The Mystical Bible

Posted on 07/25/2011 by Paul Pavao

I got an email from a friend. He was trying to post something like it as a comment on my leukemia blog, but computer problems prevented it. I’m glad. His "comment" captures the imagination, stirs the heart, and thrills the spirit. I got his permission to print it here.

So, from Jeremiah Briggs:

The dragonfly story brought tears to my eyes (linked from my leukemia blog).

I wish, oh, how I wish people could see the scriptures in the light of a loving Creator who is trying deserately to redeem His creation from the darkness of self-ruin. The God of heaven and earth desires relationship over rules. How many there are, who see the Bible as a self-help book and not a wonderful book about a mystical realm with an all-powerful and wise King and his quest to redeem his subjects from the tyranny of a usurper!

It’s full of art, music, and poetry and with mythological creatures that are more real than we are. It is like Arthur Spiderwick’s Field Guide; it’s very dangerous in the hands of the wrong people.

The people who wrote it didn’t take a Christian writer’s seminar. They simply had an encounter with the One who loves them. The outcome of their writing is a picture painted in the heart of the reader that is unique to that person. It is like reading Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings and then seeing the movie. Somehow the screen version lacks the ability to match the image that the writer has created in each one of us.

Perhaps thats why I’ve never tried to illustrate Tom Bombadil; I don’t think I can for one, and two, I don’t want to disturb the image in the hearts of others.

Though I’ve attempted numerous times to do illustrations from the Biblical narrative, my art is never from a literal perspective, which I find distastful because most attempts I’ve personally viewed are a very weak cup of coffee at best and at worst… well, I’ll avoid being disreapectful to those who have labored so hard to capture the unimaginable.

Michael the archangel defeats the devil
Michael the archangel throws down the devil
by Jeremiah Briggs, used with permission

It’s like they are trying to catch the wind. I make only a feeble attempt to interpret the image which is within me. For as the author said, "We must have eyes to see and ears to hear." Our hearts and spirits say "amen" to the message and perceive the image it renders.

I’ve tried many times to do an image based on the scripture, "In the year that King Uzziah died I saw the LORD … " I think, after reading your post and the dragonfly post, I may have the composition I’m wanting, but as usual it, like others in the past, will reflect the Hidden Realm where what we see and what is really there are two entirely different things.

Posted in Bible, Miscellaneous | Tagged , , , | 2 Comments

What I Support: Faith Alone and the Family of God … In New Words

Posted on 07/22/2011 by Paul Pavao

I get so caught up in correcting what I see as obvious error that sometimes I forget to make clear what I’m supporting. I believe the Gospel of Jesus Christ really is good news.

I attack all sorts of doctrines. Often, if not always, it is not because I think they are wrong. Most or all of the time I am simply arguing that they are too important to us.

Faith Alone

There is one important thing, and that is Jesus Christ. There is one important act, and that is faith in and obedience to Jesus Christ, and those two things–faith and obedience–are interchangeable.

I don’t have to appeal to Greek to prove that. You know it’s true in English.

Let’s assume you’ve just told me that you’ve become a Hoganite. You have become a believer in Hulk Hogan. Then you hero gets on TV and says that if you want to be a real man, you will stand outside in mid-winter, in the snow, in public, and in daylight in only your All-Star Wresting, speedo-style trunks for four hours. You, rightly thinking that this is idiotic, decide not to do it.

I would have to commend your wisdom. However, I would also add, “You’re not much of a believer in Hulk Hogan now, are you?”

I am against being “not much of a believer” in Jesus Christ.

On the other hand, if you were to go out, shiver in the cold for twenty minutes, then race inside, unable to bear it any more, then I would again commend your wisdom in giving up and coming inside. But I would comment that though you’re loony, you are apparently a real, actual, true Hoganite.

I am for, with, in support of, given to, a servant of, and a prayer for real, actual, true Christians–people who occasionally fail miserably, but who avidly, joyfully, and humbly pursue everything Jesus Christ has called them to.

The One True Church

Everything else I say is just to help those avid, joyful, humble Christians know that they don’t have to pretend other people are Christians. They can love them, witness to them, and serve them. Then they can leave work and from hospital visits and dinners with the not-much-of-a-believers and devote their meetings and fellowship and life to other avid, joyful, and humble Christians who are their only true family.

And those avid, joyful, humble, and failing Christians, together, leaning on Jesus Christ are the one, true, and only church, the pillar and support of the truth.

