The Potter's House: The Forming Pt.4

The Potter’s House: The Forming

And the vessel that he was making from clay was spoiled in the hand of the potter; so he made it over, reworking it into another vessel as it seemed good to the potter to make it. Jeremiah 18:4 (Amplified Bible)

Christian! What does this label mean? There are so many people today that call themselves Christian and so many different displays of “Christianity” it leaves to reason why many find it so suspect in our society today. Politicians when running for office are quick to cater to the Christian coalition to muster up much needed votes to seat them into office and when they win the office, the Christianity that they spouted is nowhere close to what it should be. Movie stars and other personalities spout Christianity as well; but what does it really mean to be a Christian?

I don’t want to make you feel that I am on a tangent or that I am out to present myself as having obtained, for I do continue to press toward the mark of the prize of the high call of God that is in Christ Jesus. My objective is to address the “believer” that is not content on being as he or she is year after year using for an excuse the old James Cleveland mantra, “Please be patient with me, God isn’t through with me yet.” To some degree that might be true, but at what time in our life do we stop being content with mediocre Christianity of going to church allowing the preacher to decode The Book for us?

True Christianity should be about becoming “Christ-like” from the inside out. This may be a tough pill to swallow, but the gospel has been watered down so much that it is becoming intrinsically hard to determine the “have’s” from the “have not’s” in terms of a devout change for the cause.

Christ did not die so you and I could go to heaven. I am going to say it again, CHRIST DID NOT DIE ON THE CROSS SO YOU AND I CAN GO TO HEAVEN.

Those of you that have continued on to get the end of the matter, thank you! The truth of the gospel is about being transformed by the renewing of your mind, and about losing all levels of world conformity (see Romans 12:1-2).

We have allowed the gospel to become so watered down that with all due respect, many of the pulpits across the American stage has adopted an “anything goes” mentality. Song and dancing the members with prosperity this and prosperity that. God is calling for a prosperous people, but that prosperity should be witnessed from within first. Seek first the KINGDOM OF GOD and His RIGHTEOUSNESS (Matthew 6:33). Not the righteousness of the religious organization you are a part of, not the kingdoms built up by men, for men, but God’s righteousness and TRUE HOLINESS! The Tower of Babel is among us again, but in the form of institutions that are bent on finding another way to God’s throne.

There is the homosexual agenda, the independent woman agenda, the attacks on the institution of family and marriage are run amuck; and the church stands back on its heels being silent.

Why?

One reason for this may have to do with the fact that we have sleeper cells in the church hiding their homosexuality, lesbianism and adultery to name a few, not to mention preaching of “another gospel” without accountability and responsibility to the mandates of the Word of God that have all but become options: “Obey the Word of God if you want to.”

We are become like unto the Pharisees and Sadducees, spiritually malnourished and abundantly fat with religious concepts that DO NOT and CAN NOT change us into men and women of purity.

Through the shed blood of Calvary, we were initiated into the royal family, but that is not the only part of the work of God in the life of the Believer; in one verse the writer talked about following on to know the Lord; and more importantly, to be known of the Lord.

I read an article that talked about an Episcopal Gay Priest retiring from the ministry. I don’t want to come across as condemning when I say what I am about to say. God did not die on the cross so that we could walk according to our humanity being “filthy still” – we are to be TRANSFORMED.

The word of God in John 3:16 states, “For God so loved the world that HE gave HIS only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth on HIM shall not perish, but shall have EVERLASTING LIFE.”

Just what exactly does that mean? What is wrong with the life that we have?

The life that you had in the flesh was centered in iniquity (lawlessness) and sin (unbelief); note what David says about his human “condition”: Psalms 51:5 – “Behold, I was shapen in iniquity; and in sin did my mother conceive me. Now why is it that David can understand the human “condition” and the need for change; and we in this modern era cannot?

We have cussing Christians, drinking Christians, homosexual Christians, adultery committing Christians, lying Christians and year after year there is the dim point of view of the so called Christian, that they are doing the best they can, for the Lord understands their heart.

