The Way Journal

The Truth About Submitting to Civil Governing Authorities

2011-05-25T09:05:00.002-05:00

Romans 13:1-7 "Everyone must submit himself to the governing authorities, for there is no authority except that which God has established. The authorities that exist have been established by God. Consequently, he who rebels against the authority is rebelling against what God has instituted, and those who do so will bring judgment on themselves. For rulers hold no terror for those who do right, but for those who do wrong. Do you want to be free from fear of the one in authority? Then do what is right and he will commend you. For he is God's servant to do you good. But if you do wrong, be afraid, for he does not bear the sword for nothing. He is God's servant, an agent of wrath to bring punishment on the wrongdoer. Therefore, it is necessary to submit to the authorities, not only because of possible punishment but also because of conscience. This is also why you pay taxes, for the authorities are God's servants, who give their full time to governing. Give everyone what you owe him: If you owe taxes, pay taxes; if revenue, then revenue; if respect, then respect; if honor, then honor."

I have been praying about writing this for some time now. It's been stirring in my spirit for awhile as this particular scripture is the main one that Christianity and the "church" uses as evidence for believers to submit to the civil government(s), participate in civil affairs and pay taxes. This particular scripture is taught that it is our duty to support the civil authorities under which we dwell.

When we look back to the time when Jesus was walking among man, Rome was the civil government and King Herod's was the nation's. The people were under terrible tax oppression. They had to pay taxes to Caesar and they had to also pay their taxes that Herod was imposing AND the temple tax (tithe) to support the temple rulership. The tax collectors then added more on top of that to skim off the top, further extorting the people's hard earned labors and leaving them in terrible distress, thus the reason why the tax collectors were so despised.

We find in Luke 23:2 the accusations the people made toward Jesus before Pilate as they: "began to accuse him, saying, “We have found this man subverting our nation. He opposes payment of taxes to Caesar and claims to be Christ, a king.” They were accusing Jesus of subverting Herod's government and opposing Roman rule. Elsewhere, when accused directly, Jesus said to render to Caesar what belongs to Ceasar and to God what belongs to God. These seem somewhat contradictory and confusing don't they? But let me make my point ....... The people ACCUSED Jesus of subverting the nation (Israel, Herod) and OPPOSING payment of taxes to Caesar (Rome - civil)! What?!?! Jesus OPPOSED payment of taxes to the civil government? Taxes to Caesar were SO unimportant to Jesus that He sent Peter for a fish to get the Roman tax from it's mouth showing us that God will provide to the civil authorities!

To further enhance the point I want to make in this message, let me add one more scripture that's been taken out of context (I'm quite sure there are more than this but you'll get the drift). In 1 Timothy 2:1-4 we find Paul instructing Timothy thus: "I urge, then, first of all, that requests, prayers, intercession and thanksgiving be made for everyone – for kings and all those in authority, that we may live peaceful and quiet lives in all godliness and holiness. This is good, and pleases God our Savior, who wants all men to be saved and to come to a knowledge of the truth." Kings? Wait! Rome didn't have a king! Israel did!

Now I'm probably gonna ruffle a BUNCH of feathers with what I'm about to say - one brother in particular maybe that I've already had a similar conversation with. If so, I hope you will prayerfully consider these things and search them out for yourself and see if the Holy Spirit does not show you the same thing. So here goes.....

We have been duped. We have believed a lie that we owe our allegiance to the civil governments of this world. Using these scriptures to make that case is error - and here's why.

Who are the authorities that Paul is referring to in Romans and Timothy? Are they REALLY civil authorities? Paul said "Everyone must submit himself to the governing authorities, for there is no authority except that which God has established. The authorities that exist have been established by God." He specifically identifies who these authorities are - they are the ones that are established by God. What has ever been established by God? The Torah government. Those in authority of THAT government are the spiritual authorities and the only authorities that Paul is referring to here. The tax was to the Torah government for the caretaking of all of GOD's business. Careful reading of Romans 13 will prove out that the entire passage is relating to rebelling against God's established authority in the earth - not civil as we know it. Civil is man's government, NOT God's. Does the federal government of the United States adhere to Torah governing standards? NO. This government is committing murder, thievery, idolatry, adultery, and a whole host of other sins against God. Does the UK? NO. Is there ANY nation on the earth today that adheres to these standards? NO - NOT EVEN ISRAEL. ALL are civil governments EXCEPT the Islamic ones who rule by Sharia law.

In the United States, the government is not ruled by just and righteous men who love and serve the words of Almighty God, though I'm sure there are some in elected office who are believers. God has NOT established the government of the United States. It was NOT founded on christian principles as many believe - it was founded on the ideals of men of whom some were godly. But the foundational priniciples are civil, not spiritual. Man did and still continues to believe otherwise. The result? MASSIVE INJUSTICE. WORLDWIDE!! I will not support that. My allegiance lies in God's government - the kingdom. We have NO KINGS today. We have ONLY Caesars who have set themselves up as God and rule oppressively over the people. Yet we stand in the guise of patriotism and allegiance to an unholy thing. Much of Christiandom in the United States - especially the conservatives - have made the United States an idol of sorts. Pledging allegiance to a flag that they believe stands for freedom, but in fact really stands for dominion. Now that is not to say that we don't have freedoms - we have FAR more than any country on earth. BUT..... Just try to break any one of the civil laws - or even try to not publicly pledge allegiance to the flag and see how free you really are! The police and civil authorities have been given rulership over the people and the poorer you are the worse it is. The rich can be arrested but they have enough money to buy their way out of the system. The poor don't. Don't believe me? Visit any criminal court hearing in this land and just listen. They are debtor's prisons. Jesus said "when I was in prison you did not visit me". We have taken that to mean we need prison visitation ministries. And those are good - by all means - they are very good! But think about this. Who were the ones inprisoned when Jesus said this? They were the poor who couldn't pay the taxes. Some were murderers and thieves for sure. And some, I'm sure were evil. But the vast majority were there simply because they were poor.

Now, don't get me wrong here - I'm not calling for a rebellion against the civil governments. Jesus didn't, I won't either - he said give to Caesar what belongs to him, and I will. But I won't give allegiance to him. My allegiance lies only in and within the Kingdom of God as it rules in my heart. I will keep the civil laws because I know what man's laws have the power to do - but not out of fear, simply out of obedience to live peacefully and uprightly before my fellow man. For I have been on the brunt end of the government's authorities and it's not pleasant. They smeared me and my family unmercifully and wrongfully - these things will haunt me the rest of my days. BUT what the adversary meant for harm, God has meant for good and works all things together for good.

Today I have a very dear friend and brother who has been horribly and wrongfully accused of a crime he did not commit. His life stands in the balance simply because someone decided to harm him and the civil authorities took pleasure in honoring that one's wishes, even physical abuse. I stand in prayer with and beside him and believe that God will deliver him and reveal His glory in the doing of it. But let me tell you - it's a terrible thing to fall into the hands of those who have the power to kill you. Jesus told us about that. He said not to fear man who can kill the body - but rather fear the one who has the power to send both body and soul to hell. So that's the side I'm on.

Here we are.............. We are in the beginning of sorrows. It's not my intent to be grim here, but I do want to give a wake up call. If you are a true believer, then give your allegiance where it belongs. Rightly divide the scripture and don't take other people's word for stuff - not even, and especially mine. Pray fervently for yourself and your family. Pray for one another. Stand with one another. Love one another - see that your brothers and sisters have no needs among you. By THIS will ALL MEN KNOW that we are HIS. As we move forward closer and closer to His coming things will get much worse. They WILL hate us BECAUSE of HIM. They will throw us in prison. They will and can take from us. They can harm us. But they cannot take our spirit and we will overcome. Jesus said "he who endures to the end......." May we ALL endure to the end.

The Spirit of Adoption

2010-10-21T12:06:00.001-05:00

Romans 8:14-17 ".....those who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God. For you did not receive a spirit that makes you a slave again to fear, but you received the Spirit of sonship. And by him we cry, “Abba, Father.” The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God's children. Now if we are children, then we are heirs – heirs of God and co–heirs with Christ, if indeed we share in his sufferings in order that we may also share in his glory."

John 1:12,13 "Yet to all who received him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God – children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband's will, but born of God."

Ever wonder why God always commanded the Israelites to make sure they included the "strangers and aliens" in their camps for all their feasts, rituals, harvests, blessings, etc.? Ever wonder why God is so intent on caring for widows and orphans? James 1:27 specifically defines what true religion is that God accepts

"Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world."

In Isaiah 58:6-8 God has rebuked the nation for keeping and practicing the fasts, but they have not pleased Him - “Is not this the kind of fasting I have chosen: to loose the chains of injustice and untie the cords of the yoke, to set the oppressed free and break every yoke? Is it not to share your food with the hungry and to provide the poor wanderer with shelter—when you see the naked, to clothe him, and not to turn away from your own flesh and blood? Then your light will break forth like the dawn, and your healing will quickly appear; then your righteousness will go before you, and the glory of the LORD will be your rear guard."

Throughout Old and New Testament writings we find the same theme, over and over again. Take care of the people. Take care of the orphans. Take care of the widows. Feed the hungry. Clothe the naked. And here in Isaiah He even says to "provide the poor wanderer with shelter". Why are these things so important to God? What's the message?

The strangers and aliens among the people have always represented the Gentile people and the Jews have always been the "natural born". Why does God instruct them to care for them? Because they are the ones He is adopting. We are not "natural born" sons and daughters of God. But Jesus gives us the power to become that - by His blood and spirit. Jesus was telling Nicodemus in the middle of the night that there would no longer be a proselyte among them. He told him that we must be born of water (human birth) and spirit (faith - adoption). Jesus was opening a doorway that had never been opened before except in instruction and symbolism. God knew how deep the roots of rejection go. He was making a way for all mankind - a door by which ANY could enter in and become sons of God. No longer would they be strangers and aliens - there would be one new man, comprised of both Jew and Gentile, symbolized by the instructions through time to care for the strangers and aliens in their midst. This new man was to be born of the spirit. No longer would natural birth be the way into the realm of the Government of Grace as upheld by the law. But rather a new way - the Throne of Grace - the rule of law, the spirit of the Law flowing THROUGH the Lamb - the door, the way.

The law would be written on the hearts through circumcision of the heart. The spirit of God would dwell in man and teach and guide him into all truth. The evidence that it exists would be the true religion that God accepts - to care for the widows and orphans and to keep one self from being soiled by the world. By caring for one another, bearing one another's burdens, a community of faith, trust, hope, love, provision and truth. Reaching out and caring for others around them, thereby showing forth the fruit of the Spirit in their lives, lifting Him up with their lives and actions, and drawing all men to Him. No words we can ever say will do that - only our faith put in action in this way.

Men and women who have been adopted can understand the spirit of rejection that must be overcome in their lives. That ever present "nobody wants me" rooted deep inside them is difficult to overcome. Receiving a message that God loves them is not always enough. But when we ALL recognize that we are ALL adopted then we can understand, identify and have the heart of God to touch those wounded spirits and help them heal and feel wanted and accepted in the beloved.

May we all pray for discernment, understanding and wisdom that we can fully grasp the width, depth, height and breadth of His love toward us. We are sons and daughters of the Most High God, Creator of the universe and our Abba Father.

Harvest Time

2010-10-02T22:09:00.003-05:00

winter wheat growing

October already.... cool, clear, crisp nights and mornings and comfortable days. The smell of a bonfire, weiner roasts and smores. Mulled ciders and pumpkin fields full and ready for picking. Apples, pecans, signs of squirrels getting ready for the winter approaching. Here in Tennessee the colors of autumn are everywhere as the leaves have started changing and some of the sugar maples are gently flowing from green to red as if someone is pouring red water gently over the top and it rolls down the tree. Saturdays filled with people raking and burning leaves. I love autumn. I always tell my grandchildren that the trees are going to sleep and when they wake up in the spring we can go fishing. They always wait and when spring comes and the leaves start to come out they come running and saying "look Mamaw - the trees are waking up!"

