A Modern Woman's Perspective On The Kingdom of God on Earth


May 4, 2021

Science and Technology: Forging A Path For the False Messiah? -- Part 1

The title of this blog has been plaguing me for quite a few years -- ever since God began to show me what was behind the curtain of our society's growing interest in artificial intelligence and merging man with machine and other species. I would like to take the time to set up what I think this scenario might look like. And if you are familiar with my blog then you will know that I don't always adhere to the popular explanations that are agreed upon by the masses -- and that includes "following the science", as well as customary interpretations of the Bible. It's not that I do not believe every word of our faith's Holy Book is true. On the contrary, I believe there is so much more Truth in Scripture that is never discerned by the faithful. And I do not know why we have been chosen, but God has seen fit to give me and my husband a hunger to search out these deeper Truths. That hunger is both a blessing and a curse. 

It's a blessing because our spirits know without a doubt when Father reveals an idea or path He wants us to pursue. The unveiling of what had previously been mysterious to us results in such a burst of exultation over the new knowledge He has revealed, that it is uncontainable. But that is where we usually encounter the push-back from the Church and the world. No one, whether Christian or secular, wants to abandon their comfort zones. And if something we present makes them uncomfortable [because it doesn't align with their traditional belief system], well then, it must be false, right? Combine this hunger to pursue more of God's wisdom and plan for the world with our assignment as Watchmen on the Wall, and I'm sure you can see where we receive a lot of unfavorable response. But it will not deter us. And I also believe that if most Christians would be honest with themselves, it frightens them to see what used to be fringe science and technology becoming more mainstream. So, it's easier to refute our message and hang on to their traditions than to see how God may want to move them into position for our End Times battle with Satan and his protégés. 

When God first approached Mark and I through dreams, it was as if we were awakened to a new dimension; like we had stepped through a spiritual portal into a new realm where we were able to see everything we believed through new spiritual eyes. He introduced us, through a series of personal encounters, with people who were able to take us from milk to meat in our walk with Him. We began to hear Him in our spontaneous thoughts and to "accidentally" stumble upon books and podcasts by people who obviously had been given a similar hunger to explore more about the magnificent God we serve. And mind you, everything that came before us was vetted by the Word! Our library of Scripture-inspired books grew; some to be discarded as having an agenda other than to reveal the True God, while others revealed more of the breadth, length, height and depth of God [and His fullness]. Still more were added to the "to read" list. And every once in awhile, God will shine His light on one of those books that has been gathering dust, and we will go in search of it, to find that it is clearly a book to be read in this season. And this blog post is all about one of those books and a startling concept that I believe has found its time to be brought forth.

The book is entitled Beguiled: Eden to Armageddon, and was written by Dr. Joye Jeffries Pugh in 2013, with an updated and revised edition released in 2017. I daresay, "Dr. Joye" as she is known, does not fit the stereotype of Biblical researchers, or prophetic voices. But God has a habit of picking unconventional people whom He knows will be obedient to their calling.  And she writes with credible insight of Biblical truths and precepts. So, I'm just going to dive right in to what my spirit discerns is a scientific possibility that we need to be aware of in this season that precedes the Second Coming of Christ.

For years, I have been sounding the alarm on man's fascination with combining science and technology outside God's design of creation. In 2013, I quoted Ray Kurzweil, an American inventor and futurist, who is hellbent on seeing transhumanism realized in our lifetime. This is what he said then: "We can now see inside a living brain and see individual inter-neural connections being formed and firing in real time. We can see your brain create your thoughts and thoughts create your brain. A lot of this research reveals how the mechanism of the neocortex works, which is where we do our thinking. This provides biologically inspired methods that we can emulate in our computers. We’re already doing that. The deep learning technique that I mentioned uses multilayered neural nets that are inspired by how the brain works. Using these biologically inspired models, plus all of the research that’s been done over the decades in artificial intelligence (AI), combined with exponentially expanding hardware, we will achieve human levels within two decades." That was eight years ago, folks, and Kurzweil actually moved up his timeline to 2029, so we are half-way there!

Fast forward to last year, 2020, when Elon Musk, industrial designer/engineer and AI enthusiast, announced on a podcast that his company would be ready to implant a neural link in our brains in less than a year, with "low potential for rejection". Musk also said, "Full AI symbiosis is possible". In case you don't know the definition of symbiosis, it is this: interaction between two different organisms living in close physical association, typically to the advantage of both. The radio host's response? "Once we've experienced being a god, who is going to want to go back to being stupid [read that as human]?" Musk seemed to be in agreement, stating, "AI is getting better -- it's a benign scenario now [read as not harmful]. We're already a cyborg to some degree. We interact with our phones and electronic devices, but the data rate is too slow. Right now, we download information at about 100 bits/second (approximately 12.5 bytes). Computers can go 1 million times faster. If you can improve the data rate, you can improve symbiosis between man and machine". (Obviously, that is the goal of his invention). And he says it with such nonchalance!

But I want to return to the idea that man wants to be his own god expressed by that delusional radio host. Hasn't that been the goal of Satan ever since [as Lucifer] his pride convinced him he could usurp the throne of Heaven? And the prophecies of the Bible have been clear that a False Messiah will appear in the End Times. In fact, mankind has been warned for centuries through God's Word that this False Messiah would deceive many "with all power and signs and lying wonders". And Satan has done a great job of intermingling science and religion so that far too many Christians will receive him as the Second Coming of Christ. The acceptance of Evolution by the American National Academy of Sciences and their theory that "the evidence for evolution can be fully compatible with religious faith" has gone a long way to blend the two, and discredit the truth that faith is "the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen". Science, on the other hand, always demands evidence. There is no room for the supernatural, and unexplainable power of God in Science. 

 Therefore, because the 20th and 21st Centuries have moved us ever closer to worshiping Science and Technology, it will be easy to fool men and women (even Christians) when the False Messiah appears and his "lying wonders" prove that he is who he claims to be -- the Son of God. How will that be accomplished? I will give you a hint about what will be revealed in Part 2 of this topic... True Believers know the Word of God and they will not easily be deceived because they have not compromised with the world. But the day is coming when this remnant will be ridiculed not only by the world, but by their fellow Christians. The remnant will declare that the False Messiah, who will "stand in the holy place" [the temple], is the abomination of desolation spoken of by the prophet Daniel. But even those who claim to be Christians will believe the lie. How will this creation of Satan be able to fool so many who profess their faith in Jesus? That's where the science and technology of the last 50 years may very well provide the way. Even now, I believe we have reached the point [in man's ability to invent and create] to pull off this deception. If so, we could be closing in on the return of the True Messiah, who will put an end to this wickedness on earth. Tune in for Part 2 on the next blog post.

Mark 13:22    For false Christs and false prophets will arise, and they will provide signs and wonders in order to deceive, if [such a thing were] possible, even the elect [those God has chosen for Himself].

 

 


April 30, 2021

Why Paul's Letter to the Colossians Is Also Meant For Us

 

One of my favorite times during my day is when I join my husband in our time in the Word. We each curl up with our Bibles, independently engaging with Scripture for deeper revelation of the God we serve. Please don't think we see ourselves as doctrinal experts or somehow singled out by the God of the Universe to be the recipients of knowledge otherwise undisclosed. On the contrary; we simply delight in those light-bulb moments when we discover something new in a verse or passage that we've read multiple times before, and we come to the realization that God just shined His light on a new precept that aids in the growth and maturity of our faith. What follows is the excitement of sharing that with each other, and with those who "have ears to hear". 

