From the Pastor’s Study

Rev. Dave Cahen

First Church of God

Reach Up – Reach In – Reach Out

Acts 17:27 – “God did this (changed the world through Jesus) so that men would seek Him and perhaps reach out for Him and find Him, though He is not far from each one of us.”

As a toddler says to their parent, “Up” or as we might say to God, “Daddy” – This is the beginning of Salvation, to realize we need more than ourselves in life, to realize we cannot make it in life by ourselves, to realize that by ourselves we will fail. We need a Savior. We need Jesus Christ. Reach up to Him.

Luke 15:17 – “When he came to his senses, he said, ‘How many of my father’s hired men have food to spare, and here I am starving to death!”

“He came to his senses” – or reached in (KJV & NRSV say “he came to himself”) or reached inside himself. This is the second part of salvation – repentance and a true follower. He realized his physical condition. This young man was hungry! This young man was thirsty! This young man was flat broke! This young man was friendless! This young man was away from home! He realized one man could change all of that – his father. He resolved to get up. He resolved to go to his father. He resolved to repent; to his earthly father and to his Heavenly Father. Now he became a true follower – just like we can. Because IN us is part of God Himself – the Gift of God – the Holy Spirit. Reach in to Him.

Judges 6:14-16 – “The Lord turned to him and said, ‘Go in the strength you have and save Israel out of Midian’s hand. Am　I not sending you?’ ‘But Lord,’ Gideon asked, ‘how can I save Israel? My clan is the weakest in Manasseh, and I am the least in my family.’ The Lord answered, ‘I will be with you, and you will strike down all the Midianites together.’”
The Lord tells Gideon he is the man of the hour. God is going to send him to deliver His people from the enemies. Yet his first reaction was disbelief. Gideon doubted God’s ability to use him. He wanted God to do mighty things to save Israel… yet when God wanted to use him to do that, he finds it hard to accept. We want God to do great things – revive the church, bring in the lost, bless our family… and then when God tells us He is going to do that through us, we cannot accept. God said it very well, “Go in the strength you have and save Israel…” God did not expect Gideon to be a superman – He said to just go in the strength you have. When God calls us to serve Him, we simply come with what we have.

This is the second act of Grace – Holiness or Sanctification. God is looking for a willing heart, an obedient heart. The important things are God’s call, “Am I not sending you?” and that He will enable you. Don’t say you are too small, too weak, not talented, not gifted… when God calls you, just come as you are. The important thing is not in your “little strength” but His Great Strength. God is going with you, and together we can defeat any situation. God is patient with man. Gideon finds it hard to believe. He asked for signs and God did a few miracles to reassure him. Eventually, in Judges 7 we read of Gideon’s success – all because he finally put his faith in God. A leader – reluctant at first, but he eventually got there – so can we. God calls us – we respond – we’ve grown from the inside out. Reach out to a lost world.

How do I reach out? In order to be ready to reach out, the church must ask some questions of itself: Do I desire truth more than acceptance from others? Am I willing to change what I believe? Because the people outside the church are asking the tough questions we cannot hide behind our theology. We have to look beyond our denominational distinctions for the purposes of outreach. Once they are in the church they can decide if the doctrine is for them or not; but on the street, kingdom theology rules. God is light and love. He loves us, He first loved us. But He also shines the light in our darkness. He will give His opinion whether we like it or not. He is not a Santa Claus in the sky that comes once per year, He is a daily Savior; the Creator of the universe who sustains us moment by moment.

Do you care about seeking truth and living in truth and His will in the Spirit? We must be radical. Radical is defined here as willing to do and go wherever the Spirit leads. Spirit living is a commitment to live uncomfortable lives. The truth is I can guarantee you that the Holy Spirit will lead you somewhere you do not want to go or will ask you to do something you do not or would not normally do. Prior to my life in the Spirit I would not normally preach. Prior to my life in the spirit I would not normally move all the way from Kentucky to Missouri. The Spirit will lead in the path of the Cross just like He led Jesus in the path of the cross, and that is definitely not a pretty or a safe place to be. We sometimes say Jesus suffered and died so that we did not have to. Jesus suffered and died so that we would not suffer eternally. His suffering then had nothing to do with ending suffering here and now.

