Archive for April, 2022
Actual experience or second hand truth?
Posted by appolus on April 28, 2022
Posted in bible, Christian, christian blog, christian living, Christianity, Daily devotional, Devotions, faith, Jesus, revival, testimony, the crucified life, the deeper life, the gospel, the persectuted church, The presence of God, The Psalms, the remnant, The State of the Chuch and Manifest presence, the state of the church, theology | Leave a Comment »
Why weep for those who suffer for Jesus?
Posted by appolus on April 28, 2022
Act 21:13 Then Paul answered, What mean ye to weep and to break mine heart? for I am ready not to be bound only, but also to die at Jerusalem for the name of the Lord Jesus.
How many times, brothers and sisters, have we been advised by saints not to do this or to do that? Everywhere Paul went it was clear that all knew that when he went to Jerusalem that he would suffer. Yet Paul was of a different sort. He knew right from the beginning that he would suffer. Never tell anyone not to do something just because you “know,’ it will not end well. It may not end favorably as we measure it by the flesh or by our own emotions, but the providence of God overrides what we believe to be right or wrong.
Oftentimes we are simply adding to the difficulty of the one we are trying to help. No doubt Paul, like the rest of us, would have had fears and apprehensions about what was to happen to him when he went to Jerusalem. In his spirit he was bound and determined to go for he was “ready not only to be bound but also to die.” I think if we do not have that kind of spirit, we must never try and persuade someone not to do something on the basis of our love for them or the fact that we would never do what they are now bound and determined to do. Our love for someone and our emotions, cannot be allowed to override the direction of another. That other is the servant of the most High God and God alone must determine his fate.
If we are going to err, let us err on being determined to serve God no matter what. If someone is dying of cancer, don’t tell them what to do. If someone is going to move half way around the world with their family, to a dangerous country, do not advise them not to. Jim Elliot died on the remote bank of a river in the middle of nowhere. Imagine you knew that before he left to go to the jungle. Is it your job to dissuade him? In your human reasoning you it makes no sense, but of course Jim was willing to be bound or to die for the cause of Christ. Who could ever have foretold how that story would end, how the whole tribe would be saved, how the very man that killed him would be saved. The providence of God. The mysterious works of God. All He needs is willing servants who “love not their lives unto death,’ but rather, who stand upon the Blood of the Lamb and the word of their testimony.
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Perfect love casts out fear.
Posted by appolus on April 26, 2022
1Jn 4:17 Herein is our love made perfect, that we may have boldness in the day of judgment: because as he is, so are we in this world.
As He is, so are we in the world. Let that sink in for a second brothers and sisters. As He is, so are we, in the world. This does not mean we are Christ, as erroneously taught by charlatans and wolves. No one loved more than Jesus. He loved His heavenly Father. He loved the multitudes. He loved the lost. He came to set sinners free. He came to set the captives free. He came to be the expression of His Fathers love for the world and He proved this in glorious fashion on the cross. Now, those who know Jesus, who have the Spirit of God dwelling in them, love the Father, love what God loves. They fear God but they are not afraid of God. The world should be afraid of God. They should tremble at the thought of standing before God at the judgment seat.
Yet brothers and sisters, we are not afraid to stand before the judgement seat of God. Perfect love has cast out that fear. We are taught that “we may have boldness in the day of judgement.” For the unsaved world there shall be torment for they do not know the love of God because they do not love God. Yet we, who have responded to God’s great love, expressed on Calvary, shall rather, boldly approach the throne because as He is, so are we. We are one in Christ as He and the Father are one. This great love shall have its expression in this world. They shall know us by our love for one another. They shall now us by our love for the lost. They shall know us because we shall love what God loves. Most of all, we shall be known for our love for God. Our grand obsession shall be for Jesus. We are Jesus lovers.
And whether we are rich or poor, whether we are in sickness or in health, for better or for worse, none of that shall change our love. Whether we live, or whether we die, we shall glorify God. In sickness Jesus says to Paul, in his answer to his prayer for healing “My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness.” Paul is so affected by this that He responds “Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me.” Who today seeks this kind of power? Those who know “that as He is, so are we in the world.” No one suffered more than Jesus, yet we are called to “rejoice, inasmuch as ye are partakers of Christ’s sufferings; that, when his glory shall be revealed, ye may be glad also with exceeding joy.” (1Pet 4:13) When Christ is revealed, not only shall we not be afraid, we shall be glad with exceeding joy. With boldness we shall stand in the day of judgement “because as He is, so are we.”
Posted in bible, Charismatic, Christian, christian blog, christian living, Christianity, Daily devotional, Devotions, gifts of the spirit, God's love, Jesus, revival, testimony, the crucified life, the deeper life, the gospel, the persectuted church, The presence of God, the remnant, The State of the Chuch and Manifest presence, the state of the church, theology | 1 Comment »
The wolves are closing in.
Posted by appolus on April 24, 2022
Act 20:29 For I know this, that after my departing shall grievous wolves enter in among you, not sparing the flock.
