In your prayer time, do you practice to plead the case of another? Not hyperventilating with many words, but advocating their cause before the Lord?

Proverbs 23:10-11, “Do not move an ancient landmark or enter the fields of the fatherless, for their Redeemer is strong; he will plead their cause against you.” Another way to see someone who pleads a cause is seen in the word “advocate”. Not “litigate” but “advocate”. The idea of an advocate, as someone who pleads a cause, in Hebrew is a combination of two words, the first is “to grapple with” and the second is to “contend for a cause”. There is wrestling involved. The spirit of the word “advocate” is different than to “litigate” in the sense that to “litigate” means to argue within judicial process implying one person is right and the other is wrong. By no means am i saying we go before the Lord as the one who is right and God is wrong. Never! But what we are doing is more as an intercession, making needs known, and talking to God about why we think our petition before Him is a good idea … arguing with God is not what we do when we advocate.

In 1 John 2:1, John uses the word advocate in the sense of someone who comforts in addition to pleading the cause of another. To intercede might be a bit more aggressive, but it is still a form of advocating. The Greek word in English for “advocate” is in the sense of a “person called in to help, summoned to give assistance,” which gives us the meaning of “helper in court.” Even though there is no clear reference to our advocating in court, the idea is still, more or less, in legal tones. It would seem that being an advocate for another is part of what Paul was writing about in Gal6:2, “Bear one another’s burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ.”

In Job 16:1-2, when the writer said, “I have heard many such things; miserable comforters are you all.”, the word “comforters”, in Hebrew, is used in the sense of someone who would intercede and plead my cause before the Lord, which obviously the friends of Job were far more negative litigators sitting at a prosecutors bench, than positive advocates.

i have noted of myself, during my prayer time, that i do not want to get stuck in rote repetitiveness, “bless them Lord”, “help us God”, “heal them Lord”, over and over for lack of words. i’m not saying those are not good things to pray, because they are. What i am saying is that i would like to be a better advocate, pleading the cause of others more effectively, using words which make a difference.

When God told Abraham in Genesis 15:1 that He was his shield, the word “shield” is used in the sense of a “protector”, an advocate who contends for the cause of another. In Deuteronomy 33:29, the Lord is declared as the “shield of your help, and the sword of your triumph.” He is the personification of a shield and sword for us, a shield as one who intercedes to help, and as a sword dividing truth from fiction, defining the victory. In the process of sinning, i believe our senses offer to reason with us about the delicate deliciousness of our desire, like a manipulative employee would influence the boss in order for them to get what they want. That is manipulating, not advocating.

Jesus was and is an advocate for sinners before God, and i would like to be better at advocating for those who are locked in a dark prison of their own making, and even for those who are, by consent, in bed with curses they have agreed with, yet wonder why life is not better than it is. In 1 John 2:1-2, the apostle writes, “…we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous.  He is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the sins of the whole world.” He is our defender and legal counsel, and is sufficient for any who would be in need of a helper and shield. This isn’t universalism, which says He died for everyone, repentant or not, nor is it just “limited atonement”, meaning He only died for an elite, select few. As our advocate He is also our propitiation, meaning by His blood on Calvary, He satisfied God’s righteous requirement of justice. “He who knew no sin became sin for us that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.” Jesus is our propitiator, our Defender from the dead, at the right hand of the Father where He intercedes for us before the heavenly throne. Therefore, as our advocate, we are secure in that intercession, in that justification, in that satisfaction.

If Jesus is your advocate, you also, yes YOU, have been empowered to advocate for those around you. If we know God hears us in whatever we ask, we know that we have the petitions we have asked of him. i think of being an advocate as one who petitions, who appeals to the Highest authority on behalf of another with respect to a particular cause. We can make better use of our prayer time. God will give us words to make a difference if we’re willing to extend ourselves, consistently, on behalf of others. i guarantee it.

What do you think?

i met a young man the other day, covered in tatoos, quiet, life in turmoil and chaos … in trouble. Across his neck he had the words “Expect No Mercy”. The tattoo reminded me of the words of someone who carries a never ending offense; someone who possibly has experienced from someone important in their lives in the past, some sort of condemnation, and it just stuck to him and wouldn’t let go. He learned the “no mercy” lifestyle somewhere. Maybe he learned he should never expect mercy for his life, actions, or reactions, and as a result he should give no mercy. Where do we learn such things?

