Joshua Apostolic Prophetic Network
Home Central: www.joshua-ap.net/
Iranian Regime's Video Says, Their Islamic Messiah (The Mahdi) Is About To Appear.
Dear Joshua Family Subscribers:
Today, I wanted to share with you some of the latest developments in the Middle East along with a link to a video, which I believe every Christian and Jewish person needs to see. The propaganda soon to be released by the Iranian regime, depicts the current revolutions and chaos taking place in the Middle East and Northern Africa as positive evidence that, their messiah, (the Mahdi) who will be their Twelfth Imam, is right on the verge of appearing on the world scene.
This is the one, who supposedly would lead Islam and it's armies in the end-time to defeat Israel, America, and other non-Muslim countries, and to bring peace (with the sword), to the rest of the world under the domination of Islam.
Note: The radical fundamentalist Islamic idea of peace is to conquer and annihilate the Jews, Christians, and all other non-Muslims who will not submit to Islam.
Recently, Erick Stakelbeck, a reporter for CBN, released an article and included video footage, of the Iranian regime's video production on the Middle East and North African revolutions, which claims those chaotic events go right along with certain Islamic Prophecies, and will accelerate the soon return of their Messiah, the Mahdi. To read the recent CBN article and to watch the video footage, Go Here: Video-Says-Mahdi-is-Near
The name of the Iranian regime's video is entitled, The Coming is Near. They also believe that Iran's President Mahmoud Ahmadenijad, will overtake Jerusalem before their Mahdi appears on the scene. Although this is obviously a propaganda video to be distributed to all Middle-East Arab countries by the Iranian regime, it strongly indicates that they are currently in a planning-to-strike war mode with the intent of conquering Jerusalem, and to hasten their (Twelfth Imam) Mahdi's soon appearance.
However, the God of Israel is watching over the affairs of His Chosen people and His Promised land, allowing only that which will bring forth the fulfillment of Prophecy for the End times. Israel will likely hit Iran first as a preemptive strike on Iran's nuclear facilities, with her superior defense technology, which is some of the most advanced in the world today.
To read more on Iranian Leaders plans, and to watch the regime's video-full version (translated into English) on Reza Kahlili's website (former member of Iran's Revolutionary Guard), Go Here: Iran Leaders
Watch this most informative video, as Joel Richardson compares the similarities of the Islamic Mahdi to the Anti-Christ on Glenn Beck's Show. This was very informative--Watch here: Islamic Mahdi -on GB
Here is yet, another video of Joel Richardson on Sid Roth's program. A somewhat different view on End time prophecy, Mystery Babylon and the Beast nations. Watch as the mysteries unfold from the books of Daniel and Revelation. Will Islam play a major role during the Great Tribulation? Will the Anti-Christ be a muslim messiah? Watch this amazing, eye-opening video on what may take place in the very near future. Joel Richardson on It's Supernatural .
*Feel free to leave your feedback and comments, here on the weblog.
Showing posts with label Spirituality. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Spirituality. Show all posts
Mar 17, 2011
PROPHETIC SIGNIFICANCE OF JAPAN'S EARTHQUAKE
Joshua Apostolic Prophetic Network
Home Central: www.joshua-ap.net/
NEXT: Another Article that I found, right after my last prayer session for Japan. Had not heard of this particular Bill Wilson, but was glad to find this very insightful prophetic article. Please make sure to leave your comments and feedback here on the weblog. Thanks!~ L.D.
***
"THE PROPHETIC SIGNIFICANCE OF JAPAN'S EARTHQUAKE"
-Bill Wilson
Word of Life Ministry
March 14th, 2011
On March 11 Japan was hit with the most intense earthquake in its recorded history. This event alone has tremendous prophetic significance and it should serve as a solemn warning to the United States. The fulfillment of prophecy is at times like peeling off layers of an onion.
Some events are a type and shadow of what is to come, while others take you to the real core. The prophetic implications of the devastating Japan earthquake is a little bit of both.
First, in Matthew 24:7-8, Jesus said, “For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom: and there shall be famines, and pestilences, and earthquakes, in divers places. All these are the beginning of sorrows.” This is obvious, but there is more.
These were events that Jesus warned us would be signs of the end times. When we see these ancient kingdoms in the Middle East having internal turmoil and threats of wars, we look to the prophecies to determine where we are at in the continuum of prophecy. Major natural disasters are another benchmark. We as watchmen try to discern why that particular area at this specific time.
When this earthquake occurred, I wondered deeply why Japan. At the same time, I thought of the prophecies of Israel and how they may impact Japan. A central prophecy regarding Israel goes back to Genesis 12:3 where the Lord told Abraham, “And I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curses thee.”
A particular end time prophecy, speaking at its core about the Day of the Lord, but one that we can say comes often in layers is Zechariah 12:3 where the Lord says, “And in that day will I make Jerusalem a burdensome stone for all people: all that burden themselves with it shall be cut in pieces, though all the people of the earth be gathered together against it.”
On March 11, the day of the earthquake, Japan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs released this statement: The Government of Japan deplores the decisions of the Government of Israel to give permission for the construction of 1,600 housing units in East Jerusalem…Japan demands that the plans should not be implemented.”
This was the first time Japan used such strong language about Israeli settlements. The earthquake should also serve as a warning to the US president, whose State Department March 13th condemned Israeli plans to build 500 new West Bank homes as “illegitimate.”
Within 48 hours after President George W Bush substantially pressured Ariel Sharon into forcing Jewish settlers from Gaza in August 2005, the first signs of Katrina were swirling in the ocean.
Naysayers believe these are unrelated coincidence, but watchmen see them from the lens of Biblical prophecy. Jesus also said in Matthew 24, “see that you be not troubled: for all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet.” More to come.
---
The full statement that Japan made on March 11, 2010–one year to the day before the earthquake–was: “The Government of Japan deplores the decisions of the Government of Israel to give permission for the construction of 1,600 housing units in East Jerusalem in addition to 112 units in West Bank just after the Israeli and Palestinian leadership’s acceptance of the start of indirect talks.
The Government of Japan does not recognize any act that prejudges the final status of Jerusalem and the territories in the pre-1967 borders. Japan demands that the plans should not be implemented.”
[The Daily Jot incorrectly stated previously that Japan had done this Friday, but there is much more.]
On March 1 of this year the Palestinian National Authority announced that it had signed an agreement with Japan to provide $32.5 million for a project of treating waste water in the Palestinian-occupied town of Jericho. It was reported as one of the biggest projects aided by Japan in the Palestinian territories to supply industrial areas with water.
The PNA noted in the announcement that since 1993, Japan had given the PNA more than a billion dollars, including $40 million in developing the Jordan Valley area in the West Bank. The PNA said that the agreement is “vita, strategic and important to help the PNA finalize building the institutions of the future Palestinian state.”
Japan is instrumental in helping build out a Palestinian state on the West Bank (traditional lands of Judea and Samaria), yet is critical and demanding of Israel for building housing units for its own citizens.
On January 11 this year, Japan’s Foreign Ministry said it “condemns the demolishing of a part of the Shepherd’s Hotel in East Jerusalem with a view to constructing new housing units for Jewish people.”
A month later on February 10, Japan’s Foreign Ministry said Israel’s plan to build housing unites for “Jewish people in Sheih Jarrah of East Jerusalem” is against efforts of the international community to resume peace negotiations. A month later, Japan is hit with a historic earthquake.
Daily Jot sources point out that the earthquake in Japan caused tsunami flooding in industrial areas, and the money Japan gave to the Palestinians was for wastewater treatment to supply water to industrial areas of a new Palestinian State.
The United States also is guilty of giving billions of dollars to the Palestinians over the years. And the current US president is condemning the Israeli homebuilding as well. Keep in mind that Japan’s fault-line is part of the infamous “ring of fire” where about 90% of the world’s earthquakes occur.
This includes the entire Pacific coast of America. Zechariah 2:8 says of Zion, “for he that touches you touches the apple of Lord’s eye.” Japan and America share the same “Fault” line. What is next?
Have a Blessed and Powerful Day!
Bill Wilson
Word of Life Ministry
Resources: http://www.dailyjot.com/
Feb 28, 2011
PROPHECY UPDATE: SIGNS IN THE HEAVENS
Joshua Apostolic Prophetic Network
Home Central: www.joshua-ap.net/
Prophecy Update: Signs in the Heavens
(Amazing and Informative Video in three parts on the heavenly signs of the Second Coming of Jesus Christ, the Messiah)
Dear Joshua Family Subscribers:
Today, I wanted to share with you some important prophetic information, with a Prophecy Update video (Parts 1-3) on the Signs in the Heavens. This is the most amazing video series on what will happen in the heavens during 2014-15. The Solar and Lunar eclipses will fall on the Jewish Feasts as signs of the Second Coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, on the Hebrew Calendar.
The following video series will blow your mind, when you watch them carefully, as Pastor Steve Hadley of Harvest Family Fellowship in Reno, discusses the past events, and then, on to the upcoming Solar and Lunar eclipses on the Hebrew Calendar, which are signs of major fulfillment of Biblical Prophetic events. This shows just how very close we actually are to the end of the age, the catching away, the war of Ezekiel 38-39, and the Second Coming of Jesus Christ, the Messiah.
This Pastor is not trying to be a date-setter of an actual date, but believes that the prophetic heavenly signs of this prophecy update should prompt the Body of Christ to repent, to make ourselves ready, and to watch for the soon coming of Christ. The Bible does tell us to make ourselves ready, and to be watching for His coming. I have included some scripture references below the conclusion of the third video. Feel free to leave your feedback in the comments area. ~ L.D. Oxford
Signs in the Heavens -- Part 1 of 3 - Watch Here
Signs in the Heavens -- Part 2 of 3 - Watch Here
Signs in the Heavens -- Part 3 or 3 - Watch Here
(Scriptures References from NIV)
Joel 2:30-31- I will show wonders in the heavens and on the earth, blood and fire and billows of smoke. 31 The sun will be turned to darkness and the moon to blood before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the LORD. Repeated in NT - See Act 2:19-20
Matthew 24:27- For as lightning that comes from the east is visible even in the west, so will be the coming of the Son of Man.
Matthew 24:30- "At that time the sign of the Son of Man will appear in the sky, and all the nations of the earth will mourn. they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of the sky, with power and great glory.
Mark 13:26-27- At that time men will see the Son of Man coming in clouds with great power and glory. 27, And he will send his angels and gather his elect from the four winds, from the ends of the earth to the ends of the heavens.
Mark 13:35-37- Therefore keep watch because you do not know when the owner of the house will come back - whether in the evening, or at midnight, or when the rooster crows, or at dawn. 37, If he comes suddenly, do not let him find you sleeping. What I say to you, I say to everyone: 'Watch!'
Matthew 24:42- "Therefore keep watch, because you do not know on what day your Lord will come."
Luke 21:25-28- "There will be signs in the sun, moon and stars. On the earth, nations will be in anguish and perplexity at the roaring and tossing of the sea. 26, Men will faint from terror, apprehensive of what is coming on the world, for the heavenly bodies will be shaken. 27, At that time they will see the Son of Man coming in a cloud with power and great glory. 28, When these things begin to take place, stand up and lift your heads, because your redemption is drawing near."
Acts 3:19-21- Repent, then, and turn to God, so that your sins may be wiped out, that times of refreshing may come from the Lord, 20, and that he may send the Christ, who has been appointed for you - even Jesus. 21,`He must remain in heaven until the time comes for God to restore everything, as he promised long ago through his holy prophets.
1 Thessalonians 4:15-18- According to the Lord's own word, we tell you that we who are still alive, who are left till the coming of the Lord, will certainly not precede those who have fallen asleep. 16, For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of god, and the dead in Christ will rise first. 17, After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever. 18, Therefore encourage each other with these words.
1 John 3:2-3- Dear friends, now we are children of God, and what we will be has not yet been made known. But we know that when he appears, We shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is. 3, Everyone who has this hope in him purifies himself, just as he is pure.
Revelation 1:7-8- Look, he is coming with the clouds, and every eye will see him, even those who pierced him; and all the peoples of the earth will mourn because of him. So shall it be! Amen. 8, “I am the Alpha and the Omega,” says the Lord God, “who is, and who was, and who is to come, the Almighty.”
Revelation 22:12- “Behold, I am coming soon! My reward is with me, and I will give to everyone according to what he has done.
May 17, 2010
VIDEOS: SIGNS OF THE TIMES...AND OTHERS
Joshua Apostolic Prophetic Network
Home Central
***
Dear Joshua Family Subscribers:
Please make sure to watch this informative video segment of the 25th International Prophecy Conference -- Signs of the Times and others, which are listed below, and are at the same link ~ L.D.
VIDEOS FOUND HERE
OTHER FREE CONFERENCE VIDEOS TO WATCH:
*IS SELECTED JUDGEMENT COMING TO A CITY NEAR YOU? - Perry Stone
*50 REASONS WHY WE'RE IN THE END TIMES - Dr. David Reagan
*QUESTIONS & ANSWERS - Various
*THE SEARCH FOR NOAH'S ARK - Randall Price
*THE ETERNAL HOPE OF EVERY BELIEVER! - Donald Perkins
*THE DESTINY OF BABYLON - Chuck Missler
*FOOD & THE END TIMES - Bill Cloud
*THE SIGNS OF THE TIMES: HOW CLOSE ARE WE TO THE END OF DAYS?
- Donald Perkins
*THE RESTORATION OF ALL THINGS - Bill Cloud
*SIGNS OF THE TIMES: WHAT WE NEED TO DO. - Chuck Missler
***
As posted on:
Joshua AP Network E-list
May 4, 2010
JOSHUA FAMILY AND WEBLOG FRIENDS
Joshua Apostolic Prophetic Network
Home Central
***
Dear Joshua Family Subscribers: (and Weblog Friends)
Tonight, I wanted to share with you some of the most recent prophetic words that i could locate from Wendy Alec, along with some related excerpts from the "Journal of the Unknown Prophet," http://www.unknownprophet.com/ which is a prophetic book that Wendy wrote, and had published back five years ago. (in 2005)
MORE ABOUT THE BOOK: It was back in Nov. of 1999 during a period of ten days, when Wendy Alec had a visitation from the Lord Jesus, where He warned her of the things to come. He spoke both of Judgement and Mercy... He spoke to her regarding the trading systems of the world, concerning Ministry leaders and the Body of Christ, (who is the Church) During this on-going visitation Jesus wept.
Then, in two other experiences that Wendy had with the Lord in 2002, He spoke with deep anguish of the last day assignments that were to come against His elect. He warned of a great spiritual blindness that was coming...of the seductions of Jezebel, and a great falling away that would take place.
(Note: To learn more, you can find "Journal of the Unknown Prophet" in our Joshua AP Network Book Store located on the left menu of http://www.joshua-ap.net/ You can also find more of her books and other ministry resources by visiting http://www.god.tv/
I know that these prophetic words will be an encouragement and blessing to many of you who would take the time to read through these with open and receptive hearts. Ask the Lord to give you discernment with this, and by all means test prophecy along-side with the scriptures, as much as you are able, with your given knowledge of the Word.
Wendy is most definitely, a seasoned and experienced prophet who has prophesied the Word of the Lord, and has also shared her visions from the Lord countless times through the media of God.TV
Ask the Lord what He might be saying to you personally through these words that you are about to read, as they spoke and provided fresh insight to me in several ways while reading through these.
