Seeing Christ

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If you're a true believer in Jesus Christ, and thus saved, you are born from above. It says "born again"
in many versions of the Bible, but the most accurate way of saying it is really born from above. You could say "born again from above," as a way of understanding and describing what has happened.

Once we are born of the Spirit of God, an immediate change begins to happen; not only of being forgiven of sins and a huge weight being lifted off of us, but of the Holy Spirit beginning to reveal the Lord Jesus Christ within us, as Paul mentions happening to him. "It pleased God ... to reveal his Son in me" (Gal 1:16).

The ultimate end of God for the Saints is that we are conformed to His image. But to be conformed, we must first have an inner revelation of Him; one that goes beyond mere intellectual understanding.

Jesus Christ is the great object of the focus of the Holy Spirit, as He takes the things of Christ and reveals them to us. This doesn't mean that there will be revelation of Christ outside of what the scriptures reveal, but it means there will be an understanding of what they actually mean in regard to Christ.

While it is good to receive insight and instruction from our brothers and sisters, there must be a place for each individual Christian to have this inner fellowship and revelation of Jesus Christ, otherwise all we deal with are external things, which have undermined Christianity since almost the beginning.

What is the first thing we will begin to understand once we start this walk with the Lord? It is that Jesus in His person is completely and totally different than we are. We won't and don't see this right away, but there is this almost immediate battle that begins as we start to see Christ, which is the Holy Spirit starting to show us how much we fall short of who He is.

Seeing Christ isn't primarily about getting a bunch of head knowledge about Him, it's seeing who He is in light of who we are, and understanding the Holy Spirit is revealing that in order to transform us to be more like He is.

This isn't making the old man better, it's working from the fact that we have died in Christ, and only the life of Christ living within us is to be manifested. This is done a little at a time and not as once, otherwise it would overwhelm us. That's the reason we must be quiet and patient, not getting in a hurry to be conformed to His image, otherwise we get a lot of artificial and outward results, which could deceive us, while losing out on the far more important inner changes, which will then be followed by the outward change.

We need to ask Christ to reveal Himself in us so we can little by little be made to be more like Him. This is what the Christian walk in its entirety is, only it grows to new levels as we see Him clearer and clearer within by the Holy Spirit.

Don't be discouraged when you see yourself in the light of Christ, as the purpose isn't to beat you down, but to call out to the Lord to continue to help and change you to be like Him.

Christians and Daily Interaction

One of the more vital elements of Christ and His people that we need a revelation of is what it means for Christians to interact with one another. I don't mean in some general, surfacy communication, but sharing life together on a daily basis.

This is what has been the underlying impetus behind those who are calling for a change in the practices of Christianity, while maintaining the sound doctrines associated with it.

Many have become heretical in their understanding and communication, as they don't have a revelation of changing the practices of Christianity while maintaining the truths about Christ.

Even so, that doesn't mean we should abandon the pursuit of body life outside the institutional church system, as there is still a driving force that comes from the Holy Spirit that pushes us toward being "one to another," as the Holy Scriptures mention many times.

The key thing is we must first see the value of sharing life together outside of the walls of a building. It's not like some people think, where it is assumed it removes any type of responsibility and accountability for and to one another. Rather it is more demanding in practical outworking, as our Christian faith is challenged to become a reality amongst believers.

Anyone can go to a building and hide or get lost among people they no little about or fellowship with seldom, if ever. But to share the life of Christ together consistently is much harder, but also provides the environment where God can do what He wants with His people - both individually and corporately.

If there is no interaction between believers, how do we watch over one another, how do we build up one another, how do we practically love one another, taking it past very limited and potentially deceptive sentimentality, and bringing it into a love that is giving of Christ to one another.