We treat each other pretty terribly sometimes. i’m thankful, so thankful that God Almighty extends mercy to us. i’ve begun to think that if a man doesn’t know mercy, he probably doesn’t know forgiveness either. The Hebrew word for mercy denotes God’s compassion which spares us from destruction or similar dismal fates. If God did not extend us mercy and forgiveness through Christ, we would all be doomed from before we were born, but because of God’s mercy, there is hope. Jesus Christ gave His life and was resurrected from the dead due to love, and also for mercy’s sake for a dying world with no hope of life. Because of the mercy of God, through the sacrifice of Jesus Christ, we “may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly”.

Are you offended? Offended people carry a tit-for-tat posture, they tend to have no mercy for themselves or others. And what is worse, they seem to be good with walking around offended, day and night. They tend to be angry, unfulfilled, sensitive people, generally speaking. Many of them seem to be the most insulting, demeaning, crude, and crass people I’ve ever met. They think nothing of insulting others and putting them down, but say something to them about their attitude, friend you better watch out because offended people seem ready to bite anyone who challenges them. They’ve always got a growl in their throat about something. i believe, in the end, it comes down to ego, selfishness, and a sense of entitlement.

Do you carry the throwing stones of offense in your pockets, those extra handy throwing stones which fit your hands just perfectly? Haven’t you ever wondered exactly who helped you pick out those handy throwing stones? Well, it wasn’t God, i can assure you of that.

Amazing as it sounds, offense has facets, which i call faces and there are four faces of offense:

1. Number of offenses

Men might forgive some, but are not prone to forgive with much repetition.

2. Number of offenders

Men may pardon one or a few, but the greater the number of offenders the less inclined men are to forgive.

3. Kind of offense

Men limit what sort of offenses they forgive, as long as it doesn’t cost them much and it would be to their advantage.

4. Degree of offense

People will forgive an offense if it is small enough to not be of any injury to themselves. Many seem to feel that they don’t mind anything that happens as long as it doesn’t happen to them.

And who are the Friends of Offense: bitterness, anger, confusion, casting shadows, and vilifying others. They come to visit but then won’t leave, and the more they stay, the more entrenched they become. Do they live at your house? Did you invite them in one day when they came to visit but now they won’t leave?

Eph 4:31 “Let all bitterness, wrath, anger, clamor, and evil speaking be put away from you, with all malice.” In the Message Bible translation, Hebrews 12:15 points out that the seeds of offense grow, “weeds of bitter discontent. A thistle or two gone to seed can ruin a whole garden in no time.” How does your garden grow?

People who carry an offense, don’t know forgiveness as God has extended it to them, and as a result there is not much mercy in them for themselves or anyone else. No mercy means a life doomed to condemnation. We can either stand on mercy or stand on condemnation, but you can’t be in both camps at the same time, the bitterness will tear you in half.

i want us all to know that “God is sheer mercy and grace; not easily angered, he’s rich in love. He doesn’t endlessly nag and scold, nor hold grudges forever. He doesn’t treat us as our sins deserve, nor pay us back in full for our wrongs.” “So thank God for his marvelous love, for his miracle mercy to the children he loves.” OH, how he loves you and me.

Mercy … that sounds like something i want. How about you?

Isaiah 61:1-3, “The Spirit of the Lord GOD is upon me, because the LORD has anointed me to bring good news to the poor; he has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to those who are bound; to proclaim the year of the LORD’s favor, and the day of vengeance of our God; to comfort all who mourn; to grant to those who mourn in Zion— to give them a beautiful garla nd of grace instead of ashes, the oil of gladness instead of mourning, the garment of praise instead of a faint spirit; that they may be called oaks of righteousness, the planting of the LORD, that he may be glorified.”

In our season of grief, difficulty, possibly even working through catastrophic circumstances, i believe God has a word for you and you, yes you can be healed everywhere you hurt. If you’re sad and that sadness just invades your waking and sleeping, God can heal your sadness by the Blood of Jesus, and not only can He heal your sadness, but He’ll give you the courage and strength to get up off your sick bed and re-enter the land of the living.

i’ve wondered exactly why many folks think Jesus died for their sins,… it seems many times that’s as far as anyone thinks about it, He died for my sins and it stops there … was it only a salvation thing so we don’t have to go to hell like having fire insurance?  …  just – saved from our sins?. i believe, if we’ll take the Lord seriously, He wants so much more for us than that. He wants us to enjoy the road home and not just be Eyore all the way home. One lady said, God wants us to be whole, not full of holes.

