Cleveland Christian Forum

Lead Me O God!

2012-01-17T10:29:00.001-05:00

Lead me O God
I do not know this way
It has been proved to me o’er and o’er

For when I have set my faith’
my heart
my face
like flint to seek you
to go on further still
even further than ever before
I’ve been surprised by opposition
strange and unexpected resistance
as though an enemy fears that I should enter in
to such a place of abandonment with thee

Or is it you who tests my commitment
and through such circumstance say to me
“Are you truly committed to my way my son?
Will you indeed no longer turn my glory into shame?
Will you indeed stand upright in this exalted place ?
Or will you allow yourself to be talked down once again?

I know not O god
thou knowest

My heart has been so changeable
you alone have proved faithful

But this I have
that I know that I am blind
and that you alone can lead me in this way
Thou who at once dwellest in the midst of the thick darkness
and in the light that is unapproachable
lead me on

For you have said Who is blind as my servant?

Is it that I have been so immersed in my weakness and my blindness
that I have a confidence that this shall be no work of my own
but only of thy grace and mercy
not any of my might or power
nor any of my willing

but a feeling after thee
who is in in me
both to will and to do

What is this strange confidence
where before there has only been failure

Was my utter failure
again and again....

...was my falling......
preparatory to my rising again?

Is it through my profound imperfection
that I now find your perfection
Is it the knowledge of my own weakness
that now helps me find this strength
Is it my own profound blindness through which I now see such glory?

After so great a death-
whence come this overflow of abundant life?
Did vanity and emptiness alone prepare me
for such wealth of spirit?

What now can I do in this place high above all rule and authority
This place you said you had prepared for me
that you promised to come and bring me to

Seated together in heavenly places I rest
Work your work
My works shall follow
I will be still praising you

...that they might go, and fall backward,
and be broken, and snared, and taken.
Isaiah 28.13

The City of God

2011-12-28T11:28:00.009-05:00

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)

2011-12-20T12:37:00.002-05:00

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

2011-11-26T10:36:00.000-05:00

...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

2011-11-11T13:45:00.002-05:00

...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

2011-11-01T09:28:00.004-05:00

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

More than Revival

2011-09-28T09:33:00.000-05:00

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

2011-09-23T14:15:00.000-05:00

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

2011-09-19T11:03:00.001-05:00

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...

2011-09-09T10:23:00.002-05:00

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

2011-08-03T10:05:00.001-05:00

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

2011-07-18T13:00:00.006-05:00

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

2011-06-15T09:20:00.001-05:00

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

2011-06-10T11:02:00.005-05:00

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

2011-05-28T09:54:00.001-05:00

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

2011-04-27T09:22:00.004-05:00

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

2011-04-26T09:26:00.003-05:00

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

2011-04-06T11:52:00.001-05:00

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

2011-03-31T10:08:00.002-05:00

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

2011-03-19T10:10:00.001-05:00

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

2011-03-15T10:38:00.006-05:00

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

2011-01-04T10:31:00.003-05:00

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

you 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

The other day I saw that one of your young men
sought to murder a Congresswoman
along with the many others
that he succeeded in butchering.

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

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

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

Preconceived Notions

2010-12-16T14:01:00.003-05:00

We need to beware of the way we think.
The way we perceive things must be come suspect.
We must understand that our own expectations and desires
color how we view things around us
as well as things to come.

As spiritual people we've been introduced to the reality
that what will come has a significance for us.
The future has been predetermined.
Christ will come.
Good triumphs over evil.

But on the way there our thoughts and hearts are exposed.
Our motives purified.
The fire burns.
Our outlook redeemed.
Redeemed from an idolatrous way of looking at things.
Even things to come.
Even things that have been promised.

Called to ministry, as a young Christian,
I yearned for ministry.I longed to be used.
God's plan was to use me.
I was given glimpses.

But my focus began to see 'ministry'
as the answer to all my problems.
I thought that as I entered more fully into ministry
I would be more spiritual-feel more of a sense of responsibility
towards spiritual things. Be what God wanted me to be.

As I approached the few opportunities to minister
that did come I got 'real spiritual'.
I abstained from fleshly things like never before.
And friends I talked to did the same thing.

And then it was like God was saying,
'You do all this spiritual stuff in preparation
to appearing before man, why not do the same
when the only one to appear before is me
and that which I call you to do daily?

'I began to see the idolatry of my own heart
and for me what had become the ' idolatry of ministry'.

That began a liberating journey
of learning to appear before God and to minister unto him.
Nothing else matters.
Nothing else compares.

That which seems so confining
becomes a large place indeed.
Priorities are properly arranged.

My own understanding and viewpoint is dealt with
as my expectation is from him
who continually shares from his riches in glory-

what my eye has not seen

nor my ear heard

nor has ever before entered into my heart.

A life of preconceived ideas is shattered
as my heart becomes a childlike one
of beholding and expectant wonder.

From Confusion to Double

2010-12-08T10:22:00.007-05:00

And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.Philippians 4.7

In our spiritual lives we often find ourselves in situations
that are perplexing to say the least.
There is that within us which tries to understand.
We seek God for answers and very often the answer
comes to us in the form of that "peace that passeth all understanding."

