Reviving the Soul :: What Is A Human?

Matthew 11:29
"Take My yoke upon you, and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart; and you shall find rest for your souls."

Yoke Up
What does it mean to find rest for your soul? It sounds nice doesn't? Rest. I could definetly use some rest, but how do you obtain it? The secret is in the yoke. A yoke in that day was referred to as a rabbi's specific interpretations on how to live out the Torah. Action is the key. Not just know what the Torah means, but to actually live it out.

So when Jesus asks us to take His yoke, he is telling us to come and live your life according to his interpretations of scripture. Remember Jesus said, "I have not come to destroy the law, but to fullfil it." Therefore, he wants to teach us how to live, and when we begin to implement this new style of life then, and only then, will we find rest for our souls.

Unconscious Control
Dallas Willard says, "The soul is far beyond our conscious control." The soul is that part of us that lies so deep within us that we don't really even acknowledge it most times. The soul organizes the whole person. If your soul is in good order, then most likely everything else will be running relatively smooth. But how do we effect what lies out of our conscious control? The point is we cannot. Only God can. However we are not passive in this process, we play a part. Our part, is what we can do; it's what makes us responsible for the status of "the running wound of the human soul."

Discipline
Discipline comes out of great passion. The reason anyone disciplines themself is because there is something much deeper going on. There is a vision. A vision to be something that your not. When Jesus said, "Take My yoke," those who heard it were given a vision worthy of a lifetime and beyond. It was a vision to come and be just as he was. It was an invitation to come and learn how to live just like Him. Bring your soul and I will show you a life in which you find rest, not hurry, not exhaustion, and not irritation. The soul is frazled and tired. It's like a mom trying to manage two teenage kids who are at odds with one another. The fighting never stops.

Our Hope
Our only hope is to slip into the easy yoke with Jesus. The imagery of a yoke is really perfect. A yoke is a device which is placed around the necks of two animals: a veteran and a novice. What takes place is the novice or younger animal learns how to work like the older or veteran animal. It's training. It's understanding that "I don't have it all figured out" and my only hope is "to yoke up with someone who does." Jesus.

Still Walking
So we continue to walk along the path of disciplined grace with Jesus and he revives our soul. He begins to bring it into rest and order. Our life will run like it should, with less fragmentation and more solidarity.

"Thus the Lord says, 'Stand by the ways
and see and ask for the ancient paths, Where the good way is, and walk in it; And you will
find rest for your souls.'" [Jeremiah 16:6]

What's Your Theological World View?

Check out this interesting survey on your Theological World View. I found it entertaining and pretty accurate. You will have to see for yourself.

My report is below. I find the results to be fairly accurate to my own beliefs. If you have any interest in post-modern theology then I would reccomend a book entitled "A Genorous Orthodoxy" by Brian McClaren. It basically sums up the whole thing.

Anyways, have fun and enjoy the survey.

You scored as Emergent/Postmodern. You are Emergent/Postmodern in your theology. You feel alienated from older forms of church, you don't think they connect to modern culture very well. No one knows the whole truth about God, and we have much to learn from each other, and so learning takes place in dialogue. Evangelism should take place in relationships rather than through crusades and altar-calls. People are interested in spirituality and want to ask questions, so the church should help them to do this. Emergent/Postmodern 71% Evangelical Holiness/Wesleyan 68% Neo orthodox 61% Fundamentalist 39% Roman Catholic 39% Classical Liberal 39% Reformed Evangelical 36% Charismatic/Pentecostal 32% Modern Liberal 21% What's your theological worldview? created with QuizFarm.com

Overhauling the Heart :: What Is A Human?

John 3:5
"Jesus answered, 'Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit he cannot enter into the kingdom of God.'"

Matthew 5:44-45
"But I say to you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, so that you may be sons of your Father."

Wickedness Present
Overhauling the human heart is completely the work of grace. A human surgeon may perform surgery on the physical heart, but no one can heal and restore a spiritual heart. The heart is that "place within us from which outlook, choices, and actions come. The heart has been formed by a world away from God; now it must be transformed (Renovation of the Heart, Pg. 14 - Dallas Willard). The heart is a wicked place, our own actions can easily prove this, and if that does not convince us then we can pick up a history book and look at what human beings did before us and gasp at the evil that has existed (which has not come to an end). The truth of the matter is that the heart is bent toward evil. I have heard it said that "Out of the heart come evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, slanders (Matt. 14:19)."

Hope
Nevertheless be comforted and have hope, "In whatever our heart condemns us; for God is greater than our heart and knows all things. Beloved, if our heart does not condemn us, we have confidence before God. (1 John 3:20-21)." Saying the heart is wicked or bent toward evil is like stating the obvious, but is essential for our understanding the overhaul. As we slowly but surely walk along the path of disciplined grace with Jesus our heart will begin to take on his outlook, willings and actions.

This is the promise of God from the beginning, "I will put my law within them and on their heart I will write it (Jeremiah 31:33)." Amazing! I have often said that, "God is no God if He cannot change the desires of a human heart." This is the business He is in. He is so interested with who we are and who we are becoming, and His goal is to make our heart like Christ's. To become completely immersed in agape love, that does not regard self, but promotes the good of others for their sake and not our own. This is the God(Trinity) of the Universe. This is the greatest reality in your life.

Heart - Will - Spirit
I am going to make this simple. Your heart is your will. Your heart is your spirit. Whenever you will you reveal the intentions of your heart. Your spirit is that place that God created which reflects His image. "Then God said, 'Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; and let them rule... (Genesis 1:26)" We rule by excercising our heart, or will, or spirit. Whenever the Bible makes reference of them each term is referring to our exectutive center. So now when you read through the scriptures and run into these words you will know what the writers had in mind.

Our Devestating Problem
"The human will (heart or spirit) in the human being is not only precious, it is a problem. From the strictly human point of view it is a devestating and unsolvable problem (Renovation of the Heart, Pg. 145 Dallas Willard)." In simple language, were calling the shots. That's not good. If there is anyone who should not be running my life it is definetly me. Think about it. I really have no idea what I am doing. The greatest hinderance to Christlikeness for Jonathan Bailey is Jonathan Bailey. We all need to embrace that, no matter how much it hurts, it's true. But thanks be to Jesus who says, I will take over. I will show you how to live. "I have come that you may have life, and a good one at that (John 10:10 PAR)."



To Be Continued...