Inside Out part 1
The economy of the Kingdom of God works on an, "inside out," basis. Which is to say, what's in you comes out of you. That's why I always say you can't give what you don't have. That's why you have to receive before you can release. That's why what you believe is so important--because you become what you believe. As a man thinks in his heart... so is he. And that's why the armor of God is so important. It protects us from the world's economy, which is outside in. Let me explain: the world, or circumstances, or what it looks and feels like, will always try to dictate reality to us. And we've even accepted this to the point where we say things like, "When life gives you lemons, make lemonade." Well I say, "If life gives you lemons stop taking what life gives you and start receiving the gift of God!" We've settled for life... when ABUNDANT life is available to us. And that's why there's so much suffering and sadness in the world today. Because we let the outside define the inside. Remember the famous story about Jesus walking on the water? And then Peter joining him? We're going to look at a verse of that story in the Message Bible in a second, but first I want to say: I believe that Jesus walked on the water on purpose. There's great truth we can draw from that picture. But I also believe that in a sense Jesus didn't even notice that He WAS walking on water. I think He was walking to the disciples, and they happened to be on a boat in the middle of the water. But the circumstances didn't make much difference to Jesus, because they were (literally in this case) beneath His feet. I think it was a situation where He was walking to them, period. And the fact that He had to walk on water in order to do it was of little consequence. But then look at Peter's experience: "He (Jesus) said, "Come ahead." Jumping out of the boat, Peter walked on the water to Jesus. But when he looked down at the waves churning beneath his feet, he lost his nerve and started to sink. He cried, "Master, save me!" Jesus didn't hesitate. He reached down and grabbed his hand. Then he said, "Faint-heart, what go into you?"" (Matthew 14:29-31) A couple of things here. I know Peter was walking on the water, but I believe he was really walking ont the Word of God. When Jesus said, "Come ahead," it empowered him to do so. And it wasn't until Peter took his eyes off of Jesus and put them on the circumstances--when he let what was outside dictate his reality--that he started to sink. Then Jesus blew away this idea that we have to have perfect faith. Because He didn't punish Peter for falling. He didn't say, "You should have believed in me, now you're on your own." He didn't leave him or forsake him. He didn't hesitate. He reached down and picked him up. And then He asked Peter the only question that mattered: "What got into you?" The Word was already in there, and then Peter mixed it with faith and it came alive. Inside out. But then he let something else get into him--outside in--and that's where the trouble came from. And that's what this Rant series is going to focus on: Holding fast to what's inside us so that it can come out of us, and not letting what's out there get in!