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Email # 8 (May)

I've been reading Exodus lately, and it got me thinking about some things.

We're gonna jump to Exodus chapter one in a moment. It's such a great book. If you haven't read it, I'd recommend reading it some time. And if you have read it, why not read it again? It's such an amazing book!

The book of Exodus tells the story of Moses and His journey leading the Israelites through the wilderness, towards Canaan, the promised “land”. They did some great things, but they also failed at a lot of things too. Later on in the New Testament, Paul makes it clear to us that the story is there for a reason, and it's for our benefit! (1 Corinthians 10:11.) There are many things you can learn from their story, that you can apply to your own personal life. Primarily though, we can apply the lessons to the church as a whole. After all, the Israelites were a group of people journeying together! But I digress...

Let's look at the start of the book: The Israelites, (because of Joseph), are now occupying Egypt.

Exodus 1:7-13:

...the Israelites were fruitful and multiplied greatly and became exceedingly numerous, so that the land was filled with them.

Then a new king, who did not know Joseph, came to power in Egypt. “Look,” he said to his people, “the Israelites have become too numerous for us. Come, we must deal shrewdly with them or they will become even more numerous and, if war breaks out, will join our enemies, fight against us and leave the country.
So they put slave masters over them to oppress them with forced labour, and they built Pithom and Rameses as store cities for Pharaoh.

But the more they were oppressed, the more they multiplied and spread; so the Egyptians came to dread the Israelites and worked them ruthlessly.

The reason Pharaoh and the Egyptians oppressed the Israelites is because they were scared of them! He knew what they could become if they began to discover who they were and what they were called to do. (The Israelites were (and still are) a special group of people with a great calling on them as a nation.)

That's a lot like Christians today! The enemy has oppressed Christians in a number of ways, ultimately because he's scared of what they can achieve if they knew who they are and what they're called to do.

Obviously, in some ways, the church (corporate) has made heaps of ground. If you're a Christian, you're on the winning team. But we still have a long way to go! There are a quite a few ways that Christians are like the Israelites in the verses above!

He has oppressed Christians today through sin, boredom, religion, apathy, wrong mindsets, just to name a few. But when we get free... look out!! Look out devil, God's people are on the rise!!!

All it took for the Israelites, was for Moses to come along. Guess what? Jesus has come along!!! He has set us free! We have everything we need (and truly desire) in Him!!! But the devil's tricked us into going back in to believing a lie... and by believing him, we've gone back to living in oppression. We've gone back in to sin, harmful-habits, routines that are not going anywhere, a life void of the Spirit of God, and this leads to narrow/small thinking, it often leads to negative/critical thinking.. No wonder we're so bored in church!

But let's not be discouraged by what's lacking! Focus on what God is doing... He's raising you up. He's preparing you for something. He's testing and developing you're character. And one of the ultimate tests is this: what are you going to do, with things the way they are? Are you going to stay connected with the body? Continue to gather? (That's one important thing.) Keep serving? (As God's called you to...) Submit to human authority? Let's keep doing all of those things and more. And if you've found yourself out of fellowship, for whatever reason... you need to go back! Church is where you belong! If you want to be a part of what God is going to do in the future, you need to join in with what God is doing now. That's crucial! But I digress...

Ok, with that in mind... let's look back to the story of Exodus, and what it could mean to us today:

Once again, Pharaoh, and the Egyptians, knew what the Israelites could become. That's why they oppressed them so much. In the same way, Satan is quaking in his boots about what the church can become. Sure, he's going to be up to a few things himself in the future (have you read the book of Revelation?), but the bottom line is, God is at work. He's bringing the kingdom, and He's doing it through His body, you and me. God had called the Israelites to conquer, and then occupy a place called Canaan, a land “flowing with milk and honey”. This can mean many things to us today. It could apply to you personally in a specific way right now, and it could also apply to the church (corporate), seeing multitudes of people saved and discipled (that's a fantastic example). For now though, let's say that our “promised land”, is to see Christians occupying the positions of influence that they are specifically called to... including major positions of influence in the media and the arts.