For almost four years, Paul warned, night and day, with tears, of the wolves that will come from outside of the Body of Christ, and those false prophets who would rise up within its ranks. From without and from within. The powers of hell and all of its fury would rise up in opposition to the children of God. If any saint thinks that this was just for that time, they would obviously be mistaken. In the last one hundred years, I would argue , the activity of the wolves and the false prophets have never been more active. Tearing away at the fabric of the truth, despising those who hold to it and warring against the Word of God. An all out assault on every front that has indeed led to the great falling away. Charismatic craziness. Word of faith, prosperity gospel, cheap grace. Adoption of the standards of the world. Dead denominationalism. And so the barrage rains down. In war, prior to an attack, there will be a bombardment from artillery. This is a sure sign to the soldiers that a full frontal attack is imminent. The bombardment was to soften them up.
The country of Israel have what is known as the iron dome. It is like a shield, a force field, that intercepts incoming missiles and stops them from reaching their target. We too, brothers and sisters, have such a defense. It is the truth. The Word of God. And when it is in place in our lives we are safe from the attacks of the enemy. Though lies and perversions rain down upon humanity and they are slowly destroyed by it, we who stand under the banner of faith and upon the solid ground of the truth, shall not be moved nor destroyed. When God struck the Egyptians with a darkness, a gross darkness that was so “thick,” that it could be felt, the Israelites had light in their dwellings. We too have light in our dwellings. The light of Christ that dwells in us by the power of the Holy Spirit. God has commanded light to shine forth from darkness. You are that light brothers and sisters. Through these earthen vessels light shall shine forth and rivers of living waters shall flow.
Posted in bible, Charismatic, Christian, christian blog, christian living, Christianity, church of england, church of scotland, consequences of sin, Daily devotional, Devotions, end times, End Times Eschatology, False Doctrine, False Prophet, False Prophets, False Prophets and Teachers, Jesus, New World Order, revival, testimony, the crucified life, the deeper life, the gospel, the persectuted church, The presence of God, the remnant, The State of the Chuch and Manifest presence, the state of the church, theology, Uncategorized | 4 Comments »
Are we foolish Galatians following another gospel?
Posted by appolus on April 23, 2022
What are we intended to be? We are intended to be in our experience, in our spiritual life, in our presence here, a living proof that Jesus is the Son of God, not just declare this as a tenet of our faith and creed, but to be here as children of God growing up into Sonship (T.A.Sparks)
Is there a difference between those who declare the tenets of our faith and who agree upon the creeds, and those who are sons and daughters of God ? A living reality as opposed to a set of truths. The Galatians are a great example. Paul says to them “I marvel that you are turning away so soon from Him who called you in the grace of Christ, to a different gospel, which is not another…………..but even if we or an angel from heaven preach any gospel to you than which we have preached to you, let him be accursed.” This is intense. Paul is leaving no room for doubt. Anything other than Spirit led experiential transformation, is a gospel of works and is perverse and no gospel at all and those who teach it are accursed by God Himself.
The works of the law were being presented to the Galatians by those from Jerusalem. They had begun in the Spirit but now they were resting on the flesh, the works of the law. Paul calls them fools who have been bewitched. In most of modern day Christendom it is not the works of the Jewish law that bewitches men, although there are whole sects of folks who will tell you that you must keep the law and the feasts and so on. No, it is our own mental assent to orthodoxy that has replaced the living reality of sons and daughters of Christ. No experience necessary. A mental assent to a series of abstract truths is all that matters. This represents to the genuine believer today, what the Judaizers were to Paul and the saints. It is in conflict with the saints. It is amazing that the same truth can be what divides us. One is a living example of it, the other is a mere professor of it. And the one who professes it almost always resents and comes against the one who has been changed by it from the inside out.
How many times has it been said to you, in a resentful fashion, when you give your testimony of being born again “well, I never had any such experience, I just grew up in the church.” Or, if you relate any kind of supernatural experience and transformation there are any number of people who will resent you. Sparks says this ” our testimony must not be …I was brought up in a Christian home, and sent to Sunday school and taken to church and instructed in these things and given a sound Bible teaching. There has to be something more than that.” Of course, the something more is Christ Himself burning at the center of who are by the power of the Holy Spirit. We do not share abstract truth, we share a living experiential Jesus. Anyone can agree that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the Living God. The devil himself knows that to be true. What the world needs to hear is a first hand account of the living Christ living in us, speaking to us, leading us and guiding us and changing us.
Brothers and sisters, we are a living proof of the risen Christ. We share with people who we know, not what we know. Now, can a man or a woman come to Christ by the Spirit of God and then fall away into mere orthodoxy, relying on the arm of the flesh to come to maturity? Yes indeed. Of course they never shall come to maturity. Teachers of every stripe will woo you away, they will want you to be zealous for them. Your church shall replace Jesus. Your pastor shall replace Jesus. Your favorite teacher will replace Jesus. Only by continuing on in the Spirit can you grow from mere babes in Christ into maturity and sons and daughters. Why is so much of Christendom stuck on the rudimentary elements, sharing milk week after week? It is because they have replaced the living reality of the Spirit of God with the mere orthodoxy of men. The orthodoxy and the truth of it is not the matter here, for genuine Spirit filled and Spirit led saints will be among the most orthodox people you will ever meet. The matter is being Spirit led.
