A Call for Disciples of Restoration

Heaven desires and the world groans for a true spiritual revolution for Jesus Christ and for His glory. For that to happen, the greatest need is for committed and dedicated disciples of Jesus Christ to be true salt and light on the earth. A spiritual revolution is not happening presently because most Christians are failing to be true and mature salt and light to the world around them. Why? One of the main reasons is that there is a famine of hearing, receiving, believing, and acting on true prophetic words. Note: There is a famine of true prophetic voices, but the greater famine is of hearing the true prophetic word and having the perseverance and endurance to stay focused on following that word to completion.

Rather than believing in and listening to a true prophet(s) and thereby learning what God is emphasizing, too many Christians are listening to other voices, especially the voice of self. The self, especially the hurting self, will either shut down or step up activity, and both are devastating to God’s purposes. Those who shut down will not be fruitful for the kingdom of God. Those who step up activity for the wrong reason will not be fruitful for the kingdom either, even if they are engaged in what would be termed spiritual work. They have sacrificed listening to and obeying God’s prophetic words for other things, even spiritual things, which gives them a false escape from the hurting self. It brings them attention, what their old nature is starving for.

Those who are prone to stepping up activity will be caught up at times in prophetic words that speak of their destiny and their value, words that validate them, as it were. Pseudo and immature ministers are becoming famous and prosperous by speaking about people’s destiny. These words are often motivated by the flesh and appeal to the flesh. God does, at times, speak about the future, but He really wants us to hear what He is saying about the here and now.

Because of the lack of hearing and acting on true prophetic words, most Christians lack true prophetic vision. The result is the acceptance of satanic or fleshly-inspired visions. This is often manifested in cultural and self-centered individualism. To those with discernment, it is obvious that secular society has been taken over by cultural society, but it is also obvious that the Church has been invaded by the same. Many sincere Christian individuals have subtly been captured by individualism, whether it is cultural or self-centered. Self-centered individualism will sometimes motivate one to be part of a group or to do things for others, but the underlying motivation and focus is upon receiving glory for self.

What is the way out of all of this self centered deception? Real surrender to the Holy Spirit! Real surrender that enables one to deny self, forsake all, take up their cross and follow Jesus. After all, one is not on the path of true discipleship unless they begin at this place of full surrender, which specifically involves the denying of self. The amount of surrender (yielding) to the Holy Spirit is directly proportional to the denying of self, both the good self and the hurting self.

In closing, I want to emphasize that we need a spiritual revolution. It doesn’t take many disciples to start a spiritual revolution, but it takes disciples who are focused on Jesus and others, rather than on self. These disciples will have ears to hear what God is saying through His true and mature prophets. They will cease listening to voices that distract them; they will cease being involved in activities—spiritual and otherwise—that feed the self. They will truly follow Jesus, seeking first His kingdom and His righteousness, and will be a vital part of the bride who is making herself ready. Their joy will be the joy of pleasing the Lord and not the pseudo joy of the world and self, which is always elusive, fleeting, and never fulfilling. They will never lose focus! Even in a storm, they will stay focused on Jesus and His will for them and His people. God is calling you to be such a disciple!

Witnessing to the Witnesses

Witnessing to the Witnesses
(7/13/2011)

When the deceived and overzealous witnesses come to your door, be prepared to be a victorious witness for Jesus Christ. Disciples of Jesus, the Christ, are to be promoters and defenders of the faith. To properly promote and defend the faith one must be born again, baptized in the Spirit, mature in the written Word of God, and part of the faithful remnant of believers.

If you are born again, baptized in the Spirit, an active part of the faithful remnant, and armed with the Sword of the Spirit, then you are ready for the battle. Therefore, when an opportunity comes knocking at your door, take the lead by the Spirit of God, and stand in victory for Jesus Christ. It is always important to remember that a major part of the battle with these witnesses is over who Jesus is. Those coming to your door have a battle plan, and their victory depends on your defeat. Their battle plan is to take unlearned people and overwhelm them with a mixture of truth and error; it is similar to Satan’s strategy with Eve. Your victory depends on your walk in the Spirit. To be forewarned is to be forearmed!

To be victorious against this assault, and it is a spiritual assault, one must be born again, baptized in the Holy Spirit, mature in the written Word of God, unified with true disciples, and most of all, living in ongoing intimate fellowship with God—Father, Son, and Spirit. If you meet these qualifications, then you are prepared for the battle. Stand clothed in the spiritual armor that God has provided for His soldiers, have the sword of the Spirit drawn and ready., and follow the Holy Spirit to victory for Jesus. In love speak the truth. Ward off the lies and deceptions of the enemy, and be a victorious witness for Jesus.

