Rivers from the Rock

“He who believes in Me, as the Scripture has said, out of his heart will flow rivers of living water.”- John 7:38

Are you thirsting for something more? Are you dry spiritually? We take water for granted. We can simply turn on the faucet in our kitchens accessing a refreshing flow of water. Or we can go to the super market and purchase water in various bottle sizes. In Biblical times water was not as conveniently available. You had to draw water from a well. Sometimes wells ran dry. At other times a well couldn’t be found. Next to air, water is our greatest physical necessity.

But there is a human need that surpasses even our physical need for air and water. That need is the eternal life giving Holy Spirit. Without the Holy Spirit we wander aimlessly through a worldly wilderness searching and thirsting for spiritual water. There’s a spiritual application in the Bible’s depiction of our need for water.

Usually you don’t appreciate your need for water until it isn’t there.  When you’re parched and dried out for lack of water, when you do find some, it’s a big deal. When God’s people were travelling through the wilderness to the Promised Land they experienced times of thirst. God provided water for them. To remind them of His provision God instituted the Feast of Tabernacles. Jesus used the ceremony of the Feast to communicate a greater truth that applies to our spiritual thirsts.

The Feast of Tabernacles was an eight day festival. This was one of three Feasts that men of Israel were required to attend in Jerusalem (Deut. 16:16). It’s estimated that there were millions of  people in Jerusalem during the Feast. This ritual Feast was a reminder of how God provided water from the rock in the wilderness (Numbers 20:8-11; Psalm 78:15-16). It also spoke to the coming days of Messiah’s reign (Zechariah 14:8, 16-19). This Feast was an expression of thanks to God and call for Him to provide rains for the crops in the coming year.

The high priest on every day of the Feast would lead a huge joyous procession of thousands of people to the Pool of Siloam located just below the City of David to the south where he would get water for the ceremony. Flutes and other instruments were played and Isaiah 12:2-3 would be sung while pitchers was being filled – “Behold, God is my salvation, I will trust and not be afraid; ‘For YAH, the LORD, is my strength and song; He also has become my salvation.’ Therefore with joy you will draw water from the wells of salvation.” It was said of the Feast ceremony – “Anyone who has not seen this water ceremony has never seen rejoicing in his life.” This was a time of great continuous celebration to the Lord for the entire Feast.

Why the Pool of Siloam? Siloam means sent One. The Pool of Siloam had living water or a flow of water that was not stagnant but clean. Water taken from this Pool was a prophetic picture of the Messiah who would one day come to provide the refreshing waters of life they needed.

There were two pitchers used in this ceremony. The high priest had a gold pitcher which stands for royalty. He would draw the “living water” (Heb. mayim chayim) from the Pool with the gold pitcher. His assistant had a silver pitcher filled with wine. Silver is a symbol of redemption. Wine is a symbol for blood. So in this ceremony we have living water and blood represented.

The high priest would take the filled pitcher of water and lead the procession back to the Temple through the Water Gate to the Court of the Priests. As the priest entered through the gate there would be three trumpet blasts. He would approach the altar where there were two silver basins, one on either side of the altar. Then as a drink offering the priest would pour out the water from the gold pitcher into one silver basin. As he did so Isaiah 44:3 would be sung – “For I will pour water on him who is thirsty, and floods on the dry ground; I will pour My Spirit on your descendants, and My blessing on your offspring.” His assistant would pour out the wine into the other silver basin. So symbols of blood and water were poured out on the altar as part of this ceremony each day of the Feast. You can’t have the refreshing water of the Spirit without the blood of atoning sacrifice.

The Feast would climax on the eighth day referred to as “the Great Day” (Leviticus 23:36). During the eighth day of celebration of the Feast of Tabernacles there would be a solemn procession from the Temple Mount to the Pool of Siloam. This Great Day was the day that Jesus made His proclamation: “On the last day, that great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried out, saying, “If anyone thirsts, let him come to Me and drink. ³⁸ He who believes in Me, as the Scripture has said, out of his heart will flow rivers of living water.” ³⁹ But this He spoke concerning the Spirit, whom those believing in Him would receive; for the Holy Spirit was not yet given, because Jesus was not yet glorified.” (John 7:37-39).  

On this last Great Day of the Feast at one point the priest would hold up the emptied pitchers as an expression of the prophetic hope that Messiah would one day come and fill them up. It was at this moment that Jesus stood and cried out, “If anyone thirsts, let him come to Me and drink. He who believes in Me, as the Scripture has said, out of his heart will flow rivers of living water.” Do you see the significance of Jesus’ words?  Jesus is announcing that He is the “Sent One.” Jesus is the One who would fulfill the thirst of the people. Out of His side would flow the “blood and water” needed to redeem the sinner and open the floodgates of the living water of the Spirit (John 19:34). Are you thirsty? Come to Jesus.

John clarifies very specifically the connection of the words of Isaiah – “I will pour My Spirit on your descendants” and Jesus’ words – “Out of his heart will flow rivers of living water.” John states, “But this He spoke concerning the Spirit, whom those believing in Him would receive; for the Holy Spirit was not yet given, because Jesus was not yet glorified.”  This was all about the Holy Spirit! How so? Let’s see.

Before we go any further we need to see something very important in the words of Jesus. Jesus is not speaking here about the born again indwelling of a believer with the Holy Spirit. Here Jesus is speaking of an outpouring of the Spirit until He overflows from the believer to others. He is talking about the Pentecostal outpouring of the Holy Spirit. Let me explain why this is so.

On the evening of the day Jesus rose from the dead, when His atoning sacrificial mission was fulfilled and he had been “glorified,” He met with the disciples. Jesus showed them His pierced hands and side verifying it was He, Jesus, the resurrected Lord. Then He commissioned them saying, “Peace to you! As the Father has sent Me, I also send you” (John 20:19-21). Then it states, “And when He had said this, He breathed on them, and said to them, ‘Receive the Holy Spirit.” (John 20:22). It was at this point that the disciples were born again and indwelled by the Holy Spirit. But this is only the first aspect of the work of the Spirit in the heart of a believer.

John alone mentions this receiving of the Holy Spirit by the disciples at this point. Perhaps, writing a few decades after the two volume set of Luke’s Gospel and Acts John was seeking to clarify the work of the Spirit in the lives of disciples. What John refers to in His gospel (John 20:22) is not the baptism with the Holy Spirit that in Luke Jesus instructs the disciples to tarry in Jerusalem for (Luke 24:48-49). We don’t know why the Spirit inspired Matthew and Mark to write those gospels in a way that didn’t mention Jesus’ instruction to tarry in Jerusalem for the Promise of the Father; the baptism with the Holy Spirit. What we do know is that Luke does refer to Jesus instruction to the disciples to wait in Jerusalem for empowering by the Spirit. And we know that John made sure to indicate that the disciples had been born again prior to Pentecost.

