Year: 2020

What is a Wannabe?

“Wannabe” is a secular/slang term, but we can still discuss the term within the scope of Christianity. If “wannabe” is about “not meeting the qualifications” even though “someone wishes to be a part of” — several verses come to mind immediately on the subject.

“Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he who does the will of My Father who is in heaven. Many will say to Me on that day [when I judge them], ‘Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, and driven out demons in Your name, and done many miracles in Your name?’ And then I will declare to them publicly, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me [you are banished from My presence], you who act wickedly [disregarding My commands].’
Matthew 7:21‭-‬23 AMP

These spoken about want to… they even sought to enter… but they weren’t prepared… they weren’t qualified.

“Then the kingdom of heaven will be like ten virgins, who took their lamps and went to meet the bridegroom. Five of them were foolish [thoughtless, silly, and careless], and five were wise [far-sighted, practical, and sensible]. For when the foolish took their lamps, they did not take any [extra] oil with them, but the wise took flasks of oil along with their lamps. Now while the bridegroom was delayed, they all began to nod off, and they fell asleep. But at midnight there was a shout, ‘Look! The bridegroom [is coming]! Go out to meet him .’ Then all those virgins got up and put their own lamps in order [trimmed the wicks and added oil and lit them]. But the foolish virgins said to the wise, ‘Give us some of your oil, because our lamps are going out.’ But the wise replied, ‘No, otherwise there will not be enough for us and for you, too; go instead to the dealers and buy oil for yourselves.’ But while they were going away to buy oil, the bridegroom came, and those who were ready went in with him to the wedding feast; and the door was shut and locked . Later the others also came, and said, ‘Lord, Lord, open [the door] for us.’ But He replied, ‘I assure you and most solemnly say to you, I do not know you [we have no relationship].’ Therefore, be on the alert [be prepared and ready], for you do not know the day nor the hour [when the Son of Man will come].
Matthew 25:1‭-‬13 AMP

So we can see there are wannabes when it comes to the Good News as well. In fact, our enemy is a wannabe. We know that he wants to destroy us:

Be sober [well balanced and self-disciplined], be alert and cautious at all times. That enemy of yours, the devil, prowls around like a roaring lion [fiercely hungry], seeking someone to devour.
1 Peter 5:8 AMP

This enemy has schemes and strategies and uses deceit:

Put on the full armor of God [for His precepts are like the splendid armor of a heavily-armed soldier], so that you may be able to [successfully] stand up against all the schemes and the strategies and the deceits of the devil.
Ephesians 6:11 AMP

But our God has won the victory:

Yet in all these things we are more than conquerors and gain an overwhelming victory through Him who loved us [so much that He died for us]. For I am convinced [and continue to be convinced—beyond any doubt] that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present and threatening, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor any other created thing, will be able to separate us from the [unlimited] love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Romans 8:37‭-‬39 AMP

So how do we know whether we are a wannabe or are the genuine article?

Jesus had this to say:

Jesus answered him, “I assure you and most solemnly say to you, unless a person is born again [reborn from above—spiritually transformed, renewed, sanctified], he cannot [ever] see and experience the kingdom of God.”
John 3:3 AMP

When Nicodemus asked further on this topic in John chapter 3, he is given this Word:

Jesus answered him, “I assure you and most solemnly say to you, unless a person is born again [reborn from above—spiritually transformed, renewed, sanctified], he cannot [ever] see and experience the kingdom of God.” “For God so [greatly] loved and dearly prized the world, that He [even] gave His [One and] only begotten Son, so that whoever believes and trusts in Him [as Savior] shall not perish, but have eternal life. For God did not send the Son into the world to judge and condemn the world [that is, to initiate the final judgment of the world], but that the world might be saved through Him. Whoever believes and has decided to trust in Him [as personal Savior and Lord] is not judged [for this one, there is no judgment, no rejection, no condemnation]; but the one who does not believe [and has decided to reject Him as personal Savior and Lord] is judged already [that one has been convicted and sentenced], because he has not believed and trusted in the name of the [One and] only begotten Son of God [the One who is truly unique, the only One of His kind, the One who alone can save him]. This is the judgment [that is, the cause for indictment, the test by which people are judged, the basis for the sentence]: the Light has come into the world, and people loved the darkness rather than the Light, for their deeds were evil. For every wrongdoer hates the Light, and does not come to the Light [but shrinks from it] for fear that his [sinful, worthless] activities will be exposed and condemned. But whoever practices truth [and does what is right—morally, ethically, spiritually] comes to the Light, so that his works may be plainly shown to be what they are—accomplished in God [divinely prompted, done with God’s help, in dependence on Him].”
John 3:3‭, ‬16‭-‬21 AMP

We see the contrast. Wrongdoers hate the light, and they love the darkness. They do not believe or trust God. They may know about Him, but they do not know Him. They never turn away from their sin to repent and to follow The Way of Christ.

