Monday, June 30, 2008
Friday, May 30, 2008
GO THE EXTRA MILE
“If someone forces you to go one mile, go with him two miles.” (Matthew 5:41).
During the time of Roman occupation in ancient Israel, a Roman soldier had the legal right to literally force a Jew to carry his belongings for a certain distance. The Jew would not dare to say no because of the punishment that would result. What the Jew did have a choice in was the attitude he took in this outrageous yet lawful demand.
Roman soldiers were certainly used to Jews grumbling and complaining with hate in their eyes as they were forced to carry the Roman’s possessions. Seeing this Roman soldiers must have thought, ‘I’d be angry to, if this task was forced upon me, he’s just like I am.’ This gives some context for Jesus’ seriously radical and radically serious statement about going twice as far from what is asked of you; not out of it spite but love.
Talk about exploding the conditioned expectations of a Roman soldier. Seeing this Roman soldiers would probably think, ‘what kind of man is this, who acts in overwhelming kindness in a personally unjust situation?’ It may even provoke him to inquire the man about his life. At the very least it would be something he could never forget.
It is amazing how rarely our whole hearts are required of us in this world. It is easy to get by in mediocrity. But extreme is part of what it means to be salt and light in a dark and dying world. The truth is that no man or woman will go the extra mile out of their own humanity. That type of walk only happens by the power of the Holy Spirit experienced through a yielding to the Messiah Jesus.
As for the Sermon on the Mount, it is expanding to further texts and God is doing a deep and slightly painful work in me. I thank Him for it and trust Him in it. I’ve surrendered to this walk and I will persevere until it reaches completion going the extra mile with Jesus.
During the time of Roman occupation in ancient Israel, a Roman soldier had the legal right to literally force a Jew to carry his belongings for a certain distance. The Jew would not dare to say no because of the punishment that would result. What the Jew did have a choice in was the attitude he took in this outrageous yet lawful demand.
Roman soldiers were certainly used to Jews grumbling and complaining with hate in their eyes as they were forced to carry the Roman’s possessions. Seeing this Roman soldiers must have thought, ‘I’d be angry to, if this task was forced upon me, he’s just like I am.’ This gives some context for Jesus’ seriously radical and radically serious statement about going twice as far from what is asked of you; not out of it spite but love.
Talk about exploding the conditioned expectations of a Roman soldier. Seeing this Roman soldiers would probably think, ‘what kind of man is this, who acts in overwhelming kindness in a personally unjust situation?’ It may even provoke him to inquire the man about his life. At the very least it would be something he could never forget.
It is amazing how rarely our whole hearts are required of us in this world. It is easy to get by in mediocrity. But extreme is part of what it means to be salt and light in a dark and dying world. The truth is that no man or woman will go the extra mile out of their own humanity. That type of walk only happens by the power of the Holy Spirit experienced through a yielding to the Messiah Jesus.
As for the Sermon on the Mount, it is expanding to further texts and God is doing a deep and slightly painful work in me. I thank Him for it and trust Him in it. I’ve surrendered to this walk and I will persevere until it reaches completion going the extra mile with Jesus.
Saturday, May 3, 2008
Friday, April 4, 2008
SHARP ERO UPDATE #8
THE NECESSITY OF PURITY
Why does the Father God require purity to get into heaven? “Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God” (Matthew 5:8). Purity is not a concept but a tangible reality like light and heat. The absence of light is darkness. The absence of heat is cold. The absence of purity is contamination.
Every human heart is contaminated by sin and a world that glorifies in debauchery. Only the blood of Jesus applied to our hearts by faith can make them pure and keep them pure if we continue in faith! (Romans 11:22).
The words of Jesus are spirit and they are life and they are pure and holy. “Without holiness no one will see the Lord.” (Hebrews 12:14) Purity and Holiness are separate sides of the same coin. They both enable us to see GOD!
What or who do you look to in times of need? Who or what do you thank in times of plenty? Who or what do you consult in making important decisions? That person or thing is the Lord of your life. Selah…
Here's the link to Regent Comm school chapel on December 3rd, 2007.
http://media.regent.edu/schcom/chapels/120307comchapel.wmv
Why does the Father God require purity to get into heaven? “Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God” (Matthew 5:8). Purity is not a concept but a tangible reality like light and heat. The absence of light is darkness. The absence of heat is cold. The absence of purity is contamination.
