To Deny Oneself
Hi Friends,
Today is a new day! God is faithful. He is from everlasting to everlasting! We thank the Lord for the beautiful day, for the sunshine, and all his wonderful blessings! I have a vision to share with you about the Christian life and our purpose.
The Vision - A Black Handbag
In the vision, I saw a woman’s black handbag or purse. It was rather old fashioned with two leather handles and a pinch and twist closure made of two polished chrome balls that slide past each other to close or to open.
A purse represents many things to a woman. But what usually comes to mind are keys and money. We put money and everything else that is important in our lives in the purse. If there were a fire in the house, we would take whoever is in the house with us, grab our purse and go. Everytime we leave the house, we take our purse with us, for it carries all the essentials: keys, phone, credit and debit cards, cash, driver’s liscense, medical I.D. cards, makeup, and first-aid and medicines. For every individual there will be additional things that are necessary. Some women carry flashlights, rechargers, sunglasses, tissues, checks, a notebook, or reading material.
Years ago, before cell phones, I carried a book in my purse because we lived in Chicago, and we had all kinds of freight trains. It was illegal to tie up any intersection for more than 20 mins. However, when these trains came, we always wanted to be prepared to have something to do for those 20 mins.
Bringing a book in my purse just reminded me of a vision that the Lord had given me about 27 years ago. In the vision, I was sitting on my bed at home. I had a Bible in my lap and I took it and put it on the night table and placed a very small New Testament in my purse. The Lord was showing me that it would be dangerous for me to carry a Bible in full view.
In that same vision, there were also three books that I picked up and put on my lap. The first was a book entitled “Huis Clos,” which was written by a French Existentialist named Jean Paul Sartre. Existentialists believe that you make your heaven or hell on earth. The second book was entitled “Those Left Behind.” On the cover of the book was a very dark scene of rows and rows of short crosses and charred bodies of people who were crucified with their knees bent. In the far background was a palace or castle. I did not see the title or cover of the third book in the stack. I simply took these three books and placed them in front of the Bible on my night table, so as to conceal it. This vision is about persecution of the church. Even though we live in the United States, there is always the chance that we could lose our religious freedom if there was a hostile government take-over.
The possibility of the Bible being outlawed in our nation is real, for its teachings go against man’s ideologies that exalt man over God. It seems quite natural for men to rebell against God’s authority, for the sinful nature of man is corrupt. In the time of Noah, the Lord regretted that he had made man:
The Lord saw how great the wickedness of the human race had become on the earth, and that every inclination of the thoughts of the human heart was only evil all the time. And the Lord regretted that He had made man on the earth, and He was grieved in His heart. So the Lord said, “I will blot out man, whom I have created, from the face of the earth—every man and beast and crawling creature and bird of the air—for I am grieved that I have made them.” Genesis 6:5-6
Someday the Bible and the gospel’s message of repentance and salvation may be considered “hate speech.” Those who oppose biblical values, and God as the ultimate authority, will hate and oppose everything and everyone that stands in their way.
Jesus said:
If the world hates you, understand that it hated Me first. If you were of the world, it would love you as its own. Instead, the world hates you, because you are not of the world, but I have chosen you out of the world.
Remember the word that I spoke to you: ‘No servant is greater than his master.’ If they persecuted Me, they will persecute you as well; if they kept My word, they will keep yours as well. But they will treat you like this because of My name, since they do not know the One who sent Me. If I had not come and spoken to them, they would not be guilty of sin. Now, however, they have no excuse for their sin.
Whoever hates Me hates My Father as well. If I had not done among them the works that no one else did, they would not be guilty of sin; but now they have seen and hated both Me and My Father. But this is to fulfill what is written in their Law: ‘They hated Me without reason.’
When the Advocate comes, whom I will send to you from the Father—the Spirit of truth who proceeds from the Father—He will testify about Me. And you also must testify, because you have been with Me from the beginning. John 15:18-27
I have told you these things so that in Me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation. But take courage; I have overcome the world!” John 16:33
The purse in the vision was black. It represents the dark side of money and the things that money buys: material possessions that give one a sense of prestige or of belonging to a particular group; the power to control, financial opportunities to create more money, to influence others and to obtain the favor of others. Money can buy positions, friends, and pleasures. Money satisfies the cravings of the natural worldly man and his ego.
He who loves money is never satisfied by money, and he who loves wealth is never satisfied by income. This too is futile. Ecclesiastes 5:10
But the love of money is considered idolatry, something someone worships, and considers more important than God or the things of God.
”Those who want to be rich, however, fall into temptation and become ensnared by many foolish and harmful desires that plunge them into ruin and destruction. For the love of money is the root of all kinds of evil. By craving it, some have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many sorrows.” 1 Timothy 6:9-10
There is no doubt that the love of money can be a hindrance to following God. People do wander away from the faith, when they become enticed by the things money can buy. A get-rich-quick scheme may produce easy money, but it may require someone to do something deceitful, illegal or dishonorable as part of the plan. We know that desperate people do desperate things. When people do not trust God for their provision, and fail to live within their means, the desire for money can overtake them and they succumb to the devil and his temptations. Jesus said you cannot serve God and money.
