Wholeness: Make A Move

When I first started this series, I had maybe three or four posts in mind. Nearly one year and 50+ posts later here I am finally wrapping up; or am I? Every time I think I get close to the end, more ideas would suddenly be there. Whether this is the last official post or not, I'm sure the concept will come up again. It's just that important. But, somehow it seems right to wrap up just after Christmas since the Messiah is the gateway to new beginnings.

There has been a surprising amount of posts that deal with the why not just the how. Then again, the how is irrelevant if we refuse to move forward just because we can't see past our preconceived notions about the why. I honestly believe false assumptions of many varieties are a big obstacle to true discipleship and spiritual growth. Not to mention that how often involves facing things we just assume avoid when specifically addressing this subject. Wholeness can only happen as inner wounds are healed after all, and those inner wounds are indeed the primary obstacle to genuine righteousness. As Isaiah 61 reveals the Messiah came to proclaim good news to the poor, bind up the brokenhearted, proclaim freedom for the captives, and release from darkness for the prisoners. I'm sure the language is as figurative as it is literal too, Jesus was always just as concerned with our spiritual well-being as our physical one. The poor in spirit are held captive by more than just physical chains after all. So Jesus didn't just come to "should" us to death with a systematic definition of righteousness without actually equipping us with the means to live up to that standard as the legalists do.

I have also seen other teachers around me delving into some of the same outlying ideas as I have. What better confirmation that the spirit is moving, and seeking a remnant among the mediocre masses.

Let me leave you with this. Back in the 19th Century emerged "The Holiness movement" an ideal that centered around entire sanctification, and perfection. Yet, here in the 21st century, this notion of perfection is often viewed as impossible, even in the denominations that sprang from this movement. If we acknowledge only one dimension of holiness, it is quite impossible. It's like raising the walls on a house before pouring a concrete foundation. The house is inevitably going to be weak, and prone to damage and rot. This seems to fit the state of the church universal right now I'm sad to say.

Maybe it's time to call for a new holiness movement. One that embraces all three dimensions of holiness, and doesn't try to skip over the transformation process it takes to become genuinely righteous. Or just tries to apply a merely cosmetic surface faith. True full spectrum holiness is what we truly need for a genuine revival that will delight and inspire the lost again. This is clearly what this broken world so desperately needs right now. I suggest you start with yourself and face the brokenness in your heart that makes you captive to the ways of darkness. So you can find true wholeness in a way that makes people take notice and say to themselves “I want what they have.”

The Visual PARABLEit