The path of least resistance is to tick the boxes of orthodoxy without being a living reality of what that very orthodoxy teaches. It is one thing to believe that we have been called to be salt and light, it is quite another thing to actually be salt and light. You see the difference? Now apply that to every other aspect of what we believe. In order to live out what we believe we have to be led forward by a very real Holy Spirit. In almost every church up and down the land the folks are led, not by the Holy Spirit, but rather by men, who, for the most part will be teaching orthodox teaching of the basic kind. The systems of men has become another Gospel. It is like the sacraments in the Catholic church. Vacuous rituals devoid of any power. The words and the teachings and the sermons of much of Christendom, devoid of the actual power of the Holy Spirit, have become nothing more than sacramental activity, promising something without the power to deliver.
Sons and daughters of the Lord will always be in conflict with the merely religious. A mental assent is no match for a living reality. One has power and the other has a mere appearance. One is playing a character, the other is the real person. We used to say, back in the day, that there were no grandchildren in the Kingdom of God, only sons and daughters. Christendom has been swallowed up by the grandchildren. By osmosis and an accident of birth, there are millions of false professors all over the world and yet we know the words of Jesus from Matt 22 “many are called but few are chosen.” The many that are called prove themselves to be unworthy of the calling by the fact that they consider the calling a mere religious adornment. They busy themselves with the things of the world and disqualify themselves. Therefore, God finds for himself the few. He clothes them in righteousness and this clothing is worn to the marriage feast.
In the days to come, the divisions will become much deeper, much more apparent. The lifeless orthodox church will become more and more powerful as they ally themselves to the world and its system. It will reach its zenith in the one world system to come. The great whore church and the one world order will unite in an unholy alliance against the saints who shall refuse to acknowledge their authority and the authority if the evil one to come. The delusion shall be so great that only those sons and daughters, led by the Holy Spirit, will be able to see what the rest of the world cannot see or refuses to see. The marriage feast is coming brothers and sisters and only those clothed in the righteousness of God that is attained by the power of the Holy Spirit shall enter, the few. The many, in an attempt to save their lives here in this world, will lose their eternal lives in the world to come. There shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.
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How long shall I suffer?
Posted by appolus on April 21, 2022
Psa 13:2 How long shall I take counsel in my soul, having sorrow in my heart daily?
How long shall I suffer Lord? Every day I search my heart and reason within me and yet I find nothing, only sorrow and suffering continually. David is at a loss. He has no one else to turn to. The comforts that he had known before have fled him. The good man suffers greatly in his affliction. He searches himself and tries to find remedy and yet there is none. At the very same time he knows that God is good and greatly to be praised. The knowledge of this adds to the mans sorrows for in his heart he knows it is a madness to complain before God. It goes against his spiritual DNA, and so we come to this place of crying out. God hears your cries.
Brothers and sisters. Are you in this place? Have you been in this place? It is like a certain spiritual death where sleep may overwhelm us. David cries out to God to consider him and bring light to his eyes. A certain kind of malaise, a melancholy has insidiously crept in. And now he cries out for light. He reminds himself that he has trusted in the mercy of God. He remembers how the Lord, in all of his ways, has dealt bountifully with him and this causes him to sing unto the Lord. Trust in the Lord your God brothers and sisters. Cry out to Him, do not remain silent. Remind yourself of how far the Lord has brought you and how much grace and mercy He has given to you. I cannot say how much longer you may suffer, but we know this. We know that no one suffered more than our Lord and that He also felt the despair of being seemingly abandoned. Rejoice in your salvation today, for the Saviour of your soul knows and sees your suffering. He committed His Spirit into the hands of His Father, you do the same.
Posted in bible, Christian, christian living, Christianity, Daily devotional, Devotions, God's love, God's voice, revival, testimony, the crucified life, the deeper life, the gospel, the persectuted church, The presence of God, the remnant, The State of the Chuch and Manifest presence, the state of the church, theology, Uncategorized | 3 Comments »
Have you received the Holy Spirit?
Posted by appolus on April 19, 2022
Act 19:2 He said unto them, Have ye received the Holy Ghost since ye believed?
How could something so simple, become so controversial? Paul is asking some disciples he happened upon in a certain region if they had received the Holy Spirit. Every professing Christian must ask themselves the same question. The answer will be between them and the Lord and the Word. How honest these disciples were , they say they have never even heard of such a thing as the Holy Spirit. That very ignorance was to them an advantage, and our modern day knowledge of the Holy Spirit and the Word of God can actually work against us. We have head knowledge of the Holy Spirit, we can read about Him and be taught about Him and not deny Him and somehow this passes for having received Him.