On the day when David went out to the battlefield to bring food for his brothers, he didn’t show up wanting to be a fierce warrior and victor in front of everyone. In fact, it seems that he was amazed that none of the men dressed like fierce warriors (who should be trusting in the LORD to supply victory) were actually living up to what they looked like outwardly. He did not say to himself, I want to be a great fierce warrior, so I will prove myself here. NO! He said:

David said, “The Lord who rescued me from the paw of the lion and from the paw of the bear, He will rescue me from the hand of this Philistine.” And Saul said to David, “Go, and may the Lord be with you.”
1 Samuel 17:37 AMP

David’s own brothers accused him of being overconfident in asking about such things, but to David, he had asked a simple question. We see clearly that the wannabes will accuse a man of being prideful if they are cowering in fear when the man of God is equipped and fully trusting in the LORD. The man of God isn’t hoping that one day he will be strong enough to stand against the enemy — He is accepting that God fights for Him and has prepared him already for today’s amazing opportunities that look like impossible obstacles to mere men. The man of God does not faithlessly “try”, He does. The man of God does not shrink back from the light fearing that his sin or faithlessness will be revealed — He practiced truth plainly and openly even while humbly knowing that the victory is being delivered by the hand of the LORD. There is room left for doubt and second guessing if a man is trusting in himself, but what is impossible for the LORD God Almighty?

One might ask, but how do I get there?

I can tell you that it isn’t something you are going to build up on your own by “wanting harder” or “striving harder” or “acting more religious” or “gaining Bible knowledge”. Jesus was talking with Nicodemus in John chapter 3, and:

Jesus replied, “You are the [great and well-known] teacher of Israel, and yet you do not know nor understand these things [from Scripture]?
John 3:10 AMP

And we can see from the parable of the ten virgins that trying to get your oil through someone else just isn’t going to do the trick. You need to walk and talk with The Teacher, you need to be prepared, you need to already be walking in the light now, not “wannabe walking in the light someday”.

There is not time nor room for wannabes.

Have you decided?

The Joyful Fool?

I’ve recently started responding to insults with what I call “foolish joy”. For example, when someone recently insulted me saying that a song that I wrote and performed “sounded like something a five year old would put together” — I said “I know, isn’t it great to just truly let go and enjoy the experience joyfully like a child who is just happy to be creative and have fun!”

I’m sure they either A) thought that I was such an idiot that I didnt understand, or B) realized that their being a troll couldn’t touch my joy — either way, their goal of feeding me their poison was hopefully clearly evident as unsuccessful.

And I don’t value their opinion, so who cares whether they think of me as a no-talent idiot or as a joyful fool. The point is that if more trolls encountered more “joyful fools” who do not just “react” to what the trolls are doing/saying, and if we “joyful fools” stayed our joyful course (maybe even feeling sorry for the bitter fool wasting their time being offended by others and spewing their poison), but refused to drink it ourselves — maybe they might seek a different way.

Yeah, I’ve found myself on both sides — being the grumble, complainer, accuser — and being the joyful fool. I think the world view is that the joyful fool is an idiot, because he gets stepped on and abused by the bitter folks. But the joyful fool might be the wisest of us all, maintaining his own joy — and willing to allow those wicked people who enjoy bitterness and grumbling and complaining and judging and oppressing to know the poor substitute for joy they have found in being evil towards others.

I’ve found this especially helpful when I interact with other believers where there is a disagreement and the discussion departs from discussing evidence and facts and truths to getting personal with accusations, etc. I’ve found that joyfully overlooking the personal attacks and praising the name of Jesus and His grace and mercy defeats the goal of the enemy to offend and spread their poison. In many cases, not responding to these personal accusations will enrage the religious because their goal is to get you to “react” in the normal way a man naturally would, instead of being wise spiritually. And by praising the name of Jesus and glorifying God at the same time, the attack is not only thwarted between you and the person of flesh and blood in front of you, the true enemy hiding in the shadows and pulling the strings will be reminded again that he is defeated and that his time here is short.

I’m not going to tell you that this approach doesn’t come with consequences. If you want other people to honor you and think that you are knowledgeable and successful and powerful and important — them the joyful fool bit isn’t for you. You would probably be better off insulting and abusing and complaining and oppressing and demonstrating your dominance, spreading your selfish ambition like a poisonous troll. That approach will help you climb the ladder on the backs of others and prove your “defeat over all your competition”.

But all of that seems such a poor, poor substitute for joy.

He who is slow to anger has great understanding [and profits from his self-control], But he who is quick-tempered exposes and exalts his foolishness [for all to see].
Proverbs 14:29 AMP

“Listen carefully: I am sending you out like sheep among wolves; so be wise as serpents, and innocent as doves [have no self-serving agenda].
Matthew 10:16 AMP

Lord, help us to be willing to humble ourselves, to be willing to face opposition and not just “react” in our nature, but to continue walking with undistracted purpose and focus through your spirit. Help us to stay the course of the narrow path, truly as travelers simply passing through this land, because we are headed home to your loving arms. Do not let us be distracted to the right or the left, but lead us steady and firm wherever we should go. Forgive us for our many wanderings, and discipline us in your grace and mercy. You are a patient, loving, God who is slow to anger and faithful to forgive. You are wise and your ways are higher than the ways of the world. Help us to be the same with one another. Amen.