God too loves the spring and autumn. He set feast days around them, foreshadows of things to come. In the spring is the celebration of passover and death exchanged for life, the giving of the law and the outpouring of the Holy Spirit. Everything about the spring points to the death and rebirth experience. Fall is the time of change. Everything in creation changes in the fall. The feast begin with the Feast of Trumpets which always happens at the harvest time. It's the time of the new year - new beginnings, emphasized in the Feast of Tabernacles which is the foreshadowing of the time He will tabernacle among us. It's celebrated each year by living in a tent for a week to remember the wilderness experience and to look forward to the new world, new age to come. Paul said that we would not all sleep; meaning we would not all die physical death. Some of us will be alive when Jesus returns and be changed. At the last trumpet, Paul said, we will experience the corruptible putting on incorruption, the dead in Christ will rise first and then the rest will be caught up to meet Him in the air. This last trumpet blast is on Yom Kipper every year. So we don't know the day and the hour He will come, because that's the Father's decision only, and the Feast of Trumpets is not set on the same day. None of the feasts are - they all float about the calendar based on harvests and new moons.

In Luke 10:2,3 "He told them, “The harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field. Go! I am sending you out like lambs among wolves." and in Matthew 13:24-30 Jesus gives the parable of the wheat and the tares - a harvest time parable.

"Jesus told them another parable: "The kingdom of heaven is like a man who sowed good seed in his field. But while everyone was sleeping, his enemy came and sowed weeds among the wheat, and went away. When the wheat sprouted and formed heads, then the weeds also appeared. The owner's servants came to him and said, 'Sir, didn't you sow good seed in your field? Where then did the weeds come from?' " 'An enemy did this,' he replied. "The servants asked him, 'Do you want us to go and pull them up?' " 'No,' he answered, 'because while you are pulling the weeds, you may root up the wheat with them. Let both grow together until the harvest. At that time I will tell the harvesters: First collect the weeds and tie them in bundles to be burned; then gather the wheat and bring it into my barn.' "

Some of you reading this may be farmers or grew up farmers. Some may have never seen a farm or raised a garden. I did not grow up on a farm, but I was born and raised in central Indiana among the corn, soybeans and wheat fields. My father was from southeastern Kansas and we lived there a couple of times in my 5th and 6th grade years, but visited every single summer until I was married. That was wheat and sorghum country. I raised or was part of raising gardens my whole life, so I know a little bit about plants, farms and growing things.

With corn and sorghum, which is like corn, the plants grow thick stalks and grow fairly tall so they're planted a little ways apart from each other to allow for weed tilling. Great care is taken when weeding so that the shallow roots of the plants don't get pulled up, but they are fairly easy to till. Soybeans a little less easy, but done well until the plant gets too bushy, then the shade from the plant chokes out the weeds.

Wheat is different. It's in the grass family (well corn and sorghum are grasses too). When you try to pull up a dandelion plant, it will come up with earth and grass attached to it. Likewise with wheat and the weeds that grow in among them. Wheat is planted primarily in the fall - 3/4 of the wheat crops in the US production are winter crops. They are planted usually between August and October and harvested in the spring between May and July. The spring wheat crops are planted April - May and harvested August to October. Do you start to see a picture emerge her of the appointed times (spring and fall feasts) and the parable of the wheat and tares?

ripened wheat

Wheat crops are simply breathtaking - they are fields of the brightest most beautiful lush green you will ever see when they are growing. And when they are ripe they are like oceans of the most beautiful gold moving with the wind and the breeze. You cannot see the weeds. They have come up with the wheat, grown with the wheat, enmeshed their roots with the wheat. If you tried to pull a weed up, it would be like pulling up a dandelion - you'd have the roots and wheat with it in a lump. Jesus said "let them grow together until harvest".

When the combines come in to harvest the wheat the machines are incredible. It's cut about 2-3 inches up from the ground leaving a thick golden stubble. The shaft is the straw and is bundled along and sold for bedding, the weeds are burned. The wheat grain is sifted to remove the chaff and leave only the tender buds for grinding into flour. The only thing of value in the whole of the field is this bud. In it is sustaining life. It has grown and survived storms, winds, rains, droughts and the weeds. It survived and grew to fruition in spite of all the plant went through.

I think that Jesus was telling us many things in this parable and his calling for laborers. Each time Jesus referred to mankind he puts him in a context of agriculture. Something that is organic, it grows and bears edible fruit and life giving sustenance to the body. Many of you reading this will have all kinds of bells and whistles going off, some won't. Some won't even understand - and that's okay. Jesus spoke in parables for a reason. We are the wheat fields that the Father has so carefully planted. Entwined and unrecognizable to the one standing on the sidelines are the weeds that are among the wheat plants. To the naked eye, they look the same. But if you taste one of those weeds, you could be poisoned, at best it would be a very bitter taste in your mouth and could leave you scarred or your taste buds messed up. But the wheat plant knows what the weeds are and where they came from. They've been growing with them. The rain falls on the whole field - on the just and the unjust - when it rains. The storms hit the same field - the just and the unjust. Some of those weeds can so cross pollenate themselves that you would think you're looking a wheat plant. It wouldn't be until you tasted the bud that you would know it wasn't.

Among us - all around us - everyday is the battle over our lives, our minds, our hearts. The fields are now ripening - they are becoming more and more gold and the weeds are getting desperate not to be found out. Some of them may even think they're wheat so they stand tall and proud. They linked themselves at the root system with the wheat so they know they can't be yanked out and they just might be able to slip by in the harvest. Jesus said the angels are going to harvest these fields - the laborers only work them. The angels will gather it all up starting with the wheat and they are well trained to know the difference.

Timothy talks about perilous times. Jesus said to guard our hearts and minds. Peter, James, John, Jude, Paul, Timothy - they all sent warnings out on what to look for, how to identify, how to stand, how to not lose heart. Paul describes the armor we must wear at all times. Be careful not to forsake sound doctrine. Evil does exist - it's living in the field with you.

A good rule of thumb is this - does the world hate you because of Him? Luke 21:17 "All men will hate you because of me". If not, chances are you've got the wrong gospel. Scripture will bear me out on this. The religious system, and the people in the world, all hated the followers of Jesus then and down through time. Rejoice if people persecute you and say all manner of evil against you, or accuse you falsely - that means you've got the right thing. If what you are following and what you believe is a social club that has the biggest gatherings, the most "peaceful" experiences, generates no persecution or rejection, does not stir up the pot of religion, then chances are you've got the wrong gospel. True followers are few. Always have been. They've never been large numbers of the population. Even many of Jesus own disciples turned and left Him because they could not embrace the hardness of His teachings. The true gospel is radical and it's life changing. So look around you - have you stirred the pot. Is their a mob inciting a riot against you? Does anyone hate you for His sake?

It's harvest time...... we better be ready when the angel harvesters come.

The Church of Tomorrow

2010-09-30T11:10:00.000-05:00

For awhile now I've been sensing in my spirit that there is something shaking. Hebrews tells us that there would come a time when everything would be shaken and only that which remained would last. In recent years I've witnessed a great migration taking place. An exodus out of the organizations we call "church" to gatherings in homes and online. There are several reasons for this exodus. Most are waking up, looking around and saying "where am I? how did I get here? what do I do now?" There's a disorientation that often accompanies a long deep slumber. Some, when fully awake, realize that they were so horribly deceived that they determine to bring the system down. Hundreds of books and websites, blogs and Facebook and other social networking pages have been created and published for this very purpose. Some of them are really beneficial and water the soul. Others are filled with rebellion, animosity and false teachings leading many astray. Currently, it seems to me that the latter is gaining the most ground. People are exchanging the truth for a lie and inventing a Jesus, God and gospel they can live with, rather than submit to the One and only True One. We have never been called to bring God to our way of thinking - we have always been called to Him. He is unchanging, unwavering, immovable. One never brings a river to themselves - one must always journey to the river.

God is shaking. He is shaking the church and sifting it. Those who are pure of heart will easily pass through the sieve. Those who are not will not pass through those small openings. Everything that can be shaken is being shaken. Why? Because it's a preparation - a last push and call for the Kingdom that's coming in physical form. Only a pure spotless Bride will be counted worthy to participate in the first resurrection, which is the marriage of the Lamb. God is restoring the body of Christ to it's origins and purposes, accompanied by all the power of the Holy Spirit operating and confirming with REAL signs, wonders and miracles, in order to reach a lost and dying world and to hopefully snatch some from the fire that are caught up in the false doctrines and teachings. I urge anyone reading this today to heed the call. Purify your hearts and minds. Reject all that is unholy and untrue. Return to the real Jesus and the real God. Repent. Call on the Lord while He may be found. The result? A restored New Testament Church in full operation to usher in the return of the King. What does that look like? Well, I think Andrew Strom says it far better than me. I want this. I want this so bad I can taste it.

“THE CHURCH OF TOMORROW “

-by Andrew Strom.

A lot of people probably read some of the writings on this website and wonder, “Where is all this headed? What is the goal?” A glib answer might be- “We want to get back to real ‘New Testament’ Christianity.” But what exactly does that look like?This is an important topic – and something I have pondered a great deal over the years. What exactly would the ‘New Testament Church’ look like if it was translated into a modern western city?

To get started, I want you to forget about today’s church just for a moment – with all her obvious problems and contradictions, and picture something quite different. I want you to imagine that you are still living in the same city, in the same year, but you are right in the middle of a ‘Book of Acts’-type scenario. Somehow everything has changed.

For some reason, all of the Spirit-filled Christians in your city have left their Denominations and divisions behind. They have truly begun to fulfill the prayer of Jesus – “That they all may be ONE”. They now hold huge gatherings all over the city – right out in the open. And as well as these united gatherings, on most streets there is now a house-meeting, where all the Spirit-filled believers from that street gather together, eating and sharing and having communion, etc. (ie. A “NEIGHBORHOOD CHURCH”). The power of God flowing in these house-meetings is amazing. Many healings and miracles are occurring. The ‘gifts’ flow freely every day.

It seems also that many of the church buildings and cathedrals have simply been abandoned. No longer do Christians want to hide themselves away behind “four walls”. They want to gather out where the people are – presenting Jesus to the whole world. They want to be truly “one body”. There is no way that any of their old buildings could contain the crowds, anyhow.

And the men whom God has raised up to lead this vast movement do not seem much like the ‘Reverends’ or even the ‘televangelists’ of old. In fact, quite a few of them have never even been to Bible College, and they seem to be very plain, ordinary people from humble backgrounds. But what an anointing! It is very clear to everyone that these ‘apostles and prophets’ (as they are known) have spent many years in prayer and brokenness before God – drawing closer and closer to Him. When they speak, the very fear of the Lord seems to come down, and many people repent deeply of their sins. Demons are cast out and the blind and crippled are made whole. -These kinds of things are happening all the time. The whole city is just in awe of what is going on, and thousands upon thousands are being saved. Even the newspapers and television are full of it.

As soon as someone repents they are immediately baptized in water and hands are laid on them for the infilling of the Holy Spirit. -This is expected from day one! And it is also expected that every Christian has a gift and calling from God – and that they should be encouraged to move forward and fulfill their calling. No longer is there a distinction made between those who are “ministers” and those who are merely ‘laity’. Now it is expected that EVERYONE is a minister of the Lord! (However, there are ‘elders’ – ie. older Christians to guide things).

Some of the bishops and pastors from several denominations have actually denounced this great move of God very strongly. They say it is “deception” and warn their people to stay away. (-Every Revival in history has been accused of this – usually by religious leaders). But to be honest, it is so obvious to most people that God is the one behind it all, that very few take these men seriously. The Spirit of God is sweeping all before Him. The glory of the Lord has come.

One of the reasons that these leaders are so upset is that a lot of the Christians’ GIVING now does not go to church buildings, but rather to the POOR. In fact, God has spoken to many people to start supporting widows and orphans overseas, etc. They also give generously to anyone in their midst who is in need. Many even sell their own possessions in order to do this.

The huge over-riding theme of this great movement is LOVE. “Behold how they love one another” is the catch-cry of many who watch this ‘new church’ in action. And everyone is given to MUCH PRAYER.

And so, gathering “as one” in the outdoors and breaking bread from house to house, they eat together with glad and sincere hearts, praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. And the Lord adds to their number daily those who are being saved.

CAN THIS REALLY HAPPEN?

The above description is taken straight out of the Book of Acts – as applied to today. Everything in the above paragraphs is put there to give you an idea of what it would be like to live in the Jerusalem church at the start of Acts. -And it was like that for YEARS. Imagine the impact of such a church on the world around it! God is wanting to do this again. And He wants to use ordinary people like you and me to help bring it to pass.

