Self-Sinner.

 Self…sins.

That's right, self…sins. 

The self-serving part of us sins. Name a sin that isn't self-serving in some way. 

The ironic thing is, what we consider self-serving is in fact ultimately going to kill us. The wages of sin is death. We kill ourselves through our sins and it's not a death necessarily of our flesh. You can sin until you're a hundred years old, but ultimately the death you'll reap from all the sin is a permanent death of non-existence. Non-existence. If you think your life of a hundred years is long, ask all those who are on the brink of a hundred years of life how fast all those years went by for them. They'll tell you it went very quickly. In the grand scheme of things, a hundred years is something that can go by very quickly. A hundred years when held against eternity is absolutely very little time.  Your years of sin revelry won't last, can't last, what you believe you're doing when you sin- serving self- is actually killing you and not serving yourself at all. You've been deceived into believing your sinning serving self is doing you good in some way or else why would you continue on in sin?  Not all sins that so easily beset us are easy to sin no more, but at the very most you must hate the sin and strive against sin. A true repentance, a genuine lamentation, a very real soul affliction must be made. A Holy Spirit conviction, a constant dying daily to self,  a surrender, an opening of the door to the One who knocks, the mystery of Christ in us, this must be our life! Only Christ in us- our hope - can give us the eternal salvation He alone can offer.  Christ our hope. 

(Excerpt- A.T. Jones)

The word of Christ to every man is this, "If any man will come after Me, let him deny himself." Luke 9:23.

All sin is of self, and self is of Satan. All righteousness is of Christ, and Christ is of God.

Therefore let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus, "who emptied Himself" that the Father might appear to men, and that men might be saved. Let it be in you. As surely as you will let this mind be in you, so surely will it be in you. And so surely as in Him it led Him to empty Himself, so surely it will lead you to empty yourself of all self. And so surely as you are emptied of self, so surely will you be "filled with all the fullness of God." Eph. 3:19.

*******

"I just want to die! Let me die! Please, let me die!" Venjeran screamed. That scream however was nothing but a hoarse whisper to those who sat near him. 

"More balm, get more balm," Aljudia, one of two healers called to the servant boy who instantly rushed off. 

"The balm is not working," Whygni countered, but didn't yell for the servant boy not to go. 

"Nothing is working, nothing. We need stronger bark for the tea, and more of the soothing incense. The incense will help him sleep it's the only thing that does," Aljudia sighed, and reached out with a cool cloth touching it to the suffering man's brow.

"I'll get the incense," Whygni mumbled and left the room with forlorn parting remark. "Rarnee needs to return, and soon, or Venjeran is going to will himself to die."

*

"Are you sure you should go? You've scarcely recovered and…"

"Yes, I have to go. Venjeran…" Rarnee sighed leaving her sentence unfinished.

"Venjeran needs you, I understand," Luida commiserated. She wished things could be different for Rarnee and her ill husband. 

She'd been away from him for over two months and in truth didn't know if he were dead or alive. Unless she found the Miracle Worker and brought Him to Venjeran she couldn't return. How could she live with herself if she didn't do everything she could to help her husband. Some might question her leaving him in his time of desperate need, but he'd wanted her to help him and she could do nothing for him, nothing.  Putting a cool cloth on his head as he screamed in agony, did nothing. Crying hot tears as he cried tears of pain, did nothing.  When knowledge of the Miracle Worker came to her she knew right then she had to try to find Him because only a miracle could save her husband. Yes, she'd thought about the possibility of Venjeran dying while she was gone and every time the thought came she pushed it hard away from her, refusing to entertain the idea as any sort of reality. 

"I leave tomorrow morning and I can't thank you enough, Luida," Rarnee said, and reached for the woman's hands with hers, squeezing gently.

"All thanks goes to God, Rarnee, all thanks and all glory. He brought you to us and you've blessed us with your presence. You revived the memories of the Miracle Worker and all the blessings we received at His hands. You'll find Him, Rarnee, I know you'll find Him." 

Would she? She had to.

"Yes, I'll find Him."

Jesus Is the Acceptable Part of Us.

 The Greatest Mystery. 

Guess what?! You're invited to this greatest of mysteries!

The Riches of the Glory of This Mystery--Christ In You--Christ the Hope of Glory--Every Man Perfect In Christ Jesus.

You HAVE to admit that it is the greatest mystery -how we can be made perfect by Christ Jesus. 

From the worst most blatant sinner to the saint-seeming sinner, we are ALL corrupted. God will look for Christ in us because only Christ in us is worthy of redemption. Our works will be brought into judgment and only one work we do will be acceptable. The work of believing on Jesus Christ whom God sent to us, and believing over and over and over again- every day a renewed belief!