When in John’s gospel Jesus said, “Receive the Holy Spirit” the verb “receive” is grammatically an Imperative Mood demanding an immediate responsive action to a command. It is in the Aorist Tense which conveys action (i.e. Punctiliar). And it is in the Active Voice which conveys the idea it was an action the disciples themselves had to take or receive. Couple this with Jesus breathing on them at the moment He said this to them and the best conclusion is that receiving the Holy Spirit was something the disciples did at the moment their risen Master commanded them to do it. This was the first time they received the Spirit. This was their born again experience. And it happened before Pentecost.

If the disciples received the Holy Spirit at the end of John’s gospel before Pentecost then we reasonably see what Luke mentions in his gospel and Acts as something additional and subsequent to this initial receiving of the Holy Spirit. In Acts Jesus references “the Promise of the Father” as being “baptized with the Holy Spirit” (Acts 1:4-5). This is the baptism with the Holy Spirit that John the Baptist referred to as being provided by Jesus. It is distinguished from the baptism with water (Matthew 3:11; Mark 1:8; Luke 3:16). Now we are learning the details of this baptism with the Spirit connected to Jesus.

Jesus further describes this “baptism” as, “But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth” (Acts 1:8). This Promise of the Father for which 120 waited obediently in the upper room came upon them on the day of Pentecost (Acts 2). The events of Acts take place subsequent to the Gospel of John. What happens in Acts happens to believers. You may have received Jesus as your Savior and Lord, you may have been born again, have you been empowered by the Holy Spirit? The Book of Acts is the inspired historical account of the work of the Holy Spirit through the disciples He empowered. This second work of God’s grace is something provided by Jesus (Acts 2:32-33) and administered by the Holy Spirit (Acts 2:4) and received by faith (Acts 15:8-9).

We can’t reduce the working of the Spirit to a formula. At Pentecost we see the empowering baptism with the Spirit happening in the disciples as a subsequent work. A further pattern of the baptism with the Spirit as a subsequent work is seen in Samaria (Acts 8:14-17) and Ephesus (Acts 19:1-7). However at Cornelius’ house and what is often referred to as the Gentile Pentecost we see the empowering baptism with the Holy Spirit coming concurrently or at the same time as their born again experience (Acts 10). Some people receive the indwelling and empowering of the Spirit all at once. Some people are born again and it takes time for them to receive the Spirit’s empowering. The important thing is that whether concurrently or subsequently, you receive the empowering baptism with the Holy Spirit. We need to be empowered by the Holy Spirit if we are to serve our Lord Jesus optimally for His glory.

 

Much of the church and many believers are as dry and empty as the pitchers held up by the Jewish priests on the Great Day of the Feast of Tabernacles. What’s the problem? The problem is much of the church and many believers have forgotten or gotten away from a reliance on the Holy Spirit. We need to be refreshed and empowered by the Holy Spirit. Only He can satisfy our spiritual thirst.

John connects what Jesus said at the climax of the Great Day of the feast with the outpouring of the Holy Spirit. So the question we need to ask is “Was there anything that happened in the wilderness setting this feast refers to that speaks to us about our relationship with the Holy Spirit?” And the answer is yes. There is an illustration of the process of Spirit filled life provided for us in the Old Testament connected with this Feast of Tabernacles. Remember, the Feast of Tabernacles was designed to help the people remember how God provided for them in the wilderness. Are you dry and parched spiritually? Jesus has the water you need. He can quench your spiritual thirst with the Holy Spirit.

The Old Testament is the New Testament concealed. The New Testament is the Old Testament revealed. The New Testament is our best commentary on the meaning of the Old Testament. In the Old Testament we are told that God provided water for His people from a rock in the wilderness. In the New Testament we are told that the Rock in the wilderness represents Jesus. “For they drank of that spiritual Rock that followed them, and that Rock was Christ” (1 Corinthians 10:4). “Water” in scripture is a symbol of the Holy Spirit as alluded to in John 7:39. The rock in the wilderness and how water was received from it speaks to us of Jesus provision of the Holy Spirit.

Come to the Rock Jesus for the regenerating living waters of new life in Him. In Exodus 17 the thirsty people received water from a rock that Moses struck. Moses struck the rock and water flowed out. Similarly, on the cross Jesus was struck. When He was struck on the cross, out of His side flowed blood and water (John 19:34). The blood of Jesus cleanses us from all our sins. The water represents the indwelling Holy Spirit. “Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God” (John 3:5). Blood and cleansing must precede the indwelling of the Holy Spirit (1 John 5:6).

The first step in experiencing the outpouring and overflowing of the Holy Spirit in our life is to come to the Rock Jesus and be saved from our sins. You can’t experience all Jesus has for you and the fullness of the Holy Spirit unless you have repented (turned from your sins) and placed your faith in Jesus. You must first be born again. His completed work of the cross is the just basis for God to forgive your sins. Come to Jesus!

Speak to the Rock Jesus and request by faith the empowering of the Holy Spirit. To get water from the rock the first time Moses was instructed by God to strike the rock. But after that when the people thirsted for water Moses was instructed by God to “speak to the rock” (Numbers 20:8). This is because Jesus was struck on the cross once and only once. Jesus died once for all for the sins of the world. He does not have to die over and over again (Hebrews 7:27; 9:12; 10:10; cf. also Romans 6:10). Moses, however, in disobedient anger struck the rock again and again. He was punished for this not only because he obscured a typology of God about His Son Jesus, but also because he misrepresented God as angry with His people for thirsting. God wasn’t angry. God wants to pour water on him who is thirsty.

We don’t have to strike the rock again and again to receive the refreshing water of the Spirit. We only have to speak to the Rock Jesus in faith and the water of the Spirit will flow. We don’t have to do spiritual gymnastics or work ourselves up emotionally to receive the outpouring of the Spirit in our lives. We simply have to speak to Jesus in faith. Just ask Him to open the flood gates of heaven to release the Holy Spirit in our lives. Seek and ask Jesus in faith for the outpouring of the Holy Spirit. God knows what we need and is eager and willing to provide the Holy Spirit to those who ask (Luke 11:13). Speak to Jesus!

