I was with you in weakness, in fear, and in much trembling.
And my speech and my preaching [were] not with persuasive words of human
wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power, that your faith should
not be in the wisdom of men but in the power of God. - 1Co 2:3-5 NKJV
It is very easy to communicate with people who agree with you
already. No matter what you are saying, when your audience is a friendly group
of peers that share your convictions and beliefs it is a great strength and
comfort. However, when you move outside of that safe place and expose your
convictions and beliefs in the marketplace it becomes a fearful thing and the
gospel of Jesus is far more divisive than most anything else you can share. The
Jesus presented in the bible cuts through our inner being and dices up much of
our cultural norms. I am now in weakness, fear and much trembling, for I have
chosen to live for God in such a way I am considered foolish by many. Yet I do
not boast in my “courage” to push forward, for if it were by my own power then
I might have a boast, but it is solely because of the revelation of Jesus
Christ. My hope is in the reward of the gospel that is stored up in heaven for
me, and the glory of the Kingdom of God, for it is God who chose the foolish
things of this world to confound the wise. In other words, I am on display,
living counter to the American wisdom, believing that my life is truly hidden
with Christ in God. My own heart attempts to defraud me, saying what are you
doing, what are you accomplishing? Even though I continue in faith that what
Jesus said is true. What many of you may be unaware of is that my “blind faith”
is not blind or misguided, but it stands upon the power of God. Jesus revealed
himself to me through visions and acts of power. I was not persuaded to become
a “Christian” by a convincing presentation of the gospel, but direct
communication from the Lord. So now, after 20+ years it appears the silence of
heaven has grown loud, but I stand firm on the power of God.
Now to you I say if you claim to have faith, what is it
built upon; reason, arguments, wisdom of men, science, history, logic, etc. If
your faith is built upon any of these things then you are in danger because
they are not enough to preserve you. We will continue to work, toil, spin and
otherwise wear ourselves out to gain prominence, security and peace in this age
when all the while we are called to rest. We work our fingers to the bone to
have a good retirement and then have it snatched away by some type of
difficulty and are left wondering, “What was the point”. It has been sung that
everybody’s working for the weekend, and I know what it is like, but this is
not the life God has planned for us. All we want is to be happy and yet we
sacrifice our happiness in order to get it and wonder why we are bitter, angry
and selfish. Let your faith be in God and the work He accomplished through His
Son Christ Jesus our Lord. Rest in Him, for He is returning to gather His
beloved to Himself to lavish His love upon you who believe. Outlandish and
foolish but the only rock solid hope there is.
