The Holy One calls to me this morning. The recent celebration of the Jewish Passover has me thinking about that epic night of deliverance for Israel and their faith journey as a nation.
The Holy Spirit reminds me of something I read about a few days ago when He tells me "Beware of "rabble-rousers".
My indwelling Counselor is the "Spirit of Truth". His role is defined by Jesus in John 14:15-16, If you love Me (says Jesus) you will obey what I command and I will give you another Counselor to be with you forever- the Spirit of Truth. The world cannot accept Him because it neither sees Him nor knows Him. But you know Him for He lives in you and will be in you."
Many Christians mark His Presence with charismatic manifestations, but my personality and comfort zone walks along a more academic and less emotional line. The Holy One meets me where I am. I do have a firm belief in supernatural miracles. I have seen and experienced the Hand of God move in completely supernatural ways. In fact His intervention is a daily reality for those who are in vital relationship with Him. There is no random event or coincidence in life but rather a calculated action by the Sovereign God of eternity that challenges us to look up and see Him, but the real joy I feel hones on the thrill I find in our relationship and how He brings me Truth and the wisdom to apply it.
I love a good mystery and feel accomplished when I follow the clues to an "aha" moment as the mental mystery is solved. My God knows me as one He personally created and provides the challenges that make our relationship so exciting.
Not every mystery is solved in a day nor will the entire mystery of God's Being ever be solved over even a lifetime on earth. But as we traverse the turf here together, with the mysteries that abound the delight of my faithful Counselor and Guide, fills my heart with joy.
I take His commands seriously whether written in His Word or spoken in my ear. "Beware the "rabble-rousers" comes out of a passage of scripture I was in some days ago while reading about the nation of Israel and their time in the wilderness after their deliverance out of Egypt.
The entire Nation of Israel had been brought through the Red Sea in a supernatural move by God. The waters were divided providing a pathway of escape from Egyptian bondage AKA slavery. This even was the end of a series of miraculous signs that Moses was sent to perform before the Pharaoh. The supernatural wonders were not hidden from the Egyptian population.
All in Egypt were touched in one way or another, which means that even the Egyptians had an opportunity to come to the knowledge that the God of Israel was more powerful and real than the gods of Egypt that they had worshipped. As the Nation of Israel under the leadership of Moses began the exodus out of Egypt there was a similar opportunity for others (non-Israelites) to follow them, mix in with the migration and flow out of Egypt along with the people of this mighty and powerful God.
Here in numbers 11:4, scripture identifies some who made up their numbers as "rabble". This explains where the term "rabble-rousers" comes from. This was a "mixed multitude" (KJV) among the people who were troublemakers and who incited God's people to rebel.
True believers are trusted by God to trust in Him. The Nation of Israel was asked to put their trust in the God of their fathers, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. Those who just came along for the ride and may have seen the end of the Egyptian way of life, but did not share Israel's faith legacy did not calculate on God's demand for obedience. Not all who made the journey out of Egypt were true to the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob and became a source of trouble for the migrating nation.
Logic would suggest that God had not provided so spectacular a deliverance just to abandon them to death by another means such as starvation or dehydration, but that was the suggestion as they made their way through the wilderness. The "rabble" among them were the mal-contents of the group. They were a constant source of complaining and in that represented a dangerous seed of rebellion.
Have you ever noticed when you are facing difficult circumstances where faith is being honed and trust is hard, voices spring up to talk you out of trust and into rebellion? The devil has an army of "rabble-rousers". He uses people and speaks through others to accomplish his goal.
Life and circumstances we face are quite often like entering the Lord's gym for a workout. If you are not a fan of exercise you may hate when He asks you to join Him there: especially when His invitation is at the end of a long hard day of temporal living and the mind becomes battlefield complete with a company of flesh sympathizers.
Rabble rousers unleash their toxic poison into our fellowships just as they did to the nation of Israel. People who do not know God personally and try to undermine the faith of those who do.
Discernment of the spirit of who is talking is critical to knowing the difference between the two. But then as I ponder and process what the Lord is showing me in His warning today, I realize the potential in me to not only fall victim to rabble-rousing people who surround the Body of Christ but to actually join in with their agenda and speak in faithless terms about what we are experiencing in these end of days.
Am I complaining about the Manna when my flesh is lusting for quail? Am I ready to erect a golden calf idol when asked to wait for a Word from the Lord being brought down from the mountain?
A rabble-rousing spirit whether phantom or flesh is quick to remind us of "better" days.... when we were slaves to sin because they know nothing of the promised land that awaits us. The rabble among us can get under or skin but they must never be allowed to get into our minds. We must never forge an agreement with their message of faithless mistrust in God's goodness and mercy.
"Beware of the "rabble-rousers" is a warning I take seriously. Today I pray for Divine discernment and protection from without and from within.