This is Outposts, cool jazz and contemplative conversation that makes you say, “hmmmm…”, something smooth for the late night people, or maybe those on their way to work. i suppose some are sitting up late in their big arm chair, pondering the things which occurred today, or maybe the things which didn’t occur today. Others are just late night people, they seem to function better after the sun goes down… i have no idea why, your reasons are your own. Then there are the people who are up late because you can’t sleep … .stuck in that grey place between awake and asleep, that place …  where nothing hides, tossing and turning like a fish out of water. What’s on your mind that you can’t sleep?

i believe so so many folks are in pain, real pain. We may have learned to live with it, and some truly tolerate pain better than others and have learned to wear a good face, but it doesn’t mean the pain isn’t there. For years, i was in pain and i had no idea why, how it got to be there, or even what it was about … i gave it no identity and as a resulti was always acting out with no thought of questioning any of my actions.

When i had cattle, i grew to know they are usually pretty good down to about -25 … on particularly cold days i would chuckle to myself because their faces looked like they were saying, “Boy it sure is cold” and the other one would say, “Yea, it sure is but i don’t know what to do about it.” They’d munch more hay and just roll their big eyes around, appearing to think about being cold but clueless as to what to do about it. That was me when it came to pain … just clueless what to do about it. Our topic is beauty for ashes like a garland of grace … and the gold the Lord brings out in us when it appears all is burned to the ground.

In my little life, i know something, maybe not much according to some, but this i know, i can’t play hide and seek with my difficulties and expect them to simply go away. Just because we don’t deal with stuff doesn’t mean it’ll just disappear.

The Lord wants us to be more than survivors. In the last program it was mentioned that one day while out for my afternoon walk, the Lord made me to know that i was only surviving when i was supposed to be prospering. He said, “How is it you have fallen to only surviving when you should be prospering?” It was a good question, and at the end of His question there came a feeling like the earth plates in my heart were moving, repositioning themselves to align better with God. You know what i mean?

Here’s a question, if you knew it could happen, would you be willing for your circumstances to be your message and ministry?

John 6:12-13, “And when they had eaten their fill, he told his disciples, “Gather up the leftover fragments, that nothing may be lost.” So they gathered them up and filled twelve baskets with fragments from the five barley loaves left by those who had eaten.”

i don’t know about you, but there have been terrible times when i felt like my entire life was just broken little pieces, just fragments. In John 6:12-13 i hear the Lord calling me to bring even my broken fragmented life to Him. He has healed the broken hearted and opened wide the prison doors and has the power to deliver forever more. We’ve all heard that God does more with nothing than we can do with something, and even if we’re sure we are on the negative side of zero, God can do something with even that.

i’ve got a few ideas of who i am, but i’ve got tons of ideas about who i’m not and i reckon it’s good to give Him not only who i am, but also all that i’m not … take it all captive.

2 Corinthians 10:5 says to take our thoughts captive. That word “thoughts” there in Greek means all your perception, purpose, all your academic thinking, and even your disposition, take it all prisoner by the word of God, and that’s not just the negative stuff either, that’s ALL of it, even the good things, take them ALL captive, like holding a prisoner of war at spear point.

We can’t be afraid to reveal to the Lord even the smallest details of our lives, you know, it’s not like He’s surprised. i believe God knew exactly what He was getting into when each one of us came in the door of the house by the Blood of the Lamb.

There is no time the Lord ever regrets forgiving your sins and transgressions. i believe the Lord has more hope for me than i have for me, and certainly more hope for me than any of my friends or relatives. i was the little boy who was never supposed to live past the age of seven, according to our neighbors. i was a dangerous kid, not because i was mean or tough, but i was so vastly ignorant of the repercussions of my actions, it’s the truth, my parents didn’t expect me to survive childhood.

i figure, if you are the meek, poor, wounded, depressed, if you’re the fearful, sad, conflicted, shamed and disqualified, if you’re the bankrupt and blind, one of the lost and unfortunate ones, you are exactly who Jesus came for. You are the very one He came to get eye level with. He was crucified, died and rose from the dead for you. You are the very one God came to rescue.

You and I both know what happens to unprocessed emotions: they get stored. i can’t remember who said it but they said, “What’s buried alive never dies.” That’s the truth. We’ve gotta deal with stuff, we can’t just bury it, or compartmentalize it and stuff it somewhere. Some folks compartmentalize their griefs so well, they can, with all confidence say they are “fine…totally fine”, but below street level all the wounds which have been buried are still active, affecting all they do. Honestly, I don’t see the Lord as someone who just throws “lessons” at us in the form of casualty, catastrophe or suffering as if we are hamsters just running on a wheel. But I do think we are all able to choose to have the power to mine gold from even the darkest of situations.

