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And the devil who deceived them was thrown into the lake of fire and brimstone, where the beast and the false prophet are also; and they will be tormented day and night forever and ever.
– Revelation 20:10
Where does the devil go at Christ’s return?
The answer that springs to mind is, “Hell, of course.”
But Satan has never inhabited hell. Hades (in the Greek) and Sheol (in the Hebrew) are other words for hell, the place for the departed souls of those who have died in their sins.
The Bible teaches that before Christ’s coming and redemption of mankind, God had a place for the souls of the dead to dwell temporarily. This place had two sides, one for the souls of those who were not believers, and one who held the Old Testament believers. This second place was called Paradise, or Abraham’s Bosom. A vivid description of this place is given us by Jesus in Luke 16:19-31.
We know that Christ once went to Hades. 1 Peter 3:19-20 relates an account of Christ’s visit to the “Spirits now in prison, who once were disobedient, when the patience of God kept waiting in the days of Noah.” During the three days after his death and before His resurrection, Jesus entered hell and proclaimed the gospel to those who died in unbelief. He also released the Old Testament believers from Paradise to join His Father, effectively moving Paradise to heaven (Matthew 27:53).
As we saw last week, Satan has no place to rest. He roams the earth “like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour” (1 Peter 5:8). He also still has access to heaven, where he accuses believers before God “day and night” (Revelation 12:10).
Revelation, the last book of the Bible, reveals the future of our adversary.
In the last days, he is thrown out of heaven and comes to earth with “great wrath, knowing that he has only a short time” (Revelation 12:12). This period is known as the Great Tribulation, which will culminate in the glorious return of Jesus Christ. Jesus will stop the rebellion at Armageddon and set up His kingdom on earth for 1000 years. Revelation 20:1-3 tells us the devil will be bound into an abyss during Christ’s millennial reign.
Then Satan is released for a short time to again deceive the nations. This rebellion is short-lived, however, and ends with his banishment to a place called the “lake of fire.” He is joined there by the unrighteous dead of all ages and the demons. “Then death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. This is the second death, the lake of fire” (Revelation 20:14).
Satan knows he is a vanquished adversary. His only possible goals now are to take as many people as he can with him and to wound the heart of God with the suffering he inflicts on His beautiful world.
It’s about revenge now for Satan.
The devil knows anything that hurts God’s people hurts God. So, he expends all his energy and hate to do as much damage as possible in the time he has left.
Though he roars like a lion, he’s still a snake who lost his legs in Eden. The angel once called the “star of the morning” now eats the dust of this world. He may wound God’s heel, but his head has already been crushed. He is an enemy on the run.
Resist the devil and he will flee from you.
– James 4:7
Slightly Obsessed #121: Where Is the Devil Headed?
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Now there was a day when the sons of God came to present themselves before the LORD, and Satan also came among them. The LORD said to Satan, ‘From where do you come?’ Then Satan answered the LORD and said, ‘From roaming about on the earth and walking around on it.’
– Job 1:6-7
The devil isn’t in hell.
The cartoons we see where he stands at the door to the fire with his pitchfork are comical and corny.
Just what he’d like you to think.
It’s one of the two sides he likes to present to mankind. The other face is one of a fierce and frightening monster. In his effort to control his image, he likes to either convince you he’s just a cartoon character, or – if you believe he’s real – a terrifying superpower.
The Scriptures depict the devil as a fallen angel who inhabits three places: God’s heaven, outer space, and the Earth. In Job, we are given a very special glimpse into the throne room of God. Here Satan presents himself before God to report his whereabouts. He has been roaming the earth.
We are given another look into the spiritual realm in the book of Daniel. An angel appears to Daniel in response to his prayer and fasting. The angel tells Daniel he was delayed in his response by three weeks of battle with the kingdom of Persia, a battle so fierce the archangel Michael came to help him. It is believed that the “kings of Persia” mentioned there are spiritual forces of evil (Daniel 10:12-13).
God, we learn from the Bible, is omnipresent. He can be everywhere at once. Satan, on the other hand, is just one being, though still a powerful one. He can’t be everywhere at the same time. He is the brain behind the evil we endure, but many of his schemes are carried out by his legions of fallen angels, whom we call demons. Ephesians 6:12 tells us that our battle isn’t against humans, but against “rulers” and “powers” and “world forces of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places.”
The devil, we see, doesn’t live in hell. He doesn’t even own the rights to hell. He did once own the rights to the earth, forfeited to him by Adam and Eve, the reason he could offer all the kingdoms of the world to Jesus in the wilderness (Matthew 4:9).
These were the keys to the kingdom reclaimed by Christ at the cross and with His resurrection. Until then, Satan held the world in his clutches and kept it in chains. Jesus paid the ransom for His beloved creation and won its freedom. In Revelation 1:17-18, Jesus appears to the apostle and tells him, “Do not be afraid; I am the first and the last, and the living One; and I was dead, and behold, I am alive forevermore, and I have the keys of death and of Hades.”
Satan is a wandering spirit.
He has no place to call his. His only possession is the hearts of those who have given themselves over to him. Even then, they are only his until death. Then they are held in Hades until the day of judgment. He never knows when one of those he possesses will suddenly turn on him and run to God. Then they are lost to him forever.
Revelation 12:9-10 calls the devil the “accuser of our brethren,” who “accuses them before our God day and night.” This indicates that Satan still has access to heaven and God today.
That’s going to change.
Next week: Where Is the Devil Headed?
Slightly Obsessed #120: Where Is the Devil Now?
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How you have fallen from heaven, O star of the morning, son of the dawn!
