No Baggage

No Baggage!
(On The Narrow Way)

And commanded them that they should take nothing for their journey, save a staff only; no scrip, no bread, no money in their purse: But be shod with sandals; and not put on two coats. Mark:6:8-9

When we "surrendered" to God the Father through Christ, the Way, the Door, and stepped out onto the narrow way, did we forget to leave some things behind? Did we tell the God of our salvation that we were ready to follow in the footsteps of our lowly Master and embrace the poverty which comes of separation from the World? Big question, ...did we embrace the power which we "claim" we had been given at the moment of regeneration, to begin to strip off the baggage of our earthly existence and seek the things of Heaven and the Spirit of God?

For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world. 1Jo:2:16

Didn't the Father of Jesus Christ tell us we'd be taken care of, needs met, even some wants (desires of the heart) realized?
M't:6:25: Therefore I say unto you, Take no thought for your life, what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink; nor yet for your body, what ye shall put on. Is not the life more than meat, and the body than raiment?
M't:6:30: Wherefore, if God so clothe the grass of the field, which to day is, and to morrow is cast into the oven, shall he not much more clothe you, O ye of little faith? What carnal "needs" and "loves" do we have but those which the World has told us we NEED; The symbols of affluence and position, security and gain. If we've been drawn out of the World into Christ, what's with the baggage we carry?
Weren't we exhorted to desire heavenly things? But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you (M't:6:33).
Aren't we exhorted to lay up treasures in Heaven, (M't:6:20) and follow after charity, and desire spiritual gifts, (1Cor14:1) ?
And what should we do with these spiritual gifts? ... Even so ye, forasmuch as ye are zealous of spiritual gifts, seek that ye may excel to the edifying of the church (1Cor14:12) ...Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for all saints; (Eph:6:18) Yes, service to others, not to one's self. Getting tough?
Haven't we been told of the perilous times in which we live and the importance of focusing on the "now" of our souls instead of the "maybe" of earthly gain and pleasure, ...Take therefore no thought for the morrow: for the morrow shall take thought for the things of itself. Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof. (M't:6:34)

The love of baggage...
Thou shalt have no other gods (baggage) before me. Ex:20:3

Read the entire book of James as a letter to the backsliders in the church! See if you can come away challenged in the least bit to use it as a measure of your own walk as a child of God. An example of James' "outreach" to the backslidden Saints: James 4:1-4 ...From whence come wars and fightings among you? come they not hence, even of your lusts that war in your members? Ye lust, and have not: ye kill, and desire to have, and cannot obtain: ye fight and war, yet ye have not, because ye ask not. Ye ask, and receive not, because ye ask amiss, that ye may consume it upon your lusts. Ye adulterers and adulteresses, know ye not that the friendship of the world is enmity with God? whosoever therefore will be a friend of the world is the enemy of God. What is the source of the warning and rebuke? The love of baggage, the world, self... must I continue?! Is this regenerated (Ti:3:5), sanctified (2Tm:2:21), separate and apart (2Co:6:17), a royal priesthood (1Pet 2:9)? You say you have been called out of darkness and into His light. You claim you have been separated to God wholly and completely yet you greedily strive and contend for the things of this World under the jealous eye of the God you claim to serve. You are trailing baggage behind you. And baggage is a good sign that what it is that is clattering behind you and what you have placed before you, between you and God, has become an idol you refuse to surrender upon the altar.
I will repeat, 1Co:10:19: What say I then? that the idol is any thing, or that which is offered in sacrifice to idols is any thing? You sacrifice to idols when you spend money on your vain trappings, amusements and status symbols like your houses and cars, families and businesses. Your "sacrifice" is the precious time you spend pursuing the money to sustain a way of life you wish God to FIT INTO. Your life must fit into God's will, not the other way around! This is sacrificing your time and money to satisfy yourself. The money is and idol. Time is and idol. YOU are an idol! You sacrifice yourself to idols! We do well to remember who gives and takes away... Read Luke12:16-20.
But I say, that the things which the Gentiles sacrifice, they sacrifice to devils, and not to God: and I would not that ye should have fellowship with devils (1Co:10:20). And what do you sacrifice to the God you claim to serve and worship if not your very bodies of clay along with it's desires... I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service (Ro:12:1). Seems to me an acceptable sacrifice to God does not include holding on to your money, possessions, hidden lusts and worldly desires. Maybe it's just me... So is he that layeth up treasure for himself, and is not rich toward God. Lu:12:21