The Spirit is calling. Can you hear Him?
The Holy Spirit reminds me of something I read about a few days ago when He tells me "Beware of "rabble-rousers".
My indwelling Counselor is the "Spirit of Truth". His role is defined by Jesus in John 14:15-16, If you love Me (says Jesus) you will obey what I command and I will give you another Counselor to be with you forever- the Spirit of Truth. The world cannot accept Him because it neither sees Him nor knows Him. But you know Him for He lives in you and will be in you."
Many Christians mark His Presence with charismatic manifestations, but my personality and comfort zone walks along a more academic and less emotional line. The Holy One meets me where I am. I do have a firm belief in supernatural miracles. I have seen and experienced the Hand of God move in completely supernatural ways. In fact His intervention is a daily reality for those who are in vital relationship with Him. There is no random event or coincidence in life but rather a calculated action by the Sovereign God of eternity that challenges us to look up and see Him, but the real joy I feel hones on the thrill I find in our relationship and how He brings me Truth and the wisdom to apply it.
I love a good mystery and feel accomplished when I follow the clues to an "aha" moment as the mental mystery is solved. My God knows me as one He personally created and provides the challenges that make our relationship so exciting.
Not every mystery is solved in a day nor will the entire mystery of God's Being ever be solved over even a lifetime on earth. But as we traverse the turf here together, with the mysteries that abound the delight of my faithful Counselor and Guide, fills my heart with joy.
I take His commands seriously whether written in His Word or spoken in my ear. "Beware the "rabble-rousers" comes out of a passage of scripture I was in some days ago while reading about the nation of Israel and their time in the wilderness after their deliverance out of Egypt.
The entire Nation of Israel had been brought through the Red Sea in a supernatural move by God. The waters were divided providing a pathway of escape from Egyptian bondage AKA slavery. This even was the end of a series of miraculous signs that Moses was sent to perform before the Pharaoh. The supernatural wonders were not hidden from the Egyptian population.
All in Egypt were touched in one way or another, which means that even the Egyptians had an opportunity to come to the knowledge that the God of Israel was more powerful and real than the gods of Egypt that they had worshipped. As the Nation of Israel under the leadership of Moses began the exodus out of Egypt there was a similar opportunity for others (non-Israelites) to follow them, mix in with the migration and flow out of Egypt along with the people of this mighty and powerful God.
Here in numbers 11:4, scripture identifies some who made up their numbers as "rabble". This explains where the term "rabble-rousers" comes from. This was a "mixed multitude" (KJV) among the people who were troublemakers and who incited God's people to rebel.
True believers are trusted by God to trust in Him. The Nation of Israel was asked to put their trust in the God of their fathers, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. Those who just came along for the ride and may have seen the end of the Egyptian way of life, but did not share Israel's faith legacy did not calculate on God's demand for obedience. Not all who made the journey out of Egypt were true to the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob and became a source of trouble for the migrating nation.
Logic would suggest that God had not provided so spectacular a deliverance just to abandon them to death by another means such as starvation or dehydration, but that was the suggestion as they made their way through the wilderness. The "rabble" among them were the mal-contents of the group. They were a constant source of complaining and in that represented a dangerous seed of rebellion.
Have you ever noticed when you are facing difficult circumstances where faith is being honed and trust is hard, voices spring up to talk you out of trust and into rebellion? The devil has an army of "rabble-rousers". He uses people and speaks through others to accomplish his goal.
Life and circumstances we face are quite often like entering the Lord's gym for a workout. If you are not a fan of exercise you may hate when He asks you to join Him there: especially when His invitation is at the end of a long hard day of temporal living and the mind becomes battlefield complete with a company of flesh sympathizers.
Rabble rousers unleash their toxic poison into our fellowships just as they did to the nation of Israel. People who do not know God personally and try to undermine the faith of those who do.
Discernment of the spirit of who is talking is critical to knowing the difference between the two. But then as I ponder and process what the Lord is showing me in His warning today, I realize the potential in me to not only fall victim to rabble-rousing people who surround the Body of Christ but to actually join in with their agenda and speak in faithless terms about what we are experiencing in these end of days.
Am I complaining about the Manna when my flesh is lusting for quail? Am I ready to erect a golden calf idol when asked to wait for a Word from the Lord being brought down from the mountain?
A rabble-rousing spirit whether phantom or flesh is quick to remind us of "better" days.... when we were slaves to sin because they know nothing of the promised land that awaits us. The rabble among us can get under or skin but they must never be allowed to get into our minds. We must never forge an agreement with their message of faithless mistrust in God's goodness and mercy.
"Beware of the "rabble-rousers" is a warning I take seriously. Today I pray for Divine discernment and protection from without and from within.
The Spirit is calling. Can you hear Him?
No comments:
Post a Comment