We need to be honest with ourselves and the Lord. Yea, i know we have to be people of faith, and faith will get us through, and by faith i am healed, but so many in leadership have gotten so they are dealing with other people’s stuff, but they’re not dealing with their own, even to the point of denying they even have woundedness going on. Believe me, if you’re in church leadership long enough, you WILL get hurt, sheep bites are painful. But i don’t think we should be wounded healers. Telling ourselves if we had enough faith we shouldn’t even be going through those things. If we feel like we can’t be honest over things, if we feel like we can’t bring our problems into the light, it’s the truth, everything we hide has power over us. That’s why a couple programs ago i made a call to deal with the hidden things in our backyard where no one can see, which is a metaphor for saying everything we hide has power over us.

That, by no means, says we should just dump all our dirty laundry onto anyone who comes along, we need to be a little more discretionary than that. But you’d be surprised how much help there is in having a safe person to simply verbalize things with. i call it “talk therapy” We need to talk about the things which hinder us so hell can’t continue to hold it over our heads anymore, making us a slave to what is hidden and compartmentalized.

We spend a lot of energy keeping things hidden. It reminds me of having a bicycle which only turns in one direction. Oh, you’re peddling and balancing alright, but you aren’t going anywhere. Every time you hearken back to a former time about the time so-and-so did that, or such-and-such happened, or you remember the disappointment or anger of a past thing that happened, get off that bicycle and deal with what’s holding you back.

Many years ago, i was angry and so disappointed it seemed life was just going in circles. i distinctly remember waking up one day and making a clear decision that i was not going to allow the past to keep dragging me backwards into a dark corner, getting suckered into a fight in the dark, and that from there on out, i was going to look up instead of down, afterall, when you’re always looking down, all you can see is the ground.

i was drawing a line in the sand that enough was enough, that’s it, i’m not looking back, obsessing about the past anymore, sitting in the middle of nowhere wishing i could just get a glimpse of destiny. i believe it’s a fact, we can’t do anything about what’s past, what’s done is done, but we can do a lot about cooperating with God about what’s ahead.

2 Corinthians 5:17, “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old things have passed away; behold, the new has come.”  Put off your old self, which belongs to your former manner of life, be renewed in the spirit of your minds, put on the new self, created after the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness. Let’s get motivated about that!

Philippians 3:12-14, “…but I press on to make it my own, because Christ Jesus has made me his own. Friends, I do not consider that I have made it my own. But one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.”

“Press” is one of the key words i’m interested in. It means to push forward, pursue, take action, campaign and advance on. It’s not a timid, passive term, it is a verb that is present, active, indicative, meaning it is in the now, we are the ones doing the action, and it’s a statement of fact. Take note of these words also, “make it my own”, which is a now verb, “Forgetting what lies behind” as in the now, and “straining forward” is present tense, meaning now. Do you see it? Now, now, now!  In order to press onward, we’re going to have to learn to do it, even when we’re hurting, even when all odds say we should just quit, even when our closest friends tell us to just give up on our faith. We’re going to have to learn to do the right thing even when the wrong thing seems more just. You know, it’s always the right time to do the right thing, and we need to do it until doing the right thing just becomes second nature to us ‘cause doing the right thing is just the natural inclination of our heart. That’s called enduring and it’s one way of resisting the devil so he’ll run away, screaming into the distance, driven backwards into his own gates.

Friends, we need to know who we are in Christ and stop getting our identity from how we look, who we know, the job we have, what we own, what others say about us, and what spectacular things we may have done or not done. It’s been said before on this program, i don’t believe most of us really know what to make of ourselves, nor do we seem to know how to talk about ourselves. God wants to define us, and if we wait until some religious body defines us, we maybe waiting all our lives. God is our constant defining moment, now, now, now.

i don’t know about you, but i’m not satisfied to merely go to Heaven when i die. Don’t get me wrong, it’s a wonderful thing, of course, but i just don’t believe Jesus Christ, the son of God Almighty, died for me so i can just barely get through, just surviving, (Eeyore voice) “i guess everything will be great when we get to Heaven, but we’re just doing the best we can with what little we’ve got in the mean time, barely scraping through. i’ll probably enter Heaven with the faint smell of brimstone on me, but at least i’ll be in Heaven.”

          Jesus said He came that we would have life and have it more abundantly. Now listen, that doesn’t mean we won’t have problems, it doesn’t mean we won’t struggle, it doesn’t mean we will never weep over situations, or, that everything is just going to be moonbeams and merry-go-rounds either … but it does mean, by the blood of Jesus, we have a right to not be wounded all our lives, to not bleed all over everything over past hurts, we have a blood bought right to not get mired in the clay of what someone did to us.

You wouldn’t believe how often hell has come to me and told me i would never have anything more than a second-rate life, doing second-rate things, for second-rate reasons. It reminds me of the kids in high school who got D’s on their report card. They tended to do D things with D people going D places for D reasons yet were never able to lift up their heads enough to see that there was so much more life than what they had.

i am determined to not let the wounds of my past dictate the steps of my future, and to stop the bleeding of old hurts. The past belongs in the past, which is why it is past. Let … it … go.