You have been cut down to the earth,
You who have weakened the nations!
– Isaiah 14:12
It’s snake season where I live.
Our long, dry summer has driven all kinds of creatures down to the river valley in Idaho. The hills around us are scorched under the unusually abundant triple-digit days. Deer, moose, coyotes, insects, and snakes are looking for water and a cool retreat from the heat.
That means we keep a sharp lookout and watch our feet as we work outside. A few summers ago, I reached down into my flower garden to change the sprinkler and found a rattlesnake soaking up the cool water. It blended in so well and never did rattle at us. It occurred to me that I could easily have been bitten.
Sometimes the attack comes without a warning.
If, as we learned last week, Satan was the highest of the angels, what was he doing in the Garden tempting the clueless Eve? In the fourteenth chapter of the book of Isaiah, we read that he got cocky. He believed he could take the universe away from God.
For this, he lost his place in heaven and was condemned for his folly.
God told Satan:
Because you have done this,
Cursed are you more than all cattle,
And more than every beast of the field;
On your belly you will go,
And dust you will eat
All the days of your life;
And I will put enmity
Between you and the woman,
And between your seed and her seed;
He shall bruise you on the head,
And you shall bruise him on the heel.– Genesis 3:14-15
In Revelation 12:3-9, a “great red dragon,” who is identified as “the serpent of old,” the devil, and Satan, sweeps away a third of the stars of heaven with his tail. The “stars of heaven” are probably one-third of the angels who follow Satan in his rebellion. This army of demons do his bidding as he continues his long rebellion against God.
But he is a snake already crushed.
Next week: Where Is the Devil Now?
Slightly Obsessed #119: Who Is the Devil, Part 3
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God saw all that He had made, and behold, it was very good.
– Genesis 1:31
Popular culture paints the devil as a slick-talking rascal in a red suit, sporting horns and a pointy tail.
He supposedly lives in hell and relishes each new addition to his cauldron of boiling souls. In movies he perches on the shoulder of the hero, whispering evil into his ear as an angel on the opposite shoulder argues for him to do the right thing.
The monster behind the caricature is a much more frightening and complicated creature.
The Bible tells us God was pleased with His work at the end of the creation week. This creation included not only the earth and its inhabitants, but the universe itself and its hosts. The existence of orders of angels are well-documented in the Scriptures. Ephesians 6:12 speaks of “principalities and powers” in the spiritual realm. The books of Revelation, Ezekiel, and Isaiah describe strange angelic beings.
The Bible indicates that Satan was originally the crowning glory of the angelic beings.
In the book of Ezekiel, God speaks to the “king of Tyre,” possibly a king, but seemingly someone of much greater stature. He says to this being:
You had the seal of perfection,
Full of wisdom and perfect in beauty.You were in Eden, the garden of God;
Every precious stone was your covering:
The ruby, the topaz and the diamond;
The beryl, the onyx and the jasper;
The lapis lazuli, the turquoise and the emerald;
And the gold, the workmanship of your settings and sockets,
Was in you.
On the day that you were created
They were prepared.You were the anointed cherub who covers,
And I placed you there.
You were on the holy mountain of God;
You walked in the midst of the stones of fire.You were blameless in your ways
From the day you were created
Until unrighteousness was found in you.– Ezekiel 28:12-15
It seems unlikely a snake could bedazzle Eve enough to betray God. But an anointed angel with the cunning of a serpent certainly could.
Next week: Part 3
Slightly Obsessed #118: Who Is the Devil, Part 2
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And give no opportunity to the devil.
– Ephesians 4:27 (ESV)
There are only two kinds of snakes in our yard: One-rock and Two-rock.
The big ones take two rocks.
That’s been my credo for years, much to the chagrin of my reptile-loving nephew. I always figured snakes have the whole river valley near my home to hang out in. If they wander onto my turf, they’re on their own.
That’s not fair, though. They are part of God’s creation, too, and they’re just being what God made them to be. They can’t help it if they scare me to death. Though we don’t kill the nonpoisonous snakes what wander onto our property, I will always have a big aversion to snakes of any kind. I never could understand the passage in Genesis 3:1-5 where Eve falls for the wiles of a serpent. I’d be too busy throwing rocks to listen.
Now the serpent was more crafty than any beast of the field which the LORD God had made. And he said to the woman, “Indeed, has God said, ‘You shall not eat from any tree of the garden’?
The woman said to the serpent, ‘From the fruit of the trees of the garden, we may eat; but from the fruit of the tree which is in the middle of the garden, God has said, ‘You shall not eat from it or touch it, or you will die.’
The serpent said to the woman, ‘You surely will not die! For God knows that in the day you eat from it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.
– Genesis 3:1-5
Because Adam and Eve listened to the serpent, God cursed it with these words: “Because you have done this, cursed are you more than all cattle, and more than every beast of the field; on your belly you will go, and dust you will eat all the days of your life.” (Genesis 3:14)
These passages bothered me for a long time, for the following reasons:
(1) Why is a snake talking?
(2) Why doesn’t it bother the woman that a snake is talking?
(3) Why would Satan appear as a snake when it would be much more impressive to show up as the angel he was?
(4) Isn’t taking the legs off snakes an odd way to punish Satan?
(5) Since acquired characteristics can’t be inherited, why don’t the rest of the snakes since Eden still have legs?
I take the Bible literally, but I also know certain passages of Scriptures (especially those having to do with future events) are couched in parables and symbolic language. These Scriptures can be interpreted with other verses in the Bible.
