Be Still part 4
I feel like a big part of my ministry is helping people to know and understand their identity. Who they really are. And who we are in Christ is who Christ is in us. That's why I wrote the Answer Trilogy (Identity Crisis, Six Steps to the Throne, and EPIC), and that's why I preach and Rant so much about the inner man. The hidden man of the heart. What's deep inside. So with that in mind let's look at 1 Peter 3:3-4, "Whose adorning let it not be that outward adorning of plaiting the hair, and of wearing of gold, or of putting on of apparel; But let it be the hidden man of the heart, in that which is not corruptible, even the ornament of a meek and quiet spirit, which is in the sight of God of great price." The hidden man of the heart is a meek and quiet spirit. And according to my pastor, meekness is not weakness. It is strength under control. And according to Jesus, "Blessed are the meek: for they shall inherit the earth" (Matthew 5:5). Jesus even described HIMSELF as meek and lowly in heart (Matthew 11:29). But of course He did. Because HE is the hidden man of the heart. HE is the One who lives deep inside of us. This is what I've taught my son, Logan, about God so far: God is love. His name is Jesus. He lives in your heart. That, to me, is the foundation that Paul was talking about that we must build on. That's where it starts, and that's where it ends. Jesus is the Alpha and the Omega. The first and the last. The beginning and the end. And He's everything in between. LOVE is everything in between. But I'm finally ready to give you my thought for the day. It's from Ferris Bueller, "Life moves pretty fast. If you don't stop and look around once in a while, you could miss it." I believe that's what Jesus meant when He warned of the thief and the robber--one who tries to enter the sheepfold any other way but through the door. Because when we're running around trying to take the Kingdom by force and the violence of human effort we miss the truth that God already gave it to us. That the Kingdom is WITHIN us. We need to be meek. Not demanding our own way or stomping around trying to "fix" everything (and inevitably making everything worse). We need to be still and know that HE is God. We need to stop focusing on the external and start focusing on the internal. Not on circumstances, and actions, and knowing one another after the flesh. But on the unseen things that are eternal. We need to set our affection on things above, not on things on the earth. We need to stand in awe of Him. And be still. Stop trying to get God to do what WE want--or what we THINK we want, since there's a way that SEEMS right to a man, but the end of it is death--and we need to let God do what HE wants. Which is to love us, and protect us, and bless us more than we could ever ask or even think. I've heard it said, "If you want to hear God laugh, tell Him your plan." But I think there's a more excellent way. And it goes like this, "In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths" (Proverbs 3:6). Don't make a plan and then try to fit God into it. Don't try to do things your own way. Don't try to TAKE the Kingdom. He's already given it to you. It is WITHIN you. Receive it with meekness. Fill yourself with the fulness of His love and watch that love flow out all on it's own. Naturally. Not by trying. But by resting. By being still...