Founder’s Journal

Remember — Lucifer’s goal is to interfere with our Kingdom influence because it will accelerate his ultimate condemnation. Believe it or not, every Christian has a vital purpose in the Lord’s strategic plans. He is eager to see His kingdom grow and His influence reach into new territories. Lucifer is determined to stop those plans, but it’s a lost cause. The death and resurrection of Jesus makes it inevitable. So, the enemy has two remaining strategies to derail us: he can tempt us to sin and he can accuse us in our conscience.

Judicial standing is the legal right of one party to accuse another of potential (or actual) harm. To have “standing” in a court of law, one party must demonstrate a personal stake in the issue at hand. Before Jesus’ death, Satan had legal access to stand before the Lord in the courts of heaven to accuse mankind of all sorts of treachery. Why?

In ancient mythology, Ulysses needed to navigate the passageway between Italy and Sicily, the strait guarded by two deadly, intimidating threats — Scylla and Charybdis.  On the one side lay rocky shoals — certain to rip the hull out of one’s ship.  These rocks were guarded by a terrible, six-headed dragon determined to eat anyone alive who wandered within its reach.  On the other side lay a vicious whirlpool from which a ship would never escape.  You can sense the immense risk of danger to the ship in this picture.  

A dime has two sides: heads and tails. Regardless of which side faces up, you can tell you are holding a dime. The coin is inherently worth 10 cents even if you can’t see the side that is facing down. Simply by looking at one side you can describe the other.

Humility, the great quality of Jesus so richly described and often mentioned in Scripture, also has two sides. There is the outward side, which is behavioral and easily observed by others. Some people have a “low look”, they are obviously unaggressive and exhibit virtually no pride. Jesus said about Himself “Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.” (Mat 11:29)

In the early church, a great disagreement arose whether one could consume meat that had been offered to pagan idols. Believers of all faiths offered sacrifices through their priests. Often the best cuts of beef and lamb were brought to the temples for this purpose. Once the offering had been prayed over, the priests immediately took the fresh product to the market to be sold. The priests earned money through this practice. However, some early Christians severely objected to the purchase of meat that had been offered to pagan gods. This became a contentious debate among believers – is it permissible or not?

The Lord’s fundamental identity is to be a Father.  He wants us to draw close to Him as spiritual sons.  He also encourages our relationship with our natural fathers, when possible.  He pours grace into our relationship with a spiritual father, as well.

Here is a conversation-starter for you and your Dad, whether you choose to converse with your natural father or your spiritual father.

As you continue to explore your identity as a spiritual father, be willing to press deeper, to the true, biblical meaning of the term.  We can colloquially say you are “fathering” certain individuals, but be willing to challenge yourself:  is it really fathering, or perhaps discipling, or maybe just training?  There is a difference between those three roles.

About 60 times, the Bible uses the term “inherit” and about 190 times it mentions “inheritance.”  That’s pretty significant.  The topic immediately reminds us of what an older, loving family member leaves to the children in a will.  When God uses those words, He wants us to take them seriously.  His fundamental identity is “Father”, so He is prone to plan for His family’s needs.