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Episode 45- Chapter 25 Part 1

Transcription

Hello everyone, and welcome to the latest in a series of podcasts that follow along with our book, The Wizard of God. This is Steve Roy and today we're going to begin discussing the Great Feast in Chapter 25. The four friends' long journey and land of God is coming to an end. All that remains now is for them to enter in and dine. The message of the parable of the lost son and elder brother, what's often known as the prodigal son, is to join the feast. The message to everyone is to come to the feast. This is the beginning and end of all things. It sounds so simple and thanks be to God it is. This book has been about food, about eating, but many of you may still be asking, "What is food in the land of God and where do I find this feast?" First, let me assure you that God isn't hiding it from you.

Jesus said, "My yoke is easy and my burden is light." He promised rest to the weary, along with an abundant, never-ending feast to all to come to him. But like grace and her friends in the land of God, many Christians go through long periods, sometimes their whole lives, without experiencing the feast. Why is this? One major problem is, like the government and EC, many religious systems tell their followers that God is hiding himself, holding back blessings, and that we must work or learn and master confusing of secure secrets in order to earn the blessings of God.

But the words of Jesus tell us plainly that this is not true. Here is one of many things that Jesus taught on the subject of dining on spiritual food. This promise is the cornerstone of the book and the podcast. John 6:35, he's speaking to the crowds who are following him. He said,

"I am the bread of life. He who comes to me will not hunger, and he who believes on me will never thirst."

Hallelujah. No friends, it's never God who is holding back and keeping us from the feast. The fact is, in the book, remember there was always food for the four friends. Remember the table in Chapter 2 filled with delicious food?

It was there for grace from the moment she arrived in the land of God. How about the amazing fruit in the orchard? The free barbecue feast in Pleasant Grove. The delicious pizza on the outskirts of the EC. There was even provision in the badlands through the sandwich cart guy. So unsatisfied hunger and thirst was never a part of the plan in the land of God. All that ever remained for the four was to dine where the feast was.

So it stopped them from continuing to receive. They didn't see. They didn't recognize the abundant provision that was right in front of them. So they didn't come and receive. The Bible calls this "in seeing they did not see." The cure for starvation is simple if there is an abundance. All that remains is to eat. But how? Where? What is food for a Christian? What will the four friends be dining on in Chapter 25 at the Great Feast?

To eat, to dine, is to receive all of the abundant grace that's in Christ Jesus. That's our spiritual feast. But having Christians come to and believed on Jesus, if so, why isn't His promise in John 6:35 true for everyone? What's the cause of many Christians' failure to dine? Failure to receive tangible grace and provision?

Friends, imagine this for just a moment. What if an abundance of all grace was lying right before us, what if all our dreams had come true, but we were sleeping? John announces this in the beginning of his gospel.

He says, "Of his fullness we have all received, and grace multiplied upon grace." I'm going to read this from the Amplified Bible.
"For out of his fullness, the superabundance of his grace and truth, we have all received and grace upon grace, spiritual blessing upon spiritual blessing, favor upon favor, and gift heaped upon gift.”

In order to walk in who we are as new creations, we must receive of His mercy and grace. In Romans 5:17 Paul teaches that we must receive the abundance of grace and the gift of righteousness, or right standing with God, in order to live the supernatural Christian life. We'll look at this verse again later. We've spoken a lot about mercy and grace throughout the podcast, yet mercy and grace are so often misunderstood. Please allow me to illustrate how mercy and grace work together through a story that God brought to my attention many years ago. It's a story that has really helped to open my eyes to God's amazing mercy and grace and the need for both.

I hope it will help you as well. I'm sure many of you know the classic book or part of it, "Les Miserables," or maybe you've seen one of the movies that's brought this classic to life, this classic story of redemption. I'm gonna discuss the opening few scenes from a 1998 movie adaptation. There's a link provided to a clip of these scenes. If you are able, I would highly recommend watching the 7-minute clip. If you do, when you get to the 7 minute 18 second mark, please pause the clip and look at the face of the actor who portrays Jean Valjean. Then return here and continue the podcast. The face of Jean Valjean is a face that is seen, experienced, pure, extravagant, mercy, and grace.