This is a major problem today with those that have seen a glimpse of what Christ is after, but get bogged down in feelings and emotions, rather than the type of love that can cost everything. That's why there is so much heresy among those that have left the institutional church. They build their lives and doctrine around a sentimental acceptance which has nothing to do with the love of Christ, but everything to do with creating God in their own image. Much of the so-called emergent church is built on that shifting foundation, which will eventually crumble, as it isn't a foundation at all, but a humanistic, liberal, progressive infiltration of what God desires.

That is of course the methodology of the god of this world, who always offers an alternative to what it is God is trying to do in order to stop it or confuse those wanting to enter into something deeper in Christ.

God isn't after new, hip doctrine in order to create a new "Christianity," He is after what He has always been after: a people that embrace and show forth who Jesus Christ is to many in the world that long to see and know Him. It is of course also to show invisible powers who Jesus Christ is as well.

The point is in order to participate in the people of God in the way the Scriptures reveal, there must be a sharing of Christ through consistent, daily interaction. It is there we must seek wisdom from God on the best and most efficient way to work that out.

Will Hollywood Corrupt "Biblical" Stories?

Hollywood is of course primarily interested in making money, so when it looks to Christian
audiences as a source of income, they tend to go to the Bible for source material.

That creates a potential problem, as the upcoming story of Noah reveals, as after a couple of screenings - one to Christians in Arizona, and another to Jews in New York - it was found it to be a use of Biblical material to portray the flood as the result of climate change. I'm not kidding you. That is the reported theme of the ark and flood story from test screenings.

Instead of sin and rebellion against God, it is the "disrespect" of the environment that caused God to flood the earth.  

The director of the film, Darren Aronofsky, even identified Noah as the "first environmentalist."

If Hollywood attempts to go the route of lying about what the Bible actually says, and layers its liberal lies onto the narrative, Christians must and will totally oppose the film, and not only stay away in droves, but blast the fictional Hollywood account of the story as an outrage against them.

It would be better for Hollywood to not make these films than to make them and be perceived as a slap in the face to believers in Jesus Christ.

Christians aren't beggars that are just thankful to get the notice of Hollywood. If it wants to make movies based upon the Bible, than it needs to remain true to the Scriptures, not recreate them in their own image.

This is the usual strategy of Satan, to use the scriptures in a perverted way to confuse the ignorant and unlearned. We need to be vigilant and respond accordingly if they attempt to use the Bible to distort God and confuse weaker believers.

If the early responses to the Noah film are accurate, Hollywood is already making a huge mistake; hopefully one it will pay for through huge losses.

It even makes me wonder if it is purposefully done in order to keep the demand for Christian films under wraps in order to keep good stories from being told. That would be done by making a film Hollywood knows would be negative to Christians, giving it the appearance they aren't a legitimate market to cater to.

Cracker Barrel Does the Right Thing

Hollywood, GLAAD, and businesses continue to underestimate the pent-up anger of Christians in America over the decades-old attack on Jesus Christ the Lord and our faith in Him.

That came to a head when family patriarch Phil Robertson of the Duck Dynasty clan was brutally attacked for correctly reiterating what the Bible teaches about homosexuality: that it is sin.

When the inevitable brutal attack began against Robertson, outrage from believers poured into those who had pushed them far enough. It appears this may be a turning point that could turn things around for American Christians.

To that end, Cracker Barrel, a restaurant chain in the United States, was bombarded with protests and threats that people would no longer go to there to eat their meals if products representing the franchise weren't put back on the shelves for sale. Cracker Barrel, thinking it has the public on its side, has quickly backtracked after the outcry against the company soared.

Businesses need to understand the tiny 2% of homosexuals in America don't represent the majority in any way, and even though media give the appearance they are powerful, it is more of an illusion than anything based in reality. This is the importance of what is happening, and why I say it could be the beginning of a turnaround in the acceptance of attacks on Christian believers in America.

It won't happen immediately and quickly, but I think we'll start to see more boldness from Christians in telling Hollywood and businesses they won't be telling us what we believe and how we can express it.

