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"Come follow me and I will make you fishers of men." Matthew 4:19

Category: Revelation (Page 5 of 6)

His Star & His Ambassadors…

December 19, 2020 /
MaryEllen Montville

“As God’s co-workers we urge you not to receive God’s grace in vain. For he says, “In the time of my favor I heard you, and in the day of salvation I helped you.” I tell you, now is the time of God’s favor, now is the day of salvation” –2  Corinthians 6:1-2.

Paul is referencing the Prophet Isaiah here. More accurately, Isaiah is sharing with us what God has shared with Him directly concerning a future time and Ruler that will be born to His people, to Israel. Isaiah 49:8 is a love note from God, to us. It’s God pointing us towards the coming of His Son, Jesus, towards salvation and grace. Some say God is talking through Jesus, to Isaiah, pointing Him towards His acceptable time, His season of good-will, toward His virgin birth that will usher in God’s New Covenant. One that will be sealed by the Spotless Blood of this same One written about but yet to be born. “Thus said the LORD, In an acceptable time have I heard you, and in a day of salvation have I helped you: and I will preserve you, and give you for a covenant of the people, to establish the earth, to cause to inherit the desolate heritages;” –Isaiah 49:8.

This Ruler and time would first be announced to the lowly, to a virgin village girl who would soon be overshadowed by His Holy Spirit. Followed then, by those lowly shepherds guarding the Temple flock the very night that same girl gives birth to God’s Son, Jesus. Had there never been a cradle, there would never have been The Cross. Jesus was born in a lowly stable in Bethlehem to one day die in our place. But before that, before He dies, He will grow up and challenge the status quo. He will touch and change and revolutionize our understanding of what it means to love God absolutely—and our neighbor as ourselves. Jesus was born, in part, to be our errorless guide, our unswerving Teacher—flawlessly demonstrating what it means to be a genuine co-laborer with the Father. To be the only man born of a woman worthy of taking upon Himself the sins of the whole world. This Godman. That tiny Babe wrapped in swaddling milk rags man’s only way back into right relationship with the Father. An unorthodox telling of the Christmas story for sure, yet True, nonetheless.

Long before the angel appeared to Mary, God had conferred upon man the unfathomable privilege of co-laboring with Him—of being His emissary. “And out of the ground the LORD God formed every beast of the field and every bird of the air, and He brought them to the man to see what he would name each one. And whatever the man called each living creature, that was its name” –Genesis 2:19. Even before God’s Holy Spirit overshadowed Mary or that moment, a specific one of His stars pierced the clear night sky while certain shepherds tended their flocks or wise men in a distant land poured over their charts and maps in search of Him. God had chosen us, you and me, Paul, Isaiah, and Mary and Joseph, each to be His. The recipients of His magnificent gift of salvation, of His utterly amazing grace. Paul is admonishing the Church in Corinth never to forget this. We would be wise to take heed as well! To not receive God’s grace in vain. Be it our undeserved saving grace or the daily graces afforded us moment-by-moment that enable us to “live and move and have our being.” Instead, Paul is encouraging us all to follow his example of wringing out the very last drop of this grace afforded him, afforded us daily, in service to His God. He is also reminding us that we are, after all, God’s ambassadors here on earth. Our loyal service the King’s rightful due then. Those shepherds tending their prized Temple sheep, sheep having been set aside solely to be sacrificed for Israel, for its atonement, did precisely that. They lavishly spent every cent of the grace afforded them in service to their newly born Messiah.

“‘But you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah, are by no means least among the rulers of Judah: for out of you will come a ruler who will shepherd my people Israel’” –Matthew 2: 6.

Scripture tells us that no sooner than this preternatural star-emblazoned their otherwise ordinary night sky, an angel appears to them and, “the radiance of the Lord’s glory surrounded them,” informing them that their long-awaited Messiah had just been born. Scripture goes on to tell us that they were terrified! Yet, despite their fear—their awe-struck-ness, they were off to find this Holy Babe. And, once they had seen Him, Scripture tells us they told everyone they came across about Him—about the extra-ordinary events of this very holy night. “And those who heard were astonished.” Grace had been afforded these shepherds. And they spent it all in service to the Babe they found lying in a manger. These were wise servants, indeed. We would do well to model our faith-walk after theirs. “But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people. Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord. This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger” –Luke 2:10-12.

It is said that on the evening of December 21, 2020, centuries since the last time what is being hailed as the “Christmas Star,” in 1226, to be precise, the observable conjuncture of the planets Jupiter and Saturn will, some say, light up the night sky. Whether this same conjuncture of planets or a similar one is what the shepherds saw, I’m not qualified to comment on. Yet this I am confident in saying: whatever this celestial event may be, whatever it may end up being labeled as, one thing is sure, this celestial event is no mere coincidence. Those like myself, patiently waiting for our Redeemer to return, have our eyes locked on the horizon, always looking up. We are eagerly awaiting the return of the One born in that manger some 2000 plus years ago. And, yet, while we look and while we wait—we work. Just as Paul instructs us, more, like Jesus commanded us. And we share, too.

We tell of His coming and of the wonders of knowing Him—of serving Him. We speak of His great Love. He is Love personified, after all. We tell of His amazing grace and mercy, of His sweetness, His tenderness. We speak of His correction and reshaping. His great love for us will not allow us to remain wherever He may have found us. We share that He will soon return and how no one can see Him—go with Him unless they are His unless they have a relationship with Him. Like those shepherds before us, those first evangelists, as my dear friend Sam Cordeiro just referred to them in His most recent sermon, we speak as they did, of what we know—have tasted for ourselves. This Christmas season ought to be about more than presents and lights and spending. It ought to be about receiving His great love for you, into your heart, new or newly. Receiving this One, we see asleep in the manger, Christ the Lord. The Savior of mankind. God’s New Covenant.

If you know Him, brothers, and sisters, then please, don’t squander the grace He’s afforded you. And friend, if you have yet to meet Mary’s Son, our Jesus, I encourage you, no, I plead with you to ask Him to show Himself to you this day. I would so look forward to meeting you one day and hearing our Father tell you, “well done, good and faithful servant!“ “Then He took the cup, gave thanks, and gave it to them, saying, “Drink from it, all of you. This is My blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins. I tell you, I will not drink of this fruit of the vine from now on until that day when I drink it anew with you in My Father’s kingdom” –Matthew 26:27-28.

Awe and Wonder…

December 5, 2020 /
Kendra Santilli

But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people. Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord” –Luke 2:9-11.

I’ve been going for a lot of long nature walks lately. Not even because I’m super reflective, not because I have an affinity for nature, no. It’s much simpler than that, it’s because I have a dog. Yes, you read that right; my dog is the reason I go for long nature walks. Bear with me here as I tell you a bit about my fur baby. I have a golden retriever named Daisy, and boy is she energetic! Simple neighborhood walks don’t do it for her any longer, not like they did when she was a pup. She requires the cool of the earth beneath her paws now, she wants the scent of crisp autumn leaves, actually, more like whatever’s lurking beneath them. She wants the sight of the forest with its beams of sunlight and the sound of squirrels rustling about, birds chirping, up in the trees somewhere, she wants to lick the dew off of the fallen foliage. To say she loves the woods is an understatement—she is elated when she’s in them! When I say the words, “wanna go for a walk?” she comes to life. She bolts towards the door, ready to run, head-on into a new adventure. Over the past couple of months, as Daisy and I have trekked various New England trails, my dog has taught me to love creation. It’s because of her that I’ve been reminded nature was created for me to enjoy as well. Daisy stops and smells the flowers. She investigates every twig that appears suspicious. She picks up on any trace of any other creature who may have gone before her. She is so present in every moment. Locked in discovery mode, she traces every sight and scent—familiarizing herself for next time. Her desire for discovery got me thinking: “what if we lived in wide-eyed wonder as Daisy does? Awestruck by all the beauty that surrounds us? What if the earth, formed by the hands of our Maker and designed for us to thrive in, elicited the same awe-struck response in us as it does in Daisy?

