The Occultic Influence On The Body of Christ

     What do you think of when you hear the word "occult"? If you're like most people, you probably think of witchcraft, devil worship, or some kind of dark magic. Actually, the word occult is a rather broad term that covers a lot of practices that are unholy to our God. It comes from the Latin word occultus and means "hidden, or secret". The best definition I've found is that the occult is any person, group, or organization that tries to gain supernatural power, abilities, or knowledge apart from the Creator God.
     Now, that may seem as far away from Christianity as any practice could be. But I want you to know that the occult can be very subtle in the ways it intrudes into our lives. That means that Christians can be unaware about their unintentional involvement in the occult. It may not be hard to discern that activities like a Ouija Board, Tarot Cards, palm reading, or horoscopes may be flirting with the occult. And for many non-Christian people, it can be their form of spirituality. But I would wager that more than a handful of Christians have partaken in these activities at some point in their lives. "But that was a long time ago", they might think. "How can it affect me now?" Or, they dismiss it as harmless fun. They believe in Jesus and don't see it as being affiliated with the dark side.
     But here's the thing ... activities such as these are rooted in disobedience to God! You might think they are harmless, but in reality, they are an invitation for the kingdom of darkness to take up residence in you or your family line. They open doors to the demonic and give the devil legal rights to bring torment into your life.
     You might think is an over-exaggeration, but I personally know of a wonderful Christian woman who decided to have a Tarot card reading because she was at a new stage in her life, and wanted to know what might lie in her future. First, you must understand that anyone who decides to become a Tarot card "reader" receives an instruction booklet with possible interpretations of what any card might mean. I happened to be at a gathering of women when this reading was taking place. I immediately removed myself from the vicinity and began praying, separating myself from what I knew to be an unholy event.
     I don't really remember what other cards she received, nor did I listen to what the "reader" was conveying. But I couldn't ignore the hush that came over the room when she received the "Death Card". Now, of course, no one wants to receive that card, and the reader quickly interpreted it as the end of this stage of her life, and that it represented transformation and new beginnings. The woman ended her "session" excited about what lay in store for her in the coming days or months.
     Well, within that year, one of her daughters committed suicide, and the next year, her second daughter also took her own life. Now, I'm sure that there are more than a few who would say the Tarot Card reading had nothing to do with that. But because of my involvement in Inner Healing and Deliverance ministry, I am well aware of spiritual doors that can be opened.
     That's why I had to repent and renounce my own participation with Tarot card readings while in college. But as you will notice from the original image on the left, the Tarot card industry has decided to soften the image of the Death Card. But it does not change the fact that it is an open door, giving legal rights to the Enemy because you are in agreement by participating in the practice.
     Another example from my past: about a year or so ago, I ran across an old journal I had kept from a horoscope reading I had done in my late 20s. I remember going to this woman's house and providing her with the month, day, year, and actual time of my birth. She then spent an hour relaying where the planets were at the time of my birth and how that aligned with my personality and my destiny. The odd thing is that these few pages, hand-written on Big Chief tablet paper, had managed to travel with me through multiple moves over 40 years. As I read through the notes I took, I was astounded at how that reading had pretty much captured things about my personality. But it was disturbing to see how I also had notes that seemed to indicate that my future was ordained by the stars and the planets, and not my position as a daughter of the King. I took that journal to my husband and asked him to burn it. Well, it was quite interesting what happened next.... it would not burn! It was just paper and no matter how many times we applied a match to it, it would never light. Finally, my husband doused it in diesel fuel, and it finally caught fire, and please believe me ... it curled and coiled, just like a snake! That was enough to convince me that I had truly been participating in an unholy occult practice.
     But it is not just fortune-telling activities like these that are a threat to the Christian community. Satanism, Wicca, Witchcraft, Paganism, Astral Projection, violent occult video and computer games are heavy influences among our culture, especially the Millennial generation. They are looking for adventure and to be stimulated. These practices offer excitement, thrills, and distraction in a world where they are finding it difficult to know their place. But they are opening doors to demonic activity, and the Enemy is only too happy to enter in.
     And we cannot exclude some religions who have occultic overtones. Remember, "occult" means "hidden, or secret". Religions like Mormonism and Jehovah's Witnesses have their origins in the occult. Mormon founder, Joseph Smith, who was a Freemason, claimed supernatural power from a Seer Stone which he said guided him to the golden plates that helped him translate the Book of Mormon.

     Charles Taze Russell, the founder of Jehovah's Witnesses, studied the writings of Sir Isaac Newton, who was a member of another occult organization, the Rosecrucians, and both men held high regard for Egyptian gods and pyramids. (See Russell's tombstone. Does that look Christian?)
     Both religions, just like Freemasonry, put emphasis on secret rituals that elevate initiates to godhead status and include influence from false gods.  I know this may offend some of you, but I have had family members who were involved in these religions and I have seen the effects on them. Also, my niece was asked to be a bridesmaid at a Mormon wedding, but was not allowed into the Temple to witness the actual wedding ceremony because she was not a Mormon. Why would anything having to do with a wedding need to be kept in secret?
     Then there is the seemingly benign act of yoga. But do you know that the word yoga means "to be in union with; or to be yoked to"? And guess who you are in union with? The divine gods of Hinduism. Each of the yoga poses is a posture of submission to one of the 33 million Hindu gods. You can rationalize this practice by calling it "Christian yoga", but the origin of these poses is still about paying homage to false gods.
     In the end, it is important for those of us who profess faith in Jesus Christ alone to be vigilant about the abilities or knowledge we seek, and to know from whom supernatural power is coming from. Blood pacts; séances; astrology/horoscopes; spells or curses; New Age (books, objects, seminars); objects of worship/crystals/good luck charms; sexual spirits; various superstitions; martial arts (mysticism/devotion to sensei); Hare Krishna; transcendental meditation; church of Scientology; other non-christian religions or cults -- they are all non-Christian and unholy spiritual practices that need to be renounced.
     To "renounce" means to "break agreement with". Therefore, it is important that we acknowledge our sin and offense against God and ask for forgiveness. If you or someone you care about has been involved in any practice that is apart from God, then here is a prayer that you can speak over yourself/them:

Lord, I confess seeking the help from Satan that should only come from God. I confess occultism and false religions as sin. I repent and renounce for these sins and ask you to forgive me, in the Name of Jesus. I renounce Satan, his works and his demons, and count them my enemies. I close the door on occult practices, and I command any associated spirits to leave me now in the Mighty Name of Jesus!

Father, please forgive me for any indulgences in the occult, both for what I did myself, and any involvement by my family. I renounce it and cover myself with the blood of Jesus. In the Name of Jesus, I renounce and break loose myself and my family from all psychic powers, bondages, and bonds of mental and physical illness, upon me and my family line, as the result of parents and other ancestors.

I renounce, break, and loose myself from demonic subjection to any family members, ancestors, descendants, or any other human beings, living and dead, who have had spiritual influence over me. I ask You to forgive and bless them, especially with salvation.

I ask that You would forgive me for participating in occult practices and false religion and spiritual adultery. I forgive those who have cursed me. Please forgive me for cursing others. I break any curses and demonic soul ties including psychic and Catholic prayers. Lord, I ask forgiveness for keeping cursed objects and demon infestation in my possession and my home and property. I will clean out my house of any cursed objects. I will anoint my house with oil.