Here's what Cracker Barrel said in a statement:

"Dear Cracker Barrel Customer:

When we made the decision to remove and evaluate certain Duck Dynasty items, we offended many of our loyal customers. Our intent was to avoid offending, but that's just what we've done.

You told us we made a mistake. And, you weren't shy about it. You wrote, you called and you took to social media to express your thoughts and feelings. You flat out told us we were wrong.

We listened.

Today, we are putting all our Duck Dynasty products back in our stores.

And, we apologize for offending you.

We respect all individuals right to express their beliefs. We certainly did not mean to have anyone think different.

We sincerely hope you will continue to be part of our Cracker Barrel family."

Now that Cracker Barrel repented from its actions, Christians should support the company, as they've done the right thing. Of course the long-term support should be determined by the restaurant continuing to do the right thing.

Let this be a terrific example of Christians sticking together and telling this culture what it is Jesus Christ expects, and not being afraid to express it.

What A&E, GLAAD Missed with Phil Robertson and Duck Dynasty

There has been something brewing underneath the surface of the culture in America for several decades, as opposition to anything related to Christ has ramped up, with some of it like abortion have dire consequences.

With the debacle at A&E concerning its Duck Dynasty show and Robertson family patriarch Phil, that pent-up frustration has flowed out onto the social media street, with an amazing amount of backbone that had been believed to be gone from believers in Jesus Christ in the United States.

What A&E and the vicious activist group GLAAD didn't know, was it wasn't gone at all, as Christians are called upon to suffer for His name's sake. Rather, what was happening underneath the surface was a dormant but powerful force waiting for the right time to be unleashed. That time has now come, and it is sweeping not only across the country, but across the world. I don't think things in America will ever be the same again.

Brutish GLAAD even acknowledged it's never had this type of negative response to its outrageous attacks on those calling homosexuality sin.

As bad as this overall was that A&E had videos of the Robertson's with the usual bleeps included to suggest the family members were cussing all the time. What the bleeps were in reality were references to Jesus Christ. Because of those actions alone, A&E deserves what it's getting.

Willie & Phil Robertson talk about fake bleeps and praying in Jesus' name

The Robertson's were a wealthy family before they appeared on Duck Dynasty, and so the network had no pull to make them line up how they wanted them to.

Finally, the channel attempted to stop Phil from praying in the name of Jesus, which the family fought back on, and won, as the show had become the most popular reality TV show in history.

What really happened here is the Robertson family had millions of Christians who identified with them as being one of them. When the attack from GLAAD and A&E commenced, it became personal like an attack on a family member would be personal. GLAAD and A&E never had a chance.

These people actually believed their bullying tactics, which were usually against vulnerable people who didn't know how to fight back, had effectively cowered the Christian population in America. They were as wrong as they could be, and they will pay for that misjudgement in the years ahead. It's about time they did.

I truly believe this is the beginning of something far beyond Duck Dynasty and Phil Robertson. Christians are seeing that when they ban together, it is their enemies that are put on the defensive. It took this event to cause them to see this. It's doubtful they'll ever take the evil attacks of GLAAD and Hollywood like they have in the past. They will start to weaken as the righteousness of Christ grows in His people.

Did Obama Just Override the Supreme Court on Individual Mandate?

Obamacare is in shambles, as is the presidency of Obama, as after a protracted battle over the individual mandate, which went to the Supreme Court of the United States, and was reaffirmed as legal and necessary to the success of the law by the Court, Obama with a brazen act, simply wiped out the mandate he fought for for millions of Americans.

It just keeps getting more bizarre as the attempt to force health care on all Americans continues to fail.

Obama has made so many changes to the suggestion law, that it's even more confusing than it was before, as he continues to gut it on his own. Democrats who will oppose Republicans in 2014 are scrambling behind the scenes as they start to understand they will be voted out of office over the Obamacare debacle, which has been lied about by the President himself over promising no one would have to drop their existing plan if they didn't want to.

