SHEEP AND GOATS SERIES, continued

Sheep and Goats, Part 3

In Ezekiel 34 God called Ezekiel to prophesy against the irresponsible shepherds of His sheep: 


Ezekiel 34 New King James Version (NKJV)


34 And the word of the Lord came to me, saying, 2 “Son of man, prophesy against the shepherds of Israel, prophesy and say to them, ‘Thus says the Lord God to the shepherds: “Woe to the shepherds of Israel who feed themselves! Should not the shepherds feed the flocks? 3 You eat the fat and clothe yourselves with the wool; you slaughter the fatlings, but you do not feed the flock. 4 The weak you have not strengthened, nor have you healed those who were sick, nor bound up the broken, nor brought back what was driven away, nor sought what was lost; but with force and cruelty you have ruled them.


Yeshua (Jesus) similarly spoke of when He will judge the nations, or in other words, He will separate the sheep from the goats: 


Matthew 25:31-46New King James Version (NKJV)


31 “When the Son of Man comes in His glory, and all the holy[a] angels with Him, then He will sit on the throne of His glory. 32 All the nations will be gathered before Him, and He will separate them one from another, as a shepherd divides his sheep from the goats. 33 And He will set the sheep on His right hand, but the goats on the left.

I began this blog series on Sheep and Goats several years ago, little understanding exactly what the Father had planned and what He wished to say to me or through me...

Now, I have much more clarity on what I have sensed the Spirit is saying to the churches and consequently is saying to her sheep, goats and shepherds. Over the course of the next several posts, I expect to share some of those strategic thoughts reflected by prolonged study of God's word that my husband and I have engaged in, as well as some video studies that we have been impacted by.

FIRST, let's reflect on this odd serendipity: Today's Chinese/Lunar New Year celebration has a curious dilemma associated with it -- 2015 is the "year of the Sheep" but there is confusion about whether that is a sheep, goat or ram. Watch this short BBC video which explains the problem...

Sheep and Goats, Part 4

The Father sometimes speaks through seemingly insignificant circumstances to remind us of the truth of His word. This time instead of an ass, it's a millennia-old eastern New Year's tradition!

I'm sure it's not a huge newsflash to you that the church is confused about how to discern who among us comprise the good shepherds in our midst, not to mention the myriad doctrinal and denominational debates about who God's "chosen" sheep are.

I gave up trying to understand Calvin's Pre-destination vs. Election years ago, not to mention weighty subjects such as Evangelical Antinomianism and the more recent, Shack-inspired doctrines of Universalism.

This stuff can make a goyim-girl's head really spin, I promise.

Meanwhile, we have living proof every week as we attend Sunday worship that, just as God's people have lost much of the truth of His word in vain traditions, the Chinese are confused about whether they are to dedicate their New Year adulation to the lowly and passive sheep, the stubborn and willful goat or the dangerous, headbutting ram.

That's an interesting metaphor as we weed our fields, pray for our harvests and remain territorial over our 'herds', um, I mean, flocks.

Sadly, unknowing believers in Jesus have held onto traditions, barely questioning what it is we practice and whether our worship is really dedicated to God or is an offensive amalgam of exactly the weakened type of humanistic performance that He told Israel (that includes US) He cannot, He will not receive!

My heart has been suspicious for years -- has yours been nudging you? So much of what we have defined as worship, as service to our King, has vexed me deeply. I have felt like the woman at the well (John 4) -- she ultimately recognized who the King was, yet she had no understanding of what He was saying regarding HOW to know Him! 

Actually, she thought she had pegged Jesus from the start: "Yeah, I know you're a Jew and why are YOU talking to me, a Samaritan?"

When Jesus offered her living water, she responded by touting her traditions to Him...she knew her spiritual traditions, declaring Jacob was her forefather too, raising the centuries-old cultural divide between the Northern dispersed kingdom of Israel (forsaken by God due to their paganistic worship) and Judah, the outwardly obedient yet "whitewashed" Southern kingdom of Israel.

Talk about chutspah! She challenged Jesus further, this woman who'd had five husbands: “Sir, You have nothing to draw with, and the well is deep. Where then do You get that living water? Are You greater than our father Jacob, who gave us the well, and drank from it himself, as well as his sons and his livestock?”