So, I'm afraid you're in for another "spotlight moment" as I share where the Lord led me today. As sometimes happens, I began in the Book of John [which is where I've been focusing my study the last few weeks], but ended up in the short book of Colossians. To be honest, I don't know how or why God led me there, or how the two are connected. But once in Paul's letter to the church at Colossae, I was struck that he emphasized that his letter should be read to the church at Laodicea also. He mentions it several times. Of course, I instantly recognized that Laodicea is pictured as the "church of the End Times", or the state of the church right before Jesus returns -- and I probably don't need to remind you, that He is not particularly pleased with it. So, I wanted to see what Paul had to say in the four-chapter epistle to the Colossians, which he wanted the Laodicean church to be especially aware of. 

Would I recognize the warnings to Colossae and Laodicea as relevant to the Body of Christ today? I warn you ... today's post is heavy with Scripture, but I think it is worth our time to consider that what Paul meant to be read to the physical church of Laodicea in the First Century is also meant for the spiritual Laodicean church in the Twenty-First Century. May we take note of our true spiritual condition!

Colossians 1:9-14. Because of this, since the day we heard about you, we haven’t stopped praying for you and asking for you to be filled with the knowledge of God’s will, with all wisdom and spiritual understanding. 10 We’re praying this so that you can live lives that are worthy of the Lord and pleasing to him in every way: by producing fruit in every good work and growing in the knowledge of God; 11 by being strengthened through his glorious might so that you endure everything and have patience; 12 and by giving thanks with joy to the Father. He made it so you could take part in the inheritance, in light granted to God’s holy people. 13 He rescued us from the control of darkness and transferred us into the kingdom of the Son he loves. 14 He set us free through the Son and forgave our sins.

This is what is pleasing to the Lord: to be filled with the knowledge of God's will and possessing His wisdom and understanding so that we bear fruit in the works we do for Him. It pleases Him when we increase in the knowledge of God; when we walk in His power and authority; when we are patient and endure with joy; when we thank our Father for moving us into the Kingdom of Light; and we thank Jesus for redeeming us and forgiving us! According to Revelation 3:14-22, the Laodicean church didn't even come close to what Paul described as pleasing to the Lord. In fact, Jesus says He knows their works and they make Him sick; He wants to spew them out of His mouth [vomit]! 

So, I ask you, as we examine where the church has gone in our lifetime, do you think Jesus is happy with the fruit we've borne for His Kingdom? Have we represented Him well? Does abortion, gay marriage, transgenderism, and child trafficking speak of Him [or our effectiveness in influencing the world]? Is all of that what the Light of the world looks like? Paul intended for his words to call the church of his day to account for their faith and their actions. (And yes, faith should include action)! We must take a good hard look at ourselves in our day!

Colossians 1:15-16. He Son is the image of the invisible God, the one who is first over all creation, 16 Because all things were created by him: both in the heavens and on the earth, the things that are visible and the things that are invisible. Whether they are thrones or powers, or rulers or authorities, all things were created through him and for him.

I believe this passage has great power in what it reveals, but I also believe it has been lost on this generation. It represents the wisdom and spiritual understanding that Paul says pleases the Lord, and which the First Century believers were willing to pursue. It reveals a bigger picture of the spiritual realms and Christ's position in regards to them [which I do not think the 21st Century Church grasps or understands; the same fault is found in the Church at Laodicea]. The central point of this passage is that Christ is over all things ... whether in Third Heaven (thrones), Second Heaven (powers; also called dominions], or First Heaven (rulers and authorities). These are all orders of angels in the Celestial spheres, and they can be Godly angels or fallen angels, loyal to Satan. The modern Church's refusal to acknowledge that that these are spiritual beings [in either obedience or opposition to Christ] leaves the Body of Christ ignorant of their own power and defenseless against the power of the dark side. Failure to understand this precept, denies the Pre-eminence of Christ over them all!

Colossians 1:26, 2:2-3. In these selected verses, Paul refers to "the mystery hidden for ages and generations, but now revealed to his saints", and again, "that [your] hearts may be encouraged, being knit together in love, to reach all the riches of full assurance of understanding and the knowledge of God's mystery, which is Christ, in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge".  

Here is what Paul meant for the churches at Colossae and Laodicea to understand: there is no longer any mystery or impediment to understanding God. He has revealed Himself through Christ (whom many in the First Century Church encountered in the flesh, and those in this century meet through Christ in us). Christ has opened the door for us, and because we know Him, we can have full understanding and knowledge of God, because He is God!  The treasures that the knowledge of Him give us are no longer hidden, but available to those who are willing to seek Him and receive His revelations. It is the glory of God to conceal a matter, and the glory of men [kings] to search it out [Proverbs 25:2]. 

And if we don't make the effort to gain a full understanding of God, then it should not surprise us that God says, My people perish for lack of knowledge (Hosea 4:6). God continues His thoughts in Hosea: Because you have rejected knowledge, I reject you from being a priest to me. And since you have forgotten the law of your God, I also will forget your children. Let's be clear in our understanding -- when people reject HIS knowledge in favor of their man-made knowledge and religion, then God sees us as unfit to carry His message forward as His priest [which is the state of the End-Times Laodicean Church]. That church has forgotten "the law", which means the precepts and teachings of Christ. They are in danger of being forgotten by God.
 

Can you see that the End-Times Church of Laodicea was no longer walking in those "riches of full understanding and knowledge"? They were focused on the riches brought to them by their identity as a world banking center, producer of luxurious woolen garments, and their prosperous drug industry connected to the medical school there. Sound familiar?  They were focused on money, prosperity, and drugs, and apparently had lost the power and passion of their first love. Jesus accused them of thinking, "‘I’m rich, and I’ve grown wealthy, and I don’t need a thing.'  Could His indictment, "You don’t realize that you are miserable, pathetic, poor, blind, and naked" be applied to the Church today? 

• And finally, Colossians 2:8-15, 20-23. See to it that no one takes you captive by philosophy and empty deceit, according to human tradition, according to the elemental spirits of the world, and not according to Christ. For in him the whole fullness of deity dwells bodily, 10 and you have been filled in him, who is the head of all rule and authority. 11 In him also you were circumcised with a circumcision made without hands, by putting off the body of the flesh, by the circumcision of Christ, 12 having been buried with him in baptism, in which you were also raised with him through faith in the powerful working of God, who raised him from the dead. 13 And you, who were dead in your trespasses and the uncircumcision of your flesh, God made alive together with him, having forgiven us all our trespasses, 14 by canceling the record of debt that stood against us with its legal demands. This he set aside, nailing it to the cross. 15 He disarmed the rulers and authorities[b] and put them to open shame, by triumphing over them in him.... If with Christ you died to the elemental spirits of the world, why, as if you were still alive in the world, do you submit to regulations 21 “Do not handle, Do not taste, Do not touch” 22 (referring to things that all perish as they are used)—according to human precepts and teachings? 23 These have indeed an appearance of wisdom in promoting self-made religion and asceticism and severity to the body, but they are of no value in stopping the indulgence of the flesh.

I think Paul makes it quite clear that our faith is more than a philosophy. It is a life! It is not based on having knowledge of abstract principles [such as "God is love"], but it is a personal knowledge coming from real, physical experiences of the love of God through an intimate [and active] relationship with Jesus. That "experiential knowledge" of God's precepts surpasses "the elemental spirits of the world", which are meant only for this sphere. They are meant only for elementary education (as children on milk) and intended to prepare us for higher learning. Yet how many Christians today have stopped growing, satisfied in the elemental [or basic] understandings of their faith?