And it makes no sense to his natural mind. It's beyond too good to be true. It's beyond his ability to comprehend. Friends, one thing I know for sure, it takes the Holy Spirit to reveal the love, mercy, and grace of God. Our minds are simply incapable. Every scene in this first seven minutes or so is remarkably symbolic, I believe, of the lives and experiences of many Christians.

In case you aren't familiar with the story or weren't able to watch the clip, here's my synopsis. The French novel "Le Miserable" tells the story of Jean Valjean, a desperately poor man who was sentenced to 19 years in prison with hard labor for stealing a loaf of bread for his starving sister and her family. In prison, he was beaten and abused by his captors. When he's finally released after 19 years, it's with a yellow passport, which identifies him as a dangerous criminal. In this movie adaptation, I recommend the story begins as Jean Valjean limps his way into still another town to find food and refuge. He's turned away by endkeepers because of his identity papers.

And please understand this important point. Jean Valjean has been freed from prison, yet he is still homeless, poor, and helpless. While attempting to sleep on a public bench, an old woman urges him to try one more door in his search for shelter. She directs him to the door of a gracious, benevolent bishop. The bishop welcomes him into his home to spend the night and invites him to dine with him and his housekeeper.

While still standing at the doorstep, totally confused by the gracious offer, Jean Valjean warns the bishop about his identity, as it is written on the passport, the identity that was assigned to him by the legal authorities. The bishop tells John Valjean that he knows who he is, but he accepts him into his home anyway. There is no doubt this is the first act of mercy and grace that John Valjean has probably ever experienced.

He doesn't comprehend it, but he accepts the invitation. At dinner, Telling a story of arrest and imprisonment, he relays his impossible current status with the Bishop. He explains with his yellow passport, with the identity as a dangerous criminal, he's unable to work as no one will hire him. As he sees it, he was released from prison to starve. He blames and is bitter towards both man and God. Finally, He thanks the bishop for his hospitality and tells him after being able to sleep in a real bed, he'll wake up a new man.

The bishop's eyes open up because he knows what will truly be required for Jean Valjean to become a new man. He wakes up in the night and he plans to steal the silver dinnerware and make his escape. The bishop wakes, confronts Jean Valjean, who assaults him and runs away. The following day he's caught, arrested, and brought before the Bishop. This leads to the first amazing event.

Instead of demanding he be punished for his crimes, the Bishop shows Jean Baljean mercy, and unconditionally forgives him. He is free to go. But then, beyond all imagination, to everyone's total surprise, Along with mercy, the bishop extends abundant extravagant grace by freely giving Jean Valjean all the silver, which when sold is enough to make him a wealthy man. But much more than riches, the silver gives Jean Valjean the power to become a new man with a completely new identity.

So many Christians can relate to Jean Valjean's long journey, limping through life, trying to find refuge. I've tried all the doors to try and find, to try to experience the grace of God, they say. And they've all come up empty. If this is you, maybe you haven't tried all the doors. To be born again takes only a moment, but to walk in our new life, to be fully redeemed, requires receiving the treasure. To redeem is to take something broken, imperfect, condemned, and make it new, make it perfect, and uncorrupted, stronger, often and more beautiful than the original. To redeem is to give something or someone a new identity, but this new identity can't be something written on paper alone.

Redemption requires something tangible to occur. Redemption requires the skilled hand of the Creator. To redeem a man requires the power of God. I believe the story of Jean Valjean provides us with a very accurate picture of what is truly needed for our full redemption to take place and the legal opposition we face along the way.

As they are forever linked together, many people confuse grace with mere mercy. Stories that tell if someone receiving mercy can be very powerful. Our souls fill with gratitude towards the one who extended mercy to us. Surely, mercy would be enough to change to redeem someone, wouldn't it? This is how I felt about the opening few minutes of Les Miserables before the Holy Spirit opened my eyes. Let's change the scene, when Jean Valjean is taken to the bishop by the soldiers. Imagine the bishop graciously forgiving him for the assault and larceny, but then sending him on his way without the silver.