I renounce all fortune telling, all magic practices, and spiritism, cults and false teachings, and any form of Satan worship, in the Name of Jesus.

I break any and all curses and soul ties brought about by psychic heredity, occult contacts and religious cults.

In the Name of Jesus Christ, I break any and all demonic holds on my family line due to supernatural experiences apart from God and name them as the Holy Spirit leads.

Father, I thank You that the blood of Jesus cleanses me from all sin and I go forth in the freedom that His blood paid for. It is in His Mighty and Powerful Name that I pray. Amen. 

John 18:20      Jesus answered him, “I have spoken openly to the world. I have always taught in synagogues and in the temple, where all Jews come together. I have said nothing in secret.

  
      

    

The Fullness of Salvation

     As often happens, I will be re-reading Scriptural ground that I have covered before and detect the tip of buried treasure within a verse, and it leads me on a journey of new revelation. So, I invite you to take this ride with me.
     I am still deep in Hebrews, and as I finished Chapter 9, the verses 27 and 28 caught my spiritual eye: And just as it is appointed for man to die once, and after that comes judgment, so Christ, having been offered once to bear the sins of many, will appear a second time, not to deal with sin but to save those who are eagerly waiting for Him (ESV).
     As I often do, I like to compare various translations to see if I receive a new or different insight to God's inspired Word. Here's what the Passion Translation says: Every human being is appointed to die once, and then to face God’s judgment. But when we die we will be face-to-face with Christ, the One who experienced death once for all to bear the sins of many! And now to those who eagerly await him, He will appear a second time; not to deal with sin, but to bring us the fullness of salvation. 

     I couldn't help but notice the difference in the two translations. The English Standard Version (ESV) seemed to place the focus of Christ's second appearance on those who are eagerly awaiting Him, while the Passion Translation spoke louder to me about the fullness of the salvation He is bringing. What is the meaning of this "fullness" and how does it differ from the first salvation we received when we accepted Jesus as our Savior?
     There is agreement between the two versions of Hebrews 9:27-28 that Christ is a Living Hope for those of us who eagerly await His return. As I searched Scripture for more revelation on the connection between Jesus as our hope and His eventual return, I found it in 1 Peter, Chapter 1. To begin, we find ample reason to glorify the Father for bringing us into relationship with Him... We give Him praise for His extravagant gift of mercy and grace into a new life in Jesus Christ, the Messiah. We exalt Him for granting us the position of "children", including the rights and privileges as heirs, and the impartation of spiritual life. We recognize our spiritual rebirth from above; that we've been spiritually transformed, renewed, and sanctified. We acknowledge that we must be reborn by the Living Water of the Word [which cleanses and gives spiritual life] and the Holy Spirit, who moves our spirit to respond to His voice. And then, in verse 5, Peter references that there is more to be unveiled regarding salvation: Through our faith, the mighty power of God constantly guards us until our full salvation is ready to be revealed in the last time. 
     There it is again! "Our full salvation"! As I contemplated these verses and revisited my understanding of salvation [as I learned it at the time of my conversion], a bigger picture began to form. I understood that at the time I repented for my sins and asked Jesus into my heart as my Savior, I received immediate spiritual and eternal deliverance from my sins; the debt I owed God for my disobedience had been paid by the blood of Jesus on the Cross.
     But here is Peter telling us that at the return of Christ, our full salvation will be revealed. A careful word study showed me that the word "revealed" comes from the Greek word apokalupto, meaning to "uncover, unveil; reveal for the first time". So obviously there is some other aspect of our salvation that is unknown to us at this time, which will be unveiled to us "in the last time", i.e at Christ's return at the end of this age. It will not change the effect of our salvation, but I believe it will unveil the depth of it --- just how much we have been saved, and from what.
     And it takes a willingness on the part of the believer to consider what that will look like. Too often, I think we modern Christians are satisfied to bask in the knowledge that we don't have to pay the penalties for our sins; and as a result we get to live eternally with our Father in Heaven. We don't give too much thought to the warnings that the Bible gives us about what that time will look like, when Jesus comes back to "judge the quick [alive] and the dead".
     We think of ourselves as safely established in this "Age of Grace", and many still believe that they will experience no part of the coming Great Tribulation; that they will be whisked away to Heaven before any of "the bad stuff" happens on the earth. But would it change your mind if you knew that the same word, apokalupto, used in 1 Peter, is also used by the Apostle John to refer to the full revealing of Jesus Christ in the Book of Revelation? 
     In this last book of the Bible, the divine program of redemption for mankind is brought to its fulfillment. The Book of Revelation is an unveiling of the character and the plan of God. It depicts visions and symbols of the resurrected Christ, who alone has authority to judge the earth. And because everything about God is holy, so is His Justice. That Justice will be the wrath of God against those who have continued in their rebelliousness and lawlessness -- the wrath that we will be spared from because of our imputed righteousness that comes through our initial salvation experience.
    But take another look at what Peter says in 1 Peter 1:13 ... Through our faith, the mighty power of God constantly guards us until our full salvation is ready to be revealed in the last time. I have often said that our salvation is a process and a journey. We are told to "work out our salvation with fear [holy awe] and trembling", indicating that it is a continuous action throughout our lives. Therefore, it makes sense that we will have no idea of the magnitude of what Jesus did for us until it is unveiled and displayed when He comes to judge the earth and its wicked. 
     The fullness of our salvation has nothing to do with the value or completeness of it. Jesus accomplished everything we needed in order to be saved when He went to the Cross. Rather, it has to do with our full comprehension of what we were saved from: the wrath [anger, fury] of a righteous God. But we need not approach that time with misgivings or fear because there is hope in the Word. Peter also says, So then, prepare your hearts and minds for action! Stay alert and fix your hope firmly on the marvelous grace that is coming to you. For when Jesus Christ is unveiled, a greater measure of grace will be released to you.  When those days come, we will have no fear of the wrath of God, or of Jesus as Judge of the world. Instead, we will, by God's grace, be able to share the tremendous joy of knowing the fullness of our salvation and the divine revelation of our Savior, Jesus Christ, the Messiah!

Philippians 3:12   I admit that I haven’t yet acquired the absolute fullness that I’m pursuing, but I run with passion into His abundance so that I may reach the purpose that Jesus Christ has called me to fulfill and wants me to discover. 

The Good News of The Kingdom of God

     I know it may seem as if I'm belaboring the point of the Kingdom, but I do not think the Body of Christ has a firm grasp of how important this matter is to God. Has it become clear to you that all the parables Jesus teaches in Scripture pertain to the Kingdom? Or, like me [before my spiritual eyes were opened], perhaps you assumed they were moral lessons that we are to learn to become better Christians. But, in my case, that belief came from an immature understanding of the "big picture" the Bible presents.
     For far too long, I accepted the Church's organized and religious versions of what God wanted to tell me through His Holy Word. And it wasn't until I began my own earnest study that some of those teachings and doctrines fell short, if not exposed as downright corrupted. Let's start with the Book of Genesis. It is more than the Sunday School stories we were taught on the Creation of the World, the Fall of Man, Cain and Abel, Noah and the Flood, Abraham and Isaac, Jacob and Esau, Joseph sold into slavery, and the proliferation of the Twelve Tribes of Israel. Yes, Genesis reveals all those important stories, but there is so much more! The very core of Genesis is based on God's plan [from the beginning] to make Earth an extension of His Kingdom in Heaven. And He intended for His creation [man] to rule and have dominion over the earth by establishing His Kingdom principles. Man was created to be in authority over God's creation.
     But as Scripture tells us, Man relinquished that authority to Satan in the Garden. It has been God's design ever since to restore our rightful authority and dominion. God intended to rule Earth through our leadership. We were created to be second-in-command under the Rulership of the Triune God.  From that first rebellion in Genesis, God has planned for us to re-discover not only His purpose, but ours, and to reclaim our inheritance as sons and daughters of God.

