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Chapter 3 Love, from the book "Drawing Near To The Fire Of God"Posted: 2012-09-24 16:13:57 by: David Nelson
Chapter 3 Love Here is a most powerful message. I feel confident that it is one of God’s greatest messages if not the subject and message He loves the most. There are two great commandments, we are to love God and we are to love one another. Jesus says upon these two commandments hang all the commandments of God. Just like two coat hangers hanging on a coat rod with a hundred other hangers all hanging from them, if those two commandments fall all the other commandments of God fall to the ground. (Matt. 22:40) In fact, if we don’t love those who we see (people) how can we say we love God who we can’t see? I Jn. 4:7 and 8 (also there are other verses in I Jn.) it teaches that we don’t have the love of God in us and we don’t really know God if we don’t love people. Paul once said that all the commandments of God can be summed up in one command, love others. (Rom. 13:9) If we love God we will love others. But what is this love that we must have? Is it a warm feeling? Is it compassion? Is it a deep friendship? What I am about to share about love may not be what you have normally thought in the past. There is a great revelation here. I am going to give you some words and concepts and I would like you to see how they are synonymous with the meaning of love. I want you to remember these words as we talk about love, forgiveness, forbearance, unity, peace, mercy, oneness. At first you may not see how these have to do with love but let us continue. Here is one of the key concepts, “Love covers a multitude of sins.” (I Pet. 4:8) Love covers the mistakes of others. Love covers the foolishness, the immaturity, the stupidity, the meanness of others. Love doesn’t cover just a few things, but a multitude of sins in others. Jesus said to Peter, how many times could someone sin against you and you keep forgiving them? Peter must have thought, 3 times is good, 5 times is very loving and kind, 7 times seems to be what a wonderfully kind person would do. But Jesus said, I say to you Peter you shall forgive 7 times 70, 490 times you shall forgive, in other words, you should never stop forgiving. In Matt. 18 it says something very powerful. A servant owed a king 10,000 talents (which today may translate to a huge debt, let us say, a million dollars). All the servant had, including himself, wife and children, even if all were sold into slavery to work for the rest of their lives they could never pay off this huge debt. The man fell before the king begging for mercy and the king forgave him the whole debt, a debt which he would never have been able to pay off. But then that same servant who was forgiven would not have mercy on his fellow servant who owed him 100 denarii (about 1/3 of a year’s wages), and through him in prison. Jesus concludes His parable with this, should you not have had mercy on your fellow servant as I had mercy on you? Throw this evil servant to the torturers till he should pay his debt! In like manner, My heavenly Father will also do to each of you if you do not from your heart forgive your brother his sins. God has forgiven us everything we have ever done or ever will do in the future, we can never pay enough to save our souls from our sins. Should we not and are we not able to forgive the few sins we see in our brothers? Everything you have ever done is known and forgiven by God. From the time you were a child when you lied and said you didn’t break your mother’s lamp but you did. All those things done in the dark that only God saw, and the evil motives you had in your heart that only God knew, God has forgiven everything you have done or thought, He has seen it all. The book of Proverbs says things like this over and over again, love forgives, he who overlooks a fault seeks love, love forgives all offenses. You had a million dollar debt forgiven so that you could go to heaven. But we see a few sins in others, and we just see a few surface things, we don’t know why they did what they did (their motives), maybe they had a rough day or maybe we don’t know the whole story. We only see a small portion of another’s life and should we not forgive that small debt? If you don’t forgive your brother from the heart God will not forgive you, and you will be imprisoned with the captives until you pay your whole debt, which you will never be able to pay. This is serious. In the Lord’s prayer it says, forgive us our debts (Lord) in the same way that we forgive others. In other words, have mercy on us the same way we have mercy on others. Then a powerful word is given by Jesus after the Lord’s prayer. If you do not forgive others of their sins neither will your Father in heaven forgive your sins. (Matt. 6:14,15) We will not be forgiven by God if we don’t forgive others. Yes, it is the blood of Jesus that covers our sins, but if we do not learn the kind of love that forgives others, then we do not know God. That’s what the book of I Jn. teaches, those who know God know and learn love. If we are not learning love we don’t know God. Look at I Cor. 13. If we have not love we have nothing. We may give away everything to the poor, or have great revelations, and prophecy, but if we have not love we are nothing. Love shows forth long- suffering (patience). Love suffers with the weaknesses and mean things others do, till it hurts us, but we must keep on suffering patiently for a long time. Love is kind (we will