What inspires people to go? What changes our perspectives from cowardice, fear, and comfort to warrior, strength, and faith? Not a macho kind of strength, and definitely not the world’s view of courage, and faith that becomes…EVERYTHING!
The disciples followed Jesus for three years witnessing countless miracles with their own eyes, and yet when Jesus was arrested, when it seemed that their Lord who had held the authorities at bay for so long suddenly did not…they fled. We cannot really blame them; if the police came and arrested one of my teachers and all of his followers I would probable run too, and I believe most of us would do the same.
However, these same men who had betrayed, abandoned, and fled from their Lord; they came back!
Jesus restored his disciples even Peter the most overt and outspoken of them all, the most boisterous; Jesus takes this loud mouthed and rough around the edges fishermen and through His Spirit changes his heart! Jesus restores Peter and then promotes him to the “rock on which I will build my church.” He replaces Judas, empowers and then sends out the twelve. What was the change? The Sunday school answer of course is the Holy Spirit and Jesus.
The Holy Spirit empowers the disciples to go out and preach the good news of Jesus Christ, that the Kingdom of God in here, and they are empowered to cast out demons, heal the sick, raise the dead! (Acts 1:8; Mark 16:15-18)
It is a little easier to accept the workings of the Holy Spirit, especially after Pentecost and since the New Testament was put written. There is a point to all this and I am working my way to it, so bear with me.
Something I think we tend to forget is that the Holy Spirit is still active to this day; ok lets also get something else covered-the Holy Spirit is not a ‘what’ but a ‘who’. He is still active and at work to this day! The very same Spirit that called our Bible heroes; Noah to build an ark, Moses to free the nation of Isreal and then later to deliver the Law. Hebrews 11 helps describe what He can and has done through flawed men and women.
He is still active(the Holy Spirit) and He still directs and guides us to this day. An ancient voice, a gentle and wooing voice. No, He is not always audible and we have no right to hear His voice audibly, that is His choice. Yet inclinations on our hearts, thoughts in our minds that we recognize aren’t from us almost screaming at our souls that the Father has more to this life for us!
It was the same ancient voice that spoke life into creation, that spoke to Noah, Moses, Sampson, Abraham, Jesus, John the Baptist, and countless others! This same voice by the same spirit that enabled the prophets to prophesy, that healed the sick, raised the dead, and that now works in our souls and in our hearts not only to heal our wounds but to send us out! It is the same Spirit that enabled John the Baptist to live in the wilderness and eat bugs in order to fulfill the prophecy, “the voice of one crying out in the wilderness.” It is the same Spirit that enabled Saul, who had such zeal to protect Jewish law and tradition to repent and become Paul one of the zealous followers of Jesus and a warrior for God’s grace.
This is the same ancient, loving, and powerful Spirit that inspired such men like Dietrich Bonhoeffer to oppose Hitler. In his biography and according to his journals and his journey of faith; he came to a point where it was no longer sufficient to simply oppose Hitler and the Nazi’s in word, but to get to a such a place of integrity and obedience to Christ that he no longer asked for the opinion of others or permission to oppose Hitler. It came to a point for him that there was no longer discussion but only opposition to the Nazi’s and only by the same Spirit working in him to do was that possible.
It is the same for John the Baptist who, at least I can imagine, came to a similar place in his relationship with the Lord who no longer asked for permission or ‘what do you think?’ But came to a place in his heart and mind where he was fully aware of what God was calling him to do; to become the voice in the wilderness. He had arrived to the point on his life where he was willing to give everything up for the sake of Christ, and lived and cried out in the wilderness.
Jesus stated in Mark 3:28-29 “I tell you the truth, all the sins and blasphemies of men will be forgiven them. But whoever blasphemes against the Holy Spirit will never be forgiven; he is guilty of an eternal sin.”
A word from the Lord came to me earlier this week; do not stifle, shut out, interrupt, disbelieve, shut out, quell, or disobey the Holy Spirit. Do not shut out the Holy Spirit’s impressions on your heart because of a job, relationship, or the ‘what if’ of life. Do not pour ‘new wine into old wine skins’.
Do not allow the distractions of this world, its tough, to stifle the calling God has on our lives. I believe more men have an inclination to the mission field yet that yearning gets covered up with; job, money, responsibilities, expectations, and none of these are inherently bad or evil. Do not abandon your family to go to the mission field, but take them with you! It can be difficult simply because we are flawed human being, but we must remember that we are living for eternity! Schools, jobs, relationships, church groups, money, and all things under the sun are temporary. We will all spend eternity somewhere.
I do not want to stifle the Holy Spirit’s work in my life. It is hard sometimes because I get distracted too (I’m human). I have desires in this life just as everyone else does; job that provides, wife, family, and good health. Yet I have this calling on my life to GO. How can I justify disobeying the Lord when it is so obvious that He has called me through the same ancient voice to Go? He has rescued me from death(twice), provided peace in strife, sent angels to protect me, healed past wounds and will heal current ones, He has sent me to Jamaica, India, Mexico, and Peru, and now calls me further. I only sense freedom and purpose while on mission. Yes I am adventurous and He uses that for His glory! I cannot and will not shut out that ancient voice, the same voice that cries out in the wilderness for me to Go!
Jonah attempted to flee from the Lord, and His story proves that it does not work! “The Word of the Lord came to Jonah son of Amittai: ‘Go to the great city of Ninevah and preach against it, because its wickedness has come before me.’ But Jonah ran away from the Lord..” (Jonah 1-3a). Later on the Lord did not give Jonah a choice, it became obvious, “And the Lord commanded the fish, and it vomited Jonah onto dry land (Jonah 2:10). The Lord literally vomited Jonah into the mission field that He called him to go. We don’t have to go perfectly clean and completely ‘together’ (another mistake the modern church makes).
To simplify this really long blog; I am to go, we are to go! Listen to the voice from the wilderness that cries out to our hearts!! Pray always in the Spirit, fan into flames the gifts God as given you, and cultivate your faith!!
