Dale Cresap's blog

You live in a world of actions and consequences. Do you find that punishment or even the threat of punishment is the strongest motivation to avoid doing evil? Yet my word says that it is my goodness that leads you to repentance? Do you see me lavishing my goodness on those who choose to be far from me, in order to draw them to me? Does it upset your sense of justice to think that they are getting away with something? Do you see the same dynamic in your own life? I want to be loved more than feared. I want you to understand this spiritual principle because I want you to take part in it, for I have called you to love your enemies. 

You see the actions of other people, but not the thoughts and intentions of their hearts from which these actions flow. This is reason enough not to judge people’s motives. Do you find it difficult to keep your mind from going there? Do you tend to assume the worst? There may be several possible motives for a given action. Intentional evil is the worst, but many things may be explained by ignorance. If you would be gracious then let your assumptions run to the most benign explanations. Don’t attribute to malfeasance that which can be explained by ignorance. It is better still not to attribute motive at all. 

Do you recognize my voice? You have my promise that my sheep will. One attribute of my voice is persistence. Do you seem to have a continuous stream of random thoughts that come and go without much notice? Yet do you also have thoughts that keep coming back, as if you were being intentionally reminded? Perhaps you are. You also have my promise that I will call all things into remembrance. I want you to be patient, and I display this quality myself. If I am serious about getting a point across to you I will repeat it as often as necessary.

Have you encountered people who think that I was a good teacher and a good person, but are not willing to acknowledge my true identity? This may sound like a sympathetic position, but it is not even logically defensible. I must be better or worse than this. For I kept insisting that I was the Son of God. The prophets of old declared the truth of my coming and identity but they made no claim of deity for themselves. If Isaiah, Jeremiah, or Ezekiel had they had they would have been stoned and their words not included in the Bible. You cannot think of me only as a good teacher. If I wasn’t who I claimed to be I would be the biggest fraud of all time.  

Do you believe in the sun when it is not shining and in me when I am silent? Yet how often am I silent? You know me as the Living Word who was with God in the beginning, who was made flesh and dwelt among you. How shall I be silent? I spoke to my audiences and said he who has ears to hear, let him hear. All heard the same words but how many comprehended them? I spoke of the Kingdom of God and the things of the Spirit. These things are spiritually discerned and flesh and blood does not reveal them but my Father in heaven. Do not be discouraged by this but seek to receive and understand revelation for you have my promise that my sheep know my voice. 

Do you love me? How do you manifest this love? Do you do so by hating those who hate me? You may say that your friend’s enemy is your enemy also, but I love my enemies and I have called you to follow my example. You will encounter those who are in open rebellion against me. They expect you to engage them in open hostility, and are prepared for this. They are not prepared for you to love them and you can catch them off guard. Do you think this is too kind? It is the way that I reached you when you were opposed to me. It is my goodness that will lead them to repent even as it did you. 

You know that I have a plan for your life. Do you see it in broad generalizations or in minute details? I do not give most people a view of their destiny far into the future. I have my own reasons why it is better this way, but your plan still involves intricate details and timing. Do not ask to be burdened with these far in advance, but walk with me in childlike trust that I will show you what you need to know when you need to know it. You cannot carry the whole plan and still remain in the state of peace to which I have called you. If you are content to leave the future in my hands you will find that I am good at logistics. 

Is there any place that you consider to be a safe haven, a refuge from the hazards and dangers of the world? Perhaps this is your home. But for a child the place of safety is not an address or geographical location, but in the presence of their parent. They want to be with them wherever they go for the security they provide. You can extend this concept to yourself as my child. There are spiritual dangers and hazards, but there is also a spiritual haven and refuge. You know I am with you always and you can follow me knowing there is no safer place than in the center of my will. 

Do you drive to your destinations with confidence that you know where you are going? You can even go somewhere you have never been before if you have a map that gives directions to your destination. You know better than to take a road that leads nowhere. Yet do you apply the same principle in other areas of your life? Have you ever entered a discussion of foolish and unlearned questions and ended up generating strife? Have you ever taken part in activities with predictable bad outcomes? If you follow a road you shouldn’t be surprised to go where it leads. Seek me for wisdom, discernment, and strength to follow me on the strait and narrow way of life. 

Have you ever made the statement about an entire group of people, such as a denomination, that they were saved or not? This is unwise and inadvisable. Can you even make such a statement about another individual? This is a declaration of profound consequences and not one to be made lightly. Only the author of the Book of Life can judge the thoughts and intents of the heart of someone else. You are not to say even in your heart, who shall ascend into heaven and who shall descend into hell. If you cannot determine this for a person how much less can you do it for a group? You can do and teach my commandments without entering into judgment.