Bibliolatry: The "Christian" Sin

By David Ryser

I couldn’t believe what I was hearing.

“According to John 1:1, Jesus is the Word.  And the Word is the Bible.  When you are reading the Bible, you are holding Jesus in your hands.  The Bible is Jesus.”  The preacher made his point using logic I had learned in a Junior High School math class:  if A=B, and B=C, then A=C.  Apparently the congregation had attended the same math class because they received this “revelation” with great enthusiasm.

I left the church service greatly troubled and conflicted.  Troubled because I know Jesus is not a book.  Conflicted because I knew that to sort this out, I would have to touch the third-rail of Christianity…the Bible.

Since the days of the Protestant Reformation (an unfortunate term, since nothing was reformed), the Bible has held a central place in the Christian faith.  This is not an altogether bad thing.  The Bible is the written Word of God.  It is a living source of revelation (Hebrews 4:12), and is the major authority in matters of faith and practice (2 Timothy 3:16, 17).  We all have experienced the quickening of the Holy Spirit in our hearts as we read the Bible.

But Jesus is not a book.

I know from personal experience that it is possible to increase in the knowledge of the Bible while drifting away from Jesus.  Shortly after becoming a Christian, I entered Bible College.  I studied the Bible for the next 6 years.  At the end of that time, I knew the Bible from front to back.  But I also lost my intimate relationship with Jesus.

Because Jesus is not a book.

I am not the only person this has happened to.  In Jesus’ time, all Jewish males learned the scriptures.  But those who became scribes devoted their entire lives to studying the Bible.  They knew the scriptures.  When the magi came to Herod seeking the Messiah, the scribes were consulted to find out where He was.  And they knew where to look for Him (Matthew 2:1-6).

So why didn’t they go to see Him?

Perhaps it was because they knew the Book, but they didn’t know the Author.  They were looking for the Messiah, and even knew where to find Him, but they didn’t act upon what they knew from the scriptures.  They never went to see Him.

Is it possible that the scribes had fallen in love with the Bible and fallen out of love with God?

Jesus is not a book.

The Pharisees were also people of the Book.  They, along with the other Jewish people, searched the scriptures because they thought that in them they could find eternal life (John 5:39a).  But they were blind to the One that the scriptures revealed (John 5:39b).  They did not come to Him and receive the life they sought (John 5:40).  Instead, they opposed Him and ultimately had a hand in killing Him.

How did this happen?  Could it be they had fallen in love with the Book, but then killed the Author?

Jesus is not a book.

Suppose I were to write and publish my autobiography.  You want to know me, so you buy the book and begin reading.  You learn all about my life, my likes & dislikes, and my thoughts.  Do you know me?

I am not a book.

Suppose my book tells you how to contact me.  Instead of contacting me, you excitedly continue to read on, hoping to find out more.  And my book contains a wealth of information about me.  You keep on reading and learning.  Do you know me now?  A person can increase in learning without coming into knowledge (2 Timothy 3:7).  In order to know someone, we must meet and experience them.

I am not a book.

Now suppose I come to your home to visit you.  You are in another part of the house reading my book in an attempt to get to know me.  If you continue to read, but do not come to where I am to meet me, you will never know me.  You may know a great deal of information about me, but you won’t know me.

I am not a book.

The apostle John tells us that he wrote his gospel so we might put our faith in Jesus and receive life (John 20:31).  Reading about Jesus is not enough.  We must act upon what we have read and experience Him.  John’s gospel is not Jesus.  It is a message about Jesus designed to motivate and guide us to meet and experience Him.

Jesus is not a book.

Worshiping a book, any book, is a form of idolatry.  Idolatry, by definition, occurs when we place something or someone in the place of God.  Anything can be made into an idol.  Even a book.  Even the Bible.  The Bible is God’s written Word.  It is an expression of God, but it is not God Himself. When we worship the Book, we have become bibliolaters.  The Bible has become an idol standing in the place of God within our hearts.

We cannot be intimate with a book.  More accurately, we should not be intimate with a book.  Intimacy with a book is weird.  Intimacy with a book is pornographic.

Jesus is not a book.

How many times have we been exhorted to stand upon the Word of God?  As if the Bible is the foundation of our faith.  The Bible itself teaches us that it is not our foundation…Jesus is our one and only foundation (1 Corinthians 3:11).  Without Jesus, our Bible is nothing more than paper, ink, and imitation leather.  The Bible’s power comes from the One who stands ready to perform His Word and who breathes on the written Word to produce the life of God in us.

