Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, in everything give thanks, for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you (1 Thess 5:16) Imagine living according to this word every day, it would revolutionize your world. Let this year be the year, let this day be the day that we live entirely according to the word of God.
Archive for the ‘Christian’ Category
Living by Faith: Embracing 1 Thessalonians 5:16 Daily
Posted by appolus on January 6, 2025
Posted in Christian, christian blog, Christianity, Daily devotional, 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, Uncategorized | 1 Comment »
Understanding Salvation vs. Wrath in 1 Thessalonians
Posted by appolus on January 5, 2025
“For God did not appoint us to wrath.” (1 Thess 5:9) So much has been made of this statement and wrong doctrines have flowed from it. Context always explains the meaning. “For God did not appoint us to wrath but to obtain salvation though our Lord Jesus Christ who died for us.” You see what the opposite of wrath is in this context? Salvation. To be saved is to be safe from not being saved. It does not mean that we shall avoid persecution or tribulation. In fact in Chapter three of 1st Thessalonians Paul writes “no one should be shaken by these afflictions (what afflictions? those who killed their own prophets and have persecuted us-chapter 2 verse 15) Not only should we expect persecutions and afflictions, Paul states categorically “we are appointed to this.” Another word for appointed is “ordained.”
Posted in Babylon, Christian, christian blog, christian living, Christianity, Daily devotional, Devotions, end times, Jesus, revival, 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, Uncategorized | 2 Comments »
The Song of Love
Posted by appolus on December 5, 2024
I wrote this song seven months ago, in the very depths of my cancer and chemo. The presence of the Lord and His grace and mercy had settled on me for that whole time and I sensed a very strong anointing from Jesus. Its at this time I wrote this song to love to my Jesus and called it “The song of love.” I pray that it will bless you mightily and take you deeper into His heart………bro Frank
Posted in bible, Christian, christian blog, christian living, Christian poetry, Christianity, Daily devotional, Devotions, Jesus, revival, spiritual gifts, 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, worship, worship music | 2 Comments »
The unseen beauty that is our God
Posted by appolus on November 14, 2024
A conversation between Kalli Womack Cook and Frank McEleny, brother and sister in the Lord.
Kalli………….
The Father said, “There is beauty in the earth.” The child asked, “Where?” The Father said, “A flower blooms in the desert.” And the child responded, “But no one sees it.” And the Father said, “Yet, because it blooms it makes it true: There is beauty in the earth, And truth is beautiful.”
This morning, the whispered prayer of my heart was, “Lord, help me to be like You, in a world that is not.” The whispered prayers of our heart are like flowers blooming in the desert. Beauty unseen. But the beauty of a flower isn’t measured by how many people observe and appreciate its beauty. A flower’s beauty is the same, whether it blooms unseen in the desert or near a well-traveled sidewalk.
Mankind does not set the standard for beauty. Nor does mankind’s measurable observations of beauty determine its existence or value. Beauty unseen by men, is seen by God. And in a world wholly unlike Christ, it makes this statement true: “There is still beauty to be found in this world.” Maybe not for long, but for now.
Frank……………
And to finish the thought from Corinthians, when we gaze upon that which is unseen, the eternal weight of His glory falls upon us. We cannot see this “weight,” yet it presses down upon our hearts and oil pours forth. This eternal weight of glory changes the very atmosphere, unseen, but rarified air breathed and glory exhaled.
When Angie and I hike, I search out the hidden flowers, often having her pull back leaves so that I can take the shot and show the world what beforehand, only God could see, and He does. Isn’t it just the same with us? He sees what the world cannot and it brings Him great pleasure.
Kalli………………
I remember a while ago, I watched a nature documentary about sea creatures that lived fathoms below the surface. They were mesmerizingly beautiful and my initial reaction was sadness that such beauty should go to waste, unseen and unappreciated by man. And then the Spirit used that moment to teach me a greater truth about beauty.
Until that moment, I had never realized how much I assumed that beauty existed for mankind. That if man doesn’t observe it to appreciate it, then it is somehow wasted. I learned that beauty doesn’t exist for us. It exists because God is beautiful and He is the One who created all things. Beauty exists because God exists.
Frank………………
Amen Kalli! It’s a magnificent truth that the God of all glory, the creator, takes delight in His creation. Imagine a world where no two flowers are alike, every one, like the snowflakes, different and every one a masterful piece of artistry. That world is the Kingdom of God, that flower, is you. And His delight is to see it blossom.
Posted in bible, Christian, Christianity, Daily devotional, Devotions, God's love, Jesus, praise, revival, testimony, the crucified life, the deeper life, the gospel, the remnant, The State of the Chuch and Manifest presence, the state of the church, Uncategorized | Tagged: bible, faith, flowers, God, Jesus | 4 Comments »
The marvel that is sanctification!