Throughout Scripture, God is referred to as an AWEsome God. I think that says something about the lens through which He wants us to view Him…

By definition, awe is an overwhelming feeling of reverence, admiration, fear, etc. It is produced by that which is grand, sublime, extremely powerful, or the like. Knowing the Creator of the universe invokes just such an awe inside of us. It awakens some deep knowing that fulfills our every need for belonging. I mean, it was the voice of God, after all, who spoke the stars into existence and gave the earth its form; He who, with just one Word, spoke light into existence. And it was this same God who allocated a place in the ecosystem for every living being. Everything that has breath sends that same breath right back to Him, in praise. His hands the very ones that formed humankind, the crown jewel of His creations. And it was His breath blown into the lungs of that first man that gave him life—us too. Yes. From the very beginning of time, God’s watchful eye has been on us. If I stopped right here, what I just said should be enough to ignite a great big spark of awe in you. But alas! There’s more…

The bond between God and man was broken by Adam and Eve in the garden of Eden—their sin separating them from Him. But God set out to—had a plan to, restore what they had broken! Considering the Christmas season that is upon us, I thought it appropriate to look at the response of mankind to the arrival of God in the flesh, in the person of His Son, Jesus. In Luke 2, we find the story of Jesus’ birth. But before I get there, I need to remind us- Jesus chose to come into this world in the most unlikely way, and to the most unlikely of people. Ordinary people like me and you. Jesus did not come with a heavenly army, nor to a kingdom as we know it. He came through Mary, a humble servant. And He chose to be born in a simple stable, in a very unlikely town. In Luke 2 we learn that the very first people to be told of His birth were lowly shepherds. What got me when I read Luke 2 was the shepherd’s response. An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people. Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord. So, they hurried off and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby, who was lying in the manger” –Luke 2:9-11; 16. They were terrified—a response to being awed. Yet despite this, after they were reassured by the angel, they were moved to action. That overwhelming awe didn’t paralyze them. It moved them. First, to go and see, then, secondly, to go and tell!

When you have a genuine encounter with the Living God, something magnificent happens within you. That encounter causes you to act because of what you’ve just experienced for yourself! Understand, this kind of supernatural reaction doesn’t just impact you, the one who has the initial experience, it has an eternal chain-link effect that connects you somehow to countless others. Luke 2 goes on to tell us that, “all who heard it were amazed by what the shepherds said to them” –Luke 2:18. All who heard. Those shepherds couldn’t keep quiet about their awesome experience with the angel of the Lord. They told anyone who would listen to them all about Jesus, His star, and His birth—about their divine encounter with Him. They shared all that the angel had spoken to them and everything they had witnessed with their own two eyes. They could have chosen to write the angel off as some dream-like apparition, yet they chose instead to unapologetically stand by what they knew to be true.

I can call to mind some experiences I’ve had where I may have dulled down the story to make it seem a bit more “normal”. But the truth is, the supernatural things of God are anything but normal. There’s a reason they’re called “super-natural”. They defy earthly definition. And when we share these supernatural things God has done in our life with others, it causes amazement to well up in them.

Let’s look, for a moment, at the wise men. Fun fact: The Bible doesn’t say how many wise men there actually were. We know from Scripture that there were three gifts, but there very well could have been a caravan of people traveling to behold the Savior of the world! Regardless, these wise men, or “Magi” as they’re referred to in Matthew 2, were highly esteemed and well-educated men. Yet these same men came and bowed humbly before a baby they believed to be the Messiah. They saw a star in the heavens, a sign, and they followed it. They did not worship this sign mind you, they simply allowed it to lead them to their Creator. With this in mind: I pray we are never too old or too prideful to recognize and respond to the move of God—no matter how undignified doing so may seem. Like the Magi who knelt before a baby, I pray we have the humility to adore Him in every situation we may find ourselves in. Secondly, I pray we don’t look at signs as gods, rather that we allow them to lead us to the One True God—the source of all wisdom and life.

From the moment He was born, Jesus evoked an unadulterated passion from His own—from all those who recognized Him as their Messiah. I have the feeling that all the emotion tucked into the Christmas story may have been placed there to help us to return to a childlike state of simple joy and admiration for the Babe in the manger.

As Jesus grew into His ministry, He healed many and spoke with such wisdom it shocked those who heard Him speak. The Samaritan woman, the lepers, the blind men, the lame, each received His gift of healing and love. Then, telling everyone they knew what they had experienced, most of them responded just as the shepherds did—in wonder and amazement. Part of the beauty of this story is that we get see Jesus amaze people all around the world, still. Whether it be restoring hope to the hopeless, bringing healing to the afflicted and broken, or bestowing a sense of belonging to someone who is lost. Jesus is still working today—right here, right now. He still displays signs and wonders around us every day. We just need to open our eyes, our hearts, to both see and to receive them.

If my dog can live in the moment, soaking in the awe and wonder of God’s endless goodness, His abundant provision, and splendor, I’m thinking we ought to be able to as well. Wouldn’t you agree? This Christmas season, my prayer for you is that you might find the “extra” in ordinary things. Most of all, I pray that you discover the hope found only in Jesus Christ. I pray His joy fills you beyond measure! I pray you begin to live in a state of wonder and awe, flat out amazed by all that God has done, is doing, and is yet to do!

And if you’ve never asked this God of awe and wonder into your heart—what better time than now! Give your life to Jesus today let it be your gift to Him in return for all that He has given you, starting with your very breath. He has allowed all this time to pass just so that you’d read this, and then ask Him into your heart as Lord. “But, beloved, be not ignorant of this one thing, that one day is with the Lord as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day. The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance” –2 Peter 3:8-9.

Smoke Inhalation. 1 Timothy 4:1

May 16, 2020 /
“The Spirit clearly says that in later times some will abandon the faith and follow deceiving spirits and things taught by demons.”

In other words, in these last days, some who call themselves Christians will be taken out by their having breathed in the toxic fumes given off by those things we, as believers, were never designed to take in. The noxious effects of which, by their very nature, can cause our demise. Religious spirits—deceiving spirits, are famous for this. Laying claim to having the only form of protection that can truly save them—the Holy Spirit alive within them—their being overcome proof positive nevertheless, He never resided within them.

Statistics tell us that, some 50–80% of fire deaths are the result of smoke inhalation injuries, including burns to the respiratory system. Smoke inhalation kills in just a few minutes and also quickly obscures vision, creating disorientation that can prevent a safe escape. I read this excerpt recently, regarding 1 Timothy 1:4 that said: There is a set-up in the activity of seducing spirits and doctrines of demons on the earth that is causing a society-wide shift from God’s Truth—to deception. Said Scripturally: “And every spirit that confesseth not that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is not of God: and this is that [spirit] of antichrist, whereof ye have heard that it should come; and even now already is it in the world” –1 John 4:3.