Worship God.  Read and cherish His written Word; but be sure to meet the One the Book points to, and have a relationship with Him.

Jesus is not a book.

Responses to this article are welcomed.  You may contact the author at drdave1545@yahoo.com

Jesus is King: Even if I Didn't Vote for Him

By David Ryser

“You won’t believe what I just saw!”

I had phoned Tim after seeing a bumper sticker on a car.  I enjoy reading bumper stickers.  Some manage to say so much in so few words.  Especially during an election season.  I find the stickers are far more clever than the candidates.  The sticker read:  “Elect Jesus King of Your Life.”

In the days following, Tim and I had great fun with this.  I phoned him one day and asked, “Have you elected Jesus as King of your life?”    He answered, “No.  I’m a member of the opposition party.”  I laughed!

But, one day, I stopped laughing.

The more I thought about that sticker, over time, the more it troubled me.  The message seems benign enough.  However, it points to a subtle, but dangerous, attitude in the American Church that is inconsistent with the Gospel.

This attitude is, in fact, Gospel poison.

Where does this attitude come from?  Perhaps it originates in our democratic political process.  In our country, we elect our rulers.  We have a choice.  We choose people to represent us.  We choose a president to lead us.

And in our churches, we are exhorted to choose Jesus.

I’ve lost count of the number of church services I have attended where the preacher exhorts the congregation to “make Jesus the Lord of your life.”  Make Jesus Lord of my life?  I have the power to make Jesus Lord?  And what is He if I choose not to make Him Lord?

Since when are kings elected?

The Kingdom of God, as with any other Kingdom, is ruled by an unelected King.  (In biblical times kings ruled as lords, as absolute monarchs, and exercised the power of life and death over their subjects.) The King is Lord over everything and everyone in His Kingdom.  He makes the rules--and He enforces them.  His word is law.  His decisions are final.  He does not solicit the opinion of His subjects on how to run the Kingdom.  A kingdom is not a democracy.

Jesus reigns supreme.  The fact of His Kingship is not in dispute.  His status as King is settled.

But I have some power, right?  Even if I can’t make Jesus King, I do have the choice of whether I will be His subject.  What if I decide not to be a subject in His Kingdom?  What if everyone on earth decides to reject Him as King and refuses to be part of His Kingdom?  Then is He a King?  King over what?

Actually, Jesus has already faced this challenge.

In John 6:26-65, Jesus preached a message that offended even His followers.  As a result, most of His disciples abandoned Him…except for the Twelve (verse 66).  Jesus turned to His remaining twelve disciples and asked them, “Do you also want to go away?” (verse 67).  What would Jesus have done if they had decided to leave?

He would have chosen twelve more disciples and started over.  He doesn’t need us.

I know that sounds harsh, but it’s true.  God loves us passionately and values us highly, but He doesn’t need us.  He is not diminished in any way if we choose not to be part of His Kingdom.  The Kingdom of God, like any other Kingdom, is about the King…not the subjects.

The Kingdom of God is not about us.  The Kingdom of God is about Him!

Jesus is King.  Nothing I do will make Him King, and nothing I do will topple Him from the throne.  My service to Him does not establish His Kingship.  I do not serve Him to make Him King…I serve Him because He is the King.  He is the King whether or not I serve Him.  He doesn’t need me.

The Kingdom of God only needs the King.  Subjects are optional.

So where does that leave us?  We have the honor of being invited to be part of God’s Kingdom.  And not just as servants, but as children of the King.  We have the privilege of being co-laborers with the King in the advancement of His Kingdom on the earth (1 Corinthians 3:9; 2 Corinthians 6:1).  We can choose to be a part of the Kingdom, but we can’t elect the King.

Jesus is Lord.  Jesus is King.  He is King over all of the kings, and He is Lord over all of the lords (Revelation 19:16).

Even if I didn’t vote for Him.

Responses to this article are welcomed.  You may contact the author at drdave1545@yahoo.com

Another has Fallen: So What's New?

By David Ryser

Recently another minister, along with his ministry, has fallen.  Who?  Does it matter?  Church leaders have been dropping like flies from the beginning of the Church. (Examples abound, both in the Bible and in Church history.) Thousands have fallen.  Time permitting; thousands more will fall.  Our usual response is to rally around the minister and seek his restoration.

This is good.  Restoration, with humility, is commended in the Bible (Galatians 6:1, 2).  I believe that we in the Church have too often been guilty of “shooting our own wounded” when it comes to dealing with people (leaders and others) who have fallen.  And I also believe that God is bigger than our mistakes…and even our sin.  Even if we have miserably failed God, He is able to heal and restore both the person and the situation for His glory.

