“The Same Old, Same Old”

Part 1

By Rayola Kelley

What is your attitude towards the Word of God? When I first became a Christian, the main emphasis of the small church I attended was that I needed to know the Word of God. They encouraged memorization, learning where the books of the Bible were, and reading it from Genesis to Revelation. In my immaturity, I approached it from an intellectual level to know what it said, but I did not approach it to simply believe it so I could apply it to my life.

       Granted, there was no debate in my mind that the Bible was God’s Word, but I wanted to understand it without realizing that understanding it was not the same as knowing it. To know the Word would mean I would have to know the author of the Word. I had vague religious notions about God and sentimental concepts about certain things, but I did not really know God. After all, He is unseen and operates in the dimension of eternity. The only way we can know God is by His Spirit (1 Corinthians 2:10-15).

       Eventually I ended up with some knowledge about the Bible that inflated my conceit but did not bring nourishment to my soul. Just as Romans 10:2-3 warns, I had a zeal for God, but I was ignorant towards what constituted His righteousness. Instead of being established on the Word of God, I was “top heavy” with specific knowledge, causing me to be puffed up about it, and I lacked life, love, and power in my life (1 Corinthians 8:1-2). I would later learn that my emphasis was more towards the milk of doctrine and my understanding of some of the fundamental Christian beliefs became my “pacifier” that allowed me to find false consolation when it came to the inconsistencies that plagued my life. I found myself taking detours away from my real calling to truly live the life of Christ by faith in obedience to His Word. This departure caused me to fall further away from what I understood, into a state of hypocrisy that clearly showed I was not practicing what I often preached.

       It is amazing how we Christians struggle with the same issues because we have knowledge of the Christian life, often via certain doctrines, but how many of us are living the life of Christ? It is easy to get caught up doctrine, church activities, and what appears to be noble causes in ministry, but what we must develop in our lives is the life of Christ. To have the life of Christ means we must have an intimate, growing relationship with the Lord that allows us to become more like Him as we take up His likeness (Romans 8:29). We must come into those places that encourage such a relationship.

       How many of us know what it means to be shut in with God? There is a chorus that goes along with this theme, “Shut in with God in the secret place, There in the Spirit beholding His face, Gaining new power to run in the race, How I long to be shut in with God.”  To be shut in with God does not have to do with coming into some altered state of mind, but coming into that place where it is finally just you and Him. This place is where you can finally hear the Lord and truly commune with Him. I know in the case of the Shulamite girl in the Song of Solomon, sweet fellowship began at the table, led into secret places of the stairs, graduated to the chambers, and ended in a garden (Song of Solomon 2:4, 14; 3:4; 5:1).

       Although we hear much about having a relationship with God, how many of us have truly developed a healthy, intimate relationship with Him through Jesus Christ? After all, Jesus desires friendship with us and not sporadic service in which intensity fades in and out according to emotional sentiment or zeal (John 15:15).  God’s Spirit must be the one who influences us the most, His Word must direct every step, and His way of righteousness is the narrow path I must choose to walk in daily. To develop such a life we must know, breathe, and live Jesus’ life. The Apostle Paul put it in this way in Galatians 2:20, “I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me.”

       The great test of every generation has been truth. Lies, seduction and deception abound because each age conditions man to compromise here and there with the truth to show a more tolerable side when it comes to the fundamental beliefs of Christianity. Some would have themselves to believe that they want to show a more compassionate side to Christianity by compromising the truth, but what they lack is a true love for the truth which will put them in a precarious situation (2 Thessalonians 2:10-12). The tendency to dance with any of the godless philosophies of the world to appear wise and up to date is what sets man up to fall into the traps of Satan (Colossians 2:8).

       How many are taking to heart the warning found in Ephesians 4:14? It seems that many are taken away with the latest rogue wave when it comes to the fads, beliefs, and movements that roll in with heretical leaders and their seducing doctrines of demons (1 Timothy 4:1). I know for myself that the greatest obstacle that keeps me, along with many others, from examining themselves when it comes to truth, is believing they can’t be deceived. The awareness that we are prone to deception not only can bring some reverence in our attitude towards God, but it can cause us to walk carefully when it comes to the Word of God. We just can’t assume and presume all is well in our spiritual lives, but we must examine ourselves to see if we are really in the true faith (2 Corinthians 13:5). After all, we can know the Bible, quote it, and stand for it, but if we do not believe it enough to obey it, we will find ourselves in a crisis of faith where what we do believe will mock, or bring a great indictment, against us.  