And God can be trusted to be their God, and Jesus can be trusted to be their King, and the Holy Spirit can be trusted to be their teacher, and the Triune God, Two proceeding from One, can and will lead them into everything they need far better than any seminary graduate or any confident interpreter of Scripture.

We are in danger of deception when we seek to follow God alone (Heb. 3:13), but when avid, joyful, and humble Christians live as family to one another, feeling free to keep their fellowship with other avid, joyful, and humble Christians, then they can know everything that matters and their zeal, joy, and humility will not only spread, but will be backed powerfully by God.

Posted in Bible, Church, Gospel | Tagged , , | 1 Comment

Hearing God

Posted on 07/20/2011 by Paul Pavao

I’m mixing my blogs today.

On my Leukemia blog, “Thrilled to Death,” I’m writing about setting our eyes on Jesus. That requires some comments about hearing God, which goes better here. You’ll understand the short teaching you’re reading here, but if you want it in context, read today’s leukemia blog as well.

In fact, the teaching there is way more important than the teaching here, at least today. But the sidelight needs to go here, so here it is:

The general context is that I believe God has said that leukemia is not going to kill me.

So here goes:

I have some doubts about whether God really said I won’t die. A follower of Christ should always have a healthy question about whether he’s really heard God or whether he’s heard some whispering spirit or is simply deceiving himself. That’s where the body of Christ comes in. That’s where you set your opinions, and often even your hearing of God, down on “the pillar and support of the truth.” (If you don’t know what I’m talking about, see 1 Timothy 3:15.)

The body of Christ doesn’t think I’m going to die, either.

Note: By body of Christ, I don’t mean ask a bunch of people who are bound by modern traditions to agree that God always wants to heal people. They’re just going to tell you doctrine they’ve interpreted from the Bible; they’re not going to be able to listen to the Anointing which is true and not a lie, so they’re certainly not going to be able to tell you what it’s saying.

At that point, my doubts don’t matter. At that point, my job is to obey God. I am to both do and say what he’s saying.

Really? Does that work?

It’s worked for me for 29 years solid. I’m a church historian, amateur though I may be. It’s worked for the saints of God for 2,000 years.

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The Leukemia Tapes: 3 Minutes with Shammah

Posted on 07/19/2011 by Paul Pavao

Rather than writing everything, I’m devoting some time to some videos on some basic misunderstandings in modern Christianity. I’m limiting them to 3 minutes or less.

(That explains “3 Minutes with Shammah.” I’m calling them “The Leukemia Tapes” because I’m doing them while at Vanderbilt Cancer Center on chemotherapy for my “rare and unusual” form of acute leukemia.)

So far, I’ve covered Romans 2:4 and the kindness of God leading to repentance. I’ve covered Titus 2 and sound doctrine, which is an extremely important basic idea. Finally, I’ve covered 2 Timothy 2:19 and God’s foundation, which is very related to what sound doctrine really is.

I’ve started with those because modern Christians love to argue that sound doctrine is important, but I think it’s indubitable that they have no idea what the apostles meant by sound doctrine. So we fight and divide over things that would not qualify as sound doctrine to the apostles, but rather would be mere strife about words, empty chatter, and an unhealthy obsession with dissension.

You can see the Titus 2 tape here, and the rest are easily found when you get there.

If you like it, and you have a Facebook account, please click the “like” button there at YouTube. Those I irritate think about clicking the “thumbs down” button, but those who enjoy it don’t think about doing anything to indicate that. I understand that, as I’m the same way, but it would help me get listeners if you “like” or “thumbs up” the video.

Posted in Modern Doctrines | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

Grace and Faith

Posted on 07/17/2011 by Paul Pavao

I consider it possible that this discussion is too much about words, or too technical, to be very important. But anything that drives the real definition of grace home for modern Christians, very few of whom know what grace means, is pretty crucial.

Grace is the power of God that enables you to … well, just about anything. Grace is used to describe the power behind spiritual gifts (1 Pet. 4:10-11), serving God acceptably (Heb. 12:28), help in time of need (Heb. 4:16), and resisting sin (Rom. 6:14).

Grace is not mercy. Mercy is God choosing not to punish sin or giving us something we don’t deserve. Grace is power. Grace teaches us not to sin (Tit. 2:11-12).