I also believe that God desires to restore His fallen people to their purpose and ministry in His Kingdom.  I acknowledge that the gifts and the calling of God are irrevocable (Romans 11:29; although, in context, this verse is not speaking of individuals).  Our mistakes and sin are not bigger than God.  His purpose for us, and the gifts given to accomplish that purpose, remains unchanged regardless of our failures.

The Bible is full of stories about people who failed and were restored.  David is perhaps the prime example, but there are others.  If God can restore an adulterer and murderer, He can restore anyone.  Even the incestuous drunkard Lot is ultimately declared righteous (2 Peter 2:7, 8).

No one is beyond the power of God to restore.  The apostle Paul wrote about God’s grace and goodness toward him, even as people he had arrested for being Christians were rotting in prison...the ones who were still alive.  A former slave ship captain penned the words to the hymn, Amazing Grace.

How about you?  What’s your story?

God does not throw away people and their ministries just because they fail.  As His children, we are called to act like Him.  We are privileged to be agents of forgiveness, healing, and restoration (2 Corinthians 2:6-8).  .

But are we doing it for the wrong reason?

My friend, Arla, describes the problem eloquently when she writes that the restoration process seems to be motivated by the belief that “the world needs what [name of minister] can do.”  She notes that our justification, and ultimately our motive, for restoration is that God needs both the minister and his ministry.  In fact, the Kingdom of God needs neither.

That’s cold!  That’s awful!  But is it?

Here’s what I think is cold and awful.  I find it disgraceful to value a person merely for their anointing and gifting.  I’m troubled that my brother is being valued as a commodity rather than as a human being.

It disgusts me when the ministry is valued more than the person.

Ministers and ministries are a-dime-a-dozen.  People are priceless.  Can’t we value our brother for more than just his title and his function?  And what about his family?

What’s wrong with us?  We act all concerned for the Kingdom of God as if our brother’s fall has harmed it in some way.  Certainly the work of the Kingdom has suffered a bit, but the Kingdom itself has not been damaged.  The King is still on the throne.  The King still rules.  Even if every one of us falls, the Kingdom will stand.

The Kingdom of God will thrive without our brother’s ministry.  The important thing now is that there be genuine repentance and healing.  This takes time.  It doesn’t happen in days, weeks, or even months.

It may take years.

The ministry may need to die. God is able to resurrect it.  This certainly is no time to be soliciting funds to keep the ministry alive while the restoration process continues.  And I don’t need constant updates replete with gruesome details or “happy talk” concerning the process.  It’s none of my business.  Let the particulars of the restoration be kept between God and those directly involved.

My job, if any, is to pray and believe God.

Grace with accountability is what is needed now.  I’m trusting that all concerned will choose to walk the narrow, difficult, and painful path to true restoration.  No shortcuts.

My brother is worth it.

Responses to this article are welcomed.  You may contact the author at drdave1545@yahoo.com

Nothing has Changed?: Everything has Changed

By David Ryser

“We don’t allow coffee in the sanctuary.”  This was my introduction to Jim, a member of a church in Mobile, Alabama.  Later in the day, I realized that meeting Jim was the reason God had sent me to Mobile.

In fact, meeting Jim is one of the best things that has ever happened to me in my entire life.

I thought I’d gone to Mobile to be with my friend, Bill, who is powerfully gifted with an apostolic anointing.  (He is also quite gifted prophetically, so you don’t want any hidden sin in your life if you are going to be around him.)  Bill was ministering at the church over the weekend and had invited me to come and hang out with him.

It seemed like an innocent enough invitation at the time.

I was going through a particularly difficult time in my life.  God had slammed the door shut on my previous life and ministry.  He was working (very diligently, it seemed to me) to transform me into the image of Christ.  (No, He’s not finished…He’s never finished.)  God had showed me that except for the Jesus in me, there wasn’t anything about me He particularly liked.  And He showed me that there wasn’t much of Jesus being manifested in me.  So while He loved me passionately, He didn’t like me very much.

I’ve discovered that I appreciate some revelations more than others.  (I’ve also decided that I would be able to hear God more often and more clearly if He would just flatter me more.)

The transformation process is painful.  And it doesn’t always go smoothly.  Jesus said that the godly path is narrow (Matthew 7:13, 14).  He neglected to mention it is also bumpy.  During this part of my faith journey, I was particularly discouraged.  I had embraced the pain of God’s correction.  I really had no choice if I loved Him.  I also accepted God’s discipline because there was a hope of a new life afterward.  At times I could see some change in me, but then my behavior and attitude at other times would cause me to wonder if there had been any change at all.

