Posts Tagged ‘kingdom growth’

Engulfed in Peace

Posted: June 16, 2011 in disciples life, Kingdom Teaching, Prophetic, teaching, wilderness
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Engulfed in Peace
By Ron McGatlin

Injustice exudes from an upside down fallen world.
The masses have had their minds inverted and their hearts darkened.
Wisdom has hidden and righteousness has departed far from them.
The shrewd and strong take from the weak and simple and no one intervenes.
They spend wildly what they do not have for what they do not need.
They trample the precious and embrace the corrupt.
They reject truth and cherish lies.
They kill their babies and pamper their pets.
They sleep with a viper and run from a Lamb.
They abandon their wives and molest their children.
They run after knowledge and turn away from truth.
Their judgment is upon their heads and they know it not.
The devourer is upon them and their time of loss is at hand.
Their leaders take them the wrong way and they do not discern.

Their sin has separated them from their God (Isa 59:2). They have turned from Him and He has given them over to perverse reprobate minds (Rom 1:28).

To have spiritual eyes and understanding is a burden. Seeing what should be and finding no way for it to be is a source of great frustration and discouragement. To see our once blessed nation crumbling and the children wasting their lives brings great pain. To see the armies of evil moving in to devour the strength of the people is sad beyond measure. However, the hardest part of all is to know the solution, to have the remedy to save the land and restore the people and be violently turned away. This is the most troubling and frustrating of all.

But take heart and be filled with courage. God is not finished yet. There is a kingdom reality manifesting now with us and before us is the righteousness, peace and joy of the glory of God on earth as it is in heaven.

In the midst of the devastation of cataclysmic events of judgments, a great light shines through on the horizon. Beyond the smoke and dust of devastation the Kingdom reigns and the glory approaches. Look up to the light and be engulfed with total peace beyond all reason and understanding. Even in the midst of great destruction your heart will be at perfect peace and rest. Warmth and comfort will supernaturally engulf your heart and life. As the light approaches, the peace of righteousness will become joy unspeakable and full of glory.

Do not dwell upon the news of death and despair. Do not set your eyes on the evil that is being dissolved but look up and set you affection on the light of our glorious KING the LORD of all and His kingdom of righteousness, peace and joy.

Keep on preaching and demonstrating the kingdom grabbing hold of those who come running out of the fire. Refresh them with the pure cool water of the Spirit and provide them a fresh clean change of cloths. Many will be saved even during the cleansing fires of judgment. Supernatural faith and peace will be graced to you to finish the work of God allotted to you. You will be engulfed in peace hidden in a cloud of His love. Set your mind on things above. Set your affection on heavenly things of Christ Jesus in the Spirit.

Col 3:2: Set your mind on things above, not on things on the earth.

Let your life be consumed in the Spirit. Let you daily moment by moment walk be in the Spirit.

Gal 5:25: If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit.

Be led of the Spirit in all things and lean not unto your own understanding.

Prov 3:5: Trust in the LORD with all your heart, And lean not on your own understanding.

Rom 8:14: For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, these are sons of God.

Psa 91:7-8: A thousand may fall at your side, And ten thousand at your right hand; But it shall not come near you. Only with your eyes shall you look, And see the reward of the wicked.

Phil 4:4-7: Rejoice in the Lord always. Again I will say, rejoice! Let your gentleness be known to all men. The Lord is at hand. Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.

Phil 4:8-9: Finally, brethren, whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy; meditate on these things. The things which you learned and received and heard and saw in me, these do, and the God of peace will be with you.

Keep on pursuing love. It never fails
and His kingdom never ends.

Ron McGatlin

http://www.openheaven.com
basileia@earthlink.net

Blinded by the worlds bling, bling!

Posted: June 15, 2011 in disciples life, Kingdom Teaching, teaching, wilderness
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Is the world so powerful in these days that its ability to hide the truth is so great that the majority of Christians do not even realize that they have been captivated by it allure. So many believe they are free not realizing how thick the prison walls of worldly desires are around them. Sadly one of the thickest walls is that of religion. Praise God for His Word – let us not stop professing it in the Authority & Power of Jesus Christ.

For I am not ashamed of the Gospel (good news) of Christ, for it is God’s power working unto salvation [for deliverance from eternal death] to everyone who believes with a personal trust and a confident surrender and firm reliance, to the Jew first and also to the Greek, For in the Gospel a righteousness which God ascribes is revealed, both springing from faith and leading to faith [disclosed through the way of faith that arouses to more faith]. As it is written, The man who through faith is just and upright shall live and shall live by faith.(A) For God’s [holy] wrath and indignation are revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who in their wickedness repress and hinder the truth and make it inoperative. (Rom 1:16-18 AMP)

Holiness has seemed to have become a challenge for most people to obtain.

Our salvation is the power which affords us the ability to live, not just a life of faith, but a life of faith that is based upon godliness.

There are some terms that most people shy away from today, which speaks of their relationship and stand with God that seem to segregate them from the common population. Terms such as holiness, sanctification, righteousness, perfection, peculiar, and consecrated are not common in the Body today, yet many of the worlds wisdom is spoken of and portrayed as a holy revelation.

“The world has taken captive in many churches the powerful message of Biblical characters”

We start using TV programs and characters to relate to rather than the people of the Bible as though they are now out dated.

Most people do not want to be looked at as being different; we try so much to assimilate, until we assimilate ourselves to spiritual compromise. Some things, some of us, would never see as being unrighteous or compromising, because we choose to keep God out of that part of our lives.

There is an element of unholy control that we like to have over certain areas and we resist any efforts of change and ultimately label others as being either fanatical, weak, or religious when challenged to change in those areas.

I have learned that no matter what is preached, unless individuals allow the Holy Ghost to penetrate their hearts, they never see the errors of their ways. Therefore, in these last days, the church has become too compromising and that has lead to a frustration of its purpose.

There was a day that there was a distinct difference between those who were sanctified and those who were not. Yet now the mention of true sanctification is shunned away as legalistic.

Many of us have forgotten the admonition by Paul in:

Do not be unequally yoked with unbelievers [do not make mismated alliances with them or come under a different yoke with them, inconsistent with your faith]. For what partnership have right living and right standing with God with iniquity and lawlessness? Or how can light have fellowship with darkness? What harmony can there be between Christ and Belial [the devil]? Or what has a believer in common with an unbeliever? What agreement [can there be between] a temple of God and idols? For we are the temple of the living God; even as God said, I will dwell in and with and among them and will walk in and with and among them, and I will be their God, and they shall be My people.(C) So, come out from among [unbelievers], and separate (sever) yourselves from them, says the Lord, and touch not [any] unclean thing; then I will receive you kindly and treat you with favor,(D) And I will be a Father to you, and you shall be My sons and daughters, says the Lord Almighty.(E) (2 Cor 6:14-18 AMP)

Paul is literally speaking in this passage about compromising our spiritual values and assimilating with the unrighteous philosophy of the world.

What makes it so difficult for the people of God to sanctify themselves for God only?

Have you considered why the world seems so attractive to people, when it was the world that caused them to run to Christ?

Oh my friends, many of us are in denial having allowed the lust of our eyes, the lust of our hearts, and the pride of life to cause us to become more attracted to the world than to please God.

