Greetings again friends!

We live in a world where the sanctity of life is no longer sacred and seems non existent. Witness the shootings in our schools that’s taken the lives of many innocent young victims. Or, the shootings in our public places, like malls, theaters, and so on. Events like these are frequent that we don’t ask “if” but “when” the next one is going to happen. Then, there’s gang wars which take the lives of our young adults. There are wars that are fought in parts of the world with no regard for human life. I could go on. The answer to our troubles lies deep within us. It has to do with our self-respect and self-esteem from which all relationships begin.

Laws of Relationships 

There are only two important relationships that matters in life. When Jesus was asked this question by one of the religious scholars of his day, Jesus said, “The first in importance is, ‘Listen, Israel: The Lord your God is one; so love the Lord God with all your passion and prayer and intelligence and energy.’ And here is the second: ‘Love others as well as you love yourself.’ There is no other commandment that ranks with these.” (Mar. 12:28-31) I will focus on the second part of this passage, “Love your neighbor as yourself,” in this post because of its relevance concerning our relationship with our fellowman.

Golden Rule of Relationships

The “Golden Rule” is the basic law of relationships which undergirds our relationships with people. Jesus said, “So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you” (Matt. 7:12). The Golden Rule forms the basis of the law of relationship of “loving our neighbor as ourselves” (Mark 12:31). That is the Spirit’s code of love, which upholds man’s conduct and relationship with other humans. Jesus said this shall be the sign of discipleship, if we love one another as He loves us (John 13:34-35).      

Loving Yourself

However, this short and direct command, “Love your neighbor as yourself,”  packs a lot more punch than it appears to say. Its true test lies not in how much we Love others, but in how much we Love ourselves first. If you read the command backwards it would say, “As you Love yourself, Love your neighbor.” To the degree you value yourself, value your neighbor. Love begins with you. If you are asked to Love someone, how do you measure its effectiveness? How do you tell it is a genuine article? Let’s unwrap this question in this post.

Jesus says you are the gauge of that Love. How much Love you can give depends on how much Love you have for yourself. If a neighbor came to your house and ask for milk, and you don’t have any in your refrigerator, how much of milk can you give? Yes, none! Who you are as a person, is the determinant of how you relate with other people. You cannot Love someone more than who you are as a person – in your heart, deep in your innermost being. Your Love for others will tip the scale at the point of your self-esteem and no more.

Self-Acceptance

The essence of what Christ command is not self-centered love. But self-giving Love! Jesus is talking about self-acceptance – who we are in the core of our being. We understand that in the process of Christian conversion when we surrendered our lives to Christ, we acquired a ‘new self’ in Christ. The words of Paul rings clear, “I have been crucified with Christ, and I no longer live…” Crucified and buried the ‘old self’ in our watery grave of baptism. So, just as Christ was raised from the dead, we have been raised from our watery grave with a new life in Him, and He in us. We had hands laid on us to receive the gift of the Holy Spirit, just as Jesus told the disciples to wait for Pentecost and the coming of the Holy Spirit. Paul goes on with this thought, “Yet I live, but not I, but Christ lives in me. And the life which I now live, I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me.”  (Gal.2:20)

New You

How much do you value this ‘new you,’ this new person you have become in Christ? This is the question that seems to arise out of the second part of Jesus’ command. How much do you accept this ‘new self’ that’s born anew in Christ by the power of the Spirit? When you received Christ, you were made sons and daughters of the Most High God. But more importantly, just as God is a Tri-Personal Being – Three distinct Persons with three equally distinct functions, but ONE God, so it is with all believers in Christ. Christ made us ONE with God by becoming human Himself. Theologians emphasize the distinction between the Trinitarian persons by using different prepositions to characterize their roles. For example, if you are a reader of Thomas F Torrance’s writings, you probably came across something like salvation is from the Father, through the Son, and by the Holy Spirit. Our response to God, whether it involves repentance, prayer, thanksgiving, worship, Love, is also Trinitarian in nature: we respond to God’s Love with His Love by the Holy Spirit, through the Son, and to the Father. Of course, that’s the first part of the command in our relations with the Triune God. The second to do with our neighbor cannot happen without the first. They dovetail into each other.

Unique, Unrepeatable Image of God

So, when we worship and relate with the Triune God, we do so as a person who is uniquely distinct from others. The poet William Wordsworth said, all persons “differ by mystery not to be explained.” I cannot give a post to reach everyone of you because you are all different in gifting. From my vantage point, I cannot explain who you are. Only God knows all that for He has gifted everyone differently. We will never lose our personal unique giftedness as an individual in Christ. Stephen Seamands, in his book, “Ministry in the Image of God,” said, “The goal of Christian community, constituted by the Spirit in union with Jesus Christ, is to provide a place in which everyone is accepted as an ineffable, unique, and unrepeatable image of God.” So, I can only give a “housekeeping” message which applies to all. Only in your personal reading and studies can God reach you as a person unique in your own gifts.

Covenanting Trinity

The New Covenant explains this in Hebrews 8: “None of them shall teach his neighbor, and none his brother, saying, Know the Lord, for all shall know me, from the least to the greatest of them.” The Message says it like this, “They won’t go to school to learn about me, or buy a book called God in Five Easy Lessons. They’ll all get to know me firsthand, the little and the big, the small and the great.” (Heb.12:11) That’s the Covenant telling us about the work of the Holy Spirit in your personal journey and salvation. You’ll go through personal issues unique to your own situation which you will take to God in prayer, and the Spirit will guide you in your studies because what you’re going through is unique to who you are in your gift. You will go through trials unique to you because they can happen only within the context of your person and your constituted gift from God. Personal trials are peculiar to you because of your gift. That’s how the Spirit leads you deeper to your your destiny in Christ.

John’s Vision

In John’s vision of the God’s world in the future, there are innumerable multitude that stands and worships before the throne of God “from every nation, from all tribes and peoples and languages.” (Rev.7:9) That world to come is not a homogenous place where we are all blended into one enormous banana pudding. No, but one where the individual nations, tribes, peoples, and languages endure and remain.

Self-Giving, Self-Sacrificing Love

You see, the distinction between the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, must always be viewed in the context of their Loving relationship and interaction with one another. Love is self-giving and self-sacrificing. Each of the Triune Persons freely lays down and gives of Himself for the sake of the other Two. Theologian Geoffrey Wainwright says it like this, “The divine Persons empty themselves into each and receive each other’s fullness.” So our new identity in Christ brings us into that circle of Trinitarian Love. There is no egotism or self-serving, or self-seeking, within the Triune Godhead. There’s only self-giving Love. That’s why Paul said, “I urge you, brothers and sisters…to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice,” – why, because in our fallen humanity we can’t live like God in His self-giving Love. The only way is to live like Christ did and live sacrificially in the Spirit’s power. Paul goes on, “holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship. Do not think of yourself more highly than you ought, but rather think of yourself with sober judgment, in accordance with the faith God has distributed to each of you. ⁴ For just as each of us has one body with many members, and these members do not all have the same function, ⁵ so in Christ we, though many, form one body, and each member belongs to all the others.⁶ We have different gifts, according to the grace given to each of us.” (Rom.12:1-6)

This is the self-respect and self-acceptance Jesus is talking about. The measure of Love you have for who you are in Christ and the gifts He confers upon you to do God’s will in you, which is His Love in you, is the same measure you will use to love others – nothing more, nothing less. This is the foundation upon which Godly relationships are built, beginning with your family and then outwardly to your neighbors. This is the basis upon which Christ’s command, “Love your neighbor as yourself,” is built. It is built upon your “self-respect” in Christ. “As you Love yourself, Love others.” Christ’s baptism in the Jordan reveals not only what the Father declares openly of His Son, but to all His children. Each time someone receives Christ as Savior the Father utters these memorable words, “You are My beloved son, You are My beloved daughter, in You I am well pleased.” (Mar.1:11) Our self-acceptance and self-esteem is grounded on those words of the Father. It tells of a person who is unique and has a place in the Father’s heart.

Parable of Lost Sheep

In a parable Jesus compares Himself to a shepherd who leaves the ninety nine sheep to find the one that’s lost. (Luk.15:3-7) Why did he do that? In a world where the sanctity of life seems non-existent, so much so we say ‘life is cheap,’ some might ask why is that lost one important? Because human life, made in the image of God, is sacred. He loves each and every one of them. Yes, it’s a Love more than we will ever know or imagine. There’s another side. What makes one so different from another that’s worth saving – truly, I don’t know, but God does. But I know this, He made us in His image, so to deny us is to deny Himself. I can only repeat William Wordsworth words, each one of you is “different by mystery not to be explained.” As Paul says, “We do not all have the same function.” All 100 were uniquely gifted, so, like the Trinity, God made us in His image so one could not function without the other.

Self-Esteem

Self-acceptance is about self-esteem. The ‘old man’ that was crucified was buried in baptismal waters along with his self-worth. That self-worth was our ‘false self’ – now you receive the ‘new self’ in Christ. Let me tell you something about ‘false self.’ I use to see myself as the one and only person who will make things work and happen for me, and my family. I don’t turn to anyone for help. In every facet of my life and that of my family – my children’s upbringing, their education, our overall welfare was my responsibility and mine alone. And my self-esteem was measured by my accomplishment in how I performed that role as a father. That’s the spirit in which my whole life was lived. It’s not until I come to understand the Triune nature of God’s self-giving, self-sacrificing Love, that I understood in my heart that was my ‘false self.’ This self-giving God wants to give Himself to me, by taking every single weight of my responsibility onto Him and His Son through the Spirit. And my response is to give myself in self-giving Love and worship to Him first and my Love my fellowmen. To make His love a living reality in my life! Christ said, “Take my yoke and give me yours. Mine is lighter.” What is His yoke? It is His self-giving Love.

Human Way of Discovering Self or God’s Way Through His Spirit

If I keep insisting upon my self-worth on the basis of what I can accomplish for me and my family, my job, my neighbor, I am rejecting His gift, His Love. I will remain blinded to the gift He wants to show and give me through His Spirit. By living according to the standards of my ‘false self,’ I was defining what made me acceptable, rather than accepting God’s definition of me in the gift He wants to give me. To reject God’s gift and insist on my own definition of myself is missing the mark, or sin. Paul said, “[Not in your own strength] for it is God Who is all the while effectually at work in you [energizing and creating in you the power and desire], both to will and to work for His good pleasure and satisfaction and delight.” (Phil.2:13, AMP)

Grow in Grace and Knowledge

This is a process, not a once-off thing we do in our initial conversion. For the ‘old self’ will always try to rear its ugly head, and I must learn how to put it down. As Peter said we are to “grow in the grace and knowledge of Jesus Christ.” (2 Pet. 3:18) That is how the process works in you and me – we are to be growing spiritually through God’s grace and knowledge. So, I have to embrace my weakness as well, realizing I still live in this fallen human body, which Paul calls, “this body of death” – “What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body that is subject to death? ²⁵ Thanks be to God, who delivers me through Jesus Christ our Lord!” (Rom.7:24-25) So, the process of self-acceptance involves learning to embrace all our flaws as well – to understand who this ‘old self’ is. Otherwise, how will we know the difference? When Paul said “I glory in my weakness,” it means he knew the difference between the two. He ends as always, “I am made complete in Christ.” (Col.2:10)

The Measure of Who You Are In Christ

It is our self-worth and self-acceptance in Christ, that forms the basis of how to truly learn to relate and Love others acceptably without fear or favor.  The Bible is clear, as you love yourself – your ‘true self’ in Christ, to the same degree, extend it to others. What Christ has done for you, you want the same to be done in others. You can never extend more than the measure of the value of who you are in Christ. But as you grow in “grace and knowledge” we do increase that measure, so that we can Love more than we had before. So, the question will always be: are we “loving” through our ‘false self’ or through our ‘true self’ in Christ?

Christ told of the day of judgment, He said, “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. ²² Many will say to me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name and in your name drive out demons and in your name perform many miracles?’ ²³ Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!’ (Matt.7:21-23) I can do everything I have always done under the ‘false self’ and paint Christ’s name over it in bright glossy finish. But does that make it truly Christ’s work? No, it doesn’t change a thing. It’s not about me doing things for Jesus, but Christ coming and doing His thing in me. There’s a big difference. We want to bring about God’s will in our own way, in our own will. It’s not going to happen. It’s not as if He has not given us help – of course He has through His Spirit who lives in us.

Abraham & Sarah

Abraham wanted to bring about God’s will the way he and Sarah saw it. So, he was going to build his whole legacy and heritage upon Ishmael. Ishmael was going to be the heir-apparent to the birthright – so they thought. After all, didn’t God promise them an heir, and they were helping God out in this crucial matter. But God would have no part in it. He had other plans. It was not what they wanted to do for God, but what God was going to do in them. There’s a difference. Then they entertained three divine visitors. The three angels were icon of the divine Trinity. Paul sums up the situation as it appears with God, “The son of Hagar, the slave-wife, was born in a human attempt to bring about the fulfillment of God’s promise” (Gal.4:23 NLT), while Isaac was the child of promise, the rightful heir to Abraham’s legacy.

Isaac & Ishmael

For many years Abraham’s relationship with God was not perfect as long as his heart was with Ishmael. It was not until he came to the realization that God’s will for Isaac and not Ismael, that he summoned up enough courage, with Sarah’s insistence, to send Ishmael and Hagar away, then the relationship was reset to its intended course. How often we claim to have an idea we give our all to, saying it is what God wants us to do and prayed about to God to bless our efforts in that goal. It becomes apparent God is not blessing our efforts. What we have done is only what is humanly possible to do. That is one way we know God’s will is present – for it will take a miracle for God to prove. Isaac was a miracle child born when Sarah was past her child-bearing age. Ishmael is the child of our human thoughts and efforts – he is the ‘false self.’ He is not our ‘true self’ – he is a child born out of slavery who will enslave us.

Isaac Becomes an Idol

There came a time that even your true gift (your Isaac), becomes a problem, just as Isaac became an obstacle in Abraham’s relationship with God. Abraham was delighting more in Isaac than in God. So, even when we have the right dream, a gift from God, the one we have always waited for all our lives, the dream now becomes an obstacle in its own right. So, Abraham was told one day to take Isaac and sacrifice him to God. Often God’s purpose and destiny, our Isaacs, become more important to us than God Himself. If it enslaves us, then it can become no different from Ishmael. We have remade it to reflect our ‘false self’ not God’s glory in us. We have taken God’s glory from Him. Yet He says this us, “I am the LORD; that is my name! I will not give my glory to anyone else, nor share my praise with carved idols.” (Isa.42:8) He is saying “don’t turn My gift into an idol and bow before it – I am here, I give gifts and I have more where that came from.” God’s gift can usurp the throne of our hearts which only God should occupy. Oswald Chambers says, “The greatest competitor to devotion to Jesus is service to Him.”

