The Spirit of glory and of God rests upon those who suffer for the sake of the Lord Jesus Christ. That suffering may take many forms. Fiery trials, tribulations and infirmities. Yet one thing is for sure, it is not common in Christendom. It is certainly unknown to the world. I have personally met a number of saints whom I would say the Spirit of glory and of God rests upon them. And it is those who suffer and are yet joyful. It is those who are in the throes of infirmities and yet they are the ones who minister to you. It is quite a glorious thing to behold. And as always, the glory of God, His manifest presence changes people. I would argue all genuine saints have encountered God in a manifest way. It may only have been a moment, or moments. It might just have been a glimpse, or glimpses. Yet note what 1 Peter 4:14 says, it says it rest upon those who suffer for His name sake. That word “rest,” means to remain. It settles down upon their hearts and spirits and they walk in the glory of God. They are truly the anointed ones in that sense. Quite rare I imagine.
Now consider the days into which we are headed. A day when the world turns against us wholesale. A day where God’s remnant saints are persecuted and suffer for His sake on a worldwide scale. A day when we boast in our infirmities. Where we boast in the things that we have lost for His sake and count it all as rubbish because we are “found in Him.” Imagine the light from millions saints shining in the gross darkness of a world nearing its end. Imagine the power that will rest upon us that emanates from the glory that simply remains upon us. Think about the power of love that flowed from Stephen even as he was being stoned. We know he was a man “full of the Holy Spirit,” but we do not really know what “full of the Holy Spirit,” meant in the context of the very early church where power abounded. We do know that Stephen was emulating and manifesting the power of Christ from the cross who could cry out “Father forgive them.”
Religion will be horrified at the light that comes from the true and genuine saint for it will highlight the darkness that they actually dwell in. This can only complete the separation of that which is genuine and that which is not. Darkness consumes its own, it swallows it whole. Light also consumes light and we who walk in the light as He is in the light will have fellowship one with another. There shall be no greater fellowship that that of the saints of the last days. Through the fires of affliction and persecution and a refusal to bow the knee to the gods of this world the Spirit of glory will rest upon us. Christ with us in the flames. He will never be sensed as close as He will be in the times when we suffer for His name sake. His grace is all sufficient for these times and His strength is made perfect in our weakness. And Paul uses the exact same phrase to talk about the exact same thing as Peter does in 1 Pet 1:14. Paul says “Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me.”
Brothers and sisters, we have nothing to fear from the trying times to come. Those who have never actually experienced the manifest presence of God cannot possibly understand what Peter or Paul is talking about. The notion of suffering, period, is actively prayed against by much of Christendom. Weakness, as the Scriptures count weakness, is despised in many so called Christian circles. And yet the Lord says His strength is made perfect in out weakness. I would put it to you brothers and sisters, if His glory is out highest ambition, then His glory shall rest upon us in the days of our sufferings. If it is our daily habit to take up our cross, then when the day comes to suffer greatly for His sake, then we shall be well prepared. Oil in your vessel comes little by little, piece by piece, step by step. This is how we prepare for the times which are soon to come upon us.
Religion knows nothing of this. The little oil in their lamps will soon burn out when the gross extended darkness comes. Can you not sense that darkness even now lapping around us like a mighty incoming tide that cannot be stopped? Those who walk in the light, those who suffer for His sake gladly, those who take up their crosses daily, those who boast in their infirmities, those whose chief end is to glorify God, it is those who will stand in that evil day. This is how we prepare. It will not be a last minute thing but rather it will flow from the natures and character that has been formed as we walked down the narrow path. In that day when the Lord appears and the virgins are called to trim their lamps, only those who have filled their vessels in their daily walk with Jesus, season after season. In season and out of season. In good times and in bad. It plenty and in want. In sickness and in health. In having much or suffering much loss. Only these will go into the marriage feast of the Lamb.
One last thing brothers and sisters. Let us suppose that we are not that generation that sees Christ return. Let us suppose He tarries yet. The same principles above apply to our individual lives. If we are not a people who die to ourselves daily, if we are not in the habit of taking up our crosses or giving glory to God and counting it all honor to suffer for His sake, then our end days will not be good. The flesh needs to know who is boss or the flesh will not treat you well in your old age. If we live into our older years then we should be beautiful representatives of the Lord Jesus Christ here on earth. If not, then all the worse elements of the flesh will come forward and get even worse. Bitterness and ungratefulness, unhappiness. I have seen both examples. One, a life well lived in the Lord continues in the beauty of holiness, the other a life lived as unto themselves and degenerates. Let us consider our ways and how we would like to end the race. Let us, with all of our hearts, desire to finish the race strong that we might hear the most beautiful of words “well done good and faithful servant.”
Let me go out on a limb a little bit and prophesy. I see the time coming when all the holy men whose eyes have been opened by the Holy Spirit will desert worldly evangelicalism, one by one. The house will be left desolate and there will not be a man of God, a man to whom the Holy Spirit dwells, left among them (A.W.Tozer, The dangers of a shallow faith.)
This prophecy was made over 60 years ago. He goes on to say…. “as the church stands now, the man who sees this condition of worldly evangelicalism is written off as being somewhat fanatical. But the day is coming when the house will be left desolate and there will not be a man of God left among them. I would like to live long enough to watch this develop and see how things turn out. I would like to live to see the time when the men and women of God-holy, separated and spiritually enlightened-walk out of the evangelical church and form a group of their own, when they get off the sinking ship and let her go down in the brackish waters of worldliness and form a new ark to ride out the storm.”
Can I say, for the most part, what passes for the church now, has sunk beneath the brackish waves or worldliness to which Tozer prophesied. What passes for church now would be entirely unrecognizable to the men and women of God who are now the arms of the Lord. Has the prophecy come to pass as of now? No. Evangelicalism has certainly sunk beneath the waves, but those who have come out of her have not found their place yet. The time will come. Persecution on a scale never seen before will draw us together as we have never been before. It took persecution to scatter the saints in Jerusalem so that they would go out and fulfill the commands of the Lord. It will take the great tribulation to bring us back together.
We will stand before an angry world, most likely led by the sunken Evangelical and religious movements, and not be moved. They will see how a saint stands in the midst of the fire with Jesus by their side. They will see a purified bride, having been stripped of everything this world has to offer, yet covered by the glory of the risen Lord. They will see a people like Job who will fall to their knees and cry out to God in worship “the Lord gives and the Lord takes away, blessed be the name of the Lord.” In short, they will see the glory of God cover the earth as the brackish waters cover the sea. The worldly church, the world and everything religious in it sinks into these foul waters. The Body of Christ rises up in the pure and undefiled waters that flow from heavens throne and it is crystal clear and will stand in complete contrast to the defiled waters of this world.
Many many years ago I had a vision. I was high above the country of America and I could see from east to west. The vast majority were settled in the east and would never dream of venturing into the great unknown. To travel westwards was to risk everything. Yet, slowly but surely some began to leave everything that was established to strike out into the unknown. They banded together for safety and gave up their homes and establishments, their careers and positions for a dream. Many would not make it but all of them were driven forward by forces perhaps they did not fully understand. They were pilgrims, sojourners, travelers.
