My Beef with Religion
“So Lloyd, why do you push back so hard against religion? It makes me uncomfortable,” a friend asked…
I grew up in religion: “A specific fundamental set of beliefs and practices agreed upon by a number of persons or sects” (disctionary.com)
OK, overall I can say it was good. I was taught I could have a relationship with God.
And I did have a relationship with God… and also with religion. And that was the problem.
Religion taught me about love, but religion seemed to get it wrong as much as it got it right. And at the end of the day, religion never loved me…
I knew instinctively that He loved me because I had a relationship with God… But most of the time it wasn’t an intimate kind of love because religion kept getting in the way.
You see, religion taught me that God loved me… but also that God was pissed at me because there was something innately wrong with me.
So, while I figured that God loved me, I was also convinced that He was really angry at me most of the time. And I knew this because He sent His Son to protect me from His wrath and judgment.
This wasn’t something God told me—I learned it from religion.
“God is holy and can’t look at sin,” Religion also taught me that.
So, the love of God wasn’t the kind of love that put me at rest or that I could easily access or experience.
God is love. And I knew it. I’d even taste it or sense it briefly now and then. Love: it was true but so often distorted and inaccessible through the lens of religion…
I was secure about going to heaven, it was probably a Baptist, “eternal security” doctrine that I believed. But I never felt like I’d be sitting up close. I knew my mother would be on his lap, and I’d be way, way back in the crowd. Maybe I could wave to her once in a while. But I thought I’d be there. So, yeah… I got love, but didn’t deserve it and never measured up. It was more like God was putting up with me because of Jesus. Another insecurity given to me by religion.
If you have seen the TV show NCIS, then you can recall when The Boss Man would surprise his understudy Dinohzzo by whacking him up the backside of his head. This was The Boss Man’s way of teaching, or of bringing his point home. And that was pretty much my relationship with God. I never knew when the next shoe would drop. When the next whack up the backside of my head would come. There was always this sense of foreboding. Not because that is what God is like, but religion knows “whacking” will keep most people in line and so religion keeps up the whacking.
The scenario of grabbing a skill saw and tearing into your kid? I knew I wouldn’t do that to my kids. But my theology seemed to make room for that kind of reasoning when I once had an accident with a skill saw… “maybe God wanted to teach me something, maybe He wanted to instill a little discipline by whacking me, or allowing Satan to use this skill saw to mess with me,” I thought.
As a child, I was terrified that He’d catch me with a beer in my hand upon His return and send me straight to Hell, something religion taught me… and I don’t even like beer!
As a child, I knew a pastor, a religious man who, after telling his son the stove was hot, and the child still playing too close to the fire and seemingly not getting the message, took his son’s hand and put it on the stove.
That was messed up and I somehow knew it. And I was never that kind of a father to my kids. I understood it was abuse. At the same time, I can understand where that kind of thinking comes from.
So yeah… my kids got spanked, a lot, but I also asked forgiveness a lot because even back then I instinctively knew love wasn’t about punishment. And I also absolutely knew that loving my kids was not about skill saws and hot stoves.
And yet I believed my Heavenly Father used skill saws and hot stoves to teach me? Why? Religion had something to do with that.
I knew intrinsically that God’s love was true, but religion always kept His love at arm’s length. And it was probably because I was a sinner.
What’s crazy is, God never interacted with me like I am a sinner, never called me by that name. And yet religion seemed to be obsessed with my sin. Religion seemed to want me focused on my sin 24-7. Religion told me that if I ever wanted to be free from sin, I would have to pay more attention to it…
Sin-conscious thinking always has you looking inside, or over your shoulder. You are never, ever enough. There’s always more hoops to jump through, conferences to attend, books to read, discipleship training, accountability relationships, always reaching for more, and never really feeling like you arrived. It’s a hill with no top. The treadmill. And so unhealthy.
That’s why the statistics say there’s very little difference in the morality of a Christian versus non-Christian. Their bad behavior is just a little more hidden. There is very little difference in the stability of marriage. The percentage of religious men indulging in pornography is likely just as high or higher than the non-religious counterpart. Religion is a schizophrenic life at best and at worst. Always fluctuating between superiority and inferiority.
So, what was good during those seasons?
Of course, God was, he’s God. Always consistently faithful and good. My provider, my hope, my Savior, and so on.