Maybe these held familial beliefs ingrained in them since childhood? Maybe they had, in some superficial way, made those beliefs their own? They attended church, read the Bible, did the stuff, went to the Bible study, and the conferences—until they did not. Until that one day when, perhaps unawares, some other word caught their attention, seeped into them, and they began breathing in that noxious thing. In these last days, many will die of smoke inhalation. Seduced into removing the one thing from their lives that is certain to save them, the shield of God’s Truth. Hold fast beloved! Do not be deceived, if that were possible, into removing the only thing that can save you! And pray as never before! For those who are deceived, blind, are being led astray! Deceiving spirits are here in force! This is what Paul is telling us here. What the Holy Spirit stressed to him—is stressing to us, too concerning the times in which we live…

Fire! Fire! Noxious fumes have filled the air! Those that may have stood firm in the faith at one point, drifting. Moving away from what they once held dear, knew to be certain and True. Scripture does not make clear why they drifted, only that they did. Is it possible they were never truly anchored to His Truth at all? Others will reject God’s Truth entirely—blatantly. Claiming perhaps that their truth is the truth instead—this doctrine of demons. The tickling of the ears that have come to wage war with God’s children in these last of the last days. This one final, brazen, frontal assault on God, and on His Church. Not a popular message for sure, this, but I have to share it, nonetheless…

Expose the lie that claims his truth, or her truth, that their truth is the truth— and not God’s Word! I must share with those who say, “Who is this God to tell me what I am or how I should feel, think, love, or should marry?” To this, I say I love you, therefore I must share His Truth with you. I am duty-bound. Love Himself commanded me to. Thousands before me have stood facing this very moment. Shall I seek popularity and remain silent, or risk offense and possibly be used as the hand that pulls one from the fire? I have never been the popular kid, so for me, that decision was easy. I will risk the fire. I must. I have been called to. And as I said, I love you. Not with a feel-good love that prevents me from sharing the Truth, no. Rather with the love of Christ. A love that wants to share both Him and eternity with you.  “But mark this: There will be terrible times in the last days. People will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boastful, proud, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, without love, unforgiving, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not lovers of the good, treacherous, rash, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God—having a form of godliness but denying its power. Have nothing to do with such people” –2 Timothy 3:1-5. Notice friends, that among this long list, Paul says not one thing ever about hating anyone. He does not say name call or demean those we do not see eye-to-eye with. He does say clearly, however, have nothing to do with such people. Meaning, not taking on what they are doing. Rather share what you know to be right and true and good, instead. We are not God. We cannot save anyone. We are called to love everyone, to share the Word of God, and pray for everyone beloved. Pray that their eyes be genuinely opened to His saving Truth…

The shield of the Holy Spirit that each Blood bought believer possesses must be worn daily, moment by moment, in all situations as our protection. Whether we see evidence of a fire—or not. He must be the filter through which all of our decisions pass—our conversations too. If not, we run the great risk of being overtaken by smoke. Made weak or sick by the noxious fumes given off by those whose only motive is to kill, steal, and destroy—some intentionally, others having been overtaken and used. They may have been a best friend, a family member, a mentor—it does not matter. Hard to hear I know. But a necessary lesson. What did we think Scripture meant by remaining alert? Being awake? Vigilant or watchful?  These were not casual suggests—they are life-saving tools we must implement as we navigate our way around the blaze that is these last days. “For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms” –Ephesians 6:12.

We may not instantly recognize the deceiving spirit that came walking into our living room because it cleverly hid behind the smiling eyes of our son or daughter, a friend, or that guest in the church. We have been tricked, however briefly, into thinking that we are seeing the one we know, perhaps love, and have trusted, when all the while it is an antichrist standing before us. Some demon from hell sent to rip off our mask and take us out!

That one we see before us having been used by, duped into doing the dirty work of the god of this world—or one of his insidious minions. Deceiving spirits who momentarily blind us. Dis-abling us from seeing their true identity by wafting in attached to, somehow, that one we know—or wanted to at least. In these instances, the enemy does not come at us like the roaring lion Peter warns about in 1 Peter 5:8, though his end game remains the same, his tactic changes. There is no warning, no roar, the hair on the back of our neck does not stand up when that familiar one stands before us; our belly is relaxed, calm. Now, instead, with those familiar to us, too often he will come cleverly disguised like the wolf dressed in sheep’s clothing. That one spoken of Matthew 7:15. Though this particular scripture refers to false prophets, the same principle applies. What is standing right in front of us is not who it is professing to be. “Now I urge you, brethren, keep your eye on those who cause dissensions and hindrances contrary to the teaching which you learned, and turn away from them” –Romans 16:17.

“A victim of smoke inhalation may be rendered unconscious very quickly, leading to rapid death.”

As it is in the natural, so too in the spirit-man. Keep your shield on beloved. Noxious fumes are swirling all about you. Scripture says it this way: “For as he thinketh in his heart, so is he: Eat and drink, saith he to thee; but his heart is not with thee” –Proverbs 23:7.

Beloved, hold fast to God, and the Truth which lives within you. Share it freely and without fear. God is your rear-guard. Nothing shall befall you that has not first passed through His hand. And if He allows it to touch you, trust it is for your edification—a needed lesson, a stretching for some future time. “I give you this charge: Preach the word; be prepared in season and out of season; correct, rebuke and encourage—with great patience and careful instruction. For the time will come when people will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear. They will turn their ears away from the truth and turn aside to myths. But you, keep your head in all situations, endure hardship, do the work of an evangelist, discharge all the duties of your ministry”—2 Timothy 4:1-5.

And friend, if you’re here today for the first time and something in you is saying, “I want to know more about this God, I want to be saved from the noxious fumes of this world.” Maybe even those swirling around you right now? Then put down that joint, throw away your pipe finally, and ask this same Jesus to come into your heart right now. If you read this far then you have read about the odds of surviving smoke inhalation. Jesus wants to give you the only thing that will save you from this world—His Holy Spirit living in you. A relationship with Him. Won’t you ask Him to show Himself real to you?

Surrounded. 2 Kings 6:17

March 14, 2020 /
“And Elisha prayed and said, Jehovah, I pray thee, open his eyes that he may see. And Jehovah opened the eyes of the young man, and he saw; and, behold, the mountain was full of horses and chariots of fire round about Elisha.”

I was like this servant. Truth be told, there are moments, both in my life and ministry, when I still am. Blind that is. Not God. There’s a news flash! Not all-knowing or seeing. Rather I’m frail and human and so very much in need of the One who is God. Who does see all, know all; because I can sometimes forget that there is more than one type of sight—ways of seeing a person, place, or situation. Of starring into the face of what is so clearly hidden in plain sight; yet seeing only the natural enemy army before me. An army that mirrors back to me my weaknesses and failures and inadequacy. Blind in my desire to so want to serve God and his people, those He has placed over me with excellence,  I sometimes move foolishly, carelessly, in my flesh, in my own strength, instead of waiting for the Lord to release me—to open my eyes to what is truly in front of me. What it is He’ll have me see. By His grace, He has covered my rookie mistakes and any potential crisis was averted. My natural sight having blinded me from seeing what is truly surrounding me, at all times; the angels my Father has given charge over me. Their aid, and His strength…

“The angel of the LORD encamps around those who fear him, and he delivers them” –Psalm 34:7.

Am I alone in my testimony? The only one who has, perhaps in their walk or ministry, missed the mark?

Not seeing what was standing right in front of them? Spiritually speaking that is. Or not recognized what was truly available to them, or. more, what was coming at them, their leadership, or the Body, because they looked at a situation, or failed to see a thing because they were, I was, looking at it, at that person, with natural eyes only? I know of at least one other who was as blind as I have been. Dare I say perhaps as blind as you’ve been too? One whose spiritual eyes failed him as well. Elisha’s new servant. My apologies. I can’t introduce you. I can’t share his name with you because the scriptures don’t tell me his name, only that he is Elisha’s assistant.

If we’re not paying attention though, we’ll mistake him for Gehazi, Elisha’s first assistant. We first hear of Gehazi in 2 Kings 4:12. However, he leaves Elisha’s service covered in leprosy and shame in 2 Kings 5:27. So this one, this unnamed servant who sees only the army of the Arameans, this natural enemy army surrounding him and his master, is then obviously new. Perhaps he’s Gehazi’s replacement? Either way, what’s obvious is, replacement or not, he’s yet to have caught the gift of seeing beyond the natural realm and into the spiritual, as Elisha, his mentor has.  “None of us, my lord the king,” said one of his officers, “but Elisha, the prophet who is in Israel, tells the king of Israel the very words you speak in your bedroom” –2 Kings 6:12.

