Next week, however, I will be enrolled in the Bethel School of Supernatural Ministry which is a full-on, broad-screen, technicolor course in life as a Christian. It’s full time, and has a reputation for taking all of one’s time, especially if you really are a serious student, which I want to be, in order to get the most out of the experience.

Therefore, my posts will be, at best, irregular, and maybe disappear completely for the next 9 months. I’m not sure that I’ll be able to afford the time to compose and write a post each week.

In house construction, when a house has its foundation, all its framing, has windows and doors installed and has a completed roof, it is called “dried in.” It can be closed and locked, and it won’t be damaged if it rains or snows, but it can’t be lived in. It needs water and electricity, tile, nice cabinets, fixtures, etc. etc.

As a metaphor, I think my Christian life has been very well ‘dried in.’ It has a good foundation, solid structure, and is secure, but there are large areas that this intensive school will add to me that will be life-giving. I will receive from the Lord new, dynamic, powerful, bold, confident abilities and understandings that will add a great deal of life. Many self-imposed limitations will be removed. Faith will come for more of God’s reality to be displayed.

I hope that, in the absence of this weekly few paragraphs, you will get one of my books from the website, danlemaire.com, and read a few paragraphs each day or each week, and find some of the same flavor of faith-filled inspirational reading that you have found here. And you have permission always to get in touch with me by email at 345lemaire@gmail.com

All grace to you,

Dan

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There are a lot of creation stories in different cultures, but none that I have heard speak of, “worlds prepared by the word of God so that what is seen was not made out of things which are visible.” (Heb 11:3)

Many cultural legends tell about how mankind was tricked by a deceiver and fell from a glorious place of life into the present chaos that is now the blight of every society. God, the one true God, loves mankind so much that He would take our vileness upon Himself to atone for it and grant mankind an opportunity to return to that glorious place of life again.

That scenario is dependent upon the coming of a Savior, a messiah. He has come. And He is coming back to bring an end to this era, a time often called “the day of the Lord.” Other cultures and religions are still expecting a messiah, notably, the Buddhists, Muslims, Hindus, Jews, Indonesians, and some Native American tribes. But He has already come, just as predicted, and He will return to bring a final end.

God’s Kingdom is so other-worldly that its most diligent devotees don’t pretend to understand how His generous dealings with us work by grace, or how the most tragic circumstances which life hands to us can be transformed into a song like, “It is well with my soul.”

There will be an eternity to worship Him and learn of His unfathomable glory.

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Well-written fantasy is not confusing to the reader because the features of the world and the principles of how things happen there are made clear: what kind of creatures are there; who has power; who rules that world, and which characters in the story oppose that rule with a different kind of power. One common feature of fantasy is that there exists a struggle between good and evil or between success and failure which provides the thread of the story.

Christian fiction, which I wrote a little about last week, has the incredible advantage of not needing to do much world-building. All of the principles of a real world with God in it are already established. What is needed, and Christian fiction can do this very well, is the story to expose the fabulous truths of God’s work among men which is truly fantastic, without being fantasy.

Universally, the ideas we have about God are based on the reality of Himself. False gods exist because there is the real God. Without him, it would take a genius world- builder to come up with the idea of an invisible being so great, so powerful, and so in love with mankind.

It would be a further great stroke of genius to create a plot in which such a God would send Himself in the flesh to live among us, demonstrate the perfection of holiness and love that is in His Kingdom, and then render Himself as a guilt offering for all mankind. How fantastic is that? You can’t make this stuff up!

Furthermore, it would take a master of creativity to devise how the affects of such a great sacrifice could be, for all time, activated for each individual by their simply believing with the heart and confessing with the mouth what God has done, resulting in character transformation and behavior modification that cannot be explained by anything but supernatural intervention.

All of this fantastic truth, and more, is already existent in our world, but it is not very generally recognized. One of my goals as an author is to use the fantasy-like reality of God’s love and work expressed among us as fabric for great stories that can unveil the truths that we all need to grasp. Deep Delta T, The Second Arrival, and Mission Earth are the three books of the Delta T trilogy which are my beginning ventures into this goal.