In Matt 3:11 we see that Jesus would baptize us with the Holy Spirit and with fire. What does that mean to you? Jesus says in Acts 1:5 that not many days from now you shall be “baptized with the Holy Spirit.” In verse 8 Jesus tell us that we would receive power and become witnesses after the Holy Spirit has come upon us. In Acts 2 we see those gathered together in the upper room be baptized with the Holy Spirit as represented with tongues of fire, fulfilling Matt 3:11. In Act 4:31 we see the disciples filled again. In Acts 6 we see that Stephen was “full of the Spirit.” In Acts 10 we see the Gentile believers receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. Then of course in Acts 19 we see those who have never even heard of the Holy Spirit, receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. We see this doctrine fundamentally established over and over again. And of course there were signs of such a baptism. I would argue that boldness was the primary sign, boldness and power to be a witness. Other signs are well documented, among them being tongues and prophecy.
Now brothers and sisters, these things cannot be denied. To deny them is to deny Scripture. So the question remains “Have ye received the Holy Ghost since ye believed?” It is a fundamental question and only you can answer it. Without this baptism you shall be powerless. You cannot possibly be a witness for Christ on the earth without this power, and these are the Lords own words. With the evil day fast approaching we must know that we have oil in our lamps. We shall not be able to stand without it. Without it we shall stand in darkness. Only by receiving the gift of the Holy Spirit can we be a light to the world and a witness to the Kingdom of God. We cannot possibly stand in our own strength. We can do many things by our own might and power and much of Christendom is established upon the might and power of men. Yet, what men establish, men can tear down. That which is established by the Spirit cannot be moved for it is founded upon the solid Rock of Christ.
Posted in bible, Christian, christian blog, christian living, Christianity, Daily devotional, Devotions, gifts of the spirit, Jesus, pentecostal, revival, testimony, the crucified life, the deeper life, the gospel, the persectuted church, The presence of God, the remnant, The State of the Chuch and Manifest presence, the state of the church, theology, Uncategorized | 1 Comment »
A reprobate generation.
Posted by appolus on April 17, 2022
Act 18:6 And when they opposed themselves, and blasphemed, he shook his raiment, and said unto them, Your blood be upon your own heads; I am clean: from henceforth I will go unto the Gentiles.
God will not always strive with men. I think we forget that in the days in which we live. Paul testified to the Jewish people in Corinth and they “opposed him and blasphemed.’ At this point he confronted them and told them clearly “your blood be upon your own heads, I am clean.” Let us observe two things from Acts 18. First Paul was “compelled,’ by the Spirit to share the Gospel with the Jewish population in Corinth. And after he was obedient to that calling, and the message was not only rejected but was rejected with blasphemy, the sharing was over. We are not called to promote blasphemy in men. Men have free will and have a perfect right to reject God. Then, Jesus Himself appears to Paul and tells him not to be silent. He was to preach the Gospel to those who would have ears to hear, the gentiles, and not to worry what the Jewish people would do to him. And what was the antidote to the obvious fear Paul must have had? “For I am with you.’ The presence of God gives us the courage to share the gospel where we are led to share.
The key thing, brothers and sisters is this. In the sharing of the Gospel we must walk in the presence of God and be led by His Spirit. We must know when to speak and who to speak to. We are certainly not called to continue to cast our pearls before swine and have God blasphemed. This may be the greatest challenge to the saints of our generation. We live in a day an age of unabashed wickedness. I would argue that we are living in a Romans chapter one age. What do I mean by that? There is a time when God can give a man up to his own “vile affections.” These two words in the Greek mean “infamous disgraceful passions.” I would further argue that we are living in such a time when a whole generation around the world have been given over to a reprobate mind. This word reprobate in verse 28 of Romans means ” worthless, castaway, rejected.’ As with Paul, we must be led by the Spirit of God in everything we do and say, and not say, if this indeed is the direction of the Holy Spirit.
The marvelous thing about being led by the Spirit is the direction, oftentimes precise direction. God may well have you share with someone who appears to be the vilest of all, yet God alone knows the hearts of men which is why we must be able to say “He is with me.” We must be able to hear His still small voice. We must believe that the steps of a righteous man are ordered of God. Speak to one man, “shake you garments,” over another man, God knows. Mat 10:14 And whosoever shall not receive you, nor hear your words, when ye depart out of that house or city, shake off the dust of your feet. That dust shall be as a witness to those who despise the Gospel and blaspheme it. The time is short brothers and sisters, with His presence and His direction, use the time that we have left wisely. The good news is for those who know they are sick, “They that are whole have no need of the physician, but they that are sick: I came not to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.” (Mark 2:17) Those who are righteous in their own eyes and have no need for a Saviour, shall not find the Lord.
Posted in bible, Christian, christian blog, christian living, Christianity, consequences of sin, Daily devotional, Devotions, end times, End Times Eschatology, Eschatology - Study of the 'End Times', Jesus, religious, revival, testimony, the crucified life, the deeper life, the gospel, the persectuted church, The presence of God, the remnant, The State of the Chuch and Manifest presence, the state of the church | 3 Comments »
Who are God’s people?