So what is this ‘opening of his eyes’ that Elisha prayed for? This seeing? Surely Elisha’s servant wasn’t blind. Had he been blind, he wouldn’t have been able to see the Aramean’s surrounding them at Dothan…

Elisha had prayed for his spiritual sight to be activated. For the eyes of his understanding to be open, that he might truly see. Elisha prayed for his ability to see beyond his seeing in the natural. A gift from God alone. I’ve heard it described this way: Spiritual things are not perceived by the natural man with his natural sight. But we compare revelation or spiritual perception to the act of seeing because of their similarities and because the results of the two are the same, namely a coming into the experience of knowing something beyond the shadow of a doubt. The natural man is in darkness regarding spiritual things, that is he can’t perceive them unaided. Without light, we cannot directly perceive God or His kingdom though we have the testimony of creation and the inward testimony of our conscience. When the Holy Spirit comes, however, bearing His influence on the soul of man it has the same effect as light has upon the natural eyes of man. His influence causes man to perceive the things of the spirit. Like light, the greater the influence the greater the level of perception. The result of a man receiving the light of the Spirit is perception and he becomes absolutely convinced of the truth of the object he saw as if he had seen it with his natural eyes. (Emphasis my own)

This ability to see into the spirit realm is indispensable for those God has called to minister to His people.

To be able to see what is coming that we might cover our leaders and those God has placed under our care. We cannot operate in our appointed offices without it. Especially those prophets and seers, intercessors, and priests whom God has called to the frontline of this ongoing battle between Himself and His enemy and ours, Satan, that great deceiver. We must be able to see, to discern, the will of God for His people and for our own lives and ministry. How else will we be able to sound the alarm? Warn others of what is coming against them? Encourage them to repent and seek God, unless we first know a thing for ourselves. See it coming for ourselves if you will. Perhaps Elisha’s servant was so newly appointed to the man of God, this gifted prophet who himself had received a double-portion anointing from his mentor, the prophet Elijah, that Elisha had yet had the opportunity to have laid hands on the young man and pray God stir-up the gift that was just waiting to be called out from within him? I ask this based upon the Truth that God does not call anyone into any office, into His service, unless He alone has also blessed and provided us with everything we will ever need, not only to walk out our salvation in this world but to fulfill that call or office for which He has called us. “For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do” –Ephesians 2:10. Or, perhaps, Elisha was not slack at all but rather waiting on God’s appointed time. Waiting for that moment God alone had foreordained for Elisha’s new servant to be introduced to seeing beyond the natural and into the spiritual realm…

The scriptures are replete with just such instances of this same intense first experience with seeing into, and properly interpreting, the spirit world. Daniel no doubt understood the “suddenly” of just such a moment. The Apostle John too. Ezekiel and Samuel as well, just to mention a few. Daniel 7; Revelation 1:1-2; Ezekiel 1; Samuel 3.

Here’s the thing beloved: If you have been appointed to some office, some position within the Body of Christ, know, with all certainty that you are there because of God; whatever His reason for allowing you to be there. He alone places us in positions of leadership or authority. Know too, that since He has placed you there, you carry within you everything you’ll ever need to complete the task you were appointed to fulfill. That said, understand this as well: You will have to learn partner with the Holy Spirit and those He has placed in positions of authority and leadership over you to develop, draw out, hone, fine-tune, what God has already deposited in your belly. Also, to remain humble and teachable enough, as Elisha’s new servant did, to receive what we need, be it prayer or guidance or correction from those God has placed over you—to speak into you, to help train you and cover you when you inevitably get it all wrong on occasion—just as he did.  As I have. As you will too. “No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it” –Hebrews 12:11.

But fear not! Take heart, beloved! Don’t allow your pride to disqualify you from your assignment by thinking, calling into question your divine calling…

Just because you got it wrong this time, does not mean God didn’t appoint you or has somehow failed you. Humble yourself in the recognition that these are growing pains. You’ll get it wrong many times in your walk with Lord. I know I have! The shame is not in getting it wrong. The shame comes, the sin slithers in, when you allow pride to rob your anointing. Admit your blindness before God and men and the Lord will, in His divine timing, send one to pray that your eyes be opened, too. “Young men, in the same way, submit yourselves to your elders. And all of you, clothe yourselves with humility toward one another, because, God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble.” Humble yourselves, therefore, under God’s mighty hand, so that in due time He may exalt you. Cast all your anxiety on Him, because He cares for you” –1 Peter 5: 5-7.

Friend, if you are here today and haven’t familiar with the things this teaching contains, perhaps God has called you here today that you might ask Him to come into your life, as Lord and Savior, so that He might teach you. Opening your eyes to the Truth of His Son, Jesus, and all that He has for you to see and learn from Him? Won’t you ask Him to show Himself real to you now? He’s been waiting for your invitation. Listen to His Words, not mine: “Then you will call upon Me and come and pray to Me, and I will listen to you. 13You will seek Me and find Me when you search for Me with all your heart” –Jeremiah 29:12-13.

All along… Psalm 145:9

October 5, 2019 /
” The Lord is good to all, and His tender mercies are over all His works.”

Recently, while listening to Dante Bowe sing, The Goodness of God, the Holy Spirit got hold of me; opening the eyes of my understanding, He stretched me. Drawing me in, I was given a peek, just some small glimpse, of what God’s goodness meant—has looked like, in my life. I was wrecked and repenting by the time He was finished showing me, yet I was left hungry for so much more. I had tasted, and it was good! I knew this was no one-time revelation, no amuse-bouche’. Rather, it is a fine dining experience. A multi-course meal whose unique, rich, layered, subtle textures and flavors will have me revisiting this experience of God’s Goodness, over and over and over again…

The Holy Spirit took me back to specific days and seasons in my life; revisiting very specific sins. I was able to see glimpses of myself in the thick of it—covered in my filth, yet seemingly not carrying. Selfish. Oblivious to anything other than what I wanted or needed to make me happy or feel satisfied, at that moment. I saw the bars and the many men and the lies and the sex. The sneaking around. The adultery. The hurt I’d caused my parents and later, my children, friends, and family. I saw my filth stream before my eyes like some twisted, lust-filled, foul-mouthed, underground movie. I saw myself stealing, hustling, getting high, watching porn. I saw when I was molested as a child. I saw my depression, my wanting to die, my neglect. And then I felt the weight of my wretchedness; instantly.

I understood the Holy Spirit wasn’t condemning me, He’s already forgiven me. Rather, He was allowing me to feel the weight of that disgusting filthiness once again that I might be stretched, opened up in some new way, to drink in this heightened, vivid, understanding of just how good and loving and kind and merciful, how patient and long-suffering this God, my Jesus, is. Not that over-used, over-worked, knee-jerk, ‘God is good’ kind of goodness, rather His pure, life-changing, transformative, loving, goodness. The very goodness that caused Him to hold tight His Cross willingly lay down upon it, then allow those He was offering His very life for, to drive their sin through His Perfect flesh. That kind of Goodness…

A Goodness that is far too big, and deep, and wide, for my puny, finite mind, thoughts, and feelings, to fully take in! God had seen each of my sins. And still, after seeing them all, He came to me, personally. He came in a way like no one in my life had ever come; in the gentlest of ways, as softly as the softest of summer breezes. He was just, there. Suddenly. I can close my eyes and go back to that moment, it’s so alive and vivid still; I can feel His nearness as deeply now, more actually, as I did then. And, from that moment until today, I am His and He is mine.