I am convinced that we are NOT supposed to treat the early church as a “special case”. It was given to us as an ‘example’. It is what the “normal” church should be like all the time! And yet we have fallen so far below this standard. Only in times of Revival do we approach it again for a time. But I believe it is supposed to be “normal” for the church to be like this – day in and day out. This is the way that Jesus always wanted us to be.

However, one thing is clear. It will take a great “SHAKING” for us to get anywhere close to the above description today. You have to be aware that in order to get there from here, a whole lot of ‘hierarchies’ and church boards and careers and titles and positions would be on the line. And a lot of men simply don’t want to lose those things. It doesn’t matter to them whether it is Truth or not. If it affects their reputation, their position or their organization, they will oppose it with everything they have.

Sadly it is very difficult to see a “smooth” transition to this kind of Christianity. I believe we are in for a shaky ride. But I certainly believe that it is on God’s agenda. And like the Great Reformation before it, I believe He will do WHATEVER IT TAKES in order to get us there.

Here’s to true ‘NEW TESTAMENT’ Christianity, my friends – the kind that Jesus and the apostles actually invented in the beginning.

Let us settle for nothing less – WHATEVER IT TAKES.

www.johnthebaptisttv.com

Anatomy of a Grudge

2010-09-18T22:17:00.000-05:00

“Grudge” - noun: a feeling of ill will or resentment; adjective: something done to settle a grudge; verb: to resent the good fortune of another, to begrudge, to feel dissatisfaction or ill will. Simply defined; a grudge is a feeling of resentment harbored because of some real or fancied wrong. Grudges can stem from jealousy, envy, greed, offense (perceived or real) among others and they have multiple characteristics; bitterness, rancor, malevolence, enmity, hatred, malice and spite.

Ephesians 4:31 “Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice.”

Colossians 3:8 “But now you must rid yourselves of all such things as these: anger, rage, malice, slander, and filthy language from your lips.”

1 Peter 2:1 “Therefore, rid yourselves of all malice and all deceit, hypocrisy, envy, and slander of every kind”

Bitterness exhibits itself as strong animosity.
Rancor is the strongest word in our language to express hostile feelings.
Malevolence is best described as a smoldering ill will and can be seen in our expressions. It is an evil disposition toward another; the inclination to injure others.
Enmity is hostility; hatred; ill will; a deep seated, often mutual hatred. Enmity is the quality of being an enemy and in a state of opposition (Friendship with the world is enmity against God. James 4:4 and 1 John 2:15,16. I will put animosity between you and the woman, and between your descendant and her descendant; he will bruise your head, and you will bruise his heel. Genesis 3:15. The carnal mind is enmity against God. Romans 8:7).
Hatred is a feeling of dislike so strong that it demands action. Listed among the works of the flesh (sinful nature) in Galatians 5:20.
Malice is the desire to inflict injury, harm, or suffering on another, either because of a hostile impulse or out of deep-seated meanness. The intent, without just cause or reason, to commit a wrongful act that will result in harm to another. A desire to harm others or to see others suffer; extreme ill will or spite. Malice is a stronger word than malevolence, which may imply only a desire that evil may befall another, while malice desires, and perhaps intends, to bring it about. Malignity is intense and deep seated malice. It implies a natural delight in hating and wronging others. One who is malignant must be both malevolent and malicious; but a man may be malicious without being malignant.
Spite is defined as a malicious, usually petty, desire to harm, annoy, frustrate, or humiliate another.

The very nature of grudges allowed to reach maturity can end in murder and death (spiritually and perhaps physically as well) of both the offender and the offended.

I am a recovering grudge holder. Like most grudge holders, I didn’t know I had them. I so successfully concealed that I was holding grudges that I had believed they were righteous and justified indignation. I went through all the motions of forgiveness - believed it and had long moved on past offenses done to me - UNTIL I’d randomly meet the offender(s) in a chance meeting or passing. Especially difficult when these offender(s) are in the family. Then there they were, in full royal dress, presenting themselves as rapid heartbeat, a flushed face, a burning sensation in the depths of my belly - all signs I was ready to rumble! Feet set, check. Jaw set, check. Memories of the offense at the forefront, check. Armed with every emotion and determination to defend my position if called upon - I faced the offender(s). These are the first indication that you’ve got a grudge. You know you’re “sober” when you don’t go through the checklist and the presence of the offender(s) stimulate no reaction.

I had all the arguments. God sees and waits. He keeps records. He will avenge me. I need to save this person from the awful punishment that God will bring on their head for all the wrong they’ve done to me, and others. After all, the Father MUST see this person’s attitude the same way I did. But it’s all a lie wrapped up in a truth, and it’s a dangerous one. It’s one that can kill you and cause you sickness and disease.

I have a particular family member who has lied about me, lied about my kids, and behaved undisciplined as a belligerent child! This person is relentless in the pursuit of our family and inventing ways to harm us, unprovoked. This person isn’t even conscious that they do this. They presents themself to the world and the congregation as a sweet, loving and caring christian. But behind the charade is a devious person. I have witnessed and been the recipient on more than one occasion of their rage and childish outbursts their entire life. And they are the instrument, the sandpaper, that God used to reveal to me that I was a grudge holder. Unlike anyone else, this person had the uncanny ability of bringing out the worst in me. After a particularly heated and horrible argument with them awhile back; and I was left angry, shaken and frustrated, I realized I had been keeping score of all the many times this person had accused me or my kids wrongfully. I did not realize until that day that I was nursing a lot of wounds and trying to justify them in my own heart and mind as deserving. We all do that, don’t we? It’s ever so much easier to blame others for our actions - and reactions. Blame shifts the focus to someone else. That’s it’s purpose.

I’m really good at reasoning and analyzing offenses and identifying the root causes of disputes, arguments and outbursts. I’m really bad at identifying them in myself. I know how to forgive the offender and how to explain it to others. I’ve a strong need to bring closure to incidents and disagreements amicably and, hopefully, reach reconciliation. Just ask Bill - I‘m relentless in this endeavor. I love peace, balance and harmony. I especially like it when people agree with my point of view on these matters. After all “blessed are the peacemakers”. But with this particular person it’s rare that anything ever works out that way. They were raised to believe they are entitled to whatever they desire and can do nothing wrong; there is no other way to see things except their way, no matter how irrational they may be. And so, it was after this particularly ugly event that God revealed that I would not cease striving with this individual until I dealt with the condition of my own heart. That wasn’t the answer I was looking for.

What the Holy Spirit revealed to me, was that I was a grudge holder, always had been. I come from a long line of grudge holders all in varying degrees of progress with their grudges. Some quietly nurse their wounds and refuse to speak to or see their offender(s) for days or years on end. Some have slinging curses down to an art form and can quickly speak their mind; inventing new kinds of name calling all the while graphically describing the specific methods they intend to use to inflict harm on their offender(s). Then there are the ones who shout venomous language toward the offender(s), usually without warning or reason, for the express purpose of inflicting the greatest possible emotional pain. And the worst ones are the ones who spend hours, days and years planning the best possible revenge. No matter what form or personality it takes most of the grudge holders call themselves “good Christian people“ and can often quote you book, chapter and verse to justify it.

The day the Holy Spirit revealed this to me, He also revealed that I was a nursing my own grudges. He showed me I had even made pets out of them. Every now and then I revisited the memories of the offenses and checked on them to make sure they were still alive and well, but securely locked away. I’d feed them with some depression, self pity, anger and resentment. Pet them, console them and encourage them to be patient; the day would come when God would vindicate me because He‘s keeping score. That’s the way it goes, right? “Vengeance is mine, says the Lord.” This is one of the greatest tricks the enemy has to convince us that we are justified. The pain and suffering we experience that has been inflicted by others deserves punishment. We deserve vindication and we certainly don’t ever want to let them hurt us again - so this is a way of protecting ourselves. An eye for an eye, right? Oh, but wait, that was law and we’re now in the law of grace. Jesus said we had to forgive and love our enemies. Bless those that curse us. Pray for those that spitefully use us. Turn the other cheek. If they ask for our shirt - give them our coat too. If they ask us to go a mile, we go 2. We forgive 700 billions of times. So we just roll over and play dead? We’re just supposed to take it? But what about lying about us? We ought to be able to justify some kind of punishment for that. What about abusing us? What about pure meanness? What about robbing us? What about………? Jesus went through this and more yet when He was reviled, He reviled not again. They plucked out His beard; pressed thorns into his head. Rounded up people to lie before the Sanhedrin for the purpose of convicting him. Called Him horrible names; stripped Him naked and gambled over His clothes. Incited a riot against Him and even convinced the government to execute Him without cause. I can think of no better reason to hold a grudge than He had. Did He? No. Why? He could have called down legions of angels, but He didn’t. How can we possibly justify being any different than our greatest example. Bottom line - there is no precedence or instruction for justifying nursing our wounds. None. Nada. Zip. Believe me, I looked. Nope - not there.

So what did I do? I repented and asked God to remove this terrible infection in my soul. It’s not easy. These things take root and spread out like parasites in us. Left long enough they become the root of bitterness that Paul warned us not to let take root. I had let that happen; what I didn’t realize was that a grudge is the fruit of that root bitterness grown from the seed of offense and I had a tree full of that fruit. Repentance as a progression - an ongoing experience. It’s something alive and created that goes to the very roots of the trees of sin in our lives and rips them out of the soil of our hearts.

While I’ve never heard this subject taught in the body of Christ; it is my hope that my journey of discovery concerning this will compel us all to serious reflection and action to remove us from the pit that grudges can bury us in. We’ve all got some good reasons to hold grudges - but those are dangerous plants for a garden.

The Wedding Feast of the Lamb

2010-08-19T16:25:00.000-05:00

The Wedding Feast of the Lamb

Luke 12:12-24 “He said also to the man who had invited him, “When you give a dinner or a banquet, do not invite your friends or your brothers or your relatives or rich neighbors, lest they also invite you in return and you be repaid. But when you give a feast, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind, and you will be blessed, because they cannot repay you. For you will be repaid at the resurrection of the just.” When one of those who reclined at table with him heard these things, he said to him, “Blessed is everyone who will eat bread in the kingdom of God!” But he said to him, “A man once gave a great banquet and invited many. And at the time for the banquet he sent his servant to say to those who had been invited, ‘Come, for everything is now ready.’ But they all alike began to make excuses. The first said to him, ‘I have bought a field, and I must go out and see it. Please have me excused.’ And another said, ‘I have bought five yoke of oxen, and I go to examine them. Please have me excused.’ And another said, ‘I have married a wife, and therefore I cannot come.’ So the servant came and reported these things to his master. Then the master of the house became angry and said to his servant, ‘Go out quickly to the streets and lanes of the city, and bring in the poor and crippled and blind and lame.’ And the servant said, ‘Sir, what you commanded has been done, and still there is room.’ And the master said to the servant, ‘Go out to the highways and hedges and compel people to come in, that my house may be filled. For I tell you, none of those men who were invited shall taste my banquet.’” See also Matthew 22:1-14

Western society’s portrayal of marriage is a romantic, expensive, elaborate event centered around the bride. Everything is about her - she is the total and central focus of the wedding; from her dress, attendants, groomsmen and ushers; mothers and grandmothers, flower girls, ring bearers, venues, food, music, flowers, reception - especially the Father/Daughter dance celebration. This concept has penetrated other societies who are now copying the western concept of the wedding and marriage celebrations and ceremonies. This is not God’s model - and because the understanding of His model has been set aside and exchanged for the pagan models, many have fallen into error; especially concerning the subject of the rapture. Some of what I’m about to say will be new to many and I pray that you receive it with a fertile heart. Some will already have awakened to this truth and moved away from the traditional and mainstream concept of marriage and the rapture. But it wasn’t until I was sharing this with someone else last night that I fully understood this parable in Luke and Matthew. I hope this is as much a revelation to those who read this as it was to me. I think it explains a lot of questions we’ve been having about a lot of subjects.