Christ in you, the hope of glory- not you in Christ, the hope of glory. There is a difference. Christ comes to live in us, we invite Him into our lives. We do not do the work of entering into Christ, we do not knock on His door. We have to believe truly that our salvation rests solely on Christ and His merits, and not a single merit of our own. Our believing is our work. Our believing that He draws us to Him and that alone brings us to Him for Him to enter into us, this is our work. We stand before Christ by invitation. We must accept the invitation, the rest is for Christ Jesus to do, for the Holy Spirit to enable.

When we are invited to an event -unless specifically stated we are under no obligation to bring something to that event (social dictation may require us to bring a token gift to a small, intimate event, or the nature of event may be to garner gifts). This particular huge event, this royal event does not dictate we bring anything- we are being gifted even by the invitation- our presence is all the reciprocation desired. Our showing up to the event we've been invited to, this is all important. Not showing up automatically leaves us empty, not able in any way to experience the event. We must show up. You can't show up to an event that doesn't take place.

The event you are allowed to attend has you escorted into, and given all you need, to take part in the event you've been invited to. Not wearing the appropriate clothing? Of course you're not. Clothing is offered to you. Not clean enough to don the appropriate clothing, a bath is offered to you. So hungry you fear you can't last until the main feast, a snack of ample substance is given to you. So thirsty you can't think straight, you are offered something to drink. In fact everyone who accepts the invitation to this event must partake of all the services offered, because this event is so unique, so inexplicably intricate and fancy, and such a mystery that none are ever appropriately prepared for the event. The invitation is not only for the event, but for that preparation for the event. You can only be prepare by allowing the host to do all these things for you, you simply must let him do what needs to be done. You must yield yourself to the host. Nothing you can ever think to do to be prepared will be acceptable, because the event is otherworldly, out of your realm of comprehension, filled with the wondrous.

Christ extends the invitation we accept the invitation and invite Him in and as soon as we invite Him in we are inviting Him to change us completely. This change is something that is done in mystery, we are just told to believe it will take place and be done in us. We are told to believe. Believe even when we cannot see, even when we cannot comprehend, even when we notice no change at all, we are told to believe -this is our work. The change will come in us and it's not supposed to be recognized as a change in us but recognized as Christ in us. That recognition may very well be unrecognizable to keep us from the tiniest sliver of laying claim to our making the change by something we've done- other than believe. We cannot force our own change try as we might, and boy, do we try. We sometimes try so hard we forget completely to yield and begin to do all kinds of things we think are commendable and acceptable, but none of those things are because NOTHING we do can be acceptable. It must all be done by our Savior every last bit, nothing excluded.  Jesus alone is the acceptable, when Jesus enters into us He is the acceptable part of us. 

Col 1:26  Even the mystery which hath been hid from ages and from generations, but now is made manifest to his saints: 

Col 1:27  To whom God would make known what is the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles; which is Christ in you, the hope of glory: 

Col 1:28  Whom we preach, warning every man, and teaching every man in all wisdom; that we may present every man perfect in Christ Jesus: 

Col 1:29  Whereunto I also labour, striving according to his working, which worketh in me mightily. 

Joh 6:28  Then said they unto him, What shall we do, that we might work the works of God? 

Joh 6:29  Jesus answered and said unto them, This is the work of God, that ye believe on him whom he hath sent

God-Man, Miracle Worker.

 The Miracle Worker- all knew the man who was meant by such a name, but none knew his given name in order to ask after him. Some could remember knowing his name at one time, hearing his name more than once, and yet could not remember that name now. The collective memory loss revolving around a single name confused the villagers but one of their wisest villagers simply remarked- "All glory to God."  

They all agreed the Miracle Worker mentioned God often, and gave glory to Him endlessly. On Sabbaths the Miracle Worker had spoke in such a way they had their hearts touched and their spirits awakened as never before. The Miracle Worker was a miracle in and of himself, they knew this at the very core of their being. Never before in the history of all history had there ever been a time when such a man could heal as he, never.  Yes, each village had their healers, but their healing abilities were basic in comparison to this man's. They could clean and dress a wound, he could heal the wound to completion. They could give teas of herbs and spices for illnesses, he spoke a word and their illnesses were gone. They could wrap a broken bone, splint it and such, but he could make it so that is was as if the broken bone had never broken. They could offer as much comfort for things completely out of their realm of being able to help- leprosy, lameness, blindness, demon possession, mutism, deafness, wasting diseases and the like. The Miracle Worker cured all of those things, all of them! 