I’ve experienced the goodness of God that Dante was singing about in my own life, without a doubt. I too have sung of the goodness of God. Read about it in the Scriptures, certainly. I’ve witnessed to folks about His goodness. Posted and shared quotes and pics extolling that goodness on social media sites; sharing it personally with new believers. Yet, I had never stopped long enough to truly dig down into the depth of just how far back His goodness had been active in my life; just how far back it truly reached. In that moment, by the revelation of The Holy Spirit, I saw, more, I felt and understood in a new way, just how far back His goodness reached. It went Ephesians 1:4 back, Jeremiah 1:5 and Psalm 139:13-18 back, to mention just a few examples. It went standing over the void back…

I’ve taken many cursory glances at this reality over the years, mind you. But in truth, never really sat alone with the thought of His goodness and what it meant in my life—all of my life, giving it the time it so richly deserves. I never knew it in my bones, felt the reality of it churning around in the very depths of me until that moment when the Holy Spirit opened my eyes to all of what God had watched me do in my life. All those days and nights and instances I thought I was being so slick. When I thought I was being so careful, so clever. When I felt the darkness of some strange room was all the hiding place I’d ever need; my sins were safe there, hidden.

Friends and brothers and sisters, I’m not here today sharing my dirt with you for any reason other than to be transparent and to encourage that one who may be here now; feeling as filthy dirty as I was then, would be still, had it not been for the Goodness and love and mercy of my Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.

I am here today to share with you the wonder and the beauty and the Awesomeness of God. Of exactly what He can and will do in the life of the one He grabs hold of. I say He grabs hold of because I had nothing to do with that. I surely didn’t deserve it. I wasn’t praying for it, honestly. God hadn’t even been a thought that had crossed my mind in any real way—until He did. Until that ‘suddenly’ moment when, in hindsight, I now understand was the Holy Spirit giving me the desire to go to a particular church at a specific time. And I went. I followed that ‘feeling’. And right there, in that Catholic Church, in the midst of the priest’s sermon, The Holy Spirit came for me. And, as I said earlier, He came as softly and gently as the softest of summer breezes. There were no beams of light streaming through the stained-glass windows, no choir of angelic voices singing holy songs, just a deep, the very pit of me deep, and oh so subtle, shift inside. And from that moment, sitting in that Church with my then lover at my side, unashamedly languishing in the pit of my adultery, the Goodness of God has kept one such as me. John 10:27-29…

Friends, I am not here today to point you towards something I’ve read or heard tell of. Something that’s been sung about or shared. I’m not here to regurgitate someone else’s story of how they met this God who offers us—all of us, this goodness we must experience for ourselves. I’m here because I know Him, love Him, have been afforded the privilege of serving Him. I’m here to point us each towards the only one that can and has and will always, until the very last, pour this fresh clean water of His goodness and His love, His unfathomable capacity to forgive us—over us. The One who loves us too much to leave us where we are—whether we’ve known Him for years and years or have just met Him today—or will meet Him soon, I pray. I’m here today to share with you that this Good God has so much more for you and me. He is troubling the water, stirring up something inside of you. Step in and be made whole. Be restored, made clean. Be refreshed.

Brother’s and sister’s and friends let us not settle for the common. For swimming in the shallow end because we can manage that nicely on our own. Cry out to God to rid us of our preconceived notions and ideas of who we believe Him to be and ask Him instead to show Himself to us afresh, new. Let us cry out to God right now in repentance, for mercy, and for more of Him. May He draw us each into an ever deeper and wider, a more pure and True understanding of who He is—and of ourselves, in Him, as He intended us to be and live and share and give and love and serve each other —Psalm 145:5-7.

Friend, if your reading this today and can relate. If you’ve not yet asked this Good God that I’ve spoken of today to be your God, come into your life and change it as surely as He has changed mine—and so many countless others like us; ask Him now. Don’t wait another day, please. “If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask Him!” Matthew 7:11. 

Higher Than Our Own. Isaiah 55:8-9

September 21, 2019 /
“The Lord says, “My thoughts are not like yours.
    Your ways are not like mine.
Just as the heavens are higher than the earth,
    so my ways are higher than your ways,
    and my thoughts are higher than your thoughts.”

In preparation for this week’s teaching, I went to sit beside the ocean to get alone with the Lord. I parked the car close to a popular local inlet where the small craft anchor. A particular dingy caught my eye…

Staring at it I thought, “that little guy looks as though it could sink at any moment.” Compared that is, to some of the sturdier-looking, larger boats anchored nearby. Looking away, I continued on in prayer. But once again this little boat caught my eye. This time, however, it appeared to be listing. Signaling the beginning of an inescapable watery demise. “I had a feeling that little boat would eventually go down. It didn’t appear at all seaworthy.” As I continued to watch what I saw instead caused me to literally shout, ‘no way!”’ The waves had caused it to shift directions and I saw it was fully righted! Not only had that little boat not gone under, it was effortlessly bobbing along being piloted by the tides that had it safely hemmed in. What I was certain I had seen had been little more than an optical illusion. My eyes playing tricks on me. A complete misread on my part…

And then God spoke. Impressing on my heart that: I wasn’t to always trust what I saw in front of me rather, to steadfastly rely solely upon what I know to be True of Him. Trusting in His Sovereignty, mercy, grace, and, power. He reminded me to always have my faith securely anchored in Him; my mind and thoughts captive to His will alone. There are many illusions in this world…

Satan is a master of illusion and deception. And, He is busier now than ever knowing his time is at hand. God’s elect must be even more vigilant. Leaving no opening in our armor through which he might gain entrance. “For false Christs and false prophets will appear and perform signs and wonders that would deceive even the elect, if that were possible” –Mark 13:22.

God had convicted me of the cracks in my own armor; as quickly as I had judged this little boat of being unseaworthy, so too had I judged myself unworthy to serve Him by comparing myself to those I felt were far more gifted—more qualified than myself. I’d allowed temporary feelings of unworthiness to serve God and His people to supersede what I know He alone has called and equip me to do. Serve! Whenever and wherever He leads me. I was instantly humbled by the realization that not only had I been allowing myself to entertain lies, questioning my very election, entertaining my fears, doubts, and insecurities as one entertains friends; allowing them access into places mere acquaintances are not permitted, I had, unawares, projected my feelings of inadequacy onto that little boat! Thus, falsely judging us both as unseaworthy…

That’s when God convicted my heart! Who was I to judge the gifts He’s given me? His grace? Who was I to question His reasoning for choosing me for Himself?

And so, if I don’t make it my business to stay close to Christ daily, standing firm and fixed, minute-by-minute on who He says I am, I will, according to my own estimation, find myself sorely wanting. Unworthy to serve such a Holy God—or His people. Knowing my own sin and shortcomings I will judge myself as a vessel of dishonor, rather than one of gold or silver having been made pure, not by my own works or worth, rather by His. In this Truth, I was allowed a far deeper, more personal revelation of meaning behind Paul’s words: “But to me it is a very small thing to be judged by you, or by man’s day; but neither do I judge my own self”–1 Corinthians 4:3.

Our self-worth, my self-worth friends, should not be grounded in the esteem or opinion nor in the rejection of others—man’s flesh is far too fickle, untrustworthy, and ever-changing to ever take fully to heart. First, it blows this way and then that. One minute calling out Hosanna and with its next breath, crucify Him! Neither should we fully put our trust in self-assessments, least we think either too highly or too lowly of ourselves. Yet if our conscious pricks us, we must be certain to examine it. But it is to God alone that we must look to for every good thing in our lives. Starting with the foundational Truth of who we are and who He is in our lives, ministry, work, and worth. Only His Truth is irrefutable. Our sure standard.

His Word clearly tells us: “All else is sinking sand…” –Matthew 7:24-27.