God’s model begins in Genesis 2. After God made Eve, he “brought” her to the man, Adam, and presented her to him. Adam named her, described her as “bone of his bone, and flesh of his flesh for she was ‘brought’ out of man”. Then after the presentation, Adam “knew” his wife Eve and the two became one flesh. God’s model is one of covenant and because covenant has been lost in it‘s true meaning many have not understood the magnitude of God‘s view. Marriage is a covenant bond between one man and one woman who together become the example of the Creator in the earth. The foreshadow of Jesus and His bride - who was created out of His side by the surgical insertion of a soldier’s sword that brought forth water and blood - the final seal of the New Covenant of Jesus and His bride - the church. The bride is now preparing herself to meet the Bridegroom when the Father presents Him to her in the ceremony to come.

In God’s model of betrothal and the marriage ceremony and banquet are totally centered around the Bridegroom. He is the only focus. The bride is for Him. The bridegroom’s father seeks a bride for his son. He finds her, sometimes at birth, and purchases her for his son with something of great value to him. From that moment on, the young “bride” belongs to the son, the bridegroom. Both grow apart - oftentimes never seeing each other until the wedding ceremony. The bride prepares herself for the groom. With the help of servants, family and community, she makes her wedding garment; learns all the duties and concepts of being a wife and waits. The groom spends the time preparing a place for her to dwell so that when he goes to get her, he can take her with him to the dwelling he has prepared for her. He too waits. For it is the son’s father - and he alone - who decides when the wedding is to take place. The servants watch from rooftops and walls - always looking for the signs that the bridegroom is coming down the road. When the father tells the son - go and get your bride who has made herself ready for you - the watchmen see him coming and sound the alarms that the bridegroom is coming, THE BRIDEGROOM IS COMING! The shofar blows and the bride, who has adorned herself with her wedding garment. With her servants, family and community she goes out to meet the bridegroom as he approaches. They meet under a canopy where she is presented to him. He takes her to the wedding chamber where the two become one and when they emerge the banquet begins. The ceremony and banquet are simultaneous events. Only those present can attend any of it.

This is the model that Jesus uses every single time He mentions the wedding and marriage of the Lamb. It’s why He says that only the Father knows the time and the hour of His coming. It’s why He says He has gone to prepare a place for us so that where He is we may be also. It’s why He says, and His apostles give us the picture of, what we are waiting for. The rapture of the church - IS the wedding of the Bridegroom. Once the wedding ceremony has occurred and the marriage is consummated (the bride and groom emerge from the wedding chamber) then the marriage supper (banquet) of the Lamb occurs.

The King and man in these parables is the Father. Throughout the centuries He has sent His servants out with the invitations. He sent His prophets to the Jews and the world before Jesus came to invite them to the wedding banquet. Many refused to hear the prophets and killed them, the ones that did not either became part of the remnant that went through, or they just fell away and were absorbed in the world. The servants since Jesus have been the prophets and teachers who have sent out the invitations to come - many were labeled heretics and burned at the steak, imprisoned or executed in another manner. Men like John Bunyan, Watchman Nee, and some others immediately come to mind, who were put away for speaking the truth and passing out the invitations. There are many today still doing the same and many are accepting the invitations and are walking in fellowship with Jesus and other believers. Some are in the institutional / traditional church, some are not. Most never even meet each other, but the Holy Spirit, Jesus and the Father know those who are His because the seal of the Holy Spirit is upon them. The rest are still “stoning” the servants. The stoning today is not necessarily physical but is comprised of attempts to discredit and label the speakers of the truth as troublemakers, unbelievers, heretics, sowers of discord, doctrine makers, and so on. Why? Because they love the lie more than they love the Truth, Jesus. They love the darkness and hide from the light. They must do everything they can to keep from getting into the light and be exposed for who they really are.

What these parables are telling us is this:

A) Centuries of invitations have been and are being sent out and many are refusing to accept them. The cares of the world and the business of life; their own beliefs and opinions don’t match the invitations; their agendas, ministries, and purposes are more important; and the pleasures of life are just feel too good to give up.

B) The rapture is not when people think it is - and more importantly it’s not WHAT they think it is. It’s the wedding that occurs immediately prior to the outpouring of the wrath of God and the banquet immediately after.

C) When the wedding banquet occurs it’s too late to come in. If you try, you’ll be noticed by your “clothes” and thrown out. There’s no sneaking in. The wedding has already taken place - the marriage has been consummated and cannot be undone.

D) The weeping, wailing and gnashing of teeth is the torment of the “Oh No!” moment. The realization that you missed it. It’s too late.

Jesus said blessed are those who escape the second death. Those who are the bride receive their reward - the Bridegroom. To be the bride means you have been judged worthy - there is no more judgment to come. Those not worthy are left outside and will have to wait until the Judgment Day to learn their fate when they stand before a Just Judge who opens the books and examines their life. Jesus said we should pray that we be counted worthy to escape the wrath of God to come. How do we get counted worthy? By doing the work of the King till he comes - making ourselves ready, keeping oil in our lamps, feeding the hungry, clothing the naked, caring for the widows and orphans, making disciples, keeping our garments from getting soiled by the world. We wait to hear the sound of the alarm that the Bridegroom is coming. We abstain from vain arguments, divisions and strife. We speak the truth in love and try to snatch a few from the fire and see that they accept the invitation.

There are always going to be false prophets and false teachers. In fact, they will increase and intensify as the Day approaches. We must be diligent to test every spirit and ensure that we listen to no one or no thing that denies Jesus is the Christ and rejects His voice and His instructions. We keep our ears and hearts open so that we can hear His voice at all times. We become more discerning and more humble - not seeking any limelight but keeping ourselves from temptations that would crush and shipwreck our faith. We care for one another and build each other up; encourage one another and esteem others greater than ourselves. Above all - we lift Him up and keep the Bridegroom as the central focus.

What's That Gonging Sound?

2010-08-13T08:21:00.000-05:00

The past few days have proven to be real eye-openers for me. It all started with a wall post by a good friend and brother concerning Paul's instruction "not to associate with the sexually immoral". The question was - "what did Paul mean?" The comment string got very intense with opinions about what Paul was saying. I chimed in with my own opinions and based them on my understanding of scripture and backed it up with historical record - my usual M.O. The conversation went back and forth for hours - "but what about..." and "but what if ...". I finally gave up and went to bed near midnight with no clear cut understanding of it. I woke up the next morning to 2 posts by 2 women that drove me to my knees and put me on my face in repentance. They were each of their own personal experience and journey that revealed the prejudice and judgment that is passed on a person without knowing anything about them. I won't go into the details of the posts but suffice it to say they opened my own heart as Father showed me the judgment and self-righteousness there. I suddenly realized that people come to Facebook and church buildings; social networks and social sites for all kinds of reasons; for me, I initially joined so that I could connect with distant family for notifications and such. But most come in hope of finding some connection that they can identify with. After a retreat in April, my Facebook experience took a new turn as a place to connect with other believers. Later, my husband joined for the same reason - though we still connect with our kids, grandkids and extended family. It's a place where a person can reveal as much or as little of themselves as they choose through words on a page; and personal history is not a pre-requisite to participate. After this morning's experience It became so clear to me just how easy it is to post our opinions, scriptures, snippets of quotations or bible verses, and so on without even a thought or concern as to how that comment could be construed, understood or received by someone who is tender or hurting. That's what happened to me. I did not realize how my words were causing someone else's pain to surface - and likewise they didn't know how their pain would surface something in me that desperately needed to change. Something I wasn't even conscious of.

Through these 2 stories I saw a terrible mistake I had made in my own life that I never faced until yesterday morning. Through their heartfelt words and testimonies I actually experienced their stories and I wept and wept. I knew I was guilty of being one of the people who would have rejected them simply because of the lifestyles they were engaged in, never once considering or become concerned as to why they did. Granted there are people in the world who are just bent - but that's not for us to judge.

Later in the day another event happened through another FB friend. Both of us were new "friends" to a Facebook page and neither of us knew anything more about this "friend" other than they had been recommended, like so many others I had on my list of "friends" and this one seemed to have some good things to say. Most of his posts were snippets, short quotes from someone else, or a statement that needed some clarification. My friend and I had gotten engaged in a discussion with him which turned rather intense concerning righteousness, sin, grace and another string on revival. Instead of his handling the intense conversation with gentleness, love, willingness to listen and consider that other's didn't have his revelation, and even answer simple questions - he turned to insulting and arrogant remarks. Almost before I could blink, both my friend and I had been de-friended by him. I was so shocked that I wrote him a message requesting an explanation, but none has come. Further, comments my friend and I had made that he didn't agree with were completely deleted. This isn't the first time I've seen this. I lost another "friend" earlier in the week for the same reason.

The end of the day came with another friend (who was also one of the 2 I had mentioned above whose posts had so affected me) posted a note about the sexually immoral association thinking. Among the comments on her note were 2 that also deeply affected me. One was the story of a woman who was living in extreme promiscuity. She suffered from her own guilt and shame but this was the only avenue she had found in her life where she could feel loved and comforted. Her only real friends were a small number of real believers. These friends never spoke to her of her lifestyle. They loved her right where she was and demanded nothing from her. They cared for her, comforted her; until their allowing Jesus to love her through them caused her to turn her life to the Father, which in turn freed her from her destructive lifestyle.

The other story was of a woman who was a member of a church who had no husband to care for her and was doing all she could to feed, clothe and house her children. In desperation she turned to prostitution to provide for her kids. When she did, her church judged her and pushed her out to fend for herself and considered her a whore. She could have had another choice had the "church" loved her and cared for her needs.

All these events combined of the last 2 days have led me to a very strong conclusion. There's just way too much knowledge, pride, arrogance, opinions, prejudice, and vain arguments going on. There is a common thread of questions weaving through it all - what is sin? What is forgiveness? Who do we hang with or not hang with? What is Grace and how is it reconciled to the sin argument? Is the bible the Word of God or is Jesus the Word of God and the bible a library of books that are inspired and God breathed? So many questions - so many opinions - and no one's experience, point of journey, background, or understanding considered. Very few were building one another up; bearing with one another; or loving one another. I realized it was becoming one giant Kingdom of Self instead of the living Kingdom of God. And like all citizens of the Kingdom of Self, the rule is "if you don't play by my rules, or say what I like to hear, I'm going to take my marbles and go home and I won't let you see or talk to me again". In the Kingdom of God there is "what can I do to help you; what can I give up to take care of you; I need to serve you and comfort you; I need to wash your feet; you are more important than me and your feelings are important to me; here, take my hand."

So after much prayer and consideration I have made a decision. I am not going to participate in vain arguments anymore. I WILL engage in meaningful conversation that brings the kind of healing my friend's string did. I want conversation where we have a place to ask any question and find the answers together. Something we have never been permitted to do in the institutional church. I want fellowship like existed in the first century. Like mindedness - all things in common; and that includes understanding - common purpose - love for one another - taking care of one another so that all men will know we are His (1 John 3) - showing our faith by our works. What works? The Lord's business - feeding the hungry, clothing the naked, taking care of the widows (which also means divorced) and orphans (Isaiah 58 "this is the fast that I have chosen, that you care for the widows and orphans; and James 1:27 "The religious observance that God the Father considers pure and faultless is this: to care for orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being contaminated by the world") - healing the sick - loving our neighbors as our self - being the servant of all. These are the good works. These are faith accompanied by works.

So following is my Declaration of Dependence on Jesus. I invite any one who has the same like-mindedness to join me. I would like to set up a Facebook page (and maybe a blog too) where people can come and post their needs - whatever they are. Whoever administrates it - and I'm willing to take that on - will connect the needs to a "friend" in their area who can take them under their wing to disciple them and love them to wholeness. If the "friend" needs resources to meet whatever the needs are - then that gets sent out as a call to help. Let's become a REAL New Testament Church. Father is doing an amazing thing among us. He is connecting His children electronically. When I first thought about that this morning I thought that just seemed too weird - how could that be God? But after witnessing - AND EXPERIENCING - the healing power of the Holy Spirit through words on a page, I knew that the Father will use whatever He wants to, and to truly experience Him, we should join Him where He's working. He even spoke to me this morning and asked me how this was any different than what the gospels and epistles were. They too were words on pages - passed around and read by many - and were instructions for living IN Him. So I'm determined to take advantage of this amazing channel of communication that can get instant - or near instant - help to those in need in this world of ours and join the Father where He's working. Through Facebook (or blog, or website) we can literally connect people all over the world! Meet them right where they are - and start a forest fire of compassion, instead of contention, and take the love and heart of the Father everywhere!