Then after we have surrendered our gift, our Isaacs, God consecrates it and gives it back to us. For now God knows our heart is not in the gift, but in Him. Recall what God told Abraham when he was about to take Isaac’s life, “Abraham, do not lay a hand on the boy. Now I know that you fear God, because you have not withheld from me your son, your only son.” (Gen.22:12) God gives Isaac back to Abraham. Yet it seems so much a self-fulfilling prophecy, for much later, God had to sacrifice His own Son. There was no one to stop Him. But God did it out of pure Love for man, Abraham had to prove his Love for God. It was Abraham’s Love for God that saved Isaac. But also, there was no one to stop Him from raising His Son from the dead. For such is the Love of God. Death has no power over Love. Just as It was Abraham’s Love for God that saved Isaac our Love for God will save our neighbors. Your identity, your ‘true self’ in Christ is made of God’s self-giving Love. It is this ‘true self’ you must Love, and is the basis on which we extend Love to others.

Let’s go out there and live life with all the self-esteem we have in Christ’s Love for us through the gifts He has so gracefully conferred upon us, and through it extend the same Love to others.

Blessing

Until we meet again in my next post, may the blessing of the God who ceaselessly expresses Himself in His dependable Triune Love, be with you today and give you strength for authentic creative Triune Living as a Bula man-river.*

If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to write me in the space provided below, or email me on bulamanriver@gmail.com.

Kiang                                                                                                                                                          (Your Servant in Christ)

* The “Bula man-river” is the metaphor describing the union of man with the Love of the Triune God flowing in humans, making possible the “Triune Life” – the source of the miraculous life in man. To read the many facets of life of the Bula man-river, go to my website www.bulamanriver.com where you can order a copy of my Book. Remember, when you purchase my book all the proceeds go towards the Lords’ work of dispensing the Gospel. Thank you for your support.

All scriptures are taken from the NIV Version 2011, unless stated otherwise

Note: Any information obtained from this website that is used for publication should be acknowledged by citing the website address, date of acquisition and information pertinent to original authorship. For general guidelines regarding web citations see The Guide for Citing Electronic Information .

Greetings once more to all! Lets’ continue on the topic of man’s creativity.

Man’s creativity is God’s gift to mankind. God is the origin of all creation and is Creator. In part 1 we saw WHO God is explains WHY and WHAT He creates. He creates because He is Love in His Triune nature and Being. We saw that He is Love. (1 John 4:8) What He creates He does out of His divine unfathomable Love. He is Love because He’s Triune. He cannot be a Tri-Personal Being and not be Love, for Love is inter-personal and relational. To be Triune is to be in Loving relationship.

How do you tell if a person is creative in God’s own image? Jesus answered this question by saying, “By their fruits you shall know them” (Matt.7:20). If you see the context of this verse Jesus was pointing out how to tell the difference between a person who is creative (true) and a person who is non-creative (false). What is productive, and what is unproductive. What is Love, and what is fear. And ultimately we are a facing life or death equation in the end.

Alright, Jesus’ answer dovetails into another question… what are these fruits? Paul documents this in his letter to the Christians in Rome, Corinth, and Galatia. God’s love is the peaceful flow of the Spirit’s life in the Bula man-river: it is *the fruit of patience, *the fruit of kindness, *the fruit of contentedness,  *the fruit of being modest and unboastful, *the fruit of humility, *the fruit of honor, *the fruit of unselfishness, *the fruit of calmness and dignity, *the fruit of forgiveness andcompassion, *the fruit of delighting in good and shunning evil, *the fruit of tolerance, *the fruit of responsibility, *the fruit of enduring hope, *the fruit of steadfast perseverance, *the fruit of joy, *the fruit of peace, *the fruit of goodness, *the fruit of faith, *the fruit of gentleness, *the fruit of self-control, *the fruit of zeal and spiritual fervor, *the fruit of friendship, *the fruit of sharing and generosity, *the fruit of prayerfulness, *the fruit of hospitality, etc. (1 Cor.13; Also Gal. 5:13-26; Rom.12).

 

Dove – Symbol of The Holy Spirit (Wiki Commons)

All these and other traits of the Spirit spells one thing: they spell the actions and emotions of the Spirit in the life of man. By and through them we decipher and peek into the different tones of God’s love. They present to us the way of life of the triune God.

It’s not possible to speak of the Spirit’s creative work in man without the fruits that identify who He is – it’s one and the same, it’s unavoidable. He is Love. Love is identified by fruits. Most times when people think of the fruits of the Spirit, they often view them academically through the legalistic lens of religious proponents as self-improvement tools to make “better people” of us. We live powerless lives when we do. We are not zombies, but free-will humans made in the image of God. These are not self-improvement tools, but rather self-giving and self-sacrificing tools in Herald’s move in our lives.

On the contrary, we fail to realize that from eternity these fruits undergirded the loving relationship of the Three Persons within the Triune God. Love’s energy is brought to life in the application of these fruits. In our constant presence before God, as Bula man-river*, share this energy and the creative relationships we have within the Triune existence of God. Before creation, before the existence of a world in need of being saved, self-giving, self-sacrificing Love, was what marked the fellowship of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit (Herald). Now you are in their midst living the same life they live from eternity and tasting that life in the Spirit. Many believe in the Trinity but have not experienced the Trinitarian life, let alone know of its power in their lives.

Paul was addressing this very issue of denying the power of the Triune life of God when he drew the attention of young evangelist Timothy, to a list of actions (fruits) that were disempowering people, and from the Herald the Spirit. He mentioned being unloving, unthankful, without self- control, brutal, unforgiving, self-lovers, despisers of good, disobedient, and so on. These and other such actions are fear-based behaviors. Paul said, “They have the form of godliness, but deny its power.” (2 Tim. 3:1-5, KJV) All these behaviors stand up against the list of the Spirit’s fruits we saw earlier, which are Love-based behaviors.

If we take a look at these Love fruits closer we would realize they cultivate and promote positive emotionally-charged activities. They show God has emotions. For example James instructs us to be “slow to become angry.” (Jam.1:19) Herald helps us by empowering us with self-control by controlling our anger. So, self-control is a calming positive emotion which dampens the negative angry emotion. When the Bible says, “Rejoice always” (1Thess.5:16) it’s not referring to our human expression of enjoyment, but a spiritual emotion of joy which the Spirit gives to sustain us even in times of adversity. “The joy of the Lord is your strength.” (Neh.8:10) Joy is not an unmoving static emotion, no, it reveals the divine exuberance of God’s divine emotion. To be in God’s presence is to taste His unbound joy. You can go through each fruit separately and peek into God’s awesome own divine self-giving feelings.

These fruits are the emotional Love expression of God’s Tri-Personal nature and Being. Love is the core expression of creativity. One look at this beautiful earth we call home, and it becomes obvious God created it out of sheer exuberance of joy. Without Love creativity is non-existent. Fear is not creative, it is negative and harmful.

Light Bulb – Symbol of Creativity. Rainbow Colors Depicts God’s Creativity in Man (Wiki Commons)

Why is this important to Jesus and those who choose to follow Him as believers? Because the power and might of God can never ever be manifested in a destructive way because He is Love. (1John 4:8).  It can only be expressed in His Triune Loving pattern of doing things. It is always self-giving and self-sacrificing. And that’s what these fruits demands from us – to be self-giving and self-sacrificing as they are in their relationships with each other.

When Jesus walked this earth, the power of God flowed through the Love fruit of His compassion which healed and produced much good among the people. (Acts 10:38) Through the Holy Spirit we are drawn into their circle of Love, thus, we live the Triune Life. Just as each divine Person in the Trinity is always denying Himself for the sake of the Others and submitting to Others, so do we in the Triune Life, first with God and our fellowman. To be Triune is to be in Loving relationship. We saw that in the last installment. There is no self-love or self-importance within the Triune Godhead. The Tri-Personal God find their unique identities by focusing not on themselves, but on one another. Who they are is how they express themselves to each another. And the Holy Spirit lives this same Loving expression in believers when we also live self-giving lives through the fruits of Love.

We are all unique in our gifting and destiny, and who we are in our gifts becomes a reality only when we express our gifts to others through the fruits of the Spirit. Or, we can be self-centered and use our gifts like an ATM machine and cash-in on our gifts for our own selfish motives, like the unprofitable servant in Jesus parable of the talent. (Luk.19:11-126) When we do that we are burying our unique gifts in our ‘self.’ You’re a non-identity because no one can seen you except you. You have hidden yourself in the ivory tower of your ‘self.’ And not until you allow the Spirit to express your gift in self-giving Love to others through Herald’s divine fruits, only then your unique identity will show through.

Let’s live our unique selves in the creative life in the Spirit.

If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to write me in the space provided below, or email me on bulamanriver@gmail.com.

Blessing

Until we meet again in my next post, may the blessing of the God who ceaselessly expresses Himself in His dependable Triune Love, be with you today and give you strength for authentic creative Triune Living as a Bula man-river.*

Kiang                                                                                                                                                          (Your Servant in Christ)

 

* The “Bula man-river” is the metaphor describing the union of man with the Love of the Triune God flowing in humans, making possible the “Triune Life” – the source of the miraculous life in man. To read the many facets of life of the Bula man-river, go to my website www.bulamanriver.com where you can order a copy of my Book. Remember, when you purchase my book all the proceeds go towards the Lords’ work of dispensing the Gospel. Thank you for your support.

All scriptures are taken from the NIV Version 2011, unless stated otherwise

Note: Any information obtained from this website that is used for publication should be acknowledged by citing the website address, date of acquisition and information pertinent to original authorship. For general guidelines regarding web citations see The Guide for Citing Electronic Information.

Greetings once more friends around the world! It’s amazing how the month of January just whooshed by, and we are now in the month of February. Let’s touch on another topic of importance to our lives and that of our loved ones. Let’s talk creativity.

Every day we witness the mind of humans at work to bring about much of the creative environment in which we live today, without which life would be unbearable. At no time in man’s history have we seen man’s creativity in the innumerable products and services available to man. From  cell phones to space exploration; from medicine to toys; from computers to transportation, and in every field of endeavor. Of course, we must not forget the most important of all creativity without which nothing would be possible, man’s creative relationship with the Creator and his fellow humans. As long as you are human, you can believe in your own creativity, why, because God made humans to take on His image and likeness, and God is Creator.

Creativity – Domain of the Human Species Made In God’s Image (Wiki Commons)

God is Creator. WHO He IS in His nature reveals HOW He creates. God is creative because He is Love. God is Love because He is Trinitarian. (1John 4:8) He cannot be a Tri-Personal Being and not be Love, for Love is inter-personal and relational. One of the purpose of Jesus’ coming was to reveal the true God and His Triune nature of Love. The Trinitarian Being of God has been described as the grammar of Christian faith. Grammar simply tells us we are speaking a language properly so the meaning of our communication is not misunderstood. Jesus revealed a God who is Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. It differentiates the Christian understanding of God from all other beliefs.

Jesus prayed for His disciples and future believers in this way, “As you, Father, are in Me, and I am in You, may they also be in us.” (John 17:21) Prior to this He assured them, “Nevertheless, I tell you the truth: it is to your advantage that I go away, for if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you. But if I go, I will send him to you… He, the Spirit of truth come, He will guide you into all the truth.” (John 16:7, 13, ESV) It is clear the Holy Spirit (Herald – my intimate reference of Him) will be with us forever, as Jesus states, “And I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Helper to be with you forever. (John 14:6) It is clear that when Jesus lived a perfect human life, died as human atonement for sins, and was resurrected and ascended to heaven, He took our humanity and glorified mankind by bringing mankind into the very Being of the Triune God. Because of what Jesus did by joining man to the Triune God in Himself, the Holy Spirit automatically became part of our humanity, hence, He remains with man forever – if and when we believe.

If Herald is with us forever, then He is the Love, the nature, and Being of God in man. As Paul told the Romans, “God’s Love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us.” (Rom.5:5b) Therefore, it is logical to conclude that all of God’s creative activity in man is proclaimed, sounded, and declared by Herald the Spirit. Jesus tells us of how he will work in man, “He will not speak on his own; he will speak only what he hears, and he will tell you what is yet to come. ¹⁴ He will glorify me because it is from me that he will receive what he will make known to you.¹⁵ All that belongs to the Father is mine. That is why I said the Spirit will receive from me what he will make known to you.”  (John 16:13-15) In other words, the Tri-Personal God act as ONE.

Dove, Symbol of the Holy Spirit (Wiki Commons)

Too many times we try to explain God as a mathematical equation, like, how can something be one and three. We say it’s a puzzle, a riddle. We will not find God in a mathematical equation. The Trinity speaks of God’s nature – in other words, the act of one Person is always the act of three, and the act of three Persons is always the act of one. That makes them ONE, not three. It is this same incomprehensible and immeasurable Love which spills over and cause them to create man in His image and likeness. (Gen1:26-28) Who creates a species (man) and gives him the freedom to even defy Him? The answer is in His unknowable Love. He lives in a dimension He has not fully reveal to man. The Triune God is unified in substance and reality in their Love for one another.

When we frame the question about God in mathematical terms, we obscure the nature in Their Tri-Personal Love God is wanting to convey to man. Be that as it may, in mathematical terms, it conveys that God’s mystery transcends human understanding. Man will never contain God in his limited human mind – He is beyond us. “To whom will you compare Me? Or who is My equal?” (Isa.40:25-26; 55:8-9) If God were solitary like other gods, we can decipher his nature easily because that has been man’s own motivation since the fall of Adam. Man is solitary and self-centered. All His Triune work are acts of His unfathomable Love, and therefore “creative” and outgoing, not solitary and destructive.

This solitary human life, Christ has taken into Himself and made it Trinitarian by joining it to God’s Loving Triune Being. (John 17:20-21) This is WHERE the believer IS NOW! He lives in the circle of God’s Triune Love and creativity. It is from this Triune center, this Trinitarian base we have in Christ, that we are made to live the “creative life” in the power of the Spirit. This is the birth place of all creativity and the Loving “creative life.”

In my next installment, I will touch on the specific actions of Herald to see how this “creative life” is undergirded in man, and made reality in the life of a human believer.

If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to write me in the space provided below, or email me on bulamanriver@gmail.com.

Blessing

Until we meet again in my next post, may the blessing of the God who ceaselessly expresses Himself in His dependable Triune Love, be with you today and give you strength for authentic Triune Living as a Bula man-river.*

 Kiang                                                                                                                                                         (Your Servant in Christ)

 

* The “Bula man-river” is the metaphor describing the union of man with the Love of the Triune God flowing in humans, making possible the “Triune Life” – the source of the miraculous life in man. To read the many facets of life of the Bula man-river, go to my website www.bulamanriver.com where you can order a copy of my Book. Remember, when you purchase my book all the proceeds go towards the Lords’ work of dispensing the Gospel. Thank you for your support.

All scriptures are taken from the NIV Version 2011, unless stated otherwise

Note: Any information obtained from this website that is used for publication should be acknowledged by citing the website address, date of acquisition and information pertinent to original authorship. For general guidelines regarding web citations see The Guide for Citing Electronic Information.

Greetings once more friends everywhere!

