Month: March 2021

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Affirmation, part 5: Reaction Time

“You can’t control what others do, but you can control what you do and how you react.”

This is the fifth of Frank Viola’s six affirmations. It is an invitation to take a seat in the heavenlies and see from our Father’s vantage point. Let me frame this in terms of what I experience. What others do, or fail to do, has an impact on me, but I have no control over that. The only control I have is over my responses—thoughts, emotions, words and actions. 

One thing that comes to mind at the outset is that I often forget, or fail even to notice, the kindnesses of others—their love and mercy and grace. I hope for mercy and grace especially when I’ve been the one to wrong somebody else. Certainly I have received much good from others. But I’m most apt to notice and remember when (in my own judgement) somebody has wronged me. Then I’m out for justice. 

Jesus had something to say about this:

Then Peter came up and said to him, “Lord, how often will my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? As many as seven times?” Jesus said to him, “I do not say to you seven times, but seventy times seven. Therefore the kingdom of heaven may be compared to a king who wished to settle accounts with his servants. When he began to settle, one was brought to him who owed him ten thousand talents. And since he could not pay, his master ordered him to be sold, with his wife and children and all that he had, and payment to be made. So the servant fell on his knees, imploring him, ‘Have patience with me, and I will pay you everything.’ And out of pity for him, the master of that servant released him and forgave him the debt. But when that same servant went out, he found one of his fellow servants who owed him a hundred denarii, and seizing him, he began to choke him, saying, ‘Pay what you owe.’ So his fellow servant fell down and pleaded with him, ‘Have patience with me, and I will pay you.’ He refused and went and put him in prison until he should pay the debt. When his fellow servants saw what had taken place, they were greatly distressed, and they went and reported to their master all that had taken place. Then his master summoned him and said to him, ‘You wicked servant! I forgave you all that debt because you pleaded with me. And should not you have had mercy on your fellow servant, as I had mercy on you?’ And in anger his master delivered him to the jailers, until he should pay all his debt. So also my heavenly Father will do to every one of you, if you do not forgive your brother from your heart.” Matthew 18:21-34. 

Should our forbearance apply only to our sisters and brothers in Christ? By his death, Jesus redeemed all of humanity even though, given free will, he knew that not all of humanity would accept redemption. If he is the vine and we are the branches, then we bring forth fruit regardless of whether the beneficiary is a believer. The apostle Paul directs us to do good (provided that good is inspired by the life of Christ) “to everyone, and especially to those who are of the household of faith” (Galatians 6:10).

Earlier in the same letter, Paul wrote, “I do not nullify the grace of God…” (Galatians 2:21). The word that is translated “nullify” also means “frustrate” or “set aside.” Our interactions with others always present us with this choice: will we take the grace that comes from the Spirit of Life and set aside the reactions that come from our fallen nature? Or will we set grace aside so that we can respond according to the flesh? To live in God’s grace will bring forth more of the life of Christ. to allow the flesh to dominate eventually will lead to our separation from God, which is spiritual death. 

As Paul also wrote to the Galatians, “But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh. For the desires of the flesh are against the Spirit, and the desires of the Spirit are against the flesh, for these are opposed to each other, to keep you from doing the things you want to do” (Galatians 5:16-17). There is no such thing as living by the Spirit and, at the same time, reacting to others in a self-gratifying way. This passage answers a question I’ve had. Paul’s list of the fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22-23) ends with “self-control.” The term sounds like something that I should be doing, by my own strength. Based on the context, however, it really means setting self aside to let the Spirit take control.

So, I can control what I do and how I react, in the sense that I can choose between the response of the flesh and the response of the Spirit. Yielding to the flesh, no matter how justified it might seem, leads to many evils. Paul also lists these “works of the flesh” in chapter 5 of Galatians. Included in the list are the rivalries, dissensions and divisions that we recognize throughout the history of Christianity. On the contrary, yielding to the Spirit puts the life of Christ on display in the earth. God the Father has a purpose that He is determined to accomplish. This purpose involves re-establishing unity between the individual believer and Himself, and unity among believers. Every time we choose to display the life of the Son, we open another avenue for the Father to achieve His ultimate intention.

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Affirmation, part 4

Here is the fourth affirmation: “All things that take place today — including the irritations and disappointments — will work together for your good. Romans 8:28 is still in the Bible.” It refers to this familiar verse, which (in the English Standard Version) reads: “And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to His purpose.” 

“We know.” It isn’t what we know, but the one we know: the God we are coming to know and love. He is full of love and goodness. “For the Lord God is a sun and shield; he bestows favor and honor. No good thing does the Lord withhold from those who walk uprightly” (Psalm 84:11). He is looking for people, like us, who are seeking for Him. He even gives us love so that we can love Him as He loves us. God is not one to hold back—He searches out every opportunity to give us of Himself. “And from his fullness we have all received, grace upon grace” (John 1:16). Jesus made this point to his disciples: “For everyone who asks receives, and the one who seeks finds, and to the one who knocks it will be opened. What father among you, if his son asks for a fish, will instead of a fish give him a serpent; or if he asks for an egg, will give him a scorpion? If you then, who are evil [earth-bound], know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will the heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!” (Luke 11:10-13).