Posted by appolus on October 5, 2024
The process of sanctification is monumental and entirely underrated. God takes the ashes of our lives and begins the process of making something spectacular out of them for His own will and His own good pleasure. From the depths of who we are tectonic plates begin to thrust upwards. Oceans emptying, mountains rising from the deep. Vast towering peaks, raging rivers carving out the sides of the canyons and the valleys below. Snow on top of mountains. Ice sheets building up and glaciers forming into unstoppable forces, working their way through solid granite. Plateaus and peaks and valleys in their wake. Earthquakes shaking everything that can be shaken. Volcanoes erupting and molten rivers of magma reshaping the earth. This is your life in Christ being shaped by the hand of God.
For those who are being rightly shaped, His hand never leaves us. Every circumstance and even seemingly random events all come together and work together for those who love the lord and are called according to His purposes. In the end, what the Lord creates is something magnificent. A work of art that defies words. A work that no one could have predicted when we were but a block of stone or some ashes blowing in the wind. It was His vision of you. He brought it to pass, He created it, its all His work, ours is to but yield under the hand of the creator. Most of the changes moved as slow as the glaciers. Some of the changes were like a cray bubbling volcano that erupts into seeming chaos but at the same time yield incredible destructive creative power. The flesh being torn away, the spirit rising.
Sometimes, and for long seasons, our lives are like a sailing ship on a flat calm ocean that has not even a breeze. Just sitting there, seemingly stuck, with no possibility or circumstances changing, Yet even in this, the winds of change are coming and we had no idea from what direction they would blow. The key to all of this dear brother, dear sister is to trust in the Lord who holds you i His hand, who rightly shapes you from beginning to end. When the mountains crumble, just know that He is there. When all around you is shaking and you think that this is the end, it is not, it is but a brush stoke from the Masters hand on a canvas where upon a masterpiece is taking shape. You are His work and He is faithful to complete that which He has begun. Lord we marvel at it all. If the heavens declare your glory, and they do, your work in us is even greater and unlike the heavens, is made for eternity.
Posted in bible, Christian, christian blog, christian living, Jesus, sanctification, spiritual growth, testimony, the crucified life, the deeper life, the gospel, the persectuted church, the remnant, The State of the Chuch and Manifest presence | 2 Comments »
Who are the chosen?
Posted by appolus on October 3, 2024
2Pe 1:11 For so an entrance shall be supplied to you abundantly into the everlasting kingdom of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.
Many are called, few are chosen! How mysterious is the words of the Lord? Who are the called? Who are the chosen? Why are the many not ultimately part of the few? What determines who belongs to the few?
In 2 Pet chapter 1 we see that we are called to add to our faith, with all diligence, virtue and knowledge and self control and perseverance and Godliness and brotherly kindness and love. If these things are ours and we abound in such things then we shall, according to the Word, never be barren nor unfruitful in our intimate relationship with Jesus. Each of these aspects of our salvation is our responsibility to nurture. A fire has been kindled in us, the fire of God in our hearts, and that fire must be kept burning. The fuel is obedience, love and grace and mercy and forgiveness. Doing good to those who hate us. Rejoicing in our circumstances. Allowing light to shine forth from darkness. Letting this mind be in us. It is we who determine our mindset.
The fruits of these works in us must be clearly visible to all. “You shall know them by their fruit.” “You shall know them by their love for one another.” Might I add that we shall be known by the Blood of the Lamb in our lives and the testimony of His works in us, clearly seen. This is the light that shines forth from us. This is the flavor of the salt. And also this “they loved not their lives unto death.” In all of these things we overcome. We overcome in Him. We must not be moved by circumstances, in fact circumstances, be they persecution or afflictions or infirmities, must be borne with the dignity of God that dwells within us. We are Royal priests in a royal priesthood a “chosen race,” a holy nation and we must display that royalty for all the world to see for we have been called out of darkness into His marvelous light! We must not suffer as the world suffers. The world understands suffering all too well, what they do not understand is joy in the midst of it all.
They cannot understand why saints would have peace when there should be no peace. And when we walk in this abundance, with all diligence, then there is an entrance that is supplied to us. This not only refers to when we die and go to heaven. There is a heavenly entrance available to Gods saints in the here and the now for the Kingdom already is and it dwells within us. We must testify of this Kingdom, we have been empowered by the Holy Spirit to be a witness to just this, the Kingdom of God, not just spoken of, but demonstrated to a lost and dying world. And for those who follow this path, the path of the cross and the joy that is set before it, belongs the Kingdom. Yes, many are called, but sadly few take the narrow road that leads to Calvary and resurrection life.
Posted in Babylon, Christian, christian blog, christian living, Christianity, Devotions, Jesus, revival, Spiritual warfare, 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, Uncategorized | Tagged: bible, faith, God, Jesus, Kingdom of God | 1 Comment »
Can dry bones speak?