In my last post, I spoke about individual gifts and talents. These are personal utilities that can change us and make our lives for the better for our families this year. You are unique because everyone is gifted differently. But there is a purpose why gifts are given, and we’ll touch on that today. 

New Year, New You! (Wiki Commons)

Wherever we find ourselves in the socio-economic landscape in the beginning of 2014, we ought not to forget there is one thing which puts us on a level playing field no matter the environment we find ourselves. And that is, the commission by Jesus to take the Gospel to the far reaches of the earth. Before Jesus was taken into the clouds, He charged His disciples, and by extension, to all who follow him, He said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me.¹⁹ Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, ²⁰ and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.” (Matt.28:18-20).

We are all given a part to play in that commission. And maybe much more different than we have realized before. We have this mistaken idea that taking the Gospel to the world means we have to be preachers – no, we don’t. We have this image of those we see on television and think this is what Christ meant. Powerful as that medium is, it is far cry from what Jesus wanted to do in His people. 

First Century Church

Think of the first century church. Who took the Gospel to the world? Was it just the twelve apostles? Who was responsible for taking the Gospel to the whole Roman Empire, until the emperor of Rome himself embraced Christianity. Perhaps a nominal believer, but a believer nonetheless! It began on Pentecost. The Spirit not only empowered the 120 to perform marvelous signs and wonders, but the 3000 who were converted that Pentecost day was the main bulwark behind the work of spreading the Gospel message of Jesus Christ. They took the Gospel message back home to whatever part of the empire they came from. It began with a small group from the backwaters of the Roman Empire and after two, three centuries go by, lo and behold that same group and its descendants and the faithful who embraced the faith along the way, have somehow taken over the Roman Empire and Christianity became the official religion. Of course, so much have transpired in the centuries that follow, that Christianity today is anything but what the first century Church was then.

No TV, Social Media, …

Back then there was no television or radio. There was no internet and social media. There was no Facebook or Twitter. The gospel was published by word of mouth like wildfire throughout the empire. We have lost that medium of contact – some call it the “personal touch.” Many today think that, that is what is missing in this work of taking the Gospel. The twelve disciples couldn’t have done it by themselves.

Of course, we can’t compare the two time periods and say it can be done in the same way and rubber stamp their approach in our time. But there is a basic principle we can’t discount no matter in which epoch we may be referencing. I’m talking about God’s Love. Love cuts across borders and time and space and can be applied wherever and whatever the situation maybe. The circumstance and history changes, but the principle of God’s Love never does. And the Gospel message is about God’s Love to be made known in all epochs of time, isn’t it? “For God so Loved the world that He gave His one and only and only Son,” (John 3:16) to be our atonement, so we can enter into their Tri-Personal existence and into this glorious Love in which they have existed from eternity. The Bible tells us God has poured His Love in us by His Spirit. (Rom.5:5) That is what the Spirit did in the first century, and what He will do again today.

Gold – Metaphor for Gifts (Wiki Commons)

Gift Metaphor for “Gold”

How does Christ expect us to play our part? The answer is in a parable He gave in Matthew 25: ¹⁴ “Again, it will be like a man going on a journey, who called his servants and entrusted his wealth to them. ¹⁵ To one he gave five bags of gold, to another two bags, and to another one bag,^[a] each according to his ability. Then he went on his journey. ¹⁶ The man who had received five bags of gold went at once and put his money to work and gained five bags more. ¹⁷ So also, the one with two bags of gold gained two more. ¹⁸ But the man who had received one bag went off, dug a hole in the ground and hid his master’s money.

¹⁹ “After a long time the master of those servants returned and settled accounts with them. ²⁰ The man who had received five bags of gold brought the other five. ‘Master,’ he said, ‘you entrusted me with five bags of gold. See, I have gained five more.’

²¹ “His master replied, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Come and share your master’s happiness!’

²² “The man with two bags of gold also came. ‘Master,’ he said, ‘you entrusted me with two bags of gold; see, I have gained two more.’

²³ “His master replied, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Come and share your master’s happiness!’

²⁴ “Then the man who had received one bag of gold came. ‘Master,’ he said, ‘I knew that you are a hard man, harvesting where you have not sown and gathering where you have not scattered seed. ²⁵ So I was afraid and went out and hid your gold in the ground. See, here is what belongs to you.’

²⁶ “His master replied, ‘You wicked, lazy servant! So you knew that I harvest where I have not sown and gather where I have not scattered seed? ²⁷ Well then, you should have put my money on deposit with the bankers, so that when I returned I would have received it back with interest.

²⁸ “‘So take the bag of gold from him and give it to the one who has ten bags. ²⁹ For whoever has will be given more, and they will have an abundance. Whoever does not have, even what they have will be taken from them. ³⁰ And throw that worthless servant outside, into the darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’” (Matt.25:14-30).

Each of the servant were entrusted with the Master’s wealth. The “gold” is the metaphor for a believer’s gift, a person’s calling, his/her destiny in Christ. It belongs to the Master which He gives out of His wealth. Our gifts are “Love-gifts” from the Father. Let’s call it “life-gift” for the purpose of this blog post. It is given according to your ability and your ability is your gift. So, it’s obvious our “life-gift” or calling is not ours, but given to us as part of the Master’s wealth. So, Paul tells us where our “life-gift” comes from:  “Out of the generosity of Christ, each of us is given his own gift. That is why it says, ‘He climbed the high mountain, he captured the enemy and seized the booty, he handed it all out in gifts to the people’” (Eph. 4:7-8, 9-13, The Message).

Gifts are Magnets to Life

Life and gifts comes fused together and are inseparable. No human can claim to be without a gift given him or her by the Creator. Therefore, a person’s “life-gift” or dream is always magnetizing to him or her. A gift is like a magnet. That’s to say, the “life-gift” is the magnet to a person’s life. We have heard the adage, “Life is a gift.” Indeed, for the gift that comes with life is what makes life a gift. Think about this: A musician does not find his music, his music finds him. An author does not find his subject to write about, his subject finds him. An entrepreneur does not find his niche, his niche finds him. We are all free to accept the prompts of our calling or to reject them. We either flow with our gift or swim against it. Every prompt from the heart of our “life-gift” is a jigsaw piece that fits into a picture of your destiny that’s constantly magnetizing to you. Whoever a person is and becomes is only as good as the gift that defines him or her. That “life-gift” is the “bag of gold” in the parable.

Jesus – the “Gift-Giver,” Giving out of His “Treasure”

God is able to be all things to everyone through our varied gifts and that shows His greatness. Paul said, “Having then gifts differing according to the grace that is given to each of us…in proportion to our faith, let us use them” (Rom. 12:6). Paul again said, “[Not in your own strength] for it is God Who is all the while effectually at work in you [energizing and creating in you the power and desire], both to will and to work for His good pleasure and satisfaction and delight. (Phil.2:13, AMP) Again Paul emphasized, “… In order that they may know the mystery of God, namely, Christ, in whom are hidden all the treasures (the wealth of the Master) of wisdom and knowledge.” (Col.2:2-3). No one can ever come to know about his or her “life-gift” without knowledge and wisdom. The application of gifts is a ‘mind-matter’ that begins with knowledge and knowing what your gift is, and its function through God’s Love.

Consider, when Paul was inspired to write that we will be conformed to the image of God’s Son, Jesus, it primarily means we will take upon us all that He is in His Sonship so humans become God’s sons and daughters, His gifts and abilities so we can live with purpose in each of our talents, His generosity by the influence of His unfathomable Love, His powers through His Spirit who equips and strengthens humans. That is what it means when Scripture says that “all our treasures (wholeness as persons) lie hidden in Him” (Col.2:2-3, italics mine; Rom.8:29). There is total fullness in Christ, and a measure of that fullness is given by the grace of God to every believer. As Paul wrote, “For in Christ all the fullness of the Deity dwells in bodily form” (Col.2:9). The first gift we receive from God is the gift of the Holy Spirit who was given on Pentecost. (Act.2:1-4) Jesus said the Spirit will manifest the gifts in humans, “The Spirit will take from what is Mine and disclose it to you” (John 16:15).

The First Gift

The first gift we receive from God is the gift of the Holy Spirit – just like that original apostles and all who were gathered on that memorable Pentecost day. So, here we see how God is working in humans through His Tri-Personal Being. God is our Father, who gave us His Son to be our Savior, and His Spirit to empower us. Before Pentecost the disciples were cowering in fear, afraid for their lives. Then, the Spirit came and fear went out of them and Love entered and gave them something they never had – a new birth. A new person! Peter went out and preached a powerful message that converted 3000 that Pentecost day. People were surprised, ‘weren’t these the same people, the fearful followers of Jesus who scattered after Jesus was crucified? What has come over them? Here they are speaking in our own language and dialect.’ They don’t know what to make of it , that some thought they had too much to drink. The work of God in us is always the work of the Spirit’s Love in us. (Rom.5:5) It can’t be done by human effort, although human effort is essential. There is a difference. It is a work of faith. Human effort alone is devoid of the Love of God. And we see how the Spirit makes all the difference before, and after Pentecost. Human effort can be done through human fear or through the Spirit’s Love. God will not possess you and take your life over and live it for you. That’s what the devil does using fear as a weapon. God’s Love does not force people, but He lets His people reason it out for themselves what to do. God says, “Come now, and let us reason together, says the Lord: though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool. (Isa.1:18) If we are forced against our will, then we are fallen human still.

Detailed Ivory Carving of Lazarus Raised to Life – We All Have Gifts to Glory Our Maker (Wiki Commons)

Love Creates a Life of Tension

It is like walking on a tightrope like a balancing artist in a circus, we don’t want our fallen human heart based upon fear to take over, and on the other hand we know we must allow the Spirit to use us in His Love. And every step of the way, there is this tension that exists to go this way or that – and it is normal in God’s way of Love for us, and we have to be free to make up our own minds to lean to the Spirit’s inclination, and deliberately stay away from our fearful and evil nature. And in this very dynamic of walking this tight-rope act, we enter the environment we commonly call facing trials. It’s not a bad thing, as I said, God can’t force us in His Love, and so we’re always living life in tension. Over time good habits take hold and it becomes easier.

Trials are Magnet for Destiny

But here is the beautiful thing about this life of tension in God’s Love, the trials are magnets drawing you to your “life-gift” – to your destiny in Christ. God doesn’t give you His Spirit then suddenly you wake up one morning, and you say, “I’m going to be a scientist or whatever your dream may be…” No, this pattern of living in God’s Love attracts test and trials which leads us to our destiny. Why, because the world is functioning in an environment different from God’s Love – it runs on fear, and we see it all around us every day. The fruits of Love and the fruits of fear which Paul speaks so eloquently about to the Corinthian and Ephesian Christians, create this dynamism which we confront  in all seasons of life, and they come in every way, shape, and form.

Profit and Loss

In this Love/fear dynamism, a kind of trade takes place which Jesus metaphorically speaks of in His parable (Matt.25). We make profits and we make losses. Because God’s Love is at work in our penitent minds, we will make more profits than loses. We encounter losses because we are still weak in our humanity. When we do make mistakes (because we are humans) we acknowledge our wrong and ask for forgiveness and move on. That’s how Jesus taught us to pray daily. (Luk.11:4) He has promised that no trial will come beyond our ability to cope, but will make a way of escape. (1Cor.10:13) What does that mean? It means God can create circumstances so you are always making a profit, despite intermittent loses, through the weakness of our humanity. Loses are lessons that teaches us how to make a profit the next time around, isn’t it? And if we’re making profits whatever way, then all things work together for good. (Rom.8:28) Mistakes and trials are magnets drawing us to our destiny. Each weakness that we change, we automatically assume its opposing strength. If you cease to hate then you learn how to love. If you acknowledge your pride as the source of your problems, then you will learn to be humble. If you don’t change then your weakness will strangle you spiritually and you will suffer loss. But if you change and learn to Love and respect, then you can only make a profit.

God Confers Us With Gits to Bless Us for His Glory (Wiki Commons)

Joseph the Dreamer

The Bible is filled with examples of this. Think of Joseph… each step of the way beginning with his dream – his destiny, his gift, his calling – attracted trials that was magnetizing him to his destiny. (Gen.37, 39-47) Sold as a slave by his brothers at age 17, he was placed on the human slave market in Egypt. He was bought by Potiphar, an Egyptian military top brass, and put in charge of his business. He was thrown in jail under false accusation. Then he met two servants of Pharaoh who had dreams which disturbed them. God revealed the meaning of the dream to Joseph. Two years later, Pharaoh had a dream. Joseph was called on to make its interpretation known to Pharaoh because the Egyptian wise men and magicians were helpless. Now, he came face to face with the destiny he saw in his dreams. He was second in command in all Egypt. His destiny was to save the known world from a worldwide famine which Pharaoh saw in his dream. When Joseph’s family were reunited and his brothers stood before him, afraid that Joseph might say it’s pay-back time for what they did to him, he told them God was behind it all along. (Gen.45:4-7) Joseph’s life teaches us never to look at life and the trials that come with it in isolation from your “life-gift” – your destiny in Christ. Each trial, insignificant as it may appear to us, is a piece in the puzzle that fits into the picture of your dreams. If God had not given Joseph his dream to aspire for, he would have remained a shepherd like his brothers. Christ is your dream because He has the Giver who has given us gifts out of His wealth and treasure. He was the one who gave Joseph his dream.

‘Life-Gift’

We all have different strengths, and we must focus on them. That’s our gift given us out of the wealth of the Master. Always believe in your uniqueness and difference and realize you’re that way for a purpose. The “life-gift” identifies your place in the plan of God and how each of us play a role in it. It need not be ecclesiastical or religious in nature. As I said, people seem to have this perception that when God is involved in a person, his calling ought to be religious in nature. It’s a myth that stems from the enemy who wants to vilify the good in people’s varied talents. We are given the freedom to be whoever we want. That obviously means in the area of our strengths, which most likely don’t lean towards things religious. Joseph’s gift was not of a religious nature. He was an administrator and manager of people. A person can be a plumber, or engineer, a doctor or gardener, an architect or builder, a marine biologist or fisherman, a basketball player or botanist, or whatever the gift. Gifts evolve as the Spirit supplies the faith. Peter was a fisherman. Then Jesus called him and said from this day forget the fish, let’s do something different with your skills – let’s fish humans. A person may be a basketball player with a short-term career. Then he moves onto something else. This is the way a person’s “life-gift” works in the Spirit’s influence and guidance.

Proud Owners of Destiny that Can’t Be Bought

Jesus said, “You are blessed when you are content with just who you are – no more, no less. That’s the moment you find yourselves proud owners of everything that can’t be bought” (Matt. 5:5 MSG). God gives us purpose in the football field as much as in the pulpit. There’s divine purpose in being a housewife as well as a company executive. Think about this: a housewife who is a mother has a better defined view of seeing and applying God’s Love in her family situation, than a company executive whose mindset is to make more money for the shareholders. Unless of course, if you work for a company whose whole objective is service over money.  

