Churning of the nose

February 17, 2006

Joel Akin

Proverbs 30:33 Surely the churning of milk bringeth forth butter, and the wringing of the nose bringeth forth blood: so the forcing of wrath bringeth forth strife.

 It is true that the wringing of the nose brings forth blood and the churning of milk brings out butter. In some ways we are like that. We take scripture and turn it the way we think it should go. We twist it right and twist it left until it fits the theology we live with or are accustomed to. But in all truth there is one divide and that division leads to hot or cold.

 Its probably like our faucets. One is called hot and one is called cold but there is one spigot from which both come out. When it comes to getting a drink we aim for the cold and when we wish to clean our hands we go for the hot. The hot is considered part of that which cleanses us and the cold is that which refreshes us. Yet the fact is there is only one outlet. But sometimes to find the real truth you have to look underneath where all the pipes are to discover truth really does come in hot and cold. As Jesus said I would rather you were hot or cold. Otherwise I would spit you out of my mouth. Well, he was referring to those who tried to mix hot and cold and make it lukewarm.

On occasion I head off to Chili's a Texas style restaurant where they serve great burgers. That tends to be my chosen meal along with chips and salsa.

When I eat there I get a chuckle because I realize how odd it is to think of one object that is both hot or cold. Chili's are hot peppers and, as you get it, their name is cold but their taste is hot.

Sometimes people are like Chili's. They look cold to the touch and to the sound. We might call them the Church of Cold Truth. We think nothing hot can come from them. Yet sometimes those things which seem completely cold to the things of God produce the greatest mysteries of all. If they are cold, well, as Jesus did say, he had to preferences. Now maybe our concept of being hot is what everyone wants. But standing in the fire day after day after day isn't much fun either. In fact standing in the fire is like being between the two coals. You get the hot wind blowing in and your praying for a cool wind to blow. So do they? Do we experience cool winds? Perhaps that's what we long for is the cooling wind. After all its not easy being 'hot' all the time. So having a name like Chili might be one way of obtaining the best of both worlds.

Of course some think this conversation is rather lukewarm. Being lukewarm means you don't want to be hot or cold but want to switch back and forth between the two. So, are we like the Wise virgins with our vessels full of oil or are we begging and borrowing from others? How do we arrive at a vessel full of oil or coals?

The only answer I'm aware of is to be in communion with God. Everyone of us has to find a way of developing a relationship with God so that oil line installed by the Holy Spirit can stay open. There is an anointing oil we speak of that comes on us. Looking at the Old Testament we see a young man named David who is anointed with oil. He is called to be King of Israel but we have a strange division that takes place when Saul offends God and that oil line seems to be diverted or shunted to the earthly realm. The flow of anointing is stopped and there has to be a way to keep the kingship oil going so Samuel anoints the son of Jesse or David. Now how does this transition take place? I believe by a spiritual transition from old to new. Or in other words a totally new line. The old line had to be cut off but because Jonathan was the next in line that had to be cut off as well.

So how does this affect us today? By a similar method when we are anointed with a spiritual line through the Holy Spirit. This Kingship Oil is granted through a priestly lineage and that priestly lineage often becomes the head of the line. When that happens there is often spiritual warfare between Satan and God over the line and who owns which and which part. For example who owns the oil? Why the God head which is the source. But the line traverse's, in a sense, through enemy territory. Now the purpose of this Holy Line is to be grafted in to the main line but the spiritual essence takes time to plant, to lay, to build and to bury. In other words much of that burying is a death to self and to the flesh so the ground becomes holy anointed ground.

Now the interesting thing of oil is it seems to be the 'fruit' of faith. Faith is the substance of things hoped for. Thus that which grows from the desire or hope leads to a seed we call faith. But faith, like any seed, has to die in order to be reborn. That dying to self is a form of faith growing and maturing. Each time our dreams die its as if our dream for that faith is dying in order that it might grow again into life. Now what is the purpose of all this death and dying? The answer is the type of orchard or plantings we have made. Every planting is unique and each planting reflects the type of desire/prayer/will of God in it. Each desire then becomes part of the overall orchard which God helps you plant when your desires are planted into His care.

This overall planting takes time and is not meant to be realized overnight. It is a plan meant to take up the lifetime of the person involved. Now how does the Kingship oil fit in? Its like a river of living water that helps keep that orchard alive so when the time comes for harvest there will be rewards aplenty. This orchard is like a synergism where human and God work together for the common good. Now what that orchard becomes depends on the faith and the type of faith that is grown. And then eventually that orchard will begin to produce and when it produces it will produce based on the original needs and desires of those who helped create it. Perhaps if we study scripture we see this in the men God chose to raise up to positions of king, priest, soldier and so forth. Each position becomes part of the overall kingdom of God.