Posts Tagged ‘Kingdom life’

Arise And Possess the Kingdom

Posted: April 27, 2011 in disciples life, Kingdom Teaching, Prophetic, teaching, wilderness
Tags: , , , ,
0

If you are reading this, you are privileged to live in one of the most dynamic times of change upon this planet. The core of reality as has been practiced in the church is changing. In 1990 God spoke clearly to me, one of His nobodies, and said, “Church is over.” I replied, “What does this mean”. I quickly heard, “Church as you have known it is over”. Fifteen years ago that was an astonishing word to me and did get me into a heap of trouble when I dared to share it with a few others. I do remember being preached at from at least a few pulpits.

This word was preceded several years earlier by a life changing response to another question that I had asked God in 1985. I had simply asked, after beginning again to read the gospels, “God what does this word kingdom really mean? Why did Jesus speak of it so much?” I was quickly within an open heaven as God poured revelation of His Word into my astonished soul. Many of my religious views and formulas began to dissolve as truth became reality.

My grave concern of being the only person I knew who was hearing this (though there were others unknown to me) was soothed by an assurance that He was also giving this revelation of kingdom truth to others around the world and eventually it would “come up like grass in a field”. The resulting rejection by all religious organizations, friends, and family was most painful but there was no possible turning back from the revelation and call of God.

Today we are alive in a day when the gospel of the kingdom is being preached widely and the great transition of the church from the church emphasis age to the church of the kingdom emphasis age has begun. Many have seen and are moving into the experience of the reality of the manifest presence of God changing the people of God (the church) to change the world. Religious pomp and ceremony are, over time, being replaced by the reality of the joy, power and love of intimate relationship with God and with one another. The focus on “me” and “my needs” is becoming a focus on God and His desires. Our will is fading into His will. Our ways are beginning to transcend into His way.

We must fully awaken from the soul sleep of religion to the purposes of God to establish the kingdom of God as a practical reality; eventually ruling and reigning over all the earth. God has not sent angels or any other beings other than mankind to possess the kingdom of God. Only man is made in the image of God and today can be filled with the life of the Spirit of the resurrected Christ. Only man has the God-given place to rule and reign with Christ on earth.

Sons must arise from the limitations of fallacious doctrines of demons and traditions of men to the reality of Almighty God and His truth. All things are possible to him who believes. Believe false limitations and it is possible to limit the life of God in and through you. Believe the truth and it is possible to become as Christ in the world. The question is not whether you will believe or not. The question is “Whose report will you believe?”

The world is in great darkness. And sadly many people of God who are called by His name are in much darkness as well. Many leaders are stumbling in darkness even in the noon day of the light of God coming forth. Spiritual blindness will be broken as the people sitting in darkness see and begin to move toward the great light of the gospel of the kingdom manifesting in the holy humble servants of God filled with the power and love of the resurrected Christ. Christ living within them is beginning to possess that which was created for God and redeemed by Christ at the cross and now must be possessed by the life and power of the resurrected Christ living through mature sons of God.

It is not going to happen some other way. There is no plan B. Sons and daughters of the most High God fall on your face before Him. Let His manifest presence of ultimate fire burn everything from your life and refill you with only His life, His love, His ways, His power, and His wisdom – pass through the dark night of the soul of death and then ARISE IN HIS GLORY! ARISE IN HIS LIFE AS CHRIST IN THE WORLD. Speak carefully, speak only His words from His Spirit within. Speak with the authority of Christ. Destroy the works of the enemy. Instruct and bless your brothers and sisters.

Light come! Will of God be done! In the name of Jesus.

Pursue Love, It Never Fails,

Lots of Love,

Ron McGatlin

Turmoil of betrayal

Posted: April 21, 2011 in disciples life, Kingdom Teaching, teaching, wilderness
Tags: , , , , , , ,
0

“for love covers a multitude of sins…..”

What does one do when betrayed! The Word says to not only love the person, it says to forgive as well. Yet let us look at the love that is mentioned in the passage for a moment. The love that is written in the KJV is “ἀγάπη ag-ah’-pay” which mean to love, that is, affection or benevolence; specifically (plural) a love feast: – (feast of) charity ([-ably]), dear, love.

O’ that unconditional love that the Father shows forth towards His children – this is the love which He desires His children to operate in.

Yet as humans we find that at the moment of betrayal it is a immediate turmoil of emotions that run through our whole being. This is usually because it is not our enemies that are able to betray us rather it is those who are closest to us. It is like a deep knife being thrust into our rib cage and puncturing our heart.

But the Lord tells us in His Word to forgive and to do so with agape love and we must search deep within our selves to find the Christ in us to overcome the pain. I have heard some say that they can not be hurt – yet I believe that hurt is indeed part of our make up. The question that must be asked is how “do we respond to such hurt”?

Many lash out at the person who has hurt them. Sadly many leaders in the Body today who feel they have been betrayed possible when someone leaves their church or break fellowship with them go on the defensive and at times will use their influence to cause others to look indifferently upon the one who may have caused the offense.

Yet my brothers and sisters this is not the answer – the answer is love – agape love that is completely and undeniable unconditional – love that states if you hurt me I will still love you, if you befriend me I will still love you. We saw the Lord Himself paint this picture for us as the 11 scattered when He was arrested and one of His closest friends went so far as to deny Him not once, not twice but three times. Yet we see that when Jesus met them again after His resurrection in that closed in room He said to them “Peace be with you” . We see in the passage found in John 20He treated them with brotherly love holding nothing against them.

We must model our lives after the Lord, for He has been tempted in every manner such as we have even to the point of those closest to Him betraying Him, yet His response was that of love – so must ours! (ref Heb 4:15)

Now onto an even deeper look in regard to betrayal in the area of when we betray our selves. In the midst of s struggle with a besetting sin it is so easy to not be willing to forgive ourselves, opening the door to the enemy to come in and fill our minds and spirit up with guilt and condemnation. This leads to the position that the Blood of the Lamb is qualified to forgive all sin except our own. And then we turn inward and begin doubting the scriptures. We begin to become bitter and cynical as we see others set free yet we remain in bondage. This bitterness will grow and cause us to become distant from those around us.

We must be willing to love ourselves here as well brothers and sisters. I am not talking about a selfish prideful love here I am talking about seeing ourselves thru the eyes of the Father. No, I am certainly not condoning sin here, I am speaking from a personal stand point from which I have gone through. The position I described above is most often entered into when we try and overcome something in our own strength. We set ourselves up for failure for, we in and of ourselves have no power over sin. The overcoming power comes from the cross, from the blood of the Lord and the infusion of grace from the Father via Holy Spirit into our inner man that empowers us to live the overcoming life.

My dear children, I’m writing this to you so that you will not sin. Yet, if anyone does sin, we have Jesus Christ, who has God’s full approval. He speaks on our behalf when we come into the presence of the Father. (1 John 2:1)

I have struggled with an issue in my own life for years up until recently when the Lord showed me the power of His love. I would have victory for days, some times weeks even at times for months and I would fight off the desire with all the strength I had. Then bam, it would pop up and cause me to stumble again. I not only felt like I had betrayed the Lord, inside I would be so unforgiving of myself because once again I betrayed myself.

The devil tries to undermine our faith, making us feel guilty and unclean by pointing to our sins, causing us to take our eyes off Jesus. He then fills us with doubt about our salvation. There are many things that make us unclean and the devil will be sure to point them out in order to break our fellowship with God. One of his greatest weapons is to position of to identify our selves in the sin rather than freedom from the sin.

Self betrayal can be like a fast spreading cancer. Once it attaches itself to you it begins to rapidly drain you and can suck the very life out of your spirit.

I John 1:9 says, ”if we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness”

The key to the victory over it comes thru repentance – admitting you’ve done wrong and asking the Father to forgive attached to inner self forgiveness and wrapped up in the power of His love which contains a deep sense of grace and mercy. We must not only accept the fact that God loves us, we ourselves must love who we are through God’s eyes!

Consider this: The Father has given us his love. He loves us so much that we are actually called God’s dear children. ( 1 John 3:1)

For it is this position of love, realizing that we are not simply loved when we are good, we are loved at all times by the Father – we must find our identity in His love. Before long that sin that so often caused us to fail will no longer be an issue for the Fathers Love will break its power in our lives – His Love flows mightily thru the Blood of His Son, the Lamb of God with such power that there is no sin that cannot be washed away.

We can only come to God by the merits of the blood and its cleansing power.

“they overcame him (the accuser of the brethren), by reason of the blood of the Lamb, and by reason of the word of their testimony and have not loved their life, even unto death”. (Rev 12:11)

Close the door on the effects of betrayal today in your life – in regards to that which comes from others betraying you down to self betrayal – “The blood of goats and bulls and the ashes of cows sprinkled on unclean[a] people made their bodies holy and clean. The blood of Christ, who had no defect, does even more. Through the eternal Spirit he offered himself to God and cleansed our consciences from the useless things we had done”. (Heb 9:13-14)

Now we can serve the living God in righteousness thru Christ. We must walk anew each day, dying to self placing our fleshly desires under the sin destroying weight of the cross. Let the Blood of the Lamb wash you anew and sweep in and over you, consuming you in the Fathers LOVE!

For we indeed serve an Awesome God!

Russ Welch

HARLOTRY OF BABYLON

Posted: April 14, 2011 in disciples life, Kingdom Teaching, Prophetic, teaching, wilderness
Tags: , , , , ,
0

There are two great, ruling cities from which mankind can receive patterns for life. We have previously written regarding the great ruling city of God, New Jerusalem, the Bride of Christ City. The other great ruling city is Babylon, the Harlot of the devil, which has planted its harlot patterns throughout the current world system. Babylon’s patterns have produced great riches for some. She is extremely enticing and beautifully clothed in wealth. Yet, inside, she is full of filth and abominations, a habitation of demons.

Babylon must fall. This great religious and political system with all its patterns of life is judged of God and is coming down. Before the patterns of New Jerusalem can rule, the patterns of Babylon must be dissolved. The people seeking to enter the city-of-God lifestyle must have the Babylonian patterns and ways broken, removed from their lives, and replaced with New Jerusalem patterns. The Babylonian system has been deadly to the saints of God. Many have fallen and many are in captivity to Babylonian ways. God’s people are warned to come out of Babylon lest they share in her sin and receive of her plagues.

Revelation 17:1-6: Then one of the seven angels who had the seven bowls came to me, “Come, I will show you the judgment of the great harlot who sits on many waters, with whom the kings of the earth committed fornication, and the inhabitants of the earth were made drunk with the wine of her fornication.” So he carried me away in the Spirit into the wilderness. And I saw a woman sitting on a scarlet beast which was full of names of blasphemy, having seven heads and ten horns. The woman was arrayed in purple and scarlet, and adorned with gold and precious stones and pearls, having in her hand a golden cup full of abominations and the filthiness of her fornication. And on her forehead a name was written: “MYSTERY BABYLON THE GREAT MOTHER OF HARLOTS AND ABOMINATIONS OF THE EARTH.” And I saw the woman drunk with the blood of the saints and with the blood of martyrs of Jesus. And when I saw her, I marveled with great amazement.

Revelation 17:15,18: And he said to me, “The waters which you saw, where the harlot sits, are peoples, multitudes, nations, and tongues.” And the woman whom you saw is the great city which reigns over the kings of the earth.

Revelation 18:2-4: And he cried mightily with a loud voice, saying, “Babylon the great is fallen, is fallen, and has become a habitation of demons, a prison for every foul spirit, and a cage for every unclean and hated bird. For all the nations have drunk of the wine of the wrath of her fornication, the kings of the earth have committed fornication with her, and the merchants of the earth have become rich through the abundance of her luxury.” And I heard another voice from heaven saying, “Come out of her, my people lest you share in her sins, and lest you receive of her plagues.”

