For the One
This past weekend my friend Julie and I took a road trip and visited Bethel in Redding, CA. (And, yes, for no special reason other than to experience their weekend gatherings! Ha!) There are so many things I can say about this amazing part of the Body of Christ, but my lasting impression was the very real, tangible presence of God. There is nothing extraordinary about the building itself or the look of everything. No, it was all in the people; these walking temples of the Holy Spirit, these sons and daughters who went about their way in an imperfect pursuit of their passion for HIM, and it saturated the premises around them. It filled the hallways, and the parking lots with HIM. It is a place where their core values are seen and felt and not something they just talk about or strive to practice; in fact, I would dare say the people are not even conscious of it. It is something they simply become as they enjoy intimate relationship with God and enjoy living it out together.
My real take away from the whole experience is what God would speak to me during worship. My first night there, the team sang the song Reckless Love, and while we sang the line "leaves the ninety-nine" Holy Spirit said to me, "You are the one!" Throughout the song He just kept repeating it. Honestly, I struggled with it as I began to reference the Parable of the Lost Sheep in my mind during the song, and I started to argue with Him how I haven't forsaken Him, I am not a stray! And still He just kept repeating, "You are the one!" Imagine being offended by the Holy Spirit during worship at Bethel of all places! HA! I was able to let it go, and I went on to have other amazing experiences knowing He would explain Himself...eventually.
Since coming home, I have listened to that song on repeat everyday this week. Today, I finally got my answer. Luke 15:1-7:
Then all the tax collectors and the sinners drew near to Him to hear Him. And the Pharisees and scribes complained, saying, “This Man receives sinners and eats with them.” So He spoke this parable to them, saying:
“What man of you, having a hundred sheep, if he loses one of them, does not leave the ninety-nine in the wilderness, and go after the one which is lost until he finds it? And when he has found it, he lays it on his shoulders, rejoicing. And when he comes home, he calls together his friends and neighbors, saying to them, ‘Rejoice with me, for I have found my sheep which was lost!’ I say to you that likewise there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine just persons who need no repentance. (NKJV)
First of all, with Jesus' initial question, if you really consider what He is asking, seems illogical and unwise to the natural mind. Why would anyone risk the greater number for an insignificant one? What is one to ninety-nine in terms of investment and return, especially when the odds of finding it in a wilderness are slim at best? And yet He states it as if from a shepherd's perspective it is a common occurrence and blatantly obvious. Next, is the statement of WHEN He has found it, not IF; implying a relentless pursuit that does not stop until it achieves what it sets out to accomplish. Then, comes the unfathomable rejoicing! He doesn't even require the one to walk the great distance back to the fold! No, He completely shoulders the void, and gives no complaint to what it cost Him only making known His joy to those around Him! Talk about reckless passion!
It all of a sudden became clear to me. God wasn't calling me a stray when He wanted me to identify with the one. Rather He was revealing His heart for me, and I answered Him like a Pharisee with my own self-importance wanting to identify more with the herd who had no need of a Savior. Romans 3:22-24, "It is God's righteousness made visible through the faithfulness of Jesus Christ. And now all who believe in him receive that gift. For there is really no difference between us, for we all have sinned and are in need of the glory of God. Yet through his powerful declaration of acquittal, God freely gives away his righteousness. His gift of love and favor now cascades over us, all because Jesus, the Anointed One, has liberated us from the guilt, punishment, and power of sin!" (TPT) He began to show me that to truly grasp my identity in Christ, I need to remember and understand where I have come from, and to see my need for Him in able to truly prepare for where He is leading me. This was vital for Jesus when constantly facing criticism and opposition from His accusers in John 8:14, "For I absolutely know who I am, where I've come from, and where I'm going." (TPT)
When I was the director of the Kids Ministry at The House Church, there was a night I had to set up three of the classrooms for service and when I got there the rooms were completely wrecked from the previous occupants. There was trash scattered around, toys left abandon all across the room, sticky tables, Play Doh in the carpet, you get the picture. I remember it being a day I was already completely exhausted, and I just didn't want to give anymore. I sat in the middle of the room staring at the mess, and told God I didn't think I could do this, not tonight. So, He tells me, "I want you to set up the rooms as if Jesus Himself is going to walk down that hallway tonight." I got really excited with anticipation and had a spring in my step. I cleaned everything up top notch, put out extra toys and arranged them all OCD-like on the shelves and around the room, picked out the best snacks we had in stock, going from classroom to classroom with a critical eye making sure everything was just right as if royalty was coming. I had one child show up that night. ONE. For all three classrooms. ONE. I remember, laughing inside, and just waiting. He tells me, "I want you to do it for the ONE. That is My heart, so let it be yours."
Since then, I have had that anthem often repeated. Different scenario, different person, same chorus. And yet when it was sung over me, I was discombobulated by it when it His intent should have resonated in my heart all along. Perhaps that is why He saw fit to say it. What you do will come out of who you know you are. YOU are the ONE. Let it saturate you with a revelation of His Great Love for you.
