[Music] [Music] this is our 10th and final Jesus trip session in our series on contemplation and I remind listeners once again to check out our full 20-hour course available at John crow. because this series is just scratching the surface on this vitally important topic this week I really just want to pull back the lens and recap a bit many churches have no grid for the Deeper Life Teresa of Avala told her young nuns some of which were aged 15 years or younger she expected them to have a contemplative practice a prayer practice of Silence within six months of their time in the convent she understood the vital necessity of contemplation but countless professional preachers seminarians or lifelong Christians have never even heard of contemplation no ultimate grid for the practice of God's presence I mean what else merits our time from the outside contemplation may look like you're just sitting there half asleep wasting time not even asking God for anything just quiet but time spent in his presence is never wasted time the love of God you're experiencing there is a very wormhole that is beyond all time and dimensionality even intercession is happening and you don't even have a clue how you may just be sitting there on your old tattered couch but what you're doing is Cosmic you are experiencing the love of God that exists outside of time and space the very love of God that reaches through the heights of Heavens through myriads of angels and even penetrates to the depths of hell it stretches the vast limits of the cosmos you experiencing and participating something together simultaneously in the now a in a cosmic Corridor together with the Patriarchs Abraham Isaac and Jacob even with your own great great grandchildren it encompasses all worlds Dimensions within Dimensions Wheels within Wheels we've neglected to relish and explore the very core Dynamic of the Christian faith we must have a grace-based mysticism that drinks of the union and fullness it's already ours in Jesus and even many Christians who do begin to experience or catch the importance of contemplation can still be quick to abandon the church they catch one quick whiff of the Deeper Life and the next thing you know they're posting roomy and deepok Chopra quotes that don't really have anything to do with Jesus and then suddenly you can spiritually evolve beyond God himself and it becomes all about wigging out to some ethereal Source some nebulous Divine soup forgetting the centrality of Jesus Christ who presents to us what God is clearly like and what humanity is truly like and holds those two together in his very person and in forgetting Christ we can trade in all this religious self-effort transactional christianese language we once had about dying to self and killing yourself off to please God get closer to God and then just exchange all of that for a different flavor of religion with more trendy psycho Bible language about diet to Ego or ascending some level of Awakening any christless mysticism or one that demotes Jesus to a mere Guru who is just an example to for our own individual path of self-realization what bound to revert us right back to the self-effort of our false self more religion to say we have it all in Christ does not equate to boredom as if we're saying hey you've got it all so this is the plateau of your experience now else to see here folks no a million times no boredom is not a fruit of the spirit that's why we won't turn off our phone for 10 seconds to pray we're equating boredom with God bored with a God we barely know but think we have all figured out and expecting that Netflix is going to give us better entertainment now I'm not anti- Netflix but look if you're bored it's because you're still sniffing the cork of the fullness you already have inside your belly part part of our contemplative practice is to face boredom headon and see right through it see churches are emptying yes today many are interested in the major questions of life and they're not being adequately fed through church and they're not going to be fed through culture but unfortunately there are there are deeper issues to which many are not finding answers in established churches and these longings can only be suppressed or else they get diverted by chasing wealth affection Fame Prestige power control these impulses are extremely absorbing and they appeal to the false self the ucer self the identity crisis of Fallen Adam and these things become overwhelmingly oppressive Necessities if they are not moderated there is endless propaganda of worldly motivation and shallow gratifications that don't speak to the deeper needs of humanity but which are pervasive everywhere yet it all leaves the spiritual element of people unsatisfied see contemplation undercuts all of this to the root of what we're looking for because contemplation is the mode by which we experience and participate this gospel Union that is ours in Jesus Christ rather than just leaving the gospel in a realm of theory or books or positional ideology there are reasons many have bailed in churches often because of the human element and faults of churches or leadership maybe the hypocrisy or their lack of commitment to the ideals that they espouse many are looking elsewhere for spirituality and likely there is a move of the spirit to meet people where they're at for instance in all of the deconstruction that you're seeing at the moment at least people are being awakened to certain deeper values even if it seems to be outside the church that they're chasing them but Outside The Community of Faith this endless construction often just ends in a depressed neoism and there's an element of course where folks just you know maybe don't like to be told what to do or they have issues with any kind of church Authority and that's one of the reasons sermons aren't in fashion anymore participatory learning is more in Vogue people have a hard time listening to lectures they'll be texting and obviously there's so much control in the church but the question is whether all the new spiritual stuff being Voli about is truly going to be contemplative wherein there is a transformation and a freeing from the illusion of the false self in a real interaction with the presence of Jesus Christ or is it just feeding the false self with more spiritual attainment it can't be enough to speak about Christ mysticism involves engaging this Union we have