The Miracle Worker was from God, no one in their village would dispute that claim, who else could have sent such a prophet! God had blessed them richly and they couldn't even remember the Miracle Worker's name. All glory to God. He was a God-sent man, a prophet, but what was his name? All prophets had names. All glory to God - proclaimed the God Prophet, Miracle Worker, all glory to God.

They would have deemed him an angel sent by God, if they hadn't learned of his continued work all through their land. He was no angel, at least not an angel they'd ever been taught existed and walked among man before. He was a man, but a God man, they knew this in their hearts. Not a single villager would say different for all had been touched by him, healed by him in one way or another.

When their sicknesses began to return they didn't feel regret, they didn't feel anger, they continued to feel blessed, because they had been blessed. The blind never lost their sight, all those with diseases cured did not succumb to them again, and so on.  Did the newly diseased lament their new conditions having come too late for the Miracle Worker to cure? Sure, in some ways they couldn't help but mourn their fate, but they were still grateful for all he'd done, and when he'd done it.  

All glory to God- as the God-man proclaimed, all glory to God.

*******

A.T. Jones (Excerpt)

'So entirely did He empty Himself of all self that He could say with perfect truth, 

"I came down from heaven, not to do Mine own will, but the will of Him that sent Me." John 6:38. 

"I can of Mine own self do nothing: As I hear, I judge, and My judgment is just because I seek not Mine own will, but the will of Him that sent Me." John 5:30.

"Verily, verily, I say unto you, the Son can do nothing of Himself, but what He seeth the Father do; for what things soever He doeth, these also doeth the Son likewise." Verse 19. 

"The Father that dwelleth in Me, He doeth the works." John 14:10. 

"My doctrine is not Mine, but His that sent Me." John 7:16. 

"The words that I speak unto you, I speak not of Myself," "But the Father which sent Me, He gave a commandment, what I should say and what I should speak." John 14:10; 12:49.

He came not doing His own will, nor speaking His own words, nor doing His own works.

It was the Father's will which was done in Him; it was the Father's words that were spoken by Him; and it was the Father's works that were done in Him. 

That is to say, He emptied Himself that the Father might appear in Him. And when He emptied Himself, the Father did appear in Him. And so, "in Him dwelleth all the fullness of the Godhead bodily." He was "God manifest in the flesh," "God with us."

But He did all this that men might know the Father as He really is. 

Therefore, He says none know "the Father but the Son, and he to whomsoever the Son will reveal Him." "He that hath seen Me hath seen the Father." 

This is Jesus Christ, the Son of God, the Saviour of the world.

What the Father was to the Son and in the Son in this world, that is just what He wishes to be to every person in this world. And just as certainly as any man will empty himself of self, as Christ did, so certainly will the Father be to him, and in him, what He was to the Son, and in the Son.

He Humbled Himself

 

God Jesus stripped off His divinity when He chose to humble Himself knowing that when He took on the flesh of humanity, He was taking on death.  He died for us unworthy creatures. 

Satan longs to be a god, equal with God the Father, equal with God Jesus. Satan's twisted mind, warped through pride, has Him believing he is a god- not equal, but better than the Father and Jesus, as well as the Holy Spirit. Satan took one third of God's created angels, angels just as He was an angel and through deception, the angel gathered other angels and began a life separated from the Gods of Heaven. Satan chose to target God's created human beings and was able to deceive them. They were now Satan's! They belonged to him! However, they were destined to die. He could NOT offer them eternal life, he didn't even try, it wasn't his to give. He offered them deception. He convinced them they needed to live their lives for themselves just as he lived his life for himself. He set up lie after lie, after lie. The first lie he set up was telling mankind they wouldn't die. He lied. To spin his lie, he told them once this body they possessed stopped living they had another body waiting for them, a body like his, a spirit body. He lied. 

Satan is the Father of lies and proud of it.

Jesus God who was in every way equal to God the Father willingly gave up His God power just to become a human being, to become part of a created race. Not only did He become part of a created race, but part of a created race that had succumbed to a created fallen angel's lies, a race of weak, sin inclined flesh. He humbled Himself. 

Php 2:6  Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God: 

Php 2:7  But made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men: 

Php 2:8  And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross. 

A.T. Jones

'Then, when the fullness of time was come, the Father would reveal Himself to mankind as He really is, and His bearing toward the world of sinners. And in order that this might be done in its fullness and perfection, Jesus emptied Himself, and "took upon Him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men; and being found in fashion as a man, He humbled Himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross." Phil. 2:6-8. 

