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The Heart of the matter
–
It is not about climbing and clawing into some exclusive “get me to
Heaven when this is all over” club or about measuring out on the good
side of a divine judgment “good and evil scale” . The heart of the
matter is about Restoring that which was stolen from us - namely our
Identity.
Our identity is that which defines us to ourselves and consequently to others.
It
is the “me” inside ourselves that we rarely reveal, it is our heart.
True Christianity is about bringing us back to the place where we are
what God says we are and we do not doubt it or believe anything else in
our heart, it is our true identity. Out of the heart flow the issues of
life. When our hearts are changed, everything else changes as a result.
Restoration
True
Christianity restores us to the place and condition where we operate
our lives out of our true identity as God’s own covenant people. The
Bible has two testaments the Old and the New, but the word “testament”
means “Covenant”. A covenant is a unique agreement between two
individuals or groups where by the two become one. This “one” is a
“one” that did not exist before the two parties entered into the
covenant. The two covenants that are presented in the Bible do not
conflict as may appear to some, but they compliment and reinforce one
another. They are sequential, one follows the other, and their sole
purpose is to restore what was lost, to bring us all back into a close
and intimate union with God himself.
In the Covenant we
can hear his voice; we do as He says because we are sure that He only
brings our good and our satisfaction. Our true identity is in Him, we
are hidden in Him and we no longer have a need to hide things, or
horde, covet, or steal to get what we need. In our true identity we
operate in strength and confidence because His strength is made perfect
in our weakness – this is the power of a covenant.
Even as
I write these words, they sound like a goal that is still off in the
distance, sometimes even just a wispy day dream. But the Bible tells me
that His promises are good, He has authored and He is bound by covenant
to finish my Faith, so I find that the only thing lacking is my belief
in my true identity. Something else is in its place. And this is where
the true work of the Kingdom of God takes place.
Everything else flows from that.
Luke 17:20-21
"The
kingdom of God does not come with your careful observation, nor will
people say, 'Here it is,' or 'There it is,' because the kingdom of God
is within you." NIV
John 10:7-10
Therefore Jesus
said again, "I tell you the truth, I am the gate for the sheep. All who
ever came before me were thieves and robbers, but the sheep did not
listen to them. I am the gate; whoever enters through me will be saved.
He will come in and go out, and find pasture. The thief comes only to
steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and
have it to the full. NIV
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