We need to turn back to the roots of our beginning and realize that the Lord birthed something in our Jewish heritage that the enemy knew if he could sever our ties to it, would cause us to be a weakened church. Now is the time that we need to turn towards the Lord our God whole heartedly, we must learn to sacrifice ourselves, our agendas, and our philosophies to the sole authority of God, the Father. If not, I believe that some of us are in for a rude awakening at judgment time.

Speaking of shunned words this is but another thing that people do not like to talk about, judgment. We all will have to give an account for all that we do in this flesh.

The Jewish people were taught from a young age to know only study and recite the Torah, they were taught to have a holy reverent fear of the Lord and His Word. The truth is today, we have not seen, nor realized the drastic outcome and punishment of divine judgment, because we have allowed the world to justify ill conditions to fate and not attribute them to the hand of God.

I believe that God is highly disappointed with the church today and, as the scripture states; He is shortening these last days so that the very elect will not be fooled.

So let us pose this question today of “how are we fooled”? We are fooled when we choose to outdate the scriptures; when we choose to justify our actions; when we choose to compromise our values and standards; and the like.

Because we allowed the things of the world take rule in the church, walls of separation and segregation were imposed. Today because of the error that has traditionally become a “false” truth has left us with actions that are not necessarily denominational dependent, but are direct in violation to the word and will of God. God’s word never changes, nor does God. He is the same yesterday, today, and forever.

Because of all the hype and counterfeit moves of God today, I believe that most people have had a religious experience, but all are not truly filled and baptized with the Holy Ghost.

The very Word itself has been consistently manifested before our very eyes, yet not knowing the Truth of the Word we have been blind to the fact that we have birthed a generation of “believers” who have a form of godliness, but deny the very power of the God they state that they serve.

God is not weak; the blood of Jesus is not powerless; the power of the Holy Ghost has not diminished; prayer still works; so does, fasting, studying, and submitting to the word of God.

Let us read what the Master stated in gospel of John:

If you [really] love Me, you will keep (obey) My commands. And I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Comforter (Counselor, Helper, Intercessor, Advocate, Strengthener, and Standby), that He may remain with you forever– The Spirit of Truth, Whom the world cannot receive (welcome, take to its heart), because it does not see Him or know and recognize Him. But you know and recognize Him, for He lives with you [constantly] and will be in you. (John 14:15-17 AMP)

Jesus’ words in this passage allow you to take an individual spiritual assessment and to measure your spiritual development based upon your love for Him.

Just as He said in Luke 7:47, “Wherefore I say unto thee, Her sins, which are many, are forgiven; for she loved much: but to whom little is forgiven, the same loveth little.” Many of us have not properly valued His forgiveness of our sins. And, what you value little, you respect little.

“Worldly wisdom says to disregard the ways of the world and that everyone can believe the Word according to your own understanding”.

Again I want to touch base on how our being cut off from our Jewish heritage in the church has left us prepared to disregard the world’s wisdom and hold strongly onto the Truth of the Word. When one studies the early church, we find a group of people who were prepared to be those whom the Lord would birth the Bride through. Their culture of honoring and holding to the scriptures as a life source allowed them to transfer this into the next generation. At an early age they could recite the Torah, today many in the church can not recite more than a handful of scriptures.

Fathers can not pass on the knowledge of the Word when they themselves know it not. The enemy sought to replace this important aspect of the family and replaced the ‘fathers’ with the clergy or priest, even to the point that for decades and in some cases in our day they are still referred too as “father”.

The Fathers were use to being the spiritual leader of the homes and this custom was passed from one generation to the next. Even today many even though they do not believe that Jesus was the Christ, they are reaping the reward of holding to the Word of God and given God is correct place of authority and ruler-ship in their lives. They know what it means to be a spiritual family.

Like the people of the first church, our love for God should cause us to obey all of His commandments; they are not grievous, except to those who desire to do wrong.

The reason why some of our lives are so spiritually weak is simply because our lack of true love for Christ, the Word and the WAY of God diminishes the effectiveness of the Holy Ghost, which is given to us.

Our love and obedience empowers us with the comfort of the Spirit in every situation of our life.

So, what will you give or surrender in exchange for your soul? Will it be a little pleasure; a little recognition; a little fame; a little popularity; a little compromise; a little here and a little there?

Back to what the Lord said earlier, “Consider your ways.” Living for God is more than about blessings and prosperity, but it involves righteousness, holiness, consecration, sanctification, and sacrifice.

What you do now determines the strength of your relationship. God has already given us everything that pertains to life and godliness through the working of His Holy Spirit. But, it will do us no good if we never obey.

Let us repent and turn to the Lord God adhering to the Masters call to” ‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your strength, and with all your mind. And love your neighbor as you love yourself.” and begin with removing the lust of this world, replacing its ruler in our lives and start with the first commandment “You shall have no other gods before Me”.

We are living in the days when the Lord is seeking radical disciples – those who have heard not only the message of the cross, but the call to bare ones cross as well.

For indeed we serve an Awesome & Holy God.

Christ-like Discipleship verses the Modern Church discipleship

Posted: June 11, 2011 in disciples life, Kingdom Teaching, Prophetic, wilderness
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As we were ministering to the homeless last night, I thought of all the peoples in the City neglected by the church, not just the homeless, but the mentally tormented, the addicts, the elderly and shut ins -yet these peoples are not forgotten by the Lord.

Last night I was crying before the Lord for the need is so large yet so few are moved with true compassion. He had reminded me early as I was driving home from downtown of how He has said there will be a day when those who had been clothed for the wedding, will have their garments removed and they shall be placed up the way wards and servants.

As I was weeping before Him, He showed that many like those we have been ministering are a hidden remnant army of Heaven, waiting to be awoke for the last days – that of those who the religious have forsaken He shall revive, restore to their created purpose and place in them the Fire of His Glory. For many look to those who appear to be “righteous & Holy” as pleasing towards the Lord, yet the fragrance of their prideful religion is a stench to His nostrils.

Many in the modern day church believe that by building huge “houses of worship” and filling them with great performers and most advanced technological gadgets of the day, we shall disciple a huge amount of workers – Yet history goes against that thinking, for the past 100 years the church as evolved with the modern world, they have allowed the power of God’s Word to be replaced with modern ingenuity and we have been left with a powerless people – powerless not because the Lord has not desired to empower them with His presence – they are powerless for they have grown dependent upon their wisdom, their knowledge, their way and have rejected the ways of the Lord.

The church in a large part has become broken in the Spiritual things, though it appears wealthy in the modern sense – it has turned from the style of discipleship which birthed the world changers of Jesus day and attempted to better the very style He has prescribed in His Word.

They see themselves as rich because all the money they bring in and can spend on modern amenities – Yet the Lord says “Because thou sayest, I am rich, and increased with goods, and have need of nothing; and knowest not that thou art wretched, and miserable, and poor, and blind, and naked”. (Rev 3:17)

First of all, making disciples is not an easy process. It is trying, it is messy, it is slow, tedious and even painful at times. It is all these things because it is relational (something that can not be gained from those who believe they can mainly disciple from a pulpit).

We read part of the instruction that Jesus gave us and what it involves in that we are to go and make disciples of all nations. Then we are to baptize them in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost. We are to teach them to obey everything Jesus commanded. All this adds up to the means to multiply people who enjoy God’s grace and extend His Glory around the world.