Posted by appolus on September 24, 2024
Can these bones live? A question asked of God to Ezekiel in a great valley which represented all of Israel (Ezek 37) What great valley stretches our before us in our day? Christendom lies motionless in the valley of death, mere bones glistening in the sun. Yet in Ezekiel, these bones speak. There is enough life in them to cry out to God, according to God. “Behold, they say, Our bones are dried, and our hope is lost: we are cut off for our parts.” Oh to God that Christendom would have enough life left in them to cry out the very same thing.
H.Bonar, in the 19th century made four basic observations as it applied in his day from Ezekiel 37. 1. Our creed may be sound and yet we may not be Christians. 2. Our religion may be externally complete and yet we may not be Christians. 3. Our good works may be numerous and praiseworthy, yet we may not be Christians. 4. Our lives may be exemplary but we may not be Christians. ” By religion I mean everything that pertains to the private or public worship and service of God;our praises, our prayers, our sanctuary services, our family worship. What are all these without the inward breath? What is routine without life? Mechanical religion may be all right for the gods of Greece and Rome, but not for the living and true God…..Your sanctuary attendance may be regular and reverent, but what if there is no breath in it? Will God accept that?”
Men have built up great armies in our day. Vast denominations and smaller little kingdoms. They all shelter under the banner of God. Yet, without the breath of life from God these armies are but dry bones. Some may be better put together than others. Bone may have come to bone. Some may have flesh and sinews, some may even be covered in skin and have taken on the appearance of having life, but without the breath of God they are all equally dead. Men boast about how well put together their “followers,” are yet it is God alone who breathes life. And without this life we are dead and buried in the valley just as sure as the dead are buried in the cemetery.
So, can these dry bones speak? According to God they can. They can cry out. And if they cry out then God has some promises for them. He says that He will bring them out of their graves. He will do that by breathing life into them. He will cause them to rise up, just as surely as Lazarus rose up from his own grave. He will put His Spirit in them and they shall live. The baptism of the Holy Spirit is life itself and without this life, without this breath, we can do nothing. We can surely go about our routines and our dry works and be no different than the dry bones in Ezekiel’s valley. Yet, if we want to rise up in the power of God, a radiant army who marches upon its knees, we must have the breath of God in us. The valley of dry bones that is today’s Christendom desperately needs the breath of life.
Posted in Babylon, Christian, christian blog, Devotions, end times, End Times Eschatology, God's voice, Jesus, religion, religious, revival, testimony, the crucified life, the deeper life, the gospel, the remnant, The State of the Chuch and Manifest presence, the state of the church, Uncategorized | Tagged: bible, ezekiel, faith, God, Jesus | 4 Comments »
I have come to send fire on the earth!
Posted by appolus on September 14, 2024
It is true that we have seen man’s best endeavor in the field of evangelism leaving communities untouched. We have seen crowded churches. We have seen many professions. We have seen hundreds, yes and thousands responding to what you speak of here as the altar call. But I want to say this dear people, and I say it without fear of contradiction, that you can have all that without God! Now that may startle you, but I say again, you can have all that on mere human levels. Howard Spring was right when he wrote ” The Kingdom of God is not going to advance by our churches becoming filled by men, but by men in churches becoming filled by God.” And there’s a difference! Crowded churches, deep interest in church activity is possible on mere human levels, leaving the community untouched. (Duncan Campbell)
If your salvation was a “get out of hell,” transaction then it’s highly likely you are not saved. It’s when the wretchedness of our condition, as exposed by the Holy Spirit of conviction, collides with the love and the mercy and the grace as revealed by Calvary, that a man or a woman repents and turns 180 degrees from the sinful lives they led and are saved. Much of the religious industrial complex, having avoided this themselves, cause others to be lost in their ignorance. They are fooled into believing that a “sinners prayer,” has saved their souls from eternal death and that church attendance and sacraments will see them “home,” safe.
Deep conviction of sin was the mark of the great awakenings and revivals of note. It did not come by persuasive words or the clever skills and oratory gifts of men. It advances when the Holy Spirit comes down and lights up the darkness that lies within men. And in the realization of that darkness and the utter wretchedness of our sinful ways, we come face to face with the mercy of God. The wonder of it all will overwhelm a mans wicked heart. He will tear his shirt and fall on his face and cry out to the living God. And in that moment, as opposed to “hands up who does not want to go to hell,” (an altar call that I have actually heard) the eternal consequences of his ways will tear through a mans soul. In his surrender and in his repentance, his very soul will be flooded by grace and the transformation will be astounding.
In most of our churches, the Holy Spirit of conviction, having been driven out a long time ago, has been replaced with persuasive words, emotionalism and manipulation, typically through music. The music team will be told to come up. The people will be told to put their hands up, to stand up, to cry out, to come forward. The support team will be told to come forward, the prayer team will be told to come forward. The truth is brothers and sisters, when the Holy Spirit of conviction comes down, He alone is affecting the hearts and spirits of men. In the soulish realm, men need instructions. When the might and power of men have failed, then its the Spirit that causes men to “rent their shirts,” and cry out “what must we do to be saved.” Echoing through the people will be cries of “is their mercy for me.”