talk later about the powerful Hebrew word Hesed and about the great attributes of kindness and tenderness found in the meaning of love). Love is not rude, is not easily provoked (is slow to anger), does not wish bad on others, bears all things, believes (the best) in all things, hopes all things, endures all things. (lawyers who are defending a person try to present the best benefit of the doubt as to why someone did something, even when the action appears to be evil but may not be). Love does not think negatively or talk negatively. A person who automatically puts the worst construction or interpretation on a person’s actions is of Satan rather than of the Holy Spirit. It is human nature (not the Holy Spirit’s nature) to put the worst conclusions on people’s actions, it also is the work of the devil, he has always been the accuser of the brethren (we will see more of how true this is later). Satan wants to sow division among people (divide them), whereas the Holy Spirit wants people to be one (in God’s love). In Prov. 22:1 it says that a good name is better than great riches. To hurt someone’s good name is worse than going into their house and stealing all their goods. In the old western towns of the U.S. years ago it used to be said, “So and so has a bad name in these parts.” Or it might be said, “So and so has a good name in this town.” The bad name guy might be one they call Black Bart. If you look at him funny he is so mean he might beat you up or even shoot you. You didn’t mess with Black Bart or get on his wrong side or he would slap you around. He was mean, he had a bad name. But there might be another person like Wyatt Earp or Roy Rogers or Matt Dillon who had a good name. They were known as fair, they were kind, courteous, and they were courageous. You could count on them if you needed them to fight against the bad guys or clean up a town, they could bring justice to a town and get rid of the bad guys. They were strong, fast with a gun, they had a good name for being successful and triumphing over evil wherever they went. And so, today, let’s look at you or myself, do we have a good name, are we known for righteousness and goodness? But what if someone talks behind our backs and puts down our good name with gossip or even hidden faults that may even be true? They have tarnished our good name with speaking negative things about us. Now people will not think of us as highly as they did before and our name sinks lower. Whatever is negatively said about you or myself hurts our good name whether it is false gossip or even true things about us that nobody knew before. We must not tarnish people’s good names in any way, it is better that we steal all their goods than to bring down their good name (Prov. 22:1). We are not to gossip or whisper about others (nothing negative should come out of our mouths, even if it is true, but still negative). Let nothing evil (negative) come out of our mouth but only what is good for edifying, that it may impart grace to the hearer. (Eph. 4:29) We are not to whisper behind people’s backs and stop when they come near. If we are saying positive things about a person we won’t have to stop when they come near, for we are adding positive to their good name. Whatever takes away from a person’s name is the work of the devil. Even the news on TV is gossip when it is spreading negative information about celebrities or well-known people, because they would much rather that those negative things stay private. It hurts their names even if the information is true. We should not join with the devil in accusing the brethren or sowing discord among brothers with our tongues. We should not do negatively to anyone’s name even if they are non-Christians. If someone sins and you know it for sure, there are 3 things you can do. You can just plain forgive them and forget about it, or you can pray for them to change and overcome their sin (and forgive them), or you can go talk to them between you and them alone. (see Matt. 18:15) By talking to them you may find out you were wrong about them, and find out the truth that was in their heart. Healing could come by talking. But you are never to speak to a 3rd party before you speak to them alone. Speaking to a 3rd party is gossip. Yes, there is a place for telling others if a person will not change and their actions will hurt the Body of Christ, but we must do these first steps first. We may pray for someone or even talk to them but they might not change right away, or they may never change (or understand your rebuke). We are to have mercy as God has mercy on us, we don’t understand everything either, they have to learn from God just like we do. It is before their own master that they will stand or fall, God will teach them, we must forgive. Always be merciful, always forgive, desire to be at peace with everyone (as much as it depends on you, be at peace with all people) (Rom. 12:18). To be one with someone is to hold no grudge, no obstacle between you and them, nothing they have done that you are holding against them, that keeps you from being one in heart. Look at Col. 3:12-14 to see the mantle or cloak that the Church is missing. The devil has stolen the mantle that should be on the Church’s shoulders. Col. 3 says that we should have forbearance towards each other. Forbearance means that we bear with each other’s weaknesses and lacks. We are to have bowels of mercy, forgiveness of each other, tenderness towards each other, forgiving each other with the same forgiveness that Christ has