So, Yeshua read her mail. He easily revealed to her that He was more powerful than their forefather, Jacob. She still kept to her long-held opinions though, and she countered one more time, with her Samaritan worship traditions! “Sir, I perceive that You are a prophet. Our fathers worshiped on this mountain, and you Jews say that in Jerusalem is the place where one ought to worship.”


I stand amazed at the patience and love of the Lord of the Universe, as He drop-kicked her attitude, 180-degrees, right into Eternity: "But the hour is coming, and now is, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth; for the Father is seeking such to worship Him. God is Spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth.”

That was when He revealed Himself to her -- she saw it. He was Messiah and she ran to tell everyone who would listen. That, then was her worship, her obedience, her living sacrifice. She did HIS will and followed HIM at that moment.

She ultimately recognized Him as more than a prophet -- but until she obeyed Him, speaking truthfully as He sifted her heart, she couldn't really know Him as King and Lord. 


And His disciples? They were distraught over Jesus speaking to a woman! Well, boys, of course He was talking to her...


Think about it, where was He? At Jacob's well. Doesn't this sound similar to the Genesis account about Abraham's servant who found Isaac's bride Rebekah, at Laban's well? And remember, Jacob went to Laban's well (Gen.29), finding his beloved bride Rachel there.


Do you see it? In Sychar (translated "drunken" or "falsehood", as in idolatry/false worship) Yeshua was at that particular well, Jacob's well in Samaria, talking about His "living water", the "gift of God" for His Bride! And He was speaking to all of us, His beloved, about worshiping in spirit and in truth.

Do you see it? 

It's all about WHO you worship, in spirit and in truth.

Yet, sadly, ignorantly, believers in Jesus have been spiritually exiled into Babylon for a couple of thousand years and we haven't even realized it. We, like the Samaritans have been arguing about our descendancy, our worship traditions, while we stand and argue in the actual presence of our King, our Lord! 

Man! I can tell you that I have been knocked back, breathless with my sudden realization of my own glaring presumption! I had no idea what I was doing; I was a child and I was speaking and living as a child.

I have been arguing with Adonai, Elohim, the Great I Am and I didn't even know that's what I had been doing. 

For years I have prayed Romans 12:1-2 for my life. I want to be that living sacrifice of worship proving what is the good, acceptable and perfect will of God.

Due only to His goodness, the Father has graciously sifted my heart and answered my heart's desire (Ps. 37:4) for His living water, like that woman at the well. All I can say today, is how utterly grateful I am to my Abba, for faithfully keeping me in Him.

Listen, I realize I haven't really told you yet, exactly what I'm talking about, exactly just what I've come to understand in my walk as a worshiper of God.

I can tell you this much today: I'm not dishing about contemporary worship styles versus hymns and traditional liturgy, or the appropriateness of using flags and banners in the sanctuary while believers prophesy and sing in tongues. 

NO! That's the same traditions-and-appearance-fluff that the Samaritan woman tried to engage Jesus in. We know how He shut that line of thinking down. Have you ever thought about where those arguments really come from? 

Well, we know who he is -- he tempted the Son of God for forty days in the wilderness didn't he? He has desired since ages of old, to usurp the worship of the Father, as he deceives the children of God, right? You know, the house-divided-can't-stand tactical offense and we all know it's nothing new under the sun. 

If you will commit to study the scriptures like a noble Berean (Acts 17--"they received the word with all eagerness, examining the Scriptures daily to see if these things were so") and if you will open your heart to God's word, praying that His Holy Spirit will open your eyes to His truth, I think you may be in for a surprise. 

John 16:13New King James Version (NKJV)

13 However, when He, the Spirit of truth, has come, He will guide you into all truth; for He will not speak on His own authority, but whatever He hears He will speak; and He will tell you things to come.

Please keep coming back here, to study and pray with me, won't you?

Sheep and Goats, Part 5

So many times I have read verses from the gospels, and wondered about Jesus' words, his parables, his description of His earthly ministry. This one has bugged me for years:

Who are the lost sheep of Israel that Yeshua said he came for?

If you have recently pondered this question, then you may be hearing what the Spirit is saying to the churches in this age. 

If you have ever prayed for a revival, if you have ever desired to witness and be a part of the "Great Awakening", then please view this short promo and then commit to spending little more than an hour of your life to inquire of the scriptures. You can click the link below to navigate to the full video...



 
The Lost Sheep - Promo from 119 Ministries on Vimeo.


Click here to view this free video... you may never be the same.

Sheep and Goats, Part 6

[ please return here soon, for my next post in this series ]