A shift took place. 2000 some odd years ago. On an old rugged cross. In a place called Golgotha--which means skull. Because, really, while it was a heart shift... that manifests in a head shift. Repentance is being able to think again about something because of something else. Seeing a change and being able to change with it. Being transformed into what we have already been transformed into. Knowing and believing that because of the cross things are different now. A sinner saved by grace is not a sinner anymore. He is a saint. So let's look at our key verse for this Rant series again: "In a word, what I'm saying is, Grow up. You're kingdom subjects. Now live like it. Live out your God-created identity. Live generously and graciously toward others, the way God lives toward you" (Matthew 5:48 MSG). Did you catch that? You're Kingdom subjects now. We have been taken out of this world and brought into the Kingdom! That's not something that needs to happen. We're not looking for a rapture, or an afterlife. And, listen, I'm not saying there's NOT an afterlife. I'm simply saying that what we have right now is what we have right now. We are kings and priests equipped and empowered to rule and reign IN THIS EARTH. In this life. We don't grow up in order to get to the end. We grow up to in order to enjoy the journey! To experience Jesus's abundant, everlasting, eternal, Resurrecion Life of love! When you know better, you can do better. When you know it, you can throw it. Once you've received it, you can release it. As a king and a priest who can (and ought to) do all the things Jesus did, and greater works than those, we need to start exercising our authority and power. And by that I mean living towards each other graciously and generously. Our authority and power comes from the name of God. Jesus. Love. That is where we get our strength from. That is how we can do all things through Christ who strengthens us. He strengthens us with love. He strengthens us by loving us. And then we use that strength to love each other. Receiving and releasing His love. That's as simple as I can make it. Because that's how simple God made it. We love... because He first loved us. God loves the hell out of us, and then we love Him back by loving each other. That's what this life is for. That's what this life is all about. That's how we rule and reign. Not by lording over people, but by letting the Lord inside of us come out and loving people! It's all about love. Maturity is, well, let me quote a memory verse: "There is no fear in love; but perfect love casteth out fear: because fear hath torment. He that feareth is not made perfect in love" (1 John 4:18). And what I really want is those last four words, "made perfect in love." Because that's what maturity is. Maturity is being made perfect in love. Being fearless. Being able to love without fear. Being able to love each other without worrying about... well... anything. Not "loving" people in order to get something, but LOVING people because we have something. Something worth giving. That's the shift--going from trying to get... to giving what you've got. KNOWING what you've got. Knowing you are loved, and loving people with that love. That's the New Commandment. That's what life is all about. That's what we grow up into, and that's how we grow up!

Once upon a time there was a preacher who made the analogy of planting a seed. No, his name wasn't Jesus. But the thing this preacher said about it really stuck with me, even to this day. He said, "You don't plant a seed and then immediately dig it up expecting it to blossom and bear fruit overnight." Maturity is a process, in other words. We have to go through things in order to get from here to there. And going through those things is what helps us learn and grow. Going through those things is what equips and empowers us to help other people when they inevitably go through similar things. And here's the key: Those things are going to happen no matter what. In this world we WILL have tribulations. BUT we can be of good cheer. Because we have Jesus (we ARE Jesus), and He has overcome the world. We can look at the bigger picture, the grand scheme, and we can use every experience to learn and grow. We can let the seed blossom in its own time. It doesn't happen overnight. Rome wasn't built in a day. This never-ending life-long journey is just that--a journey. Look at John 15:8 in the Message Bible, "This is how my Father shows who he is--when you produce grapes, when you mature as my disciples." I love that so much. Because it puts the emphasis where it belongs. This is how MY FATHER shows who HE is--when YOU produce grapes. When the seed that HE planted in you--that incorruptible seed that grows into the fruit of the Spirit, which is love--bears fruit. And, of course, just for the record, what "we" produce is really what HE is producing in us. It's not what we do. It's what Jesus--God in the flesh, love in a body... God in OUR flesh, love in OUR body--does in us, and through us, and as us. So when we're talking about growing up, or growing pains, stretching ourselves past the point that we ever thought we could go by loving people more than we ever thought we could... it's really all about receiving God's love more than we ever thought we could. Because you can't give what you don't have. And you can only give what you do have. What we ought to do, then, is let God love the hell out of us and then love Him back by loving each other. That's holiness. Loving people is holiness. That's maturity. Loving people is maturity. When someone treats you bad... and you respond with love... that's about as mature as it gets. That's when God's love is made perfect in you, and that's when God's love casts out all fear, and that's when you can truly experience and enjoy the abundant, everlasting, eternal, Resurrection Life of Love that is the gift of God. The gift that we have already been given. The gift that we have. The gift that we experience... by giving it away. By sharing it. By giving people what we have... and who we are. Giving people--and ourselves--grace to grow. Plant the seed and let it grow. As long as you're moving forward it doesn't matter how fast, or slow, you go. Baby steps are still forward steps. And, never forget, God is holding your hand the whole time. Leading you, guiding you, directing you, and protecting you. Helping you along day by day. Step by step. It's like that old saying, "If you want to go fast, go alone. If you want to go far... go together!" We're all in this together, and God is carrying us along!

