The Kingdom of God

(Luke 15: 11-32)

The kingdom of God is not of this earthly creation.  It is righteousness, peace, and joy in the Holy Spirit.  It is spiritual.  Jesus told Nicodemus that one most be born of heaven to see the kingdom.  Spiritual birth is needed for each of us.  It has been said and written before that this can seem gradual, or instantaneous.  But a moment occurs for each person who is truly born of the Spirit where that one knows it.  The circumstances vary leading to that moment but the birth must happen.  Like a child is birthed out of the womb, we are awakened to the kingdom.  The child is brought out into the world.  The newborn babe in Christ is aware something exists beyond this world.

I notice how often we confuse our earthly attempts to understand with the reality that the kingdom is not knowable by earthly understanding.  It is the problem with training and endless reading of books.  Our desire for understanding is not wrong but I am aware of the desire to be a teacher.  We want a ministry, to be respected, admired in God’s house.  Too often we have been taught that acquiring knowledge is the highest goal.  In proverbs we are exhorted to gain wisdom, to gain understanding.  The knowledge of the Holy One is understanding.  When the Lord revealed the new covenant to Jeremiah, that prophet declared, you will not teach one another to know the Lord for you will all know me, from the least to the greatest.

And how did Jesus define the greatest?  The greatest shall be the servant of all.  Long ago I heard and received this truth.  We are here to wash one another’s feet.  I hear of redemptive gifts and I understand them to be a description of our natural personality inclinations.  These need to be subject to the cross.  While some of us may be seen by others and our own selves as servants, we are all called to be servants.  If we put on Christ, we put on the greatest servant of all.  He was the Highest and emptied Himself to become the servant of all mankind.  This is a mystery!  It is also the greatest truth of all.

The kingdom of God is a vast family of servants.  A family of those who know the will of God and do it.  Jesus said many times, “To what will I compare (liken) the kingdom of God?”  It is like a king who had two sons.  He often began with that phrase.  We have a king and are like two sons.  Jesus contrasted the two sons.  One of them we want to be like.  The other, not so much.  Have you ever refused to rejoice in the salvation, or victory, or blessing of another?  Have you been nursing disappointment?  That elder son was such when the wayward brother returned home.  “Dad, you never gave me a party, and look all you are doing for this kid who wasted what you gave him?  And you want me to join this party? No way!”  Most amazing to me that the Father pleads with that bitter son to come in.  Pleads?  We could easily complain to that Father, “Why would you plead with him, that bitter guy?”  The Father’s heart is revealed that He looks for that elder brother to soften his heart.  The Lord loves him too.  He had been working too hard and not enjoying the blessings, even earthly ones, that the Lord had for him.

The kingdom includes both of these brothers.  The Father loved them both.  Both needed a repentance, a return and a restoration to right relationship.  We could say more about this story, this parable but we will let you go search more yourself.  We mentioned the desire for us to be teachers.  As we grow spiritually we should be teaching others.  This is mentioned in Hebrews regarding maturity.  It has taken a time for me to begin to write into the public sphere.  I had to come to a place of confidence in whom the Lord had grown me up to be.  I often say that what we need to do is quite simple.  Learn to sit at Jesus’ feet and listen.  Find good teachers.  Connect with genuine believers.  Move from one sheepfold to another.

In all this, move as the Good Shepherd directs you.  Have you been in one stream (denomination?) for your whole life, afraid or unwilling to drink from a richer stream?  Sorry but every denomination is just that.  Individual churches with denominational names are often now more alive than in the past.  Leadership is critically important.  If a leader is still not learning of the Lord and growing, you will come to a time you must move.  Do you know His voice?  You can know it, you must.  He creates the hearing ear.  He, the living God, wants you to know Him more than you know Him today.  This is the New Covenant in the blood of Christ.  Such is the kingdom of God.  It is filled with sons.

A Woman in the Heavens – Revelation 12

John was in the Spirit.  Heavenly revelations, unveilings, exposures were given to him.  These were similar to those seen by Ezekiel and Daniel.  These are spiritually understood.  Recently, I have read some of the historical interpretations of chapter 12 of Revelation and the visions recorded.  These comments did not address another understanding.  I had the privilege of knowing some saints who had grown through the movement known as Latter Rain.  With these and others such as Wade Taylor, I was exposed to teaching concerning sonship.  As with many “new” teachings, distortions abounded.  Jesus clarified it this way.  Love your enemies, bless them that curse you and so prove to be sons of your Father in heaven.  All other manifestations will ultimately be tested, some will be found illegitimate, and some will be disqualified.  The sons of the kingdom will be bound and cast into outer darkness.  Jesus said this.  I choose to be a son of our Father in heaven.

