My heart dreams day after day. It does not stop....really. It dreams about you. It dreams about God. It dreams about my enemies. It dreams about possibilities. Such isn't an assertion I perpetuate. Rather it simply rules my mind. I am enamored with being in kindergarten always learning about kingdom matters. I still hunger to learn.
One of my biggest dreams is freedom. As the African-Americans hold a special understanding of slavery that Caucasians can only read about historically, I sense and experience similar slavery in the church. Something unbiblical came along and was swept into our camp as a Trojan horse. Before we knew it we had been sold out as slaves to carry an unnecessary weight throughout our days. Shame on any of us who dare call it a golden calf.
Yet, it is. I speak of the Restoration Movement. Before our early American church fathers broke camp a non-Bible word was connected to us that buries its people: restoration. Restoration insinuates that putting our hands to the Bible plow and looking back is right; something evidently Jesus didn't understand.
The fruit of this movement is a growing quagmire of hardened hearts who cannot stand the genuine call of the New Testament...grow in the Spirit of Christ. Restore is the motto. Explore is taboo. Exploration has been stymied because we have reverted to digging up the past of the church instead of the future fascination of God.
We continue to hear it said by the restorationists that we must take our stand. Such a stand implies in harmony, never out of step, and always cooperative with everyone who holds such faith. Hardly a picture of Jesus. Controversy is assumed satanic when, in reality, it is promoted by Jesus as necessary to hold to the true pattern of Holy Script.
I encourage you to develop a love for your enemies which would match that of Jesus' for you. And then I would encourage you to take your stand and break free from the quagmire that is choking off hope from a very needy culture; that of restoring a hand full of sacred calves with just a smidgen of spirituality mixed in.
I don't like being in trouble. I am insecure enough that everyone liking me is a big deal. But I must say our God surely has bigger fish to fry than that of calling all people to look back in any other direction than the cross. When we catch a vision of the cross....we will explore with great freedom those regions of the soul...theirs, ours, and mine.
4 comments:
"I encourage you to develop a love for your enemies which would match that of Jesus' for you."
Can't go wrong with that--Amen!
People are like stained glass windows: they sparkle and shine when the sun's out, but when the darkness sets in, their true beauty is revealed only if there is light within.-Elizabeth Kubler-Ross
When we view the cross.... we are at a cross roads.... we choose to sacrifice as he did.. or choose to be like those in disbelief and hurl insults by our attitudes.
Sometimes our lights have to shine brighter so others will not grow dim.
thanks for all that you do and the good example of Christ shining in you.
terry i really engoy reading your blogs.Keep up the good work,I only in past year come back to the lord,I remember hearing you at one of the workshops,years ago.the topic i believe was not guitting,putting on a full court press.your message lifted me up them,and your blog cont to do so.thank your for striving to continuly seak the real jesus.I am just a truck driver and my spelling or gramer may not be the best. my name is robert.
Wow! Powerful words, Terry. Love the comment by Robert!
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