Now, according to Jesus, disciple making involves going. It involves intentionally taking the gospel to the people where they live, work and play. Disciple making is not a call for others to come to us, in a building, to hear the gospel but a command for us to go to others to share the gospel. It is a command for us to be gospel-living, gospel-speaking people at every moment and in every context where we find ourselves.

We disciple true disciples by leading them by hand in to the high-ways and by-ways – not by mere instruction – but by walking the walk with them – walking thru those neighborhoods where the modern day church dare not go – walking into the trauma centers – walking into the bars – walking into the nursing homes – walking into the prisons – and breathing out the gospel message. Christ first led the way, showing the disciples how to minister – then He said go, do what you’ve seen me do.

Many of the modern day church leaders if they were to lead the church to where they were taught, it would be but back to the halls ways of religion, the seminaries where they were taught by the those who dared not go themselves – being taught the business structure of church, the non-offensive politically correct art of “church” – not the hands on laboring structure of the Kingdom!

I recently came out from underneath a leadership who believed they had come out from the religious church structure only to find that they are attempting to build their own. Dis-regarding the teachings of the Lord Jesus Christ in the call to go out, they teach “gather” them in that “our” elite might minister too them. Sadly they have continued to attempt to build like minded leaders to advance their name, dis regarding the call to go out and reach the lost, disc regarding the Lord’s call to feed the hungry.

I praise Yeshua for His faithfulness to call out too His own, for during the whole process, many of the trained leaders, having had a true and revelationary encounter with the Lord have been drawn away from such religious foolishness and have gone out to spread the Good News.

Now the truth is, it has cost those who have dared to truly follow the Lord, even as Jesus said it would – false accusations, back biting even being told that they are walking away from God’s calling. In reality they are walking directly into the purposes of God for their lives.

God is calling for a re-aligning of the Bride back too her foundational setting!

Give me the Bible and the opportunity to speak of its power, sharing the testimony of how thru it, Holy Ghost has transformed and continues to transform my life – mix with with the testimonies of others, coat in the power and authority of heaven via the anointing of Holy Ghost and you will see a people being reached with the truth – yet this is not for me alone – this is the opportunity for every believer who has been set free to do – going out and sharing the power of the gospel to lost.

If we were to strip these modern churches of all the fancy gadgets and turn them back to the preaching of the Word of God in truth and purity – if we were to remove the performance based worship, speaking and theatrical style church services back to that which the Lord taught us, we would see a church that is impacting the very culture that surrounds it rather than the church being impacted by the culture!

Time is short, the Father has told Holy Ghost to ramp up the shaking – the earth itself is crying out for the Lords return. Holy Ghost is empowering those who desire the true gospel with a last days out-pouring of anointing, dreams and visions – the time for the religious modern day church to repent and turn back to the foundational teachings is short.

You have heard the Word and heard the call – the decision is now before you – follow Jesus and His Word in His truthful authority & anointed power or continue to sit in the comforts of religion listening to those ear tickling, watered down – self help, powerless messages. Today the alarm is being blown before you, those who take up the cause of Christ, their cross and His Kingdom shall see their rewards, they shall be empowered from on High with supernatural peace and strength to push forward the Kingdom of God.

There is a gospel starved generation out side the walls of religious conformity- Are you radical enough to say no more to religion and start living, breathing and walking in the power of His name? For the true radical disciples of Christ have a fire burning inside to transfer the message of truth into others lives, that they in return become set a blazed with the passion of Christ to go out and do the same!

Give me ten such individuals, who have denied themselves, turned from religion and rejected the modern day powerless doctrines of individualism and conformity which leads to a life of religious compromise.

Yes Lord, show me ten such radical Kingdom citizens who have been baptized in the fires of Yeshua’s passion for the lost and forsaken, those filled with His fire filled passion for His Bride- for then I will show you a city being transformed, who shall then see the Spirit birthing out a people who shall transform a State, who then shall see the Spirit birthing out a people who shall transform whole nations for the Glory, Honor and Praise of our Lord Jesus Christ, which in return Glorifies the Father!

The choice is set before you today friends – follow man or follow Christ!

IHS,
Russ Welch

Its time for the preachers turn back to preaching life not death!

Posted: June 9, 2011 in disciples life, Kingdom Teaching, teaching, wilderness
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The apostle Paul wrote to the Corinthian church: “I rejoice, not that ye were made sorry, but that ye sorrowed to repentance: for ye were made sorry after a godly manner…for godly sorrow worketh repentance” (2 Corinthians 7:9–10).

What is happening to the House of God today? Where is the preaching of the Word? Why is there such a lack of messages about sin? When we do not preach the Word, rather we preach a watered down version according to what we believe the people want to hear, we do an injustice to the Lord. And we end up with a church filled with weak Christians stumbling from defeat to defeat! They choose to listen only to soft, flesh-assuring preaching. Where there is no convicting word, where there can be no godly sorrow over sin. And where there is no godly sorrow for sin, there can be no repentance. And where there is no repentance, there is only hardness of heart.

Thank God, David had Nathan, who was not afraid of what the King would do to him, he walked with a holy reverence for the Lord God and the Truth!

David saw what happened to Saul when he rejected the word of the Lord. Saul, who once walked a godly life style, living as a Spirit-led king continually rejected the Spirit’s reproving words, delivered by a holy prophet. It didn’t take long after he began to stop listening to God that Saul began to walk in self-will, bitterness and rebellion.

Finally, the Holy Ghost departed from him: “Because thou hast rejected the word of the Lord, he hath also rejected thee from being king” (1 Samuel 15:23). “The Lord…departed from Saul” (18:12). Saul ended up turning to a witch for guidance, which many Christians do today – they seek out a person who does not treasure the gifts of the Lord and they will for the recognition of men give a pleasing truth-less word. Saul knew the Lord had left him, he even confessed to the witch, “God is departed from me, and answereth me no more, neither by prophets, nor by dreams: therefore I have called thee, that thou mayest make known unto me what I shall do” (28:15)

All this came crashing back to David memory, all the madness, ugliness and terror surrounding this man who had shut out God’s word. Suddenly, the truth pierced his own heart: “God is no respecter of persons. I have sinned, as Saul did. And now here’s another prophet, in another time, giving me God’s Word, as Samuel gave it to Saul. Oh, Lord, I’ve sinned against you! Please don’t take your Holy Spirit from me, as you did from Saul.”

We need men and women of God today in the pulpit who fear the Lord more than they fear the people or the lack of their treasure chests being filled!

We need men and women of God who are on fire for the Lord and His truth, that will not compromise the truth of the scriptures even if it means death. We need to get back to the Bible and stop with all these foolish functions, conferences and hyped up emotional meetings to stir the hearts, minds and wallets of the people. Holy Spirit will stir the hearts of the people. When we release the Word of God with the power and authority of the King, it will bring conviction – not only to those hearing the Word, but first to those preaching the Word.

Friends, let us not be fooled any more about the “Revival message” coming by simply willing it – that if we get loud enough He will come, that if we dance hard enough the Lord will show up in power. The Bible clearly shows that whenever we return to the Lord in genuine, heartfelt repentance, God responds by bringing absolute reconciliation and restoration. Reconciliation – a rejoining of our hearts and spirit with that of the Lords! Restoration a true Revival that brings us back to the redemptive and transforming purposes of the Lord! It’s when God’s [people fall on their face, truly repent and call out upon the Lord with every part of their lives, then we shall see a people rise up who themselves are the Revival of the Most High!!!

