My husband and I went to see the movie, “Jesus Revolution” last week. I remember seeing hippies on the news when I was a little girl.
Back in the day, a new neighbor moved in with lots of sons and two daughters. One of the older boys wore a white t-shirt over a muscular body. He wore long brown hair down the middle of his back. I stared at him, trying to figure out why he would choose a girl’s hairstyle, until he glared at me.
So, to watch a film highlighting Pastor Chuck Smith in California being introduced to a hippie and hearing the music of my youth, the story grabbed me.
Seeing a pastor and his wife deal with cultural change on a major scale helped me think of my pastor/husband and me. How do we react to the uncertainties of the times?
In the beginning of the hippie’s visits, older hymns were sung about sin being washed away by the blood of Jesus. I really enjoyed the movie, but afterwards, I wondered where all those converts to Christ went.
Although, it occurred to me that many of the people of that day could be dead today. Stopping drugs improves health, but for those who imbibed for a long time or used strong substances, that may have shortened their lives significantly.
Jesus heals people, but sometimes He doesn’t intervene, and folks suffer consequences for risky behaviors. God has eternity in mind, which is why Jesus talked about repentance—turning from sin, and seeking Him and His kingdom, (Matthew 6:33).
I watched a series called “Now We Live: How Your Faith Can Restore a Broken World” on Right Now Media, with Summit Ministries’ trademark perhaps, at the end of each segment.
Alisa Childers spoke of Jesus in ways I’ve only recently begun to think about. She said that Jesus, being God, met Moses at the burning bush. Reading in the Old Testament lately, I got thinking that when God met Moses at a tent, it had to be Jesus. On the mountain top, God told Moses he could only see God if he set himself in the cleft of a rock, and only saw the back of the Father, so that Moses wouldn’t die. Seeing God’s glory face-to-face would be too much for Moses to handle.
Alisa Childers said there is only one Jesus. She said that Jesus was with the Israelites and with Moses during their exodus in the wilderness. God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit are one. She also said, “People make God in their own image.”
She talked about God being our Judge, and that people don’t think of Him that way.
God is love, and He gives us peace as we learn from Galatians 5. As a Father, He disciplines us for our own good. Yet, there’s an eternal separation that God doesn’t want for us, and Jesus warned listeners about often. In 2 Peter 3, the Bible says, “It’s not God’s will that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.”
I’m praying many will see “Jesus Revolution” and receive Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior. I’m also asking God that they read the Bible and learn what Jesus had to say. One of His comments that I wrestle with at times is to deny myself, pick up my cross and follow Him. By asking for His help, I’m able to put self aside. Sometimes, I should ask before I give up putting my desires on hold.
I’m thankful for His forgiveness and grace and mercies which are new every morning. A Christian cliché: “God loves us too much to let us stay the same.”
So, I repent of sin every day, more than once, because I fall short of God’s holiness. After receiving God’s forgiveness, then I need to forgive myself and move on.
That’s where the lack of guilt comes from, which is mentioned in the movie. God’s forgiveness after repenting, and sincere willingness to be molded by the Holy Spirit removes the excessive remorse that hinders healthy emotions in us.
Obeying Jesus shows our love for Him and gives us joy. We won’t be perfect in these human bodies, but the Apostle John said in (1Jn 4:11, NKJV): “Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another.”
May God bless you and protect you from the fiery darts of the enemy.