Notice that in verse 20, Paul reminds the churches of Colossae and Laodicea that in Christ, they have died to these "elemental spirits of the world". He means the worldly knowledge is to be replaced with spiritual knowledge gained through a life spent experiencing Jesus and God -- not "according to human precepts and teachings"; nor through "self-made religion and ascesticism"(a doctrine that adheres to strict regulation as the means to achieving a higher spiritual state). If we are honest with ourselves, we must acknowledge that the modern church is steeped in man-made religion and traditions, developed to control the flesh (including our minds and our actions/works for the Kingdom) and to appear spiritual. But the only way to greater spiritual knowledge is to commit to growing in wisdom through experiencing God and Christ in the spirit -- not in a "head knowledge" that limits the power and jurisdiction of God to transform mankind.

There is a remnant in the Body of Christ today who understands what Jesus meant when He said, "Those who believe in Me will do the works that I do; and even greater works than these will he do"... (John 14:12). We know what it means to walk in the power of Christ in us, and through the Holy Spirit, to defeat demons, heal the sick, call on the heavenly host to battle on our behalf. We know what is is to go before the throne of God and meet with His magnificent Presence. We know the very real power of prayer and fasting to take the fight to the Enemy at a higher level. We know all this because we have experienced it! We do not allow the restrictions of religious regulations or traditions [established in the preceding centuries] to stop us from fulfilling John 14:12. 

We know that the Bible reveals the falling away and the apostasy that precedes the moment God's cup of wrath is full to the brim. We recognize the signs. And we rejoice in our assignments to continually represent Him and His Kingdom; serving Him and our fellow man, so that no man can say we did not share the Good News of our glorious riches and heavenly inheritance coming from our relationship with Christ. We testify to the modern Church that we will be conquerors! It is time for all who profess faith in our Lord to leave the traditions and teachings of man behind, and walk in both true experiential knowledge of Christ and spiritual wisdom. We heed the instructions of Jesus to the Church of Laodicea and we look forward to ruling and reigning with Him in the Millennial Kingdom! Come, Lord Jesus!

Revelation 3:21-22    The one who conquers, I will grant him to sit with Me on My throne, as I also conquered and sat down with My Father on His throne. 22 He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. 

 


 

April 26, 2021

Iniquity and Injustice: The Signs Of Our Time

I know it's been a few days since I've written a blog post. To be honest, my spirit has been in turmoil and I've been trying to listen to what God wants to reveal to me for this time. As you may or may not know, my husband and I live near the Texas border with Mexico -- close enough that our daily lives have dramatically changed from what they looked like just a few years ago. And what I'm about to share does not come from a political bias. Rather, the turmoil I am experiencing in my spirit comes from trying to see the humanitarian crisis before me from a biblical and historical perspective, as well as from the viewpoint of my Father in Heaven.

Here's the source of my unrest ... I see so much injustice all around me; it is affecting people of different ethnic backgrounds, different nationalities, different histories ... and it is all being incited by forces of evil that don't care who they destroy in the process. There is the injustice of the immigrants who have traveled (many of them walking) for thousands of miles because their nation's social and economic structures have collapsed and they are simply hoping for a chance to survive and thrive in America. There is the injustice of thousands of women and children being exploited for slave labor and the sex trade within our nation. There is the injustice of people paying thousands of dollars [and some tens of thousands, depending on their nationality] to be illegally smuggled across our border. There is the injustice of a mother having both of her legs broken by the cartel as she fought to join her four children who were loaded on a raft to cross the Rio Grande. But because she had lost her wrist band which indicated she had paid the smuggler, she was left on the Mexico side of the river, screaming in physical and spiritual pain. 

There are so many stories like that, and we have seen some of it on our nightly news. What we have seen far less of is the injustice suffered by peaceful residents of our Southern border states, whose cars are being stolen; who are finding dead bodies on their land; whose property is being destroyed -- houses broken into, fences mowed down, and ranches whose outbuildings are being taken over as "stash houses" as the smugglers move people from place to place. We are not adequately hearing about the over-worked law enforcement officers involved in high-speed chases and shootouts, or the overburdened Border Patrol officers taxed with the surge of over 2,000 immigrants per day [per county] in sparsely populated areas. It's an insurmountable problem! 

But like I said, I'm trying to wrap my brain and my heart and my spirit around the consequences of all this turmoil and danger and chaos. Does history have anything to say about similar periods of national upheaval? What does God think about it, and what role will He play in the near future? Believe me, I can see the iniquity of past generations coming to bear. I am not naive as I look upon this nation's need to repent for how it has treated indigenous peoples. I know that only a couple of hundred years ago, at the end of the Mexican-American War in 1848, the United States, as victor, took possession of land that makes up all or part of Texas, New Mexico, Arizona, California, Nevada, Colorado, Utah and Wyoming. But before that, Mexico fought a revolutionary civil war to gain their independence from Spain, who had previously conquered the Aztec empire to reign over this disputed land. There is enough blood in the ground from all those wars and generations of fighting over the land. 

And I know that has been the way of the world ever since God set the boundaries of the nations after the Tower of Babel [when He took Israel as His spiritual territory, and left the rest of the earth in the possession of the lesser gods]. There have been wars over land, and nation has conquered nation. Boundaries and names of nations have changed throughout the centuries, and injustice has ruled the earth. And the rise and fall of nations and empires has resulted in generational iniquity. Wickedness has entered in the bloodlines of people through war and murder and evil wrought under the demonic influence of men [and women] who have sought to profit from the misfortune of others. Our nation is not immune from such human iniquity.

Yet, now I see that injustice is falling on Godly and righteous people, who through no fault of their own, find themselves in the middle of unjust policies and an invasion of the poor and disadvantaged who are being used by governments and illegal organizations to serve their own interests. Are we seeing the beginning of the collapse of our nation? Combine what we are experiencing along our southern border with our mounting national debt and the instability of our place in the global economy, and it is certainly conceivable that we cannot sustain the current crisis. We know by looking at history, that such collapses can take a century, perhaps decades, or happen overnight; coming like a thief in the night.

Wait! Doesn't the Bible have something to say about that? Now as to the times and dates, brothers and sisters, you have no need for anything to be written to you. For you yourselves know perfectly well that the day of the [return of the] Lord is coming just as a thief [comes unexpectedly and suddenly] in the night. While they are saying, “Peace and safety [all is well and secure!]” then [in a moment unforeseen] destruction will come upon them suddenly like labor pains on a woman with child, and they will absolutely not escape [for there will be no way to escape the judgment of the Lord] -- 1 Thessalonians 5:1-3. 

I've seen it in my lifetime! The Soviet Union, under Mikhail Gorbachev fell apart in less than five years. Do you remember how close the world came to complete economic meltdown in September 2008? I don't think any of us know just how desperate that situation was -- and our economic system still hasn't recovered! But there is one thing we all need to stay focused on ... the rise and decline of nations throughout history all have the hand of God upon them. Daniel, that great prophet of the Bible, who had favor and compassion from God, proclaimed that "It is He who changes the times and the seasons; He removes kings and establishes kings" (Daniel 2:21). It is evident that God determines the ways in which a nation progresses and develops. If a nation and its leaders stray from the precepts of God's counsel, then history will see them exit the stage according to His will. 