What a great contrast between the harlot city of Babylon described in the book of Revelation (chapters seventeen to nineteen) and the beautiful Bride-City of God, New Jerusalem, described in Revelation (chapters twenty-one and twenty-two). The beautiful Bride of Christ lifestyle is filled with the glory of God abiding with man and man living in God’s very presence partaking of a pure river of water of life, clear as crystal, proceeding from the throne of God and the Lamb. Tears are wiped away and curses broken. Men and women are thankfully serving God and joyfully praising Him.

Just as there is a natural Jerusalem and now a spiritual New Jerusalem coming forth, there was a natural Babylon that was destroyed and now a Mystery Babylon that is being destroyed. Many patterns that began thousands of years ago in old Babylon are traceable throughout ancient history and up to the present time. Ancient Babylon was the first great-walled city after the flood. Noah’s great grandson, Nimrod, built it. Noah begot Ham; Ham begot Cush; and Cush begot Nimrod.

Babylon became the birthplace of idolatry that spread throughout the ancient world and was passed to empires and civilizations throughout history. Nimrod and his wife, Semiramis, were the first people to be worshipped as gods. Although different names were used in various cultures, they were similarly worshipped in much of the world, and can still be easily recognized in many religions today. These patterns were subversively planted into the Christian religion. Churches today are still affected by them. This nation (the good old U.S.A.) and much of the world are primarily ruled by the patterns of ancient Babylon. The patterns found in Nimrod and Semiramis of ancient Babylon are very similar to the dynamics of worldly families, businesses, churches, and political governments of today.

Genesis 10:8-12a: Cush begot Nimrod; he began to be a mighty one on the earth. He was a mighty hunter before the Lord; therefore it is said, Like Nimrod the mighty hunter before the Lord. And the beginning of his kingdom was Babel, Erech, Accad, and Calneh, in the land of Shinar. From that land he went to Assyria and built Nineveh, Rehoboth Ir, Calah, and Resen.

The word “before” in the statement “He was a mighty hunter before the Lord” could be translated “against”. Nimrod was a mighty man “against” the Lord. By some means, he and Semiramis tapped into the darkness of mystical and occult powers. A departure from the patriarchal faith had occurred. It is represented by some profane history that Cush had become a ringleader of apostasy. Nimrod added mystical, demonic powers and knowledge to his natural strength and became a powerful force on the earth, conquering all those around him.

Nimrod was the first to wage war upon his neighbors, the first to train troops with exercise and hardship, and the first to build towers and walled cities for battle. Nimrod exercised strong control over men. They were enticed with unbridled self-gratification. Everywhere Nimrod went there were extravagant parties with orgies, dancing girls, music, games, and anything that brought self-gratification. Nimrod also controlled others by locking up the mysteries of science and sorcery that he had discovered and releasing them to men only when they were under his control. He used confession of sins and faults to control. When he had enough information on others and they were awestruck by his great display of magic, he could easily control them.

Nimrod was suddenly cut off in the midst of his glorious career. Mystery surrounds his disappearance, but it is believed he met with a violent death while on one of his expeditions. Semiramis, whose feminine beauty hid her immoral, manipulative, deceitful self, had usurped her husband’s attributes before his death. At his death, she fully took over her husband’s place.

Semiramis, in her licentious ways, gave birth to a son after Nimrod was gone. She told people that Nimrod had reappeared in the person of a posthumous son. She held the son up as God and the people worshipped him. They worshipped her as the mother of God. Eventually, she became the predominant goddess overshadowing the son. Thus, through deception and manipulation she took over the assets and attributes of Nimrod and continued her lavish lifestyle.

Semiramis was seen as both the mother and wife of her husband. Nimrod was seen as the husband and the son of his wife. She was revered as the “Mother of God”. The image of the “Mother of God” with the child in her arms spread throughout the idolatrous world. Semiramis is said to have finished the wall of Babylon and thus became the goddess of fortresses and towers. The “Diana of the Ephesians” mentioned in the New Testament with her crown of towers is identified with Semiramis.

Babylon became known as a great center of extravagant wealth and revelry, a monument of glamour to the accomplishments of man, a place of harlotry and sorcery, a place of great wizardry, great human knowledge and discovery, and a place of competition and contention. However, its primary characteristic was spiritual harlotry.

Spiritual harlotry is seeking to fulfill our own needs and desires apart from God. God is our provider and desires to meet our needs in every area of life. If we look to anything or anyone else to meet our needs, we are looking to another god and are involved in spiritual harlotry. Harlotry and idolatry are very closely related. Harlotry is looking to an idol (another god) for what our Heavenly Father should provide for us. Spiritual harlotry is selling our purity to meet our needs. It is self-seeking and self-serving.

It is easy to see how the bad heart-tree is a harlot tree. Spiritual harlotry is seeking to meet the needs of our life-structure on our own, instead of trusting God to take care of us. The good heart-tree is a bride tree, in which we are able to trust God to meet all of our needs and satisfy our wants.

Babylon is a harlot system, a means of meeting human needs and selfish wants apart from God. Babylon is ruled by a spirit of harlotry and is characterized by competition, immorality, and sorcery.

HARLOTRY IS SELF-SEEKING AND SELF-SERVING:
It is seeking to meet my own needs and desires apart from God.

COMPETITION IS SEEKING POSITION OR CONTROL:
Some characteristics are: Contention, Strife, Thieving (taking), Lying, Deceit, Manipulation, Seduction, Control, Dominance, War (fighting), Overlord, Tyrant, Backbiting, Murder, Greed, and Covetousness.

IMMORALITY IS SEEKING PLEASURE OR ENTERTAINMENT:
Some characteristics are: Lust, Fantasy Lust, Fornication, Sexual Perversion, Unclean, Overeating, Overplaying, Overworking, Over-resting, and Reveling (partying).

SORCERY IS SEEKING POWER OR DIRECTION:
Some characteristics are: Occult, Witchcraft, Hypnosis, Mind Control, Mind Power, Humanism, Intellectualism, Astrology, Psychics, and New-Age Junk.

Much of the world has taken giant steps into Babylonian harlotry in recent decades. Games and “playing” have become a major part of the western world. Gambling lotteries and casinos have spread widely across the land. Sexual perversion and recreational immorality are accepted as normal behavior. Psychics are now openly viewed by many as a valid source of direction for their lives. Competition has intensified as people struggle for control in families, businesses, governments, tribes, and nations. Computer and video games, gambling, spectator sports, recreational drugs and alcohol, entertainment, and other recreational industries probably already represent the largest segment of production in the western world. Are we seeking from another god what our true God desires to supply?

WORLD WAR

Many skirmishes and wars continue to be fought within the Babylonian world system. Men and nations compete for the assets of the world to gratify themselves. There is no end to the struggles for positions of control and possessions in the Babylonian jungles of social structure.

However, the greatest war of all time is the all out win or die worldwide war between Babylon and New Jerusalem (the kingdom of darkness and the kingdom of light). The war is between the harlot and the Bride way of life ruling the world. Christ Jesus has already won this war and has provided victory over the evil Babylonian kingdom of darkness. The full manifestation of this victory waits for the hearts of mankind to align with Christ Jesus. This involves human beings turning from their harlot lifestyles and becoming the righteousness of God in Christ. The pure, holy, glorious Bride of Christ is the fulfillment of the victory Christ Jesus purchased with His own blood.

Therefore, the war is now within the minds and hearts of mankind, especially those who are called by His name. The god of Babylon strives with much success to limit the faith of the people of God. His greatest tool is spiritual blindness to kingdom of God reality. When God’s people cannot see and cannot hear Him clearly, false concepts can be planted that prevent true faith from developing. What man believes in his heart determines the release of the rule of the kingdom of darkness or the kingdom of light.

The war is about faith to believe that the kingdom of God is now available on the earth. The enemy has destroyed the faith of most religious people. They simply do not believe that the kingdom of God that Christ came to purchase can manifest now. The enemy has perverted the word of God and caused most people to believe the planet is to be destroyed and not redeemed. The enemy wants you to have no faith for the kingdom of God now and no hope for the planet to become restored.

This blindness and loss of faith in the kingdom of God is not new. Works of Babylon were firmly implanted in the church before the fourth century. By the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, when the English Bible was translated, there was almost no revelation of the kingdom of God on earth. This present life and world were seen as hopelessly evil and lost. The planet would have to be destroyed, a new planet created, and Jesus bodily returned for there to be any of God’s kingdom on earth.

This led to what I consider to be the most grievous of translation errors in our English Bible. In 2nd Peter the translators deviated from their own translation rules to cause the word to say the “elements” of the earth will be burned up in judgment. Going back to the original language, it is absolutely obvious that without any doubt Peter was speaking of the rudimental elements of evil that would be completely destroyed.

The word translated “elements” is “stoicheion” (stoy-khi’-on), which means something orderly in arrangement, a basal, fundamental, initial serial, and constituent. In other words, “stoicheion” means the basic, foundational, principles of an order. In this passage it specifically refers to the foundations of the evil order affecting earth, not the physical elements of the planet.

This is the only time this word is interpreted to mean physical elements in the Bible.

“Stoicheion” is used seven times in the New Testament; in every case it refers to basic principles or rudiments, either of the doctrines and oracles of God or of the evil world order. In no other place is it interpreted as referring to the physical elements.

(For a detailed study of this passage see Chapter 7 of the book The Seventh Millennium.)

God is looking for a kingdom people.

God is calling forth a people that will break through the Babylonian darkness, and renounce their harlot lifestyles, and renew their minds to the mind of Christ by the Holy Spirit. The kingdom of God waits for God’s people to change their mind-set from seeking life and pleasure from other gods to a pure love relationship with Christ Jesus our Lord and King.

Will we become the Bride or continue in our harlot ways? The world waits to see the reality of the New Jerusalem lifestyle and the love and power of the real kingdom of God. Multitudes will come to the real thing; however, multitudes will continue to seek other gods until they see something more real than what the church has produced in past centuries.

In prayer renounce the Babylonian ways in your own life and rebuke the enemy in the name of Jesus. Ask Father to fill your heart with the life and concepts of the New Jerusalem lifestyle.

Keep on Pursuing Love
It Will Never Fail,

Ron McGatlin

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

GOD’S KINGDOM PATTERN

Posted: April 11, 2011 in disciples life, Kingdom Teaching, teaching
Tags: , , , , , , , ,
1

THE GOOD SEED

The seed that will produce the good heart-tree when planted in good heart-soil is LOVE. The unconditional God-kind of real love flowing through an affirming attitude is received in the heart as pleasure or comfort.

The heart perceives love primarily as ACCEPTANCE along with mercy, grace, and forgiveness for our shortcomings. We find love, acceptance, mercy, grace, and forgiveness in God through Jesus Christ.

John 3:16: 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.

Ephesians 2:4-5: But God, Who is rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in trespasses, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you are saved).

Ephesians 1:6-7: …to the praise of the glory of His grace; by which He has made us accepted in the Beloved. In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of His grace…

Our hearts must experience the love of Jesus filling our spirits by the Holy Spirit. Our hearts also need to experience the love of Jesus in our souls through the manifest love of Jesus coming through other people. To grow a good life-structure we need to receive the seed of the love and acceptance of Jesus flowing through an affirming attitude from the people in authority over us and from those around us. We never outgrow our need for love.

God’s pattern is for the individual to be formed in a godly environment of love and acceptance; not just a Christian home with clean morals and firm discipline, but a family characterized by unconditional godly love. The seed-pattern of the kingdom of God is the real love from God flowing through godly parents, extended family, and community always affirming the worth of the child while tenderly nurturing and training from conception to maturity.

Ephesians 6:4b: Amp. “… but rear them [tenderly] in the training and discipline and the counsel and admonition of the Lord.”