Those who learn to love like Jesus loves grow into true maturity.  This passage in Revelation reveals a woman in the heavens.  This woman is the bride, the wife, if you will, of the Lamb.  She has died to the law and been joined to the One who has brought us grace and truth (Romans 7).  She is in heaven now as the cloud of witnesses and extended to the earth among those who in experience are seated with Christ in the heavenlies.  So we, along with the Spirit and the bride and John, cry, “Come, Lord Jesus.”  Through intimacy and travail in prayer, she gives birth to a man-child.  Apparently, the Greek word refers to a mature man.  Isaiah said a nation would be born in a day.  The day is drawing near, and it seems to me, has already come in a measure.  The body of Christ is arising as a mature man, yet in child-like humility fully submitted to our Father. Many true disciples are praying for people all over the world with instant healings resulting.  Other manifestations of true spiritual authority are showing up.

Paul wrote to the Galatians, who were being drawn back to the law, that the Jerusalem above is our mother.  This is very important for God’s people to understand.  It is an aspect of our true identity.  I want to write this very carefully, meaning with grace and love.  The church, His bride, the wife of the Lamb, is not Jewish.  She is heavenly, she is of a spiritual constitution.  She is of a new creation.  This new creation began when the man Christ Jesus was raised as the first-born of new creation.  This cannot be emphasized enough.  A man sits on the throne of heaven.  He is no longer Jewish; He is the first of glorified man.  He was the last Adam, dying to sin for all of mankind and He was raised to a spiritual life, complete with a glorified body.  He is now a life-giving Spirit.  Words are insufficient to describe this One who is the glorified Christ.  This is mystery.

We are hearing that God desires a womb.  His people, His church, the called-out ones, are the bride of Christ now.   In the referenced passage, we see the woman gives birth.  Christ Himself is the initial birth.  We are the following brethren, those who know the will of God, and do it.  We must act as the Father directs us.  We are the sons in His divine, heavenly family, born of His Spirit.  And we see that with the exaltation of Christ to the heavens, that satan has no more place to stand as an accuser.  He is thrown down to the earth where we overcome him.  His main weapon is accusation against those who belong to the Lamb.  And we together overcome.  We need to put away the accusations he brings through us against each other.  I emphasize together.  I have resisted independent spirits.  Those frustrate the work of the Spirit.  It can happen in families, and in the church.  Its basis are wounds unhealed, unforgiveness, fears and insecurities, self-protection.  It inhabits such ground and we separate ourselves from those spirits.  I have done it.  We need for the Spirit to possess our land our souls, so the accuser has no ground to stand on.

To be sure, as Jesus withdrew from Judea, we wisely withdraw as needed.  We must go to the Shepherd, get healed up, and return to our place as prayers.  I mean those who pray.  I am careful with our titles that can sound prideful to others, yet they are real, spiritual functions.  I mean intercessors, prayer warriors, watchmen, fire-breathers.  I have coined a new one.  Watch out.  By that last name I mean those who have the word of God in their mouths, speak it in His name (in His character) and it devours and silences His enemies, and ours.

Prayer, deep prayer, heavenly-minded prayer in intimate cooperation with Christ by the Spirit, brings to birth the new man that God desires.  This is interpretation of the picture we see in Revelation 12.  Yes, that man, that new man is already; he exists already.  He is the body of Christ.  Later in the passage John records that trouble will come to those who dwell on the earth.  The children of the woman are persecuted.  But rejoice you who dwell in heaven.  The more we identify with our place seated with Christ in the heavens, the more joy, the more new wine is poured out through us.  Have you heard the message of Psalm 91?  Dwell in the secret place under His shadow.  Live there, stay there.

Are you knowing, experiencing, the place of authority He offers to us, as seated with Him in the throne room of God?  I have seen in the Spirit empty seats waiting for those who will take them.  I could say to each one that He has a seat for you with your name on it.  It costs you time sitting at His feet.  You find when you take your seat, like Isaiah (Isaiah 6), you are not worthy, but He brings His fire to cleanse.  More than that, as you pour out tears like the harlot, He comes to wash your feet.  I weep again when I see Him love me like that.  He wants to share His eternal, heavenly life with you now.  Just take the time to draw near.