I could have called this Rant series, "Growing Pains." Because a lot of the time that's what we have. It's easy to get complacent. To get comfortable. Even in an uncomfortable situation. It's amazing to me what human beings are willing to accept. And we just shrug our shoulders and say, "It be like that sometimes." The thing is... growth is uncomfortable. It stretches you. Pulls you out of that comfort zone. Look at 1 Corinthians 4:14-15 in the Message Bible, "I'm not writing all this as a neighborhood scold just to make you feel rotten. I'm writing as a father to you, my children. I love you and want you to grow up well, not spoiled. There are a lot of people around who can't wait to tell you what you've done wrong, but there aren't my fathers willing to take the time and effort to help you grow up. It was as Jesus helped me proclaim God's Message to you that I became your father."A couple of things here. First of all... what parent wouldn't want their kids to grow up well? That's why we try to teach things that will help them live their best life. And living your best life DOESN'T mean getting what you want all the time. Sometimes it means NOT getting what you want. And that's one thing we need to learn about God--just because He doesn't give us the answer we want... doesn't mean He hasn't given us the answer we need. We need to learn that NEED is more important than WANT. We need to learn... that we need to learn. That we can't stay in the same spot and expect something different. If you always do what you've always done... you'll always get what you've always got. If you want something different... you have to do something different. Unless you're building something. In which case, stay the course. Find people who support you. Not people who want to tear you down, but people who will put in the time and effort to build you up. Jesus helped (and is helping, and will help) me. That means I can help you. You can't give what you haven't got, and you can only give what you have got. Receiving and releasing what our heavenly Father has given us is the only way we can grow up. Testing the height, and depth, and length, and breadth of God's love for us by loving each other bigger and stronger than we ever thought we could. You test how much God loves you by loving people. And by "test" I mean "prove to yourself." Like, "How much does God love me? Let me count the ways. Let me show myself... by loving Him back... by loving people!" Because, again, you can't give what you don't have. And you can only give what you do have. The maturity we have comes from our Father. He fills us up with Himself and then we can let that love--because, remember, God IS love--come out of us. Naturally. It's not about what we can or can't (mostly can't) do for or by ourselves. It's about what God does in us. Jesus is God IN the flesh. Love IN a body. God in OUR flesh. Love in OUR body. So we need to receive it and release it. We need to get out of our comfort zone. Stretch ourselves. Love more than we ever thought we could. That's how we grow. And sometimes there are growing pains. But that's how we know we're making progress!