THE GOOD ROOT

The seed of love sown in the soil of our heart will begin to grow the foundational ROOT system of our life-structure. The taproot is the reality of the LOVE OF JESUS in our heart. The tip of the taproot is abundant life. The main root of the love of Jesus, along with its beautiful secondary roots, will fill our heart-soil with the fullness of God. The secondary roots that branch from the main taproot are both in-working and out-working characteristics, such as peace, approval, devotion, kindness, calmness, blessing, joy, gladness, goodness, satisfaction, hope, cheerfulness, and delight.

Ephesians 3:17-19: …that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith; that you, being rooted and grounded in love, may be able to comprehend with all the saints what is the width and length and depth and height – to know the love of Christ which passes knowledge; that you may be filled with all the fullness of God.

THE ENEMY’S SCHEME

THE BAD SEED

The bad seed is UNLOVE. Unlove is perceived in our hearts primarily as REJECTION, and is felt in the heart as PAIN. Seeds of rejection, accusation, condemnation, and unforgiveness flowing through a judgmental or critical attitude are the seeds the enemy uses to plant a bad life-structure. Unlove is the absence of the unconditional God-kind of love.

Rejection may come in many forms and from many sources. Usually the rejection that produces the most severe pain comes from those closest to us–from those who should love us. Rejection is often communicated in subtle ways. The child that is severely abused, abandoned, or that suffered the trauma of parental divorce may not be the only child who feels the pain of rejection. If our parents were just too busy with their own situations to really be there for us when we needed them, we experienced rejection, too. Apathy can be the worst kind of unlove.

Psalm 109: 2-4a, 22-23: For the mouth of the wicked and the mouth of the deceitful have opened against me; they have spoken against me with a lying tongue. They have also surrounded me with words of hatred, and fought against me without a cause. In return for my love they are my accusers. I am poor and needy and my heart is wounded within me. I am gone like a shadow when it lengthens; I am shaken like a locust.

Romans 2:1a, Amp.: Therefore you have no excuse of defense or justification, O man, whoever you are who judges and condemns another.

Ephesians 6:4a, Amp.: Fathers, do not irritate and provoke your children to anger; do not exasperate them to resentment…

There is no more painful seed which can be planted in our heart than being judged and condemned by someone we love, especially those who have some measure of authority in our lives. We are particularly open to parents, pastors, teachers, coaches, mates, older siblings, and close friends. The enemy knows this and will seek to cause unforgiveness, condemnation and accusations from those who should love us. He wants us to feel the devastating pain of rejection and react to it with resentment.

THE BAD ROOT

The pain in our heart begins to grow the foundational ROOT structure of our life. The painful seed of rejection begins to produce anger, resentment, and bitterness. Left to its natural course, the seed of rejection will always produce a root of BITTERNESS. The tip of the taproot of bitterness is death. The secondary roots are both out-working and in-working characteristics. The out-working characteristics are things like anger, resentment, hatred, wrath, retaliation, rage, and an attitude of murder. The in-working characteristics are things like grief, sorrow, guilt, remorse, hopelessness, depression, despair, and an attitude of suicide.

Remember, the heart did not want these things. They are the natural result of the seed of unlove planted in the heart soil. The soil will grow whatever is planted.

Hebrews 12:14-17: Pursue peace with all men, and holiness, without which no one will see the Lord: looking diligently lest anyone fall short of the grace of God; lest any ROOT OF BITTERNESS springing up cause trouble, and by this many become defiled.

The Greek word translated “bitterness” also carries the meanings of “piercing, sharp, pungent, and poison.” The life-structure becomes poisoned with bitterness, as the taproot of bitterness with all of its ugly subsidiary or secondary roots grows and entwines to permeate the entire heart-soil.

Acts 8:21-23: You have neither part nor portion in this matter, for your heart is not right in the sight of God. Repent therefore of this your wickedness, and pray God if perhaps the thought of your heart may be forgiven you. For I see that you are poisoned by bitterness and bound by iniquity.

THE BAD TRUNK

The root of bitterness will spring up, cause trouble, and defile many. The trunk of our life-tree that springs forth from the root of bitterness is always, without exception—REBELLION. Rebellion (a disobedient attitude) is the natural outworking of bitterness, which is the natural result of inner pain from rejection. Rebellion is not usually something we plan or even desire for our lives. We didn’t want it. It was planted in our heart-soil, often before we were old enough to choose. Feelings of being rejected by parents, teachers, siblings, relatives, and peers plant the seeds that will produce the structure of our life, a trunk of rebellion.

FEAR and PRIDE characterize the trunk of rebellion. The rebellion turns into fear as we feel unloved and subconsciously reasons something like this: “The authorities over me, or those around me, do not love me as much as they love themselves. Therefore, they are going to take care of themselves first and not me. And I don’t feel God loves me because I’m in rebellion against Him. Therefore, He’s not going to take care of me either. No one is going to take care of me, so I must take care of myself.” We are now self-focused, self-centered and have a poor self-image.

Then, we take a look at ourselves and a look at the big mean world and reason something like this, “Wow! I’m not very big and the world is so big. I don’t think I can do it. I can’t take care of myself.” FEAR, insecurity, inferiority, and anxiety enter at this point.

Eventually, we may look around and see others successfully taking care of themselves. We reason something like this, “If they can do it, I can too. So I’ll take hold of my boot straps, double up my fist, set my jaw and start getting tough.” When we begin to succeed at taking care of ourselves, get that good job, new car, etc., we are PROUD. Why not? I did it all myself. God didn’t do it. The authority over me or those around me didn’t do it. I did it.” Now we are filled with PRIDE, and we become stubborn, haughty, arrogant, self-willed, and unthankful.

When we are winning, pride reigns, but when things don’t go so well, fear rules. We will flip back and forth between fear and pride depending upon our evaluation of our performance. We have become performance-oriented. We find our self-worth only in our performance. Only perfection, which we never seem to achieve, will satisfy us.

The central characteristic of our entire life-structure has become NEED. It does not matter how much we have; it is not enough. There is always a sense of lack, not being good enough, not doing enough or having enough. This continuous feeling of need or lack becomes the primary motivational force in our life-structure.

THE BAD LIMBS

The limbs of the bad heart-tree do not grow from a trunk of well-being and abundance, but rather from a driving sense of intense need–a feeling that “I will not make it if I don’t have more.” From this strong sense of need, the limbs or branches of the life-structure come forth. The natural product of great need is a strong desire to have in order to attempt to satisfy the strong sense of need. This powerful desire to have is LUST. We are not talking about a spurious want type of desire. We’re talking about what seems to some people to be a life-or-death situation.

We subconsciously reason something like, “I must provide for myself or I might not make it. If I’m going to provide for myself, I must have money–money that is mine, that I control.” Lust for money and greed come forth in the life-structure. “If I’m going to get and keep money, I must have power and position.” A lust for power, control, position and fame develops into the life-structure.

The greatest need we all have, what we are really searching for, is love—to be able to receive and give real love. But, the person with this life-structure does not even know what real love is. The bad heart-tree has never fully experienced real love, the unconditional God-kind of love. However, this type of individual does know the good feelings of romance and sex. So, lust for romance or sex comes forth and promises to meet their deep, inner need.

Remember, we did not decide to be this way. It got planted in us a long time ago as painful rejection—unlove.

The major limbs of the bad heart-tree life-structure are lust for money, lust for power, lust for position, and lust for romance or sex. On these limbs the fruit of the life is borne.

THE BAD FRUIT AND SEED

The fruit that will always come forth on these limbs is BAD DEEDS. The attitudes and actions will be selfish and involve taking rather than giving. This type of individual may really wish in his heart that he actually cared about others. He may even convince himself he does care some. But, deep in his inner being, when he really gets honest, he does not care about others like he cares for himself. Some of the attitudes causing his actions and words to offend and wound others are aggression, competition, striving, high achievement, defensiveness, inconsideration, and hostility. Wounding others sets up his own rejection from those he offends. When he offends and wounds others, he causes them to reject him. This plants more pain in his heart and starts the cycle all over again.

These offensive and wounding bad deeds are the fruit. Most fruit has a seed inside. Inside this fruit is the SEED of unlove—rejection. The seeds produced by this person’s life are exactly the same as the seeds that were planted in his own heart-soil. The individual is helplessly unable to control his judgmental and critical attitude toward those he should love. Rejection, accusation, condemnation, and unforgiveness are sown from the person into the heart-soil of others, especially the wife or husband and children. And thereby the kingdom of darkness is reproduced in the hearts of others, producing the same life-structure all over again. In a real and practical way, the sins of the fathers are passed on to the next generation. The situation tends to grow worse to the third and fourth generations. (Exodus 34:7).

THE BAD BIRDS

Certain kinds of birds are attracted to the bad fruit of the Bad Heart-Tree. The birds are BAD SPIRITS. The Bible calls these bad spirits demons. Demon spirits of darkness, blindness, deception, and delusion will come with all their filthiness and torment to lodge in the limbs of the bad-heart tree. These spirits will shut out the light. The truth of God cannot get through to the heart, but lies, deceptions, and delusion will flow readily into it.

2 Corinthians 4:3-4a: But even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing, whose minds the god of this age has blinded…

1 John 2:11: But he who hates his brother is in darkness and walks in darkness, and does not know where he is going, because the darkness has blinded his eyes.

2 Thessalonians 1:9b-11: …according to the working of Satan, with all power, signs, and lying wonders, and with all unrighteous deception among those who perish, because they did not receive the love of the truth, that they might be saved. And for this reason God will send them strong delusion, that they should believe the lie.

This type of individual is now ready to receive occult interest and involvement. He seems powerless against the enticing drawing of the lying promises of the occult to meet the needs of the life-structure. Promises of excitement, power, control, peace of mind, and riches turn into hopeless bondages and addictions that imprison him and steal all hope and, eventually, his very life.

Anyone deeply involved in occult, witchcraft, or other demonic activities has the bad heart-tree as his life-structure. It is the only way to great deception. Occult activities can range from overt satanic worship and witchcraft to church members who are deceived into practices of spirit-power that look like God. Some have called this Christian witchcraft. The bad heart-tree, mixed with religion, produces false prophets.

Remember, this individual did not plan it this way. He did not want this at all. It was planted in him as rejection, which caused pain that grew into bitterness, and then into rebellion, with fear and pride. Then his need became lust, which produced bad deeds and bad seeds, which invited evil spirits to lock him into bondage and torment, unable to hear God or His truth. In addition, if the enemy can cause the heart to be closed off to godly people as well, this individual is locked into bondage.

THE WALL

This bad tree an its fruit is not pretty. The individual soon learns his behavior is not acceptable and it causes him to be rejected and to suffer more pain again and again. He observes that every person who gets close to him eventually hurts him. He also recognizes that every person that gets close to him is hurt as well. As a result of this, he begins to build a WALL OF DEFENSE. This wall is designed to hide what actually is in the heart-tree. It is created to prevent closeness with people and stop the wounds caused by painful rejection. The wall is constructed of things used by the individual to attempt to make him feel better by venting on others.

Proverbs 18:19: A brother offended is harder to win than a strong city, and contentions are like the bars of a castle.

The person with a wall of defense is saying, “No one is ever going to get close enough to me to hurt me again.” He builds a wall as strong and as tall as necessary to keep anyone from seeing what is really in his heart and to keep anyone from ever really getting close enough to hurt him. He usually begins building his wall with contention and contrariness. Next are unaffection, withdrawal, and so on. If these characteristics fail to keep everyone away, the wall is built higher with more serious resistance.

Recall that the wall is supposed to hide the pain, bitterness, rebellion, fear, pride, lust, bad fruit, and spiritual darkness of the heart-tree that has grown from the seed of unlove planted in the heart-soil. One problem the person runs into is that the wall itself becomes very ugly. In order to cover its ugliness, one might whitewash the outside of the wall. However, this mask is only temporary, It may last long enough for a person to make it in the presence of others, such as at work or church, etc. Another problem is that the limbs keep growing over the wall. The person will continue adding more bricks to make the wall higher and stronger.

