Hello everyone who helped pass the salt! A big thank you to all!
The subject of salt and its applications was very much on my mind prior to posting the thread. I am grateful for your insights and participation that were a catalyst to me receiving deeper insights and revelation into the mysteries of Gods word.
I have re-read the thread again and this is what has come up for me in conclusion.
God is the same yesterday today and tomorrow. We are being made into His image and likeness. Therefore as He makes us become stable, unchanging, steady in the fruit of His Spirit of Love, Joy, Peace, Kindness, Goodness, Faithfulness, Gentleness and Self-control, so too will we be able to remain steady in the face of the raging storms of emotions that can be unleashed against us even if we are in a little boat crossing over to get somewhere else and minding our own business when a storm hits.
What comes up is the lesson to not become too easily integrated with the storm or give access to emotions of anxiety that come from external circumstances whose aim is to drive in fear, pain or confusion. Being anxious for nothing is the result of being more in the image of Christ and less in the image of volatile fickle man.
In Africa we have a unique creature called the chameleon. Apart from its ability to swivel its eyes and look backwards and forwards at the same time, this little creature can change the colour of its skin.
I have learnt from this thread that Jesus was not a chameleon. Can you believe some of the things God is teaching me…Dahhh!
Any one of you bright sparks in the USA and Europe, Asia or Australia could have told me that hey?
Well Okay but for those who do not know what a chameleon is, this small creature is able to change the color of its skin to suit its environment so as to be camouflaged and blend in to protect it from being eaten by predators.
Yet we read in the scripture
John 8 : 59
So they took up stones to throw at Him, but Jesus, by mixing with the crowd, concealed Himself and went out of the temple. Did Jesus camouflage Himself or vanish? No! He mixed with the crowd, blended in and
made His Exit.
He was able to camouflage Himself in order to leave the scene. Jesus was also able to appear and disappear very effectively. This scripture really invites deeper reflection
Luke 24 : 31
And their eyes were opened, and they knew him; and he vanished out of their sight. They lost sight of him literally when their wyes were open spiritually. Is that the same for us here in the Forum as we discern each other from the abundance of our mouths showing what is in our hearts? I think yes. It matters little to me what our literal physical parameters are. It matters much more to me what our hearts speak. This in turn does reveal the spiritual condition as being in close conformity with the image of Christ or in distant conformity to His likeness.
The chameleon can not disappear! Swivel eyes…Yes…change colour to conceal itself…Yes but vanish from sight….NO!…only Jesus could do that and in His image and likeness we should know when to vanish from sight! Like when to keep quiet! ….when anger, violence and intent to do harm raises itself up against us as stones ready to be thrown at us, we should leave and not fight, or you can see a stoning coming, then turn and leave the area. Disengage and remove oneself, make an exit and do not stay in the area. Common sense hey? Dust off your shoes and leave, duck!….vanish, split or remove yourself from the communication. Have no part with commotion, debates, fighting or siding for or against a brother or sister. Doing so might not puff up one but it could deflate and dis-encourage an other. This may sound like chameleon talk looking backwards and forwards at the same time but seriously; here is what I have found out. We are going to become made more into the image of Christ and as a result of this we will become more constant as God is constant. We will learn how to appear and disappear....to be invisible. The Spirit is invisible, its presence felt and seen. This is decidedly not the same as going with the flow or joining the crowd. It is the contrary! I believe our training ground is in our conversations because our words will either justify or condemn us.
I have seen that Jesus was a master of camouflage and appearing and disappearing. When he was expected he didn’t show up ref the death of Lazarus, when he was not expected He did show up walking on the water! We can do the same in this sea of words between one other as we practise in the spiritual mastery of Christ and as we grow into the conformity of His image and learn to love one another as the consequence of His work in each one of us here.
Peace to all
Arcturus