I believe the Holy Spirit of conviction is not done with us. Yet we must travail in prayer. We must be diligent and cry out to the Lord. And we must keep on doing that until we see the breakthrough. Most of all, we must believe that He is, and that that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him, for without this kind of faith it is impossible to please Him (Heb 3:6) The keys to this kind of encounter comes through earnest and steadfast prayer. Where is the prayer meeting? Where are the faithful people of God who know that in order to see Him move, He alone must come down. An old poet wrote ” The promise can’t save though the promise is sure. It is the Blood we get under that cleanses us through. It cleanses me now, hallelujah to God! I rest on the promise but I’m under the Blood.”
Can you see what is being said? Men have abandoned the Holy Spirit and now rest upon a text of Scripture as opposed to the one who is the Scripture. Words cannot save us, only Jesus can. He is the Word made flesh. It rests upon Him alone and the power of the Holy Spirit to convict men and to open up their hearts and to rent asunder the veil that clouds their minds from their true state. Mercy and truth must collide. The truth of our state and the mercy that shall cleanse it. And only then shall righteousness and peace kiss. Jesus says in Luke 12 “I have come to send fire on the earth!.” Jesus came to bring fire, a burning all consuming fire that will burn up the wretchedness of men. When the monstrous iniquity of men’s state, collides with the fire of God that rains down upon their hearts through the Holy Spirit, we shall have our revival. Lord send down your fire and burn the hearts of men once again.
Posted in Babylon, Christian, christian blog, christian living, Christianity, controlling churches, Counterfeit Jesus, deception, Devotions, faith, False Prophets and Teachers, Jesus, revival, testimony, the crucified life, the deeper life, the gospel, the remnant, The State of the Chuch and Manifest presence, the state of the church, Uncategorized | 5 Comments »
I have danced on mountains.
Posted by appolus on September 10, 2024
I have worshiped in the valley
Where angels fear to tread
I have danced upon the mountains
And there was Spirit led
My heart has been enraptured
Until it filled to overflow
My soul was loosed in heaven
And I know the way I go
Tis Calvary then and Calvary now
In all it's resurrection power
He's the King of Kings and Lord of Lords
He is our strong tower
Would you open up your heart today
And let the rains flood in
It washes you as white as snow
And cleanses you from sin
The Blood of Christ's still raining down
From high upon the cross
For you and me He died that day
And He suffered such great loss
The fountain flows it never ends
The source is heavenly grace
It is glorious and inexhaustible
It stands in time and space
And while all things shall pass away
His glory shall remain forever
And we can come eternally
To that almighty river
Oh Lord my God my one and all
Before your throne I surely fall
Your love for us is instrumental
And your glory fills your holy temple.
Posted in Christian, christian blog, christian living, Christian poetry, Christianity, Jesus, poetry, revival, spiritual poetry, testimony, the crucified life, the deeper life, the gospel, the persectuted church, the remnant, The State of the Chuch and Manifest presence | 3 Comments »
You are my resting place.
Posted by appolus on September 4, 2024
I wrote this today from my meditations on the Lord and my great desire to stay in that quiet place with Him. This is where eternal life is, no matter what storms we find ourselves in.
You are my resting place
And deep within these realms of grace
You are so very near
You perfect love casts out all fear
And deep within this very veil
Where there's no fear and no travail
I'll throw the lines and I'll set sail
Into the depths of your heart
You are my resting place
I find in you a warm embrace
Your peace alone is my one desire
That stands with me in the midst of the fire
So when thunder crashes in angry skies
I'll pay no heed nor lift my eyes
To you alone I'll cast my gaze
Beyond the storm and above the waves
You are my resting place
It's there I look upon your face
You're my anchor Lord, within the veil
Your perfect love it never fails
So when lightening fractures the skies above
The heavens shall open and rain down with love
And I'll be soaked in your heavenly dew
As your hand takes hold and carries me through
So Lord you are my resting place
And I'm awash in a sea of grace
And when the storm is gone and there is no trace
I'll sail on, into the depths of your heart.
Posted in Christian, christian blog, christian living, Christian poetry, Devotions, poetry, revival, spiritual poetry, testimony, the crucified life, the deeper life, the gospel, the persectuted church, The presence of God, the remnant, Uncategorized | 1 Comment »
Christendom is compromised.
Posted by appolus on September 2, 2024
A Ms Barnett argued, at the University of Virginia in 2008, that “Dietrich Bonhoeffer saw clearly what the cost of compromise is, what the cost of complicity is. He understood something about failure, about what happens to the human soul when backbone dissolves, about what happens to the Christian church when it makes one compromise after the other. He understood that when the church does that-when it continually redefines its message, its interpretation of scripture, its very theology, so that it stays out of trouble-that these are not the sins of omission but of commission, of complicity. And that is why he was such an uncomfortable figure for protestant leaders in the early post-war period.”