A holy life or a life of holiness is not a destination, it’s a journey. Sometimes we will talk about sanctification and say “I’m entirely Sanctified” – another word for whole. That does not suggest it is like salvation where it is a onetime event. Yes there is an instant where God comes in to our lives and begins that process of making us whole. The longer we serve Him the deeper He probes us, and the more He will require of us. The Holy Spirit will mold you into the person you were created to be. That is often a painful process.

God, the Holy Spirit does not seek to hurt us, but He does seek to make us Christ-like and that can be painful. We can be honest with the Holy Spirit. Tell Him your fears. He is strong enough to handle any burden we place upon Him regardless of how insignificant we may think it is. I used to think God doesn’t care about little things, but the longer I serve Him the more I know He cares about anything I care about, and the longer He dwells in me, the more I care about what He cares about. God wants to release us. He wants to make us whole; perfect us; complete His work in us. Be the church. Do not just do church.

We love the idea of holiness and intimate relationship with Christ but when it comes to letting go of the baggage we picked up along the way often we just don’t it. We can do it, but we refuse. We find some excuse, and often we can pick scriptures out of context to support our thought. I have heard homosexuals try and justify their lifestyles with scripture. This is what I’m talking about when I say we must live biblically orthodox theological lives. Look through the prism of Scripture, Biblical tradition, experience, the Body of Christ, and the tradition of the church and see if it the scripture you are standing on to support your unwillingness to submit to the Will of His Spirit is really saying what you think it says. I promise you God is consistent in every way. He will not call you where you are not needed.

He will not ask you to do something just because. Everything about God has a purpose; that includes His will for you. If there is something standing in your way, move it. If you can’t move it pray it away. If it’s a spouse then you pray for God to change the spouse, but in the meantime you live for the kingdom. If it is a job, God can handle that too. Nothing is too big that God cannot handle it, but I can tell you this. To seem holy rather than being holy is not holiness. You are living a lie, and do not call yourself a Christian for you are living in willful transgression against the known will of God, if we want to be the church. Seeming is not being. Wearing a mask will burn us out of the kingdom fast. The great thing about allowing the Holy Spirit to make its residence inside us is that at our core we become Holy like God, for it is His Spirit that lives in us. What about you? Who are you at your core? Are you doing church? Or is the Spirit of God dwelling in you and at your core you are the Holy Living Spirit of God? If not, I invite you to allow God to transform your life from the inside out. If you are tired of doing, I invite you to be. God is inviting you to empty yourself of everything in this world. Empty yourself of the pain from past experiences. Empty yourself of everything and allow the Holy Spirit to fill you. Sometimes people get just enough light in their life that they had a brief period of knowing abundant life. But there is a point where God will not allow us to remain static. We either move to the next level with Him, or we become miserable.

· Reach up – to God first before you do anything – this is the beginning of salvation.

Acts 17:27 – “God did this… so that men would seek Him…”

· Reach in – inside yourself & search your heart & resolve to repent – be a true follower.

Luke 15:17 – “When he came to his senses…”

· Reach out – He is calling you and sending you to be a leader – be sanctified.

Judges 6:14 – “The Lord turned to him and said… Am　I not sending you?’

· Don’t go it alone – you don’t have to – He is with us.

Matt. 1:23b – “…and they will call Him Immanuel – which means, ‘God with us’”.
· Don’t doubt or be afraid – you don’t have to – He will never leave you.

Heb 13:5b-6 – “…God has said, ‘Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you.’ So we say with confidence, ‘The Lord is my helper; I will not be afraid. What can man do to me?’”
· Don’t limit what you can do – you don’t have to – live by faith.

John 14:12 – “I tell you the truth, anyone who has faith in Me will do what I have been doing. He will do even greater things than these.”