Dale Cresap's blog

Have you ever heard of people referred to as sheep? This implies that they are placid and unthinking followers. This is no compliment. Yet many times in my word I refer to my own people as my sheep. Do you think I mean this as an insult? Yet my word also refers to me as the lamb slain from the foundation of the world, and it is clear that sheep face a better future than goats. It is not within a man to direct his own steps. Even the best and brightest are followers and all the more so if they are unaware that this is true and how much this dynamic affects them. Blessed are those who walk in the light and are delighted to call on me as their shepherd.

The skeptic and the doubter pride themselves on their reason and intelligence for the things they can figure out on their own. This is their primary distinctive. My intelligence so far exceeds theirs that there can be no comparison, for mine is infinite, yet I do not pride myself on it. For my primary distinctive is not intelligence but love, which is greater, and I should know. Do you think that you lack wisdom in comparison to the intellectuals you know? Yet I am willing and eager to share divine wisdom with those I love, who seek and ask it of me. I want them to understand that love is greater than intelligence, and for it to be their primary distinctive as well.

Do you desire the approval of others for being devout? I warned against emphasizing the outward appearances of piety in offices and titles, in manner of dress, and even in your appearance, that those who fast should not appear sullen or somber to be regarded as being spiritual. Are there still more ways in which you value public approval for your spirituality? Even if you avoid these items just mentioned are you content to let others think you are more spiritual than you really are? This is a dangerous trap. Be quick to acknowledge me for your righteousness and yourself for your faults to bear my presence in you with open humility. 

Have you heard it said that you are what you eat? This can be argued at the most basic material level, and a proper diet is important to health, but you are a spiritual being. I taught that it is not what goes into a man that defiles him, but what comes out. For the food you eat passes through you and is eliminated, but what comes out of your mouth is an indication of your heart. For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks. This is true for better or for worse, for curses and insults and condemnation or for blessing and affirmation and favor. Just as godliness is more profitable than bodily exercise, so the words you speak are more important than your diet. 

Do you believe in the sanctity of life? This is easy to believe in for infants and children who are in a state of innocence. What about adults who have issues and character flaws? This is a more severe test of your commitment to this principle. The sanctity of life is based on the creature being made in the image of the creator. This is still true even if the creature is fallen in sin. It is not based on the life being worthy, but is an intrinsic value. Do you see your fellow men and women as made in my image whether they believe or not? This gives you the same perspective I have, and an appreciation for the magnitude of the great commission. 

Have you heard it taught that Christians should not be involved in politics? This restriction is not in the Bible, but it is often stated by those who oppose the Christian world view. Yet political involvement is a test of character because it is a field that lends itself to strife and acrimonious debate. The polarized camps make stereotyped caricatures of and mock and curse the other side. How do you represent my values without descending into such behavior? You are called to let your light shine before men that they may see your good works and glorify me. If you display grace and maturity in the political realm it will indeed be a light in the darkness.

My word says my sheep know my voice. I can speak to anyone I wish, and I do. Who would be able to approach me for salvation if I did not call? Many who hear are unaware that I am the one bringing favorable thoughts to their minds, but my own people should recognize my voice when I speak to them. You are generally free to share the things I tell you, but it is important to do this in grace and humility. If you claim to speak for me then you should expect others to judge your words according to their own conscience and their understanding of my nature revealed in scripture, just as you do when someone else speaks in my name.

Do you think of friends as being equals? I have called you my friend, but we are not equals. Yet have you not been in a friendship with someone else in which one brings more to the relationship in resources or maturity or some other significant way? You are still friends but you are mindful of the difference between you. Doesn’t the lesser usually seek out the greater, expecting a greater benefit? If the greater one is gracious he will not emphasize their difference in status. Do I ever remind you of how much greater I am? And it was I who sought your company, and made it possible, and am pleased to acknowledge you as my friend.

Do you have seemingly impossible questions that you ponder? Bring them to me. Search the scriptures and see that I handle difficult questions well. Yet I do not promise to resolve for you questions that theologians have wrestled with for centuries. Yet even if I don’t give you a definite answer I can still bring you to a state of peace with regard to the question. Now you see in a glass darkly but you will see me face to face. One day you will see me as I am and you will ask me no questions, for you will know as you are known. Until then I ask you to trust me, with patience regarding things not yet revealed, knowing that I am in control of them.

Do you remember my prayer for my tormentors while I was on the cross? ‘Father forgive them, for they know not what they do’. Do you realize the understatement in this case? All the issues of time and eternity converged here and they were totally unaware. Have you ever prayed this prayer yourself? For you live in a spiritual world, with unnoticed and seemingly insignificant acts having consequences for eternity. You understand this but those who walk in darkness have no comprehension of it. Is ignorance of the law a valid legal defense? Yet it is a gracious thing for you to pray this same prayer for others.