     Here is the one thing that I believe those of us of the Christian faith need to come to terms with: Jesus did not come to establish Christianity or the Christian religion. He came to restore the Kingdom of God to earth! Everything that Jesus said and did during His three-year ministry came from the Divine instructions of the Father. He only said and did what the Father revealed to Him. His ministry reflected His passionate desire (and the Father's) to establish the Kingdom of God in men's hearts so that they might influence all aspects of the earth.
     But remember, the fact that God is sovereign over His Kingdom, and we were created to administer His Kingdom here on earth, indicates that we live under His rule and His reign. The effect of His Kingdom touches our body, soul, and spirit and is able to heal, transform and renew every part of us. But His Kingdom is not designed to just effect our physical body or inner man. We are supposed to be shining examples of what a Kingdom citizen looks like. And I mean "shining" in the sense that the light of Christ and the Holy Spirit is evident in all we do and say. And it's all really simple. In fact, Jesus said, "Whoever does not open their arms to receive God’s kingdom like a teachable child will never enter it.”
     When you think about it, He has given us everything we need to enter the Kingdom ... 1) His Word, reveals what Kingdom living looks like, along with our responsibilities as citizens of the Kingdom, and includes the blessings that come from entering into the Kingdom. Jesus presents all that relevant information in the four Gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. 2) He has given us the Holy Spirit as our Guide, Counselor, and Teacher to help us stay on track and keep us focused on the Kingdom. 3) He has given us a goal to reach: Seek the Kingdom first, and His righteousness. Then ALL our earthly needs will be met. 
     Yet, I fear that too many of us look at other things first before we ever consider the Kingdom of God as our priority .... we look at our families, our jobs, our positions in the Church, our positions in the world, our finances, how other people see us, and anything that makes us feel good about ourselves. But Jesus is our King, and our loyalty must first be to Him. We cannot say, "Lord, I will follow you and represent Your Kingdom, but first let me ______". 
     The Good News of the Kingdom is that once we enter into the Kingdom through the doorway, which is faith in Jesus, we have entered a new country; we have a new homeland. We are no longer citizens of the United Citizens, but are residing in the Kingdom of God. We are then commissioned as ambassadors and representatives of His Kingdom government, and our assignment is to help others find the doorway, too. That's what Jesus did! Yes, He performed signs and wonders, but the purpose of them was to bring the Kingdom of God [and His access to its resources] into view so that everyone He met would "seek the Kingdom" and desire to enter it, too. 
     As citizens of the Kingdom, we have full rights and access to the resources of the Kingdom. Jesus showed us that when He confidently expected there to be enough food to feed the five thousand. He knew His Father's Kingdom was one of plentiful provision. He knew that as long as He tended to His Father's business, all of His needs would be met. Today we read that story and call it a "miracle". To Jesus, and Kingdom-minded citizens, it is an expected development.
     The Good News of the Kingdom is that healing, deliverance, provision, mercy, love, and grace [among many other rights of Kingdom citizens] are all parts of God's system of Kingdom government. They are the privileges of every person who enters the Kingdom through the door of Jesus. They are not end goals within themselves, but benefits of understanding who we are and our position within the Kingdom. It is exactly because we move beyond the door of Jesus [and our "born again" experience] that we can mature and grow as true sons and daughters of the King and take part in this increase of God's Kingdom on earth.
      And as children of God, it is important that we not only seek His Kingdom, but His righteousness, as well. We need to know His mind and His heart; begin thinking like Him so that we can be instrumental in seeing His righteous will done here on Earth. I have such a longing to know more of the Kingdom and my role in it. I have stepped through the door that is Jesus, and now I want to know how I can be a good citizen of the Kingdom. What is the best way I can serve my King? How does He want me to share the news of His Kingdom? Am I hearing my assignment correctly? I don't want more of religion or church-y systems. I want to walk boldly and confidently in His Kingdom system! And I know any and all news about the Kingdom is "good".  But, Lord, I am asking you to reveal my next steps, and I pray that my Kingdom walk serves Your purposes, not my own. I thank you for drawing me into Your Kingdom. Now, help me to be worthy of my citizenship, as I seek you with all my heart.

Revelation 11:15       ... The kingdom (dominion, rule) of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord and of His Christ; and He will reign forever and ever. 

    
      