So grace, obviously, is this incredibly wonderful thing that all of us should want. Grace not only provides salvation, for all intents and purposes it is salvation.

How do we get grace? By faith:

By [our Lord Jesus Christ] we have access by faith to this grace in which we stand. (Rom. 5:2)

Ephesians 2:8 says it similarly:

For by grace are you saved, through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest any man should boast. (Eph. 2:8-9)

The gift of God mentioned here, by the way, really has to be a reference to salvation in general. In Greek, as in most languages except English, the gender of a word like “that” (as in “and that not of yourselves”) matters. Grace is feminine, faith is masculine, and “that” is neuter. So “that,” which is not of ourselves but is the gift of God, cannot be grace or faith. That really only leaves the possibility of a general reference to salvation.

Either way, Scripturally faith gives us access to grace, and grace is really, really incredible.

A Little Rejoicing in Grace To Cap Us Off

That’s why Ephesians 2:8-9 leads naturally into Ephesians 2:10:

For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to go good works.

Another great description of just how great grace is can be found in 2 Peter 1:3-4 …

His divine power [which the apostles like to call “grace”] has given us all things that pertain to life and godliness through the knowledge of him that has called us to glory and virtue. Though this we are given exceptionally great and precious promises, that by them you might be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust.

Okay, one more; a favorite of mine, though not from the Scriptures:

For our own Ruler, the Divine Word, who even now constantly aids us, does not desire strength of body and beauty of feature, nor yet the high spirit of earth’s nobility, but a pure soul, fortified by holiness, and the watchwords of our King, holy actions, for through the Word power passes into the soul.

O trumpet of peace to the soul that is at war!
O weapon that puts to flight terrible passions!
O instruction that quenches the innate fire of the soul!
The Word exercises an influence which does not make poets;
It does not equip philosophers nor skilled orators,
But by its instruction it makes mortals immortal, mortals gods
And from the earth transports them to the realms above Olympus.

I don’t know if I’ve ever talked about why the early Christians regularly say that we’re to become gods. It’s stunning to find out such terminology was common in the apostolic churches, but once you find out why then you can get your breath back.

Posted in Modern Doctrines | Tagged , , , | 5 Comments

The True Church

Posted on 07/15/2011 by Paul Pavao

Many of my friends will wonder why I’m writing about the true church and apostolic succession again.

Well because there’s hardly a week that goes by that I’m not presented with arguments either that I should join the Roman Catholic or Orthodox Church or explanations from someone who is going to join them.

I think that many people, even ones who oppose apostolic succession with me, don’t understand the church, the Scriptures about the church, nor why they are part of the church.

So that’s why I’m writing about it again.

This is a shortened version of a longer page that has many more references.

The True Church Is the Local Church

The true church is supposed to be able to do some things:

  • Be delivered from seducers by revelation from the anointing. (1 John 2:27)
  • Possess and diligently maintain a unity of Spirit. (Ephesians 4:3)
  • Grow together into the fullness of Christ, come to unity of faith, and be delivered from men who are skilled in deceit by speaking the truth in love to one another, something they are trained to do by leaders appointed by God. (Ephesians 4:11-16)
  • Be the pillar and support of the truth (which I believe happens from the first 3 points — 1 Timothy 3:15)

The local church can do all these things. An organization uniting many local churches can’t do any of them except possibly the last one if it’s interpreted as holding to a dogmatic statement of beliefs.

Thus, it is more than a waste of time for a local church to join an organization uniting it to other local churches; it is a grave danger. There is a danger of losing the ability to seek and trust answers given by “the anointing” and trusting decrees from the organization instead, and there is the danger of replacing the guidance of the Spirit with confidence in some set of interpretations of the Scriptures.

Remember, no one–not even any righteous people–were able to interpret the Scriptures well enough to recognize Jesus from the Scriptures. The Pharisees used the Scriptures to reject Jesus, something he rebuked them for (John 5:39-40), and others recognized him by a recognition provided by God (Matthew 16:17).

That really ought to be enough said, but I want to attack two things: the false interpretation of apostolic succession by the Orthodox and Catholics and the false and, let’s face it, bizarre interpretation of Matthew 16:18 by the same groups.

Apostolic Succession

I harp on this all the time. No sense banging heads with those who can’t be honest enough to see the obvious. For those of you who can, it’s better if you read it yourself.