God is present and involved in all of life. In our weak areas of life, where we may feel inadequate and make mistakes, He wants nothing more than to guide us the right way to our strengths to avoid harm and discouragement to ourselves. In the area of our strengths, He is the first to rejoice with and bless us (Ps. 37:23-24).

The Commission

So what is the answer to Jesus commission for us. The answer is, your gift – the “gold” you were handed when you received Jesus as you Savior and Master – that is your ministry to the world. You are the breathing, living, walking, Gospel of Christ. Where you are at present – in your job, in your hobbies, in anything you may be gifted to do exceptionally, with your family, is the place for God’s will and purpose for you. Even if you are considered unemployed or underemployed, Love always has a job for us. You’re never unemployed when it comes to God’s Love. Love transcends socio-economic conditions.

Action More than Words

Our actions speaks louder than our words, don’t they? Our gift speaks louder than our words. Words don’t have the effect that our actions do on people. Words are easier to forget, while our actions and abilities leave a more lasting impression. To put it in a nutshell, actions is what make people believe in you. When they see the personification of your gifts in the good you do to them, then your words carry weight – then your word has integrity. Not the other way around. Peter tells us, “But in your hearts revere Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope you have. But do this with gentleness and respect.” (1Pet.3:15). So Peter supports this model of how we are to take the Gospel – we are to lead with our gifts. He said, “in your heart revere Christ as Lord.” That means we follow His command and lead. He has given us “gold,” or our gifts to trade with. Your gift is the vehicle for our Father to show His Love with those we come in contact and relate with. Then once you have impressed people through your actions (His Love), then we convince them with your words. The Spirit will lead us to say what needs to be said, just as He did with Peter on that memorable Pentecost.

Don’t try to convert anyone, that’s not our job, only the Spirit can convert the human heart. Did Peter convert the 3000, no, the Spirit moved and convicted the hearts of people. That’s exactly as Jesus foretold what the Spirit would do before He was crucified – He told the disciples it was good that he went away, because that way, the Spirit would come and He would convict the hearts of people of sin. (John 16:8-9) The name of Christ have been discredited and maligned because we have have tried to force the our words down people’s throats, so to speak. We have done that which is not our place to do. We have failed to heed the words of Peter “to do this with gentleness and respect.” Your job and mine is to sow the seed of the Gospel through our gifts followed by our gentle and respectful words, then leaving it to the Spirit to convert the heart. I have known people who heard the Gospel for the first time, and many years on a change of heart took place. Don’t ask me how and why – only the Spirit knows that. Jesus did not force people to accept His words. He just laid it out for them. He went about doing good through the miracles He performed. And it was through the gift of miracles, His good works He did among the people, that brought people in droves to come and hear His words. (Acts 10:38) His gift was the platform which attracted people to come and hear the Gospel.

Jesus gave us another parable that essentially means the seeds of the Gospel God sows through our gifts will get only 25% response, and the remaining 75% of the people won’t even bother. Don’t be discouraged, Jesus had only 120 by Pentecost, even though he miraculously fed 5,000 hungry people in just one of His numerous miracles. He healed 10 lepers, only one returned to give thanks, that’s a 10% response. The parable says there are those whose heart are like the ground that’s full of weeds that kills the seed. Then there are those who have no depth for the seed to take a foothold because they have hearts of stone. There are seeds that fall on the pathway and never had a chance from the word go, and the birds come and eat the seeds. Only 25% fell on good ground. (Mark 4:1-19) And even the 25% can dwindle if we don’t look after them.

Reflection…

Let us reflect on the “gold” Jesus has handed us in our “gifts” and see how we can allow the Spirit to lead us to trade them more efficiently this year for the sake of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Pray about it. What do you think the person who buried his bag of “gold” was thinking? I think he thought that his gift was not important to him or Christ. He wanted to do his own thing. Or, if he thought it was important, he turned his “life-gift” into a “life of needs and wants” for his own selfish objective. Yet, his gift and the gifts of all His people was the very vehicle Jesus prepared for the Gospel to be taken to the farthest reaches of the world. It’s not hard to turn our gift into an ATM machine and forget the purpose for which it was given in the first place. We see it happening all around us. We live in a self-absorbed society and world where we mistakenly think that everything we have in our person is ours, and for our own self-centered ambition. They are cashing in on their talent, there’s even a “prosperity Gospel” to promote this life-style for “believers.”

It took between 2 to 3 centuries for the Roman world to accept Christianity. But you know what, it was not easy. No amount of words could convince Rome. What changed Rome ultimately was the gifts, the blood, sweat, and tears of untold number of Christian martyrs who gave their lives for their faith. It was an unimaginable account of personal sacrifice and loyalty. That was the extent they were prepared to go for their Lord. Today, we are not called upon like they were then, although there are countries where Christians are persecuted. The framers of our constitution were Christians, thanks to the Christians before them who followed their Master’s commission to take the Gospel far and wide. The pilgrims came to the New Word seeking religious freedom. The baton is passed on from one generation to another with the Spirit at work in the midst of His people doing the Lord’s work.

Let’s reflect on that, and ask Jesus for conviction about the gift he has given us, and wherever we find ourselves, to give Him our best efforts, fully cognizant of the commission of Matt. 28 that the Gospel will be taken far and wide and accomplished on the backs of the gifts He has blessed and given His people.

If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to write me in the space provided below, or email me on bulamanriver@gmail.com.

Blessing

Until we meet again in my next post, may the blessing of the God who ceaselessly expresses Himself in His dependable Triune Love, be with you today and give you strength for authentic Triune Living as a Bula man-river.*

Kiang                                                                                                                                                          (Your Servant in Christ)

All scriptures are taken from the NIV Version 2011, unless stated otherwise

Note: Any information obtained from this website that is used for publication should be acknowledged by citing the website address, date of acquisition and information pertinent to original authorship. For general guidelines regarding web citations see The Guide for Citing Electronic Information.

A happy and rewarding year 2014 to all!

Man a Tri-Personal Being

May I suggest a resolution that’s out of this world and will be the basic impetus for a rewarding year before you? The most basic and pivotal knowledge man can have is to understand God is Trinitarian. God exists and fills all of existence, both physical and material, spiritual and metaphysical, with and in His Tri-Personal Love bursting forth from the Father, Son, and Spirit. In their Loving Triune relationship, He brings us into His existence to experience the Trinitarian Life. Man, in his human existence, lives a “solitary” life with an equally ‘solitary’ worldview he inherited from the fall of Adam. Jesus changed all that when He came as the Immanuel to take our humanity into the Triune Godhead, thus becoming Savior and Mediator of mankind.

Man, a Tri-Personal Being Made in the Image of The Trinity

Triune Template

Like an atom (the basis of all matter), life relies upon its triune particles of protons, electrons and neutrons. And this triune template can be proven in all of creation, why, because the universe and this earth is the handiwork of the God who is Himself Tri-Personal in His existence. He made everything to reflect His Triune image, including man. He exists in Loving relationship with each other and desires to share His Triune Being of Love with mankind whom He has created in His likeness.

Three-Dimensional Vs One-Dimensional

In Christian faith, God has given believers the third person of the Trinity, the Spirit, to live with man (believer) forever so He can bring the ‘Triune Life’ to man. Jesus said, “Unless you are born anew of water and the Spirit you cannot enter the Kingdom of God (experience the Triune Life)” (John 3:5). You have heard me use this term often – ‘Triune Life’ throughout my previous blog posts. In its simplest form it means to live with a third-party in one’s life. It means to live a three-dimensional ‘Triune Life’ instead of man’s one-dimensional ‘solitary’ life. It means to live and exist in the very Trinitarian Life of God through and in Christ His Son.

Just as physical life as we know it cannot exist without the atom’s threefold elements, so can’t man truly live and fulfill his destiny unless he lives God’s ‘Triune Life’ in the power of the Spirit. He may exist in chemical form, but he is dead in true-life form. Paul says it like this, that we “lay a foundation so that we may take hold of the life that is truly life” (1Tim.6:19, emphasis added).

Triune Template the Success Template

So, in all you do in 2014, enlist your third-party “Friend” and “Helper” who is the Spirit into your relationships to make it a successful year. (John 14:15-17) And be surprised by the miracles He will bring into your life. Remember, no relationship can be fostered unless there is one or more persons, at least two. But three is the template of success. Not any threefold relationship which remains “solitary” at its foundation, but divinely Triune with its core in the Tri-Personal Being of God. In short, this is the miraculous life we have been made to participate with and in Christ.

May the Spirit orchestrate all your three-dimensional relationships, and may you have a genuine new beginning, in 2014.

If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to write me in the space provided below, or email me on bulamanriver@gmail.com.

Blessing

Until we meet again in my next post, may the blessing of the God who ceaselessly expresses Himself in His dependable Triune Love, be with you today and give you strength for authentic Triune Living as a Bula man-river.*

Kiang                                                                                                                                                            (Your Servant in Christ)

* The “Bulaman-river” is the metaphor describing the union of man with the Love of the Triune God flowing in humans, making possible the “Triune Life” – the source of the miraculous life in man. To read the many facets of life of the Bula man-river, go to my website www.bulamanriver.com where you can order a copy of my Book.

All scriptures are taken from the NIV Version 2011, unless stated otherwise

Note: Any information obtained from this website that is used for publication should be acknowledged by citing the website address, date of acquisition and information pertinent to original authorship. For general guidelines regarding web citations see The Guide for Citing Electronic Information.

Greetings again friends! Let’s continue with God’s story about man. Again, may I wish you all the joys of Christmas, and a reward-filled New Year, 2014.

We have seen the Why, What, and How of God’s story of man that began with Christmas in parts 1 and 2. Let’s answer the final question, When? 

The account of Jesus birth was recorded by Luke in this way, “In those days Caesar Augustus issued a decree that a census should be taken of the entire Roman world.  (This was the first census that took place while Quirinius was governor of Syria.)  And everyone went to his own town to register.  So Joseph also went up from the town of Nazareth in Galilee to Judea, to Bethlehem the town of David, because he belonged to the house and line of David.  He went there to register with Mary, who was pledged to be married to him and was expecting a child.  While they were there, the time came for the baby to be born, and she gave birth to her firstborn, a son. She wrapped him in cloths and placed him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn.  And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night.  An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified.  But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people.  Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is Christ the Lord.  This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.”  Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying,  “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to men on whom his favor rests.”  When the angels had left them and gone into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, “Let’s go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has told us about.”  So they hurried off and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby, who was lying in the manger. When they had seen him, they spread the word concerning what had been told them about this child, and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds said to them.  But Mary treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart.  The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things they had heard and seen, which were just as they had been told.”(Luke 2:1-20) This is the most beautiful and inspiring part of God’s story about man. For in it we witness the humblest manner God chose for His Son to enter our human world through the virgin Mary, in a manger, in the little town called Bethlehem.

Birth of Jesus. Painting by Lorenzo Lotto (1527/28) (Wiki Commons)

Let’s now answer the final question When …

Faith
When…does all this happen in man? When…does this activity of God in making man into His own “image and likeness” become reality? It takes place when a human believes in the Messiah God has provided to make it possible. We take faith for granted. But for God faith is the turning point in human life and in our relationship with Him. How… because every time a human believes in the Messiah God offers for his/her deliverance, a true miracle takes place. Listen to what this miracle does, Paul says, “WHEN YOU BELIEVED, YOU WERE MARKED IN HIM WITH A SEAL, THE PROMISED HOLY SPIRIT, … (Eph.1:13-14). You and I were specially and personally marked by God our Father as His own CHILDREN with His own seal of adoption in His Spirit – that is what faith in Jesus does. Faith in His Son is what moves God to do miracles – this one, all-important miracle of all man can ever want. You see, when it comes to matters about the spiritual realm of God and the physical realm of man, the only bridge that connects the two realities is faith. Faith is the only thing that bridges this wide divide between God and man. This passage goes on to say what the seal of the Spirit does, “who is a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance until the redemption of those who are God’s possession—to the praise of His glory” – yes, we are guaranteed immortality, for eternal life is the “likeness” of God. He is Spirit-composed. Do you believe?

Seal

We know what a seal is, right – Paul said God set His seal upon believers. We place our seal of approval on a legal document to confirm ownership of something, or whatever the legal transaction may be. The seal of God is the seal of His Person in the Holy Spirit. By receiving the seal of the Holy Spirit man receives the image of God, in the very Person of God, which is the Love of God, and the Life and immortality of God. The Spirit breathes and vitalizes the Triune life of God in man. That is the way God our Father had planned for man to take on the “image and likeness” of God. By implanting and unifying Himself to humans, man takes on the “image and likeness” of God. There is no other way. Paul confirms this born again experience and its resulting life, “What matters is something far more interior: faith expressed in Love.” (Gal.5:6, MSG)

Dove – Symbolic of Holy Spirit (Wiki Commons)

The Pew Research Group says, and I quote, “Nearly half (47% of Christians) says that one’s actions are the key to determining eternal fate, with nearly one-third (29%) saying that being a good, moral person is the key to everlasting life.” So what do you think? Is it about man straying from a moral code? Or is it something much deeper – that we have strayed, that we are removed from Him?

A Barna survey says most Christian don’t believe in the existence of the Holy Spirit, neither do they believe in the existence of the devil, Satan. (www.pewresearch.org /www.barna.org) A person may claim to believe in the death of a man called Jesus. He can go so far as believe in His resurrection, and salvation by grace alone. But if he does not believe in the God who is Triune in the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, he is not a Christian. If you believe in Jesus, you cannot not believe in the Trinity, for He is the Trinity and homoousiosly part of it. The Tri-Personal God is the governing center of all Christian belief – it is the image of Triune Love man is made to take on. (see part 1)

Holy Spirit – Image and Likeness of God

Jesus said, “The Spirit gives life, the flesh counts for nothing” (John 6:63). Isaiah said all our good human acts are like filthy rags to God. (Isa.64:6) The human effort to be morally good springing from the fruit of ‘good and evil’ (because that’s all it is), cannot and will not conform man to the “image and likeness” of God. Only a rebirth and the indwelling life of the Holy Spirit does that. Notice how the image of God, the likeness of God takes shape, “Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love” (1John 4:7-8). There is human effort, don’t be mistaken, but Paul says, “I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live,” but we live by faith and that’s supplied by the Holy Spirit… “the life I now live, I Iive by the faith of Jesus.” (Gal. 2:20). It takes the faith of Jesus to live like that, not our faith. Our human faith was crucified on the cross. Speaking of the purpose and role of the Spirit in human life, Jesus said, “He (Spirit) will honor me; he will take from me and deliver it to you. Everything the Father has is also mine. That is why I’ve said, ‘He takes from me and delivers to you.’” (John 16:15). The purpose of the Spirit is conform man to the image of Christ’s Person through faith the Spirit supplies.

Jesus has to take on the likeness of man, and man has to take on the likeness of God. Jesus can’t live the ‘Immanuel life’ in heaven – He has to take on His own humanity through Mary. Likewise, we cannot live the Triune Life of God’s Love, God’s very “image and likeness,” unless we are born again and the Spirit unifies Himself with us. Just as Jesus became fully God and fully man, we become a new species of humanity who is given a rebirth with divine life through the Holy Spirit. We have to be born again in the power of the Spirit. So, it’s not about human effort, no matter how noble our intentions, it is about God literally unifying Himself through the birthing of the Holy Spirit in man – it’s a new birth into the Triune Life of God.