Worship and receive. There is one more point depicted in the Rock of the Old Testament. In Numbers 21 God’s people needed more water as they moved on through the wilderness. But as they moved they moved further and further from the rock. The question that then needed to be asked and answered was, “If our water comes from this rock, what happens when we move on from here away from the rock?” In 1 Corinthians we are told that “that spiritual Rock . . . followed them, and that Rock was Christ” (1 Cor. 10:4). Jesus was following them to provide thirst quenching water. Jesus follows us; walks with us; is attentive to us; watches over us and provides for us. Jesus is here. Just come to Him and ask when you need to be refreshed in the Spirit.

But notice something here. As the people moved on through the wilderness it states, “From there they went to Beer, which is the well where the LORD said to Moses, ‘Gather the people together, and I will give them water” (Numbers 21:16). This was a different place. This was a different time. How would they get the water? “Then Israel sang this song: ‘Spring up, O well! All of you sing to it . . . .” (Numbers 21:17). As they sang water sprang up from where they were. Their worship released the flow of water. The worshipped and received the refreshing waters.

Do you see the practical picture here for us? The New Testament speaks of being continually filled with the Holy Spirit. “And do not be drunk with wine, in which is dissipation; but be filled with the Spirit” (Eph. 5:18). We are exhorted to being continually filled with the Holy Spirit. How can we experience this in our lives? It’s no accident that Paul goes on to say, “speaking to one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord, giving thanks always for all things to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ” (Eph. 5:19-20). What is a means to be continually filled and empowered with the Holy Spirit? How do we open the faucet to let the Holy Spirit overflow us? Worship and receive. Are you dry spiritually? Feel weak spiritually? Enter into worship of the Lord. Take a step of faith and give a worship offering to the Lord.  Then receive the cleansing flow of the Spirit by that faith (Acts 15:8-9). Look up and over your life obstacles and WORSHIP JESUS! Worship and receive the refreshing overflowing torrents of living water of the Holy Spirit promised to you by the Father (Acts 1:4-5), provided by Jesus (Acts 2:32-33), and administered by the Holy Spirit (Acts 2; Rom. 5:5). Worship Jesus and receive the empowering of the Spirit!

Are you spiritually parched? Have you been born again of the Spirit? Do you lack the power of the Spirit? Are you filled but not overflowing in the Spirit? The Father has promised to provide the power we need to effectively minister in His Name. We need to come to Jesus in full surrender and by faith receive that empowerment. This is God’s promise. God is faithful. Come in Jesus’ name. Worship and receive.

 

 

Leadership Lessons from the Wilderness - Exodus 18

 

When we look at Exodus 18 we see some important leadership qualities. These qualities are:

 

First, God’s leaders don’t overlook details of His word (18:1-2). Moses had not circumcised his two sons earlier in Exodus (4:20-26). God brought a strong rebuke against Moses because of this. Moses sent his wife and children away as a result. Those in leadership positions for God are held to a higher standard (James 3) and cannot afford to overlook the commands of God.

 

Second, God’s leaders are willing to stand alone (18:3-4). Moses sons were named Gershom and Eliezer. Their names meant stranger in a foreign land and God is my help respectively. Moses was willing to be a stranger in a foreign land if that was part of God’s plan. He was willing to do this because he trusted God enough to trust Him in times of uncertainty.

 

Paul was willing to stand alone with God if need be (2 Timothy 4:16-18). At the end of his life that is exactly what he was called upon to do. The leader of God must be willing to stand with no one beside him but God alone if need be. Martin Luther, when opposing the sinful religious system of his day said, “One with God is a majority.” That is the mindset a leader of God needs.

 

Third, God’s leaders are respectful (18:5-7). Moses was not proud. He had reason to be. God used him to deliver Israel from Egypt. God had done great things through Moses. But Moses remained humble as evidenced by his bowing before Jethro as a sign of respect. God is opposed to the proud but gives grace to the humble (1 Peter 5:5). Remember that leaders.

 

Fourth, God’s leaders give glory to God (18:8-12). Moses shared with his father in law all that God had done and gave glory to God. The result was Jethro worshipping God. A leader of God always points people to God not themselves. Godly leaders seek to decrease and let God increase in the eyes of those they serve (John 3:30).

 

The result is spiritual fruit in the form of conversion. When Moses’ father-in-law heard the account of YHWH’s victory over Pharaoh and Egypt’s pagan gods he believed in God: “Now I know that the LORD is greater than all the gods; for in the very thing in which they behaved proudly, He was above them.” (18:11)

 

Fifth, God’s leaders serve (18:13). Moses served the Lord from morning to night. He was willing to be spent for the Lord. A servant’s heart is essential for anyone who wants to be used by God. You can’t serve the Lord without it! (Mark 10:45).

 

Sixth, God’s leaders are teachable (18:14-24). Moses had a heart to serve but he was serving in a way that would burn him out. Jethro saw this and counseled Moses to delegate authority to others to spread out the work load. Moses accepted this wise counsel and was teachable. Leaders don’t’ think they have to know it all, they are willing to receive teaching and instruction that will enable them to serve more efficiently and effectively. Teachableness is what makes leaders good leaders.

 

Seventh, God’s leaders teach God’s word (18:16, 20). The godly leadership of Moses was characterized by relying on God’s word and using it as a guideline for leadership. Moses taught the word of God (Deuteronomy 1:18; 2 Timothy 3:16-17).

 

Eighth, God’s leaders lead by example (18:20). Moses was to “show” or model and clearly demonstrate what should be done by those he was delegating to. This is how Jesus taught the disciples; He modeled to them what they should do (John 13:15; Phil. 2:5).

 

Ninth, God’s leaders have the responsibility of selecting other leaders (18:21-22, 25). Looking at this passage we see Moses took responsibility to “select” other leaders. God’s leaders take responsibility, or more accurately, they receive God’s authority and use it for God’s glory.

 

Tenth, God’s leaders delegate authority (18:25-27). Moses delegated authority but did so to qualified men. He implemented what he learned. He took action. This all made for effective leadership and oversight of God’s people. Moses chose “able men.” This is how leaders were selected in the book of Acts too (Acts 6).

 

How to Try the Spirits

From Chapter 29 in Man - The Dwelling Place of God by A. W. Tozer

THESE ARE THE TIMES that try men's souls. The Spirit has spoken expressly that in the latter times some should depart from the faith, giving heed to seducing spirits and doctrines of demons; speaking lies in hypocrisy; having their conscience seared with a hot iron. Those days are upon us and we cannot escape them; we must triumph in the midst of them, for such is the will of God concerning us.