Revelation 12:9 gives us an important key to Genesis 3:
“And the great dragon was thrown down, the serpent of old who is called the devil and Satan, who deceives the whole world; he was thrown down to the earth, and his angels were thrown down with him.” (Revelation 12:9)
That answers a lot of questions. The “serpent of old” wasn’t a literal snake, any more than he is a literal dragon. It was Satan. Next week we’ll explore who Satan really is.
Slightly Obsessed #117: Who Is the Devil, Part 1
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For it is time for judgment to begin with the household of God.
-1 Peter 4:17
One flag comes down. Another goes up. And everyone has an opinion.
Battle lines are being drawn everywhere as the States formerly known as United become a nation polarized by competing ideologies.
Christians have, understandably, felt threatened by the increasingly hostile environment in which we live. The natural response is to fight back.
But I can’t help but wonder if we are fighting the wrong battle.
We’re up in arms against homosexuality, but we choose to look the other way when heterosexual Christian couples live together outside of marriage. We shake our heads at crime in the streets, yet we don’t know where our own children are. We decry abortion but sacrifice our own babies on the altar of our ambitions because we’re just too busy to care.
Do Christians really want to throw stones at unbelievers from a house of glass?
Yes, we must oppose sin and take a stand against evil. It’s important to fight for the faith. And what is faith?
“Faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.” – Hebrews 11:1
The battlefield for Christianity lies at our feet, as we choose each day whether or not to believe what we can’t see; to follow a commander we’ve never met; to rout the principalities that threaten the sovereignty of God over our hearts.
It’s so much easier to take on the enemy without than it is to challenge the enemy within, isn’t it?
What do you battle today?
Whatever it is, Jesus Christ extends His grace to you. He has promised to vanquish your enemy, whether it is substance abuse, sexual impurity, pride, lies, discouragement, or anything else that assaults your soul. He has paid a high price for your victory. Let Him win it for you.
Open His letters and allow His Spirit to speak. He has promised to fight for us, and He has something to say.
The battle is not yours but God’s.
– 2 Chronicles 20:15
Slightly Obsessed #116: What Do You Battle?
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Because the sentence against an evil deed is not executed quickly, therefore the hearts of the sons of men among them are given fully to do evil.
– Ecclesiastes 8:11
He asked the question, but his voice filled with mocking.
The Canadian wondered why Canada hadn’t earned judgment from God for its decade of marrying gay people, given the loud warnings of impending judgment upon America for its recent approval of gay marriage.
The implied message: Judgment isn’t coming.
Judgment is coming, though not specifically because of the new fad in sexual orientation. The Bible tells us a day is coming when God will bring justice to this world, both rewarding the good deeds of those who loved Him and executing a sentence against the evil acts of those who didn’t.
But for now, at this moment, we live in the age of grace.
“After the flood, before the fire, you’ll find us in time,” Dogwood sang back in 1975. We’re still there, between the genesis of humanity and the revelation of Jesus Christ in all His glory. As the age drags on, God’s grace on the nations is seen by some as a sign of His weakness, His approval of their lifestyles, or His nonexistence.
Because we haven’t been brought before the Judge yet, we think we’re free. Because God restrains His power, we think Him impotent. Like children testing our limits, we grow bolder when our misdeeds are met with His benevolence.
As we lurch toward destruction, we slap away the hand reaching down to rescue us.
We believe we can do this by ourselves. We don’t need a daddy or an advocate. It’s all under control.
Until the day we meet the Judge.
Thus I will punish the world for its evil,
And the wicked for their iniquity;
I will also put an end to the arrogance of the proud,
And abase the haughtiness of the ruthless.– Isaiah 13:11
Slightly Obsessed #115: Before the Gavel Falls
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This is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins.
– Matthew 26:28 (NIV)
The plan was simple and evil.
When a racist opened fire on members of a Bible study at Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church in Charleston, South Carolina, he hoped to ignite a race war. Playing off the heightened race tensions since recent shootings in places like Ferguson, Missouri, he had a simple, evil plan.
Find some black people and kill them.
His first target was the College of Charleston. But the security was too tight, so he chose a place that would be easy because everyone was welcome there.
He walked into a church.
He didn’t foresee one crucial thing. This was not a town ready to buy into his war. This church took their Savior seriously, shedding their own blood in His name, forgiving the one who had brutalized them. At the killer’s arraignment, family members still reeling from the loss looked into the face of hate and forgave him, turning a senseless act into a holy sacrifice.
The area has largely followed suit, determined to reject the race war and use the tragedy to close ranks and reaffirm their love for each other. This love, which seeks the highest good of others, is embodied in our every act toward those around us.
Forgiveness is the purest expression of Christ’s love.
The depth of Christ’s love to the unworthy, the power of His blood to cleanse the most horrific sins, the beauty rising from the ashes of shattered lives –none of this has been more evident than in the determination of one church to follow Christ, wherever the road leads.
What color is forgiveness?
Beautiful.
Be kind to one another, compassionate, forgiving each other, just as God in Christ also has forgiven you.
– Ephesians 4:32
Slightly Obsessed #114: The Color of Forgiveness
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The joy of the LORD is your strength.
– Nehemiah 8:10
Is life pressing in on you lately?
Have you been feeling weak in your faith? Are you tired of the daily onslaughts on your family, your faith, and your work?
You’re in good company. But how do believers find strength for a new day filled with old problems?
God tells us we are renewed when we find joy in Him. There are over 200 references to the word “joy” in the Scriptures, depending on your version. Here are a few of those Scriptures:
Rejoice always.
-Thessalonians 5:16
Keep on rejoicing.