Acts 23:3: Then Paul said to him, “God will strike you, you whitewashed wall! For you sit to judge me according to the law, and do you command me to be struck contrary to the law?”

In the upper portion of the wall of defense, blame and slander are used to create separation. A major tool for creating emotional and eventually physical distance is the abuse of alcohol and drugs. If these big tools don’t create enough distance to keep others away, the individual becomes abusive, immoral and violent. In painful desperation and frustration, if he is unable to keep others out any other way, he will murder them.

Now that the wall is strong enough and high enough to keep people out from the side, and the spirits of darkness are keeping the light of God out from above, the helpless individual has become an island. He cannot give or receive love. The person is now isolated from other people and from God. Feelings of loneliness and hopelessness overwhelm him. The angry, hostile attitudes that had been focused outwardly on others begin to be focused inwardly on himself. Self-rejection now plants its painful seeds in his own heart-soil producing a deadly cycle of depression and self-hate.

The person now must attempt to build a wall to separate himself from himself. He becomes as two people in one body–one rejecting the other. He is actually dying for love and is unable to receive it or give it. Finally, he realizes it won’t do any good to just murder the one who rejects him; he’s must kill the one that is hurting him from the inside. So, he stacks the last brick on the wall. Suicide makes this statement, “You will never touch me now; you will never hurt me again; and I will never hurt me again.”

Remember again, this person did not want it to be this way. It just happened. It was planted in him. The work of Satan is complete when he can cause people to reject each other long enough to grow the seed of unlove to its final maturity—death and separation from God and His kind of life.

Keep on Pursuing Love
It Will Never Fail,

Ron McGatlin

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

Living Kingdom Today

Posted: April 7, 2011 in disciples life, Kingdom Teaching, Prophetic, teaching, wilderness
Tags: , , , , ,
0

The destiny of the world is to become the kingdom of God.

The kingdom of God potential has come and dwells within the people of God.

The full potential of the destined kingdom of God is now seeded within the fertile soil of the hearts of those in whom Christ Jesus dwells.

The Spirit kingdom growing in the hearts of human beings governs and empowers the lives of God’s kingdom people.

Subsequently, the Spirit kingdom is manifest into the natural world as the life of Christ emanates from God’s people.

Human government opposes the government of God.

The first level of human government is the inner governing of our lives. Within each person there is governance for the individual’s life. Natural man is governed within by his unredeemed soul (mind, will, and emotions) led by a spirit or spirits other than the Spirit God. God’s kingdom people are governed by the Spirit of Christ flowing through their redeemed soul by the Holy Spirit of God.

The natural unredeemed human governance opposes the governance of God within human beings. Therefore, there is internal conflict for the rule of the lives of mankind. This conflict is ultimately the war to rule the world. Whoever or whatever rules in the hearts of mankind eventually rules in the world.

The governments of the world are led by spirits: either ungodly evil spirits or the SPIRIT OF GOD.

There is no such thing as a spiritless government. Secular humanistic government is a government of evil spirits working through unredeemed souls of human beings. To seek to build a government that is neutral to religious beliefs and tolerant of all religions is to deny that the spiritual realm exists and to govern in ignorance.

Again, we find religion in the forefront of the disastrous condition of the world. The mutant form of weak, man-focused “Christian” religion that denies the reality of Christ in the Spirit indwelling His people has abandoned the governments of this world to other spirits. The enemy of God rules in this world where God should be ruling. The Spirit of God in His temple on earth is to be establishing His kingdom first in the hearts of people and through their lives into families, tribes, and nations.

In recent decades a spark has reignited the fire of the Holy Spirit, releasing an avalanche of revelation of “Christ in you (His people) the hope of Glory”. The hope of glory is the kingdom of God reigning within people and eventually in the world bringing His heavenly order to Planet Earth.

The process of kingdom growth within the hearts of God’s people has begun. However, we see the kingdoms of this world not yet the kingdoms of our God. The current dilemma for kingdom people involves functioning in God’s kingdom order in a world not yet ruled by God’s kingdom order.

LIVING KINGDOM TODAY

Even the best secular humanistic governments cannot bring forth righteousness, peace, and joy. Every government that is not on the shoulder of Christ Jesus is destined to fail, and as governments fail people suffer (Isa 9:6-7).

How do God’s kingdom people live in a world of nations yet mostly ruled by men ignorant of the Spirit of God and led by cunning and often ruthless spirits driving their unredeemed souls?

The answer to this question will vary with each person according to calling and specific direction of the Spirit of God. There are many parts to the Body of Christ and the different parts will have different functions.

Some may be led to work on the deep spiritual issues by helping others come to Christ and be transformed. Some may be led of God to work in more surface areas such as the political arena seeking to restrain the evil and press toward less governmental restrictions and increased tolerance for God’s people. Kingdom people will be called to fulfill a multitude of spiritual and practical functions to supply continued life, strength, and growth to the people of God. One part must never condemn another part but connect joint-to-joint as God’s Spirit leads.

The primary requirement for living in a hostile government environment is to be personally intimately related to God in such a way that there is continuous communication in the Spirit. God can direct day-by-day and moment-by-moment by His Spirit within. All hindrances and distractions that can limit our ability to hear and obey the Spirit of God need to be eliminated or overcome.

Christ Jesus is the over-comer, the healer of hearts and the cleanser of souls. Encountering the work of the Cross of Christ and the reality of the resurrected life of Christ Jesus by the Holy Spirit is God’s provision for renewing and transforming the heart of human beings to intimately commune with God.

Major areas to be cleansed and overcome that prevent intimately communing with God include things like renewing our minds, healing past wounds, forgiving everyone and everything, leaving past religious convictions and beliefs, abandoning cares of this life and deceitfulness of riches, yielding control of our life to Spirit God, deliverance from other spirits, and abandoning all other idols. All these things and more are provided in Christ Jesus and appropriated by a joint work of our willingness to lay down our lives before God and allowing Him to powerfully cleanse and transform our being to accommodate the very life of Christ abiding within. We are then connected directly to the throne of God as we abide in Him who is seated at the right hand of God. We are then ruling and reigning with Christ in this world bringing forth the kingdom of God on earth as it is in heaven. This is living kingdom today.

Living in the kingdom of Christ today, we endure all things, overcome all things, and are at rest in all situations. Having sought and found this kingdom of God and His righteousness, all things are added to us. Righteousness, peace, and joy fill our hearts by His love (Mat 6:33-34) (Rom 14:17). Faith and believing effortlessly become full assurance and reality of practical experience.

God’s people throughout history have lived powerful lives in God in nations ruled by ungodly governments (Heb 11:32-40). Today, in this time of ungodly governments severely opposing the people of God, a people are being prepared. In this season of the day of the Lord manifesting in the forerunner remnant of maturing sons of God, apostolic leadership of Christ is coming forth to prepare a generation of kingdom people to govern as Christ in families, tribes, cities, nations, and the world. Thus, the kingdoms of this world shall be the kingdoms of our God.

Praise the LORD all you people! Give glory unto the KING who has come to dwell among His people! Glory and honor to His Majesty the Mighty One in whom all the fullness dwells! Worship the One whose kingdom never ends! Our God Reigns!

Hallelujah! Thank You Jesus! Amen!

Ron McGatlin

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

GOD’S JEWELS

Posted: April 5, 2011 in disciples life, Kingdom Teaching, teaching, wilderness
Tags: , , , , ,
0

As the Israel of God (the church, “ecclesia”) attains practical obedience and holiness through inner empowerment of the grace of God, the Bride of Christ is prepared. Now is the time for the church to make herself ready and become the perfected Bride and City of God on earth. The religious church for the most part has thought that the kingdom was not for today, and has focused on getting in the gate and hanging on until Jesus comes or until we die and go to heaven. Therefore, we have multitudes of Christians hanging around the gate in the outer court. We’ve expected these neophytes to demonstrate the “Christian life.” It is no wonder most of the church has decided to disregard kingdom teaching as not being for this time since, seemingly, no one has the power to realistically live it. Therefore, we have reasoned, the kingdom must be for heaven when we die or some future day.

Another beautiful, figurative word God uses to describe His mature “sons of the kingdom” is “His jewels.” His children are being perfected into beautiful jewels. It is so amazing that God, who has all the gold and precious stones in the world, considers His kingdom people as jewels, jewels now being perfected, cut and polished to reflect His glory.

Malachi 3:17a: “They shall be Mine,” says the Lord of hosts, “on the day that I make them My jewels.”

Isaiah 61:10b: For as He has clothed me with garments of salvation, He has covered me with robes of righteousness, as a bridegroom decks himself with ornaments, and as a bride adorns herself with jewels.

The remnant church is being prepared as precious jewels to reflect the glory of God. The spotless, perfected Bride Church will reflect the glory of God in every facet of life. There must be no internal imperfections or flaws if we are to perfectly reflect His glory. Each facet must be cut to perfect shape and polished to perfection, if we are to become one of the jewels of New Jerusalem one of the adorning stones set on the foundation of the twelve apostles of the Lamb.

In God’s pictorial language, the twelve tribes of Israel are the “gates” of entry to the city of God. The purified church (the Israel of God) is the “gateway” as it brings forth the ministry of Jesus in the world. The twelve apostles of the Lamb are the “foundation” of the spiritual city of God.

Revelation 21:12, 14:Also she had a great and high wall with twelve gates,and twelve angels at the gates, and names written on them, which are the names of the twelve tribes of the children of Israel. Now the wall of the city had twelve foundations, and on them were the names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb.

Revelation 21:18-23: “And the construction of its wall was of jasper; and the city was pure gold, like clear glass. And the foundations of the wall of the city were adorned with all kinds of precious stones: the first foundation was jasper, the second sapphire, the third chalcedony, the forth emerald, the fifth sardonyx, the sixth sardius, the seventh chrysolite, the eighth beryl, the ninth topaz, the tenth chrysoprase, the eleventh jacinth, and the twelfth amethyst. And the twelve gates were twelve pearls: each individual gate was of one pearl. And the street of the city was pure gold, like transparent glass. But I saw no temple in it, for the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are its temple. And the city had no need of the sun or of the moon to shine in it, for the glory of God illuminated it, and the Lamb is its light.

Isaiah 62:1,3, 5b: “For Zion’s sake I will not hold My peace, and for Jerusalem’s sake I will not rest, until her righteousness goes forth as brightness, and her salvation as a lamp that burns. You shall also be a crown of glory in the hand of the Lord, and a royal diadem in the hand of your God. And as the bridegroom rejoices over the bride, so shall your God rejoice over you.”

As God is perfecting us the finished jewel may be much smaller than the initial, damaged, rough stone. But when He is finished, there will be no impurities to impede the glorious light of God from flowing out every window or “facet” of our lives. If there are imperfections yet within us which indicate a need for further healing or dying to self, they will block or hinder the flow of God’s glory and keep it from being reflected in one or more of our “facets.”

Another word demonstrating the unimpeded ability to “flow” the glory of God from all the facets of our jewel is freedom. In the natural dimension, a cut diamond that has an impurity in it, such as a carbon deposit, is not free to “flow” the light out of some of its facets. Additionally, if the diamond is not cut properly or has blemishes in its surface, the light flowing through it will be distorted. In the spiritual if we, the children of God, have some spot of impurity remaining in our hearts, we will not be free to “flow” the glory of God in that area of our lives. Also, if we are not yet perfectly cut and polished, we are not free to “flow” His light without distortion. The process of being formed, cut, polished, and purified might be considered very difficult by the diamond that is experiencing the cutting and grinding.

