From the desk of Steve Shultz:
There are several types of separateness, both good and bad. What Luke Holter is talking about below is the "bad" kind. We, as Believers, are called to be separated unto the Lord, while at the same time both living in and reaching out to the world.
But the separateness again here is shame-based?hiding from others and from the Lord, which keeps us locked up much longer in our shame than is necessary.
I doubt that anyone gets off without having to work through shame at some point in their lives. It's a process of the Christian walk to learn how to walk in conviction rather than shame. This article will help many of you.
I was stunned some twenty years ago when a pastor at a conference told us all, "God isn't interested in your sin!" That got my attention. What he was saying is, "Jesus' Blood covers you and all He is looking for is the redemption HE paid for to be worked out in our lives. He's seen it all. That's why HE had to die FOR US!"
It's not that we shouldn't GIVE TO HIM our sins, confessions, and our changed lives, but the point is?the Father is looking for His Son to be seen IN US. So He doesn't want or need our sin; He stands at the door and knocks so that we will invite HIM IN.
Thus, Luke Holter is teaching us that our identity is not found in our mistakes and the shame it causes, but in Christ, the Solid Rock.
Here are some great resources for you regarding the topic of shame and our identity based in Jesus:
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Luke Holter:
The Great Prison Break:
Escaping the Bondage of Shame
Look to Jesus as Your Identity
I have been a Christian for over 25 years now, and in the last three years I have been examining the way I do everything pertaining to life and godliness. I am currently working on a new book about perspectives through the filter of the Holy Spirit, and it has rocked my world. The Lord has been taking me on a journey of perspective, and I believe it is so powerful for me on a personal level and others in the Body of Christ as well.
We grow up a certain way and, through the filter of life and upbringing, we have a certain perspective of ourselves and the world. The Lord wants to begin to give us new eyes to see things how He sees them. That includes how we see ourselves. In my opinion, one of the most revealing things about your personal theology on the Godhead is manifest on how you view yourself.
Recently while I was studying and meditating, I was reading the story in Luke 19 about Zacchaeus the tax collector and really searching myself for where I can relate to Zacchaeus in this story. I was asking the Holy Spirit, How am I like Zacchaeus? All at once, the Holy Spirit overwhelmed me in this very public place I was in. The Holy Spirit spoke to me and said, "Stop looking for your reflection in the lost, and instead?look for your likeness in Jesus, so you can reach the lost." I thought, Whoa! How much of my life have I done this?
The Holy Spirit spoke to me again and said, "So many Christians live a shame-based life with Me because they view themselves as the sinner and never like Jesus. They assume that the Lord always looks upon them as the lost and never the saved. Rather than looking for how you are like those lost that Jesus is ministering to, look to Jesus as your identity."
An Invisible Prison
The Word tells us that people who become isolated and hidden, seek their own desire and they rage against wise and sound judgment?which will cause them to struggle with dark things (see Proverbs 18:1-3). It is true that when individuals become isolated, darkness becomes a much more vicious animal. Imagine that when you are hidden in sinful behaviors that you get a large sliver in your hand, and when you become hidden and isolated, that sliver just goes deeper and becomes more infected. This is how darkness works and is the end goal of the enemy. The enemy desires for us to become completely bound and hidden in our sinful lifestyle, because it estranges us from society, from reason, from God, and from breakthrough.
Part of the reason that being separated is such a strong fear for us, is that it makes us feel vulnerable or helpless to the whims of another. It means that the world around you can invade you at a moment's notice and leave you with no ability to react. Being separate is more like an act that is done to you rather than something that you make a conscious effort to partake in. This reality is what makes this feel so uncontrolled and fearful.
Many emotions can follow someone who is struggling with separateness, and they can be varied in intensity from individual to individual. One of the most common feelings associated with separateness is shame. Shame is an invisible prison that can keep us bound for as long as our eyes are blind to its door and frame. Shame is something that God never meant for us to feel but through fallen nature we are at some point destined to face. Shame is an ugly beast, and it is only through the truth of Christ Jesus and the Holy Spirit that we can stand against such spiritual and emotional villainy.
Hiding in Sin
A good look at the effects of shame can be seen in the story of Adam and Eve. In Genesis, they both eat of the tree of good and evil and they both have their eyes opened. They all of a sudden understand what they have done and they have full revelation on their current condition. As soon as they hear God walking in the garden, they become afraid and attempt to hide from God. It is worth saying this now, that when we hide in our sin it simply begets more sin. We never become healed and well through hiding our true selves from God. It is only though letting God love us in our sin that we get victory in that area of our lives.
So, Adam and Eve are hiding in the garden and they, for the first time, feel shame. The unfortunate thing of living in a world that is fallen is the fact that when Adam did this it shot straight down our family line. See, we are constantly fighting against the bloodguilt of Adam through the redemptive Blood of Christ. Just as death came through one man for all, now through one Man we have eternal life. Our spirits are seated with Christ Jesus in heavenly places; however our souls are being transformed on a daily basis. This means that we will wrestle with the fallen nature in our mind, will, and emotions until we are made perfect at Christ's return.
Shame vs. Conviction
Shame is not the same thing as conviction. When looking at whatever circumstances you are going through, it is always good to look at the fruit of it. For instance, if you are feeling conviction from the Holy Spirit, then if you respond with obedience and change the way you think and turn from your behavior, then you will experience freedom and power. However, if you are apologizing out of a religious obligation due to your understanding that what you have done is wrong, then the fruit will be shame, self-condemnation, and self-inflicted punishment. When we feel shame we feel defeated, and when we feel convicted we feel strength to overcome.
Man was made to dwell in community with other men, and this is a Biblical, biological, and scientific fact. We were made for communion with God and other human beings, as well as for communion with all of creation. To be aware of your own separation from God and others without the hope of reconciliation and communion through love is the source of all shame. We are all in a battle, and all of mankind is in a constant struggle to overcome our separation from the object of our affection and desire.
We are in a great prison break to escape the bondage of separation and shame.
Luke Holter
Prophetic Sheep Ministries
Email: propheticsheep@yahoo.com