Bonhoeffer knew all this because he watched the Lutheran church compromise with the world in which they lived, and their world just happened to be the Nazi world. I would argue that in our day, Christendom, has made just as many if not more compromises with the world. Ours is not the world of the Nazis, but ours is an equally godless world. Hundreds of millions of babies slaughtered around the world, in their mothers womb, as sacrifice at the shrine of feminism, and we are, for the most part, silent. Our children are daily indoctrinated with vile doctrines, perhaps even being groomed, and Christendom is, for the most part, silent.
Can I suggest that in this next generation, our scriptures and theology will be further compromised. We shall be told that homosexuality is not really condemned in the scriptures. We shall be told that there are actually many ways to heaven and that each religion is merely a different expression of God. As time passes, more and more saints shall have no choice but to leave their “denomination,” or “church,” because of such compromise. And the saint that raises his or her voice against such things will be tolerated less and less in a wicked and adulterous generation. The remnant saint of the last days will simply be called to stand. Stand upon the truth, stand upon the word, stand against an ever increasing tide of wickedness.
The Confessing Church in Germany was founded in 1934 as a reaction to the “German Christians,” who were advocates of Nazi policies, especially the “euthanizing,” (murder) of mentally handicapped people. Before the Nazi gas chambers, 400,000 mentally handicapped people were taken to their local clinics or hospitals and were there murdered. The Confessing church did something very bold, they separated from mainline denominations in reaction to their compromise with the world. We need such a separation in our day. Our days are no less wicked. T.A.Sparks writes this …………………….
The Lord must have something against which hell is impotent and by which He demonstrates to the universe that strength of His might which causes to stand and withstand, and having done all to stand. If one were asked what the last issue for the Church in this age is, I would say that it stands, and that is saying a tremendous thing. Oh, you say, that is surely limiting things, are you not expecting much more than that? Progress, advance, sweeping movements? The Church will have all its work cut out in the end to stand, but its standing will be its victory. Just to be able, through testing, trial, when everything is blowing round you like a blizzard; when everything is dark, mysterious, and even God seems far away and unreal, and faith is tested and you are being assailed on the right hand and on the left, and there is every reason outwardly for your moving, giving up, falling down, surrendering, lowering your standard, just to stand and not be moved in your faith is the greatest possible victory….
We are passing through deep experiences, the enemy is doing it and the Lord is not preventing him, but we are coming to a fuller knowledge of the power of our God and a deeper rooting beyond all previous shakeableness. And the Lord is seeking to have a people who cannot be shaken, against whom hell with all its demonstration of arrogance and pride, is impotent. “And the remnant… shall again take root downward.” That is what the Lord needs.
Posted in Babylon, bible, Christian, christian blog, christian living, Christianity, Church history, churches, end times, Jesus, new wineskins, New World Order, revival, testimony, the crucified life, the deeper life, the gospel, the persectuted church, the remnant, The State of the Chuch and Manifest presence | 1 Comment »
Church attendance is not Discipleship.
Posted by appolus on August 25, 2024
Some poor deluded folks think that by attending a church they are being disciples. Very sad. I’ve known disciples who attend a church, I’ve known disciples who gather together in small groups, I’ve even known disciples who meet just “where two or three are gathered,” but I’ve known very few disciples. They are the few. They are the remnant. Just as the Lord said it would be. The vast majority I’ve known are church goers, which is a world apart from disciples……bro Frank.
Charles Simeon 1759-1836 wrote…………
Isaiah 29:13, “The Lord says: These people come near to Me with their mouth and honor Me with their lips, but their hearts are far from Me!”
In our church services, we go through all the external bodily motions; but as to the prostration of the soul, we are for the most part oblivious and unconcerned. We think that we have done our duty to God, if we have gone through the appointed external rituals, though our heart has not accorded with the body in any part of the service. In truth, our services have been hypocritical throughout.
Had a stranger come into one of our church services, and overheard our glowing praises, and our solemn confessions, petitions, and thanksgivings–he would have supposed that we were the most humble, spiritual, and devout people in the universe!
But had he been privy to the real state of our hearts–then how little would he have seen:
of earnest ardor in our praises,
or of honest humiliation in our confessions,
or of sincere fervor in our petitions,
or of genuine gratitude in our thanksgivings!
He would see that the state of our hearts indicated that we felt nothing, and meant nothing–at the very time that we professed to mean so much and feel so much!
For the most part, he would have seen that the whole of our service was only a solemn mockery; that instead of being genuine worshipers of our majestic and holy God–for the most part, we were but insincere hypocrites!
Let me ask, in the name of God Himself: What reason you can have to think that God would accept such services as these?
If, indeed, God were like ourselves, and could see only the outward appearance, then we might hope that, being deceived by us–He would be pleased with us.
But when we bear in mind, that the omniscient God knows . . .
our every secret thought,
our every secret desire,
our every secret motive,
and that He perfectly searches our heart, and knows our thoughts–then we must be sure that our very services are an abomination in His sight!