– 1 Peter 4:13
Rejoice with those who rejoice.
– Romans 12:15
O clap your hands, all peoples; Shout to God with the voice of joy.
– Psalm 47:1
Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice!
– Philippians 4:4
To rejoice is a choice.
There’s one thing common to all these Scriptures. They’re all written in the imperative, meaning the “You” is understood, and they are commands.
You rejoice. You consider it all joy. You shout to God with the voice of joy.
The call to joy is a command. Our response requires a decision.
Before His crucifixion, Jesus told His disciples, “Therefore you too have grief now; but I will see you again, and your heart will rejoice, and no one will take your joy away from you.” (John 16:22)
Jesus promised them a joy that could never be stolen from them. If we have a joyless life, then, it’s because we have chosen not to celebrate the gift He has given. We carry it around unopened in our hands day after day.
We show it to people and tell them, “See, God has given me joy.”
It becomes a burden, another duty to carry around to prove how Christian we are. Then we get too tired to even pretend, so we just set it on a shelf next to our Bibles, gathering dust.
This gift was meant to be opened.
Dived into. Rolled around in. Given a chance to percolate in our bones, strengthen the inner man, and infuse us with new life.
Feeling weak today? Set your burdens down and open your gift.
Slightly Obsessed #113: Are You Feeling Weak?
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When the Lamb broke the seventh seal, there was silence in heaven for about half an hour.
– Revelation 8:1
Heaven is a busy place.
At least, that’s what the Bible says. According to the Scriptures, it’s the true center of the universe, where angels regularly present themselves to God (Job 1:6; 2:1). Since there are ten thousand times ten thousand angels, it must be quite a process to acknowledge them all.
There is at least one trouble-maker there. Job and Revelation 12:10 tell us Satan accuses believers before God night and day. Added to that are the millions of prayers of Christians rising to Him constantly. Revelation 5:11 speaks of the praise of myriads of angels and the elders around the throne. Heaven is filled with the sounds of praise, warfare, and prayer.
All this, and not even a sparrow falls on earth without His notice.
The book of Revelation foretells seven seals which contain judgments brought upon the earth in the last days. The seventh seal opens a horrific series of judgments heralded by seven trumpet blasts. Much death and suffering will come to those who have rejected God.
God is reluctant to bring down His creation. Although mankind has turned against Him and committed the vilest acts imaginable, He endures the evil and offers forgiveness—even now. Today, the door stands open to life and an escape from the coming wrath.
How He must hate to end the offering of grace! How long He has waited for us to repent. No one is beyond God’s love. He holds out hope for the soul who yearns to be pulled from the edge of destruction.
At the last, when the door must close, the moment is so solemn that even heaven falls silent.
Is this a time of mourning what must be done? Is it grief for all who will perish without hope?
Or is God listening for that last voice who will call out His name?
Slightly Obsessed #112: Silence of the Lamb
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In Him, you also, after listening to the message of truth, the gospel of your salvation – having also believed, you were sealed in Him with the Holy Spirit of promise….
– Ephesians 1:13
In his book The Holy Spirit, Billy Graham tells the story of an English missionary who died in India during the early 1900’s.
Immediately his former neighbors broke into his home and pillaged it, stealing the man’s possessions. The English Consul was notified, and the official went to the missionary’s home.
Since there was no knock on the door, the official simply pasted a piece of paper across it and affixed the seal of England on it. No one dared to break the seal because it represented the world’s most powerful nation. The power of England stood behind a piece of paper on the door. In the same way, when we are saved, the Holy Spirit takes up official residence within us, “sealing” us for Himself by His power and authority.
The Greek word for seal means “to confirm” or “to impress,” and it is used three times in the New Testament in connection with believers. This sealing represents two important concepts: security and ownership.
Sealing in the sense of security is illustrated in the sealing of Daniel in the lion’s den (Daniel 6:17), and in the irrevocable seal of the king in spoken of in Esther 3:12 and 8:8. The Greek word used in Matthew 27:65-66 to describe the Roman seal on Jesus’ tomb is the same word used in other New Testament Scriptures to speak of the seal of the Holy Spirit.
The seal was not to be broken except by order of the king.
This seal also signifies ownership. In Jeremiah 32:10 we read the prophet bought a piece of property, paid for it in front of witnesses, and sealed the purchase in accordance with the law and custom, making him the legal owner.
Ancient Ephesus was a port city, carrying on an extensive trade in lumber. A merchant looking for lumber would walk through the timber, select what he wanted, and stamp it with his own signet, or sign of ownership. When he was ready for the lumber, he would send an agent with the signet to locate all the timber carrying his seal. His agent would then claim and take all the lumber with the master’s mark on it back to the man who bought it.
In the East, a seal on a document was more important than the signature.
The signet used to imprint a seal usually sat in a ring and was inscribed with words or symbols. It often reflected an office of importance. It was commonly pressed into clay, because of its resulting permanence, although wax was used, too. Wax was not as desirable because it was prone to melt in the hot sun. Clay hardened over time, so that the clay itself would actually have to break in order to break the seal.
We are the clay. God is the master, and Jesus has bought us. The imprint of God impressed into our hearts seals us by the authority of the Lord on High. We are His, under His protection. The power of all heaven stands behind His mark.
He is sealed in us. He can’t leave without breaking the clay and His promise to never leave or forsake us. We are, quite literally, never alone as we walk through this world and await the Master’s call to reclaim His own.
Slightly Obsessed #111: The Holy Spirit – His Seal upon Our Hearts
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Andrew: I heard that you’re back in the studio. Is that right?