The Bible gives us an example of this when Daniel interprets the handwriting on the wall at King Belshazzar's feast: God has numbered the days of your kingdom and put an end to it; —you have been weighed on the scales [of righteousness] and found wanting [deficient]. That very night, Belshazzar's kingdom fell to the Medes and Persians. It happened suddenly -- like "a thief in the night". Do you think the nations are found "wanting" today? What about the nations in Venezuela, Brazil and Central America whose governments have created such a surge of poor and desperate people to our borders? What about the nation of Mexico who has surrendered to violent organizations who extort its own people to benefit their trafficking and drug trade? What about our own beloved nation? What does God think of us as the Number One destination of trafficked and enslaved people? Aren't we due His wrath and judgment for failure to acknowledge Him as we continue to idolize wealth, power, sexual perversion and abortion? 

The injustice we have perpetuated through generations of iniquity will not be ignored by our Righteous and Just God. I know it must grieve His heart that we have fallen far from His ways. There is very little to connect us to our Biblical founding, except for the remnant who is faithful to exalt the Lord of Heaven and left the name of the Most High God above all other names. This remnant refuses to honor and worship the gods of gold and silver, or to bow down to the gods of greed and human power and influence. 

Last weekend, a small group of our Ekklesia spent the day traveling our surrounding counties, praying for redemption of the land and the blood that is crying out from all the wars and injustice through the centuries -- from the human sacrifices to the Meso-American gods of Kul Kul Kan, Vera Cocha, Ah Puch and Quetzacoatl; from the blood shed in the Texas Revolution to win independence from Mexico; and from iniquity of the drug and sex trade that travels through our state to the rest of the world. But I also know that we need to repent for the blood our ancestors shed in conquering the indigenous peoples who came before us; and for being the state that led abortion to become the law of the land. There is so much to repent for before our Righteous and Holy God! Forgive us, Father! We declare that we will continue to magnify You as our God who gave us Life from the breath of your Spirit. Will you join me in fervent prayer that the hand of Almighty God will turn the hearts and plans of this nation's leaders back to Him, that it might be said of us, "Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord, the people whom He has chosen as His heritage!" (Psalm 33:12).

Ecclesiastes 3:16-17    Moreover, I saw under the sun that in the place of justice, even there was wickedness, and in the place of righteousness, even there was wickedness.  I said in my heart, God will judge the righteous and the wicked, for there is a time for every matter and for every work.

April 20, 2021

Deep Diving Biblical Precepts: Jesus Is The Bread of Life


I want to start a new series called "Deep Diving Biblical Precepts", in which I will be doing an occasional investigation into Biblical doctrines that we all are familiar with, but which we take for granted. In other words, I want to take a deeper look at common teachings that cross denominational lines, and that are theologically accepted as valid principles, but which we may only have a surface understanding. The first of these topics will be the understanding that Jesus is our Bread of Life.

There is a fascinating passage in John 6:22-59 where Jesus is approached by the crowd after feeding about 5,000 men (not counting the women and children that accompanied them) with five barley loaves and two fish. The people were astonished by the miracle they had witnessed, and Jesus perceived that they were about to come and take Him by force to make Him king (John 6:15), so He withdrew to the nearby mountain. The crowd then saw the disciples depart in a boat to cross the Sea of Galilee to Capernaum on the other side. The next day they were mystified by another miracle they struggled to understand -- There had been only one boat at the shore when the disciples departed and Jesus had not been with them, but yet here He was in Capernaum with them [they did not know that He had walked on water the evening before to join them in the boat]. So, they question Jesus... "Rabbi, when did you come here?"

Jesus reprimands them because they were more concerned about mundane things and didn't recognize the miracles that came from the Father, and were only seeking Him because they had all been fed from the few barley loaves. Jesus tries to explain that they are more concerned about doing works for food that perishes than they are about eating the food that endures to give them eternal life. Jesus says the only work they need to do is believe in the One that the Father has sent, referring to Himself. So the crowd challenges Him... what miracle [sign] do you do that we can visibly see, and then we'll believe. And they made it clear that they were seeking a miracle like the manna from Heaven that appeared by the hand of Moses. 

Jesus tells them that it was not Moses that did the work, but God who provided what they needed to survive. He reminded them that their ancestors had eaten the manna in the desert and they died. And here is where I gained a new understanding of the "manna miracle", as we will call it .... In reality the manna was provided by God sending the dew [or more likely rain] from the 1st heaven (our skies and atmosphere) to cause the manna to grow on the ground in the wilderness. We find this scenario in Exodus 16:14-15 where Moses instructs them to gather it because "this is the bread which the Lord has given you to eat". God was the Giver through natural means. But this time Jesus was giving them the true bread from heaven [the 3rd Heaven where God resided and Jesus had come from] that they might never hunger or thirst again. 

I believe this passage has been so misunderstood in our life time! The manna the Israelites received in the wilderness was physical bread. It was like coriander seed and they ground it in their mills, or beat it in a mortar, and baked it in pans, and made cakes of it (Numbers 11:7-8). It had a "shelf life"; it molded and could not be counted on to sustain their flesh and bodies after a period of time. But Jesus is true bread; a spiritual bread that is everlasting and sustains their souls and spirits. He is the bread of LIFE! He states in verse 51, "I am the living bread that came down from Heaven. If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever. And the bread that I will give for the life of the world is my flesh."

Of course, this confuses them again ... "How can this man give us his flesh to eat?" So Jesus said to them, "Truly, truly, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you have no life in you. Whoever feeds on my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day. For my flesh is true food, and my blood is true drink." Then He qualifies exactly what He means in this strange discourse by repeating what He had said earlier, "This is the bread that came down from heaven, not like the bread the fathers ate, and died. Whoever feeds on this bread will live forever."

First of all, any serious student of the Bible understands that if something is restated in a passage, then it is an important concept that God wants us to comprehend. When Jesus repeats that He is the bread that came down from heaven, [and He is not like the bread the Israelites ate in the wilderness], He is making a distinction between being fed spiritually and being fed physically. Also, there is the principle that the physical bread can't keep you from dying, while the spiritual bread gives you eternal life. Furthermore, I know that there are some denominations that teach that when we take communion, we are literally eating Jesus's flesh and drinking His literal blood. But this passage is not to be read as a literal translation at all. Instead, His words symbolize His action of sacrificing His flesh and blood for us.

 Again, He is making reference to His flesh as true food in a spiritual sense, and His blood as true drink; again referring to that which feeds us spiritually. In no way, does He suggest that we are to physically eat His actual flesh or blood. That would make us zombies and vampires! Instead the sacrifice of His flesh and blood, which resulted in His death on the Cross, made way for us to restore our relationship with our Heavenly Father -- something all mankind had been starving and thirsting for since Adam's fall in the Garden! That's the essence of verse 35: He is the Bread of Life! Whoever comes to Him will not hunger, and whoever believes in Him shall never thirst -- our eternal life will be a spiritual one, sustained by His power in us.

Did you notice the two different sets of circumstances in that last sentence? You must come to Him and you must believe in Him. It is the only way to satisfy what your soul and spirit hunger and thirst for. Come, eat of the Bread of Life and partake of the Living Water. It is eternal and nothing will ever taste as sweet!

Matthew 5:6    Blessed [joyful, nourished by God’s goodness] are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness [those who actively seek right standing with God], for they will be [completely] satisfied.



April 17, 2021

Lift Up The Forerunners!