If you would like to write in to share your own personal revelations from the Lord that relate to the prophetic words shared here tonight, please feel free to do so anytime. My contact email is on the Joshua AP Network E-list mailings, or you may comment on the Blogs. Blessings, L.D.
***
As posted on:
Joshua AP Network E-list
Subscribe Today!
CONTINUED: UNLEASHING OF THE END-TIME SEDUCING SPIRITS
Joshua Apostolic Prophetic Network
Home Central
***
Resources: http://www.unknownprophet.com/
* THE UNLEASHING OF THE END-TIME SEDUCING SPIRITS *
And suddenly it was as though a heavy, heavenly veil was drawn back in the Spirit realm, and I saw the satanic princes in their battle dress standing in their chariots, directing the great mass of hellish battalions and powers and principalities-and they were standing as a great and seemingly fearsome mass in a line that stretched to eternity, waiting.
And then a great shofar was sounded, and the fallen satanic princes and generals took their places in front of the battalions, as the great rumbling of Satan's chariots thundered. And all as one, they bowed their heads-as the prince of darkness made his entrance.
And as he stood there-all terrible in his damnable arrogance and rebellion-he lifted his sword high to the heavenlies, and again, as one man, I saw the princes and their battalions follow suit, and I heard Lucifer's spine-chilling cry: "It is TIME!"
And the hordes of hell resounded with a great and terrible cry: "It is TIME." And as Lucifer turned to his fallen princes, I could hear his malicious hiss: "IT IS TIME TO TARGET THE CHAMPIONS."
And immediately it was as though I was back under the trees on the beautiful English lawn in front of the manor house where Jesus was standing-His countenance filled with such beauty, such grace-but His eyes seemed filled with a deep and unstoppable pain. He reached out His hand to me: "It has begun," He said.
I could hardly decipher His words, such was His anguish that it was as though He was choking with grief: "My children are falling. It has begun."
And still I could hardly make out His words for the great emotion that came from Him, and the tears could not keep from falling down His cheeks as He came toward me: "The targeting of the champions-My Father's champions here on Earth.
The hosts of hell have been assigned for the past decades waiting for this hellish moment in the spirit realm, listening for the release of My End-Time move from Heaven. They have heard the mighty rush of My holy angels, and so in turn they have unleashed the most violent satanic assault that
Earth has yet seen since the days of My birth when Satan's wrath was unleashed through Herod against the babes in arms in a huge murderous onslaught."
I stared at Him transfixed. And again a terrible grieving filled His countenance. "My children, My generals, My leaders, My priests..."
His voice was barely audible. I could almost feel His agony, for indeed as He thought of you and me, He was suffering for us. "The champions of My Father's household think they are prepared. Some do not fear the enemy..." He hesitated.
"And that is good and right, but they also do not fear the Father. They rely on their own strength, on their own integrity, on their own valor." He looked unwaveringly into my eyes.
"It is hard for My Father to reach these, for they are blinded by their own deceptions and will easily be overcome by the battalions you just glimpsed. For many will succumb to the snare of the great deceiver of their souls-pride. But My grieving at this moment is not for them.
"My Father loves His children." He looked at me. "You cannot yet understand with what tremendous passion and compassion the Father holds for His redeemed ones. They are His greatest treasures in the universe. He delights in His children. He longs for their fellowship-for their communion with Him.
The Father does not base His love for His household on their gifting or talent or on those who in the world's eyes have so much to offer. But He has delighted to choose the foolish things of the Earth, for in His great and unfathomable wisdom He knew that those who realize that they are the most undeserving will be those who have fully embraced the fact that without His love they are completely unqualified.
"The Father knows that these are the ones who will lean their minds and hearts unquestionably on His Being-those who limp with the scars of his chastening and of their own inadequacy-those who know that within themselves there is no good thing except their hope in Him. These are His champions-and My daughter-these are the prime targets for the onslaught of the enemy that you have just seen."
***
As posted on:
Joshua AP Network E-list
Subscribe Today!
CONTINUED: THE FALLING AWAY
Joshua Apostolic Prophetic Network
Home Central
***
Resources: http://www.unknownprophet.com/
*THE FALLING AWAY *
"Many of those that the Father views as His greatest generals and champions have been assailed violently by assignments of the enemy. Each assignment is an assignment of seduction planned by Satan himself. The seducing powers and principalities have but one aim-to seduce My household away from Me and My Father.
"I am not talking about the new believers. I am not talking about the immature or even the young men. I am talking about My leaders, My generals, My priests, those who are well versed in Me.
Those who have seen terrible battles, those who have fought with Me in the dark places of the Earth, those who have led thousands upon thousands to Me across the nations, those who have built great churches, those who have brought in generational moves.
I am talking about the apostles, the prophets, the pastors, the teachers, the evangelists. And I tell you, My daughter-a great and terrible coldness has been unleashed-a coldness of heart that will imbue and infect even some of My champions' spirits.
"And so brother shall rise up against brother, minister against minister, sons against fathers, husbands against wives, and the great falling away shall begin, but it shall begin in My own household." He was quiet. "And it shall start with those who have been closest to Us."
A great and terrible chill went through my body. "Jesus," I whispered. "How can we survive such an onslaught?"
"The major End-Time assaults are divided into several camps. They are all ruthless strategies of Jezebel, the ultimate seducer and the releaser of the End-Time seducing spirits.
The first major seduction of My children will be in the area of morality-the lust of the flesh and the lust of the eyes, but seduction is not just confined to My children's morality. Satan's primary goal is to seduce My children away from the Father.
"One of Satan's most lethal weapons against My ministers is another of Jezebel's strongholds-the pride of life, pride and self-righteousness. Jezebel's third great onslaught will be in the area of discouragement.
This is the same weapon used against My servant Elijah, and indeed, many of My servants throughout the ages. Great discouragement, in turn, leading to strong delusion and finally, that of the great blinding."
***
As posted on:
Joshua AP Network E-list
Subscribe Today!
Home Central
***
Resources: http://www.unknownprophet.com/
*THE FALLING AWAY *
"Many of those that the Father views as His greatest generals and champions have been assailed violently by assignments of the enemy. Each assignment is an assignment of seduction planned by Satan himself. The seducing powers and principalities have but one aim-to seduce My household away from Me and My Father.
"I am not talking about the new believers. I am not talking about the immature or even the young men. I am talking about My leaders, My generals, My priests, those who are well versed in Me.
Those who have seen terrible battles, those who have fought with Me in the dark places of the Earth, those who have led thousands upon thousands to Me across the nations, those who have built great churches, those who have brought in generational moves.
I am talking about the apostles, the prophets, the pastors, the teachers, the evangelists. And I tell you, My daughter-a great and terrible coldness has been unleashed-a coldness of heart that will imbue and infect even some of My champions' spirits.
"And so brother shall rise up against brother, minister against minister, sons against fathers, husbands against wives, and the great falling away shall begin, but it shall begin in My own household." He was quiet. "And it shall start with those who have been closest to Us."
A great and terrible chill went through my body. "Jesus," I whispered. "How can we survive such an onslaught?"
"The major End-Time assaults are divided into several camps. They are all ruthless strategies of Jezebel, the ultimate seducer and the releaser of the End-Time seducing spirits.
The first major seduction of My children will be in the area of morality-the lust of the flesh and the lust of the eyes, but seduction is not just confined to My children's morality. Satan's primary goal is to seduce My children away from the Father.
"One of Satan's most lethal weapons against My ministers is another of Jezebel's strongholds-the pride of life, pride and self-righteousness. Jezebel's third great onslaught will be in the area of discouragement.
This is the same weapon used against My servant Elijah, and indeed, many of My servants throughout the ages. Great discouragement, in turn, leading to strong delusion and finally, that of the great blinding."
***
As posted on:
Joshua AP Network E-list
Subscribe Today!
CONTINUED: THE GREAT BLINDING
Joshua Apostolic Prophetic Network
Home Central
***
Resources: http://www.unknownprophet.com/
* THE GREAT BLINDING *
"The great blinding is a blinding of My children's hearts and of their minds that has caused them to dwell in and to live for all that which is the temporal-instead of that which is eternal.
"The world has been caught up in the great blinding to such a degree that they cannot see beyond that which they can see and touch and sense. The spirit of the world has them in its grasp, and the love of the Father is not in them.
I have grieved as I have watched My saints fall prey to this same spirit. As the spirit of the world has entangled them, their minds and hearts have become blinded with the deceptions of all that is temporal. They have started to live and to desire that which brings the reward and the praise of man in the kingdom of Earth.
"But My Kingdom is not of this world, My child. And how I grieve, for few there are today that truly know and understand this saying. For the ways of My Kingdom are foolish to the temporal world, and so it is that in this last age many of My servants have been seduced by the spirit of the world and have suffered a great and terrible blinding.
For they live more- Oh far more for what is counted and recorded in the books of man and of Earth than for that which is recorded in the books of Heaven. And that which is recorded and that counts for so much on Earth counts often for so little in My courts. For so many of My children still live for the praises and accolades and the rewards of men.
"So many of My ministers still live for that which Heaven counts as hay and as wood and what shall be burnt up in an instant as stubble when they stand before My judgment seat.
"And so I grieve with a great grieving-for My children spend their resources and the resources of My Kingdom on that which is seen and that lasts but for a moment-but eternity is built on the unseen and on the souls of men and of women.
For they have been blinded with a great and terrible blinding-a blinding by the spirit of the world-but the world will perish and will pass away, but he who does the will and the purposes of My Father shall live forever."
***
As posted on:
Joshua AP Network E-list
Subscribe Today!
Home Central
***
Resources: http://www.unknownprophet.com/
* THE GREAT BLINDING *
"The great blinding is a blinding of My children's hearts and of their minds that has caused them to dwell in and to live for all that which is the temporal-instead of that which is eternal.
"The world has been caught up in the great blinding to such a degree that they cannot see beyond that which they can see and touch and sense. The spirit of the world has them in its grasp, and the love of the Father is not in them.
I have grieved as I have watched My saints fall prey to this same spirit. As the spirit of the world has entangled them, their minds and hearts have become blinded with the deceptions of all that is temporal. They have started to live and to desire that which brings the reward and the praise of man in the kingdom of Earth.
"But My Kingdom is not of this world, My child. And how I grieve, for few there are today that truly know and understand this saying. For the ways of My Kingdom are foolish to the temporal world, and so it is that in this last age many of My servants have been seduced by the spirit of the world and have suffered a great and terrible blinding.
For they live more- Oh far more for what is counted and recorded in the books of man and of Earth than for that which is recorded in the books of Heaven. And that which is recorded and that counts for so much on Earth counts often for so little in My courts. For so many of My children still live for the praises and accolades and the rewards of men.
"So many of My ministers still live for that which Heaven counts as hay and as wood and what shall be burnt up in an instant as stubble when they stand before My judgment seat.
"And so I grieve with a great grieving-for My children spend their resources and the resources of My Kingdom on that which is seen and that lasts but for a moment-but eternity is built on the unseen and on the souls of men and of women.
For they have been blinded with a great and terrible blinding-a blinding by the spirit of the world-but the world will perish and will pass away, but he who does the will and the purposes of My Father shall live forever."
***
As posted on:
Joshua AP Network E-list
Subscribe Today!
CONTINUED: PRIDE AND SELF-RIGHTEOUSNESS
Joshua Apostolic Prophetic Network
Home Central
***
Resources: http://www.unknownprophet.com/
* PRIDE AND SELF-RIGHTEOUSNESS *
"I have watched as some of My children have fallen morally. But My anger has been stirred as I have seen some of My ministers-those of My own household-turn, and in their closets, pat themselves on the back and say like the Pharisees: ‘Thank You, Lord, I am not like they. I am glad I am not as they, for they are weak, and surely I am strong and would never do such a thing that would make My Master ashamed.'
And I tell you, My child," and He was greatly pained, "I tell you that I have seen My children-these My ministers-sit in their homes and at their church banquets, gossiping about these fallen ones. I have seen them expose their sin, expose their nakedness and say: ‘This is a terrible damage to the Gospel'-as if in shock and as in horror-but these have themselves fallen victim to the pride of life. And I am grieved with a great grieving.
"For indeed pride says, ‘It is by my own hand and by my own sufficiency that I keep the law.' And self-righteousness despises the weaker and encourages itself in its own strength to keep. But I tell you that in these coming days, all that is not rooted in dependence upon Me and My Father and upon My grace shall fall. And even as Satan fell, so I grieve for some of My called-out ones.
For they lean on their own understanding, they lean on their own integrity, they lean on their own morality, they lean on their own proficiency and they pride themselves that they are not weak like other men. But I tell you that even as Satan fell from beholding himself as greater, so many of these, My elect, shall fall from beholding themselves instead of beholding Me.
"And so when pride takes root in some of My servants, with it shall come a deadly self-righteousness and a critical, denigrating spirit as they compare themselves to others, and they shall see the faults and the failings and the specks in their companions' and their colleagues' and their leaders' eyes, and yet they shall completely ignore the beam in their own. And the terrible coldness talked about in My Word shall grip their hearts, and they shall not even realize that they have fallen away, for they shall be so sure of themselves and their boasting in Me.
You hypocrite, first get the beam of timber out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take the particle out of your brother's eye. Matthew 7:5, amp
"Tell My ministers to check their hearts, lest Satan seduce them away from their childlike trust and dependence on Me."
***
As posted on:
Joshua AP Network E-list
Subscribe Today!
Home Central
***
Resources: http://www.unknownprophet.com/
* PRIDE AND SELF-RIGHTEOUSNESS *
"I have watched as some of My children have fallen morally. But My anger has been stirred as I have seen some of My ministers-those of My own household-turn, and in their closets, pat themselves on the back and say like the Pharisees: ‘Thank You, Lord, I am not like they. I am glad I am not as they, for they are weak, and surely I am strong and would never do such a thing that would make My Master ashamed.'
And I tell you, My child," and He was greatly pained, "I tell you that I have seen My children-these My ministers-sit in their homes and at their church banquets, gossiping about these fallen ones. I have seen them expose their sin, expose their nakedness and say: ‘This is a terrible damage to the Gospel'-as if in shock and as in horror-but these have themselves fallen victim to the pride of life. And I am grieved with a great grieving.
"For indeed pride says, ‘It is by my own hand and by my own sufficiency that I keep the law.' And self-righteousness despises the weaker and encourages itself in its own strength to keep. But I tell you that in these coming days, all that is not rooted in dependence upon Me and My Father and upon My grace shall fall. And even as Satan fell, so I grieve for some of My called-out ones.
For they lean on their own understanding, they lean on their own integrity, they lean on their own morality, they lean on their own proficiency and they pride themselves that they are not weak like other men. But I tell you that even as Satan fell from beholding himself as greater, so many of these, My elect, shall fall from beholding themselves instead of beholding Me.
"And so when pride takes root in some of My servants, with it shall come a deadly self-righteousness and a critical, denigrating spirit as they compare themselves to others, and they shall see the faults and the failings and the specks in their companions' and their colleagues' and their leaders' eyes, and yet they shall completely ignore the beam in their own. And the terrible coldness talked about in My Word shall grip their hearts, and they shall not even realize that they have fallen away, for they shall be so sure of themselves and their boasting in Me.
You hypocrite, first get the beam of timber out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take the particle out of your brother's eye. Matthew 7:5, amp
"Tell My ministers to check their hearts, lest Satan seduce them away from their childlike trust and dependence on Me."
***
As posted on:
Joshua AP Network E-list
Subscribe Today!