Let us be reminded of God’s promise in Isaiah 61:7-8, “Instead of your shame there shall be a double portion; instead of dishonor they shall rejoice in their lot; therefore in their land they shall possess a double portion; they shall have everlasting joy. For I the LORD love justice; I hate robbery and wrong; I will faithfully give them their recompense, and I will make an everlasting covenant with them.”

That’s joy, which is rejoicing and gladness with a shout in the middle … and that’s an everlasting joy too. The Lord rewards those who diligently seek Him and i must add that i have sought the Lord at His request for lo, all these years and i believe and am assured i am living in the reward. He didn’t persecute me for my wrongs, He corrected me to a better heading. He didn’t prosecute me as in a court of law, He took me to a place to heal the wounds which drove me off the deep end. So much of my life i’ve had to do things afraid. What is it one preacher says, “If you’re afraid, go forward afraid…go with God anyway. Go forward with Jesus and tell the truth, even if your voice shakes!”

If He did it for me, He’ll do it for you too. We don’t have to be wounded all the days of our lives. There is a choice to be made there. What do you want? Do you just want to make it through the muddle in the middle, merely surviving life? Regardless of all my confidence, i can safely say, from hard won experience, no one, nowhere, is able to run their lives by themselves. We can’t, simply can’t do it alone, as in “are not able”. There is no way anyone can escape the gravity of earth, the pull of this world, on their own. i have been abandoned, rejected, made to be isolated and isolated myself, and felt overwhelmingly alone, but through it all, God has been there, He and i have pressed forward, in the now, every step of the way. Regardless of who doesn’t like me, disagrees with me, won’t return my calls, or feigns to be my friend yet doesn’t speak to me at church or on the street, i have determined i am going on with God no matter what or who.

Check out another of God’s promises, Isaiah 54:4, “Do not fear, for you will not be ashamed; Neither be confounded, for you will not be put to shame; For you will forget the shame of your youth.” i love the part where He says, “neither be confounded” … meaning to not let yourself be insulted, offended, or wounded to the point of nearly bleeding to death. And then He says, “you will not be put to shame or disgraced,” basically meaning the Lord will lead us in a path which we don’t have to suffer the loss of honor due to humiliation, not that we will forget the stupid stuff we did when we were ignorant and young, but the shame of those days will be resolved unto strength, maturity, and faith. Friends, now there’s the word of the Lord to cling to.

i know of a fellow who was reminded by the enemy of all the dumb stuff he did as a young man, reminded so often it just seemed to be a probability that’s the way the rest of his life was going to go. He began to believe he was as terrible as hell would have him believe he was. He called me on the phone and asked me straight out if i thought he was a failure, and with all power i answered, Absolutely not, never, in the name of Jesus. The Lord said in Isaiah 54:17, “no weapon that is fashioned against you shall succeed, and you shall refute every tongue that rises against you in judgment. This is the heritage of the servants of the LORD and their vindication from me, declares the LORD.”

Hell will bring against us all of our don’ts, won’ts, can’ts, and should’ve’s as judgments lodged against us to wound us to death, but God says we have the power, by the blood of Jesus, to refute those accusations because we are the children of light, servants of the most high God who sets our feet on firm footing and leads us beside still waters, meaning He is faithful to bring us to His Shalom. Even if your life is burned to the ground and there’s nothing but ashes and soot left, God knows how to build again, so from the sludge of a burned out life, new life springs forth like gold sticking out of the ground.

Stand up church, it ain’t over till it’s over. You may be down, but you’re not out. i’ve not heard the bell yet, so get up and fight. 1 Timothy 6:12, “Fight the good fight of the faith. Take hold of the eternal life to which you were called and about which you made the good confession in the presence of many witnesses.” Think about it.

Stand up church, get to your feet. Your catastrophic circumstances are not the end of things, it is the beginning of excellence in Christ, it ain’t over till it’s over, and it’s not over yet. i know a man who has struggled with addiction, crime, and incarceration almost all his life, but then when Jesus took hold of him, things begin to change. Yes, he relapsed because that was his best self-medicating coping skills, yes, at first he still played out his criminal habits because that was all he’d ever known. But little by little, he became less and less of an addict, committed fewer and fewer crimes, and every time he got knocked down, he kept getting back up, and getting back up, determined to apprehend Christ, the prize who lay before him. Over time he got good at falling down and even better at getting back up, every time he got back up he was standing longer and more upright. The farther he got from addiction and crime, the less he was inclined to see himself as a failure with no hope. In him grew a hope that in Christ he really could be a son of the Most High, and he really was be an overcomer.

