Thursday, February 04, 2010

The Bullet of Breath and Sound: Another Look at the Power of Breath (Part 3)

The breath created by our Godhead infuses His creation with the reality and possibilities of His purpose. He confers spiritual living with His Spirit energy on who or what He chooses. Breath is one of His ways to control the sound of Who He is! Remember how Adam and Eve heard “the sound” of the Lord as He sought them out in His paradise. It was the same paradise intended for them (Gen. 3:8). Breath is His volume. Breath is His physical force. His breath empowers our life functions. His Spirit breath is constant, either in small or large ways, sustaining life by revealing Himself. The basic word for breath in Hebrew, ruah, is used 378 times in the Old Testament and in Greek the word pneuma is used 379 times in the New Testament. Breath (wind, spirit) is an essential concept in grasping our Lord’s significance and His ways. Ponder deeply the implications for your life from the Master’s words in John 20:21, “Peace be to you! As the Father has sent Me, I Am sending you.” And with that He breathed on them and said, “Receive the Holy Spirit.” Let us pray that the mystery of those words will become clearer to us all!

We are created by His breath (Gen. 2:7); redeemed by His breath (John 3:8) and perfected by His breath (John 20:22). Our own breathing … which must be continuous or we die … is a constant reminder that breath is critical if we are to survive physically. Spiritual breathing is also an absolute if we are to survive spiritually. The breath from, by and for our Lord takes us into the Presence of our Creator-Redeemer-Perfecter. We learn, with entrancing and compelling wonder, what it means to feel “the wind, the voice and the sound” of our compassionate, gentle and redeeming Godhead. He is flowing through us. He is permeating the world around us. He is revealing His kingdom above us!

Let us reflect on that fascinating text, Genesis 3:8-9, once more: “Then the man and his wife heard the sound of the LORD God as He was walking in the garden in the cool of the day … the LORD God called to the man, ‘Where are you?’” All of us are stunned and agree that Adam and Eve were insane to give up “their garden” just to satisfy their curiosity about a Satanic promise! Yet we do the same thing … again … and again … and again!

The Hebrew wording used here could well indicate the Lord’s question as, “Adam, why are you where you are?” Thus does the Lord ask us all to examine ourselves, be honest about our direction in life, quit making excuses and return to the Breath of His Presence. By re-creation we can again enter the fresh environs of our Godhead’s mysterious, peaceful and gorgeous garden. Even while we walk through earth’s battle damage of ruin, destruction, tragedy and chaos, we can experience an IMAX vision of the sound, breath and voice of our garden walking Lord! His guaranteeing presence will control our minds and hearts. In this alone we will “discover the joy of our destiny.” The outward storms of life are fierce, but within our heart is “the garden!” “Weeping may remain for a night but joy comes in the morning!” (Ps. 30:5). Truly, when we discern the meaning of the Breath of God, He will “Turn our wailing into dancing” (Ps. 30:11). A silent mouth is serious evidence that we do not have a singing heart about Jesus (Ps. 30:12).

We do, however, speak a message of wisdom among the mature, but not the wisdom of this age or of the rulers of this age, who are coming to nothing. No, we speak of God's secret wisdom, a wisdom that has been hidden and that God destined for our glory before time began. None of the rulers of this age understood it, for if they had, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory. However, as it is written: "No eye has seen, no ear has heard, no mind has conceived what God has prepared for those who love him" but God has revealed it to us by his Spirit. I Corinthians 2:6-10a (Emphasis added)

The question should be ever with us, “How well are we hearing the sounds of our Lord’s breathing?”

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