It is God ministering to us and saying in effect,
"I hear you and I have it in control.
Here is my peace that attests to that."
But understanding is not given.

He ministers the answer to the realm of faith
not our fleshly lust to know all the details
of how and when.

Herein the words of our Lord ring most truewhere he proclaims:
"Except ye be converted and become as little children,ye shall not enter
into the kingdom of heaven."
Matthew 18.3

Did you ever notice how little children can accept alot of things
without needing to understand. You can tell a child we're going to get ice cream and he smiles and jumps for joy.
He doesn't start asking questions about how you are going to get there.
He just climbs in the car and trusts you know what you are doing
and that the object of desire will be forthcoming.
All the details: the cost, the time, the way,
are not even in his realm of concern.

There is a painful process wherein we are humbled
and learn not to lean so much on our own understanding.
Much of the pain is in the realm of confusion.
The Psalmist cried:"My confusion is continually before me..." Psalm 44.15

In listening for the Lordand waiting upon the moving of his spirit;
in knowing when we should act and when we should be still;
in discerning the voice of the Lord in the midst of so many other voices;
in such things and others our situation can be very confusing.

In a life where faith has surely brought
some rock solid sureness to our hearts
in so many ways, there also comes some real perplexing questionings.

I'll never forget the word of a Pastor who once said,
"The mountains just keep getting bigger!"
We are over and over again faced with situations that are
greater than we are-beyond our ability to comprehend.
But they are not bigger than our Lord
who would have us ever learn
to look to him and grow in grace and faith.

But herein, in our befuddlement,
in this inevitable by-product of our seeking to live a life led by the spirit,God has a precious promise for us as we continue in this way:
For confusion... they shall possess the double.
Isaiah 61.7

What Mary Found

2010-12-01T10:28:00.005-05:00

And she had a sister called Mary,
which also sat at Jesus' feet, and heard his word.
Luke 10.39

As she sat before him his words washed over her
like a gentle rain
like dew on the morning grass

Give ear, O ye heavens, and I will speak; and hear,
O earth, the words of my mouth.
My doctrine shall drop as the rain,
my speech shall distil as the dew,
as the small rain upon the tender herb,
and as the showers upon the grass.
Deuteronomy 32.1,2

Her heart became enraptured by the glory of his countenance

One thing have I desired that will I seek after
that i might dwell in the house of the Lord
all the days of my life
to behold the beauty of the Lord
and to enquire in his temple.
Psalm 27.4

Her eyes are fixed upon him
drinking in of his essence

I said,"Behold me..."
Isaiah 65.1

As she sat there a peace came over her and a rest
as she ceased from her own activities and thoughts
while her sister busily and worriedly
moved about the room

For he that is entered into his rest,
he also hath ceased from his own works,
as God did from his.
Hebrews 4.10

As his words entered into her
she felt a uniting of her heart
towards one purpose and one desire
like she had never known before

And I will give them one heart, and one way,
that they may fear me for ever, for the good of them...
Jeremiah 32.39

Her heart swelling with love in his presence
you could even sense something special going on in the room
even see a heart which like a flower opened
and sending forth its fragrance

While the king sitteth at his table,
my spikenard sendeth forth the smell thereof.
Song of Songs 1.12

It followed that she said within herself
'This shepherd
I will follow all of my days'

Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life:
and I will dwell in the house of the LORD for ever.
Psalm 23.6

Aggression

2010-11-23T19:00:00.012-05:00

I was reading a novel the other day in my spare time.
I like to read cop novels and about private detectives.
In this one I was reading the hero was helping a victim
and sought to remove her from danger by escaping with her in his car.

They were seeking to back out of a parking lot in his car
when someone rudely cut them off.

The author took the time here to comment
on people in general in our society describing their behaviour
as part of an 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.

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 handbasket!"
Many seem to 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 said " You generation of vipers."

Men as vipers. Hmnmm!

Instead of rising up towards God they go about on their bellies in the dust.

For he bringeth down them that dwell on high; the lofty city,
he layeth it low ; he layeth it low , even to the ground;
he bringeth it even to the dust. Isaiah 26.5

And be careful, their bite is nasty.

The concept of civilization is being eclipsed.
The civilized societies and cultures were in fact civil
because of the influence of the Gospel which shone on the world
with a new spirit and truth.

The concept of the “gentleman” springs from the truth
that gentleness is born of temperance and grace and strength.
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 the hearts.
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 same way men look and interpret with the natural mind
and they look for a very evil man to come someday.

In this mode of interpretation of spiritual truth thoughts are tending
toward an apprehension of only the outward like the husk of a seed,
instead of apprehending the valuable life deeper within.

This type of understanding is usually encouraged by literalists
who seem to forget how foolish Nicodemus looked in his manner of interpretation.

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.
If you 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 collective body of the damned'
becomes apparent and stands in direct contrast to that man of righteousness
who is now seen in his body, the church of the living God.

Just as the 'man of righteousness' has a 'body' so too, the 'man of sin'.
Just as the people did not recognize Christ when he came
they do not recognize anti-Christ either but still look for his appearing.

...and this is that spirit of Antichrist, whereof ye have heard that it should come; and even now already is it in the world. 1 John 4.3

Yes, there is a collective body of Christ and there is also a collective body of sinners
that is prophetically referred to as the 'man of sin'.

Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed , the son of perdition... 2Thessalonians 2.3

You want proof. Take a look around you.

Without your wounds where would you be?

2010-11-18T11:05:00.005-05:00

The very angels themselves cannot persuade
the wretched and blundering children of earth
as can one human being broken in the wheels of living.
In loves service only the wounded soldiers can serve.
Thornton Wilder

But faithful are the wounds of a friend, saith the Lord.
In faithfulness I have afflicted thee.
Have not I power over the vessel to shape it as I will-
with what means I deem right?

But know this that it is I that wound, and it is I that heal.
And precious in the eyes of the Lord is the death of his saints.
Have you indeed been baptized into death
and has not this which is esteemed by others as nothing
and deemed foolishness and soemthing to be despised-
has not even this been the very avenue of the life
of the Son of Righteousness in you?

Yea, thus I lift you up-
thus are you healed-
and thus are you empowered-
through death and through the cross.

It is thus that you are now graced with newness of life.
Do you not know that those who do not choose to suffer with my son
will ever learn to reign with him.

This reigning life is manifested as through the Light of the World-
is not for those who choose to shun his pain.

It is those who refuse the way of the cross that will
paradoxically suffer greatly
and be pierced though with many sorrows.

But in choosing the way of the cross
my children find a way wherein the burden is made light.

Those who refuse
find themselves in a way that is unutterably hard
with thorns and snares
and fiery serpents multiplied.

And turn ye not aside : for then should ye go after vain things,
which cannot profit nor deliver ; for they are vain.
1Samuel 12.21

But my son has indeed taken to himself great power
and reigns through the victory of the cross
that he might be the author of salvation to those who believe.

For he must reign
with the power with which he is able
to subdue all things unto himself.
In his kingdom therefore he orders all things aright
and manifests all authority
to cause all things to work together to the good
of them that love God
and are called according to his purpose.

So fear not my little children as even your pains
both small and great
are taken into account
as the hairs of the head,
even the tribulations which are appointed you.

And consider that, like my servant Job,
after you are tried you shall come for as gold-
even as jewels that are formed through great pressure.
Upon such the Son shines to reveal glory and beauty
and the wounds that I have administered will be healed.

I kill, and I make alive; I wound, and I heal. Deuteronomy 32:39

Only look not to the earth for witness
nor to those thing that are without,
but only look to that heavenly witness within-
even the Holy Spirit of God which is given you
and bears witness with your spirit.

And now do all things as unto God and not as unto men-
for it is of God that you receive your reward.
And know this that it is not in your ability-nor your understanding
through which my power is perfected in your life and being,
(for it is not by might and he that thinks
that he knows anything knows not yet as he ought to know),
no, it is not your power but your weakness
wherein my power and plan for you is perfected.

So lift up you heads this day my little ones-
my weak and afflicted ones-my chosen ones-for I Am!!!

What am I ?
I am your God and your are mine-
my jewels which I form for myself.

God hath made many cutting instruments
and rough files for the polishing of his jewels;
and those He especially loves and means to make most resplendent,
He hath oftenest his tools upon.
Bishop Leighton

Lead Me O God

2010-11-16T10:13:00.004-05:00

Lead me O God
I do not know this way
It has been proved to me o’er and o’er

For when I have set my faith
my heart
my face like flint to seek you
to go on further still
even further than ever before
I’ve been surprised by opposition strange
and unexpected resistance
as though an enemy fears that I should enter into
such a place of abandonment with thee

Or is it you who tests my commitment
and through such circumstance say to me,
“Are you truly committed to my way my son?
will you indeed no longer turn my glory into shame?
will you indeed stand upright in this exalted place?
or will you allow yourself to be talked down once again?"

I know not O god
Thou knowest my heart has been so changeable
you alone have proved faithful

But this I have
that I know that I am blind
and that you alone can lead me in this way

Thou who at once dwellest in the midst of the thick darkness
and in the light that is unapproachable

lead me on
for you have said, “Who is blind as my servant?”

Is it that I have been so immersed in my weakness
and my blindness that I have a confidence that this shall be no work of my own
but only of thy grace and mercy
not any of my might or power
nor any of my willing...

...but a feeling after thee
who is in me both to will and to do

What is this strange confidence
where before there has only been failure?
Was my utter failure ...again and again....all this falling...
preparatory to my rising again?

Is it through my profound imperfection
that I now appreciate your perfection?
Is it the knowledge of my own weakness
that now helps me find this strength?

Is it my own profound blindness
through which I now see such glory?

After so great a death whence comes
this overflow of abundant life?

Did vanity and emptiness alone
prepare me for such wealth of spirit?

