Death
At the time of the fall, Adam and Eve surely died, just as they were promised:
Genesis 2:15-17 Then the Lord God took the man and put him in the garden of Eden to tend and keep it. And the Lord God commanded the man, saying, “Of every tree of the garden you may freely eat; but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die.”
As soon as that first bite was taken, death...darkness....entered in to perfect light, at the invitation of Adam and his wife. Mankind, made with a infinite capacity to encounter the beauty of perfection, decided, at the prompting of satan, to gaze upon darkness. Evil isn't a force, it is the absence of God. It is darkness....a shadow in God's perfect light. Evil is simply an area where God's perfect transcedant presence has been blocked.
When Adam and Eve chose darkness, darkness is what they got. Some measure of darkness entered their frame, and the earth they had been given, and what was infinite in capacity for light, became some measure less than infinite. By simple arithmetic, anything less than infinite is "infinitely less." Suddenly man's capacity to encounter God was no longer enough to withstand transcedant beauty, and for love, God erected a curtain between us and Him...to shield us from His glory. In His patient zeal to be with us as intended, God keeps a "life support line" of His glory pumping through the veil...just enough light to make life possible...coming through that veil. My best and most joyful day...the day I have felt most alive and at peace...is nothing compared with what is available on the other side of that veil. Everyone who has glimpsed the other side has wanted to stay there! It is so fascinating that to talk of it here would wreck everyone for here!
II Corinthians 12:2-4 I know a man in Christ who fourteen years ago—whether in the body I do not know, or whether out of the body I do not know, God knows—such a one was caught up to the third heaven. And I know such a man—whether in the body or out of the body I do not know, God knows— how he was caught up into Paradise and heard inexpressible words, which it is not lawful for a man to utter.
To step away from this wildly better experience would be like stepping from a perfectly sunny and bright day into a hurricane of darkness. This is what the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil was all about: entering into darkness voluntarily. Knowledge of evil is a knowledge of what life would be like in the absence of God. Adam and Eve already had the knowledge of good, for they walked face to face with the source of good:
Matthew 19:17 So He said to him, “Why do you call Me good? No one is good but One, that is, God. But if you want to enter into life, keep the commandments.”
The knowledge of good IS simply the knowledge of God...which, because of God's infinite nature, would take an eternity to mine out. When God dreamed me into being, He was inviting me into an eternal adventure of discovering who He is...moment by moment reaching for another level of satisfaction in discovery of love. A heart fashioned for this type of experience can ONLY be satisfied by an eternal...unending...well of fascination. My heart can only really be satisfied by God. I don't have to wait for my body to die to start dying to my life here so I can start living with God. I want to declare war on anything, even permissible distractions, that attempt to take my mind, will, and emotions off of God.
Life as intended is simply not possible apart from face to face abiding with God. Right now, God is not satisfied in His desire to be fully in my presence. He is so unsettled in His desire to be with me that He sent the Word, His son, to set aside the privilege of perfect power forever, and take on humanity, live perfectly, and satisfy the legal claim of darkness on my heart and creation. The process He chose to send darkness back out of creation is in full swing, but many of those who claim to know Him still keep one eye on the shadows. One foot in heaven's gate, but still desiring to protect what everyone else is chasing here. Many want to keep their options open for two lives. This is a promised way to burn out. You don't burn out using all your strength to get closer to the source of strength. You burn out trying to maintain two lives, one here and one there.
Our lack of understanding of God's view of time and process has left us wrongly assuming much about God's desire for us to have a really good life apart from Him. You cannot possibly have your best life now if life, as it was meant to be, is not even possible right now. But there are many teachers who want to fascinate us with grand ideas about life here and now. A perfect life here, called greatness...sharing in the highest reward forever...by Jesus' definition looks like this:
Mark 10:37-38 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?”
Many who claim to teach God's ways are looking to satisfy your desire with something short of all-out "warring" against the darkness that separates us from the author of life. You are not supposed to live satisfied here apart from the only one who can satisfy your eternal heart. We are supposed to long for the restoration of Eden, and until that happens, we are missing the mark of what it means to be the son or daughter of the missing good Father. God loves this heart attitude: "I will not rest until there is a dwelling place for the Lord where I am!"
Psalms 132:1-5 Lord , remember David And all his afflictions; How he swore to the Lord , And vowed to the Mighty One of Jacob: “Surely I will not go into the chamber of my house, Or go up to the comfort of my bed; I will not give sleep to my eyes Or slumber to my eyelids, Until I find a place for the Lord , A dwelling place for the Mighty One of Jacob.”
Right now, God is looking for men and women after His heart...those who say "I refuse to be satisfied with life apart from You. Any measure of separation is too much. I will not rest until I am back in your presence fully!"