Yes! The Lord does understand the heart, and that’s why HE made a way of escape from the darkness of sin and the sin-nature the writer in the Pauline letter of Romans wrote this in the sixth verse of chapter six; “For he that is DEAD is FREED FROM SIN.”

Christ came from heaven to earth to show the way, from the cross to the grave, from the grave to the sky, infusing us with the ability to be FREED FROM SIN; not to wallow in it like a pig, as so many do. We have made shipwreck of the glorious gospel becoming lovers of pleasure more than we have become lovers of God. The Lord is searching for a HOLY PEOPLE; not the denomination, but THE LIFESTYLE. Listen dear reader, I am not coming to you with a finger of condemnation and self-righteous judgment; but what I am saying, is take a good hard look at the effort the Father has made to make man righteous and yet, we offer so many jelly back excuses as to why we cannot live free from sin. I know for myself when I committed brazened acts of disobedience it had nothing to do with God’s word being ineffective, but more to do with what I wanted. This is why the Word of God tells us to draw near unto God and He would draw near unto us; but we must want to be held accountable to what the will of the Lord is over our own.

I refuse to give into the notion that this is the best Christian I can be until I get to a place called Heaven. Christ walked in the human condition to show you and I the potential we have inside; and to rid us from the old Adamic nature.

We are to serve God in the newness, and this requires that we cast down the lifestyle of the flesh and live after the spirit: “For those who are according to the flesh and are controlled by its unholy desires set their minds on and pursue those things which gratify the flesh, but those who are according to the Spirit and are controlled by the desires of the Spirit set their minds on and seek those things which gratify the [Holy] Spirit” (Romans 8:5 Amplified Bible).

The Christian lifestyle can be successfully lived when we allow the Holy Spirit to TRANSFORM our thinking. The King James Version of Romans 8:5 says, “For they that are after the flesh do mind the things of the flesh; but they that are after the Spirit the things of the Spirit.”

Beloved, we need more individuals that are willing to go through TRANSFORMATION OF THE MIND. In order for this to be actualized in our life we need to have confidence in the finish work of Christ and allow the Christ to be risen in our hearts and not just on Easter Sunday; for God, through the Christ, shall arise in our hearts; the enemies of God shall be scattered. Most who confess the Christian way are only aware of being justified, but there is so much more to Christ; for He delivers, does deliver, and will yet deliver: “But we had the sentence of death in ourselves, that we should not trust in ourselves, but in God which raiseth the dead: Who delivered us from so great a death, and doth deliver: in whom we trust that he will yet deliver us;” (II Corinthians 1:8-10). There is much more to your deliverance, your salvation your exodus from the world, you have been called from darkness into light; and when the true light shines upon you, no longer will you give way to the gray area of shadows.

It is through the loving hands of God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit that you and I are formed. In the old man Adam we are conFORMED, but through Christ we are transFORMED. The Father with each push of the clay moves us toward Christ likeness, shaping our clay and cutting our clay, until HE sees the son of God coming through.

Prosperity messages push us to acquire things, houses, land and cars, and hear me, there is absolutely nothing wrong with having stuff, but when stuff takes precedents over your coming into the image of the Christ, then there is a problem. How many individuals have ended their life while living in a lavish house, driving a lavish car, and wearing the latest and greatest; but are filled with ever increasing glimpses of the un-changed Adam?

Every son of God must go through the shaping, fulfilling the will of God. I can attest to the need to allow God to shape the will, because there was a period of time when I shunned being transformed. I felt justified within myself to operate in pity, hate, and bitterness, because of things that “church folk” did to me; and the things I did to them and to myself. I forsook my calling to ministry, to the point that church was a distasteful preoccupation of my time. I did not want any parts of what church stood for, and for me it stood for people using me, speaking ill of me, leaving me for dead after they had sucked the life out of me, spiritually, financially, emotionally and on and on. Dear soul, God is not concerned with the mundane things that we get bogged down with, HIS care is related to you and I becoming as HE is in this present world (see I John 4:17).