June 14, 2022

Bob Maas
“When he had led them out to the vicinity of Bethany, he lifted up his hands and blessed them. While he was blessing them, he left them and was taken up into heaven. Then they worshiped him and returned to Jerusalem with great joy. And they stayed continually at the temple, praising God.”
Luke 24:50-53

Jesus had told the disciples to wait in Jerusalem until they were empowered by the Holy Spirit to do the work God had called them to do. One of the most difficult things I have had to adjust in my life has been letting go of what I thought would be a good plan of action. Waiting on the Lord is very problematic because I lived under the illusion that so much was dependent on me to make things happen.

Obedience to Jesus requires that we embrace the cross and die to our natural inclinations, which are developed in us over our lifetime from physical birth to the moment we start following Jesus. Everyone is conditioned by their senses in order to survive in our physical environment. We learn to live like the rest of the world.

When we start following Jesus, we are supposed to cooperate with God as He changes us. This process is called spiritual transformation, and it requires us to yield the limited, natural power we have to the Lord and begin living in His unlimited, abundant power and energy by being filled with His Spirit.