Now, before I move on, allow me to clarify a point: By no means do I mean to suggest that we should not examine ourselves, our lives, and hearts, our consciences. Quite the contrary, as Christians, we must keep a close eye on the condition of our hearts and thoughts, our words, and actions. Through prayer and the reading of the Scriptures, through our daily communion with the Holy Spirit, we must ask the Lord, day by day, to search out anything in us that is not of Him. And, should our conscience convict us of sin, we must, by His power, rid our lives of its corrupt root; least our hearts become hardened by its unchecked presence. We must repent, quickly.

Our Scripture verse today harkens back to the days of King David who, at the time of this writing has been dead some 250 years. Thus signifying that our Scripture verses are directed not at unbelievers since they are directed at David and Israel, but rather at believers. And, though applicable in Isaiah’s day surely, they are also prophetic; reaching their hand into the pocket of today’s Church, speaking directly to you and me. God’s Truth is eternal and unchanging. Our verses declare, in part, just who God is and who we are in comparison. There is no room in His declaration for neither question nor doubt. God’s Sovereignty is on clear display in these verses. Therefore, as believers living in times fraught with illusions, lies, and false accusation, we must be convinced, resolute in the fact that we are who God says we are and not fall prey to those feelings that swing us this way one moment and that another, tossing us first here, then there…

Beloved, if this has hit your heart if you’ve been judging yourself as I’ve judged myself of late, may I suggest you steal away and spend some quiet time alone with the Lord. Ask Him to reveal afresh the Truth of who you are in Him and to make clear to you once again, your purpose and calling in Him. The field is white my brothers and sisters, we must be steadfastly about our Father’s business throwing off, as our brother Paul instructs us, every weight that hinders us.

And friend, if you find yourself here today saying, I’ve felt like this too! Know this, God has led you here as surely as He led me to that little dingy. If you’ve yet to ask Jesus to come into your life as Lord and Savior, please do it now. He’s led you here and He loves you. But He won’t force Himself on you…

A Word from the Lord: Emergency Intervention Is Needed.

August 3, 2019 /

As I was sitting down to study, preparing for what I thought I’d be sharing this week, the Lord showed me instead, an image of a full-term baby stuck in the birthing canal.

It was in the birthing position, fully engaged, ready for delivery, yet the child was stuck and could not be delivered. My sense was that this baby had been in this position for quite some time. Fully formed—full-term, ready to enter “new life” yet, stuck, hence, it could not come forth. Emergency intervention was necessary to save its life. To deliver it into the life it was destined to live outside of the womb. To live and grow and fulfill what it had been created to be. But, it could not quite get there on its own. Couldn’t come into this life the same way most babies do. It needed another to rescue it, to save it from dying in the womb…

There are many in the Body of Christ who have been crying out to God to be delivered. Babies who are fully formed and should have long been birthed, delivered, yet, for whatever reason, have remained stuck. God is getting ready to intervene. He alone will deliver them, performing the emergency measures needed to remove them from the womb, as with an emergency Cesarean section. He will free them, lest they die there. Tell my children I am coming. Soon and very soon I, the Lord will deliver them.

This is what I saw and heard, in my Spirit…

The Scriptures I was led to during this time were Matthew 13: 52 and all of Ezekiel 16. Pray saints. Repent and cry out for God’s forgiveness and mercy if these Words are confirming in your belly what you know the Lord has been speaking to you for some time. I trust that He who began a good work in you and I will complete what He has started.

Yet keep in mind your guilt, knowing that His punishment is just—contrary to what your flesh might have to say about it. Humble yourself then, before God. Acknowledge your sins and repent. Then wait on the Lords just judgments to pass over you as you remain steadfast and chasing after Him; trusting that He is finishing the good work in you necessary to bring you fully forth…

Baby Sips. Isaiah 43:13

August 19, 2018 /

 

 “Even from eternity I am He, And there is no one who can rescue from My hand; I act, and who can revoke or reverse it?”

Before any created thing ever even heard my Voice as I stood over the void. Before time, as it exists in your finite minds, was, I have always been.

You will never be able to undo the plans I have for you…

I don’t know about you, but for me, that’s a lot to take in. I imagine even those we consider “fathers of the faith”, those we place in the “super-Christian” category paused for a moment when taking a drink from that very tall glass?

Baby sips. That is how we must drink in—absorb, the enormity of our God. His scope. And he said, “Please, show me Your glory.” Then He said, “I will make all My goodness pass before you, and I will proclaim the name of the LORD before you. I will be gracious to whom I will be gracious, and I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion.”  But He said, “You cannot see My face; for no man shall see Me, and live”  Exodus 33:18-20.

He alone knows what we’re able of taking in at one sitting. And He alone knows what we can’t take in. What will stop us from flourishing. This Omnipresent, Omnipotent, Omniscient God offers us sips, recurrently, consistently over our lifetimes, allowing the densely concentrated richness of Himself to nourish, sustain, and increase our understating of just who this God we love, is. Consequently, through this sipping—via this gnosis, we grow as He Expands—increases, our capacity to take in more of Him. And so it goes with each new sip. As it is with our sanctification, so it is with our “understanding” of this unplumbed God. “Behold, these are but the outskirts of his ways, and how small a whisper do we hear of him! But the thunder of his power who can understand?” –Job 26:14.

When we allow the Truth of this passage of Scripture to wash over us—to wash us clean of our usual “everyday” seeing; in an instant of divine revelation, divine clarity, we’re brought face to face with its purity, its holiness, and its scale. Then again, how could God’s Word be anything other than what He is? And, in that transformative moment of revelation—of awakening from our every-day-ness, we cannot help but be both humbled and enlarged—in chorus.

Suddenly this Sovereign God of the universe—the universe, shows up. Dwells among us. Stirs up our bellies. Our inner-most parts.This same God whom we all too often try to condense, make small to fit our desire for the route one-point-five-hour version of the God we seek on Sunday mornings, just shows up! Filling us with just the faintest whisper of His presence. And we are left silent, awe-struck, left limp, splayed out before Him. Coming away from this “unscheduled” encounter with just the slightest clue, the slightest clue, into just how powerful this God we serve is. He comes  to us when He chooses and, He leaves us in much the same way. “When I look at your heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon, and the stars, which you have set in place, what is man that you are mindful of him, and the son of man that you care for him?” –Psalm 8:3-4.

Job knew this all too well.

In one day, out of what I’m sure felt like left field to him—this devout, “blameless” man of God, this loyal, church-going, every day Bible reading man, lost all 10 of his children, his servants, wealth, livestock, and health. Even his four besties turned on him! These “friends” of his share their opinions on his sudden calamity. They range from: it must be all your fault Job, to, perhaps God hadn’t punished you severely enough! And, adding insult to injury, these friends also suggest that Job’s children must have done something “awful”. Suggesting that perhaps they had brought about their own deaths. If Job hasn’t yet completely imploded from the weight of his sheer grief and dejection his own wife now takes a turn at him telling him to curse God and be done with it! After all, this isn’t what she had signed up for! And all of this because this unsearchable God allowed—granted, permission for Satan to test Jobs faith.

Our God is the God of Job. The unsearchable One. The One who both gives and takes away. For His good purpose…

And, if our love for this God should ever be so tested, we would be wise to be of the same mind concerning the ways of the Lord as was Job when, after much striving to figure Him out concluded: The wisdom of God is hidden from the human mind. Nonetheless, Job determines he will pursue such wisdom by fearing God and avoiding iniquity.  “After Job had prayed for his friends, the LORD restored his fortunes and gave him twice as much as he had before.” –Job 42:10.

Our Big God is also the God of Abraham.

The God who provides a Ram in the bush foreknowing we’ll take up the knife in obedience.