Strange as it may seem, the danger today is greater for the fervent Christian than for the lukewarm and the self-satisfied. The seeker after God's best things is eager to hear anyone who offers a way by which he can obtain them. He longs for some new experience, some elevated view of truth, some operation of the Spirit that will raise him above the dead level of religious mediocrity he sees all around him, and for this reason he is ready to give a sympathetic ear to the new and the wonderful in religion, particularly if it is presented by someone with an attractive personality and a reputation for superior godliness.

Now our Lord Jesus. that great Shepherd of the sheep, has not left His flock to the mercy of the wolves. He has given us the Scriptures, the Holy Spirit and natural powers of observation, and He expects us to avail ourselves of their help constantly. "Prove all things; hold fast that which is good," said Paul (I Thess. 5:21) . "Beloved, believe not every spirit," wrote John, "but try the spirits whether they are of God: because many false prophets are gone out into the world" (I John 4:1) . "Beware of false prophets," our Lord warned, "which come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are ravening wolves" (Matt. 7:15). Then He added the word by which they may be tested, "Ye shall know them by their fruits."

From this it is plain not only that there shall be false spirits abroad, endangering our Christian lives, but that they may be identified and known for what they are. And of course once we become aware of their identity and learn their tricks their power to harm us is gone. "Surely in vain the net is spread in the sight of any bird" (Prov. 1:17)

It is my intention to set forth here a method by which we may test the spirits and prove all things religious and moral that come to us or are brought or offered to us by anyone. And while dealing with these matters we should keep in mind that not all religious vagaries are the work of Satan. The human mind is capable of plenty of mischief without any help from the devil. Some persons have a positive genius for getting confused, and will mistake illusion for reality in broad daylight with the Bible open before them. Peter had such in mind when he wrote, "Our beloved brother Paul also according to the wisdom given unto him hath written unto you; as also in all his epistles, speaking in them of these things; in which are some things hard to be understood, which they that are unlearned and unstable wrest, as they do also the other scriptures, unto their own destruction" (II Pet. 3:15, 16).

It is unlikely that the confirmed apostles of confusion will read what is written here or that they would profit much if they did; but there are many sensible Christians who have been led astray but are humble enough to admit their mistakes and are now ready to return unto the Shepherd and Bishop of their souls. These may be rescued from false paths. More important still, there are undoubtedly large numbers of persons who have not left the true way but who want a rule by which they can test everything and by which they may prove the quality of Christian teaching and experience as they come in contact with them day after day throughout their busy lives. For such as these I make available here a little secret by which I have tested my own spiritual experiences and religious impulses for many years.

Briefly stated the test is this: This new doctrine, this new religious habit, this new view of truth, this new spiritual experience how has it affected my attitude toward and my relation to God, Christ, the Holy Scriptures, self, other Christians, the world and sin. By this sevenfold test we may prove everything religious and know beyond a doubt whether it is of God or not. By the fruit of the tree we know the kind of tree it is. So we have but to ask about any doctrine or experience, What is this doing to me? and we know immediately whether it is from above or from below.

1) One vital test of all religious experience is how it affects our relation to God, our concept of God and our attitude toward Him. God being who He is must always be the supreme arbiter of all things religious. The universe came into existence as a medium through which the Creator might show forth His perfections to all moral and intellectual beings: "I am the Lord: that is my name: and my glory will I not give to another" (Isa. 42: 8) . "Thou art worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honour and power: for thou hast created all things, and for thy pleasure they are and were created" (Rev. 4:11).

The health and balance of the universe require that in all things God should be magnified. "Great is the Lord, and greatly to be praised; and his greatness is unsearchable." God acts only for His glory and whatever comes from Him must be to His own high honor. Any doctrine, any experience that serves to magnify Him is likely to be inspired by Him. Conversely, anything that veils His glory or makes Him appear less wonderful is sure to be of the flesh or the devil.

The heart of man is like a musical instrument and may be played upon by the Holy Spirit, by an evil spirit or by the spirit of man himself. Religious emotions are very much the same, no matter who the player may be. Many enjoyable feelings may be aroused within the soul by low or even idolatrous worship. The nun who kneels "breathless with adoration" before an image of the Virgin is having a genuine religious experience. She feels love, awe and reverence, all enjoyable emotions, as certainly as if she were adoring God. The mystical experiences of Hindus and Sufis cannot be brushed aside as mere pretense. Neither dare we dismiss the high religious flights of spiritists and other occultists as imagination. These may have and sometimes do have genuine encounters with something or someone beyond themselves. In the same manner Christians are sometimes led into emotional experiences that are beyond their power to comprehend. I have met such and they have inquired eagerly whether or not their experience was of God.

The big test is, What has this done to my relationship to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ? If this new view of truth-this new encounter with spiritual things-has made me love God more, if it has magnified Him in my eyes, if it has purified my concept of His being and caused Him to appear more wonderful than before, then I may conclude that I have not wandered astray into the pleasant but dangerous and forbidden paths of error.

2. The next test is: How has this new experience affected my attitude toward the Lord Jesus Christ? Whatever place present-day religion may give to Christ, God gives Him top place in earth and in heaven. "This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased," spoke the voice of God from heaven concerning our Lord Jesus. Peter, full of the Holy Spirit, declared: "God hath made that same Jesus, whom ye have crucified, both Lord and Christ" (Acts 2:36). Jesus said of Himself, "I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me." Again Peter said of Him, "Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved" (Acts 4:12) . The whole book of Hebrews is devoted to the idea that Christ is above all others. He is shown to be above Aaron and Moses, and even the angels are called to fall down and worship Him. Paul says that He is the image of the invisible God, that in Him dwells the fullness of the Godhead bodily and that in all things He must have the preeminence. But time would fail me to tell of the glory accorded Him by prophets, patriarchs, apostles, saints, elders, psalmists, kings and seraphim. He is made unto us wisdom and righteousness and sanctification and redemption. He is our hope, our life, our all and all, now and forevermore.

All this being true, it is clear that He must stand at the center of all true doctrine, all acceptable practice and all genuine Christian experience. Anything that makes Him less than God has declared Him to be is delusion pure and simple and must be rejected, no matter how delightful or how satisfying it may for the time seem to be.

Christless Christianity sounds contradictory but it exists as a real phenomenon in our day. Much that is being done in Christ's name is false to Christ in that it is conceived by the flesh, incorporates fleshly methods, and seeks fleshly ends. Christ is mentioned from time to time in the same way and for the same reason that a self-seeking politician mentions Lincoln and the flag, to provide a sacred front for carnal activities and to deceive the simplehearted listeners. This giveaway is that Christ is not central: He is not all and in all.

