Got Contradiction?

We serve a God of mysteries! Have you ever felt elated by the promises of God only to find yourself, later, in what seems to be complete contradiction to what He has promised? Actually, that just might be a good thing. Let me explain.

Throughout the record of Scripture we see that God is a lover who is looking for those who want a deep, abiding and loving relationship with Him. Unfortunately, many have turned their backs on Him and pursue other things. So, in order to test who is sincere in pursuing His heart, God often hides the truth about Himself to see who will search for it. Jesus said that He spoke in parables in order to reveal the mysteries of His Kingdom to those who wanted God, and to hide those mysteries from those whose hearts are far from Him. One statement that He made more than any other was: “Let him who has ears to hear, hear!” By this He was indicating that not everyone who heard His words would understand the truth that He was revealing. 

In the book of Esther, there is a major contradiction that plays out. It seemed as though the enemy of the Jews had secured their certain extinction. A plan was hatched to bring honor and fame to Haman, who despised Mordecai, a Jew who cared deeply about his people. But, in his arrogance and hatefulness, Haman developed a plan that eventually backfired on him. Instead of destroying Mordecai and the Jews, God arranged circumstances so that Mordecai was exalted, the Jews were rescued and Haman hung on the gallows he had built for Mordecai. 

 
In the midst of desperate circumstances, when a decree had gone out that the Jews were to be annihilated, the people of God cried out to Him to be rescued and to obtain justice. Their circumstances seemed to paint a picture of impending doom. Their almost certain demise was in direct contradiction with the protection God had promised His chosen people. However, God used those very circumstances to bring deliverance and victory to the Jews. Because of Haman’s wicked plot they actually ended up far better off than they had been previously. Mordecai became second only to the king and had great authority, power and prestige in the kingdom. 

At the beginning of this year, God gave our church family a promise through Isaiah 54. This was confirmed at least 3 times and we knew He was speaking to us. At the time the word was given, we had gone through some significant losses and were carrying a sense of grief and barrenness. But, what a mighty God we serve! He sent encouragement in the midst of a storm, in the midst of loss and brokenness. 

 
Isaiah 54 begins with an admonition to shout for joy, even in the midst of barrenness! It speaks of fruitfulness for the one who appears to have no hope of multiplication. And in the midst of such circumstances comes the forecast that enlargement is needed because of the expansion that God is about to bring! It promises possession of nations and resettling of desolate places. That is quite an exciting promise for those who are feeling loss and grief. This entire chapter of Isaiah speaks of the contradiction of present circumstances as compared to the future that God has in store for those who are His. 

 
In His mercy, God reassures us, through this chapter, that He will not allow us to suffer humiliation or reproach and that He will be our Husband and our Redeemer! He gives His steadfast commitment of lovingkindness even if the mountains are removed and the hills shaken. He promises to establish us in righteousness and also promises that our children will be taught by the Lord Himself. And as though that were not enough, He also promises that if anyone comes against us, it will not be from Him and they will utterly fail because of us. He declares that NO weapon formed against us will prosper. This is our heritage from Him and He will vindicate us! 

Beloved, this promise is for all who are a part of our church family. God has brought us together “for such a time as this.” He has an amazing plan to allow us to bring in the harvest and to bring glory to His name. What a privilege and an honor. But it will take “all hands on deck.” He is laying out for us a bright and exciting future if we will look past the contradictions and believe in His promises instead. (Please take time this week to read Isaiah 54!) 

If you are experiencing contradiction in your own life, be encouraged. Contradictions often come to test us and to show forth His glory in the end. He is for you not against you. Put your faith in what He says about your future. And come join the family as we enlarge our tent and see Jesus get His full reward!

Reading the Bible: A Powerful Decision for a New Year

The beginning of a new year is a great time to set a new habit in your life, especially one that brings you closer to God. We are encouraging all of the people in our church family to dig deeper into the Bible this year. Your life will be changed as you learn the Word of God and get to know Him better. What could be better than that? Jesus said, “Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will not pass away” (Mark 13:31).