Every human heart is contaminated by sin and a world that glorifies in debauchery. Only the blood of Jesus applied to our hearts by faith can make them pure and keep them pure if we continue in faith! (Romans 11:22).
The words of Jesus are spirit and they are life and they are pure and holy. “Without holiness no one will see the Lord.” (Hebrews 12:14) Purity and Holiness are separate sides of the same coin. They both enable us to see GOD!
What or who do you look to in times of need? Who or what do you thank in times of plenty? Who or what do you consult in making important decisions? That person or thing is the Lord of your life. Selah…
Here's the link to Regent Comm school chapel on December 3rd, 2007.
http://media.regent.edu/schcom/chapels/120307comchapel.wmv
Friday, March 7, 2008
SHARP ERO UPDATE #7
Divinely broken,
In obedience to the Father the Son of God was crucified to set man free from the devil, death and their sinful pride! Bless the name of Jesus who paid the price for our freedom! The Lord opened back to back portrayals of the Sermon on the Mount on Monday February 11th at a prayer group and the next day CBN’s Spiritual Gifts Seminar. The prayer group was an intimate setting in a living room and the SGS was larger group in an auditorium. Testimonies flowed from both of them.
One brother at the prayer group portrayal came up to me afterwards and said that chills ran through his body when I leaned down and looked him in the eyes from across the room and said, “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled.” He said that he prays that verse over himself all the time. I didn’t know that, but the Holy Spirit did! I know things are happening in the invisible realm during the drama. I usually don’t get to hear the specific details but it is always a blessing when I do. From my perspective I see the Holy Spirit using this dramatic portrayal to encourage genuine faith and convicts hidden sin through the words of Christ.
Many of Jesus words in the Sermon on the Mount have often been twisted or distorted to justify ungodly behaviors and lifestyles. This is ignorance in that those who do it ignore the overall context of Christ’s words. For instance in Matthew 7:1 Jesus says "Do not judge, or you too will be judged.” Yet the culmination of his thought process in reference to judging is in Matthew 7:5 when he says, “You hypocrite, first take the plank out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother's eye.”
Therefore, the will of God is never for us to point the finger at someone in condemnation but it is for us to point the finger to Jesus for salvation! In The Cost of Discipleship Dietrich Bonhoeffer says, “I am not forbidden to have my own thoughts about the other person, to realize his shortcomings, but only to the extent that it offers to me an occasion for forgiveness and unconditional love, as Jesus proves to me.” (185)
The future of the Jesus drama is exciting. Recently a semi-professional interview was done to incorporate with live footage from the drama to make a promotional DVD that will be distributed to churches for this ministry. The hope is for it to be finished by the end of April. Praise God! This March there is two scheduled portrayals. First it is the headline of a student event for the Regent Commons on Friday March 21st at 6:30pm. Then two days later I get to be a part of the service on Resurrection Sunday at Progressive Life Worship Center in Hampton Virginia.
Please continue to pray for me and this portrayal of the Sermon on the Mount that it will continue in the perfect will of God winning souls to the truth!
In obedience to the Father the Son of God was crucified to set man free from the devil, death and their sinful pride! Bless the name of Jesus who paid the price for our freedom! The Lord opened back to back portrayals of the Sermon on the Mount on Monday February 11th at a prayer group and the next day CBN’s Spiritual Gifts Seminar. The prayer group was an intimate setting in a living room and the SGS was larger group in an auditorium. Testimonies flowed from both of them.
One brother at the prayer group portrayal came up to me afterwards and said that chills ran through his body when I leaned down and looked him in the eyes from across the room and said, “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled.” He said that he prays that verse over himself all the time. I didn’t know that, but the Holy Spirit did! I know things are happening in the invisible realm during the drama. I usually don’t get to hear the specific details but it is always a blessing when I do. From my perspective I see the Holy Spirit using this dramatic portrayal to encourage genuine faith and convicts hidden sin through the words of Christ.