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I confess I haven’t read much of it since I read Peretti’s “This Present Darkness” many years ago, which was such a good series based on Biblical truth, but weaving it through an entirely made-up story. Most of what I have tried to read since then took too much liberty with adding the fictional parts, especially in attempts to tell Bible stories in a narrative form. I like the Bible stories just the way they are in my daily reading. Inspired scripture is amazing writing that withstands being re-read many times, always revealing new things.

Another genre, ‘Historical Fiction’ takes a setting in history and weaves a story that is profoundly impacted by what is going on during that historical time, for example, a fictional story about people who were living and working, or just growing up, when Harry Truman was president, people who saw the end of World War Two, heard about Hiroshima and Nagasaki and celebrated in the streets when the soldiers came home. Such a narrative, if well done, would bring to life that era of history, and would be a very good read.

I love those historical fiction stories. Christian fiction, at its best, is similar to historical fiction. In Christian Fiction there is a broad range of Christian context that can provide the backdrop for completely fictional stories based on those Biblical truths. Those truths take on new life and become more applicable to our own lives as we travel through a page-turner of a narrative.

As I look over the several books I have written, the most inspiring writing I ever did was as I wrote the Delta T Trilogy, which is just that kind of story in which Christian truths come alive as the reader walks through the fictional adventure, experiences challenges, faces mysteries, and makes life-changing discoveries.

I recently re-read the entire series, which I started writing over six years ago, so it had been a long time since it was published. I told a new friend about what fun it was to read it again after all that time, and he plead with me to be able to read the trilogy. We made a trade; he gave me his professional consultation free, and I gave him the three books. I look forward to hearing about his experience as he reads them.

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If the car is a newer BMW, it feels more distinctly a part of our identity than if it is a 2015 Buick. Similarly, a house in a prestigious neighborhood has a very different kind of hold on us than a tract home.

My point is that, to some degree, what we own possesses us. Our belongings have an influence upon us that is similar to a leash, limiting how far we can go in pursuit of life’s wider opportunities and what God might invite us to do.

Not owning a home at all yields something that some would call ‘freedom,’ the opportunity to move and go, and others might call it being ‘drifty.’ On the side of those calling it freedom, there are some prominent people in my acquaintance who did not own a home and lived in much freedom and had highly influential lives. I assume that Paul did not own a home; he certainly acted as if he didn’t. Jesus did not own a home. Many people I know who have become missionaries do not own a home.

An established home, especially if it is filled with our special possessions, art work, and memorabilia, becomes an anchor, which on one hand can keep us from drifting, and on the other hand, might keep us from obedience to Matt 28:18, “Go, therefore.”

I’m thinking that real wisdom is required in regard to our possessions, to ensure that our availability to Christ is not hindered by our devotion to things we own.

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I will studiously avoid telling you any of that as well. For me, I had the expectation, which I think was from the Holy Spirit, that the movie was going to speak to me something important from God.

I went with two friends, and we had a discussion about it right after, and at that moment we all agreed, “I’m going to have to think about this for a while before reflecting out loud on my experience.”

It is a lot to digest. Three hours long and quite a complex story-line. If you have read the book recently, you know more about the story and its complications.

Sunday morning I was able to distill my experience down to this: the movie is a broad-screen technicolor portrayal of the problem that exists between man and God. Odysseus is just trying to figure out how to get through life, and the gods are a big part of his perplexity. You may disregard that Odysseus is polytheistic, and just see the story as a tale of man’s problem with God and God’s problem with man. It’s really clear that all is not well between man and God. That’s what I distilled it down to, and it was meaningful to me. I won’t tell you the specific lesson I heard from it because you may see/hear a different principle.

My two friends heard something quite separate from what I received, a unique emphasis, but also quite a personalized reminder from God into their lives.

This is just a meditation on what I got from the movie, from the story, and I hope it is a validation on how important the stories are, the stories to which we subject ourselves. There are some stories that I definitely will not read or watch on a screen, but this one spoke to me and my friends.