Is dancing and shouting praise to the Lord wrong? Of course not, but if there is no conviction that we are not completely following Him, that there are things in our lives that limit Holy Spirit from fully releasing from our lives, that which the Lord has poured in, how can the Lord use us? He could show up at any church He desires to show up at, but He is looking for a people who are hungry for Truth, a people who are not simply moved by a song that spurns emotions – He is looking for a people who have been broken, who have come to the conviction that it is not because the Lord does not love that He has not showed up in His Glory – it is because we have not loved Him enough to get rid of everything that is an idol in our lives.

This does not mean that we have to “fade away” from life, biding our time in quiet shame until the Lord takes us home. Lets get real, listen to what the Word has to say, such as what we read in the book of Joel. Here we see where the prophet Joel assures us that God steps in immediately when we return to him: “Rend your hearts turn unto the Lord your God: for he is gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and of great kindness, and repenteth him of the evil” (Joel 2:13)

Now that a powerful promise – The Bible is filled with these promises, they are not dead words, they are alive even in this present day. The Words of the Lords speaks from generation to generation. Look again in Joel, for God then gives us this incredible promise: “I will restore to you the years that the locust hath eaten and ye shall eat in plenty, and be satisfied, and praise the name of the Lord your God, that hath dealt wondrously with you: and my people shall never be ashamed” (2:25–26). The Lord promises to restore all.

And this happened after God had pronounced judgment upon the land!

Even as He has pronounced judgment upon those who forsake His Word – if we will but turn towards Him, with a repentant heart cry out, Father forgive me – He will run to us as did the father to the prodigal son and restore unto us all that He has desired. A true revival is not ushered in on the wings of eagles, it is ushered in upon the broken hearts that cry out in repentance. Just look at the revival of times past – the heavens opened up as the people having their hearts pierced cried put to God to forgive them. We saw the revival in individuals hearts and lives being transferred into the hearts of others

We need to get back to preaching God’s Word with Fire, with conviction, allowing it to do its job to pierce the sinner and saints hearts alike.

Today the church has swallowed such a fallacy that has been placed upon the good ole Hellfire preaching to the point that the people of God have been dumbed down to believing that the pulpit should give us a word that build us up which is non offensive and easy to swallow. The truth is, God does not want to build us up on a foundation of hay and stubble – He wants to build us up on a solid foundation, on the foundation of the Rock of His salvation Jesus Christ – thus we need to have that Word of God that divides asunder, even to the piercing of the heart to render us in a broken state, that the breath of His revelation can come in with new birth and build up in His way.

What has been known to be an offensive message of Hell and sin, is in all honesty, is that which is preached through tears by one who has been through the valley of conviction and emptied out on the alter humbled under the mighty hand of God, called “grace preaching.” If you’re your heart is being pricked and probed by God’s Word — if Holy Spirit is refusing to allow you sit comfortably in your sin — then you’re listening too truth and being shown mercy. It is the deep love of God at work, calling you out of death and into the true Christ birthed life.

The question is – do we want to turn back to preaching and hearing the truth, are we willing respond to him as David did? If we the people of the Lord God desire such truth and seek after it with our whole heart then we will know true restoration and reconciliation. And we shall see that our God will restore everything the enemy has stolen.

Let the pulpits across this nation once again be set on fire – it is not to late for America or any other Nation to repent and turn towards God. His grace and mercy abounds and will be poured out upon all who call upon His Name!

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My prayer is that the Lord will strip me of everything that is not worthy of Him, everything that would limit the power of Holy Spirit flowing through my own life. That what ever is in my own life, whether pride, godless desires or what ever the sin may be be burnt up and thrown out. That from this point on I will never preach another Word that is not baptized in the fires of His holiness – that I will not listen for the Amen’s of the people – rather I will turn my ears to hear the Amen’s of heaven. That Holy Spirit will sweep across this nation and move upon every man and women of God in the pulpit seeking to only proclaim His truth this week and set them ablaze with the passion of the Father and open the ears of the people to those who refuse and see how empty their words are – the words that contain death and not life.

May the Lord God bring a conviction upon the Bride in this nation and all nations to repent and turn back to Him in Truth through the Spirit!

“A handy little machine called “Religion.”

Posted: June 7, 2011 in Kingdom Teaching, Prophetic, teaching, wilderness
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Machines are used to do repetitive or difficult work more quickly and efficiently, giving people more leisure and free time to pursue something besides work.

Once upon a time a group of people saw that a machine was needed to make something hard and difficult more easily done. They put their heads together and came up with a handy little machine called “Religion.”

The Religion Machine would make life easier for everyone they said. With the Machine, we don’t have to waste precious time relating to a real God Who loves us. The machine would take these complex processes and break them down into a simple three-step process that anyone could follow, reducing God to a faceless, personless ideology of good works. The result would be a mass-production of religious people who all spoke, thought, acted, and believed the same way.

Things went very well for a while. The Religion Machine worked just like it was supposed to. Churches were built, movements were started, crusades were held, programs were implemented. The inventors congratulated themselves on making Religion so efficient.

But you and I know that machines require a lot of maintenance. Parts have to be replaced. People wanted the Religion Machine to be bigger, better, and faster each year. Research and development expense was incurred, testing expenses, raw materials and warehousing. The Religion Machine had to have qualified people to work on it, qualified people to run it, qualified people to supervise the people who run it, and so on.

With all the improvements and modifications to the original design, the Religion Machine got so big that they had to house it someplace; now they had factory overhead: the property, the specialized plant equipment, the electrical and water requirements, more work crews, the support staff, the management, still more parts, upgrades, routine maintenance, all the hidden costs associated with keeping the Machine running.

No one knew just how big the Religion Machine would get. The inventors would have never dreamed that their little invention would one day turn into a big business, but it did. People picked up their families and moved to live and work close to the Machine. There’s money there, a chance to get ahead, a chance to settle down, a nice place to raise their kids. The Machine is a boost to the local economy because it produces jobs and goods. It’s in everyone’s interest to keep the Machine running along.

The people took great pride in their work. Take a drive with them to any part of the country and they would point to the impressive array of expensive church buildings, sprawling seminaries, and mega-church outreach centers. “We helped put that one together,” they’d say. “Thank God for the Religion Machine! How did we get along without it before?”

But there’s another side to the story. Oh, the work is simple enough. “Do what you’re told. Push this button, pull that lever, flip that switch.” Keep producing, keep the Machine running. But there’s a human toll being exacted on the people who are running the Machine. Just another cog in the wheel, they begin to stop thinking for themselves; they depend on the supervisors to tell them what to do. They go home tired day after day (their busiest day is Sunday). They always work overtime and their family life is non-existent. Even when they’re home they think about work. Production is the name of the game; keep the Machine running no matter what; produce more with less.

People always get injured on the job. It’s hot, dirty work. And noisy. The Machine makes so much noise that all the workers eventually develop acute hearing loss. The light is so dim that the employees have become very narrow-eyed and squinty, not able to withstand bright light. But somehow the security that comes from getting paid each week is more important than the side-effects. So the work goes on.