These last days and weeks my spirit has been hyper-focused on the forerunners of our faith. Of course, we are all familiar with the forerunners in the Bible ... John the Baptist, who cleared the way for the Lord to bring the Gospel of the Kingdom and Salvation to all mankind. He was a "voice calling in the wilderness" (Isaiah 40:3). Jesus is proclaimed "as our forerunner, [who] has gone in before us. He is now and forever our royal Priest like Melchizedek" (Hebrews 6:20). 

In fact, this is the only verse in the Bible that actually uses the word forerunner. As explained in the Passion Translation, forerunner means "trailblazer." Jesus has blazed a trail for us to enter into the sacred chamber and seize the hope that has been fulfilled in His eyes already; to have a company of king-priests who will dwell with Him in the Holiest of Holies and minister from there out to the nations of the earth. The clear implication of verse 20 is that He takes us in to share His throne and His ministry as the royal Priest. 

But did you know that God has anointed forerunners in every generation to lead the way to the knowledge of Him and His redemptive work through His Son, Jesus Christ? You see, forerunner signifies one who comes to a place in advance of the rest who are to follow; one who acts as a scout or guide to prepare the way for the King. As you can imagine, it looks different in every generation, depending on the state of the world and God's timeline for the nations and the world. Moses, Jeremiah, and Paul are just a few examples of the forerunners who God anointed to prepare the way for the work He would do in freeing the Israelites from their Egyptian bondage; to prepare for their captivity in Babylon; and to prepare for the growth of the Church Age. 

Therefore, we can and should acknowledge the forerunners of our generation. They are those who receive and accept the anointing God has put on their lives in the measure of rule and authority He has given them to prepare the way for whatever it is He wants to do in that generation. And I will tell you, I discern that it is particularly difficult for the forerunners in this generation of our nation. Our nation is 245 years, and history has shown us that empires rarely last beyond 250 years. As pointed out in an article on medium.com, "God is a God of order. He has ordained systems, patterns, cycles, and processes in His Creation. Sir John Bagot Glubb, an Army General and historian, studied 11 empires from the Assyrians in 859 B.C. until the demise of the British empire in 1950. He found a remarkably similar pattern in their length of existence. Each spanned a period of about ten generations, and each went through these seven stages in their empires: the age of pioneers, the age of conquest, the age of commerce, the age of affluence, the age of intellect, the age of decadence, and finally, the age of decline and collapse". 

I believe we are fast approaching that last stage. Just in my lifetime, I have seen the 1960s begin an age of decadence that has gone from "free love" to 2021 and transgenderism and human/monkey chimera embryos. If you doubt we're there, here are the characteristics that Sir Glubb said marked the second-to-last age: defensiveness, pessimism, materialism, frivolity, an influx of foreigners, the Welfare State, and a weakening of religion. The forerunners of this generation are seeing what the rest of the nation and the Church isn't. They are awake and shouting from the rooftops that we are in serious jeopardy of no longer being "one nation under God". But is anyone listening?

Like Moses, Jeremiah, and Paul before them, this generation's forerunners are often scoffed at, maligned, persecuted, and discredited. And like these earlier forerunners, this generation will look different from each other. God will anoint some to be on the front lines of the spiritual battle [with the Enemy] to determine tactics and strategies. Others will be called to be watchmen on the wall, positioned in the towers to watch for what's coming and to warn the people. Still others will be anointed as prayer warriors and intercessors -- all of them to bring about God's plan and purposes for the nations, including ours. 

The forerunners of this generation are in full cooperation with the Father. They know and see the signs of the coming collapse because they see the decline so clearly. And they are all under spiritual attack as the Enemy prepares to bring his final blows. The attacks are coming against their businesses, their families, their health, their marriages, their reputations, and their ministries. I have such great regard for them as I see them come together to support and reinforce each other, intercede for each other, and appeal for Heaven's justice for each other. I will be honest ... it also pains me to see these men and women, who are putting everything on the line for the Lord and His Kingdom receiving no encouragement from the Body of Christ. Instead of appreciating the anointing that these forerunners walk in, the Body distances themselves from them because they don't "fit the norm", they preach a different message than the lukewarm Church, or they just plain make the Body of Christ uncomfortable. 

Maybe you are sensing that our nation and the world are different. You are no longer able to recognize your community, state or country as it was when you were growing up. And hopefully, your spirits are discerning that all of what you're seeing is not what God intended for His relationship with mankind. If so, then I urge you to lift up the forerunners in this generation! The Kingdom of Heaven, as spoken of in Matthew 11:12, is "suffering violence, and the violent take it by force". That difficult verse has been so misinterpreted, but it actually means that as the Kingdom of Heaven bursts forth into this world [violently because the Enemy is defending his kingdom], people who are passionate in seeing it defeat the kingdom of darkness will step into their anointing and have an effect on bringing it into existence. That is the purpose of the forerunner, and I am so thankful to be witness to mighty forerunners in this generation! They stand together, shoulder-to-shoulder, to prepare the way for the return of our King as He prepares to ride to bring Heaven's Justice to this declining and collapsing world. Will you join me in lifting up the 21st century forerunners? May they mount up on wings of eagles to bring the word of God's redemptive purpose for the world, and may they run and not grow weary, and may they walk and not grow faint! Father, strengthen them for the work they are to do for You, and reward them when they come into Your Heavenly Kingdom. Amen!

 Luke 1:76     And you, child, will be called the prophet of the Most High; for you will go before the Lord to prepare His ways 

April 11, 2021

How Would Our Nation Be Different If The Church Acted Like The Ekklesia?


I would like to submit to you that there is not a single citizen of our great nation who would testify that nothing has changed in our country. And in the eyes of the righteous of the nation, there are many demonic strongholds that are attacking the fundamentally Christian foundation of our homeland... and appear to be winning!

But what would it look like if the Church/Body of Christ actually followed Jesus's instructions that He gave to His disciples in Matthew 16:18-19? Before we consider how those instructions could be carried out in the 21st century, let's remember the verses and their context ... Jesus says, "on this rock I will build My church; and the gates of Hades (death) will not overpower itI will give you the keys (authority) of the kingdom of heaven; and whatever you bind [forbid, declare to be improper and unlawful] on earth will  have [already] been bound in heaven, and whatever you loose [permit, declare lawful] on earth will have [already] been loosed in heaven.”  

To begin, there are a couple of ways that we can discern who or what "the rock" is that Jesus is referring to. It could be Himself, who is the foundational rock and cornerstone of the body of believers who are to become the church. Alternatively, the place they were standing [in Caesarea Philippi], was at the rocky base of Mount Hermon, the exact location where the Fallen Angels descended to corrupt humankind by mating with human women. Then there is the fact that instead of the word "church", Jesus actually used the Greek word (adopted by the Romans) of Ekklesia. Jesus very deliberately used this word, and it means “legislative assembly” or “selected ones.” This is not a religious term at all, but a political and governmental term that is used many times in classical Greek for a group of people who have been summoned and gathered together to govern the affairs of a city. For Jesus to use this term means He is giving the keys of governmental authority in his kingdom on earth to the believers who will follow His commands and His Father's form of heavenly government. 

This area [and those terms] would have made Peter and his fellow disciples very uneasy.  They knew they were standing on ground that the Nephilim had inhabited, and in Jewish theology, the spirits of these dead warrior-kings were demons.  They believed that this area, with its connection to Fallen Angels and temples dedicated to Zeus and Baal worship, was the entryway to the underworld -- the gates of Sheol, which simply means “the place of the dead” or “the place of departed souls/spirits.”  (The New Testament Greek equivalent is Hades).  In this case, with its history involving Fallen Angels, it was an area of evil departed spirits, or demons.