It’s great to be on the path, but we must actually move our feet. C’mon, let’s get on with it. There’s no time to sit and moan about old things that have passed away to the point we become inert. If we’ve nearly fainted in the heat of battle, weary from the pounding of life, Jesus is our refreshment. We don’t have to keep bleeding, we don’t have to keep weeping. There’s a choice there. John 10:10, “The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life and have it abundantly.”

Jesus came to give life to us over-the-top, more than we could imagine, better than our idea of good. We are called to do more than merely survive, and notice, Jesus used the word “abundantly” and we should take that seriously. True the devil comes to steal, kill, and destroy, but my Jesus stepped into the middle of all that and said, “I am here, and that ain’t happening to whomsoever will come to me.”

Come go with me, let us press on to know the Lord, for He will come, He will come to us like the rain, like the spring rains watering the earth. Be strong and courageous! Roll on little doggies, roll on happy trails. Amen!

1 John 2:27, “But the anointing that you received from him abides in you, and you have no need that anyone should teach you. But as his anointing teaches you about everything, and is true, and is no lie—just as it has taught you, abide in him.” Anointing, anointing, who’s got the anointing? It appears to me that anointing and abiding go hand in hand.

Jesus said come unto me all you who are burdened and heavy laden and i’ll give you rest, for my burden is light and my yoke is easy.  By comparison, His yoke is easy and his burden is light because all others yokes and burdens are grievous and too heavy, you know the kind that bow you to the ground and make you bleed.

What yoke and burden is He talking about? What is an anointing and why do i need it? i believe the yoke and burden that is grievous and too heavy is one of this world. Jeremy Taylor wrote that “Christ’s yoke is like feathers to a bird; not loads, but helps to motion” The yoke of the world is weights to burden us, and the yoke Jesus is talking about is feathers to fly, get it? Wings not weights. Maybe we all are so indoctrinated into slavery, we are simply used to being in bondage, burdened with loads too heavy to bear, so much so, that we just think that’s how life is. Jesus said that is a lie. John Stott wrote that, “The only safeguard against lies is to have abiding in us both the Word that we heard from the beginning and the anointing that we received from him.”

A yoke is made to guide and control with, and any yoke not implemented by God is one designed to indoctrinate us into the system of the world, a godless, hopeless system which excludes the Lord, and only includes itself. That yoke, the worlds yoke, comes with a burden that says you are always guilty and never guilty at the same time, crushingly guilty and unrealistically faultless. The yoke of the world trains us in rebellion, misery, grief, hatred and resenting God, it teaches our children that a fly in the ointment of healing doesn’t really putrefy and defile the ointment. It says a little lie is necessary sometimes while wearing your belt of truth loosely. It says a little cheating is ok when it’s important to advance your own self-advancing agenda. The yoke and burden of hell says we must be willing to lie upon command, hide our true selves in order to appear acceptable, being far more satisfied that we’ve obeyed the rules than having been honest and transparent, and emotionally available.

The day you accepted Christ as your Savior, 1 John 2:27 got a grip in your heart and the goodness of God began to flow freely in you. It’s the day Isaiah 10:27 came true, and would continue to be proven true everyday thereafter when you followed Jesus home. It reads, “And in that day the burden will depart from your shoulder, and the yoke from your neck; and the yoke will be broken because of the fat.” The word there translated for “fat” is the same word often used for “anointing”. It literally means the richness, the grease which makes your face to shine. In this case it is referencing a smearing of oil which is an endowment of the Holy Spirit, and not overweight or grossly obese, but so healthy, prosperous, and muscular the yoke is divided and eradicated. God’s anointing endows us with strength, and power, protection, and full authorization to do what-so-ever God asks of us. Another interesting facet is the promise of God in Isaiah 10:27 in the use of the word “anointing”, also implies the Lord’s foreordination in that the ordination exists in the context of us being called “the Lord’s anointed” even though the anointing has not happened yet. In fact, David’s anointing was of such magnitude it passed down his lineage, even though they weren’t born yet. We need this anointing. i mean, we really n-e-e-d this smearing of God’s presence upon ourselves.

When reading 1 John 2:20, he uses a phrase, “unction from the Holy Spirit”, and the word “unction” is more exactly translated as “the thick paste of anointing”. It’s not just a prompt from the Lord as many might think. It’s bigger. Again as was said previously, it means the Lord’s presence and goodness make us so healthy in the power of the Holy Ghost, the bondage of the world and the yoke of darkness is literally cracked and demolished. It is for our liberty and for the liberty of others. Without the “thick paste of anointing” to break the yoke, we are powerless to liberate ourselves from the bondage of darkness.