Many of Jesus words in the Sermon on the Mount have often been twisted or distorted to justify ungodly behaviors and lifestyles. This is ignorance in that those who do it ignore the overall context of Christ’s words. For instance in Matthew 7:1 Jesus says "Do not judge, or you too will be judged.” Yet the culmination of his thought process in reference to judging is in Matthew 7:5 when he says, “You hypocrite, first take the plank out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother's eye.”
Therefore, the will of God is never for us to point the finger at someone in condemnation but it is for us to point the finger to Jesus for salvation! In The Cost of Discipleship Dietrich Bonhoeffer says, “I am not forbidden to have my own thoughts about the other person, to realize his shortcomings, but only to the extent that it offers to me an occasion for forgiveness and unconditional love, as Jesus proves to me.” (185)
The future of the Jesus drama is exciting. Recently a semi-professional interview was done to incorporate with live footage from the drama to make a promotional DVD that will be distributed to churches for this ministry. The hope is for it to be finished by the end of April. Praise God! This March there is two scheduled portrayals. First it is the headline of a student event for the Regent Commons on Friday March 21st at 6:30pm. Then two days later I get to be a part of the service on Resurrection Sunday at Progressive Life Worship Center in Hampton Virginia.
Please continue to pray for me and this portrayal of the Sermon on the Mount that it will continue in the perfect will of God winning souls to the truth!
Monday, February 11, 2008
Friday, February 1, 2008
SHARP ERO UPDATE #6
Friday February 1st, 2008
Distinguished Branches,
Today I ran into a young woman who was at the “Sermon on the Mount” portrayal at Regent Chapel on December 3rd, 2007. It was a quick encounter but she really encouraged me. She said the most powerful thing that happened for her during the portrayal was seeing some people on the staircase across from her get up from their seats and actually lean over the railing to see who I was talking to and what I saying. A revelation instantly hit her, she said, “This is what people did when Jesus was talking. They rushed to see what he was going to do and say next!”
She’s absolutely right. As Jesus finished delivering the “Sermon on the Mount” scripture tells us that the “crowds were amazed at his teaching, because he taught as one who had authority, and not as their teachers of the law” (Matthew 7:28-9). Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever (Hebrew 13:8). Jesus was, is and forever will be the epitome of authenticity. He spoke from his innermost being and streams of living water flowed from within him by the power of the Holy Spirit. That reality will be true for us and anyone who really comes to Jesus and abides in him! (John 7:37-39).
The world does not hate religion. It loves religion. The world hates the Holy Spirit who exposes the world as a façade of fraudulence and condemns all sin. He is not a ‘performer’. He is reality! That is why I do not use the word ‘performance’ for the drama anymore. If I perform then I cut off the Holy Spirit’s power and I fail because I can nothing of real significance apart from him. It is a dramatic portrayal of Jesus.
Andrew Murray writes in his classical devotional book HUMILITY that, “We have our pride from Adam; we must have our humility from Christ. Pride rules in us with incredible power; it is ourselves, our very nature. Humility must become ours in the same way; it must be our true selves, our very nature”. The standard set forth in the Sermon on the Mount is the reflection of a humble heart submitted to the Spirit of God. To walk by faith is to walk in humility under the Spirit of God.
All things are possible WITH God! Is God with you? This is the foundation of a supernatural life that is dead to the corrupted selfish pride nature and is being perfected in the image of Christ. Jesus says, “Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect.” (Matthew 5:48). I guarantee you he was not joking! The crucifixion was not a joke! Selah!
persevering through vision,
Eric Ryan Olson
Distinguished Branches,
Today I ran into a young woman who was at the “Sermon on the Mount” portrayal at Regent Chapel on December 3rd, 2007. It was a quick encounter but she really encouraged me. She said the most powerful thing that happened for her during the portrayal was seeing some people on the staircase across from her get up from their seats and actually lean over the railing to see who I was talking to and what I saying. A revelation instantly hit her, she said, “This is what people did when Jesus was talking. They rushed to see what he was going to do and say next!”