Christopher: Yeah, I am!
Andrew: So can we be expecting some new music soon then?
Christopher: Yeah, hopefully in August is when it will release. I’m really excited about that.
Andrew: What type of themes will you be exploring with this new project?
Christopher: Yeah, this will be my first independent record, so I’m not working with any labels. Musically, I’m exploring a little bit of the hip-hop roots of it, but still with a little bit of an edge. There are definitely some cool songs on it that I’m really excited about. There’s one that’s a hip-hop/acoustic mix song called Reborn. I’m really excited about that. I’m playing with some strings on one of the songs. So I’m messing around with instrumentation and things.
Andrew: So, since you said that you’ll be having some acoustic sounds on the new project, will you be diverting from some of the rock/rap sound that you had in the past?
Christopher: It’s just the one song that’s going to be like that. There’s not going to be as much heavy guitars on this record, because I’m going to do a rock record separately, so this is going to be more hip-hop influenced. At this moment, I’m wanting to do more electronic, but I don’t think we’re going to stay in that vein; we’re just experimenting. It’s kind of what you do as an artist; you just try different things.
Andrew: Are there certain circumstances that have affected you recently that inspired any of the themes on the new project?
Christopher: There’s a song called Pray. That’s [prayer] has been a big that’s been on my heart. Prayer has always been a big deal in my life period, just more on that with certain things. I’ll also be talking about music, and how I feel about it right now and the state of it personally. There’s a song called I Have a Dream that I’m really excited about, that I think people are going to talk about. It’s more of political type of song. So, I’m just exploring some new things and topics that I haven’t necessarily touched on before.
Andrew: With you talking about your feelings in music, is there a certain genre that you’re talking about?
Christopher: No, I’m just focusing on music in general. I’m not focusing on a specific genre calling something out type of thing.
Andrew: So, what do you see within the state of music now?
Christopher: As far as that, it’s a great time for artists to be making music. With me going independent after doing music for 10 years, I think music is at a better place than it’s ever been. People are consuming it more than ever. It’s an awesome time to express yourself. I think artists just need to be themselves more, and I feel that’s what I want to do with this record without holding anything back. I’m really excited about the expression that music allows you to give.
Andrew: What is one thing about you that your fans might not know about you? It can be like a fun fact or something serious.
Christopher: I read a lot, whenever I can when I travel. I post so much of my personal life and talk about it. A lot of people don’t know I have a daughter now, because I don’t post any pictures of her. She’s been pretty amazing, so I’m really excited about that.
Andrew: What are some books you’ve been into recently?
Christopher: The University of Success by Og Mandino. It’s amazing! The Creature from Jekyll Island is another book I’m reading. I’ still reading the Bible [laughs]. That’s about it for now though.
Andrew: What is one or multiple great thing[s] you’ve learned that’s impacted you over the past year?
Christopher: I feel like I celebrate a lot more. We’ve worked really hard over the years to get where we are and to do what we’re doing. But I feel like I’ve come into a mode where I celebrate a lot more than I used to, which I’m really thankful for. [I’m learning to] trust God more and more as I get older. He’s the One who brings true happiness, not material things.
Andrew: What is something you’ve been learning recently in your walk with the Lord?
Christopher: There’s a lot of things that God has shown me lately. I’ve written a lot of stuff down. More and more I realize that He’s for me; He’s not against me, even in the small things. [I’ve learned to] trust Him more and more, even when I don’t understand it. I’ve been a Christian for a long time. I’ve come to realize that He’s brought me this far, and He’s still fighting my battles with me. He’s there for us, and we need to reach out to Him more, rather than reaching out to a friend or something else.
Andrew: Thanks so much for chatting with CMADDICT! I’m pretty pumped about the new record!
Christopher: Yeah! Thanks so much!
Manafest Interview
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A good name is to be desired than great wealth.
– Proverbs 22:1
My angelic-looking little tow-head had pushed my hot button all day with his mischief.
My patience finally cracked under his antics, and I ordered him into the kitchen for a “talk.” He stood there in silence, ready to take the verbal barrage he knew was coming.
“Erik,” I fumed, “I have had it with you today. You need to cut it out, now.”
To my surprise, a slow, smug smile crept across his deceitfully cherubic face. He clearly did not see the seriousness of his transgressions. I continued to lecture; his smile continued to grow. My stinging rebuke seemed to hit an invisible barrier around him and bounce right back into my face. By the time I paused for a breath, he was actually beaming.
“Erik Thorson,” I blustered in frustration, “are you even listening to me?”
“Yes, Mom,” he replied slowly, as if revealing a satisfying secret, “but I’m not Erik.”
Only then I realized I was calling Kevin, who was indeed the guilty party, by his older brother’s name. Although Kevin knew he had committed the crimes, the punishment didn’t touch him because I had directed my wrath at someone else.
In the Bible, Paul explains the mystery of salvation and the new birth of a believer in this way:
Therefore, if any man is in Christ, he is a new creature; the old things passed away; behold, new things have come.
– 2 Corinthians 5:17
We who have accepted the Savior’s sacrifice live in a world of conflicting natures; we are new, eternal creatures living in old, unregenerate bodies.
While our inner man is eternal, incorruptible, and cannot sin, our old natures are still subject to the enemy’s pull and get us into all kinds of trouble. This is our state until the day we either leave the old body at death, or receive our new bodies in the resurrection.
For I joyfully concur with the law of God in the inner man, but I see a different law in the members of my body, waging war against the law of my mind and making me a prisoner of the law of sin which is in my members.