By the anointing Jesus breaks the yoke. By the Holy Ghost in power, just as the prophet spoke. This is the day of the latter rain, God is moving in power again. By the anointing He breaks every yoke.

Jesus IS the embodiment of our anointing. This is not throwing off the yoke of the Lord, but by His prosperity and well being in us, the yoke of darkness and sin are thrown off. By no means do we tear ourselves free of the yoke of the Lord. Israel, in their rebellion tried that and it didn’t go well.

A better, more literal translation of Isaiah 10:27 is “that the yoke, like the burden, will be taken away from God’s people, and the yoke itself will snap, from the pressure of his fat strong neck against it.” Again, it isn’t throwing off the yoke of the Lord, it is being delivered from from sin and death, authorized and empowered under the Lord’s bridle, to do whatsoever He says to do.

The anointing was once only for kings, priests, and prophets, but is now for everyone who believes in Christ, not just for an exclusive, elite group in leadership. What was once outside of a man, as in externally pouring oil on the head of the king, is now, by faith, inside us because of the sacrifice of Jesus on Calvary. Being “in Christ” makes us anointed. There are not some who are and some who ain’t. The word of God says He will give the Holy Spirit to anyone who asks, and He didn’t say go to this person or that person to get it, it is given by our request and God’s giving.

John 8:32 “And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free,” and then in vs 36, “Therefore if the Son makes you free, you shall be free indeed”.

Our greatest strength against darkness is to come into the likeness of the Son, Jesus. In Him is our prosperity, our fatness, the unction to function at every junction in the power of the Holy Spirit.

What do you think?

Another fellow and i were doing church at the local jail one Saturday morning, and in walked a guy who appeared so far down he couldn’t see up. Upon inquiry, he said he couldn’t even begin to fathom how his life had gotten so far away from God. The fellow was crying great big alligator tears, occasionally, one would drip off his chin. After a moment or two, my partner bit the bullet and asked him what was up? Then and there, he began his tale of woe. It was his sons birthday and he couldn’t be there, and he wasn’t going to be momentarily released to go to the birthday party. We were understanding and ooo’d and ah’d properly, then i asked about “the rest of the story” saying, “why won’t they let you out to attend?” Then the “rest of the story came out. Through his tears in his most pitiful voice, he said the child’s mother had a permanent restraining order against him. Then he paused for dramatic effect, then added, as did his brother, two sisters, his parents, and even his ex-mother and father in-law, they all had permanent restraining orders on the man, and bad old law enforcement was ardently enforcing it all. Our eyebrows went straight up in an “Oh Wow” look on our faces. i asked him what in the world did he do that would drive such a thing? His weeping came to a halt, and he, with great regret in his voice said that, over time he had broken into the house after his wife divorced him and he robbed her, and another time he had beat up his brother then robbed him AND ALSO his sister. And then he’d molested his cousins 14 year old daughter, and robbed them too. My partner said with a straight face, “Well, i’m glad they didn’t let you out, and i’m glad they’ve all got restraining orders against you. That’s a good thing.” His tears literally went backwards into his eyes and all the sobbing abruptly stopped as he sat there stone faced.

Then he said loudly, “Then what do i do with Romans 8 where it says “all things work together for the good?! When am i going to get some good in my life? i was taught as a child that i was predestined to be a child of God, that i was called and foreordained, and nothing could separate me from the love of God. i feel about as far from God as a man can get, short of falling into hell. You talk about how Jesus gave His life for me so that i’d have life more abundantly. Well, all that abundantly part would be real nice about now. It says in vs 32 that God will give us all things. Where is all that ALL? i’ve been on my own my entire life and i can’t see where any of God’s extra ever showed up. i’m supposed to be the elect of God and nobody is supposed to be able to lay any charges against the elect of God, but yet i’ve got nothing but charges against me!”

Well, friends, how do you reply to that? You can quote another scripture at the man who obviously knows scripture enough to give chapter and verse. Do you not think he’s heard it before? Sure he has. You could tell him what a horrible person he is, but, do you think reminding him of what a sinner he is will help? Chances are good he knows that all too well, day and night. You could just sing a hymn or two, change the topic and pretend that, by faith, you’re not really there. Yep, i’ve seen people mentally click out like that when faced with an aggressive personality. They sort of just close their eyes, click their heels together, and say over and over, “By faith, i’m not here. By faith, i’m not here.” Of course, then he and the others would go back to the dorm and gloat about how they shut you down. It would be a big laugh. If it was you in our position, then who was running that meeting? You thought you were, but then, really, he was, and that may very well have been his whole point. You could get angry with him, and rebuke the devil, binding all unclean things in the name of Jesus, but then, once you get angry, you’re just angry, and you can’t undo that. You could suggest that he come to your church when he gets out and talk to your pastor. When he gets out go talk to your pastor? Oh, like that will actually happen. You are the one with your boots on the ground, and it is the meeting that’s been laid in your lap to direct, and you’re going to shuffle him off to someone with a title, as if the title makes the word of God more effective? Are the issues and controversies of Romans 8:28-33 settled in your own heart, enough to talk to someone who might debate it with you?