Besides, where else could they go? What else could they do? Financial commitments based on that paycheck have been made: houses mortgaged, cars financed, durable goods charged. If the Machine stops running, the paychecks stop coming, and it means bankruptcy for the workers and the community. So on and on it goes.

Every once in awhile a pay raise comes. Some live long enough to retire, but most of the workers die young from stress, are injured on the job and permanently disabled, or have nervous breakdowns. But no matter what, the Machine kept running.

Then the unexpected happened.

The Religion Machine used a synthetic, man-made oil for fuel to keep it running.

The oil ran out. The Machine ground to a halt.

The workers were in a panic. No more fuel? How would the Machine run? What about their job? What about their paycheck? Who would take care of their families?

“What about natural oil?” someone asked. No that wouldn’t work. They tried that years ago. Genuine oil would not run the Religion Machine.

The supervisors cursed and swore. How could they get the Machine running again?

There was only one thing left to do.

The doors were locked, and the gates closed tight. Armed security gathered the workers together and had them form a line leading up to the top of the combustion chamber, the fiery inferno which fueled the Religion Machine.

One by one they were cast into the fuel tank. The Machine sparked and began to hum again.

“More people! We need more people over here!” Like lambs being led to the slaughter, the deaf, dumb, and blind workers were pushed over the precipice to be used as fuel for the Religion Machine. Next it was their wives, husbands, children, parents, brothers, sisters, all thrown alive and screaming into the Machine. The houses and cars, the clothing and jewelry, the furniture and possessions were all confiscated and dumped into to the Religion Machine to add more fuel for it to run.

At last everything that could be used for fuel had been used. It would not be enough, and it had all been in vain. Once again the Religion Machine ground to a halt, and no one was around to start it up again. The supervisors went out into the community to try and recruit new workers, but after hearing what had happened to the last shift no one would take the job.

Today those supervisors are dead and gone. The Religion Machine was dismantled by the townspeople, the parts scattered to the four winds, never to be assembled again.

The problem with the Religion Machine was that it started out as a neat invention designed to help people, but it wound up hurting them. The Machine was made for man, but soon man lived for the Machine and became dependent upon it.

Once upon a time another group of people saw that a machine was needed to make something hard and difficult more easily done and give them more leisure time. They were even more talented, technologically advanced, and affluent than the first group of inventors. So they put their heads together and came up with a handy little machine called “American Christianity”…

And we see today that this machine is one that has become a giant monster when it comes to the consumption of the Brides resources both in regard to finances and personnel. It has destroyed many lives purposed in the Kingdom and has risen up many Pharaoh type leaders and in many ways has merely become a spiritual prison for many.

Praise the Lord, for the Father is sending His Spirit with a true revelation opening the eyes of many to the darkness of this spiritual machine for what it truly is. It has the essence of Kingdom, yet it in its ruler-ship of men it has not allowed the Kingdom of the Kingdom of God rule, mans voice has trumped out the Will of Jesus, leaving it more of a spiritual Egypt than the True Kingdom of Jesus Christ with all its liberties and rights of the sons and daughters of the Lord God.

In this day the Watchman are shouting louder – “look and see what the Spirit is revealing, look at how He is exposing the nakedness of the false” – Truly that which can be shaken is being shaken –

The question is are you Radical enough to walk in the truth – Are you radical enough in your faith to not merely walk away from the man-made model – are you radical enough to grab the hands of those who are still imprisoned and lead them out of the spiritual Egypt, the religion machine in America!!!

There are many echoes in the land, but few voices….

Posted: June 6, 2011 in disciples life, Kingdom Teaching, teaching, wilderness
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( I woke up this morning with this message burning deep within my belly)

“They were astonished at His doctrine: for [Jesus] taught them as One that had authority, and not as the scribes” (Mark 1:22).

How much of what we hear being preached and peddled around the world in the Name of Jesus is but the regurgitation and ramblings of people who can only repeat what everyone else is saying? Where is the Revelation of Jesus Christ? Who is the man or the woman that refuses to confer with flesh and blood, but only speaks according to what they have seen and heard by revelation through the Spirit? Most teachers are teaching what was taught to them, and their teachers learned it from their teachers, and so on it goes until we no longer have Spirit-birthed revelation, we have third and fourth-generational head-knowledge, yesterday’s manna and hand-me-down flesh and blood doctrines.

As one of my brothers puts it: there are many echoes in the land, but few voices. There is an ocean of difference between repeating what you have heard and speaking of what you have experienced! Is it any wonder that there is much learning, but no experiential knowledge of Truth? If we speak of ourselves then we can only impart knowledge. But, if we resolve to only speak by revelation, we can impart Life. Only revelation can change a person.

I am not talking about fresh revelations of what one feels he or she needs to be said, rather Spirit inspired revelations that the scriptures witness too and validate it as coming from the Father. Revelations that have been heard in the place of its birth – the Throne room of the Most High and ushered thru by the utterance of the tongues of Gods servants here in the world.

Revelations that only the Father could know such as when witnessing to a person and by the unction of the Spirit a revelation of that persons life that only God could know which brings forth the reality in that person’s life that God was there and has taken a very personal interest in them, the essence of the Fathers love for His creation- anointed words, relational and powerful!

“Peter’s words convicted them deeply, and they said to him and to the other apostles, “Brothers, what should we do?” (Act 2:37)

Words filled with power & authority will bring forth a stirring in the hearts and spirit of those hearing it.

“Then Peter continued preaching for a long time, strongly urging all his listeners, “Save yourselves from this generation that has gone astray!” (Act 2:40)

We need more men and women like this today! Preaching with conviction under the Authority of Jesus Christ and with the power of Heaven. We need men and women empowered by Holy Spirit filled with fresh revelations that transform neighborhoods’, Cities, States and whole Nations!

Peter and the other men and women in the Bible did not just repeat what they heard, they repeated their experiences from the stand point of the intimate relationship they had with the Son of God.

We need men and women who are living out their lives according to the purpose God has established, people walking in their God defined destinies. Men and women living out Rev 12:10-11:

Salvation and power are established!
Kingdom of our God, authority of his Messiah!
The Accuser of our brothers and sisters thrown out,
who accused them day and night before God.
They defeated him through the blood of the Lamb
and the bold word of their witness.
They weren’t in love with themselves;
they were willing to die for Christ. (Message)

Men and women who will not accept the norm, who have no interest in tickling ears or being the esteemed speakers or favorite candy vendor! They are only out to please the audience of Heaven, where the sound thunders “Worthy is the Lamb”.

“As The Lord, The God of Israel lives, Whom I serve, there will be neither dew nor rain in the next few years except at my word.” ( 1 Kings 17:1)

Men and women who like Elijah, when the Word of the Lord leaves their lips the power of God and the Kingdom of Christ is established with the manifestion from the spiritual into the natural! Gods Authority being released upon the earth. A people walking in the revelation of their being empowered by Jesus Christ, walking under and by His authority as dominion takers for the Kingdom.

Again, many words are released today that bring no glory to God for they are in reality only a petty attempt to validate a person or organization and they contain no life, no transforming ability and no power. Dead words released by dead wine skins that are releasing nothing but dead religion that imprison rather than birthing LIFE.