The first part of their journey was mapped, but soon enough they only had the general heading. They forded rivers and scaled mountains and crossed vast seas of prairie lands that stretched out into infinity. There was storms and baking heat. There was cold and there was snow but still they pushed on. They were often attacked and would circle the wagons. They dealt with wolves and bears and coyotes. Snakes were everywhere but still they traveled on. None of this was the actual westward migration in America, it was the remnant saints I was seeing. They were leaving everything that was established behind and pushing on for a continuing city. They had no place on this earth to call their own. No kingdom to call their own, no town to call their own, no State to call their own. They were travelers.
Every mountain was a part of their sanctification. Every river, every wild animal, every obstacle was the same. In the blazing plains they had to trust for water. In the violent storms and tornado’s, they had to trust that God would keep them. They had a pioneer spirit that was not all that common to man. Yet just like the westward American push, they all come to the Pacific. Will they set up shop there? Surely we can go no further than this? And yet in my vision I saw a boat draw near to the shore. Jesus was the captain and He shouted to those gathered on the shore to come on board. The people on shore had no idea what was beyond the horizon. Surely they had suffered enough just to get here, and now, there was the Lord urging them on, urging them onto the boat to continue the journey, and for most it was simply too much.
So as the few got onto the boat, the rest began to lay down foundations for communities. After a while the boat stopped coming and they could no longer hear the voice of Jesus urging them on. The temporary wagons that had brought them so far were broken down and used in the establishment of fine new buildings. With the journey over and the permanent structures erected, the people grew weak. They no longer had the journey to keep them strong. This place they had established for themselves had very fine weather and they did not have to deal with storms, they grew weaker still and they had no vision. Their reliance upon the Lord waned as His voice became a distant memory, an echo in the wind. They became so weak they withdrew from the coast. Little by little, piece by piece they began to fall back to where they had come from. The things that they had overcame began to overcome them. And in a period of time, they found themselves right back where they came from. Everything they had gained on the journey they had lost. Without the vision of the journey, the people perished.
This was my vision. It was as dramatic as it was scary. The journey is everything. We have no place on this earth to call our own. If we are not moving forwards then we are falling backwards. There is no treading water in the Kingdom of God, there is only the journey that ever lies before us. God has no pleasure in those who fall back. The journey is your Christianity. It is your walk. It is your relationship with Jesus. It does not matter how old you are or how young you are, we are all called to journey down the path that God Himself has forged for us. We do not get to see what is around the next bend, we simply trust. We are called to live each day at a time and not to be anxious for the things the gentiles are anxious for. Sufficient for the day are our troubles and it is Jesus who gives us the strength to get through this day, tomorrow is never guaranteed. Our strength is derived from how we interact with Jesus as we meet the obstacle.
Do not worry about tomorrow brothers and sisters. Keep on the journey, keep on going, keep on following Jesus. Ignore charlatans and false prophets you meet along the way, you will recognize them for they will be selling you something. Do not put your roots down into anything other than the Kingdom of God. One thing about a wagon, its always ready to roll the next day. We must always be ready to roll on, for this is our calling, we journey through this world and the Holy Spirit is our guide. He alone knows the way forward. He alone can lead us and guide us home. Let us never gather moss brothers and sisters in our spiritual homeward journey. It might be rough. It might be tough, but I can guarantee you that it will never be boring. One season there shall be great mountain ranges and another season mighty rivers. There will be the dead of winter and also the magnificent spring flowers. The heat of the summer will feel fine for a while but the Fall colors and coolness will refresh your soul.
The seasons of life will be the mile markers of our journey, and as we grow older and are less physically fit, we grow stronger in the Lord and the power of His might. The seasons will pass with ever increasing speed as we journey onwards. As our time here on earth draws to its close then we shall begin to see glimpses of the journeys end. The end of everything in this world is truly the beginning of everything in the next. He gives us eyes to see such things. Imagine beginning to arrive at the end of your journey. A journey that has perhaps lasted multiple decades. A grand adventure that no power in the heavens or earth could ever persuade you to give up. The perishing outer man is being replaced by a spirit that is renewed daily. Piece by piece we are decreasing but step by step He is increasing. Our grand obsession, Jesus, is all that we want. He is all that we need. We look back down the journey with all its many milestones and we can see how, not one single time, He has let us down. Oh brothers and sisters, let us finish strong the journey that is set before us.
Gal 3:1 O foolish Galatians, who hath bewitched you,
Are we modern day Christians really any different from our Galatians brothers and sisters of old? Paul says to the Galatians that they have fallen from Grace, those who desire to be under anything other than the Gospel that he himself had presented to them, but now he was an enemy to them for telling them the truth. This word “bewitched,” means to be “fascinated by a false presentation.” In the Galatians case it was the law they were fascinated with and men, who should have known better, who seem to be something in Christian circles from Jerusalem, had enticed them away from the truth, away from the Spirit and away from freedom. A fall from grace is a tragedy for it is by grace through faith that we are saved and not of works, including the works of the law, less we should boast and then the free gift is not free indeed but rather debt.
We have so many in our day who are “fascinated by a false presentation.” Consider the Charismatics and their prosperity gospel? How about men like Benny Hinn with a singular obsession with healings? MacArthur and his denial of the sign gifts of the Spirit? Catholics and every other denomination who are fascinated by their own dogmas and decrees which are quite apart from Scriptures. One man rodeo shows in the non denominational systems who promote themselves. What is the one thing they all have in common with each other and the Galatians? “They zealously court you, but not for good; yes, they want to exclude you, that you may be zealous for them.”(Gal 4:17) Think about the horror of that statement. Men and systems of men set up to promote themselves and in doing so, exclude those who follow them from entering into the freedom that Christ brought for them. It was for freedom that Christ set us free. It is for bondage that men would have you zealous for them and their systems that elevate them. Jesus has been usurped.
Who is hindering you from following the Word? This is not from God. Who elevates themselves rather than the Lord Jesus Christ and the Word of God and the Holy Spirit. In the third epistle of John he writes to “the church,” in Asia Minor. He runs headlong into a man called Diotrephes. A man who had zeaously courted the church in that region to elevate himself. A man who loved the preeminence and just like Paul, John had become their enemy because he spoke the truth. Yet there were still men like Gaius and Demetrius. Good men. Men who followed after Jesus and who “walked in the truth.” There are good men and women today who still walk in the truth. God has His remnant. They are few and far between. And there are is a scourge of men like Diotrephes who would hinder you from walking according to the truth because when we do that, Jesus, and only Jesus is elevated.
There is an inevitable clash between God’s people and men who promote themselves. John would clash with Diotrephes if he traveled there. Paul clashed with the Christian religious men of his day, and even with Paul and Barnabas over what was right and what would cause men to fall from grace. If one were in MacArthur’s church and criticized him openly, the same fate would befall them as those who criticized Diotrephes. They would be removed from the church, with violence if need be. To criticize the Catholic church over 1500 years would cause one to be excommunicated and most likely burned at the stake. To criticize the reformers would have resulted in certain banishment and oftentimes imprisonment and burnings too. It is the mark of insecure men who have set up their own systems in direct violation of God’s Word and the leading of the Holy Spirit.
And then of course there is the genuine Body of Christ to be found everywhere. Oftentimes isolated perhaps. Lonely and without a church home to call their own, but always part of the Body of Christ and the family of God. Sons and daughters scattered to the four winds but not abandoned. Faithful to the Word of God and the leading of the Spirit. Illuminated by the light of Christ and the freedom that dwells within them. At liberty to speak the truth in love despite the consequences. Seeking no office and seeking no titles. Only willing to wash the feet of their brothers and sisters and feed them spiritually. Discipling everywhere they go whether to the one or the two or the two hundred. The number is not important. I encourage you this day my brothers and sisters. Stand fast therefore in the liberty by which Christ has made you free and do not be entangled by the religious systems of men which causes you to become entangled by a yoke of bondage.