Who provideth for the raven his food? when his young ones cry unto God,
they wander for lack of meat. Job:38:41

Can you honestly say, "I have counted ALL things as loss for the Excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord: for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and do count them but dung, that I may win Christ," (Ph'p:3:8)? What did Paul face for "selling out" to the pursuit of the real Jesus? ...In journeyings often, in perils of waters, in perils of robbers, in perils by mine own countrymen, in perils by the heathen, in perils in the city, in perils in the wilderness, in perils in the sea, in perils among false brethren; (2Co:11:26). FALSE BRETHREN! Even Paul himself had to suffer Posers! They had to be pretty sharp to initially deceive Paul didn't they! I personally KNOW posers who have gone to great lengths to assume the mantle of "believer" to literally save their carnal lives and homes! This happens ALL the time. What lengths will Satan go to destroy the true follower of Christ? Every trick of "light" possible, Saints! Be vigilant!
For some of you backsliders and Christ-claiming, church-goers, this may be getting a little too thick for you to swallow but the Truth will do that sometimes. What did Paul desire? ... For I am in a strait between two, having a desire to depart, and to be with Christ; which is far better: (Ph'p:1:23) I certainly don't have to explain this passage.

What is it (after we are truly re-born of God) that we should desire? How about, as newborn babes, desire the sincere milk of the word, that ye may grow thereby: (1Pe:2:2) As Paul states, ...a better country, that is, an heavenly: wherefore God is not ashamed to be called their God: for he hath prepared for them a city. (Heb:11:16) Is the God of Grace, the Father of Jesus Christ ashamed of some of us? I'd say a big YEP to that! We have become shameful, compromised specimens of true Christianity haven't we? We've blended away our calling to chastity and purity and holiness because we haven't the guts to obey God and rely on the power He gives us to resist the World. Love of the World is what breaks the fellowship between us and God. Isn't that obvious?! Our true intents and allegiances become evident in our fruits. We have refused to believe God. We refuse to let go of our selves. Some of us do not desire the hard Truth. We tire of the Way. We choose the gratification of our flesh instead of fidelity and resignation to His most blessed covenant, made with you by way of the Cross; Certified by the glorious resurrection of Jesus from the dead. Confirmed by the Holy Spirit in the heart of the true believer. We become God's enemy because of unbelief! Not possible? Yes it is. And factual and evident! FRUIT! (M't:7:20)

A man to whom God hath given riches, wealth, and honour, so that he wanteth nothing for his soul of all that he desireth, yet God giveth him not power to eat thereof, but a stranger eateth it: this is vanity, and it is an evil disease. Ec:6:2
I repeat, you lust, and have not: you kill, and desire to have, and cannot obtain: you fight and war, yet you have not, because you ask not (Jas:4:2). You may get the 401K, the house and cars, the woman of your dreams, status in some church leadership position, but this scripture says that you yet have not. And this "not" is the kingdom of God, His blessing, treasure in Heaven, a right relationship with the Father of your professed salvation. You are dragging your "stuff" behind you on your perceived narrow way and this "stuff" is dragging you backwards and you make no forward progress in the light of the heavenly economy. You are being dragged into Hell!

For thus hath the Lord said unto me, Go, set a watchman, let him declare what he seeth. Isa:21:6

We tire of sounding out the same alarm time and again from these walls above the Camp. We tire but do not quit. We are told that if we warn the wicked of their evil ways, to turn from it; and if they do not turn from their evil ways, they shall die in their iniquity, their sins, BUT we, the watchmen, will have delivered our souls (Eze:33:9). The alternative for those of us faithful to our calling to the Body and the lost, in obedience to Jesus Christ, is not at all pleasant to contemplate; But if the watchman see the sword come, and blow not the trumpet, and the people be not warned; if the sword come, and take any person from among them, he is taken away in his iniquity; but his blood will I require at the watchman's hand. (Eze:33:6) What is this "sword"? Is it not the enemy of our souls, the hater of Jesus Christ, even the devil and sin?
The trumpet blows a repeating refrain: turn from your sins! Heed this well, ...When the righteous turneth from his righteousness, and committeth iniquity, he shall even die thereby. ...But if the wicked turn from his wickedness, and do that which is lawful and right, he shall live thereby. (Eze:33:18-19) Doesn't Heb 10:26 back this ancient scripture up? Would the destruction of your eternal future count as something to be warned of when danger is near? I pray it be so. We pray you would listen for the sakes of your souls.

