Wrist Slap
I’m a contemplative Christian. That means, out of the main sources for my understanding of and relationship with God (Tradition, Scripture, and Experience), I lean towards the “experience” part. I meditate twice a day, walk in near-constant prayer, and worship with passion.
I used to be more about the other two: tradition and Scripture. For the first 20 years of my life, I attended Catholic church (tradition!). In college and in my 20’s, I studied the scriptures with gusto. About 10 years ago, I read the Bible from cover to cover and I could give you a run-down on biblical history, the relationships between the OT and NT, and main themes of Jesus’ teaching and the epistles to rival even some ministers. And yet…that was 10 years ago.
This past week, I had a close friend call me on my lapse with regards to my attention to Scripture. They were referencing, from a place of true humility, Bible verses, stories, etc. that I had forgotten existed. Who the heck are Nadab and Abihu? Say what about 1 Timothy 4:8 letting me off the hook on my exercise routine? (the second is from my own reading and is for humor purposes only 🙂 ). My spiritual golf bag was complete with all the clubs in good condition, all except for one, the driver (The Bible). My driver, the primary book of my faith, was proverbially in the back of the shed somewhere, behind the 15 year old croquet set and the random bag of ant killer.
A Wealth of Wisdom
Recommitted to learning how to use my “driver” again, for a few days, I poured over the epistles. I quickly realized just how many of them I had not read a lick of in a decade. Some parts didn’t even have a familiar ring. Surprised by this, I did some research. Apparently, if you are a Catholic, Lutheran, or Episcopalian, and only attend church on Sundays and holidays (feast days), you hear a bit less than 4% of the OT and about 41% of the NT. Yikes! No wonder so much of what I was reading “felt” new!
False vs. True Teachers
As I began to read the New Testament in earnest, a few biblical themes that had not come up in church frequently, if at all, became apparent. One was a clear focus of the epistle writers on false and true teachers.
In both the epistles (and the Gospels), the theme of contrasting the servants of God and servants of the Devil kept popping up. The false teachers are self-focused, drawn by worldly lusts, and in service to their own interests. Meanwhile, the true teachers submit their lives to the will of God.
Jesus Himself said it best:
Anyone who chooses to do the will of God will find out whether my teaching comes from God or whether I speak on my own. Whoever speaks on their own does so to gain personal glory, but he who seeks the glory of the one who sent him is a man of truth; there is nothing false about him.
John 7:17-18 (NIV)
Whom Do I Serve?
This really spoke to my heart–what kind of disciple and teacher am I? At least some of the time, I know I am looking out for my own glory. Yet, again and again, the Bible is calling us to lay down our own will and surrender to God’s. Yup, it’s not about me after all. That lesson could be its own blog post. Instead, it is the foundation of lesson #2. So, let’s review it briefly once more: Serve God alone: True teacher. Serve Self: Watch out!
Dear Ole’ Devil
Another bit from the rapid-fire Bible reading that surprised me was how often the devil and his cronies (whom the false teachers serve, knowingly or unknowingly), show up throughout the NT. Satan = 35 times, Devil = 36 times, Demon = 21 times. Again, wow! I’m a John girl–“God is love”. I don’t give the Devil a second thought. I simply keep my eyes on Jesus and expect any of those evildoers to flee from the light! One of the verses that I did remember from the NT seemed to back my position:
For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.
2 Timothy 1:7, KJV
Yet the number of times the “evil one” appears in the NT gave me pause. Is it okay to just be love and ignore the devil? So far, I seem to be free of major inner strife/spiritual warfare. But am I just getting lucky?
Our Best Defense
Keep in mind that I’m only a few weeks into this resurgence of my earnest study of the Bible. I’m still learning and sorting the other 60% of the NT out. Yet, from this brief yet intense study period (and decades of faith prior), it seems we ought take a two-pronged approach in keeping ourselves safe from the devil. First, we ought heed the biblical precautions to “resist the devil” (James 4:7; Don’t keep a chest full of whatever is tempting you in your house) and be as “shrewd as serpents” (Matthew 10:16; keep yourself free of conflict and danger whenever possible/don’t go looking for trouble). However, after taking these “Don’t be an idiot!” precautions, we should look to God alone for our protection.
Just as true teachers serve God only, so too will a true disciple rely on God alone for their safety. Instead of relying on our own (separate from God) inner resources, we ought rely on a deeper, strong power. The Holy Spirit’s power is far greater than our own. John, Peter, and the rest of the apostles (from what I can tell post Pentecost) had no concerns about demons personally because the world and its desires couldn’t touch them/compete with what they knew they had in Christ.
Temptation? War with “the flesh”? Sure, they probably had to deal with that. Demons? For those who walked the Earth with Jesus and were strongly convicted of the truth of their identity in God, I don’t believe that was an issue. Jesus already overcame the world and they rested in that promise. They knew, powerfully, who and Whose they were.  They slipped now and then, but quickly returned to the Truth and to the protection of God.
My favorite example of this is from the apostle John himself:
“We know that anyone born of God does not continue to sin; the One who was born of God keeps them safe, and the evil one cannot harm them.”
1 John 5:18 (NIV)
Keeping our Eyes on Jesus
How does our conviction of who and whose we are keep us safe? Knowing our identity in Christ, like Peter as he walked on water, keeps our eyes firmly fixed on Jesus and off of the waves.
As we look to God for our protection we must be aware of when our eyes have dropped to the waves.
Looking at the Waves #1: Fear
One clear sign of our eyes shifting from Jesus is fear.
“He that fears is not made perfect in love.”
1 John 4:19 (KJV)
Often, fear hides in our body as tension. It is wise that we regularly look within our bodies for signs of tension and our minds for strands of fear. When we are afraid, it’s a sure sign that something isn’t right, that we’ve taken our eyes off of Jesus in one way or another. God has us and our life under His protection when we serve Him alone, so fear is a sign of self-protection and is a quick way off the path (uh oh, heading the way of the false teacher!).
When we become aware of this getting “off-track,” we must both surrender that fear to God and allow Him to set us right!
Looking at the Waves #2: Guilt/Shame
One of the most radical teachings I was given over the past several years was on God’s forgiveness. I used to believe that guilt/shame was a sign of humility. Now I know that it is a sign of pride (inward self-focus). If Jesus says you are forgiven and that He no longer sees your sins, who are you to argue? Conviction is a different thing. I’m far from perfect, as we all are, so every time I am convicted of going astray, I confess, ask forgiveness, and do my best to trust that it is done. (1 John 1:3-10).
When we get caught up in the past, unable to move on, we must remind ourselves that it’s done, it’s over, it’s forgiven, and holding onto it a moment longer is robbing the Kingdom of a powerful servant. Â
Very truly I tell you, everyone who sins is a slave to sin. Now a slave has no permanent place in the family, but a son belongs to it forever. So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed.
John 8:34 (NIV)
Walk in the light. If you notice yourself caught up in fear or guilt/shame, lift your eyes to see the face of Jesus and serve Him only.
A Heart Overflowing
Pure love and joy with a desire to serve Christ and Christ alone is what God asks of us. This makes us both true teachers, true disciples, and keeps us safe from the Evil One. Don’t be an idiot (don’t go looking for temptation/a challenge), and keep your eyes on Christ. Know how much (beyond measure) you are loved by God, and let that love continue to overflow in service to Christ!
Know who and whose you are and live from that truth. That is enough.