Again, there are psychic experiences that thrill the seeker and lead him to believe that he has indeed met the Lord and been carried to the third heaven; but the true nature of the phenomenon is discovered later when the face of Christ begins to fade from the victim's consciousness and he comes to depend more and more upon emotional jags as a proof of his spirituality.

If on the other hand the new experience tends to make Christ indispensable, if it takes our interest off our feeling and places it in Christ, we are on the right track. Whatever makes Christ dear to us is pretty sure to be from God.

3. Another revealing test of the soundness of religious experience is, How does it affect my attitude toward the Holy Scriptures? Did this new experience, this new view of truth, spring out of the Word of God itself or was it the result of some stimulus that lay outside the Bible? Tender-hearted Christians often become victims of strong psychological pressure applied intentionally or innocently by someone's personal testimony, or by a colorful story told by a fervent preacher who may speak with prophetic finality but who has not checked his story with the facts nor tested the soundness of his conclusions by the Word of God.

Whatever originates outside the Scriptures should for that very reason be suspect until it can be shown to be in accord with them. If it should be found to be contrary to the Word of revealed truth no true Christian will accept it as being from God. However high the emotional content, no experience can be proved to be genuine unless we can find chapter and verse authority for it in the Scriptures. "To the word and to the testimony" must always be the last and final proof.

Whatever is new or singular should also be viewed with a lot of caution until it can furnish scriptural proof of its validity. Over the last half-century quite a number of unscriptural notions have gained acceptance among Christians by claiming that they were among the truths that were to be revealed in the last days. To be sure, say the advocates of this latter-daylight theory, Augustine did not know, Luther did not, John Knox, Wesley, Finney and Spurgeon did not understand this; but greater light has now shined upon God's people and we of these last days have the advantage of fuller revelation. We should not question the new doctrine nor draw back from this advanced experience. The Lord is getting His Bride ready for the marriage supper of the Lamb. We should all yield to this new movement of the Spirit. So they tell us.

The truth is that the Bible does not teach that there will be new light and advanced spiritual experiences in the latter days; it teaches the exact opposite. Nothing in Daniel or the New Testament epistles can be tortured into advocating the idea that we of the end of the Christian era shall enjoy light that was not known at its beginning. Beware of any man who claims to be wiser than the apostles or holier than the martyrs of the Early Church. The best way to deal with him is to rise and leave his presence. You cannot help him and he surely cannot help you.

Granted, however, that the Scriptures may not always be clear and that there are differences of interpretation among equally sincere men, this test will furnish all the proof needed of anything religious, viz., What does it do to my love for and appreciation of the Scriptures?

While true power lies not in the letter of the text but in the Spirit that inspired it, we should never underestimate the value of the letter. The text of truth has the same relation to truth as the honeycomb has to honey. One serves as a receptacle for the other. But there the analogy ends. The honey can be removed from the comb, but the Spirit of truth cannot and does not operate apart from the letter of the Holy Scriptures.

For this reason a growing acquaintance with the Holy Spirit will always mean an increasing love for the Bible. The Scriptures are in print what Christ is in person. The inspired Word is like a faithful portrait of Christ. But again the figure breaks down. Christ is in the Bible as no one can be in a mere portrait, for the Bible is a book of holy ideas and the eternal Word of the Father can and does dwell in the thought He has Himself inspired. Thoughts are things, and the thoughts of the Holy Scriptures form a lofty temple for the dwelling place of God.

From this it follows naturally that a true lover of God will be also a lover of His Word. Anything that comes to us from the God of the Word will deepen our love for the Word of God. This follows logically, but we have confirmation by a witness vastly more trustworthy than logic, viz., the concerted testimony of a great army of witnesses living and dead. These declare with one voice that their love for the Scriptures intensified as their faith mounted and their obedience became consistent and joyous.

If the new doctrine, the influence of that new teacher, the new emotional experience fills my heart with an avid hunger to meditate in the Scriptures day and night. I have every reason to believe that God has spoken to my soul and that my experience is genuine. Conversely, if my love for the Scriptures has cooled even a little, if my eagerness to eat and drink of the inspired Word has abated by as much as one degree, I should humbly admit that I have missed God's signal somewhere and frankly backtrack until I find the true way once more.

4. Again, we can prove the quality of religious experience by its effect on the self-life.

The Holy Spirit and the fallen human self are diametrically opposed to each other. "The flesh lusteth against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh: and these are contrary the one to the other: so that ye cannot do the things that ye would" (Gal. 5:17). "They that are after the flesh do mind the things of the flesh; but they that are after the Spirit the things of the Spirit . . . . Because the carnal mind is enmity against God: for it is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be" (Rom. 8: 5, 7).

Before the Spirit of God can work creatively in our hearts He must condemn and slay the "flesh" within us; that is, He must have our full consent to displace our natural self with the Person of Christ. This displacement is carefully explained in Romans 6, 7,and 8. When the seeking Christian has gone through the crucifying experience described in chapters 6 and 7 he enters into the broad, free regions of chapter 8. There self is dethroned and Christ is enthroned forever.

In the light of this it is not hard to see why the Christian's attitude toward self is such an excellent test of the validity of his religious experiences. Most of the great masters of the deeper life, such as Fenelon. Molinos, John of the Cross, Madame Guyon and a host, of others, have warned against pseudoreligious experiences that provide much carnal enjoyment but feel the flesh and puff up the heart with self-love.

A good rule is this: If this experience has served to humble me and make me little and vile in my own eyes it is of God; but if it has given me a feeling of self-satisfaction it is false and should be dismissed as emanating from self or the devil. Nothing that comes from God will minister to my pride or self-congratulation. If I am tempted to be complacent and to feel superior because I have had a remarkable vision or an advanced spiritual experience, I should go at once to my knees and repent of the whole thing. I have fallen a victim to the enemy.

5. Our relation to and our attitude toward our fellow Christians is another accurate test of religious experience.

Sometimes an earnest Christian will, after some remarkable spiritual encounter, withdraw himself from his fellow believers and develop a spirit of faultfinding. He may be honestly convinced that his experience is superior, that he is now in an advanced state of grace, and that the hoi polloi in the church where he attends are but a mixed multitude and he alone a true son of Israel. He may struggle to be patient with these religious worldlings, but his soft language and condescending smile reveal his true opinion of them-and of himself. This is a dangerous state of mind, and the more dangerous because it can justify itself by the facts. The brother has had a remarkable experience; he has received some wonderful light on the Scriptures; he has entered into a joyous land unknown to him before. And it may easily be true that the professed Christians with whom he is acquainted are worldly and dull and without spiritual enthusiasm. It is not that he is mistaken in his facts that proves him to be in error, but that his reaction to the facts is of the flesh. His new spirituality has made him less charitable.