Do you think the inmate misconstrued Romans 8:28-33? Yes. Do you think he actually knows better, and was a well practiced manipulator? It’s highly likely.  Do you think he was counting on my partner and myself buying into his sob story? Absolutely. So what would you do?

i am not going to give an answer here. That’s for you to conclude for yourself. i will say though that the entire situation is real, and we must be able to do more than just throw scriptures at people, and argue with them. We must give some serious thought to what is driving the behavior’s which are in front of us, starting with ourselves. Here’s a hint: Ask not what God can do for you, but what you do for Him. The Lord does not exist in order to get us what we want. What do you think?

John 8

Jesus was in the temple teaching, as usual, and then came the Pharisees with a woman who was taken in adultery (where was the man? Also, how is it they just “happen” to be there to catch her?). i have read that they brought her to the 1st porch which is at the 6th step, which is the number of man, in order to try her case, but i don’t know if that’s true. But, trying to snare Jesus, they asked Him what He thought. He told them that anyone with no sin should cast the first stones, and from the oldest to the youngest they left.

By law, they were right. By law, they could indeed stone her. By law, they brought her to the temple for judgment and the carrying out of the sentence. The Hebrew word for judgment means “to level the hand at, as in aiming the finger”.

The Lord says to me: “There should be no enemies within the Body. None.”

If our hands are filled with stones to throw, then we can’t have our hands full of what God has for us. As long as we’ve got a throwing stone in our hand, that stone is taking up space where God’s provision should be. Many times, by law, i am right to be angry with someone or i rightly should suspect them of something tricky. By law i am not wrong to aim my finger at that person and “tell it like it is”. By law. My right. Demanding what is fair, by law. Mercy for me, justice for you! But in the Body of Christ, there are NO enemies. None.

Did they keep a special box of stones at the temple in order to mete out justice? A fair sized box on the left and right side of the porch labeled ‘Throwing Stones”?!? A box of stones that someone went out and handpicked … just the right circumference and feel. Hmmmm, how handy. A box labeled “Throwing Stones” that just “happen” to be handy for those that felt an offense toward those “law breakers”. The enemy is sure to help us to know right where the best stones to throw are kept. Let me encourage us all…drop your stones! If your hands have stones to throw in them, you are actively denying yourself the provision you’ve been praying about. Want to know what it is that restrains you? God will be glad to talk to you about that, but one of the first things He’ll ask of you is to…drop the throwing stones. Even if you are right, DROP THE STONES!

That chip on your shoulder is contagious, drop the stones!

Quit being offended and drop the stones. If you feel that you’re always defending the way you feel or why you do what you do, you might not only have stones in your hands, but some extra’s in your pockets … just in case. Drop the Stones!

So there should arise in our minds an excellent question: Who made sure you were able to put your hand on that throwing stone? Got a big fat aught with your church family? Ask the question: Who made sure you knew all about it? Who told you that? And who made sure you could lay your hands on the very best throwing stones? Drop the Stones!

Jesus never defended Himself that i can find. i’ve concluded that a main reason Jesus didn’t defend Himself is because He was not Offended. And if anyone in all creation had a reason to be offended, it was Jesus. But yet He was not offended, therefore He did not defend. If there is no offense, i believe there is no reason for a defense. In meeting people that are always busy with a defense, i find them to be the proud owners of throwing stones … they actively hold an offense. Jesus told Peter to put away his weapon … NOT put it away for now as if it was OK to possibly pick it up later when it more suited his purposes, but “put away your offense”. Jesus told Peter to disarm! Drop the stones!

If you’ve ever had a stone thrown at you and been hit, it hurts. Alot, and it’s hard not to retaliate. Put away your offense, drop the stones in your hand, God would like to fill your hands with something else, and as long as your hands are full of Stones to Throw, they can’t hold anything else. Disarm. Drop the Stones!

Let us take God as our defense, and receive the shelter who has been offered to us. i will,  i will go hide in Jesus.

Thanks for listening, i’m Social Porter for Living In His Name Ministries.