“No one can serve two masters. Either you will hate the one and love the other, or you will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money. Matthew 6:24
You may be familiar with the story of the rich young ruler who asked Jesus about how to attain eternal life. If not, here is the story:
And behold, a man came up to him, saying, “Teacher, what good deed must I do to have eternal life?” And he said to him, “Why do you ask me about what is good? There is only one who is good. If you would enter life, keep the commandments.” He said to him, “Which ones?” And Jesus said, “You shall not murder, You shall not commit adultery, You shall not steal, You shall not bear false witness, Honor your father and mother, and, You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” The young man said to him, “All these I have kept. What do I still lack?” Jesus said to him, “If you would be perfect, go, sell what you possess and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow me.” When the young man heard this he went away sorrowful, for he had great possessions. Matthew 19:16-22
The Lord tells the young ruler the truth. He puts his finger on the issue for this young man. Money was his identity. Money is all that he knew. He had probably never done any hard labor, or worried about his next meal. His security was firmly embedded in his wealth. Whatever he needed, he purchased without a second thought.
But if he were to follow Jesus, he would have to sell or let go of everything: all his land, his merchandise and shops, his animals, his servants, his home, his wardrobe, and his luxurious lifestyle. Could he trade that all for Jesus and eternal life? He would have to trust God for all his needs. Could he do that? He would be homeless. Would he be willing to give up the normal comforts we take for granted?
And one of the scribes came to Him and said, “Teacher, I will follow You wherever You go.” And Jesus said to him, “Foxes have holes, and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay his head.” Matthew 8:19-20
To follow the Lord, we must be willing to give to God what he asks for. The Lord will test our faith with choices. Will we choose God over our family? Our friends? Our job or occupation? Our social standing in the church, the community or any social clubs? Will we choose God over our lifestyle? Over our habits, pastimes, pleasures, and our own identity?
Can we become nothing to serve the living God? Can we put down our pride and the things about us that we take pride in? Our education? Our mental or physical abilities, strength and beauty? Our traditions and ancestry? Our egos?
John the Baptist gave everything to follow God. He was homeless, living in the wilderness. He wore only a camel skin for clothing, and ate wild honey and locusts. And even though John was considered a great prophet, he humbled himself before God and man.
So John’s disciples came to him and said, “Look, Rabbi, the One who was with you beyond the Jordan, the One you testified about—He is baptizing, and everyone is going to Him.”
John replied, “A man can receive only what is given him from heaven. You yourselves can testify that I said, ‘I am not the Christ, but am sent ahead of Him.’ The bride belongs to the bridegroom. The friend of the bridegroom stands and listens for him, and is overjoyed to hear the bridegroom’s voice. That joy is mine, and it is now complete. He must increase; I must decrease.
The One who comes from above is above all. The one who is from the earth belongs to the earth and speaks as one from the earth. The One who comes from heaven is above all. He testifies to what He has seen and heard, yet no one accepts His testimony. Whoever accepts His testimony has certified that God is truthful. For the One whom God has sent speaks the words of God, for God gives the Spirit without limit.
The Father loves the Son and has placed all things in His hands. Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life. Whoever rejects the Son will not see life. Instead, the wrath of God remains on him.” John 3:26-36
We have only this life-time to get it right. We are to serve Jesus as King of Kings and Lord of Lords. We are to recognize his sacrificial death on the cross as payment for our sins. If we do not accept him, and believe in him, then we have nothing. For it says above: “Whoever rejects the Son will not see life.” But “Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life!”
The vision of the purse is so rich with Biblical teachings, for the purse represents many aspects of life. Almost everything that we consider in this life to be important is represented in the purse.
There is another thought I would like to share which is actually the very first scripture that came to mind after seeing the vision. It was this passage in the book of Haggai:
Consider your ways: You have sown much, and harvested little. You eat, but you never have enough; you drink, but you never have your fill. You clothe yourselves, but no one is warm. And he who earns wages does so to put them into a bag with holes. Haggai 1:5-6
A purse or handbag with a hole in it! Something is wrong here! The Lord wanted his people who had returned from exile in Babylon to consider their ways. They had built up the walls around Jerusalem, and re-built their homes, but the work stopped on re-building the Temple of God. They had become discouraged because it wasn’t as magnificent as the former Temple and so they stopped.