I only know now that without your sovereign discipline
your loving rebuke
I could never have been freed from much that held me.

What now can I do in this place
high above all rule and authority
This place you said you had prepared for me
that you promised to come and bring me to?

Seated together with you
in heavenly places I rest
work your work
my works shall follow
I will be still praising you

The Wound is Healed

2010-11-08T10:37:00.003-05:00

Twas on the cross that serpent received
the wound to the head- yet he lived
And now that wound- it heals

Christianity was at the forefront of civilization
But civilization will cease as we know it
That which comes and now is
with the healing of that vile head
does not breed nor inspire a civilized man
but a beastly- unmerciful- implacable

Now comes not the age of Aquarius as it were
but the Age of Polarization
Extremism is the rule of the day
as the sheep are separated from the goats.

The beast riseth from the sea of imagery
and moveth surreptitious
especially at night

he is seen sneaking into homes unknowing
a strange blue glow signaling his presence
to those who stand without
And he poureth forth his blasphemies
waters flowing forth
into the souls of the sons and daughters of men
as he maketh his war
from the idol that doth both live and speak in the sight of men-
empowered by the power of lightnings
that crackle with might
as they course through the power of the air

And children most of all
demonstrate that awe that is felt
as the image appears in the sight
and hearts are bowed
before this abomination that causes desolation.

And he saith in his heart before those feasting at his table, “Who seeth me?”

The Parable of the Tall Ships

2010-11-06T09:32:00.003-05:00

A wise Captain and owner of a fleet of ocean going vessels
went down to the docks to see a man who sold cargo ships:
large multi-mast vessels capable of commercial transport.

The owner of the marina explained that he only had two available.“One,” he said,
"just came from the builders-the other, just in from the storm.”

The captain knew what storm the man was talking about,
having lost ships that he was now trying to replace. He went on,
"The worst storm of the century some are sayin’!
That’s where this one here that’s all tore up just came in from.
She just limped in out of that storm like a beat dog.” He pointed ,
”You can see, two of ‘er masts are cracked near the base.
I’m surprised they didn’t break clean off like the main mast did.
She’s banged up all over as well. Need lots of repairs
and a good scrub and polish a ‘course, ‘fore she’s fit to sail again!”

And then excitedly he turned the master sailor to show him the brand new ship:
a grand and tall sailing vessel. The Captain had to squint his eyes
to shield them from the brightness reflected off the polished chrome
and brass and bronze that adorned the magnificent new vessel.
“Now this here’s a beauty. She’s a bit pricey, mind you, but worth every penny.
State of the art! and brand spankin’ new, she is!
She’s never been outside of this here jetty.
We just put her in the water the other day.”

“Aye, she’s a beauty that she is!” the wizened sea veteran agreed
but as he did he turned to the beat up and broken vessel that lay sorrowful
and bruised in the water and propositioned the seller,
“How much will ya take for that one?”

Shocked, the harbor master looked to the man pleadingly saying,
“If its money that’s the problem…” but the Captain cut him short,
“No! No! You know I run a large fleet and money is not the issue here!”

And the seller looked on still incredulous, for he himself was very impressed
with his new ship and had seen how the Captain had admired it as well.

But the fleet owner went on to explain: “In that devil of a storm,
I lost some ships and many men as well. And by God, if I can help it,
that’s not gonna happen again. You see, where many other ships failed
in that great tempest- this one came through.
A bit worse for the ware, tis obvious, but she made it;
and her men and all the cargo survived.
And now we know something about this here ship.
She’s been tested, tried in the fire as it were, and she’s survived.
That’s more than you can say for a lot of others which didn’t make it.
And who can say with this new one here. A fine looking ship she is,
I’ll grant you, but who would you trust the lives of your crew to-
this one here which has never been to sea, and may or may not be seaworthy,
or survive in great waters? or this one whose taken the worst
that ole sea can throw at her and survived intact to sail another day?
We know she can take the rough stuff!”

And so the sale was made and the Captain had a new ship.
The harbor master was disappointed that he didn’t sell the more expensive one,
but still he had to admire the wisdom of the Master’s choice.
So, ready to restore the broken vessel and add it to his fleet,
the Captain took his leave. As he departed he turned and said,
“And don’t worry, that other is a fine looking ship and most people
are overly impressed by outward appearance.
You should have no trouble selling her. And who knows
maybe she’ll prove to be a good bet after all.”

So, with a tip of the hat, a grin, and a sparkle in his eye,
the sage Captain climbed to shore and sauntered off,
confident in the vessel he had chosen, while the harbor master stood,
watching him leave, and scratching his head.

Like the wise Captain, God is choosing in this hour
based not on appearance but on survivability.

Jesus said, “I have prayed for you that your faith fail not.” Luke 22.32

Unless the Lord Almighty had left us some survivors,
we would have become like Sodom,
we would have been like Gomorrah.
Isaiah 1.9

As at the first...

2010-10-26T12:13:00.004-05:00

Remember how it was at first?
When you first met Him?

Ah...the lover of our souls.

His love (truly we discovered) was better than all other highs.

Let him kiss me with the kisses of his mouth:
for thy love is better than wine.
Song of Songs 1.2

And then we found that this Christian stuff wasn't so easy.

After a wonderful season with our "first love",
we entered into
a season of cold and darkness
where we wondered what the heck was going on.

I sought him whom my soul loveth,
I sought him,but I found him not.
Song of Songs 3.1

There were times where the pain of this relationship,
and all of its difficulty,
wrought a brokenness within.

Oh that I knew where I might find him.
Job 23.3

Would it not be wonderful if it could be as at the first?
When we were first enthralled with his loveliness and his grace.

Well, allow me be to be like one who comes from the mountains
bearing glad tidings. (Isaiah 52.7) That is exactly what God is doing
for many in this hour.

After the initial time of faith followed by the testing and prison of hope
there comes this season of love
where God promises to be to us like he was at the beginning.

Don't just take my word for it though- look at what God Himself has promised:

I will cause the captivity of Judah and the captivity of Israel to return
and I will build them as at the first.... And it shall be to me a name of joy,
a praise and an honor before all the nations of the earth,
which shall hear all the good that I do unto them.
And they shall fear and tremble for all the goodness
and for all the prosperity
that I procure unto it.
Jeremiah 33.7,9

Now I know that that was written to Israel but I have found
the same principle is found in promise to the church.
God is coming to us as at the firs and better.
He has saved the best wine for last.

Before, we had heard about him with the hearing of ear.
Now, like Job, after much suffering we say,

...now my eye sees you.
Job 42.5

I am come into my garden,my sister, my spouse:
I have gathered my myrrh with my spice,
I have eaten my honeycomb with my honey,
I have drunk my wine with my milk:
Eat, O friends, drink, yea drink abundantly, O my beloved.
Song of Songs 5.1

After seasons of faith and hope there comes a time of love-
a day of the gladness of our hearts
where the children of promise become
the mature sons and daughters of fulfillment.

Aloneness

2010-10-25T11:52:00.004-05:00

The wilderness and the solitary place
shall be glad for them and the desert shall rejoice
and blossom as the rose.
Isaiah 35.1

Every one of us has a place in our life and in our hearts where we alone go.
We might be married or we might be be a Pastor who ministers to a large congregation;
we might have a house full of children or a very active social life.
On the other hand we might not have a life at all, so to speak.

Regardless, each one of us has his or her alone place.
And what we are in relation to this solitary place
determines more than anything else what and who we really are.

We may have areas in our lives where others help us
and the burden is borne with the loving aid of giving friends.
But as sure as the sun shines, there will always remain that place
where we alone must go.
No one else can go there with us.
No one can help us there.
Others can only point the way.

But let every man prove his own work,
and then shall he have rejoicing in himself alone,
and not in another.
For every man shall bear his own burden.
Galatians 6.4,5

Now this alone place is like an uncultivated garden.
There is great potential for fruitfulness here.
Or, this place can be barren, unfruitful.

Let us get up early to the vineyards; let us see if the vine flourish,
whether the tender grape appear , and the pomegranates bud forth:
there will I give thee my loves.
Song of Songs 7.12

Now when this place is fruitful and filled with the beauty of flowers,
running streams and fruitful trees, it is easily understood that this place
will be one that someone would choose to visit often;
a beautiful garden of rest, comfort, and refreshing.
We would want to go there and tend to our garden and enjoy its prosperity,
drink in its beauty, breath its wonderful fragrances.

Awake O north wind: and come, thou south; blow upon my garden
that the spices thereof may flow out.
Song of Solomon 4.16

As well, if this secret place is empty and barren, you can imagine
that a person would not choose to visit there but would avoid going there at all costs.
How many of us book passage to the barren, howling wilderness?
No one in their right mind!
We all want to vacation in Paradise Garden.

Now the fact that some, maybe most people, seek to avoid
their own personal alone place is the reason many embrace some form of escapism.
We turn to alcohol, drugs, cigarettes, TV, overeating, shopping (hello!)
unhealthy relationships, bars movies etc.
Actually the list is endless concerning the things we will pursue
rather than seek to develop the inner land that pertains to our own inner life
and the garden of the Lord in our innermost being.

How many stay in a bad relationship because to get out means
they would have to face their own place of aloneness?
Many things we do are an attempt to put a hedge between us and aloneness
with the accompanying emptiness and boredom..

We’re all carrying around this empty place within: that "God shaped void"
that came with the “ fall” (see Genesis). We hate the ‘void’ but verily,
this place will be filled- for good or for ill.

You’ve heard that ‘nature abhors a vacuum’.
Well, that truth works on an emotional and spiritual level as well.
Yes, it is true that many people are terrified of being or feeling alone.
They have not realized that this place of aloneness can be a place of great blessing.

To find this blessedness the Lord calls us to lone places,
the Spirit guides us into desert places. God ordains that some become very familiar
with this type of wilderness- this spiritual place of which we speak.

Let him sit alone in silence for the Lord has laid it on him.
Lamentations 3.28

And because it is here God brings revelation, it is here also we find intimacy
and fellowship with the Son of God and King of Hearts.
Truly it is to this place that the Jesus directs us when he counsels,

When thou prayest enter into thy closet,
and when thou hast shut the door
(when you are truly alone with God),
pray to the Father which is in secret,
and the Father which seeth in secret shall reward thee openly.
Matthew 6.6

The promise of heavenly reward is for those who will not be afraid
to shut themselves up alone with God if only for a portion of the day.
It is in this way that the promise is realized, that we become like a tree
planted by the rivers of water whose leaf will not wither.

Have you ever met a person with withered leaves? Its not pretty.
Its not what God has for those who look within to find that place that,
though it looks threateningly like a desert, God promises to make
like a well watered garden.

And he promises to faithfully to watch over it.

I the Lord do keep it. I will water it every moment:
lest any hurt it,
I will keep it night and day.
Isaiah 27.3

Prayer is not so much what I do....

2010-10-21T12:41:00.004-05:00

I thought that I must not consider prayer
in relation to that which I do
but rather
that which I am

Not as something that I must find time for
and then perform

but that which is now become so pervasive
and so permeating
that like my breathing
it is ongoing
oft unconscious

a function of my being
an atmosphere into which I am placed
something I watch for and yield to

as a Son
and with that Spirit within

a position where I now awaken
ship without oars
immersed in a mighty river
that quietly and imperceptibly
except to quickened eye
flows clear as crystal

Instead of an inner and continual sucking need
a fullness overflows
with thankfulness and praise
even adoration
to Him who sits on the Throne

not of heaven’s distance
but nearness to my very heart

The sacrificial fires ever burning
desolation no more

Trousered Apes

2010-10-15T09:24:00.003-05:00

See how they parade
all that passes for entertainment
across the brightly lit and colorful screen

Trousered apes
they are
reveling in beastly mirth

Encouraging the ungodly appetites of the unstable
and undiscerning

all for mammon, earthly pleasure and gain.

Has an idol ever both lived and spoken in the sight of men before this?

Shall we drink the wine of venom of asps?

Will we grasp vanity and the wind
and not reap
that which whirls
with violence

How hath the beast so surreptitiously worked his wiles?

What! is there no watchman?

How is it that ye do not understand…?
Matthew 16.11

Heartfire

2010-10-11T14:12:00.005-05:00

The heart is for flames. The soul yearns for fire.

The human heart offers itself upon the altar of sacrifice to be consumed.
To what does the heart give itself?
On what altar is the sacrificial fire burning?
What fire is kindled there?With what is our heart inflamed?
What passion consumes us?

Peering across the landscape of human experience
we can discern many sources of fire.
For instance, most of us have experienced the fire and warmth
that a romantic relationship kindles within.
When we have found that special someone, incipient interaction sparks a fire
that begins to consume and to warm what before might have been a cold and empty heart.

Most of us have never felt so alive, so warmed within, so passionate.For many this type of burning within is so much to be desired that they will seek to kindle this flame
and continually fan even the idea of it, with romance novels and movies
when it is absent in an actual personal relationship.
We all long to be so consumed to kindle something in our heart.

The heart is for flames the soul yearns for fire.

Alcohol is another way that one seeks to kindle a fire within.
Whole nations experience widespread and epidemic abuse of this intoxicant
as its use has even been stamped with a measure of social acceptability.
Imbibing ‘spirits’ is another way anxious souls seek to meet the hearts yearning.

The scriptures talk about those who seek wine until they are ‘inflamed’ by it.

… they are inflamed with wine.
Isaiah 5.11

Most often it is a deeper thirst than a dry throat that many seek to quench.
In pubs across the world multitudes spend hour upon hour at wooden
altar like structures upon which they rest their elbows in prayer like fashion
while kindling a slow burn within.

The heart is for flames .The soul yearn for fire

In these ways and a multitude of others, the heart,being the desperate lonely hunter that it is, goes about seeking an altar on which to offer itself — a sacrificial offering
to be consumed by the flames of the altar.

Needy, the human heart will become inflamed with lust, greed, hatred, love (true and false), religion, idolatry, witchcraft, drugs, money, and on and on…

…enflaming itself with idols under every green tree.
Isaiah 57.5

A prophet addressed this issue when he wrote,

Behold, ye that kindle a fire, that compass about yourselves with sparks:
walk in the light of your fire and in the sparks that ye have kindled.
This ye shall have of mine hand; ye shall lie down in sorrow.
Isaiah 50.11

Not coming to the Lord for fire, we all will seek something or other to warm us within.
And just as nature abhors a vacuum, so the human heart abhors the absence
of a filling and warming fire, and many abuse this reality
rather than accepting the heavenly cure.

For they have made ready their heart like an oven…
in the morning it burneth as a flaming fire.
Hosea 7.6

We all yearn to feel alive, to relieve the tension and the boredom;
to be warmed in such a way as to fight the cold, fear, and the loneliness.
We look for that which is beyond ourselves.
We look for that which will enhance our lives.

And there are many promising lights, and deceitful,
that attract our attention from out of the darkness.

…for Satan himself masquerades as an angel of light.
2 Corinthians 11.14

Yes, there are many and divers fires that would draw us
to their proffered light and warmth.
Evil is often disguised as a warming fire.

The heart is for flames the soul yearns for fire- but God’s judgment upon life
that is not found in Him is evident.
There are sad eyes everywhere.
Joy has withered away from the sons and daughters of men.

The rivers dry up, the land mourns, the harvest is not plentiful.
Hosea 4.3

Yes, that harvest of the human heart is mournfully thin—
all because men and women choose their own way,
following after the desires of their own heart, mind and imagination.

The heart is for flames and the soul hungers for fire but mankind
walking in the light of their own fires have this from the Lord’s hand – they lie down in sorrow.

In times past an empty hearth meant a cold house. But where a fire burned within
the inhabitants could rest comfortably. Likewise the human heart is restless
until it finds its rest in God-cold and hard until warmed by the fire that is God Himself.

“Our God is a consuming fire.” the apostle proclaimed.
God will consume the heart with a fire that will always be burning,
While all other fires burn out and leave the user sick and full of sorrow,self loathing and pain,
the fire of God burns with health and vitality, sure and eternal.

Jesus, proclaiming the salvation that would come after his departure
and knowing the need and hunger of fallen hearts, promised,

“Ye shall be baptized with the Holy Ghost and with fire.”

O the wonderful fire that is God.He burns in our hearts with sweet assurance
of his presence and favor when we invite the Holy Ghost in.

Jesus promised that he would give the Holy Spirit to all who would ask saying,

If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children:
how much more shall your heavenly Father
give the Holy Spirit to them that ask him?
Luke 11.13

The heart is for flames the soul hungers for fire and God who gives
the Holy Ghost to those who seek and obey Him also provides that needed Heartfire.

Gilded Cage

2010-08-05T18:57:00.003-05:00

captive bird

blessed cage

in width and height contained

the world without….
and devils….
they touch me not here

only in passing beyond bars wide

restraint and protection
by choice alone

Church a prostitute?

2010-07-28T09:43:00.002-05:00

"A number of years ago, I had the privilege of teaching
at a school of ministry. My students were hungry for God,
and I was constantly searching for ways
to challenge them to fall more in love with Jesus and to become
voices for revival in the Church. I came across a quote
attributed most often to Rev. Sam Pascoe.
It is a short version of the history of Christianity,
and it goes like this:" .

Christianity started in Palestine as a fellowship;
it moved to Greece and became a philosophy;
it moved to Italy and became an institution;
it moved to Europe and became a culture;
it came to America and became an enterprise.

Some of the students were only 18 or 19 years old--
barely out of diapers--and I wanted them to understand
and appreciate the import of the last line,
so I clarified it by adding, "An enterprise. That's a business."

After a few moments Martha, the youngest student in the class,
raised her hand. I could not imagine what her question might be.
I thought the little vignette was self-explanatory,
and that I had performed it brilliantly.

Nevertheless, I acknowledged Martha's raised hand, "Yes, Martha."
She asked such a simple question, "A business?
But isn't it supposed to be a body?"

I could not envision where this line of questioning was going,
and the only response I could think of was, "Yes." She continued,
"But when a body becomes a business, isn't that a prostitute?"
The room went dead silent.
For several seconds no one moved or spoke.
We were stunned,
afraid to make a sound because the presence of God
had flooded into the room, and we knew we were on holy ground.

All I could think in those sacred moments was,
"Wow, I wish I'd thought of that."
I didn't dare express that thought aloud.
God had taken over the class. Martha's question changed my life.

For six months, I thought about her question at least once every day.
"When a body becomes a business, isn't that a prostitute?"
There is only one answer to her question. The answer is "Yes."
The American Church, tragically, is heavily populated by people
who do not love God. How can we love Him?
We don't even know Him; and I mean really know Him. ...
I stand by my statement that most American Christians do not know God--
much less love Him.

The root of this condition originates in how we came to God.
Most of us came to Him because of what we were told He would do for us.
We were promised that He would bless us in life and take us to heaven after death.
We married Him for His money, and we don't care if He lives or dies
as long as we can get His stuff. We have made the Kingdom of God
into a business, merchandising His anointing.

This should not be. We are commanded to love God,
and are called to be the Bride of Christ--
that's pretty intimate stuff. We are supposed to be His lovers.
How can we love someone we don't even know?
And even if we do know someone,
is that a guarantee that we truly love them? Are we lovers or prostitutes?

I was pondering Martha's question again one day, and considered the question,
"What's the difference between a lover and a prostitute?"
I realized that both do many of the same things,
but a lover does what she does because she loves.
A prostitute pretends to love, but only as long as you pay.
Then I asked the question, "What would happen if God stopped paying me?"
For the next several months, I allowed God to search me to uncover my motives
for loving and serving Him. Was I really a true lover of God?

What would happen if He stopped blessing me?
What if He never did another thing for me?
Would I still love Him? Please understand,
I believe in the promises and blessings of God.
The issue here is not whether God blesses His children;
the issue is the condition of my heart.

Why do I serve Him? Are His blessings in my life the gifts of a loving Father,
or are they a wage that I have earned or a bribe/payment to love Him?
Do I love God without any conditions?
It took several months to work through these questions.
Even now I wonder if my desire to love God is always matched
by my attitude and behavior.

I still catch myself being disappointed with God and angry
that He has not met some perceived need in my life.
I suspect this is something which is never fully resolved,
but I want more than anything else to be a true lover of God.
So what is it going to be?

Which are we, lover or prostitute? There are no prostitutes in heaven,
or in the Kingdom of God for that matter,
but there are plenty of former prostitutes in both places.
Take it from a recovering prostitute when I say there is no substitute
or unconditional, intimate relationship with God.
And I mean there is no palatable substitute available to us
(take another look at Matthew 7:21-23 sometime).

We must choose.

Dr. David Ryser

Christian Forum

2010-07-16T09:24:00.001-05:00

visit www.clevelandchristianforum.com and go to forum to participate.

Aloness ( There I will give thee my love)

2010-06-14T10:57:00.003-05:00

“The wilderness and the solitary place shall be glad for them
and the desert shall rejoice and blossom as the rose.”
Isaiah 35.1

Every one of us has a place in our life and in our hearts where we alone go.
We might be marriedor we might be be a Pastor who ministers to a large congregation;
we might have a house full of children or a very active social life;
on the other hand we might not have a life at all, so to speak.
Regardless, each one of us has his or her alone place.

And what we are in relation to this solitary placedetermines more than anything else
what and who we really are.We may have areas in our lives
where others help usand the burden is borne with the loving aid of giving friends.
But as sure as the sun shines, there will always remain
that place where we alone must go.
No one else can go there with us.
No one can help us there.
Others can only point the way.

But let every man prove his own work, and then
shall he have rejoicing in himself alone, and not in another.
For every man shall bear his own burden.
Galatians 6.4,5

Now this alone place is like an uncultivated garden.
There is great potential for fruitfulness here.
Or, this place can be barren, unfruitful.

Let us get up early to the vineyards; let us see if the vine flourish ,
whether the tender grape appear , and the pomegranates bud forth :
there will I give thee my loves.
Song of Songs 7.12

Now when this place is fruitful and filled with the beauty of flowers,
running streams and fruitful trees, it is easily understood
that this place will be onethat someone would choose to visit often;
a beautiful garden of rest, comfort, and refreshing.
We would want to go there and tend to our garden
and enjoy its prosperity, drink in its beauty.

Awake O north wind: and come, thou south; blow upon my garden
that the spices thereof may flow out.
Song of Solomon 4.16

As well, if this secret place is empty and barren, you can imagine
that a person would not choose to visit there
but would avoid going there at all costs.
How many of us book passage to the barren, howling wilderness?
No one in their right mind! We all want to vacation in Paradise Garden.

Now the fact that some, maybe most people, seek to avoid
their own personal alone place is the reason many embrace some form of escapism.
We turn to alcohol, drugs, cigarettes, TV, overeating, shopping (hello!)
unhealthy relationships, bars movies etc.
Actually the list is endless concerning the things we will pursue
rather than seek to develop the inner land
that pertains to our own inner life and the garden of the Lord in our innermost being.

How many stay in a bad relationship because to get out means
they would have to face their own place of aloneness?
Many things we do are an attempt to put a hedge
between us and aloneness with the accompanying emptiness and boredom..

We’re all carrying around this empty place within:
that "God shaped void" that came with the “ fall” (see Genesis).
We hate the ‘void’ but verily, this place will be filled- for good or for ill.
You’ve heard that ‘nature abhors a vacuum’. Well, that truth works on an emotional
and spiritual level as well.

Yes, it is true that many people are terrified of being or feeling alone.
They have not realized that this place of aloneness can be a place of great blessing.
To find this blessedness the Lord calls us to lone places,
the Spirit guides us into desert places.

God ordains that some become very familiar with this type of wilderness-
this spiritual place of which we speak.

Let him sit alone in silence
for the Lord has laid it on him.
Lamentations 3.28

And because it is here God brings revelation, it is here also we find intimacy
and fellowship with the Son of God. It is to this place that the Jesus directs us
when he counsels,

When thou prayest enter into thy closet,
and when thou hast shut the door (when you are truly alone with God),
pray to the Father which is in secret,and the Father which seeth in secret
shall reward thee openly.
Matthew 6.6

The promise of heavenly reward is for those who will not be afraid
to shut themselves up alone with God if only for a portion of the day.
It is in this way that the promise is realized,
that we become like a tree planted by the rivers of water
whose leaf will not wither.

Have you ever met a person with withered leaves? Its not pretty.
Its not what God has for those who look within to find that place that,
though it looks threateningly like a desert, God promises to make
like a well watered garden.

And he promises to faithfully to watch over it.

I the Lord do keep it. I will water it every moment:
lest any hurt it, I will keep it night and day.
Isaiah 27.3