I try to keep my words soft an sweet, in case I ever have to eat them. Now... having said that, I know there are some people out there who will think, "That guy is hard and sharp, what's he talking about?!!" Well, first of all, I said I TRY. And second of all, different people and different situations call for different tactics. I remember once upon a time I heard a sermon called "Paul was a junkyard dog." Talking about how Paul--who wrote the majority of the New Testament in his letters to various churches--didn't pull any punches. He just put it all out there. Let the chips fall where they may. It is in this spirit that I've titled this Rant series, and it is in this spirit that I have chosen my key verse. Matthew 5:48 (which is Jesus, not Paul, but hopefully you'll see where I'm going with this). In the KJV it is, "Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect." Which, by the way, kind of does away with the idea that we are less than in any way. Jesus wouldn't tell us to be perfect if we couldn't, you know, be perfect. He would never give us an impossible mission. Where we seem to get stuck, or get lost, or get it twisted, is in our definition of perfection. Now, I've spoken many times of my love of the old professional wrestler Mr. Perfect. Because he was so cool. He did everything, well, perfectly. Bowling--he rolled a strike every time. Diving--double triple backward gainer (or whatever a perfect dive is). Golf--you know he'd sink that putt every time. But that's not real. That's not what God expects from us. Perfection, Spiritually speaking, is about maturity. It's about growing up in the strength and knowledge of who we are. Which, of course, is who God is in us. Christ in you, the hope of glory. That's your true identity. And I think the Message Bible version of our memory verse really says what I'm trying to say: "In a word, what I'm saying is, Grow up. You're kingdom subjects. Now live like it. Live out your God-created identity. Live generously and graciously toward others, the way God lives toward you." Sounds a little harsh, maybe, on the surface. But when you know better, you can do better. When you know who you are, and where you are, and why you're here (which, by the way, is why I wrote the Answer Trilogy, to answer those three vitally important questions), you can stop trying to be someone you're not and you can embrace who you are. You can mature into who you really are. "When I was a child, I spake as a child, I understood as a child, I thought as a child: but when I became a man, I put away childish things" (1 Corinthians 13:11). There's our buddy Paul. Talking about how, after a while, you really do need to grow up. You don't have to be stuck where you are. And you don't have to let things that have happened in your life hold you down. It comes down to receiving and releasing. God lives toward us graciously and generously. When we receive His love, we can release His love. We can be mature. We can live toward God (by living toward each other)... graciously and generously. We can give everything we have and everything we are. We can lay our lives down for our friends. That's what it means to be perfect, as our Father is perfect. Generosity, grace, forgiveness, mercy... love. Those are the things we have. Those are the things we are. Those are the things we can give to each other!

Whatsoever we ask for in His name... His Father (OUR heavenly Father) will give us. Because whatsoever we ask for in His name--in His nature, and authority, and character--He has already given us. This isn't about rubbing the bottle and hoping the genie pops out in order to give us whatever we want. This is knowing what we need (love), and knowing that we have what we need (because God is love and He loves us). Once you know that you have what you need... that's when you can do what you were created to do. Receiving and releasing the love of God is our entire purpose on this earth, in this life. We were created to be loved by God and to love Him back by loving each other with that same love. To, again, receive it and release it. That is the Divine Order of things, because you can't give what you don't have, and you can only give what you do have. You can't give when you think you don't have anything. You will, instead, run around like a chicken with it's head cut off trying to get what you think you don't have. Trying to fill a God-shaped (love-shaped) void with everything and anything else. But you can only fill a God-shaped (love-shaped) void... with God. With love. And we already have that. So when we're trying to enter into the sheepfold any other way but the door--whose name is Jesus--we are robbing ourselves (and each other) from what we already have. Guys. We have no lack because our God has no lack. It's that simple. Everything He is and everything He has... is ours. It's available to us. The ultimate truth of the universe is found in John 3:35, "The Father loveth the Son, and hath given all things into his hand." We are the Son. Our true identity is Jesus, the beloved Son of God. As He is, so are we in this world. Jesus is God in the flesh, love in a body. He is God in OUR flesh, love in OUR body. So we see that God has given all things into OUR hand. We don't need to ask for anything. We simply need to know--and use--what we've got. We have been equipped and empowered to do all the works Jesus did... and greater works! Because HE is living in us. And through us. And as us. So instead of asking in His name, we need to start acting, or operating, in His name. We need to start using OUR authority as kings and priests on this earth. We need to stop trying to be someone we're not, and simply be who we are. By knowing and believing that we are who God says we are. By knowing and believing that we have what God says we have. And then giving what we've got. Receiving it... and releasing it. Letting what's inside come out, by knowing and believing that it's in there. It's too big to keep inside anyway. What is inside WILL come out. Or, I should say, what you BELIEVE is inside will come out. Faith is so powerful and so important. You can't believe what you don't know. Faith comes from hearing and hearing from the Word (Jesus, love) of God. But once you hear it, you need to be a witness to what you've heard. What you've seen. What you've felt and experienced. Stop living life as if you don't have something you need. Or as if you aren't who you're supposed to be. And start living... in His name! Start experiencing His abundant, everlasting, eternal, Resurrection Life of love by letting Him live it in you, and through you, and as you!