– Romans 7:22-23
Paul explained although he still sinned, it was no longer him sinning, but the old nature living in his body (Romans 7:17). He went on to declare victory over and deliverance from this body of sin through the Lord Jesus Christ (Romans 7:24-25).
To be sure, we’ll be fighting the old nature until we leave this earth. But we are no longer at its mercy, and we now have all the resources at hand to live outside its power. So when the voice of the accuser comes to us in a dark hour to remind us of our past transgressions, we can let them bounce off us. He may be looking at us, but he’s talking about someone else.
We can grin and reply, “But that’s not me!”
And we’ll be telling the truth.
Wretched man that I am! Who will set me free from the body of this death? Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord!
– Romans 7:24-25
Slightly Obsessed #110: Do You Know Who You Are?
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He who believes in Me, as the Scripture said, ‘From his innermost being will flow rivers of living water.’
– John 7:38
Moving. Overflowing. Saturating everything around it. Pushing obstacles out of the way.
A river can be a fearsome thing. I’ve lived beside a river since childhood. I’ve seen it in every season of life, at summer’s low flow and spring’s muddy runoff. We had to evacuate a previous home one year when the river jammed with ice and the water backed up over its banks and into the house.
Its power commands our respect, and its beauty inspires our awe.
Jesus likened believers to a conduit of the Spirit of God. He instructed us to “be filled” like a river, not a trickling like a creek not still and stagnant like a pond. We are to be moving always forward with power.
This is not a wish for us, nor a suggestion, nor even a hope. It’s a command.
I sit this morning in the quiet of a new day and wonder how I keep this command. I know God dwells in me through His Holy Spirit. But how do I keep that constant flow of His power filling every corner of my life? What can I do to remove any hindrances to Him?
There are, I believe, several ways we can stay connected in a vital way to The River:
*Be devoted to prayer (Acts 1:14). Daily, constant communication with God keeps us tapped into the source of His power.
*Deal with known sin. Ephesians 4:30 tells us sin grieves the Holy Spirit. Song of Songs 2:15 warns of the little “foxes” that ruin God’s work. Sin restricts the flow of fresh anointing and leaves us dry.
*Soak up God’s Word. The Word of God cleanses us (Ephesians 5:26). It feeds the inner source in our spirits and keeps us pure. It is the ultimate guide for our every step forward.
*Listen for His voice. God really does want to speak to us. Through trial and error, we learn how to distinguish His voice from our own thoughts and the competing voices of the world around us (Hebrews 5:14).
*Submit to His will. Surrender is the key to continual filling. The supply is unlimited, if we just remove our resistance to His direction. We only hurt ourselves when we try to swim against the force of His power.
*Trust Him fully. We can’t gauge God’s work in our lives by what we feel. The Bible tells us His power is perfected in our weakness. It is often during times of the worst heartbreak God is actually working the most within and through us (2 Corinthians 12:9).
If you yearn to be filled with the Spirit of God, He is ready and waiting for you. He wants to make you a powerful testimony to His grace. Shallow water is for children. The deep things of God are calling. Dive in.
Be filled with the Holy Spirit.
– Ephesians 5:18
Slightly Obsessed #109: Like a River
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The Spirit and the bride say, ‘Come.’ And let the one who hears say, ‘Come.’ And let the one who is thirsty come; let the one who wishes take the water of life without cost.
– Revelation 22:17
Facilitating small fellowships in rural areas can be challenging.
As the only facilitator for the ladies’ Bible study in a small church in a small town, I never knew if anyone would even be there from week to week. One day I arrived breathless and late to open the church for the study, frustrated at my own tardiness.
As I drove up, I saw no one was there. A rush of relief washed over me as I realized I now had a free evening, followed by an instant pang of guilt. Stricken, I unlocked the door and sat in the cold, empty sanctuary. I played the beautiful old piano in the corner and grieved over my hard heart.
I’ve missed plenty of Bible studies in my day. And I never worried about it because life is hard and busy. But this was different. A deep sadness welled within me. I knew it was from God. I had been dutifully serving Him, but with a divided, distracted heart.
Yes, life is busy. I have plenty of great excuses for setting Him aside. They’re just not enough anymore. In the night falling over the world, God is calling out His people. A locked door and a cold sanctuary do not make a fitting throne for a King.
John’s letter to the churches included this rebuke to the church at Laodicea:
I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot…So because you are lukewarm, and neither hot nor cold, I will spit you out of My mouth. Because you say, ‘I am rich, and have become wealthy, and have need of nothing,’ and you do not know that you are wretched and miserable and poor and blind and naked, I advise you to buy from Me gold refined by fire, so that you may become rich, and white garments that may clothe yourself, and that the shame of your nakedness will not be revealed; and eye salve to anoint your eyes so that you may see. Those whom I love, I reprove and discipline; therefore be zealous, and repent. Behold, I stand at the door and knock.
– Revelation 3:14-20
When the Laodicea believers read the reproof, they knew exactly what He meant.
Laodicea was one of three famous cities of the Lycos River valley. Six miles to the north of it lay Hierapolis, a city boasting hot springs and thermal baths. Ten miles to the east lay Colossae, known for its pure, cold springs. Laodicea had to pipe water from a spring five miles away. The water was so heavy with minerals that it slowly clogged the pipes. By the time it reached the city, it was tepid. This foul, lukewarm water was nauseating, explaining Jesus’ threat to spit it out of His mouth.