CONTINUED: DISCOURAGEMENT AND STRONG DELUSION
Joshua Apostolic Prophetic Network
Home Central
***
Resources: http://www.unknownprophet.com/
* DISCOURAGEMENT AND STRONG DELUSION *
"Even in the generation that preceded this present Church Age, some of My greatest servants succumbed to discouragement, and this led in turn to strong delusion. The enemy will do his utmost at this time to discourage and impede and roadblock My purposes and My plans. And to those whose limbs grow too weary, whose hearts grow faint with weariness, he will start to cloud their vision." Jesus' tone was urgent.
"And visions that were birthed in power and in clarity and in the vigor of the Holy Spirit will seem to become clouded. Legions of satanic voices have been unleashed, and the voice of the enemy will whisper doubt and confusion and unbelief to the weary soul. If seriously entertained, these satanic whisperings shall gain a foothold in the hearts and minds of some of My servants, and they shall think to themselves: I have sowed and there is no reaping. There is no harvest. I have labored for nought, for the fruit is so little.
"So know, My child, to warn My servants that when they hear these voices, to immediately discard them, not even to entertain such a train of thought, for it is a train of thought carefully strategized by the legions of the damned with intent to discourage and to delude even the elect. For these voices will question My faithfulness. These voices will question My Word. These voices have one intent, to seduce My children away from My Father.
"When Elijah ran from Jezebel in the wilderness, he had just slain all the prophets of Baal with the sword. He had seen My mighty hand of deliverance. But on receiving Jezebel's message, he ran for his life. And in these times, many of My servants who are mightily called and anointed by Me for the work in My End-Time moves have received a message from this same spirit of Jezebel that was at work against My prophet Elijah. And that message is the same today as it was then: ‘So let the gods do to me, and more also if I make not your life as the life of one of them by tomorrow.'
"And so My servants who have become weary of the battle and of standing against the darkness and warring in the high places of the Earth have become afraid and arisen and have run for their lives and cried out to Me as Elijah did: ‘It is enough; now, O Lord, take away my life.'"
Jesus sighed, but His sigh was not of exasperation, but filled with a deep concern and compassion
"My Father and I have heard the cry of Our servants. My body has not understood the depth of discouragement which has gripped their souls." He hesitated.
"I have watched from Heaven as some of My servants became weary in well-doing, and because of the tremendous opposition and discouragements of the soul, they fell to discouragement, pride and eventually to strong delusions."
I could feel the Lord's hurt. "I have loved these men. They loved Me for many, many years with a pure heart, but they fell into Jezebel's snare and were deceived.
"Many of My servants today face the same pitfalls. Many have served Us day by day in the hidden places of service, unseen by man but known of Me. Many of them have poured out their lives and their substance for the sake of the Gospel and for My Kingdom, but they have seen little fruit. Some have done mighty exploits, some have faithfully served day by day. But many, so many, have become weary and are ready to faint.
"For Jezebel has sent her message to them saying: ‘I will make your life as one of them (slain by the sword tomorrow).' And so the Father of Lies has sown seeds of deception in My servants' souls-questioning their faithfulness, questioning My protection-that My servants have began to doubt My very hand upon their lives. And they have become depressed and dismayed and lost their purpose that once was so clear, and like Elijah, they cry out: ‘And I only, I am left, and the enemy seeks my life to take it away.'
"Many of these ones in the past years have given themselves to activity rather than to intimate fellowship with Me. It is essential that in this season that they take time out and draw aside to Me in intimacy in My presence so that they can find refreshing.
"This assignment is far more deadly to those who are called to do as Martha than those who sit like Mary. Many of these have great administrative gifts; they are ably equipped to do, they are equipped to run ministries, equipped to run churches, equipped to run businesses. Others have become so caught up in the activity of ministering to others that they have been caught up in the activity of serving and have lost intimacy with Me and have become depleted.
"The more intensely discouraged that My servants become, the more they have leaned on natural, carnal methods to change their circumstance and have become spiritually depleted. This discouragement in turn has kept them away from My face and My presence where they would find My supernatural encouragement, strength, fortitude and divine strategy to unlock their circumstances.
"Tell them they must draw unto Me. I am their lifegiver. I am their encourager. I am their anchor. I am their sustenance. That I would allure these My children to Myself and gently, as My angel spoke to Elijah, say: Child, arise and eat. Draw aside and replenish yourself. Guard your minds and hearts from the father of all lies and deceiver of your souls."
The woman was robed in purple and scarlet and bedecked with gold, precious stones, and pearls, [and she was] holding in her hand a golden cup full of the accursed offenses and the filth of her lewdness and vice. And on her forehead there was inscribed a name of mystery [with a secret symbolic meaning]: Babylon the great, the mother of prostitutes (idolatresses) and of the filth and atrocities and abominations of the earth. I also saw that the woman was drunk, [drunk] with the blood of the saints (God's people) and the blood of the martyrs [who witnessed] for Jesus. And when I saw her, I was utterly amazed and wondered greatly.
Revelation 17:4-6, amp
***
As posted on:
Joshua AP Network E-list
Subscribe Today!
Home Central
***
Resources: http://www.unknownprophet.com/
* DISCOURAGEMENT AND STRONG DELUSION *
"Even in the generation that preceded this present Church Age, some of My greatest servants succumbed to discouragement, and this led in turn to strong delusion. The enemy will do his utmost at this time to discourage and impede and roadblock My purposes and My plans. And to those whose limbs grow too weary, whose hearts grow faint with weariness, he will start to cloud their vision." Jesus' tone was urgent.
"And visions that were birthed in power and in clarity and in the vigor of the Holy Spirit will seem to become clouded. Legions of satanic voices have been unleashed, and the voice of the enemy will whisper doubt and confusion and unbelief to the weary soul. If seriously entertained, these satanic whisperings shall gain a foothold in the hearts and minds of some of My servants, and they shall think to themselves: I have sowed and there is no reaping. There is no harvest. I have labored for nought, for the fruit is so little.
"So know, My child, to warn My servants that when they hear these voices, to immediately discard them, not even to entertain such a train of thought, for it is a train of thought carefully strategized by the legions of the damned with intent to discourage and to delude even the elect. For these voices will question My faithfulness. These voices will question My Word. These voices have one intent, to seduce My children away from My Father.
"When Elijah ran from Jezebel in the wilderness, he had just slain all the prophets of Baal with the sword. He had seen My mighty hand of deliverance. But on receiving Jezebel's message, he ran for his life. And in these times, many of My servants who are mightily called and anointed by Me for the work in My End-Time moves have received a message from this same spirit of Jezebel that was at work against My prophet Elijah. And that message is the same today as it was then: ‘So let the gods do to me, and more also if I make not your life as the life of one of them by tomorrow.'
"And so My servants who have become weary of the battle and of standing against the darkness and warring in the high places of the Earth have become afraid and arisen and have run for their lives and cried out to Me as Elijah did: ‘It is enough; now, O Lord, take away my life.'"
Jesus sighed, but His sigh was not of exasperation, but filled with a deep concern and compassion
"My Father and I have heard the cry of Our servants. My body has not understood the depth of discouragement which has gripped their souls." He hesitated.
"I have watched from Heaven as some of My servants became weary in well-doing, and because of the tremendous opposition and discouragements of the soul, they fell to discouragement, pride and eventually to strong delusions."
I could feel the Lord's hurt. "I have loved these men. They loved Me for many, many years with a pure heart, but they fell into Jezebel's snare and were deceived.
"Many of My servants today face the same pitfalls. Many have served Us day by day in the hidden places of service, unseen by man but known of Me. Many of them have poured out their lives and their substance for the sake of the Gospel and for My Kingdom, but they have seen little fruit. Some have done mighty exploits, some have faithfully served day by day. But many, so many, have become weary and are ready to faint.
"For Jezebel has sent her message to them saying: ‘I will make your life as one of them (slain by the sword tomorrow).' And so the Father of Lies has sown seeds of deception in My servants' souls-questioning their faithfulness, questioning My protection-that My servants have began to doubt My very hand upon their lives. And they have become depressed and dismayed and lost their purpose that once was so clear, and like Elijah, they cry out: ‘And I only, I am left, and the enemy seeks my life to take it away.'
"Many of these ones in the past years have given themselves to activity rather than to intimate fellowship with Me. It is essential that in this season that they take time out and draw aside to Me in intimacy in My presence so that they can find refreshing.
"This assignment is far more deadly to those who are called to do as Martha than those who sit like Mary. Many of these have great administrative gifts; they are ably equipped to do, they are equipped to run ministries, equipped to run churches, equipped to run businesses. Others have become so caught up in the activity of ministering to others that they have been caught up in the activity of serving and have lost intimacy with Me and have become depleted.
"The more intensely discouraged that My servants become, the more they have leaned on natural, carnal methods to change their circumstance and have become spiritually depleted. This discouragement in turn has kept them away from My face and My presence where they would find My supernatural encouragement, strength, fortitude and divine strategy to unlock their circumstances.
"Tell them they must draw unto Me. I am their lifegiver. I am their encourager. I am their anchor. I am their sustenance. That I would allure these My children to Myself and gently, as My angel spoke to Elijah, say: Child, arise and eat. Draw aside and replenish yourself. Guard your minds and hearts from the father of all lies and deceiver of your souls."
The woman was robed in purple and scarlet and bedecked with gold, precious stones, and pearls, [and she was] holding in her hand a golden cup full of the accursed offenses and the filth of her lewdness and vice. And on her forehead there was inscribed a name of mystery [with a secret symbolic meaning]: Babylon the great, the mother of prostitutes (idolatresses) and of the filth and atrocities and abominations of the earth. I also saw that the woman was drunk, [drunk] with the blood of the saints (God's people) and the blood of the martyrs [who witnessed] for Jesus. And when I saw her, I was utterly amazed and wondered greatly.
Revelation 17:4-6, amp
***
As posted on:
Joshua AP Network E-list
Subscribe Today!
CONTINUED: SEDUCTION, LUST AND JEZEBEL
Joshua Apostolic Prophetic Network
Home Central
***
Resources: http://www.unknownprophet.com/
* SEDUCTION, LUST AND JEZEBEL *
"This assignment is more easily discerned but far more lethal in its
outward consequences, for it devours its prey. The intense seduction
lures My children into the enticement of sin but eventually leaves them
stripped of their ministry, calling, reputation and sometimes even their
relationship with Myself and the Father and their eternal salvation." He
sighed deeply.
"The Father knows that these very ones were drawn to Him because they
knew the very weakness of their own souls-like the woman whose story I
promised would be told eternally."
I spoke. "The woman who washed your feet?"
Jesus smiled tenderly. "Those who have been forgiven much love much. In
this last generation many came to Us from the greatest ensnarements and
bondages. Once they saw Our great love for them, they became Our
greatest champions and bondservants, for their gratitude for receiving
such a redemption was unfathomable.
"These are the ones who have become close and tender with Me-who would
follow Me unto death."
"But if they would follow you unto death, Lord Jesus-and they hear your
voice-then how could they fall to seducing spirits?" I asked, that chill
gripping me again, sensing the answer.
"Every weakness that these ones experienced in their lives..." His
expression was so grave, "...every fissure, each wound, each broken
place that lies unhealed-these satanic powers and principalities and
demons shall now target.
"Many, many of My children did not receive healing of their minds,
emotions and souls in this last generation. And because they have lived
in the household of God for years, many do not even realize that these
scarred places exist.
"These last days' assignments have been meticulously strategized, and
that is the very strength of their evil-they have been tailor-made to
each of My champions. They know the urgent, driving, unmet needs of the
soul:
the generational bondages of each individual called by Me to impact this
generation; the lack of nurturing; the deep unhealed rejections and
hurts of the emotions; the fatherlessness; the need for affirmation; the
desire to belong; the deep isolations-all of which when not met in
Me-now have laid the perfect snare for the assignments of the enemy.
"Some of My champions have experienced a violent, satanic assailing
against their minds. Any thought not taken captive shall be a thought
that can take violent root in their soul to lead to ensnarement.
Anything from their past that has been dealt with by their own strength
and not by My Spirit shall become a snare to them and can leave them
vulnerable to the enemy of their souls. Any habit not ruthlessly dealt
with and put to the cross, when assigned with the searing heat of
temptation, will breed and rapidly multiply."
Jesus continued, "In this past age Jezebel has translated itself into
many different forms, but one of her primary rules in this present age
is her amalgamation with Babylon, the spirit of the world and lust. Lust
of the flesh, lust of the eyes and the pride of life.
Jezebel rules electronic media-film, television, advertising-she is the
epitome of seduction in this last age. She was Delilah, Salome,
Herodias. She rules pornography, adultery, lasciviousness,
homosexuality, pride, power, separation, divorce, ambition and every
perversion and sin of the flesh known to mankind. She tantalizes,
packages sin, sells it and then debases and exposes her victims before
killing. Her primary targets in this last Church Age are My ministers,
both men and women."
I felt the icy chill once more. Well I knew the depth of hatred Jezebel
holds for God's bondservants.
"Multitudes of My ministers today struggle with pornography. Multitudes
of My ministers struggle now with lust on a daily basis. Multitudes are
struggling against a terrible coldness of heart within their marriages
and families.
"Many came out of a deeply sinful lifestyle or out of deep-rooted
rejections, and as was the way in this past generation, far too many of
My children were not discipled effectively and did not receive effective
healing in the areas that propelled them into that habitual sin.
Also, especially among My leaders in this past generation, My Church has
been so embroiled in self-righteousness that if one of My children has
cried for help in an area of failure, many times they have been
ostracized, isolated and had their confidence betrayed.
This has led to My ministers leading double lives, having a public face
for their congregations whilst crying out to Me in their bedchambers
because they hate what they have become. Yet they know that many will
deal treacherously with them if they admit their need for help.
Jezebel knows this full well, and it is one of her most effective
strategies. For once the champion is isolated from real help, the
seducing spirits are unleashed, and time after time, My child falls into
adultery, fornication, homosexuality, pornography, separation and
divorce. And how I and My Father grieve. For well Lucifer knows that it
is often those who love us and who have hungered for Our presence who
have often been the most damaged in their past-and now Satan targets the
damaged places.
Warn them. Warn them to guard against the great deceiver of their souls.
For as Satan came to Me in the wilderness, he intends to do now to those
who follow Me, who lead others-to tempt-to lure-for in this most violent
of testings, even My most elect shall fall."
He hesitated, and a great pain seemed to cloud His countenance. And I
sensed that He was thinking about one whom I knew that He loved greatly
who had been caught even that month in a prevailing sin.
And I thought of the ones in this past year who had fallen in ways that
were still politically acceptable to us in the household of God-but my
thoughts were not with those‚ but rather with those, so many of late,
who had fallen morally-not acceptable-and who had lost or taken time out
from their ministries.
And as I looked into Jesus' eyes, I knew that these were the ones He
grieved for. For well He knew how they loved Him. In fact, some loved
Him more, much more than any others. And well He knew how they must have
wrestled in the still, quiet hours of the early morning against sin.
But because the assignments of hell had been so meticulously crafted and
because Lucifer knew so well that the politics of the Church so often
ensured isolation and silence in struggling with sin, one by one they
had fallen to the brokenness and fissures in their own souls.
And as He looked at me, I felt that suddenly I knew how He had looked
upon that rich young man. And so I prayed for all of us who had been
targeted by the enemy, to be assailed in this last End Time, that even
in the tumult and the fierce heat of the testings and trials and
temptations, we would draw on His strength that would take us through
the eye of the needle to that last lap of the narrow way that we may be
counted as conquerors.