There were times when I was so brokenhearted and disappointed in myself that I pleaded with God just to give up on me.

But I kept coming back to Him for further transformation.  Where else could I go?  It had hurt me when He told me He didn’t like me very much.  It had hurt me when He took my ministry away from me.  It had hurt me as He revealed me to myself.  But what choice did I have?

Where do you go when the only One who can heal you is the One who wounded you?

Did I mention that transformation is painful?  Self-improvement is so much easier. Perhaps this is why there are so many self-improvement books in our Christian bookstores.  And there are a bunch of them.  If they removed all of the self-improvement books from the shelves, Christian bookstores would be nearly empty.

They could always continue to sell artwork and relics, I suppose.

Anyway, back to Mobile.  On the way to church on Sunday morning, Bill and I had stopped off at a coffee shop and picked up large cups of coffee.  I was nearly finished with my coffee when we arrived at the church.  Finding no trash receptacle outside of the church, I carried my cup inside.

Big mistake.  Or was it?

The outer doors of the church led directly into the back of the sanctuary.  I was standing about one-third of the way deep into the room talking with one of the church elders.  It was then that Jim came by to say hello.

“We don’t allow coffee in the sanctuary.”

I didn’t notice that the elder’s mouth was hanging agape in stunned disbelief.  I smiled at Jim and said, “I’m sorry, brother.  Where can I throw this away?”  He pointed to the back of the sanctuary in response.  I made my way to the back of the room, found a trash can, and disposed of my coffee cup.  I returned back to where I’d been.  Jim smiled, said “Thank you,” shook my hand, and walked away.  I continued my visit with the elder.

I promptly forgot about the episode…until God brought it up again.

A few minutes later, God reminded me of my encounter with Jim.  Then He spoke to me.  “So nothing has changed, huh?”  Suddenly I realized everything had changed.  I had not been offended by Jim.  I had not been tempted to be offended and then fought with everything that was in me to exhibit the love of Christ toward Jim.  It had not even occurred to me to be offended by Jim.  I was not offended because, at that instant at least, there was nothing in me to offend.  For those few moments, I was manifesting (in my words and actions) the life and love of Jesus in me.  Everything had changed.

By the way, I’ve discovered along the journey that every time I’m offended, I am in the wrong.

Jesus lives in me and expresses Himself through me!  Wow!  Do I still make mistakes?  Of course I make mistakes.  I make lots of mistakes.  Plenty of times I display my old nature.  Don’t you?

The only place I know of on earth where people are always decent, in order, and mistake-free is the cemetery.

After God spoke to me, even over such a simple thing, I was filled with His peace and joy.  I was encouraged to continue with the process of transformation.  This determination has carried me through some dark days since then.  I’m still disappointed with myself from time to time; but since that day, I’ve never again been tempted to quit.

Thanks, Jim.

Responses to this article are welcomed.  You may contact the author at drdave1545@yahoo.com

Son or Bastard?: The Difference is Discipline

By David Ryser

I was driving 70 miles per hour on an interstate highway when I had the following vision. It hit me with such strength and clarity that I lost sight of my surroundings for several seconds.

I am not one who has a lot of experience with visions.  God seems to speak to me more often through other means.  I’m not complaining, but I’ve often thought it would be fun to have what some call an “open vision” where I would see into the spirit realm and be unaware of what was going on around me.  I would not, however, have chosen this particular time and place to have such an experience.

I saw myself as a small child.  I was about four years old.  I was standing before the throne of God with a broken toy in my hand.  I knew the toy represented my life.  It was broken.  I looked up at God, held out the toy to Him, and said, “Daddy, can you fix it?”  He took the toy from me and laid it aside.  I climbed up into His lap and held on tightly to Him.  He didn’t say a word.  He just put His arms around me and held me while I cried until I had no more tears left to cry.

How did my life get to be such a mess?

A few months before, my life was great.  I had everything I ever wanted.  I had been powerfully affected by coming into contact with a genuine move of God.  I was experiencing God at a level I never did before.  I was doing what I was made to do--teaching in a School of Ministry.  The presence of God would show up in the classes and He would move mightily in our midst.  I had the privilege to go overseas and minister.  Signs and wonders followed.  My future in the ministry never looked brighter.

 Then the whole thing came crashing down.