Right now, I have a choice of whether or not I will reach for temporary satisfaction apart from God, or refuse to allow my heart to settle until I have done everything possible to be in His presence and make the conditions right for others...God's beloved family...to enter in, too. This is the key to living a fascinated and satisfying life: refusing to be satisfied by anything less than I was made for.
Right now the world is busy selling God's people a lesser experience. Entertainment, a low view of life based on more rusting possessions or false security, "satisfaction" outside of God's best plan for me...these all conspire to keep my gaze from locking on my true life, which can't even start until I die, or that veil is torn in two from the other side!
God is looking...searching...for hearts loyal to Him and His desire, that He might show Himself strong on their behalf to literally change the world. Not for their self esteem, but for His dream of being back in Eden.
II Chronicles 16:9 For the eyes of the Lord run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to show Himself strong on behalf of those whose heart is loyal to Him...
How many years do I have left to participate in the war against the darkness? How many years do I have left to stir up my zeal for what God is zealous for? Right now He is looking for men and women who will help Him establish a right view of life in the earth and gather up all those who would be His. The older I get the more heart-sick I feel with how much time I wasted focusing on making life here more comfortable when all the while I should have been warring against such a low view of life in the first place. When the Bride wakes up to what her groom literally died to accomplish...seeing her role that He continues, in His patience, to hold open for her the world will change suddenly. Heaven will open when the generation of Jacob...the generation of those that respond...refuse to be satisfied with anything less than the life God called very good!
Psalms 24:1-10 The earth is the Lord ’s, and all its fullness, The world and those who dwell therein. For He has founded it upon the seas, And established it upon the waters. Who may ascend into the hill of the Lord ? Or who may stand in His holy place? He who has clean hands and a pure heart, Who has not lifted up his soul to an idol, Nor sworn deceitfully. He shall receive blessing from the Lord , And righteousness from the God of his salvation. This is Jacob, the generation of those who seek Him, Who seek Your face. Selah Lift up your heads, O you gates! And be lifted up, you everlasting doors! And the King of glory shall come in. Who is this King of glory? The Lord strong and mighty, The Lord mighty in battle. Lift up your heads, O you gates! Lift up, you everlasting doors! And the King of glory shall come in. Who is this King of glory? The Lord of hosts, He is the King of glory. Selah
Genesis 2:15-17 Then the Lord God took the man and put him in the garden of Eden to tend and keep it. And the Lord God commanded the man, saying, “Of every tree of the garden you may freely eat; but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die.”
As soon as that first bite was taken, death...darkness....entered in to perfect light, at the invitation of Adam and his wife. Mankind, made with a infinite capacity to encounter the beauty of perfection, decided, at the prompting of satan, to gaze upon darkness. Evil isn't a force, it is the absence of God. It is darkness....a shadow in God's perfect light. Evil is simply an area where God's perfect transcedant presence has been blocked.
When Adam and Eve chose darkness, darkness is what they got. Some measure of darkness entered their frame, and the earth they had been given, and what was infinite in capacity for light, became some measure less than infinite. By simple arithmetic, anything less than infinite is "infinitely less." Suddenly man's capacity to encounter God was no longer enough to withstand transcedant beauty, and for love, God erected a curtain between us and Him...to shield us from His glory. In His patient zeal to be with us as intended, God keeps a "life support line" of His glory pumping through the veil...just enough light to make life possible...coming through that veil. My best and most joyful day...the day I have felt most alive and at peace...is nothing compared with what is available on the other side of that veil. Everyone who has glimpsed the other side has wanted to stay there! It is so fascinating that to talk of it here would wreck everyone for here!
II Corinthians 12:2-4 I know a man in Christ who fourteen years ago—whether in the body I do not know, or whether out of the body I do not know, God knows—such a one was caught up to the third heaven. And I know such a man—whether in the body or out of the body I do not know, God knows— how he was caught up into Paradise and heard inexpressible words, which it is not lawful for a man to utter.
To step away from this wildly better experience would be like stepping from a perfectly sunny and bright day into a hurricane of darkness. This is what the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil was all about: entering into darkness voluntarily. Knowledge of evil is a knowledge of what life would be like in the absence of God. Adam and Eve already had the knowledge of good, for they walked face to face with the source of good:
Matthew 19:17 So He said to him, “Why do you call Me good? No one is good but One, that is, God. But if you want to enter into life, keep the commandments.”