Walk in and according to the Spirit and men shall know you by the fruit of the Spirit. Love, joy, peace, long-suffering, kindness, gentlesness, and self control. They shall also know you by your fierce loyalty to the Lord and to the Gospel of the Kingdom and to the Word of God. Live in the Spirit and walk in the Spirit and you shall avoid jealousies pride and envy. Those who sow these things shall reap everlasting life. We shall run and not grow weary, we shall walk and not faint. We shall not lose heart when we pay due attention to the condition of our heart and walk in the aforementioned fruit of the Spirit. Love the Body of Christ with a lavish and reckless love. Let us boast in nothing other than the cross of the Lord Jesus Christ and the cross upon our own backs. Let us rejoice in infirmities that God may be glorified by the excess grace He pours upon us. The world has been crucified to us, it no longer courts us. We have been crucified to the world and we no longer have any taste for its pleasures. Let the peace and the mercy and grace of God fall apon the genuine saints today and let all who read this be encouraged.
Events in the history of the churches in the time of the apostles have been selected and recorded in the Book of the Acts in such a way as to provide a permanent pattern for the churches. Departures from the pattern has had disastrous consequences, and all revival and restoration have been due to some return to the pattern and principles of Scripture (The Pilgrim Church ,E.H.Broadbent)
A permanent pattern for the Church, set down in the Word of God, found in Acts and Corinthians in quite some detail, yet almost universally ignored down through the ages. And from Miletus he sent to Ephesus, and called the elders of the church ( Act 20:17) Now the word “elders,” and “presbyters,” and “overseers,” and “bishops,” all refer to the same men. It is Ignatius who starts the deviation. He as born around the year the Lord ascended into heaven. He died in 107ad. In less than 70 years we see the true birth of the clergy/laity divide, the great disaster as I call it. Now its roots had already begun to grow and around 85ad we see Diotrephes being described as “loving the preeminence.” It’s just like men to desperately want a hierarchical system and then climb the ladder to the top.
John, who excoriates Diotrephes In 3rd John, just a few years later writes Revelation. And of course the beginning chapters start out with grievious warnings from Jesus Himself to most of the churches in Asia. His first warning was that outside of repentance He would “remove your lamp-stand.” A lamp-stand holds the light. If it is removed then comes the darkness. Nothing grows in the darkness. There was various threats made against the churches by Jesus and God does not make idol threats. To the corrupted church at Thyatira Jesus says to her that if she did not repent of her sexual immorality that He would “cast her into a sickbed and those who commit adultery with her into great tribulation, unless they repent of their deeds. I will kill their children with death and all the churches will know that I am He who searches the minds and hearts.”
Lets face it brothers and sisters there are very few who can handle this Jesus. The Jesus who can strip away the lamp-stands of churches and leave nothing but the bare bones of religion. Without the light of Christ one is left only with a vain philosophy. Yet ambitious men can stand upon the bare bones of religion and elevate themselves above the others. While Jesus has no pleasure in institutions and denominations, men love them and men love numbers, they must have more. The more numbers, the more buildings, the more services the more one can boast in “their work.” In fact before the second century is out we come to another major deviation, infant baptism. What a great way to add to your numbers. No longer a believers baptism but an initiation ceremony that guarantees full and ever expanding buildings.
It all begins with men loving the preeminence. The desire to have authority over others. A self elevated position among the group. No longer would it be possible to invite men like John to “your,’ church, he would take the limelight away from the “clergy.” No longer would it be possible to worship in a 1 Cor 14 fashion where a plurality of peoples would be able to speak and share, this would take the limelight away from the ones who loved the preeminence. And so that old ancient curse that began with multiple churches refusing to repent even when Jesus Himself called them to it, still exists today and for the same reasons. How could these men repent of their un-biblical clery/laity divide? Admit they are wrong and always have been? They know it would end their “career,” their authority,” their standing in their community. They know they would just have to take their place with all the other brothers and sisters.
And so brothers and sisters, if there is to be a revolution among the Body of Christ the first thing to fall must be the clergy/laity divide. Only then could there truly be a return to the “old paths,’ to the Word of God and the pattern laid down. For clergy rely upon being clergy for their identity. It is who they are. They are keepers of the status quo and could never allow a 1 Cor 14 model to develop in their midst, because in a relatively short order, when order is reestablished and the Church leaders are but “elders,” and “presbyters,’ and “overseers,” then none are elevated above the other. If you have the courage, and it will take courage because of the negative reaction that will come against you, next Sunday, ask your “senior pastor,” ( a made up name) to justify to you from the Word, the clergy/laity divide. If he deems to answer your question, it should be very interesting. Please share any replies here for the saints to read.
No matter the darkness the light prevails
Just as we saw in the thorns and the nails
Victory in Jesus as the darkness drew near
Victory over hell and death and fear
The world may languish and be spiraling down
Yet victory belongs to the one with the crown
Glory and majesty with the dawns early light
Filled with His strength and ready to fight
The proud shall fall never more to rise
His glory shall be revealed in magnificent skies
The sun shall flee and the moon disgraced
The stars in the heavens are violently displaced
The King of kings, the Lord of all ages
Steps down once more as the devil rages
The victory is complete, the darkness no more
The ravenous lion has given his last roar
In the last days the prophets of old still speak to us. None more so than the prophet Isaiah. The prophetic word of God echos down through the ages. It spoke to its first audience and it has continued to speak down through the corridors of time. God has always had a remnant in the land and in these last days they still remain. They have ears to hear what the Spirit says. God is still instructing His sons and daughters through the prophetic word from thousands of years ago. In Ecclesiastes we are told that “to everything there is a season.” We are further told that “He has put eternity in their hearts.”
The Lord our God is doing a work in this, the last season and He is calling out to His remnant saints, the ones who have eternity in their hearts, to come forth from the world and stand. Isaiah stepped forth and cried out with a loud voice “send me.” He took the prophetic words from God to a sinful Judah who were surrounded by sinful nations. Today there exists a sinful Christianity which is surrounded by a fallen world. Shall you stand? Can you hear? Can you see the fallen world and the state of the church? In Christ alone there is truth and we stand upon His word which never changes.
This book journey’s through many of the chapters of Isaiah that stood out to me. The Lord spoke to my spirit and I put pen to paper. As the world grows ever darker and shakes it angry fist, the prophetic word of God becomes all the more vital. What is God saying to His remnant saints? What is He saying to those who refuse to bow the knee to the gods of this world?
1Sa 10:19 And you have this day rejected your God, who himself saved you out of all your adversities and your tribulations; and you have said unto him, no, but set a king over us.
It seems very obvious what God is saying to His people, by choosing a man to lead them they were actually rejecting Him. What pain this must have caused the Father’s heart. He had made a people out of nothing and had delivered them time and again from trial and tribulation, hunger and captivity. He had opened up the sea before them and destroyed the most powerful army in the world for them. He had fed them in the wilderness and led them out. He had given into their hands the promised land. Yet all of these things were forgotten by a people who refused to look to themselves to see where the problem was. And before we are too judgemental, isn’t that exactly what we often do? We find ourselves in some kind of dire straits and we cry out and look for deliverance. We typically look to the world first.
