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Growing up in Columbus’ South side I had my comic book heroes: Superman, Spiderman, Aquaman, Iron Man, and others. As a scrawny kid these fellows inspired my imagination for big and exciting things. In church I also learned about some mighty heroes like David, whose faith in God enabled him to bring down a giant when he was still an insignificant boy like me. And then there was Samson, who destroyed an entire building full of Philistines with his bare hands. Of course I had to read about Daniel, for I had the same name. He and his friends had the courage to withstand the greatest king on the earth, and was vindicated by God against lions and a raging fire.

At the same time I had difficulty connecting these great stories with Christianity as I then understood it. My mom’s family, she was one of 13 children, were mostly in the church. Some of them liked to debate on some of the minor issues of the day, like the appropriate dress of women in the church. It then seemed to be more about what I cannot do than anything else. This was really no fault of the church. Now I fully realize that the don’ts in life are the real sticky points for all of us. Adam and Eve had the freedom to eat of every tree in the garden but one. That one restriction was the one that got their attention.

Some of us eventually found what it was really all about. Christ came to save us from our messed up way of thinking and living. He desires true fellowship with us. When we truly have an encounter with Him, the limitations become less of an issue. We realize how much He loves us and we want to return that love that He has placed in our hearts. This is what it means to be “born-again.” This is what it means to be a New Covenant Christian, a child of the Living God!

Now that we know that it is not about rule-keeping, the rest should be easy, right? Well, sort of…. As I look at myself and others who have come into this great experience, some problems still exist. Born-again Christians sometimes tell lies, get angry and even hate, become addicted to harmful substances, commit adultery and other actions that are contrary to the nature of Christ. Some are still tempted to do things they have turned away from because of Christ. Yes, forgiveness for all these things is readily available from Him, but the damage we do to ourselves and others in the process is very real.

Now that we are not under rules, we tend to forget how much we still need the words they contain. Sometimes I chuckle under my breath when I hear people say that they don’t live by a set of principles. They think they only follow their consciences, or the Spirit of God, or their instincts. The fact is that anyone who says, “I only follow what my heart tells me,” has already established a principle or a set of words that they live by. There is even a code among the most lawless in society. To turn in a fellow thief is unforgivable to the other thieves. Some intellectuals today with the most “liberated” thinking can get very heated when their rules are violated!

People can even get very legalistic about their not being under law!

So far I have not found anyone who does not hold to words that they live by. You can hear the clichés most every day. In Early America, we had, “A penny saved is a penny earned.” Standing up for the American Revolution, Patrick Henry cried, “Give me liberty, or give me death!” Later revolutionaries stated that all men are created equal, with certain unalienable rights to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. That concept of equality is even more powerful today. How about later slogans, like “Make love, not war!” Or “Give peace a chance?” A common and popular statement in our time in essence is “there are no absolutes,” which in itself states an absolute.

There is even a creedal quality to “we are not under the law, but under grace!”

The point is, we are going to live by someone’s word’s. Whose words are we going to live by? What works for me is to find those individuals who have been listening to the Voice of the Lord, and to glean from their words. They are those who have taught me how to listen to God for myself, how to dig into the Scriptures and to allow the supernatural work of the Holy Spirit to embed the very words of God into my heart and life.

Words from God are not to hinder or limit us. They empower us to resist the pull of destructive habits and behavior. As bread nourishes our physical bodies, the Word of God is bread to our inner life. It builds up the New Man that He has made us to be. God’s Word is a creative force. When He says, “Let there be light,” there is light! When He says “You shall not steal,” there is power in that word when mixed with faith to make me into a giver rather than a taker. When we read, Galatians 5:22-23: “the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, long-suffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance: against such there is no law,” we are reminded of the virtuous life that results from the Spirit-filled life.

The Psalmist said, “Your Word have I hid in my heart, that I might not sin against You.” (Psalms 119:11).

It is evident that Jesus in His humanity had the word of God hidden in His heart. When visited by the tempter, He resisted him with the very words of Scripture in the proper context. In Him there was no disconnect between the Spirit of God and the Word of God. The two resonated together within Him and propelled Him forward in His mission.

In us, “the spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak.” We need for these wholesome words to become flesh. We need the Living Word of God to transform our thoughts and emotions, bringing them in line with our spiritual life. “For the mind set on the Spirit is life and peace.” If we need our daily physical bread, how much more do we need our daily spiritual food, for “man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God.” (Matthew 26:41, Romans 8:6, Matthew 4:4).

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In an earlier podcast I shared an experience I had forty years ago from which I have never recovered. Like so many others, I had caught a small glimpse of what God has in mind for all of humanity. Remembering the garden in Eden that Adam and Eve once enjoyed, it seems to us like paradise. And there seems to be a sense in the heart of all people that there is such a place, or at least a desire that paradise would be real.

Where does this desire come from? If many modern theories about our origin are true, there is no basis for such a hope. How could a one-celled life form, or even an ape pass down a memory of a blissful existence? How could an accident of nature conjure up in its imagination a world such as the one described in nearly every ancient culture? A wise man, whose words are preserved for us in the Bible, noted that God Himself has placed eternity in our hearts! (Eccl. 3:11 NIV)

While some are satisfied to simply picture heaven in their minds, Jesus set forth that His mission was to proclaim the coming of heaven to earth! He also challenged anyone who had ears to hear, that they should ready themselves for it. Only those who repent of their sins and trust in Him to deliver them can be truly “born from above,” and gain an entrance into this Kingdom. It is truly an experience, but one that literally transports us from one realm of existence, the kingdom of darkness, into the Kingdom of God’s dear Son. (John 3:3-5, Cols. 1:13).

