Five, Six, and Seven

I had a dream last night. It wasn't all that different than some dreams that God has given me in the past, but this one was much more "finished".

They started out as flying fail dreams 20-30 years ago. I figured out how to fly, but while in flight, I would "forget" and come crashing to the ground. These dreams took various forms and always ended the same, with me tasting dirt.

Somewhere in 2007, if I remember correctly, I had a dream where after I figured it out, I even explained it to someone else, and then demonstrated how to do it.

Flying, in the dream had a clear representation. Flying was God communicating a walk of faith. Faith, nothing like what the Word Faith teachers present, but real Faith... Faith or trust in God alone.

In the dream, I had to go outside and stand in the sunlight. I had to just stand there and bask in the brightness, the warmth, the energy of it. Once that was done, I put out my hands slightly and felt for the wind. Once the wind was felt through my fingers, it would pick me up. Once airborne, I could go anywhere.

The symbology was obvious to me as the Holy Spirit opened my eyes to it. It was a message given to me after all. At the time, I told many people and wrote about it too. Most couldn't see the symbology as I told them but tried to correct me that it meant something else. Something less God and more self.

I didn't understand it at the time, but I do now. It all makes perfect sense, yet still, I explain what God gives to me, and others "interpret" it into something that fits their current state of mind...and heart.

It can be very frustrating.

I have even explained it as if they were trying to tell someone about Jesus, but they can't jump past the idea that "He just loves everybody, no matter what they do!"

People "believe" what they want to believe, and unless God opens the eyes, they will remain blind.

THIS is the answer, and Jesus spoke very clearly about it in Matthew Chapters 5, 6, and 7.

I know, I know, I teach and write about this ALL the time. Yes, and it still meets with deaf ears. Of course, because of what I know, I am still required to cast out my line and wait for God Himself to hook the men. It is not up to me. It never was. It never will be.

"It is how you present it!"

No, it is not. Haven't you ever seen how some guy can just say "Jesus loves you" to another and they drop to their knees and repent? Haven't you also seen where someone can present the Gospel with slides, marketing tools, radio, TV and any number of modern technologies and get crickets?

The Gospel itself does explain why this happens! Ah, but even in the presentation, most are unable to see what the Gospel message really is.

"It's about sin you dolt!"

Yes, yes, it is. However, Sin isn't merely doing wrong. This makes perfect sense when you understand that the solution to sin is Faith in God through Jesus Christ.

The first sin was eating from the Tree of The Knowledge of Good and Evil. The motive for the crime was a desire to become "like God".

Faith is trusting in God, The Father.

Sin, therefore, is the opposite.

Trusting in ourselves to ascend and become "like God".

Jesus opened the door and became the focal point to turn back, to repent, to turn from the effort to be better, and move into a relationship with God based on trust.

Trust in what? It isn't then, trust that God will do what we want but rather trust that God knows what is best. THIS is where the freedom is. The flight. The moving through the universe as if you had wings.

In my dream last night. I was in a large group of people. As I stood there, I decided to just fly. I started slow and just floated upward. As I did, I could see a better view of what was around the area. As I hovered, I picked a spot to go to and just took off. Like Superman I just flew. Not far from where I took off from, I looked back and saw someone else, someone who saw what I did, lift off the ground. They pretty much did the exact same thing I did. The hovered, marveled at the view, and then took off in a direction. Immediately after they did that, MANY others did the same thing. It spread very quickly!

As I flew higher and higher, I ended up in space. I found that I no longer needed to breathe and that knowledge increased to understand that I also no longer needed food and had no other "weaknesses". I was in fact, now immortal... indestructible.

Once that knowledge was understood, I flew back down and started telling anyone who would listen that we, who could fly, were now immortal.

What a feeling! This was what I woke up with.

Yeah, what a great way to start the day.

All these dreams tie together, along with All of scripture. The message is simple, yet we make it so complicated. We do it because we really don't like the simplicity, we don't like that we CAN'T earn this.

The Gift

You must understand, it is written plainly. God, The Father, The Author, The One outside of time and space, picks, chooses, predetermines those who He will give this gift too. It is NOT offered to everybody.

You see, due to this desire to ascend and become like God, we WORK, we STRIVE, we WANT to have some effort to receive this gift. The Gift, given by grace, IS the SIGHT, The Faith in God, through Jesus Christ.

You believe, because you now see. "IT IS TRUE! JESUS IS GOD!"

The light bulb goes on, and you now SEE it clearly. Without that light, you would have remained in darkness unable to see the obvious staring you right in the face!

Not By Works!

You don't even put in effort to accept this gift! That would be a work.

Faith then creates action. The faith is given; the act of that faith is to ACCEPT the truth of it. It WILL happen. It has nothing to do with a will or choice of a man. The faith, that gift, comes because God, The Father had grace on someone. He decided. He chose. HE GAVE.

No Room to Boast.

Can you see it?

Do you have the gift?