Another Look At Eschatology -- Part 2

    
     I want to begin this second half of my theory on the Eschatology in Matthew 24 with this premise: I do not believe we should become too focused on when all the events Jesus references take place. It is enough to know that He announced there would be an end to old religious systems [that could not save mankind] and the beginning of a Kingdom of Heaven government on earth; a government that would not end.
     But most Christians are even unaware of this truth. So until His return, there will be a clash between the two systems -- religion vs Kingdom -- with the old system fighting for relevancy in the face of the re-establishment of God's original design for man on the earth. Yes, Jesus tells us not to be concerned about the day and the hour of His return, but He also tells us to stay awake and be ready for it, or like in the parable of the ten virgins, the foolish ones will find themselves shut out of the marriage feast.
     With all that in mind, let's go back to Matthew 24 and see how Jesus makes a transition from the things that would happen in the generation of the Disciples [to signal the beginning of the end of religious systems] to the actual time of His return when the last of the religious age will yield to the everlasting Kingdom of God on earth.
     So yesterday, we left Jesus prophesying that the old religious system is being replaced with a Kingdom model and its gospel "will be proclaimed throughout the whole world as a testimony to all nations" ... and then the end [of the religious system] would come. Notice that He doesn't give a timeline for how long that will take. And I would submit to you that the gospel of the Kingdom has not been preached throughout the world. In fact, it has not even been preached throughout the Western Church! (This is a topic that I will be exploring in my next post). There are still people who do not understand what Jesus inaugurated with His First Coming. Therefore, "the end" is not yet in sight.
     But I want to take a careful look at Matthew 24:15-28.  It is in these verses that Jesus makes His transition FROM prophesying to the Disciples' generation TO prophesying about His Second Coming. Note that He begins this passage by telling them that when they see "the abomination of desolation spoken of by the prophet Daniel", those that are in Judea must flee to the mountains because great tribulation is coming. He further states, "And if those days had not been cut short, no human being would be saved. But for the sake of the elect those days will be cut short."
     Now, I have sat in several Sunday School classes that have taught that this is concerning the future. So let's first look at the "abomination of desolation". If you are like me, you have likely been taught that there will be an event similar to the one in Daniel, Chapter 9, -- "and on the wings of abominations shall come one who makes desolate." The website, The Gospel Coalition, agrees with historians who say this references the Seleucid king Antiochus Epiphanes IV, who ruled Palestine from 175-64 B.C. Antiochus treated Israel with such violence and contempt that they rebelled against him. When he came to suppress the rebellion, his forces entered the temple, stopped the regular sacrifices, set up an idol of [or altar for] Zeus, and apparently offered swine there as a sacrifice. This is an abomination because it is idolatry, and it brings desolation because it defiles the holy place at the heart of Israel.
     So, while I do not think Jesus is necessarily saying this specific abomination will be repeated, I do think we can surmise that here, as is often the case throughout the Bible, “abomination” refers to major covenant violations, especially idolatry. But I also think we should consider that He is still talking about this happening in the generation of the Disciples, and He could be prophesying about the destruction of the Temple in 70 AD. And I will tell you that His comments that no humans would be saved unless the days were cut short certainly apply to the siege and destruction of the Temple in Jerusalem.
     Just read what it was like .... the Jews rose up in rebellion against Rome, which resulted in a campaign by Rome's leading general, Vespasian, to take care of "the Jewish problem". This was a continuation of the "wars and rumors of wars" prophecy Jesus had made earlier. Vespasian began his campaign in AD 67 in Galilee, where a young priest, Joseph, was in command. His army numbered more than 50,000 men. Vespasian took Sepphoris, Jotapata (where Joseph surrendered to the general and became the Roman scribe Josephus), and several other towns with brutal force. He also destroyed Gamla, where the Jewish Zealot movement began, putting 10,000 people to the sword. Most of the towns of the region were left as smoking ruins. Many men were executed, often crucified, and the women and children were sold into slavery. A few were saved for the games in the arena. Galilee was again Roman.
     When Vespasian became emperor after the death of Nero, he appointed his son, Titus, to continue his campaign against Jerusalem. The situation in Jerusalem was horrible. Several factions of Zealots converged on the city, having been defeated elsewhere. They blamed each other for their defeats. One group controlled the Temple Mount and appointed their own priest. When the Sadducee priests resisted, they were slaughtered along with 8,500 of their supporters. The sewers of the city ran with Jewish blood. Simon Bar Giora, another self-proclaimed messiah, entered the city and fought the Zealots. Confusion and terror reigned. Jerusalem was divided into three sections, each fighting the other as the Romans tightened the noose. Apparently, the Christian community, possibly remembering Jesus' words (Matthew 24:15-16), fled to the mountainous regions east of the country.
     In the spring of AD 70, Titus arrived outside Jerusalem. His army now numbered 80,000 or more. Titus breached the third wall near the end of May and slaughtered the people of that part of the city. Five days later, the second wall fell. Half of the city belonged to the Romans. In July, the Romans built a siege wall around the city to prevent escape and to starve the citizenry.
     People killed each other over scraps of food. Anyone suspected of contemplating surrender was killed. Because some Jews had swallowed gold coins before trying to escape, their fellow citizens began to disembowel those they caught, looking for money. In one night, 2,000 were ripped open. No one bothered to bury the dead. Many who did surrender were crucified just outside the walls so the hapless defenders could watch their agony. Josephus records that the Roman soldiers nailed people in various positions for their own amusement until they could not find enough crosses for the victims.
     The famine took its toll as well. Josephus reports that 600,000 bodies were thrown out of the city. On August 6, the sacrifices ceased in the Temple. The Temple itself was burned and destroyed on the ninth of the Jewish month of Av (the end of August), the same day it had been destroyed by the Babylonians more than 600 years before. It has never been rebuilt. All the citizens of the city were executed, sold into slavery, or saved for the games in the arena. The slaughter was beyond description. Infants were thrown to their deaths from the top of the city walls, and people were burned alive; the alleys of the city were choked with corpses. Eleven thousand prisoners died of starvation waiting for their execution. Josephus records that more than 1 million perished and nearly 100,000 were sold into slavery. The Jews' holy city was gone and their Temple destroyed. I don't know about you, but I think these events qualify as fulfillment of Jesus's prophecy that if the days had not been cut short, no one would have been saved. Therefore, it makes sense that this passage pertains to that time and that generation, not the future. 
     BUT, then Jesus does something curious. He again prophesies that "false christs and false prophets will arise and perform great signs and wonders, so as to lead astray, if possible, even the elect."  It is here that I believe He transitions to the coming of the end of the age of religion [and the perpetuation of His Kingdom] and His Second Coming. He says, "do not believe" the false christs. We will see the sign of the coming of the Son of Man ... it will look like this ... as the lightning comes from the east and shines as far as the west.
     Again, I want to make it clear that I do not put forth my opinion as a Biblical scholar. But I try to be like a good Berean and search the Scripture for truth. And I am certainly open to having my mind changed as the Holy Spirit reveals more of what I need to know. And you know what? We don't have to agree on the timeline of eschatology. Nor do we even need to consider the timeline, except for His admonition to "stay awake" and "be ready". So when Jesus says "after the Tribulation of those days", the Bible does not say which days it is. Therefore, we should consider His warning as if it could be any day.
     But He does state that the powers of the heavens will be shaken and there will appear in heaven the sign of the Son of Man, and all the tribes of the earth will mourn when they see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven with great power and glory. He will send out His angels with a loud trumpet call, and they will gather His elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other.
     And, yes, only the Father knows when that will take place. But He gives us clear instructions ... He is setting His servants over His household until He returns. We are to feed the children of God until He returns. We are to preserve and extend His Kingdom to all the earth. That should be what we are all focused upon. And what does that look like? What is the good news of the Kingdom? Tune in for the next post!

Matthew 24:43-44      But know this, that if the master of the house had known in what part of the night the thief was coming, he would have stayed awake and would not have let his house be broken into. Therefore you also must be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect. 

Another Look At Eschatology - Part 1

     

