Good Afternoon Brothers in Christ,
I pray you are daily receiving the Spirit of wisdom and revelation of the knowledge of Christ through His Word. There have been challenges the past two weeks with the hurricane, damage, lost power, lost connectivity, etc. for many people in the Greater Tampa Area. There is so much to teach and learn through the event from God’s Word. I’ve certainly heard many people in South Florida and Northeast Florida as well as Houston and surrounding areas speak to such things as God using this for His glory, God using it to judge wickedness, etc. All of this is hogwash. Sadly, many who are saying this are professed Believers. I can understand the unsaved saying this – they don’t know any better. But, to have a Believer saying this is heartbreaking. It shows they don’t know their own Father, they don’t have a real relationship with Him, they don’t know God’s truth – His Word. This email will not deal with this. We’ll talk to this in Caleb’s Promise at some point.
Are you being served? John 13:7-8 says:
7 Jesus answered and said unto him, What I do thou knowest not now; but thou shalt know hereafter.
This occurs after the Last Supper, the Feast of the Passover. Jesus begins washing and drying the disciple’s feet. When He reaches Peter, Peter ask Him, “Lord dost thou wash my feet?”
Peter was refusing Jesus’ desire to wash Peter’s feet. Why? Because Peter knew that he, Peter, was totally unworthy to have the sinless one, the King, washing his feet as a servant. In Peter’s mind, there is no way the Creator of Heaven and Earth was going to wash his feet. He, Peter, should be washing Jesus’ feet, instead. What do you think of this? It certainly sounds like Peter has the right thinking. It sounds as if Peter is a humble, unassuming servant – someone the King of Kings would be proud of for Peter’s humility and stand. Brothers, we have all been taught this and believed this for years. It couldn’t be further from the truth.
In reality, Peter was very prideful and self centered with his refusal of Jesus washing his feet. Peter was refusing the “WILL” of his King. Ouch!! Yes, that’s exactly what I said when I received the revelation of these scriptures. How many times have I refused the will of my Father, my King? Pages could be written on these scriptures. But, we’ll keep it very short and to the point.
Peter, when he stood and refused to be served, represented the Law, the Old Covenant. Under the Law, man had to serve God. Man had to perform for God’s approval. Jesus, when He knelt to wash the feet, represented Grace, the New Covenant replacing the Law. Under the New Covenant, God serves man. Man does not have to perform for God’s approval. God’s approval is given, in total, when we accept Jesus Christ as our Savior. This is why Jesus replied to Peter in verse 8 saying, “If I wash thee not, thou hast no part with Me.” Jesus was saying, those that live under the Law have no part with me, but they are judged by the Law. If you allow Me to serve you, you are under My Grace, and you are judged by MY ACTIONS. WOW!!!!!! Man, I have chill bumps right now. Hallelujah we are judged ONLY BY JESUS’ ACTIONS.
To be judged under the Law is eternal death for the unsaved. To be judged under the Law is temporal death for the saved. This means those that die under the Law are condemned to hell for all eternity. Those who are saved, but continue to live under the Law on this earth will suffer temporal, or temporary, death each day. Once the saved die and go to heaven, they are released from the Law under which they’ve self imposed themselves.
Brothers, don’t refuse God’s blessings to you and your family because of false and misguided humility. As we learned in our last Caleb’s Promise, “humility” is “complete trust in God.” If we reject part of God’s Word, then we have false humility, we are prideful, self centered, and self willed. This is exactly what Jesus was communicating to Peter and the other disciples during the washing of the feet. By refusing Jesus’ will for our lives, we are refusing His blessings on our life. We know the Promise given to us through Abraham and his Seed, Jesus Christ: God will bless us, make our names great, and we will be a blessing to others.” The devil has crept into the church and deceived many Believers into believing they must perform for God in order to get God to approve and move for them. This is simply Anti-Christ. If this were true, we would have to tear John 13 out of the Bible. We would have to put Christ on the cross repeatedly.
IN ORDER TO BE A BLESSING TO OTHERS, AS WE ARE COMMANDED, WE FIRST HAVE TO LET GOD BLESS US AS HE DESIRES TO DO. ELSE WE WILL NEVER FULFILL GOD’S WILL FOR OUR LIVES.
As Andrew Wommack would say, “You’ve Already Got It!” So, quit begging, groveling, praying the heavens to part, praying God to rain down blessings, praying God to stand for you, to heal you, to prosper you, to deliver you. It was all done before the foundation of the earth and finished at the Cross. This is why Jesus said, “It is finished!” Praise God folks, it is all done. Now, just stand on God’s Word and decree your environment. It’s already been done.
Bless all of you.
Larry