The overcomer will want to locate these imperfections and allow God to deal with them. Jesus came to fix our imperfections and repair the damage inflicted upon us by the devil and by our own foolishness. We can learn to recognize problem areas by the lack of the glory of God flowing through a particular area or facet of our life or daily walk. There are seven easily defined general areas or facets of freedom in each of us.

Zechariah 3:9, Amplified.: “For behold, upon the stone which I have set before Joshua, upon that one stone are seven eyes or facets “ [the all-embracing providence of God and the sevenfold radiations of the Spirit of God]. “Behold,I will carve upon it its inscription,” says the Lord of hosts, “and I will remove the iniquity and guilt of this land in a single day.”

Freedom is having all hindrances to receiving and reflecting the light of His glory removed. If freedom in a certain facet does not exist, we will know to look in a corresponding area in the heart for impurities or imperfections to be healed or removed. We must know how to appropriate the ministry of Jesus to heal the brokenhearted and set the captives free. We must allow Him to burn out impurities or cut away a portion of our stone to eliminate the impurity in our jewel. In love He may use the chisel and hammer of traumatic events and abrasive relationships to cut and polish our jewel.

In the natural realm, the facets of a jewel are “windows.” Light flows in through some and out through others. When the jewel is moved, the light shifts from window to window and sparkles brightly as it reflects the light from each facet. The jewel has no light of its own, but does a beautiful job of reflecting available light.

The major facet of our jewel is obedience. Usually the major facet on top of a jewel receives the light in to be reflected out the other smaller facets. We will reflect whatever light we turn our obedience toward. If we turn our obedience toward evil, we will reflect the darkness of evil. If we turn our obedience toward God, we will reflect His glory. Freedom is both freedom from reflecting evil and freedom to reflect good.

SEVEN FACETS OF FREEDOM

Seven facets of freedom are obedience, contentment, prosperity, enjoyment, harmony, health and service. Probably all needed areas of freedom are defined under these seven headings. If we have these freedoms, we can walk in the kingdom of God, New Jerusalem, purified, Bride-of-Christ lifestyle.

Freedom is both freedom from reflecting evil and freedom to reflect good.

OBEDIENCE IS FREEDOM

Freedom from rebellion, stubbornness, self-will, perversion, arrogance, compulsiveness, impulsiveness, pride and impatience.

Freedom to be submissive, yielding, faithful, loyal, humble and repentant.

CONTENTMENT IS FREEDOM

Freedom from want, lust, needs that cause stress, fear, doubt, worry, anxiety, insecurity, suspicion, distrust, hopelessness, nervousness, tension and confusion.

Freedom to be satisfied, thankful, fulfilled, secure, trusting, believing, hopeful, peaceful and stable.

PROSPERITY IS FREEDOM

Freedom from lack, poverty, wastefulness, fruitlessness, loss and not having enough to complete God’s plan.

Freedom to be adequately supplied to complete God’s plan, fruitful, flourishing, receiving, increasing and conserving.

ENJOYMENT IS FREEDOM

Freedom from ungodly pain & sorrow, torment, guilt, boredom, condemnation, depression, self-pity, shame, withdrawal, loneliness and frustration.

Freedom to be experiencing pleasure in God, delighting in the Lord, being joyful.

HARMONY IS FREEDOM

Freedom from strife, contention, jealousy, envy, hostility, discord, rejecting, rejection, resentment, retaliation, criticizing, hate, selfishness, manipulation and gossip.

Freedom to be unified, compatible, in accord, friendly, open, in fellowship, accepted and accepting.

HEALTH IS FREEDOM

Freedom from (physical, emotional, or spiritual) sickness, disease, wounding, disorder, malfunction, malformation, perversion and weakness.

Freedom to be (physically, emotionally, or spiritually) whole, well, healed, strong, in order, sound, able-bodied and hearty.

SERVICE IS FREEDOM

Freedom from unproductiveness, slothfulness, uselessness, incapability, lack of purpose, worthlessness, futility, vanity and hindering.

Freedom to be productive, purposeful, providing, useful, capable, valuable and helpful.

Remember:We must turn our facet of obedience toward the light and away from darkness. We will reflect whatever light we turn our obedience toward. If we turn our obedience toward evil, we will reflect the darkness of evil. If we turn our obedience toward God, we will reflect His glory.

If we have impurities in our jewel, we feel very uncomfortable when we turn fully toward the light. The bright light generates heat within as it contacts impurities and is blocked from flowing out. For comfort’s sake, some will turn their “obedience facet” away from the light, away from focus on closeness with God. They may turn away from intimacy with God and instead turn toward religious forms and rituals.

Romans 6:16-18:Do you not know that to whom you present yourselves slaves to obey, you are that one’s slave whom you obey, whether of sin to death, or of obedience to righteousness? But God be thanked that though you were slaves of sin, yet you obeyed from the heart that form of doctrine to which you were delivered. And having been set free from sin, you became slaves of righteousness.

Some will lift up a shield of religion or unbelief and self-deception to keep the light from burning within them. The enemy will provide the shield for us if we will use it. He has a whole suit of armor for those who will obey him.

Luke 11:20-22: “But if I cast out demons with the finger of God, surely the kingdom of God has come upon you. When a strong man, fully armed, guards his own palace, his goods are in peace. But when one stronger than he comes upon him and overcomes him, he takes from him all his armor in which he trusted, and divides his spoils.”

The armor of Satan is the opposite of God’s armor. Those who obey the enemy have their waist girded with lies, a breastplate of unrighteousness, their feet shod with the bad news of conflict. They carry the shield of unbelief and self-deception. They take the helmet of damnation and wield the sword of evil which is words of accusation and condemnation.

Self-deception begins with replacing what God has said with human rationalization and self-justification. Rather than repent and change, some will attempt to alleviate uncomfortable feelings of guilt with self-deception by denying their own guilt and blaming others.They accuse and condemn others for their own inner impurities and imperfections. The enemy will assists them with his religious belief systems and doctrines, which will seem to justify one’s faults rather than change them.

Only by directly turning toward the light of God and continuing to move toward the light, can one’s inner-impurities and imperfections be exposed and dealt with. Only by repenting and allowing the power of God to change us will we become purified. Belief and obedience cause man to be conformed to God. Unbelief and self-deception attempt to conform God to man.

If we are to become the jewels of God, there are things in each of our lives that must be overcome. As we journey toward becoming His jewels, the damage previously done to us by the enemy and the resulting negative life patterns must be overcome. We must become overcomers by the blood of the Lamb, the word of our testimony and not loving our lives to the death.

Rev 12:11: “And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony, and they did not love their lives to the death.

Keep on Pursuing Love,
It Will Never Fail.

Ron McGatlin

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

OUTER DARKNESS

Posted: April 4, 2011 in disciples life, Kingdom Teaching, teaching, wilderness
Tags: , , ,
0

Matthew 25:30: “And cast the unprofitable servant into outer darkness. There will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.”

Revelation 21:27: But there shall by no means enter it anything that defiles, or causes abomination or a lie.

Matthew 8:12: “But the sons of the kingdom will be cast out into outer darkness. There will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.”

The illustration we used earlier of the king-dome helps me to understand about outer darkness. You remember the gigantic glass dome filled with the presence and light of God. The light flowed out in all directions and dispelled the darkness. Everywhere the light is, the darkness must flee. But everywhere the light has not yet reached, the darkness remains. Envision the light reaching out in a large circle around the dome. As far as it reaches, there is light; at the point where the light stops, the darkness begins. These outer regions from the dome could be referred to as “outer darkness”.

The powers of darkness lurk in that darkness around the light, waiting to do their dirty work. They concentrate in the area around the light to try to prevent people from entering the king-dome light. That is why Jesus said the kingdom of heaven suffers violence, and the violent take it by force. There is a “pressing” involved in entering the kingdom – not a violence from or force toward, God, but a violence from the enemy and a pressing or taking it by force by those who enter.

Luke 16:16: “The law and the prophets were until John. Since that time the kingdom of God has been preached, and everyone is pressing into it.”

Matthew 11:12: “And from the days of John the Baptist till now, the kingdom of Heaven suffers violence, and the violent take it by force.”

If disobedience is found in us, even though we are sons and are well into our journey in the light toward the Holy City, we are returned to outer darkness for more suffering. God loves us and is faithful to allow us to repeat this cycle as many times as is necessary to bring us to purity and holiness as mature sons of the kingdom. The devil is predictable and will always be waiting for us in the outer darkness to inflict fresh pain upon us until we are able to reckon ourselves dead to self that Jesus may be manifested in us. Then, with repentance and fresh love, we return to our journey into the light toward the Holy City of God.

This does not mean we are eternally destroyed. The powers of darkness mean their dirty work for our death; but, God limits what the enemy can do to His children and all these things work together for our good (Romans 8:28). It is not for our death; it is for our purification.As we walk closer and closer to the dome, the light becomes brighter exposing impurities or imperfections that we could not see in the lesser light.As these imperfections are exposed, we always have two choices. We must repent and allow the light to purify us further, or deny the fault and blame someone or something else. If we do anything other than quickly repent, we again are on our way to outer darkness for more pain and suffering. In the pain of outer darkness, we may think something like this, “It sure didn’t hurt this much back in the light. I believe I will become obedient.”We repent, die to self some more, and are returned to the light on our journey to the king-dome.

I am very sorry to say that, in my own experience, it has required many of these cycles to deal with my independence. The secret is to very quickly and humbly repent. If we do not quickly repent, while we debate it in our minds we are already slipping back toward the darkness.

It is very easy, once we are out of the suffering stage, to begin again to feel our muscles and go back to the independent stage. We think something like, “Wow! I’m glad that’s over. I’ve got it now. It’s all working again now. I can really do it this time”. Here comes the man of faith and power for the hour. Guess what stage we are just about to enter again?

Revelation 21:27: But there shall by no means enter it anything that defiles, or causes abomination or a lie.

Matthew 8:12:“But the sons of the kingdom will be cast out into outer darkness. There will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.”

Matthew 22:11-13:“But when the king came in to see the guests, he saw a man there who did not have on a wedding garment. So he said to him, ‘Friend, how did you come in here without a wedding garment?’Then the king said to the servants, ‘Bind him hand and foot, take him away, and cast him into outer darkness; there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’”

Revelation 7:13-17:Then one of the elders answered, saying to me, “Who are these arrayed in white robes, and where did they come from?” And I said to him, “Sir, you know.” So he said to me, “These are the ones who came out of great tribulation, and washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb. Therefore they are before the throne of God, and serve Him day and night in His temple. And He who sits on the throne will dwell among them. They shall neither hunger anymore nor thirst anymore, the sun shall not strike them, nor any heat; for the Lamb who is in the midst of the throne will shepherd them and lead them to living fountains of waters, and God will wipe away every tear from their eyes.”

Revelation 19:8:And to her (the Lamb’s wife) it was granted to be arrayed in fine linen, clean and white, for the fine linen is the righteous acts of the saints.

The wedding garment we must have on is “the righteous acts of the saints.” True righteousness is the white robe washed in the blood of the Lamb. The wedding garment customarily was furnished by the host, the lord of the feast. The man who is not wearing the garment is without excuse. It is by his independent thinking that he elects to refuse the offered garment and provide his own. Self-righteousness in its purest form will not be good enough to enable us to walk into the Holy City. The Pharisees did not make it. The spirit of Pharisee will not enter the kingdom walk and, unfortunately, will hinder all that it can from entering. Religion and its pharisaical laws and traditions are part of the darkness that must be pressed through. The kingdom disciple can expect violent resistance from people affected by the spirit of Pharisee.

Matthew 23:13:“But woe to you scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you shut up the kingdom of heaven against men; for, you neither go in yourselves, nor do you allow those who are entering to go in.”