     About a month ago, I wrote a post about taking the Bible out of context and asked a couple of important questions ... Are we willing to read the Bible from the context of the New Testament writers? Or are we only willing to accept the doctrines we've been taught in our denominations or by modern-day writers and theologians? Because I have to tell you that I recently had to re-think my understanding when I decided to take another look at the eschatology of Matthew 24. 
     First, we need to come to an agreement on the term eschatology. The term comes from two Greek words meaning "last" (ἔσχατος) and "study" (-λογία). In short, it is the study of "end things". Webster's dictionary says eschatology means "the part of theology concerned with death, judgment, and the final destiny of the soul and of humankind." The study of "end times" by the Christian community goes all the way back to the teachings of the Christian apologists, Justin Martyr (c. 100–165), Tertullian (c. 160–225), and Origen (c. 185–254). The Puritans in the 18th and 19th centuries, along with German scholars in the 20th century, brought us various theological belief systems regarding the Second Appearance of Christ on the earth. But I think it is safe to say that Matthew 24 has caught the attention of most Christians as the primary source for their interpretation of when the "End Times" occurs and what it will look like. But is the interpretation correct?
     I, for one, accepted the prominent theory that all of this chapter in Matthew foretells the signs we should be looking for; signs that will indicate that Jesus is about to return. But I was encouraged to read it again and take from it only the context within which Jesus is speaking. When I paid close attention to the actual verbiage and the grammatical tense of His Words, I realized that there were actually two timelines that Jesus discusses.
     The first happens in Matthew 24:1-14. The second timeline is from verse 15 to the end of the chapter. As I came to that understanding, I realized that much of what I had understood as the characteristics of the End Times was, if not flawed, at least only partially true. The Bible didn't support what I had been taught in Church; or what I had heard others speak; and especially what I, myself, tried to make it mean. Let me show you what I'm talking about....
     At the end of Chapter 23, Jesus is berating the religious leaders in Jerusalem, calling them a brood of vipers for what they will do to prophets and wise men He sends them. He curses them with the pronouncement that all the righteous blood shed upon the earth will come upon them. He asks how they will escape being sentenced to hell, and then makes the declaration that "all these things will come upon this generation".
     Now, if you are a 21st century Believer interested in eschatology and the End Times, I know you've been taught that "this generation" is a future proclamation for us. But that's not what Jesus is saying! In fact, His disciples came to Him on the Mount of Olives and ask Him, "When will these things be, and what will be the sign of your coming and of the end of the age?"
     We need to stop right here and get a couple of things clear. First, note that Scripture says end of the age! Many versions of the Bible (King James, Geneva Bible, Douay-Rheims) say "What will be the sign of the end of the world." That has led to a huge misconception of what Jesus is going to talk about and to whom He is speaking! Remember, the disciples have been with Him for nearly three years. He has told them of His coming death and resurrection, and He has also told them that there are some of them standing with Him "who will not taste death until they see the Son of Man coming in his kingdom" (Matthew 16:28). Remember ... what has been His primary message? "The Kingdom of God has arrived!" and "I must preach the Good News of the Kingdom of God in other towns, too, because that is why I was sent." The Disciples may not yet understand its full implication, but they are well immersed in His Kingdom message. And they have seen the Pharisees demand signs from heaven [in Matthew 16:1] and heard Jesus tell them, "You know how to interpret the appearance of the sky, but you cannot interpret the signs of the times. An evil and adulterous generation seeks for a sign, but no sign will be given to it except the sign of Jonah". And we know that sign was given to them [in that generation] with the Lord's three days in the grave.
     So, let's return to Chapter 23 where Jesus berates the Pharisees. Among the seven "Woes!" that Jesus pronounces against them, He makes it clear that they will be judged for shutting the kingdom of heaven in people's faces. For they neither enter themselves nor allow those who would enter to go in (Matthew 23:13). Jesus has been preaching the Kingdom of God for three years and they still don't get it! What they don't understand is that the old religious system is ending and the Age of the Kingdom is here! And, furthermore, all these things will come upon this generation ... not our generation or some future generation -- but the generation to whom He is talking!
     So, what does He actually tell the Disciples is coming? Their house will be left to them desolate ... there will not be left one stone upon another that will not be thrown down ... many will come in His name, saying, 'I am the Christ', and will lead many astray ... wars and rumors of wars ...nation will rise against nation ... kingdom against kingdom ... famines and earthquakes in various places ...
     I, for one, have mistakenly interpreted that to be a dual prophecy. Here's how my thinking went: Obviously, the statement made to the Pharisees that their house would be left desolate, combined with Jesus's declaration to the Disciples that not one stone would be left upon another, refers to the destruction of the Temple in 70 AD and the destruction of the old religious order.
     But Jesus actually says in 24:8, [about those things just mentioned] ... This is how the first contractions and birth pains of the new age will begin!” He is speaking of the new age of the Kingdom that He has brought with Him! And, in fact, these were signs that did occur in that generation. I did some research and found this article that lists the revolts and rebellions that happened in the First Century, and during the lives of the Disciples. The wars and rumors of wars prophecy came true! There were 50,000 slain in Mesopotamia; 20,000 butchered in Caesarea; 10,000 in 50 AD during Passover; 50,000 killed in Alexandria in 66 AD; 20,000 died in Syria; and within one-and-a-half years, four Roman emperors were killed. 
     Jesus's prophecies of famines and earthquakes in that generation is supported by Scripture. Acts 11:28 tells us that a prophet named Agabus "stood up and foretold by the Spirit that there would be a great famine over all the world (this took place in the days of Claudius)." This famine actually took place in Syria between 46 and 47 AD. Again, it happened in that generation. Of course, there is the earthquake that took place at Jesus's crucifixion, as well as the earthquake in 62 AD that destroyed the city of Pompeii, and may have been a contributing factor to the eruption of Mount Vesuvius in 79 AD.
     But look what else He says will be coming in that generation... In Matthew 24:9-13, Jesus says,  "Then they will deliver you up to tribulation and put you to death, and you will be hated by all nations for my name's sake.  And then many will fall away and betray one another and hate one another. And many false prophets will arise and lead many astray. And because lawlessness will be increased, the love of many will grow cold. But the one who endures to the end will be saved."
     Well, we certainly know that the Disciples [in that generation] suffered persecution and all but John were put to death for their faith in Jesus. They did endure to the end of their lives and their salvation is assured. And most of us are familiar with the story in Acts 8:9-11 which tells us of Simon, a great magician, who astounded the people of Samaria with his astonishing displays of magic arts. I don't know for sure, but I imagine they closely resembled the acts of Jesus (healing the sick and casting out demons). The Bible tells us, "Everyone, from the least to the greatest among them, was dazzled by his sorcery, saying, 'This man is the greatest wizard of all! The divine power of God walks among us!' "
     But Simon wasn't the only one. Acts 5:36-37 also tell us of a man named Theudas "who rose up claiming to be somebody", and of another man who rose up, Judas the Galilean, "who got people to follow him in a revolt". History also records the names of Simon Bar Giora and Simon Bar Kochba as self-declared Messiahs. But when we let Scripture interpret Scripture, we see that the Bible attests to Jesus's prophecies of "the things" that would come upon that generation.
     As I re-read and studied the Bible, I saw what was right in front of my eyes all these years but I was too blind to see it. The English Standard Version actually tells us that Matthew 24:3-14 are Signs of the End of the Age. But all my previous understanding had come from teachings that said it was the "end of the world". And so I interpreted the signs of false prophets, wars, famines, earthquakes etc. to be something that those in the generation of Jesus's return would recognize. But that is not reading the Bible in context! Jesus clearly was talking to the Disciples and their generation!
    But I do not want to end this Part 1 without mentioning the last sign Jesus gives. This sign leads us into Part 2 of my Eschatology theory. In verse 14, Jesus says, And this gospel of the kingdom will be proclaimed throughout the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come.
     Here Jesus is still talking about the end of the religious system. But, folks, we still have the religious system with us. Our present-day religious system doesn't recognize that the Kingdom of God is on earth. It doesn't embrace healing and casting out demons as assignments for followers of Jesus. It doesn't acknowledge our power and authority to take back dominion of the earth. It elevates the Gospel of Salvation above the Gospel of the Kingdom. I want you to consider this ... Jesus's mission wasn't to get you to Heaven. It was to get you to bring Heaven down to earth! It was to establish territory for the Kingdom of God and to leave us as ambassadors representing our King.
     Once the Gospel of the Kingdom is proclaimed throughout the whole world as a testimony to all nations, then the centuries-old religious system will end and the Everlasting Age of the Kingdom will endure! In the rest of Chapter 24, Jesus begins to speak of how that will come about with the Coming of the Son of Man. So, stay tuned for the rest of the story!

 Isaiah 29:13    These people honor me with their words while their hearts run far away from me! Their worship is nothing more than a charade! For they continue to insist that their man-made traditions are equal to the instructions of God.
    