I was at a weeklong conference in Toronto and looking forward to encountering God and having a good time in His presence.  I was expecting to receive God’s further guidance for my ministry.  The week started off well enough; but as time wore on, it became evident that God wanted to speak to me about my character rather than my ministry.  I began to struggle with this unexpected turn of events, but God brought the argument to a close by making two statements and asking one question.  My response was, “Uh-oh…busted.”

When God spoke that to me at the conference, it was as if I could hear a door close in the spirit.  Yes, God opens a door that cannot be closed, but He also closes a door that cannot be opened (Revelation 3:7b).

In that instant, I knew that my life and my ministry (as I had known them) were over.

You see, I had been living as if Hebrews 12:5-8 was not in the Bible.  We are the children of God, but He wants us to become mature sons.  The road to sonship is paved with discipline. (The root word of disciple is the same as for discipline.)  Fathers only discipline their own children.  They do not discipline other people’s children.  If God does not discipline us, we are not His children.  And certainly not His sons.

If we are not God’s sons, then we are spiritual illegitimate children (“bastards”--Hebrews 12:8; KJV).

Why does God discipline His children?  He does so for the same reason that an earthly father disciplines his children.  The purpose of discipline is to develop character in the child.

I’ve discovered in this season of my life that God is far more concerned with the quality of my character than He is in my anointing, calling, and gifting.  Although we highly esteem anointing, calling, and gifting--and promote and exalt people based upon these--God does not regard these as highly as character (1 Corinthians 13:1-3).  In fact, bragging about our anointing, calling, and gifting is a lot like bragging about having a derriere.

Why do people not brag about having a rear end?  Because everybody has one.  It’s nothing special.

If you tell me you are anointed, called, and gifted; all you have done is told me you are a follower of Jesus.  All of Jesus’ followers are automatically anointed, called, and gifted.  It’s nothing special.

All Christians have butts.  Who cares?

I’ve been in the religion business for a long time.  I have never seen anyone fail in ministry for a lack of anointing, calling, and gifting.  I have, however, seen hundreds fail for a lack of character.

Character counts.

This is why the apostle Paul, when writing to the young apostles Timothy and Titus, speaks at length about the importance of godly character when appointing pastors and other church leaders.  In enumerating the qualities of people who are qualified for church leadership (1 Timothy 3: 1-13; Titus 1:5-9), Paul does not speak at all about anointing, calling, and gifting.

Why?  Are these not important?  Do we not want our leaders to be anointed, called, and gifted?  Of course we do.  The reason Paul does not mention anointing, calling, and gifting is because these things are assumed to be present already in these people.

I am not qualified for ministry or church leadership simply because I have spiritual buttocks.  And neither are you.

So what should we do?  We are anointed, called, and gifted for a purpose.  If we are ever going to fulfill our purpose in God’s Kingdom most effectively, and in a way that glorifies God and is a blessing to others, then we need to submit ourselves to the discipline of God.  If we do, we will grow to become mature sons of God.

The Church already has enough bastards masquerading as sons.

Responses to this article are welcomed.  You may contact the author at drdave1545@yahoo.com

Tim's Question: "What was it all about?"

By David Ryser

“What was it all about?”

The question came from my friend, Tim, as we were talking one evening.  We were talking about revival.  I had been powerfully impacted and influenced by one of the many mighty moves of God that had occurred in the mid-to-late 1990’s.  Tim had not.  His faith walk had taken him along a different path.  As the revivals changed their focus and/or direction, or fizzled to a mere shadow of their former glory, Tim was curious about the meaning of it all.  He thought I might have some thoughts on the matter, so he asked, “Now that it’s over, what was God up to in those revivals?  What was it all about?”

Without hesitation, I answered him.  And my answer surprised me.  Perhaps some context will help you understand my answer.

It was March 1997.  And I was miserable.  I had been in the vocational ministry, sometimes full-time and sometimes part-time, for 13 years.  I was burned out.  I was tired, spent, dry, and spiritually comatose.

I was done.  I didn’t know where to turn.  I was more desperate than I realized.  I needed revival.

Revival means the same thing in Hebrew, Greek, Latin, and English. (I looked it up.)  To revive someone means to restore them to fullness of life.  This is not the same thing as resurrection.  Resurrection is when you are dead and then are brought back to life.  Revival is when you are mowing the lawn on a hot day and the exertion of the work has sapped your strength.  You are hot, exhausted, and on the verge of sunstroke.  Then someone comes out of the house carrying a cold beverage in a frosted, iced, and sweating glass.