The following link is Irenaeus’ argument from apostolic succession, for apostolic succession is an argument, not a doctrine. Irenaeus (c. A.D. 185) and Tertullian (c. A.D. 210) are the only early Christian writers to argue from apostolic succession.

Irenaeus’ most well-known passage is in Against Heresies III:1:1 and forward. Read it for yourself and determine whether he is arguing for truth or promoting an organization whether it holds to the truth or not.

Tertullian addresses the subject throughout a whole book called A Prescription Against Heretics. I think chapter 28 makes it clear what he’s talking about. And if there’s any doubt about what constitutes a true church, those who hold the truth or those who hold to an organization, try chapter 32.

(Just to add a little more, try reading Cyprian’s 67th epistle (as numbered by The Ante-Nicene Fathers set. The 3rd paragraph addresses what to do when the leaders of the church are sinful. Then try reading about the 7th Council of Carthage, called by Cyprian and attended by 87 bishops who got together solely to reject the bishop of Rome’s claim to be a “bishop of bishops.” You won’t have to read far to see what they think of that claim.)

Matthew 16:18

“You are Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it.”

First, let’s address the Protestants. The fact that Peter is petros and rock is petra does not matter. Peter is a man, and so in Greek his name has to end in -os. He can’t be called petra. It doesn’t matter if there’s a difference in definition between the two words, Jesus is obviously calling Peter the rock, and we sound pitiful when we say he’s not. It’s embarrassing.

However, this is in no way a promise that “the church” will never fall.

Gates are not offensive weapons. The church is not in danger of being attacked by the gates of Hades and collapsing.

Jesus is saying that the church will be able to overthrow death (however you want to interpret “death” here).

Amen. It will. But only if it is healthy and thriving.

If it is not healthy and thriving, then Jesus might “remove its candlestick” or “vomit it from his mouth” as the letters in Revelation 2 and 3 put it. Even Ephesus, the great church founded by Paul, was in danger of no longer being a church.

And the fall of a church, many churches, nor even all churches does not contradict Matthew 16:18.

Posted in Church, Roman Catholic & Orthodox | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Evolution, Grace, Logic, and Algebra: Why X – Y = Abundant Grace

Posted on 07/14/2011 by Paul Pavao

I couldn’t resist putting the following exchange up as a blog post. It happened in the comments section of “Evolution and Romans 5:12.”

I’ll just give you Monster’s one comment, and my reply. I chopped out a section his (marked with …) for obvious reasons:

Monster’s Comment to Me

“And Jesus himself began to be about thirty years of age, being (as was supposed) the son of Joseph, which was the son of Heli,

“Which was the son of Matthat …

“Which was the son of Enos, which was the son of Seth, which was the son of Adam, which was the son of God.”

So which one of these in the line of Jesus were made up characters? Just Adam? Perhaps Seth, or Enos? How about Noah? Why stop at Adam, let’s just throw out the Great Deluge as a fairy story as well. Seriously, where do the real people start and the made up people end? Where do the made-up events stop and the real events start? If Adam was a real person, just from a long line of sinning cavemen who died, then why does he take the rap for sin? That’s not very just; in fact, I would call it false witness.

Your watered-down version of Genesis just doesn’t add up.

My Reply

I know that Christians love to reason from “if x is true, then y.” For Christians, if they don’t like y, then x must not be true. I’ve started referring to such Christians as AI Wits (meaning “Anything I Want is True”).

I can’t do that. Wishful thinking doesn’t work for me. I like to take a good, long, hard, and evens years-long look at the evidence to determine whether x is true. Then, once I find out whether x is true, then I deal with y.

In this case, x is true, or at least has so much evidence for being true that we have to deal with it. Evolution at least seems to have happened, whether we like it or not.

This affects our interpretation of Genesis, whether we like it or not.

This means we have to deal with the question you asked, not complain about having to deal with it and throw out evolution because we don’t like it.

As it turns out, the question you ask–”Which one of these in the line of Jesus were made-up characters?”–is a really important question that can start the process of leading us out of our modern version of Christianity back into apostolic Christianity. What do I mean by modern version of Christianity? I mean the one that is powerless to produce “love from a pure heart, a good conscience, and sincere faith” but instead “straying from these into fruitless discussion, wanting to be teachers of the Law, even though they do not understand either what they are saying or the matters about which they make confident assertions” (1 Timothy 1:5-8, NASB).

