All of creation is a witness that it is fundamental to the nature of God to love diversity and creativity. He makes every snowflake different, every tree different, and every human being different. There are no two hills, streams, or lakes alike. This must cause us to ask another one of those ultimate questions: “If God so loves diversity and creativity, why is the church, which is supposed to be His representative on the earth, so boringly uniform?”

         The next verse in our study is Revelation 1:17:    

         And when I saw Him, I fell at His feet as dead. But He laid His right hand on me, saying to me, “Do not be afraid; I am the First and the Last” (NKJV). 

        As we have covered, it is a common belief that Christians have been instructed not to judge. But nowhere does Jesus say that, and nowhere is this said in the Scriptures. Some flawed English translations give the impression that Jesus said this when He talked about taking the log out of our own eye before trying to remove the speck from someone else’s eye. However, what He taught there and elsewhere is not to judge wrongly.

         If you have been reading this Word For The Week for long, you have likely noticed my style is to develop a theme, and then from time to time go back to review it before going on. I may say things a little differently, but it is purposeful repetition. Repetition is required for retention, and the more something is repeated, the more it will be retained. What we do not retain we have little possibility of actually doing, and it is by doing that we bear fruit. Our goal is not just to know the will of God, but to do His will.

         When I prayed for this coming year, I was shown a roller coaster. This means we will have ups and downs this year. I realize that hardly takes a prophet to predict, but the encouraging thing about this vision was that the ride ended at the highest point. We’re going higher this year! So don’t be discouraged by the dips. Hang on and know that we will be going up again soon.

In relation to the war on terrorism, the best that could happen is for all the Islamic terrorists to be converted to Christ and be as radical for Him and impart life, as they have been devoted to taking it. This is going to happen to some of them. Many of the greatest Christian leaders in the last days will come from radical Islamic movements. They will be as fearless and resolute for the gospel as they have been for Islam, and they will help to bring badly needed restoration to the basic spiritual and moral fabric of the church.

          As we read in the Scriptures, those who are led by the passions of the carnal nature will perish and not inherit the kingdom of God. This we must know and keep in mind. But the way to get free of what the Apostle Paul called “the body of death” (see Romans 7:24), which is the result of eating of the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil, is to eat from the Tree of Life, which is Christ.

      This week we will study the prophetic gifts and how they work in us. When we do, many will realize that they have been working in them, but did not understand them. Even so, this is not a science but a relationship. We are listening to a Person, not just learning formulas and procedures.