Be Patient With The Becoming

2 Corinthians 5:21, "For our sake He made Him to be sin Who knew no sin, so that in Him we might become the righteousness of God." Can I give you a word of encouragement? Be patient with the becoming.

I'm a firm believer that what is stated in this verse is a reality. From the Father's perspective we ARE the righteousness of God in Christ. However, it is in our practice that we often get it wrong. The beauty of Honor among us is that we are learning how to recognize this truth. To see a person not based upon their performance, but upon this amazing truth. Where we regard one another in the image and likeness of God. Where we affix the same value to them as Jesus did. People who are worthy of love, honor, and life. This is the beauty of Honor among us. The very life of Christ alive and well in the church. Where we learn to be patient in the becoming.

There is a greeting in the Hindu culture that I find intriguing. I'm sure you have seen it. They press their hands together and bow their head. The word is Namasté. It is a way of recognizing the "divine spark" within another. A way of saying "I bow to the divine in you." Now...I know that some people will take offense to this. However, I want you to see the honor at work here. The recognition of something greater within each person. If I were to take this into practice I would be saying that I honor the image and likeness of God within you. That the light in me honors the light in you.

Why is it that I find such honor among other groups and even other religions but struggle to see it within our own culture? Should we not have some type of similar greeting among us? We talk about knowing the truth, possessing the revelation of God in Jesus, and to at least being the children of God. Then why do we struggle to see the value in one another?

The answer lies within our ability to honor one another. Just for a moment I want you to think about the way in which Jesus honored us. The Scriptures declare that Jesus came unto His own even though they would not receive Him. I don't believe that this escaped the forethought of God. Jesus came to honor that which was within us. He could see our value in the Father's heart. He knew what we possessed within ourselves. One of the parables of Jesus was about the Kingdom of Heaven being like a treasure hidden in a field. A man found the treasure, buried it, and went and purchased the field. My dear friends, YOU are the treasure. The world is the field. Jesus is the man who found the treasure. Honor does not stumble over the treasure because of the field that contains it. It sees the treasure and only the treasure.

For far too long we have allowed the church to become a masquerade. Everyone comes in wearing their best masks. We look the part, know the vocabulary, and perform at our best. Unfortunately there are so many within our midst who are not experiencing life. Why? Because we have blown it in the area of honor. Honor, according to Thayer's, is a valuing by which the price is fixed. When you consider the value that Jesus placed upon each of us (the giving of Himself) then we should learn what it means to see the treasure that is each and every person we come into contact with. That we will stop requiring masks. Stop allowing people to play the part. And learn to value people for who they are. I love the quote from Bill Johnson that says, "A culture of honor is celebrating who a person is without stumbling over who they're not." It's where we learn to be patient with the becoming.

I posted this on social media this morning. I hope you can see my heart:
Honor, among us, recognizes the gift rather than the package.
It sees through the facade and/or the brokenness.
It does not require a mask.
It does not need complete agreement.
All Honor needs is a conduit. A heart that finds the treasure hidden in the field then goes and purchases the field.
Is this not the way in which Jesus came to us? Honoring what was inside of us? Determined to see the Father's image and likeness rise to the top? He didn't need our religion. He didn't need our customs and traditions. he came unto His own even thought they would not receive Him. That's Honor. That's Love. That's the Kingdom. How often do we stumble over the treasure because of the field?
#eyestoseeandearstohear

How quickly we forget how long it took us to get to where we are in our own understanding. How long it took us to get a grasp upon this thing called faith. How we continue to struggle even today. I am the righteousness of God in identity. I am becoming the righteousness of God in practice. Learning to be patient with my own becoming has given me incredible grace and mercy for the others. I don't need their perfection. I don't need their complete agreement with everything I believe. I don't even need their acknowledgment of my own journey. I see in them the treasure that Jesus sees. I want them to see it as well. I want them to believe that there is more to them than they have come to experience. Because there is a God who loves them for who they are are and not as they should be.

May this be part of your journey. To discover the treasure of every person that is in the earth. To see the image and likeness of God in yourself AND in one another. May we have eyes to see and ears to hear. The creation waits in eager expectation for the revelation of the sons of God.