Laodicea was such a wealthy city that when it was destroyed by an earthquake in 60 A.D., the citizens turned down Roman aid and rebuilt it themselves. It was famous for the black cloth woven from the beautiful wool from its sheep. The citizens were proud of their black clothing, but Jesus saw them as naked and advised them to be clothed in the white clothes of His righteousness.
The city sat near a quarry from which came a powder used to make eye salve. Jesus saw their blindness and told them to anoint their eyes with the salve He offered to restore their sight.
The letter to Laodicea wasn’t written to non-believers. He was talking to His church.
His own people were blind, naked, poor, and lukewarm.
I am Laodicea, too full of the world’s cares to see my emptiness. I have been too blind with duty to notice my spiritual nakedness, too busy with the temporal to live in eternity.
Thank God, He loves me enough to reprove me. Today, Jesus stands at the door of our hearts. He knocks. He waits.
How did it get closed, anyway?
Come, Lord Jesus, come.
Slightly Obsessed #108: Living in Laodicea
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If someone says ‘I love God,’ and hates his brother, he is a liar; for the one whom does not love his brother who he has seen cannot love God whom he has not seen.
– 1 John 4:20
He sat perched on the examination table, his gangly legs hanging over the side.
The crisp white paper crackled under him as he shifted his weight. He just wanted out of there.
The doctor checked his eyes, his ears, and had him say “Ahhhh.” Then he glanced down at his arm. A nasty red semi-circle emblazoned his forearm.
“How did that happen?” the doctor asked nonchalantly. But I noticed that he asked my son and not me. An irrational fear of being accused of child abuse shot through me, even though I had nothing to do with the mark.
“My brother bit me,” came the honest reply.
The doctor was satisfied. I was embarrassed my kids could be so brutal to each other. But my battling boys were hardly the first to pass through the doctor’s door. Brotherly violence has a long history. Ever since Cain took down his brother Abel, families have been at each other’s throats.
It’s hard to put up with each other because we know us too well.
It’s easy to be kind to a stranger. We don’t have to live with him. We don’t care that he doesn’t pick up his clothes off the floor or doesn’t like to share his candy.
Jesus commanded us to love everyone. He knew, though, the true test of our commitment to Him. He understood our devotion to other members of His Body would be the litmus test of our love. It alone gives integrity to our claim of discipleship.
He did not say, “All men will know you are My disciples, if you have love for the poor and needy.”
He did not say, “All men will know you are My disciples, if you have love for the unsaved.”
He did not say, “All men will know you are My disciples, if you have love for the Bible.”
All these things do mark the man and woman of God. It is, however, our true devotion to other believers that speaks to the world. When we quit the catcalls and the accusations and the infighting, then all men will see we have a Father worth knowing.
How kind are you to your brothers and sisters in the faith?
By this all men will know you are My disciples, if you have love for one another.
– John 13:35
Slightly Obsessed #107: The Mark of a Believer
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But now Christ has been raised from the dead, the first fruits of those who are asleep. For since by a man came death, by a man also came the resurrection of the dead. For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ all will be made alive.
-1 Corinthians 15:20-22
Today it rained.
The lovely sun-filled days of the past week gave way into a quick spring squall. As the clouds rolled in and rain fell in sheets upon our roof, I picked up the newspaper and a cup of coffee. It was then I felt the chill in the air.
Today I learned that a friend died.
He was much too young and full of life to be gone. We knew he was very sick and his days upon this earth were short. But it didn’t prepare me like I thought it would.
I was immediately filled with remorse I hadn’t visited him lately. He and his wife had always been there for us. They loved to share their Jesus and anything else they had to give with others. If I could describe either of them in one word, that word would be:
Generous.
This week, of all weeks, when the wild desert parsley is in hot competition with the cherry blossoms and the world is awakening from winter’s sleep, my friend has gone to live with Jesus. He has left the tent that was his brief house on earth. He’ll be back for it one day.
I know this because God has promised it. The resurrection is preached to us in every green sprig that bursts forth from the dead twig, in every plant that emerges victoriously from the cold ground. Every spring, creation shouts the message mankind keeps forgetting:
Jesus is alive.
Jesus defeated death, He is Lord of all, and there is an eternal spring coming.
This Easter, be sure to eat lots of candy. Hunt eggs with the kids. Sit around the table with the people you love. Be sure to tell them you love them, while there is time.
Go visit someone. Sing loudly to God in the worship service. Let them hear you say, “Amen.”
While you’re at it, be sure to thank Him for life.
Slightly Obsessed #106: Easter, a Time for Hope
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But we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us.
-2 Corinthians 4:7 (NIV)
I awaken groggily to a bright light in my face as morning announces itself with fanfare.
The sun invades the blinds covering our large downstairs bedroom window and bursts in triumphantly. I lie for a moment in that just-waking-up sleepy glow, snuggled beneath layers of quilts, as I listen to the birds outside my window and the soft breathing of my sleeping husband. On my nightstand, the baby monitor hisses with the ticking of the clock on the wall in our disabled son’s room next door and the swooshing of air that reassures me his ventilator is working correctly.
In the quiet hour before I awaken enough to mentally strap on the burdens of the day, I take in the wonder of the peace that envelops me. I revel in the warm colors of the log beams and cedar planking above my head. The furnishings in this room represent my inheritance from my mother and gifts from my family. It is simple, small, yet rich in textures and love.
I shift a bit in bed. My movements stir a little whirl of dust into the air. I watch in amusement as the tiny particles do an electric dance in the stream of light. They remind me of the lightning bugs down in my native South, turning on and off in a magical fairy flight.
The dust appears to be showing off, and I smile at the sight.