forgiven us of everything. And above all this, put on love which binds everything together in perfect harmony (binds us all together perfectly). We must have this kind of love. But this love is even greater than has been explained thus far. Not only must we love the lovely and our precious brothers and sisters that are already showing forth the character of God, but we must love the unlovely, the ugly, the smelly, the mean, and our worst enemies. We can’t just love those who love us, or shake hands with those who shake our hands, or like those who are like us. (Matt. 5:43-48) This is God’s character, to love all, even the worst. There is a difference between phileo love and agape love. Phileo love is a human kind of love. I love you because I love the way you dress, I love talking to you, we have the same interests, we click together, I like your personality, we communicate so well, we really get along well. I like you because you like me. If we have phileo love, that kind of love can change when the person we think we love changes. Agape love is so much higher. It is an unconditional love. It is love that may not be loved in return or may not be reciprocated. It is love that loves someone before they love you, or even if that other person hates you and hurts you and never will love you back. It is the love your enemies type of love. It is the love that loves them when they don’t greet you, they don’t accept you, they don’t like you. Agape love is the love of the Father that can only be taught to us by God, be put into us by God, and it comes through us from God’s heart into our hearts toward others. It is a supernatural love that God must teach us and give us, this is His character. He is teaching us to be like Himself and have His heart. This is agape love. This kind of love may seem impossible. It is a miraculous love. But God is giving us more understanding. If you stood in the midst of a congregation of say 500 people and looked around to see who gravitates towards who when the service is over, you will notice some things. Do some just go to their friends, do some try to get with the people of greater honor, do clichés form, do we notice who’s dressed nice and gravitate towards them, do we like those who are educated, who do we like, who are our friends? But if you have the Lord’s eyes and the Lord’s heart you may look around to see that lonely one, the mentally challenged one, the one who needs us, and we may go to them instead of the others. The Lord will lead us and show us, we will see people as God sees them and do what most pleases Him. If this all isn’t enough, Jesus said in Jn. 13 (near the end of His earthly ministry), this command I give to you that you love one another as I have loved you. By this will all men know that you are my disciples. Can we love with the depth that Jesus (with God’s love) loved His disciples? Can we love one another this way? Jn. 17 describes more what kind of love we are to have for each other. At least 3 times Jesus prays to the Father that His disciples be one. So that the world will know that Jesus came from the Father, we must be one. Remember I said that oneness had to do with love? People who seek to be one must have real love to remain one, otherwise trouble will split people apart. So then Jesus mentions love in Jn. 17 in His prayer. He says, this is the kind of love that will be in you my disciples, the same love that the Father has toward the Son and the Son has for the Father, that this love would be among us! We are to have that kind of love for each other. If we will get close to God as I explained in chapter 1, if we will get into a close walk and a close relationship with God, praying, seeking God, drawing near to Him, He will give us a heart like His, we will become like Him, we will have His eyes, His tears, see as He sees, feel as He feels, we will have more of His love. But we must pursue God fervently, never give up till we have found Him, it will be our all consuming passion, seeking His face till we see Him. God has promised, you will seek me and you will find me when you seek for me with all your heart. Draw near to God and He will draw near to you. He will see if you really mean business. If you don’t give up He will come to you. The apostle Paul loved the people of Corinth but they didn’t love him very much. They would rather have other spiritual leaders come to them to minister to them. In II Cor. 6:11-13 Paul explains how his heart has been enlarged by God to have all of the Corinthians in his heart but he says that their hearts are small and shriveled so as not to let Paul into their hearts. Paul encourages the Corinthians to open up their hearts to him. Just like this, today, God will teach us His love and make our hearts so large that we will love people with a love that people will not be able to reciprocate back to us the kind of love we give. But we will all come into His fullness the closer we come to God. We must get God’s Hesed love. The word Hesed is a very powerful Hebrew word which may be translated loving kindness or tender mercies. We may see it in the Old Testament only as one word, love or mercy, but it has a deeper meaning than just one word. Do you remember that one of the fruits of the Spirit is kindness? To be kind may seem like a soft, weak word in our day but being kind to someone is at the heart of the greatness of God. Hesed is not just kindness or love but it is loving kindness. Hesed is not just being tender toward someone or being merciful toward them