Even if you feel like reading through the Bible is a task too difficult, we want to encourage you that YOU can do it! But it is easier with a plan! We have made it simple for you with some easy options!

Traditional Bible Reading Plans
Each day we will provide you with the chapters you need to read. All you need is a Bible. And if you don’t have one, we will give one to you. Choose the plan for you:

• Read the Entire Bible in a year (printable PDF). We suggest this reading plan for everyone!
• Bible Overview in 45 days (printable PDF). This plan can be used if you feel intimidated to read the entire Bible.

Digital Bible Reading Plan
There are fantastic options available if you use a smartphone, a tablet, a computer, or another type of mobile device through the free YouVersion app. The app allows you to read the Bible for free in over 200 different translations in 100 different languages. You can now take your Bible reading with you wherever you go.

YouVersion offers digital reading plans to help you know what to read each day. As you read, you can highlight text, make notes, and share your favorite verses easily with friends. You can also make searches for key words. YouVersion will even remind you daily of your reading plan if you’d like. All of these features are attached to your YouVersion account, so you can stay synced whether you are using your phone, tablet, mobile device, or computer.

Pastor John Gabriel Arends will be following a digital Bible reading plan with YouVersion this year. If you would like to join him on the same Bible reading plan, here are the steps:

Mobile devices:

1. Download the free YouVersion Bible app by visiting youversion.com/download.
2. Create an account (remember your login information!)
3. Start the “Old Testament and New Testament” Bible reading plan.
4. Send an email to john@therivermontana.com to let John know.

Computer:

1. Go to https://www.youversion.com/reading-plans/7-old-testament-and-new-testament
2. Click “Start this plan”
3. Create an account (remember your login information!)
4. Send an email to john@therivermontana.com to let John know.

Thou Shalt Be Flexible: Walking in the Spirit

In this message, Pastor Paul Arends shares the importance of being adaptable and flexible in order to have the fulness of Holy Spirit in our lives. Whether it is a church family or an individual, adaptability is required. God is on the move, and Pastor Paul teaches how we can move with God and live this great adventure.

In addition, Paul shares a prophetic word from Larry Randolph over Montana.

The Fight of Faith that Overcomes

This past year has thrown a lot of punches at many of us that we were not expecting. Whether it is a lack of finances, a relationship breakdown, sickness or even terminal illness attacking your body, many have sought counsel or prayer for what to do and how to get through. The crisis is real. So is the fear and pain. What do we do as believers to process through this? Here is what I have been sharing with people from my own experiences that threatened to undo me and destroy my faith in God.

Yes, you are in that place the Israelites were in with their backs up against the Red Sea and Egyptians moving in for the kill. Or when they were led out into the wilderness to a place where there was no water and the cloud stopped there (which means they were not to move from there, nor did they know where to go next - the cloud had always led them to a place of water and sustenance). It is the place of utter helplessness in our circumstances and a place of contradiction. Why would God allow this? What does He expect me to do? Would he really abandon me in this place of destruction? After all I have seen Him do to get me where I am through His blessing and favor, will He now give me over to the power of these things that have surrounded me, even while I was faithful to Him?

This is that place that no one wants to go through but every child of God is destined for - to test and reveal the heart. It is that place that God ordains for us (even if it is the enemy warring against us) where we have to dig in deeper than we ever have before to "trust the Lord with all of our hearts and not lean on our own understanding" (Proverbs 3:5). It is that place where the goodness of God seems non-existent but we grab hold of that reality of God's goodness because we know it is true. But you don't know it is really true except in the midst of contradiction. It is the place where he have to face the fears that we have deep in our hearts that we have not yet seen. As well as the lies we believe about God and ourselves that we don't know are there. But our Father in His mercy brings us into that place to face ourselves so that we can be purified and set free of those things that will ultimately keep us from our destiny. Our Father knows that there are bigger giants ahead of us that will try to knock us off the path of our calling and greater glories of conquest as we pursue the Kingdom - giants that will take us out if we are not ready to face them - but will take us out if we still have these fears and lies in our hearts.