Freedom

God’s Love will always give man the freedom to choose which way to go. God in His Love, will never exercise His authority whether by coercion, physical force, or even psychological means, to enforce obedience on anyone. But through the Spirit we are given true liberty to understand who we are destined to be as a person within the Triune Godhead in Christ. Peter said your are like ‘living stones’ being built into a spiritual house for God and for mankind. (1Pet.2:5) Paul said you are the temple of God and the Spirit dwells in you. (1Cor.3:16; 6:19) Through our calling and gifts and destinies, we obey willingly and lovingly. There’s a saying that says find what you love doing, your gift, and you’ll never “work” the rest of your life. That would be God’s own story He writes in your personal life. But that’s another subject, suffice to say, your gift and calling, whatever it may be, is essentially from Jesus and is Jesus for the Bible says “this secret of God, namely, Christ, in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge. He is before all things, and in him all things hold together. In him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things have been created through him and for him.” Col.1:16-17; 2:3) Our gift is our charge and mandate in life, isn’t it? It is our personal place in life where Jesus gives us authority, which is our destiny in Him.

The Relevance of Christmas – “Born Again”

Let’s see how this divine purpose takes place exactly. Here’s where the relevance of Jesus’ birth, and the message Christmas should convey to us. The process of making man into the “image and likeness” of God takes place in man in the same identical manner as the birth of Jesus in becoming human. What does the Scripture tell us of the birth of Jesus? It tells us that He is the child of the Holy Spirit. He is the Son of God. (Matt.1:18-24) The angel told Joseph, “The baby inside her (Mary) is from the Holy Spirit.” (V.20, emphasis mine) He is to be called Immanuel, God with us. (V.23) This is how God took on the image of our humanity and joined it to the Triune image and Person of God – by being born a human through Mary in the power of the Spirit. He became the prophesied Immanuel – fully God and fully man, “God with us.”

“Von Neuem Geboren” or “Born Again” Sculpture by Michael Printschler (Wiki Common)

Now with humans, taking on the image of the Tri-Personal God is the exact birthing process, the exact copy of Jesus birth, but in reverse. Jesus told Nicodemus, “You must be born again” (John 3:7). He said, “I assure you, no one can enter the Kingdom of God without being born of water and the Spirit” (John 3:5). Man must undergo a new birth. That’s the relevance of Christmas for the believer. We say it’s Jesus’ birthday, but we ought to ask what does it mean? Think about this, God cannot take on the image of Immanuel unless He is born a human, in the same way, man cannot take on God’s divine “image and likeness” unless he is born of the Spirit. In both instances, there is a birthing process. So we see the salvation offered to us is very much a Tri-personal activity of God in His interactive Love through and through.

Christmas is as much about Jesus human birth as it is about man’s spiritual birth. It’s hard to believe that most Christians do not believe in the existence of the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit’s power makes this new birth in God’s spiritual Kingdom possible for man, just as the Spirit made Jesus birth in our human world possible. The new birth fundamentally means the Spirit’s power will take man eventually into immortality as John 3:16 affirms, “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.”

“To Fulfill ALL Righteousness”

So, I would like to put across to you that Christmas, the day we celebrate the birth of the Messiah, is not only a time of celebration of Christ birth by itself, but His birth made possible our birth into the divine image of God in the Spirit’s power. Jesus became the first human to receive the Holy Spirit under the New Covenant when He was baptized in the Jordan. Remember, He did not need to be baptized because he had no sin to repent of. When John first refused to baptize Jesus, He told John it must be done “to fulfill ALL righteousness.” What does that mean? He was being baptized for us, so when the Spirit hovered upon Jesus in the form of a dove, and the Father declared, “You are My dearly loved Son, and you bring Me great joy,” Jesus inaugurated the new birth in man which brings the God-life which is the only way that ALL God’s righteousness can be brought to man. (Matt.3:13-17) John told the people, “I baptize you with water, but He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit.” (Mark 1:8)

Man’s Future Hope – “Born Again” Resurrection to Immortality (Wiki Commons)

Conclusion

So, next time you hear a middle-of-the-story message of Jesus dying to save us from our sins (redemption) always see it as a jigsaw piece of a bigger picture we have covered today about God’s purpose to make man in His image (incarnation). It tells us why Jesus’ birth as Messiah by the Holy Spirit made possible our spiritual birth into the Triune Life of God. He came, was born in Bethlehem, baptized by John in the Jordan, overcame the devil, lived perfectly doing good, died as a worthy sacrifice for human sins, was resurrected and ascended into the Triune Being of God, taking our humanity with and in Him and is our Mediator and High Priest today. He sent the Spirit who gives us a new birth to live the Triune Life in Christ, and so fulfill the original purpose – the purpose God has never deviated from, to make man into His “image and likeness” and complete ALL righteousness in man.

To view the complete write-up on these subject of Christmas, you may read parts 1 and 2 below, posted on December 4^th and 12^th respectively.

If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to write me in the space provided below, or email me on bulamanriver@gmail.com. 

Blessing

Until we meet again in my next post, may the blessing of the God who ceaselessly expresses Himself in His dependable Triune Love, be with you in this Christmas season of the birth of Jesus the Messiah. May the Spirit enliven you and make all things concerning you possible in Triune Living as a Bula man-river.*

Kiang                                                                                                                                                          (Your Servant in Christ)

* The “Bula man-river” is the metaphor describing the union of man with the Love of the Triune God flowing in humans, making possible the “Triune Life” – the source of the miraculous life in man. To read the many facets of life of the Bula man-river, go to my website www.bulamanriver.com where you c(Your Servant in Christ)an order a copy of my Book.

All scriptures are taken from the NIV Version 2011, unless stated otherwise

Note: Any information obtained from this website that is used for publication should be acknowledged by citing the website address, date of acquisition and information pertinent to original authorship. For general guidelines regarding web citations see The Guide for Citing Electronic Information

Greetings again friends! Let’s continue with God’s story about man. Again, may I wish you all the joys of Christmas, and a reward-filled New Year 2014.

The Prophet Isaiah foretold the birth of the Messiah in this way, 

“For a child will be born to us, a son will be given to us; and the government will rest on His shoulders; And His name will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Eternal Father, Prince of Peace. Of the greatness of his government and peace there will be no end.” (Isa.9:6 NASB).

The Birth of Jesus & Visit by Shepherds (Wiki Commons)

By mentioning “government” more than once we are given an emphatic message about a Messiah whose influence is universal embracing all peoples. The New Testament echo this same thought in this manner, “For God loved the world so much that he gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life.” (John 3:16, NLT) It is not a message about a narrow religious sect, but a worldwide Government or Kingdom which has jurisdiction over territory and people. The Kingdom of God is God’s Government that has reign over political and spiritual boundaries. Hence, the world is given a Messiah who carries the title of “King of kings, and Lord of lords.” (Rev.20:4-6) God’s ultimate purpose of recreating His Loving nature in man is so people from all nations will become His Kingdom of kings, lords, and priests. So, the birth of the child Jesus, the giving of a Son, the provision of a Messiah, is not just for a religious sect one calls Christianity, He is given to unite all people and impact all mankind beyond borders, beyond religion, beyond any political persuasion, racial differences, and any wall of division. God gave Him for a universal purpose in which His Love unifies the whole world as He himself is One in His Triune Being.

Answering ‘Why’ and ‘What”

But let’s come back and continue from where we left off in part one on this message of the purpose of Christmas, and the Messiah’s birth. The essential prerequisite to the Messiah’s universal impact is the fulfilment of God’s underlying purpose of recreating His people in “His image and likeness.” Nothing happens until that change takes place in the heart and being of humans. We have seen His image is Love, when we answered the question, Why? And we have seen His likeness is Trinitarian, when we answered the question, What? All of the above is predicated on mankind being transformed from his fallen, fearful, and corrupt existence inherited from Adam, and freely adopting the image of God’s Triune Love in His Son, whose birthday we celebrate at Christmas. So, now we answer the question, How will God make this transformation possible in man?

How?

How…. will God make possible man’s transformation into His image of Love and the likeness of His Triune nature? Think of who God IS for a moment. He is the most holy God, all righteous, sovereign, all-powerful, omniscient, omnipresent, Loving Triune Being. He is the most awesome Spirit Being who have existed eternally without beginning, without end, whose sovereign Being occupies all space and time. There is no other god besides Him. Our limited, inadequate, imperfect, physical mind will never be able to grasp nor comprehend Him. What we know about God is what He has revealed Himself to us and given us minds to comprehend. Without His revelation and the mind and faith to comprehend and be convicted, we would remain ignorant of His attributes and purpose. When we look into the living universe with our mighty telescopes, the creation we see and the feel of this earth, awesome as they are, yet it all still remain utter mysteries to man. Even with the human mind, we are at a loss to explain how it works. We don’t know if we are the result of untold years of evolutionary process, or we are created beings. The question of human origin still baffles us. As we think more and more deeply about all of creation we come up with more questions than answers. Yet, there is a God who is the creative first cause of the universe we can’t explain. And He did all that out of His Love.

Man – Made in The Likeness of The Trinity (Wiki Commons)

Now, this is the God, who, in all His unfathomable mystery, said from the beginning, He wanted to make man into the image and likeness of His Love in His Tri-Personal Being. How does man become like someone who exists in all His unknowable mystery, let alone comprehend and have some semblance of communication and relationship with which to begin? The Scriptures tell us He is utterly holy, and conversely, we are utterly depraved and unholy. Despite His mystery, He has given us minds to comprehend the essentials to sustain a relationship with Him. We were made with that potential in our minds. And it is not as hard as we assume all the mystery about Him suggests. We will go to our death beds never knowing all the answers to the mysteries of this world, but He has ensured humans can have a complete, fulfilling, and lasting Loving relationship with Him and with each other.

How will God’s “likeness mandate” be made a reality in man? How does He do it in this seeming impossible situation in man? Man has no alternative but to seek His answers. What is His answer? It has to take Someone from within the Tri-Personal Godhead who is a co-equal Being with the Father and the Spirit, to become human, and glorify our humanity in Himself, and forever unify man to the Triune God for eternity. When you think about it, it cannot be any other way. It is simple, it is awe-inspiring, it is something the prophets of old had wanted to peek into the wisdom of God. Man is helpless, so God Himself has to provide answer. Hence, we read of another passage about Christmas and the birth of Jesus in this way,

“Therefore the Lord Himself shall give you a sign, Behold a virgin shall conceive, and bear a Son, and shall call His name Immanuel” (Isa.7:14).

“Behold, a virgin shall be with child, and shall bring froth a Son, and they shall call His name Emmanuel, which is being interpreted, ‘God with us’” (Matt.1.:23).

That Someone from the divine Trinity is Jesus, God’s own Son. He is the Immanuel who has fulfilled God’s purpose in the divine mandate of unifying God’s image with man. Jesus became man, so man can take upon himself God’s Loving Triune image. Man is transformed from his “solitary” image in himself, to the “Triune” likeness of God in Christ. Jesus becomes man’s Mediator and High Priest inside the Triune Life of God having taken our humanity, perfected and glorified it in Himself, and took us with Him into the heavenly abode of the Triune God. By expressing this impossible and unimaginably Love for man,  through Jesus man can now miraculously respond adequately, perfectly, and completely in Love to a God who is all-holy in his Being.

Depiction of Resurrection of Jesus (Wiki Commons)

How did Jesus do it? a) He was born to Mary as the prophesied Messiah in Bethlehem. b) He lived a perfect sinless life teaching the Gospel. c) He overcame the devil in the temptations. d) He was crucified to cleanse man from all sins past, present, and future. e) He resurrected in His glorified human body. f) He ascended and unified man’s humanity to the Triune God forever. That is the greatest story told about man – it is God’s story about man. Let’s now answer the question When? When does all this happen in man? When does this all this start for man?  We’ll answer the When in God’s story of man in our next segment.

If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to write me in the space provided below, or email me on bulamanriver@gmail.com.

Blessing

Until we meet again in my next post, may the blessing of the God who ceaselessly expresses Himself in His dependable Triune Love, be with you today and give you strength for authentic Triune Living as a Bula man-river.*

Kiang                                                                                                                                                          (Your Servant in Christ)

 

* The “Bula man-river” is the metaphor describing the union of man with the Love of the Triune God flowing in humans, making possible the “Triune Life” – the source of the miraculous life in man. To read the many facets of life of the Bula man-river, go to my website www.bulamanriver.com where you can order a copy of my Book.

All scriptures are taken from the NIV Version 2011, unless stated otherwise

Note: Any information obtained from this website that is used for publication should be acknowledged by citing the website address, date of acquisition and information pertinent to original authorship. For general guidelines regarding web citations see The Guide for Citing Electronic Information

Greetings once more friends the world over! May the joys of Christmas be yours, and a reward-filled New Year await you!

It is that time of year which believers with genuine hearts, apart from all the distractions, celebrate with true rejoicing hearts. It is a story which carries such deep spiritual meaning with equally transcendent impact beyond any story man could have written. Why, because the story of Christmas, or the birth of the Messiah, is God’s own story about mankind. It’s time we read the whole story as God tells us, and celebrate it as a gift from God as we enter this season of rejoicing.

Glad Tidings

God had His prophet Micah predict the birth of Jesus this way, “As for you, Bethlehem of Ephrathah, even though you remain least among the clans of Judah, nevertheless, the One who rules in Israel for Me will emerge from you. His existence has been from antiquity, even from eternity” (Micah 5:2). It is clear the Messiah’s progeny is key to His role as Savior – He exists from eternity, He is the Son of God.

Angel Announces Birth of Jesus to Shepherds (Wiki Commons)

The Ambiguous Story of Jesus

As we celebrate the birth of Christ, let’s go back to the beginning to recap God’s story for man. For too long the message of Jesus Christ as the Savior has been cloaked in ambiguity because it is being told from the middle of God’s own story about man. There is one message millions have heard about Christ – Jesus died for your sins to save you. (John 3:16) Important as that is, it does not tell the full story. Not even half the story. When you read a book from the middle, you’re always left with many ‘whys’ as you go along because you don’t know what had gone on before. It’s so vital to understand that the incarnation comes before the redemption. So the onus is upon story-tellers to tell the full account of God’s story of man so hearers understand the fundamental imperative for a Messiah. So, many a non-believer has asked, why must my sins be forgiven? Why must it be Jesus and not someone else? Why must He die? The predictable reply is Jesus is God’s own Son, and He died to save man from his sins. Yet again, the person snaps back, but why – to what end? Right here, we have a coin-toss for the many answers that Christians give. Take your pick! We will see at the end of of the three-part write-up, there is only one answer God gives us when we understand the full story.

