By Francis Frangipane,
One may argue, "The Lord I know is loving, not confrontational." Really? I agree He is most loving and accepting of us and has gone to unfathomable lengths to rescue us. Yet that does not mean He is hesitant about correcting us when we are in sin or deception. Consider, to this same church in Laodicea, Jesus described the kind of love He has. He said, "Those whom I love, I rebuke and discipline" (Rev. 3:19).
Personally, I love that Christ confronts me. I love that He shows Himself strong in delivering me from evil. I love that my salvation is not up to me but is the effect of His passionate working in my life. I know He loves me, because He does not leave me to my innate patterns of self-deception.
Again, one argues, "Jesus is the gentle shepherd." Yes, He is. But allow me to illustrate my point with a story.
A while ago I passed through a particularly intense conflict that left me wounded and exhausted. I pleaded with the Lord for an early rescue that didn’t come until much later. As I sought Him, He showed me that given the nature of my flesh and the fallen nature of man in general—and considering that the devil was deeply involved in this conflict—Christ had been as gentle as possible with me. But He still confronted me where I was wrong. He still revealed where I fell short. He didn’t justify me in the conflict or blame others; He required I repent of where I was incomplete and then forgive those who instigated the conflict. And yet to soothe my wounded soul, He reminded me, "Those whom I [dearly and tenderly] love," the Amplified Bible, Classic Edition says, "I tell their faults and convict and convince and reprove and chasten [I discipline and instruct them]."
If we would be Christ’s followers, we must know this about Him. He came that the "thoughts from many hearts may be revealed" (Luke 2:35). Transformational change does not come to us simply because we read biblical doctrines. It comes because Christ reveals our need, and we repent.
Remember what I wrote in chapter 1: the headline of Christ’s message is "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand." His message is not just that we can reach heaven from where we are but that we must also embrace His call to repentance. Beloved, you can attend church for a decade and never inwardly change. Jesus said,
Many will say to Me on that day, "Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in Your name, and in Your name cast out demons, and in Your name perform many miracles?" And then I will declare to them, "I never knew you; leave Me, you who practice lawlessness." —Matthew 7:22–23
Jesus is teaching us that seeing our need is the unfolding of His blessing.
I am familiar with those who say, "Jesus always tells me He loves me." Certainly, no more wonderful words have ever been spoken in all the universe. But remember, Christ is the Word of God made flesh. He was in the beginning with God, and through Him all things were created. When the Word unites with our need, Jesus has other things to say in addition to His love.
For the word of God is living and active, and sharper than any two-edged sword, even penetrating as far as the division of soul and spirit, of both joints and marrow, and able to judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart. —Hebrews 4:12
Lord, judge our thoughts and the wrongful intentions of our hearts! The Word is not a doctrine; it’s a sword. It is surgical. It is living. All things are open and laid bare before the Word—every aspect of our inner man. He knows what needs repentance, healing, and deliverance. All those things come through our capacity to hear; in hearing, we discover our need and repent.
From heaven’s viewpoint, goodness is not measured by one’s acts of righteousness but by appropriated righteousness that comes to us from God. In heaven, perfection comes in degrees of dependency. It is not a form of self-attained righteousness but the perfection of surrender. And the kingdom of heaven is given to those who see their need, dismiss the effort to justify themselves, and honestly open their hearts to God.
Our spiritual walk begins when we acknowledge what needs to change. But knowing our need is only the beginning. In the next chapter you will learn that after seeing the need, we must repent, cry to God for change, and let the Lord go deep into our hearts.
God, I know that You are not superficially approached. To know the kingdom, I must seek to know Jesus as Lord. I ask You to go deep inside to turn over the fallow ground of my heart. Excavate out of my life all pride, rebellion, lawlessness, fear, lust—any human attitude that has no place in Your kingdom. I surrender it all to You.
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Adapted from Francis Frangipane’s newest book, The Heart That Sees God, available at www.arrowbookstore.com.