The Lady Julian tells us in her quaint English how true Christian grace affects our attitude toward others: "For of all things the beholding and loving of the Maker maketh the soul to seem less in his own sight, and most filleth him with reverent dread and true meekness; with plenty of charity to his fellow Christians." Any religious experience that fails to deepen our love for our fellow Christians may safely be written off as spurious.

The Apostle John makes love for our fellow Christians to be a test of true faith. "My little children, let us not love in word, neither in tongue; but in deed and in truth. And hereby we know that we are of the truth, and shall assure our hearts before him" (I John 3:18, 19). Again he says, "Beloved, let us love one another: for love is of God; and every one that loveth is born of God, and knoweth God. He that loveth not knoweth not God; for God is love" (I John 4:7, 8).

As we grow in grace we grow in love toward all God's people. "Every one that loveth him that begot loveth him also that is begotten of him" (I John 5:1) . This means simply that if we love God we will love His children. All true Christian experience will deepen our love for other Christians.

Therefore we conclude that whatever tends to separate us in person or in heart from our fellow Christians is not of God, but is of the flesh or of the devil. And conversely, whatever causes us to love the children of God is likely to be of God. "By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another" (John 13:35).

6. Another certain test of the source of religious experience is this: Note how it affects our relation to and our attitude toward the world.

By "the world" I do not mean, of course, the beautiful order of nature which God has created for the enjoyment of mankind. Neither do I mean the world of lost men in the sense used by our Lord when He said, "God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved" (John 3:16, 17). Certainly any true touch of God in the soul will deepen our appreciation of the beauties of nature and intensify our love for the lost. I refer here to something else altogether.

Let an apostle say it for us: "All that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world. And the world passeth away, and the lust thereof: but he that doeth the will of God abideth for ever" (I John 2:16, 17) .

This is the world by which we may test the spirits. It is the world of carnal enjoyments, of godless pleasures, of the pursuit of earthly riches and reputation and sinful happiness. It carries on without Christ, following the counsel of the ungodly and being animated by the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that works in the children of disobedience (Eph. 2: 2) . Its religion is a form of godliness, without power, which has a name to live but is dead. It is, in short, unregenerate human society romping on its way to hell, the exact opposite of the true Church of God, which is a society of regenerate souls going soberly but joyfully on their way to heaven.

Any real work of God in our heart will tend to unfit us for the world's fellowship. "Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him" (I John 2:15). "Be ye not unequally yoked together with unbelievers: for what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness? and what communion hath light with darkness?" (II Cor. 6:140. It may be stated unequivocally that any spirit that permits compromise with the world is a false spirit. Any religious movement that imitates the world in any of its manifestations is false to the cross of Christ and on the side of the devil and this regardless of how much purring its leaders may do about "accepting Christ" or "letting God run your business."

7. The last test of the genuineness of Christian experience is what it does to our attitude toward sin.

The operations of grace within the heart of a believing man will turn that heart away from sin and toward holiness. "For the grace of God that bringeth salvation hath appeared to all men, teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly, in this present world; looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ" (Tit. 2:11-13) .

I do not see how it could be plainer. The same grace that saves teaches that saved man inwardly, and its teaching is both negative and positive. Negatively it teaches us to deny ungodliness and worldly lusts. Positively it teaches us to live soberly, righteously and godly right in this present world.

The man of honest heart will find no difficulty here. He has but to check his own bent to discover whether he is concerned about sin in his life more or less since the supposed work of grace was done. Anything that weakens his hatred of sin may be identified immediately as false to the Scriptures, to the Saviour and to his own soul. Whatever makes holiness more attractive and sin more intolerable may be accepted as genuine. "For thou art not a God that hath pleasure in wickedness: neither shall evil dwell with thee. The foolish shall not stand in thy sight: thou hatest all workers of iniquity" (Psa. 5: 4, 5).

Jesus warned, "There shall arise false Christs, and false prophets, and shall shew great signs and wonders; insomuch that, if it were possible, they should deceive the very elect." These words describe our day too well to be coincidental. In the hope that the "elect" may profit by them I have set forth these tests. The result is in the hand of God.

 

Jesus and the Storms of Life

 

“But He said to them, “It is I; do not be afraid.” – John 6:20

 

 

It’s hurricane season and the first summer hurricane has just made its way up the eastern seaboard of the United States. There are likely to be more hurricanes to follow. Physical storms are inevitable. But there are other storms in life that are just as inevitable. I’m talking about storms that take the form of a pink slip notification of job loss. Maybe a storm of a letter or voice mail indicating the end of a relationship. Maybe it’s a failed test, a rejection or major disappointment of some kind. Maybe it’s a call to come down to the police station to bail someone out. Maybe it’s a police officer’s knock on the door in the middle of the night to inform you a loved one has been lost. Maybe it’s coming home to a burned out house. Maybe it’s being broadsided or rear-ended while driving. Maybe it’s a call into the doctor’s office to receive a life altering prognosis. Some of these storms you can see coming. If you indulge in recklessness, cheating, stealing, adultery, overeating, smoking, drug abuse, and/or drunkenness the storm clouds are forming; all you have to do is look around you to see them. But most life storms come without warning.

Storms, whatever the form, are inevitable in life. They are part of life. What compounds the difficulty and the painful impact of storms is not preparing for them. Some storms you can’t stop. Some come into life like a runaway train. When I speak of preparing for storms in life I mean understanding how they might be a part of God’s plan.

 

God is love (1 John 4:16). He desires none perish (2 Peter 3:9). He is sovereign and in control no matter what. “Whatever the LORD pleases He does, in heaven and in earth, in the seas and in all deep places” (Psalm 135:6). We may not understand why some things happen. But God as Sovereign remains in control and rule no matter what happens. If something happens, God has allowed it to happen. He is sovereign. God is in control.

 

But that creates a problem for us. We often look at tragedy and wonder why does God allow that? When bewildering storms slap us in the face we need to moor ourselves to the truth that “He shall judge the world in righteousness, and He shall administer judgment for the peoples in uprightness” (Psalm 9:8). God knows all and being a God of love we must accept that what He allows has a loving purpose even if it appears very unloving in the immediate impact. Like Job we must understand, “Who can say to Him, ‘What are You doing?’” (Job 9:12). When we question God we go beyond our pay scale of authority. God confirms this with the words, “Who has preceded Me, that I should pay him? Everything under heaven is Mine” (Job 41:11).