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This non-pastor has been led to lead a life that is based on love. “Love Does” is the slogan upon which he lives, and it’s the title of his first book. He believes that love does things. It acts upon love with tangible deeds that are done; over-the-top things that he does to be love for people. They don’t wonder if he loves them; it is clearly expressed in the tangible actions he has done, created, or arranged to bless people. He does crazy things sometimes that no one would ever anticipate or expect, in fact, his friends might even advise against doing some of these things. It is shocking to read about the actions that love has inspired Bob Goff to do.

His second book, Everybody Always continues the string of stories about things that are done in the love of Jesus. Over and over, he writes, “People who are becoming love…” His goal is to inspire us to more than love as a principle and into love that does.

The “love chapter,” I Cor 13, says several things that love doesn’t do, and we tend to major on those; love doesn’t brag, does not take into account a wrong suffered, is not provoked, etc. If we aren’t careful this can become another set of “Thou shalt not…” rules.

What love can do, how your love can be expressed, even through your limited capabilities, will be inspired by the stories in these books.

Think of a simple principle, “love is kind…” Put that on steroids, magnify it, and imagine how you could express over-the-top kindness to someone, anyone, even someone you don’t like very much, but you know God loves them and you are called into relationship. Then do it, with joy and confidence.

I know, it sounds costly in time, expense and energy, doesn’t it? And it will be. To help yourself get over the cost, maybe think about what it cost God in time, expense, and energy to send Jesus here to demonstrate His love for the world, to become love, to do over-the-top kinds of things for people whom He wished to express love, some of whom nobody else liked very much, but He loved them. Let Jesus be our pattern and inspiration; not, “What would Jesus do?” but, “What over-the-top thing would You like me to do as love in your name, Jesus?”

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All boys (and men) want to be a king.

They also want to be a warrior.

And a lover.

And a sage, or a wise man.

Rohr presents his theory based on these four roles of manhood which says that there is a positive kind of king and a negative sort of king. The positive one is just and fair and rules for the good of the people. The bad king is a tyrant, unfair and rules only for his own advantage.

Similarly, there are positive and negatives for each of these four roles. Rohr’s theory says that if a man is obsessed with only one of these roles, he will typically err to the negative side. So, the solution is to have a balanced interest in all four. Thus he will become the good ‘king’ of the house. He will be the reliable ‘warrior’ or protector of the family, never frightening his wife or children. He will be a faithful ‘lover’ and everyone in the family will know his steadfast, faithful love. His wisdom, or his role as the sage will always be for the best interests of the family and never to be manipulative or tricky.

Perhaps you can see then, that the boy who has been taught how to be a man does not consider himself more important than others, realistically expects life to be hard and is willing to do hard things, is not expecting everything to be about him, knows he is not in control, and knows that his time on earth is finite. (These are the lessons typically learned in the initiation rituals.)

These men will be able to skillfully balance all of the roles of manhood. Hopefully, you know some of these men, or are such a man yourself. Such men are the fabric of good society, keep things orderly, fair, safe and full of love and fun.

When you add to all of that, the patterns instilled by the Holy Spirit through faith in Jesus, who was the perfect man, these men make a church a wonderful church, will influence a neighborhood for good, and even change history. Think Abe Lincoln and Winston Churchill. Those are my favorites from history in regard to these ideas of manhood.

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Through these required rituals, boys actually become men and they learn these five principles of manhood:

• I am not important. (Little boys are treated as important, and that is appropriate, but as a man, they are just one of the men.)

• Life is difficult. (To little boys, life is easy, but they learn that now it will be hard work, demanding physically and mentally.)

• I am not in control. (The old men are in control, God is in control, or the weather is in control, but I am no longer in control.)

• Life is not about me. (Little boys tend to be the center of attention, but will no longer be treated as special.)

• I am going to die. (Men know that they have a single life to live; life is finite and they are not invincible; they know they could die.)

Rohr also goes into great length to illustrate the difference between false masculinity and real manhood as demonstrated by Jesus. The godly Man is a beautiful thing in society, much needed and greatly appreciated, even if they are often poorly rewarded.

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As I mentioned, the author, Robert Bly, is not a Christian, and I was pleased to find a book by a Christian man, that is, a man who includes in his thinking the reality of what God had in mind when He created men. I’m going to quote from the book a lot in this post; “authentic manhood can be approached only in relationship with the Father God, who seeks in every man to fulfill the purpose for which He has created him.”