So many groups and people have been given exemptions from the individual mandate, I don't even know who has to line up with it at this time. I don't think the White House does either.

What is happening is if Obamacare rendered your existing health plan illegal, you now will be able to fore go the individual mandate without the government making you pay a fine as a result of taking that action. As I said, it keeps getting weirder and weirder.

Want a good laugh? Here's how a rushed release of the new ruling was written by the HHS and supported by the Senate Democrats. It says that those who "experienced financial or domestic circumstances, including an unexpected natural or human-caused event, such that he or she had a significant, unexpected increase in essential expenses that prevented him or her from obtaining coverage under a qualified health plan," can get an exemption from the individual mandate.

What's so hilarious about this? The ruling essentially admits and asserts that Obamacare is just such a human-caused event! In other words, the other lie about health care expenses not rising because of Obamacare was brought to light. The very action of HHS confirms Obamacare in fact did raise rates to the point they struggle to find an affordable replacement. Many can't find it, which is where much of the outrage comes from. People couldn't afford to pay for the expensive premium required to receive Obamacare. Obamacare was the cause for losing and not being able to afford insurance.

The purpose of exemptions was to help the poor who were in dire need of help; not to force people off of affordable insurance plans into plans they couldn't afford.

Even with the exemptions health care costs will still be more expensive than former insurance plans, and this "catastrophic" coverage won't include some of the mandates originally included in the individual mandate. Under the original plan Democrats even fought making this concession. Being on the verge of being voted out of office, they suddenly got concession religion.

This is going to continue to get worse, as Americans start to realize some people are getting exemptions at the expense of others. Who's going to pay for all of this in light of this?

Before it was thought younger people would pay for it, but if they get significant exemptions, how will health care for the sicker, elderly be paid for?

If you don't see this as an act of desperation by the White House and Obama, you don't understand the severity of this action by HHS and the president. There is no doubt Obamacare could end up being shut down after all. This is the only explanation for why there is such as drastic change in direction; one which literally opposes what the White House fought for before the Supreme Court. A growing number of people are getting angry, and it's a bi-partisan anger that will punish the Democrats in the next election, as it should.

Republicans wisely voted against the disaster as a block. They'll rightly remind the public of that fact going forward.

The ongoing risk is Obamacare will be changed at a whim by Obama based upon political winds brought to his attention by his own party. There is no doubt we could see an extraordinary even in the elections of the near future, and it appears there is absolutely nothing that the Democrats can do about it.

Amazingly Obama is step-by-step doing to his own health care plan what the Republicans were trying to do by changing the law.

Unfortunately for most Americans, we'll have to pay the price for Obamacare until we demand it be totally abandoned. That won't happen until the majority start to feel the pain of much higher prices. From the way things are going, that shouldn't take too long. Prepare for some financial pain. It's coming.

GLAAD Attack Dogs on Defensive: Way Past Time

The abusive and anti-Christian self-appointed defenders of sinful lifestyles opposed by Jesus Christ - the GLAAD organization - is now under pressure as people from all over blast the intolerant group for attacking Phil Robertson because of His godly opposition to the homosexual lifestyle, rightly identifying it as sin.

There is a growing backlash against the verbally violent organization, as Christians, and many others, are tired of the brutish, outrageous attacks it employs as a means of suffocating and destroying the views and lives of those that oppose the wickedness they represent.

Even the organization itself admits it has never experienced the type of outrage from people tired of the destructive antics of the group.

It is finally realizing it is in a real culture war, but a culture that is based upon the person of Jesus Christ, who created the human race male and female, and only allows that to be the standard of sexuality; as long as it is within the confines of marriage. There in fact can't be such a thing as gay marriage, because the sin of homosexuality is forbidden by Jesus Christ in the first place.