Therefore, Peter might have understood what Jesus was saying in this way -- that when He referred to "the rock" on which He would build His Church, He did not mean either Peter or Himself.  Peter and the other Disciples knew Jesus was talking about the very rock on which they were standing -- the foot of Mount Hermon, the demonic headquarters of the Old Testament and the Greek world. And they were to be obedient to taking back dominion and authority of the earth from the demonic influence and strongholds to which they were in bondage.  Nothing has changed in 2000 years. That was the disciples' mandate, and it's ours, too.

So, now back to my original question .... what would it look like if we were to step into that mandate as the true Ekklesia? What is our responsibility to effect change on this earth; to take back territories from the kingdom of darkness and transfer them into the jurisdiction of our Father's Kingdom in Heaven? What if the Ekklesia was to divide up into small groups of 5 or 6 and across the Southern border states, thousands of these groups met to determine the areas in their communities and counties that are under bondage to the strongholds that are orchestrating an invasion of our land ... and what if each of these groups met at a particular place on the map and prayed and confessed the sins that have been committed in and on the land, asked God for forgiveness, then prayed for reconciliation, restitution and restoration? What if tens of thousands of the Ekklesia were committed to doing that and to consecrating the land [with holy oil] to break the strongholds of Freemasonry, human trafficking, drug addiction, poverty, murder, and the breakdown of the family unit?
 
I know that just in the section of the Southern border where I live, the land is saturated with the influence of false gods from the generational iniquity of worshiping the pagan war gods of the Mezo-American era; it has literally been bathed in the blood of human sacrifice for centuries and generations. The Ekklesia groups in the East and the Deep South could do the same, confessing the sins over the land that were committed during the Revolutionary and Civil Wars, and covering those bloody grounds with holy oil and the Blood of Jesus. And so it would go throughout our nation -- from the war-torn cities of Chicago across the plains of our nation's mid-section to the West Coast -- every person who calls themselves a Christian confessing and repenting for the state of our country due to the neglect of the Body of Christ to steward it, protect it, and repent when we have sinned. 

Take a slow, deliberate look at this oft-quoted verse in 2 Chronicles, chapter seven: [If] My people, who are called by My Name, humble themselves, and pray and seek (crave, require as a necessity) My face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear [them] from heaven, and forgive their sin and heal their land. Our nation stands no chance of being healed unless we can confess our wicked ways in the here and now, and own up to our generational and historical iniquity! I've heard the excuse that the pastors are tired ... but if they are unable to lead the remnant of their flocks to be obedient to 2 Chronicles 7:14, then are they perhaps guilty of not equipping and training their church members to do the ministry of God in the world (Ephesians 4:11-12)? Shouldn't there at least be a remnant that is capable and willing to pray, confess, repent, and turn from the wicked ways of the world, and ask God to forgive us and heal the land?

We are commanded by Jesus to preach the good news of the Kingdom of God that is on earth and in heaven; to make disciples; and to baptize those who receive Christ as their Savior. That is doing the work of the ministry of the Father and Son. But when it becomes clear that our communities and cities across the nation have fallen from God's original design, and our families are in bondage to strongholds that result in addiction, persecution, murder and death, then there is no excuse for the Body of Christ failing to be the Ekklesia and governmental authority of the Kingdom of God in people's lives. If everyone who professed faith in Jesus was committed to joining with a remnant of fellow believers to confess their sins and the sins of the nation -- and then repent and ask for forgiveness -- and then bless the land and ask God to heal it, just think of the impact that would have against the kingdom of darkness!

And for all of you who are walking this out already, God bless you! Join with me to pray that this will become a wave of revival among the Body of Christ, and that we will begin to see this nation be freed from the demonic strongholds that threaten to bring us down. I believe that there are legions of Heaven's angelic army just waiting for us to ask that they be unleashed to fight in the spiritual realms. Let us partner with them, under the leadership of Jehovah Sabaoth, the Commander of this mighty heavenly army, and may we see the darkness defeated in our generation. Amen!

Hosea 14:9     Whoever is [spiritually] wise, let him understand these things; Whoever is [spiritually] discerning and understanding, let him know them. For the ways of the Lord are right, And the righteous will walk in them, But transgressors will stumble and fall in them.

 

April 7, 2021

The Lord Will Remove The Strongholds Over The Nation! Listen For Your Instructions!


Do you feel it? The heaviness that lies over our nation, as if we are slowly drowning, trying to keep our head above water. We sense that our global enemies are biding their time, waiting for us to implode from oppressive debt, or explode from internally orchestrated tension. Christians are feeling the pressure and praying for God to rescue us. I can only imagine how non-believers are coping. But there is something every man, woman, and child in this country needs to understand ... we were created for this time and sent here to earth to partner with our Creator to defend and uphold the ground we've been given authority over!

Did you know that you existed in Heaven from the foundations of the world? That you were created before the world even existed? And did you know that God determined when He would send you to this earth to a specific place, for a specific purpose, and in a specific time? I know it's kind of a weird thought, but consider that, in a way, we are placeholders, if you will, for the territory we occupy. And we are to hold it until Jesus returns to claim ownership and dominion [authority] of the earth. In other words, we are a symbol or expression of Him, who has the right of possession of the earth because He created it. That's our assignment ... to hold the ground until He comes.

But what do we do when an ancient spiritual Enemy also claims dominion of the earth, and men are only too willing to cede ownership of ground that doesn't actually belong to them? That's a story that is as old as the earth itself and one in which our nation finds itself mired in today. And I can tell you that there is no ground that is more embroiled in that ancient battle than our southern border. Whatever you are hearing on your nightly news doesn't even scratch the surface of what we are experiencing regarding the smuggling of drugs and human trafficking. The violence is too horrific to report and there is a very real concern that the public would panic if they knew the truth. So, again, what do we do about it? We look to the Word for the ways the Lord has fought for His people -- and we pray and declare that the Lord will break demonic strongholds -- and we war in the spirit by anointing the land and applying the blood of Jesus as a boundary to keep out the Enemy and his hordes. 

We exhort our fellow citizens to believe and declare, just as Joshua did before he led the Israelites into the Promised Land ... The Lord our God is even now providing this land as a place of rest and He will give it into our hand. Please join me in praying through the following strategies, as I listen to the Lord encourage us to see Him as our stronghold; our place of safety that is inaccessible by the Enemy. He tells me that we will not be frightened nor will we be dismayed for, as Jehovah Nissi, He goes before us into battle with the enemies of this land. 

Lord, just as You did for the Israelites at the Red Sea, destroy our enemies who seek to overtake this land, and we declare that You will deliver the innocent from the clutches of the Enemy. Dry up the resources that fund the evil ones and rule over them with Your Holy Justice because You are the God of both Heaven and Earth, and all belongs to You!

Lord, You are the Living God, who created this land to be lived under Your dominion and rule. Drive out the lawless and the violent; drive out those who trade in human souls and bodies, and free the captives, Father! Let Your Holy blood, Lord Jesus, redeem the human blood that cries out for justice. Cleanse the land, Father, and set a blood boundary around this country, that will repel the Enemy and turn back the wicked from entering.

Father, You are Jehovah Sabaoth, Commander of the Army of the Lord, who leads the angelic legions in victorious battle so that we might declare, "This land belongs to the Lord Almighty!" Father, stretch out your hand and redeem this land and bring it into the jurisdiction of the Kingdom of God. For You are Jehovah Gibbor Milchamah, the Lord, strong and mighty; the Lord mighty in battle; King of Glory; the Lord of Hosts. You cause us to be part of this generation that seeks Your return. 

Sanctify this land unto Your Holy Name, Jehovah M'Kaddesh, who consecrates and sets us apart for His holy purpose. Likewise, return this land to holiness; set it apart for You!  Show us the ways to partner with You. We do not want to merely cower in the corner, praying for help and safety, but we also know the battle is Yours! You will fight against the principalities and powers and rulers of wickedness on our behalf. But we have a part to play, too! So show us how we are to pray in the spirit; where to tear down the altars in the spirit; where to stand and blow the shofar to summon the Heavenly Host! Give us discernment and wisdom. Lift our spirits to be courageous and bold. Guide us into effective partnership with the angels of Mercy and Might! And it is in the powerful and sovereign name of Jesus Christ, the King and Ruler of the Universe, that we bless this land to be a beacon of hope and light until His glorious return! AMEN!

 Exodus 15:6-7      Your right hand, O Lord, is glorious in power;  Your right hand, O Lord, shatters the enemy. In the greatness of Your majesty You overthrow and annihilate those [adversaries] who rise [in rebellion] against You; You send out Your fury, and it consumes them like chaff.

April 4, 2021

Passover and Resurrection Day: God's Holy Alignment in 2021!

I want to begin this post by saying that today, I unequivocally celebrate the resurrection of my Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, from Death into Life, and I praise Him for making that possible for me, too! And as you know, if you have followed this blog for any length of time, that I love researching the Word for historical and theological context. So, it is with awe and wonder that I find that our Christian celebration of Easter this year coincides with the last day of the Jewish faith's Passover celebration. Let me share with you how the two come together to show the glory and sovereignty of YHWH, the Creator of the Universe and the Most High God.

In our Christian faith, Easter has come to mean the celebration of the resurrection of Christ three days after His crucifixion. It is the oldest Christian holiday and the most important day of the church year because of what Christ did for us.  His willingness to pay the debt owed by all mankind throughout history, for the sins we have committed, culminates at the Cross.  He endured God's wrath so that we don't have to and could be forgiven our sins and reconciled with God, our Father in heaven.  Christ's crucifixion and resurrection constitutes the single most important event upon which Christianity is based.

I have written many posts about the corrupted history of Easter and how it came to be in the traditions of our faith and the Church. You can enter the word "Easter" in the search bar of this blog and peruse those, if you are interested. For the purpose of this post, here is a short summary of that history: In 325 AD, Emperor Constantine, at the Nicean Council, ordered all Churches to celebrate the Resurrection of Christ on Easter Sunday.  The early Church had celebrated the Resurrection during the Passover, beginning on the 14th day of the Hebrew month called Nisan, which could fall on any day of the week [being governed by the Jewish lunar year].  But the Churches near Rome had abandoned the practice because they hated the Jews, blaming them for the death of Jesus, so they fixed the date to the first Sunday after the first full moon of Spring, which coincided with the ancient Roman celebration called ‘Easter’, after the pagan goddess of Spring, Eostre. It helps to know that Constantine, before his self-professed conversion, was a pagan who worshiped the Sun God, hence his desire to move the celebration of Christ's resurrection to "Sunday". 

His Satan-induced hatred of the Jews caused the Jewish influence (in the form of the Feasts) to be erased from the Church.  Here is a direct quote from Constantine himself:   “And truly, in the first place, it seems to everyone a most unworthy thing that we should follow the customs of the Jews in the celebration of this most holy solemnity, who, polluted wretches! having stained their hands with a nefarious crime, are justly blinded in their minds. It is fit, therefore, that rejecting the practice of this people, we should perpetuate to all future ages the celebration of this rite, in a more legitimate order, which we have kept from the first day of our "Lord's" passion even to the present times. Let us then have nothing in common with the most hostile rabble of the Jews.” (Council of Nicea, pg. 52.)

Now that you have that background, I hope you can appreciate the importance of Christian acknowledgement of the Lord's Feasts (they are not "the Jewish feasts"), especially the celebration of the Feast of Passover, including the Feast of Unleavened Bread and the Feast of First Fruits. There is actually so much significance that ties the Jewish Passover celebration and the Christian celebration of Easter, or Resurrection Day, as it is becoming more popularly known.  And there is an interesting correlation between the two this year.

First of all, there are eight days assigned to the Feast of Passover by YHWH. And in the Christian tradition, there are eight days from Palm Sunday to Resurrection Day/Easter. The last day of Passover is celebrated in commemoration of the crossing of the Red Sea [or the Sea of Reeds, as some versions of the Bible call it].  Eighty years prior to this event, the infant Moses was delivered from the waters of the Nile River, after the Pharaoh of Egypt decreed that all Hebrew sons born to the Israelite slaves should be drowned. Eighty years later, this same man called Moses, would be instrumental in delivering the nation of Israel from the waters of the Red Sea. This experience is known in the Bible as the Exodus; when Israel is delivered out of their bondage of slavery in Egypt into a new birth, or existence, if you will. Paul, in 1 Corinthians 10:2 tells us that in crossing through the Red Sea "all Israel were baptized into Moses [into his safekeeping as their leader]... That event is what is being celebrated around the world today, on Resurrection Day, by millions of Jews. 

In a similar manner, today we Christians celebrate that we are baptized into Christ, united with Him in His death and burial [as our sins are crucified and buried through His sacrifice on the Cross] and in His resurrection [as the Forerunner of our own birth into a future resurrected life]. He is the First Fruit of the Harvest of believers into an eternal resurrected life. This year, the Feast of First Fruits falls on the same day as Resurrection Day/Easter! I do not believe this is a coincidence in 2021! This year, I believe YHWH is calling the attention of His faithful to His Holy calendar. I believe we are coming close to His ordained time when we will be united in the worship of our Redeemer, the Jewish King of the Universe. This year, whether Jew or Christian, we will all be celebrating our deliverance from bondage into God's Grace and His strong will and desire to save us all and transfer us into His Kingdom on earth. So, join me, in praising God for bringing our faiths into alignment this year, as we pray that His promise of dwelling with us on earth will soon come to pass. Happy Pesach and Happy Resurrection Day!

Romans 8:11    Yes, God raised Jesus to life! And since God’s Spirit of Resurrection lives in you, He will also raise your dying body to life by the same Spirit that breathes life into you!


 

April 1, 2021

Hearing God's Voice In The Hours Before Dawn

We live such busy lives in this 21st Century. That's 2,000 years after Christ walked this earth, and 2,000 years further away from His human presence and influence. That's quite a span of time for the Enemy to develop ways to distract us, and to encourage us to separate ourselves unto our selfish desires. It has also been such a span of time that he has been successful in convincing us that we no longer need to consult with our Creator about how to deal with the crises in the world. He's done a pretty good job at separating us from the most important relationship in our lives. So, it shouldn't surprise us that our days are filled with so much activity that we rarely stop to have a conversation with the Lord, or to ask Him what He thinks and wants to do about a particular situation in our life or the world. 

It has become the nature of my relationship with Father, Son, and Holy Spirit that they often wake me sometime in the third watch of the night (from midnight to 3 am) and continue to speak to me into the fourth watch (3 am to 6 am). So, it was the other night. 