Posted by appolus on April 17, 2022
We are people of the Word, of the Spirit and who have a singular passion and His name is Jesus. We are the way and the faith and we are to be found everywhere, from every culture and from every color and from every background. A carved out people, called out of darkness into His marvelous light. Living a simple life of purity and total dedication to Jesus that cuts across cultural traits and transcends centuries of behaviors, it is the calling of the Spirit. We are sons of daughters brought to glory by the Kings of Kings.
This is what the enemy hates above all. Our calling from God. We, who were not a people, now sons and daughters of God in a mysterious royal priesthood. There are many pretenders. Many are called, few are chosen. Only something original and valuable is ever counterfeited. Satan has done some of his best work in counterfeiting the saints. Yet upon close inspection, his imposters (who do not know they are imposters, the best deception is when the deceived have no idea they are deceived) are lacking in two primary and absolutely vital aspects of genuine Christianity. Passion for Jesus, a grand obsession that eclipses everything else in life, and primarily , the Holy Spirit who gives such a passion.
It is not children that God is looking for, it is sons and daughters. We come as children, we grow into sons and daughters. He is looking for those who go on to maturity. He has no pleasure in those who turn back. No pleasure in those who start out with gladness but have no root and when the sun comes up, when the trials of life come, what little root they have withers in the shallow ground. No pleasure in those who get choked and caught up in the cares of this life and the desire for riches and they are without fruit. Yet there is good ground and God loves it. A ground that was no longer fallow, a ground that had the rocks and the stones and the clods removed. A ground that was tilled. Good servants, good soil, sons and daughters, much fruit.
The days are growing darker brothers and sisters. The great whore church is rising, stocked by the great falling away. The flesh wars against the spirit. The flesh has risen up to dizzying new heights and it is nearing its zenith. The time for all out war against the saints is at hand. We are people of the truth and the truth shall be the primary weapon. First to identify us and then to destroy us. Truth shall be banished and the lie shall be crowned in its place. All shall be made to worship the lie. Only the sons and daughters shall not. They shall never bow down to the gods of this world and the gods of this world are rising. They are corrupting our children and an army shall rise. A generation that shall be without natural affection. They shall be false accusers and fierce with it, totally sold out to their corruptions and they shall despise what is good. They will be proud and boastful and lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God and all the time having a warped form of Godliness.
Yet, for the sons and daughters of God, it will be their finest hour. The same Spirit that burned in the hearts of the three Hebrew children burn in ours. We shall never bow down to the gods of this world and we shall experience the presence of God as we have never done before nor any generation that has proceeded us. Jesus shall be with us in the midst of the fire. He shall raise us up to higher ground as the enemy comes in like a flood. His banner shall fly and flutter in the wind of the Spirit over every bloody battle-field around the world and thus His glory shall cover the earth as the waters cover the sea. All the world shall witness this, the Kingdom of God in operation, so that they are without doubt and without excuse, and then comes the Son of Man in all His glory.
Posted in bible, Christian, christian blog, christian living, Christianity, church, Church history, churches, Daily devotional, Devotions, end times, End Times Eschatology, Eschatology - Study of the 'End Times', Jesus, religion, religious, religious persecution, revival, testimony, the crucified life, the deeper life, the gospel, the persectuted church, The presence of God, the remnant, The State of the Chuch and Manifest presence, the state of the church, theology, Uncategorized | 2 Comments »
You can change your identity.
Posted by appolus on April 14, 2022
Posted in bible, Charismatic, Christian, christian blog, christian living, Christianity, Daily devotional, Devotions, Fresh Fire, gifts of the spirit, Jesus, praise and worship, revival, Spiritual warfare, testimony, the crucified life, the deeper life, the gospel, the persectuted church, The presence of God, the remnant, The State of the Chuch and Manifest presence, the state of the church, theology | 1 Comment »
Finding the right path after having a wrong heart.
Posted by appolus on April 14, 2022
Act 15:39 And the contention was so sharp between them, that they departed asunder one from the other: and so Barnabas took Mark, and sailed unto Cyprus;
This is a well known incident. Paul and Barnabas fall out with each other, so much so that they change their plans and Barnabas took Mark and sailed to Cyprus leaving Paul behind. The plan had been to go back and revisit the brothers and sisters in every city and encourage them. It was a good plan, but the personalities of these very Godly men got in the way of the plan that very well was their own. Has this ever happened to you? Has you temper or some other personality trait caused you to fall out with someone and it seems that you have completely blown it? I have lost count over the last thirty years how many times it seems that I have “stepped on,’ the plan of the Lord. It never left me unaffected, quite the opposite. I would aid and abet the enemy in beating me up.
I am sure that as Paul watched Barnabas and Mark sail away, he must have regretted his “sharp contention,’ with his dear brother in the Lord. They had been through so much together. Barnabas must have looked back as the ship sailed away and had similar thoughts, the Holy Spirit, no doubt, convicting both for their parts in the contention. Yet I want you to see something. Despite us, despite our many failings, God has a plan and He is working it out. Paul decides to take Silas in the place of Barnabas. Little did not Paul know that he and Silas were about to live out one of the most famous incidents in the New Testament. Very shortly after leaving, they find themselves in the bowels of a dungeon, whipped to within an inch of their lives and in stocks.
And despite the previous failings of Paul, we see God had a plan. I believe that plan was for the jailer and his whole family to be saved. Silas was probably the perfect guy for this job. We find them both praising the Lord at the midnight hour and all the prisoners listening to them and then, a great earthquake. God came down. The doors flew open and the men, taken by the presence of God no doubt, stayed right there in their cells. The jailer, supposing the very opposite is about to kill himself but instead he gets saved and all of his family and goes on to have a house church in that city. Gods plan. Remember, God had forbidden them to preach the word in Asia, they also being refused permission to go to Bithynia. Then they had a vision of a man pleading for them to come to Macedonia. You see how every step of the way, God had a plan and He was bringing it to pass? Paul and Silas were on a need to know basis. Brothers and sisters, more often than nought we are on a need to know basis. I would imagine that knowing they were going to be scourged and put in stocks would not have helped them along.
If you have messed up and missed the mark, take heart brothers and sisters. You have no idea what God has in store for you. He uses imperfect individuals to carry out His perfect will. It is always about His plan and never about ours. We may go crashing ahead sometimes with what seems to be right, and yet it is completely wrong, its is simply our own plan. God will interrupt our plans. He will use what is useful to Him and bring you to where He wants you to be. My only advice is to listen for the direction or as in this case, the redirection of the Holy Spirit. Stay humble and broken and contrite and no matter what, move in forgiveness. Be quick to forgive those that have wronged you. After all, we are but vessels in the hands of the Lord, and if we are quick to forgive then He is faithful and just and merciful to forgive us. In the end, it is all His work and it is all His glory and it is His story. Keep walking brothers and sisters, God will use you.
Posted in bible, Christian, christian blog, christian living, Christianity, Daily devotional, Devotions, God's love, God's voice, Jesus, praise, praise and worship, revival, spiritual gifts, Spiritual warfare, testimony, the crucified life, the deeper life, the gospel, the persectuted church, The presence of God, the remnant, The State of the Chuch and Manifest presence, the state of the church, theology | 1 Comment »
We belong to God and one another.
Posted by appolus on April 12, 2022
1Pe 2:9 But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should shew forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvellous light.
Before we knew the Lord we dwelt in darkness. We were called out of that darkness into the marvelous light of Christ Himself. In darkness we were not a chosen generation, we were a condemned people. Now in the light of Christ we are His chosen generation. In darkness we were no priests, yet now in His marvelous light we are royal priests in a royal priesthood. In darkness we did not belong to God, yet in His light we are now His peculiar people. That does not mean we are odd or strange, it means we are purchased and privileged, we are exclusively His. And by virtue of belonging to God we have been called to publish and to celebrate the one to whom we belong. The words “shew forth,’ is ex-ang-el’-lo. We are His angels so to speak, His messengers, called to go forth and praise Him and tell the world of the glory of God who called us.
Brother, sister. This is who your are. The devil himself will come against you with a fury when you walk in your true identity. That word we hear so much about today, identity, so much lies surround it in regard to gender and so on, the truth of that is self evident and needs no elaboration. The real battle lies in the true identity of the saints. We indeed changed identities. We were once dead in sin and now we are alive in Christ. We once dwelt in darkness with no heavenly purpose, now we dwell in His marvelous light with a singular eternal purpose. We have been called out to “shew forth,’ His praises. To noise abroad His glory. To shout from the rooftops of His majesty. To witness to a dying world the Kingdom of God and its King. We once walked in our unholiness and now we walk in His holiness. And as we walk in such light, as He is in the light then we shall have fellowship with others of the light. We are one, brothers and sisters as He and the Father are one, and in that we behold His glory.
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The essential experience.
Posted by appolus on April 11, 2022
Everything about my faith was an experience. The most dramatic of which was the day I surrendered. A day that will live in infamy for my flesh, never to be forgotten. A day of great rejoicing for my spirit, never to be forgotten. I have experienced love, I have experienced joy, I have experienced forgiveness. I have experienced transformation. I have experienced cleansing. I experienced opposition. I experienced warfare. Obviously you see the word that comes up over and over again. Experience. I knew nothing of doctrine when I was got saved. I knew nothing of the Scriptures nor did I know the great essentials of the faith, but I now knew Jesus. He spoke to me, I experienced that. He taught me, I experienced that. He led me and He guided me, I experienced all of that. After about seven months I was baptized in the Holy Spirit and this was a whole other level of experience.
If you climb to the top of a mountain, it is a very definite experience. It separates you from all others who have not. It joins you to all others who have. You can read books about climbing, and watch videos and documentaries and be filled with head knowledge about it, but unless you have experienced the peak then you are not a mountaineer. Sit among a group of them and discuss climbing, they will soon figure out you are not a climber. By the same token, listen to a group of climbers speak about climbing and you will be able to pull up a chair and sit down with them, if you yourself are a climber. It is that way with the Body of Christ. It is a mysterious thing, a spiritual reality birthed in actual experience. New creatures in Christ recognize each other, they speak the same language.
Those of the head knowledge persuasion are dead set against the word “experience.’ Theologians and schoolmen and whole denominations have made themselves the deadliest enemy of experience. And on the other side there are those who endlessly speak about their own personal experiences such as roaring like lions and rolling around the floor or barking like dogs. Both of these sides serve a common purpose for the enemy of the saints. To tear down the Body of Christ, those who have actually experienced transformation. Tick six boxes of mental assent to abstract truth on one side, or get dirty rolling on the floor with the other. None of this means anything in the end. For those who have scaled the lofty heights and peaks of glory, in encountering God, live on and in their experiences walking with Jesus and transformation. The Word of God is His magnificent roadmap that leads us home through valley and mountaintop. And no matter the lofty heights or peaks or the chains and dungeon, those who have encountered Jesus, experienced Jesus, experience joy inexpressible and there rests upon them the Spirit of God and of glory.
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The Spirit of glory and of God rests upon us.
Posted by appolus on April 11, 2022
Posted in bible, Christian, christian blog, christian living, Christianity, Daily devotional, Devotions, God's love, God's voice, Jesus, revival, spiritual gifts, spiritual growth, Spiritual warfare, Spirituality, testimony, the crucified life, the deeper life, the gospel, the persectuted church, The presence of God, the remnant, The State of the Chuch and Manifest presence, the state of the church, theology | 3 Comments »
The boldness of the Baptism of the Holy Spirit.
Posted by appolus on April 10, 2022
Posted in bible, Christian, christian blog, christian living, Christianity, Daily devotional, Devotions, Jesus, revival, spiritual gifts, testimony, the crucified life, the deeper life, the gospel, the persectuted church, The presence of God, the remnant, The State of the Chuch and Manifest presence, the state of the church, theology | 3 Comments »
Open your mouth and speak.
Posted by appolus on April 10, 2022
Then Peter opened his mouth………..While Peter was still speaking these words, the Holy Spirit fell upon all those who heard (Acts 10:34,44)
Peter was speaking to the Gentiles. This was not something he had desired to do. In fact we see a rather dramatic encounter on the rooftop where a great sheet comes down in a vision filled with any number of unclean and common animals and he is told to eat. Three times Peter resists. Now we know that the number three is very significant to Peter, for three times he had denied his Lord. Yet, here we see Peter, so ingrained with tradition that he would, in effect, say no, three times to a direct order from God. Let not any of us think that our traditions and preconceived notions are so easily overcome. And still there would be more for Peter to overcome when he is confronted, publicly, by Paul.
Yet, praise the Lord, we see a very different Peter. His resistance gives way quickly to obedience. And this obedience leads him to the door of a gentile. And, we are told, Peter “opened his mouth.” Brothers and sisters, the Lord wants us to open our mouths to all manner of men and women. The Holy Spirit will never fall on us, like in Acts, if we are too afraid to open our mouths. Any journey on foot requires us to put one foot in front of another, it is how we make forward progress. Communications from God to the lost requires His servants to first open their mouths. His Holy Spirit will do the rest if you would abandon your fear of man. Holy Spirit boldness leads us to open our mouths, He fills it, then He falls upon those who hear it. It will almost always involve the risk of loss. In our day, in the west, not the loss of life but perhaps friendship, reputation, job or career. Will you open your mouth?
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Swept up in symphony
Posted by appolus on April 8, 2022
Every now and then, in a glorious symphony of realization, my heart is overwhelmed by the music of my Saviour’s love for me. I am swept up in its majesty! It carries me with the substantial fullness of a raging river and yet with the gentle sound of a thousand doves wings flapping in the wind. I am undone by it all. Every doubt and all the rocks of my flesh are removed and suddenly the river is in full unabated flow and all I want is to be taken. Time loses its meaning as I am swept towards the vastness of my Jesus. An ocean so vast that I am swallowed whole. Everything returns to its simplicity. All the barriers are broken down and I glimpse and am engulfed, once again, by the glory of it all.
Posted in Christian, christian blog, christian living, Christianity, Daily devotional, Devotions, Fresh Fire, God's love, hope, inspirational, Jesus, revival, testimony, the crucified life, the deeper life, the gospel, the persectuted church, The presence of God, the remnant, The State of the Chuch and Manifest presence, the state of the church, theology, Uncategorized | 1 Comment »
Oh what glorious fountains!
Posted by appolus on April 7, 2022
1Pe 1:22 Seeing ye have purified your souls in obeying the truth through the Spirit unto unfeigned love of the brethren, see that ye love one another with a pure heart fervently:
Can you see what the Lord is saying through Peter? Obeying the truth through the Spirit is part and parcel of being purified. Let not anyone think that outside of obedience to the Word of God and the Spirit of God that that one will be Holy as He is Holy. He who called you is Holy, now, the Scriptures tell us, be Holy as He is Holy. Lift your eyes as high as they can be lifted and set your sights on the Holiness of God. Seek first His Kingdom so that you may be partakers of His righteousness and Holiness. Willing and desirous obedience as opposed to conformity to your old flesh or the world around you. This leads to walking in the love of God which is manifested in our love for one another and even our love towards our enemies.
