The House of Mud (Ryan’s Testimonial)

***Prayer***

Define Cistern (House of Mud)

What is a cistern and what does it look like.

Characteristic

A cistern is a well not connected to the source,

Can carry water

Becomes filled with debris and becomes mud

No light

What causes us to be in a Cistern

Forsaking God (I don’t need you) & Hewing Out (My way or the Highway)

Illustration (Seeking the Lord but having an idol in the heart) - I’m happy to serve but only when it looks this way

Chase - leaving work or staying

Connected vs Disconnected

It’s important to be able to know when we disconnect (state to congregation)

Carries impact

We feel so outside or away from everyone and everything.

Offenses to me; because it no longer aligns with the things I want or desire.

Impact on Self

Your assignment to give to others

You begin to not be able to see, or stand up properly

Impact on the Body

From the self to the body

Made to be in community

Give others a model

Support others in their walk

When condition (how and why we’re willing to serve) is exposed it is offensive or seen as an attack.

Wound takes root (abandonment, rejection, blaming)

Leads to further disconnection from God

Call to action

If you find yourself in the Cistern there is a way out

Two ways to come into the cistern, there’s two ways to come out

Plead for self

Body of Christ (someone else praying)

Because each of us has a specific assignment on our lives, when we disconnect it has impact on the body.

When we are disconnected we begin to fall out of alignment with God. It is our responsibility to set down our agenda and reconnect.

Twisted Truth

Jeremiah 38:4 ESV

Then the officials said to the king, “Let this man be put to death, for he is weakening the hands of the soldiers who are left in this city, and the hands of all the people, by speaking such words to them. For this man is not seeking the welfare of this people, but their harm.”

What happens in the Cistern.

Resistance to truth

The resistance comes from the fact that you’ve already made up your mind about how things should go, look, or function.

When your agenda is challenged by the truth, it begins to frustrate and confuse you.

You begin to try and reason or force why your truth is THE truth

Have you ever been in a cave (what does it like <dark there’s no light, unable to see even your next step at some times>) (When you try and make a call there’s no reception) * That’s what it’s like to be disconnected from the source and the living water.

You contend for the one bearing truth to be put to death (which we just read together in 38:4 of Jeremiah)

You begin to try and champion your truth to be received by others.

This can look like gossiping, intentionally exposing others shortcomings or mistakes, minipulating even scripture itself to force or strongarm others into agreement.

Contention against the others, twisting their good actions as if the person was trying to bring harm

I took it as, or what you meant by that was actually, etc.

Words of exhortations begin to sound like attacks, or fall on deaf ears.

When the warning arrives it is not received

Warning

Lately I’m seeing you struggle to worship or want to fellowship, your absence or lack of participation is causing a rift in relationships, the Lord has placed on my heart that.

Not received

There begins to be a defense for eveyrthing, a down play of the situation, deflection or blame on others, or the Lord would have told me as well, etc.

No regard for the people involved

The problem with that is you begin to create a trail of destruction, and in the wake you left the body wounded, but as long as your agenda, desire, or vision is actioned or seen as “The way” the sacrafice was worth it.

Remember when asked what it is that is required of man… Do justice, love mercy, walk humbly before your God…

Corrupted Justice

Jeremiah 37:13–14 ESV

When he was at the Benjamin Gate, a sentry there named Irijah the son of Shelemiah, son of Hananiah, seized Jeremiah the prophet, saying, “You are deserting to the Chaldeans.” And Jeremiah said, “It is a lie; I am not deserting to the Chaldeans.” But Irijah would not listen to him, and seized Jeremiah and brought him to the officials.

Church the truth has been corrupted, so without “real” truth how can you possibly administer proper justice? The answer is you can’t. So what happens next?

Corruption begins to skew any and everything.

This can be events, words of correcton/ affirmation, or just the God said being spoken.

This can be time in God’s presence - Ex. Worship, Prayer, Fellowship.

This becomes grounds for the flesh and the enemy to say that there’s been an injustice

Causing you to be unable to cover yourself or others

taking a literal example from scripture, we see this with Noah and his sons

The youngest sees his father’s struggles and his moment of shame. Instead of covering him we see him calling it out and exposing his father.