We run to man. Who do you run too? Do you run to God? Is the Lord your Alpha and Omega? Is He your first choice? Or, is He often your last? We want a king. We want a pastor, a healer, a seer. We do not realize that when we depend on anything other than God we are in a very true sense rejecting God and choosing our own way. We look and see how the world handles it problems and we try and imitate them, how tragic. Whatever we give ourselves over to, it will certainly reign over us. God told the people that if they go down this road then a king will “take your sons and appoint them for his own chariots.” How many countless young men have died down through the ages fighting for a king? Not King Jesus mind you, but for a worldly king for worldly purposes. God told them that a king “will take the best of your fields, your vineyards and your olive groves.” Think of the poor share croppers barely scratching out a living while the “landowners,” become very wealthy.
God told them that a king will take your young men and your young women and your donkeys and he will put them to work for his own purposes. He will take a tenth of your sheep and you will be his servants. And in that day when your are totally oppressed you will cry out to me, God says, and “the Lord will not hear you in that day.” We live in a world today that is totally given over to its own systems. A world that has totally rejected God in favor of themselves. They work but they cannot get ahead. They are taxed at every turn. Wars have consumed whole generations of young men. There have been more killed in wars in the last 120 years than in all the wars down through the corridors of history, combined. We are seeing the ultimate conclusions of men rejecting God and choosing for themselves their own ways. The tower of Babel has risen and stands so much taller than the ancients could ever have imagined………and great will be its fall. And yet, in the midst of all of that, God has a people not given to the world and Jesus is their King.
1Sa 3:7 Now Samuel did not yet know the LORD, neither was the word of the LORD yet revealed unto him.
Samuel, although a child of promise, did not know the Lord “yet.” In the previous chapter we read that the sons of Eli did not know God. “Now the sons of Eli were corrupt, they did not know the Lord.” Yet God was now calling to Samuel. Three times He calls to him in the night. What fear must have struck Eli when he realized that while God was not talking to him, the priest, he was engaging the child, Samuel. It must have been clear to him that his time had passed and that certainly his sons were passed over and under judgement. In fact we are told that the Lord desired to kill his sons and sure enough they would be killed. In order to know God we must encounter God. Samuel would have known the word and would have been taught the word even as a child, yet it was not until God encountered him that he “knew,” him. This concept of “knowing God is so important. God says to many in that day, who claim to know Him and who have done many works in His name “depart from me ye workers of iniquity for…..I never knew you.”
And what was the word that came to Samuel? A frightening word indeed in regard to the corrupt priesthood and those who refused to do anything about it.God says “For I have told him that I will judge his house forever for the iniquity which he knows, because his sons made themselves vile and he did not restrain them.” God says that the word is frightening, so frightening indeed that it would make the ears “tingle,’ which is akin to the teeth chattering with fear. Now how did Eli know? In the previous chapter we see that ” a man of God,” came to Eli. A nameless man of God. not another prophet or a king, a nameless man of God. No doubt Eli might have had little difficulty dismissing this nameless man of God. Eli’s greatest crime? “Why do you kick at My sacrifice which I have commanded in My dwelling place and honor your sons more than Me, to make yourself fat with the best of the offerings of Israel my people.” Eli honored his sons more than he honored God. Eli made himself fat with the offerings that were for God. His sons had made themselves fat.
Can I put it to you that there are a lot of fat men in the land of Christendom. They have fattened their hearts on the offerings they take in the name of God. They honor their own more than they honor God. They go to great lengths to elevate themselves and their own and yet in order to do this they must dishonor God. If you love anything more than God then you are not worthy to be His disciples. If you cause His name to be dishonored in the public square, if the name of God is mocked because you rob and you steal from the people ( you are actually stealing from God) then God will cause something to come upon you that you could never see coming. The very first thing that shall happen is they He will not talk to you. You will not hear the Word of God. He will speak to others, others you may actually despise, and it will make you angry and jealous and fearful, but He will not speak to you. What you have so meticulously built up over the years and decades, in one night God will tear down. Eli was warned by an unnamed man of God and he chose to ignore it. We ignore God at our great peril.
Over many many years Absalom stole the hearts of the people of Israel. You see, Absalom wanted what his father had. He wanted the exalted place among the people. He would rise up early and stand beside the gate and those who came looking for the king, he intercepted them and spoke to them. They were not his people, they were his fathers people but Absalom, falling foul to that most ancient of sins that caused Lucifer to fall down from the heavens, desired to have what was not his to have. And so he wooed the hearts of the people away from their King.
Is that not the very essence of religion? There is one mediator between man and God and His name is Jesus. How many men and religious institutions have sought to replace Jesus over all the centuries? One pretender after another, rising early in the morning, slowly and deceptively seeking to displace God and stealing the hearts of the people away from their rightful King. And all the worse is the fact that so many of these men and institutions knew something of the mercy of God, had been blessed in many ways by His goodness and His forgiveness. They had been touched by His love and by His word which only serves to make their deception and their desire to have what He alone has all the more treacherous.
And so finally David hears of this rebellion against him. Oh what a dagger must have penetrated his heart, to know that his very own had turned on him. One that he loved and had forgiven and had showed mercy too, and he repaid all of that with hatred and animosity and a heart bent on taking what was not his. It is hard to imagine the anguish of David, now no longer a young man, having suffered so much in his life and so much of it undeserved, now as an older man, having to flee from everything that had been his. The city of David, the tabernacle, the ark of the covenant would all be left behind and he and a remnant few would flee the jealous forces that were arraigned against him. They would flee into the wilderness.
Today there is a remnant few who have fled into the wilderness. They have left the city behind with all of its religious trappings. No walls, no tabernacle, no ark of the covenant. Stripped of all the religious trappings, they have something that David had. He had the presence of God with Him. Not that which represents the presence, but the actual presence of God. While religious men hung onto the trappings and rituals and icons, for that is all they have, David goes into the wilderness, the remnant go into the wilderness with God Himself. And as he ascended Gods holy hill he wept, he and the people with him wept. With tears the seed is sown brothers and sisters, tears of sorrow for what has become of something that should have been so beautiful and brought glory to God, but has been so thoroughly corrupted by men who desire to steal the glory of God and steal the hearts of the people.
Do not despair in the wilderness brothers and sisters. In God we have peace no matter what men think about us. In God we can rejoice despite the fact that the forces of Absalom are arrayed against the remnant few. Listen to some of the things that David says in this time and be comforted…… Because thou hast been my help, therefore in the shadow of thy wings will I rejoice…… because thy lovingkindness is better than life, my lips shall praise thee……….I remember thee upon my bed, and meditate on thee in the night watches……….From the end of the earth will I cry unto thee, when my heart is overwhelmed: lead me to the rock that is higher than I……………………. For thou hast been a shelter for me, and a strong tower from the enemy.
There is an inevitable end to the forces of Absalom, those who would attempt steal the glory of God and from His King. David speaks to this very thing and to those very forces in psalm 63……But those that seek my soul, to destroy it, shall go into the lower parts of the earth. They shall fall by the sword: they shall be a portion for foxes. But the king shall rejoice in God; every one that sweareth by him shall glory: but the mouth of them that speak lies shall be stopped. Glory to God saints! Is the end we shall come out of the wilderness by the power of God. The soul that weeps, the soul that thirsts after God in the wilderness shall find joy and inexhaustible waters of life even in the driest deserts and when He comes again into His rightful place then all of God saints will rise up and cry Holy.