Healing the Masculine Soul is the book by Gordon Dalbey. One of the aspects of men in American culture that Dalbey addresses is the isolation of men from one another. He writes, “It’s hard for us men to form close relationships with one another…. I believe we’re afraid of the manly courage and strength that are summoned when men come together. A unique and truly awesome power arises when men gather: the power God gives especially to men collectively, to get His work done in this world. Yet, because this power is so much greater than my own individual self, my ego is threatened by it….I judge myself as ‘less manly’ than the others…I defend against it - instead of join with it.”

Dalbey uses a parable to theorize that, for our time, men are running away from their own lion-hearted courage. Even as we long to be “real men,” we are afraid of the courage and strength it bears. “The world therefore fears the man who is secure in his manhood, because he can’t be manipulated into buying its trucks and beer as a means of securing it.”

Dalbey has read Iron John and refers to it extensively. He adds to Bly’s story the need for men to apprehend authentic Godly manhood, men who know how to be good fathers, good husbands, how to lead and, “carry their fair share of the burdens of our human and Christian communities. They would once again be truly able to enjoy their lives, not in selfishness, but in the wonder of contributing their strength for the well-being of others.”

Next week, one more book about becoming a man.

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Biblically, the WWII view of manhood was not perfect. It did not correlate well with the characteristics that Jesus portrayed as the perfect man. I’ll address that more in future posts on this subject.

For now, the reality is that we find masculinity labeled as ‘toxic,’ and men don’t know how to be. In fact, they are a little scared to take charge, to be leaders, be strong, courageous, or influential fathers. Dads don’t know how to help their boys become men, and Moms are not able to do that very well either, no disrespect to single Moms who have done a reasonable job of raising boys; it’s simply not the same as a man.

The book, Iron John, uses ancient mythology in an allegory to expose all of the dilemma which I have discussed above, and it proposes some solutions. It is not by a Christian author, but neither is it anti-Christian. It was the first major book to call attention to what was happening in our culture, and it was a 62 week bestseller. I found it to be a fascinating wake up call to this critical aspect of our society; the role of men.

In the book, Bly, the author, uses the myth to portray manhood (Iron John) as caged, but presents an option by which he can be freed and the young boy in the castle follows him out into the forest. To fill out the picture, the boy’s father, the king, is absent, and the queen is in charge of keeping the boy safe. It is ripe with allegorical parallels to the dilemma of how to become a man in this present culture.

In the following two weeks, I will bring up two other books, these by Christian authors who came along after Iron John, and I will think with you through some of the possibilities of what might be necessary if our culture is to return to a wholesome view of men.

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Jesus showed up as a man. Granted, He first arrived as a child, but He grew up to be a man. Even as a twelve-year-old (officially now a man) He was found in His Father’s house with a group of the Rabbis, “both listening to them and asking them questions and all who heard Him were amazed at His understanding and His answers.” Luke 2:47 This is Eagle behavior.

As a young man, He had obviously already acquired an impressive amount of wisdom. Keep in mind that He had to learn in the same way as we do, otherwise He would not have been able to experience the same challenges and frustrations of growing up and learning in this fallen world. He is “One who has been tempted in all things as we are, yet without sin.” Heb. 4:15. So, He was a diligent learner, wise, yet still asking questions. Eagle-like manhood

We have the idea that masculinity means fearless. I don’t think that is possible. Rather, a man proceeds into dangerous and difficult situations with courage, which means he is doing the right thing even if there is fear while doing it. Jesus was distressed about facing the cross. Distress is a pretty good word for the experience of courage mixed with fear. And He willingly rendered Himself as a guilt offering (Isaiah 53:10). He said no one could take His life from Him, but He would lay it down Himself. John 10:18

We could go on all day about Jesus showing up as a man: in His “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees” speech in Matthew 23, pitting Himself against the most powerful people in that society. Then He repeatedly healed people on the Sabbath, fully aware of how offensive that was to His enemies. And when He touched the dead man’s coffin without concern about the ritual uncleanness with which they would label Him He had another plan.