but it is having tender mercies. To have Hesed toward someone is to have a powerful, awesome, love of God that the world and the Church has seen little of. But we must have it in these last days. We must get it to become more like God, to become what He wants us to be. Without holiness no one will see God. (Heb. 12:14) He requires it of us, without love we do not know God. (I Jn.) The world must see it to be saved in these last days. (Jn. 13 and 17) This is the powerful message of love. It is a message of no gossip, forgiveness always, a great expanded heart of mercy that loves and helps the unlovely, a great heart that unites and is knit more and more with those who also love God, it is Hesed love, Agape love, the love that is in God and is our God. In Jer. 9:23-24 it says do not glory in obtaining wisdom, having might or riches, but glory in this, that you understand and know Me, that I exercise lovingkindness (Hesed), judgment and righteousness in the earth. For in these things I delight (in myself and in you) says the Lord. You do not need to READ MORE, this is the entire writing (Chapter 4 The Tabernacle of David will be listed in about two weeks)
Chapter 2 Corporate Revival (from the book "Drawing Near To The Fire Of God")Posted: 2012-09-19 09:02:32 by: David Nelson
Chapter 2 Corporate Revival The goal in Chapter 1 is that we might have a more intimate walk with the Lord. The Lord’s main purpose is not so much that we may accomplish more for Him but that we may come to know Him better and better. Knowing Him and walking with Him is an eternal goal whether we accomplish a little or a lot here on the earth. Remember Enoch in the Bible? We don’t know exactly what he accomplished but his epitaph is, he walked with God and he pleased the heart of God. That is what our Father said about His Son and our Lord Jesus in an audible voice while He walked on the earth. If the Lord were to say these things about us would our lives not be all worthwhile? We are to love Him and please His heart even if His purpose for us would be that alone. Loving God in our heart of hearts, with all our strength should become the greatest thing for all to us. God will teach us this truth. But we are not to be alone with God as a permanent thing or His ultimate goal for this world. God wants us to get together with others. There will be a Church, a Body, a Bride, God has plans for that. There is also a great need and a desire in God’s heart for a corporate revival in our time. The Church as it is now is not what God wants it to be. Let us see what He wants the Church to be. If one person sits in his room and receives great revelations from God and gives prophetic words in his room alone, how will others learn and be edified if he does not get out of his room and give his gifts to others? If one person grows close to God and becomes a beautiful, colorful, fragrant flower and blooms alone, who will enjoy this sight? God and the person alone may be edified but how will God be glorified unless others see this great sight that God has made? God wants us to see each other ablaze with His glory, God wants the world to see His works and His beauty too. God wants us to be with each other, to see each other, and to receive from one another. One stick burns alone, but many sticks together can make a great bonfire. One solo with one instrument can be very good, but look what God could do with many people with many instruments playing together to create God’s symphony. With more people you would add harmonies and interacting strains of music as an orchestra that you cannot attain with one voice or one instrument (as beautiful as they may be). We are not meant to get it all from just a few people, we need each other, each one has a missing piece of the puzzle that we need to see the whole picture better. God has a great purpose for us to be together and not alone. Even though it is God’s plan and His desire to have a corporate expression (us together) there is a big problem today. Each of us is to receive fire from God and give the fire He gives to each other. When you come together let each one have something to give. (I Cor. 14:26) What have you received and heard from the Lord? What has He put into you? If it is really God, it is fire! It will touch others, people will know that you have been with God and have heard from God! And are we not hungry to meet others who have heard from God and we want God’s fire in them to flow towards us? We want more of God, we are hungry, and we will know when someone we meet has fire from God. The big problem is that when we go into most churches today everyone is not allowed to share their gift. The church may claim outwardly that there is freedom to share, but the people cannot really do this the way God wants to do it. If God were allowed to move through people 100 % exactly as He desires in every service it is possible there would be no more sermons for a while from the pastor and not the same song services we see either. I will share much more about this later in this chapter but I would like to give some other foundation teachings first. We need real fellowship with God and with each other. In I Jn. 1:1-3 it says that we have seen, we have touched, we have experienced first-hand the living Christ, who He is, face to face. We know who He is, we understand what He is saying, and we are actually fellowshipping with God. If we have fellowship with God (real koinonia) then we will be able to have fellowship with each other. The intimacy we have