I remember I was involved in some meetings in Scotland and Wales. The first one in Scotland was a large outreach to the community over several nights, the second one was a revival meeting in Wales. A dear brother, one of my dearest friends, a pastor from Oklahoma was going with me. He got a call from one of the moderators telling him in no uncertain terms not to have anything to do with me and that if he did, things would not go well for him. The problem? Apparently I was a Pentecostal. This man caused all kinds of problems and in his self righteousness did great damage to the meetings in Wales. Many , many years before that he had been involved in a “revival,’ therefore he “qualified,” to be in the revival industry. And believe me brothers and sisters, so much of it is an industry with books and conferences and so on. Revival in and of itself was worshiped. Where was Jesus? Why was His name not high and lifted up? Rather than pursuing Jesus, so many were simply pursuing ghosts of a bygone age, seeking to replicate it and any deviation from what they understood about it caused major problems.
There is a lot of talk about revival right now. I’ll tell you why I do not like that word. It competes with Jesus. If a move of God supposedly happens there are two broad groups of people who immediately respond. Group 1 says “It is definitely a revival.” Group 2 says “It is definitely not a revival.” And in these two groups are all manner of bias and that bias comes immediately to the fore. Somewhere in the middle is a group of people who would love to see God move, yet, because of the horrendous history of so called revivals in the past or churches who claim to have a revival every Sunday, they wait. They wait hopefully. They do not attack anyone. They do not make assumptions. They do however long to see a mostly religious Christendom actually encounter the Living God in ways that mean they can never return to the world from which they came.
If all you are talking about is revival, then you are talking about the wrong thing. If you are running with the crowd then you are most likely running in the wrong direction. It is Jesus first and last. It is His Word and the Baptism of the Holy Spirit that we rely upon. Without either, we can do nothing. If you are a cessationist then you have much greater problems than whether some meeting somewhere is of God or is not. This frenetic activity from the two broad groups of folk underlies a fundamental lack of Godly wisdom. In the days ahead, with the world coming to its end, and with gross darkness falling all around us, we will desperately need discernment and patience and wisdom from God above. Delusions, lying signs and wonders, angels of darkness appearing as angels of light, they are all going to increase with an alarming speed. Drawing close to God and His Word will be a vital aspect of our walk, and should always be, but all the more so as darkness descends. Draw close to Jesus brothers and sisters. Only by His name being lifted up will men and women be drawn to God. All other names, all other words, have no power.
2Th 2:3 Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition;
Deception is never very far away. In all ages, unscrupulous men, men who typically do not work by their own hand but rather are “supported,” by others, have spread falsehoods and deceptions, selling themselves as ones who “know.” Paul addresses this very thing. Certain men had told them Thessalonians that Christ had already come back, that somehow they had “missed the boat,” so to speak. Paul gently reminds them of what he actually taught them. He reminds them that first there must be a great falling away from the faith. He reminds them that “He who now restrains,” will do so until He is taken out of the way. The lawless one must be revealed. There will be lying signs and wonders that will fool those who are not saved. This strong delusion will be sent by God Himself but it will not affect those who have “received the love of the truth.” The lawless one will be consumed by the breath of His mouth and the brightness of His coming, His second coming. Brothers and sisters, do not be deceived by preterists, so called or partial preterists and others who tell you that Jesus already came back, that all of this was fulfilled in 70ad. It is amazing to me that the same men, of the same character, who lied to the Thessalonians are still with us today and still deceiving foolish people who have not “received the love of the truth.”
It is one thing to hear the truth. It is even another thing to accept and agree with the truth, it is entirely another thing altogether to love the truth, to such an extent that one would suffer the loss of all things for it. Jesus is the truth. To be a lover of Jesus is to be a lover of the truth. It is like a mighty shield wall that stands immovable against all lies and lying signs and wonders. Receiving the love of the truth is to be marked eternally. It is to have rivers of molten lava flowing through our veins. It burns at the heart of who we are.It burned in the heart of every single martyr down through the ages, and there were millions of them, who could not and would not deny the truth that was revealed to them. Those who receive the love of the truth are dismantled piece by piece and rebuilt in the image of the Lord Jesus Christ. They are strong in the Lord and the power of His might. They speak in a way that is beyond their capacity for they speak by the power of the Holy Spirit who leads them and guides them into all truth. Paul says, in the starkest terms, that term being “we command you,” (he rarely commanded anything) “withdraw from every brother who walks disorderly,” according to the things Paul has just said. Have you received the love of the truth?
2Th 1:5 Which is a manifest token of the righteous judgment of God, that ye may be counted worthy of the kingdom of God, for which ye also suffer:
Paul is thanking God for the Thessalonians. And he is thanking God for the evidence that they are indeed saints. What is the qualifications that Paul is speaking of? 1. They have growing faith. 2. That growing faith leads to an abundance of love for their fellow saints. 3. They had patience and faith and love and endurance even as they suffered greatly through tribulations and persecution. And then Paul says this, he says that all of this was “manifest evidence,” of the righteous judgement of God that these Thessalonians were counted worthy of the Kingdom of God. Manifest evidence is translated “indication.” There was every indication to God that these saints by their faith and by love and endurance in the midst of great trials , stood strong.
Is there every indication in my life and your life brothers and sisters that you and I will be counted worthy of the Kingdom of God? Do we love in abundance, especially those of the faith? Are we patient in persecution and trial? Does our trust in God hold firm? Does it compel us deeper into the heart of God? Matthew Henry says that if our faith is worth anything it is worth everything! Everything we have, every part of our hearts, every part of our lives in service and devotion to the One that we love. And the proof of it of course does not lie on the mountaintop, but rather in the depths of the valley in the midst of trials and sufferings. This is where the “evidence,” comes to light. Under heat, under duress, in the crucible of life. Let us aspire to be counted worthy of the Kingdom of God and let this be evident to all who observe our lives.
Years ago I saw a documentary of a certain part of Africa. For 10 long months it sees no rain. First the mighty river dries up and then it becomes pools.Then the pools slowly shrink until they are nothing more than wet mud-holes. In this particular documentary, it showed a giant crocodile that had taken up residence right in the middle of a mud-hole. Despite its presence, deer and other animals risked their very lives in order to partake in the last of the water. A small number of animals, rather than taking up residence with the crocodile,undertook a long migration in search of water. Yet almost all the animals that were indigenous to this geographic location, refused to go in search of water and died before the rains came. Animals that in normal circumstances would never come within 100 yards of a crocodile, came right up beside him in a desperate attempt to get some satisfaction, from this drying mud-hole.
When God withdraws the rain of His presence from the church we see many strange things. The majority stay where they are and slowly die as they throw their lot in with their former predators.Others, like the deer that panteth for the water-brooks, are driven to make journeys they would otherwise never make. Driven out into the deserts and dry places in their desperate desire to find living waters. The tragedy for many in the “church” today is that they can live a life, devoid of His presence, and not even know that they are dying. Imagine that this ten months without rain is a season or seasons in Christendom. Generation after generation sucking on mud, barely surviving on the moisture that remains in the mud hole. Getting down and dirty in the mud, and being dangerously close to the world as they try to survive in the dry season. To try and operate in this world as a church without the Holy Spirit and the presence of the living God is to be reliant upon a mud-hole. Vestige of some by- gone days where once the river flowed. Talk of past victories but no present life. Living on memories and manna from a bygone age.