As you lift the glass up to your lips and gulp the contents, you begin to be refreshed and your strength returns. This is revival!

As I was muddling along in my misery, a man from our church asked me one day if I wanted to go to a revival meeting.  Did I want to go to a revival meeting?  Does a cow eat at Burger King?  I didn’t know what I needed, but I was certain I had no interest whatsoever in attending another hyped-up church service that was a mile wide and an inch deep.  Been there and done that.  Got the T-shirt.  No, thanks!

I didn’t know exactly what I needed.  But I knew I needed something real.

I politely declined the invitation to attend the meeting, but to no avail.  To some people, the word “no” is not the answer to a question; it is an invitation to a debate.  This man was one of those people.  So he pestered me about going to the revival for several days until I finally gave in and promised to go.  He cheerfully responded, “Great!  I’ll pick you up early because we need to get there at least 30 minutes before the start of the service to get a good seat.”

Get a good seat?  I didn’t want to go there at all.  And now I had to go early to get a good seat? But, a promise is a promise (Psalm 15:4b).

When the day came to attend the revival, we walked into the church really early--and I stopped dead in my tracks.

I saw something in the front of the church that I’d never seen before...or since.  I saw a group of people worshiping God with passion.  They were pouring out their hearts to Him with all of their strength.

I instantly knew two things.  I knew these people were head-over-heels in love with Jesus.  And I knew I wasn’t.  I had loved Jesus with all my heart when I first met Him so many years before. But somewhere along the way, I’d lost my passion for Him.

I was heartbroken and terrified at the same time.  Heartbroken because I had lost my first love (Revelation 2:4).  Terrified because I didn’t know if I could get it back.

Over the next few months, I experienced God in ways I never had before.  When God shows up, church services are charged with His presence.

On one occasion, His glory came so powerfully into the worship service that my hands felt like they were full of something that felt like fine sand.  I couldn’t keep my arms up in the air.  As my arms would go down below my waist, I would spread my fingers and allow the “sand” to run through them until I could lift my arms up again.

On numerous occasions, I was “blasted” by the power of God.  As I would lie on the floor, God would stir me in the deepest part of my being and perform what I can only describe as “spiritual surgery” on me.

Miracles were commonplace.  People twitched, jerked, laughed, cried, and staggered like drunks as the Spirit of God fell on them.  Physical healings were a common occurrence.  There were thousands of testimonies of how God had touched people and changed them.

And somewhere along the way, I again fell deeply and passionately in love with Jesus.

After rediscovering my passion for Jesus, I found my understanding of revival began to change.  I realized revival was not about what God was doing.  Revival was about God Himself.  It was about loving Him, knowing Him, and serving Him.  It was about receiving His life and love, and then carrying these things to others.  It was about demonstrating His Kingdom, and co-laboring with Him to establish His Kingdom, on the earth.  It was about…

“What was it all about?”

Tim’s question hung in the air.  He waited for my response.  I finally answered, “I can’t speak for anyone else, but for me the revival and its manifestations were bait.  I stopped and looked to see what God was doing, and I found God Himself.  He used what He was doing in the revival to hook me, and then He reeled me in.  The manifestations were simply bait.”

Since then, even during my darkest days, I’ve always been grateful that I took the bait.

Responses to this article are welcomed.  You may contact the author at drdave1545@yahoo.com

Stressed Out? Here's Some Advice

By David Ryser

Recently I was driving along and minding my own business when I came across a two-line message posted on a church marquee.  The sign read:  DON’T ALLOW STRESS TO RUIN YOUR LIFE.  LET THE CHURCH HELP.

Need I say more?

Responses to this article are welcomed.  You may contact the author at drdave1545@yahoo.com

Autumn's Question: "How much confirmation do you need?"

By David Ryser

“How much confirmation do you need?”

The question came from Autumn, a student at the School of Ministry.  On her face was a look that was somewhere between bemusement and incredulity.  She was not being disrespectful.  She was the voice of God speaking directly into my heart.

And I have asked myself the same question many times in the years since then.

Earlier in the day, Autumn had taken (what was for her) a big risk.  She had been my student, and I her teacher, for almost two years.  During her time of morning prayer and worship, God gave her a prophetic vision and word for me.  Out of respect for me, and for our relationship, she was reluctant to share it with me; but she obeyed God and ministered this powerful message to me after class.

It impacted powerfully in my spirit, and I immediately received it as a word from God.