with him so yes just to sit there seemingly only half asleep in wordless wond seems by all purposes to be the most impractical waste of time on the planet and yet it is the chiefest calling of your life of everyone's life and although you may not feel it's your personality to be silent or that you're not good at sitting in silence in fact the human heart was created for a vast capacity for silent prayer Psalm 652 says to you silence is praise oh God and Zion your silence before God is worship part of worship is giving silence to one another pausing listening not talking over one another not reacting on Facebook two seconds after someone posts something that's a great thing to learn in today's combative and Loud Society the deepest relationships we have with family and friends are the ones where you can go on Long Drves together without having to fill every moment of space with nervous chatter silence is a deeper way of knowing if we aren't used to it putting down the phone may seem tough you're itching for that dopamine kick to see who responded to your Instagram piics but there's an infinite Frontier of peace and richness of authentic being that's being forfeited you don't need to just meditate in absolute silence if that's not a muscle you've built take a walk take a drive but we need to start cultivating and carving out time alone and we need to carve out time that is quiet St John cacus says the lover of Silence draws close to God he talks to him in secret and God enlightens him silence is a way of waiting a way of watching and a way of listening to what is going on within and around us it is a way of interiority of stopping and then of exploring the cellers of the heart and the center of Life silence is fullness not emptiness it is not absence but the awareness of a presence there is rest in Waiting upon God look at the scriptures Psalm 1312 surely I've calmed and quieted my soul like a wean child with this mother like a wean child is my soul Within Me Psalm 44 meditate within your heart on your bed and be still Psalm 37:7 rest in the Lord wait patiently for him in Matthew 11 our Lord says come to me all you who labor and are heavy laden and I will give you rest take my yoke upon you and learn from me for I am gentle and lowly in heart and you will find rest for your souls for my yoke is easy and my burden is light and Isaiah 40:31 but those who wait on the Lord shall renew their strength they shall Mount up with wings like eagles they shall run and not be weary they shall walk and not faint in Hebrews 4 there remains therefore a Sabbath rest for the people of God for the one who has entered his rest has himself also rested from his works as God did from his Isaiah 26:3 you will keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed upon you psalm 62:1 for God Alone my soul waits in Silence from him comes my salvation and Psalm 46:10 be still and know that I am God J Brent Bill writes silence takes us beyond the limits of Consciousness and into the heart and mind and will of God instead of our possessing God through silence God through silence possesses us so as a practice contemplation should not be seen apart from the gospel as a way of drawing near to God though you will hear that kind of language from some writers no contemplation when viewed evangelically in a good sense evangelically is a practice wherein we unpackage enjoy and actually subjectively experience the union we have that has been 100% secured in Christ's person and finished work it actually flows out of the Oneness and wholeness of the tri Unity of God not just reading the menu but delighting ourselves in the meal and it does involve carving out time to be alone Solitude Abbott triphen writes our society is addicted to noise we find it it impossible to drive our vehicles without the radio on or a CD playing our televisions are running from the moment we return home from work we take our runs with earphones filling our minds with music we even walk with our friends while listening to our own music we live as though we were afraid of Silence noise keeps us from connecting with our inner self wherein we have the opportunity for communion with god without silence we are unable to hear the voice of God speaking in the Stillness of our heart guys so many people when they hear this good news of the Gospel the New Creation in Christ well they wonder often why their outward lives don't seem to be bearing the subjective fruit of the Gospel even though intellectually they have heard that the old man the false self is dead with Christ their minds may still be cluttered with a lot of nonsp thinking but it helps to know that the false self is an illus self it has no grounding in reality not all of our thoughts or emotions are perfect however onto logically in our very being we are whole and this wholeness is a gift from God so part of the problem is that we fill our empty space with noise and in neglecting the reality of the everpresent Christ we set our Union aside as a mere idea while running off and feeding on other ideas that seem contr contrary to reality and we wonder why we feel dissatisfied and end up blaming the gospel for being deficient or not working or just not enough no contemplation is much deeper than an intellectual Ascent or even worshiping toward God it's a participation in God even the mere reading of scripture is not the same as relishing this abiding Union for its own Sake One monastic writer observed if we are merely speculative students of scripture breaking the words of God up into scientific fragments and deafening our spirit with the noise of human argument then we cannot hear the word who speaks to us silently in the words of God it is difficult for us to be real and authentic when our time is spent not just with entertainment or even scripture though these are wonderful in themselves but to be authentically ourselves we must be contemplatives of course scripture should included in your contemplative practice and I know some of you found great benefit by incorporating uh scripture in your meditation times not just sitting Silent not just zipping through a reading but taking that slow saturating lectio Divina type of reflective prayer where you read a scripture due at a time you soak it in for a while you embi on it before moving on and before long the book gets sat down because you're just too busy ingesting his delectable presence so