"You are the one! It's time to take My Love personal and realize the measures I have come to LOVE YOU, to pursue you with a relentless passion, where there is nothing I would not give to call you My Own. You. My Dear One. Receive it. For how can you return affection for affection, passion for passion, measure for measure if you do not begin to perceive the extent of My Great Love for you? How can you see the One in others if you do not identify with it for yourself? How can you serve the One if you do not grasp how you have been served? I LOVE YOU."
My real take away from the whole experience is what God would speak to me during worship. My first night there, the team sang the song Reckless Love, and while we sang the line "leaves the ninety-nine" Holy Spirit said to me, "You are the one!" Throughout the song He just kept repeating it. Honestly, I struggled with it as I began to reference the Parable of the Lost Sheep in my mind during the song, and I started to argue with Him how I haven't forsaken Him, I am not a stray! And still He just kept repeating, "You are the one!" Imagine being offended by the Holy Spirit during worship at Bethel of all places! HA! I was able to let it go, and I went on to have other amazing experiences knowing He would explain Himself...eventually.
Since coming home, I have listened to that song on repeat everyday this week. Today, I finally got my answer. Luke 15:1-7:
Then all the tax collectors and the sinners drew near to Him to hear Him. And the Pharisees and scribes complained, saying, “This Man receives sinners and eats with them.” So He spoke this parable to them, saying:
“What man of you, having a hundred sheep, if he loses one of them, does not leave the ninety-nine in the wilderness, and go after the one which is lost until he finds it? And when he has found it, he lays it on his shoulders, rejoicing. And when he comes home, he calls together his friends and neighbors, saying to them, ‘Rejoice with me, for I have found my sheep which was lost!’ I say to you that likewise there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine just persons who need no repentance. (NKJV)
First of all, with Jesus' initial question, if you really consider what He is asking, seems illogical and unwise to the natural mind. Why would anyone risk the greater number for an insignificant one? What is one to ninety-nine in terms of investment and return, especially when the odds of finding it in a wilderness are slim at best? And yet He states it as if from a shepherd's perspective it is a common occurrence and blatantly obvious. Next, is the statement of WHEN He has found it, not IF; implying a relentless pursuit that does not stop until it achieves what it sets out to accomplish. Then, comes the unfathomable rejoicing! He doesn't even require the one to walk the great distance back to the fold! No, He completely shoulders the void, and gives no complaint to what it cost Him only making known His joy to those around Him! Talk about reckless passion!
It all of a sudden became clear to me. God wasn't calling me a stray when He wanted me to identify with the one. Rather He was revealing His heart for me, and I answered Him like a Pharisee with my own self-importance wanting to identify more with the herd who had no need of a Savior. Romans 3:22-24, "It is God's righteousness made visible through the faithfulness of Jesus Christ. And now all who believe in him receive that gift. For there is really no difference between us, for we all have sinned and are in need of the glory of God. Yet through his powerful declaration of acquittal, God freely gives away his righteousness. His gift of love and favor now cascades over us, all because Jesus, the Anointed One, has liberated us from the guilt, punishment, and power of sin!" (TPT) He began to show me that to truly grasp my identity in Christ, I need to remember and understand where I have come from, and to see my need for Him in able to truly prepare for where He is leading me. This was vital for Jesus when constantly facing criticism and opposition from His accusers in John 8:14, "For I absolutely know who I am, where I've come from, and where I'm going." (TPT)
When I was the director of the Kids Ministry at The House Church, there was a night I had to set up three of the classrooms for service and when I got there the rooms were completely wrecked from the previous occupants. There was trash scattered around, toys left abandon all across the room, sticky tables, Play Doh in the carpet, you get the picture. I remember it being a day I was already completely exhausted, and I just didn't want to give anymore. I sat in the middle of the room staring at the mess, and told God I didn't think I could do this, not tonight. So, He tells me, "I want you to set up the rooms as if Jesus Himself is going to walk down that hallway tonight." I got really excited with anticipation and had a spring in my step. I cleaned everything up top notch, put out extra toys and arranged them all OCD-like on the shelves and around the room, picked out the best snacks we had in stock, going from classroom to classroom with a critical eye making sure everything was just right as if royalty was coming. I had one child show up that night. ONE. For all three classrooms. ONE. I remember, laughing inside, and just waiting. He tells me, "I want you to do it for the ONE. That is My heart, so let it be yours."
Since then, I have had that anthem often repeated. Different scenario, different person, same chorus. And yet when it was sung over me, I was discombobulated by it when it His intent should have resonated in my heart all along. Perhaps that is why He saw fit to say it. What you do will come out of who you know you are. YOU are the ONE. Let it saturate you with a revelation of His Great Love for you.
"You are the one! It's time to take My Love personal and realize the measures I have come to LOVE YOU, to pursue you with a relentless passion, where there is nothing I would not give to call you My Own. You. My Dear One. Receive it. For how can you return affection for affection, passion for passion, measure for measure if you do not begin to perceive the extent of My Great Love for you? How can you see the One in others if you do not identify with it for yourself? How can you serve the One if you do not grasp how you have been served? I LOVE YOU."
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