"The Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us (and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father), full of grace and truth." John 1:14.

So entirely did He empty Himself of all self that He could say with perfect truth, "I came down from heaven, not to do Mine own will, but the will of Him that sent Me." John 6:38. "I can of Mine own self do nothing: As I hear, I judge, and My judgment is just because I seek not Mine own will, but the will of Him that sent Me." John 5:30. "Verily, verily, I say unto you, the Son can do nothing of Himself, but what He seeth the Father do; for what things soever He doeth, these also doeth the Son likewise." Verse 19. "The Father that dwelleth in Me, He doeth the works." John 14:10. "My doctrine is not Mine, but His that sent Me." John 7:16. "The words that I speak unto you, I speak not of Myself," "But the Father which sent Me, He gave a commandment, what I should say and what I should speak." John 14:10; 12:49.'

Love By Our Creator.

"I need the miracle worker," she whispered through cracked, dried lips. 

"Shh, you're going to be okay, just rest now."

"You…you don't understand, my husband…" Her voice was barely audible. Her dry tongue tried to wet her parched lips but there was no moisture. 

The edge of a cup was placed against her mouth. "Sip slowly, dear." Her caretaker's voice was soft. 

Listening, she sipped from the cup. Cool water touched her lips and mingled with the copper taste of the caked blood. As the water trickled down the back of her throat she coughed lightly and the cup was pulled away. 

"Easy now, slowly." 

She was encouraged as the cup returned to her lips.

Several sips later she felt better and closed her eyes even as she tried to speak, but failed. Nonsensical words trailed off as consciousness eluded her.

Not awake, yet not resting, Rarnne tossed and turned, moaning as her dreams slipped into nightmares. 

He was calling for her over and over. The sound of his voice familiar yet strained by the agony filling his entire being. He needed her help, his pain was too intense, but there was nothing she could do, nothing. The teas to relieve pain weren't working any longer. The twisting of his spine growing worse even as he was placed in a healer's contraption meant to straighten him. Why had this happened to him? What caused him to go from being perfectly healthy to an invalid over the course of the last several years? He didn't know, she didn't know, and no one else knew why this tragedy had befallen Venjeran. Even if they knew, there was nothing they could do to change a thing. The knowledge of the why would not give the how and that is what they needed, the how to make things better.  

"Rarnneeeeee! Help me! Rarneeeee! Please! The pain! Stop the pain!" 

How long had she heard the cries, day in, day out, awake, asleep the constant voice of agony she could no longer shut out of her thoughts.

"Venjeran!" She answered in a hoarse cry of her own, breaking through her sleep and into consciousness. "Venjeran!" She tried to sit up but every muscle in her body protested and she fell back.

"No, no! Don't get up, stop, you need to rest!" Gentle hands wrapped around her arms and eased her back into the bed. "Shh, I'm Luida. You arrived here yesterday morning and collapsed. Let me get you some warm broth and some more water and after that if you feel up to it you can tell me…"

"Venjeran, he needs the Miracle Worker. We were told he'd been here, please…"

"Shhhh, eat first. You need to get stronger. The miracle worker hasn’t been here for over a year now, I'm so sorry." Luida gave Rarnee's arms a gentle pat, her words filled with compassion. Rarnee wasn't the first to come to their village looking for the Miracle Worker. Several people had heard the news and come looking for Him. Theirs wasn't the only village touched by the Miracle Worker, though. Many villages had been blessed by Him, people were desperate for His healing touch.

"I have to find Him, please…"

"Shhhh, let me get that broth. You stay here for a few days and rest up and I'm sure we can get you to the next village, they might have news of Him."

Rest, while Venjeran suffered, she didn't dare and yet, if something happened to her then she couldn't help him any longer. She'd rest but only for as long as it took for her to regain her strength. Every moment was precious and she'd been gone from Venjeran for over two months now. 

"Thank you," she whispered, "thank you, Luida, may God bless you."

*******

A collective of creatures. We all have the same basic components with overall minimal variances. The only thing unique to the creatures as individuals is their thoughts, their memories, their choices, the thing that makes them separate from all others. Our brains in structure are quite similar. To take several brains from several creatures and mix them up blindly, you'd be hard pressed to tell whose brain belong to which body (in general-not in comparing excising strokes and the like). The brain is our center of thought, our uniqueness resides there. If you were to really get right down to it, very few people are exactly alike in any great detail. We are all generally the same. We are creatures given the gift of unique individuality. That individuality was never intended for us to use in order to place ourselves in a position of superiority. No creature could ever become their own Creator, forever there would be a Creator above and beyond all creatures. 