“Thus says the Lord of hosts: Consider your ways. Go up to the hills and bring wood and build the house, that I may take pleasure in it and that I may be glorified, says the Lord. You looked for much, and behold, it came to little. And when you brought it home, I blew it away. Why? declares the LORD of hosts. Because of my house that lies in ruins, while each of you busies himself with his own house. Therefore the heavens above you have withheld the dew, and the earth has withheld its produce. And I have called for a drought on the land and the hills, on the grain, the new wine, the oil, on what the ground brings forth, on man and beast, and on all their labors.” Haggai 1:7-11
God was exasperated with them. After having spent many years in captivity as punishment for sin, they were set free so as to go and rebuild Jerusalem and the Temple. However, they stopped making progress on God’s house, and no longer felt the urgency to complete it. The hardship that the Lord brought to them was designed to get their attention and re-focus them on what is truly important– not their houses, but the temple of God.
The Lord then encouraged them to once again take up the project and do it to bring him honor. As they faithfully took up the work again, the Lord encouraged them to finish building even though the temple did not seem to have the same grandeur as the first. The Lord said:
‘The glory of this present house will be greater than the glory of the former house,’ says the Lord Almighty. ‘And in this place I will grant peace,’ declares the Lord Almighty.” Haggai 2:9
Hallelujah, and the Lord blessed them:
“‘Now give careful thought to this from this day on—consider how things were before one stone was laid on another in the Lord’s temple. When anyone came to a heap of twenty measures, there were only ten. When anyone went to a wine vat to draw fifty measures, there were only twenty. I struck all the work of your hands with blight, mildew and hail, yet you did not return to me,’ declares the Lord. ‘From this day on, from this twenty-fourth day of the ninth month, give careful thought to the day when the foundation of the Lord’s temple was laid. Give careful thought: Is there yet any seed left in the barn? Until now, the vine and the fig tree, the pomegranate and the olive tree have not borne fruit.
“‘From this day on I will bless you.’” Haggai 2:15-19
The Lord’s ways are not our ways. Thank you Lord for you are faithful even when we are not!
The vision of the black purse is about dedicating all that we are and all that we have to God. It is not about amassing wealth for ourselves, but to give all we have so that our treasure will be in heaven. It is not about tending to our own homes and our own possessions, but instead, building the kingdom of God. It is about being good stewards with all that God has given us. Do we consider our possessions our own? Is our life our own? Don’t we belong to God? And as his servants, shouldn’t we declare: “Not my will but yours be done.” This for some may be an entire paradigm shift.
“Do you not know that your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your bodies.” 1 Corinthians 6:19-20
The Lord purchased us; he ransomed our souls. He redeemed us from eternity of flames, and gives us a place with him in his eternal kingdom! We have new life in him! If we are not our own, and the things that are in our possession are not our either. Everything in the earth belongs to God. We are merely stewards of his creation.
Just as I was writing, I remembered that one of Jesus’ disciples held the community purse. It is amazing that Jesus put the least honest person in charge of the purse–Judas. He was the very one who betrayed Jesus for thirty pieces of silver. The price of a slave.
Zechariah prophesied about 500 years before the Lord’s betrayal and the payment to be made with 30 pieces of silver:
I told them, “If you think it best, give me my pay; but if not, keep it.” So they paid me thirty pieces of silver. And the Lord said to me, “Throw it to the potter”—the handsome price at which they valued me! So I took the thirty pieces of silver and threw them to the potter at the house of the Lord. Zechariah 11:12-13
The price paid was the value of a slave as given in Exodus:
If the ox gores a slave, male or female, the owner shall give to their master thirty shekels of silver, and the ox shall be stoned. Exodus 21:32
Judas held the purse, and used it for his purposes. On the day that Mary brought out a jar of very expensive perfume and anointed Jesus, we are made aware of Judas’ intentions and his love of money.
Then Mary took about a pint of expensive perfume, made of pure nard, and she anointed Jesus’ feet and wiped them with her hair. And the house was filled with the fragrance of the perfume.
But one of His disciples, Judas Iscariot, who was going to betray Him, asked, “Why wasn’t this perfume sold for three hundred denarii and the money given to the poor?” Judas did not say this because he cared about the poor, but because he was a thief. As keeper of the money bag, he used to take from what was put into it.
“Leave her alone,” Jesus replied. “She has kept this perfume in preparation for the day of My burial. The poor you will always have with you, but you will not always have Me.” John 12:3-8
The love of money is the root of all kinds of evil!
There is much to contemplate regarding the scriptures in this post. I know for me, that when I write, I become convicted of the sins, decisions and wrong attitudes that I have. We all need to be right with God everyday of our lives. We need to repent, which means to change our minds. The word of God is so important to show us what is right and what is wrong. What is good and what is bad. What is truth and what is not.
All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work. 2 Timothy 3:16-17
Please study the word of God for yourself. Everyone needs to know the truth, and to be equipped for God’s work. Let’s remember too, that all creation is God’s, and we too belong to him for we were purchased by his blood and through belief in him, we have eternal life. Choose this day to make Jesus your Lord, your God and your King! Jesus means Savior! God bless you all!
