Greetings again as we continue our journey in A Peculiar People.

I pray these writings would inspire and ignite our hearts for fulfillment of God’s promise to reveal his delight and love in the deepest parts of who we are and where we live. And you and I would take heed of the tremendous effort and resources Jesus has already employed to capture the vastness of who we are.

So far in our journey we’ve covered key verses in 1 Peter Chapter 2:9, Matthew Chapter 24: 40, Psalm 16 and John 14:1–4. First Peter proclaims we are Christ’s treasured possession. Matthew 24 speaks to Christ’s exertions to take possession of you and me. God promises in Psalm 16 to cleanse our territory – our land, his holy temple – from the enemy. And John 14 declares the preparation we must undergo and our participation.

The Grace of God

First Peter 1:13 says, “Therefore having girded up the loins of the mind of you, being self – controlled, hope completely on the grace being brought to you in(at) [the]revelation of Jesus Christ.” (1)

This is another extraordinary and powerful passage unfolding the plan of God to you and me. The word revelation means, among others, “naked.”

Here’s one of the pictures I believe the Lord is painting with words of grace for you and me. Remember how Adam walked in the garden naked and unashamed before the Lord. And after the fall how God made garments of skin and clothed Adam and Eve to hide their nakedness.

The apostle Peter, walking in revelation applies an Old Testament truth to unfold God’s plan to reveal Christ, the second Adam, to you and me in the private, secret, and hidden places of our lives – those areas of darkness, wounds and sins we have at great expense and effort clothed with sinful practices (Romans chapter 8).  

Peter is saying, “As God unveils Christ to you, his nature, thoughts and attitudes, and manner of living, your sinful practices will be exposed. The clothing you have put on to hide your brokenness and wounds will be naked in the light of Christ’s righteousness.”

“Do not hide and do not fear. Christ’s grace will hold you in the pain and disruption his revelation brings in your journey of healing and restoration. And even though you may want to hide at times in fear, Jesus will heal those areas as well. I repeat, hope completely in the grace Christ extends to you and hold firm (Hebrews 3:14) and he will complete the work in you God the Father completed in him.” (quotes are mine)

Christ’s Revelation to You and Me 

The “revealing” of Christ is an exceedingly great and precious promise by God to you and me. Peter says in his second letter, “Through these he has given us his very great and precious promises, so that through them you may participate in the divine nature, having escaped the corruption in the world caused by evil desires.” (2 Peter 1:4, NIV)

(As an aside, in 2 Peter, Peter refers back to the Transfiguration of Christ. It is interesting Adam was not on the Mount of Transfiguration with Moses and Elijah. Moses and Elijah saw the fulfilled promise of God standing before them but, strangely, the first Adam was noticeably absent from this special and intimate event. And maybe rightly so, because Moses and Elijah, ambassadors of the covenant and promises of God were also Old Testament types of New Testament saints dying to sin and walking in newness of life, i.e., types of the resurrection.)

The revelation of Jesus Christ to you and me will expose our inability and insufficiency to be like Jesus. The sinful practices of our life will be revealed and found wanting. Thankfully, this is a process and a journey, wrapped in the arms of Christ and in the grace of his love.

When Jesus begins a deep work in an area, invariably, you and I will try to help him. Our old nature will want to help Jesus fix us. Graciously, it will be exposed and become part of the healing and restoration process as well.   

His revelation graciously brings you and me to a place where we’re powerless to be like him apart from intimacy. This is part of the process. Our powerlessness ushers us into dependency upon Christ for healing and redemption.

This is the mystery of Jesus Christ. As God begins to unwrap the clothing hiding our brokenness and wounds, his grace advances ahead embracing you and me in our nakedness. As we learn from him to embrace him during these times, he begins the process of healing our inner man from “hiding,” anxiety and fear to confidence and trust. You might say building confidence and trust is the first phase of the work of the Holy Spirit when Jesus takes you deep in him.

The degree and depth of this part of the journey depends on the degree and depth of damage you have suffered from, abandonment, loss, trust, abuse, loneliness, etc. This was an extensive process for me and is still continuing to some extent.

I am eternally thankful for the prayer ministers the Lord sent my way who ministered God’s love and grace in confidence and trust to me.

Wrapping Up

Having chosen unrighteousness in many areas of my life I’ve learned it’s not a simple matter of a little prayer and a decision of my will to choose righteousness. Yes, you may find that certain low hanging bad fruit can be plucked by decisions. But picking bad fruit, and removing and healing the root causes, are two different things. The latter is the province of Christ and those called and anointed by him.

Only Jesus knows the deep wounds and hurts you and I suffer, how they relate and connect to one another, the circumstances giving them life and power, and importantly, how to methodically “weed” our garden without destroying the garden. Jesus said in Matthew 15:13, “He replied, Every plant that my heavenly father has not planted will be pulled up by the roots.” (NIV)

If you want a measure of healing and redemption in your life and the roots of bad fruit pulled up, you will need the leading, guidance, direction and power of the Lord Jesus Christ. You and I cannot marry Christ to our practiced ways of living and expect “Christ” to be birthed in us.  

Our battle is not only with our own flesh but with the agreements you and I have made with principalities and powers far stronger than our natural man. And we cannot put on the armor of the spiritual man of Ephesians 6 without healing and restoration. Otherwise you and I are trying to put new wine in an old bottle.

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Thanks be to God who unfolds the mystery of Christ and extends grace to us in the exposure of the deep, secret and hidden things in our life. Do not fear Christ taking you deep in him. The revelation of Jesus Christ is not unto condemnation but life. (Psalm 73:26; 1 John 3:19 – 20; 1 John 1:9; Romans Chapter 8; 1 Corinthians 4:5)

 

(1) The New Greek – English Interlinear New Testament by Translators Robert K. Brown and Philip W. Comfort, Editor: J. D. Douglas. Copyright © 1990. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc. All rights reserved.

Scripture quotations marked (NIV) are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®. Copyright© 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.™ Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide. www.Zondervan.com  The “NIV” and “New International Version” are trademarks registered in the United States Patent and Trademark Office by Biblical, Inc.™