And along the way, He would break through religion. He would meet me in those moments of introspection and self-focus, those church alter encounters where once again I went to the front sin focused and desperate. He would meet me while I cried out in my personal prayer times as an insecure hopeless sinner. In those fleeting moments, He would break through the religious mindset that imprisoned me and flood over me with a sense of His mercy, forgiveness, love, peace, and joy and I would be free.
But these true moments of my Father’s embrace were soon overwhelmed once again by religion.
Here’s the thing about this religious way of living…
The delusion is that we think it is normal Christianity. And it is for most folks. It was for me. But those brief moments of true love experienced, it’s so not what Jesus promised. It’s so short of the mark. Those fleeting alter moments of abundant life, those moments where we sense His love and all is right with the world, they are not the fullness of the life Jesus promised.
I’d say it was only about 10 years ago when exhausted, I completely gave up on religion and around the same time, I began to increasingly experience my heavenly Father’s pleasure and embrace. Ever since He and I have been systematically removing religion from our relationship, every relationship actually. So yeah, religion and I broke up. Not the church and I, religion.
Sin-consciousness has so many of us living towards a goal that is completely unreachable in this lifetime. Whereas, the gospel that Paul preached is all about living from the finished work of Christ. And oh, the difference this makes!
So, would I change anything about my religious, introspective, sin-conscious years?
Oh yes! In a minute I would change all that. But really, I’m so thankful that His goodness and His love finally caught up with me, finally broke through all those religious ceilings that kept Him at a distance, that kept His promises delayed. And I’m so grateful for my children and grandchildren—that they don’t have to live that kind of schizophrenic life.
Thankfully I have a half-full personality and that helped. But I know too many folks who have lived their whole life half-empty in religion, and they have had it much worse…
Oh, the joy of living completely full! No more measuring up, no more introspection, no more sin-consciousness. Waking up in the morning completely enough! Full and running over. That’s what we were promised.
And the pushback that people feel from me is from that context. We can live full and running over!
The good news is so much better than I imagined… I can’t stop myself from wanting people to catch a glimpse of who they are and how their Heavenly Father sees them. The gospel truly is the best news on this planet! It’s everything Jesus promised! And I mean everything now! Love and acceptance and joy and peace are no longer fleeting moments that seem to slip away, they are not promises for some future—the goodness has already happened!
Redemption is the restoration of our original blueprint, design, and value. Redemption is a restoration of everything that we lost in Adam. Jesus is not some religious picture of who we should be, He is a picture of who we already are. Jesus is not a religious picture of what we hope to be, Jesus is what God believes about us now. We get to live in Eden, today, one with God. And that is way better than what religion has told me my whole life.
So, that’s why I push back so hard on religion.
Religion is the original bait and switch. Religion taught me about love, acceptance, forgiveness, and so much more. But religion never came through on any of its promises, religion has never loved me or saved me. Thankfully Jesus did and has and we can know we are loved, accepted, forgiven and so much more now.
Love you.
Lloyd
But What About Church Discipline?
Last week I released an article regarding how Jesus handled sin titled “But What About Sin?“
In the comments section, I was asked by a fella named Matt, “What are your thoughts on church discipline?”
He then went on to note this scripture…
“For though absent in body, I am present in spirit; and as if present, I have already pronounced judgment on the one who did such a thing. When you are assembled in the name of the Lord Jesus and my spirit is present, with the power of our Lord Jesus, you are to deliver this man to Satan for the destruction of the flesh, so that his spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord.” – 1 Corinthians 5:3
I thought I would post my response…
Hey Matt,
This is a sticky question simply because “church discipline” has almost as many definitions as “Christian.” It can mean almost anything…
Recently, on Facebook, for fun, I wrote, “Let’s play a game.”
I’ll start,
‘The Bible loves You’
Your turn, go.”
As of today, there are over 250 responses from Christians around the world spanning subjects like the nature of God, women in ministry, evangelism, church attendance, and on and on…
These 250 plus responses essentially note the abuses of scripture and, more to the point, the abuses of those who taught it to them.
My point? I believe in “church discipline.” But in my 46 years, I have rarely seen it done well. Discussing “church discipline” online is like discussing Big Foot—there have been many sightings, but he’s an elusive fella.
I love Danny Silk’s book, Culture of Honor. He writes about church leadership and specifically, healthy church discipline. He shares a few beautiful stories of what can happen when the goal is true repentance and the fruits thereof.
He notes that when honor is at the heart of a leader when disciplining, there is always a doorway to repentance, transformation, and reconciliation. I think everyone should read it, especially leaders.
