Guard your Roots...!

Introduction :

God put it in my heart to write on "root out or uproot". Meaning of the word root up or uproot is tear out by the roots, weed out, wipe from the face of the earth, dig out, unearth etc. The word simply means a complete clean up so that there is no trace of its existence.

Why am I talking about uprooting & What needs to be Rooted out?

Many of us who have accepted Christ or are in the verge of accepting him need to understand one thing - when we ask for forgiveness of our known and unknown sins to Jesus, it is important for the pertaining roots to be completely destroyed, meaning, there should be no trace of sin in our lives. Traces can be in the form of anything (it could be thoughts, people, objects, place etc.) that keeps us reminded about our sins.
Before we get deep into the uprooting process, lets brush up our knowledge on significance of Roots & then get into my version of its classification.

If we recollect the importance of a Root (which were taught in school), we will be able to relate well. I've put together few key points

    - Roots are important as plants originate from it, and it wouldnt grow without it
    - Roots are important because they secure the plant into the ground
    - Roots help absorb or take in water and minerals/nutrients from the ground/soil
    - Roots store food for the plant
    - Roots prevent soil erosion

Now that we are clear on importance of Roots, lets get deep into how to relate roots in our lives. I would classify Roots into two types based on what the scripture says - (i) Good Roots & (ii) Bad Roots.

    * Good roots being love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, Meekness, temperance (Gal 5:22-23)
    * Bad Roots being Adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness, Idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies, Envyings, murders, drunkenness, revellings (Gal 5:19-21)

Note : Eventhough the above are described as the fruits of Spirit in the Bible, I have considered it as Roots because of the fact that "Roots are important for any plant, as they originate from it, and it wouldnt grow without a root or even bear fruit without it"

God put it in my heart about uprooting of the bad roots we just talked about. Initially when I started writing on Uprooting, I couldnt understand as to why uprooting was so important. When I got deeper into "importance of a Root", i received a revelation in my heart as to why Uprooting is important for a Believer (New comer or Matured Believer) who has accepted Christ.
I believe that there are bad roots in many of our lives which drives us to sin against God. If those bad roots are let as is,

    - It will hinder the spiritual growth of a believer : Bad roots (we talked about above Gal 5:19-21) remains as is, it hinders the spiritual growth of a believer, meaning we will remain as a toddler who wouldnt be able to grow. Our lives will remain stagnant, not knowing what the will of God is. This inturn will drift us away from God and the purpose for which he has created us.

    - It disconnects our relationship with God : These bad roots disconnects our relationship with God, because the Scripture says that "He is a holy God" and with the bad roots that creates       unholiness in us we can never connect with him nor will be able to maintain a healthy relationship with him.

    - It makes way for Satan to gradually destroy oneself : If these bad roots are not removed it enables free Satan's entry into our lives. He creates a vacuum between God and us. The             scripture clearly says that "Satan comes to steal, kill and destroy (John 10:10)" hence he will lead us into destruction through the bad roots that are there in our lives.

    - Finally it leads to death : When these bad roots become permanent in our lives and are not uprooted, they drive us to sin against God. And the scripture says that "Wages of Sin is death.. (Romans 6:23)".

Now that we know of the bad roots which are there in our lives, the question that would arise in our minds is "What must one do to get rid those bad roots completely..?"

Here are a few points that will help us answer the question we have :

    - Repent & cry out to the lord for forgiveness in your Prayer time : For the scripture says,    When we repent, our sins will be completely wiped out & that refreshing times will come from the  presence of God (Acts 3:19)
    - Let the anointing flow on you : When we let the anointing of the holy spirit flow through us, "it (anointing) breaks every yoke of bondage..(Isaiah 10:27)" in our lives which has caused the  bad roots to remain as is.
    - Pray without ceasing (1 Thes 5:17) : We have to pray without ceasing and continually because it keeps us intact with God and Prayer brings victory over situations which seem             impossible. In simple words, Prayer simply keeps us connected with God. While we are connected, we are always active in the Lord hearkening to his voice.

To my conclusion :

It is essential to remove the bad roots which are still there in our lives. As God's chosen generation we need to examine our lives and see what are those bad roots that needs to be completely obliterated from our lives which makes way for God to become our Author and Finisher of our lives/faith (Heb 12:2).
If some of us who are reading this message feel that

"how can God forgive me and help me in removing these bad roots?"

"I am a hard core sinner, these bad roots can never be removed"

OR some of us may still feel that "No ways, I am a very spiritual person, I dont think I have any bad roots in me"

If you have any of those feelings mentioned above, let me tell you one thing, just do one simple thing, sit in God's presence and simply allow the holy spirit to take complete control of you, this message may not convince you but the spirit of the sovereign lord will fall a fresh on you and take to the realms that we have never imagined off.

