Tags
dying to self, inspiration, Life and Death, suffering, T.A. Sparks, the old self, trials, wilderness
April 30th, 2017
Basically, I wanted to go to bed early. However, before I checked the internet as I sometimes do and there I read in the news that someone had died today. Not knowing who this man would be, I felt nudged to read more about him. Wikipedia told me that he was a Swiss man who passed away at the age of only forty years in the exercise of his favorite occupation which had been rock climbing and mountaineering. As I checked out his website, I clicked on some beautiful pictures I really marveled at. Not completely sure which photo I liked the most, I eventually chose one of them for my blog and began to write on here. Only a few minutes later I returned to this man’s website in order to insert this and, perhaps, another picture into my blog article, as I wondered again. Good pictures, yes. Even very good pictures, taken by a professional, no doubt about this. But where was this very first amazement I had felt? This awe and wonder, this joy about I-do-not-know-what-it-is as John of the Cross once called it (am paraphrasing him here). They were completely gone! I was no longer interested in these pictures that seemed to be normal, even ‘dead’ to me now and I decided to delete what I had just written, all at once. Well, God’s leading, you know, is truly a strange thing at times…
May 1st, 2017
Now, some time after midnight as I just shared a cold, roasted chicken thigh with Lily the cat, I do not know yet what God might have had in mind, but I sense I should keep writing. About life and death, perhaps? These pictures of high mountains where you could see this aforementioned man climbing were alive to me although he had died, but ONLY in these moments as GOD made them alive to me. Not before, since I saw similar pictures in the past without any comparable feelings. And I felt no life in them afterwards, either. As simple as it might sound, God is the Life that He shares with anyone He wills, at any time, but always in His time. Believe it or not, I just experienced the same thing while checking the Bible. I was thrilled to find 1 Cor 15:45 which tells us that “[t]he first man Adam became a living being”; the last Adam became a life-giving spirit” (ESV). Reading through the following verses, I saw they somehow led to the gist of it all which consists of these words,
“Death is swallowed up in victory. O death, where is your victory? O death, where is your sting?” (1 Cor 15:54-55 ESV)
Jesus Christ has become a life-giving spirit in order to raise the dead. Not only those who die physically, even those who have died to their old nature’s shackles. After I had jotted down the above-mentioned Scriptures, I could not relate to them anymore, not at all. That is bizarre, isn’t it…? 🙄
May 27th, 2017
Life and death, still. Rather, I have experienced months where I have found myself spiritually dead. Months during which my old nature could not find anything to cling to, nothing to get any life or joy out of it, neither out of hobbies, things, experiences, nor out of encounters and talks with people, NOT A THING provided any life. Nonetheless, just now I found an interesting description about such a period by T. Austin Sparks.
Three Wilderness Features
“There are three things in this wilderness period:
- “A barren place of dependence. This is a tremendous factor in coming into our inheritance in Christ; for a wilderness is a wilderness, a dry barren place, where you cannot see anything, or feel anything; where if your only resources were in your senses you are at an utter end. It is a barren place of utter dependence upon God, and there is nothing else to depend upon. This is an essential feature in order to possess, a vital factor for obtaining the inheritance. How often God says to His people, “I am your inheritance” (Num. 18:20). “The Lord is my portion” (Ps. 119:57). “The Almighty will be thy treasure, and precious silver unto thee” (Job 22:24,25 A.R.V.).
“In Christ you have all that, “For all things are yours… the world, life and death, or things present or things to come, all are yours and ye are Christ’s and Christ is God’s” (1 Cor. 3:25).
“He is shutting you up to exclusion where in that barren place He can be your life and you have to depend on Him for everything; thus, you come into your inheritance which is – HIMSELF. It is an utter separation from all and everything unto God.
- The wilderness is a bounded place of separation, within the limits of God’s appointment, where you are separated unto God. There must not be the slightest overlapping with Egypt, “not a hoof to be left behind” and there had to be “three days’ journey into the wilderness” (Ex. 8:27). The separation is unto the degree of Divine completeness, it is being wholly separated unto God. God has come in between and defined the limits to our life and what it means to be separated unto God.
- The wilderness is a hedged place of imprisonment to God, there is no getting out of it, you are imprisoned, given wholly to God and for Him, and know Him as your only object.
“God shut Israel into the wilderness and there was no way out; Pharaoh saw that, see what he says about it: “Pharaoh will say… they are entangled in the land, the wilderness has shut them in” (Ex. 8:27).
“Yes, the devil knows all about it! He says, “the wilderness shut them in” – but, God shut them in. What a place of imprisonment when you have come out wholly for the Lord! Yes, that is the way, the Lord has imprisoned you, and you cannot run away. There are sometimes fiery trials, and often Satan says, quit, quit, and you know you cannot. The flesh would love to be released and find a way out, but you know you have got to go through, and He is holding you. If He had not held you, where would you have been? We would kick and run away, only He holds, and will hold until He has done the work; and you will say, “the Lord did it”; you are hedged by a Divine compulsion.
“The Lord sovereignly held the children of Israel in the wilderness, while the testing and training was going on, preparing for the inheritance. And He is holding you while He does the same, you are the prisoner of the Lord, hedged in unto His Divine completeness; the Lord is sovereignly holding and getting us through, the credit is not ours, but His, it is all Grace.
“The duration of the wilderness depends upon our maturity in our knowledge of the Lord, until HE becomes and IS our “all in all,” He – HIMSELF. When He has His place, we come into our large place, for our coming into a large place is on the ground of our personally knowing in a very real way the Lord – HIMSELF as our all; and conquest depends upon this knowledge of the Lord.” (1)
(1) http://www.austin-sparks.net/english/books/002915.html
“In keeping with T. Austin-Sparks’ wishes that what was freely received should be freely given and not sold for profit, and that his messages be reproduced word for word, we ask if you choose to share these messages with others, to please respect his wishes and offer them freely – free of any changes, free of any charge (except necessary distribution costs) and with this statement included.”
All images by Susanne Schuberth 2017
Judi Eddy said:
Incredible! You have put into words what I could not understand of late. I love how the Lord does this. The T.A.Sparks adds are amazing and having been a runaway most of my life I see my imprisonment is accomplished lol but ouch…I have not commented before but this recent post is such a comfort. I actually was looking for a post from you or Michael C and meant to check last night but was detoured. I have notebooks FULL of scriptures that thrilled me upon discovery and then it was like”why did I think that was so relevant?” The word is always relevant of course but then when the life-giving Spirit breathes life into a specific word we get a taste of eternity’s bliss with the Word – like on the Mount of Transfiguration for a moment we SEE His glory. But then too often like Peter, James, and John, the Father has to speak and say “HEAR HIM” so we don’t wander off after Elijah or Moses. OR like John Baptist ask the Word “are You the One or should we look for another?”(in my words). HE IS HIMSELF OUR TREASURE. Oh what a thought! May each of us “parts of His Body” continue to make up the whole in so many unique ways as we watch for His appearing together! Thank you for such transparency and much love to you in Christ. Judi
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Susanne Schuberth (Germany) said:
You are very welcome, Judi. I am amazed to hear that this post was helpful for you. In fact, I felt so ‘dead’ while writing so that I am glad you could glean something from these words. Michael C and I did not publish a lot lately, did we… since we both have suffered from this lifelessness and spiritual inspirationlessness for quite some time now.
Thank you, Judi, for your confirming words regarding your experience with Scriptures that sometimes spoke to you and then didn’t anymore.
In His Love,
Susanne
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Michael said:
Susanne, it is a brave thing to write on your blog when you do not FEEL any inspiration. Like you have said, I still wait to be woken up from this long spiritual slumber I seem to be caught in. I can not write without His leading. Thanks for sharing that excerpt from TAS. He seems to nail it as to what is happening with us.
Michael 🐻
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Susanne Schuberth (Germany) said:
Waiting to be woken up, too, Michael. But I do not feel brave at all. Quite the contrary! 😝 Susanne 😺
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Fred said:
Ya it was a good post and encouraging to me as well.
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Susanne Schuberth (Germany) said:
Thank you, Fred. That was nice!
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Michael said:
Thanks, Judi.
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dimple said:
Your shot, “in the woods” spoke to me. I don’t know German, but Steinkirchen made me think of church… A beautiful walk in the spring green, to the prize that awaits. (I have no idea if this make sense, at all!) Thanks!
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Susanne Schuberth (Germany) said:
You’re welcome, Louise. I too like this “in the woods” pic for some reason. As far as I remember you love trees. I can tell you that it was like walking through a virgin forest of sorts. These very high trees had impressive roots above the soil. Somehow I felt like Alice in Wonderland as I was walking all alone there due to the bad weather. It was pretty cold and rainy (even snowy in a bit higher regions) on May 9th when I would spend three days in Upper Bavaria.
Steinkirchen, indeed, means church of stone. I posted a picture of this village with its white church before (if you like, see https://enteringthepromisedland.files.wordpress.com/2017/04/20170330_142557.jpg). Törwang’s church seemed to be more beautiful to me (cf. https://enteringthepromisedland.files.wordpress.com/2017/04/20170330_1259221.jpg).
And yes, your comment made sense to me! 🙂
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dimple said:
The church of (living) stones! I have chills!
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Susanne Schuberth (Germany) said:
Well put, Louise!👌💒😉
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Fred said:
This gives me great hope. Lately even though I have not wanted to GOD is having me read testimonies by other Christians specially ones that have been persecuted. It has been a slow thing but I am trying my best to obey and I have found the testimonies helpful. There was one that reminded me of you and Mike. It was about a family that refused to go to the government run church and the family was persecuted for it but they were trying to obey GOD and stay loyal to him just like you are. This story goes back to the middle of the 15 hundreds 1555 if I remember correctly. So this type of thing has been doing on a long time.
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Susanne Schuberth (Germany) said:
Glad to hear this, Fred.
If reading testimonies strengthens your faith, keep reading them, I would say. 😉
Thanks for your encouraging words and for providing two of my favorite numbers of which 15 means REST. 15:55, instead, which points to 1 Cor 15:55 is a time I often see accidentally on my phone when God wants to confirm to me, again and again, that the sting of death is not an eternal thing for us. Just for clarification, 15:55 Uhr in German is 3:55 pm in the States.
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Fred said:
That is neat. I looked at the date again and come to find out it is 1557. Maybe what I posted was what needed to be posted to help you.
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Susanne Schuberth (Germany) said:
Fred said, “Maybe what I posted was what needed to be posted to help you.”
You just said what I had thought, but not verbalized. Yes, it was God speaking through you before with these numbers 15 and 1555. 🙂 Thanks again!
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Susanne Schuberth (Germany) said:
Interesting… 1557 is not that bad, either, since 1 Cor 15:57 says,
“But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.” (ESV)
Nothing is our doing, not even our obedience which simply springs from listening to His leading.
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Michael said:
Thanks, Fred, though I do not see myself as any kind of a martyr. If anything the locally “recognized churches” are probably relieved that I am not part of any of them. 🙂
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Fred said:
That is different from my experience. I have at least 2 pastors that miss me. Neither care which church I go to as long as I am going. I consider both to be a friend and they are both very friendly as well.
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Anna Waldherr said:
Since you’ve been describing the path from death to life, I thought I’d share this quote. It is from “God’s Undertaker – Has Science Buried God?” by John Lennox:
“…it is a law of nature that human beings do not rise again from the dead by some natural mechanism. But Christians do not claim that Christ rose from the dead by such a mechanism. They claim that he rose from the dead by…supernatural power.”
With love,
A. ❤
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Susanne Schuberth (Germany) said:
Indeed, Anna, without God’s supernatural power we cannot change anything of our old nature’s likes and dislikes, affections and aversions. It seems to me I have tried EVERYTHING to change my heart and my circumstances, therefore I know it does not work.
Thank you very much for sharing this timely quote! ⭐
With love,
Susanne ❤
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Kenneth Dawson said:
Yes the Lords leading is strange But and that’s A Holy But His love for you and me is truly unending–I have another Spark article that I will send to you–cheers
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Susanne Schuberth (Germany) said:
Thank you, Ken.
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Kenneth Dawson said:
Well I tried to send it but it would not go
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Susanne Schuberth (Germany) said:
Hmm… not sure what went wrong, Ken. I will send you a short email so that you’ll have my email addy, too. You could try to send this TAS article that way then if you like.
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Kenneth Dawson said:
Thanks Sue–I now have you in my address file for email
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Susanne Schuberth (Germany) said:
You’re welcome, Ken. Btw, just replied to you via email again.
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Ken Dawson said:
Yea I just read it and no doubt in my mind you probly used it before–I have about a million of his articles but that one struck me cause I used it twice yesterday and once today to do some discipling and the main point is that no matter how messed up we are He continues to love us—such a devote lover!
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Susanne Schuberth (Germany) said:
Amen, Ken. God is faithful!
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