I stare at the Multitude gathered before Eve, here in Hades’ Box at the End of the World.
Waiting to tear us limb from limb.
And worse.
Ernie: Father, forgive me. I didn’t know what I was doing. I am not able to drink this cup.
Adam: Fear not, my son. I did. I AM!
by Apostle Gabriel Cross The Lord has revealed to me, the spirit of self, in the life of many believers, which is the spirit of division. One is divided against oneself, always second guessing themselves or what God is saying to them. The spirit of division, hinders and retards you or stops you from fulfilling […]
The Spirit Of Self — Pure Glory
Where the Hades should I go now?
All the people I care about aren’t here yet.
Jesus warned me I only had a brief time with the Master Key of St. Peter.
How the heck am I supposed to empty out Hell?
Which one person could I reach or succor that could make an outsized difference?
Oh. Duh. I guess there’s a reason I bear his name.
I know how Adam must’ve felt
When Eve ate the Apple.
That’s why he ate.
Because he would rather
Die with her
Than live alone.
Satan head-faked him.
She wouldn’t have died.
Or God could have raised her
If he’d only managed to endure
Until God showed up
Eve was deceived by desire
Adam was deceived by despair
That is what kept them
From reaching for
The Tree of Life
Our very first official session (on Thursday) started with me explaining (and arguably demonstrating) the idea of “Dog Park Church.”
Robby built on this with several novel innovations as he launched our first “franchised” session on Friday:
In response to the recent storming of the US Capitol.
I hate it.
I hate You.
Look at You. “All powerful.” “All wise.” “All loving.”
Yeah, right. Have You seen this world?
Worse, have You seen those who dare to call themselves Your people? Your representatives? Your priests?
The only real answer is Jesus.
The only real problem is sin.
The only real work is the cross.
In the end, we only have Him.
Draft 1, 29 Oct 2020, The Great Reset
We pivot our discussion of the Biastes Co-Discipleship Network, for the 1pm PST Tuesday, Aug 4, 2020 episode of The Great Reset, to take on the challenge of creating relational unity.
Continue readingMay they all be one, as you, Father, are in me and I am in you. May they also be in us, so that the world may believe you sent me.
John 17:21
Continued from Part I.
Man and Woman were walking by a range of hills. Suddenly, a gleam of light caught Woman’s eye. She glanced up, and saw a beautiful blue sparkle high up on the side of a cliff. “Oh my,” she said, “how lovely! I wonder what that is?”
Without a moment’s hesitation, Man ran over and started climbing. Woman held her breath as his fingers and toes sought out tiny ledges to hold onto, and gasped once when he almost fell. But before she knew it, he had retrieved his prize and was kneeling before her, holding up a nearly transparent rock that glittered with all the colors of the sun.
That night by the fire, while she was admiring her gift, she leaned over and kissed him on the cheek. “You were so brave, today. I bet you aren’t scared to do anything!”
Man stiffened. Without a word, he got up and walked away into the darkness.
Continue readingThe serpent was clever, more clever than any wild animal GOD had made.
He spoke to the Woman: “Do I understand that God told you not to eat from any tree in the garden?”
The Woman smiled and said to the serpent, “Not at all. Actually, God did not tell me anything.”
The serpent was puzzled. “Wait, you mean you think you can eat from any tree in the garden?”
“Yes, that’s right,” she said, humming to herself as she sniffed a flower.
“This is too easy,” murmured the serpent. “Well then, have your tried the fruit from this tree here in the center? It is the best in the garden. In fact, it will make you smarter than your husband, as smart as God! You really need to experience it for yourself.”
The Woman saw that the tree was beautiful, that its fruit was good to eat, and that it would make her wise.
She half-reached an arm towards it…
Continue reading
Worship: He’s Worth It
The whole point of becoming a Christian is to know and love God, ourselves, and others the way Jesus did. But what exactly is love?
We use the word “love” whenever we strongly desire or value something. But there are three very different kinds of love:
Holiness: Open to God
Lots of people admire Jesus. Even those who aren’t Christians often consider him a model for how human beings should treat each other.
Last time we talked about skills that help us become more like Jesus. So why doesn’t everyone practice those skills? Why do we ourselves often do the opposite of what Jesus wants us to do?
Because we have a wound in our spirit.
Dear God,
We acknowledge you as our King.
Free us from sin so we can be happy with you
Teach us how to respect each other,
and help each other feel valuable,
So we can work together to spread your Kingdom.We ask this by the blood of Jesus. Amen.
A kind friend pointed out that the seminary focuses I dissed in my last post:
may not be sufficient for spiritual maturity, but are necessary.
In fact, what I should have said is that the latter require the former:
Leadership is a perilous venture, for the very attributes that make leaders great also carry the seeds of our downfall.
But surprisingly, there is a very simple cure — albeit a very unpleasant one…
I want to be a Whole Christian.
I want to love the Lord my God with all my heart, all my soul, all my mind, and all my strength, and be part of a worshipping community with others who do.
I want to love my brothers and sisters the way Christ loves me,
my neighbor as myself,
and my enemies.
Especially my enemies. For I have discovered that I only see the log in my own eye after I find grace for the speck in someone else’s.
Part 2 of the Guilt-Grace-Gratitude musical trilogy, from my 1996 meditations on The Grace Cycle.