He is the God who gives us the desire of our heart long after our hope for the thing has all but faded away. Then, once we “have” this desire—this precious thing He’s blessed us with, this God who is jealous for our affections just may ask us to return it—to offer it up to Him in faith. Not because He needs, He owns both the universe, as well as all the gifts He’s given us. It may not be that He even wants it back. What He wants, what He’s seeking, is us. All of us. All our heart, soul, mind, and strength. What He wants is for us to trust Him. To love Him above all else. All else. And, yet, knowing our love for Him is true, is first, held precious in our hearts above all else, He built into this test of loyalty, of commitment, mercy.

This All-knowing God has His answer before He ever asks us the question. The testing of our commitment to Him above all else is for our benefit not His. It’s for our growth. To strengthen our faith in this God we love and serve. He is after all, God all by Himself. He does not need us, He chooses us. “Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.” –James 1:2-4.

This God, this beyond what we can even wildly dream of God, the One who speaks galaxies into existence, more, created the complexity and intricacy of those galaxies, putting them into orbit, each exact element in its exact place. He too hung the stars in the night sky and knows each by name. He’s the only One who has the answer as to how many grains of sand exist on every beach, lake, pond, on each shore, everywhere. As well as how many and the exact number of hairs on your head, on my head, on every head.

This same God thought up just how to create the most gossamer of veils. Then He placed them, these whisper thin filmy creations as wings on the backs of Dragon Flies. And He created green. And all the other colors. This Mighty God, this God who sits on the Throne of heaven seeing every-thing, everything, at once. Nothing—not one thing ever, escaping His All-Seeing eye fits Himself into my too small frail flesh that we might be One. That I might—you might, partake of heaven, of Righteousness—His, not ours, now, here on this earth. This God, too big to take in in 1000 lifetimes created me—you, that we might co-create with Him. Doesn’t that just blow your mind! God wants to use you. Partner with you.

This same God who created Neptune and breath and daisy petals wants to partner with you…

So, when I contemplate today’s Scripture, I quickly realize there is far too much I do not know—will never know, was not meant to know, this side of eternity, about this God. And I’m okay with that. I’m okay with it because I can pray for the wisdom I need. He gives it in abundance, freely. I can scour His Word too. And, I can seek this God directly for His wisdom. I have that kind of relationship with Him, because of Him. So, rather than even trying to answer today’s question posed by God ourselves, instead, let’s allow His own Words to give us our answer: “When He had said these things, He cried out with a loud voice, “Lazarus, come forth.” The man who had died came forth, bound hand and foot with wrappings, and his face was wrapped around with a cloth. Jesus said to them, “Unbind him, and let him go.” Only God can undo something He has done—allowed. Only He has that kind of Power. Even the curse of death must obey Him. Only God can save. “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,” declares the Lord. “As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.” This is the God we serve. And I for one, am humbled and blessed to be called to sit at His feet and proclaim, “My God How Great Thou Art!” Knowing I have only the slightest understanding of this Truth.

We come by faith believing, baby sips…

Friend, if you have yet to meet this God who you’ve just read about, now is the right time. This is the right place. You’re not here by accident. Please, stop, and repent of your sins, just tell God you’re terribly sorry, and ask this God into your life as your Lord and Savior. Remember, nothing gets past Him. He knew you’d be here, more, He’s the reason you are here….

 

 

 

 

 

Are You Going Gray? Revelation 3: 15-16

December 3, 2017 /

 “I know your deeds, that you are[neither cold (invigorating, refreshing) nor hot (healing, therapeutic); I wish that you were  cold or hot. So because you are lukewarm (spiritually useless), and neither hot nor cold, I will vomit you out of My mouth [rejecting you with disgust].”

He’s not speaking to the world in general. In Chapter 3 of the book of Revelation, God is talking specifically to His own—to the Body of Christ, the Church.

If you are a Blood bought believer in Jesus Christ, then God is talking to you! And, if you don’t yet know Him, now is the time. He loves you fiercely, and wants you to be with Him always…

Before we get into this Word, lets pray: Spirit of the Living God, illuminate your Word, breath your Ruach breath on it, that it may come alive in us, and through us feed may. In Jesus matchless name we pray. Amen

Gray days, we all have them—perhaps even a season of gray-ness…

Everything just feels neutral—status quo. No great highs, neither any major dips, or lows. We are not one way nor the other—we’re neutral—comfortable, blithely moving along. Our ministries are fine, our lives, fine. So are our families, friends, finances, and oh yeah, so are those sins that so easily entangle, those little foxes we’ve allowed to slip into our house—they’re fine too…

Wait, what! Sin is fine? No! No, it’s not! It’s not fine!

Now that I have your undivided attention you’re ready to hear that in the same way you were just reading along and then wham, something slipped in that wasn’t right, didn’t belong, so it is with satan. One of the enemy’s greatest tricks—his greatest deceptions, is to lull us—unsuspectingly, into a state of gray—of complacency.

Neutral-ness, grayness, lukewarm-ness, will kill your fervor for God—and for His people! If the enemy of your soul, that roaring, roaming, vicious, lying enemy—set on taking you out, can’t rip you from God’s Mighty Hands, then he will settle for robbing you of your passion. The power of your light…

I feel the Lord impressing upon me that now is not a time for grayness, neutrality. Not a time to be lukewarm! He will tolerate that no longer. It’s as though God is calling His children to perform an, ‘internal temperature check’ of sorts. Not to shame us, and certainly not to harm us. But rather to refine us, to bring us that one step closer to Him. Like myself, any believer who has had their sleep disturbed when the Holy Spirit roused them at 1, 2, 3 o’clock in the morning with that ‘call’ that goes off in the pit of your belly, that tightening that will not be ignored—that Holy disruption that wakes you up, or sits you down, or stops you in your tracks at random times of your day. Knows what I’m talking about. God is calling you to pray and pray and pray, pleading prayers of mercy. There’s a sense of urgency—a quickening, in your Spirit…

I know that you understand what I’m sharing.

And, as it is in the Spiritual realm, so too, will it manifest in the natural—the division, separation, polarization. The result of the great shaking, the sifting—the separation of the Sheep and the goats that has begun in the spirit realm. And, as with a woman’s labor pains, shall only increase. We, as a people, are experiencing a pronounced polarization in the natural world…

Allow me to explain.

If you are a parent, boss, leader—one in authority, then you should know that to lead and guide people righteously, then justice, mercy, patients, and a great deal of love, among other attributes, must accompany this great privilege. Even in doing all that your able however, there may yet come a time, when contrary to all you’ve poured into them, they will simply refuse to accept your kindness. And, so, with a heavy heart, you must allow them to go their own way. As I said, as it is in the Spirit, so it is about to manifest in the earth…

This is what I sense is happening in the Spirit, now.

God has left man with no excuse not to acknowledge Him. The world in which we live, all of creation, testifies as to His existence. And, in the technological age in which we live—now, in many places on earth, most have heard that there is only One True God—and of His Son, Jesus Christ. Most have heard that God sent Jesus into the world—a sinless sacrifice, so that all men might have the opportunity to be reconciled back to Him after sin had separated us from Him, after the fall of Adam and Eve in the garden. Yet contrary to this knowledge, many refuse to acknowledge God and turn to Him and repent of their sins. Allowing Him to restore them back into right relationship with Himself. A time is quickly coming upon us—a tipping point, when God will say enough, and contend with man no longer. When He will allow those, who continue to slander Him, refuse to acknowledge Him, those who mock and ridicule Him—to have their own way…

Since you are now reading this, you too now know.

God will always confirm His Word (Mark 16:20). How? Through His Spirit.

And, by signs. His Word tells us that He, in the last days, will sift the world. That there will come, in those days, a great sifting—a great separation, a stark division will occur. “…But he said, ‘No, lest while you gather up the tares you also uproot the wheat with them. Let both grow together until the harvest, and at the time of harvest I will say to the reapers, “First gather together the tares and bind them in bundles to burn them, but gather the wheat into my barn” (Matthew 13:29-30).