To show the arrogance, presumption, and cluelessness of GLAAD and A&E, vice GLAAD president of communications Rich Ferraro said he talked with representatives of A&E in an alleged attempt to figure out why so many people despised the attacks on Robinson.

I'll let you know GLAAD. It's because we are one with him, and an attack on him is an attack on us. It's also the unfolding realization that there has never been a good-faith attempt by Christ-haters to truly respect people that believe in and obey Jesus Christ.

We are increasingly understanding that this is nothing less than a war to eradicate those who truly follow Jesus, and who won't back down to others in regard to His commands to us. This is what you're experience GLAAD, and it's only the beginning. It will get much worse for you, and you'll start tasting of the first fruits of defeat that all enemies of Christ will have to endure.

Fellow Christians, don't back down, don't waver, don't cave in, and don't believe them. This is a war that has been going on since Satan tried to become like the Most High God; the only God. It's a way that has been already one by Christ, but which we must engage in to mop up our defeated enemies.

Don't listen to the smooth attempts to assuage your righteous anger. It's past time to keep them on the defensive, to call for them to repent from their sinful ways and turn to Jesus Christ, who is more than willing to forgive them for their sins.
It's great that this is happening. For too long Christians and others have believed this is all about a counterfeit "tolerance" that all of us should engage in when communicating. Just look at the vicious attacks groups like GLAAD partake in to quickly get that lie out of your head. They have no interest in anything but forcing this lifestyle upon people, and to have all to agree that there is nothing wrong with it.

Think on it though. Homosexuals are the only people in existence that self-identify with the sin they are committing. After all, who says I was born a murderer and thus belongs to some type of interconnected murderers group? This is exactly what homosexuals have done and do.

They want us to believe they're victims of simply being born the way they are. That's of course a lie. Everyone has a choice, and those immersing themselves in the lifestyle, are attempting to force the rest of us into accepting it.

The fact that Phil Robertson wouldn't toe the homosexual line, and the wicked and evil attack on him was exposed in the public eye, confirms this is nothing but a bunch of people attempting to destroy anyone that gets in their way.

How they brutally and viciously attacked Phil Robertson, a lover of Jesus Christ, openly shows the real agenda and attitude of GLAAD and their ilk.

Christians and others watching this unfold understand that now, and GLAAD will no longer get a free ride, and neither will those homosexuals and other deviants not willing to repent of their sin.

If A&E doesn't turn away from its decision to remove Phil Robertson from Duck Dynasty, we should totally abandon it as a TV channel, and continue to pressure advertisers until they refuse to advertise on it.

Also know, that The Walt Disney Company owns half of the A+E, the holding company of A&E. Let them all know what you think of this attack on the followers of Jesus Christ.

Jesus' Creative Destruction

There is what some would call the downside to the working of the cross of Christ in a person, but if you can understand the revelation and outworking of the cross in your life, it would be embraced enthusiastically, albeit at times painfully, by all true believers in Christ.

So you understand what I mean when talking of the cross, I refer to the principle of the cross being destructive to the natural man, the old man, or what some may refer to as the "flesh" in the Holy Scriptures.

The point of that being wrought in a believer is that the old man is weakened and broken, so the life of Jesus Christ, through the Holy Spirit, can be worked into a believer. What eventually should emerge over time is the conforming to the image of Christ in a believer.

Since there is so much lingering of the old man in our flesh, Jesus must employ the tool of creative destruction - the cross - so He can manifest Himself in and through us.

Look at the first scriptures in the Bible to see how this works. Jesus working with basically a blank slate, starts to create the heavens and the earth. Because He has that clean canvas, He is able to do all sorts of interesting things to outwardly reflect eternal and invisible values.

This is what the purpose of the in working of the Cross is, to provide a canvas for Christ to paint His person on. For those willing to endure the working of the Cross, ultimately it will result in Jesus Christ Himself revealing who He is in you.