Reasons to Believe

One reason given is, so you can go to heaven when you die – but why is that so important? By obtaining a ticket into heaven, you obviously exchanged it for your ticket to hell because of your sins. Why heaven, what’s in there for me? What is hell anyway, has anyone been there to tell its horrific tale as the claim suggests? How does God’s Love reconcile with such a place as hell?

Take the prosperity gospel, it seems the proponents of this belief care just for the here and now. Perhaps heaven and hell is too far-fetched for them. Then, there are those who believe in Jesus because of one’s tradition, as it were a family or village custom to become a believer. It’s just rubber-stamping, but does it mean anything to the person? There are those who believe Jesus is a great moral teacher who came to make this a better world – much like Buddha, nothing more or less. 

The Pew Research group says, “A majority of all American Christians (52%) think that at least some non-Christian faiths can lead to eternal life.” (www.pewresearch.org) So, Jesus’ birth as man’s only Savior is now snubbed by His own followers. “Nearly half (47%) says that one’s actions are the key to determining eternal fate, with nearly one-third (29%) saying that being a good, moral person is the key to everlasting life.” So your moral compass means more to your eternal fate than Jesus.  A Barna survey says that most Christians don’t believe that Satan or the Holy Spirit exists. (www.barna.org)     So, one may adopt his/her brand of faith before a smorgasbord of beliefs. Sadly, this is the upshot of religion dictating a relationship which God intended from the beginning to be personal and one-on-one. What do we believe? Why this confusion? Because the Christian message is unclear and ambiguous.

The Full Story

Let’s take God’s story from the beginning so we are not left with many ‘whys’ about God’s call to His purpose for providing a Messiah. The only reason God made man is revealed in these words He uttered from the beginning, “Let Us make mankind in Our image, in Our likeness, so they may have dominion over the earth.” (Gen.1:26-30) It’s plain, it’s simple. You can say it bears the title of the God’s book about man. I will share the story of God about man in three parts, with God’s Son as the central part of its theme.

History

Now, from Adam to this day, God has never deviated from His story line for mankind with His Son as central to its theme. The story of man’s own history upon this earth has been a mixture of experiences of “good and evil.” There have been many horrendous stories of man as there are helpful ones. In modern times many have not forgotten the atrocities perpetrated in the death camps of World War Two. We can go further back and recount many equally horrific acts of man’s inhumanity to man. There have been good done also, like what we have witnessed in recent history in the field of education, the sciences, technology, medical advancement, transportation, and so forth. Yet, despite the ‘good’ man has witnessed, his knowledge has also been used to create weapons of mass destruction that’s capable of wiping man from the face of the earth. Akin to Winston Churchill words, man’s own story has been “a riddle wrapped in a mystery inside an enigma.”

God had warned Adam, if he went down this path and write his own story about man, he would live a life of “good and evil” that was depicted in the forbidden fruit he and his wife Eve were deviously led to partake. Though there was ‘good,’ it was not God’s goodness, but man’s duplicitous good. (Isa.64:6; Jer.17:9; Rom.3:23) God’s goodness produces an authentic good that’s represented in the “Tree of life,” which was also in the Eden. (Gen.2:9)

Tree of Life

The Tree of Life was man’s salvation. It represented all the goodness and graces of God to man. Adam botched it, plain and simple. And mankind have been recipients of Adam’s story humans have been writing and rewriting for six thousand years of history. It’s the story of man’s stamp of good and evil in the world that’s leading to a certain dark future. Not unless, Someone steps in to stop this tide of ‘madness’ at its tracks. This is where the birth of the Messiah is ushered in which we celebrate today. Very simply, He came to take us to the Tree of Life which Adam failed to do. For in the Tree of life, God’s story about man can be written, and is being rewritten. The Tree of Life is the metaphor for the Holy Spirit who brings God’s Love to flow in us like a river of living waters. (Rom. 5:5; John 7:37-39)

A Depiction of The Tree of Life (Wiki Commons)

I would like to present God’s story about man in 3 broad parts. In this piece we will cover part one, and parts two and three before we come to Christmas, 2013.

Part One

When God said He created man for the purpose of irrevocably fashioning man in His own image and likeness, we have to ask why, what, how, and when about His story as it relates to you and me. His story about man has always been a personal story about you and me, just as it was personal with Adam and Eve. His work of fashioning man in His image can only be done on a personal, one-on-one basis. There was no religion around to dictate Adam and Eve’s relationship with God. Maybe there was, in the form of the intruder, the devil himself. He’s not asking you to join a religion which dictates your relationship with Him.

Our relationship with God is not based upon a system of beliefs but a relationship of Love with the Person whose birthday we honor at this time of year. He is the central theme in God’s story about man. We encounter Him in His Word, the Bible. Jesus is the Personified Word of God, and we have the Bible as the literal Word of God. We find our place in the world through His Word (Jesus). No religion can lead us to our destiny in Christ. Only God can do lead us through each of our gifts He  bequeaths upon us on a personal, one-on-one basis. Our gifts is our personality embodied the Tripersonal Loving Being of God. Religion cannot do for God what only God can do for and by Himself. Nothing must and stand between you and God. He desires a personal relationship with you, directly. Jesus was born for that very purpose. That’s the important criterion to understand about the story of man God has written in the past, is doing now, and into the future. It is a story penned in the heart of each individual on the basis of a personal relationship with each man, woman, and child that’s ever been born. (Heb.8:10)

Why?

Why… should I be conformed to His image and likeness, we ask? Because of His Love, and because He is Love! It’s plain and it’s simple, yet mind-boggling in its scope. God wanted man to share in everything that He Is, and who He Is – His image is His Love – because He can never deviate from doing things out of the magnanimity of His Love. We are told in Scripture, “God is Love” (1John 4:8). He is not made of Love – His IS Love! God is forever “giving,” that’s what Love does. From eternity, God exist in their Tripersonal life through the power of their Love for each other. Man’s very existence is the result of the ongoing flow of God’s Love within His Triune Being flowing out to man. Were it not so, we would cease to exist altogether. God’s Love is like a river which flows and enriches everything and everyone in its path and never takes back. (John 7:37-39) It is hard to comprehend God’s ever-giving Love, when we have for six thousand years lived in the story line of self-centeredness Adam has penned for man. Man has always been about himself. He is fallen, depraved and corrupt. Even the good he does is done with an ulterior motive. (Jer.17:9) Jesus was born to unify mankind to the Tripersonal Being and Love of God. God seeks a relationship of Love with man as His very own children as Jesus is His Son. God’s story of man tells us how he plans to do just that.

What?

What… is His image and likeness? Love cannot exist in isolation. So, when He said “Let Us…make man in OUR image, after OUR likeness…” in the Genesis creation account of man, He was revealing Himself as existing in His Tri-Personal Being as Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. (Gen. 1:26; Matt.28:19; John 14:10, 16; 16:7) The Hebrew word “Elohim” describes a uniplural God. God is Trinitarian in His nature. Love by its nature is relational. Is it possible for God who is Love to exist in isolation, in solitude – unaccompanied, secluded, alone in self-absorbed existence? If God were one solitary person, with no one to love and share His divine Being, then His affirmation that “God is Love” (1John 4:8) would be meaningless. And we know God is Tripersonal and spirit-composed, and we are solitary, self-absorbed humans made of flesh and blood. “Likeness” means to become ONE and alike. It is to be natured in the Love of God which binds us as ONE. God’s purpose is to make His people become ONE where they are of a single identity or image of Love in Him, not apart from Him. He seeks to make us His very own children so He can shower all His Love upon us.

Rublev’s Famous Icon of The Trinity (Wiki Commons)

God is composed of three Love Personalities, as Father, Son, and Spirit, in ONE Triune Being. And so is mankind composed of many different gifts and personalities God has conferred upon us through the Spirit. We are united in our diverse personalities in His Triune Being of Love. Our numerous and distinct personalities and gifts reveal the greatness of God who created and Loves us as His children. To conform to that image of the Tripersonal God composed in Love is what salvation is to mankind. We may have different ways to explain salvation, but its essence is to conform as One in the image of God who is Love. Hence, we are told, “For those God foreknew He also predestined to be conformed to the image of (of LOVE of) his Son” (Rom.8:29, emphasis added). As I said earlier, this is the basis of how God’s story of man is written. It is based upon the Triune Love relationship of the Father, Son, and Spirit, where we are brought into a personal relationship with each other within the Triune Being of God Himself in Christ. Jesus unified our humanity to the Trinitarian God as the prophesied Emmanuel. (Isa. 7:14; Matt.1;23)

Our mentality and psyche for living ought always to be that we are walking the very midst of the Tri-Personal Being of God in the all sufficiency and expectation of His Triune Love.

How… yes, how is God possibly going to make this “Triune likeness” mandate happen? How will God go about making man, whom He has made of flesh and blood, into a spirit-composed person, and a Love-composed person as He IS?

The answer… We’ll answer the How question more in-depth in part two, but suffice to say now that only Someone from within the Triune Godhead can take man and change man into the Trinitarian likeness and Life of God (Love). That’s the only way, there is no other way. It’s much like trying to domesticate a beast from the wild. We train it to give the animal, say a chimpanzee, some semblance of our humanity in order to live among us. We remove its wild instincts and to some degree instill the human spirit in it. Most times it’s to reflect our humorous spirit in the animal. Why is the dog call man’s best friend? We have seen and continue to see many animated movies that have been produced along this theme. Man trains the chimpanzee to project the image he wants the chimpanzee to adopt. When the beast cannot be domesticated and continues to be untameable, it is let back into the wild. That’s why certain animals, like a lion, cannot be domesticated because it is untameable.

So in like manner, only Jesus, who is God as the Father and the Spirit, and who comes from the Triune Godhead, is man’s doorway into the Tri-Personal Love-Being of God. Jesus said, “I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life, no one comes to the Father except through Me” (John 14:6). Now we can understand why Jesus was emphatic about what He said about Himself – why He had to come, be born a human, be fully God and fully human, live, die, and be resurrected so man can be unified to God forever – through no other way, but in and through Jesus. 

That is why the Messiah came. That is why it had to be Jesus. That is why Jesus was born. That is why, in the true spirit of Christmas, we have much more than we realize to rejoice over. As I intimated, the message of His death seems to dominate the airwaves, that is ‘redemption’ – but the ‘incarnation’ is the doorway to ‘redemption.’ If there is no ‘incarnation’ (image and likeness, Immanuel), there is no ‘redemption.’

The Popularized ‘Nativity Scene’ – But Do We Know Its True Meaning? (Wiki Commons)

We will answer the how and when of God’s story about man as it’s seen through the birth of Christ in parts two and three. If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to write me in the space provided below, or email me on bulamanriver@gmail.com.

Blessing

Until we meet again in my next post, may the blessing of the God who ceaselessly expresses Himself in His dependable Triune Love, be with you today and give you strength for authentic Triune Living as a Bula man-river.*

Kiang                                                                                                                                                          (Your Servant in Christ)

* The “Bulaman-river” is the metaphor describing the union of man with the Love of the Triune God flowing in humans, making possible the “Triune Life” – the source of the miraculous life in man. To read the many facets of life of the Bula man-river, go to my website www.bulamanriver.com where you can order a copy of my Book.

All scriptures are taken from the NIV Version 2011, unless stated otherwise

Note: Any information obtained from this website that is used for publication should be acknowledged by citing the website address, date of acquisition and information pertinent to original authorship. For general guidelines regarding web citations see The Guide for Citing Electronic Information

Greetings Friends the world over! This is the time for Thanksgiving in America. Thanksgiving Day is November 27, 2014.

Thanksgiving is the essence of the human spirit which stands inviolate and knows no borders. It is the epitome for good in all people and nations. Sometimes gratitude does not come easily because of our biases and prejudices. To say “thank you” is to express the dignity and decency of our humanity replicated in the Creator’s likeness. “Thank you,” (English) “Danke” (German), “Mahalo” (Hawaiian), “Merci” (French), “xiexie” (Chinese), “Terima Kasih” (Malay), “Takk” (Norwegian), “Kamasahamnida” (Korean), “Paldies” (Latvian), “Gracias” (Spanish), “Spasibo” (Russian), “Dhayavad” (Hindi), “Dziekuje,” (Polish), “Obrigado” (Portuguese), “Vinaka” (Fijian), and hundreds and thousands of languages and dialects all speak the language of this larger-than-life divine attribute. Let’s talk “Thanksgiving” today.

“Rest and Thankful” Bench (Wiki Commons)

Where, how, and when did Thanksgiving began? In America we usually rehash our colonial history and tell the story of the Pilgrims and native Americans coming together to celebrate their harvest in the autumn of 1621. That’s all fine, and I find the story inspiring each time I learn fresh bits of information. It was reported the Wampanoag native tribe arrived bearing five deer for the feast. And of course, an abundance of turkey caught in the wild, I’m sure. Although it was not known then by a thanksgiving label, it was obvious gratitude was the prevailing mood among the Pilgrims and indigenous natives. It was reported that they celebrated for three days, not just one. They were thankful to God for surviving the hardships they endured in the New World, for the religious freedom they now enjoyed, and for the successful harvest and bounty before them.

“Thanksgiving” & Eden

Much later, by Presidential edict a day was set aside for a national day of Thanksgiving. But let’s step further back in history and see where thanksgiving truly began. Let’s go back to the Garden of Eden – yes, as far back as the very beginning. Here, we’ll find where the spirit of “thanksgiving” all started. For the most part, the story of Adam and Eve almost invariably gravitate to their disobedience, right? We don’t look at the life they lived before being alienated from Eden. There is no record how long Adam and Eve remained faithful to God before the fall. This is important, for the life Adam and Eve had with God was the kind of life God had in mind for mankind. It was a relationship that Adam and Eve enjoyed with God. It was a relationship based upon His Love for man which is the sole reason why He created man. What we see in history in the post-Eden era of man, is six thousand years of human experience lived apart from God. Though not apart from His supreme sovereignty.

Gratitude – A Way of Life in Eden

The truth is: being appreciative and thankful was a way of life for Adam and Eve as long as God was in their lives. Adam and Eve did not live like Neanderthal cavemen trying to eke out a living. No, they lived in God’s glorious company. Our educational system in supporting evolutionary science (so-called) place our children at a great disadvantage in this area of human origin. Think about this, Eden was a garden planted with God’s own hands. He handed it to our first parents with all the blessings of a home where they could live a life of unbelievable miraculous manifestation and live happily as humans. Adam never dropped a sweat off his brow. Eden was handed to him and his wife on a platter – literally. Josephus, the Jewish historian, said that fruit trees in Eden would automatically produce fruits right before our first parents’ eyes when they were hungry. Imagine what that’s like? Adam’s thoughts had the power to materialize what he desired into reality. What do you think happened when God brought the animals to Adam to be named? “Whatever the man called each living creature, that was its name” (Gen.2:19). Mankind has drifted so far away from God that he has no inkling of the kind of life He desires to give man. 

Was It a Legalistic Union?