The knowledge of good IS simply the knowledge of God...which, because of God's infinite nature, would take an eternity to mine out. When God dreamed me into being, He was inviting me into an eternal adventure of discovering who He is...moment by moment reaching for another level of satisfaction in discovery of love. A heart fashioned for this type of experience can ONLY be satisfied by an eternal...unending...well of fascination. My heart can only really be satisfied by God. I don't have to wait for my body to die to start dying to my life here so I can start living with God. I want to declare war on anything, even permissible distractions, that attempt to take my mind, will, and emotions off of God.
Life as intended is simply not possible apart from face to face abiding with God. Right now, God is not satisfied in His desire to be fully in my presence. He is so unsettled in His desire to be with me that He sent the Word, His son, to set aside the privilege of perfect power forever, and take on humanity, live perfectly, and satisfy the legal claim of darkness on my heart and creation. The process He chose to send darkness back out of creation is in full swing, but many of those who claim to know Him still keep one eye on the shadows. One foot in heaven's gate, but still desiring to protect what everyone else is chasing here. Many want to keep their options open for two lives. This is a promised way to burn out. You don't burn out using all your strength to get closer to the source of strength. You burn out trying to maintain two lives, one here and one there.
Our lack of understanding of God's view of time and process has left us wrongly assuming much about God's desire for us to have a really good life apart from Him. You cannot possibly have your best life now if life, as it was meant to be, is not even possible right now. But there are many teachers who want to fascinate us with grand ideas about life here and now. A perfect life here, called greatness...sharing in the highest reward forever...by Jesus' definition looks like this:
Mark 10:37-38 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?”
Many who claim to teach God's ways are looking to satisfy your desire with something short of all-out "warring" against the darkness that separates us from the author of life. You are not supposed to live satisfied here apart from the only one who can satisfy your eternal heart. We are supposed to long for the restoration of Eden, and until that happens, we are missing the mark of what it means to be the son or daughter of the missing good Father. God loves this heart attitude: "I will not rest until there is a dwelling place for the Lord where I am!"
Psalms 132:1-5 Lord , remember David And all his afflictions; How he swore to the Lord , And vowed to the Mighty One of Jacob: “Surely I will not go into the chamber of my house, Or go up to the comfort of my bed; I will not give sleep to my eyes Or slumber to my eyelids, Until I find a place for the Lord , A dwelling place for the Mighty One of Jacob.”
Right now, God is looking for men and women after His heart...those who say "I refuse to be satisfied with life apart from You. Any measure of separation is too much. I will not rest until I am back in your presence fully!"
Right now, I have a choice of whether or not I will reach for temporary satisfaction apart from God, or refuse to allow my heart to settle until I have done everything possible to be in His presence and make the conditions right for others...God's beloved family...to enter in, too. This is the key to living a fascinated and satisfying life: refusing to be satisfied by anything less than I was made for.
Right now the world is busy selling God's people a lesser experience. Entertainment, a low view of life based on more rusting possessions or false security, "satisfaction" outside of God's best plan for me...these all conspire to keep my gaze from locking on my true life, which can't even start until I die, or that veil is torn in two from the other side!
God is looking...searching...for hearts loyal to Him and His desire, that He might show Himself strong on their behalf to literally change the world. Not for their self esteem, but for His dream of being back in Eden.
II Chronicles 16:9 For the eyes of the Lord run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to show Himself strong on behalf of those whose heart is loyal to Him...
How many years do I have left to participate in the war against the darkness? How many years do I have left to stir up my zeal for what God is zealous for? Right now He is looking for men and women who will help Him establish a right view of life in the earth and gather up all those who would be His. The older I get the more heart-sick I feel with how much time I wasted focusing on making life here more comfortable when all the while I should have been warring against such a low view of life in the first place. When the Bride wakes up to what her groom literally died to accomplish...seeing her role that He continues, in His patience, to hold open for her the world will change suddenly. Heaven will open when the generation of Jacob...the generation of those that respond...refuse to be satisfied with anything less than the life God called very good!
Psalms 24:1-10 The earth is the Lord ’s, and all its fullness, The world and those who dwell therein. For He has founded it upon the seas, And established it upon the waters. Who may ascend into the hill of the Lord ? Or who may stand in His holy place? He who has clean hands and a pure heart, Who has not lifted up his soul to an idol, Nor sworn deceitfully. He shall receive blessing from the Lord , And righteousness from the God of his salvation. This is Jacob, the generation of those who seek Him, Who seek Your face. Selah Lift up your heads, O you gates! And be lifted up, you everlasting doors! And the King of glory shall come in. Who is this King of glory? The Lord strong and mighty, The Lord mighty in battle. Lift up your heads, O you gates! Lift up, you everlasting doors! And the King of glory shall come in. Who is this King of glory? The Lord of hosts, He is the King of glory. Selah
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