The scripture you posted has context. Paul is actually correcting the elitist and arrogant attitudes in the church leaders because their hearts aren’t broken but instead, they are acting proud.
“And you are proud! Shouldn’t you rather have gone into mourning and have put out of your fellowship the man who has been doing this?” – 1 Corinthians 5:2 NIV
“And you’re so above it all that it doesn’t even faze you! Shouldn’t this break your hearts? Shouldn’t it bring you to your knees in tears? Shouldn’t this person and his conduct be confronted and dealt with?” – 1 Corinthians 5:2 THE MESSAGE
Paul is addressing a leadership that is so outside union with their Father that they are blinded to the son who is now living like a desperate, insecure, and destructive orphan in their house.
I think it’s important in reading this verse to understand that Paul is first addressing leadership for their lack of mourning—for the hardness of their hearts. They are not operating like Fathers, but like CEO’s.
He was addressing how far their hearts were from our Father’s heart.
Jesus revealed our Father’s heart perfectly. He leaves the 99 for the one, He celebrates the discovery of the lost coin, He sells all He has for the treasure in the field…
Jesus, on a cross, revealed our Father’s heart toward all of His kids, all of us.
If discipline isn’t about a father walking in humility, desiring the best for his child while mourning the fallen mindset, it will become punishment and there will be no life in it.
All discipline should be restorative in nature, or it isn’t Godly; it isn’t like Jesus.
If we leave the revelation of Father behind while reading this scripture, we will (and, historically, have) come up with some pretty punitive, retributive, and ultimately abusive “disciplines.”
Now, let me note the verse you posted by sharing one of my new favorite paraphrase versions.
“As you meet together and I meet with you in the spirit by the power of our Lord Jesus Christ present with us, such a person is to be released from your midst and handed over to the Accuser, let the accusation consume his flesh until the light of day, the revelation of Jesus Christ, rise for him again to rescue his spirit from the deceit of his sin.” – 1 Corinthians 5:4-5 (The Mirror)
Here are my brief thoughts to this scripture, read through the lens of a father.
First: Satan is the accuser (1Timothy 4:13), not God, not me, or you, or anyone else. Yes, accusation exists in this world. We have all felt it, but it’s nothing to do with us.
Accusation and all that comes with it (condemnation) are not, nor should it ever be something we partner with. Especially as fathers and mothers, as leaders.
Second: Because God is love, He has given us free will. Without the freedom to reject His love, we don’t have the freedom to receive it. We aren’t robots. God is a Father and desires friendship with His kids—a loving relationship.
There were two trees in the Garden of Eden; we still have two trees today. There is no condemnation for those in Christ, but if we chose to reject our union with Him, we literally choose condemnation… not from Him, that’s impossible—there is no condemnation in Christ. Condemnation is simply the fruit of our rejection.
Matthew 6:22-23 reveals how this works: “The eye is the lamp of the body. If your eyes are healthy, your whole body will be full of light. But if your eyes are unhealthy, your whole body will be full of darkness. If then the light within you is darkness, how great is that darkness!”
Third: “Hand him over to the Accuser” is essentially the same thing the Father did when His prodigal-hearted son demanded his inheritance before leaving His father’s house, his fathers grace, wholeness, and life…. The father, loving his son and valuing his free will, released him to his fallen mindset pursuits.
Then, and this is important, the father stood on the porch waiting for evidence that his son had repented, changed the way he thought. And the first sign the father has of his sons changed mind, so runs to him and restore him!
That is How our Father releases a free-willed son who systematically rejects His disciplines. He releases him to the fruits of his fallen mindset, knowing that love and kindness are powerful and that when His son has chased his rebellion’s ambitious ego to its conclusion, he will remember and return to the always-present, waiting arms of his Father.
No condemnations, no accusation, simply a value for free will with a faith that Love will win in the end.
That’s how I read this scripture and how I believe we are called to discipline.
Love ya!
But What About Sin?
Recently I reached out to a fella who had been increasingly confrontational on social media. I wanted to check in personally to see if he and I were OK.
He responded letting me know he was concerned with my writing’s lack of focus on sin and hell.
“I often wonder why we are trying to get folks into the Kingdom if there is no punishment at the end of life.” He wrote.
He shared about a person he loved who is living desperate, lost in brokenness, and sin. He let me know he felt compelled by love to sternly and consistently inform this loved one of the wages of sin; of the punishment that God has planned for those who do not repent.
He felt that was my job as well.