One must only look at our sin-saturated society to see evidence of this division—this polarization that’s occurred—this line in the sand that becomes more divisive daily. And I’m not talking politics or its cabals here, they’re a symptom only—a byproduct of this polarization. I’m speaking specifically about a society that is now calling good evil and evil good. I’m talking about just how far, as a people, a society, most have drifted from God…

But the prickly part, the crux of this message, is not for those who have chosen not to follow Jesus, but rather, for those who have. Those He is speaking to in this verse. As believers in Christ Jesus, we His Body, must be held to a higher standard.

It must, according to Scripture, start with us…

Join me next week, God willing, on 12/10 when we’ll delve deeper into the more personal ‘prickly parts’ of this teaching. What specifically, is God calling His children to do, ‘in such a time as this?’ Until then saints, pray in the Spirit. Pray without ceasing. Repent, ask the Holy Spirit to reveal those ‘hidden’ areas in your life that need to be laid open before the Lord…

And, if you have not yet asked Jesus into your life as Lord and Savior, but what you’ve just read is resonating with you, then now, right now, without delay, is the time to ask Jesus to come into your life as Lord and Savior. Here’s what His Word assures you if you do: “If you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes and is justified, and with the mouth one confesses and is saved” (Romans 9-10).

 

“Rescued from the Wrath” Romans 5:9-10

August 20, 2017 /

 “Therefore, since we have now been justified [declared free of the guilt of sin] by His blood, [how much more certain is it that] we will be saved from the ]wrath of God through Him. For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God through the death of His Son, it is much more certain, having been reconciled, that we will be saved [from the consequences of sin] by His life [that is, we will be saved because Christ lives today].” 

If you want to know the love of God, know the work of Christ. —John Piper

From the moment John spoke the words that forever changed the world—forever altered, shifted human history, and with it—every man’s destiny: “Behold The Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!”,  we were—we are still, being introduce to Redemption, to Life. In the blink of an eye the man that everyone was pushing past to get to John the Baptist—takes center stage. He has stepped across time and donned a body made of flesh just to be with us. He once was wrapped in milk rags and put to bed in a manger—an animal hotel. He left The Throne of Heaven, left the Father’s presence, to step into the sin-stained world He spoke into existence. One that would cry out for His Very Blood—and they’d get it.

One that had the to freedom to denounce Him—and it did. And it does, still…

Yet the last time we’d heard anything about Him—this Jesus, he was about 12 years old. His parents were desperate with fright—searching everywhere for this Lamb—their son, Mary’s, and Joseph’s—God’s own. They’d thought they’d lost Him—little did they know He could never be lost. That’s our choice, man’s, to go on being lost that is— not God’s, ever. Our Scripture verse today bears witness to that Truth. Because of God’s unfathomable, unplumbed, love He chose to give—gave to the world, the whole world, in the form of His only Son, a way back to Himself. So that whomsoever would believe in Him would have life eternal—reconciliation, a relationship, with God.

That’s the heart of God for all of humanity—for you. Believe it, or not…

Because you, we deserve it? No. Despite, regardless of, contrary to, everything, anything, and I do mean anything, you and I may have done—might have been through, God loves us, loves you, personally. Right this minute, just as you are. And, He has a plan and a purpose for your life—for your reading this message at this exact moment. As sin-stained and guilty as you may be—however dirty, or unworthy you may feel, contrary to anything that may have been inflicted upon you, done to violate you, whether you know Him or have yet to meet Him. You are loved by God.

He knows you—and more, He loves you deeply…

See while Jesus was hanging on His Cross dying for you, dying for me, the very Cross He willingly went to so that you might escape eternal death—escape a life, this life, separated from Him—from the Father, from His very best for you, both now, and in the world to come, He did so knowing if you’d respond to Him, to His great love for you, or not.He knew if you’d say yes to Him or, if you’d turn away as many standing there did that fateful day did. Our society, this world, has done a bang-up job, and I say this loosely and with intended irony, of stressing one of God’s greatest character traits—His great love for us. And, while this is true, the God’s great love part, it is also equally true that there are times His love is used as a blanket to cover over our sins, our bad habits, and actions. And that love—His love, biblically based love, has or had nothing to do with. No part of…

 

As I write this, the deplorable, hate-filled, evil, events that recently took place in Charlottesville that did their level best to recreate a racial divide paralleled to that of the pre-civil rights era, come to mind as one such example of just how man will attempt to turn, bend, reshape, the love of God for all mankind, into a sanctimonious, weak-as-water, far from holy, version of its most base nature. Its lowest version of itself. And yet, somehow equate that nature, those actions, to the will and intentions of a holy, loving, God…

Which leads me into the oft forgotten counterpart of God’s great love—His wrath. You can’t fully grasp one without having, at one point, known the other. We as a people choose to skip over the wrath part of God when we see it written somewhere, hear it preached from Sunday morning pulpit’s. But denying God’s wrath does not negate it, nor the effect it has on a person’s life. I started off this teaching with a quote from renowned bible scholar, John Piper. And it’s to him that we’ll turn now for a slice of his teaching on Romans 5:9-10. Listen as he explained how the love of God and His wrath—are inextricably linked: The Bible makes it plain that God will one day pour out the full measure of his wrath on the sinful unbelieving world, and the unrepentant will be cast into what John calls the “lake of fire.” Revelation 20:15, “And if anyone’s name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire.” And Revelation 14:10 describes it like this: They will “be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels and in the presence of the Lamb. And the smoke of their torment goes up forever and ever.” It is like fire. It is torment. It is forever and ever with no end. This is terrifying. If enmity ever had meaning, this is it. If this is not having an enemy, then there is no such thing as having an enemy. God will one day pour out his enmity – his wrath – on the whole world of humankind who have ever lived and not trusted him. The question is: Who can rescue us from this wrath of God? The clear answer of this text – and the whole New Testament – is this:

Only God can rescue us from the wrath of God…

 

Where can we see this? Verse 9: “having now been justified, shall we be saved.” Verse 10: “If while we were enemies we were reconciled to God through the death of his Son, much more having been reconciled, we shall be saved by his life.” In all those actions, we are being acted upon. Who is acting? Who is doing this justifying, reconciling, saving? The answer is God the Father. How do we know that? Because in verse 10 it says, “we were reconciled to God through the death of his Son.” But if the Son was doing the reconciling, it wouldn’t say he did it “through the Son.” You wouldn’t say. “The Son of God reconciled us to God through his Son.” No. The Father, himself, loves us.

That was the clear point of verse 8, “But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.” Here’s the good news: the love of God rescues us from the the wrath of God against sinners. Don’t try to defend the love of God for us by denying the wrath of God against sinners. If you do, you will undermine the love of God. Because the greatest demonstration of the love of God is the way it rescues us from the wrath of God. If you deny wrath to defend love, you lose love. God the Father himself works to rescue us from his wrath. And the point is that he has done this in the past, and he will do it in the future. This is the way both verse 9 and 10 are built. Verse 9: “Much more then, having now been justified by His blood [that’s the past work of God – “blood” referring to the death of his Son whom he sent], we shall be saved from the wrath of God through Him [that’s the future work of God].” Then verse 10: “For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God through the death of His Son [the past work of God in history], much more, having been reconciled [in the past], we shall be saved by His life [the work of God in the future].”

Friends, whether you’ve met Him yet, or not. And whether you believe in Him yet, or not, does not negate—will never negate, the fact, the Truth, that God so loves you that He sent Jesus to restore you to Himself, to have a relationship with you, and to save you, rescue you, as in the days of Noah, from His certain wrath…

 “For God so [greatly] loved and dearly prized the world, that He[even] gave His [One and] only begotten Son, so that whoever believes and trusts in Him [as Savior] shall not perish, but have eternal life” John 3:16

Won’t you say yes to Him, to His hand extended toward you in love—while it still today?

 

 

 

 

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