As someone who now lives in Kansas, a place that only gets about 33 inches of rain a year, I know how dry the ground can become and how deep that dryness is. At first when it rains the rain merely flows over the top surface. The ground is so hard it does not penetrate. It needs to consistently rain over several days for the ground to become saturated,to be thoroughly penetrated. Flash floods come and go very quickly and when it is gone, it is like it has never rained because it never penetrated. Yet, when it rains consistently over time, the effects are deep and lasting.There is a deep penetrating rain coming for Gods people. He has taken His people into the wilderness, the valley of death, the valley of decision. Because of the intensity of the battle that lies just ahead of us, it was and is necessary for the Lord to take His people into the desert place of testing. They have left the mud-holes of the world and the crocodiles behind. They refused to stay and die in a place of compromise. They have been driven into the desert and there they will find the Church, in a place where it seems impossible for anything to live, never mind thrive. Survival here does not depend upon traditions or past victories or the dusty heritage of religion. No, rather it depends upon the hand of God alone., A place where we once again cry out to the Living God for Him and Him only. Those who truly desire Him will stay in this place of testing. The Remnant of Gods people will prevail for our God is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.
Yes there is an intensity of persecution for Gods people just appearing on the horizon. There are storm clouds gathering even as you read this. There is coming a time such as has never been seen before for Gods people. Yet with huge storm clouds come great rain falls. God will pour out His Spirit in a such a way that His children will stand in the pouring saturating rain of His presence. And despite the intense persecution and all out war that the old serpent will wage on us, we will rejoice and glorify and lift our hands on high. We will praise God for the rain that falls. The persecution will seem light in comparison to the eternal weight of glory that is to be experienced in His presence. God will inhabit the praises of His people who worship Him with their whole hearts. Gods people will only care that His presence is with them. As long as He goes before them, they will follow. They will follow Him right into the valley of the shadow of death. For they know that He will lead them to the pure waters of life.They will allow nothing to separate them from their God. Stay the course brothers and sisters, the rain is coming, and then comes the King.
Eph 6:10 Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord, and in the power of his might.
In Paul’s final words to the Ephesians, he addresses all the different groups that he had spoken life into. He had instructed them in ways that they could only carry out by the power of the Holy Spirit. Whether that was Husbands to wives, wives to husbands, children to parents and parents to children, bond-servants to masters and masters to bond-servants, if they were to walk in Christ and be obedient to Him they must walk in the Spirit. This was not just good “how to,’ advice from a life coach or a marriage counsellor, this was instructions from God that could only be carried out by His spiritual children. Now the question was “will you walk in obedience to these instructions?” Will you “put off,” and “put on,” the things aforementioned? If you are willing to do these things then finally brothers and sisters, you must be strong in the Lord and the power of His might. Your obedience to God qualifies you to put on the whole armor of God. Do not be fooled, no disobedient servant shall put on this armor.
For this is a spiritual battle of unseen forces and this is where the victory will lie. As the days of this world wind down then the principalities and powers will rise up. The rulers of the darkness of this age and the spiritual hosts of wickedness in heavenly places shall come forward will great rage and boldness. They will attack truth from every imaginable angle and to the saints it will seem that we are being swamped and over run by the forces of darkness. It is, in effect, a last stand. Therefore saints, take up the whole armor of God that you may be able to stand in the coming evil day and having done all-to stand. Truth will be your core, it shall be fastened to you at the very center of who you are. The righteousness of Christ shall be your breastplate. It shall guard your heart against the darkness of unrighteousness. Your feet shall be secure as it stands upon the Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ of which we are not ashamed. Our trust in God shall protect us from the lies of Satan and his hordes, his threats shall not penetrate our hearts. And with our minds protected by our salvation and a sword in our hands then we shall hold our ground. We shall not move. We shall be an army of warriors who march upon our knees in prayer and supplication to the glory of God.
This stand, by the power of the Holy Spirit will fill us with boldness. We shall be bolder than we ever imagined. We shall be ambassadors for Christ even as we are shackled by the fleshly chains of men. Chained, perhaps, in this world, but free Sons and daughters of the world to come. This stand will of course, enrage the enemies of our souls. Think of the three Hebrew children. They may perish in the fire kindled by the hatred of men, but they would never bow down to the gods of this world. As we make out stand, as we refuse to bow down to the gods of this world, then we must expect the fire to come. Yet look again into the depths of the flames that surrounded the Hebrew children …….look…. can you see? The Son of man and the fellowship of the flames. We who worship Christ shall not burn, but rather we shall live forever in the glorious presence of our Lord and God. So brothers and sisters, lay down and put off that which hinders you from this fight and take up your cross. Put on the righteousness of Christ and the full armor of God and let us stand together. Back to back, side to side, lets us surround ourselves with our fellow saints and the Holy Spirit and let the battle of the ages begin, for Christ has already won the war!
Gal 1:8 But though we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel unto you than that which we have preached unto you, let him be accursed.
We are living in a day where the Gospel is under more threat than it ever has been in the last 2000 years. Quite an incredible statement when you consider the history of martyrs and persecution that took place century after century. We seem to believe that we must not condemn anyone who preaches “the gospel,’ and that the motivation must not be questioned, rather as long as the message is preached then we simply leave the motivation of the preacher to God. I agree with this. Let the Word go forth and let the Lord be the judge. Yet in the scripture we see something entirely different in regard to “another gospel.” If “another,” gospel is preached other than that which was delivered, then the one who engages in this is cursed. And unless we did not get it, Paul repeats himself ” I say again, if anyone preaches any gospel to you than what you have received, let him be accursed.” We should let that sink in for a moment. Paul pronounces a curse over those who preach a false gospel.
In the immediate context Paul is talking about legalizers or Judiazers. People who professed faith in Jesus but still were under the law and desired to see others under the law. Yet this curse is more than appropriate to ascribe to the “cheap grace” or the “prosperity gospel,” and the myriad of other so called gospels that exists today. We hear so many say “well as long as Jesus is being preached.” Jesus was being preached by those whom Paul was speaking of. In the end brothers and sisters, the Gospel is something that we receive through the Holy Spirit. And those who receive it recognize it in others. Paul did not receive it from anyone. In fact, after his salvation he was gone for three years into Arabia. And when he finally came to Jerusalem he only stayed for fifteen days where he conferred with Peter and James only, and then he was gone again for fourteen years. No one knew him personally in Judea, they had only heard of him. This “training,” that Paul received from God himself would mean that Paul would show no personal favoritism to any man, no matter what that man was perceived to be by others.
For I am not ashamed of the Gospel of of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believes; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek.(Rom 1:16) The Gospel is simply the good news about Christ and His Kingdom. It is personified in the fact that He has set you free from the bondage of sin and death. He came to set the captive free.He came to restore the broken. He has redeemed our fallen souls. He has made a way for us to the Father and it comes only through Him. He loved you while you were yet in your sin. He who the Son sets free is free indeed, he is completely liberated from the curse of the law. And that last point is why he was so hated by many of the legalizers and why he would confront Peter to his face. Brothers and sisters, if we want to be friends with the world then never confront anyone about anything. Stay hiding in your silence. Peep out from behind your twitching curtains and watch as false gospels are taught everywhere and do and say nothing. Doing that will make you the exact opposite of Paul. There is nothing loving about fearful silence wrapped up in virtuous overtones. Its the truth that sets men free, not your love. Your love only makes a difference when it is aligned with truth. Jesus alone and His gospel is the way the truth and the life.