God could well have pointed a dense jungle to Adam and said, “I want you both to go out there and make us a garden-home where we can all live together. I know it’s going to be tough, but it will be good for character-building. Your performance will be a reward of itself when the garden is complete.” No, but unfortunately, many a legalist would have us believe God to be like that. And sadly many a believer fall for that kind of relationship with God. The legalist would have you believe God would never plant a garden for you—you are to plant it for yourself. He would not fight your battles for you—you are to fight your own battles. Of course that is what the “solitary life”** brings us. They are proponents of the belief there has to be something we do to earn God’s Love. If that’s so, then whatever man does in his “solitary” expression will be reward unto itself, so at the end of the day, he has no one to thank, but himself. Is it any wonder then that they live thankless lives, because they can’t see God as the Mover and Shaker in their lives? How can we see God in this way where He is the Mover and Shaker in our lives? How do we find every reason to thank Him? Or, is it hard to find reason to thank Him, if ever?

Instruction Was a “Thank You,” Not “Payback”

What was the only instruction God gave Adam? What were they to do with their lives and their beautiful garden-home? They were “to work it and watch over Eden, and to not eat from the tree of the fruit of good and evil.” (Gen.2:15, 17, emphasis added). Adam and Eve were to take good care of Eden, their home. And right here – here’s where the origin of gratitude and where thanksgiving began. It began with the Creator giving man a purpose and calling. This is the very first directive God gave man – what do you think was Adam’s response when he looked around him, and: 1> He was told he was created from the soil he stood on. 2> He saw his beautiful wife Eve God gave him for a fitting life-partner. 3> He saw this most beautiful garden-home call Eden, with all the abundance to keep them alive and healthy. Then, they were to export this Edenic model in their dominion over the whole earth.  4> He saw God living and walking with them, and gave them gifts to live a purposeful life.  5> They saw how this relationship created the incredible ongoing miraculous life of living their destiny. There was nothing they saw in all this they could attribute to themselves and pat themselves on the back – none whatsoever.

“Rest and be Thankful” Shelter (Wiki Commons)

Here’s where the very first act of man to his God comes through: Adam’s responsibility of “keeping and caring for Eden, and not eating from the tree of good and evil” was their way of saying “Thank You” to God for His Love. It was their act of worship and gratitude. That was the first and natural reaction of humans to God – to respond to what they saw around them, acknowledge the Love of the generous Giver, and say “Thank You, God.” That was all – what else could be more fitting than a heartfelt “Thank You.” Nothing more and nothing less! The act of gratitude is an act of Love flowing back to the God who is Love and who lives for Love.

Love is “Free” 

This was a relationship based upon Love that can only be exchanged “freely.” Love is unconditional. It also tells us the basic determination God had in mind when He created humans in His own image. And what’s that? He determined to give and bless man with everything out of His Love, so that man will enjoy living in His presence. It was to make man see and never doubt where his happiness stem from, and how and to whom he is to respond with his gratitude and worship. There’s no price tag attached to this relationship. The relationship in God’s Love was very simple – there is a Giver who lives to give His Love for He is Love; and there’re humans who live to receive Love for he is the vessel for God’s Love – and whose response is to live life purposefully and worship and give thanks to the Great Giver. To give thanks is an act of Love. God will not spare anything from man, whom He has made in His likeness. That would be tantamount to denying Himself. Later, His Love would not hold back His only Son but sacrificed Him for man.

Love Cannot be “Repaid”

The act of taking care of Eden was not to “repay” God. Love can never be repaid. True Love travels one-way, and never expects to be repaid. Jesus said, “If you lend to those from whom you expect repayment, what credit is that to you? But lend to them without expecting to get anything back. Then your reward will be great, and you will be children of the Most High” (Luk.6:33-35). Jesus was talking about God’s divine Love. That is man’s purpose: to be a vessel for the divine Love through his God-ordained calling. If you pay for something, then it becomes a “trade.” By its very nature, Love can never be traded. Think of the sunshine, the air we breathe, the water we get from our rivers and lakes? Think of our earth that hangs in the blackness of space? Can man imagine a way in which to repay God?

God’s Love is His unearned favor to man. Love is priceless. What price tag do you place on His Love for you? For Adam, do you think “working and watching over Eden, and not eating of the fruit of good and evil” was enough to repay or earn God’s Love? There is only one response that God’s Love can generate and trigger in us – all we can say to God’s Love is – “Thank you.” There is nothing else to say. God is Love and is not for sale. You can’t buy Love. We can’t say “If I obey God – “work and watch my garden, and be obedient” – He will bless me.” That’s extortion, not Love. The miraculous life in His divine purpose comes from His unearned Love, not because of our obedience. We don’t “obey” God, we Love God. For Adam and Eve, their calling in “working and watching over Eden and not eating the forbidden fruit” was an act of Love and gratitude, not legalistic “obedience,” for God’s Love for them. “Working and watching over Eden and being obedient” was going to be their life’s calling and purpose. Therefore, all of life with its gift, is an act of gratitude. Life is an act of gratitude. Gratitude is an act of Love.

We would find the true meaning of life if we remember God our Father did not create us out of a judgmental conviction so we may live in fear of Him, but out of the wellspring of His unearnable Love so we can Love Him in return. “Give Thanks to the Lord, for He is good; His love endures forever” (Ps. 118:1-2). Humans are miracles waiting to happen when they believe God is the Mover and Shaker in their lives. If we don’t have thankfulness in our hearts, then we’re not living His divine purpose in the miraculous life springing out of His Love, which in turn generates joy and thanksgiving in our hearts. 

God Provided “Freely” for Israel’s Well-Being

When we look in the Bible, do we find this miraculous life happening on this side of the post-Eden era? The answer is a resounding “yes.” More remarkably, it happened on a national scale. > This relationship with God, though alienated by Adam, was once more brought to earth with Abraham’s encounter with God. Through Abraham’s faithfulness God called him a friend and their relationship was bound by a covenant which extended to his descendants and eventually the nation of Israel. > Israel found itself a slave people in Egypt. God remembered His covenant with Abraham, and through Moses He brought Israel out of Egypt. > How did He do it? By a series of miracles with His own hands, just as He planted Eden with His own hands! We know the story. Israel experienced the miraculous life and saw one miracle after another until the final miracle of the Passover forced Pharaoh’s hand to free the people. (Exodus 3-12) > They left with riches handed to them by the terrified Egyptians. > They saw the pillar of fire leading them by night, and a pillar of cloud by day. > They saw the Red Sea part with their own eyes which allowed them safe passage across it. > They saw Pharaoh’s pursuing army drown as the sea collapsed upon them. > They celebrated and gave thanks for their deliverance. > They saw God wrote the Ten Commandments with His own hands at Sinai. > He miraculously fed them for 40 years in the desert where nothing could grow. Their clothes did not wear out, nor did the sandals on their feet. (Deut.8;4)

Moses Viewing the Promised Land, illustration from the 1890 Holman Bible (Wiki Commons)

The Promise Land

> Finally, when they were ready to enter the Promise Land, He went before them and defeated Jericho in such a spectacular manner that it left no doubt in their minds God was leading them. > He drove out the inhabitants of the land, and gave > them cities they did not build > vineyards they did not plant > livestock they did not raise > homes they did not build or furnish > riches they did not acquire > wells they did not dig—with God Himself going before them as their Defense (Deut. 6:10-12; Ps. 46:1; Josh. 23:9-11). Just as God planted Eden for Adam and Eve, He handed Israel the Promise Land to Israel – on a platter. The one singular reason this miraculous life was possible was because God was in Israel, as He was with Adam and Eve in Eden. As long as they lived in such an environment their lives was one continuous miraculous expression after another. In that kind of situation, it was hard, if not impossible, to be thankless. The people had to see God as the Mover and Shaker in their lives to generate awe and gratitude.

Israel’s Instruction

What was God’s instruction to Israel? Recall, this is the path of disobedience and mayhem Adam took humanity into the post-Eden era. Mankind has lived through so much pain and death under the influence of the unseen enemy. The flood of Noah had come and gone. Israel’s instruction was to keep the covenant. God told Israel, “Now if you obey me fully and keep My covenant, then out of all nations you will be My treasured possession. Although the whole earth is Mine,  you will be for Me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation” (Exo.19:5-6). Israel answered, “All that the Lord has spoken, we will do” (Exo.19:8). Where Adam’s gratitude for God’s Love was “to work and watch over Eden and being obedient in not eating the forbidden fruit,” Israel’s gratitude was to “keep My covenant.” That was Israel’s purpose and calling in life. Life was to be lived in a certain way as explained in the Commandments. All the physical and material ancillary benefits they enjoyed from the Promise Land sprung from their calling and destiny as explained in the covenant. The Promise Land was given to fulfill Israel’s purpose. Listen to what Moses told Israel before they entered the Promise Land, “But you shall remember the Lord your God: for it is He that gives you power to get wealth,” and for what purpose? “…that He may establish His covenant which He swore to your fathers, as it is this day” (Deut.8:18).

“Living that life was their expression of gratitude for all the miraculous manifestation which saved them from slavery in Egypt and establish them as a nation, which continued to be manifested in their national life and purpose. But instead of “keeping the covenant” as an act of gratitude, it became a burden for them. They forgot their roots and how they came to be a people and nation descendant from the Abrahamic lineage and promise. They became a thankless nation. They desired to serve the gods of other nations around them. The ongoing miraculous manifestation was withdrawn due to unbelief in their purpose, and their lack of gratitude and worship of the God who has always been their salvation. God was no longer the Mover and Shaker in Israel.

Outline, Review

We know what happened? Let’s look back at this scenario presented to us. Adam failed, and so did Israel. Israel found itself back to where they started as a slave nation carted off by the northern kingdoms. Eden – gone! The Promise Land – gone! The presence of God which brought the miraculous life and divine purpose – gone! Their security and defense with angelic host that stood guard over Israel – gone! The thankful heart – gone! Man in the pre-Eden era had failed. Man in the post-Eden era had failed. You can say both sides of Eden was experimented on, our “solitary” self-centered way of life was put to the test, and found wanting. What happens now? God gave man the only answer.

Jesus the Second Adam

God sent the Second Adam in Jesus Christ, His Son. After seeing a thankless nation forsook His purpose and flout His covenant, He had the prophet Jeremiah foretell the establishment of a New Covenant in the Second Adam to do what the first Adam and Israel could not do. God said, “For I will forgive their wickedness and will remember their sins no more. I will put my laws in their minds and write them on their hearts. I will be their God, and they will be my people” (Jer.31:33-34; Heb.8:10,12). Jesus lived a miraculous life healing all who came to Him with whatever disease and sickness. Not only physical but spiritual disease – He brought a spiritual message of the New Covenant from the Father. (Acts 10:38)

“Tree of Life”

Recall, it is sin which separates humans from God’s Presence and His miraculous manifestation in life. Jesus rectifies the mistake of the first Adam, redeeming man from the sin condition as Savior and Mediator, and takes man back to the Tree of Life. The Tree of Life is the metaphor for the Holy Spirit who brings to man the “Triune Life” of the “Bula man-river.”* The Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil, which we were made to partake through the first Adam, is a metaphor for a life of the self (the “solitary life”**) under the influence of the devil. Jesus said, “It is for your good that I am going away. Unless I go away, the Counselor will not come to you; but if I go, I will send him to you” (John 16:7). It is the Spirit who bring the miraculous life, and reveals our gift and purpose through which we live a thankful life.

Pentecost – Spirit of the Miraculous Life in Man

Pentecost, the day the Holy Spirit came, became the birth date of the Church. The main characteristic of its birth was the power of miraculous manifestation God gave it. Prior to that, the disciples and the faithful were cowering in fear for their lives. We know the story in Acts 2. The Spirit gave them faith, purpose, conviction, and boldness they never had. They spoke in languages of the different populace that were there for the feast of Pentecost. Three thousand gave their lives to Christ that day. They healed the sick and maimed. With the Spirit’s move the people took the Gospel message back to their countries and homes. What a story to tell.

Man is given the Holy Spirit which brings this rebirth from the fallen condition he had in the first Adam, to the new life he now has in Christ, the Second Adam. Jesus said, “No one can enter the kingdom of God (the “Triune Life”) unless they are born of water and the Spirit. Flesh gives birth to flesh, but the Spirit gives birth to spirit” (John 3:5-6). This rebirth where, through repentance, we dispose of everything to do with the path of the “solitary life”** we inherited from Adam. The Second Adam comes with the Spirit who brings us the “Triune Life,” and the greater promise of eternal life. Paul tells us in 2 Corinthians 1:22, “He (God) set His seal of ownership on us, and put his Spirit in our hearts as a deposit, guaranteeing what is to come.” It is the Spirit who brings the continuous miraculous manifestation into the life of the believer. Not only in terms of the physical, but more so the spiritual – we have an eternal High Priest in Christ and the Spirit who brings Jesus’ mediatory work in heaven into our lives. Our “Eden,” our “Promise Land,” is a heavenly one in Christ, which the Holy Spirit brings to us personally, each and every day.

The Believer’s Calling – Eternal Absolution

What is our purpose under the New Covenant? Very simply, it is to receive the Savior God has provided for man’s redemption. (John 3:16; John 16:8-11, note especially, V.9; Heb.8:10-12) He is Jesus Christ. It is the only way that God could “forgive our wickedness and remember our sins no more.” (V.12) Then in response to our faith in Jesus, our Father gives us the gift of the Spirit to “put My laws in their minds and write them on their hearts.” (V.10 a) Only then, through this Triune activity of God, He can now say,  “I will be their God, and they will be my people.” (V.10 b) Man can now live the reborn Triune Life of the “Bula man-river.”* The energy of the “Triune Life” is God’s Love for it is lived in God’s very Triune Being. 

Rest and Be Thankful Stop (Wiki Commons)

As humans, we will never stop trespassing, and God will never stop forgiving us in His Son. That’s why Jesus taught us to pray daily for forgiveness. This brings joy and gratitude in us because, as Paul tells us, we are declared “righteous” so we can remain in His Presence, and not be ejected from His Presence like Adam and Israel were. “God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God” (2 Cor.5:21). That is the continuous miraculous manifestation we have in Christ – which we will have all the days of our lives, and all the days of our lives for which to be thankful. Each and every day we are declared righteous to live the miraculous life which brings our purpose and all blessings physical and spiritual alike and to offer thanksgiving.

(PLEASE READ MY DONATION MESSAGE FOLLOWING THIS POST)

Our work is to make this good news of Jesus Christ known to all peoples and nations through the gifts and talents God has graciously blessed each of us. The gift represents your “Eden,” your “Promise Land,” whatever that may be in your life. You are to take care of it and God utilizes it to make His Son known to the people you come into contact. It doesn’t mean you have to be a preacher, but it is our example which counts. Our gifts don’t have to be of an ecclesiastical nature. The majority of us have secular talents. Yet, God calls believers part of His priesthood. (1 Pet.2:9) Your example speaks louder than your words. “Go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit” (Matt.28:18-20). Paul tell us, “For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.” (Eph.2:10) “Good works” means our gift, calling, and destiny in the body of Christ.