She’s absolutely right. As Jesus finished delivering the “Sermon on the Mount” scripture tells us that the “crowds were amazed at his teaching, because he taught as one who had authority, and not as their teachers of the law” (Matthew 7:28-9). Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever (Hebrew 13:8). Jesus was, is and forever will be the epitome of authenticity. He spoke from his innermost being and streams of living water flowed from within him by the power of the Holy Spirit. That reality will be true for us and anyone who really comes to Jesus and abides in him! (John 7:37-39).
The world does not hate religion. It loves religion. The world hates the Holy Spirit who exposes the world as a façade of fraudulence and condemns all sin. He is not a ‘performer’. He is reality! That is why I do not use the word ‘performance’ for the drama anymore. If I perform then I cut off the Holy Spirit’s power and I fail because I can nothing of real significance apart from him. It is a dramatic portrayal of Jesus.
Andrew Murray writes in his classical devotional book HUMILITY that, “We have our pride from Adam; we must have our humility from Christ. Pride rules in us with incredible power; it is ourselves, our very nature. Humility must become ours in the same way; it must be our true selves, our very nature”. The standard set forth in the Sermon on the Mount is the reflection of a humble heart submitted to the Spirit of God. To walk by faith is to walk in humility under the Spirit of God.
All things are possible WITH God! Is God with you? This is the foundation of a supernatural life that is dead to the corrupted selfish pride nature and is being perfected in the image of Christ. Jesus says, “Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect.” (Matthew 5:48). I guarantee you he was not joking! The crucifixion was not a joke! Selah!
persevering through vision,
Eric Ryan Olson
Monday, January 21, 2008
Friday, January 4, 2008
SHARP ERO UPDATE #5
Friday January 4th, 2008
Disciplined bride,
My message for every born again child of God for this year is “Consecrate yourself unto Jesus in 2008, for God is preparing to do amazing things through you for his glory.” Surrender is the first step of consecration!
I had the great privilege to close out the year of 2007 with a performance of the Sermon on the Mount at the First Night Celebration in Tri-Cities Washington. It was held at Columbia Basin College in the new Geo-Science Center. It never ceases to amaze me how the Lord opens up doors for the Sermon on the Mount to challenging venues.
There was a good turn out and most of the people were caught of guard by me in my garment, sandals and prayer shawl portraying Jesus. I actually heard a few hecklers before I started the drama. Then, the anointing came, and it got dead silent. The words of Christ came out with fiery love. The often quoted rarely practiced words of Jesus in Matthew 6:33, “But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well” were delivered with a particular urgency that I have never sensed before in all my previous performances.
There are many so-called Christians who seek “good” theology or educated terminology but few seek the face of God. There are many so-called Christians who seek a religious social life to appear like a “good” person in the eyes of men, but few seek a surrendered life to Christ that will appear foolish in the eyes of men.
To Love God is to seek Him! Selah.
Your brother in Messiah Yeshua,
Eric Ryan Olson
Disciplined bride,
My message for every born again child of God for this year is “Consecrate yourself unto Jesus in 2008, for God is preparing to do amazing things through you for his glory.” Surrender is the first step of consecration!
I had the great privilege to close out the year of 2007 with a performance of the Sermon on the Mount at the First Night Celebration in Tri-Cities Washington. It was held at Columbia Basin College in the new Geo-Science Center. It never ceases to amaze me how the Lord opens up doors for the Sermon on the Mount to challenging venues.
There was a good turn out and most of the people were caught of guard by me in my garment, sandals and prayer shawl portraying Jesus. I actually heard a few hecklers before I started the drama. Then, the anointing came, and it got dead silent. The words of Christ came out with fiery love. The often quoted rarely practiced words of Jesus in Matthew 6:33, “But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well” were delivered with a particular urgency that I have never sensed before in all my previous performances.
There are many so-called Christians who seek “good” theology or educated terminology but few seek the face of God. There are many so-called Christians who seek a religious social life to appear like a “good” person in the eyes of men, but few seek a surrendered life to Christ that will appear foolish in the eyes of men.
To Love God is to seek Him! Selah.
Your brother in Messiah Yeshua,
Eric Ryan Olson
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