Monday, September 14, 2009

Jesus Christ is perfect theology

"Jesus Christ is perfect Theology." - Bill Johnson

This statement by Bill Johnson has been going off and off and off in my head again and again recently. It's a very intriguing thought with deep revelation and powerful repercussions in how we view life.

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JOhn 1:17-18 - 17For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ. No one has ever seen God, but God the One and Only, who is at the Father's side, has made him known.

JOhn 6:46 - Not that anyone has ever seen the Father; only I, who was sent from God, have seen him

John 14:6-7 Jesus told him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one can come to the Father except through me. 7 If you had really known me, you would know who my Father is. From now on, you do know him and have seen him!”
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"Jesus Christ is perfect theology. He is the answer to every question".

Everything that happens in our life, no matter the circumstance, if it doesn't line up with who Jesus is and what Jesus done, it's an imperfect answer to a bigger picture and purpose.


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This thought has been going around in my head again. I guess probably its because I'm currently going through a stage of changing perceptions, and there are moments in our life where we need to perceive or see things as God see's things.

It's really hard to actually understand what God see's. Because He doesn't just think different than what you think, he is vastly very very different. I mean, just think about this thought "What does Jesus see and think about issues?".

Sometimes we feel that Jesus is like a machine, whatever God says, he says, whatever God does he does, but actually the bible says that he went through all temptations, trials and tribulations. He felt everything we feel, and he knows what we go through, and yet he overcame it all.

Jesus is and was a living breathing person like you and I, who think, breath and do everything the same we do, even go to the toilet. Jesus is the perfect example, he is the prototype of every Christian living on this earth in perfect relationship with God the father. He is what we are to be. He lived in perfect submission not as in control, but in submission, in a love submission of Father and Son.

Now, we are to live like Jesus lived. And I personally have a very difficult time phantoming what that means. Because it meant living in a realm where "Nothing is impossible in God". When Jesus looked at the 5 loaves and 2 fishes, he thought "This could feed the thousands.", can we look at the piece of bread on our table and think "This would end world hunger?".
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Jesus is perfect theology. The issue about the old testament, is that God can be very wrongly perceived. One of the statements that my urban life member said "The God of the old testament is very scary". And yes, He is. Because He is great and mighty, greatly to be respected (feared). Because He is perfect, He is Holy.

And I think thats where the problem lies, in that the old testament laws were meant to display God's holiness and perfection. If you had a kid who rebelled, take him out and stone him to death.

But is God like that? Is He is person someone who wants you to stone your kid?

I think where thats the reason why Moses never entered the Holy Land when he hit the rock. God said "You did not represent me well". The character of God the father was tainted as a angry judicial distant God seeking to punish his children for their wrongdoings.

And I believe with all my heart, that is why Jesus was sent. To re-write the wrongs and put the perspective of God the father and who He is in person back into our hearts.

John 3:16 - For God SO LOVED...

How often do we talk about the Love of God? How often do we talk about the Love Jesus had? Jesus is the perfect representation of God the father. He is perfect theology. He loved the people, he came to cleanse the sick, cast out demons, he restored people and preached about the realities of the Kingdom of God, heaven here on earth.

Hence, we are to live a life in perspective of Jesus, with God's eyes on our life. If you have a sick child, our perspective is to believe "If Jesus is here today, He would be made whole, and Jesus is here today". The Spirit of the Living God, the one who raised Jesus Christ from the dead, the same Spirit that brooded over the oceans at the creation of this world is in everyone of us who believe. That things around us may be not going as they seem, but in the backdrop if we pray, God is setting you up for a victory, one so unassuming that it has to be only God, and thats what you call a miracle and not possible by our own strength.