Shouldn't Jean Valjean live a life of gratitude for being so graciously forgiven? Isn't this enough to redeem and empower him to change his ways? Surely it was an incredibly gracious act simply to forgive him. But would this act of mercy been enough to make Jean Valjean a new man? man. Because for him to become a new man, he will need a new identity.

Mercy will leave him. Mere mercy will leave him in the exact same position with the same identity as when he first arrived at the bishop's door. Like then, he'll be pardoned but not redeemed. Not fully redeemed. His identity will not be changed. Although once again perfectly freed, he will lack the power to change his life, the power to fully redeem him as a new man with a new identity. So many Christians I've met live here, in this exact position. They've received amazing mercy at the cross, having their sins past sins forgiven. They've been told that they've been saved from the wrath of God and are free, sadly often to a degree, saved from hell if they don't somehow violate the terms of their pardon.

Having been freed from past sins, they are sent away to live the Christian life as virtually the same person as before, with no new ability, no power to live, to function as new creations. They have received mercy, but not grace. Sadly, this is what they've been taught and repeatedly told they should be thankful for God's mercy. They've received the pardon, but not the silver. Although completely forgiven of his crime against the bishop, without the silver, Jean Valjean was again, he was powerless to become a new man. He would have been granted mercy, but without grace, he would have nothing to live on, nothing to sustain him except the fading memory of the merciful act. So many Christians attempt to live this way, often heeding the advice of the preacher.

They are continually "returning to the cross." What this means in practice is they are continually trying to focus their mind, their natural mind, on all that Jesus has done on the cross for them, all the suffering he endured to purchase their forgiveness, Their mercy. The idea is, by focusing on the historical act, they will somehow be able to live their “Christian life” with nothing to draw upon except gratitude, mixed with guilt. Success at this flawed understanding of the Christian life is, of course, impossible, and it totally hinges on human strength, dedication, and willpower.

No, friends. Like Jean Valjean, we as Christians must have power to live the Christian life. Without the silver, Jean Valjean may have sustained himself for a few days, maybe even a few weeks without food. But you recall the passport and didn't give him the ability to work? Having no ability to work to earn food, he would have soon had to steal again or starve. No silver would have equaled sin and starvation. How do we live the Christian life?

How do we receive our silver? The power to change our identity. First, because of all the false teaching, I must repeat this, you can't earn the silver. Grace cannot be earned or it ceases to be grace. You can't do it through your own strength because the Christian life is not an "it" but a "who." What did Jesus answer when he was asked,

"What shall we do that we may work the works of God?" In John 6, Jesus announced that he was the bread, the living bread. He was the food that was sustained us spiritually. He answered,

"Therefore this is the work to believe on me."
My friends, it’s by the Holy spirit. You truly see this. You'll see the message of this book and what we believe is the core message of Jesus. To believe is not a mental exercise. Jesus said he was the living bread. So to believe is to eat. To believe is to receive tangible grace in you by the Holy Spirit.

And praise God. This natural grace and mercy, the food, Jesus, will flow through you. This is the work of God to dine on Jesus, the living bread. Hallelujah. Like Jean Valjean, as Christians, apart from him we have no ability to work, to earn spiritual stuff, strength, power, bread, water. We can't earn them through our good works, our long prayers, or anything. we must receive, partake of, all things of Jesus as a gift, by the grace upon grace that flows of Him, of His fullness we have all received, and grace upon grace. So how do we live? Again, in Romans 5:17 Paul teaches that much more, those who receive the abundance of grace and the gift of righteousness will reign in life through the one Jesus Christ.

Take some time to read these, to take time to meditate on these scriptures, to receive grace is to receive of His fullness. I have witnessed so many Christians asking, begging God for more, something more. But we've already been granted the ability to tangibly receive of the life of God. What could be greater? What more can God give us than Himself? What more could possibly be needed? Please meditate on this. Maybe you felt like the elder brother, sometimes in the parable of the lost son, slaving away for God with no feast. If so, please hear what the Father said to this son who complained about his life and wanted more.