Disciples must be intimate with Jesus and knowledgeable of the whole counsel of His Word of truth. Remember that the Holy Spirit is here to lead to victory and bring to your mind what you have stored in your heart.

In closing, I will say that for certain ones who come to your door, you will be wise to hold them to John 1:1. They will want to move around in their bible, but stay in the lead. They are on your property, and you are a disciple of Jesus. Take the offensive, and victoriously defend the gospel of Jesus and His kingdom. Stand your ground in love and truth!

Why John 1:1? The witnesses will speak of Jesus being the son of God, but their bible does not make Him God. Where your Bible concludes verse one with “and the Word was God,” theirs reads that he was “a god.” There is no need to allow them to go anywhere else in their bible or yours until they acknowledge that Jesus is God.

They will want to go to John 1:18 and many other verses, but hold your ground. As you grow in your defense of the truth, you must also have an answer for John 1:18, but for a start, hold your ground with John 1:1. They will fight you spiritually and try to overwhelm you emotionally, but stand your ground in love and truth. They will eventually repent or leave. If they leave, you will have planted truth about Jesus in their minds and hearts. As they approach other prepared disciples, the truth you planted will be watered, and eventually, they may yield to truth and be set free.

The Holy Spirit will work with you while you plant God’s truth, and He will continue to work to set them free when true and mature disciples continue to witness the truth of God. So be prepared to be led of the Spirit. Give Him something to work with in the hearts and minds of others.

Speak Words of Peace and Blessing

Anxiety in the heart causes depression, but a good word
makes it [the heart] glad. —Proverbs 12:25 [brackets added]

Our message this morning will be titled "Speak Words of Peace and Blessing." Jesus came that we might have life and life more abundantly (John 10:10). This is true whether times are good or difficult. Jesus is always present with us, and His words are always words of life for His family. He desires that we receive and live by His words and share them with others, beginning in our homes.

These are difficult times, but whether times are good or difficult, Jesus is on the throne. We can reign in life because He reigns. We can always have His inner peace and release His peace to others through our words of peace and blessing if only we will yield to the Holy Spirit (the Spirit of Jesus) and allow Him to control our lives, including our tongues.

The Word of God teaches us that there is the power of life and death in our tongues. Some Christians are speaking death to themselves and those around them, rather than life and life more abundantly. The devil and the world have robbed them of their inner peace and blessing, and they are functioning as the devil’s "stressmakers," rather than God’s peacemakers. Their words often release stress and emotional turmoil, rather than peace and blessing. Sickness—mental, emotional, and/or physical—is on the way. Stress and the resulting anxiety can put adults and children in fetal positions, figuratively or literally. The “good news” is that this doesn’t have to be. In John 10:10, Jesus tells us that the devil comes to steal, kill, and destroy, but He (Jesus) comes to give us life, and life more abundantly. He didn’t just come to do something for us thousands of years ago; He comes to us by His Spirit in the here and now. He is an ever-present help in our times of need.

Christians are to have inner peace in the midst of both good and difficult times because Jesus is our “Prince of Peace.” Jesus enables us to have peace and to share it with others, beginning in our homes. Outer peace is a result of inner peace. Jesus makes it possible for His disciples to not only have peace but to speak words of peace and blessing to others, again beginning in our homes. Let’s allow Him to do so! Let’s resist the devil and his ways and words and replace them with God’s ways and words. If you give commands and use phrases such as, "you need to do this and that, or you will get this and that," make sure they are from the Lord and spoken in love. Stressful commands and phrases don’t reveal inner peace, and they seldom, if ever, bring life to others. "Spare the rod and spoil the child" does not mean to inflict injury, whether it is physical, mental, or emotional.

In summary, the devil’s spirit and ways of saying things are different from God’s Spirit and ways of saying things. The devil’s way causes and releases harmful results! Injury can be inflicted on adults and children by the devil’s ways and words. God’s way causes and releases peace and blessing. We are overcomers because Jesus is our Overcomer! If you have made mistakes in these or any other areas, receive God’s forgiveness and not the devil’s condemnation. Go forward in the Spirit! The Lord Jesus bless and keep you and your family!

Fourth of July

Happy 4th of July! May all Christians in our wonderful country humble themselves, repent, and unite in faith to be God's salt and light so that He will heal our precious country.

Lord God, we give You thanks and desire to worship You in spirit and truth. We declare that this is Your day and Your country! We will celebrate, give thanks and make intercessions this day. We will do Your will. In Jesus Name!