We may doubt this truth about God when we consider what we know of “reality on the ground.” In the fourteenth chapter of John, Jesus twice reassured the disciples who were sharing the Passover with him. “Let not your hearts be troubled.” Soon he would go to the cross. “Let not your hearts be troubled. Believe in God; believe also in me” (verse 1). “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid” (verse 27). The irritations and disappointments we face today are no more momentous than the events that the disciples were about to face. What is the remedy? Believe in the Father and the Son. The Father’s attention is on His Son. He loves His Son. He has exalted His Son. Because the Father has placed us in the Son, we also are exalted. In the Son we have all good things, including direct access to the Father. In their relationship we know the source of an enduring, trustworthy peace that can overcome our irritation, our disappointment and our fear.

God works, in everything, “for good.” But what is good from God’s perspective? In Jeremiah 17:5-8 the prophet wrote, “Thus says the Lord: ‘Cursed [disapproved of God] is the man who trusts in man and makes flesh his strength, whose heart turns away from the Lord. He is like a shrub in the desert, and shall not see any good come…. Blessed [approved of God] is the man who trusts in the Lord, whose trust is the Lord. He is like a tree planted by the water, that sends out its roots by the stream, and does not fear when heat comes, for its leaves remain green, and is not anxious in the year of drought, for it does not cease to bear fruit.’” The individual who trusts in himself turns away from the Lord and will experience no good; we who trust in the Lord keep drawing from His life and will experience fruitfulness.

Bearing fruit, where humanity is concerned, has to do with displaying the characteristics of the Son. God’s good is directed toward a purpose. The fruit we bear—by the life that Jesus imparts to us—is not for ourselves but for others. Consequently, “good” goes beyond “my good.” We receive good from God so that we will share His good with others, especially other believers. Ultimately, we receive good so that we can work with God toward fulfilling the purpose that He had in creation.

Good is not necessarily pleasant for us. God is the conductor of a great orchestra, as well as the composer of the score. He knows how to combine all the parts to bring good to each individual believer, and to the whole company of believers. Sometimes an unexpected pause in the music brings a period of silence. We don’t understand why. Sometimes the sections of the ensemble clash and the sound is frankly dissonant. It seems all wrong. He will resolve everything into harmony. 

Help me then in every tribulation
So to trust Your promises, O Lord,
That I lose not faith’s sweet consolation
Offered me within Your holy word.
Help me, Lord, when toil and trouble meeting,
E’er to take as from a father’s hand,
One by one, the days, the moments fleeting,
Till I reach the promised land.
(Day by Day, Carolina Sandell Berg, third stanza)

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Affirmation, part 3

“Receive everything that happens today as passing through God’s sovereign hands before it gets to you.”

This affirmation is the positive side of the previous one, which directed us to “ruthlessly eliminate all expectations” regarding how our day should go. The positive side is for those who make plans but allow God to overrule their plans.  

Day by day and with each passing moment,
Strength I find to meet my trials here;
Trusting in my Father’s wise bestowment,
I’ve no cause for worry or for fear. 
He whose heart is kind beyond all measure
Gives unto each day what He deems best—
Lovingly, its part of pain and pleasure,
Mingling toil with peace and rest.
(“Day by Day,” Carolina Sandell Berg, first stanza)

In this affirmation we approach God the Father as Sovereign. He is the King who loves us. And He has hands: Jesus Christ, who is the visible expression of the Father, and the Church, which is the visible expression of Jesus Christ. Jesus died, arose from the dead and ascended to the Father. When he took his place at the right hand of God, he poured out the Holy Spirit for the first time on his faithful followers who were gathered in the upper room. In them the Church was born.

To those of us who are on the trail of transformation, whether we move in the company of the Church or for now have to travel alone, Jesus sends an invitation. “Make your home in me, as I make mine in you” (John 15:4). The true source of life for each of us is Christ Jesus. He imparts life to our spirits by making himself at home there. From our regenerated spirits, life flows out to our souls. Like the manna in the wilderness, this soul-aspect of life is evanescent. It is meant to be shared and consumed before it expires. It is renewed from our spirits, which remain established in Christ. 

Our Father is reestablishing in us the order He intended—the order of spirit first, then soul and body—that existed when humans were created. The human spirit He brings into subjection to Himself. He trains the soul to keep looking to the spirit for its life—the spirit that is the dwelling place of His Son, the Spirit of Life. The soul, which is the seat of the mind, will and emotions, finds this training hard to accept. Why? 

  1. The soul in its fallen state was accustomed to independence. But we have died to the old nature in which the soul was dominant. Now the soul must learn to submit to the spirit. 
  2. There are many outside sources—foreign influences—upon which the soul can draw, instead of the spirit. All of these sources are contrary to the Spirit of Life, although they appear to have life in themselves.
  3. There are necessities to which we must attend, or so it appears. Inimical forces pressure us and distract us from God. 

We receive this training of our souls not primarily for our own benefit but for the sake our Heavenly Father. He loves us; in this way we return that love to Him. We can pray along with Jesus, “Now is my soul troubled. And what shall I say? ‘Father, save me from this hour?’ But for this purpose I have come to this hour. Father, glorify your name” (John 12:27-28).

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