Luke 4:18 - 19 (Amplified) The Spirit of the Lord [is] upon Me, because He has anointed Me [the Anointed One, the Messiah] to preach the good news (the Gospel) to the poor; He has sent Me to announce release to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to send forth as delivered those who are oppressed [who are downtrodden, bruised, crushed, and broken down by calamity],19To proclaim the accepted and acceptable year of the Lord [the day [l]when salvation and the free favors of God profusely abound.(G)

Tuesday, September 8, 2009

Possessed by a dream

I had a friend today got a job, she got a great job in Singapore, to be honest, I'm really happy for her, but at the same time, just an inkling of sadness and/or jealousy as well. I guess to some extent, it's a bit harder to rejoice for someone else when your not in a entirely comfortable position yourself. But the bible does say, rejoice with those who rejoice, and mourn with those who mourn. The mature thing to do is to rejoice, and seek God for the breakthrough in your own life.

The moment I heard that happen, I felt in my own life, like the voices coming, questioning my current position in life, my choices and the path in which I've taken. It tends to come from time to time, and to be honest, it gets hard at times to keep your head up and continue continuing on.

I feel that is why, it's very important to always honour the words spoken into your life and continually listen to fresh revelation, or Rhema.

The last few years has been very interesting years, especially ever since coming to Melbourne and Planetshakers. God has been moulding my thoughts and desires, and my concepts and perceptions of the world.

Like I still believe the dream and the prophetic words of my youth, but also having to seek out God for how to get there. Too many times, we just praise God, but then go our own way, when God is wanting us to go His way. We believe in the end result, but we take our own path how to go there.

To be honest, I always question the road sometimes God is leading me. And I guess the hand of God tends to be always hindsight, therefore we live by faith and not by sight.

For example, I remember a very strong calling from God in 2007 to remain in Melbourne. And throughout 2008, when I was so poor, eating sandwhiches day in day out for so many months, just having to encourage myself was tough. I remembered many nights just felt like crying, but then re-reading again the bible verses that he had highlighted in my heart. Especially from the book of Jeremiah and Chronicles.

I really thank God for his presence though. There are moments where its all muddy and just I feel lost, but when I get into his presence, and faith fills the atmosphere, I feel as if the line of sight is clear again. I think thats why I really thank God for worship and praise. Especially in the dark nighs in my bedroom, just with the worship blasting through my headphones, and just standing there with my hands raised.

2009 has been better, though still at times I feel not there yet. And there are times I feel God is taking me around the mountain and not up and through the mountain. That the path he has set before me, is a quicker one, a short-cut, however it will be the path less taken, and I have to be strong and very couragous. Sometimes even foolhardy. If it takes me 10 years to get to my destiny and not 20, heck, I told myself I'll mop floors, scrub kitchens if it takes me, and ha ha, after Nando's, I do feel like I had a fair time doing those things. It may seem foolish to the eyes of the world, and even to myself.

Hence I feel like I always need to be connected to God, as tightly as possible, it's all about relationship, just like how Abraham brought Isaac up the mountain to sacrifice Him. Alot of times I know God is interested more in my heart and attitude, it doesn't take much for Him to just put me at the right place at the right time to be successful..

Like Joseph and his 4 P's. The Pit, Potiphar, Prison and Palace. God can move Joseph straight to the Palace, but I believe that there is a place and time for everything. What I believe is that Joseph learned to lean in to God wherever he was placed, and continued believing in the dreams of his Youth. He thought he would have been the ruler over his little family of 11, little did he know that God was setting him up for much bigger things, to be the Prime Minister of the most powerful nation of the time.

But I liked what one Pastor said, "When God blesses a man, does he gain a champion or loses one?". When I go into my security firm, at times that I'm so much more capable than this, but then just have to keep on reminding myself and seeing the good in everything that I do, like negotiating and just talking to people that I come across, believing that God is continually shaping my character to fit into the calling that he has in store for me. But God has really poured out his favour on me in both my jobs. And especially the security company has reached new heights, especially in terms of businesses and our clients tend to be very happy about our work.

So, yeah, just have to continue holding on to the promise, and just be faithful with whatever little I have in my hand. Like the story of the talents, I feel in the past I might have squandered it, God's Grace is continually over my life, so start afresh, forget the past and multiply it. I'm really believing in the more not only just next year, but also in the next coming weeks and months. What could is possibly be? I don't know, but I do believe it will be good and better than ever before.