Our role in the coming days (lengthy)
The Body of Christ has not changed down through the centuries. Always at her core she has been called to be an eye-witness to God’s glory. This is the essential heartbeat of Gods remnant bride and always will be. She is a tabernacle in the wilderness, she is Gods temple here on earth. At the same time she has always been despised by the religious spirit because she speaks truth to power. In these days God says in His word through His prophet Zechariah that ” In that last day a fountain shall be opened up for the house of David.” God Himself says again through the prophet that (speaking of Christendom) “Two thirds in it shall be cut off and die. But one-third shall be left in it. I will bring the one-third through the fire, I will refine them as silver is refined and test them as gold is tested. They will call on my name and I will answer them. I will say ” This is my people.” (Zec 13:8-9)
And so we see that a fountain shall be opened in that day for the house of David. Can you imagine how welcome a fountain would be in the midst of a dry and thirsty land, a land racked with drought and famine? I want us to look at two men of God and see what parallels we can draw. Let’s look at Noah and as we do let’s think about the context of the time in which he lived. It’s a time and a place of great wickedness and there would only be a tiny fraction saved out of this. Noah is commissioned to build an ark over a long period of time. We know that Noah faced ridicule and scorn. What he was building have never been built before. And, rain had never fallen from the sky and the notion that the whole earth would be covered by a flood was preposterous to all who lived then.
Every day the people could hear Noah’s hammer. Every day the ark took shape and was rising up. The continuous hammering would have been a great source of irritation to all around him. Noah would have to keep building despite the ridicule and the scorn and the anger because the rain was surely coming and he was being obedient to his calling. We too as Gods remnant people have to keep true to what the Lord has called us to do. We are also in the ark business. There was one place of salvation when the rains of judgment began to fall, it was the ark. Can I put it to you brothers and sisters that the remnant church of God is God’s ark built by the hands of Jesus. The Body of Christ.
With the judgments beginning to fall, with the beginning of the birth pangs, it will become apparent that God has a people who have not bowed the knee to Baal. God is getting ready to reveal His ark by bringing judgment and allowing the rise of the anti-christ. This ark will be a witness to the glory of God and His way of escape. This ark will be used as a last chance for the un-redeemed of the world to be saved before final judgment. This ark will be revealed to the world by persecution. All of the world will see this ark and they will be without excuse when that day comes. This ark is the glory of Christ here on the earth and He reveals Himself through what He has built.
Now lets consider Joseph and consider the context and the back-drop of his day. Here we have Joseph who has been called to save a remnant. “And God sent me before you to save a Remnant in the earth and to save your life by a great deliverance.” ( Gen 45:7) Before Joseph could do this he had to be scorned and ridiculed by his own. Because of dreams and visions, that scorn turned to anger and hatred. He was then rejected and sold into slavery. He is then wrongfully accused and ends up in prison, seemingly forgotten and forsaken. God of course had never left him. This is way of the remnant. Yet God had not forsaken Joseph and even in prison Joseph moved in the supernatural and he found God’s favor. He was able to interpret dreams and visions and this would lead him to see that a great famine was coming upon the land. He was able to make provisions that would save “A Remnant in the earth.”
Can you see the pattern behind this brothers and sisters? Can you relate to the suffering and the rejection and the fact that he seemed forsaken? Joseph was surely plagued by this as he languished in prison. The pattern is clear. When there is great judgment coming upon the land, God has a people or a person whom He will send ahead to enable whoever will, to escape that judgment. God has created such a vehicle in the Body of Christ. And they too, just like Joseph, must be despised and rejected by the very one’s they have been sent to save. This is the divine pattern. We see our Lord Jesus walk down this path. He came from the glories of heaven and the right hand of the Father, emptying Himself and humbling Himself in order to walk amongst those who He had come to save. He became despised and rejected, tortured and killed.
And now with the final judgment fast approaching, the ark which Jesus has been building for 2000 years is almost ready. God’s remnant church comes from every possible background and across all denominational lines. ( artificial walls built by men and not by God) Through the last 2000 years they have been scorned, ridiculed hated and despised and hunted down and killed and almost all of this was done by "their own.” Their own being people who would profess God with their lips but their hearts are far from Him. Yet God in His mercy will reach out and continue to reach out through His Body while there is yet time. A witness until the very end. A faithful Body and a people without excuse.
The Body of Christ is everywhere. It is in every village, every town , every city and every nation on the earth. There are countless millions of Gods own children around the world. For the most part they are swallowed up in Christendom with its multiplicity of divisions and man made walls. Yet, the closer to Christ’s return is, the more and more difficulty the Body of Christ will find within the denominations of men. Could a saint really stay within the confines of any organisation that has corrupted itself with the world?
This will be the ever increasing pressure that will be brought to bear on the saints in the coming days. Only the individual saint can answer this question for his or her self. The Word of God and the Holy Spirit must be a lamp unto our feet. As the darkness increases our need for the light that shines forth from the Scriptures and the Holy Spirit who gives us not only revelation but inspiration only becomes greater and greater.We have a God who will never leave us nor forsake us. We must trust Him with our whole hearts.The Word of God and His doctrines were written to be understood by even the simplest among us, in fact God delights in confounding the wise by the foolish things of this world. The doctrines of men are generally complicated and confusing. Stay with the Word, lean upon the Holy Spirit for understanding and insight. Do all of this with your whole heart and you will not go far wrong. He did not leave us as orphans, praise God.The Holy Spirit will lead and guide His children through not only good times but through the darkest valleys and the narrowest portions of the path that leads us home.
Men and women will always choose chains. They will readily accept being in bondage as long as they can exercise their baser desires. The anarchy of the heart and soul reign, and the civilized order that gave rise to the west, presents a true problem to the lunatics that have taken over the asylum. The madness that was contained within the walls of law and order and decency has broken loose. Where did we see this kind of madness in history? Caligula? Nero? In the French court prior to the revolution where the perverse plied their trade? In the halls of the English boarding school system that gave rise to all manner of perversion? And yet it was always contained. Hidden away in the shadows and the alleyways of our “decent society.” The word decent is described as conforming to the recognized standard of society, good taste, modest, as in behavior or speech.
This recognized standard is not particularly etched in stone or written down in a some constitution. It is more like an atmosphere. The prevailing wind of opinion. The rising or falling tides of what is or what is not acceptable. What is the recognized standard of our day? And who does the recognizing? Is it a collective? Once it was the religion of Christianity that defined and defended “decency.” Their decency was derived from the teachings of Jesus. It may have been, for the most part, all just religion, yet it held us together as a society and held back the purveyors of moral and spiritual anarchy. The old notions were enshrined in the law and the law was based upon the Word of God as its final arbiter, meted out no doubt by very imperfect men. Yet what was ever the alternative? To remove God, even the imperfect notion of God, from our laws and out of our national Zeitgeist? Then we had to replace it with another invisible agent. The invisible agent of self.