The approach we have to Genesis, which you are offended to have questioned, is part of the reason that our Gospel, with some exceptions, can’t produce “the power of God to salvation” (Rom. 1:16) so that saints are “zealous for good works” (Tit. 2:14) and rarely have love from a pure heart, a good conscience, and an unfeigned faith.

X (evolution) shocked me back in the mid-90’s. The incredible power of leaving American Christianity’s rigid, novel, and mostly powerless approach to Scripture (Y) shocked me even more.

Amazingly, in this case, x-y=z, where z is abundant grace and faith.

Posted in Evolution and Creation, Modern Doctrines | Tagged , , , | 7 Comments

Can This Really Happen in America?

Posted on 07/13/2011 by Paul Pavao

Last night I went to a Bible study. Most of the people I’d never talked to before. The topic was faith and works. Everyone agreed with me.

It wasn’t a dream.

I couldn’t believe it was happening. I’m somewhat scared to mention that they were all Baptists because maybe their church isn’t supposed to find out! I’d hate to expose them!

They were Bible believers, only they were reading and talking about the parts people really don’t want to discuss. Here’s some things they said:

  • People get offended and don’t even want to discuss whether Genesis 1 might not be literal, but they’re constantly explaining Jesus’ words away by interpreting them figuratively. (“He really didn’t mean that.”)
  • When Jesus said we need to cut things off if they cause us to sin, or when he said to forsake all our possessions, those are the places we need a more literal interpretation.
  • “Faith alone” is the ultimate American doctrine, but as far as I can tell, the only place it occurs in the Bible is James 2:24, where it says “not by faith alone.”

At one point, I said to them, “So, you’ve already embraced the modern heresy that James meant what he said, and tonight we’re just working on reconciling all the things the Bible says about faith and works?”

They all nodded like that was a perfectly normal thing to hear at a Bible study, especially one consisting mostly of Baptists.

Now, keep in mind that my blood cell counts are half what they’re supposed to be. They’re so low that I’m going in to get two pints of blood at the hospital in 40 minutes. I can’t rule out the possibility that I hallucinated all this.

Gideon went along, though, and my wife seems to know I went to a Bible study.

By the way, beyond finding fellow heretics, I found men that deeply loved God, and in the midst of all the discussion of faith and works was a humble pursuit of how to better please God through faith and an exuberant praise for the mercy and power of the Lord Jesus.

It was so good that it’s just hard to believe it even happened.

The Impossible Part

I mentioned that my blood counts are low enough to need a transfusion. Sitting up for an hour and a half, unless I’m in a recliner, is exhausting. I walk around really, really slow so that I don’t get light-headed and my forearms and legs don’t burn from the effort.

Last night, though, I participated in robust, excited conversation for two hours, and when I was done I was full of energy. I had more energy than before I went in.

I’m the one living in this body. I can tell you that’s simply impossible. Mere enjoyment could never produce that.

Now impossible I don’t have any problems believing. Things just work right when God’s presence comes. I remember a diabetic missionary who used to remark that whenever we came to visit him he never needed insulin. He would check his sugar levels, and they were always good, even when we visited for several days.

I walked out of that Bible study wondering if I still really needed the transfusion.

(Um, this morning, it feels like I need a transfusion, though I still feel better than I did yesterday.)

Ok, gotta go.

Posted in Leukemia, Miscellaneous, Modern Doctrines | Tagged , , | 7 Comments

My Leukemia Blog

Posted on 07/11/2011 by Paul Pavao

This really isn’t meant to be a leukemia blog, so I started a new one called Thrilled to Death. It’s sort of an online journal, so I’ll be talking about the whole process and what I’m going through there.

I have no way of knowing what that will be like. I’ve never had leukemia before.

I’m scheduling this blog for July 11, though it’ s only the 1st. I already have other blogs scheduled until then. Quick fatigue and the possibility of going into the hospital for weeks at any time has forced me to eliminate a lot of my responsibilities, so I have time on my hands do what I love to do: research, learn, and write!

One more blessing of this wonderful gift!

So, back to the Rest of the Old, Old Story on July 13, and if you only care to (or have time to) read what I have to say about leukemia, and not the faith once for all delivered to the saints, then you can switch to the other blog and be delivered from this one!

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Leukemia: Humbled To Be Found Worthy

Posted on 07/09/2011 by Paul Pavao

This post won’t go up until July 9. By then I should be in the hospital, just finishing chemo, with no bone marrow and no immune system, and starting a 4-6 week recovery.

