Pain
Nothing has touched my life that didn't touch Jesus' life, too. In Psalm 69, David's pain is plain to see. He didn't have pain because of doing the wrong things...He had pain for agreeing with God!
David, in Psalm 69, says it is his zeal for the Lord and His house that has consumed him, and instead of great reward, it brought him reproach. He was feeling great pain that he thought no one could relate to:
Psalms 69:9 Because zeal for Your house has eaten me up, And the reproaches of those who reproach You have fallen on me.
Psalms 69:20-21 Reproach has broken my heart, And I am full of heaviness; I looked for someone to take pity, but there was none; And for comforters, but I found none. They also gave me gall for my food, And for my thirst they gave me vinegar to drink.
These moments are hard but essential. These are the moments, the moments when agreement with Jesus and his plans bring pain instead of recognition, that death occurs in my inner man. When I belong to the one with resurrection power, every thing that is mine that dies gets resurrected with supernatural life. This is the point of life....not 70 or 80 years of fine livin'...No, it is the only chance in eternity I will ever have to offer my heart to the author of life to resurrect it. The more I die to my fleshy inner man, the more gets resurrected...the more I guard of my heart, the less gets resurrected. It is that simple. The author of love refuses to violate free will...He won't kill my inner man, but He is faithful to allow circumstances into my life that will...because He wants to resurrect it in glory.
These two responses from David BECAME Jesus' testimony!! I haven't been killed in my inner man in any way Jesus hasn't already experienced. Through David, Jesus demonstrated no one's suffering is outside of what Jesus is willing to walk through Himself. Jesus is a good leader...leading by example and not willing to let me experience something He hasn't already gone through and beyond:
John 2:13-19 Now the Passover of the Jews was at hand, and Jesus went up to Jerusalem. And He found in the temple those who sold oxen and sheep and doves, and the money changers doing business. When He had made a whip of cords, He drove them all out of the temple, with the sheep and the oxen, and poured out the changers’ money and overturned the tables. And He said to those who sold doves, “Take these things away! Do not make My Father’s house a house of merchandise!” Then His disciples remembered that it was written, “Zeal for Your house has eaten Me up.” So the Jews answered and said to Him, “What sign do You show to us, since You do these things?” Jesus answered and said to them, “Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up.”
The zeal Jesus had for the House of Prayer, just like David's, did get Him killed...one step further than the reproach David described feeling....and a glorious resurrection to go with it!
Matthew 27:34-35 they gave Him sour wine mingled with gall to drink. But when He had tasted it, He would not drink. Then they crucified Him, and divided His garments, casting lots, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet: “They divided My garments among them, And for My clothing they cast lots.”
Gall and vinegar...a death on a cross...and glorious resurrection to go with it.
There is nothing killing me that didn't kill Jesus first...and it is all for my glorious resurrection. I want to give Him every part of my heart. I want Him to hem me in so I can die to my inner man...that He might resurrect more and more in glory. This is part of holiness...identifying with...sharing in...the life of Jesus...which is a life of death and resurrection. This is the narrow way that leads to glorious resurrection.
Jesus told His good friends John and James that if they wanted to sit where Jesus sits, it was related to living how Jesus lived. How close can I come to your throne, Jesus? I want to know.
Mark 10:37-40 They said to Him, “Grant us that we may sit, one on Your right hand and the other on Your left, in Your glory.” But Jesus said to them, “You do not know what you ask. Are you able to drink the cup that I drink, and be baptized with the baptism that I am baptized with?” They said to Him, “We are able.” So Jesus said to them, “You will indeed drink the cup that I drink, and with the baptism I am baptized with you will be baptized; but to sit on My right hand and on My left is not Mine to give, but it is for those for whom it is prepared.”
Matthew 7:14 Because narrow is the gate and difficult is the way which leads to life, and there are few who find it.
David, in Psalm 69, says it is his zeal for the Lord and His house that has consumed him, and instead of great reward, it brought him reproach. He was feeling great pain that he thought no one could relate to:
Psalms 69:9 Because zeal for Your house has eaten me up, And the reproaches of those who reproach You have fallen on me.
Psalms 69:20-21 Reproach has broken my heart, And I am full of heaviness; I looked for someone to take pity, but there was none; And for comforters, but I found none. They also gave me gall for my food, And for my thirst they gave me vinegar to drink.
These moments are hard but essential. These are the moments, the moments when agreement with Jesus and his plans bring pain instead of recognition, that death occurs in my inner man. When I belong to the one with resurrection power, every thing that is mine that dies gets resurrected with supernatural life. This is the point of life....not 70 or 80 years of fine livin'...No, it is the only chance in eternity I will ever have to offer my heart to the author of life to resurrect it. The more I die to my fleshy inner man, the more gets resurrected...the more I guard of my heart, the less gets resurrected. It is that simple. The author of love refuses to violate free will...He won't kill my inner man, but He is faithful to allow circumstances into my life that will...because He wants to resurrect it in glory.
These two responses from David BECAME Jesus' testimony!! I haven't been killed in my inner man in any way Jesus hasn't already experienced. Through David, Jesus demonstrated no one's suffering is outside of what Jesus is willing to walk through Himself. Jesus is a good leader...leading by example and not willing to let me experience something He hasn't already gone through and beyond:
John 2:13-19 Now the Passover of the Jews was at hand, and Jesus went up to Jerusalem. And He found in the temple those who sold oxen and sheep and doves, and the money changers doing business. When He had made a whip of cords, He drove them all out of the temple, with the sheep and the oxen, and poured out the changers’ money and overturned the tables. And He said to those who sold doves, “Take these things away! Do not make My Father’s house a house of merchandise!” Then His disciples remembered that it was written, “Zeal for Your house has eaten Me up.” So the Jews answered and said to Him, “What sign do You show to us, since You do these things?” Jesus answered and said to them, “Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up.”
The zeal Jesus had for the House of Prayer, just like David's, did get Him killed...one step further than the reproach David described feeling....and a glorious resurrection to go with it!
Matthew 27:34-35 they gave Him sour wine mingled with gall to drink. But when He had tasted it, He would not drink. Then they crucified Him, and divided His garments, casting lots, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet: “They divided My garments among them, And for My clothing they cast lots.”
Gall and vinegar...a death on a cross...and glorious resurrection to go with it.
There is nothing killing me that didn't kill Jesus first...and it is all for my glorious resurrection. I want to give Him every part of my heart. I want Him to hem me in so I can die to my inner man...that He might resurrect more and more in glory. This is part of holiness...identifying with...sharing in...the life of Jesus...which is a life of death and resurrection. This is the narrow way that leads to glorious resurrection.
Jesus told His good friends John and James that if they wanted to sit where Jesus sits, it was related to living how Jesus lived. How close can I come to your throne, Jesus? I want to know.
Mark 10:37-40 They said to Him, “Grant us that we may sit, one on Your right hand and the other on Your left, in Your glory.” But Jesus said to them, “You do not know what you ask. Are you able to drink the cup that I drink, and be baptized with the baptism that I am baptized with?” They said to Him, “We are able.” So Jesus said to them, “You will indeed drink the cup that I drink, and with the baptism I am baptized with you will be baptized; but to sit on My right hand and on My left is not Mine to give, but it is for those for whom it is prepared.”
Matthew 7:14 Because narrow is the gate and difficult is the way which leads to life, and there are few who find it.
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