Self rules. Its not what displeases God anymore, it is what offends man. He does not want to be questioned nor judged by anyone. Women are equally guilty of this “self.” Men have wars and women have abortions, either way there is a slaughter. It is the children who always pay a price for the perversities of adults. Consider the last 120 years. 120 million killed in wars. In America alone, at least 64 million babies murdered. Death and destruction follow after self. 200 million souls lost in that time period. This far exceeds the deaths of all wars combined, in the history of humanity! How did it come to pass that our level of barbarism has risen to far exceed anything that has ever came before us? Yet we would never dream of calling ourselves Barbarians, but that is what we are. God is no longer the invisible agent that moves and restrains societies, self is. This is the generation that collectively worships self and has, with a very loud public voice, rejected God.
This is the great falling way. We are the Godless generation of the last days. In 2 Tim 3 this generation is described. Paul says that men would be lovers of themselves. One might argue that men have always loved themselves but Paul puts this in his descriptive list. This is a love of self far beyond anything we have ever seen before. He says that the Godless generation of the last days would be without natural affection. That phrase is the Greek word is astorgos which means to be have your heart hardened towards your own family. Consider the baby in the womb and the love of a mother for her child. A mothers love is legendary and yet the phrase that rings out from younger woman is “my baby, my choice.” Choice to do what? To kill it. Even in nature we see a mother bear would fight to the death to save her cubs, yet so much of humanity is now without even the very basics of natural affection. They are lovers of pleasure more than lovers of God, or even lovers of their own children.
Brothers and sisters, no matter what invisible agent the masses have given themselves to, we, the saints, have not nor ever will change. Down through the corridors of time all the way back to the cross, God has had His people, His remnant saints. They have oftentimes been persecuted by renegade societies and political and religious tyrants. Yet in all these things they have never bowed their knees to the gods of this world and the gods of this world are none other than the great god of self demonstrated in a throwing off of all restraints. Will the streets continue to be given over to lawlessness and anarchy? Yes. Will those who worship themselves trump all common decency and come after us? Yes. Yet, does God still reign? Yes He does. Does the truth still burn at the center of our hearts and flow like molten lava through our veins? Yes it does. If we are cut shall we not bleed mercy and forgiveness? Yes we shall. Does the cross of the Lord Jesus Christ still tower over all of humanity? Yes it does. Even the shadow of the cross burns into the consciences of men.
Where shall they run from this? They shall not run. They shall not hide and one day they shall come face to face with their own barbarity whether in this life or the next. We are a manifestation of Christ on the earth. When they see us they must see Jesus. Shall they fall at His feet or shall they call out “crucify Him.”To crucify His followers is an attempt to crucify Him afresh. And in those days we shall dwell in the shadow of the Almighty. He shall be to us a refuge and our High tower. With the armor of righteousness we shall stand fast in a day of culminating unrighteousness. Our enemies shall be those of our very household and but still we shall love. They will hate us with a perfect hatred but still we shall love. They will reject us and cast us out, but still we shall love. They will hunt us down and kill us, and yet…….we shall love our enemies. We shall not render evil for evil but rather we shall overcome evil in the victory of the cross and by the word of our testimony and we shall love not our lives unto death, the ultimate witness.
A sister in the Lord sent me an article about about someone who had visited a church and it was dark. Now, the author was speaking of physical darkness, the lights were turned down so low that she could not read. The irony was not lost on her that the opening song was about the Lord being the light in the darkness The last time I was at a church it was also dark. It had stadium seating as they do in the cinema. It was not dark when I entered, but soon enough the lights were dimmed, I guessed the “show,” was about to begin. Now why are countless churches operating in the dark? Could it just be a trend? Another fad? An attempt to appeal to a younger generation? Or, could it be as simple as the fact that this darkness truly represents their spiritual state? I tend to go with the latter.
“Entertainment.” Without the presence of God we must entertain the masses. So, just like the movies and secular concerts, we dim the lights and highlight the platform, put a spotlight on it. The platform in and of itself is an idol. I believe Luther tore down the idol of “The Eucharist,” and helped raise up the idol of the pulpit, the platform, the elevated place. People can sit in darkness because nothing is required of them. All the “action,” is taking place front and center and elevated. Then add the dry ice smoke machines and you have the whole ghastly package. Entertainment rules supreme, concert style worship and dimmed lights make sure the spotlight is on “the front.” Actual congregational worship and the proper 1 Cor 14 setting is dead, and in its place Hollywood rules supreme. Hollywood meaning that which is contrived is made to look real. May God bring down the curtain on this abomination.
2Co 6:17 Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you,
In this chapter Paul lays out the marks of the ministry, how we shall be known. As ministers of God, meaning the Body of Christ and all of its many members, who seek to live Godly in Christ Jesus, we shall be patient in the many tribulations that we will surely face. And here are just some of the many situations that we are commended to be patient in, as opposed to living your best life now. In needs, in distresses, when we are beaten for Christ and imprisoned for His sake. In working with our hands, in revolts and rebellions, in sleeplessness and in fastings. We shall be known for our kindness and our sincere love as we walk though all of these situations, showing Godly wisdom and sharing the knowledge of God in all places and to all people. We shall walk in the power of God and by the armor of His righteousness. We shall be honored but we shall also be dishonored but we shall be gracious in both states. Men will say good things about us, but equally many men will dishonor us with lies and false accusations. They will say that we are deceivers and agents of the devil himself, but no matter, let us continue to be patient. The remnant people of God will know of us but for the most part we shall be unknown.
To the world it will seem that we are cursed and are dying but we are blessed and we are walking in the true abundance of eternal life. It will be seen that we are men and women of great sorrow, and indeed we shall suffer the sorrows of this world but we rejoice in the glory of Jesus and in the sure knowledge of the eternal Kingdom of God. It will seem to many that we are poor and wretched and blind but we are truly rich in the treasures of heaven which were purchased in the midst of the fire by the hand of Christ Jesus. We are clothed in the white garments of righteousness and holiness and our blind eyes have been opened to see the glory of God and to gaze up into an open heaven. It seems to the world that we have nothing, but in the reality of the Kingdom of God we possess all things through our Lord and Savior Jesus. We who suffer with our Lord shall rule and reign with Him in the heavenlies and this our heart knows well. We have a peace that surpasses all understanding. We have a contentment that the world knows nothing of because it is not based on any worldly things. Now brothers and sisters, what has just been here described is the common walk of the genuine saint.
We must walk in Christ alone and find our fellowship with others of like mind. We must not be unequally yoked. For what fellowship has righteousness with unrighteousness? Can we fellowship with those who are willful transgressors? Not according to the Word. What communion can light have with darkness? For those who are in the light walk in the light and they have fellowship one one with another. Does Jesus and the devil have fellowship? Is it possible for believers and unbelievers to walk together under the banner of Christ? Brothers and sisters, it is incumbent upon us to understand this, the weight of these directives fall upon us in this matter of fellowship. In this day and age of watered down Christianity, a Christless and crossless Christianity, it is up to us to find the saints who walk as Paul admonished us to walk in this very chapter of 2 Cor 6. God Himself says, no rather He commands, in the very context of this chapter, that we are to “come out from among them and be separate and do not touch what is unclean.” In following these commands He promises to receive us and that He would be our Father and that we would be His sons and daughters. He promised to dwell in us and walk among us where two or three are gathered together in the mighty name of Jesus, and He will be our God and we shall be His people. Glory to God!!!
A Call To The Remnant 