Jesus is our model for becoming less turkey and more eagle. “Be transformed by the renewing of your mind.” Rom 12:2 The potential for transformation exists in every opportunity to worship, every message, every devotional time or prayer meeting. Eagles are outstanding. Join me in seeking to be outstanding and showing up as a man.

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Last week I wrote about my unusual experience of being closely followed by two wild turkeys for a long way. I said that I believe the Lord is encouraging me to “Eagle behavior” instead of turkey behavior, (turkeys always symbolizing the most ordinary, even silly, behavior), and Eagles symbolizing bold, beautiful, and confident behavior.

So, what is eagle behavior? I have been reading things since getting that word. The Bible repeatedly outlines Eagle behavior for us. Example: In Job 29:5-25, Job speaks of typical aspects of his life that existed when God was giving him favor. So that’s the first key, living under the favor of God, fully yielded to His ways. In that passage, Job says he was highly respected because he delivered the poor, the orphan, and the widow. He was eyes to the blind and feet to the lame. He “broke the jaws of the wicked and snatched the prey from his teeth.” (Great poetry for how he brought justice to help in dire situations.) He goes on to say, “I smiled on them when they did not believe, and the light of my face they did not cast down. I chose a way for them and sat as chief, and dwelt as a king among the troops, as one who comforted the mourners.”

One of the things this says to me is that Job is not arrogant, but is stating facts. It points out the amazing transformation that happens when the hand of God is firmly on one’s life. Bill Johnson points out that the confident man of God can appear arrogant in the shallow judgment of the world.

Other eagle behavior: the woman with the alabaster vial of oil, poured out on Jesus’ feet. She not only broke the vial, but also broke all the social rules of behavior. She didn’t care what anyone thought about her because she was transported by her great love for Jesus, and she knew she was freely forgiven.

It is tempting to bow to social norms, but we will miss great things if we don’t behave like an eagle, swooping in where called, carrying the authority given to us by our new birth, and bringing the stunning influence of God into an otherwise unremarkable situation.

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They came right up to me and stood looking at me. “Maybe I’m in their way?” So I moved on up the trail, and I was very surprised that they came along behind me. Very puzzled, I kept looking behind me, and they followed along a few feet behind me. They chirped and talked all along the way, and every few minutes they gobbled real loud in unison!

They followed me for almost half a mile and then finally slowed down and dropped behind. So I carried on and was left wondering if, or what, God was telling me. I puzzled about it for a couple hours as I hiked along.

Returning down the trail in the afternoon, I was further surprised that the Toms were there on the trail again, about where they had left me, and they followed along with me back down quite a distance.

I became convinced that this was a message from God. Finally, by the next morning, I believe I got the interpretation from the Holy Spirit: “Your behavior has been like a turkey, but I want you to behave like the eagle I know you are.”

I realized that, several times a day, I behave in a manner that is less bold or less influential than what God would have me do. I miss an opportunity to bring God powerfully into the picture. In these days, when God is moving so powerfully on the world, our given role is to carry the Kingdom into every situation. We are on a co-mission with Jesus to bring the knowledge of the new life in Christ to a world that is beginning to wake up to the power of God. It is still their choice, but our behavior or our words can be what opens the door for people who would otherwise miss it.

Eagle-like behavior is what is called for in this hour.

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It was held on the 250th anniversary of the original dedication of the nation to the Lord by our founding fathers, which they did when the nation was only hoped for, only a wild impossible idea, six weeks before the Declaration of Independence. That dedication was attended by the likes of John Adams, Thomas Jefferson and Ben Franklin.

What happened last Sunday was that the leading voices of the government (including Trump, Vance, Rubio, and a dozen others) and of the church (including Franklin Graham, Lou Engle and Dutch Sheets and many others) all got to speak and pray, one after the other, into the idea of America being dedicated to God the Father of Jesus Christ. This was not an interfaith idea of the validity of all religions, but a firm, clear statement that our nation needs to return to its undeniable roots, its Christian heritage, and many prayers of thanks were given during the day accrediting what America has become to the faithfulness of God and no other.