My 50th birthday is July 11. Happy birthday!

Tonight, though, June 29, I’m sitting in an RV, and except for the miracle of modern medicine, I’d be dying very rapidly. I may still die, I suppose, though I believe God has told me that’s not the end of this leukemia path for me.

Still, I think about death and eternal life. Even though I know it’s happened to thousands and millions of people, it still amazes me how our lives can go on and on for decades, seemingly so stable and normal, and then death quite suddenly shoves its way in.

So now I have this dread disease. Cancer.gov refers to it as “highly responsive, but usually fatal.” The time frame is usually under two years. At that point, you’re cured or dead.

I don’t want to die.

I don’t mean die on this earth. Everyone’s going to physically die. No sense worrying about that.

I mean I don’t want death to be the end. I want to live forever. The thought of disappearing into blackness is scary to me, and that thought, on occasions in my life, even as a Christian, has really shaken me.

And now, here I am, with a lot of reasons to think about death, and God is so close.

Today, it’s no problem to picture disappearing into the light of God because I’m already there. Today, it’s no problem believing Jesus’ promise of eternal life.

In fact, today, it’s no problem believing that the issue of life after death won’t be an issue for me for at least 20 years or so, even though doctors are going to wipe out my bone marrow and immune system next week.

Why should I be so unworried? Why should this time be the time for me to have the most peace I’ve ever had?

For the same reason those Vietnam POW’s gave thanks to God when they were released.

Because God is real, and his Gospel is real.

And so I sit thankful. I have been given this incredible peace, and such a wonderful opportunity to talk about it.

All because God thinks I can handle having leukemia dumped on me.

I feel honored, and I feel humbled.

I remember making rank once in the military after I refused to study for my test, choosing instead to devote myself to the study of God’s Word. The test scores required to make rank that cycle were lower than any before or after for several years.

I cried on my bed when I was told.

The rank didn’t matter that much to me, but that God would give me such a gift was overwhelming.

You can pray for me. You can think I’m strong. You can think I’m a good Christian, but I’m really not a very good Christian. I can give you lists of people who have lived lives of constant self-denial, while I’ve spent too much time in restaurants, occasionally failed to “get around” to giving, and simply indulged at times when I should have denied myself.

Can I really claim to have “buffeted” my body as Paul describes in 1 Corinthians 9:27?

I doubt it, unless you apply the modern term “buffet,” as in a really indulgent restaurant, to the verse, which really isn’t a very funny joke.

People like Mother Theresa cause my conscience to be stricken. Amy Carmichael once wrote a book called If. I couldn’t read it. I’m in the church now, which has done some very positive work on my weak will, so now I can at least read it. Though it convicts me, I can see where God has moved me forward in things that book talks about.

I’ve traveled, and I’ve met foreign missionaries who have hung out all night in jungles being eaten by mosquitoes, then swam a dangerous river towing bible wrapped in plastic, all to bring the Gospel to those who don’t have it. Me? I’m a self-indulgent, wealthy American. Such men make me wonder whether I qualify as a Christian.

May God have mercy on me.

Only I don’t have to say “may.” God has already had mercy on me. He’s let me feel the process of dying, and he’s held my hand and told me he’s with me.

If leukemia kills me, the only thing that will matter is the terrible hurt that will cause my family. May God allow me to teach my children to trust God the way that he is teaching me to trust him. There is nothing like walking in the Spirit.

For me, though, all I can think is the wonderful kindness of being shown eternal life by God because leukemia is destroying my blood.

Why is this happening to me? Why is God allowing me, of all people, to bear this, to experience such wonderful assurances? Why is he choosing me, of all people, to get to carry this disease and talk about the power of Jesus Christ, who never leaves us nor forsakes us?

I do know why. I’m not a very good Christian, but I am a Christian. I am a man of faith, and I have chose to learn from Jesus.

It’s far better to be a lousy disciple than a non-disciple.

Don’t fool yourself, though. To get the blessings, you do have to make a choice to enroll in his school, to choose his ways, and to give up what you want.

Yeah, I know. It’s a terrible price. Your dreams of being a pilot, your college, your exercise, your business, and even your parents, siblings, wife, and children, all don’t mean much to him except as they are put in his service.

Of course, he made them all. I suppose that gives him a right to them.

Personally, it’s a price that today I regret less than ever.

Posted in Holiness, Leukemia, Miscellaneous | Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment