The City of God

A pilgrim crossed a great and desolate wasteland
seeking refuge in a city whose builder and maker is God.
His God had called him to seek such
putting in his heart a hunger for that
which was the "Perfection of Beauty"
and the "Joy of the whole earth".

As he sojourned across the great waste
he cried and prayed continually,
"O Lord I must decrease and you must increase.
I forsake all those things of the world
and those lusts of the flesh and of the mind
that I used to take pleasure in
when I once lived in them.”

“Keep me as the apple of your eye, O my God,
for I know that with you is life and truth
and at your right hand there are pleasures forevermore.
Only let me be pleasing to you
and grant me entrance to your everlasting kingdom."

And this went on and on, such crying out to the Lord;
even great searching of heart and humbling himself before God.
For he travelled far and many temptations sought to waylay this pilgrim
from the goal of his journey that was before him.

But there came a time when, in much weariness, the pilgrim stopped
and sought to refresh himself and gather strength to continue on.
When off in the distance he spied a glimmering dome of translucent light.
Yes, it shimmered off in the distance
such that he thought it might be a dream or a mirage.
It came at a time when he wasn't expecting it
and in a way that he looked not for.

So he rose and headed towards this apparition
that had so mysteriously appeared before his face.
And as he approached that wondrous sight there appeared a man
dressed in white linen which cried out to him

'Hail Pilgrim, what is it you seek?"

To this salutation our pilgrim
and seeker of the celestial city answered,

"Sir, I have seen this pure and translucent shimmering from a way off
and I thought that it might be that city that I have heard tell
is clear as crystal and hard to be seen or found.
The Lord of the city had bid me
come and charged me that if I were willing and obedient
I might be granted entrance to this great and noble place."

The man in linen responded,

" Indeed this is that place you seek.
It is that very place whereof the Lord spoke,
‘I go to prepare a place for you.’
Behold this is the door and I am the gate keeper."

He held out his hand as to direct our pilgrim's gaze
and there appeared before him an entrance
and he was enabled to gaze in and see many of those
who had entered the gate already.

"Allow me O gate keeper one query now, for I am somewhat confused.
I see many who have entered in and are on the other side of the door
But there is none that is above the age and stature of a little child.
Are there no adults here?"

"You have seen well, said the gatekeeper.
Have you not heard the requirements of the Lord
that ‘except you become as little children’
you shall in no wise enter in to the things
God has prepared for his own."

"Ahh! now I see and I understand well," said the pilgrim.

“Indeed you do," said the man before the door,
"for you have been humbling your heart all this way
cross the great and howling wilderness
as you have travelled far and sought this city of refuge.”


“And now, you too, as you enter
will find yourself decreasing even more
that it might be fulfilled
even according to the word of the Lord.”


“One last question”, said the pilgrim,” If I may?”

“Say on.” answered the heavenly porter.

“I see that there are few who enter and abide there.
Why is it that in such a city of quiet habitation and secure
and wherein dwells no unrighteousness
and where no wicked nor unclean can enter are there not people very many?
You'd think that the line would be long to get in to such a place.”

To which the man in linen answered him,

“Truly, many are called but few are chosen.
Many even feel so desperate as you to venture the great wilderness
seeking refuge but alas they pass by the city,
not seeing it where it stands.

For it is clear as crystal. Like transparent glass, you see.
And only you could see because you have humbled your heart
and sought to obey in all things.

And there are many that perish in the wilderness
and are not able to enter in because of their unbelief.

And there are those that think the city is some future reality
to enter in to in some other dispensation so that they do not even
believe to enter into something so glorious in this lifetime.

But to you it is given to know the mystery of the city of God
and precious eyesalve is provided to the those
who believe and doubt not and who persevere
through great weakness and inherent sin-
ever humbling themselves and acknowledging their transgression.

Yes even now this bride in the earth prepares herself for that great day."

And I John saw the holy city, new Jerusalem,
coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride
adorned for her husband.
Revelation 21.2

Ignoring God (revised version)

I was in a worship meeting a few years ago
when in an atmosphere of praise
and the moving of the Holy Spirit
a very powerful word of prophecy came forth.
The Lord spoke through his yielded servant saying,
“If I came as you are asking me to come
then you would have to quit ignoring me.”


The Lord, after this brief reproof,
went on to affirm his promise-
He was still coming as he had said,
but a little correction was first in order.

As a child of promise, the Holy Spirit had shown me
some things to come and I was hungry to see fulfillment.

Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come ,
he will guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself;
but whatsoever he shall hear , that shall he speak :
and he will shew you things to come . John 16.13


But examining my heart I had to admit
that in some areas I was ignoring
the voice and the call of God.
In one area, I realized, I considered it a small thing-
a minor fleshly indulgence.
No big deal.
And maybe that was so at one time.

Blessed is the man who does not condemn himself
for those things that he allows. Romans 14.22


However, once God puts his finger on an area
and calls for change, ignoring him
then, is no longer a ‘small thing’,
but rather becomes big, fat, ugly, disobedience and rebellion.
It took a while for this to sink in.

Take for us the little foxes that spoil the vine.
Song of Songs


The other way I acknowledged I was ignoring God
was when the Spirit would seek
to direct me in a way
that I did not understand the why? or the wherefore?
I would excuse myself for drawing back.

Trust in the LORD with all your heart
and lean not on your own understanding…
Proverbs 3.5


I was at a stage in my spiritual walk where the Spirit
would be seeking to take control
many times throughout a day
in a way that as a young Christian
I would only experience maybe once a year
as a check in my spirit.

In such a way the Spirit would seek to turn me
from a path I might take or a decision I might make
or a meditation that might begin to roll in heart and mind.
Now I was getting these impositions of the spirit
many times throughout a day
and most often
I didn’t understand what God was after.

And thine ears shall hear a word behind thee, saying ,
This is the way, walk ye in it , when ye turn to the right hand,
and when ye turn to the left .
Isaiah 30.21



Through seeking him I began to understand
these promptings of the Spirit as calls to enter in.

Behold , I stand at the door, and knock :
if any man hear my voice, and open the door,
I will come in to him, and will sup with him,
and he with me.
Revelation 3.20


I was learning Jesus doesn’t just knock
to get us saved at the first,
he knocks throughout out the day to bring me in to God’s presence.

And now, O LORD my God, thou hast made thy servant king
instead of David my father: and I am but a little child:
I know not how to go out or come in.
1 Kings 3.7


The Spirit of God was prompting to get me
to cease from my own activities and understanding.
He was leading me to enter in in a way
that I had never before even imagined.

But as it is written , Eye hath not seen ,
nor ear heard , neither have entered into
the heart of man, things which God hath prepared
for them that love him.
1Corinthians 2.9
F
ailure to maintain any kind of consistent prayer life
over the years was shown to be a weakness
that God's power could work and be perfected in.
And the admonition from the Lord
to watch unto prayer took on a new meaning
as I'm learning to keep myself
watching and waiting for those special times
of entering in that the Spirit initiates.
Yes, It was quite simply a call to deeper life
in the Spirit and in prayer
and a more consistent appearing before God
which God was working in me.

No man can come to me, except the Father
which hath sent me draw him...
John 6.44


Then the Lord began to deal with me even deeper
about my thought life.

This I say therefore, and testify in the Lord,
that ye henceforth walk not as other Gentiles walk ,
in the vanity of their mind...
Ephesians 4.17

He began to lead me to pray in the spirit
and to use my prayer language more
which I realized I was so loathe to do up til now
because of the pain of moving into a realm
where the understanding is unfruitful.
It was way out of my proverbial 'comfort zone'.

But if I was to obey God and move out of
that vain kind of living and thinking that is mine
when I don’t enter in by way of praying in the Spirit,
I would need to ignore my flesh
and move out of the comfortability of my previous way
of thinking and living.

Launch out into the deep…. Luke 5.4


And so I see that God was doing this for me who,
in the final analysis , really did not know
how to come out or go in.

The Spirit showed up in my weakness here
and I slowly learned to respond.
I had to learn that when you get those checks
you do not question-
you turn and begin to listen, or wait , or be still…
you know… the kind of things our flesh is reluctant to yield to.
Especially when it is not clear to our understanding
what God is seeking to do.

For since the beginning of the world men have not heard ,
nor perceived by the ear , neither hath the eye seen ,
O God, beside thee, what he hath prepared for him that waiteth for him.
Isaiah 64.4


Developing intuitive ability is crucial here.
There are many things in our Christian walk I find
that are beyond our understanding.
That is why he gives us that peace that passeth understanding.
And so in His grace and mercy
I corrected the ‘little things’
that turned out to be not so little
and wished I had done it a lot sooner.

O how much grace we
frustrate that could be ours.

They that observe lying vanities forsake their own mercy.
Jonah 2.8I


It was said of Abraham that right at the start
of that life of faith that was pleasing to the Father
and through which he would become the father of all who believe,
that he went out... not knowing where he was going.
More and more I find this most significant
in relation to the ways of God and of faith
involving our not leaning to our own mind or understanding.

And I find there is a kind of spiritual
and allegorical beheading
that must take place.

I believe the Apostle John refers to just this
in what I believe is a parable.

…and I saw the souls of them that were beheaded
for the witness of Jesus, and for the word of God…
Re3velation 20.4


Even if we don’t see the metaphor here,
surely we can see that we are no longer
the head of our lives.
We have been given a new head.
Christ is the head of the body.

Let this mind be in you… Philippians 2.5


Every one who learns to let go of the natural life
and learns to walk in the Spirit
learns to look into a realm imperceptible to the natural mind.

While we look not at the things which are seen ,
but at the things which are not seen :
for the things which are seen are temporal;
but the things which are not seen are eternal.
2 Corinthians 4.18

Unless we are born again we cannot see such things
but God has revealed them to us
and continues to, until we become established
according to the revelation of the mystery. Romans 16.25

But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God:
for they are foolishness unto him:
neither can he know them,
because they are spiritually discerned .
1 Corinthians 2.14


Our old way of thinking has to go.
Off with the head!

The Seasons of Joseph

...faith, hope and love...
...but the greatest of these is love. 1 Corinthians 13.13

Joseph experienced the changing seasons of spiritual life.
The season of faith began when God came to him in a vision.

Then later, in a different season while in prison,
his heart was exercised with hope.

Until the time that his word came:
the word of the Lord tried him. Psalm 105.19


Finally, he was brought forth. The vision came to fruition.
The God of Promise became the God of Fulfillment.

...first the blade , then the ear,
after that the full corn in the ear. Mark 4.28


Each developed in its season. but the greatest is love.
For what is the blade and the ear to the full corn in the ear?

If the full corn had come before its time
the weight of it would
have been too much for the undeveloped stalk.
All would be lost.
That was then- this in now.
For us.
In this place.
The corn is ripe, the harvest comes.
The greatest season of all!

...the greatest is love.

Beauty for Ashes

...to give unto them beauty for ashes,
the oil of joy for mourning,
the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness...
Isaiah 61.3

How wondrous was the Lord’s visitation the other day
after that I responded
to what was a somewhat painful heart knocking
with which the Lord was seeking the opening of my heart.

Behold , I stand at the door, and knock :
if any man hear my voice, and open the door,
I will come in to him, and will sup with him,
and he with me.
Revelation 3.20

I came expectantly
and then seemingly there was nothing...
not as had so readily come of late
when I responded to spirit promptings by turning inward.

But then I persisted
and O what a loveliness...
what an inexpressible beauty I saw!
There are really no words for such favor-
for such a revelation of an aspect of God.

Beauty!

Yes! He gives it in exchange
for the ashes of my sacrifice.
For turning my gaze,
if ever so weakly, to look in his direction.

How lovely is his dwelling place!
How amiable are his tabernacles!
How glorious and wonderful
is his goodness to the sons of men,
even to as many as believe on his name

And so often it seems that it is in response
to his leading to just simply lift the head-
even that which the flesh is so loth to do.

Lift up your heads, O ye gates;
and be ye lift up, ye everlasting doors;
and the King of glory shall come in.
Who is this King of glory? The LORD strong and mighty,
the LORD mighty in battle.
Lift up your heads, O ye gates;
even lift them up, ye everlasting doors;
and the King of glory shall come in.
PS Who is this King of glory?
The LORD of hosts, he is the King of glory.
Selah. Psalm 24.7-10

Supernal Suffering

Jesus didn’t just suffer as a man on a cross,
after the fashion and pains of a human only…
There was more to it than that.

Though scourged and bloodied and bruised in body-
there is that which was much deeper going on- as deep as the lower parts of the earth.

Now that he ascended, what is it
but that he also descended first
into the lower parts of the earth? Ephesians 4.9


The whole of mankind’s sins were there to be dealt with- reaching to the depths of Satan.

And so the hurt and darkness that he experienced
were beyond the pains of flesh and soul .
His agony was an agony of all time
beyond tears
and every mortal grief.
Yes, his pain burned to the depths of hell.

Even so our sufferings take on a supernal quality
and are beyond the scope of mere men.

For add the Holy Spirit to the mix
and the flesh reacts-
kicking and bucking like a wild stallion
which is mounted by another for the first time.

And then there is that faith which came
and like a light gave vision to that which was before unseen
and was like a hope inspiring promise of that which was to come.

And then let clouds come and block that light
or let delays come in that which we so longed for
and which was so precious and yearned for…
…and came with such an assurance
as to its reality with hope
and earnest expectation.

Yes, let faith be tried in a prison of hoping against hope…

Hope deferred maketh the heart sick:
but when the desire cometh, it is a tree of life. Proverbs 13.12


Truly, the seed of life that that God plants,
like Christ, must die.

Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except a corn of wheat fall
into the ground and die, it abideth alone:but if it die, it bringeth forth much fruit. John 12.24


But now understand God’s way
and the way of all nature
and the path of Jesus…

observe….

hang on….

endure…

rejoice

Pick yourself up with grace and mercy
again and again and again
yes, hope against hope….
and watch what God will do.

Can these dead bones live….? Ezekiel

Revolution- Not Revival

There is a hunger for more. A cry for God's power and might.
A yearning for what many call 'revival' .
The enemy, it appears to many,
has come in like a flood. The waters are rising.
When will God raise up a standard against?
What will he do? How will he do it?

When you did terrible things that we looked not for,
you came down... Isaiah 64.3


Years ago when I was seeing signs from the Lord
that he in fact was planning a mighty 'move' of the Spirit,
the word 'revolution' was dropped into my spirit.
When this was given to me it was actually just bare bones.
The word 'revolution' and then three words:
repentance,
revival,
and restoration.

I understood at this time that these three R's signified
three different and distinct phases of spiritual revolution.
So what were looking at here is more than revival.
It has been said that 'we are past the point of revival'.
Something more is needed.

The 'more' is contained in the understanding of revolution:
earth shaking,
mind shattering,
heartbreaking,
life transforming- revolution.

Revival is talked about as though it were an end in itself.
We need to see it as part of a larger process.
Jesus didn't come to bring revival.
He said that no stone would be left upon another
and in the new creation this has been accomplished on every level.

No, the fire he sent in the earth was the fire of a mighty revolution..

I am come to send fire in the earth...Luke 12.49

So after I got the bare bones of this I was led to more,
given more light and revelation so as to flesh it out.
It was years later that it dawned on me that the passage
in second Chronicles describes this very process.

If my people who are called by my name will humble themselves and pray
and turn from their wicked ways (repentance),
I will hear from heaven (revival)
and forgive their sin and turn and heal their land (restorationn).
2 Chronicles 7.14

Yes,we are going to see dramatic change.
God is indeed going to do things we looked not for.
He is going to do exceedingly abundantly above anything
we can think or even ask.
And when it is all said and done we will see that he did indeed
fulfill our great expectations. The God of promise
becomes for us the God of fulfillment.

And it shall be said in that day, Lo, this is our God;
we have waited for him, and he will save us:
this is the LORD; we have waited for him,
we will be glad and rejoice in his salvation. Isaiah 25:9 KJV

More Than Words

Even the Gospel has no effect upon me
until his hand is stretched out.
Spurgeon.

God never intended to send his servants forth
into the world with words alone.
No, there are two witnesses that come from heaven-
the Word and the Spirit.

And these two are always found working in conjunction.
They could no more be separated in their working
than the light could come forth from the sun without heat.

...nothing is hidden from its heat.
Psalm 19.6

The most respected Charles Spurgeon bears witness
that words alone don't cut it.
The good news must be accompanied
with the right hand of God's own strength.

For the kingdom Of god is not in word
but in power.
1 Corinthians 4.20


He asks and answers the question,

"Is not what we need...
...the Holy Spirit that dwells within us..."

David cried out to the Lord-
My soul clings to the dust.
Psalm 119.25


And there is another respected and notable
tabernacle of witness, Andrew Murray, that speaks to us.
When writing in his book,The Two Covenants,
he poses the question,

"Do we not need something more than
words and thoughts?”

'
...the flesh profits you nothing'. John 6.63

His soul, he found, was often drawn
to that which is worldly and sensual
and his flesh was bogged down as in a mire.

He knew that he needed a touch from God
and therefore he cried for the remedy.

Quicken me according to your word. Psalm 119


Jesus came recognizing the need of all mankind
and especially that of his servants to fulfill their work
according to their high and holy calling.

Murray cautioned-

The flesh and the spirit are mutually exclusive.
They are oil and water-they do not mix.
One does not help the other.
In fact one will crucify the other.


If we follow the Lord the flesh will be crucified.

And he said to them all,
If any man will come after me,
let him deny himself,
and take up his cross daily, and follow me.
Luke 9.23


If we walk after the flesh the Lord will be.

....seeing they crucify to themselves
the Son of God afresh...
Hebrews 6.6


But God gives great grace to those who follow Jesus –
to those who set their hearts to keep his word.

Quicken me after thy lovingkindness;
so shall I keep the testimony of thy mouth.
Psalm 119.88


His testimonies are kept as we learn to receive
and walk in his grace and power.

But if the Spirit of him that raised up
Jesus from the dead dwell in you,
he that raised up Christ from the dead
shall also quicken your mortal bodies
by his Spirit that dwelleth in you.
Romans 8.11

The Church’s Finest Hour

The dawning of the church age, with the advent of the Spirit on Pentecost,was with glorious and colorful display of God’s power
and the truth as it is found in Christ Jesus.

Thou makest the outgoings of the morning and evening to rejoice.
Psalm 65.8


And now at the end of the age the colorful displays, like that of the morning and the evenings’ joyful entrance and exit,
are going to be more and more evident.

God is making his salvation and power known.

As dramatically as at the first he comes now at the end of the age.
And these coming days as a result could indeed be our (the Church’s)
Finest hour.

Therefore they shall come and sing in the height of Zion, and shall flow together to the goodness of the LORD… Jeremiah 31.12


The call is going forth and many hearts are being touched.
There are many who are responding to the call
and drawing near in this hour.

Blessed is the man whom thou choosest, and causest to approach unto thee, that he may dwell in thy courts: we shall be satisfied with the goodness of thy house, even of thy holy temple .
Psalm 65.4


And as many as draw near unto God are used of God
in the work of his Kingdom and power.

The day of “professional ministers” is swept away
as God raises up members of his body to work together
in the accomplishing of the work; people like you and me.

Everyone has their part and their place.

From whom the whole body fitly joined together and compacted by that which every joint supplieth, according to the effectual working in the measure of every part , maketh increase of the body unto the edifying of itself in love. Ephesians 4.16


To those who believe and trust God doors are being opened that the Witness
might go forth even when doors are closed in a traditional system. And that which for a long time has been considered non-traditional or non- denominational is now become traditional and dead.

God is looking for new wines skins to hold this new wine of these latter days.

*********************

The Church’s Finest Hour- part 2


The word “church” is said to have derived from the Greek word Kuriakon:
meaning the Lord’s house.

(See Eaton’s Bible Dictionary)

But Christ as a son over his own house; whose house are we… Hebrews 3.6


We“the whole body of the redeemed, those whom the Father hath given to Christ, the invisilbe…church… ” are God’s house. (Eaton)

We who are saved through the sacrifice of the Lamb are become living tabernacles of the Holy Ghost, washed by the water of the word and cleansed through the blood of the everlasting covenant. Hebrews 13.20

Yes, we are the temple of God, the ecclesia, the called out ones.

…ye also are the called of Jesus Christ. Romans 1.6


And as the called of God we are given a lively hope with much to be fulfilled in this life and in this hour

Moreover whom he did predestinate, them he also called: and whom he called, them he also justified: and whom he justified, them he also glorified. Romans 8.30


And there is a glory to be found on us even in this life.

And all that sat in the council, looking stedfastly on him, saw his face as it had been the face of an angel. Acts 6.15


Especially for those who standing up for truth in this hour and suffer persecution for their witness.

The king's daughter is all glorious within:
her clothing is of wrought gold. Psalm 45.13


O, yes there is a glory to be found within for as Jesus said,
"the Kingdom of God is witnin you."


If ye be reproached for the name of Christ, happy are ye;
for the spirit of glory and of God resteth upon you:
on their part he is evil spoken of, but on your part he is glorified.
1 Peter 4.14


Yes, it is the finest hour of the church of Jesus Christ when she stands valiant for the truth and suffers for His name’s sake.

But he, being full of the Holy Ghost, looked up stedfastly into heaven, and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing on the right hand of God… Acts 7.55


Through the scriptures, recording the colorful birth of the Church
in the age of the Apostles, we can get an idea of what God is looking for in this age as the sun begins to descend towards the horizon resplendently.

A friend of mine once told me that he pictured the church in the last days like a bright white spot on a dark and black background.

This still rings true for me.
Have you ever seen all the colors that make up 'white'?

And scripture confirms as well.

For, behold, the darkness shall cover the earth, and gross darkness the people: but the LORD shall arise upon thee, and his glory shall be seen upon thee. Isaiah 60.2

*****************************


The Church’s Finest Hour: part 3


For the LORD will not forsake his people
for his great name’s sake:
because it hath pleased the LORD to make you his people.
1 Samuel. 12.22

Isn’t that awesome? Wow! It makes me want to shout!
We who have the inner workings of the Spirit of God have light within, and the Spirit bears witness of the truth in power.

Our eyes behold scripture that stirs a breathing,
an inspiration, as the Holy Ghost confirms and strengthens our hearts
in the redemption that flows though God’s own Son like a mighty river.

…thou greatly enrichest it with the river of God… Psalm 65.9

O halleluja!
Ah, we who were once not a people are now the people of God.
We who were once wandering aimless and hopeless through the wilderness
of this world are now made partakers.

We who were once so lost and broken and addicted are now immersed
into the very Body of Christ and are members one of another.

And God does not call us to build him a house,
He is building a house for us!

Furthermore I tell thee that the LORD will build thee an house. 1Chronicles 17.10


Has any such thing so great and glorious ever been imagined?
But now as we look to the image of Christ we find that all is exceedingly abundantly above anything that we could think or ask. (Ephesians 3.20)

The images of the world always disappoint- they always look better
than they turn out to be in actuality.
But the image of the invisible God always goes beyond expectation.

In fact, it is not even in us to expect so great things,
but we receive them by faith.

Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the spirit which is of God; that we might know the things
that are freely given to us of God.
1 Corinthians 2.12


‘So great a salvation’ becomes ours as we seek him all our days.

...and serve him in truth with all your heart:
for consider how great things he hath done for you.
1 Samuel 12.24

We have now come...

We are come to Mount Sion
a spiritual place upon which the light always shines.

We are come unto the city of the living God,
a city unlike any of human origin
wherein dwells crime and corruption
but truly a city of God
wherein dwells righteousness . nothing unclean can enter.

We have not come to a place desolate, remote, and far removed
but to one inhabited by an innumerable company of angels
and the saints of the Most High
where once we were not a people
now we are his people, the community of the redeemed

We have come to the grandest assemblage of living beings
that anyone could possibly imagine, no
beyond all possible imaginings
in this finite realm

And to the church of the firstborn
not a physical structure
but a chosen people washed in the blood of the Lamb

Finally, we are come to God the Judge of all men
The Fair and Gracious One
The Merciful
The Beautiful
The Almighty
And to those who have come before and passed through- triumphant


But ye are come unto mount Sion, and unto the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to an innumerable company of angels,
To the general assembly and church of the firstborn, which are written in heaven, and to God the Judge of all, and to the spirits of just men made perfect,And to Jesus the mediator of the new covenant, and to the blood of sprinkling, that speaketh better things that that of Abel.
Hebrews 12.22-24

Living Unto Something Else

He died for all (His people), that they which live should not henceforth live unto themselves, but unto Him which died for them and rose again.
2 Corinthians 5:15


This is an amazing reality.
That we can really live unto something other than ourselves.
It is true that we all are continually desiring something more-
something greater.

In Christ we can daily enter in to that which is more
and greater than we are if left alone. Exceedingly abundantly more!

Now if we have not Christ and have not found entrance into that which
opens up before us like a promised land then we still have
that lust for more which will manifest itself
in the desires of the flesh and of the mind.

Among whom also we all had our conversation in times past
in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh
and of the mind; and were by nature the children of wrath,
even as others. Ephesians 2.3


We will ever be lifting ourselves up-
if only in our own imaginations and the vanity of our mind or,
inversely and destructively,
tearing ourselves down in hopelessness and despair.

But how great a salvation to be lifted up of Heaven
and an Almighty Father's eternal care-
who daily loadeth us with benefits of being his own children.
Ah yes! being born again- there is indeed something to enter into.

Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God.
JOhn 3.5

Imagery

Nicodemus is an example of one who looks at the words of the Lord and
sees not that he is speaking in allegorical terms
or as the Bible calls it, a parable.

And this use of what also might be called metaphor
Or imagery is employed by the Lord more often than we might realize.

But without a parable spake he not unto them....
Mark 4.34

Why does he do this?

Well, the answer to that might well engender more mystery
than it provides answers.

Jesus explains the use of this mysterious communication::

That seeing they may see, and not perceive;
and hearing they may hear, and not understand;
lest at any time they should be converted,
and their sins should be forgiven them.
Mark 4.12

One of the things the serious student needs to be converted from here,
is that tendency to rely on their own natural mind.
We are admonished to do otherwise.

....lean not unto thine own understanding.
Proverbs 3.5


When the prophet John spoke of Jesus,
foretelling the one who would come, he describes
a spiritual mindset that was supernal.

And shall make him of quick understanding in the fear of the LORD:
and he shall not judge after the sight of his eyes,
neither reprove after the hearing of his ears:
Isaiah 11.3


Nicodemus was looking at the bare seed of what Jesus said
and not able to realize that truth relating
to what was hidden and spiritual-
like that life potential lying hidden and dormant
within every seed and that is not available
for proper inspeection to natural eyes and ears.

Thou fool, that which thou sowest is not quickened,
except it die:
1 Corinthians 15.36


How shallow was this teacher of Israel!

If I have told you earthly things, and ye believe not,
how shall ye believe, if I tell you of heavenly things?
John 3.12

And yet with this truth so evidently before us we live in day
of similar shallowness where most of the so called 'teachers'
bring forth their exegesis that is based upon a Nicodemus like appreciation of the word.

Seeing they see but do not perceive,
hearing they hear but do not understand.

You see, it is not in a man to rightly divide
the word of truth with his own understanding.

Knowing this first, that no prophecy of the scripture
is of any private interpretation.
2 Peter 1.20

In regards to the mysteries of the kingdom,
Jesus said that no man could receive
the great and wonderful truths in a way
that was with intended life transforming power
unless it were given to him from above.

John answered and said,
A man can receive nothing,
except it be given him from heaven.
John 3.27


The Apostle exhorts, "know this first!"( 2 Peter 1.20)
And yet we seem to know this not at all in this age.

A true interpretation of the Bible is possible only by the Holy Ghost.

Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come,
he will guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself;
but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak:
and he will shew you things to come.
John 16.13

Jesus talked about being born again.
That got mucked up by Nicodemus.

He talks about carrying a cross daily
and yet you don't see most churches handing out lumber.

He said. ‘eat my flesh and drink my blood’
and yet most would gag at a cup of real blood.

The woman at the well asked for a drink of water
but Jesus replied that he wasn't talking about literal water.

And he talked about raising a temple up in three days
but it wasn't the temple in Jerusalem
that he was speaking about.

Paul said we speak the wisdom of God in a mystery.
This is most often with parable.
How can we have all these examples of fundamental spiritual truth
conveyed with this use of imagery
and then claim that God means for us to interpret the Bible literally?

It cannot be done consistently by any man
no matter what they might say.
There is just too much use of parable and imagery throughout the Holy Writ.

Now am I saying that none of the Bible is to be taken literally, absolutely not.

Jesus was literally born of a virgin.
And he really rose from the dead.
There is that which is quite literal.
And there is that which is both literal
and a parable of something hidden.
As well, there is that which is clearly
only to be understood metaphorically.

Therefore if thine enemy hunger, feed him;
if he thirst, give him drink:
for in so doing thou shalt heap coals of fire on his head.
Romans 12.20

You're not going to see coals of fire
heaped on people heads in actuality
and yet the Apostle's truth is still valid.

And Jesus said, Are ye also yet without understanding?
Matthew 15.16


Trust me here, you aren't going to see fire
coming out of two prophets mouths either.
So what is it referring to by way of parable?


Hear now this, O foolish people,
and without understanding;
which have eyes, and see not; which have ears, and hear not...
Jeremiah 5.21

NO, but there are some places that have good doctrine and good understanding.
That happens in places where ministers listen to the Spirit.

They do not run ahead as many to have all the answers
but they wait on the Lord for his
interpretation and the instruction of the Spirit.

Which things also we speak,
not in the words which man's wisdom teacheth,
but which the Holy Ghost teacheth;
comparing spiritual things with spiritual.
1 Corinthians 2.13

1984 Revisited

And he exerciseth all the power of the first beast before him
and causeth the earth and them which dwell therein
to worship the first beast, whose deadly wound was healed.
Revelation 13.12


This idea of a power influencing people to act in a certain way,
even to give attention and worth to an image… a concept… an idea.

We see it all the time- do we not?

In America and all around the world there is
that idea of "political correctness"
where much pressure and influence is exerted
for people to look at things
and believe and behave in a certain way.

There doesn’t seem to be a care that the ways
they want people to see things
go against all tradition;
not a care that these 'new concepts' go against the Bible-
this ‘newspeak'.

For generations people of many countries
used the Bible and its truth as the standard.
Governments and laws were based upon it.
Such nations were even called “Christian” nations.

We have no government armed with power capable
of contending with human passions unbridled
by morality and religion. Avarice, ambition,
revenge, or gallantry, would break the strongest cords
of our Constitution as a whale goes through a net.
Our Constitution was made only for a moral and religious people.
It is wholly inadequate to the government of any other.
John Adams

The Morality of John Adams day was the morality
of Judeo-Christian influence.

But that is all changing.

There is that which would cause people
to worship something else
and that influence has nothing to do with heaven.

It has more to do with that which caused Eve
to take her attention off of the words
and truth of God as the first.

And that influence is with the subtlety of a beast.

Now the serpent was more subtil than any beast….
Genesis 3.1

Power from on High

Even the Gospel has no effect upon me
until his hand is stretched out.
Spurgeon.


God never intended to send his servants forth
into the world with words alone.
No, there are two witnesses that come from heaven-
the Word and the Spirit,
and these two are always found working in conjunction.
They could no more be separated in their working
than the light could come forth from the sun without heat.

...nothing is hidden from its heat.
Psalm 19.6


The most respected Charles Spurgeon bears witness
that words alone don't cut it.
The good news must be accompanied
with the right hand of God's own strength.

For the kingdom Of god is not in word
but in power.
1 Corinthians 4.20


And there is another respected and notable
tabernacle of witness. Andrew Murray.
When writing in his book,The Two Covenants,
he poses the question, "Do we not need something more than
words and thoughts?”


He answers the question,
"Is not what we need...
the Holy Spirit that dwells within us..."


David cried out to the Lord.
My soul clings to the dust.
Psalm 119.25

His soul, he found, was often drawn
to that which is worldly and sensual
and his flesh was bogged down
as in a mire.
He knew that he needed a touch from God
and therefore he cried for the remedy.
Quicken me according to your word.


Jesus came recognizing the need of all mankind
and especially of his servants to fulfill their work
according to their high and holy calling.

He cautioned-
'the flesh profits you nothing'. John 6.63



The flesh and the spirit are mutually exclusive.
They are oil and water-they do not mix.
One does not help the other.
In fact one will crucify the other.

If we follow the Lord the flesh will be crucified.

And he said to them all, If any man will come after me,
let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow me.
Luke 9.23


If we walk after the flesh the Lord will be.

....seeing they crucity to themselves
the Son of God afresh...
Hebrews 6.6


But God gives great grace to those who follow Jesus –
to those who set their hearts to keep his word.

Quicken me after thy lovingkindness;
so shall I keep the testimony of thy mouth.
Psalm 119.88


His testimonies are kept as we learn to receive
and walk in his grace and power.

But if the Spirit of him that raised up
Jesus from the dead dwell in you,
he that raised up Christ from the dead
shall also quicken your mortal bodies
by his Spirit that dwelleth in you.
Romans 8.11

Ignoring God

I was in a worship meeting a few years ago
when in an atmosphere of praise
and the moving of the Holy Spirit
a very powerful word of prophecy came forth.
The Lord spoke through his yielded servant saying,
“If I came as you are asking me to come
then you would have to quit ignoring me.”


The Lord, after this brief reproof,
went on to affirm his promise-
He was still coming as he had said,
but a little correction was first in order.

As a child of promise, the Holy Spirit had shown me
some things to come and I was hungry to see fulfillment.

Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come ,
he will guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself;
but whatsoever he shall hear , that shall he speak :
and he will shew you things to come . John 16.13


But examining my heart I had to admit
that in some areas I was ignoring
the voice and the call of God.
In one area, I realized, I considered it a small thing-
a minor fleshly indulgence.
No big deal.
And maybe that was so at one time.

Blessed is the man who does not condemn himself
for those things that he allows. Romans 14.22


However, once God puts his finger on an area
and calls for change, ignoring him
then, is no longer a ‘small thing’,
but rather becomes big, fat, ugly, disobedience and rebellion.
It took a while for this to sink in.

Take for us the little foxes that spoil the vine.
Song of Songs


The other way I acknowledged I was ignoring God
was when the Spirit would seek
to direct me in a way
that I did not understand the why? or the wherefore?
I would excuse myself for drawing back.

Trust in the LORD with all your heart
and lean not on your own understanding…
Proverbs 3.5


I was at a stage in my spiritual walk where the Spirit
would be seeking to take control
many times throughout a day
in a way that as a young Christian
I would only experience maybe once a year
as a check in my spirit.

In such a way the Spirit would seek to turn me
from a path I might take or a decision I might make
or a meditation that might begin to roll in heart and mind.
Now I was getting these impositions of the spirit
many times throughout a day
and most often
I didn’t understand what God was after.

And thine ears shall hear a word behind thee, saying ,
This is the way, walk ye in it , when ye turn to the right hand,
and when ye turn to the left .
Isaiah 30.21



Through seeking him I began to understand
these promptings of the Spirit as calls to enter in.

Behold , I stand at the door, and knock :
if any man hear my voice, and open the door,
I will come in to him, and will sup with him,
and he with me.
Revelation 3.20


I was learning Jesus doesn’t just knock
to get us saved at the first,
he knocks throughout out the day to bring me in to God’s presence.

And now, O LORD my God, thou hast made thy servant king
instead of David my father: and I am but a little child:
I know not how to go out or come in.
1 Kings 3.7


The Spirit of God was prompting to get me
to cease from my own activities and understanding.
He was leading me to enter in in a way
that I had never before even imagined.

But as it is written , Eye hath not seen ,
nor ear heard , neither have entered into
the heart of man, things which God hath prepared
for them that love him.
1Corinthians 2.9
F
ailure to maintain any kind of consistent prayer life
over the years was shown to be a weakness
that God's power could work and be perfected in.
And the admonition from the Lord
to watch unto prayer took on a new meaning
as I'm learning to keep myself
watching and waiting for those special times
of entering in that the Spirit initiates.
Yes, It was quite simply a call to deeper life
in the Spirit and in prayer
and a more consistent appearing before God
which God was working in me.

No man can come to me, except the Father
which hath sent me draw him...
John 6.44


Then the Lord began to deal with me even deeper
about my thought life.

This I say therefore, and testify in the Lord,
that ye henceforth walk not as other Gentiles walk ,
in the vanity of their mind...
Ephesians 4.17

He began to lead me to pray in the spirit
and to use my prayer language more
which I realized I was so loathe to do up til now
because of the pain of moving into a realm
where the understanding is unfruitful.
It was way out of my proverbial 'comfort zone'.

But if I was to obey God and move out of
that vain kind of living and thinking that is mine
when I don’t enter in by way of praying in the Spirit,
I would need to ignore my flesh
and move out of the comfortability of my previous way
of thinking and living.

Launch out into the deep…. Luke 5.4


And so I see that God was doing this for me who,
in the final analysis , really did not know
how to come out or go in.

The Spirit showed up in my weakness here
and I slowly learned to respond.
I had to learn that when you get those checks
you do not question-
you turn and begin to listen, or wait , or be still…
you know… the kind of things our flesh is reluctant to yield to.
Especially when it is not clear to our understanding
what God is seeking to do.

For since the beginning of the world men have not heard ,
nor perceived by the ear , neither hath the eye seen ,
O God, beside thee, what he hath prepared for him that waiteth for him.
Isaiah 64.4


Developing intuitive ability is crucial here.
There are many things in our Christian walk I find
that are beyond our understanding.
That is why he gives us that peace that passeth understanding.
And so in His grace and mercy
I corrected the ‘little things’
that turned out to be not so little
and wished I had done it a lot sooner.

O how much grace we
frustrate that could be ours.

They that observe lying vanities forsake their own mercy.
Jonah 2.8I


It was said of Abraham that right at the start
of that life of faith that was pleasing to the Father
and through which he would become the father of all who believe,
that he went out... not knowing where he was going.
More and more I find this most significant
in relation to the ways of God and of faith
involving our not leaning to our own mind or understanding.

And I find there is a kind of spiritual
and allegorical beheading
that must take place.

I believe the Apostle John refers to just this
in what I believe is a parable.

…and I saw the souls of them that were beheaded
for the witness of Jesus, and for the word of God…
Re3velation 20.4


Even if we don’t see the metaphor here,
surely we can see that we are no longer
the head of our lives.
We have been given a new head.
Christ is the head of the body.

Let this mind be in you… Philippians 2.5


Every one who learns to let go of the natural life
and learns to walk in the Spirit
learns to look into a realm imperceptible to the natural mind.

While we look not at the things which are seen ,
but at the things which are not seen :
for the things which are seen are temporal;
but the things which are not seen are eternal.
2 Corinthians 4.18

Unless we are born again we cannot see such things
but God has revealed them to us
and continues to, until we become established
according to the revelation of the mystery. Romans 16.25

But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God:
for they are foolishness unto him:
neither can he know them,
because they are spiritually discerned .
1 Corinthians 2.14


Our old way of thinking has to go.
Off with the head!

Prey

Jesus commissioned Peter, ”Feed my sheep!”

That is the nature of the mature- to be always giving-
to be feeding souls with the things of heaven.

Yes, spirituality is always giving and from its abundance
always nurturing and feeding.

The flesh, natural man, on the other hand,
is always wanting,always needing in its poverty;
always preying on others.

It used to be that real live animals were associated
in our thinking with prey.
Not anymore.

Now we see that there are sexual predators.
There are those pedophiles who prey on children.
There is that which would exploit the elderly
to brutishly devour their savings

And there is predatory lending where greedy
deceivers take advantage of those who fall victim to their practices.


As well, there is a proliferation of scams
on the Internet to prey on the unwary.

And some are still looking for the image of the beast
to arrive on the scene.

Predators everywhere!
Victims as prey.

...the world will be astonished
when they see the beast,
Revelation 17.8

The Prison of Being

Thomas Wolfe wrote:

"He understood that men are forever strangers to one another,
that no one ever comes really to know anyone,

that imprisoned in the dark womb of our mother
we come to life without having seen her face,

that we are given to her arms a stranger,
and that caught in the insoluble prison of being,

we escape it never, no matter what arms may clasp us,
what mouth may kiss us,
what heart may warm us,
never, never, never, never, never."

Good observation Tom. Only not quite true.
It’s not quite never.

We do escape it when the arms that embrace
and are revealed to us
are the arms of the Everlasting Father-
when we come into fellowship with the Eternal Father.

We do escape when we kiss the Son
and find his kiss better than wine
and we find the anger is turned away
that binds us to such bleak visage that you proclaim

Kiss the Son lest he be angry and you perish out of the way.
Psalm 2.12

Yes, we do find release when the heart that warms us
is the heart of the everlasting almighty God who is a consuming fire.

Yes Thomas, your vision of humanity's struggle is accurate
for we are all prisoners.
And we remain prisoners-either in the kingdom of darkness
in which you are obviously held

Or, in the kingdom of God's dear Son
where our captivity is taken captive
and where we willingly remain
slaves to his love-
bondslaves to the glorious liberty of the children of God.
We are no longer stranger but have been made partakers
of the inheritance of the family of God.

Ignoring God

I was in a worship meeting a few years ago
when in an atmosphere of praise
and the moving of the Holy Spirit
a very powerful word of prophecy came forth.
The Lord spoke through his yielded servant saying,

“If I came as you are asking me to come
then you would have to quit ignoring me.”

The Lord, after this brief reproof,
went on to affirm his promise-
He was still coming as he had said,
but a little correction was first in order.

As a child of promise the Holy Spirit had shown me
some things to come and I was hungry to see fulfillment.

Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come ,
he will guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself;
but whatsoever he shall hear , that shall he speak :
and he will shew you things to come . John 16.13

But examining my heart I had to admit
that in some areas I was ignoring
the voice and the call of God.

In one area, I realized, I considered it a small thing-
a minor fleshly indulgence.
No big deal.
And maybe that was so at one time.

Blessed is the man who does not condemn himself
for those things that he allows. Romans 14.22

However, once God puts his finger on an area
and calls for change, ignoring him
then, is no longer a ‘small thing’,
but rather becomes
big, fat, ugly, disobedience and rebellion.

It took a while for this to sink in.

Take for us the little foxes that spoil the vine.
Song of Songs

The other way I acknowledged I was ignoring God
was when the Spirit would seek
to direct me in a way
that I did not understand the why? or the wherefore?

I would excuse myself for drawing back.

Trust in the LORD with all your heart
and lean noton your own understanding…
Proverbs 3.5[/i]

I was at a stage in my spiritual walk where the Spirit
would be seeking to take control
many times throughout a day
in a way that as a young Christian
I would only experience maybe once a year
as a check in my spirit.

In such a way the Spirit would seek to turn me
from a path I might take or a decision I might make
or a meditation that might begin to roll in heart and mind.

Now I was getting these impositions of the spirit
many times throughout a day
and most often
I didn’t understand what God was after.

And thine ears shall hear a word behind thee, saying ,
This is the way, walk ye in it , when ye turn to the right hand,
and when ye turn to the left .
Isaiah 30.2

Through seeking him I began to understand
these promptings of the Spirit as calls to enter in.

Behold , I stand at the door, and knock :
if any man hear my voice, and open the door,
I will come in to him, and will sup with him,
and he with me.
Revelation 3.20

I was learning Jesus doesn’t just knock
to get us saved at the first, I saw, he knocks
throughout out the day to bring us in to God’s presence.

And now, O LORD my God, thou hast made thy servant king
instead of David my father: and I am but a little child:
I know not how to go out or come in.
1 Kings 3.7

The Spirit of God was prompting to get me
to cease from my own activities and understanding.
He was leading me to enter in in a way
that I had never before even imagined.

But as it is written , Eye hath not seen ,
nor ear heard , neither have entered into
the heart of man, things which God hath prepared
for them that love him.
1Corinthians 2.9


Failure to maintain any kind of consistent prayer life
over the years was shown to be a weakness
that God's power could work and be perfected in.

And the admonition from the Lord
to watch unto prayer took on a new meaning
as I'm learning to keep myself
watching and waiting for those special times
of entering in that the Spirit initiates.

Yes, It was quite simply a call to deeper life
in the Spirit and in prayer
and a more consistent appearing before God
which God was working in me.

No man can come to me, except the Father
which hath sent me draw him...
John 6.44



Then the Lord began to deal with me even more deeply
about my thought life.

This I say therefore, and testify in the Lord,
that ye henceforth walk not as other Gentiles walk ,
in the vanity of their mind...
Ephesians 4.17

He began to lead me to pray in the spirit
and to use my prayer language more
which I realized I was so loathe to do up til now
because of the pain of moving into a realm
where the understanding is unfruitful.

It was way out of my proverbial comfort zone.

But if I was to obey God and move out of
that vain kind of living and thinking that is mine
when I don’t enter in by way of praying in the Spirit,
I would need to ignore my flesh
and move out of the comfortability of my previous way
of thinking and living.

Launch out into the deep…. Luke 5.4

And so I see that God was doing this for me who,
in the final analysis,really did not know
how to come out or go in.

The Spirit showed up in my weakness here
and I slowly learned to respond.
I had to learn that when you get those checks
you do not question
you turn and begin to listen, or wait , or be still…
you know… the kind of things our flesh is reluctant to yield to;
especially when it is not clear to our understanding
what God is seeking to do.
Developing intuitive ability is crucial here.

There are many things in our Christian walk I find
that are beyond our understanding.
That is why he gives us that peace that passeth understanding.

And so in His grace and mercy
I corrected the ‘little things’
that turned out to be not so little
and wished I had done it a lot sooner.

O how much grace we
frustrate that could be ours.

They that observe lying vanities forsake their own mercy.
Jonah 2.8

It was said of Abraham that right at the start
of that life of faith that was pleasing to the Father
and through which he would become the father of all who believe,
that he went out... not knowing where he was going.

More and more I find this most significant
in relation to the ways of God and of faith
involving our not leaning to our own mind or understanding.
And I find there is a kind of spiritual
and allegorical beheading
that must take place.

I believe the Apostle John refers to just this
in what I believe is a parable.

…and I saw the souls of them that were beheaded
for the witness of Jesus, and for the word of God…
Re3velation 20.4



Even if we don’t see the metaphor here,
surely we can see that we are no longer
the head of our lives.
We have been given a new head.
Christ is the head of the body.

Let this mind be in you… Philippians 2.5

Every one who learns to let go of the natural life
and learns to walk in the Spirit
learns to look into a realm imperceptible to the natural mind.

While we look not at the things which are seen ,
but at the things which are not seen :
for the things which are seen are temporal;
but the things which are not seen are eternal.
2 Corinthians 4.18

Unless we are born again we cannot see such things
but God has revealed them to us
and continues to, until we become established
according to the revelation of the mystery. Romans 16.25

But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God:
for they are foolishness unto him:
neither can he know them,
because they are spiritually discerned .
1 Corinthians 2.14

Our old way of thinking has to go.

Off with the head!

Perversion of the Gospel

The enemy brings down that which still bears its name to the level of the haughty will of man and the corruption of the natural heart, turning Christianity into a religion that suits that heart, in place of one that is the expression of the heart of God — an all-holy God — and the revelation of that which He has done in His love to bring us into communion with His holiness.
From Darby commentary on Galatians•

In that day shalt thou not be ashamed for all thy doings, wherein thou hast transgressed against me: for then I will take away out of the midst of thee them that rejoice in thy pride, and thou shalt no more be haughty because of my holy mountain. Zephaniah 3.11

When I read this commentary of Darby on Galatians it resonated perfectly with what my heart has considered in relation to what passes as "Christianity" in this day and age and especially with that "Gospel" you see and hear so much on Television.

You see so much of man's haughtiness as he wields the high and powerful
'word’ of God and yet in this, he holds the truth of God in unrighteousness and grieves every true heart who knows in spirit and in truth that true Gospel of the meek and lowly lamb of God.

And through covetousness shall they with feigned words make mechandise of you: whose judgment now of a long time lingereth not, and their damnation slumbereth not. 2 Peter 2.3

When you see them manipulating money out of people in the name of God
and in the name of some strange kind of "prosperity" so that they can feed the hunger of that beast called "television ministry" which like a little shop of horrors continually cries, “feed me, feed me “ yes, with a little innocuous voice at first and then eventually with a beastly growl; it demands until another gospel has been formed
with its own high tech and manipulative net to gather wealth just to feed it.

Being filled with all unrighteousness,… wickedness, covetousness… deceit...
Romans 1.29

And there are particular ministers who specialize in raising money for this beast until they are as good as those old snake oil salesman who,
to get money out of people, will promise the hearers every need met.

Just give! Give!

The horseleach hath two daughters,
crying, Give , give .
Proverbs 30.15

Prayer

I found this excellent article on prayer that I had copied and stored:

"Wherever the Church is aroused and the world's wickedness arrested, somebody has been praying." – A. T. Pierson "How terrible is the cost of robbing God of time for prayer. When we rob God of time for quiet, we are robbing Him of ourselves. It is only in the quiet that we can really know Him and know ourselves, and be sure that we give ourselves back to Him. Oh, for God's sake, do not risk keeping the windows of Heaven closed by robbing God of time." –

Gordon M. Guinness "The missionary church is a praying church. The history of missions is a history of prayer. Everything vital to the success of the world's evangelization hinges on prayer. Are thousands of missionaries and tens of thousands of native workers needed? ‘Pray ye therefore the Lord of the harvest, that He send forthlaborers into His harvest.’" – John R. Mott

"Why does the Church stay indoors? They have a theology that has dwindled into a philosophy, in which there is no thrill of faith, no terror of doom and no concern for souls. Unbelief has put out the fires of passion, and worldliness garlands the altar of sacrifice with the tawdry glitter of unreality. The Holy Ghost cannot conquer the world with unbelief, nor can He save the world with a worldly Church.

He calls for a crusade, a campaign, and an adventure ofsaving passion. For this enterprise He wants a separated, sanctified and sacrificial people." – Samuel Chadwick "We give ourselves to prayer. We preach a Gospel that saves to the uttermost, and witness to its power. We do not argue about worldliness; we witness. We do not discuss philosophy; we preach the Gospel. We do not speculate about the destiny of sinners; we pluck them as brands from the burning. We ask no man's patronage. We beg no man's money. We fear no man's frown…Let no man join us who is afraid, and we want none but those who are saved, sanctified and aflame with the fire of the Holy Ghost." – Samuel Chadwick

"The Church gives more time, thought, and money to recreation and sport than to prayer." – Samuel Chadwick "The whole history of the Church is one long story of this tendency to settle down on this earth and to become conformed to this world, to find acceptance and popularity here and to eliminate the element of conflict and of pilgrimage. That is the trend and the tendency of everything. Therefore outwardly, as well as inwardly, pioneering is a costly thing." – T. Austin Sparks

"It is a costly and a suffering thing to come up against the religious system that has ' settled down ' here. It is far more costly than coming up against the naked world itself. The religious system can be more ruthless and cruel and bitter; it can be actuated by all those mean things, contemptible things, prejudices and suspicious things that you will not even find in decent people in the world. It is costly to go on to the heavenlies, it is painful; butit is the way of the pioneer, and it has to be settled that that is how it is." – T. Austin Sparks

"’Go ye’ is as much a part of Christ's Gospel as ‘Come unto Me.’ You are not even a Christian until you have honestly faced your responsibility in regard to the carrying of the Gospel to the ends of the earth. What is your part in that great task?" – J. Stuart Holden "There are great marvels in the world to-day. There is the marvel of the disobedient Church, which hugs to itself Christian privileges and neglects Christian obligations." – J. Stuart Holden

"It is wonderful what God can do with a broken heart, if He gets all the pieces." –Samuel Chadwick "It is a solemn thing to find oneself drawn out in prayer which knows no relief till the soul it is burdened with is born. It is no less solemn afterwards, until Christ is formed in them." – Amy Carmichael

"The evangelization of the world in this generation depends first of all upon a revival of prayer. Deeper than the need for men; deeper, far, than the need for money; aye, deep down at the bottom of our spiritless life is the need for the forgotten secret of prevailing, world-wide prayer." – Robert E. Speer "A generation which wishes for a religion without tears must find itdifficult to adjust its beliefs to the teaching of the New Testament and of the facts of life…" – W. R. Inge

The Rise of the Brute Wearing Pants

I was reading a novel the other day in my spare time.
I like to read cop novels and about private detectives.
In one I was reading the other day
the author took the time in relation to his story
to comment on people in general in our society:
describing their behavior as part of and epidemic of aggressiveness.

I immediately flashed on how I have seen this attribute
in all kinds of people: little kids, teens and adults.
Just the other day I was in the library and two woman
clashed a little about the use of a public computer.
They both decided to go outside to settle their differences.
I didn't follow them out to watch.
I didn't want to see.

I considered how quick they were to go at it-
to handle their dispute with brutality.
Brutality as in B-R-U-T-E.

Back to writers.
I read a lot and have noticed over the years
many different people bemoaning in print the condition of the world.
Often its in the form of a question, "What is happening?"
Other times it's just a commentary, "The world is going to hell in a hand basket!"
Many seem recognize uncomfortably that things are getting a lot worse.

The Bible warned through the Apostle 2000 years ago
that perilous times would come.
Unspiritual men say that mankind is evolving.
Well, technology may be evolving but men are devolving.
They are going backward.
They are becoming beastly.
Jesus marked the tende3ncy saying " You generation of vipers."
Men as vipers.
Vipers are beasts of the earth.
In Genesis we see the words relating to the serpent
where it is described as a beast most subtle.
Instead of rising up towards God they go about
on their bellies in the dust.
Adn be careful their bite is nasty.

The concept of civilized men and woman is being eclipsed.
Civilized societies and cultures were in fact civil
because of the influence of the Gospel.
Nothing has been shown to tame the natural and ungodly
tendencies, even beastly in mankind, more than the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
The concept of a 'gentleman' springs from the truth
that gentleness is born of temperance.

In this intemperate age the opposite is the result.
Aggression.Meanness.Mercilessness.
There are pitiful calls for a "kinder and gentler nation",
as the beast and his image influence the imagination of men's hearts.

The "Beast". Please don't look for "him" with natural eyes.

But these, as natural brute beasts,
made to be taken and destroyed, speak evil of the things
that they understand not;
and shall utterly perish in their own corruption; 2 Peter 2.12

Now if your are not all that spiritual nor familiar with prophetic language,
you would look at some of these scriptures
after the fashion of Nicodemus who sought to interpret the words of Christ,
questioning, "Shall we enter a second time into our mother's womb" to be born again?

In this way men look and interpret with the natural mind
and do not understand the allegory or what scripture calls the parable.

Therefore speak I to them in parables: because they seeing see not;
and hearing they hear not, neither do they understand . Matthew 13.13


And so, interpreting things literally they look for a very evil man to come someday.
He might be called the "Beast" or the "Antichrist" or the"Son of Perdition".
This type of understanding is usually encouraged by literalists
who seem to for get how foolish Nicodemus looked in his own literalness.

The spiritually minded are beginning to realize that
this mystery of iniquity to which the Bible prophetically alludes
is manifest increasingly in those who believe not and have pleasure in unrighteousness.

That they all might be damned who believed not the truth,
but had pleasure in unrighteousness. 2Thessalonians 2.12

There is a great falling away taking place before our eyes.
Christian nations are Christian no more as 'beast' nations and rulers
only don the garments of a lamb.
If you believe the rhetoric they are one thing.
But view the actions they are altogether another.

We understand from scripture that this must take place
before the Lords return so that the 'man of sin'
or in other words 'sin manifesting itself full blown
in the body of unredeemed humanity becomes apparent'.

Just as the 'man of righteousness' has a 'body' so too, the 'man of sin'.

It might be worth your time to study how that in the Old Testament

the term son of Belial was used

not referring to a literal person

but to a type of person..

An Open Letter to Unbelievers

You have sought to remove the Ten Commandments
from all public view and consciousness
and have set yourselves to cast off all restraint

Yyou have been successful to the point that the young
no longer know their right hand from their left.

So how is that working for ya?

You have a nation full of lawless ones as your children
die in the streets
on the playgrounds
and in the classrooms

A while back I saw that one of your young men
sought to murder a Congresswoman
along with the many others
that he succeeded in butchering.

And now just the other day there was the horrific
butchering of little children.

Your cities are now like unwalled asylums
while you entertainers are inspired by vile imaginations
that pour their forth filth daily
through that image that doth both live and speak in the sight of men

Mankind drinks from that smae polluted fountain
like those that thirstily drink their wine-
and their wine is the venom of a poisonous serpent
even the mixture of lust and violence

Is this really what you expected as you seek to destroy the "myth"?
Have you not heard?

The nation that forgets God shall be turned into hell.  Psalm .9.17
Why do the heathen rage, and the people imagine a vain thing?
The kings of the earth set themselves,
and the rulers take counsel together, against the LORD,
and against his anointed, saying,

Let us break their bands asunder,
and cast away their cords from us.

He that sitteth in the heavens shall laugh:
the LORD shall have then in derision.
Then shall he speak unto them in his wrath,
and vex them in his sore displeasure.
                                            Psalm 2