communing with God will lead to intimacy with each other because we both have a knowing of God. Fire will recognize fire. That is the only real fellowship, and it can only be had with those who truly know and fellowship with God. Each of us has been given one or more spiritual gifts. We are not all the same, it is a Body with different parts that do different things. Our gifts are to complement each other and fulfill each other. It says in I Cor. 12:6 that there are diversities of gifts but it is the same God who works or breathes them all into and through each of us. His gifts are God breathed and God inspired in us. Each working of a gift, each time it manifests itself is a manifestation of the living God. When a gift comes forth we see God manifesting Himself. That is why the working of a gift should be so amazing, powerful, a light show of God’s glory! And in verse 11 it is the Spirit that breathes or inspires each working of a gift and who distributes to each person in the order that He wills. But is this what is allowed in normal church services today? Is the Holy Spirit allowed to choose the order of the service and work through anyone He wants in the order He chooses? You decide as you look at church services today, is each thing that happens in a church service a manifestation of the living God? Is each gift that comes forth in a church service fire from God? Is the content of the sermon you hear fresh from the throne of God? We may give time in our church services for one or two prophetic words, but what if it was the desire of the Spirit to have no opening prayer, no songs, no sermon, and one by one every person in the congregation gave a prophecy? In I Cor. 14:22-31 it says that this could happen, an uninformed person could come into your church service and the Spirit may move each person to prophecy one by one. It says that that visitor will be convinced by all, convicted by all, the secrets of his heart will be revealed, he will fall down on his face and declare that God is truly there among you! Why, because God did what He wanted to do, not our same 3 fast songs, 3 slow songs, our sermon, and our closing prayer line. Are we free to get up in the middle of the pastors sermon to give a word from God that God has now revealed to us? (see I Cor. 14:30) I don’t think this would be very welcome in very many churches today. The way church meetings are today is not what God wants. Only a few share and the rest of the people sit and observe, many people are not being used. Is there freedom for you to get up at any time during a church service and give what God is now giving you? Is everyone taught to do this and continually encouraged to do so? Every service is to be totally open to be what God wants. But I tell you that churches will not accept this kind of revival. I will tell you why the churches at large will not accept God’s revival and how the Scriptures clearly show this to be true in just a moment. Let me first tell you how Argentina, some 40 years ago was able to receive God’s revival. Also Azusa Street in California 100 years ago experienced God’s revival for 3 years. As I have already said a church meeting with God totally leading (100 %) may have no opening prayer, it might not start with music, in fact there may be no music at all, there may be no sermon or announcements, there may be no closing prayer, prayer line, or invitation, there may be no offering. It is not to be ordered in this way, with 3 fast songs, 3 slow songs, announcements, sermon, prayer line over and over again. God is a God of great variety and creativeness and He can make every meeting in every place different so that one meeting is never the same as another. In Argentina (South America) this is what happened. Sixty years ago R. Edward Miller a missionary to Argentina explains in his book, “The Secrets of the Argentine Revival,” how God showed him that he must strip away everything to have God’s revival. Brother Miller became so frustrated in his ministry with the lack of God’s presence in everything he was doing. It was the “same old” every day, knocking on doors to invite people to boring meetings. Where was God in all this? So he kept reporting back to the States, “I am working,” but he decided after many failures, much soul searching, seeking the face of God and many prayers to have meetings to seek God. They would be 4 hour meetings, only for those who would give the whole 4 hours to seek God. He did not expect anyone to come, but people did. He was determined to seek God and continue with the meetings regularly till they found God. There would be no sermons, no songs, nothing but prayer and seeking and at the end of each meeting he would ask all who were there, “Did God say anything or show anything to anyone tonight?” All the people would say, we did not hear or see anything. But one night at the end of one meeting when the same question was asked one lady said, “I think God said that I should hit the table with my hand, but I’m not sure that it was God or just my own thought,” so she didn’t want to do anything till she was sure. From time to time over the weeks the lady would say again at the end of the meeting I think I’m supposed to hit the table with my hand but I’m not sure. Then one night the missionary leader said, let us all march around the table and hit it with our hands, and so they did but nothing happened (the lady did not join in for she was still unsure). Finally the lady got up, impressed by the Holy Spirit, and she hit the table with