So to start with, let's make a few things clear:

1. This is going to happen.

The devil doesn't like it, but what God has spoken, is going to come to pass. Jesus said, “I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not overcome it” (Matthew 16:18) and in the same way, God is raising up people to occupy these positions, and the enemy is not going to be able to stop it. Once again, the devils raising up things as well. (Revelation 13 for example - I'm not unaware of what the bible says about the end-time activity of the devil, written about here and other places in the bible.) Right now though, I'm highlighting the fact that God is up to something much greater. What God is building, no demon can stop.

2. It is going to take a lot of hard work on our part

Whatever you are called to do, “do your work heartily, as for the Lord rather than for men” (Col 3:23). Diligence is not a dirty word in the bible. It says:

“The plans of the diligent lead surely to advantage...” (Prov 21:5)

“The hand of the diligent will rule” (Prov 12:24)

“He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.” (Heb 11:6)

We need to be careful not to get caught up in thinking “if God wants it to happen, it'll happen...” God said to Joshua, “See, I have given Jericho into your hand...” (Josh 6:2) – that's God the Calvinist talking. But the Israelites still had to do something to get it done! They still had to follow God's plan (see Josh 6:3-5), and then be diligent to finish off the job (Josh 6:21).

We need to be Holy Spirit filled, Jesus following Armenian’s. (I'm deliberately using words to provoke thought...) Basically, let's follow God's leading and go for it!!!

If you are, a) Seeking God b) under covering (leadership @ church), staying connected to “the body”/”the church” and c) seeking God, you almost can't go wrong. Proverbs 3:5-6 gives us comfort that we can indeed trust God to guide our paths, we just need to take some steps.

3. We do need to be strategic.

Every so often, we need to stop, and take a look at where we are currently at, and where we're heading. If we look at the example of the Israelites again, they didn't just waltz in to the promised land without any prior planning or thinking things through. They were required to trust God for the victory. But we also see that God told Moses to send out men to scout out the land, find out what it was like in there, and bring back some of the fruit. (Numbers 13:17-18)

(On this note - I believe that there are men and women of God today, that have gone in to the film industry, and found some success, but in a sense they have just been “spying out the land” so to speak. There is one man in particular whom I believe this specifically applies to. These people are coming back with a good report, and some fruit (like verse 27). We need to be like Joshua and Caleb, who know that it's not up to us and our strength. They were the ones that said: “...He will bring us into this land.” (Num 14:7-8).)

Even so, we need to listen to these people, and find out about the culture we are in, or want to be in. When it comes to the media, and “the arts”, there are many different sub-cultures and things that are worth knowing about. Allow God to prepare you for that “culture” as such. If someone gives you a cool hat, wear it!

All of this is not going to come easy, but you can guarantee it will happen. If my eschatology is correct, (and I believe it is), we are going to see lot's of crazy stuff go down in the future, but the stuff that God is doing in the media/arts etc is going to be infinitely more compelling, fun, interesting, and exciting than anything that comes from the enemies camp. Whether you believe the beast and the dragon in Revelation are partially fullfilled prophecies or not, they suck compared to what God's going to do in the days ahead!

What's your role to play? Where do you fit in with what God's doing?

“If God is for us, who can be against us?”

“...With God on our side like this, how can we lose?”

Creative Arts & Media - Email #7 (March)

Where is God calling you?

Very early in the morning, while it was still dark, Jesus got up, left the house and went off to a solitary place, where he prayed. (Mark 1:35)

For some reason, this is a verse I keep coming back to constantly. Years ago, I still remember hearing some speaker mention this verse, and all they said were the words, "Jesus had a quiet time." I don't remember much else about what she said, because at that point, suddenly, the light bulbs went on for me!

There are so many principles contained in this verse, and the context you find it in. Basically, Jesus was in the middle of one of his busiest seasons ever in His life/ministry, and he did what he had to do, to get away from everything, to spend time with His Father. Boy there's a lot in that verse... and I constantly have to find a way back to what this verse is saying to me. God has used this verse so much with me to draw me back to one thing... It's all about relationship with God.