"Lord Jesus, how can we stand?" I whispered.
"There is only one way to survive the onslaught, My child." His voice
was so soft. "Firstly, to repent of any and of all lukewarmness and
backsliding in your heart and to reignite and maintain zealously your
first love for Me. Secondly, to keep yourself from all idols and remain
fervent in the Spirit, which is the result of true fellowship in Spirit
and in truth with Myself and the Father and of feeding on My Word until
My Words are Spirit and Life to you." He hesitated, "And finally, the
cross.
The deception in every temptation is that which caused Adam to lead
billions of souls into sin-that of selfishness. Temptation promises that
which self desires. When My children desire the promises of sin more
than they desire Me-they will fall.
"The greatest weapon to survive the onslaught is for My children to take
up their cross and to follow Me. To take up the cross daily and to die
to everything in their souls and their mind that opposes My truth. To
let go of that lower life that is the flesh and continually mortify
their minds and bodies and to put to death the deeds of the flesh.
My children have forgotten the power of the cross. They have thought
that to die once is sufficient, but the spirit of the world, with its
carnality and selfishness, loosed upon this present generation is so
strong in these evil days-that it is only in a continual, daily
crucifying of their flesh that they will indeed be able to withstand
temptation.
"Remember it is written, ‘For we do not have a High Priest Who is unable
to understand and sympathize and have a shared feeling with our
weaknesses and infirmities and liability to the assaults of temptation,
but One Who has been tempted in every respect as we are, yet without
sinning.'
Let us then fearlessly and confidently and boldly draw near to the
throne of grace...that we may receive mercy [for our failures] and find
grace to help in good time for every need, [appropriate help and
well-timed help, coming just when we need it]. Hebrews 4:16, amp
"Even when you feel you are falling into the very pit of hell itself,
even when it seems as if you are clinging to Me and to My Father and to
My Word and its principles by a thread-when you feel that hell is
sucking you in-it is then that you must cry out to Me. Cry out to My
Father. Cry out Our name, and in that very second, We will come to you
and rescue you. We will draw you in and protect you from every wile of
the Evil One.
"I said I will never forsake you, and this is true. Even when you are in
the heat of temptation-still if you cry out to Me-I will hear you.
"Speak My Word, and I, the Living Word, will come to your aid and
accomplish that which I have promised.
"Now, warn My children. My Father's heart is grieved with a terrible
grieving. Warn My beloved-that many would be saved out of the fowler's
snare-that even those in the deepest mire might cry out to Me and find
their way home.
"Beloved children"-Jesus' voice was so tender, and somehow I knew that
He was speaking to all who had been ensnared who eventually would read
these words-"there is forgiveness, beloved. There is deliverance. There
is restoration." And then He turned and smiled-the smile of heaven that
seemed to light up the whole world in its wake. "THERE IS HOPE."
***
As posted on:
Joshua AP Network E-list
Subscribe Today!
Home Central
***
Resources: http://www.unknownprophet.com/
* SEDUCTION, LUST AND JEZEBEL *
"This assignment is more easily discerned but far more lethal in its
outward consequences, for it devours its prey. The intense seduction
lures My children into the enticement of sin but eventually leaves them
stripped of their ministry, calling, reputation and sometimes even their
relationship with Myself and the Father and their eternal salvation." He
sighed deeply.
"The Father knows that these very ones were drawn to Him because they
knew the very weakness of their own souls-like the woman whose story I
promised would be told eternally."
I spoke. "The woman who washed your feet?"
Jesus smiled tenderly. "Those who have been forgiven much love much. In
this last generation many came to Us from the greatest ensnarements and
bondages. Once they saw Our great love for them, they became Our
greatest champions and bondservants, for their gratitude for receiving
such a redemption was unfathomable.
"These are the ones who have become close and tender with Me-who would
follow Me unto death."
"But if they would follow you unto death, Lord Jesus-and they hear your
voice-then how could they fall to seducing spirits?" I asked, that chill
gripping me again, sensing the answer.
"Every weakness that these ones experienced in their lives..." His
expression was so grave, "...every fissure, each wound, each broken
place that lies unhealed-these satanic powers and principalities and
demons shall now target.
"Many, many of My children did not receive healing of their minds,
emotions and souls in this last generation. And because they have lived
in the household of God for years, many do not even realize that these
scarred places exist.
"These last days' assignments have been meticulously strategized, and
that is the very strength of their evil-they have been tailor-made to
each of My champions. They know the urgent, driving, unmet needs of the
soul:
the generational bondages of each individual called by Me to impact this
generation; the lack of nurturing; the deep unhealed rejections and
hurts of the emotions; the fatherlessness; the need for affirmation; the
desire to belong; the deep isolations-all of which when not met in
Me-now have laid the perfect snare for the assignments of the enemy.
"Some of My champions have experienced a violent, satanic assailing
against their minds. Any thought not taken captive shall be a thought
that can take violent root in their soul to lead to ensnarement.
Anything from their past that has been dealt with by their own strength
and not by My Spirit shall become a snare to them and can leave them
vulnerable to the enemy of their souls. Any habit not ruthlessly dealt
with and put to the cross, when assigned with the searing heat of
temptation, will breed and rapidly multiply."
Jesus continued, "In this past age Jezebel has translated itself into
many different forms, but one of her primary rules in this present age
is her amalgamation with Babylon, the spirit of the world and lust. Lust
of the flesh, lust of the eyes and the pride of life.
Jezebel rules electronic media-film, television, advertising-she is the
epitome of seduction in this last age. She was Delilah, Salome,
Herodias. She rules pornography, adultery, lasciviousness,
homosexuality, pride, power, separation, divorce, ambition and every
perversion and sin of the flesh known to mankind. She tantalizes,
packages sin, sells it and then debases and exposes her victims before
killing. Her primary targets in this last Church Age are My ministers,
both men and women."
I felt the icy chill once more. Well I knew the depth of hatred Jezebel
holds for God's bondservants.
"Multitudes of My ministers today struggle with pornography. Multitudes
of My ministers struggle now with lust on a daily basis. Multitudes are
struggling against a terrible coldness of heart within their marriages
and families.
"Many came out of a deeply sinful lifestyle or out of deep-rooted
rejections, and as was the way in this past generation, far too many of
My children were not discipled effectively and did not receive effective
healing in the areas that propelled them into that habitual sin.
Also, especially among My leaders in this past generation, My Church has
been so embroiled in self-righteousness that if one of My children has
cried for help in an area of failure, many times they have been
ostracized, isolated and had their confidence betrayed.
This has led to My ministers leading double lives, having a public face
for their congregations whilst crying out to Me in their bedchambers
because they hate what they have become. Yet they know that many will
deal treacherously with them if they admit their need for help.
Jezebel knows this full well, and it is one of her most effective
strategies. For once the champion is isolated from real help, the
seducing spirits are unleashed, and time after time, My child falls into
adultery, fornication, homosexuality, pornography, separation and
divorce. And how I and My Father grieve. For well Lucifer knows that it
is often those who love us and who have hungered for Our presence who
have often been the most damaged in their past-and now Satan targets the
damaged places.
Warn them. Warn them to guard against the great deceiver of their souls.
For as Satan came to Me in the wilderness, he intends to do now to those
who follow Me, who lead others-to tempt-to lure-for in this most violent
of testings, even My most elect shall fall."
He hesitated, and a great pain seemed to cloud His countenance. And I
sensed that He was thinking about one whom I knew that He loved greatly
who had been caught even that month in a prevailing sin.
And I thought of the ones in this past year who had fallen in ways that
were still politically acceptable to us in the household of God-but my
thoughts were not with those‚ but rather with those, so many of late,
who had fallen morally-not acceptable-and who had lost or taken time out
from their ministries.
And as I looked into Jesus' eyes, I knew that these were the ones He
grieved for. For well He knew how they loved Him. In fact, some loved
Him more, much more than any others. And well He knew how they must have
wrestled in the still, quiet hours of the early morning against sin.
But because the assignments of hell had been so meticulously crafted and
because Lucifer knew so well that the politics of the Church so often
ensured isolation and silence in struggling with sin, one by one they
had fallen to the brokenness and fissures in their own souls.
And as He looked at me, I felt that suddenly I knew how He had looked
upon that rich young man. And so I prayed for all of us who had been
targeted by the enemy, to be assailed in this last End Time, that even
in the tumult and the fierce heat of the testings and trials and
temptations, we would draw on His strength that would take us through
the eye of the needle to that last lap of the narrow way that we may be
counted as conquerors.
"Lord Jesus, how can we stand?" I whispered.
"There is only one way to survive the onslaught, My child." His voice
was so soft. "Firstly, to repent of any and of all lukewarmness and
backsliding in your heart and to reignite and maintain zealously your
first love for Me. Secondly, to keep yourself from all idols and remain
fervent in the Spirit, which is the result of true fellowship in Spirit
and in truth with Myself and the Father and of feeding on My Word until
My Words are Spirit and Life to you." He hesitated, "And finally, the
cross.
The deception in every temptation is that which caused Adam to lead
billions of souls into sin-that of selfishness. Temptation promises that
which self desires. When My children desire the promises of sin more
than they desire Me-they will fall.
"The greatest weapon to survive the onslaught is for My children to take
up their cross and to follow Me. To take up the cross daily and to die
to everything in their souls and their mind that opposes My truth. To
let go of that lower life that is the flesh and continually mortify
their minds and bodies and to put to death the deeds of the flesh.
My children have forgotten the power of the cross. They have thought
that to die once is sufficient, but the spirit of the world, with its
carnality and selfishness, loosed upon this present generation is so
strong in these evil days-that it is only in a continual, daily
crucifying of their flesh that they will indeed be able to withstand
temptation.
"Remember it is written, ‘For we do not have a High Priest Who is unable
to understand and sympathize and have a shared feeling with our
weaknesses and infirmities and liability to the assaults of temptation,
but One Who has been tempted in every respect as we are, yet without
sinning.'
Let us then fearlessly and confidently and boldly draw near to the
throne of grace...that we may receive mercy [for our failures] and find
grace to help in good time for every need, [appropriate help and
well-timed help, coming just when we need it]. Hebrews 4:16, amp
"Even when you feel you are falling into the very pit of hell itself,
even when it seems as if you are clinging to Me and to My Father and to
My Word and its principles by a thread-when you feel that hell is
sucking you in-it is then that you must cry out to Me. Cry out to My
Father. Cry out Our name, and in that very second, We will come to you
and rescue you. We will draw you in and protect you from every wile of
the Evil One.
"I said I will never forsake you, and this is true. Even when you are in
the heat of temptation-still if you cry out to Me-I will hear you.
"Speak My Word, and I, the Living Word, will come to your aid and
accomplish that which I have promised.
"Now, warn My children. My Father's heart is grieved with a terrible
grieving. Warn My beloved-that many would be saved out of the fowler's
snare-that even those in the deepest mire might cry out to Me and find
their way home.
"Beloved children"-Jesus' voice was so tender, and somehow I knew that
He was speaking to all who had been ensnared who eventually would read
these words-"there is forgiveness, beloved. There is deliverance. There
is restoration." And then He turned and smiled-the smile of heaven that
seemed to light up the whole world in its wake. "THERE IS HOPE."
***
As posted on:
Joshua AP Network E-list
Subscribe Today!
May 3, 2010
CONTINUED: AMERICA - THE DAY AND HOUR OF REVIVAL APPROACHES
Joshua Apostolic Prophetic Network
Home Central
***
Resources: www.unknownprophet.com
AMERICA-THE DAY AND HOUR OF REVIVAL APPROACHES
Prophetic Word Received 2006 - Wendy Alec
For the Lord would say-America-beloved America-you stand on the brink of a new season in Me. For I have heard the cries of those that hunger-of those that have fallen on their faces before Me seeking imploring Me for a move of My presence.
For an outpouring of My person and of My presence across the shores of America-and I tell you this day-that this hour dawns upon your shores-that the wind of My presence is stirring-that those who have longed to see this day shall yet see this move in their generation.
For where sin abounds-surely My grace abounds more abundantly. And because of the prayers of My saints in this nation, says the Lord God of Hosts, because of the fervent prayers and the supplications of a remnant in this nation, so My hand shall move across the United States of America for the great outpouring of My Holy Spirit that has yet to fall.
And so beloved I tell you that My presence shall fall from East to West from North to South-and Canada-yes surely Canada shall be a part of this revival says the Lord of Hosts. And yes-I have heard the cries of My people-
I have seen the repentance of the hearts of those of My people who have not let Me go day or night-and so I tell you this day that the prayers of the intercessors of this nation-the declarations of the prophets of this nation-have rent the heavens and have risen up before My throne like a sweet incense-an incense that burns fervently before My throne both day and night.
And so My children I am coming to this nation-oh My children I come quickly to this nation.
***
As posted on:
Joshua AP Network E-list
Subscribe Today!
CONTINUED: I AM CALLING MY APOSTLES...
Joshua Apostolic Prophetic Network
Home Central
***
Resources: www.unknownprophet.com
I AM CALLING MY APOSTLES, MY PROPHETIC EVANGELISTS
And now I would address the apostles-Rise Rise Rise up in the nation of America-Apostles. For surely the intercessions and the supplications of the saints have prepared the way for your feet to march and for your hands to build-and the prophets-the voices of My prophets have rent the heavens and now apostles it is time for you to rise and build-to break open the gates of brass and the doors of iron.
For in this time and in this season-oh yes-a new anointing shall fall upon My apostles in this hour in America-and the gates that were brass shall open and the doors that were iron shall swing forth.
Oh yes and some would say but we have seen the new move. Oh no, no says the Lord-there is coming a new day and yet a new hour that has not been seen yet upon the earth.
And now I call you evangelists-for such a time you have been birthed for in America-and yes there have been those who have plowed the fields that are white unto harvest-white unto harvest-but there is a new breed of evangelist that rises upon your shores America-and it is you to whom I call forth.
For surely although you have seen harvest-the harvest you have reaped has been but a glimmer of what I have birthed in your spirit-but I tell you that even in a moment it shall be-even in a moment-that My breath shall blow and like a whirlwind-a different season and a different dispensation shall fall-and I shall raise up My prophetic evangelists and as they declare-and as they bring forth-so I tell you that My consuming fire shall fall-and there shall be a holy fear-a holy dread of Me that shall sweep this nation-America.
And thousands times thousands times thousands shall fall to their knees in repentance as My consuming fire starts to sweep across halls across arenas across stadiums. For America stands on the outskirts of revival-but make no mistake for it is nothing that has gone before-but it is everything that the generals of old saw in the spirit realm and longed to see in their day-and so I shall raise up a mighty generation.
***
As posted on:
Joshua AP Network E-list
Subscribe Today!
Home Central
***
Resources: www.unknownprophet.com
I AM CALLING MY APOSTLES, MY PROPHETIC EVANGELISTS
And now I would address the apostles-Rise Rise Rise up in the nation of America-Apostles. For surely the intercessions and the supplications of the saints have prepared the way for your feet to march and for your hands to build-and the prophets-the voices of My prophets have rent the heavens and now apostles it is time for you to rise and build-to break open the gates of brass and the doors of iron.
For in this time and in this season-oh yes-a new anointing shall fall upon My apostles in this hour in America-and the gates that were brass shall open and the doors that were iron shall swing forth.
Oh yes and some would say but we have seen the new move. Oh no, no says the Lord-there is coming a new day and yet a new hour that has not been seen yet upon the earth.
And now I call you evangelists-for such a time you have been birthed for in America-and yes there have been those who have plowed the fields that are white unto harvest-white unto harvest-but there is a new breed of evangelist that rises upon your shores America-and it is you to whom I call forth.
For surely although you have seen harvest-the harvest you have reaped has been but a glimmer of what I have birthed in your spirit-but I tell you that even in a moment it shall be-even in a moment-that My breath shall blow and like a whirlwind-a different season and a different dispensation shall fall-and I shall raise up My prophetic evangelists and as they declare-and as they bring forth-so I tell you that My consuming fire shall fall-and there shall be a holy fear-a holy dread of Me that shall sweep this nation-America.
And thousands times thousands times thousands shall fall to their knees in repentance as My consuming fire starts to sweep across halls across arenas across stadiums. For America stands on the outskirts of revival-but make no mistake for it is nothing that has gone before-but it is everything that the generals of old saw in the spirit realm and longed to see in their day-and so I shall raise up a mighty generation.
***
As posted on:
Joshua AP Network E-list
Subscribe Today!
CONTINUED: THE CONSUMING FIRE OF MY PRESENCE...
Joshua Apostolic Prophetic Network
Home Central
***
Resources: unknownprophet.com
THE CONSUMING FIRE OF MY PRESENCE
SHALL ROAR ACROSS THE YOUTH OF AMERICA
And many many, many, yes many of them shall be the youth of this nation. For I tell you-there is coming a fire-the consuming fire of My presence that will roar across the YOUTH of the nation of America and consume the lukewarmness and the dross and the things of the world shall be consumed in its wake and a great move of repentance shall fall across the youth of this nation.
The YOUTH, says the Lord-the YOUTH of AMERICA
And as the tears of repentance fall and as the youth of this nation fall prostrate on their face-so My mighty Generals and Apostles shall join across America in a great and fearsome army of the Lord.
And it shall be a new sound-and it shall be a new wind from Heaven-the wind shall roar through the highways and byways of America-it is the sound of marching-marching-to the step and the sound of the Lord of Hosts-and the sleeping church shall awaken.
And Prophets-my Prophets-I call you-rise up in this day and in this hour and cry out cry out to America-for the time to demolish the religious strongholds that have bound My people so tightly in their fetters. It is the season and the hour for the bonds of brass to be broken for the shackles of iron to be shattered by the declarations of My prophets. For My church has been in a slumber-for My church has been in a stupor-but this is coming my season for America.
And there will be food for the hungry, says the Lord-there will be food for the hungry in spirit-there will be sustenance and nourishment-and the eagles that lie weak and dying-many, many, many of those who should be strongest in this hour have fallen from the skies through lack of sustenance and I am moved with compassion for My eagles in this hour-and I am moved with compassion upon the young eagles of this nation who are starving-and so I will feed America with that that is straight from My hand-with a word from Heaven-with sustenance that will sustain them through the coming days.
***
As posted on:
Joshua AP Network E-list
Subscribe Today!
Home Central
***
Resources: unknownprophet.com
THE CONSUMING FIRE OF MY PRESENCE
SHALL ROAR ACROSS THE YOUTH OF AMERICA
And many many, many, yes many of them shall be the youth of this nation. For I tell you-there is coming a fire-the consuming fire of My presence that will roar across the YOUTH of the nation of America and consume the lukewarmness and the dross and the things of the world shall be consumed in its wake and a great move of repentance shall fall across the youth of this nation.
The YOUTH, says the Lord-the YOUTH of AMERICA
And as the tears of repentance fall and as the youth of this nation fall prostrate on their face-so My mighty Generals and Apostles shall join across America in a great and fearsome army of the Lord.
And it shall be a new sound-and it shall be a new wind from Heaven-the wind shall roar through the highways and byways of America-it is the sound of marching-marching-to the step and the sound of the Lord of Hosts-and the sleeping church shall awaken.
And Prophets-my Prophets-I call you-rise up in this day and in this hour and cry out cry out to America-for the time to demolish the religious strongholds that have bound My people so tightly in their fetters. It is the season and the hour for the bonds of brass to be broken for the shackles of iron to be shattered by the declarations of My prophets. For My church has been in a slumber-for My church has been in a stupor-but this is coming my season for America.
And there will be food for the hungry, says the Lord-there will be food for the hungry in spirit-there will be sustenance and nourishment-and the eagles that lie weak and dying-many, many, many of those who should be strongest in this hour have fallen from the skies through lack of sustenance and I am moved with compassion for My eagles in this hour-and I am moved with compassion upon the young eagles of this nation who are starving-and so I will feed America with that that is straight from My hand-with a word from Heaven-with sustenance that will sustain them through the coming days.
***
As posted on:
Joshua AP Network E-list
Subscribe Today!
CONTINUED: AMERICA - A SHIFT AHEAD - A GREAT SIFTING
Joshua Apostolic Prophetic Network
Home Central
***
Resources: unknownprophet.com
AMERICA-A SHIFT AHEAD-A GREAT SIFTING
For I tell you America-that the times and the seasons are changing-and a time of persecution dawns-a time when agendas will rise to the surface. For there comes a shift ahead-a shift in the political arenas in the years ahead-and a great sifting of believers in America will take place-but out of this sifting My remnant shall rise-pure and true-with a clear voice-and a clarion call-but the cost is dear-for the cost is everything.
For I tell you that the time will come in America when it is no longer politically correct to be called "Christian" and many, many, many of My children shall fall away in that day and that hour-but for all who are founded on the rock-for all who hear and hearken to the voice of My Spirit-they shall know that in that day and in that hour-I shall come with My mighty right hand to save them that the great times of persecution have begun-and that I am coming soon.
For I am calling for relationship not lipservice. I am calling My church in America higher, higher, higher-higher into a relationship with My person and My presence. I am calling My church America out from the religious bondage and trappings of her past-and I will use My remnant to cry out-and the church shall turn-and the sleeping church shall rise from its slumber in the times of persecution ahead.
And I shall light a TORCH-a TORCH-a literal TORCH of the fire of My saints of America-a torch that shall set ablaze the world-for it is time to look OUT America-beyond your cities beyond your towns. Look out. Look OUT America-for the nations have need of you. Rise up from the bondage of complacency.
For the East cries out to you-and the North travails-and the South calls to you in the spirit-and so My fire shall fall-and from the east Coast to the West and from the West across the seas it shall go-and from the North it shall rise North, North even to Russia-it shall burn-and to the South-the South a flame of fire shall rise.
***
As posted on:
Joshua AP Network E-list
Subscribe Today!
CONTINUED: I SHALL DO A NEW THING IN THE BIBLE BELT
Joshua Apostolic Prophetic Network
Home Central
***
Resources: unknownprophet.com
I SHALL DO A NEW THING IN THE BIBLE BELT
And the Bible belt that has kept My word-and has revered My name. I shall do a NEW THING IN THE BIBLE BELT. For there is yet a new move that shall spring forth-for children-your present sustenance cannot sustain you in the days ahead, says the Lord. And I will break the bounds of your establishment-and I shall come towards you in this day yet in a new form-and yes many, many, many in the new day shall not recognize Me.
They shall say, "Oh this is not God." But I shall pour out such a spirit of hunger of hunger of hunger upon you-that your desperation for Me shall overcome your religious expectation-oh yes-and a new breath of My Spirit shall wash over you-and fresh and living waters shall flow upon you-and you shall drink of My presence and you shall drink of My fire and the yes of your spirit shall be opened-and I tell you that like a tree set ablaze so the Bible belt shall come into a new realm and a new fresh move in Me-and shall be fed-and shall join with the great and mighty dread army of the Lord as she rises across America-America America-Beloved America.
And then the Judgement will FALL. But My church shall BLAZE with My glory.
The throne room was huge, so huge that it seemed infinite. And as the music of heaven played, hundreds of millions of people gathered. The people never stopped coming-incessant and infinite, radiant with joy, clothed in white garments. They had followed the Lamb faithfully throughout their time on earth, through the fire and the furnace and yet stayed their course, and now the old order was passed away, and behold, the new was come.
***
As posted on:
Joshua AP Network E-list
Subscribe Today!
Jun 28, 2009
GOOD NEWS -- R.I.P. MICHAEL JACKSON
Joshua Apostolic Prophetic Network
Home Central:
It has been reported via the Official Mary Mary blog -- that three weeks ago, Michael Jackson prayed with Andre and Sandra Crouch, accepting Christ into his heart.
So now it is very likely that Michael is now singing and moon-walking with Jesus in heaven. R.I.P. Michael ! ~ L.D.
HERE'S THE NEWS:
From: The Official Mary Mary Blog
Last night we received some good news from Terri McFaddin-Solomon who is good friends with Sandra Crouch.
Three weeks ago Sandra and Andre' spent some time with their close friend, Michael Jackson. Michael asked Andre` to play, "It Won't Be Long And We'll Be Leaving Here."
Michael then prayed with Sandra and Andre and accepted Christ into his heart. Now he's singing in the heavenly choir.! Our hearts rejoice!
Source: here
***
Joshua AP Network E-list
Subscribe Today!
Oct 26, 2008
"ASK OF ME AND MORE!"
Joshua Apostolic Prophetic Network
Home Central
Joshua AP Network Books and Resources
***
(Three recommended teachings from the ministry of Francis Frangipane)
*ASK OF ME
*THOSE WHO MAKE A COVENANT WITH GOD
*WHERE A DESOLATE SOUL FINDS GOD
***
"ASK OF ME"
~ by Francis Frangipane
Resources: www.frangipane.org
We live in unparalleled times. Not since the first century have more Scriptures been fulfilled in a single generation. Each unfolding word brings down another mountain; it lifts another valley. In truth, the way is being prepared for our King's return into this world.
"THE GREAT REVOLT"
The Lord forewarned that, during the end-time, "many will go back and forth, and knowledge will increase" (Dan. 12:4). Contrast our time with any other in history: Not only are we traveling farther and more frequently, but we do so in a world inundated with increasing knowledge.
It has been our privilege to behold the prophetic return of Israel to its land (see Jer. 16:14-15), and our misfortune to live when "the earth is . . . polluted by its inhabitants" (Isa. 24:5). As though Jesus were reading a news summary of recent years, His prophecies of two thousand years ago clearly describe our times. Thus, we are compelled to discern accurately the significant era in which we live.
Indeed, of the many prophetic fulfillments of our day, one in particular rises with undimmed candor. I am speaking of what the Bible calls the "apostasy." You will recall Paul's warning: "Let no one in any way deceive you, for [the day of the Lord] will not come unless the apostasy comes first" (2 Thess. 2:3).
The apostasy has traditionally been described as a time of deception and massive falling away from authentic faith in Christ. Depending upon your specific view, sometime before or after the apostasy the rapture of the church will occur.
However, the concept of apostasy as merely “a falling away” is incomplete. The original Greek word for apostasy, apostasia, when used in classical Greek literature, meant “a political revolt.” From this we understand that the end-time apostasy is not just a time of sinfulness or large scale backsliding; it is actually a time of open defiance and warlike aggression against divine moral foundations. In other words, the apostasia is a political insurrection against the laws of God.
This interpretation of the apostasy is not an isolated view. The new International Version, Revised Standard Version, Philips Translation, and New English Bible all render apostasia as "the rebellion." The Living Bible interprets the apostasy as the "great rebellion," while the Jerusalem Bible assigns a proper name to this era: "The Great Revolt."
As we consider the fulfillment of so many other prophecies, let us carefully observe: Mankind has entered an era of open revolt and outright rebellion---an apostasy---against the moral standards of God.
Today, we are witnessing a large-scale rebellion against godliness and moral values. Indeed, this brazen attitude has had a name for itself since the 1960s: the sexual revolution. And "revolution" is exactly what it is.
Our moral standards have not only been challenged, they have been replaced by a non-standard. Indeed, the great rebellion seeks to legitimize and then mainstream every perversity known to man!
There is much to say on behalf of those trapped in perversity and who hate sin's affect on their lives. We must be compassionate toward them and not strident; many are sitting in our churches afraid to even speak of their need lest they be disowned.
I am not speaking with reference to the victims of this advance, but of those who are engaged in a mutiny against the sway of God in our nation. They argue the only standard Americans have is the standard of individual freedom.
In their view, freedom itself is the "god" ruling America, with self-indulgence sitting as chief counsel. Yet, the God of heaven desires the nations of the world. Though the apostasy will certainly intensify, we must remember it is only one of many prophecies unfolding in our day. The same Divine Word that warned of the Great Rebellion also assures us that ultimately God's kingdom shall crush the demonic influences in our world (see Dan. 2:44).
Yes, evil shall mature into full rebellion, but good is also ripening into full Christlikeness! (see Matt. 13:40-43; John 17:22-23). True, the apostasy shall reveal the nature of Satan, but the true church shall manifest the nature of Christ!
Our king is not only coming in the skies; He is coming "to be glorified in His saints on that day, and to be marveled at among all who have believed" (2 Thess. 1:10). What seems to be Satan's hour, full of darkness and rebellion, is simply the opportunity for grace to abound to the glory of God in the church!
"SEATED WITH CHRIST!"
The Second Psalm, perhaps more then any other Bible text, accurately portrays the spirit of our time. Indeed, it also proclaims our correct response to Satan's bold advance. Although it was quoted by the early church (see Acts 4:25-26), God has set its full realization for the end of this age.
"Why are the nations in an uproar and the peoples devising a vain thing? The kings of the earth take their stand and the rulers take counsel together against the Lord and against His Anointed, saying, ‘Let us tear their fetters apart and cast away their cords from us!'" (Ps. 2:1-3).
Although "the rebellion" reveals itself worldwide in many ways, in America many of our leaders have certainly been counseling together "against the Lord" in their recent decisions. We see it in the legal protection offered the gay movement and the shelter provided for satanic rock music. Again, our anti-censorship laws, like armor plating, have been established to defend sin against the Lord, shielding the perversity of our entertainment industry. The virulent cry of those in rebellion hammers relentlessly upon the fetters of moral restraint!
This railing against God has not gone unnoticed in heaven. Is the Almighty confounded? Has fear concerning recent developments gripped the Lord's heart? No. The Psalm continues, "He who sits in the heavens laughs, the Lord scoffs at them. Then He will speak to them in His anger and terrify them in His fury" (Ps 2:4-5).
The Lord laughs at the foolishness of those in full revolt, as they imagine God's judgments cannot reach them. Why then, you ask, does the Lord delay His full judgment? In part, the Lord waits for us, His church.
For while the world shall demand, and receive, the reign of hell, the goal of the praying church shall be for the reign of heaven. You see, all of God's prophecies shall be fulfilled: those concerning evil and also those concerning righteousness.
The Lord has purposed to have a "bride without spot or wrinkle" and a "kingdom" of wheat without tares. The transformation of the church will be fulfilled as surely as every other prophecy occurring before the Lord's return.
Thus, with great fear and holy trembling, we must review what God has promised concerning us! Let us remember, the Lord is not alone in the heavens. According to His Word, He has seated us with Him in the heavenly places (see Eph. 2:6).
It is time for our identity as Christians to shift. Our nationalities only define our ambassador status; our true citizenship is in heaven (see Phil. 3:20). And if God is laughing at the mocking of those in the rebellion, let us also, as His subjects, share His confidence!
Thus, He commands us to sit with Him in the completeness of His purpose. He requires us not only to live without fear but to stand in prayer for these very nations that defy Him!
Listen again to this Second Psalm, for in the very context of worldwide rebellion against the Lord, it records the most remarkable discourse: "Ask of Me," the Father says to the Son, "and I will surely give the nations as Your inheritance, and the very ends of the earth as Your possession" (Ps. 2:8).
When I first came to Christ in 1970, churches in America were deeply divided and rather cold in organized prayer. Today, leaders of denominations are working together, and it is estimated that more than a quarter of a million American churches are moving toward deeper unity and increased prayer for this nation. Jesus has asked the Father for the United States, and in response, the prayer movement has been born!
As Christ's church, we do not deserve a national revival, but Jesus does! As His representatives, in His name and virtue, we ask of the Father for America! More than an expression of faith, our prayer is actually an act of obedience: We are commanded to ask God for the nations!
Therefore, while the perverse strive toward complete rejection of God, even as their mocking words fill the air, the Almighty's unchangeable promise to His Son (and by extension, His church as Christ's body) is "Ask of Me, and I will surely give the nations!''
As violence, New Age religions and witchcraft flourish in our schools, ask God for this nation. While all restraint is removed from the entertainment industry, ask God for this nation! While perversity dresses in normalcy, ask God for America!
While abortion remains protected by laws, ask God with confidence, with boldness, and with faith for our land! Where you see injustice in any form, ask God for His kingdom to manifest on earth!
"HE WHO SITS IN THE HEAVENS LAUGHS."
Put away fear and discouragement; repent of fretting. The more we accept our place in the divine plan, the more we shall laugh at the enemies' plans. The faith that relentlessly asks God, pleases God.
Now, as the fullness of the times unfolds, as the world around us clothes itself in prophetic fulfillments, let us put away unbelief; let us repent for withdrawal. It is a time to boldly ask of God. As He has promised: He will give the nations as an inheritance to Christ!
Let's pray: Lord Jesus, how blessed we are that as evil matures into full rebellion, Your church matures into full Christlikeness. Teach me to pray for my inheritance, my nation. Use me to stand in the gap until my people become Your people.
***
"THOSE WHO MAKE A COVENANT WITH GOD"
~ by Francis Frangipane
THE COVENANT-KEEPING GOD
Throughout the history of God's dealings with man, He has revealed Himself as a covenant-making God. The Almighty covenanted with Noah, Abraham, Moses and David; He renewed His Abrahamic covenant in His call to Isaac and Jacob. Each covenant initiated a new wave of redemptive power into the world and forever impacted the human condition.
The word covenant means "to fetter" or chain together. It was the highest form of commitment that two individuals could share. Any of several rituals were employed to express the covenant partners’ unity:
A sword might be passed, signifying that the two would be united against the enemy as one. They might pass a sandal between themselves, which symbolized they would travel any distance to be at one another's side.
Or, they might cut an animal in two and pass between its halves. Just as the two halves, though separated, were still one animal, so the two covenant partners would become as one individual.
When the Lord initiated His covenant with a man, He did so as an extension of His eternal purpose; the man was a component in a series of divine initiatives. Contained within the Lord's covenant was His divine intervention, His supernatural wisdom and strategies, and His provisions.
Thus, if we look at the Lord's call to Noah, we see that it was not the ark, but the covenant of God, that preserved Noah and his family during worldwide judgment. Noah was a component, a factor in a series of divine initiatives, which accomplished the Lord's predetermined plans. God established the covenant, designed the ark and brought the animals. The Lord even shut the door after Noah entered the ark.
When the Lord established His covenant with Abraham, twice a flaming torch passed through the halves of the animals Abraham offered in sacrifice. The two passes signified that God would keep His part of the covenant and He would keep Abraham's part of the covenant as well!
Today, a restored Israel testifies to God's faithfulness in His covenant with Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. And it is God's covenant with Abraham, not merely the Jewish military, which preserves Israel in our times.
When the Lord entered into covenant with man, God promised that the covenant conditions and possibilities would not only apply to His servant, but His servant's descendants as well. Noah and his family, Abraham and his seed, and David and his family were all united as beneficiaries of God's covenant relationship. Similarly, we are saved and sustained through life's battles by Christ's covenant with the Father.
"PAYMENT AND PATTERN"
Our salvation has been secured, not only because Jesus died for our sins, but because His death was part of a covenant He had with the Father. The fact that Jesus suffered on my behalf is staggering, but His crucifixion was a component of an even more powerful reality: His covenant with the Father.
The terms of Christ's covenant were such that, if He would live His life blamelessly and offer that holy life upon the cross for sins, everyone who looked to the Son of God would be granted forgiveness.
The Father would look to Christ's sacrifice and see justice; and sinners would look to Jesus and find mercy. Yet, as maturing disciples, we find in Christ's covenant-mission not only our peace, but also a pattern Christ calls us to follow. He told His disciples, "As the Father has sent Me, I also send you" (John 20:21).
Having laid down His life in covenant surrender, He now bids us, "Take up [your] cross, and follow Me" (Matt. 16:24). Of course, our cross does not replace His cross nor do the sub-covenants we make with God supersede Christ's covenant.
The truth is, our cross extends the power of Christ's cross into our world and times, and our sub-covenant with God finds its backing because of Christ's covenant with God.
Thus, the Lord calls us to follow Him in personal covenants for our homes, cities and nations. The covenant we embrace is nothing less than the expression of Christ's nature, revealed again through us for our families, cities and nation.
"THE HARVEST AND COVENANT POWER"
To many Christians, the idea of making a special covenant with God is unfamiliar. Yet, I believe that many have already felt the Holy Spirit speaking, urging them to deepen their commitment to Christ.
Even so, covenants and our obedience to them must come from our hearts in response to the Lord's initiative. You will know the extent of your covenant by the measure of vision and faith, which also come from God.
Especially in the last days, we need to become a people who know the truth given us through Christ's covenant. And, in following Him, we should also know the unique endowment of grace He brings in making special covenants with us.
Indeed, Daniel 11:28-32 warns that the last days will be a time of unprecedented deception and spiritual intrigue. According to this text, Satan's rage will be hurled uniquely against "the holy covenant"! (v. 28a).
Yet, in this same chapter we read, "But the people who know their God will display strength and take action. And those who have insight among the people will give understanding to the many" (Dan. 11:32-33a).
The prophecy continues, "And those who have insight will shine brightly like the brightness of the expanse of heaven, and those who lead the many to righteousness, like the stars forever and ever" (Dan. 12:3).
In the midst of great deception there will be a time and a people who know their God, have great insight, do exploits and lead many to righteousness. They will receive a new and powerful endorsement of God's Spirit.
Additionally, if the enemy will be warring specifically against the holy covenant, we can assume there is something of unparalleled power that Christ's covenant provides against Satan!
A new authority is coming to those who desire full conformity to Christ. For a great harvest is indeed prophesied for the end of this age, and those leading the way will be individuals who understand Christ's covenant and have themselves covenanted with God for their land.
"GOD'S UNALTERABLE COMMITMENT"
It is right to pray for the Lord to bless our lives. However, praying for the blessing and provision of God is not the same as covenanting with Him. A covenant is an altar upon which the Lord and His covenant partner give themselves fully to each other.
The quality of a covenant relationship with God does not cease once prayers have been answered. For, in covenant love we mature from simply being "believers" to becoming living sacrifices, given to God's highest plans. By so yielding, He creates within us a life that He can use extraordinarily in the process of divine redemption.
Covenant power is greater than that which comes through prayer alone. The effects of a covenant reach far beyond simple faith. Prayer and faith are essentials; they are prerequisites, but not substitutes, for covenant power. The covenant relationship is a lifelong pledge, an unbreakable oath that God Himself initiates and promises to sustain.
Contained within His promise is His unalterable commitment, not only to satisfy His redemptive purposes, but also to supply grace and faith to His human counterpart. Together, the all-sufficient God and a believing man accomplish the impossible through their covenant relationship.
"THE POWER RELEASED IN A COVENANT"
A covenant with God accomplishes two interconnected goals. It thrusts us beyond "subjective prayer" (prayer made primarily for our personal needs), and it brings us into a deeper commitment to God. Out of greater commitment comes greater grace to accomplish God's redemptive work in the world.
An example of covenant power is seen in ancient Israel during the revival that occurred after Athaliah, an idolatrous Judean queen, was dethroned. Jehoiada, the high priest, looked to God in covenant prayer. We read, "Then Jehoiada made a covenant between the Lord and the king and the people, that they should be the Lord's people" (2 Kings 11:17).
The result of his covenant was that grace came upon the people and they cleansed the land of idolatry. We read, "So all the people of the land rejoiced and the city was quiet" (v. 20). Jehoiada's covenant brought the nation back to God and ended violence in Jerusalem!
Consider also the power released in Hezekiah's covenant with God. The nation of Judah had been fully corrupted by Ahaz, the preceding king. However, Hezekiah began his reign by seeking God's highest favor. He opened the doors of the temple and reconsecrated the priests.
Yet, the purification of priests and buildings by themselves would not have brought about revival had not Hezekiah taken one further step. He said, "Now it is in my heart to make a covenant with the Lord God of Israel, that His burning anger may turn away from us" (2 Chr. 29:10).
Just eight days after the king made a covenant with the Lord, we read, "Then Hezekiah and all the people rejoiced over what God had prepared for the people, because the thing came about suddenly" (v. 36). The difference between a long-term struggle and a speedy turning of the nation was, I believe, in the power that was released when the king covenanted with the Almighty.
It is vital that we who are Americans remember that our spiritual forefathers were people who knew and exercised principles of covenant sacrifice. When they came to this country, they knelt on its shores and covenanted with God for this land, dedicating the "new world" to Christ and His kingdom. It is unlikely that the revival of our nation will come without local and national church leaders covenanting together with God for their land.
"MAKING A COVENANT WITH GOD"
A personal covenant with God is a serious commitment, worthy of extended prayer and focused waiting before God. I have covenanted with the Lord to see the body of Christ delivered of carnal divisions and racism; my covenant goal is that Christ's prayer of John 17 be answered.
I have also united my life and faith with the covenants of our Pilgrim forefathers. Together with other brethren, both locally and nationally, we have covenanted with God to see this land restored according to 2 Chronicles 7:14.
I believe there will be a time when this nation, like all nations, will become the kingdom of our Lord and of His Christ (Rev 11:15). Until then, whether revival comes quickly or we pass through the fires of divine judgments, our lives belong to Christ-not simply to be blessed or prosperous, but to see His highest purposes accomplished in our land.
However, not all of us will covenant with God for the nation. According to their faith, some will make covenants with Him for their families. Others will covenant to see abortion ended in their cities. While still others will covenant with God for the church--to see unity established in the citywide church in their cities.
Making a covenant with God takes us further into our goal of Christlikeness. It is the highest relationship we can enjoy with God and it is the most deeply surrendered. It is, in truth, that which brings Him the most pleasure.
To those who covenant with God, He says, "Gather My godly ones to Me, those who have made a covenant with Me by sacrifice" (Ps 50:5).
Today, as this nation stands at the threshold of two realities, let us take time in contemplative prayer and kneel before the Almighty Father. In Christlike, focused surrender, as Christ was a living sacrifice for our sins, so let us become living sacrifices to God for those we love. Let us embrace covenant oneness with God that His purpose and passions be fulfilled in our lives and in our times.
***
"WHERE A DESOLATE SOUL FINDS GOD"
~ by Francis Frangipane
Jesus gave the last hours of this age a poignant headline. He called this period "The Great Tribulation." The word rendered tribulation means "grievous affliction or distress; pressure or burden upon the spirit." As we move closer toward the end of this age, we should expect that catastrophic distresses and pressures on man shall increase.
Added to the increasing stress of our times is the decreasing desire of government and society in general to restrain moral decadence. We live in a time when a significant portion of our society is in open and defiant rebellion toward God.
The prophetic words of Psalm 2 are being fulfilled before our eyes: World and local leaders "take their stand and the rulers take counsel together Against the Lord and against His Anointed" (v. 2). As they renounce moral values, their militant cry is, "Let us tear their fetters apart and cast away their cords from us!" (v. 3).
Jesus warned of this day, saying, "Because lawlessness will abound, the love of many will grow cold" (Matt. 24:12, NKJV). If you are one who has resisted the increasing darkness, you know how intense and multifaceted the battle is.
Whether you are fighting to remedy an injustice in your community or just trying to keep your family together, barely do we make headway in one area before five other areas are breeched. In spite of breakthroughs occurring in several cities, many good people have grown weary. They are just going through the motions. The prophet Daniel warned of a time when the enemy would "…wear down the saints of the Highest One" (Dan. 7:25).
To emerge victorious in this day, we must climb into the reality given to us by God in Psalm 91. There is place of replenishing life--a fountain of eternal life where we can abide. The Bible calls this place the shelter of the Most High.
"ELIJAH: A MAN LIKE US"
Elijah was a man with passions like ours, and he fought in a spiritual war similar to ours. In his battle for the soul of Israel, he stood against the wiles of Jezebel and her husband, King Ahab. Yet his most intense battle was not against visible foes but against personal discouragement.
As bold as Elijah was, he lived as a fugitive moving in and out of caves and places of hiding. Jezebel had murdered nearly all of the Lord's prophets, replacing their godly influence with the dark, satanic oppression accompanying the priests of Baal and the Asherah.
A new initiative, however, had come from the Lord: Both Elijah and the prophets of Baal were to build altars, each to the deity they individually served. The God who answered with fire would be acknowledged as Lord over the nation.
King Ahab and all Israel came to the confrontation. Try as they may, the priests of Baal could draw no response from their demonic idol, Baal. In dramatic contrast, at Elijah's prayer, fire immediately fell from heaven and consumed his sacrifice.
This was Elijah's greatest victory. And when the Israelites saw the display of God's power, they bowed to the ground saying, "The Lord, He is God; the Lord, He is God" (1 Kings 18:39).
But the Lord was not finished. After Elijah had the priests of Baal executed, he went to the top of Mount Carmel, and, kneeling face down, he prayed seven times for rain until the Lord brought a great downpour that ended a devastating three-year drought. On this one day, both fire and rain miraculously fell from heaven!
Perhaps if this tremendous day had occurred at almost any other time in Israel's history, the nation would have repented, but it did not. Baal worship should have ended, but it continued. In fact, nothing changed.
Instead of the revival that Elijah envisioned, the opposite occurred: an enraged Jezebel vowed to kill the Lord's prophet, spurring Elijah to flee into the wilderness. There Elijah collapsed, exhausted and despondent, beneath a juniper tree. "It is enough; now O Lord," the weary prophet prayed, "take my life, for I am not better than my fathers" (1 Kings 19:4).
Elijah had offered the Lord his very best effort. This day had been the culminating event of his life. Elijah had prayed that Israel would know the Lord was their God and that, in response, the Lord would turn Israel's "heart back again" (1 Kings 18:37). Yet, like the prophets before him, Elijah could not trigger revival for Israel. Discouragement overwhelmed him. He had had enough.
Have you been to the point of spiritual or emotional exhaustion where you too have said, "It is enough"? Perhaps you were frustrated by your own inability to effect positive change in your family or you've fasted and prayed for your church or society but no visible change occurred. You gave your all but found little success. Disheartened and weary like Elijah, all your resources were spent.
Elijah laid down and slept. As he did, an angel touched him and said, "Arise, eat" (1 Kings 19:5). At his head were bread and water. Elijah, weary with life itself, ate and withdrew back into sleep.
Once more the angel touched him. "Arise," he said "Eat, because the journey is too great for you" (v. 7). For all our visions, plans, and programs, the journey before each of us is also "too great." Indeed our journey is divinely designed to be too great for us. The Lord has no plan where we succeed without Him. Life is so constructed to drive us to God.
"BACK TO OUR FOUNDATIONS"
"So [Elijah] arose and ate and drank, and went in the strength of that food forty days and forty nights to Horeb, the mountain of God" (1 Kings 19:8).
The Lord gave Elijah strength, not to send him back to battle but to bring him back to basics. If we become more consumed with our task than we are with our love for God, our lives will eventually become brittle and desolate.
To restore our souls, the Lord brings us back to the essentials of our faith. Indeed, He might even stop our labors completely and direct us to the simpler realities of prayer, time in the Word, and worship.
He reminds us that, of all He calls us to accomplish, His greatest commandment is to love Him with all our "heart…soul…mind…and…strength" (Mark 12:30). Without this focus, we lose touch with God's presence; we are outside the shelter of the Most High.
The Lord brought Elijah to "Horeb, the mountain of God." In Hebrew, Horeb means "desolation."[Hebrew: Charab - to make desolate.] The barren environment mirrored Elijah's soul. Yet to God, Horeb was actually a place where the issues of a man's heart were flushed to the surface. There is no theater at Horeb, no acting. It is the place of unembellished honesty and core-to-surface transparency.
"HOW DID YOU GET HERE?"
Perhaps Elijah's greatest virtue was his zeal. Indeed, twice in his communication with God, Elijah speaks of having been "very zealous" for the Lord. But zeal unaccompanied by wisdom eventually becomes its own god. It compels us toward expectations that are unrealistic and outside the timing and anointing of the Lord.
To remain balanced, zeal must be reined in and harnessed by strategic encounters with the living God. Otherwise we become frustrated with people and discouraged with delays. We step outside our place of strength and spiritual protection.
Elijah had come to Horeb and lodged there in a cave. Soon the Word of the Lord came to him: "What are you doing here, Elijah?" (v. 9). This is one of the most important questions God will ever ask us.
His question probes the reality of our spiritual state: "How did your service to Me become dry and desolate?" God wants us to know that when we fail to esteem Him as our first love, we will always find a desert awaiting us.
Our primary purpose in life must be to abide in Christ. Otherwise we can become so consumed with the deteriorating condition of the world that we fail to see the deteriorating condition of our own soul. In His love, the Lord stops us and forces us to look honestly at our heart: Is this existence that I now live the abundant life promised me from Christ?
Let's speak candidly. We have nothing to prove and no need to pretend. We can abandon the internal mechanisms of defensiveness and pride. If we are disappointed, we are free to express it; if frustrated, we can admit it. We must simply and truthfully evaluate, without rationalization, our true spiritual condition.
Lord, reveal to me my heart. Bring to the surface of my consciousness those disappointments and heartaches, as well as my sins and failures. Remove Remove the cargo of oppression from my soul. Help me, Master, to lie still as You perform heart surgery on me.
Transparency is the outer garment of humility, and humility draws the grace of God to our hearts. Is not intimacy with God the very thing we most neglect? And is not the Lord alone our source of strength in battle? If the enemy can distract us from our time alone with God, he will isolate us from the help that comes from God alone.
Let us, therefore, approach the living God without any garment other than transparency.
"A FRESH ANOINTING"
As the pressures of this age escalate, we will soon discover that yesterday's anointing will not suffice for today's battles. The Lord brought a new beginning to Elijah's life at Horeb---one that would ultimately release a "double portion" of power to Elijah's successor, Elisha. Under this new anointing, Jezebel would be destroyed, Baal worship abolished, and the only period of revival the northern tribes ever experienced would begin.
To reach a similar place of breakthrough, it will take more than the momentum of our own zeal. We should not be surprised if God calls us to pass through our own Horeb.
How will we recognize this place? Horeb is the voice of personal desolation; it is the desperate compelling of our heart to possess more of God. We must now listen carefully to the voice of God. For it is at Horeb that He brings us deeper into Himself. It is here, under the canopy of His compassion, that we discover the purpose of our brokenness: our desolation is, in fact, a time of preparation.
The Lord is about to bring a new beginning to you. When you return to the battle, you shall war from the shelter of the Most High.
Lord Jesus, apart from You, my life is dry and desolate. Forgive me for trying to do Your will without abiding in Your presence. I desperately need You, Lord. This day, I commit my heart to return to my first love.
Teach me, Lord, to consider intimacy with You the greatest measure of my success. Let me see Your glory; reveal to me Your goodness. Guide me, Oh Holy Spirit, into the spiritual fortress of the presence of God. Amen.
Resources: www.frangipane.org/
***
As posted on:
Joshua AP Network E-list
Subscribe Today!
Home Central
Joshua AP Network Books and Resources
***
(Three recommended teachings from the ministry of Francis Frangipane)
*ASK OF ME
*THOSE WHO MAKE A COVENANT WITH GOD
*WHERE A DESOLATE SOUL FINDS GOD
***
"ASK OF ME"
~ by Francis Frangipane
Resources: www.frangipane.org
We live in unparalleled times. Not since the first century have more Scriptures been fulfilled in a single generation. Each unfolding word brings down another mountain; it lifts another valley. In truth, the way is being prepared for our King's return into this world.
"THE GREAT REVOLT"
The Lord forewarned that, during the end-time, "many will go back and forth, and knowledge will increase" (Dan. 12:4). Contrast our time with any other in history: Not only are we traveling farther and more frequently, but we do so in a world inundated with increasing knowledge.
It has been our privilege to behold the prophetic return of Israel to its land (see Jer. 16:14-15), and our misfortune to live when "the earth is . . . polluted by its inhabitants" (Isa. 24:5). As though Jesus were reading a news summary of recent years, His prophecies of two thousand years ago clearly describe our times. Thus, we are compelled to discern accurately the significant era in which we live.
Indeed, of the many prophetic fulfillments of our day, one in particular rises with undimmed candor. I am speaking of what the Bible calls the "apostasy." You will recall Paul's warning: "Let no one in any way deceive you, for [the day of the Lord] will not come unless the apostasy comes first" (2 Thess. 2:3).
The apostasy has traditionally been described as a time of deception and massive falling away from authentic faith in Christ. Depending upon your specific view, sometime before or after the apostasy the rapture of the church will occur.
However, the concept of apostasy as merely “a falling away” is incomplete. The original Greek word for apostasy, apostasia, when used in classical Greek literature, meant “a political revolt.” From this we understand that the end-time apostasy is not just a time of sinfulness or large scale backsliding; it is actually a time of open defiance and warlike aggression against divine moral foundations. In other words, the apostasia is a political insurrection against the laws of God.
This interpretation of the apostasy is not an isolated view. The new International Version, Revised Standard Version, Philips Translation, and New English Bible all render apostasia as "the rebellion." The Living Bible interprets the apostasy as the "great rebellion," while the Jerusalem Bible assigns a proper name to this era: "The Great Revolt."
As we consider the fulfillment of so many other prophecies, let us carefully observe: Mankind has entered an era of open revolt and outright rebellion---an apostasy---against the moral standards of God.
Today, we are witnessing a large-scale rebellion against godliness and moral values. Indeed, this brazen attitude has had a name for itself since the 1960s: the sexual revolution. And "revolution" is exactly what it is.
Our moral standards have not only been challenged, they have been replaced by a non-standard. Indeed, the great rebellion seeks to legitimize and then mainstream every perversity known to man!
There is much to say on behalf of those trapped in perversity and who hate sin's affect on their lives. We must be compassionate toward them and not strident; many are sitting in our churches afraid to even speak of their need lest they be disowned.
I am not speaking with reference to the victims of this advance, but of those who are engaged in a mutiny against the sway of God in our nation. They argue the only standard Americans have is the standard of individual freedom.
In their view, freedom itself is the "god" ruling America, with self-indulgence sitting as chief counsel. Yet, the God of heaven desires the nations of the world. Though the apostasy will certainly intensify, we must remember it is only one of many prophecies unfolding in our day. The same Divine Word that warned of the Great Rebellion also assures us that ultimately God's kingdom shall crush the demonic influences in our world (see Dan. 2:44).
Yes, evil shall mature into full rebellion, but good is also ripening into full Christlikeness! (see Matt. 13:40-43; John 17:22-23). True, the apostasy shall reveal the nature of Satan, but the true church shall manifest the nature of Christ!
Our king is not only coming in the skies; He is coming "to be glorified in His saints on that day, and to be marveled at among all who have believed" (2 Thess. 1:10). What seems to be Satan's hour, full of darkness and rebellion, is simply the opportunity for grace to abound to the glory of God in the church!
"SEATED WITH CHRIST!"
The Second Psalm, perhaps more then any other Bible text, accurately portrays the spirit of our time. Indeed, it also proclaims our correct response to Satan's bold advance. Although it was quoted by the early church (see Acts 4:25-26), God has set its full realization for the end of this age.
"Why are the nations in an uproar and the peoples devising a vain thing? The kings of the earth take their stand and the rulers take counsel together against the Lord and against His Anointed, saying, ‘Let us tear their fetters apart and cast away their cords from us!'" (Ps. 2:1-3).
Although "the rebellion" reveals itself worldwide in many ways, in America many of our leaders have certainly been counseling together "against the Lord" in their recent decisions. We see it in the legal protection offered the gay movement and the shelter provided for satanic rock music. Again, our anti-censorship laws, like armor plating, have been established to defend sin against the Lord, shielding the perversity of our entertainment industry. The virulent cry of those in rebellion hammers relentlessly upon the fetters of moral restraint!
This railing against God has not gone unnoticed in heaven. Is the Almighty confounded? Has fear concerning recent developments gripped the Lord's heart? No. The Psalm continues, "He who sits in the heavens laughs, the Lord scoffs at them. Then He will speak to them in His anger and terrify them in His fury" (Ps 2:4-5).
The Lord laughs at the foolishness of those in full revolt, as they imagine God's judgments cannot reach them. Why then, you ask, does the Lord delay His full judgment? In part, the Lord waits for us, His church.
For while the world shall demand, and receive, the reign of hell, the goal of the praying church shall be for the reign of heaven. You see, all of God's prophecies shall be fulfilled: those concerning evil and also those concerning righteousness.
The Lord has purposed to have a "bride without spot or wrinkle" and a "kingdom" of wheat without tares. The transformation of the church will be fulfilled as surely as every other prophecy occurring before the Lord's return.
Thus, with great fear and holy trembling, we must review what God has promised concerning us! Let us remember, the Lord is not alone in the heavens. According to His Word, He has seated us with Him in the heavenly places (see Eph. 2:6).
It is time for our identity as Christians to shift. Our nationalities only define our ambassador status; our true citizenship is in heaven (see Phil. 3:20). And if God is laughing at the mocking of those in the rebellion, let us also, as His subjects, share His confidence!
Thus, He commands us to sit with Him in the completeness of His purpose. He requires us not only to live without fear but to stand in prayer for these very nations that defy Him!
Listen again to this Second Psalm, for in the very context of worldwide rebellion against the Lord, it records the most remarkable discourse: "Ask of Me," the Father says to the Son, "and I will surely give the nations as Your inheritance, and the very ends of the earth as Your possession" (Ps. 2:8).
When I first came to Christ in 1970, churches in America were deeply divided and rather cold in organized prayer. Today, leaders of denominations are working together, and it is estimated that more than a quarter of a million American churches are moving toward deeper unity and increased prayer for this nation. Jesus has asked the Father for the United States, and in response, the prayer movement has been born!
As Christ's church, we do not deserve a national revival, but Jesus does! As His representatives, in His name and virtue, we ask of the Father for America! More than an expression of faith, our prayer is actually an act of obedience: We are commanded to ask God for the nations!
Therefore, while the perverse strive toward complete rejection of God, even as their mocking words fill the air, the Almighty's unchangeable promise to His Son (and by extension, His church as Christ's body) is "Ask of Me, and I will surely give the nations!''
As violence, New Age religions and witchcraft flourish in our schools, ask God for this nation. While all restraint is removed from the entertainment industry, ask God for this nation! While perversity dresses in normalcy, ask God for America!
While abortion remains protected by laws, ask God with confidence, with boldness, and with faith for our land! Where you see injustice in any form, ask God for His kingdom to manifest on earth!
"HE WHO SITS IN THE HEAVENS LAUGHS."
Put away fear and discouragement; repent of fretting. The more we accept our place in the divine plan, the more we shall laugh at the enemies' plans. The faith that relentlessly asks God, pleases God.
Now, as the fullness of the times unfolds, as the world around us clothes itself in prophetic fulfillments, let us put away unbelief; let us repent for withdrawal. It is a time to boldly ask of God. As He has promised: He will give the nations as an inheritance to Christ!
Let's pray: Lord Jesus, how blessed we are that as evil matures into full rebellion, Your church matures into full Christlikeness. Teach me to pray for my inheritance, my nation. Use me to stand in the gap until my people become Your people.
***
"THOSE WHO MAKE A COVENANT WITH GOD"
~ by Francis Frangipane
THE COVENANT-KEEPING GOD
Throughout the history of God's dealings with man, He has revealed Himself as a covenant-making God. The Almighty covenanted with Noah, Abraham, Moses and David; He renewed His Abrahamic covenant in His call to Isaac and Jacob. Each covenant initiated a new wave of redemptive power into the world and forever impacted the human condition.
The word covenant means "to fetter" or chain together. It was the highest form of commitment that two individuals could share. Any of several rituals were employed to express the covenant partners’ unity:
A sword might be passed, signifying that the two would be united against the enemy as one. They might pass a sandal between themselves, which symbolized they would travel any distance to be at one another's side.
Or, they might cut an animal in two and pass between its halves. Just as the two halves, though separated, were still one animal, so the two covenant partners would become as one individual.
When the Lord initiated His covenant with a man, He did so as an extension of His eternal purpose; the man was a component in a series of divine initiatives. Contained within the Lord's covenant was His divine intervention, His supernatural wisdom and strategies, and His provisions.
Thus, if we look at the Lord's call to Noah, we see that it was not the ark, but the covenant of God, that preserved Noah and his family during worldwide judgment. Noah was a component, a factor in a series of divine initiatives, which accomplished the Lord's predetermined plans. God established the covenant, designed the ark and brought the animals. The Lord even shut the door after Noah entered the ark.
When the Lord established His covenant with Abraham, twice a flaming torch passed through the halves of the animals Abraham offered in sacrifice. The two passes signified that God would keep His part of the covenant and He would keep Abraham's part of the covenant as well!
Today, a restored Israel testifies to God's faithfulness in His covenant with Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. And it is God's covenant with Abraham, not merely the Jewish military, which preserves Israel in our times.
When the Lord entered into covenant with man, God promised that the covenant conditions and possibilities would not only apply to His servant, but His servant's descendants as well. Noah and his family, Abraham and his seed, and David and his family were all united as beneficiaries of God's covenant relationship. Similarly, we are saved and sustained through life's battles by Christ's covenant with the Father.
"PAYMENT AND PATTERN"
Our salvation has been secured, not only because Jesus died for our sins, but because His death was part of a covenant He had with the Father. The fact that Jesus suffered on my behalf is staggering, but His crucifixion was a component of an even more powerful reality: His covenant with the Father.
The terms of Christ's covenant were such that, if He would live His life blamelessly and offer that holy life upon the cross for sins, everyone who looked to the Son of God would be granted forgiveness.
The Father would look to Christ's sacrifice and see justice; and sinners would look to Jesus and find mercy. Yet, as maturing disciples, we find in Christ's covenant-mission not only our peace, but also a pattern Christ calls us to follow. He told His disciples, "As the Father has sent Me, I also send you" (John 20:21).