     

    
    

Luke 22:15-16

Then He said to them, "With fervent desire I have desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer; For I say to you, I will no longer eat of it until it is fulfilled in the Kingdom of God."

 

     As most of the Christian world celebrates Easter today, it is extremely exciting for me to see more and more Christians celebrating the Passover Feasts. That wasn't the case when my heart was first awakened to the seven appointed feasts of the Lord over six years ago.  It was then that Mark and I decided to begin a deep study on how Scripture said they applied to us, as Christians. And now, six years later, the Lord is pointing us to the Passover as citizens of the Kingdom of God.

     The 2019 Festival of Passover began on the evening of Friday, April 19th and will conclude at evening on Saturday, April 27.  Within these Holy days, God ordained the Feast of Pesach, the Feast of Unleavened Bread, and the Feast of Fruitfruits -- all in commemoration of what He did in delivering the Israelites out of bondage in Egypt AND as a foreshadowing of the work He would do through His Son, Jesus Christ, in delivering us out of a life of bondage to sin. Within these eight days of Passover, Jesus was crucified, buried, and resurrected, and each Feast speaks of Him and His redemptive work on our behalf.

     And yes, God ordained these Feast Days, and they are His Holy Days, not just Jewish holidays, as the Church has mistakenly believed. In Leviticus 23, God proclaimed them as My Feasts and that they would be a perpetual statute among all your generations in all your dwelling places.  And because we are the spiritual descendants of Abraham, these Feasts not only have meaning to us, but I believe that we are to celebrate them, too.  After all, Abraham is the "father" of our faith, and as Galatians 3:29 says, If you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise. 

     As the body of Believers has grown in understanding the significance of Passover, it has been interesting to see the conflict within the Church. Should Christians celebrate Easter or Passover? Is it wrong for Christians to celebrate Passover? Is Easter really Biblical? These are all questions you must answer for yourselves. In doing so, I would recommend that you study what the Word has to say and also do some historical research. I think you will find that our religious celebrations have taken on new meaning down through the centuries.

     The eight days that make up the Festival of Passover are actually recorded in Exodus, Chapter 12. Here we find three separate Feasts, all under the umbrella of "the Feast of Passover". The first day of the Festival, and the first of the Feasts, is called Pesach, which means "spare" or "exempt" in Hebrew, and which our English Bibles translate as "pass over".  Therefore, it has become known as the Feast of Passover in our time.
     It is the foundation of all three Feasts, and commemorates the Lord's direction to the Israelites to sacrifice an unblemished and spotless lamb, applying it's blood to the side doorposts and top lentil of each home. [It is important to note, that this application made the motion of the Cross]. The Lord promised to pass over homes where the blood of the lamb had been applied.  The lambs were the substitutes for the people, sparing them [and saving them] from death and judgment by the Lord. Each house marked by the blood of the lamb would be a haven of salvation, a place safe from the judgment that was about to come upon Egypt. Those Egyptian homes, where there was no application of the blood, would suffer the judgment of the Angel of Death at Midnight. NOTE: The Lord has recently shown me that those homes marked by the blood were more than just safe havens of salvation, but were under the jurisdiction of the Kingdom of God. The Egyptians' homes, which remained unmarked by the blood of a sacrificial lamb, belonged to the kingdom of the world in which satan was god. 

     We know the rest of this story... the Israelites were spared, while the first born in every Egyptian home died that night, causing Pharaoh to issue a decree that the Israelites be released and allowed to leave.  For the Jewish people, the focus of the Passover observance is remembering YHWH's deliverance of Israel out of Egypt. "Remember" -- that is the key word for this celebration.
     For us Christians, who are Abraham's seed of the New Covenant, the Feast of Passover is a call to remember the Redemption we have received through Jesus Christ, the Lamb of God.  He is our Passover who takes away the sin of the world.  We are redeemed with precious blood, as of a lamb unblemished and spotless, the blood of Christ. Just as the first Passover proved to be the Power of God to release the children of Israel from their bondage in Egypt, Jesus is the Power of God to release us from the penalty of our sin into Repentance, His love, Life, Freedom, Liberty, AND into the Kingdom of God as Kingdom citizens. Jesus IS the manifestation of the Passover Lamb, and He was crucified on the Feast of Passover. 

     The second feast of the Passover Festival is the Feast of Unleavened Bread, which lasts seven days.  Historically, it is a call to remember the quick exodus from Egypt, when the Israelites were instructed to make bread without leaven (yeast) because they didn't have time to wait for it to rise. In addition, yeast, or leaven, in the Bible always referred to any corrupting influence in the nation of Israel.  In this instance, God was telling them to leave behind the unholy influences of Egypt -- the worship of false Egyptian gods, and the rituals and traditions that had corrupted Israel's relationship with their God during their 430 years of captivity. They were to spend that week in worship and reflection for what God had done for them, and for their relationship with Him that they were privileged to experience. They were to remove any leaven [or sin] that was corrupting their present  relationship; it was to be a time of absolute separation from leaven in any form.
     For today's Christian, this time is a Call to Purity, to an "Unleavened" life.  Jesus knew no sin, nor was any deceit found in Him.  He was unblemished and spotless.  He was made sin for us so that we could be made the righteousness of God in Him.  For us, it is a time to call to mind what God has done in each of our lives.  We should each have a personal testimony of God's salvation and our relationship to Him.  As we reflect on how He has delivered us from sin, we can ask His help in removing any leaven from our life that is separating us from Him.  The Feast of Unleavened Bread is a time of renewal and revival in our daily lives. And I will tell you that, for me, it is becoming a time for the renewal of my mind to see God's Kingdom come into its full influence on the earth. He is delivering me from wrong religious thinking and into a new mindset of my purpose as an ambassador of my King and His Kingdom. It is not a denial of Jesus's work on the Cross, but a greater realization of His whole purpose -- reconnecting us back to our original relationship with God!

     The third feast of this Holy Festival is the Feast of Firstfruits.  This feast occurs during the week of Unleavened Bread on the Sabbath after Passover.  In the Old Covenant, it acknowledged the Lord as the giver of the harvest, and commemorated Adam's son, Abel, bringing the first of his flock as an offering to the Lord. This Feast speaks volumes of Christ as the first of God's Harvest of souls and is a shadow of what Christ has done and the promises He has yet to do. 

     The Feast of Firstfruits points to Christ and His redemptive work. First of all, Jesus's resurrection occurred on the very day of the celebration of the Feast of Firstfruits.  He is the offering presented to the Heavenly Father as the first fruit of the harvest.  But just as important, He is the guarantee that more resurrections will follow.  In His first fruits offering, we see the blessing and the setting apart [or sanctifying] of the entire harvest to the Father, and a preview of what the resurrection will be like for every Believer.  Because He overcame death and lives today, every born-again follower of Christ is connected to Him and His power.

     Furthermore, that connection is real! God sent His Son to establish a Kingdom [and a family of sons] to rule His Kingdom for Him! Jesus didn't die and return to Heaven so that we would wait to join Him there. He came to restore to us our leadership authority that God gave us in Genesis 1 [dominion over the earth]. There is a fullness and expectancy of the Kingdom of God coming to earth that accompanies the celebration of the Festival of Passover.  It is Biblical and it is holy.  It is a remembrance of things God has already accomplished for us and a hope of what we can accomplish for the Kingdom. 