her hand. At that moment, with that little act of obedience, the Argentina revival began! From then on there was weeping, the great presence of the Lord, and God showed them many things that they should know and feel and do. In the Azusa Street revival 100 years ago similar things happened. Every meeting was totally run by the Holy Spirit, every meeting was totally different, with anyone in the room sharing as the Holy Spirit moved them, and the pastor gave few sermons, laying on the floor, always praying that God would keep things going and never stop guiding completely as God was doing. Are pastors ready to say to their congregations there may be no more songs, no more sermons, till the Holy Spirit says so? One night the Lord may guide us to have weeping at the altar. Another night there may be all intercession and prayer. Some meetings may be all dancing and songs, or some meetings all prophecies or teaching or sharing. Or a meeting may be any combination of the above, in any order, every night as the Holy Spirit leads. Imagine me right now walking out among you as 20 or 40 or 100 people are gathered together to meet together with God. If God is free to direct, there will be a symphony, you are the orchestra, God has already composed the music for this meeting and now He wants to lead us like a conductor. When are the violins to play, when are the flutes to sound, when are the quiet parts of the song, when do the trumpets and drums come forth loudly? When is there just one instrument or a solo? Just like I am walking out among you the Holy Spirit walks out in the midst of us and touches one (perhaps John) on the shoulder and says, it’s your time. Then the Holy Spirit walks over to a lady on the far side of the room (perhaps Jane) and He says, now you, let it come forth what I am putting in your spirit, then an older lady 80 years old, then an 8 year old boy. It may be a song, or a prophetic word, or a powerful prayer, or weeping, or intercession, or like nothing we have ever heard before. But each work from each person is a manifestation of the living God! God is in control 100 %. God does whatever He wants, through whoever He wants, as He leads and produces a beautiful symphony created by Him alone. Will we do this kind of revival that God wants? I found out in my travels in the U.S. and some overseas for 5 years that the churches at large, the organized churches with pastors and buildings, most are saying NO to this kind of revival, they won’t do it. With their mouths and to your face they say they want this and that they will do whatever is needed but in reality they will not do what God requires. The cost of doing what God wants will most certainly mean that half of their people will leave their church, their income and tithes will be cut in half, the pastor will not be paid, the church building will not be paid for, etc. You could lose your people, your pastor and your building if you do what God requires. Who will do that? We say we want God’s revival but to pay the price we may lose our kingdom. The only ones I have found who will do what God wants for revival are those who have nothing to lose. They don’t care if they lose people, pay checks, or buildings, they only want to do God’s will. And I found that the Scriptures already predicted this negative response to the prophetic directions of God in our day. In II Chron. 30 Hezekiah sent letters to all the cities of Israel to come to God’s revival (the Passover feast). Messengers (prophets) are always sent by God to announce what God wants to do when His people are not doing His will, and when they need to come back to God. The ones carrying and reading this letter from the king were laughed at and mocked and the people who heard the letter read would not come to the revival (the Passover feast). But a few humbled themselves (heard the call of God) and came. The remnant of God will come, God will have a Church and a Bride for His Son. In Matt. Chapters 21, 22, and 23 the same thing happens. Messengers were sent to take God’s churches back (His vineyards) and the hired overseers of each vineyard said NO. They persecuted and rejected the prophets sent to them. God wants people to come to His feast but those invited make light of it, make weak excuses, and find other things to do. But God says, if they won’t come, go out into the highways and byways and invite the lame, the blind, the rejects and get them to come! In Matt. 23, it says the Church (people of God) did not know the time of their visitation, when Jesus was ready to gather us to Himself under His wings the people would not. Then said Jesus, henceforth your house will be a house of desolation (Ichabod, the glory has departed)! The churches today will not do God’s revival because they want money, more people, a building and their own kingdoms. But God says, He has had enough of man’s works. God has had enough, He’s sick of it. Look what it says in Isaiah chapter one. About 6 or 7 times God says that He has had it, He is sick of it, He doesn’t want to look at it, He is not interested in our many prayers, our songs, our upstretched hands, our abundance of meetings (where He is not there and that are not His meetings). The churches are like Sodom and Gomorrah and they are sick with putrefying sores from the top of their head to the bottoms of their feet. What the churches are doing today is not acceptable to the Lord and He has sent messengers to tell them so. Their answer is, we will not do it. They say to the prophets faces we love