by donfinto | Dec 5, 2018 | The Good Report
For the Cross of Christ
As I was recently pondering the last hours in the life of Jesus, I was impressed that
His sweat drops of blood in the Garden were not because He feared death on the
cross. For that, He came into our world to face death. His words to the Father, “If it is
possible, let this cup pass from me,” had little to do with the physical agony of the
crucifixion, but His knowledge that He would be bear the weight of the sins of all the
generations since Adam, and all who are yet to come. Bear all sins. He had come into
our world to bear those sins, yet He also knew that the weight would be almost
unbearable. His hours in prayer were spent with the Father so that He would be able
to finish the work.
Recently I was reading Oswald Chambers’ November 20th, of “The Forgiveness of
God,” where he says that for us to be grateful for our forgiveness without attaching
it to the agony of Calvary is unconscious blasphemy. The only ground by which we
have forgiveness is that Jesus took our sins. Even going to hell with them, so that we
are freed from condemnation. By Jesus’ resurrection, He now can give us His
righteousness and His Spirit so that His nature can be reproduced within us.
As we celebrate these upcoming seasons in giving thanks, may we be deeply aware
of our sins that caused Jesus’ death, and express extreme gratitude for all that His
death and resurrection have produced and will produce in us.
Receive Jesus! Receive that forgiveness He worked for us! And walk gratefully in His
strength!
by donfinto | Nov 14, 2018 | The Good Report
Many of you have heard me say, “I am an unrealistic optimist and I intend to stay that way.” That’s true because I am confident that ultimately for all believers in Jesus, the end is good. As I have also often said, “Following Jesus is exhilarating though often agonizing.”
Though I am not given to depression, several years ago I went through a season of awakening every morning “oppressed.” I had to fight my way into victory before I could function for the day.
I did everything I knew to get rid of this stranger in my life. I worshipped. I prayed. I bound. I pled the blood of Jesus. I read Scripture. I memorized Scripture. I confessed. But the depression remained. I went through deliverance to see if someone else could help me find victory. Nothing helped. I was functioning, but not with the same joy that I had come to know.
Late in the year, while attending a conference in another state, I awoke between two and three in the morning and immediately knew that the oppression/depression was gone. I sat up almost involuntarily and began to praise the Lord, and for the next weeks, remained in a kind of euphoria rich fellowship with Jesus.
Why did this happen? I don’t know. Was it so that I could partially sympathize with others who fight depression often? I still don’t know.
Why am I telling you this?
1. Because some of you are experiencing attacks that are unexplainable, and need the encouragement to endure.
2. So that both of us can be more gracious with others who are experiencing oppression.
3. So that we can yearn for and experience times of rich fellowship in the Presence of Jesus.
4. And to know that He is faithful, even when we do not feel His Presence!
by donfinto | Nov 7, 2018 | The Good Report
Lately I have been appropriating a word out of Paul’s Ephesian letter (at least it’s the way Paul’s word is translated in my NIV). It’s the word, “Imagine,” in Ephesian 3:20. “To him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power at work within us.”
I can hear Paul calling us to Godly imagination, and I have begun to do just that. The fruit of this integrating godly imagination has enhanced my prayer life.
The first place I turned to in my imagination was Hosea 3:4-5, where God tells Hosea that Israel would be without a king and a sacrifice for many days. Israel has not had a king since 586 B.C. when King Zedekiah was taken to Babylon. They have not had a sacrifice since the Temple was destroyed in 70 A. D.
Then God says, “Afterwards, the Israelites will return… they will come trembling to the LORD and his blessings in the last days.”
Imagine that! Imagine the time when “the Israelites,” all of them, the Haredim in Israel who pray repeatedly at the wall, the secular in Tel Aviv, all those in the Diaspora, Jewish atheists and agnostics, Jewish scientists and university professors, business men and women – all of them (Remember that Paul says in Romans 11 that “all Israel will be saved”) – will come trembling to the Lord and to His blessings.
Imagine all this happening in one night or one week or one month, when there are visions and angelic encounters and visitations from Yeshua Himself. Imagine families getting up some morning and beginning reluctantly to tell each other about their visitations during the night hours and how they have come to believe that Yeshua is indeed Israel’s Messiah. Imagine the astonishment on the faces of the other members of the family who have had similar visitations.
Imagine that when these families finally get up the courage to talk to their rabbi, only to hear that the same thing has been happening to him and his entire family, and that he believes he has been mistaken about Jesus – that he owes a massive apology to his flock.
Imagine that when he begins to tell his congregation, they all begin to smile and nudge each other, because they have all had similar experiences.
Imagine that the news begins to spread, that major newspapers, news media of every nation begin to report this amazing phenomena is happening among the Jewish people.
Imagine that this is so astonishing to all the countries, that others begin to come to the Jewish people to inquire of them, causing a great awakening in every nation, so that the Jewish people come into the fullness of their intended destiny to be a light to the nations.
Imagine!
And this is just one scripture! Imagine reading the whole Bible like this and pausing to imagine its fulfillment, praying for its fulfillment.
My prayers are getting weightier through all this.
Want to join me?
Bon voyage in the Spirit!