        Many declare they know the truth but when all is said and done, how many are firmly standing on it? Those who stand on it in confidence not only know a matter is true when it comes to God’s Word, but they believe the instruction of the Word enough to walk it out daily in obedience to confirm its validity (Romans 10:17). Walking a truth out by faith is the only way one can know if what they claim to believe is true because it will stand when being tested by the reality of the present life. And, truth will always be tested in some fashion because people prefer to water the truth down, take the sharp cutting edges out of it, and adjust it to fit their particular narrative or emphasis (2 Corinthians 5:7; Hebrews 4:12; 1 Peter 1:5-9).  

       The truth is God’s Word is eternal and it will remain standing when all else has been taken out by the waves of judgment. The question is, what does it take to make sure we are standing on the sure foundation of Jesus Christ and His immovable Word? (Psalm 119:89; 1 Corinthians 3:11; 1 Peter 1:23-25) We all know the answer to this question. In fact, many will say it is the same old, same old answer. They may quietly say, “Is there nothing more you can add to the answer to lighten it up, give some instruction that will not make the task seem so unobtainable and unbearable, and give keys that will help one to unlock that which is confusing and mysterious?”

       The answer is we need to read, meditate upon, study, wisely apply, and live out in obedience the Word of God (Psalm 119:148; 2 Timothy 2:15-16; 3:15-17; Hebrews 5:8-9). So many times, we stop at those scriptures that mean something to us, but we tread no further to discover the eternal aspects of God’s Word. We see only those verses that agree with our understanding of God and doctrine in order to avoid being challenged by some unpleasant waves that might cause us to question if we have gone far enough to truly understand what the Bible is saying about all matters concerning life and godliness (2 Peter 1:3-4). There are those who only speak of the “positives” of Scriptures such as His promises while ignoring the “negatives” such as the conditions attached to each promise, as well as warnings of judgments and consequences, along with exhortations to believers to obey, prepare, and be ready to stand when the challenging storms of this age hit us.

       Even though we don’t want to admit it, the only sure antidote to deception is the truth of God’s Word, but it is not just reading or studying the Word that ensures the proper results. To make sure that the Word is living and powerful, we need the Holy Spirit as our teacher to bring both depths and heights to God’s Word. We often quote how truth makes us free, but there are not many that understand in what way truth becomes the means to set someone free (John 8:32; 16:13; 1 John 2:27). People, in fact, have vague notions about freedom in this country because we have been told we are free when in reality we are not.

       The reality is everyone that is in this world is in bondage to something. Whether it be governments, tyrants, or unseen forces, slavery abounds. And when you see the conditioning and influence of godless, pagan cultures, demonic seduction and evil indoctrination of man, it makes him even greater prey to the lies and false promises of his age. We all have been made dependents on Satan’s systems in order to function, but if predators are not nipping at us, systems are proving to be parasitic as they suck the life out of us and bleed us dry of any resolve, energy or life. If there is any notion being presented of being weaned from it, it can lead to great panic because we know nothing but our slavery. We are being oppressed in every way from taxation, to our speech being stifled, often falsely accused because of our faith to silence us, bullied because of our moral standing, and mocked because we will not move from what we know is true and righteous.

       There are many that want to live the Christian life, but feel powerless in doing so because of entanglements with this world. They may have good doctrine, but doctrine tells you how something must be executed, but often it is void of power that enables one to walk it out. The power in doctrine comes when we truly walk it out. We begin to understand the will of God as it leads us to recognize the benefits of doing it His way.

       In this world man will be made slaves to it, and this brings us back to who or what we serve. There are only two masters, sin that leads back to the god of this age, or God who leads us to life and righteousness that brings us to places of true liberty where we can face God and ourselves. The freedom Jesus talks about is truth that brings spiritual liberty from mental oppression, tormenting realities, fearful existences, and confusing environments. Whether we believe it or not, we do have a choice as to who we serve. We can be servants of sin and slaves to Satan, or be bondservants to Jesus and know the freedom to serve God in an honorable way (Romans 6:12-20).

       We are told in John 8:36 that it is Jesus who sets us free. Remember, Jesus is the truth, and the Holy Spirit is the One who leads us into all truth about Him (John 14:6; 16:13). The more we love the Jesus of the Bible and grow in the real knowledge of Him, the purer our life and service will be to Him.

       It is true that the answer to the question of what it means to truly mature as a Christian may be the same old, same old answer, but the discoveries about the Lord in Scripture are not the same old, same old. They are surprising, wonderful and glorious. You never know how deep they will take you in your search and how high they will bring you as to the revelations that will be revealed to you by His Spirit.

       The final truth is you will never know the great depths and heights of Scripture until you step towards God’s Word, believing it is His precious Word. It is by faith you take one step at a time into it, knowing that each step will give you the opportunity to discover untold riches, incredible revelations, and sustaining blessings and knowledge of what is truly everlasting.     

