Burning Sensations

I asked my friend David just last night about how I should go about talking to people about the things on my heart and mind after some spirited debates with someone else. Here is an excerpt:

I wonder if you think I am flirting with the condemnation thing- I don't think I am. I don't believe I am driving anyone away from Christ- but trying to get them to deal with some hard questions just like we went through. I believe that good will come from it. I truly feel guided on this and will continue until God places another
directive on my heart.:

Here is his reply:

Scott,
I cannot answer to your motives. You know what is in your heart.

As you are aware, I would not have had my eyes opened, to several very carnal biases that blocked my service to Christ, had you not, engaged me on some of these issues.
Also, if you pick up your Bible and begin reading Jeremiah you will quickly become quite tired of the monotony of Jeremiah's warnings and graphic depictions of punishment to Judah.
Thus, the quote from Jeremiah "And I can’t stop! If I say I’ll never mention the Lord or speak in his name, his word burns in my heart like a fire. It’s like a fire in my bones! I am weary of holding it in!"
It brought no joy to Jeremiah to speak of pain, suffering and loss. It drove away many people who were unwilling to open their eyes. It left Jeremiah drained and alone.

And Plenty of men, far more important and authoritative than I am, advised Jeremiah to 'change his tune' or just 'shut-up,' which was not God's purpose for Jeremiah.
Hence, Jeremiah did what was right in God's eyes but not man's.

With that said however, as I have noted many times in these discussions, Jesus will be glorified in all actions, regardless of whether they are acts of faith by faithful men and women or whether they are acts of faithlessness by faithless men and women.

Pilate brought glory to Jesus by his cowardly hand washing ceremony, but it was to Pilate's shame.

John brought glory to Jesus by his accepting Mary into his home as his own mother, and it was to John's honor.

Here are some guideposts for you to judge your own words & actions in this exchange with [your friend]. (Hopefully these will help.)


*
Is your motive and purpose to glorify Jesus?
*
Is your motive and purpose to serve [your friend]?
*
Is your motive and purpose to cause [your friend] to admit fault?
*
Is your motive and purpose to cause [your friend] to admit Dick Cheney's or G.W. Bush's fault?
*
Is your motive and purpose to cause [your friend] to quietly reflect on whom he places his highest allegiance?
*
Is your motive and purpose to win the debate?

I believe that it will help you to place these in their proper priority, by simply placing a number (1 through 6) next to each one, (1) being your highest priority and (6) being the least or non-priority.
You should probably set an objective standard too, on how you will know for certain that these "goals" have been achieved, e.g. for "Is your motive and purpose to win the debate?" [your friend] will write back to you saying "You are right and I am wrong, please accept my apologies."

I think that you will do well to consider these questions and what the conclusion of your debate will be.

Many, times planting the seed will be the only thing one can do.
The sower may be long gone by the time the seed germinates and brings fruit.
But, if the sower keeps digging up the seed to see if it's germinating, what will be the end result?

I hope that this helps.

For His honor,
DSM

And here is my reply back:

The first and only thing that comes to mind as far as a priority is the sharing of spiritually based wisdom, discernment and the mutual cultivation of theological literacy with my relationships and thus glorify Jesus.

I suppose to desire sharing wisdom implies that one believes himself to be wise. Is this desire the common burning shared by men that God has called out? Or is it pride? Why do we write? Becuase we desire to tell men about our God and to save them from folly I reckon? I certainly have not chosen subjects that will glorify my standing with peers. Is it vain to think of oneself as a fisher of men? An evangelist? A representative of God?

What is truth? Is it worth speaking for?

Certainly men the world over presume to speak for God and some... to kill for him....which is one of the things we must confront about this existence.


I apreciate the scripture on Jeremiah. I am not literate enough on the Old Testament.


I must tell you about a recent experience... a message so to speak...that I had.

I cast my mind before the Lord asking him what he wanted me to do about the things that burdened my heart- and the answer came back as,

"Kill it at the root".


This was a severe and shocking reply. A mindbender, because it is the very last thing I would have guessed I would hear. It came though with such searing power to boot. This was not easy to comprehend at first- especially for someone who had been squelching all the pride, lust, greed, envy and untruth from their mind in order to remove any thing that would trigger the impulse that moves the mind out of the frame of love and into angst and violence. "Kill it at the root". What a thing to say to a pacifist.


As I ransacked my mind trying to figure what in the great googly moogly it meant...It came to me that the key would be in understanding what the "ROOT" actually was. My mind was at light speed. It did not mean killing evil people. It meant destroying evil at the place where it really starts... cutting evil off from the very foundation of its existence.....LIES......

LIES- the great primordial and most ancient, and original sin. The thing that Satan was the father of.

Essentially then, the message was to combat darkness and evil by spreading truth and light. How to determine truth is another question. Gulp.

Heavy man. HEAVYY.

I already know that you understand...and that perhaps this sheds light on a few other things in play in discussion. What a wonderful gift from God to have a friend like you.


Right now my eyes are teared.

A fitting song: