To Be Made Whole

Life with God never ends up like you expect.  It is almost comical how you start a relationship with God through a spiritual encounter where He promises to do more than we can imagine or think.  We are then taught to be mature Christians and that having a relationship with Him is all about understanding, learning, with little or no imagination and over abundance of religion.  The salvation experience Jesus provides is more than just getting to heaven, it is being made whole through the supernatural relationship with Jesus.  The Greek word for salvation is the word “sozo”, which means to be made whole.  It is used 106 times in the New Testament to describe the fullness of salvation.  All throughout the New Testament you see sozo being used to describe the initial salvation experience where Jesus makes us a new creation, healing on the outside (physical healing), healing on the inside (emotional healing), and deliverance from demonic torment.  Salvation equals the whole package with Jesus. 

Through salvation, Jesus instituted the greatest trade in program in the history of the world.  When we say yes to Him, He takes our sin and gives us righteousness.  He takes the separation from Him and gives us the ability to be with Him forever so much so that He promises never to leave us or forsake us (Hebrews 13:5).  He takes all the things the enemy intended to destroy us with and gives us all the things He wants us to have.

If Jesus is the model and the source, then we must step back and radically unwind the religious view and relationship with God and position ourselves to think differently.  When we start our relationship with Him through a supernatural encounter He jumps into our brokenness and mess with us and changes us. How then do we end up in a position where we think we are not good enough, we believe He is perpetually not pleased with us, and we are left holding the bag trying to get ourselves nice and pretty so we can be good enough?  We build a false separation with Jesus, when all we must do is invite Him into the mess.

Over the last decade, we have worked with thousands of Christians to help gain greater intimacy with God so He can heal the broken spots.  We repeatedly see believers who already have a relationship with God, experience radical breakthrough.  By inviting Jesus into the mess and relying on His supernatural power, authority and love to transform He creates freedom in our lives providing a wholeness and peace only available with Him.  By asking Father God, Jesus, and Holy Spirit what lies we are believing or what beliefs are driving fear, anger, depression or anxiety that need to go, we immediately invite God into the mess and relinquish reliance on ourselves.  Asking Him to trade the lie for His truth, continues the trade in program Jesus initiated on the cross and allows us to experience more and more freedom. 

In John 10:10, Jesus gives us one of the reasons He came and established this relationship with us, “I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full”.  This full life is an active, present, real relationship with Jesus.  Many Christians talk about their struggle with hearing the voice of God, or even the belief that this is no longer possible.  The step of inviting Him into the mess to show you what He wants to help you clean up positions us to partner with Him and receive His peace and truth instead of pain, torment, and lies that have dominated our thoughts and hidden places in our lives.  Letting go of the lies and releasing ownership leaves us with our hands open ready to receive all that Jesus has for us.  You look up one day and realize you can hear God, which impacts all of your life and relationships. 

Transparency and vulnerability with others in this journey are so vital.  This is a team sport.  A real community where you can be “naked and unashamed” pouring into others just as much as you receive from them is pivotal.  The love and richness of relationship you experience through pursuing freedom together is literally unexplainable.  There is a beautiful picture of this relationship with Moses, Aaron and Hur in Exodus 17:12-13 – “When Moses’ hands grew tired, they took a stone and put it under him and he sat on it. Aaron and Hur held his hands up—one on one side, one on the other—so that his hands remained steady till sunset.  So Joshua overcame the Amalekite army with the sword.”  Aaron and Hur came along side Moses, held up his arms and called on a supernatural God to do supernatural things.  When they did, their team won!

If we pray as Jesus taught us to pray – “on earth as it is in heaven”, there is a whole new reality available to be experienced here and now.  When Jesus started His ministry, immediately you see Jesus preach and demonstrate the Kingdom.  Matt 4:23 – “Jesus was going throughout all Galilee, teaching in their synagogues and proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom, and healing every kind of disease and every kind of sickness among the people.”  He taught, repent for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.  In other words, you have to change how you think, because He brought His world with Him.  The Kingdom is at hand, within reach, it is in stock, or in inventory available for distribution.  This pursuit of “on earth as it is in heaven” will open up a level of freedom, intimacy, and peace that most people do not believe is possible.  The simple application of experiencing His Kingdom now, will challenge you to pursue more with God.  Welcome to the adventure!

Blake Schellenberg – Co-Labor Ministries