     Ultimately, this season of Passover is a celebration and a remembrance; an acknowledgment of God's desire to restore us to our original design and the earth to His original purpose. Yes, Jesus came as a sacrificial lamb, but He is our King, who came to establish His Father's rulership and authority over the earth He created. In the Passover celebration God shows us His plan for the redemption of mankind. But we can't stop there. We weren't redeemed to continue to let the kingdom of satan influence the earth. Fifty days after the feasts of Passover, Jesus sends the Holy Spirit to dwell in us to help us walk out our authority as ambassadors of the Kingdom. Jesus's assignment is now our assignment!

     So this Passover season, be thankful for your victory in Yeshua -- for the cancellation of your sins, and for your hope of resurrection. Then seek the Kingdom and a renewal of your mind as to your position as an Ambassador for the King of the Universe! Reconnect to that original relationship and authority and power you were made for. Yes, we have a rich heritage in the Feasts of the Lord, but our portion of the Lord goes back further than the Exodus story. It goes all the way back to Genesis 1 when God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness, and let them have dominion over all the earth. I thank my God for renewing my mind to that truth. And in the spirit of praise and worship of my King and His Kingdom, I say "Pesach Same'ach (Happy Passover)!

     
 

Are God's Love and Holiness Compatible?

    

     I ask this question because it has been on my heart as I discern the influence of the Enemy trying to divide the Body of Christ on this issue. I am beginning to see two distinct camps of Christians, and perhaps we need to dig deep and know, not only what Scripture says about Love and Holiness, but know what we believe about these characteristics of God.
     I want to begin by saying that this is my opinion as I see it at this moment in my sanctification process. I am still growing in all that God is revealing, and I know that I do not have the definitive answer to all the questions that will surely arise from this blog post. Nor do I profess to be the ultimate authority. I simply wish to present some thoughts that I hope make each of you seek the Father's heart on the matter. And, if you find yourself in one camp or the other, perhaps this discussion will lead to more understanding among our fellow Christians.
     I think it goes without saying that we all know how important love is to God. In the 21st Century Church, love is highly prized. I bet most Christians can recite the most popular Scriptures on love ... For God so loved the world, that He gave his only Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life ... God is love, and whoever abides in love abides in God, and God abides in him ... Anyone who does not love does not know God, because God is love ... We love because He first loved us ... You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment. And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. I could go on and on. The Bible has much to say on God's love and how important it is to Him.
     But the Word also has a lot to say on God's Holiness: There is none holy like the Lord ... Holy, Holy, Holy is the Lord of hosts; the whole earth is full of His glory! ... Strive for peace with everyone, and for the holiness without which no one will see the Lord ... But as He who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct, since it is written, “You shall be holy, for I am holy” ... Who will not fear, O Lord, and glorify Your name? For You alone are holy ... You yourselves, like living stones, are being built up as a spiritual house, to be a holy priesthood, to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.
     So, are God's Love and His Holiness mutually exclusive? Is one more important than the other? If they are both characteristics of His nature, how do they intersect? Again, I ask these questions because I fear that we Christians can become out of balance if we lean too far to either side. By that, I mean that if we love others, yet ignore God's call to holiness, it can lead to a compromised culture where immorality, perversion, and rebellion to God's moral laws are tolerated. We see this in the number of fatherless children, confusion over sexual identity, the willingness to ignore unrighteousness for the sake of extending mercy to another, and corruption at all levels of society. On the other hand, if we, as Christians, attempt holiness without love and mercy, we can become legalistic and religious -- intolerant of meeting the physical and spiritual needs of those who need to know Jesus the most. It is incumbent upon us, if we are going to represent Christ [growing into His image] that we embrace both Love and Holiness in their proper proportion. But what does that look like?  I'd like to present some thoughts for your consideration.
     First let's consider what God's "Love" is. Love is part of God's essential nature as expressed in Psalm 86:15: But you, O Lord, are a God merciful and gracious, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness. Love is the attitude of God expressed not only toward His Son, and to believers in Jesus, but towards the race of human beings He created. Jesus expresses this concept in John 17:26, "I made known to them Your name, and I will continue to make it known, that the love with which You have loved me may be in them, and I in them." And it is God's will that His children's attitude towards each other be one of Love.  "A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another: just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another." Furthermore, as Christians, God is the primary object of our love and it is to be expressed in total obedience to His commandments. "If you love Me, you will keep My commandments."
     So, now let's consider God's "Holiness".  This concept of Holiness is a little harder to describe because there is so much depth to it. And, I believe that "holiness" has a bad reputation; even becoming culturally irrelevant in this Age of Grace. So, let's agree that God is Holy in the sense that He is morally and spiritually separated from sin, therefore being the only absolute "Holy One", as expressed in His purity, His majesty, and His glory. To take it a step further, the glory of God is the goodness, the fullness, the splendor, and the awareness of His presence manifested in us. So, when Peter tells us in 1 Peter 1:15, But as He who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct, there is an implication that we are to cleanse ourselves from all defilement, living a holy manner of life, and experiencing fellowship with God in His Holiness. 
     But we also can't ignore our citizenship in the Kingdom of God during this discussion. Loving God, which should be our top priority, means keeping His commandments. Yes, He tells us to love others as we love ourselves, but first we are to love the Father with everything we have! And that means obeying His commands to heal the sick, cast out demons, cleanse the spiritually unclean, raise the dead, and spread the Gospel that Jesus came to preach -- the Gospel of the Kingdom. And we are to do all this with love in our heart. In fact, I don't believe you could do these commands without love. It is the love of the Father in us that moves us to act, but it is His Holiness in us that gives us the power and authority to overcome and defeat every enemy of God. 
     I believe Jesus draws us to Himself through His love, mercy, and kindness towards us. He wants us to display that same love to others. But He doesn't leave us there. He begins a work in us to transform us into His image, which is holy. His love in us provides a way for us to approach the throne of God, but it is His holiness that gives us access to God's glory -- His presence in us that will propel us to rule and reign with Him in the Kingdom. 
     If Holiness is the likeness of God, and we are called to holiness, then we are called to live a life that is set apart from this world; to live in accord with our King and His Kingdom. That means not compromising the standards of God -- any of them! Yet, a new study by the Barna Group reports that half of American pastors worry about preaching on hot-button social issues—like abortion and LGBTQ issues—worried they might offend someone.  These pastors revealed that they felt pressured from both inside the church and the culture of our society to simply "love others as you love yourself". But that does not take into account the whole counsel of God!
     We live in the Kingdom realm of our King Jesus, whether all Christians recognize that or not. As Kingdom citizens we have to decide if we are going to obey God or please people. It can be a tough line to walk. As Bible-believing followers of Christ we are to love everyone, even our enemies. Yet, we are always to walk in obedience to the Word, and sometimes love does not always appear in a warm, fuzzy manner. Sometimes love is speaking the truth without fear. And as strange as it may seem, a holy love can divide.  Because when we stop speaking and teaching God's truth because we're afraid it will offend, then we are pleasing man instead of God. We need to embrace that Grace and Truth, Love and Holiness are all sides of God's Nature. We must be careful to have a Biblical concept of God, and not one based on our own mind, will, and emotions.
     We can neither elevate Love at the expense of Holiness, nor deny that His love is present in His Holiness. Author Bert Farias explains it much better than I do: "Just as water flows through a pipe, the love of God flows through His holiness. Moreover, it is God's love that keeps Him from overlooking His holiness. After all, it was His holiness which made the atonement necessary. His holiness demanded the cost of God's own Son, for He cannot excuse, acquit or clear the guilty (Ex 34:7). And what His holiness demanded, His love provided on the cross of Calvary."
     While I am still working out the codependency between Love and Holiness, I have come to this conclusion ... They are not in opposition to each other. Love is not separated from Holiness; a better way to say this might be that Love is curbed or reined in by Holiness. Love that is not defined by God's Holiness will lead to compromise and a perversion of God's Word along with a loss of the Power and Presence that God's Holiness manifests. And Holiness that fails to be motivated by Love does not represent a true image of the Father. If the Body of Christ is going to be involved with establishing the Kingdom of God on earth, then we must walk in both Love and Holiness; finding a balance as we seek to both walk in [and demonstrate] the Light of the Lord.

