[b]HAVE YOU EVER BEEN ALONE WITH GOD?[/b]"When they were alone, He expounded all things to His disciples." Mark 4:34Our Solitude with Him. Jesus does not take us alone and expound things to us all the time; He expounds things to us as we can understand them. Other lives are parables. God is making us spell out our own souls. It is slow work, so slow that it takes God all time and eternity to make a man and woman after His own purpose. The only way we can be of use to God is to let Him take us through the crooks and crannies of our own characters. It is astounding how ignorant we are about ourselves! We do not know envy when we see it, or laziness, or pride. Jesus reveals to us all that this body has been harbouring before His grace began to work. How many of us have learned to look in with courage?We have to get rid of the idea that we understand ourselves, it is the last conceit to go. The only One Who understands us is God. The greatest curse in spiritual life is conceit. If we have ever had a glimpse of what we are like in the sight of God, we shall never say - "Oh, I am so unworthy," because we shall know we are, beyond the possibility of stating it. As long as we are not quite sure that we are unworthy, God will keep narrowing us in until He gets us alone. Wherever there is any element of pride or of conceit, Jesus cannot expound a thing. He will take us through the disappointment of a wounded pride of intellect, through disappointment of heart. He will reveal inordinate affection - things over which we never thought He would have to get us alone. We listen to many things in classes, but they are not an exposition to us yet. They will be when God gets us alone over them.
_________________SI Moderator - Greg Gordon
sermonindex wrote:[b]HAVE YOU EVER BEEN ALONE WITH GOD?[/b]"When they were alone, He expounded all things to His disciples." Mark 4:34Our Solitude with Him. Jesus does not take us alone and expound things to us all the time; He expounds things to us as we can understand them. Other lives are parables. God is making us spell out our own souls. It is slow work, so slow that it takes God all time and eternity to make a man and woman after His own purpose. The only way we can be of use to God is to let Him take us through the crooks and crannies of our own characters. It is astounding how ignorant we are about ourselves! We do not know envy when we see it, or laziness, or pride. Jesus reveals to us all that this body has been harbouring before His grace began to work. How many of us have learned to look in with courage?We have to get rid of the idea that we understand ourselves, it is the last conceit to go. The only One Who understands us is God. The greatest curse in spiritual life is conceit. If we have ever had a glimpse of what we are like in the sight of God, we shall never say - "Oh, I am so unworthy," because we shall know we are, beyond the possibility of stating it. As long as we are not quite sure that we are unworthy, God will keep narrowing us in until He gets us alone. Wherever there is any element of pride or of conceit, Jesus cannot expound a thing. He will take us through the disappointment of a wounded pride of intellect, through disappointment of heart. He will reveal inordinate affection - things over which we never thought He would have to get us alone. We listen to many things in classes, but they are not an exposition to us yet. They will be when God gets us alone over them.
_________________TJ
I like this!Oswald is pretty on point with things like this. I have often had these things on my mind since after I have had crisis in my Christian life and been brought to understand these things to a degree. I believe these to be so essential and foundational. They are often the most important thing the hardest. The most important in that the personalities is the foundation from which all other things come for out of the heart come the issues of life. It is hard in that it is so rooted in us for how are we who are self deceived to understand ourselves? It must be the work of God, the light of scripture, the illumination of the Spirit, and the graces of Jesus. I often see these things in myself and others and if this were lifted up as important before other things like ministerial zeal and technical theological understanding then the Church would be less ensnared by the devil, the flesh, and the world, and would not devour one another and in that themselves. At first I thought this was just a short article. Once I saw a second post I wonder if it is a book because I would be interested to read it.
"When they were alone, He expounded all things to His disciples." Mark 4:34
Jesus does not take us alone and expound things to us all the time; He expounds things to us as we can understand them.
It is slow work, so slow that it takes God all time and eternity to make a man and woman after His own purpose.
The only way we can be of use to God is to let Him take us through the crooks and crannies of our own characters.
How many of us have learned to look in with courage?
We have to get rid of the idea that we understand ourselves, it is the last conceit to go.
If we have ever had a glimpse of what we are like in the sight of God, we shall never say - "Oh, I am so unworthy," because we shall know we are, beyond the possibility of stating it.
As long as we are not quite sure that we are unworthy, God will keep narrowing us in
things over which we never thought He would have to get us alone.
We listen to many things in classes, but they are not an exposition to us yet.