Supernatural Fellowship Versus Natural Fellowship

We need local churches that will fulfill our Lord's will for the Church He is building. Fellowship will be a vital part of these churches, but it is supernatural fellowship (Koinonia) and not just a natural fellowship taking place in a church setting.

Many people attended a church today to fulfill natural needs and desires in a spiritual setting rather than fulfilling God's will and purposes for them. It gives them a pseudo feeling of pleasing God and fulfilling the built-in need to be part of God’s family. Watch them throughout the coming week, and you will see the fruit of the natural man and not the fruit of the born again, Spirit-filled, Christ-centered man. They love for you to join them in their walk. In fact, in some cases, they will insist upon it. Such deception. But truth heard and received will set free and put one on God's path.

Who has ears to hear and hearts to obey? Where are the ministers who will insist upon forsaking all to follow Christ and do things His way instead of keeping people in a comfortable setting doing things man's way and calling it God's way?

God is going to find out who is really committed to Him and His sold out apostles, prophets, evangelist, pastors, and teachers. Will you be a Christian (disciple) who will yield to the fire of the Holy Spirit and stand for Christ, without deception and compromise, among family, friends, fellow workers, and strangers? Or, will you have to experience the coming fires of persecution to strengthen your mettle? Some will wilt even more under persecution because they aren't standing as they should now.

In the natural, you will see similar things played out in the coming months in Washington, D.C. You will see some leaders finally compromise because they are not really standing for and on “The Rock” now. The seeds of compromise are already sown in their minds and hearts. Thank God for those in all areas of life who will not give in to deception, pressure (subtle or flagrant), and compromise because their whole life—Sunday through Saturday—is lived totally for God by the Spirit of Jesus Christ. Amen!

Prophetic Words of Restoration (July 2011)

Our message this morning is titled “Look to God for Stability.” We are living in uncertain and difficult times, but will find that God is a very present help when we look to Him. He provides a stabilizing force to believers (Isaiah 33: 5, 6). (7/24/2011)

I have spoken and written time and time again that the major problem in and with the United States is not the President, the Houses of Congress or the Supreme Court, etc.; the major problem with the United States is the condition of the overall Church in the United States. Will this nation have to fall before enough true disciples of Jesus the Christ wake up, unite in faith, follow Jesus wholeheartedly and become true salt and light to our nation? (7/18/2011)

Our message for this morning is titled "Righteousness Exalts a Nation." The righteousness of Jesus within His people is the only thing that will prevent the United States (or any nation) from falling. Let's together seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness. The Lord Jesus be glorified! (7/17/2011)

Should not a person seek their God? This is found in Isaiah 18:19 and is a warning and admonition to the people of God not to seek other sources for guidance. In this particular instance mediums and wizards are mentioned, but the underlying principle is what Christians should be aware of. Some Christians are daily following sayings that may or may not be beneficial to their life. (7/08/2011)

Happy 4th of July! May all Christians in our wonderful country humble themselves, repent, and unite in faith to be God's salt and light so that He will heal our precious country.

Lord God, we give You thanks and desire to worship You in spirit and truth. We declare that this is Your day and Your country! We will celebrate, give thanks and make intercessions this day. We will do Your will. In Jesus Name! (7/04/2011)

The title of our message for today is “Jesus Gives Freedom”. Think not first freedom for the United States of America. Think first of personal freedom from sin, guilt, condemnation, satanic attacks, the flesh, sickness and disease and then freedom from judgment upon this country because of the present state of the Church.

If Christians will humble themselves and repent therefore enabling the Church to become true salt and light then our country can be spared its deserved judgment. The humbling and repenting will include repentance for following traditions and teachings of man in the Church rather than continuing in God’s Word and knowing truth. This applies to Charismatics, Pentecostals, Baptist, Methodist, the Church of Christ, Catholics, Presbyterians, Episcopalians, etc. (7/03/2011)

We need a church or local churches in every community that fulfill God's plan for His Church and serves as a witness to the other churches in the community. The devil will do every thing he can to keep such churches from being birthed or continuing in existence. On the other hand he leaves many churches alone because they are no more a threat to him than any other community group people like to be a part of. For many Sunday church is just another way to fulfill a need to be part of a social or community group. Since it is a religious meeting their attendance gives them some sense of fulfilling their spiritual obligations to God.

We need local churches that will fulfill our Lord's will for the Church He is building. Fellowship will be a vital part of these churches, but it is supernatural fellowship and not just a natural fellowship taking place in a church setting. (7/02/2011)

Starting a real revival! O, if we could just start with every pastor really being born again and baptized in the Holy Spirit and praying in tongues more than all their church members. (7/01/2011)