In his response to me, he referenced the woman caught in adultery, highlighting that Jesus told her to “go and sin no more.”
Sin. It’s a big deal. It destroys lives, families, communities. It’s a problem for sure.
And the fact is, this fella and I don’t disagree on the wages of sin. Our disagreement is around the issue of punishment. We disagree on the nature of God.
This fella believes God is punitive or retributive. That God condemns.
I do not believe God punishes or seeks retribution. Not ever, not once, not a little, not even if the occasion calls for it… and also, never.
Nor is He the author of condemnation. If you are curious, READ THIS…
I believe God is restorative, always. Redeeming and restoring all things to Himself. If you’re curious, listen to these podcasts featuring Mako Nagasawa or Brad Jersak or READ THIS…
And yes, sin is a problem, a broken desperate hellscape, for which Jesus is the answer. But not a punitive Jesus, not a retributive Jesus, not a condemning Jesus. If you’re curious READ THIS…
Below is part of an edited response I gave to this fella. It highlights my thoughts regarding the woman caught in adultery and also implies a different approach regarding how he might interact with the person he loves who is lost in sin…
“…I too have dear people in my life who are deceived, lost, and living in sin. I too see the bondage and brokenness, the fruit of the choices made. So, yes, sin is a big deal…
But my approach toward a person who is sinning isn’t to focus on the sin, punishment, or retribution; its’ kindness. I’m convinced that kindness brings true repentance (Rom 2:4).
I am equally convinced that punishment and condemnation do not birth true repentance. The kind of repentance evidenced by heart, and then life transformation. (Rom 12:2)
The woman caught in adultery? She experienced kindness from Jesus. And what did it look like? The systematic removal of condemnation.
She stood naked, ashamed, condemned, guilty, and very much experiencing the consequences of her existence in a male-dominated world, and the culmination of her choices, when Jesus is asked to judge her, or more specifically, to condemn her, to be stoned—to death! The wages of sin is death…
Jesus did not condemn her. Instead, He exposed the deceptive, self-righteous, condemning spirit in the Pharisees, the “church leaders,” by inviting a sinless person to throw the first rock.
They all left.
Then Jesus asked something incredibly powerful, “Where are your accusers…” (John 8:10) All her accusers were gone, by the way. The spirit of accusation had been exposed and literally couldn’t persist.
Jesus noted this, continuing, “Has no one condemned you?” (John 8:10)
Jesus waited for her as she looked around for those who would condemn her. He waited for her to recognize the absence of her tormentors, “No one sir” she said. (John 8:11)
Nope. All her accusers had gone. And Jesus wanted her to see this. Because it’s huge! There were no accusers, Jesus had disarmed them. Condemnation was absent.
Then Jesus, the only person on the planet who theoretically could have condemned her, the only one without sin, said the most powerful statement a person lost in sin needs to hear, and not just hear but actually feel; actually experience, “Neither will I condemn you.”(John 8:11)
Jesus didn’t condemn her, but also, Jesus made it clear that no one else could, either.
My point? Jesus addressed her condemnation before He addressed her sin.
Then, after Jesus mercifully removes all condemnation, He releases grace by saying, “Go and sin no more.” (John 8:11)
Essentially: “I set you free from a life of condemnation. Your sin doesn’t get a say in how I see you. You aren’t what your sin says about you. You aren’t your sin. You are a beloved daughter, so be free, act like it! Live like the righteous child you are!”
You see, while the wages of sin is death, the gift of God through Christ is everlasting life. (see Rom 6:23) This scripture isn’t a reference to some promised afterlife, it’s an invitation to everlasting life now.
“Go and sin no more” was the empowering invitation to no longer live under condemnation.
It’s kindness that leads to repentance, not condemnation.
All of us are created for love. Righteousness, peace, and joy are our inheritance. Jesus is our salvation. Jesus on a cross saying, “Father forgive them, they know not what they do.” (Luke 23:34)
Or… “Father, remove from them the weight of condemnation, so they might be free…”
God, in Christ, on a cross, not counting our sins against us, removed all condemnation, and reconciled the world to Himself. (see 2 Cor 5:19)
He made a way…
So How Should We Respond to Sin?
Yes, sin is a big deal, but our privilege as Christians is to remove the condemnation that is associated with it, not add to it.
We are invited to, like Christ, release kindness, and walk people into freedom.
“There is, therefore, no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus…” (Rom 8:1) That’s us!
And I would add, ‘therefore there should be no condemnation from those who are in Christ Jesus.’