Declaration of Dependence on Jesus

1) I declare that I surrender my life to His service and His work

2) I declare that I will love my brothers and sisters and do everything in my power to care for them and love them so that they have no needs

3) I declare that I will love my neighbors as I love myself - to be a resource of help and hope for those who are hungry, needy, lonely, broken, sick, hopeless, helpless, rejected, weary, abused and lost.

4) I declare to become a laborer in the harvest - allowing the life and love of Jesus to live through me touching others.

5) I declare to judge no man and condemn no man.

6) I declare to love my enemies, bless those who curse me, and pray for those who despitefully use me

7) I declare to be slow to anger, slow to speak and ready to give an answer to anyone who asks about the hope I have in me.

8) I declare to build up my brothers and sisters on our most holy faith; to bear with one another and love one another as Jesus has loved me.

9) I declare that I will work until He comes.

10) I declare that Jesus is all and in all, the Author and Finisher of my faith. In Him I live and move and have my being. That I have been crucified with Him and the life that I live now in this mortal body, I live by faith in Him - the Son of God.

Anybody who has any suggestions or ideas on the Facebook page, or other medium - how to set it up, what to call it, how to connect people - I'm ALL EARS. If Father is using the electronic media to connect His kids - then who are we to stand in the way. Paul said if we have all knowledge and faith that can move mountains, speak in the tongues of men and of angels - but we have not love, we are like a loud sounding gong. I've been about to go deaf from that gonging sound in my ears!

Anyone on board with me?

(Addition - A friend contacted me and thought that my Declaration of Dependance on Jesus was something I wanted everyone to join me in; and it had been understood by them that this sounded like a set of rules. I just want to clarify that this was not my intent. This is MY PERSONAL Declaration. Something I needed to say publicly - a confession of sorts. While anyone is free to join me in my commitment - my inention and purpose in this note was to convey the Father's heart for the world and to join me in doing His work in the harvest fields. Just wanted to clear that up - in case anyone was thinking otherwise.)

Does the Bible Call Itself "God's Word"?

2010-08-08T18:39:00.000-05:00

The following article was posted on a website and forwarded to us from a very good friend and brother. It has been making it's rounds, but we think this message is absolutely necessary for the body of Christ to understand. We want to preface that we do not agree with all the articles and teachings on this website - but this one is right on and clearly speaks to the current discussions concerning the "Word of God" and the "Bible". We pray that it will bring clarity and understanding to your heart.

Some things are accepted so long among the children of God, that they go without a thought as to their beginnings. If something is believed a long time, does that make it the truth? Of course not.

One thing those hearing from God must always do, is to remain open to the truth that what they currently believe MAY be wrong. What about it my friend? Are you so closed that if a man were to show you something contrary to what you've always believed, that you would reject it just because "that's what you've always believed"? Believing something because we have always believed it, is one of the most dangerous places to find ourselves.

With that thought in mind - let us look at a belief that is so closely held by God's children, that it is nearly impossible for them to consider something different. Only those who are truly seeking God can even take it in. And that is, "does the Bible call itself the word of God"? Is the holy Bible that you read so often actually God's word? Do the Scriptures ever refer to themselves as the "word of God"?

Some titles given the "Word of God" (but not given to the "Scriptures") can be found as follows:

The word of God's grace. . . Acts 14:3; 20:32.

The word of faith. . . . . . . . . . Rom.10:8.

The word of reconciliation.. . . . .2Cor.5:19.

The word of truth. . . . . 2Cor.6:7; Jas.1:18.

The word of life.. . . . . . . . . . .1Jn.1:1.

The word of Christ.. . . . . . . . . Col.3:16.

The faithful word. . . . . . . . . . .Tit.1:9.

The word of righteousness. . . . . . Heb.5:13.

The word of the oath.. . . . . . . . Heb.7:28.

The word of exhortation. . . . . . .Heb.13:22.

The word of prophecy.. . . . . . . .2Pet.1:19.

The word of my patience. . . . . . . Rev.3:10.

The Word of God is a spoken thing. The Word of God is what God says, just as your word is what you say. When the Word of God comes, it comes from God's mouth (Dt.8:3; Isa.45:23; Jer.9:20; Ezek.3:17). The Bible, on the other hand, is the divinely-inspired record of the history which occurred when the Word of God came to various individuals. It is a record written by faithful men, men who would not lie. "The word of God came" is a phrase used very many times in the Bible, and, clearly, one should not understand that phrase to mean that "the Bible came", especially in the light of the fact that the Bible for the most part had not yet been written when the Word of God came to those men and women. And when the Word of God comes, it comes "SAYING". According to the evidence presented to us in the Bible, one never "reads the Word of God"; rather, the Word is always a thing to be heard. The Word of God came "saying" to many prophets and other especially blessed people. Here are the 16 individuals who, we are told specifically, received the Word of God, when it came SAYING:

The Word came to Abram SAYING. . . . . . . Gen 15:1, 4

The Word came to Samuel SAYING.. . . . . . . 1Sam.15:10

The Word came to Nathan SAYING.. 2Sam.7:4; 1Chron.17:3

The Word came to Gad SAYING. . . . . . . . . 2Sam.24:11

The Word came to Solomon SAYING. . . . . . . 1Kgs.6:11

The Word came to Shemaiah SAYING.. . . 1Kgs.12:22; 12:7

The Word came to the unnamed prophet SAYING. 1Kgs.13:9,17

The Word came to Jehu, the prophet, SAYING.. 1Kgs.16:1

The Word came to Elijah SAYING.. 1Kgs.17:2; 18:1; 19:9;

The Word came to Jacob SAYING. . . . . . . . 1Kgs.18:31

The Word came to Isaiah SAYING.. . . . . . . 2Kgs.20:4

The Word came to David SAYING. . . . . . . 1Chron.22:8

The Word came to Jeremiah SAYING. Jer.1:2-4,11,13, etc.

The Word came to Ezekiel SAYING. . . . . . . Ezek.3:16

The word came to Haggai SAYING.. . . . . . . . Hag.1:1

The Word came to Zechariah SAYING. . . . . . . Zech.1:1

Can any rational person believe that the Bible came talking to these men? Of course not. The Word is something that is heard. It was heard by Micaiah (1Kgs.22:19), by Elisha (2Kgs.7:1, 16), by Isaiah (2Kgs.20:16), by Jesus (Lk.5:1), and many others.

The Word is Not the Bible!
God's Word is what God says. The Lord spoke the Word to Moses (Josh.14:10), as He also spoke the Word to Nathan (2Sam.7:25). In neither case was God quoting the Scriptures, for in both cases it was entirely new information being given from God to those men; still, it was the Word which was being spoken. The Word was spoken concerning God's curse on Eli's house (1Kgs.2:27). And again, this Word was not a repeat of formerly written material. It was new information out of the mouth of God. Although the Lord commanded Joshua to read the Scriptures, Joshua obeyed the Word of God by doing what God told him to do, not by reading a Scripture and claiming that it applied to him (Josh.8:2, 27). When the unnamed prophet of 1Kings 13 spoke the Word of God to King Jeroboam, he too was repeating what God had told him, not what he had read. There was, in fact, nothing he could have read that would have given him this Word. So it is with every man of God who spoke the Word of the Lord. In every case they spoke what they had heard from God, new information which was needed in the situation that existed. Ahijah (1Kgs.14:18; 2Chron.10:15), Jehu, the prophet (1Kgs.16:12), Joshua (1Kgs.16:34), Elijah (2Kgs.1:17; 2Kgs.9:36), Jonah (2Kgs.14:25), the young prophet who spoke to Jehu (2Kgs.15:12), Isaiah (Isa.16:13), Jeremiah (2Chron.36:21-22; Ezr.1:1), and all God's true prophets (2Kgs.24:2; Jer.18:18) spoke what they heard from God, not what they read out of the Bible!

The false prophets of Jeremiah's day could quote Isaiah's ancient Word from God, that He would defend Jerusalem for David's sake. But Jeremiah and the few other faithful prophets living then had a new Word: God now would destroy Jerusalem, the city He had promised to defend. Their new and living Word was rejected, and the old Word which applied to Isaiah's generation was clung to instead - to the destruction of the nation.

Jesus spoke the Word, and even though he occasionally quoted from the Law and prophets, anyone would have to admit that the Word he spoke was new to mankind (cp. Mt.5:21-22, 27-28, etc; Jn.13:34), because he was preaching his Father's Word, not his own (Jn.8:26). And anyone was blessed who believed that new Word from God which Jesus brought (Lk.7:7; Jn.4:50; 17:6; Acts 13:48). God's elect, too, is to speak the Word (Acts 4:29, 31; 1Thess. 1:8) as Paul and Silas did (Acts 16: 32), but we can only speak the Word if God allows us to hear it. Those whom God honors by communicating with them are, by the mere act of receiving God's Word, set apart and given authority in God's called out assembly (1Tim.5:17; Heb.13:7). Yet it is obvious that not everyone who owns a Bible has such authority. One may own a Bible without having the Word of God.

God's Word is a spoken thing. It is not a dead letter. It is something that is spoken by God to man and, then, the content of that Word is delivered by those men to other men, either orally or in writing. But the letter that is written or the message that is spoken by those men is not the Word of God; rather, those communications are testimonies to the Word which had been received. The Word came to the prophets, and they spoke or wrote the messages that they had heard from God. The words which men heard from those prophets was the prophets' declaration of the Word of God, their testimony to what they had experienced from God. The prophets received the Word of God, and the people were called upon to believe that God had actually spoken to those holy men. Paul did not read from the Scriptures to the Philippian jailer when he preached to him and to his household the Word of God. He had heard from God, was communicating to the jailer what he had heard from God, and the jailer was being called upon by Paul to believe that God had actually spoken to him, that what he was preaching was a true witness of a divine communication. When Paul wrote to the elect concerning the return of Jesus that "This we say unto you by the word of the Lord", he did not mean that he had read in the Bible that Jesus was coming again. He meant that God had revealed to him the truth of the second coming of our Lord and that he was relaying that truth to them. That was the Word of the Lord because that is what the Lord told Paul. When Philip took the Word of God to the Samaritans and they received it (Acts 8:14), it was a joyful event, but what sensible person could possibly believe that Philip was passing out Bibles in Samaria. Taken to its logical conclusion, the belief that the Bible is the Word of God must lead one to draw some very strange conclusions, the end result being that men will trust in their Bibles (which will kill, for "the letter killeth"), instead of the Spirit of God (which gives life, "for the Spirit is life" [IICor. 3:6]).

The Word of God is alive, will live forever, and is far sharper than any double-edged sword, penetrating the souls of men, not their bodies, and discerning the thoughts and intents of the heart (Heb.4:12; 1Pet.1:23, 25). The Word is always a thing to be preached, not read (Mk.2:2; Acts 8:4, 25; 10:36; 11:19; Tit.1:3, etc.)! To "preach the Bible", as some boast of doing, is nothing. Satan quoted Scripture to entrap Jesus. He had to quote the Scriptures, for he had no Word of God for Jesus. But ministers of God are called "ministers of the word" (Lk.1:2), and preaching is called the "ministry of the word" (Acts 6:4), because "He whom God hath sent speaketh the words of God" (Jn.3:34). The man sent from God is not confined to the Words which other men have heard from God.

Do not they who esteem the Bible to be the Word of God, and say that it is infallible, understand that the Word of God can be corrupted (2Cor.2:17; 4:2)? It can be corrupted because they who have received communication from God can be influenced by money, fear of men, or other considerations, to communicate the Word incompletely or with respect of persons (1Kgs.22:13; 2Chron.18:12; Jer.23:28; 26:2). Faithful delivery of the Word can be hindered by religious traditions of men (Mk.7:13; 2Thess.3:1), and it is by those who teach that the Bible is the Word of God that the true Word of God is most frequently contradicted when it is revealed.

The notion that the Bible is the Word of God is a "slow-eating cancer". I say this because the effects of such a belief are to slowly dull the ear of man's heart to the true and living Word of God. It slowly but inexorably diminishes the role of the living God in the decisions that men make, because it has the effect of sending them to the Scriptures for guidance rather than to their knees, in faith communing with God. In time, such wrong thinking diminishes the fear of God in the human heart, dulls one's awareness that God is intimately concerned and involved in our lives, and diminishes the zeal for holiness that nothing but personal communion with the living God can produce. To say that the Bible is the Word of God is to say that the Bible was in the beginning with God and is God. And to do that it is to make an idol of what is only a tool of righteousness, a record written by holy men as testimony of the Word of God which came to them.