Humility, A Powerful Weapon

During this past Christmas season, I have been reading Terry Bennet’s book, “Why We Fight”.  He mentions the importance of Ephesians 4:1-3 as part of our arsenal.  It is critical to maintain the unity of the Spirit for growth to proceed.  I began to meditate on this passage and the power of humility was more firmly established in my relationships.  Haven’t we tired of fighting with others?  I have prayed to lose all my propensity toward anger as it always leads to temporary separations.  Anger itself is not the problem but angry, hurtful words pollute the atmosphere.  Paul and Barnabas came to a contentious issue and split.  It was apparently necessary as other separations have been, but I am weary of them.

I have been gripped with John 17 and Jesus’ awesome and wonderful prayer.  He prayed it and it will be fulfilled.  We are seeing it as we are learning to speak the truth in love.  In Ephesians 4, Paul writes, “I, the prisoner of the Lord.”  Are you His prisoner?  A prisoner of His love?  A love-slave, a bondservant of the One who is worthy of our lives?  From this platform, Paul exhorts them.  The NKJV uses the word beseech.  That is a powerful appeal.  He continues appealing that we might walk worthy of His calling.  The first criteria for this walk is humility and gentleness.  No self-assertion here but a lowliness of mind.

Ponder deeply the glory and fellowship Jesus left behind when He emptied Himself and took on human flesh to become the faithful high priest He is for us today.  We cannot analyze this; we need to see the heavenly.  The Son of God set aside His glory.  I cannot comprehend what this means.  May the Holy Spirit reveal it to us.  It is another message of His deep and unknowable love.  We are called to do the same.  It is foundational in our lives, in our spiritual nature, to walk in humility and meekness.  First, we need to have a revelation of the throne and heaven’s glory.

Some time ago, I visited the Last Days Ministries website.  Our sister Melody Green continues in the legacy of her husband Keith.  I love that brother now among the cloud of witnesses.  They republished a message of David Wilkerson which in turn referenced a piece by Frank Bartleman.  Frank was the historian of the Asuza Street revival.  Like Luke traveled with Paul and wrote the Book of Acts, Frank followed the wonderful moving of the Holy Spirit.  The title of the message was a Christless Pentecost.  How could that be?  How can it be that in that final day, some will say “Look what we did in your name.”  Works of power and healings done in Jesus’ name, and yet the Lord says, “Get away from me.”  Whose glory were those seeking; Jesus’ glory or their own?  Bartleman saw the diminishing of that movement.  He looked for that meek and lowly Jesus.  His yoke is our place of rest and where His glory shines through us.  May we see Him as He is and so walk as He walked.

We have often mistaken volume and “coming against the enemy”, as effective warfare.  To be absolutely sure, this can be exactly what is needed at certain times but I sense volume is not God’s only strategy nor tactic.  Some may disagree but to be direct, I have seen “Pentecostalism” become a hindrance to the growth of His kingdom.  We do not shout out the enemy, we cast him out with a word of true authority.  Years ago, I was with a group trying to learn deliverance.  A lot of words, a lot of noise but not enough real authority.  And some real mistakes.  Was the Spirit directing them?  True deliverance is real, necessary, and awesome.

I do not mean by all of this to diminish true working of God’s power.  We all long to see it but we do not want a show.  Jesus Himself did not want a spectacle.  The Lord has spoken to me and said, “You are Pentecostal.”  I wasn’t sure that was good but I understood what He was saying.  The passion, the fire of God, can be expressed through our emotions.  We do not want to restrain the Spirit’s expression through us.  I think of ones who truly expressed His life and displayed His power; Kathryn Kuhlman, John G. Lake, Smith Wigglesworth.  Among us are others; David Hogan, Heidi & Roland Baker, and now many others including young people out on the streets.  Believers stopping for someone and praying and spontaneous healings come!  Glory to God!  Todd White has inspired many to step out and this flow is increasing.  Sounds like Jesus, like the apostles.  They are going with the love of Jesus.

These works have one purpose; to draw the healed ones to the One who wants to be all for them.  I have received healings myself.  We learn who is the Source!  Praise God from whom all blessings flow.  Yes!  Praise Him!  That is humility.  Humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God that He may exalt you at the proper time.  He loves you and wants to bring you out and display His work in your life.  We live for His glory!  The goal is that His name, the name of Jesus would be known in the whole earth.

It seems that some of the church, that is the broad body of believers, still walk in a false humility.  We don’t want to look strange.  We cannot compare to those first apostles, we think.  Some of this comes from bad teaching, wrong believing, incomplete understanding.  I often hear prayer for the fear of the Lord.  Yes, we need that, it is the beginning of wisdom.  But we who have known that and had our beginning are moving into the second half of that verse.  And the knowledge (intimacy) of the holy one is understanding.  That brings the humility, that complete dependence and confidence in our Father to lead and direct us.