When I wake up and cannot easily go back to sleep, I have become aware that it usually means I am to spend that wakefulness by talking to Father about the things on my heart, or asking Him if there's something He wants me to know. And I have a lot of questions for Him these days. It is difficult to see the decline in our moral values and standards in this nation, and to see the deterioration in the identity of Christians. It is frightening to see the collapse of law and order as the violence on our city streets increases; and heart-breaking to see the suffering that brings millions of refugees to our southern border. Believe me, if you knew the extent of what we in the border states are facing from the lawlessness of the Enemy, you would understand why there is very real fear and many sleepless nights. Wickedness and evil have penetrated the spiritual boundaries of our nation and only God and the Heavenly Host can [and will] protect us! 

You can imagine the questions I have for the Father in the midst of the Third Watch. But I remember what someone spoke over me one time .... "You have so many questions, that you never give Father time to answer one of them before you are asking the next". Guilty as charged! So, I am trying to be intentionally silent, and letting Him know that I am ready to hear what He wants me to know. Mind you, I have to keep my soul in check because it is always ready to usurp my spirit's desire to just sit in intimacy with my Lord. But this night, I am obedient to wait on the Lord.

And then these words began pouring out of my spirit and I knew I was supposed to write them down. So I got up in the midst of the dark night and began transcribing. Here is what my spirit heard .... In the darkness of the morning hours my spirit seeks Your Presence. The world sees the encroaching Evil and fears; crying out for escape. My flesh and soul wrap themselves in steely resolve, while my spirit ascends to its appointed seat in the Heavenlies. There, I rest in You, who fills me with Your strength and authority. You impart to me Your Wisdom and Your Might. "Tell them My Truth," You say. " I AM their refuge in times of trouble. I AM their shield and their stronghold. Tell them not to fear, for I AM is with them to the end of the age." I wait for more, but my spirit hears, "That is enough for now. I AM all you need. Tell them".

So, my spirit returned to me in the middle of that night, and I laid awake until the dark gave way to the morning light. I longed to remain in that place of comfort and strength with the Father, but I knew I had to rise to another day on this earth, joining all those who wait in confident anticipation and committed obedience to see His glorious return and reign. But what about those who aren't so confident? Those who struggle with how we are to fight against these physical and spiritual forces of wickedness? I will tell you that I have many Christian friends who are dismayed at the boldness of Evil being displayed in our midst -- the horror of which you are not, and will not, see reported on your nightly news. 

It would be easy to curl up in a corner and just cry out to God to take care of it, but that's not how we are to defeat it. God wants to work with us through mighty and powerful prayer, worship, and spiritual warfare, which means we must get on the battlefield to fight alongside the Heavenly Host as Lord Sabaoth, who is Mighty in battle, goes before us to victory! And how are we to pray? Well, Scripture is the way that Jesus fought against the wiles of the Enemy and here are just a few examples from the Word that you can use to begin to war in the spiritual realms ... Father, may our enemies come against us one way, and flee before us seven ways (Deuteronomy 28:7) ... Lord, You will stretch out your hand against the wrath of our enemies and let Your right hand deliver us (Psalm 138:7) ... Father, we trust that You will disarm the cosmic powers that rule the Evildoers and put them to shame and triumph over them! (Colossians 2:15) ... Lord, we ask You to command Your Heavenly Host to rescue the innocent children from the hands of foreigners whose mouths speak lies to them and whose right hands are right hands of falsehood (Psalm 144:11) ... You are Jehovah, who defends the afflicted and executes Your judgment against the wicked. You uphold justice for the needy (Psalm 140:12) for You are the Lord who will take up their case and plunder those who rob them (Proverbs 22:23). 

As you can see, there is no stronger way to battle in the spirit than to seek the Lord for what He wants to say to you and then follow His lead. And you will find that His Word backs up everything you hear and everything He shows you. And yes, the Enemy likes to work in the Third Watch of the night, too. But when you know who you are in Christ, and that you fight with the Power of Heaven at your side, you have nothing to fear from the darkness. The Cosmic War is beginning to spill over to this earthly realm and it is time that those of us who proclaim our loyalty to the King of the Universe cinch up our spiritual armor and stand up in our identity. It is time to be counted with the Heavenly Host as we refuse to surrender the earth to the kingdom of darkness. The dominion of the earth belongs to the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit! And it is our assignment to join in that victory! Hallelujah!

Psalm 27:8    "Seek My face." My heart says to You, "Your face, Lord, do I seek."


March 26, 2021

Passover 2021

The evening of Saturday, March 27th begins the Passover feast days, which ends at nightfall on Sunday, April 4th, which happens to be the Christian celebration of Easter this year. But, as a Christian, I find the celebration of Passover and the Spring Feasts extremely meaningful because it shows us just how Jesus fulfills the Biblical prophecies of the Bible at His first coming, and how the Fall Feasts are a dress rehearsal for His second coming. 

Within these eight Holy days, God ordained the Feast of Pesach, the Feast of Unleavened Bread, and the Feast of Fruit Fruits -- 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. 

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 that the Angel of Death would 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 spiritual jurisdiction of the Kingdom of God. The Egyptians' homes, which remained unmarked by the blood of a sacrificial lamb, belonged to the kingdom of darkness in 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 week of 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 our bondage to the pleasures of the flesh in this world, and the penalty of our sins. We can now step into His 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, from sundown on Sunday, March 28th until sundown on April 4th.  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.

I can't help but see the correlation to our present situation. In the midst of all that seems to be spiraling out of control in our country -- debates over vaccinations, continued isolation and forms of lockdown, rising inflation, food shortages, division and discord among the populace, escalating violence, and the crisis on our Southern border -- we need to spend this week in intentional worship and reflection for what God has done for us, and what He wants to accomplish in the midst of this national quagmire. Our country is at a crossroads and I don't have a lot of faith that we can get ourselves out of it. We are no different from the adulterous nation of Israel in 1451 B.C. As a nation, we have abandoned our relationship with the One True God in favor of following false prophets who are leading us into the corrupted belief systems of Socialism, Communism, Social Justice, Racism, Social Media, Debt, Universalism, and Ecumenicalism.  And it isn't hard to see that the Dark Side is pushing us ever further towards "absolute separation" from being a Godly nation. This Passover week is a perfect time to reflect on how things need to change in our world and how we, as Kingdom ambassadors and citizens, are to meet the challenges that seem to be unavoidable in the near future.

That is why our celebration of the third feast of Passover week, the Feast of First Fruits, should stir our spirits into action. It begins at sundown on April 3rd and ends at sundown on April 4th. 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 for us and the promises [of a greater harvest, as well as judgment] that He has yet to do. It is important to know that Jesus 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 and it is needed today more than ever! 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.  

Will we take advantage of this Holy season to emerge from the pandemic and our national trials with a new Kingdom mindset of how we want our families, our communities, our nation, and the world to look? Or will we continue to remain dormant, waiting for the world to go back to "business as usual" and return to our old ways. I pray that each of you will renew your mind and heart to receive God's desire for your life and His will for the earth. Let's show Evil that we will no longer remain idle in the face of its onslaught. We are sons and daughters of the King of the Universe, who have been delivered out of bondage by His Holy sacrifice. And in the spirit of praise and worship of my King and His Kingdom, I say "Pesach Same'ach (Happy Passover)! 

Exodus 12:13     The blood shall be a sign for you, on the houses where you are. And when I see the blood, I will pass over you, and no plague will befall you to destroy you, when I strike the land of Egypt.