I have discovered that if in the midst of these kind of trials and contradictions, I do not have perfect peace and joy, it is because I have things in me that are not in alignment with heaven. I am still trusting in things that are not trustworthy. I am not seeing God's heart accurately, nor my own value to God as a son. I have not yet seen that unique aspect of God's loving character toward me that ultimately brings me deliverance.

The Israelites gained their biggest revelations of God's nature through their biggest tests. It was Abraham offering up Isaac (a total contradiction) that revealed to Abraham, and the nation that was yet to come from him, that God is Jehovah Jireh, the Lord Who provides (or the Lord Who sees to it). It was during the plague of sickness that the Israelites discovered that God is Jehovah Rapha, the God Who heals you. It was during the war with Amelek that they came to understand and trust that God is Jehovah Nissi, the God Who is my banner (of victory). The first time we see the revelation that God is The Lord of Hosts is when Hannah could not bring forth a child. It is while Gideon answers God's call to face the Midianites that he discovers the God Who is our peace. Jacob reveals to Joseph when he blesses him at the end of his life that God is Jehovah Rohi, the Lord Who is my shepherd. How did he come to know that except by all that he went through? But he certainly knew it at that moment when he was blessing his son who was not only alive but now prime minister of Egypt.

The fact that we are walking through what might seem to be the "valley of the shadow of death" is actually an indication that we are right on schedule with God's training in our lives for a promotion. Unless we can see that the circumstances we are in are a result of our own poor choices and bad attitudes, the reality is we are in an ordained test from God Who believes there is gold inside of us that will be revealed with fire. Deuteronomy 8:2-5 reveals to us that our Father in heaven is a good father who disciplines us (trains us to prepare us) through our overwhelming circumstances to show us what is in our hearts, making us totally dependent on Him, so that we will no longer trust in what is temporal but come into greater experience of heavenly power and provision not previously known to us (or others before us). But it is only those who humble themselves before God in this process who allow Him to expose and remove the dross of our hearts and bring forth the gold, the glory of His nature within us.

I wish I could say that most sons and daughters of God go through these times well and pass the test. Just like the Israelites, they did not, but died in the wilderness of their own grumblings, self-pity, judgments toward God and unbelief. It is so sad to see all those who initially trusted God for their salvation but could not trust Him for their daily lives. But rather accused Him of not being good or fair - not seeing their struggles or caring for them.

But it is only those who come to completely trust Him and know fully in their hearts, even through their painful hardships, that their Father in Heaven is their "Abba" or wonderful, loving Daddy/Papa, who go on to fulfill the greatest destinies prepared in heaven for those who love Him.

I have had to ask myself again and again, "Do I trust Him, is He good?" And if the answer is yes, then what do I expect to be the outcome of my present circumstances? It is my expectation that good is coming to me and that I will be cared for, that reveals genuine faith in God. It is my declaration and prophetic confessions over my future for a glorious end that indicates my heart is wrapped up in His loving heart for me, that I am secure in His care for me. I will either walk in fear or in faith. My expectation is either for possible bad things to happen or breakthrough into God's best for me. My words and attitudes will either attract demons or angels. I will either end up with a testimony of God's goodness or I will become a casualty and a stumbling block for others who would trust in God. I will either get stronger and more filled with the Spirit or I will drain others around me with my negative outlook and fear. I will either lead with my faith or I will be led by dark forces that I am agreeing with.

Ultimately, it is what you are looking at that determines where you end up and what happens. If I am looking at heavenly realities that speak of unfailing love and power on my behalf, "the Kingdom of heaven is at hand", I will see something greater than my circumstances and know the outcome in advance, leading to peace and overcoming joy. If I focus on what is going on around me or in my body, or other people, I will become subject to what I fear they can do to me that I can not control. This is why Paul tells Timothy that he must "fight the good fight of faith" (1 Tim 6:12). It is those who fight this fight of faith that finish their course (2 Tim 4:7). No matter what we are going through, we always have a choice of what we think about, what we believe and what we speak.