What the New Covenant  Does

We should understand the effect of how the New Covenant is presented and the manner it is brought to work in human life in true Triune fashion: no human can adequately thank and Love God in the way God expects because God exists outside of our human reality in His most holy state of Being. God exists in all the mystery of His holiness we will never ever know or comprehend, while man, still exists in his fallen state of alienation from Him. Humans, in their fallen state of existence, will never be able to adequately thank God who lives in absolute holiness. The truth is, only another God who is equally holy as the Father, can thank and Love another God adequately, perfectly, and absolutely. That God is Jesus Christ, the Immanuel – fully God and fully man. (Isa.7;14; Matt.1:23) Jesus existed in the Triune Godhead as the Logos from eternity with the Father and the Spirit in their divine holy existence. But here is the most beautiful picture of humanity God our Father presents to us through the Gospel message Christ brought, and wants us to understand – we are there in their midst, living in the center of their holy Triune existence – the Immanuel who took our humanity in Himself to the heavenly abode of the most holy God – represents and stands for us until the time of our change in the resurrection. 

Spirit Unifies Man In The Triune Life

The Spirit is given to man as a gift flowing perpetually through human life. As He dwells in man, He is at the same time indivisibly and inseparably connected to the Triune God in heaven, for He is God. So, as long as He lives in us, He is the union of man to the Triune God, and the union of the Triune God to man. He brings the Triune Life in Jesus to us, and as Mediator, Jesus takes all our inadequate and imperfect human responses to the Father, absolves them in Himself, so we can be declared righteous before Him. (2Cor. 5;21)

Holy as His Father

It is through the Spirit, who takes our inadequate human responses, our hollow and many times meaningless “thank-you’s,” to Jesus who mollifies and perfects our shortcomings in Himself, and offers our “thanksgiving offering” suitably and perfectly to the Father. That’s the purpose of a Mediator, our High Priest, inside the Triune Life of God. Jesus takes the “thanksgiving offering” of our human existence and offer them on the altar of the perfect sacrifice of Himself to the holy God and our Father. (Rom.12:1) Only Jesus could do that for He is God as His Father. He is holy like His Father. There is no other way!

The High Priest

We recall what God taught the Israelite. No one was permitted into the holiest place of the temple where God was present with the exception of the High Priest. If an Israelite brought a peace offering, or a thanksgiving offering, he cannot offer it himself in the holy place. He remained in a designated court within the temple grounds but the priesthood was appointed by God to perform the role of intermediary between God and man. The high priest alone is permitted to go into the Holy of Holies into God’s presence. That is what’s happening in heaven today with Jesus who is our High Priest. The priesthood represent the work of the Spirit in God’s people today, and the high priest represent Jesus, the true High Priest in heaven.

Israel had a human high priest, who mediated for Israel, but this time God Himself in Christ, is our High Priest mediating for all mankind. The human high priest went into the Holy of Holies once a year on the Day of Atonement, Jesus has gone back to heaven to be with the Father as He was eternally with the Triune God. We recall, the moment Jesus died on His cross, a violent earthquake shook the land and the veil which cloaked and hid the holiest place in the temple tore from top to bottom. (Matt.27:50-51) The event signified the holy God Himself had come to open the way for all mankind to continuously enter and live in His holy Presence through Christ out High Priest.

“Holy Father”

Jesus, by addressing His Father, “Holy Father,” (John 17:11), portrays for us a God whose mystery is beyond our comprehension of Him in His holiness, but, at the same time He is also closer to us than we can imagine – by being our “Father.” Jesus is our elder Brother. The Holy Spirit is our Friend and Confidante, our Miracle Worker. His holiness does not mean He is distant and untouchable. In fact, it means the exact opposite. He sent His Son so we can enter and live in His holy Presence. Yet He will be the God as He will always be God – holy, exalted, and sovereign above all creation in the physical and spiritual realms. The holy angels could echo only one refrain, “Holy, Holy, Holy!” (Rev.4:8)

“No Matter What Happens…”

So we read Paul tells believers, “Always be joyful. Always keep on praying. No matter what happens, ALWAYS BE THANKFUL… No matter what happens, ALWAYS BE THANKFul…for this is God’s will for you who belong to Christ Jesus” (1 Thess. 5:16-18, emphasis added). Life is now lived with a rejoicing and be thankful heart. Paul affirms this condition we have in Jesus, saying, “We are complete in Christ, for He is the head over every power and authority” (Col.2:10). Yes, indeed!

We have come one full circle, from the first Adam to the Second Adam, and find ourselves where God has always wanted us to be in the first place: “to enjoy living in His presence” – that’s all the Father wants of His children. That, in its simplest form, is the heart and core of the Gospel message. We are to be thankful that He is our Loving Father, the Mover and Shaker in our lives.

Summation

How do we surmise the life of the believer? – All of the believer’s life which subsists in the Triune Being of God, is now an expression of holy gratitude. Every cell in his body, every pint of blood in his veins, every movement in his muscle, every breadth he takes, every heartbeat in his chest, every expression of purpose and gift, all marches with a drumroll which voices one chorus: “Thank You, Lord! Thank You Lord.”

If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to write me in the space provided below, or email me on bulamanriver@gmail.com.

Blessing

Until we meet again in my next post, may the blessing of the God who ceaselessly expresses Himself in His dependable Triune Love, be with you today and give you strength for authentic Triune Living as a Bula man-river.*

Kiang                                                                                                                                                              (Your Servant in Christ) 

** “Solitary Life” is the life lived by and in the self under influence of the unseen devil. It is a life live in antithesis from the “Triune Life” of the “Bula man-river.”

* The “Bulamanriver” is the metaphor describing the union of man with the Love of the Triune God flowing in humans, making possible the “Triune Life” – the source of the miraculous life in man. To read the many facets of life of the Bula man-river, go to my website www.bulamanriver.com where you can order a copy of my Book.

All scriptures are taken from the NIV Version 2011, unless stated otherwise

Note: Any information obtained from this website that is used for publication should be acknowledged by citing the website address, date of acquisition and information pertinent to original authorship. For general guidelines regarding web citations see The Guide for Citing Electronic Information

Greetings once more Friends! It is Thanksgiving season in the US.

Let’s take it from where we left off in Part One, where I said this in the closing paragraph:

But we know what happened? Let’s look back at this scenario presented to us. Adam failed, and so did Israel. Israel found itself back to where they started as a slave nation carted off by the northern kingdoms. Eden – gone! The Promise Land – gone. The presence of God which brought the miraculous life – gone! Their security and defense with angelic host that stood guard over Israel – gone! Man in the pre-Eden era had failed. Man in the post-Eden era had failed. You can say both sides of Eden was experimented on, our “solitary” self-centered way of life was put to the test, and found wanting. What happens now? God gave man the only answer… Let’s begin Part Two…

Rest and Be Thankful Bench (Wiki Commons)

Jesus the Second Adam

God sent the Second Adam in Jesus Christ, His Son. After seeing a thankless nation flout His covenant, He had the prophet Jeremiah foretell the establishment of a New Covenant in the Second Adam to do what the first Adam and Israel could not do. God said, “For I will forgive their wickedness and will remember their sins no more. I will put my laws in their minds and write them on their hearts. I will be their God, and they will be my people.”(Jer.31:33-34; Heb.8:10,12) Jesus lived a miraculous life healing all who came to Him with whatever disease and sickness. Not only physical but spiritual disease – He brought a spiritual message of the New Covenant from the Father. (Acts 10:38) Recall, it is sin which separates humans from God’s Presence and His miraculous manifestation. Jesus rectifies the mistake of the first Adam, redeeming man from the sin condition as Savior and Mediator, and takes man to the Tree of Life. The Tree of Life is the metaphor for the Holy Spirit who brings to man the “Triune Life” of the “Bula man-river.* The Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil, which we were made to participate through the first Adam, is a metaphor for a life of the self (the “solitary” life) under the influence of the devil. Jesus said, “It is for your good that I am going away. Unless I go away, the Counselor will not come to you; but if I go, I will send him to you” (John 16:7).

Pentecost – Spirit of the Miraculous Life in Man

Pentecost, the day the Holy Spirit came, became the birth date of the Church. The main characteristic of its birth was the power of miraculous manifestation God gave it. Prior to that, the disciples and the faithful were cowering in fear for their lives. We know the story in Acts 2. The Spirit gave them faith, conviction, and boldness they never had. They spoke in languages of the different populace that were there for the feast of Pentecost. Three thousand gave their lives to Christ that day. They healed the sick and maimed. With the Spirit’s move the people took the Gospel message back to their countries and homes. What a story to tell. Man is given the Holy Spirit which brings this rebirth from the fallen condition we had in the first Adam, to the new life we have in Christ, the Second Adam. Jesus said, “No one can enter the kingdom of God (the “Triune Life”) unless they are born of water and the Spirit. Flesh gives birth to flesh, but the Spirit gives birth to spirit” (John 3:5-6). This rebirth where, through repentance, we dispose of everything to do with the path of the “solitary” life we inherited from Adam. The Second Adam comes with the Spirit who brings us the “Triune Life,” and the greater promise of eternal life. Paul tells us in 2 Cor.1:22, “He (God) set His seal of ownership on us, and put his Spirit in our hearts as a deposit, guaranteeing what is to come.” It is the Spirit who brings the continuous miraculous manifestation into the life of the believer. Not only in terms of the physical, but more so the spiritual – we have an eternal High Priest in Christ and the Spirit who brings Jesus’ mediatory work in heaven into our lives. Our “Eden,” our “Promise Land,” is a heavenly one in Christ, which the Holy Spirit brings to each of us personally, each and every day.

Eternal Absolution

As humans, we will never stop trespassing, and God will never stop forgiving us in His Son. That’s what the covenant tells us. That’s why Jesus taught us to pray daily for forgiveness. This brings joy and gratitude in us because, as Paul tells us, we are declared “righteous” so we can remain in His Presence, and not be ejected from Him like Adam and Israel. “God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God” (2 Cor.5:21). That is the continuous miraculous manifestation we have in Christ – which we will have all the days of our lives, and all the days of our lives to be thankful. Each and every day we are declared righteous to live the miraculous life which brings all blessings physical and spiritual alike.

What the New Covenant  Does

We should understand the effect of how the New Covenant is presented and the manner it is brought to work in human life: No human can adequately thank and Love God in the way God expects because God exists outside of our human reality in His most holy state of Being. God exists in all the mystery of His holiness we will never ever know or comprehend, while man, still exists in his fallen state of alienation from Him. The truth is, only another God who is equally holy as the Father, can thank and Love another God adequately, perfectly, and absolutely. That God is Jesus Christ, the Immanuel – fully God and fully man. Jesus existed in the Triune Godhead as the Logos from eternity with the Father and the Spirit in their divine holy existence. But here is the most beautiful picture of humanity God our Father presents to us through the Gospel message Christ brought, and wants us to understand – we are there in their midst, living in the center of their Triune existence – the Immanuel who took our humanity in Himself to the heavenly abode of God – represents and stands for us until the time of change in the resurrection.

Rest and Be Thankful Shelter (Wiki Commons)

It is through Him, who takes our inadequate human responses, our hollow and many times meaningless “thank-you’s,” mollifies and perfects our shortcomings in Himself, and offers our “thanksgiving offering” suitably and perfectly to the Father. That’s the purpose of a Mediator, our High Priest, to take the “thanksgiving offering” of our human existence and offer them on the altar of the perfect sacrifice of Himself to the holy God and our Father. Only Jesus could do that for He is God as His Father. He is holy as His Father.

We recall what God taught the Israelites. No one was permitted into the holiest place of the temple where God was present with the exception of the High Priest. If an Israelite brought a peace offering, a thanksgiving offering, he cannot offer it himself in the holy place. He remained in a designated court within the temple grounds but the priesthood was appointed by God to perform the role of intermediary between God and man. The high priest alone is permitted to go into the Holy of Holies into God’s presence. That is what’s happening in heaven today with Jesus who is our High Priest.

Israel had a human high priest, who mediated for Israel, but this time God Himself in Christ, is our High Priest mediating for all mankind. The human high priest went into the Holy of Holies once a year on the Day of Atonement, Jesus has gone back to heaven to be with the Father as He was eternally with the Triune God. We recall, the moment Jesus died on His cross, a violent earthquake shook the land and the veil which cloaked and hid the holiest place in the temple tore from top to bottom. The event signified the holy God Himself had come to open the way for all mankind to continuously enter and live in His holy Presence through Christ out High Priest.

“Holy Father”

Jesus, by addressing His Father, “Holy Father,” (John 17:11) portrays for us a God whose mystery is beyond our comprehension of Him in His holiness, but, at the same time He is also closer to us than we can imagine – by being our Father. Jesus is our elder Brother. The Holy Spirit is our Friend and Confidante, our Miracle Worker. His holiness does not mean He is distant and untouchable. In fact, it means the exact opposite. He sent His Son so we can enter and live in His holy Presence. Yet He will be the God as He will always be – holy, exalted and sovereign above all creation in the physical and spiritual realms. The holy angels could echo only one refrain, “Holy, Holy, Holy!” (Rev.4:8)

“No Matter What Happens…”

So we read Paul tells believers, “Always be joyful. Always keep on praying. No matter what happens, ALWAYS BE THANKFUL… No matter what happens, ALWAYS BE THANKFul…for this is God’s will for you who belong to Christ Jesus” (1 Thess. 5:16-18, emphasis added). Life is now lived with a rejoicing and be thankful heart. Paul affirms this condition we have in Jesus, saying, “We are complete in Christ, for He is the head over every power and authority” (Col.2:10). Yes, indeed! We have come one full circle, from the first Adam to the Second Adam, and find ourselves where God has always wanted us to be in the first place: “to enjoy being in His presence” – that’s all the Father wants of His children. We are to be thankful that He is the Mover and Shaker in our lives. If you don’t have thankfulness in your heart, then you’re not living the miraculous life. If you are not living the miraculous life then you can’t generate thankfulness in your heart.

How do we surmise the life of the believer?: All of the believer’s life which subsists in the Triune Being of God, is now an act of gratitude of itself. Every cell in his body, every movement in his muscle, every breadth he takes, every heartbeat in his chest, all marches with a drumroll which voices one chorus: “Thank You, Lord! Thank You Lord.”

If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to write me in the space provided below, or email me on bulamanriver@gmail.com.

Blessing

Until we meet again in my next post, may the blessing of the God who ceaselessly expresses Himself in His dependable Triune Love, be with you today and give you strength for authentic Triune Living as a Bula man-river.*

Kiang                                                                                                                                                          (Your Servant in Christ)

*Bulamanriver” is the metaphor describing the union of man with the Love of the Triune God flowing in humans, making possible the “Triune Life” – the source of the miraculous life in man. To read the many facets of life of the Bula man-river, go to my website www.bulamanriver.com where you can order a copy of my Book.

All scriptures are taken from the NIV Version 2011, unless stated otherwise

Note: Any information obtained from this website that is used for publication should be acknowledged by citing the website address, date of acquisition and information pertinent to original authorship. For general guidelines regarding web citations see The Guide for Citing Electronic Information