Yes, you do need time with Him, but really, it's what you want! There is NOTHING like the sheer thrill and joy of knowing Him, and being with Him in His presence! There is nothing like having a relationship... with... GOD!!!!!

Yet how easy do I drift from that simple truth? How easy does my heart go astray? I might not even necessarily get led astray by things that are sinful, but just by normal aspects of life itself!

I need time with God. It refuels me. It re-centers me. It sustains me.

But more than that, I want it. Even when I don't sense that "longing", or I'm not aware of the desire to spend time with God, it's there, it's just not fully tapped into yet.

But it will be.

"Do not arouse or awaken love until it so desires." (Song of Solomon 8:6)

This is a verse written in Song of Solomon, which talking about waiting. The daughters are told not to "arouse" sexual desires until the right time. There's a time and a place for everything...

Whether you're married or not though, you can have a close and personal relationship with God, right now! All you need to do is:


"Draw near to God, and He will draw near to you." (James 4:8)

It's a sure promise of Scripture! He will not impose Himself relationally on you, if you do not want Him! The truth is, He wants to draw near to you all the time, and if you will allow your heart to take a step towards Him, He will take a step towards you!

"Hope deferred makes the heart sick,
   but a longing fulfilled is a tree of life." (Prov 13:12)

"Seek and you will find" (Matthew 7:7)

As you seek God, and find His presence, the desire is tapped into, fulfilled, and becomes a "tree of life" to you. If you long for God, and you meet with Him constantly, then it adds an incredible element of "life" to you. It changes your posture, your countenance, it puts a "swing in your step!"

It changes your perception, and your outlook on life! Instead of seeing the negative in everything, you'll be looking for the good that can come out of it! Instead of seeing the way things have gone wrong in the past, and the ways things could go wrong in the future, you'll be looking for the potential in every situation to learn something from it, and to grow through it.

Walking with God will do all of these things to you, and more. It will set you up for the future, but more than that, it will allow you to trust Him for the future. If you simply seek Him for who He is, rewards will follow (Genisis 15:1), but He is the ultimate reward.

Walking with God is for you. But where do you start? Let's just follow in the footsteps of Jesus...

"Very early in the morning while it was still dark, Jesus got up, left the house and went off to a solitary place, where he prayed." (Mark 1:35)

Creative Arts & Media - Email #6 (Dec)

When The Righteous Thrive...

Last month we talked about the kingdom, and we began to imagine what it's like when the kingdom of God comes to the media and the creative arts. That led into a section entitled “Dominion Part 1”, which was basically a discussion about what some theologians call “dominion theology”. In this months 'teaching', I want to expand on this a little bit. Soon, we'll get into "Dominion Part 2"! Before we get into this, I want to share some other thoughts...

This morning, I was reading Proverbs 29, and I found several verses that mention the righteous:

Prov 29:2 - “When the righteous thrive, the people rejoice;

when the wicked rule, the people groan.”

Who says the righteous can't thrive and succeed? The above verse says that we can. It does acknowledge that there are times when wicked people will be in charge, but it says that it's a lot better when the people of God are the ones prospering.

“Prov 28:28 – “When the wicked rise to power, people go into hiding;

but when the wicked perish, the righteous thrive.”

Let's apply this to the media & the arts. When the righteous find themselves in places of influence, and stature, society will be far better off. When the “wicked rule”, and find themselves in positions of authority, then we are in trouble!!!

Again, who said the righteous can't thrive? Who said that God's people can't do well in society? Who says that we can't succeed? Sell records? Make box-office hits? Write songs that change the world and the way people think? Sell out stadiums?

(Also have a look at... Proverbs 29:16)

I think it's helpful for us to remember to be righteous. We are absolutely righteous because of what Jesus did at Calvary. We are washed clean because of what Jesus did for us. But the paradox is that we also need to be righteous. Basically, that means we must do what is right in the sight of the Lord. Let's have a heart and an attitude to do the right thing in His eyes! It doesn't mean we won't make mistakes, and stumble from time to time. I'd be the first to go, if we had to be perfect. If we are to make a difference though, we've got to want to do the right things in God's eyes. Let's not cheat in our taxes. Let's not flirt with people we shouldn't be flirting with. Let's not mess around with things we shouldn't be messing around with. Let's not be like the church in Laodicia that was called “lukewarm”. I reckon some of those guys were flirting with the things of the world in order to “fit in” just so they could get somewhere, but Jesus said that their success meant nothing. If we keep one foot in the world, sure God could use us, just like He spoke through Balaam, but in the end, our success will be meaningless. (And by the way, you don't want your story to end the way Balaam's did...)