What is your attitude
towards the Word of God? When I first became a Christian, the main emphasis of
the small church I attended was that I needed to know the Word of God. They
encouraged memorization, learning where the books of the Bible were, and
reading it from Genesis to Revelation. In my immaturity, I approached it from
an intellectual level to know what it said, but I did not approach it to simply
believe it so I could apply it to my life.        Granted, there was no debate in my mind that the Bible was
God’s Word, but I wanted to understand it without realizing that understanding
it was not the same as knowing it. To know the Word would mean I would have to
know the author of the Word. I had vague religious notions about God and sentimental
concepts about certain things, but I did not really know God. After all, He is
unseen and operates in the dimension of eternity. The only way we can know God
is by His Spirit (1 Corinthians 2:10-15).        Eventually I ended up with some knowledge about the Bible that
inflated my conceit but did not bring nourishment to my soul. Just as Romans
10:2-3 warns, I had a zeal for God, but I was ignorant towards what
constituted His righteousness. Instead of being established on the Word of God,
I was “top heavy” with specific knowledge, causing me to be puffed up about it,
and I lacked life, love, and power in my life (1 Corinthians 8:1-2). I
would later learn that my emphasis was more towards the milk of doctrine and my
understanding of some of the fundamental Christian beliefs became my “pacifier”
that allowed me to find false consolation when it came to the inconsistencies
that plagued my life. I found myself taking detours away from my real calling
to truly live the life of Christ by faith in obedience to His Word. This
departure caused me to fall further away from what I understood, into a state
of hypocrisy that clearly showed I was not practicing what I often preached.        It is amazing how we Christians struggle with the same issues
because we have knowledge of the Christian life, often via certain doctrines,
but how many of us are living the life of Christ? It is easy to get caught up
doctrine, church activities, and what appears to be noble causes in ministry,
but what we must develop in our lives is the life of Christ. To have the life
of Christ means we must have an intimate, growing relationship with the Lord
that allows us to become more like Him as we take up His likeness (Romans
8:29). We must come into those places that encourage such a relationship.       How many of us know what it means to be shut in with God?
There is a chorus that goes along with this theme, “Shut in with God in the
secret place, There in the Spirit beholding His face, Gaining new power to run
in the race, How I long to be shut in with God.”  To be shut in with God does not have to do
with coming into some altered state of mind, but coming into that place where it
is finally just you and Him. This place is where you can finally hear the Lord
and truly commune with Him. I know in the case of the Shulamite girl in the
Song of Solomon, sweet fellowship began at the table, led into secret places of
the stairs, graduated to the chambers, and ended in a garden (Song of
Solomon 2:4, 14; 3:4; 5:1).        Although we hear much about having a relationship with God, how
many of us have truly developed a healthy, intimate relationship with Him
through Jesus Christ? After all, Jesus desires friendship with us and not
sporadic service in which intensity fades in and out according to emotional
sentiment or zeal (John 15:15).  God’s
Spirit must be the one who influences us the most, His Word must direct every
step, and His way of righteousness is the narrow path I must choose to walk in daily.
To develop such a life we must know, breathe, and live Jesus’ life. The Apostle
Paul put it in this way in Galatians 2:20, “I am crucified with Christ:
nevertheless I live; yet not I but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I
now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and
gave himself for me.”       The great test of every generation has been truth. Lies,
seduction and deception abound because each age conditions man to compromise
here and there with the truth to show a more tolerable side when it comes to the
fundamental beliefs of Christianity. Some would have themselves to believe that
they want to show a more compassionate side to Christianity by compromising the
truth, but what they lack is a true love for the truth which will put them in a
precarious situation (2 Thessalonians 2:10-12). The tendency to dance
with any of the godless philosophies of the world to appear wise and up to date
is what sets man up to fall into the traps of Satan (Colossians 2:8).        How many are taking to heart the warning found in Ephesians
4:14? It seems that many are taken away with the latest rogue wave when it
comes to the fads, beliefs, and movements that roll in with heretical leaders and
their seducing doctrines of demons (1 Timothy 4:1). I know for myself
that the greatest obstacle that keeps me, along with many others, from
examining themselves when it comes to truth, is believing they can’t be deceived.
The awareness that we are prone to deception not only can bring some reverence
in our attitude towards God, but it can cause us to walk carefully when it
comes to the Word of God. We just can’t assume and presume all is well in our
spiritual lives, but we must examine ourselves to see if we are really in the
true faith (2 Corinthians 13:5). After all, we can know the Bible, quote
it, and stand for it, but if we do not believe it enough to obey it, we will
find ourselves in a crisis of faith where what we do believe will mock, or
bring a great indictment, against us.          Many declare they know
the truth but when all is said and done, how many are firmly standing on it? Those
who stand on it in confidence not only know a matter is true when it comes to