Also, another thing I wanted to express was, If God has put it in my heart to write on Uprooting, I am sure there would a few bad roots in me or in my family that needs to be completed extinguished (I am not a Perfectionist). This message has helped me to pray to Jesus to remove those bad roots too. I am hoping that it will help you folks as well.

JESUS "The Balm of Gilead"

Introduction on Balm from Gilead and Reasoning for Why Jesus can be called as a "Balm of Gilead"

Gilead is a region east of Jordan river which was allotted to the tribes of Reuben and Gad. In ancient times, there came an ointment made from the gum of tree in Gilead. Scripture says in Genesis that the Ishmaelite traders who purchased Joseph from his brothers were carrying this balm of Gilead to Egypt. Having said that, I also understood that all parts of the tree (buds, branches, bark etc) were potent for medicinal uses to treat number of disorders such as acute and chronic infection of respiratory tract, cough, wounds, bruises, snake bite, sore throat, sores etc. As Balm of Gilead is either an oil or syrup or a dish known as salve, I am sure it would undergo major processing to become an oil or a syrup. Similarly when I compare it with that of Jesus, for him to become a balm, he was smitten, bruised and beaten for our transgressions and iniquities. And the precious blood he shed on that cross turns out to be the balm for many who are sick physically and needs cleansing on the inside.
And what caught my attention i also found out that it not just healed wounds & bruises, but it had the potential to heal snakebites too (I will get deeper into this particular point in the characteristics). By all this I could connect to Jesus being the Balm of Gilead. Or rather I would say that Jesus was no less than a "Balm". If I can put together a few characteristics of a Balm in comparison/similarities with that of Jesus, below are few thoughts that cropped up in my heart as a revelation :



1. Outer Healing : We just saw a few healing s received when the balm from Gilead is used. By seeing this primary characteristic, we understand that Jesus is a healer of all sicknesses as he died for us  on the cross of Calvary for us to be delivered from all sicknesses. Hence he is called the Balm of Gilead. We see many healing that Jesus performed starting from eyesight being healed to the dead being raised (lazarus). And if any of you are seeking for healing, when you believe that Jesus is the Balm of Gilead you will be healed from the crown of the head to the soles of your feet. Every disease/sickness is but a name, BUT there is this son of God who can heal us no matter how critical the health condition is.

2. Inner Healing : Balm of Gilead also indicates inner healing as he died on the cross of Calvary for the sake of our transgressions and iniquities. As per my findings in the internet, I also understood that Balm of Gilead is used to heal snakebites too. In here, snakebite can be compared to that of sin that became a part of man after a Snake deceived Eve in the Garden of Eden. By this I am also able to relate that Jesus can even purge our sins. This balm of Gilead also indicates salvation through forgiveness of sin. Having said that if any of you feel that there is no one for you, and that the sins in your life can never be forgiven or forgotten or has over taken you - Do not worry this BALM OF GILEAD can bring about a healing in your heart and mind and can forgive your sins once you accept him as your personal savior. Remove the alphabet "I" in SIN and replace it with the "O" and allow the SON (JESUS) to take charge over your inner being. I promise you this act of yours will unleash everlasting peace within you. And you will be a new creation in Christ. Old will be gone, and new thing will sprout up in you.

3. Additional characteristic that I felt was "Even-though people had to pay to get the actual Balm of Gilead, the Balm that Jesus gives you is free of cost". You dont need to be a rich person or a poor person to take this balm. You dont have to belong to a priestly family to avail this Balm. You dont have to be a beautiful or a handsome person to receive it. You neither will have to be a ugly person too. This is free of cost to every human being who God has created in his own image. This is free to every person who knows that he/she is fearfully and wonderfully made.

In my conclusion :
I finally understood that

For the first timers in Christ, I dint want to complicate this topic of "Balm of Gilead". Its simple, Jesus is the Balm from Gilead. He is the source of all healing. He is the one who can set us free from all our iniquities and fornication when we receive him as our Savior.

For the some of us who feel we have grown spiritually & are holy people, I would still say that we need this Balm of Gilead, as we do lack in many areas (like me). We the ones who are spiritually growing people feel that we are correct in everything we do. But I am sorry to say that no man is perfect. We do need this Balm to heal us on the inside and change the inner being to yield to what God has to say is right for us. We are the ones who need the most touch from God as we need to see if the lifestyle we live is pleasing to God, rather than pleasing people. Let God do what he wants to do in our lives rather than we telling him what is best for us.
 
For the backsliders, Its is essential for you folks to roll back to the Lord. And the Balm of Gilead is what you need. Healing in those areas where you are hurt which has caused you to drift away from God. Or may be someone who was very close to you is no more around you and your blaming God for it, but now your feeling guilty to come back to him. This is a time to ask for forgiveness. He is still the same yesterday today and forever. He will never change from everlasting to everlasting he is the same. Remember the prodigal son and come back to the Lord. He desires that no one should perish.