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Those who confess the Lordship of Jesus are, immediately upon adoption,[1] brought into a unique, two-fold, lifelong transformation: individual conformation into the Image of Jesus,[2] and the corporate maturity of His Body, the Bride.[3] The better ages of eternity begin when the Son of Man returns to His prepared, equally-yoked partner.[4] Scripture offers clear—if sometimes unwelcome—insight on how to navigate the process of “growing up” in God and grace well:
My brethren, count it all joy when you fall into various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience. But let patience have its perfect work, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking nothing. If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all liberally and without reproach, and it will be given to him. But let him ask in faith, with no doubting, for he who doubts is like a wave of the sea driven and tossed by the wind. For let not that man suppose that he will receive anything from the Lord; he is a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways.[5]
Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom also we have access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God. And not only that, but we also glory in tribulations, knowing that tribulation produces perseverance; and perseverance, character; and character, hope. Now hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out in our hearts by the Holy Spirit who was given to us.[6]
In this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while, if need be, you have been grieved by various trials, that the genuineness of your faith, being much more precious than gold that perishes, though it is tested by fire, may be found to praise, honor, and glory at the revelation of Jesus Christ, whom having not seen you love. Though now you do not see Him, yet believing, you rejoice with joy inexpressible and full of glory, receiving the end of your faith—the salvation of your souls.[7]
These days are the only ones in which we can die and we can cry.[8] All that ends when the Restoration ushers in the renewed reunion between Heaven & earth, when we’ll be with and close enough to our Father that we can see Him with our eyes,[9] bearing His Name on our foreheads.[10] All the tensions, wrestles, complexities, pains, griefs, and deaths are gone forever, relegated to bittersweet memory of this age, this internship, when we grew up in maturity to prepare for life with Him forever in eternity. Paul could see the eternal purposes woven into this age of Gethsemanes and Golgothas:
To me, who am less than the least of all the saints, this grace was given, that I should preach among the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ, and to make all see what is the fellowship of the mystery, which from the beginning of the ages has been hidden in God who created all things through Jesus Christ; to the intent that now the manifold wisdom of God might be made known by the church to the principalities and powers in the heavenly places, according to the eternal purpose which He accomplished in Christ Jesus our Lord, in whom we have boldness and access with confidence through faith in Him. Therefore I ask that you do not lose heart at my tribulations for you, which is your glory.[11]
Our assignments—the “good works prepared beforehand that we should walk in them”[12]—are the biblical version of “God has a plan for your life” sentiments. But they’re grounded and inextricably knit within the broader, eternal purposes God is securely working through and to the better ends of restoration and renewal—and they differ from our calling, which does not rely on age, location, or vocation. Our highest and most dignified calling is to obey the “Greatest Commandment,” and the second “like it”:
Jesus said to him, “‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.’ This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like it: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ On these two commandments hang all the Law and the Prophets.”[13]
Jesus then takes things further hours before His arrest and calls us even higher:
This is My commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you. Greater love has no one than this, than to lay down one’s life for his friends. You are My friends if you do whatever I command you.[14]
To love like He loves us—to bleed for. To break on behalf of. To fight for. Truly, “a friend loves at all times, but a brother is born for war.”[15] Covenantal love is intercessory love. This is why “love is patient, kind, humble, rejoices in the truth, believes/hopes/endures all things.”[16] And the High and Lofty One is love.[17] See how our “calling” is woven within our journey? We are to grow into mature love, loving those around us in like kind, and fighting like hell to bring the Body of Jesus into maturity—into fullness as a “pure and spotless” “bride made ready.”[18]
What could this possibly have to do with “lyrical landscapes”?
Language helps us cultivate clarity. Scripture paints the horizon for us, and gives us the map to navigate from where we are to where we are going. It is the task and privileges of messengers to mine out the mysteries of the holy writ to make the eternal purposes of God known to our families, friends, neighborhoods, and nations. Every disciple is responsible for their own life in God, to be sure, but there stands a principle: “How will they know if they never hear? How will they hear if no one tells them? How will anyone tell them if no one bears the message?”[19]
Messengers midwife the Body of Jesus into maturity in each generation. So we must ask: what parts of the map do we need for our day and time? Are there spots that have been muddied in the journey that need clarification? Are there corners we must open up to see the directions in full detail? What language should we employ to cultivate a prayer for God to grant a spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of Him who came once to break the power of sin and death, and is coming again to rule, reign, and restore all things?[20] How can we galvanize fidelity to the ultimate Hope that does not waver, does not whip around with the wind and waves of cultural storms, trends, profound confusion, and what Paul identifies in Ephesians as “darkened understanding”?[21] In other words, we must ask these two questions: In what areas are the Body presently immature that she must grow in? And what in particular do our nations need to hear right now?
