He Came to Pick A Fight

Posted on October 26, 2018 by America's Keswick in Freedom Fighters

Imagine yourself as a living house. God comes in to rebuild that house. At first, perhaps, you can understand what He is doing. He is getting the drains right and stopping the leaks in the roof and so on; you knew that those jobs needed doing and so you are not surprised. But presently He starts knocking the house about in a way that hurts abominably and does not seem to make any sense. What on earth is He up to? The explanation is that He is building quite a different house from the one you thought of – throwing out a new wing here, putting on an extra floor there, running up towers, making courtyards. You thought you were being made into a decent little cottage: but He is building a palace. He intends to come and live in it Himself.
~ CS Lewis, from Mere Christianity

Who is this who comes from Edom, in crimsoned garments from Bozrah, He who is splendid in His apparel, marching in the greatness of his strength? “It is I, speaking in righteousness, mighty to save.” Why is your apparel red, and your garments like his who treads in the winepress? “I have trodden the winepress alone, and from the peoples no one was with me; I trod them in my anger and trampled them in my wrath; their lifeblood spattered on my garments, and stained all my apparel. For the day of vengeance was in my heart, and my year of redemption had come. … I looked, but there was no one to help; I was appalled, but there was no one to uphold; so my own arm brought me salvation, and my wrath upheld me. I trampled down the peoples in my anger; I made them drunk in my wrath, and I poured out their lifeblood on the earth.” … I will recount the steadfast love of the LORD, the praises of the LORD, according to all that the LORD has granted us, and the great goodness to the house of Israel that he has granted them according to his compassion, according to the abundance of his steadfast love. For he said, “Surely they are my people, children who will not deal falsely.” And he became their Savior. In all their affliction he was afflicted, and the angel of his presence saved them; in his love and in his pity he redeemed them; he lifted them up and carried them all the days of old.
~ from Isaiah 63

Oh beloved, it is true.

Jesus is the King of The Universe. And, He will have his way.

And, in beginning His mighty work of salvation in our lives – He first saves us from the debt of our sins. This part we readily understand if we are willing to simply listen to the gospel.

However, there is indeed more to being saved, than escaping the just punishment of our rebellion. And, in many ways this is the more difficult piece (for both Him, and me).

Jesus saves us from our sins, but then He goes about saving us from ourselves. It is a terrible battle. G_d made us in Their image. We have a will borne in us to keep us alive in this plane. And, when we see what is coming, we struggle like a man who has just had his head pushed underwater.

Can we see it?

Jesus came to pick a fight. 

With you.

And He doesn’t fight fair.

We struggle, but it is futile.

He sets about upsetting everything.

He smashes our ego off its adamite center.

He takes our will away from us.

He breaks the profile of our desires.

Our hardness is crushed into lovingkindness.

He shatters our rebellion and makes us His Love slave.

He breaks through our isolation, and makes us one with Himself.

He ruins our despair and turns it to Joy in His Presence.

He destroys our fun, and turns it into a rhythmic dance of purpose and strength.

It. Is. Epic. Deadly, but beautiful.

So, are you feeling like G_d is messing with your plans?  Sounds like you are right on schedule. Oh, fear not, He is gonna make a bigger mess of you before He is done. BUT, when He is done, you (and this fool of a writer) are going to wonder why we ever resisted.

Tonight is your night. Let Him destroy you, that you might Live forever!

Written by Makala Doulos: Makala Doulos is a child of G_d, a husband to his wife, a father to his children, and a teacher to his students. But mostly, he is a prisoner set free by Jesus. Love has invaded his life, crushed it, and made it new. Now, G_d’s Love is what constrains him to live in full surrender to the freedom The Father and Son and Holy Spirit have bought for us all. Grace and Peace to you all.

The Daily Bible Reading: Luke 12-13 | You can download our 2018 Daily Bible Reading Plan by clicking here

Daily Quote: Do you want to be filled with a Spirit who, though he is like Jesus in his gentleness and love, will nevertheless demand to be Lord of your life? Are you willing to let your personality be taken over by another, even if that other be the Spirit of God himself? If the Spirit takes charge of your life he will expect unquestioning obedience in everything. He will not tolerate in you the self-sins even though they are permitted and excused by most Christians…. You will find the Spirit to be in sharp opposition to the easy ways of the world and of the mixed multitude within the precincts of religion. He will be jealous over you for good. He will not allow you to boast or swagger or show off. He will take the direction of your life away from you. He will reserve the right to test you, to discipline you, to chasten you for your soul’s sake. He may strip you of many of those borderline pleasures which other Christians enjoy but which are to you a source of refined evil. Through it all he will enfold you in a love so vast, so mighty, so all-embracing, so wondrous that your very losses will seem like gains and your small pains like pleasure. ~A. W. Tozer (1897-1963)

This Week’s Verse to Memorize: “The Lord is my portion,” says my soul, “Therefore I hope in Him” – Lamentations 3:24