We can’t give away what we don’t have…”
I continued on in my message with some personal thoughts regarding the person he loved who was lost in sin but I’ve taken the offramp to make a couple of suggestions.
I would like to suggest that any area of life in which we release condemnation on a person is an area in which we ourselves are walking under condemnation. And we truly don’t need to be.
I would also add, any area of our lives where we are experiencing condemnation is an area where we are not fully convinced in the finished work of the cross. And it is finished.
Another way of articulating it: any area where we are not confident in His affection is an area where we will struggle with feelings of condemnation for both ourselves and others.
And condemnation literally cuts us off from accessing His grace to go and sin no more, to live confident in righteousness, peace, and joy, the evidence of His kingdom within us.
It was a memory of the kindness and goodness of his father that drew the Prodigal home (see Luke 15:11-32). What if we, as Christians, lived confident in, and revealed that kindness? How many prodigals would come home?
And by the way, every person lost in sin is a son or daughter, our brother or sister, a prodigal being called home.
I am convinced that Love is the answer to every question that aches in the heart of humanity. I am convinced that we belong before we become. I am convinced that family is the long game. I am convinced that it is kindness that empowers repentance and a renewed mind. And I’m convinced that we are truly transformed as our minds are renewed.
While we may disagree on the concepts of eternal suffering, we can all agree that suffering exists here now, and our mandate is “on earth as it is in heaven.”
So may we live confident in His affection today. And may we remove all condemnation from our loved ones, from our social media pages, our neighbors, our leaders, our churches and on and on so they too may live confident.
Joy Unspeakable
As I look back over nearly 70 years I realize how the first 60 were greatly impacted by the abusive religion of distance and delay…
Of desperation,
foreboding fear and anxiety,
sin and then shame,
penance of one kind or another,
loneliness,
emptiness,
grey clouds of depression, feelings of abandonment,
always waiting for the next shoe to drop,
not measuring up,
never being enough.
Striving for an elusive and impossible dream… A hill with no top, a destination with no arrival.
God at a distance, promises delayed…
Disillusioned and finally despondent towards ever unsurmountable obstacles of personal failure and feelings of insignificance…
Completely unaware of my true value and significance!
I can now officially say, after about 10 years of ever unfolding revelation of His goodness, these experiences are few, fleeting and farther between… almost non-existent…
They have been replaced with an inner peace and joy that sneaks up and surprises me at junctures during my day…
At times taking my breath away, tears welling up and spontaneous laughter, for no apparent reason…
Overwhelmed with an awareness of my innocence, value and beauty!
Gratitude springing up for a life I had given up ever finding…
How?
A gradual paradigm shift from religion to relationship!
From living towards… to living from!
From trying harder… to discovering!
From doing… to being!
From fear… to love!
From works… to fruit!
From striving… to resting!
Religion is an evil task master! A distortion of truth! A lie!
But His love is truly joy unspeakable and full of glory, full of glory, full of glory!
And the half has never yet been told!
May you experience joy unspeakable today!
Love you, Lloyd.
Everything He Has Is Ours: Discovering Our Father’s Love Changes Everything
I love the story of the prodigal son. I grew up loving it – it was a favorite.
Part of the reason was because of the Keith Green song about the same story called “The Prodigal Son Suite.” I used to sit in the living room crossed legged on the carpet in front of my dads huge stereo speaker. As the song burst from the speakers I would pretend to play the piano on the carpet. I played so long and so vigorously that my mom would actually move the speaker due to the carpet being worn out.
It’s a beautiful song about a beautiful story – a story of the goodness of Gods love. The amazing unmerited mercy and grace of a good Father.
You know it. There was a father with two sons. The younger came to dad and asked for his inheritance. Dad gave it to him and he went out into the world and spent it in every self-centered way conceivable.
Eventually, he ran out of cash. Then the country went into recession (famine) and the only job he could find was feeding pigs. He hit bottom when he realized that the pigs ate better than he did.
So he decides to go home, beg forgiveness and ask his father for a place among the servants.
Here is how Keith puts it.
The Son
I was near home, in sight of the house,
My father just stared, dropped open his mouth,
He ran up the road, and fell to my feet, and cried, and cried,
Father, I’ve sinned, Heaven ashamed,
I’m no longer worthy to wear your name,
I’ve learned that my home is right where you are,
Oh father, take me in.”