We have been deceived by Satan, the would-be great usurper, the great deceiver, the one who dared believe they - a creature- could be a Creator. The deceiver was given a death sentence and prior to that being carried out, all the creatures would get an opportunity to use their individuality to decide to be creatures loving their Creator, or to be creatures loving themselves, creatures putting their Creator first, or creatures putting themselves first. Our loving Creator suffered and died to give us this opportunity of choice. Our loving Creator did everything He could to save as many of His creatures as He possibly could. 

A.T. Jones -

"The deception of man led him to put self in the place of God, and the mind and word of Satan in the place of the mind and word of God. This led to the perversion of man's ideas concerning God, and the receiving of Satan's ideas and suggestions as the true ideas concerning God. It led to the setting of God in a totally false light in the estimation of man. It led mankind to look upon God as a hard master, a despotic governor, and a stern, impassive, unmerciful judge. Over and over, the Lord set forth His Word to the contrary. To Moses He declared Himself to be "merciful and gracious, long-suffering, and abundant in goodness and truth, keeping mercy for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin." In His law He set forth His character as "LOVE." Yet, for all this, mankind still followed perverted ideas of God."

Exo 34:6  And the LORD passed by before him, and proclaimed, The LORD, The LORD God, merciful and gracious, longsuffering, and abundant in goodness and truth, 

Exo 34:7  Keeping mercy for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin…

No Right to Know.

 Why do we imagine we have a right to know evil? Satan said to Eve…

Gen 3:4  And the serpent said unto the woman, Ye shall not surely die: 

Gen 3:5  For God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil. 

 God said…

Gen 2:16  And the LORD God commanded the man, saying, Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat: 

Gen 2:17  But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die. 

Eve chose to eat the forbidden fruit because of a lie. She didn't think she'd die. She imagined having her eyes opened to know good and evil would make her like a god. Satan lied and told her she would be 'as gods'. He didn't lie completely though, he loves to mingle truth with lies. Gods do know good and evil, but Gods are from everlasting to everlasting, without beginning or end.  Gods can create from nothing. Gods are the purest of love. Mankind are created beings, not Creators. Mankind are powerless, not gods. Tempted with being given God knowledge, Eve succumbed. She'd been told by her Creator Himself that she shouldn't eat of this tree, told it was a tree of knowledge of good and evil, told she would die if she chose to gain that knowledge by eating the fruit. She deemed it worth it, worth death. Did she know what death was? Yes. God gave her and Adam that knowledge of death's meaning. What good would such a warning be if there were no knowledge of the punishment? To tell a child they will not be allowed to play with a drum if they are disobedient would mean nothing if they had absolutely no knowledge of what a drum was.  But given the knowledge of the drum and its allure to be played with, the child would have incentive to be obedient.  God let them know what death would be should they eat of the fruit. Yet, Satan called God a liar and said that mankind would not die. Instead of dying they would just be given knowledge, and God had said it was a tree of knowledge. 

Death. There are many forms of death, aren't there? Seriously. You've heard the term a death to innocence, you've also heard- "You're dead to me." - spoken to a living being. The death that Adam and Eve were given knowledge of was the death of their non-existence, a death of their entire being. Satan knew that death was non-existence, as well as an end to their forms.  

When Eve bit into the fruit her death of non-existence was not instantaneous. The death of her being however had begun instantly, the process was underway. All the eternal life giving particles that she'd been imbued with were instantly tainted with the promised punishment of death. Everything changed for her and she knew it immediately. The knowledge of evil mingled with the knowledge of good, and that evil was horrific beyond anything she might have considered, but under God's protection she had no need to know of any evil, not the slightest bit. That she knew it existed and would take away her eternal life should have sufficed, it did not.

We have this belief that as created beings we have rights to things, oh wait, we forget we are created beings and that is why we believe we have the right to things. The knowledge of good and evil tainted all aspects of us, even our perception of rights as being people. We've put ourselves on pedestals- ever seeking a little god status that Satan promised we get by having knowledge. Knowledge does not make God, but knowledge especially evil knowledge can lead one to believe they are as gods. God does know evil and good, and it's a heavy weight of knowledge never intended for created beings.

We must all die with Christ- we must all be crucified with Christ, and rise with Him.  We suffer under the curse of the tree of knowledge of good and evil, a tree we had no right to partake of, a tree's fruit that is the root cause of all the suffering we ever experience in any way.

Please, Lord, we would be YOURS. Live in us, let Your mind be in us, because the mind of our own is corrupt, so very corrupt.

All by Your grace and mercy, Your love.

Find the Miracle Worker