The Scriptures are not themselves the Word of God, and they can only be rightly understood by the person who has himself heard from God. God still speaks. He has spoken to me. And the Word of God which came to me opened my eyes to the meaning of the Scriptures. To understand the Bible requires the same revelation and anointing which was required to write it. Only He who inspired the writing of the Scriptures can possibly inspire a man to interpret them correctly. In comparison to the Word of the living God, the Bible is a dead letter which kills every soul which looks to it for life (2Cor.3:6).

Despite the reverence for God which appears to attend the somber declaration that the Bible is "the infallible Word of God", that declaration sprouts from the envious heart of Satan, who would rather glory in the works of men - even the Bible, the written work of righteous men - than to glory in the living power of God. It is Satan who inspired that unknown minister who first proclaimed the Bible to be God's Word. His evil purpose was to discourage fervent prayer, and to discourage men from expecting answers from God Himself; that is, to "read the Word" rather than humbly to prepare their hearts to receive it. That the Bible is the very Word of God is a wickedly cunning lie, the effects of which are discouragement, confusion, and death, even if its proponents boast of devotion to Christ and an ever closer walk with God - through the Scriptures, of course, rather than through experience with the power of God's Spirit. The Word of God is what God is saying this moment, not what He said two thousand years ago, or even what He said yesterday.

The Bible never claims for itself the lofty title of "Word of God"; yet, strangely, multiplied thousands insist that the Word of God is what the Bible is. Living fellowship with the living God can never be attained by merely reading the Bible. There must be a communication, a Word, from God to man in order for fellowship to exist. What Satan has accomplished is to have persuaded many of us to think that we have heard from God just because we have read the Bible. This persuasion robs us of our zeal for fervent prayer and devotion, the means of really obtaining a Word from the Lord. And if Satan thought he could convince some of us that there is no longer such a thing as God speaking to man, don't you think that He would try to do it? Not only has he tried, but he has in great measure succeeded, so that many thousands now regard any man's testimony of hearing directly from God as heresy. But though many more than this be persuaded to deny the reality of God's Word being heard today, the Word of God will still prevail, and all who hear and obey His Word are destined to prevail with it.

If God Wrote Your Biography

2010-08-06T11:42:00.002-05:00

an excerpt from Chapter 3 of Jesus Manifesto.

".....consider this question: How would your biography read if God were to write it?

Today, many Christians are inviting God into their stories. But God is inviting us into His. And that story is Jesus Christ. So, with a little imagination combined with the biblical text, the following is how your biography might read if God the Father were to write it. Note that it will read as if it were coming directly from the Father. We hope that as you read your story from God's perspective, you will hear Father speaking to you in a personal way.

YOUR REAL BIRTH:
Your origins preceded your physical birth - just as the origins of My Son preceded His physical birth - and your beginnings reach back farther than antiquity.

You were chosen in My Son before the foundation of the world. That's your starting point. Somewhere in the dateless past, before I said, "Let there be", I selected you - I "marked you out" - in My Son. The origin of your existence, therefore, is found in Christ - the one who is "before all things".

Your spiritual life in space-time finds its origins in Jesus also. When you received My Son, you were born a second time and from a different realm. You were "born from above". John 3:7 "Don't be surprised when I say you must be born from above".

Birth is the impartation of life. When you were begotten again, an incorruptible seed of My Life was placed into you by My Spirit. That seed was Christ. Within the DNA of that incorruptible seed is the nature and character of My Son. I have told you this several times in My Word: 1 Peter 1:23 "You have been born again, not of corruptible seed but incorruptible, through the Word of God which lives and abides forever."
1 John 5:1 "

Everyone who believes that Jesus is the Christ has been born of God, and everyone who loves the parent loves the child. The life that you received at your new birth is known as "eternal life" and "everlasting life". Eternal life does not only point to longevity, it also points to the kind of life I have offered. It is, in fact, divine life - My own, uncreated life.

In other words, eternal life is in My Son. John 11:25 "Jesus said.....'I am the resurrection and the life'."
1 John 5:20... And we know that the Son of God has come and has given us an understanding, that we may know Him who is true; and we are in Him who is true, in his Son Jesus Christ. This is the true God and eternal life.

When you were born anew, My Son was dispensed into you, and you became a partaker of My very nature. His divine power has given to us all things that pertain to life and godliness…that through these you may be partakers of the divine nature. (2 Peter 1:3-4). But that’s not all. Your physical birth furnished you with a set of physical senses. In the same way, your new birth in Christ has furnished you with a set of senses. These are spiritual senses, the counterpart of your physical senses. The first of these is spiritual insight. It allows you to “see” with spiritual eyes. “We do not look at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen. For the things which are seen are temporary, but the things which are not seen are eternal.”
2 Corinthians 4:18. But we see Jesus……

Your new birth also furnished you with spiritual hearing. “Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and dine with him, and he with me.” Revelations 3:20. “He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.”

With your new birth also came the sense of spiritual taste. “You have tasted the heavenly gift, and have become partakers of the Holy Spirit”. Hebrews 6:4 “You have tasted that the Lord is gracious” 1 Peter 2:3.

Your new birth furnished you with new senses of spiritual touch and smell. “……holding fast to the Head.” Colossians 2:19. “Now thanks be to God who always leads us in triumph in Christ, and through us diffuses the fragrance of his knowledge in every place.” 2 Corinthians 2:14.

Once you were in darkness, and you could not see. You were lost, and your spiritual senses were dead. But I brought you to life and carried you into the light, where you could see. Your spiritual senses were awakened, and you became part of a new creation in My Son. New birth also means you were given a new consciousness. You are now conscious of another realm outside the physical one wherein you stand. You are also conscious of another life within you. That life contains a new nature, new desires, new interest, new instincts, new inclinations, new tendencies, a new intelligence, and a new motivation. That life is Christ Himself.

So what you see, hear taste, touch, and smell with your new senses is My Son. He is the object of your spiritual senses. And it is through those senses that you come to know Me, who is Spirit and not flesh.

YOUR GROWTH AND DEVELOPMENT
Spiritual Growth and development mean having My Son formed in you. “My little children…I labor in birth again until Christ is formed in you.” Galatians 4:19. Thus your growth as a disciple also comes back to Jesus. My goal is to have My Son wrought into your character so that He will be your all in all. To develop spiritually, then, is to learn My Son. “But you have not so learned Christ.” Ephesians 4:20 “But speaking the truth in love….grow up in all things into him who is the head - Christ.” Ephesians 4:15

Your growth as a Christian is growth in My Son, that is, development of that spiritual seed that I planted in you at your new birth. Growth in the Spirit takes place when more of your old nature dies and Christ gains more ground to live out his life in you. The stages of your spiritual life in My Son correspond to the stages of your physical life. You pass from babyhood to childhood, to sonship - which is full spiritual stature. As you develop your spiritual senses, you are weaned from milk to meat. Yet “meat” is not just a tougher, more complex set of doctrines on which to masticate and ruminate. Meat is a greater apprehension and revelation of My Son, who embodies all truth and righteousness. To put a finer point on it, spiritual growth is repeating the journey of Jesus while He was on earth. My Son is the inclusive human, the Last Adam. Whatever happened to Him happens to every one of My children. This is because I put you in My Son. “But of Him you are in Christ Jesus.” 1 Corinthians 1:30.

As a result, you share in My Son’s incarnation. While you do not share in His deity, you partake of his divine nature. Because of this indwelling nature, you can confidently say, “I can’t but Christ can”. As you allow Him to live out His divine life through you, I am being expressed in your humanity. By this, you are a participant in the incarnation of Jesus, and you will begin to think like Him. “But we have the mind of Christ.” 1 Corinthians 2:16. When my Son was crucified, you were in Him, so you also died with Him. The person you used to be in fallen Adam was annihilated. Your flesh, your old nature, your self-nature, you are already dead, because you died with My Son. Furthermore, all of your sins died with you. They no longer exist, according to My bookkeeping. And I’m the only one whose calculations count. “I have been crucified with Christ.” Galatians 2:20 “Our old self was crucified with Him”. Romans 6:6. “Therefore…. You died with Christ……” Colossians 2:20.

In addition, when you voluntarily lose, lay down your life, die to yourself, and mortify the deeds of your flesh on a daily basis, you are further participating in your co-crucifixion with My Son. “…that I may know Him and the power of His resurrection, and the fellowship of His suffering, being conformed to His death.” Philippians 3:10 Your joint death with Christ was the gateway to life. Everything new comes out of death - seeds, flowers, etc. The natural is a picture of the spiritual. So in dying with Him, you were on the road to new life.

But first, the dead had to be buried, and when My Son was buried, you were in Him then too. Therefore, you were buried with Him. “Therefore we were buried with Him through baptism into death…buried with Him in baptism”. Romans 6:4 and Colossians 2:12. Your baptism in water reenacted your burial with My Son. As you live your life free from the entanglements and entrapments of the world system, you are daily participating in your burial with Christ. But you were not destined to stay buried.

When I raised My Son from the dead, I also raised you from the dead, for you were in Him, and He in you. “You were raised with Him through faith in the working of God, who raised Him from the dead. If then you were raised with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ is, sitting at the right hand of God.” Colossians 3:1. Every time you allow the indwelling presence of My Son to triumph over the forces of sin and death, you are living out the dying and rising of Jesus in your mortal body. When Christ ascended, you were with Him. Therefore, you ascended with Him too, and are now seated in heavenly realms with Him. “He has raised us up together, and made us sit together in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus.” Ephesians 2:6. Whenever you enforce My Son’s authority over My enemy by faith, you are participating in the ascendancy of Jesus, and you exercise all My authority over the powers of darkness.

So concisely, the history of My Son, Jesus Christ, is your experience. Consequently, you are living both in the presence of the past (His incarnation, death, burial resurrection, and ascension), and the future (His glorification and the fullness of his coming Kingdom). There are only two things in His experience that you will not repeat. One is His being fully God. Although you are a partaker of the divine nature, you will never become divine. The other is His atoning work. You do not share in that. The work of atonement was uniquely His. But all of these other things have happened to and for you. Therefore, accept them as facts, take your place in My Son, and walk out your life from that high place. In Christ, there is no condemnation. Never forget that. You are in My Son, and you are a new creation.

YOUR GLORIOUS DESTINY
This brings us to your final end - glorification. Glory is the highest expression of life. The glory of a flower is reached when it is in full bloom. The glory of a human being is reached when women and men bear My image infinitely and at its full capacity. I created humanity to share My glory - to exhibit My life in the highest possible way.

My Son lived, died, was buried, rose again, and ascended into the heavens to sit at My right hand, where He is now glorified. Because I placed you in Christ, you too have been glorified, even though you have not yet experienced it. It’s already happened, however, for I see the end from the beginning and the beginning from the end and am in both places at the same moment. I hold time within My bosom. “Whom he predestined, these he also called; whom He called, these he also justified; and whom he justified, these he also glorified.” Romans 8:30 What’s more, I wrapped it all up before I even began. “His work has been finished since the creation of the world.” Hebrews 4:4.

I am the very meaning of the words “It is finished”. But now you have to finish what you’ve started. You can’t start out as a baby and end as a baby. You must grow, mature, develop in My Spirit. Part of your spiritual development is service, which is simply allowing My Son to manifest His life through you as you serve others. The task of all ministry is to increase My Son, both in this world and in the church. It is to bring others into an increasing knowledge and apprehension of the significance of Christ. In other words, your goal in ministry should be to reveal the fullness of My Son. You do this by serving. It’s one of the ways you grow into My Son’s image.

But know this: Your spiritual growth and development will not occur as an individual . It will occur as a body. For My Son is not just Savior and Lord; He is the head of His body as well. The members of that body are connected. You will never grow into the fullness of My Son, therefore, as a separate, isolated individual, just as no part of our physical body can grow if it is detached from the other parts. The human body is a reflection of the body of Christ. Healthy spiritual growth occurs in the body as you are related to the other members. On your own, you will never reach the full measure of the stature of Christ. This is attained by the body as a whole.