As we enter and continue our progress, we must continue to become less and less that Jesus the Christ may live in us more and more. Christ living in us provides all the love and power of heaven to work God’s obedience in us. This is the only garment, the white robe of fine linen that we must wear on our journey to becoming “New Jerusalem”, and living the overcoming life.

Keep on Pursuing Love,
It Will Never Fail,

Ron McGatlin

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

ENTERING THE KINGDOM

Posted: March 31, 2011 in disciples life, Kingdom Teaching, Prophetic, teaching, wilderness
Tags: , , ,
0

But there shall by no means enter it anything that defiles, Revelation 21:27

Not everyone who says to Me, “Lord, Lord,” shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of my Father in heaven. Matthew 7:21

Jesus taught much about entering the kingdom and walking or abiding in it. Jesus preached and taught more about what the kingdom of God is like, how it works, and how to enter it, than any other subject. The parables that Jesus taught in the four Gospels are the richest teaching on the kingdom of God in the Bible. However, what the kingdom of God(the ruler/dominion of God) is like and how it works spans the entire Bible, and is the predominant theme of the Word of God.

Jesus was not greatly concerned with teaching us how to live in heaven someday. His great concern was revealing to us how to live on the earth in this life now. God’s plan is the establishment of His kingdom on earth in and through redeemed man.

Many people have great difficulty really understanding the good-news message of the kingdom of God because they must first lay aside their strong convictions (rocks in the heart) that “kingdom” means only heaven someday or a future millennial reign. This mentality leads to a focus on what we refer to as the “salvation” or “born-again” experience, after which, we do the best we can to “hang on” until we die and go to heaven or until Jesus comes to rescue us. In Matthew 13, Jesus referred to these types of strong convictions as “rocks” in the heart-soil that prevent the fruit of the kingdom from coming to completion.

The gospel of the kingdom does not do away with the gospel of being born again. It includes the gospel we have preached in the past, as well as all true Bible doctrines. Jesus focused on preaching the gospel of the kingdom because it encompasses all the parts of revealed doctrines and is the umbrella that covers them. Some doctrinal groups have referred to themselves as “full gospel,” because they received and incorporated into their structure the latest revelation. God is still restoring His message on earth. As each new area is restored, we are tempted to think we now have it all. However, about the time we get comfortable with what we have, He again gives us more. When He provides more light, some of the error we previously believed was accurate and complete begins to melt away.

We must come to grips with the reality that entering the kingdom does not mean only going to heaven when we die. We are not waiting for Jesus to come back to earth to establish His kingdom. Jesus has already returned to earth in the Holy Spirit to indwell and empower the people of God to rule and reign, to overcome, and to retake and possess the land. Yes, He is coming back as Lord of lords and King of kings to receive His prepared Bride. Yes, His bodily return to rule and reign with His purified Bride is the fulfillment of the kingdom. But the establishment time is now! Jesus has already done all that is necessary to defeat the devil and his rule. He now lives in us by the Holy Spirit to empower His purified Bride to overcome. According to Romans 14:17, the kingdom of God is righteousness, peace, and joy in the Holy Spirit.

Is it any wonder why there is so much conflict, confusion and controversy about the baptism of the Holy Spirit? It is easy to see why the enemy so fiercely comes against it, when we recognize the role of the Holy Spirit in walking in the kingdom of God potential now. The kingdom of God is righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit. The potential for experiencing the Bride of Christ life now is in the Holy Spirit.

The kingdom of God potential first returned to earth in Jesus at the time of His baptism. The Holy Spirit descended upon Jesus and remained on Him, in an experience of spiritual life of a different dimension that had not been known before. The heavens opened to Him. Jesus saw into the spirit realm, the heavenly realm. The voice of God spoke clearly to Him, affirming Him as His Son, and expressing His pleasure in Him. The kingdom of God age came into the earth. The potential for man to intimately communicate with God returned to the earth into Jesus, in that moment.

The Baptized was to become the Baptizer and baptize many with the Holy Spirit, opening to them the potential to walk in a new level of obedience and power, and enabling them to walk in the glorious Bride lifestyle. John the Baptist, the last great prophet of the captive kingdom, did not experience the greater kingdom life available to us.

Matthew 11:11: “Assuredly. I say to you, among those born of women there has not risen one greater than John the Baptist; but he who is least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he.”

Mark 1:7-8:And he (John the Baptist), preached saying, “There comes One after me who is mightier than I, whose sandal strap I am not worthy to stoop down and loose. I indeed baptized you with water, but He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit.”

Matthew 3:16-17:Then Jesus, when He had been baptized, came up immediately from the water; and behold, the heavens were opened to Him, and He saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and alighting upon Him, and suddenly a voice from heaven, saying, “This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.”

John 1:32-34:And John bore witness, saying, “I saw the Spirit descending from heaven like a dove, and He remained upon Him. I did not know Him, but He who sent me to baptize with water said to me, ‘Upon whom you see the Spirit descending, and remaining on Him, this is He who baptizes with the Holy Spirit.’ And I have seen and testified that this is the Son of God.”

From this point forward, the kingdom was now on the earth in Jesus. Jesus was empowered to demonstrate the kingdom authority, and His earthly ministry began. When He later left the earth, the kingdom potential went with Him. However, before He left, the King promised His disciples that He would soon return with His kingdom.

Matthew 16:28: “Assuredly, I (Jesus) say to you, there are some standing here who shall not taste death till they see the Son of Man coming in His kingdom.”

Luke 9:27: (And Jesus said), “But I tell you truly, there are some standing here who shall not taste death till they see the kingdom of God.”

These verses plainly and emphatically state that some of the people present were going to be alive and see Jesus coming in His kingdom, the kingdom of God. Jesus made it clear that He was going away and coming back quickly, bringing the kingdom with Him. This is a strong statement by the Lord that He was returning to earth, bringing His kingdom with Him, during their lifetime. When did this happen? Or did it not happen as the Lord said it would?

In the past, the only way I could get around this statement was to assume He was speaking of the mount of transfiguration when the disciples caught a glimpse of His glory. It was always a bit of a stretch for me to believe that the brief glimpse of Jesus in His glorified state was what He had in mind when He said they would “see the Son of Man coming in His kingdom.” The revelation of “kingdom” brings much seemingly difficult scripture into such sweet harmony.

Jesus returned to earth as a “life-giving Spirit” at Pentecost. How many Gods do we have? We have only one God! He manifests Himself in three persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Jesus made it clear that “if you have Me, you have the Father, and if the Holy Spirit dwells in you, so does the Son and the Father.” Many Christians will quickly tell you that Jesus lives in their heart; yet, they don’t realize He could not be in their heart if He had not returned to earth.

1 Cor 15:45: And so it is written, “The first man Adam became a living being.” The last Adam became a life-giving spirit.

When Jesus walked on earth as a man, He could be in only one place at one time. He bodily went to the right hand of the Father and then returned as Spirit; now He can be everywhere at once. He can indwell all believers at one time, empowering us to obediently walk in His kingdom lifestyle. Thus, the will of God can be done on earth as it is in heaven. Many are yet looking for Jesus to return to do what He has already done or is now here to do.

In John 14:15-28 and John 16:12-25,Jesus is speaking of the Holy Spirit that is to come after He (Jesus) goes back to heaven. He makes it clear that He will return to His disciples. When He says, “I’m going away and coming back to you”, He does not mean to their descendants thousands of years later.

John 14:18: “I will not leave you orphans; I will come to you.”

John 14:20: “At that day you will know that I am in the Father, and you in Me, and I in you.”

John 14:21: “I will love him (those who love the Father) and manifest Myself to him.” (Or “manifest myself in him”)

John 16:14: “We(Jesus and the Father) will come to him and make Our home with him.”

John 14:28: “I’m going away and coming back to you.”

John 16:14: “He (the Holy Spirit) Will take of what is Mine (or Me) and declare to you.”

Jesus finishes up the discussion in John 16:23-24 by saying, “In that day you will ask me nothing … whatever you ask the Father in my name, He will give you.” Obviously, the day he is talking about is today, not some future day when He bodily returns.

Jesus came to earth, reclaimed the kingdom, was crucified, resurrected, ascended to the right hand of the Father, returned to earth in the Holy Spirit, and now lives in believers to establish His kingdom on earth. Yet, He is still at the right hand of the Father making intercession for us. Though Jesus possessed the fullness of the kingdom potential after His baptism with the Holy Spirit, He was not omnipresent in His natural body on earth. Now that He has returned to earth in the Holy Spirit, He is omnipresent.

Christ Jesus in us by the Holy Spirit will produce righteous obedience to God. Real holiness which includes true righteousness and perfect obedience is the only way to enter the fullness of the kingdom of God and become the Bride of Christ. Positional righteousness does not in itself cause us to enter or become the purified Bride. Only practical righteousness and practical obedience will enable us to live on earth in the kingdom of God. We enter and walk in the kingdom by obedience to the will of the Father.

Matthew 5:20: “For I say to you, that unless your righteousness exceeds that of the Scribes and Pharisees, you will by no means enter the kingdom of heaven.”

Matthew 7:21-23: “Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven. Many will say to Me in that day, ‘Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, and done many wonders in Your name?’ And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness.’”

Matthew 19:17b: “…But if you want to enter into life, keep the commandments.”

Remember, we are not talking about being born again; nor are we talking about going to heaven when we die. Those are “parts”, but what Jesus is talking about in these verses is entering and living in the kingdom of God now. We enter and walk by obedience to the Father. Only Jesus, by the Holy Spirit living in us, will always obey the will of the Father. Because Jesus is seated in heaven, He is available to carry out miraculous works of God through His disciples on earth.

Mark 16:19,70: …He was received up into heaven, and sat down at the right hand of God. And they went out and preached everywhere, the Lord working with them and confirming the word through the accompanying signs. Amen.

Luke 17:20-21: “The kingdom of God does not come with observation; nor will they say, ‘See here!’ or ‘See there!’ For indeed the kingdom of God is within you (or in your midst).”

As Christ Jesus manifests Himself in our being, we truly become the body of Christ, a body for Jesus to live in on earth. Jesus the Christ has returned to earth and lives in His people. We now have the potential to rule and reign over the kingdoms of the earth as His glorious life, His love, His power, His wisdom, His peace, and His faith rule and reign through our being. We can now take dominion over all the earth and over all the powers of darkness. We can reclaim every area of the kingdom. Nothing is impossible to Jesus in us.

When God’s messengers receive the “kingdom of God now” truth in their hearts and proclaim it with their mouths to the world, then the kingdom of God will be established. But as long as it is preached as a “someday kingdom”, it will not be fully established on earth. The other kingdom, the kingdom of darkness, can continue to run the governments, businesses, finance, religion, arts, music, media, sports, educational systems, entertainment industry and all other aspects of our world. Evil can continue to poison the minds of our people, inflicting pain, perverting, killing, and destroying men, women, and children of our land.

Wake up, Christians! Wake up, preachers! The saints who have gone on to heaven are not going to take back the earth, reclaim it and establish the kingdom of God on the earth. Yes, they are cheering us on. Yes, their work is made perfect in us. We are establishing what the great men of faith have begun — building upon the foundational heritage of generations of men of faith. But, only those alive on earth have the opportunity to cleanse their hands and purify their hearts to bring forth the work of Christ. Only then will the Spirit of Christ Jesus can come forth in their lives in glory and power sufficient to overpower the kingdom of darkness and establish the kingdom of light. This new generation has the potential to see the kingdom of God established in hearts today, individually, and then in the earth.

All who have gone before and paid a great price are looking to the people of God on earth today to make perfect their works and sacrifices by bringing forth the kingdom of God on earth.