In all honesty, the verse I'm going to share tonight was always a little bit confusing to me. Especially with the whole "WWJD, What Would Jesus Do?" movement. And I'm not trying to say anything bad about WWJD. I think that anything that helps us focus on our true identity (Jesus, God in the flesh, love in a body... God in our flesh, love in our body) is a good thing. However, I think that trying to figure out what Jesus would do in a given situation, and then trying to do that thing... is a lot of trying. When what we should be doing... is resting. Letting what's inside--the love of God--come out naturally. By filling ourselves to overflowing with what we have already been filled with. So. Look at John 14:12, "Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me, the works that I do shall he do also; and greater works than these shall he do; because I go to my Father." Things that make you go "Hmmm." Or, at least, made me go "Hmmm." Because it seemed, I don't know, weird? to me for Jesus to say that not only would we do the same things He did... but greater things. Like... how am I supposed to do greater things than what Jesus did. He took away the sin of the world. Died for all of mankind so that all of mankind could live. Like... how am I supposed to top that? But then I had a pretty strong revelation. It went like this, "I'm not supposed to change THE world... but by loving someone I can change THEIR world." Jesus was only one man--in a sense--right? And He lived in a certain time and a certain place. So while in the abundant, everlasting, eternal, Resurrection Life concept of the thing He DID affect everything and everybody. But on June 23, 2020 there is no one single person named Jesus Christ walking on water, and flipping tables over, and turning water into wine. Which is why the "because I go to my Father" part of our memory verse is so important. Jesus as one person went to the Father. And filled all people with His Spirit. So that when we act in His name... HE is acting in us, and through us, and as us. We do greater things than He did because we are all over the world, affecting everybody we come into contact with. By loving them. By spreading the gospel (and even using words to do so, if absolutely necessary). By spreading His name (by spreading His love). I've said this many times, some of the best conversations I've ever had about Jesus were conversations where the words "Jesus" or "God" never even came up. Because we were talking about love. And whether the other person knew it or not... God and love are the same thing. Maybe a little sneaky, in a sense, but you have to meet people where they are. You can't shove Jesus down someone's throat and expect them to not choke on it. So. Doing things in His name--His nature, His character, and His authority--is how we do the same things He did and greater things. By letting Him do what He is of a mind to do... in you, and through you, and as you... is how we experience the abundant, everlasting, eternal, Resurrection Life of God. Not by trying to live His life... but by letting HIM live His own life in us, and through us, and as us!

Whatsoever we ask for in His (Jesus's) name, our heavenly Father will give us. That's what Jesus said. But the thing I keep thinking about is that He has already given it to us. Jesus spoke of asking in His name BEFORE the cross. And ON the cross, THROUGH the cross, BECAUSE OF the cross... we have been given everything we could ever need. So we don't need to ask for anything anymore. Because we don't need anything anymore. What we ought to be doing at this point is ACTING in His name--or his authority, character, and nature. Look at Luke 24:47, "And that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in his name among all nations, beginning at Jerusalem." That's Jesus speaking. The red letters. That's a ministry mandate. Preaching repentance and remission of sins. And not the NEED for remission of sins either. The TRUTH of remission of sins. The truth that our sins HAVE BEEN remitted. Look, if you understand the power of the cross, and you understand what it means to be a sinner saved by grace, then you understand that you're not a sinner anymore. "Whoever is born of God doth not commit sin; for his seed remaineth in him: and he cannot sin, because he is born of God" (1 John 3:9). Sin is unbelief, so by defintion a believer cannot sin. A believer cannot unbelieve. Telling people to get right or get left is not what ministry is supposed to be about. Telling people that the Lamb of God came, took away the sin of the world, and brought us into the Kingdom of God (the Kingdom of heaven, the Kingdom of love) is what ministry is all about. That's how you get people to repent (or change their minds); not by telling them to repent or else, but by giving them something better than what they think they've got. Showing them a more excellent way. Who would see a more excellent way and turn it down? Nobody in their right mind, right? So instead of telling people how bad things are (and how bad they are), we need to tell people how good things REALLY are. Reveal the Kingdom to them. Jesus told Peter that his faith was the key to the Kingdom, right? We can unlock people's chains. We can set people free. We can invite them into the glorious Kingdom of God! Not by telling them they're not good enough, but by telling them that GOD IS good enough. When we couldn't... He did. He died for us when we were yet sinners... so that we wouldn't have to be sinners anymore. He gave His life for us, yes. But He also gave His life TO us. So that we might experience it and enjoy it. So that we might be able to live His eternal, everlasting, abundant, Resurrection Life of love as He lives it in us, and through us, and as us! That's what it's all about: Letting God love the hell out of us and then loving Him back by loving the hell out of each other. That's how we truly live, because to live is to love and to love is to live. We preach the gospel--the good news that God is love and He loves you--in His name. And, if we absolutely have to, we can even use our words. Our lives are God's love letter to this planet. His love letter to us. If we're going to act in His name, we're going to love people. Period. That's as simple as I can make it.

