From My Heart to Yours

by Pastor Mitch Horton | June 1999

Throughout the past year, the Lord has been dealing with me about some things that I want to share with you. They have brought significant change to my personal life, and I believe He is desirous that I, as Pastor, lead our church family in this direction.

We all are affected by sin! Thank God for the new birth and for the heart change that is produced when the Holy Spirit comes to impart the very LIFE of God to our human spirits the moment that we accept Jesus!! The OLD THINGS(the sin nature in your spirit) are passed away, and ALL THINGS (in your spirit) are become new!! (See 2 Corinthians 5:17; Romans 6:6; Romans 2:29; Ezekiel 36:26-27).

After the new Birth, we're like Lazarus when he was raised from the dead by the Lord Jesus (John 11:43-44)! He was wrapped in "graveclothes" from head to foot, with the exception of his face, upon which a burial cloth would later be applied. He actually looked like a mummy! Jews of that day prepared a dead body for burial by wrapping it limb by limb in, short, narrow strips of cloth dipped in costly spices. Once the spices dried, the body was encased in a hard shell. Imagine the sight as Jesus yelled, "Lazarus, come forth!" Lazarus walked out of the grave, encased in the "body cast" that was made by the strips of cloth. The disciples ran for fear of the "walking mummy," and Jesus looked at them and said, "Loose him, and let him go."

A tedious process then began. The body inside the cast was now ALIVE and desired to move without the encumbrance of the heavy strips of cloth. So the disciples had the arduous task of unwrapping Lazarus. That meant perhaps hours of work as, finger by finger, limb by limb, the strips of cloth were ever so gently removed. I can almost hear and see Lazarus wincing and crying out in pain whenever the strips of cloth pulled some hair as they were being removed from his arms, legs, etc. You can imagine how grateful he was when the process was completed.

I want you to notice that it took time and was perhaps painful to be freed from the grave clothes. It's the same for you and me after we're born again. We are SPIRITUALLY ALIVE in a body that was once dominated by the nature of sin (Romans 6:6-19)! Our minds, our emotions, our human wills, and our bodies have been tremendously influenced by sinful desires and practices that have left scars and habits in >ALL areas of life. God is in the process of removing the "graveclothes" from each of our lives! It's not always a pleasant process, as the Holy Spirit reveals areas where the "rags" still remain intact. But as we yield to the inward pressure of His precious Word and Spirit removing the individual strips of burial cloth, we find ourselves becoming freed from the encumbrances of the past!

I am beginning to teach a series on Wednesday nights from the workbook entitled Breaking the Cycle of Hurtful Family Experiences. We just completed our first class of the twelve week course, and I'm planning to keep it going on a repetitive basis. The material I present on Wednesdays will challenge you to remove the "graveclothes" that hinder your personal relationships and your intimate walk with God. I want to encourage you to attend our Wednesday evening services, as we together renew our minds, submitting our thoughts, our emotions, our wills, and our bodies to One who is in the process of changing us to reflect His nature to our families, friends, and associates.