“Isaiah was right when he prophesied about you hypocrites; as it is written: These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me! They worship Me in vain.” Mark 7:6, 7
J.C. Ryle: In all our Christian duties, whether giving or praying, the great thing to be kept in mind, is that we have a heart-searching and all-knowing God! Everything like mere formal worship, is abominable and worthless in God’s sight. The one thing which His all-seeing eye looks at, is the nature of our motives, and the state of our hearts!
“Serve Him with a whole heart and a willing mind; for the Lord searches all hearts, and understands every intent of the thoughts!” 1 Chronicles 28:9
Posted in Christian, christian blog, christian living, Christianity, Church history, churches, controlling churches | Tagged: A call to the remnant, apostate church, bearing the cross, Body of Christ, broken down walls, christian living, Christianity, church, church institutions, devotional, established church | 6 Comments »
What is the glory of God?
Posted by appolus on August 13, 2024
The glory of God!! The light that reflects from God Himself is seen in Christ and magnified in our hearts. It has substance, there is an eternal “weight,” that is quite apart from gravity. This weight is the “train of His robe.” It fills the temple and it fills us to overflowing. It fills our deepest longings, It touches the very depths of our souls. It renders us changed forever. Who can stand in His glory? Who could even begin to fathom/know the depths of His love? Isaiah falls down as dead and his heart is rent. The old saints used to talk about the weight of His glory where their heads naturally bowed low and trembling hands are barely raised in the “atmosphere,” of heaven come down.”Time ceases to exist and for a moment or moments we are entirely “taken up,” to higher ground. And all of this ceases to be even the first sentence to describe Him because they are but human words. He is “sensed,” in our very DNA and whoever encounters this “manifest,” presence is changed forever.
God is high and lifted up. He is glorious in His majesty. In the presence of God there is fulness of joy. In this place there is nothing impossible. Our minds are lit up by His mere presence, the manifest presence of God. To come up and into this place is to dwell with Him. This is where we are changed. This is where the attractions of this world and everything it has to offer loses all of its meaning. One moment in the manifest presence of God does more good than a lifetime of struggling against sin. For in this light we see the true darkness of our souls and we long to never again walk among the shadows. This life is but a shadow and this flesh is the vehicle that must be inhabited until that happy day when the mere moments in His presence is transformed into eternity. If we desire God, if we truly desire to come into His presence, then we shall be as the deer that panteth for the waterbrooks.
Humility and brokenness is the door and the lintel that ushers us into this Holy place. Everything about our walk with the Lord is a contradiction to the world. In order to live we must die. In order to be truly rich, we must become poor to the things of this world. In order to lead we must serve. In order to ascend unto that holy place of His presence we must bow low. It is in the deepest valleys that the saint will discover the greatest mountaintops.We must stoop down low on bended knee in order to ascend that hill and truly see. The greatest danger of the one who brings trials and tribulations and persecutions upon the saints is that they create the perfect environment for the most radical encounters with the Living God that they will ever have had. This is why the saint who genuinely desires a radical encounter with the living God is such a danger to the enemy of our souls. If he pushes too hard against the saint, he pushes Him deeper into the heart of God and that becomes a witness that has a life all of itself. The Spirit of Glory that stands for all time.
Posted in bible, Christian, christian blog, christian living, Christianity, Daily devotional, Devotions, God's love, Jesus, revival, testimony, the crucified life, the deeper life, the gospel, The presence of God, the remnant, The State of the Chuch and Manifest presence | 4 Comments »
The opiate of modern worship.
Posted by appolus on August 8, 2024
1Sa 16:14 But the Spirit of the LORD departed from Saul, and a distressing spirit from the LORD troubled him.
There are two broad categories of people within Christendom. They are not equally proportioned. One represents the vast majority and the other a remnant, a portion, “the few, as opposed to “the many.” This distressing spirit, spoken of in relation to Saul, is alive and well among the merely religious but who, nonetheless, call themselves after the name of Jesus. They seek the same comfort that Saul sought. And we see unfolding with David and Saul, an ancient battle that has always existed right from the times of Cain and Abel. In the end, one hates the other and determines to destroy the other. For the last 2000 years, the religious have mercilessly hunted down the genuine saint just as Saul hunted down David. David had what Saul did not. It really came down to jealousy.
In the beginning, Saul would get momentary relief when David played upon his harp. Modern day worship gives momentary relief to the merely religious. Its an opiate to them. Remember, the distressing spirit would leave Saul, but his relationship with God still ceased to exist. And then, of course, the distressing spirit would return. Like drunkenness, it lasts for but a short while and when one sobers up, they are distressed once again. The real malady is the malady of the soul. The only true solution is to come to Jesus on His terms. And His terms? Very simple, He requires your whole life. Those who try to save their own lives shall lose them, but those who lose their lives for His sake gain eternal life.