The Father
“Bring the best robe, put it on my son,
Shoes for his feet, hurry put them on,
This is my son who I thought had died,
Prepare a feast for my son’s alive”
I can hear this song in my head even while I write. I am transported back in front of the speaker in our living room, the piano, strings and the horns a backdrop for Keith’s voice as He sings from the fathers perspective.
“My son was lost, oh thank you, God he’s found, My son was dead and he’s now alive, Prepare a feast for my son’s alive…”
It’s a sweeping masterpiece – both the story and Keith’s rendition.
I think everyone loves this story. It’s so beautiful and it seems right that it end with the celebration feast – Everyone joyful that the son has returned. There’s singing, dancing, laughing and eating late into the night as mercy and grace pass through the room like good wine…
But the story doesn’t end there.
There’s an epilogue where we don’t want one. It’s kinda distracting and honestly, it’s kinda sad and disappointing. It’s not the happily ever after we want at the end of a beautiful story. It’s a sour note – one that never made it into Keith’s song and rightfully so.
This is a story about a father with two sons…
“Meanwhile, the older son was in the field. When he came near the house, he heard music and dancing. So he called one of the servants and asked him what was going on. “Your brother has come,’ he replied, ‘and your father has killed the fattened calf because he has him back safe and sound.’
“The older brother became angry and refused to go in. So his father went out and pleaded with him. But he answered his father, ‘Look! All these years I’ve been slaving for you and never disobeyed your orders. Yet you never gave me even a young goat so I could celebrate with my friends. But when this son of yours who has squandered your property with prostitutes comes home, you kill the fattened calf for him!’
‘My son,’ the father said, ‘you are always with me, and everything I have is yours. (Luke 15:25-31)
Big brother comes in after a hard day of working out in the field. He has been sweating and toiling, he has been “slaving.” Was he envious of little brother? Yep. But what’s interesting is that his father doesn’t address the envy, he speaks to the heart of the matter.
He says, “…you are always with me, and everything I have is yours.”
I feel like often in my life, I have worked and toiled – I have sweated out my faith. I have done the right stuff; I’ve been good and “godly.” I’ve even done a little slaving – all for Jesus of course… I don’t think I’m alone in this.
I think many Christians have been trying to earn a place in our father’s house. Here is the amazing thing; we can’t earn what is already given. You can’t earn being an heir. You can’t earn your way into sonship. You’re born into that. It’s given and you receive it. If you have asked Jesus to be your Lord and Savior, then you have been re-born into an inheritance that is eternal.
My heart is heavy for the big brother who has the spirit of religion on him. He is living from a place of religion – a set of beliefs – and not relationship. If you live outside the context of relationship, you are unable to celebrate when a relationship is restored.
Because of his limited understanding, big brothers world is very small. Because he doesn’t live from the revelation that everything Dad has is his, His potential is only as big as his own personal abilities. He only has access to his own strength, his own knowledge – whatever he can accomplish by the sweat of his brow.
And so, he does all the right things for the wrong reasons. And even though that might seem alright – cause “hey, the right stuff is getting done” – the problem is not only is the older son missing out on the joy of life, eventually he finds himself offended and at odds with his dad.
Here’s the thing, if I don’t embrace and live from the revelation that “Everything my Heavenly Father has is mine,” then some day something will happen that I cant understand and I will find myself hurt, angry and at odds with dad.
I have met many Christians who have been hurt by the goodness of God because they have been living and doing all the right stuff from the wrong revelation. If we don’t understand that “Everything he has is ours,” we not only miss out on the celebration, we find ourselves resenting our heavenly Father. We find ourselves at odds with the very nature that is his Love. Suddenly our misunderstanding trumps our Fathers love. Our lack of revelation determines how we live and how we love.
But when life is lived from our fathers perspective, the joy we experience from the return of a prodigal is not something that has to be mustered up, it is simply an overflow of our fathers heart.
Jesus died and rose so we would never again have to slave. When we see our inheritance for what it is, the very power of Love, we no longer need worry or fret. We need never slave again.
“For the kingdom of heaven is at hand” (Matt 10:7). It’s right here, at hand, within reach. You see, we are heirs to the King. Everything he has is ours and its ours right now. Not when we die or after we have earned it but right now. Not because of what we have done but because of what Jesus did. And because we are now heirs, every aspect of our father is available to us.
Everything he has is ours! Do you need mercy? It’s yours! Do you need friendship? It’s yours! Need hope, He is Hope! Need provision, joy, love, a Sabbath, a miracle, everything he has is ours! How awesome is that!