“Our Father’s House” #3

In times like these, we need more than a fake Jesus.

“I will say of the Lord, He is my refuge…” (Psalms 91:2a)

Jesus IS our Father’s House. Jesus IS the secret place. Jesus IS the Word made flesh and the promises we dwell in. “Because thou hast made the Lord, which is my refuge, even the most High, thy (habit) habitation.” (VRS 9)

Psalms 91 is a powerful teaching about not dwelling in a man-made house, but God’s House. There is great power in the House. And just like the Children of Israel in the wilderness, it is a House that moves, like a shepherd leading his flock to safe places. If you have a mansion mentality rather than a tent mentality, you have put yourself at great disadvantage. I’m not saying you can’t do it, but you got to live with the consequences of that habit, habitation. The true spiritual warrior knows the foolishness of such a choice.

In times like these a fake Jesus simply will not do. We need the real thing! I am reminded of a story I heard once, that says it so well. The story goes like this… a dad had to baby sit his young son while his wife ran errands. The only problem was that poor dad had a speech he had to give that evening. A very important speech to his company, and it was not finished. He was still working on it. But his son kept interrupting him because he was bored. The constant interruptions were beginning to threaten the completion of the speech!

So dad, who loved his son, came up with an idea he was sure would occupy him for a while. He saw a picture in a magazine of a map of the USA. He tore the page out and into several pieces creating a jigsaw puzzle of America! He knew his son did not know what a map of America should look like, so he challenged him to put the puzzle together, and when he got it right he would earn twenty dollars! The boy was elated with the opportunity to make twenty dollars and the dad would get some time to work on his speech.

However, the dad was amazed and bewildered when his son showed up back at his door only ten or fifteen minutes later, with the map completed! Totally astonished, he asked his son how in the world did you figure that out so quickly? The boy proudly explained, that even though he did not know what the map should look like, he noticed there was the picture of a man’s face on the backside, and since he knew what a man should look like, he assembled the man, and when the man was right, he turned the puzzle over, and so was the world!

The dad gladly paid his son the money and told him, “Son, I think you’ve just given me my speech for tonight.” What a wonderful story, and how true, how true. But in our world today, the man we desperately need to get right is the God/man, Jesus! And when we get a true picture of Him, then we can begin to be right, and the world can begin to be right; but a fake Jesus simply will not have power to accomplish such an effect!

Who is this Jesus we teach today? Does he look like his most famous sermon, the Sermon on the Mount? Did he like expensive buildings with large overheads? Or did he live more like a tent? Did he live in a mansion? Did he eat a lot of fancy meals? Did he wear name-brand clothing? Did he stock pile money? Did he preach to live your best life now, or lay down your life for others? Did he tell us to buy a Lexus or take up our cross? Did he offer comfort zones to his people, or drink my blood and eat my flesh? Who is this watered down version of Jesus? Just about anyone can claim to be a Christian today. Even Donald Trump! (I’m just say’n.)

We are serving God in a time of great seduction. And it should not be so! Because this fake Jesus is as easy to see as a king wearing no clothes! They cannot defend their position because Jesus preached it so straight and lived it so true that even an idiot can read the Gospels and see there is something not right about our modern Jesus! So how has this happened? It is very hard for a naked man to defend his position, even if he is a king! And yet, we have done so. It makes no sense. Unless…

You know, in that old story of the naked king, again it was a “child” who blurted out the obvious truth and asked the honest question. The adults were all too afraid, or simply seeking favor and position. The adults were willing to live in a lie, maintain their comfort zone, don’t rock the boat, it’s not a serious thing, is it? The adults remained silent except to applaud the king in his obvious error, and I’m not referring to our President here, (like you may think), I’m talking about our modern church! This fake Jesus is failing America. Statistics show it’s failing more and more every day.

Well, the real Jesus had some very strong words to say to the Church of Laodicea and their nakedness. If you don’t believe me, you can read it yourself in Revelation chapter 3. And the description of the real Jesus in Revelation is anything but a limp wristed and weak God. The real Jesus should also strike fear into the hearts of unbelievers and prodigals.

So… is your House right? A true House of God is more interested in creating a godly person than a good person. Ponder that for a bit. Is there a difference? Yes there is. And I don’t mean the godly person is some holier than thou. A godly person, a person after God’s own heart, truly loves, and truly serves. They are faithful to God’s House, like a tent that moves, a shepherd and his sheep. And they love the House Rules of the House of God, for they know them to be WISDOM. And WISE people still seek HIM> the REAL Jesus.

Thank you for visiting the Willow Tree. Let’s pray for you. I pray the Spirit of God fill you from the bottom of your feet to the top of your head, driving out any virus that may attack you. I pray you find the rest and peace of your Father’s House. I pray God’s special blessings be upon you, not to be rich in this world’s stuff, but rich in God’s power, a mighty spiritual warrior for truth upon the battlefield, and a city of light sitting upon a hill. I pray this for you and your loved ones. I pray for more power of the Holy Spirit filling us every day, as we live in our Father’s House. In JESUS mighty name I ask our Father for these things. Amen.

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