I prayerfully considered what she had said all the rest of the day.   Later I saw Autumn and shared with her the part of the story she could not have known concerning how God was speaking to me about something.  I had been struggling with it, even though I was sure it was God who was speaking to me.  Her prophetic word was the final key to my puzzle, and I wanted to thank her for delivering it and to let her know that she was correct in what she had heard and in her decision to tell me.  After hearing how strongly God had been dealing with me, I suspect she wondered why I had needed her prophetic message in order to obey God; hence, her question to me.

“How much confirmation do you need?”

You see, I’m someone who likes to know as much as possible about anything before jumping in and making a decision or taking action.  This trait carries over into my relationship with God.  When I hear something from God, I often ask, “Is that you, Lord?”  The question itself is ridiculous.  If it’s the Lord, I should simply obey Him.  If it’s not, then I shouldn’t call it “Lord.”  I think I need more information, but do I really?

How much information do I need in order to obey God?

In the Book of Jonah, we read of a man who was called by God to deliver a short, simple message to the people of Nineveh.  Upon receiving his commission, Jonah ran as fast and as far as he could in the opposite direction.  He knew he had heard from God.  He did not run because he was unsure that God had spoken.  He did not run because he feared his mission would be unsuccessful.  On the contrary, Jonah ran because he feared his mission would succeed (Jonah 4:1, 2)

Jonah ran because he simultaneously knew both too much and too little.

Jonah knew about the prophesies of Amos and Hosea.  He knew that God’s judgment was coming upon Israel and the instrument of that judgment would be Assyria (Nineveh was the capital city of Assyria).  Jonah also knew the Assyrians were savage conquerors (history bears this out in graphic detail) and brutal overlords.  Because of the prophetic word God had given him, Jonah also knew God would destroy Nineveh in less than six weeks unless they changed their ways.  If Nineveh were destroyed, the judgment of God could not fall on Israel, or at least it would be greatly delayed.

Jonah made the decision to sacrifice himself for the sake of his country and his people.  He would run from God, and God would kill him…or not; in either case, Nineveh would not have the opportunity to repent, and it would be destroyed.

What Jonah did not know, and could not have known (because God did not tell him), was that God was working through Jonah’s prophetic message and mission to change things ahead of the coming judgment.  God wanted the people of Nineveh to repent so they would be a changed people in the event that the judgment of Israel actually came to pass, thus mitigating the severity of the judgment.  And if Assyria became a godly nation and became worshipers of the one true God, perhaps their faith and experience of God’s presence might even have provoked Israel to jealousy and turned their hearts back to God in repentance.  Had Israel repented of their unfaithfulness to God, judgment might have been averted altogether.  So why didn’t God tell Jonah all of this and make things so much easier for him?  Why doesn’t God give us more information and make things easier for us?

Because He shouldn’t have to.

Jonah was a prophet.  He had the God-given ability to hear God and see into the spirit realm.  But like many of us, Jonah had the eyes and ears of God without having the heart of God.  Jonah was willing to sacrifice thousands of Assyrian lives in order to save Israelite lives, but God had compassion even on the Assyrians and had regard for their lives (Jonah 4:10, 11).  God is not interested in killing people.  His desire is that everyone would come to a saving knowledge of God (2 Peter 3:9b).

Even the Assyrians.

I am not a prophet, but I am a child of God.  Because I am His sheep, I hear the voice of my Shepherd (John 10:2-5, 14).  When God tells me to do or say something, He almost never tells me why or gives me any other information about the situation into which I am speaking or ministering.  Since most of these situations involve other people, the why’s and the what’s are none of my business.  God protects the privacy of others just as I would want Him to protect mine.  My job is simply to say and do what He wants said and done.  No hesitation.  No questions.  No arguments.

How hard can this be?

As I was pondering this lesson from Jonah’s story again one day, God asked me, “How much do I have to tell you before you will obey Me?  How much information do you need before you will obey?  How much do you need to know?”  I knew the right answer, but I also knew I wasn’t living it.  All I should need to know in order to obey is that it’s God who is telling me to say or do whatever it is He is speaking to me.  As soon as I know it’s Him speaking, I need to obey immediately.

I know people who are like this, and God has taken them on some remarkable adventures and done miraculous things through them--just because they heard and obeyed.

Why is that so scary for me?  Do I not trust Him?  And to the extent that I don’t trust God, is it because I don’t know really Him?  Will there ever be a time when I will know God intimately enough to trust Him and obey Him instantly when He speaks to me?

Good questions.  I wish I had some good answers.  If I get any, I’ll let you know.