God’s Word, but they believe the instruction of the Word enough to walk it out
daily in obedience to confirm its validity (Romans 10:17). Walking a
truth out by faith is the only way one can know if what they claim to believe
is true because it will stand when being tested by the reality of the present
life. And, truth will always be tested in some fashion because people prefer to
water the truth down, take the sharp cutting edges out of it, and adjust it to
fit their particular narrative or emphasis (2 Corinthians 5:7; Hebrews 4:12;
1 Peter 1:5-9).         The truth is God’s Word is eternal and it will remain standing
when all else has been taken out by the waves of judgment. The question is,
what does it take to make sure we are standing on the sure foundation of Jesus
Christ and His immovable Word? (Psalm 119:89; 1 Corinthians 3:11; 1 Peter
1:23-25) We all know the answer to this question. In fact, many will say it
is the same old, same old answer. They may quietly say, “Is there nothing more
you can add to the answer to lighten it up, give some instruction that will not
make the task seem so unobtainable and unbearable, and give keys that will help
one to unlock that which is confusing and mysterious?”        The answer is we need to read, meditate upon, study, wisely apply,
and live out in obedience the Word of God (Psalm 119:148; 2 Timothy 2:15-16;
3:15-17; Hebrews 5:8-9). So many times, we stop at those scriptures that
mean something to us, but we tread no further to discover the eternal aspects
of God’s Word. We see only those verses that agree with our understanding of
God and doctrine in order to avoid being challenged by some unpleasant waves
that might cause us to question if we have gone far enough to truly understand
what the Bible is saying about all matters concerning life and godliness (2
Peter 1:3-4). There are those who only speak of the “positives” of
Scriptures such as His promises while ignoring the “negatives” such as the
conditions attached to each promise, as well as warnings of judgments and
consequences, along with exhortations to believers to obey, prepare, and be
ready to stand when the challenging storms of this age hit us.        Even though we don’t want to admit it, the only sure antidote
to deception is the truth of God’s Word, but it is not just reading or studying
the Word that ensures the proper results. To make sure that the Word is living
and powerful, we need the Holy Spirit as our teacher to bring both depths and
heights to God’s Word. We often quote how truth makes us free, but there are
not many that understand in what way truth becomes the means to set someone
free (John 8:32; 16:13; 1 John 2:27). People, in fact, have vague notions
about freedom in this country because we have been told we are free when in
reality we are not.       The reality is everyone that is in this world is in bondage to
something. Whether it be governments, tyrants, or unseen forces, slavery
abounds. And when you see the conditioning and influence of godless, pagan
cultures, demonic seduction and evil indoctrination of man, it makes him even
greater prey to the lies and false promises of his age. We all have been made
dependents on Satan’s systems in order to function, but if predators are not
nipping at us, systems are proving to be parasitic as they suck the life out of
us and bleed us dry of any resolve, energy or life. If there is any notion being
presented of being weaned from it, it can lead to great panic because we know
nothing but our slavery. We are being oppressed in every way from taxation, to
our speech being stifled, often falsely accused because of our faith to silence
us, bullied because of our moral standing, and mocked because we will not move
from what we know is true and righteous.        There are many that want to live the Christian life, but feel
powerless in doing so because of entanglements with this world. They may have
good doctrine, but doctrine tells you how something must be executed, but often
it is void of power that enables one to walk it out. The power in doctrine
comes when we truly walk it out. We begin to understand the will of God as it
leads us to recognize the benefits of doing it His way.        In this world man will be made slaves to it, and this brings
us back to who or what we serve. There are only two masters, sin that leads
back to the god of this age, or God who leads us to life and righteousness that
brings us to places of true liberty where we can face God and ourselves. The
freedom Jesus talks about is truth that brings spiritual liberty from mental
oppression, tormenting realities, fearful existences, and confusing
environments. Whether we believe it or not, we do have a choice as to who we
serve. We can be servants of sin and slaves to Satan, or be bondservants to
Jesus and know the freedom to serve God in an honorable way (Romans 6:12-20).
       We are told in John 8:36 that it is Jesus who sets us
free. Remember, Jesus is the truth, and the Holy Spirit is the One who leads us
into all truth about Him (John 14:6; 16:13). The more we love the Jesus
of the Bible and grow in the real knowledge of Him, the purer our life and
service will be to Him.       It is true that the answer to the question of what it means to
truly mature as a Christian may be the same old, same old answer, but the
discoveries about the Lord in Scripture are not the same old, same old. They
are surprising, wonderful and glorious. You never know how deep they will take
you in your search and how high they will bring you as to the revelations that
will be revealed to you by His Spirit.       The final truth is you will never know the great depths and
heights of Scripture until you step towards God’s Word, believing it is His
precious Word. It is by faith you take one step at a time into it, knowing that
each step will give you the opportunity to discover untold riches, incredible
revelations, and sustaining blessings and knowledge of what is truly
everlasting.