 

Storms are going to come. They will often be unexplainable. But there are some truths about the purpose of storms that we do have. These truths help us through the storms. We can know why God at times allows storms to come. And facing the unknowable with what we do know is a firm foundation for weathering the storms of life. Jesus said, “Therefore whoever hears these sayings of Mine, and does them, I will liken him to a wise man who built his house on the rock: and the rain descended, the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house; and it did not fall, for it was founded on the rock” (Matthew 7:24-25). What follows are some foundational truths about why storms come and how they can be used by Jesus in our life. Storms are going to come. But Jesus’ promise is that if we build and prepare with God’s word we will make it through the storms.

 

In John 6 it states, “Now when evening came, His disciples went down to the sea, ¹⁷ got into the boat, and went over the sea toward Capernaum. And it was already dark, and Jesus had not come to them” (John 6:16-17).  In Mark’s parallel account it states that Jesus made His disciples get into the boat and cross Galilee (Mark 6:45). In none of the gospel accounts of this storm does Jesus appear surprised the storm came. He knew what was coming. He directed them into the storm purposely. That’s because He was going to use this storm as a teachable moment.

 

Ever launch out without the Lord only to encounter a storm? Storms of life teach us how important it is to have Jesus in our boat. This is the most important foundational truth about preparing for storms in life. “For no other foundation can anyone lay than that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ” (1 Cor. 3:11). Jesus will allow us to launch out without Him. He will allow us to face storms to see how much we need Him. This was the primary lesson He was teaching the disciples. It is an essential lesson to learn.

 

Then the storm came. “Then the sea arose because a great wind was blowing” (John 6:18).

Some go so far as to say Jesus brought this storm upon His disciples. I don’t go that far. But I do believe Jesus permitted the storm to come upon His disciples. He permits storms to enter our life. What right does Jesus have to determine if storms are allowed to come into our life? Jesus “is over all, the eternally blessed God” (Rom. 9:5).  Jesus is Lord (Acts 4:33). He is “Lord of all” (Acts 10:36). Jesus “loved us and washed us from our sins in His own blood” (Rev. 1:5). Therefore we are not our own. We have been bought by Jesus (1 Cor. 6:19-20). And it was a costly expense. Jesus purchased us with His blood (Acts 20:28; Eph. 1:14). That is why Jesus has the right to ordain storms in our life. He eternally earned that right.

 

Jesus takes full responsibility for allowing all that has come into our life, including storms. Jesus is big enough to handle that responsibility. Scripture testifies that God does test humanity with difficulty. But when God tests it is always to bring the tested “out to rich fulfillment” (cf. Psalm 66:10-12). That being the case, I believe there may be someone else involved in this storm.

 

Satan is able to kick up storms in our life. He kicked up a storm in the life of Job, and it led to great loss (Job 1:19). Satan is a destroyer (Rev. 9:11). The only one Satan is out to richly fulfill is himself at others expense. If he brings a storm it is to destroy. God limits Satan’s destructive capabilities (Job 1:12; 2:6). Satan was the cause and instrument of trial in Job’s life. But God was the Sovereign Determiner. Satan had to get permission from God before he tested Job. Satan had to operate within the parameters and limits set by God. That is true with us as well. God creates us and ordains our life span (Psalm 139:16). Even when Satan works, God remains in control.

 

From reading the book of Job we see that God allowed the trials of Job to fulfill a greater purpose (Job 1-2). We see that Job and the other human characters were not aware of God’s greater purpose for those trials (Job 3-37). Job and the others did not come to a satisfactory understanding until God revealed it to them (Job 38-41). Even in the end, when God spoke, they did not come to a complete understanding of the role of Satan and spiritual warfare. That is often the case. There are things we will have to wait for God to explain to us. And that may only come when we are in glory with Him. Until then we will have to be content with, “The secret things belong to the LORD our God, but those things which are revealed belong to us and to our children forever, that we may do all the word of this law” (Deut. 29:29). When we meet Jesus face to face we’ll probably be so enthralled with His presence that all our questions will be consumed in our eternity with Him.  

 

What was God’s greater purpose in allowing the suffering in Job’s life? The greater purpose, at least as far as we can see, was that: WE UNDERSTAND WHAT IS BEHIND SOME TRIALS BECAUSE OF THE BOOK OF JOB. God allowed storms in the life of Job so that future generations would understand there is more to existence than what is merely seen. There is a spiritual realm and a spiritual war with a spiritual adversary who oversees an evil spiritual army that opposes God. That was true then. And it is true now. The book of Job is believed to be the oldest book of the Bible. Therefore, right from the start God wanted humanity to be aware of this spiritual battle. God wants humanity to understand what is behind trials and difficulties in life. Understanding helps us to cope with the storms of life.

 

This storm came “when evening came,” in the night (John 6:16). Satan is the ruler of darkness (Eph. 6:12; Rev. 16:10). Deception and evil take place under the cover of darkness. Therefore when Satan works his evil plans it is often in darkness (Luke 22:53; Rom. 13:12; 1 Cor. 4:5; Eph. 5:11). When we launch out without Jesus it’s as though we call out for the darkness to come. We can’t afford to go anywhere without Jesus. Satan our enemy is always prowling around looking to devour stragglers (1 Peter 5:8-9). Stay close to Jesus, because He has delivered us from the power of darkness (Col. 1:13; 1 Thess. 5:5; 1 Pet. 2:9).

 

“So when they had rowed about three or four miles, they saw Jesus walking on the sea and drawing near the boat; and they were afraid” (John 6:19).  They were “afraid” (Greek phobos). This must have been a serious storm for experienced fishermen to be afraid. Mark 6:49 says when the disciples saw Jesus they initially thought He was a ghost. When they first saw Jesus they may have saw Him as a vaporous apparition. But the closer Jesus got the more clearly they saw it was really Him. The closer we come to Jesus the more clearly we will see His purposes for the storms in life. What did Jesus want to teach these disciples and us about the storm?

 

First, Jesus uses storms to get our attention. In Psalms it states being on the sea and especially in a storm while at sea provides us with an incredible view of God’s creation as well as the God who is the Creator. Psalms states storms at sea cause even seamen to cry out to the Lord (Psalm 107:23-28). When the waters are calm and stormless we might be tempted to think, I’m the captain of my own ship. When storms come and our footing becomes unstable it gets our attention. Storms teach us there is more to life than just us and earthly surroundings. There is a God to whom we must answer and attend.

 

God uses goodness and patience to get people’s attention (Rom. 2:4). But if that fails, He sometimes will use a storm to wake people up to their need of salvation. Jesus said our soul is more valuable and important than the entire world (Mark 8:36). Storms of life get our attention to that reality.