We need the Heavens revelations of Jesus by Holy Spirit that not only impact a person or a people, they also are spoken with Authority and Power to establish the Kingdom and all that it contains, bringing glory to Jesus Christ.

Praise God that we are in the hour when these men and women are being raised up and released. Many of the old wine skins will be offended and attempt to shut them down and discredit them – yet the Authority and Voice of God shall be established and even as a sunami washes over the walls put in place by men – The Spirit of God is rushing over the man made walls of religion that attempt to quench His voice in our day – Heaven will not be silenced and mercy will be hard find for those who attempt to silence the roar of the Lion of Judah in this day!

The days of man taking credit that is due to the Son is over – the Thunder of the Fathers voice has gone beyond the shaken of the Heavens and is now shaken the earth- the battle lines have been drawn through the ages – the dust of religion that has attempted to cover them is being blown off by His breath and these mighty men and women of God are being freed by the Spirit who indeed leads us too and by the Truth.

In the Spirit I can see the vision of Ezekiel 37:1-14 coming to life – where the spirit of religion has eating away at the destiny of men and women called of God – now Holy Spirit is breathing the breath of God into their lives and not only is the flesh coming back upon them, they are rising with a shroud of His Glory shielding them. Gods army – young and old rising up taking their place and having heard the voice of the Captain of Host, they are marching forward as did their Master, Jesus here on earth – establishing Gods will where they are called to do so.

The question that we must ask ourselves today is – Are we on the right side of the line?

My personal prayer is that what ever is in my own life, my own heart that would in any way or form distract me or cause me to be on the wrong side of the line – what ever left over carnage of religion that has hid within me – that Holy Spirit will not only shine the light of Heaven upon it, but that He will due a supernatural surgery to remove it.

It is so easy just to be a copy cat, riding on the heels of someone else’s revelations, yet the Radical Disciple is the one who seeks after God with desperation until the Lord speaks. Are you radical enough today to seek after the Father with every thing you have?

IHS,
Russ Welch

Ready for Full-time Ministry?

Posted: June 4, 2011 in disciples life, Kingdom Teaching, teaching, wilderness
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You are ready for full-time ministry when:

You no longer need human applause

You don’t need anyone to give you an assignment

You don’t need a plan

You don’t need a building, a congregation or an endorsement

When you no longer are looking for some Great work to do

When the only thing that fully satisfies your heart is your prayer,
your worship, your ministry unto the Lord.

When you are satisfied with feeding Christ.

When you have giving yourself completely and your focus is on this one thing – My calling on this earth first of all is to be a minister unto Him.

In studying Ezek 44 – it is scary to see how many “ministers” in our day fall far outside the guidelines of the Zadok priesthood and are nothing more than either thieves or hirelings.

I can remember the day the Lord spoke to my heart as I was thinking about Full-time ministry. I had just spent the day servicing customers homes and during that time prayed with one lady who had cancer. At another home I shared the Lord with a Jehovah witness and shared how much Jesus means to me with a few other customers. As the thoughts of “Full-time” ministry were running thru my mind Holy Spirit played my day back to me and the Lord said – this is truly fulltime ministry in My Kingdom. Out of your heart you shared Me with others and expected nothing in return. You gave Glory to My name and served others freely with no mention or seeking of glory for your own.

Then I realized the “fantasy” of Full-time ministry that has been painted by the TV evangelist and many in the position of “paid clergy” today falls in the category of the priest spoken of at the start of Ezek 44. They are pleasing to man and to themselves but they are far from pleasing to the Lord.

Each one of us is giving the opportunity of “Full-time” ministry daily – the question is are you willing to accept the applause of Heaven over that of men or are you simply seeking to make your name known through out the land?

A radical Christian chooses the high road of excellence, as taught by Paul – that though one might have a right to receive support for ministering the gospel that they rather than being a hireling work with their own hands lest they become a burden upon the church!

As for me and my House – we simply want to serve the Lord – to minister unto Him – put a smile on His face and be a blessing to the Kingdom, bringing glory to His Name.

God’s commands runs counter to prevailing opinion

Posted: June 2, 2011 in disciples life, Kingdom Teaching, teaching, wilderness
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When the Israelites saw they were in trouble because the army was hard-pressed, they hid in caves, in thorny thickets, among rocks, in pits, and in cisterns. Some Hebrews crossed the Jordan River into the territory of Gad and Gilead. But Saul remained in Gilgal, and all the people who followed him trembled in fear.

He waited seven days, the time set by Samuel. But Samuel had not come to Gilgal, and the troops began to scatter. Then Saul said, “Bring me the animals for the burnt offering and the fellowship offerings.” So he sacrificed the burnt offering.

As he finished sacrificing the burnt offering, Samuel came, and Saul went to greet him.
Samuel asked, “What have you done?” Saul replied, “I saw the troops were scattering. You didn’t come when you said you would, and the Philistines were assembling at Michmash. So I thought, ‘Now, the Philistines will come against me at Gilgal, but I haven’t sought the LORD’S favor.’ I felt pressured into sacrificing the burnt offering.”

“You did a foolish thing,” Samuel told Saul. “You didn’t follow the command of the LORD your God. If you had, the LORD would have established your kingdom over Israel permanently. But now your kingdom will not last. The LORD has searched for a man after his own heart. The LORD has appointed him as ruler of his people, because you didn’t follow the command of the LORD.” (1 Sam 13:6-14 GWT)

I Samuel 13:1-15 recounts the story of an act of presumption by another well-known figure, containing another valuable lesson for us. Saul arranged with the prophet Samuel to perform sacrifices in an appeal to God to intervene before Israel went into battle with the invading Philistines. Saul’s sin was in presumptuously stepping in to perform Samuel’s responsibilities when the prophet arrived later than the appointed time. Saul gave Samuel three justifications for his presumption: 1) The people were growing distressed and deserting him; 2) Samuel’s late arrival; and 3) the growing threat of the Philistine army (verse 11).

On the surface, it appeared Saul and the Israelites were indeed in a difficult situation, yet Saul’s reasons did not justify presuming to disobey what was commanded. He should have waited for Samuel to arrive and perform his responsibility. Saul, a Benjamite, could request a sacrifice be made and provide the animal for it, but he was not authorized by God to perform the sacrificial ceremony. Samuel was merely later than both he and Saul thought he would be.

Saul excused himself further by saying he “felt compelled.” The King James Version records that Saul said, “I forced myself.” This suggests that he was not ignorant of what he was doing but convinced himself it was more important to make the sacrifice than to obey God’s instruction. He was immediately stripped of the opportunity of having his dynasty continue forever (verses 12-13), as God later promised David.

Many circumstances arise in a Christian’s life when following God’s commands runs counter to prevailing opinion and to our own fears about the threatening conditions we imagine are building around us if we obey God. Strong thoughts are then likely to mount, urging us to turn aside from what He says—”just this once”—to relieve the swelling pressures.

As our own children do not always understand what we tell them to do, we cannot always see why God tells us to do this or that. But can we trust God that His reasons are good? For instance, He tells us to set aside three tithes and to travel to far places to keep His feasts. He commands us to love our enemies and do good to them. He asks us to become like little children and to sacrifice ourselves in service when we would rather give orders. He tells us to submit ourselves to one another in love and to be subject to corrupt and unjust governments. Keeping these instructions is sometimes far easier said than done. Can we see God in the picture even in difficult circumstances and trust Him? In this case, Saul did not.

When faced with such circumstances we must muster up our faith – even if it means running to the prayer closest to be refreshed – for our strength is found in our obedience to the Father and all that He commands of us – even if we can not understand the “why’ we must be anchored in the faith of knowing our Father has our best interest in mind.

We one truly run’s to the alter of the Lord and falls on it, they are embraced with a radical love that they have never felt before – having that river of forgiveness, mercy and grace flowing over them. Then when they stand up, having been refreshed and spiritually renewed they can now go forth with the empowerment to walk a radical Christian life.

All Glory, honor and praise to the Lord God Most High!!!

Grace to increase in faith!

Posted: May 28, 2011 in disciples life, Kingdom Teaching, teaching
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Because of this, make every effort to add integrity to your faith; and to integrity add knowledge; to knowledge add self-control; to self-control add endurance; to endurance add godliness; to godliness add Christian affection; and to Christian affection add love. If you have these qualities and they are increasing, it demonstrates that your knowledge about our Lord Jesus Christ is living and productive. If these qualities aren’t present in your life, you’re shortsighted and have forgotten that you were cleansed from your past sins. Therefore, brothers and sisters, use more effort to make God’s calling and choosing of you secure. If you keep doing this, you will never fall away. (2Peter 1:5-10)

Praise God, as we find that this passage builds on the implication of grace, that is, the gifts of God alluded to in the previous verses. Grace both enables or empowers us and makes demands on us by putting us under obligation. Titus 2:11-12 tells us that the grace of God teaches us that “denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously and godly.” Receiving the grace of God puts us under obligation to respond.

We find here that Peter is teaching that the grace of God demands diligence or effort. Verse 5 reads, “giving all diligence [effort].” In addition, it is helpful to understand that Peter is saying in the word translated as “add” that we are to bring this diligence, this effort, alongside or in cooperation with what God has already given. God freely extends His grace, but it obligates us to respond. We are then to do our part in cooperating with what He has given to us—and He inspired Peter to tell us to do it diligently and with a great deal of effort.

Messengers of the Lord almost constantly speak of growth. Yet, notice where Peter begins his list of traits we are to become fruitful in: He writes, “Add to your faith.” “Add” is woefully mistranslated into the English. Yes, it can mean “add,” but it is actually much more expansive than that. “Generously supplement” is a more literally correct rendering, which brings it into harmony with “diligence.” In other words, make great effort to supplement your faith generously.

The Apostle Peter sees faith as the starting point for all the other qualities or attributes. He does not mean to imply in any way that faith is elementary, but rather that it is fundamental or foundational—that the other things will not exist as aspects of godliness without faith undergirding them. In the Greek, it is written as though each one of these qualities flows from the previous ones. We could also say that faith is like the central or dominant theme in a symphony, and the other qualities amplify or embellish it.

How much and what we accomplish is dependent on the place from which we begin. Peter is showing us that there is a divine order for growth, and it begins with faith.

Friends, I pray that you each let your faith grow and increase today – Ask our Father in heaven to increase your faith – spend time in the Word and build yourselves up – remind yourself daily of the good things God has done in your own life – testimonies even when spoken unto yourself increase and builds up faith!!

A radical Christian living a life of radical Christianity is one who walks empowered by Grace to fulfill all that Father has set before them, having great faith in the knowledge that Holy Ghost will provide every provision necessary to full-fill the task at hand!

Are you radical enough in your faith to cry out and let His Grace supply all your needs today? For there are sick to be healed, blind eyes and deaf ears to be opened, imprisoned and oppressed to be liberated, dead to be raised – both in Spirit and in the physical.

The Highest rank is that of servant!

IHS,
Russ Welch

KINGDOM DOMAIN – THE WORLD

Posted: May 23, 2011 in disciples life, Kingdom Teaching, Prophetic, teaching, wilderness
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Doctrines developed in the past apostate church age offered little or no hope for man or the world in this present life. The essence of these doctrines is that the world and its systems are hopelessly tainted with sin and, subsequently, evil. They, therefore, are fit only to be destroyed and replaced by a newly created planet. In this view there is no hope for the present world to be cleansed and restored. The only hope for the planet is total destruction by the judgmental fire of God melting and dissolving the very elements of the planet.

Some fruits from the essence of these teachings are:

1. A release of man’s responsibility to preserve and care for the natural systems of the planet. There is little or no incentive for man to cooperate with natural laws of God’s order. Short range, more immediately profitable actions are often chosen over those that align with God’s natural order, which are designed for the continued existence of the planet’s systems. The underlying rationale seems to be, “Why be concerned since it is all going to burn and be destroyed anyway, and probably soon”?

2. A lack of appreciation for the wonderful creation of the beautiful, life- supporting planet. The glorious essence of God can be seen in the beauty of His creation. The intense blue of mountain lakes reflect more than the breathtaking awesomeness of the magnificent mountain scenes. It also reflects something about our loving, great God. The unfathomable complexity of the chemical, physical, biological, zoological, meteorological, ecological, and other systems of the planet all speak of our God, who created them. They are all designed to intricately work together to support continuing life on the planet, and the continued life of the planet itself.

3. A lack of respect for life on earth and man’s awesome and exciting potential with God. Man is the only part of God’s creation designed to intimately relate to God, to actually experience knowing Him. Man is designed to rule and reign with Him now in this present age. A lack of appreciation for God’s natural creation leads to a lack of respect for the life of man himself. Man is linked to and a part of the world’s systems.

Do these fruits seem to line up with the words of Jesus and the nature of God? Jesus came that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly. It is God’s nature to give life, to heal, and to deliver. Someone else desires to destroy. The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy (John 10:10). It is not God’s plan or desire to destroy the earth, but rather to purify it. Jesus often spoke of the wicked being removed and the righteous shining forth on earth (Matt. 13:24-30, 37-43).

The scripture also speaks clearly of God destroying those who destroy the earth.
Rev. 11:18b: And that You should reward Your servants the prophets and the saints, And those who fear Your name, small and great, And should destroy those who destroy the earth.

Since the essence of the teachings that the earth is bad and fit only to be despised and destroyed does not appear to line up with the words of Jesus and the nature of God, we need to reexamine the scriptures that seem to affirm these teachings.

Does God love the world’s systems or despise them? Are we to love the world or to despise it? Certainly, we know God loves man. However, God does not love man’s sin and evil nature. God loves the world, but does not love the evil in the world implanted by the devil. In our considerations, we must make a distinction in our consideration between the created planet and the two systems that seek to rule life on the planet.

One ruling system is the evil order of the enemy and the other ruling system is the order of God from heaven. Both of these systems are referred to as the “kosmos” in the Greek New Testament text.

One of the most well known scripture verses is John 3:16, which many Christians have taught to their small children. Many correctly use this verse to instill in children that God loves them so much that Jesus came to save them and everyone who will believe. We may read the verse, “For God so loved the world”, but think in our minds,

“For God so loved me or mankind”. Granted, the individual and mankind are the focus of what is being spoken of here, but more than mankind is being referred to as the world.

