A Stirring of Love

People from all different denominations and non-denom make a practice of telling people to "Not forsake the assembling of the saints" (leaving out the rest of this verse). They do this almost like it is a sin to not go to Church and that if you go to Church you have not partaken of that sin. If the context of this statement, if the entire verse and the previous verse is read, you will see that much more indeed was said. Why would simply showing up to Church be righteous? Why not just stay home and watch Church on television? The purpose of gathering was not simply to hear the Word and give a little praise during a few songs. Read this statement with the verse and the one right before it.

Heb 10:24-25
24 And let us consider one another in order to stir up love and good works, 25 not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as is the manner of some, but exhorting one another, and so much the more as you see the Day approaching.

Do you see that yet? More action was required when read in context. First the author says to consider one another to STIR up love and good works. If you just show up, worship, sit down, listen to the message, then shake a quick hand and go home, what was the difference really in going verses watching on the internet or on TV? Not much. The purpose of gathering is clearly having a type of interaction with others that makes them go home STIRRED UP. They leave with more passion to LOVE and to do GOOD WORKS! How does a handshake do that? Ummm you're exactly right, it doesn't. I'm not always faithful in stirring someone up when we gather, but I do make a point to look for someone I know, or someone I haven't yet met, that I can stir. It doesn't always happen. Sometimes it is me that gets stirred. The working of the body of Christ is so unique that it takes each others love for our growth.

Ephesians 4:16
From him the whole body, joined and held together by every supporting ligament, grows and builds itself up in love, as each part does its work.

Do you see that, look at the word "Itself". Let me ask you this, does the word "itself" just mean YOU? Well you can build yourself up, yes, but the scripture says that we are held together, supporting ligaments (members of the body), and then we are built up. We give each other the correct support when we are together. How is it done? According to this scripture it is done in love. Love is powerful, but it is impossible to put love into practice at home watching Church happen instead of being at Church. It is also impossible to actively love, which causes growth and a stirring of love and good works, just simply by showing up. Church isn't just Sunday Church. How about bible studies, Life groups, fellowships or just simply meeting up with believers somewhere to love on each other.

So taking both of these verses and holding them up to the light side by side we can come to the truth that it is a GREAT thing to be part of the body of Christ. It is an even greater thing to be a part of a body of believes that LOVE. Holding these verses up to the light together will also bring us to the conclusion that gathering as a Church has the purpose of sending people out STIRRED to both love and to do good works. But it also should tell us that in order to send them out they must also be built up by nothing other than LOVE itself. Now God is Love, so in the Spirit we build each other up. We are led by the Father Himself to Love on our brothers. Love is the most powerful action men can do. Love is what we were created for. Love is what saved us. Love is what builds us up. Love is what stirs us. And love is what we gather for.

Hebrews 10:25.....and so much the more as you see the Day approaching

As the day is approaching, as the end is nearer, the scripture is saying that this kind of stirring is needed even more than in the days of the author. If he was saying that way back then, then what could you say about our time as we are so so so much nearer to that approaching Day? I say this, it makes no sense to just show up any more. If you are not changed and have not changed someone else, then nothing was productive. Nothing had virtue. We must become a strengthened body of ligaments knitted and held together in the strength of Christ as it is so important for the coming days ahead.

In order to grow, as Ephesians 4:16 says "...each part does its work", you are part of that. You are required in this work of the Lord, first to be stirred then to stir others, by love and good works, to do love and good works. A cycle of love and good works, exhorting each other in the love of God. Amen!!

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Insight into Real Sight! Let Him heal your Vision!

How have you been treated all your life? Have you been spit on and dust kicked in your face? Were you an outcast? Spiritually do you still see yourself that same way? There was a man who was blind and a beggar long long time ago. Years ago, when people viewed the lame and blind that were on the streets begging, they viewed them as outcast. They were considered the scum, the left over matter of humans: not worthy to be in the house of God. They were looked upon as outcast, the outcast of God. Learned by the religious leaders of that day, it was a doctrine that was well know, that if you had these problems you were sick in your sins. Also if your family stopped caring for you and put you out to the streets you were the lowest of the low. You were an outcast. They treated them very poorly. Some people gave to them, mostly out of duty to law, also out of shame and to get them to stop begging (I'm sure there were kind hearted people who gave out of mercy). Some were simply just disgusted with them. They would kick dirt in their faces as they sat at the edge of the road begging, pure cruelty. Some would even spit in their faces in disgust. 

Has this happened to you spiritually or even naturally? Well, this blind man I began to speak about had an encounter with God. Never has he seen anything, he was born blind. I wonder after a while of hearing the norm if this man began to believe the LIE spoken to him through the whispers, yells, and the actions of the people (friends, family, strangers, religious leaders); and became emotionally blind because of the lies. Did he believe he was scum? Did he believe he was born in sins from birth and God could care less about him? Did he believe he was as disgusting as the cruelty portrayed him to be? I'm sure he knew within himself that he didn't do sins worse than others. From birth he suffered blindness. I'm sure he may have even resented his mother and father for passing that terrible sin down that made him hated and blind by the hand of God (as they believed). I'm sure he resented them for casting him out as an outcast into the streets. This is just speculation I am stirring up within you that could be the very truth of this mans heart. Honestly his parents could have loved him very much but couldn't afford to take care of him. Who knows, but I'm sure this man hated his condition and felt the insecurity of being at the bottom of mankind as a blind beggar. It's funny, people may have indeed spit on him, kicked dirt in face, but the Father sent Jesus to that man that day. Not to spit in his eyes with shame, not to kick dirt into his face with disgust, but to restore the mans sight of the Fathers loves toward him. Jesus SPIT in the DIRT, made mud with it, and LOVINGLY ANOINTED the mans eyes with it. The very tool that brought insecurity to the mans emotion now is becoming the tool of Gods healing for that mans inner reflection. God was showing this man how to SEE the Fathers love toward him. This man saw God as someone that didn't care about him. That day the mans sight toward God had changed. God didn't see him as someone that was born in sin. He saw him as a testimony to the GRACE of Gods wonderful kindness. 