Hebrews 11:37-40:They were stoned, they were sawn in two, were tempted, were slain with the sword. They wandered about in sheepskins and goatskins, being destitute, afflicted, tormented – of whom the world was not worthy. They wandered in deserts and mountains, in dens and caves of the earth. And all these, having obtained a good testimony through faith, did not receive the promise, God having provided something better for us, that they should not be made perfect apart from us.

1 Corinthians 10:11: Now all these things happened to them as examples, and they were written for our admonition, on whom the ends (purposes) of the ages have come.

Each of us is in one kingdom or the other. Either the kingdom of darkness or the kingdom of light rules us. We are bringing forth, from our hearts, either one kingdom or the other into the earth.

There is great conflict between the two kingdoms and keen competition for the hearts of men. The propagation of either kingdom depends on the hearts of men. Men must cast the deciding vote as to which kingdom will rule the earth. Only in the heart-soil of man is the potential for ruling the earth. Whichever kingdom rules the hearts of men rules the earth.

Boiling it all down; man has one great continuous “yes and no” decision to make. He must decide “yes” to the kingdom of light and “no” to the kingdom of darkness. Many generations ago, mankind decided “yes” to the kingdom of darkness and “no” to the kingdom of light.Men need make no further decision to remain in the kingdom of darkness. A decision not to come to the light is a decision to remain in darkness.

God will furnish all the power, all the direction, and do all the work to establish His kingdom; but man must decide with his own will. God has given us dominion on earth and has chosen not to overrule our will. What we bind is bound and what we loose is loosed.

Matthew 16:19, “And I give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.”

The Bride of Christ is prepared by practical obedience and holiness. Now is the time for the church (ecclesia) to make herself ready and become the perfected Bride, the New Jerusalem. Each of us must go through a process of becoming obedient and holy, or “growing up” in the kingdom walk. We must receive true understanding of the kingdom of God by spiritual revelation of the Word of God.

For anyone who might have a tendency toward thinking “this is something I can humanly do,” please be aware that it is all by the grace of God. The grace of God is the empowerment of Christ within the individual to live righteously. The grace of God is not a whitewash covering for our continued disobedience.

Grace is freely given but never forced upon an unwilling individual. Our part is to become willing to lay down our own way, our selfish desires, our religious order, our inner needs, to empty ourselves of ourselves that the Spirit of God may fill us with Christ. God will do it all. The grace of God can even make us willing but we must be willing to be made willing.

Keep on Pursuing Love
It Will Never Fail,

Ron McGatlin

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

UNDERSTANDING KINGDOM

Posted: March 30, 2011 in disciples life, teaching, wilderness
Tags: , , ,
0

The rich understandings of the kingdom of God are hidden in the Word of God, veiled in figurative, symbolic language that can be revealed to the mind only by the Spirit of God. For centuries we have read and studied the Bible; yet, the understanding of kingdom will be revealed to us only at the level we are ready to receive it and in the season that God desires.

The Bible often uses a natural word about a natural thing to represent a spiritual thing. Once we have the spiritual meaning of the natural word, we can use that word to communicate the spiritual thought. For example, we have referred to the Bride of Christ several times. We all know that we are not referring to a literal bride. A natural bride is one female person who is being married to a husband. The Bride of Christ is a figurative term representing all purified believers who are intimately related as one with the indwelling Christ. The believers may be male or female, old or young, of any heritage, and of any number. Yet, they can all be collectively described in the term Bride of Christ. When the Bible speaks of the milk of the Word, we know it is not talking about a white liquid in a bottle. When it speaks of the meat of the Word, it is not talking about a beefsteak.

John 16:25: These things I (Jesus) have spoken to you in figurative language; but the time is coming when I will no longer speak to you in figurative language, but I will tell you plainly about the Father.

John 16: 12-13a: I (Jesus) still have many things to say to you, but you cannot bear them now. However when He, the Spirit of truth, has come, He will guide you into all trut …

Matthew 16:17b.19: … for flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but My Father Who is in heaven. And I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.

Mark 4:22-23: For there is nothing hidden which will not be revealed, nor has anything been kept secret but that it should come to light. If anyone has ears to hear, let him hear.

There are key words that unlock the figurative, symbolic language of the Word and open vast areas of kingdom revelation. Many of these symbols and types have been revealed for many years. But some have been more recently revealed; and, most of those we have known for some time have a deeper, freshly-revealed kingdom meaning.

In the figurative Biblical language, much is revealed from simple symbols — from the sea (unstable masses of unsaved without structure), to the fruitful plains (the saved stable Christians), to trees (men’s life structures), to hills (authority structures), to the high mountains (great structures of authority), and on to the highest mountain (the ultimate, authority of God).

To understand the word of the kingdom from the Bible, the disciple must be able to hear the spiritual meaning of the figurative or symbolic language from the Holy Spirit. When I study a passage of Scripture, I pray and ask the Holy Spirit to give me revelation of the hidden, symbolic, spiritual meaning of the words. Then I meditate the passage allowing quiet time in my spirit and mind while waiting to hear from God. After enlightenment or understanding comes, then I begin to check out the concordance, Greek and Hebrew dictionaries, and other Scriptures for confirmation or clarification.

The following are a few possible examples of symbolic language to consider. Try using these as you study and meditate the Word.

———————————————————— ——————–

Mountains-Great structures of authority; may be godly or ungodly.

Hills-Structures of authority as mountains; except lesser.

Fields-Lower structures of authority, but still firmament. Usually indicate those saved, as opposed to the sea of lost. As such, they are the fruitful, production areas where grain, fruit trees, etc., are grown.

Valleys-Lower structures than fields, often fertile and well watered by neighboring mountains. May also indicate a very low period — a time of difficulty and hard decisions.

Sea-No structure at all, fluid, blown about, sometimes roaring, unsaved masses of people.

Trees-Natural structures of life; individual men and their life structures, ranging from great men or rulers as great cedars, strong and stable men as mighty oaks, olive and fig trees as prophets or ministers, fruit trees and vines as fruitful Christians to insignificant bramble bushes and ungodly thorns and briars.

City-A corporate structure of life; a spiritual community for the protection and well-being of its citizens, governed by spiritual laws, ruled by spiritual powers, which determine the personality of the city and the quality of life within the city. A city is structured by patterns of life. A great city is a capital or ruling city, whose patterns reach out beyond its city walls or limits to govern a greater area.

Israel-The overall church, including its ruling city, its many different cities, and wilderness areas.

New Jerusalem-The purified, holy, renewed ruling city of God; the remnant Bride Church, the Bride of Christ without spot or wrinkle.

Babylon-The ruling city of the kingdom of darkness; the great soulish system of man characterized by covetousness, immorality, and sorcery; the mother system of harlots and adulterers.

Bride and Wife-The obedient, perfected, faithful and true, ruling city portion of the church where reproduction takes place and mature sons are brought to glory. She is God-seeking and God-serving.

Harlot-The unfaithful, rebellious mistress (person or church) who sells her purity to fulfill her own desires and meet her needs; she does not seek the true God, but is self-seeking and self-serving.

Adulteress-The unfaithful part of the church who has a Husband and pretends obedience to Him, but has other lovers. She seeks to fulfill her desires and meet her needs from sources other than her Husband. She has a divided heart, and her desire is both self-seeking and God-seeking, self-serving and God-serving.

Assyrians, Philistines, Canaanites, etc.-Evil, enemy spiritual forces, demons.

Dragon, Serpent, Roaring Lion, Wild Beast, Fowls of the Air, Adverse Wind, Storms, etc.-Satan and/or demon spirits.

Seed-A living pattern, word, thought, idea, vision; also the offspring made from the pattern. A word or vision from God is a good seed. A bad seed would be the same, but from the enemy.

Soil, Land-The heart of man; the spiritual/natural interface through which seeds from the spiritual realm are planted in the fertile creativity of the heart to be brought forth into the natural realm.

Holy Spirit may be represented in His different aspects or facets as, Oil, Water, Wine, Strong Drink, Light, Rain, etc.

Oil-Comfort, healing, joy, anointing.

Water-Cleansing, washing, or life-giving Word or Holy Spirit.

Wine-Revelation from God, a rhema word from God, unveiled truths of God’s Word by the Holy Spirit.

Old Wine-Revelation from the past; usually a taste has been acquired for it. It is smooth and comfortable to the taste and can put one to sleep.

New Wine-New revelation from God. It is fresh and exciting, but may be very different to the taste and cause discomfort for those who have not yet acquired a taste for the new. It can be intoxicating if we take too much of it by itself. One must continue to feed on the bread and the meat along with the new wine.

Strong Drink-A hard word such as, correction, rebuke, or warning, etc. by the Holy Spirit.

Light-Understanding; discernment; life giving, growth-stimulating word or revelation by the Holy Spirit.

Rain-Outpouring of grace gifts of the Holy Spirit.

Rivers-Continuous flow of spiritual life; flow of Holy Spirit.

Wineskins-The container, or framework, of the inner organized filing system for the revelation of God.

Cloth-A woven network of understanding of life, which may contain intricate patterns of design, each thread fitting together to make the whole.

Flood-A great outpouring of damaging words.

Jewels-Perfected sons or daughters of God.

Fire-Intense adversity for purification or judgment; judgmental or critical words.

Stars-Spiritual persons; men of God.

Heat-Correction or judgment; the heat of the sun, particularly, is intense light that brings correction from God the Father.

Angels-Sometimes symbolizes men of God sent to the church, ministers, messengers, preachers of the message from God.

Trumpets-Sometimes are the voices of the prophets speaking forth the message of God, calling an assembly, focusing attention, and especially blasting forth the judgments of God.

Grain and Grain Fields-Production, particularly annual or periodical production.

Green Grass-Production of the fields, including grain.

Birds-Spirits, either godly or evil.

Crowns-Authority to rule.

Temple-A permanent dwelling place of God, the eternal heart of man where God dwells.

Tabernacle-A temporary dwelling place of God.

Consider the meaning of the figurative words used in Luke 5:36-39. The Lord speaks of patching new cloth onto old and of putting new wine in old wineskins. He also mentions that a man having drunk old wine does not immediately desire the new. Using the key words, it is easy to discern what He is saying spiritually.

What is being said in Isaiah 55, when the mountains and hills are said to break forth into singing, and the trees of the field clap their hands?

———————————————————— ——————–

One of the most devastating mistakes people make when seeking to know God through His Word is taking every passage, which can be literally interpreted and applying only literal interpretation to it. The spiritual man learns to literally interpret the true spiritual meaning of the passage through the figurative language of the Holy Spirit. Often there is both a literal meaning and a spiritual meaning. Much prophecy has had a literal, historical fulfillment and a greater spiritual implication. One might think of this as a railroad with two tracks running side-by-side. One track is the literal meaning of the passage; the other track is the spiritual. Many Old Testament terms and passages have a very literal, natural meaning, and may also have a vital spiritual meaning to New Testament believers about the kingdom of God. Many Old Testament events were recorded as examples to us.

1 Corinthians 10:11: Now all these things happened to them as examples, and they were written for our admonition, on whom the ends of the ages have come.

Natural Israel And Spiritual Israel
The nation Israel is extremely significant as God’s chosen people. It was through this nation and the Jewish people that the Son of God came and the Bible was written. The many prophetic writings and historical events of Israel all have spiritual meaning to the church. God has chosen Israel and its ruling city, Jerusalem, as a living message to the world. God’s dealings with natural Israel and natural Jerusalem become spiritual messages to spiritual Israel and spiritual Jerusalem. The spiritual kingdom, the Israel of God, is a new people, a spiritual people to whom origin of nationality, race, color, social cast, or political standing is of little or no significance. It is a kingdom in which all are adopted by the heavenly Father and become true brothers and sisters.

Galatians 3:7,14b, 29: Therefore know that those who are of faith are sons of Abraham … that the blessing of Abraham might come upon the Gentiles in Christ Jesus, that we might receive the promise of the Spirit through faith. And if you are Christ’s, then you are Abraham’s seed and heirs according to the promise.