The word translated “world” here is the Greek word “kosmos,” which is generally interpreted as “world order”. Strong’s Concordance Greek Dictionary defines the word as orderly arrangement, and by implication, the world and its inhabitants.
[ “G2889. kosmos, kos’-mos; prob. from the base of G2865; orderly arrangement, i.e. decoration; by impl. the world (in a wide or narrow sense, includ. its inhabitants, lit. or fig. [mor.]):–adorning, world.” The root or base is: G2865. komizo, kom-id’-zo; from a prim. komeo (to tend, i.e. take care of); prop. to provide for, i.e. (by impl.) to carry off (as if from harm; gen. obtain):–bring, receive.]

Jesus came to save more than mankind; He came to save the world. God desires to redeem all the “kosmos,” all the adorning and decorative systems. Since God has given mankind authority and responsibility to have dominion on earth, man must first be redeemed and brought into order with God and His ways for the world to be saved or restored.

God chose to limit himself by ruling through man on earth and has never rescinded that position. Man has the free will to make decisions regarding the order of rule in the world. Therefore, God had to become a man to save the world. God became a man in Jesus Christ. His original created order is for man to have dominion in the world (Gen. 1:26-28).

The man Jesus, seated at the right hand of the Father in heaven, now rules in the world as he lives within believers on the earth by the Holy Spirit. As human beings receive Christ Jesus into their lives by the Holy Spirit and yield control of their lives to the Spirit of Christ within, the will of God is done from heaven on earth through man.

The kingdom of God from heaven rules in the world and the ways of God redeem and restore the kosmos.

The key to the redemption of the world is the salvation of man. Therefore, man’s redemption is the world’s only hope.

In every instance, the word translated world in John 3:16-17, is kosmos.
John 3:16-17: “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved.

In these verses God speaks of man being saved in relation to the world being saved.

There is no distinction made between mankind and the rest of the world as the object of God’s saving love. The priority in these verses is that the kosmos be saved.
Mankind is a major part of the kosmos and is God’s caretaker for the planet. Even the root of the word kosmos, (komizo and komeo) means to tend or take care of, to provide for and keep from harm. Man is to carry out the order of God’s design on the earth. The kingdom of God, the will of God, is to come forth through redeemed man–more specifically by Christ Jesus within man.

Two Worlds On Planet Earth
Obviously, God loves the world (the world He created and its systems of life). Yet, other scriptures make it clear that we are not to love the world (evil world order) or the things of the world (evil works in the world).

In scripture, there is one planet but two worlds spoken of. First, there is the world system that God created and loves and that we are to love as well. Second there is the evil fallen world system that was released by Adam and that we are told not to love. These two world systems are kingdoms–the kingdom of light and the kingdom of darkness. The kingdom of darkness is evil but offers attractive enticements that appeal to the lust of the flesh and seek to lure people under its influence and entrapment.

We are not to love this evil world system or the things it offers. Neither of these world systems is the physical planet but spirit-led systems working to guide and empower humans beings that have dominion on the planet. Human beings have the authority to decide which system is released into the world. Neither system will have dominion in the world without the will of mankind releasing it.

In every instance the word translated world in 1 John 2:15-17, is also kosmos.
1 John 2:15-17: Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world; the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life; is not of the Father but is of the world.

And the world is passing away, and the lust of it; but he who does the will of God abides forever.

Man is not being instructed not to have loving concern for the world, but is being told to not have the love of (from) the evil world system. The world has its own kind of selfish, lustful, greedy affection–the desires of the flesh. We are not to have that love of the world. We are not to lust after the things of the world. However, we are to be filled with the love of God for the world and desire its redemption.

The love of God satisfies.
The love of (from) God is a fully satisfying inner abundance. Individuals filled with the love from God feel no anxiety or frustrating need for anything else. Nothing further is required for their spirit and soul to be at perfect peace. From this inner abundance flows a great desire and potential to love the kosmos (the world and its inhabitants).

This leads to serving mankind and the world around us by seeking to make things better for everyone, which brings the peaceful, prosperous, order of God to the kosmos. Love from God is a giving kind of love.

The love of (from) the world is not really love at all, but lust for the kosmos. It is seeking to fill an inner need that exists because the love of (from) God is not filling the individual. In reality the world’s kind of love (lust) is not love at all. It stems from the lack of the presence of God’s love within. The inner need created by unlove leads to the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life. The inner need becomes like a great vacuum trying to fill the void with the kosmos (the world and the things in it, including people). The kosmos is consumed, used, and destroyed as the inner need drives the individual to get more, have more, be more, and experience more. The love of (from) the world is a taking kind of unlove.

The love of God is in Christ Jesus. The potential for the very love of God in your life and mine is in Jesus. If the Spirit of Christ rules our hearts, the love of God is manifest in our lives.

John 17:26: And I have declared to them Your name, and will declare it, that the love with which You loved Me may be in them, and I in them.

Christ in man is the practical method by which love from God fills one’s life until no room exists for the love (lust) from the world system for the things in the world.

There is a vast difference between having loving concern for the kosmos (as God also does) and seeking to possess or consume the kosmos from our lust of the flesh, lust of the eyes, and pride of this life. The Spirit of Christ Jesus living and ruling within by the Holy Spirit guides and empowers individuals to walk in freedom from the lust of the flesh and to be filled with the love of (from) God. All people that do not have the love of God abiding within them by the Spirit will have lust for the things of the world. It is not possible for one in whom Christ Jesus does not dwell to be filled with the love of God and to be free of the love of (from) the world.

Gal 5:16-17: I say then: Walk in the Spirit, and you shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh. For the flesh lusts against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; and these are contrary to one another, so that you do not do the things that you wish.

Many Christians may need to rethink their worldview.
A belief that God does not love the kosmos may have led us to devalue much of what God loves, and sent His Son to save. Man is inseparably a part of the kosmos. To harm or destroy the world is to harm one’s self. To bless and redeem the world is to bless one’s self. As man takes care of the world, the world takes care of man. I’m reminded of an old saying that farmers once used, If you will take care of the land, the land will take care of you. This same wisdom applies to all of the kosmos.

The world is not inherently evil. It is a marvelous and wonderful creation of God. The systems and order of the world are awesomely grand beyond all we can think. The complex intricacy of biological systems, ecological systems, and the physical make up of all things is more than all the minds of man together could ever understand. Yet, it all fits and works together to perpetually sustain life. The beauty of the colors, shapes, and patterns of the mountains, lakes, forests, plains, and mighty oceans are marvelous beyond compare. The delicate, delightful fragrances of the rose, the flowers of the field, the spruce or fir tree, or the pine tree on a still spring evening, all speak of God’s love and provision for the world.

It is humbling to realize that God has put man in charge of caring for His marvelous creation. To not be concerned about caring for the people, animals, and the ecology of the world is to be apart from the plan of God. As man, by the power of the indwelling Christ, walks in accordance with God’s ways, the kosmos is healed. Mankind, seeking the kingdom of God and His righteous ways of being and doing, moves man and the world systems toward healing and restoration (Matt. 6:33) (Rom 8:19-22).

Mankind, seeking his own way apart from God, moves man and the world systems toward disorder and destruction. God has not planned the destruction of His creation. The power of Christ in man is sufficient to heal and restore the kosmos.

John 3:16a, 17b: For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that the world through him might be saved.

John 1:29b: Behold! The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!

Keep on Pursuing Love
It Will Never Fail,
Ron McGatlin
http://www.openheaven.com
basileia@earthlink.net

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