John 9:2-3 And His disciples asked Him, “Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he would be born blind?” Jesus answered, “It was neither that this man sinned, nor his parents; but it was so that the works of God might be displayed in him.

Could this special word (written above) spoken right before this mans healing continue to resignate though the remainder of this mans life as the tool that set him free to SEE? The healing of his eyes were a plus, how wonderful, but the healing of his soul was much more powerful! He just heard the opposite of what he always heard. It wasn't his sins that made him sick. In fact he probably realizes now that it was a call of God on his life. He was called to be healed and sent! To SEE spiritually what the world around him couldn't see. God must have wanted this message to get out considering the world couldn't contain the books written of the works that Jesus did in those 3 years but God wanted this particular account to be written for a reason (John 21:25).

Emotionally destroyed men almost always lacks boldness. That same day he was brought into the very house of his destruction, the reason for his insecurities, set before the ones that taught the very doctrine that put this man into bondage of his self worthlessness inner view. He was brought before the Pharisees, the true blind of that day. 

13 They brought to the Pharisees the man who was formerly blind. 

Wow talk about a test of the very truth you just received. This was like being set free then thrown right into the lions den after the lions hadn't eaten for weeks. All the same doctrine was discussed here. Sin was the center of the conversation. You see how prevalent it was in those days, even the disciples fell into the same hypocritical thinking as they asked Jesus if it was the man's sin or the sins of his parents that made him blind. 

How did the man respond? Did he respond in a timid way which would be normal fruit from this mans insecurity? No, not at all, this man responded with the anointing that Jesus anointed his eyes with! He spoke out of the freedom that he received that day. He spoke as one that was no longer in bondage to believing the widespread lie that God hated him. No longer did he believe he was the lowest of low, the scum, the outcast, but instead as one that God chose not to spit on, not to kick dust on. One that God chose to SEND. 

7 and said to him, “Go, wash in the pool of Siloam” (which is translated, Sent). So he went away and washed, and came back seeing.

He didn't just come back seeing physically!! He was seeing for the first time how God viewed him. The anointing broke the yoke of lies from his soul that day. He was now seeing and instructing the true blind (Pharisees) on what real truth was. He began to rebuke the Pharisees with powerful inSIGHT (caps intended) in a way that a timid person could not do. His boldness was due to the healing of his soul. God that day anointed his eyes to see truth!

6 When he had thus spoken, he spat on the ground, and made clay of the spittle, and he ANOINTED the eyes of the blind man with the clay,

And now this timid man made bold, who was sent by God to proclaim the miracle of truth, spoke with a mighty rebuke to the Pharisees. 

28 Then they reviled him and said, “You are His disciple, but we are Moses’ disciples. 29 We know that God spoke to Moses; as for this fellow, we do not know where He is from.”30 The man answered and said to them, “Why, this is a marvelous thing, that you do not know where He is from; yet He has opened my eyes! 31 Now we know that God does not hear sinners; but if anyone is a worshiper of God and does His will, He hears him. 32 Since the world began it has been unheard of that anyone opened the eyes of one who was born blind. 33 If this Man were not from God, He could do nothing.”34 They answered and said to him, “You were completely born in sins, and are you teaching us?” And they cast him out.

Ahem ..... OHHH YEAH he was teaching them! The unworthy timid outcast who now SEES the truth was SENT (Siloam) to speak the truth to the blind! 

35 Jesus heard that they had cast him out; and when He had found him, He said to him, “Do you believe in the Son of God?”36 He

answered and said, “Who is He, Lord, that I may believe in Him? 37 And Jesus said to him, “You have both seen Him and it is He who is talking with you.”

38 Then he said, “Lord, I believe!” And he worshiped Him.39 And Jesus said, “For judgment I have come into this world, that those who do not see may see, and that those who see may be made blind.”40 Then some of the Pharisees who were with Him heard these words, and said to Him, “Are we blind also? (if I were one of the disciples this is where I'd YELL at the top of my lungs "You better believe dat!") ”41 Jesus said to them, “If you were blind, you would have no sin; but now you say, ‘We see.’ Therefore your sin remains.

Child of God, you are free! You are not the outcast of God. He has not cast you out of His fold because of sins you commit. He will not spit in your face nor kick dust in your eyes, but instead wants you to be healed. Don't believe the lie of your insecurities. Whom the Son sets free is free indeed. Be free Bride! You are washed, you are clean, you are being groomed for the wedding night to the one that CHOSE you! Yes you were Chosen! You are His Bride. You are the Fathers Child. Side note, just speculating, but I bet that this guys family was restored too. If this man held resentment to his mother and father for the sins that were passed down to him making him blind or how they put him on the streets, then I'm sure that the WORD right before he was physically healed, also healed this relationship (see below).

“It was neither that this man sinned, nor his parents; but it was so that the works of God might be displayed in him.

How awesome that God sent this man to the very destruction (teaching of the pharisees) that caused him all his problems and in the midst he was reunited with his family. I believe God is in the business of setting you free, yes, but also setting you free to SEE your family the way He sees them. Don't be BLINDsided! See them with the eyes of God. 

I hope this blesses you. This is a longer than usual letter. Thank you for taking the time. God bless! Now “Go, wash in the pool of Siloam”! Amen!

Written by Rich Cohrs

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