If we want to pursue influence, and to succeed in our endevours, let's do it God's way. Cool?

With this in mind...

Let's look at Dominion Part 2!

So, let's continue our discussion about what some theologians call “Dominion Theology”. This is a concept that is becoming more readily accepted in the church. Certainly, it's an important concept for us to get a grasp of today!

Basically, it's the idea that we, as Christians, are called to influence various areas of society. The focus of “Christian Ministry” is not just converting people, and building churches. Of course we want to see people saved, and believers being added to the church, but this shouldn't be the SOLE focus of believers today.

Loren Cunningham is a great missionary, man of God, and leader in the body of Christ who teaches that there are 7 basic “spheres”, or “mountains” of society. These are: Family, Church, Education, Media, Arts and Entertainment, Business, and Government. Click here for a great interview with Loren about this concept.

This paradigm gives us a very helpful way of viewing things. Of course, we don't want to “box” people in, but it does help to have a grid or framework, firstly to help us understand things, and secondly to bring greater focus.

If you feel called to the media, or to the “arts and entertainment” sphere, then you are in the right place.

Let's look in the bible, way back in the beginning, to when God was first planning to create mankind, He said:
“Let us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.

So God created man in His own image; in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them.

Then God blessed them, and God said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply; fill the earth and subdue it; have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over every living thing that moves on the earth.” (Gen 1:26-28, NKJV, Italics added)

So in the beginning, God gave authority to man, to have “dominion” over the earth, to “rule and reign” with God.

As we all know, two chapters later, satan came along and led Adam and Eve astray, and in essence, he ussurped the authority from them!

In the New Testament, Paul described satan, our enemy, as the “god of this age” (2 Cor 4:4), and Jesus Himself called him the “ruler of this world” (John 14:30). Since stealing the authority from mankind, he has been working hard to try to maintain control of his kingdom, which is ultimately one that brings death, bondage, and destruction to man-kind. He has “blinded the minds of unbelievers...” and is working hard to keep it that way. (Also see Ephesians 2:1-3.)

He has set up strongholds, not only in the Media, but in governments, in Businesses, Education systemes and so on, although, right now, these systems are being infiltrated by people who are “not of this world”.

This is where dominion theology comes in. As the church, we aren't called to sit back and watch things get worse. In our own way, we are called to help “take dominion” in society.

“On this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not overcome it.” (Matt 16:18)

The church is perfectly poised to take serious ground for the kingdom of God this year. Step by step, we are moving forward.

I hope this makes at least some sense, and encourages you in some way. Feel free to leave comments/feedback!!! This email has been a bit more "theological"... My goal is to be as "practical" as possible, but at the same time, we all need a bit of "theology" now and then, which is basically a our attempts to explain God's words and works systematically.

To finish off for today, I want to encourage you with four things, to apply to your own calling in your own way:

1. Have fun doing what you're doing. Some people have no problem remembering to do this, but some of us (like me) need to be reminded! :) Life needs to be enjoyed! Enjoy the journey!!! Remember to live it up a little bit!
2. Stay connected with “the church” - His body. I know you can have fellowship with other Christians anywhere, I do it all the time. But God is growing great local churches everywhere. It's really important to find a local church that you can call home. If you guard your heart from offense, and let the Holy Spirit lead you, you should have no problem finding a great church home! And if life takes you places, why not connect with a church there to receive some fresh input before you get on your way!?
3. Stay focused on YOUR calling. Don't try to live out some one elses calling... These words have been echoing in my head lately... “Be Yourself”.
4. Have fun:)
   
   
   Peace and love, and happy new year!