there are tools we've covered the tools but the the fact is due to our vocations and our callings in life not all of us are afforded the Impractical opportunity of hours a day in prayer Our Union with God does not hinge on our silence or our Solitude there is Grace for us all in each of our respective walks but this mystical Union is most profoundly realized in a place of silence and withdrawal God by no means exists only in our quiet time but there is an act contemplation where we when we untether for a while and then we go back into the world that permeates our entire day our entire lives and indeed the whole world is full of his glory whether we're seeing it or not right there in the midst of our daily activities nevertheless we're just so prone to move right along doing business as usual with a dull sensitivity to his abiding presence and wonder and if we can continually neglect to intentionally take time and pull aside come aside to that inner room close the door pray to our father in secret see we must carve out these moments for real true concrete Solitude because in that place we learn to foster a a a a prayer that's beyond words and in this silence we see the world as it really is meant to be Henry Nan writes that we simply need quiet time in the presence of God although we want to make all our time time for God will never succeed if we do not reserve a minute an hour a morning a day a week a month or whatever period of time for God and him alone this asks for much discipline and risk-taking because we always seem to have something more urgent to do and just sitting there and doing nothing often disturbs us more than it helps but there's no way around this being useless and Silent in the presence of our God belongs to the core of all prayer and the beginning we hear our own unruly inner noises more loud than God's voice this is at times very hard to tolerate but slowly very slowly we discover that the silent time makes us quiet and deepens our awareness of ourselves and God then very soon we start missing these moments when we're deprived of them and before we're fully aware of it an inner momentum has developed that draws us more and more into silence and closer to that still point where God speaks to us he says contemplative reading of holy scriptures and Silent time and the presence of God belong closely together the word of God draws us into silence silence makes us attentive to God's word the word of God penetrates through the thick of human verbosity to the silent center of our heart silence opens in us the space where the word can be heard without reading the word silence becomes stale and without silence the word loses its recreative power the word is born in silence silence is the deepest response to the word now on the one hand contemplation is actually a practice of radical acceptance of our problems and even personal shortcomings not that we throw our hands in the air and fatalistically just give up in the face of difficulty or personal growth failing to use gifts and tools and wisdom to affect change in the world or in ourselves but contemplation is looking to Christ from a center of rest it's not self-improvement it is strictly speaking um a recognition that below all of this surface transitory hubub lies the reality of a finished work and our own true self which is free at any moment to burst forth invisible manifestation remember again silence is not some tool to bring us to Perfection God is Not purging us or trying to annihilate our souls or outward lives he's not against all our thoughts he's not against our minds our bodies or Souls he's more prum than we are God became a human he's not happiest when we just shut everything down and try to internally kill ourselves that's not contemplation much of mysticism and contemplative practice gets sidelined sidetracked into a quest for Perfection an overcoming of original sin or attainment of Union with God and quite often this is attempted through an annihilation of self silence does none of these things it's neither a substitute for Christ's work nor even an application of Christ's work but it is a participation in that reality we're not entering contemplation to combat thoughts but to have rest from them silent is not a latter to Perfection it is a place of enjoyment where we commune with him for his own sake and fruitfulness happens in our outer lives the German Mystic Johan tler said become a fertile ground for the Divine birth cherish this deep silence within nourish it guys there is a birthing of the full stature of Christ in us as the Apostle uses child birthing labor language to Express this Thomas Merton writes the great thing is prayer prayer itself in other words not some other goal or end you're shooting for here you don't even enjoy prayer itself for what it is you if you if you don't do that you've you've only known religious prayer you see contemplation is is an addiction he says if you want a life of prayer the way to get it is by praying we were indoctrinated so much into means and ends that we don't realize that there's a different dimension in the life life of Prayer in technology you have horizontal progress or you must start at one point and move to another and then another but that is not the way to build a life of prayer he says in prayer we discover what we already have you start where you are and you deepen what you already have and you realize that you're already there guys this isn't progressing towards a home in God where we aren't already seated it is actually inhabiting that place and a big part of this is the laying aside of thought and the laying aside of thought is not merely that we're being emptied of content but that something is positively happening our mind is changing love is being drunk down and begins manifesting in our lives all the virtues and fruits of the spirit they aren't fruits of self but they're fruits of the spirit after all well they start popping out but having the perspective that contemplation is getting the evil out of us uh climbing levels your prayer is going to be labored and difficult at best if it even lasts at all holy spirit's number one job is not snapping on a rubber glove to give you a lifelong sin inspection holy spirit is pointing us to Jesus so that we'll know what we've always truly looked like so all the periphery stuff that this entails slowing down turning off the electronics taking