Except the LORD build the house, they labour in vain that build it: except the LORD keep the city,
the watchman waketh but in vain Psalms:127:1

Enemy of the Cross?
Make no mistake, compromisers "in" Christ, it's a TIGHT FIT down that narrow way and no baggage of this life will ever get through! The flames of trial and tribulation lick the sides of this Way and you propose to drag your worldly idols through unscathed? Your baggage will condemn you! Your vain folly will destroy your souls! Most of our churches are dragging us down the "broad way" and your church will not save you! And I say that some of you have passed the point of no return. You've gone around the bend alright, right into the arms of the Fate of those who choose to befriend the World and what it has to offer. You have fully become enemies of the Cross! (Phil3:18) Our own churches are full of enemies of the Cross! We are led by them. We are duped into complacency and trust in the idols we have set up in the pulpits to scratch our itching ears. Our weakness is sickening. We sit with them and have fellowship with them and regard them as brothers and sisters. There are those who display ALL the trappings of Godliness yet have never had the life-changing encounter with the architect of our Salvation. We fellowship with adulterers, drunkards, spiritual "killers", liars, idolaters......darkness, darkness, and more darkness. And we think we can remain holy before God for this? Know ye not that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God? 1Co:6:9

And, Blessed are ye, when men shall hate you, and when they shall separate you from their company, and shall reproach you, and cast out your name as evil, for the Son of man's sake. Lu:6:22
If you have been called and have chosen to follow the REAL Christ, you have chosen against your belly! If you have been called and have chosen to follow Jesus Christ, you have renounced worldly vain pursuits, the pleasing of your "former" appetites, and have won for yourself hatred from the world and true Life with and in Jesus Christ. HAVE YOU?! (Ro:8:13)
Or have you become one of these: ...Whose end is destruction, whose God is their belly, and whose glory is in their shame, who mind earthly things. Ph'p:3:19 Who has redeemed you? A Pastor, a friend, a husband, a wife, a banker, a state of mind, your own mental ascent to an "understanding" of the truths of God? Heaven forbid! You have been redeemed with the most precious substance in the entire Universe, ...with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot: 1Pe:1:19.

Saints, you have begun a journey as the apostles did in Mark 6. You have striven to enter in at the strait gate and now follow Jesus down the narrow way to Life. Jesus' journey down His narrow way ended at the cross for us and then Glory! His journey was sacrifice and death. Our journey is "death" to our selves all along the way and then ultimate victory, (Rev2:17/26 - Rev3:5/12/21)Take no thought for the things of this world. Don't give them a second look. Take the words of Jesus seriously! (M't:10:38 - M't:16:24) Not one scrap of worldliness is acceptable in the eyes of GOD.
Jesus, ...let them hate us, let them revile us for your sake. Because of You, let them destroy our lives and bodies. We shall follow you, covet your Love and rebuke, and revel in the Joy of this glorious fellowship of suffering for surrendering to your will! We shall never quit the Road, nor fear being alone and despised as your servant Paul. Jesus, we are of good cheer because YOU have overcome the World and by your provision, we may also! Thank you Jesus!
Will your pastors dare to preach these scriptures?! : Ro:8:18 - 2Co:1:5-7 - Ph'p:1:29 - Ph'p:3:8 - 2Tm:1:12 - 2Tm:3:12 - Heb:5:8 - 1Pe:2:19/2:21/3:14/4:1/4:13/4:16/4:19/5:10/Re:2:10 Certainly NOT! The World's idea of Christianity is become a plague of "sleep" upon us, a sickness, a wretched disease. Repent and come clean with your lives! Give it up already.

Follow Jesus and not the World. Lay hold of Him, His Truth and Life. Suffer with and for Him and he will know your name in the end and bid you enter into Life at the end of your bloody journey through the traps and trials of this quickly passing life. You cannot serve two masters. It's baggage or sacrifice, Jesus or Hell! Still your choice. 'Nuff said.

Time is not on your side! The Lord God is! Serve Him only!
And we know that we are of God, and the whole world lieth in wickedness. 1Jo:5:19

Keep to the Road, Saints of God. Travel light! The love of baggage is the love of the World. Remember that. Amen