The moment we give in to feeling sorry for ourselves in our difficulties, we are no longer able to see God for Who He is. We must be ruthless against self-pity, though it feels good for the moment and seems justified. It perhaps is the most deadly of poisons offered by the enemy to destroy our ability to overcome. When we fight against this deception, it often reveals the lies we have been harboring in our hearts that have been hidden to us.

In Mark 5, we see the story of Jairus, the synagogue ruler coming in desperation to Jesus because his daughter was at the point of death. He had faith for her to be healed if Jesus would come. But he did not have expectation for good to come if his daughter died. His daughter's death was the breaking point for him. Jesus agrees to come but He is not in a hurry, for He stops along the way to minister to the woman with the issue of blood. In the mean time, the little girl dies and the servants come and tell Jairus to give it up. It is now time to mourn and weep. Hope is gone. But Jesus, Who already saw a different end, because He saw what the Father is doing, grabs Jairus and speaks directly to his heart issues. Jesus knows that Jairus will cave into fear and hopelessness in the midst of his circumstances. And this is always the kiss of death for all of us.

Jesus speaks simple words to him that we all need to follow in our difficulties that threathen to crush us: "Do not be afraid, only believe". The Greek word Jesus used can be translated "keep on believing". "Maintain your expectation for good, for breakthrough". Jesus was exhorting him to fight the fight of faith so he could receive heaven's best. First, we must fight fear. We must make a choice to give no place to the feelings and thoughts of fear that connect us to an expectation for bad to come. Second, we must choose to see what our Heavenly Father can do and will do for those who love Him. If you can see it, or hear it, you can have it. What you have seen, you now know to be true. What you know is what you expect. What you expect is what you speak. What you speak is what you act on.

Jairus could see that it was not over. So he went ahead and brought Jesus into the situation of his daughter's death, looking for the Kingdom of God to manifest in a way he had not known before. It was because he refused fear and took action that Jesus was given authority to enter his house and bring heaven's power to overcome. Jairus had a lot of choices before him at that moment: fear, hopelessness, self-pity, anger, judgment toward God, OR belief and action. He would either be led by the fear and hopelessness of those around him or he would lead the way with his faith resulting in victory and God receiving glory. We are reading his testimony 2,000 years later and it is still leading us to believe for more from heaven.

The Israelites found out after they failed the test, that there was water in the rock right where they were all the time. God in His mercy revealed how to get the water, but they Israelites gained nothing from this. What would have happened if they fought the fight of faith, believing that their good God would never lead them to a place of death, and declared their salvation and provision in the midst of their life-threatening thirst? Moses probably would not have had to strike the rock with the rod. As they praised their God for His goodness and declared their salvation, the water might have burst forth in their midst by itself. What a testimony they would have had! Rather they hardened their hearts and never entered into the promised land of their destiny.

You may be in this fight right now. It is a test that you can pass and gain an incredible testimony. Your promotion into greater things of the Kingdom is on the other side of this. A revelation of Who God really is in His character and goodness beyond what you have known is in the midst of these circumstances. The miracle that you think you need right now is nothing more than a normal work of God on any given day for those who trust in Him and keep their eyes on Him. Your Father God is in a good mood. He who sits in the heavens laughs at your circumstances and your enemies (Psalm 2:4). Laugh with Him. Declare your good ending. Prophesy what the love of God will bring about for you. Refuse all fear. Do not entertain one thought of what bad might happen. Watch for angels who surround those who fear the Lord. Break forth into praise and thanksgiving. Speak to your circumstances from your heavenly position of faith. Wait for more revelation to come with instruction and strategies on what to do. Wait for supernatural doors to open up. Live under an open heaven. Lead others with your words of faith, grateful attitudes and actions of belief. Prepare yourself in advance to receive a testimony. This is what pleases the Father.

I will be looking for your testimony! Amen!!