Psalm 5:7    But I, through the abundance of Your steadfast love, will enter Your house. I will bow down toward Your holy temple in the fear of You.

    
    
      
     

Welcoming the Wilderness

     I've spent a lot of time talking about the Kingdom of God; learning how to operate in the Kingdom as we grow in understanding our Kingdom assignments. But today I want to give you a personal testimony of how Jesus can throw you a curve ball, especially when you think you have it all figured out.
     For the last month or so, He has been pushing me to stop and focus on how I was accomplishing my assignment. I know that my assignment [along with my husband, Mark] is to continue His work in setting "the captives free" [from spiritual bondage] through our Inner Healing Ministry. I also know that He has revealed to my husband that we will begin to teach small groups of Christians who want to know more about Kingdom Living. That assignment has already begun and I can see that "Kingdom" is at the heart of what He has called me/us to.
     But my spirit began to be troubled because I could also see that other ministries were pulling on my heart and, while I am in full support of their calling and purpose, it wasn't given to me as my assignment, and I wasn't fully vested in where Jesus wanted to take me. He had more for me to do within my "lane" and I wasn't hearing Him! So, I struggled with saying "No" to this other ministry [for a season, at least], and waited to hear from the Lord about what is next in His agenda for me.
     Almost immediately, He showed me new opportunities within my "Kingdom lane" -- an invitation for Mark and I to come speak to a new group on Kingdom; the possibility of a women's retreat on Kingdom Living and Freedom; as well as encouragement to write a book on the Kingdom of God and Kingdom Living -- all within the span of several hours! This last assignment had actually been given to me as a word of knowledge two years ago, and I had not acted on it, even though it was constantly on my mind. Then in the same afternoon that these other two opportunities surfaced, I was speaking to a woman I consider my mentor about being spiritually attacked after hammering home the Kingdom on my blog, and she said, "So, are you are going to write a book on the Kingdom?" Confirmation of the word spoken over me two years prior! There it all was! Jesus was making it pretty clear that I was to be concentrating on my Kingdom assignment; it was to be front and center!
     So, what do I do? I get all excited and my spirit is fired up! In about 45 minutes I write an outline of what a women's retreat would like -- talk about a fast download! I'm looking at our schedule to plan our talk to the group near Houston, and I'm figuring out how I can rearrange my daily schedule to commit a dedicated amount of hours to begin writing the book.

     And guess what Jesus does? In a small group that meets to discuss our Inner Healing Ministries, Theresa (one of the women I've come to cherish for her heart and her spirit), looks right at me and says, "WILDERNESS"! At first, I didn't realize that the word was meant for me... I thought she was just speaking it into the group. She said, "No, Jesus is telling me you need to hear "Wilderness". Ok, so now I'm a little confused, because I'm thinking "I think I just came out of a wandering season and I'm back on track, focused on my assignment and excited about the future opportunities Jesus is showing me". So, I'm a little deflated in my excitement about what Jesus has in store for me. After all, the word wilderness doesn't exactly have a positive connotation in the Bible.
     You see, at first I'm equating wilderness with the Israelites wandering in the desert for 40 years and I said, "I don't understand why He would point me to wilderness". Her response was, "He says to just trust the process". So, now I know I need to go home that night and have a talk with Jesus to discover what He means, and why "Wilderness" is something I need to meditate on and pray about. At that moment, it certainly didn't sound like an encouraging word.
     But this morning, it is a different story! Last night I prayed for Him to reveal the fullness of what "trusting the process in the Wilderness" meant for me. Today, He began to reveal it layer by layer. First, the "Wilderness" wasn't connected to the Israelites' wanderings. Instead, He pointed me to His own time in the wilderness after His baptism in the Spirit. Matthew, Chapter 4, gives us an account of that experience ... Then Jesus was led by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. After fasting forty days and forty nights, He was hungry.  The passage goes on to focus on the ways that the devil tests Jesus to get him to sin, and the way in which the Lord defeats the Enemy's tactics with the Word of God.
     However, I believe our English translations put the wrong emphasis on what happened there in the wilderness. I prefer the Aramaic translation which reads, Afterward, the Holy Spirit led Jesus into the lonely wilderness in order to reveal His strength against the accuser by going through the ordeal of testing. And after fasting for forty days, Jesus was extremely weak and famished.... As I began to ask Jesus questions about His Word of "wilderness" to me, He began to show me that although it was important to recognize that Scripture is an effective weapon against the attacks of the devil, He wanted me to focus on His fasting experience in the wilderness. The primary purpose of Him fasting was to draw near to the Father for the strength and knowledge and power He would need to begin His ministry; for the signs and wonders that were to come, and for the authority of the Gospel of the Kingdom! 
     Yes, Jesus has a new exciting season ahead for me [and for Mark]. And I believe He will take us to new levels of power and authority. But first, I must spend my time in the wilderness with the Father -- fasting and praying; receiving new revelations about my assignment(s); being prepared for the testing that will inevitably come in this new season. Like Jesus, I need to trust this process in the wilderness. I need to spend time fasting as a spiritual investment to draw upon in those times that I will need God's help. Jesus, Himself, taught His disciples that some of their Kingdom assignments could not be completed without the power that came from prayer and fasting.
     Fasting will also help me strengthen my intimacy with the Father as He reveals His power and strength in my assignment and in my battles against the Enemy. And most importantly, I believe that spending time in the wilderness with my Heavenly Father will help me to pray and hear from Him as Jesus did. And I hope it will reveal any hidden sins that the devil could use to hinder my assignment. I want to leave the wilderness with a heart like Jesus. I want to be able to leave the wilderness empowered with the complete knowledge of my mission and empowered to walk it out, just as Jesus did His!
     So, while my initial response to the word of knowledge Theresa received was luke-warm, the Holy Spirit and Jesus have now shown me the truth of that word. WILDERNESS is not to be denounced, but rather, it is to be welcomed! I gladly enter into the wilderness my God has prepared for me, because I know I will meet Him there. I will be humbled there. I will receive spiritual knowledge and authority there. And I will be empowered to walk in new levels of Kingdom and to share the glorious news with those who are seeking the Kingdom first. My wilderness will glorify my God!

Isaiah 43:19    Behold, I am doing a new thing; now it springs forth, do you not perceive it? I will make a way in the wilderness and rivers in the desert.