Therefore, feeling good when worshiping is simply temporary if you are not rightly related to Jesus. A pain killer alleviates the pain for a while but the source of the pain remains. It is only when the spirit is truly touched and changed forever that we are relieved of this deep malady of the soul, distress. God has a controversy with those who have not bowed the knee to Jesus and that controversy causes us all kinds of problems. Note that in this Scripture it is God Himself who sends this spirit and it is God alone, through His Son Jesus that can alleviate us from it. Men will try multiple religious acts to circumvent the need to be obedient to God and lay down their lives. Bonar writes……………..
“Men try rites, sacraments, pictures, music, apparel and the varied attractions of ecclesiastical ornament, but these leave the spirit unfilled, and its wounds unhealed. They cannot regenerate, enliven, heal or fill with the Holy Spirit. They may keep up the self satisfaction and delusion of the soul, but that is all. They bring no true peace, nor give rest to the weary, they do not fill they merely hide our emptiness.” Every Sunday in churches throughout the land and across the world there are a myriad of programs and liturgies and music that merely hide the emptiness of those who sit in pews, unchanged week after week.
What would have saved Saul? Obedience to the Word of God. We are called to obey the Lord our God with our whole hearts, holding nothing back. And the evidence of the reality of our genuine obedient relationship with Jesus is a changed life. You can raise your hands in worship every Sunday but without this changed life it is a futile as the worship of Saul. Saul was not worshiping God, for true worshipers obey God and are changed, no Saul was seeking momentary relief from his inner anguish. He just wanted to feel better. We may look upon the raised hands of a crowd and imagine that it denotes something, but the “Lord does not see as man sees, for man looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.” (1 Sam 16:7)
Posted in Babylon, bible, Charismatic, Christian, christian blog, christian living, Church history, churches, Counterfeit Jesus, deception, Devotions, Jesus, praise, praise and worship, religion, 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 | 6 Comments »
All is well!
Posted by appolus on July 21, 2024
Nothing more is needed
Nothing less will do
The love of God it frees the soul
He died for me and you
The sun, it is no good to me
If I cannot see it's light
So without the knowledge of His love
Then my day is simply night
It's when I'm drawn unto the light
That darkness flees away
Then my hungry soul can now proclaim
My night has turned to day
I know thy name, I've seen thy light
It raised my soul from hell
And now I say with all my might
Of my soul, that all is well!
Posted in Christian, christian blog, christian living, Christian poetry, Christianity, Devotions, healing ministry, Jesus, poetry, revival, spiritual poetry, 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 | 1 Comment »
Counting the cost
Posted by appolus on July 15, 2024
He who casts his lot in with the people of God must prepare for loss as well as gain. He must count the cost beforehand and be ready to pay it when the day comes for payment. There is the taking up of our cross, the denying of self and forsaking all. He loses……… 1. This world. Whatever may be in it of pleasure, satisfaction, pomp or merrymaking, he loses for he cannot have both worlds. 2. His name. Perhaps he stood high in reputation with the men of this world and had a name for many things, but then loses this, for his name is cast out as evil. 3. His religion. For the likelihood is that he had a sort of religion or religiousness like Saul of Tarsus. All this past religion must be left behind. It will serve him no more. 4. His goods. This may not always be demanded to the full extent, as in days of persecution, but still he must be prepared to part with everything, counting it no more as his own. (Horatius Bonar)
There are few people in this world who count the cost and are ready for such loss as Bonar was talking about. Paul famously says “for whom I have suffered the loss of all things.” (Ph 3:8) He said he counted the loss of all things for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ my Lord. His greatest desire was to be found in Him. Moses famously chose to suffer affliction with the people of God, rather than to enjoy the pleasures of sin, the pleasure of all the riches of Egypt, for a season. Esteeming the reproach of Christ, greater riches than all the treasures of the world (Egypt) It was faith that caused him to turn his back on the world (Heb 11-24-28)
How this flies in the face of what passes for much of modern Christianity. Their “faith,” causes them not to turn their backs on the world, but rather to pursue the pleasure of all the riches of this world. You can do that or be found in Christ but you cannot have both. One must chose between this world and the Kingdom of God. Broad is the path that most choose (speaking of Christendom here) and narrow is the path of the few. God has and always has had His remnant. You will know them by the cross on their back. You will know them by their joy in the depths of affliction. They will be known by their love for one another. There passion will be the one in whom they are found. Out of the abundance of their hearts their mouths will speak, and it wont be about the things of this world it will be about Jesus.
If your faith causes you to pursue the things of this world rather than the things of God, you are probably in some version of the word of faith movement. If you find yourself in such a place, now is the time to flee from its false premise of “faith,’ and run to the true faith in Christ alone and in His word. True faith (trust) counts the cost. True faith causes one to pick up his cross. True faith counts all loss as fleeting and but for moment in the light of eternity. Counterfeit faith will never teach you to take up your cross. It will always point you in the direction of the treasures of this world. It will commend you to live your best life now. And if this is your path, then you should indeed eat and drink and be merry, for tomorrow you die, and not just the death of this world but rather an eternal death. Choose this day whom you will serve.