In this, the genuineness of our our trust in Him is refined again and again in a process that God Himself has initiated. Even in the midst of our various trials and the grieving of our hearts and spirits, there is inexpressible joy and an encounter with the glory of God. Our God does not sit passively by in the midst of such trials and infirmites and reproaches. No, rather we are told that we are blessed by the “Spirit of glory and of God which rests upon you.” (1 Pet 4:14) The word “rest,’ here used in the Scriptures means to refresh and to remain. Imagine that brothers and sisters, in the midst of our great trials for the glorious cause of Christ, there remains upon us a refreshing. The inexhaustible waters that flows from the wells of salvation. Oh what glorious fountains flow. First from Emmanuel’s veins and then from the living waters of Heaven.
Posted in bible, Christian, christian blog, christian living, Christianity, Daily devotional, Devotions, God's love, Jesus, revival, sanctification, spiritual growth, testimony, the crucified life, the deeper life, the gospel, the persectuted church, The presence of God, the remnant, The State of the Chuch and Manifest presence, the state of the church, theology, Uncategorized | 1 Comment »
Let us see the glory of God!
Posted by appolus on April 5, 2022
Act 7:55 But he, being full of the Holy Spirit, looked up stedfastly into heaven, and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing on the right hand of God,
Stephen, being full of the Holy Spirit. looked heavenwards and saw the glory of God. He saw Jesus standing at the right hand of the Father. Was this a church gathering? Was he in a room full of believers enjoying the corporate presence of God? Far from it, he was confronting the religious men of the day. As he was seeing these things they screamed and ran towards him and with great violence, dragged him out of the city and stoned Stephen to death. He, had committed a capital crime. He had torn down their idol, the Temple, by saying God did not dwell in temples made by human hands. He then accused them of being stiff-necked, it means obstinate and stubborn. He said they were uncircumsized of heart, meaning they were not children of God. And then, he accused them of killing the “just one,’ the Christ. All of that was true.
What Stephen said back then, we have seen play out for the last 2000 years. Religious men are still un-circumsised in heart, meaning they do not actually know Jesus. They still resist and reject the Holy Spirit in their midst. They still worship their “temple.” God’s children are still the deadliest enemy to those who are of the flesh. Yet no matter what, the key is to be “full of the Holy Spirit.” Being full of the Holy Spirit was not a random occurrence for Stephen. In Acts chapter six we are told that Stephen was chosen by the whole multitude because they knew he was a man “full of faith and the Holy Spirit.” Brothers and sisters, we are called to be full of faith and the Holy Spirit. God prepares a table for those who are full of the Holy Spirit, in the presence of their enemies. Even when they are walking through the valley of death, they fear no evil, for goodness and mercy and the Living God has followed them all the days of their new lives. He is faithful, let us be faithful. He has given the Holy Spirit, let us be full of the Holy Spirit.
Posted in bible, Christian, christian blog, christian living, Christianity, Daily devotional, Devotions, Jesus, revival, the crucified life, the deeper life, the gospel, the persectuted church, The presence of God, The Psalms, the remnant, The State of the Chuch and Manifest presence, the state of the church, theology | 2 Comments »
Will you rejoice in your suffering?
Posted by appolus on April 3, 2022
Act 5:41 And they departed from the presence of the council, rejoicing that they were counted worthy to suffer shame for his name.
How far we in Christendom have fallen. Where is the generation that rejoices in being counted worthy to suffer for the name of the Lord Jesus Christ? The apostles had just been beaten, and yet they rejoiced. They had just suffered greatly, yet they rejoiced. They could not believe their good fortune that they had been counted worthy. The disciples and the saints were not praying for them not to be beaten. They were not praying for God to minimize or stop their suffering. Rather, we read, that the saints were praying that the apostles would have even more boldness. And when they were praying that prayer, the whole place was shaken and they were all filled afresh.
How do you pray saints? When you or one you know is suffering for the cause of Christ, how do you pray? Do you pray as the saints in the early Church prayed? Are we so westernized and have we suffered so little for the name of Jesus, for so long, that we forget how to effectively pray, to the point that the everything is shaken and we are filled afresh? The Holy Spirit initiates boldness, and when that boldness is acted upon He fills us again…… and again……..and again. When the apostles are dragged in front of the Sanhedrin for violating their previous orders of not mentioning Jesus. Here is their reply. “We ought to obey God, rather than men. The God of our fathers raised up Jesus whom you murdered by hanging on a tree……….and we are His witnesses.” We too, brothers and sisters, are His witnesses, it is our calling, it is why we are filled with the Holy Spirit. Exercise boldness in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and He will continually fill you, even as you rejoice in suffering for His name sake.
Posted in bible, Christian, christian blog, christian living, Christianity, churches, Daily devotional, Devotions, Jesus, revival, Spiritual warfare, testimony, the crucified life, the deeper life, the gospel, the persectuted church, The presence of God, The Psalms, the remnant, The State of the Chuch and Manifest presence, the state of the church, theology | 1 Comment »
A Call To The Remnant 