Forged

Yesterday I was at a local coffee shop when I wrote the post. As I left a thought entered my mind. One piece of advice a pastor gave me years ago was don't put everything you know into one sermon. I think the same can be said about blog posts. The katana is an incredible image that has so many implications. Yesterday the focus was on being the katana, not the swordsmith or the Samurai, but the object that is nonexistent without the prior, and a useless dust collector without the later. Without God I am nothing.

Driving from the coffee shop to an appointment, the idea of forging came to my mind. I feel like I tend to see life as a process where the forging ends at some point and God then begins to wield the sword in battle, but the more I think about it, I'm not sure if that's correct. What if, (this is a thought, not a declarative statement) what if this life is merely the forging process, and the katana of our life is only completed at death? This thought challenges how we would see life and eternity. And if this is accurate, it puts the focus on the eternal.

I think that our understanding of heaven is off. We do not become angels when we die, and I do not believe that it will be sitting on clouds, playing harps and singing non-stop for eternity. It honestly sounds really boring, but what if there is more to heaven than that? One of my college professors said that Genesis 1 is as much creation as it is eschatology (end times study). God set the world in motion and it was perfect, exactly as He created it to be. Man sinned, and God began the process of restoration to bring everything back to the state of perfection. In the beginning, Adam had a job to do, "God blessed them; and God said to them, 'Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth, and subdue it; and rule over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the sky and over every living thing that moves on the earth.'" (Genesis 1.28) Adam was a caregiver who tended to creation, enjoyed fellowship with, and offered worship to, God, and lived in paradise.

Again, this is a thought, but what if the purpose of this life is simply to forge the sword and at death it is offered to God for Him to really use? I am not saying that God does not use us here on earth, the Bible clearly shows that God has instructed us to make disciples and proclaim His Kingdom. But it is crucial that we never become complacent and stop growing. The same professor quoted Wesley, "There is no standing still on the Christian journey. You are pressing forward or sliding backwards." I think that life is a process that is preparing us for eternity and all that God has in store then.

Philippians 1.6, "For I am confident of this very thing, that He who began a good work in you will perfect it until the day of Christ Jesus."

Philippians 3.12-14, " Not that I have already obtained it or have already become perfect, but I press on so that I may lay hold of that for which also I was laid hold of by Christ Jesus. Brethren, I do not regard myself as having laid hold of it yet; but one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and reaching forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus."

John 16.33, "These things I have spoken to you, so that in Me you may have peace. In the world you have tribulation, but take courage; I have overcome the world."

Romans 5.3-5, "And not only this, but we also exult in our tribulations, knowing that tribulation brings about perseverance; and perseverance, proven character; and proven character, hope; and hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out within our hearts through the Holy Spirit who was given to us."

James 1.2-4, "Consider it all joy, my brethren, when you encounter various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance. And let endurance have its perfect result, so that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing."

Romans 8.28-30, "And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose. For those whom He foreknew, He also predestined to become conformed to the image of His Son, so that He would be the firstborn among many brethren; and these whom He predestined, He also called; and these whom He called, He also justified; and these whom He justified, He also glorified."

God is at work in us, working to perfect us until the day of Christ. We have not obtained the goal, or been made perfect, so we are to press on toward the goal of Christlikeness. There will be troubles and hardships we face, but Christ has overcome the world. Because of this the trials we encounter serve a purpose. They exist to transform us into Christlikeness by cleansing us of sin and forming us into His image. With Christ, the trials produce the traits and characteristics of God, making us fit for His presence and service. All things work together for the highest good of those who love God, which is becoming like Christ, and that results in glorification.

God is at work in us to mold us into men who are fit to enter His presence and worship and serve Him for eternity. This life is the forge, were we are heated, beaten, cleansed, and shaped to be who God created us to be. The trials we endure, the service we offer to God, are all part of this process. Paul said in 1 Corinthians 13.12, "For now we see in a mirror dimly, but then face to face; now I know in part, but then I will know fully just as I also have been fully known." The best is yet to come. There will be a time when the forging is finished. There will come a time when the katana is finished, sharpened, polished, and handed to the Samurai. But I do not believe it is on this side of eternity.