No human can answer these questions. We cannot invent these answers, or trust our own hearts to lead us into truth.[22] To begin with, we must seek the Lord in prayer, diligent meditation in the Word, and fasting, asking Him to illuminate the eyes of our own understanding,[23] to lead us down the ancient paths to the wells of living water,[24] that we might draw out and drink from Him, not from broken cisterns filled with brackish water.[25] And when He blesses us with His counsel,[26] we may not white knuckle it for ourselves. We must steward the talents bestowed and assigned to us with wisdom, to be sure, but we must also leverage what we’re entrusted with for the growth of the Gospel’s roots in our lives and communities.[27] We must disciple people into affection for and allegiance to Jesus, anchored in the sure hope of His soon return.
Finally, it cannot be understated that God prepares messengers in unconventional ways. There are no cheap tricks to bear and declare the prophetic burden; voices “crying in the wilderness”[28] do not wake up in the desert by happenstance. They are led there by the Spirit of the Living God[29] to purge carnality out of their hearts and purify their lips to utter holy things.[30] These processes take time—but as we cannot lead anyone into an area we’ve not yet gone ourselves (lest we be “blind guides leading the blind”[31]), we must yield the clay of our souls and lives to the trustworthy hands of the knowing Potter whose Word endures beyond the grassy fields of man bound by space and time.[32] It is at that point we can climb to the high ground, in the sight of the nations, and declare the truths of beauty, justice, and the coming Restoration.[33]
O Zion,
You who bring good tidings,
Get up into the high mountain;
O Jerusalem,
You who bring good tidings,
Lift up your voice with strength,
Lift it up, be not afraid;
Say to the cities of Judah, “Behold your God!”
Behold, the Lord God shall come with a strong hand,
And His arm shall rule for Him;
Behold, His reward is with Him,
And His work before Him.
He will feed His flock like a shepherd;
He will gather the lambs with His arm,
And carry them in His bosom,
And gently lead those who are with young.[34]
But first He must suffer many things and be rejected by this generation. And as it was in the days of Noah, so it will be also in the days of the Son of Man: They ate, they drank, they married wives, they were given in marriage, until the day that Noah entered the ark, and the flood came and destroyed them all.[35]
And shall God not avenge His own elect who cry out day and night to Him, though He bears long with them? I tell you that He will avenge them speedily. Nevertheless, when the Son of Man comes, will He really find faith on the earth?”[36]
Stephanie Quick (@quicklikesand) is a writer/producer serving with FAI. She lives in the Golan Heights and cohosts The Better Beautiful podcast with Jeff Henderson. Browse her free music, films, and books in the FAI App and at stephaniequick.org.
[1] Romans 8:14-17; Galatians 3:26-4:7; Ephesians 2:1-10
[2] Romans 8:29
[3] Ephesians 4:11-16
[4] Genesis 2:18; Matthew 22:2; Ephesians 5:22-32; Revelation 19:6-16
[5] James 1:2-8, NKJV
[6] Romans 5:1-5, NKJV
[7] 1 Peter 1:6-9, NKJV
[8] Revelation 21:1-5
[9] Revelation 21:22-23
[10] Revelation 22:4
[11] Ephesians 3:8-13, NKJV
[12] Ephesians 2:10
[13] Matthew 22:37-40, NKJV
[14] John 15:12-14, NKJV
[15] Proverbs 17:17
[16] 1 Corinthians 13:4-8
[17] Isaiah 57:15; 1 John 4:8
[18] 2 Corinthians 11:2; Ephesians 5:27; Revelation 19:7
[19] Romans 10:14
[20] See Ephesians 1:15-21; 1 Corinthians 16:22; and “Allied Around Maranatha” by Dalton Thomas
[21] Ephesians 4:18
[22] Jeremiah 17:9
[23] Daniel 8:15-17, 27; 9:20-23, 25; 10:10-14; Ephesians 1:15-21
[24] Jeremiah 18:15; John 4:10-14
[25] Jeremiah 2:13
[26] See Psalm 25
[27] Matthew 10:16; 25:14-30
[28] Isaiah 40:3
[29] Jesus modeled this for us in Matthew 4
[30] Isaiah 6:5-7
[31] Isaiah 40:6-8
[32] Matthew 15:14; Luke 6:39
[33] Isaiah 40:9-11, NKJV
[34] Ibid.
[35] Luke 17:25-27
[36] Luke 18:7-8