God has blessed this nation. We are completely unique in comparison to other countries. Our freedom, our opportunities, our unity all stand out as distinct from other countries. Nobody on Sunday’s dedication said they thought Americans were smarter or worked harder or were in any way better than other peoples. All glory was given to God for who we are. Glory to God and all thanks to God.

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A crucial five things need to happen for people to become missionaries, and I think these five things are needed for any of us to successfully engage in the greatest adventure of life; finding out why God made us and knowing we have found it. These things don’t have to happen in the sequence they are presented here, but they all eventually must be present.

Calling We, as Christians, are all called (Eph 4:1-2, 2Tim 1:9). It may be very broad, or it may be laser focused on a narrow target, but where we fit into the body is very important. It may be broad; to help the church be healthy, or it may be narrow; evangelizing Gen Z in a certain community.

Anointing This is the power of God required for any fruitfulness beyond your own efforts. We can do a lot, and we can burn out, or we can work in the power which God supplies and the power that actually is Him through us.

Vision This is the clear picture that you have, a vision of what God has for you, not of your own imagination or dreams, although it can seem very natural. If you are unsure, time and application to the task will reveal whether it is God’s vision or yours.

Provision Time and money are needed for your calling, and this is so commonly accepted, there is a simple slogan, “Where God guides, God provides.”

Inspiration Energy and motivation are an essential factor to fulfilling that Call. Again, we can work hard and eventually grow tired, exhausted, and burned out, or we can love God and tap into His abundance of inspired energy. Another slogan; “Lovers can accomplish far more done than workers.”

Books could be written on this subject, but for us, for now, perhaps it is enough for us to draw back some distance to see ourselves objectively, and to see the hand of God enclosing us behind and before because of His great love for us and the wonder of how He is directing us with great detail and care.

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Don’t we all long to be fully employed in His glorious work? To know that we are doing what God most wants us to be doing settles a deep longing in our soul. Yes, we know we married the right person, and God is all over that (for those who have). Yes, we know we have children and they are surely our assignment from God. And yes we are involved in church/body life to some extent, and that is also important. But as an empty-nester in my late 60’s, discovering this writing thing was like finding hidden treasure. It’s what decades of searching had been about.

I quoted Col 3:3 last week; “For you have died and your life is hidden with Christ in God.” There is a lot that could be exposited from that statement, but, just for today, let me say that finding my purpose was finding what had been hidden with Christ all my life. He had been making deposits into a hidden account, unknown to me, all that time, so that I would have the riches to pour out onto paper later.

This weekly letter is also mostly out of that account. I have written 134 of these without skipping a week, which they say is more than what 99% of writers do. I say that to boast in what God has deposited in that account.

You no doubt have such an account too. And the more you seek to do His will, the more He deposits there. Maybe you are already cashing in on what you have been given. I bless your search and your life in Christ.

You can see most of the eight books I have written on my website <danlemaire.com> I am not ashamed to tell you about what I have written. None of us bring anything to the table except what God has given to us. We get to see that clearly in John 21 when Peter goes fishing, catches nothing in his own effort, but then catches a huge net full of fish when he obeys the simple thing Jesus tells him to do. Then Jesus says to him, “Bring some of the fish which you have now caught.” It surely occurred to Peter that he only had fish to contribute because Jesus had made it possible. And later, everything that Peter eventually contributed to the church of his time and to the Bible was cashing in on what Jesus had deposited into his life.

You, by the Spirit of God, are rich with treasure to share, and like Peter, you probably don’t have to wait until your late sixties. Or maybe you are like Moses, at 80, God asked him, “What is in your hand?”

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I remember, when I was in my 20’s and thinking about Architecture as a career choice, there were great leaders in that profession at that time and some of them were doing such innovative work, I would think about becoming their disciple, abandoning school and all else to learn from them.

What Jesus requires from His disciples is far more demanding than anything I envisioned as I considered being a disciple of an architect. “Disown your life completely?” If it were anyone but Jesus, such a requirement would be preposterous. There is no way I would do that for any man.