some time being aware this is not sanctifying us you have been Sanctified that just means set apart he is our sanctification 1 Corinthians 1 but we are growing and we mature in this this is the call to walk in the spirit to Echo harmonize with the spirit to tune in to listen not just to come to God for direction or a word not that prophetic listening where you're just trying to get a fortune cookie red but dwelling in the word word himself enjoying him just for who he is which of course changes our concrete lives to walk out the Holiness that is already ours as we learn to move in selfless other giving love so just a few um practicals here as our Series has come to an end find a quiet place as you all know there are going to be distractions distractions of noise alarm more a creaky floor conversations in another room um it's okay sit with that maybe read a few scriptures to recollect your mind allow yourself to slip into silence if you need to pray with your words or your mind it's okay to go back and forth but you're going to notice things you're going to hear your own breath you're going to feel your own heartbeat your stomach's going to be moving but see over time this stuff begins to fade to the periphery you'll hear hear it but it grabs your attention no more than the white noise of traffic outside a bigger part of cultivating silence as you've been learning is to gently let go of the Interior distractions thoughts imaginations memories visualizations to-do lists uh sort of dreaming that will take place all this content is inevitable it's integral it's normal there's nothing wrong with you you aren't unspiritual we don't view all distractions as harmful or interfering with your prayer to the degree that we're trying to shut it all out forcefully silent prayer is not a task to be accomplished okay there's no performance or doing it right rather this is a relationship wherein we're learning to tune in to him cultivate silence in order to let go of these very burdens and concerns that never should have been weighing us down to begin with growing in trust handing things over to him our mind and heart harmonizing with the Trinity who dwells closer than the air we breathe in the very center of our souls contemplation is to drink in his love the very fountain of immortality and as your focus May occasionally drift off as it regularly does just ever so gently some of the tools with your prayer were Jesus just bring yourself back to Center recollect remind yourself of why you're there and gently release those thoughts we're not clinging to them and just as so many of the ancient fathers and mothers of the church have done before us Paving the way on these contemplative paths we're learning to embrace mystery there's no pressure to get to the bottom of every thought to every worry to every care to every memory that arises that's not why you're here you're free you're free to let those things just drift by as you sink ever so deeply into the arms of Father Son and Holy Ghost God bless you guys be back next week holy spirit is often referred as the third person of the Trinity but as the Trinity a hierarchy is Holy Spirit truly God in a recent poll among 3,000 evangelicals the majority believed holy spirit is a force not a person yet the early church adamantly declared that Holy Spirit is the Lord The Giver of Life who spoke by the prophets and who is worshiped and adored together with father and the son many charismatics though open to the spirit's interaction likewise think of Holy Spirit as a power or energy which comes in degrees holy spirit doesn't come in portions Holy Spirit comes in person what does it mean that Holy Spirit has already been poured out on All Flesh holy spirit is hovering over Humanity pointing us to Christ who reveals the father for a truly trinitarian grasp of holy spirit that is both theological and deeply experiential we would like to invite you this summer for a 3-month extended online ecourse with myself John Crowder together with cter Krueger and Rod Williams exploring the often neglected person of the godhead Holy Spirit each week we'll gather online for live interactive discussions with students and participants June through August 2024 live sessions are time zone friendly for the USA the UK and Europe at the end of the course we will cap it off with an optional in-person gathering on the Emerald Coast of Florida with Warren Sylvester leading worship Holy Spirit spirit is Illuminating and making the reality of our Union with God known to us in super abounding Wonder after 12 weeks of deep teaching on Holy Spirit this inperson Gathering is about tangible impartation as we come together to experience a deeper Divine reality than words can express find out more about the course as well as the impartation weekend and take advantage of the early bird discount at john. net we've got some fun in-person Gatherings coming to a region near you in 2024 so before you go let me tell you where I'm headed I'll be in Albuquerque New Mexico in August I'll be in New England coming to Massachusetts in October in November I'll be with DrC Baxter Krueger in Germany as well as in Switzerland and I'll be in Middle America in Ohio in December check it out John crowder.
edu . tv it's where I give live fulllength lectures interactive Q&A sessions plus you have hundreds of hours of archived teaching Bible commentary found nowhere else and your small membership fee helped support our orphanages and missions around the world so it's a win-win finally please visit our main site John crow. where you can find upcoming events like this ministry cruise to Alaska September 2024 with myself and DrC bter Krueger you'll find our extended OnDemand ecourses like this 20h hour module on christology we've also got 20 hours just on contemplation a really fun one drunk church history it's about 30 hours long and our most recent on the Book of Revelation that will change everything you thought about the apocalypse find everything at John Crowder [Music] doet Plunge Into the Depths of the gospel of grace and sign up for Kaa new wine Seminary explore the heart of the Trinity the ancient Faith the finished work of the Cross It's Supernatural and presence oriented the online format makes it an extremely affordable theology course and it's a rare opportunity to drink from some amazing teachers once a week catch the early bird discount rate at ka.