Galatians 6:15-16: For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision avails anything, but a new creation. And as many as walk according to this rule, peace and mercy upon them, upon the Israel of God.

Spiritual Jerusalem or New Jerusalem is the ruling city of spiritual Israel just as natural Jerusalem or old Jerusalem was the ruling city of natural Israel. As old Jerusalem was the natural figurative mother, that birthed the kingdom into the earth, so now the New Jerusalem is the spiritual mother, the wife of God, the Bride of Christ that is birthing the spiritual kingdom of God into our world. The New Jerusalem is the Bride of Christ, the holy, purified, overcoming portion of the church.

Revelation 21:9-11: Then one of the seven angels who had the seven bowls filled with the seven last plagues came to me and talked with me, saying, Come, I will show you the bride, the Lamb’s wife. And he carried me away in the Spirit to a great and high mountain, and showed me the great city, the holy Jerusalem, descending out of heaven from God, having the glory of God. And her light was like a most precious stone, like a jasper stone, clear as crystal.

Revelation 21:2: Then I, John, saw the holy city, New Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride for her husband.

Galatians 4:25b, 26: Jerusalem which now is, and is in bondage with her children. But the Jerusalem above is free, which is the mother of us all.

Revelation 19:7-8: Let us be glad and rejoice and give Him glory, for the marriage of the Lamb has come, and His wife has made herself ready. And to her it was granted to be arrayed in fine linen, clean and bright, for the fine linen is the righteous acts of the saints.

New Jerusalem is now coming down from the spirit realm and is now beginning to be formed on the earth. It is the Bride Church, the holy, purified, kingdom people of God. Just as it is possible for a person to be in the nation of Israel, but not in the city of Jerusalem, it is also possible to be in the church, but not yet in New Jerusalem. Not everyone in the country of Israel is in the city of Jerusalem. Neither has everyone in the church become the purified, holy Bride of Christ, the New Jerusalem.

In the beautiful, illustrative, figurative language of God, which is characteristically used by the Holy Spirit to communicate spiritual truths to mankind, God describes the kingdom of God lifestyle in the picture of New Jerusalem in Revelation 21 & 22:1-5.

In the New Jerusalem lifestyle, we continuously live in the presence of God as the tabernacle of God is with men. The glory and light of God fills our lives. Pain and sorrow are gone as God wipes away our tears. No more death as eternal, abundant life prevails; we pass from life to life. Righteousness and holiness prevail in our lives as pure gold and clear crystal. There is no night; there are no dark, threatening seasons. There is no more curse. We are under the dome of His protection, and there is perfect peace. We serve Him and rule over the circumstances of life.

Isaiah 62:5b, 12: …and as the bridegroom rejoices over the bride, so shall your God rejoice over you. And they shall call them The Holy People, The Redeemed of the Lord; And you shall be called Sought Out, A City Not Forsaken.

In Isaiah chapter 60, Isaiah begins to picture and describe the glory and prosperity of The City of the Lord, the Zion of the Holy One of Israel. (v. 14)

THE KING-DOME

Let me share an illustration that helps me understand the concept of the spiritual city of New Jerusalem. Imagine a giant, glass dome filled with the glorious presence and light of God. Inside this huge, spiritual dome everything is as it should be. Everything is in perfect obedience to God’s laws, and nothing that defiles can enter in. The environment is perfectly controlled like a greenhouse. Those who overcome enter and abide inside the dome where they enjoy all the victorious aspects and attributes of New Jerusalem. The enemy has no part and can do no harm inside the dome.

The bright light inside the dome flows out to the countryside in a large circle around the dome. Everywhere the light reaches, the darkness must flee and cannot return unless the light is lessened or drawn back.

People who sit in darkness may see the light from a distance and begin to move toward it. At the point where they actually leave the darkness and enter the light, they have entered the Israel of God, but have not yet reached and entered Jerusalem, the city of God. They have come out of darkness into the light and must continue to journey to the dome. Their goal is to enter the king-dome, the New Jerusalem-purified-holy-Bride-of-Christ lifestyle.

Matthew 4:16: The people who sat in darkness saw a great light, and upon those who sat in the region and shadow of death light has dawned.

Hebrews 12:22: But we have come to Mount Zion and to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, to an innumerable company of angels, to the general assembly and church of the first-born…

We must, through a purifying growth process, come to maturity and walk into the New Jerusalem lifestyle. Many people in the church are now beginning to see the kingdom lifestyle and are moving toward the Holy City.

Just as it is possible to be in the nation but not in the ruling city, it is possible to be in the outer court of the tabernacle but not in the holy place. Many have entered the tabernacle into the outer court, but now must be purified to enter the holy place. The presence of God is in the holy place; all the promises of New Jerusalem are in the holy place. We must come in the gate and partake of the brazen altar, the blood sacrifice for our sins, the atoning blood of Jesus. Next, we must be washed by the water at the brazen laver in preparation for entering the holy place. We must journey on to the candlesticks of the Holy Spirit ministry and on to the showbread being broken before arriving at the altar of incense and the Holy of Holies, the intimate communion with God (the king-dome).

Walking in the kingdom of God lifestyle is all about intimate relationship with God. It is becoming one with God through Christ by the Holy Spirit. It is the five virgins with oil in their lamps entering into the wedding with Christ the Bridegroom. Holiness is produced by the indwelling Christ living in us by the Holy Spirit. It is the mystery Paul spoke of as “Christ in you the hope of glory”.

Psalm 15: Lord, who will abide in Your tabernacle? Who may dwell in Your holy hill? He who walks uprightly, and works righteousness, and speaks the truth in his heart….

Hebrews 12:28: Therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom which cannot be shaken, let us have grace, by which we serve God acceptably with reverence and godly fear.

Keep on Pursuing Love
It Will Never Fail,

Ron McGatlin

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

THE GOSPEL OF THE KINGDOM

Posted: March 29, 2011 in disciples life, teaching, wilderness
Tags: , , ,
0

Jesus preached the gospel of the kingdom. He sent the twelve and the seventy disciples out to preach the gospel of the kingdom and instructed all His disciples to preach this same gospel.

Is the gospel of the kingdom any different from the gospel of salvation or being born again?

We have preached the cross and personal salvation in Jesus for many years. Is that the gospel Jesus preached? Is it the gospel that the twelve and the seventy preached?

Shouldn’t we be preaching the gospel Jesus preached?

God has been restoring revelation to His church in waves or layers. After one wave comes and men receive it and that layer is in place, then another wave of restoration brings another layer. The newer layer does not replace the last one; it builds upon it.

The gospel of being born again is the first part of the gospel of the kingdom. Although it is vital and completely necessary, it is only a part. One must be born again to see the kingdom of God. To stop at the first part of being born again is stopping and forever remaining just inside the door of the vast kingdom and never experiencing the bountiful life and treasure of the kingdom prepared for us before the foundation of the world.

Most of the teachings of Jesus were focused on what the gospel of the kingdom is and how it works. Vital, basic, foundational principles of the good news of kingdom living on earth are contained in the teachings of Jesus in the New Testament gospels. We will explore these powerful kingdom principles in later sessions.

In recent years, the gospel of the kingdom has been widely restored. The gospel previously preached focused on missing hell and getting into heaven when we died. For the most part, there was little or no real help for living life today. We tended to write off this life and looked forward to dying to have victory or to Jesus’ coming back and rescuing us from this mess. Certainly, the Lord’s bodily return and Heaven, with all its wonder, are primary to our Christian faith. However, the gospel of the kingdom focuses on restoring the rule of God from heaven on earth.

The gospel of the kingdom that Jesus preached focused on heaven’s ways coming to earth more than our going to heaven. (“Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.”) He taught how to live in the highest order of life that would bring peace on earth and goodwill toward men. There is, however, another being on earth that desires his will on earth and not God’s. I wonder who would like to cloud our minds and prevent us from seeing the potential of the will of God being done on earth.

Gospel means “good news”; kingdom refers to“ruler/dominion.” The gospel of the kingdom of heaven or kingdom of God means “the good news of the ruler dominion of heaven, or God”. Or another way to say it is, “the good news of the government of God from heaven on earth.” The good news is that the blessings of God’s rule are potentially available to His children now in this life.

Jesus announced the blessings of His kingdom in that portion of Scripture we call the Beatitudes. He had been preaching the gospel of the kingdom, healing the sick, and casting out demons all about Galilee. And seeing the multitude, He began to speak to His disciples, telling them that the needy people were blessed now. The kingdom is finally here, and those who are entering are blessed. Before the kingdom, those who mourned simply mourned. Now they will be comforted.

Matthew 5:3-6: “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted. Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth. Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be filled.”

Let me illustrate the difference between the gospel of being born again just to go to heaven and the gospel of the kingdom with this story.

A man had set out to cross a large swamp in a small boat. He paddled well into the swamp and was attacked by several large alligators. The attack was so vicious that the small boat was damaged and sank. The man was left standing in about waist-deep, murky water with only his paddle to fight off the alligators. The fight was so fierce that his paddle was broken. He was now left with only a stub of a paddle with which to jab and beat the alligators.

A voice heralded from a distant shore, “Hey out there! I’ve got good news for you. An important government man was here a while back and looked at this swamp. He promised to come back someday with a big crew to drain it.”

Jesus’ coming back and the “heaven someday” message is good news. But the gospel of the kingdom that Jesus preached can also help us with our alligators now. Let’s continue our story.

A man in a boat appeared and glided quickly to the man in the water and asked, “Do you need some help?”

“Yes! Please help me!” the man anxiously replied.

The man in the boat commanded the alligators to stop their attack. Immediately, the alligators swam away. The man in the boat helped the tired, wet and bloody man into his boat. He gave him dry clothes and medicine, which quickly healed his wounds. They immediately were at their destination.

As mankind sees the reality of the kingdom message and its overcoming power the devil will be made powerless. This is why the kingdom of darkness so violently opposes the kingdom of God now message. There is a violent pressing involved in entering the kingdom of God walk. It is not a pressing or violence toward or from God, but from the opposition, the kingdom of darkness.

Luke 16:16: “The law and the prophets were until John. Since that time the kingdom of God has been preached, and everyone is pressing into it.”

Matthew 11:12: “And from the days of John the Baptist till now the kingdom of heaven suffers violence, and the violent take it by force.”

Often there is more opposition toward the kingdom message than any other. The devil is much less threatened by a message of “heaven some day in the future”. Our seeing the rule of God only in the future allows the devil to continue his dirty work now. The simple message of Jesus, “Repent, for the kingdom of God is at hand,” the kingdom-is-now gospel, draws violent reactions from anyone who, in some way, is infected with or influenced by the opposing kingdom. Religious people and those of one’s own household often become the most violent. The Lord spoke of kingdom rising against kingdom and nation (or tribe) against nation (Matthew 24:7).

Matthew 24:10-11: “… many will be offended, will betray one another and will hate one another. Then many false prophets will rise up and deceive many, and because lawlessness will abound, the love of many will grow cold. But he who endures to the end shall be saved. And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in all the world to all nations, and then the end will come.”

Matthew 10:21: “Now brother will deliver up brother to death, and a father his child; and children will rise up against parents and cause them to be put to death.”

Matthew 10:34,36: “Do not think that I came to bring peace on earth. I did not come to bring peace, but a sword. And a man’s foes will be those of his own household.”

Remember that the conflict is between the kingdom of God and the kingdom of darkness. “We wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of darkness” (Ephesians 6:12).

The spiritual battle is for the prize of entering and walking in the kingdom of God lifestyle, not just being born again, nor just going to heaven when we die.

Keep on Pursuing Love,
It Will Never Fail,

Lots of Love,

Ron McGatlin

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

Older Entries
Newer Entries