The Father said to him out of Luke 15:31,

"Son, you are always with me, and all that I have is yours. All that is mine is yours. Has always been his. He just didn't see it. Maybe the problem doesn't lie with God giving more, but with our receiving what is already ours. In Romans 5:17 Paul is teaching how to live the Christian life.
He says we must receive, actually tangibly receive, the abundance of the grace of God along with the gift of righteousness. In case you've never heard, Christians aren't sent out to live to function with no spiritual power to do so.

Anyone truly born again is grateful for all Jesus has done for them. And Jean Valjean would have felt towards the bishop. But like him, we can't live on human gratitude and guilt. Like Jean Valjean, we will need a new life, a new identity and power to become the new man. And it is the silver that makes this possible. The rest of the story of Les Miserables shows the bishop's gift of the silver was enough to make Jean Valjean rich.

Through his new identity, he became a wealthy man and with his wealth. Although continually hounded by the law, he became a new man. Having received grace, grace flowed from him. Many Christians feel uncomfortable, though, thinking of themselves as spiritually rich. Most many are taught that spiritually speaking, they are lowly and poor.

They're told that this is the way of humility. No. To be humble is to believe and receive what God has said, which is, "We have all already been granted spiritual riches beyond all human imagination, grace upon grace." If There's any question about using silver in this context. Consider these scriptures. In 2 Corinthians 4 verse 6,

"For God who said light shall shine out of darkness is the one who has shown in our hearts to give us the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ. But we have this treasure in earthen vessels so that the surpassing greatness of the power will be of God and not from ourselves. We have this treasure. Yes, our bodies are still earthen vessels, but now the vessel contains the abundant treasure of God. What did Jesus do for our sake? Many things, but here's another one of them.

Maybe you haven't heard in 2 Corinthians 8:9,

"For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, for your sake he became poor, so that you, through his poverty, might become rich."

Look the scripture up. Jesus didn't become poor on our behalf so that we could live as beggars, begging God, groping for crumbs that fall from his table and complaining. No, this scripture says Jesus became poor so that we might be rich, rich in all things, fully equipped, fully empowered to live, to walk as fully redeemed new creations in him.

Jesus said, "I have come that you might have life abundantly."

Yes, Jesus came that we might be forgiven, but this was only the beginning, not the end. He came to give us a brand new redeemed life in him. The riches, the life he came to give us, was nothing less, is nothing less than the superabundant, supernatural life of God. We must stop looking at our old identity papers and believe who the Word of God says we are.

2 Corinthias 5:16 says it so well,

"Therefore from now on, we recognize no one according to the flesh, even though we once have known Christ according to the flesh, yet we know him in this way no longer. Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creature. All things have passed away. Behold, new things have come. Now all these things are from their of God who reconciled us to Himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation, namely that God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and He has committed to us the word of reconciliation.”

Hallelujah. Friends, it takes the gift of God to even comprehend these scriptures. Human minds cannot understand much less receive such spiritual treasure. So because of this, sadly, many have never heard the pure good news. Instead, they've heard a perverted message that mixes God's mercy with human works. Instead of receiving the gift of righteousness, the abundance of grace, complete pardon, and a new identity, and the treasure, they are told they have to earn what they have as Christians. And of course the enemy takes advantage of this false message. The very next scene after Jean Valjean received the silver, we see the law on his way to steal what he had been graciously given. The devil uses the law against the people of God.

This is why we must know the truth, the full gospel, receive it and walk in it to truly be free. Failure at being righteous in our own strength is guaranteed. It's impossible, earning anything from God is impossible. But why would we want to earn something that we already have anyway? Perfectly and forever in Christ Jesus. We must not see it.

Perhaps included with our treasure will be a new set of eyes, eyes that can see the abundance of the grace of Jesus. The remainder of the movie depicts the law and the person of Javert hounding Jean Valjean by denying and attacking his new identity. By becoming a new creation, Jean Valjean has died to the law and now lives according to his new nature. Still, he must overcome the attacks of his enemy, the law. To live as a new man, Jean Valjean had to continue to spend the silver. Please allow me to explain this point. Like Jean Valjean with pardoned but unredeemed identities, Christians are powerless over their lives. The random whims of life toss them around like a disabled ship at sea in a storm, and they cry out to God for help like beggars, see themselves as helpless and powerless.