Having laid down His life in covenant surrender, He now bids us, "Take up [your] cross, and follow Me" (Matt. 16:24). Of course, our cross does not replace His cross nor do the sub-covenants we make with God supersede Christ's covenant.
The truth is, our cross extends the power of Christ's cross into our world and times, and our sub-covenant with God finds its backing because of Christ's covenant with God.
Thus, the Lord calls us to follow Him in personal covenants for our homes, cities and nations. The covenant we embrace is nothing less than the expression of Christ's nature, revealed again through us for our families, cities and nation.
"THE HARVEST AND COVENANT POWER"
To many Christians, the idea of making a special covenant with God is unfamiliar. Yet, I believe that many have already felt the Holy Spirit speaking, urging them to deepen their commitment to Christ.
Even so, covenants and our obedience to them must come from our hearts in response to the Lord's initiative. You will know the extent of your covenant by the measure of vision and faith, which also come from God.
Especially in the last days, we need to become a people who know the truth given us through Christ's covenant. And, in following Him, we should also know the unique endowment of grace He brings in making special covenants with us.
Indeed, Daniel 11:28-32 warns that the last days will be a time of unprecedented deception and spiritual intrigue. According to this text, Satan's rage will be hurled uniquely against "the holy covenant"! (v. 28a).
Yet, in this same chapter we read, "But the people who know their God will display strength and take action. And those who have insight among the people will give understanding to the many" (Dan. 11:32-33a).
The prophecy continues, "And those who have insight will shine brightly like the brightness of the expanse of heaven, and those who lead the many to righteousness, like the stars forever and ever" (Dan. 12:3).
In the midst of great deception there will be a time and a people who know their God, have great insight, do exploits and lead many to righteousness. They will receive a new and powerful endorsement of God's Spirit.
Additionally, if the enemy will be warring specifically against the holy covenant, we can assume there is something of unparalleled power that Christ's covenant provides against Satan!
A new authority is coming to those who desire full conformity to Christ. For a great harvest is indeed prophesied for the end of this age, and those leading the way will be individuals who understand Christ's covenant and have themselves covenanted with God for their land.
"GOD'S UNALTERABLE COMMITMENT"
It is right to pray for the Lord to bless our lives. However, praying for the blessing and provision of God is not the same as covenanting with Him. A covenant is an altar upon which the Lord and His covenant partner give themselves fully to each other.
The quality of a covenant relationship with God does not cease once prayers have been answered. For, in covenant love we mature from simply being "believers" to becoming living sacrifices, given to God's highest plans. By so yielding, He creates within us a life that He can use extraordinarily in the process of divine redemption.
Covenant power is greater than that which comes through prayer alone. The effects of a covenant reach far beyond simple faith. Prayer and faith are essentials; they are prerequisites, but not substitutes, for covenant power. The covenant relationship is a lifelong pledge, an unbreakable oath that God Himself initiates and promises to sustain.
Contained within His promise is His unalterable commitment, not only to satisfy His redemptive purposes, but also to supply grace and faith to His human counterpart. Together, the all-sufficient God and a believing man accomplish the impossible through their covenant relationship.
"THE POWER RELEASED IN A COVENANT"
A covenant with God accomplishes two interconnected goals. It thrusts us beyond "subjective prayer" (prayer made primarily for our personal needs), and it brings us into a deeper commitment to God. Out of greater commitment comes greater grace to accomplish God's redemptive work in the world.
An example of covenant power is seen in ancient Israel during the revival that occurred after Athaliah, an idolatrous Judean queen, was dethroned. Jehoiada, the high priest, looked to God in covenant prayer. We read, "Then Jehoiada made a covenant between the Lord and the king and the people, that they should be the Lord's people" (2 Kings 11:17).
The result of his covenant was that grace came upon the people and they cleansed the land of idolatry. We read, "So all the people of the land rejoiced and the city was quiet" (v. 20). Jehoiada's covenant brought the nation back to God and ended violence in Jerusalem!
Consider also the power released in Hezekiah's covenant with God. The nation of Judah had been fully corrupted by Ahaz, the preceding king. However, Hezekiah began his reign by seeking God's highest favor. He opened the doors of the temple and reconsecrated the priests.
Yet, the purification of priests and buildings by themselves would not have brought about revival had not Hezekiah taken one further step. He said, "Now it is in my heart to make a covenant with the Lord God of Israel, that His burning anger may turn away from us" (2 Chr. 29:10).
Just eight days after the king made a covenant with the Lord, we read, "Then Hezekiah and all the people rejoiced over what God had prepared for the people, because the thing came about suddenly" (v. 36). The difference between a long-term struggle and a speedy turning of the nation was, I believe, in the power that was released when the king covenanted with the Almighty.
It is vital that we who are Americans remember that our spiritual forefathers were people who knew and exercised principles of covenant sacrifice. When they came to this country, they knelt on its shores and covenanted with God for this land, dedicating the "new world" to Christ and His kingdom. It is unlikely that the revival of our nation will come without local and national church leaders covenanting together with God for their land.
"MAKING A COVENANT WITH GOD"
A personal covenant with God is a serious commitment, worthy of extended prayer and focused waiting before God. I have covenanted with the Lord to see the body of Christ delivered of carnal divisions and racism; my covenant goal is that Christ's prayer of John 17 be answered.
I have also united my life and faith with the covenants of our Pilgrim forefathers. Together with other brethren, both locally and nationally, we have covenanted with God to see this land restored according to 2 Chronicles 7:14.
I believe there will be a time when this nation, like all nations, will become the kingdom of our Lord and of His Christ (Rev 11:15). Until then, whether revival comes quickly or we pass through the fires of divine judgments, our lives belong to Christ-not simply to be blessed or prosperous, but to see His highest purposes accomplished in our land.
However, not all of us will covenant with God for the nation. According to their faith, some will make covenants with Him for their families. Others will covenant to see abortion ended in their cities. While still others will covenant with God for the church--to see unity established in the citywide church in their cities.
Making a covenant with God takes us further into our goal of Christlikeness. It is the highest relationship we can enjoy with God and it is the most deeply surrendered. It is, in truth, that which brings Him the most pleasure.
To those who covenant with God, He says, "Gather My godly ones to Me, those who have made a covenant with Me by sacrifice" (Ps 50:5).
Today, as this nation stands at the threshold of two realities, let us take time in contemplative prayer and kneel before the Almighty Father. In Christlike, focused surrender, as Christ was a living sacrifice for our sins, so let us become living sacrifices to God for those we love. Let us embrace covenant oneness with God that His purpose and passions be fulfilled in our lives and in our times.
***
"WHERE A DESOLATE SOUL FINDS GOD"
~ by Francis Frangipane
Jesus gave the last hours of this age a poignant headline. He called this period "The Great Tribulation." The word rendered tribulation means "grievous affliction or distress; pressure or burden upon the spirit." As we move closer toward the end of this age, we should expect that catastrophic distresses and pressures on man shall increase.
Added to the increasing stress of our times is the decreasing desire of government and society in general to restrain moral decadence. We live in a time when a significant portion of our society is in open and defiant rebellion toward God.
The prophetic words of Psalm 2 are being fulfilled before our eyes: World and local leaders "take their stand and the rulers take counsel together Against the Lord and against His Anointed" (v. 2). As they renounce moral values, their militant cry is, "Let us tear their fetters apart and cast away their cords from us!" (v. 3).
Jesus warned of this day, saying, "Because lawlessness will abound, the love of many will grow cold" (Matt. 24:12, NKJV). If you are one who has resisted the increasing darkness, you know how intense and multifaceted the battle is.
Whether you are fighting to remedy an injustice in your community or just trying to keep your family together, barely do we make headway in one area before five other areas are breeched. In spite of breakthroughs occurring in several cities, many good people have grown weary. They are just going through the motions. The prophet Daniel warned of a time when the enemy would "…wear down the saints of the Highest One" (Dan. 7:25).
To emerge victorious in this day, we must climb into the reality given to us by God in Psalm 91. There is place of replenishing life--a fountain of eternal life where we can abide. The Bible calls this place the shelter of the Most High.
"ELIJAH: A MAN LIKE US"
Elijah was a man with passions like ours, and he fought in a spiritual war similar to ours. In his battle for the soul of Israel, he stood against the wiles of Jezebel and her husband, King Ahab. Yet his most intense battle was not against visible foes but against personal discouragement.
As bold as Elijah was, he lived as a fugitive moving in and out of caves and places of hiding. Jezebel had murdered nearly all of the Lord's prophets, replacing their godly influence with the dark, satanic oppression accompanying the priests of Baal and the Asherah.
A new initiative, however, had come from the Lord: Both Elijah and the prophets of Baal were to build altars, each to the deity they individually served. The God who answered with fire would be acknowledged as Lord over the nation.
King Ahab and all Israel came to the confrontation. Try as they may, the priests of Baal could draw no response from their demonic idol, Baal. In dramatic contrast, at Elijah's prayer, fire immediately fell from heaven and consumed his sacrifice.
This was Elijah's greatest victory. And when the Israelites saw the display of God's power, they bowed to the ground saying, "The Lord, He is God; the Lord, He is God" (1 Kings 18:39).
But the Lord was not finished. After Elijah had the priests of Baal executed, he went to the top of Mount Carmel, and, kneeling face down, he prayed seven times for rain until the Lord brought a great downpour that ended a devastating three-year drought. On this one day, both fire and rain miraculously fell from heaven!
Perhaps if this tremendous day had occurred at almost any other time in Israel's history, the nation would have repented, but it did not. Baal worship should have ended, but it continued. In fact, nothing changed.
Instead of the revival that Elijah envisioned, the opposite occurred: an enraged Jezebel vowed to kill the Lord's prophet, spurring Elijah to flee into the wilderness. There Elijah collapsed, exhausted and despondent, beneath a juniper tree. "It is enough; now O Lord," the weary prophet prayed, "take my life, for I am not better than my fathers" (1 Kings 19:4).
Elijah had offered the Lord his very best effort. This day had been the culminating event of his life. Elijah had prayed that Israel would know the Lord was their God and that, in response, the Lord would turn Israel's "heart back again" (1 Kings 18:37). Yet, like the prophets before him, Elijah could not trigger revival for Israel. Discouragement overwhelmed him. He had had enough.
Have you been to the point of spiritual or emotional exhaustion where you too have said, "It is enough"? Perhaps you were frustrated by your own inability to effect positive change in your family or you've fasted and prayed for your church or society but no visible change occurred. You gave your all but found little success. Disheartened and weary like Elijah, all your resources were spent.
Elijah laid down and slept. As he did, an angel touched him and said, "Arise, eat" (1 Kings 19:5). At his head were bread and water. Elijah, weary with life itself, ate and withdrew back into sleep.
Once more the angel touched him. "Arise," he said "Eat, because the journey is too great for you" (v. 7). For all our visions, plans, and programs, the journey before each of us is also "too great." Indeed our journey is divinely designed to be too great for us. The Lord has no plan where we succeed without Him. Life is so constructed to drive us to God.
"BACK TO OUR FOUNDATIONS"
"So [Elijah] arose and ate and drank, and went in the strength of that food forty days and forty nights to Horeb, the mountain of God" (1 Kings 19:8).
The Lord gave Elijah strength, not to send him back to battle but to bring him back to basics. If we become more consumed with our task than we are with our love for God, our lives will eventually become brittle and desolate.
To restore our souls, the Lord brings us back to the essentials of our faith. Indeed, He might even stop our labors completely and direct us to the simpler realities of prayer, time in the Word, and worship.
He reminds us that, of all He calls us to accomplish, His greatest commandment is to love Him with all our "heart…soul…mind…and…strength" (Mark 12:30). Without this focus, we lose touch with God's presence; we are outside the shelter of the Most High.
The Lord brought Elijah to "Horeb, the mountain of God." In Hebrew, Horeb means "desolation."[Hebrew: Charab - to make desolate.] The barren environment mirrored Elijah's soul. Yet to God, Horeb was actually a place where the issues of a man's heart were flushed to the surface. There is no theater at Horeb, no acting. It is the place of unembellished honesty and core-to-surface transparency.
"HOW DID YOU GET HERE?"
Perhaps Elijah's greatest virtue was his zeal. Indeed, twice in his communication with God, Elijah speaks of having been "very zealous" for the Lord. But zeal unaccompanied by wisdom eventually becomes its own god. It compels us toward expectations that are unrealistic and outside the timing and anointing of the Lord.
To remain balanced, zeal must be reined in and harnessed by strategic encounters with the living God. Otherwise we become frustrated with people and discouraged with delays. We step outside our place of strength and spiritual protection.
Elijah had come to Horeb and lodged there in a cave. Soon the Word of the Lord came to him: "What are you doing here, Elijah?" (v. 9). This is one of the most important questions God will ever ask us.
His question probes the reality of our spiritual state: "How did your service to Me become dry and desolate?" God wants us to know that when we fail to esteem Him as our first love, we will always find a desert awaiting us.
Our primary purpose in life must be to abide in Christ. Otherwise we can become so consumed with the deteriorating condition of the world that we fail to see the deteriorating condition of our own soul. In His love, the Lord stops us and forces us to look honestly at our heart: Is this existence that I now live the abundant life promised me from Christ?
Let's speak candidly. We have nothing to prove and no need to pretend. We can abandon the internal mechanisms of defensiveness and pride. If we are disappointed, we are free to express it; if frustrated, we can admit it. We must simply and truthfully evaluate, without rationalization, our true spiritual condition.
Lord, reveal to me my heart. Bring to the surface of my consciousness those disappointments and heartaches, as well as my sins and failures. Remove Remove the cargo of oppression from my soul. Help me, Master, to lie still as You perform heart surgery on me.
Transparency is the outer garment of humility, and humility draws the grace of God to our hearts. Is not intimacy with God the very thing we most neglect? And is not the Lord alone our source of strength in battle? If the enemy can distract us from our time alone with God, he will isolate us from the help that comes from God alone.
Let us, therefore, approach the living God without any garment other than transparency.
"A FRESH ANOINTING"
As the pressures of this age escalate, we will soon discover that yesterday's anointing will not suffice for today's battles. The Lord brought a new beginning to Elijah's life at Horeb---one that would ultimately release a "double portion" of power to Elijah's successor, Elisha. Under this new anointing, Jezebel would be destroyed, Baal worship abolished, and the only period of revival the northern tribes ever experienced would begin.
To reach a similar place of breakthrough, it will take more than the momentum of our own zeal. We should not be surprised if God calls us to pass through our own Horeb.
How will we recognize this place? Horeb is the voice of personal desolation; it is the desperate compelling of our heart to possess more of God. We must now listen carefully to the voice of God. For it is at Horeb that He brings us deeper into Himself. It is here, under the canopy of His compassion, that we discover the purpose of our brokenness: our desolation is, in fact, a time of preparation.
The Lord is about to bring a new beginning to you. When you return to the battle, you shall war from the shelter of the Most High.
Lord Jesus, apart from You, my life is dry and desolate. Forgive me for trying to do Your will without abiding in Your presence. I desperately need You, Lord. This day, I commit my heart to return to my first love.
Teach me, Lord, to consider intimacy with You the greatest measure of my success. Let me see Your glory; reveal to me Your goodness. Guide me, Oh Holy Spirit, into the spiritual fortress of the presence of God. Amen.
Resources: www.frangipane.org/
***
As posted on:
Joshua AP Network E-list
Subscribe Today!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