In other words, it takes a church to raise a Christian. And I designed it that way. Life in My Son has always been a corporate affair. My Word knows nothing of an independent, individualistic, insulated disciple. For this reason, the master stroke of My enemy is division . If he can get you to divide from your sisters and brothers in Christ and be on your own - separate and isolated - you will not grow in the fullness of My Son. So don’t pull away from the body. Get connected to other believers who are pursuing My Son. Worship and serve as one part of the whole. You can only know My Son in His fullness in conjunction with the other members of His body, the church.

THE END OF ALL THINGS
What is the final object of your Christian life? What is the grand end and goal? It is seeing the fullness of My Son. My object from the beginning to end is Christ as all and in all. My desire is for My Son to fill the universe with His elegance. “He who descended is also the One who ascended far above all the heavens, that He might fill all things.” Ephesians 4:10 “…….that in the dispensation of the fullness of the times He might gather together in one all things in Christ, both which are in heaven and which are on earth - in Him.” Ephesians 1:10.

If you are to reach My goal for you, you must steadily move toward the ultimate fullness that is in Him. It is My good pleasure to fill the cosmos with My Son’s glorious imprint and to sum up all things to Him. I created the universe by Him, through Him, to Him and for Him. I was so in love with My Son that I wanted to share and increase Him. I wanted My creation to be full of His wonder and His radiance. Thus every time I painted the panorama of nature, I beheld My beloved Son. He was the template I used to craft the cosmos. But creation fell from me and became distorted, tarnished, and marred. My image was damaged in the earth. My glory was lost. Yet My Son willingly surrendered Himself to restore My passion. He came into My creation as a creature to redeem and reconcile a fallen universe to Himself. And He did it by a horrendous death, the crucifixion in which you were a part.

Since that time, the entire creation has been put back on course. It’s now headed straight into My Son, where he shall fill all things with all of Himself. And that filling includes you. “For whom He foreknew, He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son, that He might be the firstborn among many brethren.” Romans 8:29. “For it was fitting for Him, for whom are all things and by whom are all things, in bringing many sons to glory.” Hebrews 2:10. “When Christ who is our life appears, then you also will appear with Him in glory.” Colossians 3:4. But note that what will happen in the entire creation must first be manifested in My people. “Of His own will, he brought us forth by the word of truth, that we might be a kind of first fruits of His creatures.” James 1:18 “For the earnest expectation of the creation eagerly waits for the revealing of the sons of God”. Romans 8:19. My Son will bring His church - My people - into complete conformity with His glorious person. When He was on earth, My Son grew in stature. Now through Him, the church will also grow in stature until that day when we, the body of Christ, reach full maturity in glory.

“…….till we all come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a perfect man, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ”. Luke 4:13 The church will one day become the fullness of Christ and the instrument through which He shall fill all things. In fact, I have chosen the church to be the vessel through which My Son will be revealed, fully presenced, and known.

Consequently, the ekklesia is the only hope this world has to see My Son physically before he returns. Why? Because His body is the living, breathing, moving, functioning image of Jesus. Therefore, the only address where anyone can find Him is ….. You.
“…..the church, which I His body, the fullness of Him who fills all in all.” Ephesians 1:22,23. My object and the object of My Spirit is to make My believed Son everything, just as He made me everything. It is to give Him room so He can be displayed and expressed in all things - including your life. When He walked this earth, I dwelled in Him. When people saw Him in action, they were seeing me in action. Now He dwells in you, and when people see you, they are seeing Him. And the more space you make for Him in your life, the more clearly the world will see Him.

So give Him room. Let Him gain all of you so He can be seen again, to My glory and pleasure. I created the visible universe so that eyes would behold the beauty if My Son and fall in love with Him. This is the mission to which you have been called.

The Written Word vs The Word - Jesus; Is There A Difference?

2010-07-25T10:03:00.005-05:00

Recently I posted a question on my wall in Facebook - "How does one get to be a false prophet and/or a false teacher?" After much discussion - all good points - a picture began to emerge in my mind. Some based their understanding as money/ego driven. Some posted that they twist the bible to their own agendas. One said "fake I.D.'s" (I liked that one). The discussion is still ongoing, but the conversation has evolved to the subject of how do we know the Truth. Some say by the bible, some say by Jesus. Some say both...... like I said, the discussion is still going on. As I was reading the comments this morning (I love hearing thoughts in words - they are very revealing) a light came on and I saw very clearly. The following I also posted in my comments on my FB page, but I had this nagging sense that I needed to also include it as a blog post for those who are not my "Facebook Friends". I hope you find it as revealing as I did when it came to me. Here it is in its' entirety:

Galatians 4:21 "Tell me, you who want to be under the law, are you not aware of what the law says?" . Verses 21-31 contain Paul's lesson on the origins of law and grace. I don't think very many people have ever read what the law says - here's a link to all 613 commandments so that everybody knows what the law really says http://www.aish.com/jl/m/m/48945081.html

These commandments, which make up the law, are summed up in the 10 we are familiar with, of which only 2, Jesus said, summed it all up. That being said - if you know what the law (which really should be translated as Torah, meaning God's guidelines or teachings) really says, you will see that there is a divine plan. There are 248 positive (the do's)- corresponding to the number of bones and vital organs in the human body; there are 365 negative ones (the don'ts)- corresponding to both the sinews and blood system in the body, but also to the number of days in a solar year = light. Of the 10 we know most, there are 5 positive and 5 negative; the first 5 concerning our relationship with God and His order and the last 5 pertaining to our relationship with man. These "guidelines" - all 613 of them - pertain to everything! Farming, business, relationships, husbandry, government, the earth - everything!

At Sinai, when God spoke, His words came out from the mountain as tongues of fire landing on the people. He only got the first two commandments spoken before the people begged Moses to not let Him speak anymore - they were terrified. The remaining 8 that make up the 10 were written down, including the 1st 2. My point here is that when God speaks, it is distinctly recognizable that it's Him....... when He has spoken to me, I know it's His voice by the "fire in my belly" and I tremble. There is no discounting that I have heard his voice. Other times, it's like a light comes on deep within me and "I see"; I understand. Some call that intuition, sense, feeling. But to me, it is the still small voice. At Sinai, the people received both spoken and written words. I think there is a lesson in that pertinent to this discussion.

God has always had a plan - He is the Master Architect, Builder, Author and Finisher. Everyone knows that a well planned building is based on a concept - the architect begins with an idea and from the idea the plan emerges. The intricacies of construction may involve scores of contractors, hundreds of suppliers, thousands of workers, millions of tools and parts and nails and screws. There may be piping enough to stretch for miles, wiring enough to span a continent, but everything unfolds from the architect's original concept / design. Discerning critics will look for the soul that is sheathed in steel, masonry, and glass. There could be thousands of pages of blueprints from which a single unifying concept grew - but any intelligent layman knows that there is a purpose behind the volumes of plans. That is how God works.

I see the bible this way - as pages of a set of blueprints revealing the master plan - from beginning to end. It took multiples of writers, teachers, prophets, evangelists, laymen, etc., each of which had an understanding of the finished product, that when read together, like the pages of a set blueprints, it gives us a complete picture of the finished building - Jesus and His church (and it doesn't resemble anything to the one on the corner). To throw out any one of the pages of the blueprints, we get a lopsided building. The bible we have is not all there is - there are pages of blueprints missing. I don't know where we ever got that the bible was and is the infallible, inerrant word of God (if it's written in the bible somewhere, I can't recall where it is). What 99.9% of Christians have is man-made translations of ancient languages (with the exception of the scrolls the Jews have secured. The Jews have maintained the Hebrew language and the Aramaic and Greek, so they would be the only ones I know of truly qualified to translate the ancient languages in their original intent of understanding.) Plus the bible we have, for the most part, was compiled by people who considered themselves pious and authorities of what man needed. Because they couldn't verify some of the writings - they threw them out of the canonized version we have and put them in other books (apocrypha, Septuagint, pseudo-graph, etc). (Side bar question. How do you verify the authenticity of writings centuries old?) Some of the writings are still yet to be translated and sitting in vaults somewhere. So while I read and study what I have - I also read a lot of the other writings too. My goal? To get somehow the whole picture - you know the one that is the first and last page of the set of blueprints? The one that shows what the house looks like when it's finished? The artist's concept. There is a drive in me to know what He said and revealed to man - all of it - that He wanted them to document. That being said - we have the Master Architect himself living in us, so when we read the blueprints we do have, He's standing over our shoulder and pointing out to us the different pages of it. This is faith. Before we can understand anything, we must have the Master explaining it - this is the reason why we must have both - The Word Himself and the words he spoke to man, to properly build the house - HIS BODY, HIS CHURCH, HIS BRIDE.

"His word is a lamp unto my feet and a light unto my path". What is a lamp but something that holds the light. I can't see myself walking a dark path with a flashlight that has no batteries. I wouldn't make it 2 steps in the dark (just ask Bill). The batteries are the energy that provides the light. Likewise, I can't imagine reading or studying the bible blindfolded. What good is that? Unless I have one written in Braille, which is just another form of darkness, it does me no good.

This is the condition of the body of Christ, as I see it. One side adheres to the written word as the ONLY way to God and understand Him. The other side adheres to the Word of God, Jesus, as the only way to know what we're supposed to do and understand. If that were the plan of God, then the Word would not have had to become flesh and dwell among men - to bring the light. The result of centuries without God speaking as He did the ancient times, got the people to the condition they were in when The Word became flesh. It took Jesus 3 years of intense training of his 12 - and the 70 - to get them to understand the blueprints, and even then it wasn't until the day of Pentecost that they did understand, when the tongues of fire - God speaking once again - landed AND DWELLED in them, and gave them power and boldness. It was not until after that moment that Peter was able to stand and speak it out - the whole picture - the Good News.

Now here we are - 2,000 years later, facing the same problems. We have man's interpretation and doctrines. We have doctrines of demons. We have New Age and Mysticism influencing the charismatics and Pentecostals (back then it was Jewish Mysticism - Cabala. In the middle ages and other times it was Shamans, Seers, etc). We have the fundamentalists who won't read anything but the King James authentic version. We have false teachers and false prophets who are in it entirely for the money and twist and turn every word to fit their agenda - and they are the richest of all, by the way. Then we have those, like us, who have awakened from a deep slumber, looked around at the landscape and wonder where in the world we are! How do we find our way home.... We follow the map and the writer/author of the map. We search, we seek, we pray, we knock, we believe, we follow the Light of the World. We take this imperfect book, this imperfect system, we take our lamps out and put bulbs in them and we walk forward - one step at a time. We lean not to our own understanding - but we bind ourselves by faith to the Word Himself. We come to know Him, walk with Him, listen to Him, read as He explains what we read, we hope, and we bear with one another; love one another; take care of one another, seeing that no one has a need of ANY kind; we die to ourselves and live in Him. Only by taking / yoking ourselves with him, in real relationship, can we find rest for our souls and our weariness. We set aside vain arguments and judgments. We set aside our viewpoints and come together in one mind and one accord with one agenda - to know Him and the power of His Might!

Living Beyond Ourselves (an excerpt from "Jesus Manifesto"

2010-07-22T15:21:00.001-05:00

Living Beyond Ourselves
an excerpt from Jesus Manifesto
by Leonard Sweet and Frank Viola

One of the most amazing but least noticed features of the New Testament portrayal of Jesus is its lack of interest in what Jesus looked like or His personality quirks. For example, what did Jesus' face look like? The Gospels don't tell. What they showcase is the way His face was spat upon, blindfolded, smitten, bruised for oursakes - all without any retaliation.

It is almost as if Jesus does not live out Himself, but beyond Himself ("I and My Father are one;" "As the Father has sent Me" "As the Father loved Me" "The Son can do nothing by Himself. He does only what he sees the Father doing"). Jesus less revealed who He is than who God the Father is, and what is beyond Him. For example, here is the message Mary was given for the apostles: "Go...... say to them, 'I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God'." How amazing is this? Jesus was saying that because of His resurrection and ascension, we share in Sonship with God; we have shared privileges with Him.

Jesus' sense of self is God-centered, not self-centered. Nothing He does is in the service of self, but in the service of God. The essence of Jesus' being is not His; He is continually receiving it from the Father. He lives in a state of empathy, in which one steps out of himself, which is the beginning of compassion, and steps into the sandals of others.