“Embrace My cross as your own…” What? Is that an invitation to join Him on a cross, to die in an agonizing way? Indeed it is, and many of His disciples have literally died in all manner of cruel ways, willingly, for His glory, because He is worth it. The rest of us, if we take Him seriously, have fully died with Him by faith, in baptism, and we have died in living in disregard of our own desires, only wanting to do His will. No man would be arrogant enough to demand that of his followers.

“Surrender to My ways.” deepens and clarifies the path ahead. Surrender: white flag, no more resistance, no more fighting back. “Not my will but Yours be done.”

Coming from our past position as a fallen human being, having been oppositional to all the ways of God, that totality of surrender is a challenging idea, and it becomes a conscious struggle to do so unless we are able, by God’s grace, to completely yield, let go of ‘my life’ and live as a truly ‘new creature,’ allowing ourselves to be redefined and take on the new identity that Christ has for us.

Work that in us, Lord. We long for your way. Only for You would we abandon what our pride would insist that we keep for ourselves. We count on the truth of Your word: “For you have died and your life is hidden with Christ in God. When Christ, who is our life, is revealed, you will also will be revealed with Him in glory.” (Col 3:3-4)

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I have heard of a few who have been able to recover something like that. Hudson Taylor, I believe, was one I heard about who came into that level of relationship with God. He was once walking in a city with a friend, and while crossing a busy street, he stopped still. His friend, somewhat alarmed, turned back to him and asked what was the matter. His reply was that a shadow had passed between him and the Father, and he could not continue until he had done what was necessary to right the trusting love-relationship he had with God.

That quality of communion with God is what Jesus made possible through His atoning work on the cross. Very few people seem to get to that quality of relationship. The apostles who wrote books of the Bible may have had that. John certainly, Paul probably, even though, like us, he had not met Jesus personally. If you count Paul as author of Hebrews, which I do, there is an intimacy in that letter which is remarkable.

And, like any pastor-teacher, the goal of the writers of the New Testament was ever to inspire us and lead us into the same level of relationship that they had with Jesus. “Here is what I have,’ they seem to say, “and I hope you will follow me as I follow Christ.”

In a similar way, I wrote the novel Deep Delta T in an attempt to clarify and encourage the readers of that book into that kind of closeness with God. It is a fictional story that includes a whole community of such people and how that was manifested in their lifestyle. I know that I drew closer to God through the inspiring experience of writing the story and placing myself in that community, even though it was imaginary. I know it is possible. I know it is transformation, and I know God Himself is pursuing, with joyful anticipation, our deep and constant friendship with Him.

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God is one. That is a central tenet of Jews and Christians, each from their own perspective. However, sin was able to crack the Godhead, split the Trinity. And that is how sin was defeated, not by the splitting, but by Jesus becoming sin for us that we might become the righteousness of God in Him (2 Cor 5:21).

That shout from the cross, “My God, My God, why have you forsaken Me?” That anguished cry came because, for the only time in eternity, the Oneness of the Father and the Son was split because the Father cannot have any part with sin. The Father had to forsake the Son

When my theology professor, Mike Webster, at Elim Bible Institute, taught on this understanding, he became so overwrought with emotion, he could not continue the class. As he walked out speechless and in tears, we students were all smitten by some shocking awareness of the cost God paid to break the power of sin.

God was willing to subject Himself to that because of His great love for humankind. Jesus, God the Son, came to earth to be sin for us, and on the cross, because He had taken on our sin, the Father had to turn away His otherwise steady gaze towards the Son and all He was doing. But, Jesus, perfect in Himself, broke sin, crushed it, and it no longer has any power over Him or over us if we believe in Jesus.

It is a little like the story of Job. God says “Have a go at My Son, who appears on earth in the likeness of sinful flesh.” Or maybe He says, “You’ll be sorry if you aim to kill Jesus, but go ahead and try.” The only way to break the incredible power of sin was to pit it against the only sinless human being, God the Son, Jesus, who alone could break it. He was able to break the power of sin so that “sin shall not be master over you,” because “He condemned sin in the flesh.” (Rom 6:14 , Rom 8:3)

And because of this, we never tire of worshiping Jesus who alone is worthy.

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