When we ask for something in Jesus's name, that doesn't mean asking God for any old thing that we want and then slapping "In Jesus's name we pray, amen" onto the end of it. God isn't a genie where we rub the bottle and get three wishes. Asking for things in His name means asking for things with His authority and character. Asking for the things that HE would ask for. And, for the record, there's a prime example in the Bible of what Jesus would--and did--ask His Father for. He was on the cross. Bloody, beaten, terrorized, humilated, and dying... and He said, "...Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do..." (Luke 23:34). Now before I say my next thing, let me ask you this: Do you think God answered that prayer? I do. Not only because Jesus had previously said that whatsoever you ask for in His name His Father will give you... but also because God is love. Forgiveness is a big part of loving people. Because people are messy. They will do you wrong. Probably without even meaning to. I always say, "Don't take things personally, even if they are." So, having said that, I believe Jesus was asking His Father not only for forgiveness for the people who were literally killing Him then and there... I believe He was asking for forgiveness for the entire human race; past, present, and future. Think about it: Jesus is the Lamb of God that took away the sin of the world, right? How did He do that? Well, if sin is unbelief... He took away unbelief by giving us something (someONE, Himself, love) to believe in. He did it by assuring forgiveness for us. He did it by using His authority. By expressing His character. His nature. His name. I'm telling you, your name is more than just what people call you. And I'm telling you you are NOT what people call you... but you ARE what you answer to. So don't answer to false allegations. Don't answer to things that happened in the past that don't define who you are. Answer to your new name. Your true name. It is written in the Lamb's book of life and it is written on a white stone. But I believe there is only ONE white stone. With ONE name written on it. The name of Jesus. YOUR true name. Your true authority and character as a king and priest equipped and empowered to rule and reign on this earth. So doing things in His name... asking for things in His name... it's not about trying to figure out who He is or what He would do or what He would want. We know who He is. We know what He did. We know what He wants. And it's all love. He is love. He did love. He wants love. And we don't even need to ask our heavenly Father for love... because He has already given it to us. Filled us up to overflowing with His love. His spirit. His nature. His character. His authority. His name. That is our true identity. JESUS is our true identity. God in the flesh. Love in a body. God in OUR flesh. Love in OUR body. In there... so it can come out of there. I think on this side of the cross it is more important to ACT in His name (nature, character, authority) than it is to ASK for things in His name. Because through the cross He gave us everything He had. Everything He is. He gave us His name. Everything we do is holy... because the Holy one lives inside us. That's a lot to unpack. We'll leave that for another time. For tonight, just know that acting in His name means acting in love!

