Psa_33:8 Let all the earth fear the LORD: let all the inhabitants of the world stand in awe of him.
Joh_15:5 I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing.
I've said many times, that if I had to describe my life in a word, that word would be FAIL. I'm serious. I also have said, and will continue to admit, that I'm a SLOW LEARNER. I often think about how it has taken me a life time to figure some things out. Yet HE has patiently watched, waited, and fished me out of the mire countless times. HE has kept me from sudden destruction too many times to mention. Ever patient, ever leading. HE has left the "99", so many times to search for me, that I own the entire world an apology just for that.
It has only been recently, that I began to understand.......
Isa_64:6 But we are all as an unclean thing, and all our righteousnesses are as filthy rags; and we all do fade as a leaf; and our iniquities, like the wind, have taken us away.
That's my life! All my best efforts and labors of love, fall way short of HIS glory. All my religiosity? Filth. Why? Because it causes me to fall into the illusion that I have earned anything at all when it comes to HIS favor and mercy. I've earned NOTHING but ETERNAL TORMENT.
I have always had a strong disdain for "futility". Doing something seemingly well, and see it fall in my face. And it would seem that the more I labor, especially in my relationship with HAYAH, the more I FAIL. Why is that? Why LORD? Because any success I meet with, even for a short time, affords me an opportunity to say, "Look what I've done". And PRIDE swells up in me. I begin to think I've earned HIS favor by being "good". Worse, I begin to think, HE OWES ME. OH HOW WRETCHED CAN ONE MAN BE? When it comes to what I've done, I have a vault full of DEATH. The wages of sin is DEATH. That is all I have to show for for my life. Oh I have had countless opportunities. But I've made a mess of them all. LORD HAVE MERCY.
And worse, I've tried to teach others my "religion", and call that "good news". 😢 ACCCKKKK!!!!
The HOLY SPIRIT has been laboring to get me to see and understand these things. But I'm a stubborn man. "I can do this myself!" Huh? We are taught this when we are very young. Worse, our parents applaud and celebrate our accomplishments. "Oh look somebody, he can do it for himself now". Life rewards our accomplishments. HAYAH knows of no such achievement, and no such reward. The ONLY reward HE recognizes is the CROSS. The only action we can take that is not vanity, is FAITH. Faith in what HE has done, WITH NO CONFIDENCE IN THE FLESH. This is GOOD NEWS. This illuminates DIVINE REVELATION within. ALL IS IN THE MESSIAH.
Php 3:3 For we are the circumcision, which worship God in the spirit, and rejoice in Christ Jesus, and have no confidence in the flesh.
Php 3:4 Though I might also have confidence in the flesh. If any other man thinketh that he hath whereof he might trust in the flesh, I more:
Php 3:5 Circumcised the eighth day, of the stock of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, an Hebrew of the Hebrews; as touching the law, a Pharisee;
Php 3:6 Concerning zeal, persecuting the church; touching the righteousness which is in the law, blameless.
Php 3:7 But what things were gain to me, those I counted loss for Christ.
Php 3:8 Yea doubtless, and I count all things but loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord: for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and do count them but dung, that I may win Christ,
Php 3:9 And be found in him, not having mine own righteousness, which is of the law, but that which is through the faith of Christ, the righteousness which is of God by faith:
Php 3:10 That I may know him, and the power of his resurrection, and the fellowship of his sufferings, being made conformable unto his death;
Php 3:11 If by any means I might attain unto the resurrection of the dead.
Dung! My life. What does that do to my PRIDE? What does that do to my ego? It exposes me to the reality of my personal efforts to "get right" with HAYAH. Fact is, there is NOTHING I can do or ever yet do, to "get right" with HIM, except place 100% of my HOPE, IN HIM!!!!! Oh, oh, oh. OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!! How wretched the man who is religious, and boasts of his own personal efforts to attempt to please HAYAH. Such a tragedy. DUNG! All DUNG. I have lived my life as a SPIRITUAL LEPOR. UNCLEAN. UNCLEAN!!!!
If we could be seen in life, as the "spiritual lepors" that we really are, others would demand that we cry out and warn them, UNCLEAN, UNCLEAN. Don't come near me, I'm UNCLEAN! And they would turn their noses up at us..... until they look into the mirror of HIS WORD, and realize that they too, or just as unclean as I am. UNCLEAN. And I am hopeless to wash my leprosy from my flesh. I need a miracle. I need power far above that of man. I need, HIS blood to wash away every stain. And the GOOD NEWS IS, I HAVE IT IN HIM!!!!! Glory!!!! I'm CLEAN. "Is this not the man, Lahry Sibley who was born a spiritual leper?" It is he! "But, but I don't understand, what happened to his leprosy??
IT HAS BEEN WASHED AWAYY BY THE BLOD OF THE LAMB!!!!!!!
I need to sit down, and shut up trying to tell others who what they need to do to be "washed", and tell them HE HAS ALREADY WASHED THEM!!!!! GLORY TO HAYAH!!!! Oh WRETCHED MAN I am. What a vain life I've lived. What a GLORIOUS salvation is mine, and it has taken me 77+ years to surrender that which was wretched, for that which is GLORIOUSLY RIGHTEOUS!!!! Oh can we just SHOUT a little here.
Recently, I had my laptop stolen. 25 years of things I had written and shared, pictures, many not replaceable. Fortunately some of it has been saved archived here on Facebook. Or is that unfortunately? You can have it all. It was like the last thing I held on too, as a "merit badge" of personal achievement. Friend, if I have told you anything to cause you to hope in what "you have done for the lord or mankind", I was wrong and I humbly apologize. I hope that this word, will cause your FAITH IN HIM to soar, and your confidence in your heart and flesh to be CRUCIFIED in HIM! HALLELUYAH. HALLELUYAH!!!!! Already dead, and alive in HIM!!!!!
REPENT of your religion. I have. And it has set me free. Thanks be only to HIM, the author and finisher of my faith, because I have honored HIM as my LORD and SAVIOR, that HIS suffering and death, were not in vain for me. Oh my.