 

Second, Jesus uses storms for our correction. That’s what happened in the life of Jonah. God called him to go to the Ninevites and preach to them. He refused, got in a boat, and set sail in the opposite direction. God sent a storm to stop him in his tracks. Perhaps the disciples launching out without Jesus was not just them following His orders but an indication of a mindset creeping into them that was presumptuous and careless. Maybe they needed to be face to face with the deep in order to go deeper with Jesus.

 

Be patient with me as a share a parenthetical comment from the life of Jonah. Jonah rebelled against the Lord’s calling and plan. And as he did so, there was a ready door of opportunity opened to him to do so. Opportunity is not always an indication of God’s will. In fact, it may be the opposite. When we rebel against God, like with Jonah, the enemy will provide us the resources to do so. One commentator put it like this:

 

A man was telling me about his diet. “It seemed like the Lord spoke to my heart about cutting down,” he said. “But one day, I thought it might be His will that I have a donut. So I asked Him to give me a parking place right in front of the donut shop if it was His will. And sure enough—after only the third time around the block, there one was!”

 

Maybe some of you are circling around the block right now, saying, “Well, Lord, if You want me to get involved with him…” or “If you want me to go there…” It’ll probably happen because Satan always has a ship ready. But know this: If you’re running from God or trying to rationalize what you know is not His best for you, a storm is sure to follow.^[1]

 

God is merciful and persistent. He will allow or even send a storm to correct your waywardness if necessary. He loves you that much. In love God will go to extremes to assure you experience His best for your life. He disciplines and corrects those He loves (Heb. 12:3-11). It’s when we get away scot free with our rebellion and sin that we should really be concerned.

 

Third, Jesus uses storms for prevention. The context of this incident is that the people wanted to forcibly take and make Jesus king (John 6:15). Jesus walked away and left before that could happen. One day He would be King on earth (Rev. 20). But before that happened He had to go to the cross and break the power of sin and destroy the works of the devil (1 John 3:8-10). His kingdom had to be built on His redemptive work. It was a satanically inspired desire to seek to force Jesus prematurely into kingship (cf. Matthew 4:8-10). Sometimes God uses a storm to prevent us from doing something prematurely or out of sync with His will. God uses storms to protect us from premature and presumptuous fleshly plans. Jesus uses storms to prevent us from mistakes and wrong decisions. He uses storms to steer us in the right direction.

 

Fourth, Jesus uses storms for our spiritual perfection. The word “perfect,” or “perfection” as it is used in scripture (e.g. Phil. 3:13 and 15) refers to spiritual maturity not being sinless. Storms in life are a great instrument to bring us to spiritual perfection or maturity. Peter was inspired to write, “Therefore, since Christ suffered for us in the flesh, arm yourselves also with the same mind, for he who has suffered in the flesh has ceased from sin, that he no longer should live the rest of his time in the flesh for the lusts of men, but for the will of God” (1 Peter 4:1-2). This doesn’t mean that physical suffering compensates for spiritual shortcomings or atones for our sins in some way. Only the atoning death of Jesus on the cross accomplishes that (1 Peter 1:18-19). What it does mean is that suffering, trials and storms in life give us a higher perspective, a clearer understanding, a spiritual perfection or more complete perception of life. When you suffer or experience a storm in life you come to know what is REALLY important in life.

 

When the disciples were on that boat, straining and struggling for their lives in the storm, they were blessed with a greater appreciation of what is truly of greatest importance; survival not a ship; heaven not earth; Jesus not a boat empty of Jesus.

 

Storms in life are of great value. James said we should actually rejoice when trials come our way (James 1:2ff.). Jesus uses storms to get our attention, for correction, for prevention, and for our spiritual perfection. Remember that when the inevitable storm of life hits. Remember that, and invite Jesus into your life-boat.

 

No one has to go through a storm alone. “But He said to them, “It is I; do not be afraid.” (John 6:20). Jesus has a way of showing up when we’re fearful. He will allow us to work and row. Then, just when we’re at the end of ourselves, just when we’re exhausted and the storm hits, there He is. Jesus knows just when to show up. Jesus’ timing is impeccable. Jesus is never early or late. Jesus is always right on time. That’s why we need to wait on Him. Trust Jesus. “It is I; do not be afraid.” He will show up right on time.

 

How can we invite Jesus into our life-boat? “Then they willingly received Him into the boat” (John 6:21a). We need to willingly receive Jesus into our life-boat. Jesus presents Himself to us in the storm. If we don’t call out to Him He will walk on by (e.g. Mark 6:48). Jesus will never force Himself on you. He will show up and present Himself to you. But you will have to receive Jesus into your life-boat as an act of your will. The word “willingly” (Greek thelo) means to make a determination, make a choice, to take action. When the disciples experienced the storm and then saw Jesus, they actively reached out to Jesus and “received Him into the boat.” You have to welcome and Jesus by faith into your life situation.

 

This is not a passive welcoming of Jesus into our life situation. The word “received” (Greek lambano) means to take, to get hold of, to seize. This is an action.  By faith when Jesus shows up we have to take hold of Him. Jesus is faithful to show up in the storms of life. We need to take hold of Jesus like a drowning swimmer does their rescuer. That’s what it means to receive Jesus actively by faith.

 

What happens when we take hold of Jesus in the storm? It states, “and immediately the boat was at the land where they were going” (John 21b).  This could be another miracle of Jesus; a miracle of transportation. But I think there’s something else going on here. When you take hold of Jesus and bring Him into your life-boat, with Jesus before you, beside you, the storm is no longer the center of attention. When Jesus is in our life-boat our focus on Him brings us into the eye of the storm. When we focus on Jesus time stops, everything stops; everything pales in comparison to Jesus. When Jesus is with you He gets you to where you’re going and when you arrive it will be as though time flew. When we fix our eyes on Jesus we see things in light of eternity and our experience becomes very immediate. Jesus makes the scary and anxiety producing parts of life pass by “immediately.” Just focus on Jesus and He will get you through. Jesus will get you to where you need to be in God’s plan.

 

Are you out on the ocean on your own? Has a storm hit you? If so Jesus is where you are and He is ready to get into the boat with you. But you have to receive Him into your boat. You have to take Him and hold onto Him. Put your arms of faith around Jesus and He will gladly come into your life-boat and get you through the storm and to the other side.

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^[1]Courson, Jon: Jon Courson's Application Commentary. Nashville, TN : Thomas Nelson, 2003, S. 491