We don't have to comprehend or understand the process as we're going through it, but like Job, should have the attitude of "though He slay me, yet will I trust Him." Believe me, many times you'll choke on those words if you really mean business with God; as He's more than willing to accept your invitation to creatively and practically work out the destruction associated with the purpose of the cross.

Understand that you won't know till much later, if at all, what it means, but in an unseen way, God will get what He wants in us. And in the end, that is the bottom line of the purpose for our existence.

This is what the new creation is all about: the death and destruction of the old in order to make room for the new. It happens in Christ, but is worked out practically in our lives. We must embrace the creative destruction of Christ in order to let Him perfect His work in us.

And the earth was without form, and void

In this second verse of the Holy Scriptures, there has been a lot of speculation that has led to odd conclusions about what it represented in the words, which I believe has resulted in a wrong understanding and emphasis.

I'm referring to the assumption that God couldn't create something that was without form and void, so something had to have happened to it as a result. From there a number of scenarios have been created out of thin air, such as Satan destroyed the original creation, or there being a preAdamic mankind before this creation.

In other words, there are those that assert this wasn't really a creation, but a restoration. That is an incorrect conclusion, based upon the fact the Scriptures teach us in 1 Corinthians 15:45 that "The first man Adam was made a living soul; the last Adam was made a quickening spirit." There is no way to get around the 'first man Adam' phrase. It can't be confused or misinterpreted. Either Adam was the first man or mankind, and Jesus Christ the last Adam, or they weren't (Adam refers primarily to mankind).

The Adam of Genesis was representative of all mankind because he was the first man. Jesus Christ as the last Adam or mankind, is representative and first-born of a new mankind that will have no other after it. There can be no improvement upon Christ as the representative of the last mankind, thus his designation as being the last Adam.

Why this is important is it can distort the ways of God and miss some of the benefit of what He's revealing to us. For example, the idea that the earth was without form and void doesn't have to be taken as a negative because God wasn't through yet.

Even when we become born again and are considered perfect in Christ in the eyes of God the Father, that doesn't mean we aren't practically without form and void as measured by the person of Christ. For the rest of our lives God will work on conforming us practically to the actual person of Christ; we will eventually be like Him in His perfect manhood (not deity).

So when we look at the work of God, it isn't hard it all to understand God wasn't finished with His creation work yet, and that applies practically in our own lives in knowing when we are starting something, in the beginning there will be the reality of it being without form and void.

Once the invisible, eternal things were made into physical things, time was introduced with them, and from that point on things were done in an orderly fashion as we understand sequence, and that's why we see one day after another where God adds something to His creation.

A specific example would be when a baby comes into this world. Anyone having children will know what am empty slate an infant is, and other than its physical body, has little inside that is 'formed' yet. It takes a lifetime to grow up and be filled with different qualities.

We could apply this to any area of life we engage in. What marriage isn't somewhat chaotic in the beginning? A man and woman are just starting off (even if they've known one another for some time), and begin this new creative venture together from the beginning. That's simply the way of life.

You could add starting a business, education, becoming a Christian, or any other number of things that have a beginning.

One of the major lessons to learn is that we have to take things one step at a time in this world. Each practical step leads to another, and without each step being incorporated into who we are, we will always have this weak leg that can collapse at any time, like a table with a leg that wears out and topples over to one side.

This is one of the things that we miss when making the mistake of assuming God didn't create the earth in a formless, void less state. He was simply taking one step of time in the process, and was ready to take the next step because He couldn't ever start something and leave that way.

On the other side, many people have pursued these theories about many parts of creation, based upon believing God's had an original creation that had been destroyed, but was now bringing back to the state He wanted it to be.

People with agendas have at times reinforced this because they don't want to face the fact or creation, and would rather promote evolution as the means the world and everything else came into being. Even people naming the Lord have fallen into this lie.

Some people do this out of hatred for Christ and His people, and others do it to make a name for themselves because they won't be accepted and considered serious in their academic circles.