Responses to this article are welcomed.  You may contact the author at drdave1545@yahoo.com

Surrender or Death: God Takes No Prisoners

By David Ryser

I’ve known Joe for more than 25 years.  Since he moved away to California, we don’t see one another very often, so we visit frequently by phone.  We exchange personal pleasantries and talk about what God is doing in our lives.  Because Joe is an avid reader, he often tells me about the most recent Christian book he has been reading.

During one such conversation, I received clarity concerning something I’d been thinking about for a while.

The book Joe had been reading heavily emphasized the importance of a Christian surrendering to God.  As a result, the word “surrender” came up a lot in this particular conversation.  Every time the word “surrender” was spoken, a thought grew stronger in me until I asked, “Why does a soldier surrender?”

As I voiced this question, Joe responded with the first answer that had come to my mind, “He surrenders because he is beaten.”  My thoughts were becoming more clearly defined, and I expressed them by saying, “No, a soldier surrenders when he is beaten, but why does he surrender?”

Even a defeated soldier has options.  Surrender is one option, but he could also continue to fight.  He can continue to fight, with his bare fists if necessary, until he is killed.  So why does he choose to surrender?  He chooses to surrender in order to preserve his life.

When we surrender to God, we likely do it for the same reason.

Nowhere in the Bible are we commanded to surrender to God.  (The word surrender isn’t even in the Bible).  We are told to submit to God (James 4:7a), but submission is not the same as surrender.  There is a difference between the two.  Submission is always voluntary.  Surrender is always coerced.  Big difference.

We are not coerced to submit to God.  Coerced submission is false submission.  Coerced submission is no submission at all.

We are told to lose our lives (Luke 17:33) and die to ourselves and our old life (Romans 6:2), but never to surrender.  When a soldier surrenders and is taken captive, what does he spend every waking moment of every day doing?  Plotting how to escape.  Our Adamic nature does the same thing if we are allowed to surrender.

This is why God does not take prisoners.

I once heard someone say, “God and the devil have one thing in common:  they are both trying to kill you.”  This is a true statement and totally biblical.  Both God and the devil are trying to kill me, but for different purposes.  The devil wants to kill me in order to dishonor God (because I am made in the image of God) and to do damage to the cause of the Kingdom of God.  God wants me dead so He can resurrect me into a new life as a new creation (2 Corinthians 5:17)…a new spiritual species of humanity.

For as long as I have been a Christian, I’ve heard fellow believers talking about how we live the resurrected life.  We’ve joyfully proclaimed our resurrected life even as we continue to live lives (at least on the inside of us) that are pretty much the same as our old lives.  Yes, we’ve cleaned up our language and modified our behavior (whitewashed the tomb as it were--Matthew 23:27), but on the inside we are still motivated by the same things as always.  We still want to be noticed, appreciated, admired, and promoted.  Our lives are still all about us, and we continue to pursue the things we have always pursued; only now we do it in Jesus’ name. 

And we pay pastors big money to tell us how wonderful we are and to comfort us when we know instinctively that something is still wrong with us.

We continue to talk about the resurrected life without ever having experienced death.  We want resurrection without death.  The problem with this is that resurrection always involves death.  Resurrection, by definition, requires that we be dead first.  No one can be resurrected without having been dead.  Resurrection is only for dead people.

If you are not dead, you cannot be resurrected.

Paul says he dies daily (1 Corinthians 15:31). He tells Christians to consider themselves dead to sin on a constant basis (Romans 6:2-11), but raised to newness of life in Christ.  Paul makes a direct connection between death and resurrection here in Romans 6 and elsewhere.

Only by losing our life can we find life (Matthew 16:25).

The process of dying to ourselves can be a painful process, it takes more time than we’d like; in fact, it never really ends.  Embracing pain and difficulty is not natural for us.  Putting aside our own interests and ambitions for the sake of Jesus and the Kingdom of God is hard for us, but we cannot manifest the life of Christ flowing through us until we have cast our “old man” aside so we can put on the resurrected “new man” (Ephesians 4:22-24).

Anyone can walk on the wide path; it is easy for us, but it leads to destruction.  Few choose to walk the narrow path that goes through the valley of death on its way to resurrection and newness of life.

This battle most of us are fighting is not with the devil.  To paraphrase Steve Gray, too many Christians want to talk of fighting the devil when we are not yet finished fighting with God.  This fight with God has only one possible end.

Our battle with God does not end in surrender.  It ends in death.  God doesn’t take prisoners.

Responses to this article are welcomed.  You may contact the author at drdave1545@yahoo.com