In this Kingdom there is a different set of values and even a different way of seeing things. Instead of self-preservation, there is self-sacrifice. Instead of coercion there is serving others. There is both an immediate transformation and a progressive one. Now the Kingdom of God is within us, changing our hearts and attitudes as we intentionally confess Jesus as Lord of all things. Not only does He give the desire, but also the power to live a life of goodness, holiness and joy as citizens of heaven! (Phil. 2:13, 3:20).

Jesus told his dear friend Martha that anyone who lived and believed in Him would never die. Those who have gone before us in physical death are alive and with Him now, but they too, will be a part of heaven on earth. He will bring them back at the climax of the ages! (1 Thess. 4:13-14).

This Kingdom that we can experience now is on the move. Like yeast in flour, it permeates society, one heart at a time. (Matthew 13:33). The exciting thing as that we get to participate in the increase of His Kingdom. As we follow the example of Christ, going about doing good, showing kindness to others, telling them about His gracious love for us, the Good News of the Kingdom becomes contagious. It has been spreading for two thousand years now. It began with only twelve disciples, and has grown to untold billions since then!

Within a few days after Christ’s resurrection and ascension, a community of believers became the first expression of His Kingdom on the earth. It was the mighty Holy Spirit that descended like a hurricane upon them that empowered them to live together and to love one another so.

Christ is bringing the work that He began back then unto a climax in our day. He is calling for a fresh new wineskin to contain and preserve the New Wine of the Spirit that will duplicate the glory of that first assembly in Jerusalem. This new wineskin is actually a simple, humble, flexible community of people who love God more than their own pride and power. It is to be led by those who love serving more than being served.

The central focus is the Lord Jesus Christ Himself, Who was truly the Servant of all. It is all about Him! While there will always be great diversity in our worship, He is bringing us into a greater unity than we have ever known. This is all for our good and His glory, in order that all the world will truly know that He is Lord! (Phil 2:10-11).

For in Christ we have a glorious past, a marvelous present, but also a future that is beyond words!

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During my second visit to India I met a lady who was part of a House Church in Hyderabad. She invited us into her home and was very eager to share her testimony. I don’t remember if there was some sort of crisis in her life at that time of her conversion. I do remember how she came to know Christ. Most of us come to know Him through the testimony of another who already knows Him. Occasionally, we do hear stories of people who come from having a supernatural vision of Him. They are often people that are in areas like hers in which the knowledge of Christianity is limited.

This dear lady had all her life been a believer in the Hindu religion, when one night Christ appeared to her in a dream. What do you suppose was His message to her? His message to her was for her to find a Bible and begin reading it! It was there that she found about the Gospel and the plan of God for her life, and was born again. Eventually she did find other believers and the fellowship of our friends in Hyderabad.

In countries like America, the Gospel is widely proclaimed and there are churches in every neighborhood. An individual might embrace the Christian faith simply because of a family tradition. That could not be said in this case. She would never have that hint of doubt that might lay in the heart of one whose faith was handed down “second hand.”

That is why each of us need to seek the Lord and get to know Him for ourselves. I am tremendously thankful that I was raised in a Christian home, but oh how glad I am to know for myself that Jesus Christ is real and truly the Lord of all!

It can be a sad thing when people know the Christian life only as a family tradition. Some people take pride in their knowledge of the Bible in much the same way. You probably know someone who knows the Bible but has not allowed it to change his or her heart and attitudes.

On the other hand, it is equally sad to have a spiritual experience without allowing the Holy Spirit to instruct our minds through His Word. These days it is becoming popular for Christians to make light of Bible study. Some assume that anyone who takes the Bible seriously is not “spiritually minded.” Most of these people have no idea of the power they have from simply absorbing the Scripture from our American culture! We learn more of the Bible by accident than people from many other parts of the world. It is in our holidays, the names of our cities, our common clichés and even in our commercials!

The most spiritual man who ever lived was Jesus of Nazareth. And yet; no one had a higher view of Scripture than Him. He brandied the Sword of the Spirit with great skill against the temptations of the devil. Even as a young boy he amazed the teachers of the law with His insights into the Scriptures. As a man, the way He bested the Bible scholars of His day incited them to great jealousy, hatred and even murder.

Before I understood the value of knowing the Scripture, my Christian life was weak and unstable. After I began this life-long adventure of learning and living in the Word of God, all that changed! That adventure began when I recognized Jesus as Lord of my life and that He desired to continually teach me how to live that life through His Word, as found in the Bible.

Some would call me a “Bible worshiper.” All I can say, is that like the sister I met in India, Jesus Himself has directed me to learn about Him through the Scriptures, that were “given by inspiration of God.” (2 Timothy 3:16). They will prove to be profitable to anyone who believes in Him. Even those who may not already believe are in danger of becoming believers. It was John, who wrote His Gospel those things about Jesus in order that the reader might believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that believing they might have life in His Name! (John 20:31).