I am guilty of being too focused on the temporal, and not on the eternal. I get focused on the hardships and lose sight of the end goal of the process and the result. Heaven is not the goal, Christlikeness is. Heaven is the result of becoming like Christ. When we are focused on the eternal, the trials and hardships become not only bearable, but meaningful. Losing sight of the goal has caused my life to look less like Jesus. I have not treated others as Christ would. I have not loved as Christ does. I have claimed to love Jesus, but haven't lived it. I haven't been focused on eternity, and have let the temporal rule me.

I want to live focused on eternity. I want everything I do to mold me more into the image of Christ. I have not done a good job of this recently. I have been distracted by the here and now, focusing on what I want to accomplish in this life, and not on what God wants to accomplish in me to prepare me for eternity. I want to be forged, and whenever God is done, to enter His presence ready for whatever service He has for me.

"Iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another."

To God alone be the Glory!

Strength and Honor

Too Late

"When Moses spoke these words to all the sons of Israel, the people mourned greatly. In the morning, however, they rose up early and went up to the ridge of the hill country, saying, 'Here we are; we have indeed sinned, but we will go up to the place which the Lord has promised.' But Moses said, 'Why then are you transgressing the commandment of the Lord, when it will not succeed? Do not go up, or you will be struck down before your enemies, for the Lord is not among you. For the Amalekites and the Canaanites will be there in front of you, and you will fall by the sword, inasmuch as you have turned back from following the Lord. And the Lord will not be with you.' But they went up heedlessly to the ridge of the hill country; neither the ark of the covenant of the Lord nor Moses left the camp. Then the Amalekites and the Canaanites who lived in that hill country came down, and struck them and beat them down as far as Hormah." -Numbers 14.39-45

Israel has received God's punishment, and they are greatly saddened by it. For many of them the Promised Land was a dream that they had never imagined they would see. The deliverer who would lead them out of Egypt was one they longed to see, but never had they imagined they would see him in their life time. Now they see that the fulfillment of God's promise was within their grasp, and they allowed it to slip through their fingers.

Now, after realizing what they have done, they hope to change the situation. After the judgment has been given and they don't like it, they decide that they can trust God. The are prepared to go to battle and take the land so that they don't have to die in the wilderness. But for them it is too late. They had every opportunity and they let each one pass by. Moses warns them that they will not succeed in taking the land because God will not be with them. Moses himself remains in the camp when they go out, and just as he said, the people are defeated.

The people tried to force God's hand. After it was too late they tried to do what God had wanted them to do. But their last chance had passed them by, time had run out. They would not ever see the blessings God had for them in the Promised Land. They would never see the promise made to Abraham fulfilled. For them it was too late.

I read this section of Scripture and my mind goes to the judgment seat of Christ. One day every one of us will enter the presence of God to receive the final judgment. Every knee will bow before Christ and declare that He is Lord. Those that have done it in life will be welcomed into eternal paradise, forever to spend in perfect harmony with God. But for those who haven't it will be too late. Every tongue will declare that Jesus Christ is Lord because it must happen, but if that is the first time that your tongue declares Jesus as Lord it will be too late. Those who wait until they see that God is real, that He is serious about Heaven and Hell, for them it will be too late, and they will spend eternity separated from God.

Men, what will your fate be? Have you willingly bowed your knee to Christ and declared Him to be the Lord of your life? Have you ruled Him out as non-existent, or as someone who doesn't want you to have any fun? Now may be the last chance you have to turn to Him, because once you take your final breath it will be too late. As you kneel before Him, in all of His glory, you will declare that He is Lord, but at that point you will be driven out of His presence forever. What are you waiting for? What is keeping you from declaring Him as your Lord?

God gave Israel chance after chance to trust Him and receive the blessings He had for them, but time after time they rejected Him, and finally it was too late. For you right now it is not too late.

(If you have questions, or would like to know more about making Jesus the Lord of your life, I have an email address at the bottom left of this blog page. I would love the opportunity to share with you in more detail and help in any way that I can.)

"Iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another."

To God alone be the Glory!

Strength and Honor