There is a name above all names, right? And that name is Jesus. That name is God. That name is love. Because God is above all things. Because LOVE is above all things. God is all-powerful. Which doesn't mean MOST powerful (as if there is other power to speak of) but simply means ALL of the power. Love is the only true power that exists. And, yes, sometimes we GIVE things power. But that doesn't ever have to happen. We can live our lives in a way that glorifies God. We can do things... in His name. Now, let me explain what I mean by that. Because all my life I've heard people end their prayers with the phrase, "In Jesus's name we pray, amen." And, listen, I don't have a problem with that. If that's how you feel you should end it... do you, man. I simply think we can go deeper. When it comes to God--Jesus, love--we can always go deeper. We can test the length, and breadth, and height, and depth of His love for the rest of our never-ending, everlasting lifes and never get to the limits. Because there ARE NO limits. So. Look at John 16:23-24, "And in that day ye shall ask me nothing. Verily, verily, I say unto you, Whatsoever ye shall ask the Father in my name, he will give it you. Hitherto have ye asked nothing in my name: ask, and ye shall receive, that your joy may be full." Asking... and receiving. My dad told me something a long, long time ago--and in that specific case it was about girls, but I believe it extends way beyond that--he said, "If you don't ask... they can't say yes." Pretty much changed my life. Just hit me like a thunderbolt, you know. So simple, but so powerful. Because I believe a lot of the time we let things hold us back. We give things--like fear, or anxiety, nervousness, whatever--power over us. And we don't do what we want to do, or what we should do. I believe more is lost by indecision than wrong decision. I remember a guy on a TV show saying, "If you don't know what you're doing, it's best to do it quickly." Here's my point: A lot of times we don't get "it" (whatever "it" is) because we don't even ask for it. Because we don't think we deserve it. We don't think we can have it, so why bother even asking for it? But Jesus said whatever we ask His Father for... in HIS NAME... we shall receive it. So that makes invoking Jesus's name supremely powerful, right? Which is why I think it's more than just throwing a tag line out there. Because "name" in the Bible, and specifically in these verses, means more than just the noise we make to identify someone. It is 3686 in Strong's Greek Concordance and means, "Authority, character." It is His nature. We aren't just saying, "God, can I have a million dollars in Jesus's name" and then checking our bank accounts. We are letting the mind of Christ (that's already in us) BE in us. USING the mind of Christ. Asking for what He would ask for. Operating in His power and authority. Not trying to use His name as leverage to get what we want, but using His authority and character to manifest what HE wants in our lives! Which, of course, is nothing but love. Because God IS nothing but love. That's the nature of Jesus--love. That's the character and authority of Jesus--love. That's the name of Jesus--love!

The thing to remember, in the midst of trial and tribulations, is that it came to pass, not to stay. That there is a light at the end of the tunnel, and it's not always going to be a freight train coming your way. The thing to remember is that God--love--can, and will, keep you from falling. God can--and will--carry you through. And when you go through things, instead of getting stuck IN things (or letting things get into you), you can learn from your experiences. You can learn and grow. You can, in fact, take that experience and then help someone else when they go through something similar. Learning, growing, and helping others. That, to me, is the point of the struggle bus. And, listen, I'm not saying God MAKES "bad" things happen. I don't believe that at all. He is light and in Him there is no darkness at all. I'm saying that life happens. And we can choose how we react to what happens. We can focus on the silver lining instead of freaking out about the cloud. Every storm runs out of rain, right? Again, it came to pass not to stay. So while we might be on the struggle bus right now... we won't be forever. It won't be like this for long. Right now is right now, but right now is not forever. Letting things play out instead of always fighting against everything and everybody. Because even though it might look like bad, or evil, all things work together for good. We can take a longer view, look at the big picture, and understand that it's all a part of the grand scheme. The master plan. Look at Jesus's passion--all of the things He went through on the way to the cross, and then actually, you know, dying--those things, in and of themselves, don't look "good." They look horrible. Being beaten, spit on, mocked, and... you know... killed. Not a great day. Until you realize WHY He endured all that. Until you see the purpose of His actions. He could have fought back. Brought down a legion of angels to defend Him. But He knew what was really going on. What He was accomplishing by riding that particular struggle bus all the way to the end. And the end... was really a new beginning. For us. Jesus did what He did... for us. Because He loves us. The greatest love a man can have is to lay his life down for his friends. That's what Jesus said, and then that's what Jesus did. He put His money where His mouth was, so to speak. Didn't just tell us what love is, but showed us. Gave His life for us, and gave His life to us. Because that's what love is. Love is giving. The way to get off the struggle bus is 1. To endure. And 2. To give what you've got even in the midst of what's going on all around you. Ministering out of you mess is what gives people a message. A message about love. Showing people that love has no bounds. That love doesn't need ideal circumstances... because love PRODUCES ideal circumstances! No matter what you're going through, it doesn't have to go through you. You can be you no matter what. You can give what you've got no matter what. And when you don't feel like you have anything... you can lean on the Lord. Lean on love. Fill yourself up with what you've already been filled with. Let God carry you, lead you, guide you, direct you, and protect you!