Could it be that those who are remade in Christ's image live in a similar fashion? We do not live from within but from beyond; we do not live out ourselves, but beyond ourselves. How did Paul put it? "It is no longer I who live, but it is Christ who lives in me." So for a Christian to say "I am" is to utter something quite profound, even self-contradictory.

In John Milton's classic Paradise Lost, satan declares himself to be "self-begot, self-raised". That is satan's greatest lie and his greatest delusion - the delusion that lies behind a great deal of human disaster; the myth that we are self-made and self-raised. By means of every medium imaginable and every merchant of materialism (which are really merchants of the self), the evil one perpetuates the fantasy that we are self-begotten; he promotes our forgetting that it is God who has made us, and not we ourselves. The old cynicism that says that Americans hold nothing sacred is challenged by the realization that we do hold something sacred; the individual, the self.

Is your faith based more on a flaccid "What's in it for me?" than on pursuing your Lord and the concerns that He has?

Then turn your head away from the reflective pool before you drown in Narcissus Nirvana. Get outside of yourself and into Christ. In this way you will live beyond yourself and into Christ. In this way you will live beyond yourself to see others, not just yourself, and in seeing them you find yourself. (Maybe we need some "Drown Narcissus" rituals.....like a fast from "self-help groups" - a favorite oxymoron - or self-help books.)

Garrison Keillor says that there are only two ways to cure our "raging narcissism": (1) have children, or (2) move to a foreign country where people don't care who you are or what you do.

But Jesus says that there's another way to cure our "raging narcissism": starve our inner narcissist by forgetting ourselves and focusing on God.

Our problem is this: we have even created a narcissistic form of Christianity, in which "conversion" is less a turning toward Christ than a turning toward success or fame or fortune. Narcissus never had it so good than in the best-seller Christianity, which has become self-centeredness wrapped up as "spirituality", which has become the latest fashion accessory for the person who has everything. A survey of the Christian Book Association's best-selling books as we began the twenty-first century found that family and parenting topics accounted for nearly half of the titles, with the rest focused mainly on the self. Of the top 100 books, just 6 were about the Bible, 4 were about Jesus, and 3 were about evangelism. "The Christianity of the bestseller lists tends to be personal, private, and interior," wrote Gene Edward Veith, "with little attention to theology or to the church".

We have made conversion primarily about ourselves, finding of ourselves and a fulfilling of ourselves. We've made it a journey of self-discovery rather than a journey of God discovery. Yet conversion is not about us, but about God's overture of love, without which we are devoid of sufficient motive or power to change and be changed. True conversion is to lay hold of Christ, or rather, as Paul corrected himself, to allow Christ to lay hold of us. True conversion is directed toward the one to whom we convert, the one to whom we turn. It is a life of "fullness" in which the fullness is Christ.

You are not the point. And we are not the point. Jesus Christ always has been and always will be the point. All arrows point to Him and not to us.

Some reading those words may say, "Of course Jesus is the point. What Christian doesn't know that!" Well, Frank (Frank Viola) recently spoke at a conference and shared on the unsearchable riches of Christ. One person responded by saying, "I've been a Christian for over thirty years. I've been a worship leader, taught Sunday school, and was very active in minsitry from the day I believed on Jesus. I've served in some very large nondenominational, evangelical, Bible-believing churches. And for the first time in my life I now realize that it's all about Christ. This message is not being preached today."

This sort of response is very common when a believer gets a fresh glimpse from the Holy Spirit as to who Jesus really is in the purpose of God.

Robert F. Taft, perhaps the world's leading scholar of Byzantine liturgy, compares the worldview behind Byzantine art and architecture to the twenty-first century world view:

"Unlike in the past, people nowadays do not see themselves as finding their place in a scheme of things larger and - yes - more important than themselves. On the contrary, they see the larger reality in terms of how they can exploit it for their own self-fulfilment."

......in my own words........ if you have not yet gotten this book - I strongly encourage you to do so. It's message is a necessity for walking as a believer and understanding the will of God through Jesus. Jesus said "he who holds his life will lose it, but he who loses his life will find it".

And So..... What About Those Pastors?

2010-07-21T14:47:00.018-05:00

When I find myself getting asked the same questions in different ways from different sources, time and experience have proven that it's something God wants us to have a conversation about. Lately it's been the subject of "Pastors" and the "offices" of the church. Are they really what we think they are - or something much different? And, what about all those other offices? Who and what are "Apostles, Prophets, Evangelists, Pastors, Teachers"? What's their purpose? How do you know you're supposed to be one of these? Are they supposed to get paid for their service? What does the "church" really look like? Is the structure in the denominational congregations the biblical model? If not, why? This has, after all, been the model we've believed to be correct for centuries. This is going to be a long study explaining these offices and what their intended purpose is, then and now, so let's approach it one office at a time. Let's call this one - About Pastors.

Have quite a few friends - past and present - that have been labeled "Pastor". Some even rose to the position that they received the title "Senior Pastor". About 12 years ago a long time friend of ours (we'll call him David) had been privileged with this title at a large mainline denomination where he had made his career. David had become our friend in 1976 when we attended his congregation in the town where we lived. His children and our children were very close in age and so we became fast friends. In 1979, after a death in the family, we moved away but kept in touch with David. As we moved "up" in the non-denominational charismatic world, David moved "up" in the mainline denominations. Though we kept in touch, we didn't see each other again for several years. In 1993 we called on him to perform our daughter's wedding and we had a chance to sit down and talk with him again; get re-acquainted and share our experiences. By this time we had left the denominations and the charismatic movement altogether and had begun our lonely walk out of the doctrines of men - and devils. We talked about our views of the roll of Pastor and what we had come to believe it should be in the body of Christ. We didn't agree, but we prayed together and remained friends. David continued to climb up the ladder. We didn't see each other again until 1999. As we sat at the table in his kitchen over coffee, his head down and shoulders sagged, his hair having gotten so much gray and signs of extreme stress showing in his face he quietly spoke and said, "I should have listened to you. I knew you were right, but I really believed this was the path God wanted me to take. I arrived to be the Senior Pastor of one of the largest congregations but I'm nothing more than a CEO of a corporation. Instead of doing what I thought a pastor should do, I find myself instead in board meetings, committee meetings, budget meetings, planning meetings and staff meetings. I haven't prayed or counseled anyone in a long time." Within 2 years, David retired and moved to North Carolina to be near their daughter. Three years later, his wife died from a very aggressive form of cancer and 3 years later, David died from Parkinson's Disease. This is not the end to all those who make a career that David did. There are a lot of good men out there working hard believing they are in the ultimate service to God. Many of them have been given the gift of pastor, as it was intended, but have lived it out in the fashion that has become familiar for this office - to shepherd a "church". But David's case does speak loudly to the real internal condition of the insitution that the world calls church. This is not the way of God. So what is?

Ephesian 4 is Paul's call for unity in the body of Christ. He begs for the believers to live lives worthy of the calling of Christ; humility, gentleness, patience with each other; bearing with one another in love and making every effort to preserve the unity the Spirit gives through the binding power of peace. Beginning in verse 7 he reveals to these gentile believers the grace that abounds toward us through Jesus. I think that all scripture must be taken in it's full context in order to fully understand the message. With that as the basis point let's start with verse 8 thru 16: "This is why it says, 'After he went up into the heights he led captivity captive and he gave gifts to mankind.' Now this phrase, 'he went up', what can it mean if not that he first went down into the lower parts, that is, the earth. The one who went down is himself the one who also went up, far above all of the heaven, in order to fill all things. Furthermore, he gave some people as emissaries (apostles), some as prophets, some as proclaimers of the Good News (evangelists), and some as shepherds (translated as pastor in KJV) and teachers. Their task is to equip God's people for the work of service that builds the body of Messiah (Christ), until we all arrive at the unity implied by trusting and knowing the Son of God, at full manhood, at the standard of maturity set by the Messiah's perfection. We will then no longer be infants tossed about by the waves and blown along by every wind of teaching, at the mercy of people clever in devising ways to deceive. Instead, speaking truth in love, we will in every respect grow up into him who is the head, the Messiah. Under his control, the whole body is being fitted and held together by the support of every joint, with each part working to fulfill its function; this is how the body grows and builds itself up in love."

There is a lot to say about this scripture, so to maintain the integrity of the understanding of this let's start with the part about Jesus going up into the heights and if he went up he FIRST went down. Down where? The grave? Death? Hell? No - to the earth. He was born as a human in the earth. Why and what is Paul telling us? That he had to FIRST come to earth to establish his kingdom and train people how to equip his body and grow them up. He started out with 12, then he chose 70. Outside of those were many others who followed him and his teachings. When he went up, then he gave gifts to men - some to be apostles, some to be prophets, some to be evangelists, some to be shepherds, and some to be teachers ----- and he assigned them the task of equipping the body. Fitting it together, seeing that it holds together at every joint and that each part is working properly. Not a single one of these gifts are offices as we have known them to be. None is greater than the other.

They are like the five fingers of a hand. Can you grasp and hold something correctly without all 5 fingers? No. We depend on the five fingers of each hand to eat, dress, groom, grasp, write, and so on. With our hands we touch and feel; we can touch another person; we can offer help; we can carry; we hold and feed a baby; we cook, we clean. When any one finger is missing then we're disabled. For the last many centuries we have been functioning in the body with 1, 2 or 3 fingers - only. Most of the time only 1 finger - the pastor. This role has become dominant and the position of ultimate authority and leadership. Some denominations give people these titles, but because they don't understand the function - they still have disabled the body. No wonder the body of Christ is full of infancy - it has only 1 finger! When he went up, he trusted the functions of the body to those whom he had trained. It was their task to train others - make disciples. It didn't take even a century after they were gone for the deception to begin. Which is exactly what Paul said would happen. He said the infants are tossed around by waves and blown by every wind of doctrine / teaching at the mercy of people clever to devise ways to deceive. I think that pretty well describes the condition of the church today.

None of these gifts were ever intended to be paid positions. Money collected in the body was and still is to be used to meet the material needs of the members of the body, especially widows and orphans. There were no needs in the early church, but today there have been all kinds of programs and committees formed for the purpose of deciding who should get help from the body and with it comes judgment. This is not how it should be. Not a single one who had been appointed as overseers of the body in the early church got paid. They were tradesmen and earned their own living so that they weren't burdensome on the body. It was not unusual for them to receive hospitality and offerings of gratitude, but they did not get a salary for their gifts. They accepted and understood the task that had been assigned to them. An apostle's task is to found the congregation - to see that it's properly established in the teachings of Jesus; I see him as the thumb, the finger that helps us actually grasp and hold. The prophet's place is to reveal the will of God to point to sin and bring repentance - I'll call him the first finger - the pointer. The evangelist's task is to bring the Good News to the perishing and lost and bring them in. He is the one who "reaches out", so I'll call him the middle finger - the longest one. The pastor, or shepherd's job is to look after the flock; to keep the wolves out, to see that they are properly fed and watered so they can grow healthy and happy and bind them, keep them for the Lord. So I'll call him the "ring finger' because he's the one who sees to it that we become purified and sanctified as the bride. Finally, the teacher's job is to ensure there is not error in understanding - to properly convey the meaning of scripture and that people are walking the narrow way. He's the little finger because not only is it an intimate and seemingly small task, without it we can't maintain our grasp - it works with the thumb and together we get the whole man, growing in the Lord.

These were gifts given to the body - they were identified by the character, actions, lifestyles and personalities of the ones the Lord himself has chosen. They were not, and still are not, offices that one just up and says "when I grow up I want to be a pastor". They are not positions filled by ambition - they are filled by those chosen by the Lord. How far we have strayed from the intent of the Lord and the body of Christ is crippled.

Many leaving the institution are like little children who have taken a long nap; when they wake up the house is empty and lonely and they don't know where their parents have gone. They search and search and when they don't find them, because they have been crippled and need help feeding themselves they go in search of those who will fill the role. More often than not, they are finding some pretty bad substitutes and their condition becomes worse than it was alone. Some find they simply can't survive and go back in for safety, and without someone to show them the way, they die there never have grown into their full potential.

I see this so evident in the body of Christ, both in and out of the institution. We must pray that Father reveals to us who those are in our congregations that have been given these gifts. We must pray that the Holy Spirit speaks to them and shows them their gift(s) and how they should use them. We must pray that the body is filled with wisdom and understanding to know the heart of God.