Posted in bible, Christian, christian blog, christian living, Christianity, Daily devotional, Devotions, Jesus, revival, Spiritual warfare, testimony, the crucified life, the deeper life, the gospel, the persectuted church, the remnant, Uncategorized | 2 Comments »
Cancer update-Complete remission-The Lord has delivered me!
Posted by appolus on June 25, 2024
Posted in cancer, Christian, christian blog, Christianity, Daily devotional, Devotions, God's love, Jesus, revival, testimony, the crucified life, the deeper life, the gospel, the persectuted church, the remnant | 13 Comments »
Jesus
Posted by appolus on June 21, 2024
His name is like honey on my lips, His presence , the source of my life and my joy and my peace. Where could I go but to the Lord? He is the light of my life, the breath in my lungs, the very reason that I exist. His majesty and His glory tower over me.His love, as vast as the endless sea. His faithfulness as endless as eternity. In Him I have been gloriously set free. Oh for a thousand years to sing of the reason for my joy. It is complete in Jesus. Teach me Father how to glorify that name which is above all names. The name given, that name honored, that name high and lifted up, that name which fills the temple, which fills all of heavens chambers. It fills the nigh skies and the vast seas, it fills my endless soul and brings me to my knees. Jesus, Jesus, walk with me and by the power of your Holy Spirit let all the world see that when they see you, they have seen the Father and the glory and the majesty.
Posted in bible, Christian, christian blog, Daily devotional, Devotions, God's love, Jesus, poetry, revival, testimony, the crucified life, the deeper life, the gospel, the remnant | 2 Comments »
The strength that takes me through.
Posted by appolus on June 19, 2024
In every storm, the saint has an anchor and His name is Jesus. We are out there in the roiling seas and He is the forerunner. He goes before us into the harbor and draws us in. In ancient times when the sea was too stormy to enter the harbor and giant waves would crash against the harbor walls and the ships would drag their anchors and be in danger of overturning and being swamped, they would lower a skiff, a forerunner. The anchor would be placed on the small boat and the boat would make its way into the harbor and the anchor would be dropped in calmer waters ,then the boat would be pulled into the harbor.
Jesus is our forerunner, Jesus is our anchor and He has went before us and prepared a place for us. A place of peace and stillness, His very presence speaks to the storms, be still! When you flee to Jesus He shall be our Rock, our strong high tower. Come to Me, He says, and I will give your weary souls rest. God and His Word are immutable, that is to say unchanging over time, any time, eternity even. God is unchanging and the Words that He speaks are unchanging. He never lies and this immutability, the Word says, is so that we “might have strong consolation who have fled for refuge to lay hold of the hope set before us.” There it is, its right there, take a hold of it, grab onto to it, never let it go, let it take you into the still calm harbor of His presence so that you might survive the storm. Take hold of this brothers and sisters, and you shall not drown.
I wrote this poem yesterday after the report that the cancer in my colon was gone. It reflects upon the storm my family and I have navigated in the last several months with a diagnosis of stage 4 cancer. It was not my first storm and I am sure it will not be my last but the one ever present help has been Jesus. I have lived as a Christian long enough to know that Jesus is the anchor of my soul. I still have a pet scan next week to determine if the cancer is still in the rest of my body, but the same God who rules and reigns this week, shall be ruling and reigning next week and I will be careful to give Him all the honor and all the praise. Peace, in the midst of the storm, is among the most valuable treasures from the vaults of heaven. If you are in the midst of a storm today, come to Jesus and He will give you peace and rest for your weary soul.
The strength that takes me through.
The anchor of my soul
When I was on my knees
Is the harbor of my life
Amidst the stormy seas
You are my strong high-tower
You're the one I run into
When I'm weak you are the power
The strength that takes me through
The waters shall not overwhelm
The fires shall not consume
When Christ my Lord is at the helm
When His presence fills the room
You were there from the very start
You are there when I'm all alone
You dwell in the very depths of my heart
You are there upon your throne
So I'll praise you lord forevermore
You're my life, my breath, my all
When you knock I'll open up the door
I will answer when I hear you call.
Posted in battle against cancer, bible, cancer, Christian, christian blog, christian living, Christian poetry, Christianity, Daily devotional, Devotions, healing, Jesus, poetry, praise, revival, spiritual growth, testimony, the crucified life, the deeper life, the gospel, the persectuted church, the remnant, The State of the Chuch and Manifest presence, Uncategorized | 1 Comment »
A cancer update-the peace of God.
Posted by appolus on June 17, 2024
Posted in bible, cancer, Christian, christian blog, christian living, Christianity, Daily devotional, Devotions, faith, God's love, healing, healing ministry, hope, Jesus, revival, spiritual gifts, spiritual growth, Spiritual warfare, testimony, the crucified life, the deeper life, the gospel, the persectuted church, The presence of God, The Psalms, the remnant | 7 Comments »
A Call To The Remnant 