This is not the identity of Christians who have received the grace of God in Christ. Romans 5 .17 says, because of what Jesus did on our behalf, we can receive the abundance of grace, the gift of righteousness, and reign in life through Jesus. The word "reign" refers to how a king reigns, rules, other definitions are to exercise the highest influence, to control, to obtain royal power, to become king, to reign over one's life. To reign in life as a king is the very opposite identity of a powerless beggar.

And this power authority is 100% secure because it's all because of what Jesus has done and is granted to us by grace. It's not mixed with acts and works of our flesh, good or bad. And the good news is Jesus work is 100% perfect and 100% finished and we are in him, but we must receive the abundance of grace and the gift of righteousness.

Grace and righteousness are gifts, and like all gifts, gifts by nature, they must be received to be effectual. This is the meaning of the food, the dining in the Wizard of god. We must eat the good food and refuse to live on dead flesh. There's more to share, but for now again, please take time to ponder, take on these scriptures we've shared.

Put yourself in the shoes of Jean Valjean. Without the silver, the gift, the grace he received, could any amount of hard work and dedication but enough to fully redeem him to give him a new identity? Praise God in Christ, we don't have to earn our spiritual treasure or identity. I'll read the scripture where Jesus gives the invitation to the great feast. In Luke 14, Jesus is invited to the house of one of the leaders of the Pharisees. He graciously accepts at the table. He begins to contrast false religious teaching with the love, mercy, and grace of God. We'll pick up the story in verse 15 where one of the religious ones tries to chime in.

“When one of those who were reclining at the table with him heard this, he said to him, ‘Blessed is everyone who will eat bread in the kingdom of God.’ But he said to him, ‘A man was giving a big dinner, and he invited many. And at the dinner hour, he sent a slave to say to those who have been invited, “Come, for everything is ready now.” But they all alike began to make excuses. The first one said to him, “I bought a piece of land, and I need to go look at it. Please consider me excused." Another one said, "I bought five yoke of oxen and I'm going to try them out. Please consider me excused." Another one said, "I've married a wife and for this reason I cannot come."

We spoke to this parable previously. The religious one was waiting, hoping to die with God in heaven. This is the point. Jesus corrected him and announced that the great feast was ready now, now because Jesus had come. What is the response from those invited in this parable? They make excuses for not attending the feast. All the excuses listed are reasonable to the natural mind, but later Jesus states that none of those who were invited and declined would taste at the feast. Of course, they didn't taste. They refused to come. I hope through this podcast we can all agree on a few truths.

The feast of God is ready and waiting for us now. The time for excuses has passed, and we must turn from one thing in order to turn to another. We must refuse any imitation, any perceived need that would keep us from the feast. It's critical that we see our absolute need for the tangible treasure of God, the feast, without which we are nowhere. If we don't see this critical, we won't give all that we might have it. All things are harsed by grace, but to receive we must abandon all hope in ourselves or anyone or anything else.

We must abandon all hope of making it on our own, which includes living the Christian life. For instance, there's only one who can live the Christian life, Jesus. But the good news is he lives in us and we live in him. Hallelujah. Well, please join us again for part 2 as we explore what the Scripture says, the gift, the treasure that allows us to reign as kings and life and how we receive it. But in case your invitation got lost along the way, allow me to announce your invitation to the Feast of God. Isaiah 55, from the New Living Translation, verse 1:

“Is anyone thirsty? Come and drink. Even if you have no money. Come take your choice of wine or milk. It's all free. Why spend your money on food that doesn't give you strength? Why pay for food that does you no good? Listen to me and you will eat what is good. You will enjoy the finest of food. Come to me with your ears wide open. Listen and you will find life.”

Hallelujah. Grace and peace to you my friend. Bye for now.

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