After all, it’s just dust. What can be lowlier than dust? It’s a humble bit of earth that’s useful outside, but a bother indoors. It’s only interesting today because the light has reflected off it in such spectacular fashion. Then the magnitude of the message hits me.
If God can do such a thing with a speck of dust, can He take my life and make it dance for Him, even on the days I feel like dirt?
Sure He can. The clay from which Adam came, and to which we return, is the foundation of life. God uses dirt. It doesn’t matter that we’re ordinary.
It matters that we live in the Light.
Joy surges in my heart, bedazzled with hope. What a Creator He is! What a Redeemer! The ultimate artisan, God delights in taking something as lowly as dust and turning it into a glorious dance of joy. He loves to show what His skilled hands can do with common materials. He really seems to enjoy working with clay.
And yes, that clay is us, His favorite dust. We may feel like nothing, but He considered us valuable enough to die for. We’re His beloved vessels, overflowing with the treasures of grace. How often I forget it’s not up to me to make something of the day, or for that matter, of the clay.
I just need to be available to dance.
Slightly Obsessed #105: Stardust
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I am an old man and have known a great many troubles, but most of them have never happened.
– Mark Twain
The headline read, “Thousands of snow geese fall dead from sky in Idaho.”
According to the report on msn.com, at least two thousand migrating geese were recently found dead in eastern Idaho. A Department of Fish and Game spokesperson said avian cholera was suspected because the geese “just fell out of the sky.” My daughter back east passed along the article to me because I live in Idaho and have been neglecting to watch the skies for incoming geese. Although I’m a world-class worrier, it never occurred to me to worry about having a dead goose fall on me.
I worry about plenty of other stuff, though.
It’s easy to weave worry into the fabric of our thought life. It becomes such a conditioned response to trial, or the possibility of a trial, even our prayers become more like worry directed heavenward than actual communication with God.
I start off with good intentions, though. I begin to pray in good faith for a situation. But before I know it, I’ve become distracted and wind up just thinking about my problems.
Worry does not empty tomorrow of its sorrow, it empties today of its strength.
– Corrie Ten BoomWorrying takes a lot of energy.
Fear of tomorrow robs us of the joy of now. It’s living a thousand deaths as we play out endless terrors in our minds. Most of the things we fear never happen, but we have suffered at their hands just as surely.
Imagine how our lives would change if we spent as much mental energy in appreciating God’s goodness as we do in anticipating evil.
“And which of you by worrying can add an hour to his life?” –Luke 12:25 (NET Bible)
We can’t change our situations by worrying about them. It’s not only a useless exercise, but also a faithless one. God doesn’t want us groveling in the dark pit of our fears. He wants us to trust Him with our tomorrows. His love clothes our existence in the golden hope of everlasting life, starting right now. When trouble does come, we will have only lived it once. But most of it will never come. It’s better by far to rob worry of its power, than to give it power over us.
So do not worry about tomorrow; for tomorrow will care for itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.
– Matthew 6:34
Slightly Obsessed #104: Falling Snow Geese and Why It doesn’t Pay to Worry
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He will be like a tree firmly planted by streams of water,
Which yields its fruit in its season,
And its leaf does not wither;
And in whatever he does, he prospers.
– Psalm 1:3
It was cold outside, the perfect wintry day for a visit to the local home and garden store to dream of spring.
We dashed from the car to the store and the welcoming blast of heat inside the door. We separated there; my husband headed toward the hardware aisle as I made a beeline for the indoor plants. Every year about this time, I wander through the lush tropical plants fresh from the hothouse and long for my personal Eden. I’m convinced the booming horticultural industry is a product of our internal yearning to reclaim our lost Garden.
The second chapter of Genesis presents two strange trees in the world God created: the tree of life and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. He urged Adam and Eve to eat freely of any tree in the Garden, except the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.
We read the story and fixate on the cartoon pictures we always see of the tree with the apple, two naked people standing behind strategically placed bushes, and the snake. We forget Adam and Eve were invited to eat of the tree of life. But they chose, instead, to eat the forbidden fruit, condemning all creation to death from that moment forward.
God then sent them out of the Garden and stationed cherubim to guard the way to the tree of life. If they had eaten from that tree in their fallen state, they would have been immortal humans in rebellion against God. This was a kindness to humanity. Envision a world in which a child abuser, a terrorist, or a Hitler couldn’t be stopped. That would be a place of true torment.
After Genesis, the tree of life disappears from the Biblical account and doesn’t reappear until the last book—Revelation. Between the beginning and the end, we discover when the Law was given, the tree became a symbol of judgment. Deuteronomy 21:22 tells us that a person hanged on a tree was considered “accursed.”
For millennia, we labored under that curse, longing for Eden and the tree of life.
Then came Jesus, the “second Adam” (1 Corinthians 15:21-22; 45). Galatians 3:13 tells us: “Christ redeemed us from the curse of the Law, having become a curse for us—for it is written, ‘CURSED IS EVERYONE WHO HANGS ON A TREE.’”
Upon one man, the full payment of Eden’s sin was unleashed. In one day of unimaginable suffering, the ageless curse was broken. Today, we stand once again before the tree of life. Again, God extends the offer, “You may eat freely….” Once again, we choose between life and death.
Mankind no longer must stand outside the gates of the Garden. If we accept Christ’s sacrifice, we are invited to enter a fragrant new land and dwell in a lush refuge of hope.
Two Adams. Two trees.
One choice.
He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To him who overcomes, I will grant to eat of the tree of life which is in the Paradise of God.
-Revelation 2:7
Slightly Obsessed #103: The Tree of Life
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