This is why it is so dangerous to resist the predestination teaching in scripture. The desire to be "like God" dominates our nature. It IS the sin nature. It is what we must oppose. It IS the opposite of Faith in God.

God is in control.

We are not.

How arrogant it is for man to dismiss God's sovereignty because he feels it is not "just" that God created evil and will judge man for it.

"He didn't do that! Man walked away!"

Really? Do you think God so stupid as to lose control over His creation because of a Tree He made and a snake, He let into the garden?

You really don't know the Power of God at all.

Matthew 22:29

29 Jesus replied, “You are in error because you do not know the Scriptures or the power of God.

If God is not ALL POWERFUL, and in control, how can anyone really trust Him?

You can't.

"God can't help you unless you ask."

God can't... That is the most unbiblical and evil thought ever in scripture.

Faith is what saves. Trust in God.

Sin is what brings death. Trusting in anything else.

Death is in fact separation from God.

It is "I don't need you!"

"You must repent and believe!"

Repentance IS turning from doubt to faith. It isn't becoming good first! If SIN is unbelief, then repentance is Belief! Isn't that what scripture teaches?! Isn't that what Jesus Teaches!?

Yes, yes, it is.

If you really look at Matthew chapter 5-7, the whole Gospel message is there... RIGHT THERE!

It starts in chapter 5. One of the most terrifying chapters in the book. The one most young Christians struggle with and feel hopeless over. Jesus doesn't just teach about the Law; He hammers it into something absolutely impossible!

The LAW was ALWAYS impossible! Just take a look at the speech Joshua gives to Isreal as they are about to enter into the Promised Land! He even says it!

Joshua 24: 19-21

19 Joshua said to the people, “You are not able to serve the Lord. He is a holy God; he is a jealous God. He will not forgive your rebellion and your sins.

20 If you forsake the Lord and serve foreign gods, he will turn and bring disaster on you and make an end of you, after he has been good to you.”

21 But the people said to Joshua, “No! We will serve the Lord.”

Jesus tells the Jewish people, a people still believing that they can obey the Law as they professed loudly to Joshua, "Yeah, no, if you even think about the hotness of another woman, you have already committed adultery..."

Ouch?

No! This is freedom, and where it begins.

This is where learning how to fly starts.

"I can't do it Lord. I can't become like You".

"You don't have to. I have proven who I AM. I have made the way... Follow me."

"But must I still choose? Must I still respond? Must I still Obey?!"

"NO! I finished the work. I finished the LAW."

"YOU ARE MY WORK!"

You see, if the Father chose you. You know because you believe. You see. You realized that You cannot be good enough to become like God. You KNOW that He accepts you anyway.

Yet... because of our "sin nature" our deep-seated desire to ascend, we still struggle with effort, work, and our "ability" to become more. This is moving away from faith in God and His completed work, to trusting in our work. Even in our "I'm so sorry's", apologies, promises to do better, and excuses for why we fail... "it just because I'm ADHD". These become works, effort, or penance.

It is turning back toward sin. It is saying to God that trusting Him is not enough.

Of course, the lifestyle shows it. If I think I am responsible. If I am in control, I have to do the same useless things to "try" to be better, I will meet with constant failure... feelings of disappointment.

If I trust God, I will never be disappointed.

Matthew Chapter 6 addresses this. Jesus exposes our struggle to again try to "appear" godly. He points out in the Lord's Prayer a submission to God, The Father's will... not ours.

He then goes into the solution. "Do not worry". Chapter 5 points out that you are not and never can be good enough. Chapter 6 points you to trust in the Father, WHO IS IN CONTROL. He says how to see the fault by realizing we do things for appearance, it exposes the deep desire to fight God for control, for our choice.

Oppose it by trusting God in ALL Things. "Your will be done!"

Stop fighting and surrender.

Jesus then hammers it home in Chapter 7 by exposing the "ascension" efforts in comparison. Repentance again, comes by trusting God's control. He even warns about false teachers who will try to convince you to trust in your work, your effort. They are exposed by how they treat others. Thorns, actions that demean others to raise themselves, bad fruit.

Galatians 5:22

22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law.

Do they climb by pulling others down? That is ascending.

You see, if you trust God for acceptance. What need do you have to be better than anyone?

You don't.

This message is really all throughout the book.

Man has rebelled, as planned.

God, not phased, as this is HIS work, created the scenario where those who He predestined will "see" that they ARE accepted, because of HIM, not because of anything they have done, or will do.

Because they "see", they WILL seek Him, to know Him better, thus increasing that trust, that connection to the Father. As they grow in this trust, they will oddly enough, become more like Him, not in power, but in grace, kindness, love, mercy and just a pleasure to be around.

The Holy Spirit will lift them, and they will see the bigger picture.

They will want to share this truth. They will even understand that only those "chosen" by The Father, will hear it, see it, and believe it. It has nothing to do with how well, polished or thoughtful they present it.

He really doesn't need us.

But it sure is nice to just do the flying thing and watch as others pick it up too.

It's like being a fisher of men.

"Nice catch there!"