But how should we really be postured in this kind of situation

Other people’s willingness to do more, or press forward becomes an offense

Any defense brought to you isn’t received or heard.

*In our desire to make sure that our justice manifest, we start to set up snares and traps. No longer in the role of liberator we become the accuser and demand the person or people to be seized.

Seizing of the Innocent

Jeremiah 38:6 ESV

So they took Jeremiah and cast him into the cistern of Malchiah, the king’s son, which was in the court of the guard, letting Jeremiah down by ropes. And there was no water in the cistern, but only mud, and Jeremiah sank in the mud.

Church the problem here is you’ve now created an injustice. We see this happen the same way with Jesus being captured.

John 18:3 ESV

So Judas, having procured a band of soldiers and some officers from the chief priests and the Pharisees, went there with lanterns and torches and weapons.

When you’re in the cistern you become just like Judas.

Worship should run like this, because if it’s too long people will become restless (nevermind what the Holy Spirit says) this will bring the people in

The word should be softer because if it’s to heavy or seen as an attack the people will leave (nevermind the fact that it’s meant to convict the people, it’s meant to cause transformation, it’s meant to cause people to be set free)

Anyone (new should only be allowed to serve in this capacity, because anything else before (insert set amount time) would be a terrible idea. (If it’s not newness to Christ, feel free to insert any other emotional reason <they offended me and until I feel better, I’ve never seen them at church functions, they just came out overt sin, or they’re still working through whatever>)

Church that’s causing unnecessary restrictions, ties, and potential ligatures.

Denying the person, body, and church healing, growth in the Lord, their liberation through receiving the truth and washing of the water.

Instead of repenting and surrendering to the God said, we see someone in a cistern come against the will of God. Effectively casting the people into a dark, spiritless, famined fill prision.

Coming out of the Cistern

What has the word of God revealed to us on how we should be carrying ourselves, and engaging with each other?

Whether you’re a member of the congregation, minister, or otherwise we should be found like the Ethiopian Ebed-Melech.

Jeremiah 38:7–13 ESV

When Ebed-melech the Ethiopian, a eunuch who was in the king’s house, heard that they had put Jeremiah into the cistern—the king was sitting in the Benjamin Gate— Ebed-melech went from the king’s house and said to the king, “My lord the king, these men have done evil in all that they did to Jeremiah the prophet by casting him into the cistern, and he will die there of hunger, for there is no bread left in the city.” Then the king commanded Ebed-melech the Ethiopian, “Take thirty men with you from here, and lift Jeremiah the prophet out of the cistern before he dies.” So Ebed-melech took the men with him and went to the house of the king, to a wardrobe in the storehouse, and took from there old rags and worn-out clothes, which he let down to Jeremiah in the cistern by ropes. Then Ebed-melech the Ethiopian said to Jeremiah, “Put the rags and clothes between your armpits and the ropes.” Jeremiah did so. Then they drew Jeremiah up with ropes and lifted him out of the cistern. And Jeremiah remained in the court of the guard.

Church my cry is that you find yourself in the defense of the truth, that instead of exacting your own sense of justice that we would cover those in need, hungry and thirsty, just seeking to come and collect their portion that God has given for them to have.

Be willing to petition and pray for others

instead of allowing the flesh to have control over how you perceive any situation or information, allow the Holy Spirit to be the one to tell you

As a church body go and surround the person or people in the cistern and cover them

We see scripture state that the rags and clothes go into the arm pits

This is the call to action for the individual to be willing to listen to wise counsel

It’s also a call to action for the body to be willing to help the person or people lift up their arms and fight to repent and come back under the covering of truth.

instead of casting them into darkness bringing them into the light with fellowship

The Lord spoke to me last Sunday. He made me aware of the fact that you only wind up being in the cistern when you miss your court day.

***Pray for the body to surrender to the will of God, that all offenses would be forgiven. That they would desire to see the vision come to pass not in part, but in the fullness and completion of how God desires it to be. That when we begin to lift up our offering that it would be pleasing to the Lord, in alignment, and in a the Spirit of Truth***