you and your words but they will not pay the price. But there is a remnant that will say YES and God will have His Church and His Bride without spot or wrinkle. He is building His true Church right now as we speak. God is standing outside the churches, the glory has departed, the lukewarm church is not acceptable, He is almost to the point (sick to His stomach) of spewing them out of His mouth. He says to this 7th and last church (Laodicea), behold I stand at the door and knock, will you let Me back in? God is standing outside the church, but we just keep going with our same services, which we are doing without Him, they are man-run and man-made. They are just flesh, which is the enemy of the Spirit. We should be broken when the Holy Spirit leaves but we keep going in our own power. We should fall apart when God doesn’t move or at least stop (or be broken). The way it is supposed to be is, if He doesn’t move, we don’t, when He moves, we move. God will not come back into our services in the revival He wants till we prepare our hearts for Him, and make this place for Him. The churches will not see God and the world will not see God until we make this place where He can do what He wants 100%. It will not be easy for people to come together, prepared for God, and move with God in the ways described above, but God wants this and He is ready now if we will say YES. God will show us the way to Himself. If fire is coming to you from God at an individual level, He will show you that we must come together corporately also. We have yet to see what great things God will do when we come together with Him in our midst. We think the little river in our lives is great, wait till we see God’s “Niagara Falls” revival! He is now calling us to something greater than Azusa Street, greater than the Argentina revival, greater than any revival that has been before. We can see it already beginning here and there, underground, under the radar, we are beginning to taste what God wants. As it is explained in II Chron. with king Hezekiah, heaven will come down and kiss the earth and we will walk in heavenly places with our God! You Do Not Need to READ MORE, this the entire writing (Chapter 3 Love, will be coming in a week or so) Drawing Near To The Fire Of God (Chapter 1)Posted: 2012-09-12 12:26:07 by: David Nelson Drawing Near To The Fire Of God Chapter 1 Individual Revival God is now calling us to come near to Him that we may have His fire in our hearts and spirits. The Scriptures tell us to draw near to God and He will draw near to us. The following 4 chapters are steps toward the revival fire God is desiring for His Church. He will have a Church without spot or wrinkle. Jesus will build His Church and the gates of hell will not prevail against it. The Lord will have a Bride that is passionate and pure and aglow with the Spirit. First we must have individual revival in our hearts, a closer relationship between each one and God alone. He is calling to each one and wooing each one into a deeper relationship than we have ever had before. God has always had people that He has spoken to and given commissions to. He spoke to Noah and instructed him to build an ark. He spoke to Abraham, and it is recorded in the Bible exactly what God said in about 8 different instances. Of course, God probably spoke to Abraham on many more occasions than just 8, but what I want you to notice is that only about 8 are specifically recorded in the Bible exactly what He said (written word for word). For example, God said to Abraham that he should leave his country and go to a new country that God would show him. Later God said that Abraham’s descendants would be as many as the stars in heaven. And still later He said that Abraham would have a son and would call his name Isaac. All in all there are about 8 specific words given to Abraham in Genesis. God also spoke to Moses at the burning bush and showed the beginning steps he was to take as he was to go back to Egypt to the Pharaoh. God spoke to Gideon and led him step by step in what he was to do. First he was to break down the idols of his father, then he was to gather an army, then he was to whittle it down to the size God wanted. All these were clear, specific instructions given to Gideon. One time the people of God inquired of the prophet Jeremiah and he was to hear from God, what saith the Lord? So Jeremiah sought the Lord, what does the Lord want to say to the people, should they fight against the Babylonians or should they surrender to them? After 3 days he heard nothing from the Lord. After 7 days he still did not know God’s will or what God wanted to say. How long would he have to wait to hear from God? The Bible says after 10 days the word of the Lord came to Jeremiah. We must hear clearly and specifically from God, what does He want us to do or say? God spoke to Paul on the road to Damascus and said to him, I will show you what you will suffer for me, and I will give you instructions through one that I will send to you. And Jesus did send a man named Ananias to Paul to tell him more (Acts 9). In Acts 10 there was a man named Cornelius. He was a devout man, he gave alms to the poor, and he prayed constantly. As his prayers went up to God day after day, God made note of Cornelius and would remember him. God was recording his prayers and made a note, on such and such day I will send an angel to Cornelius to instruct him more. When the day came that God sent an angel to Cornelius, the angel said to him, I have come because of your prayers, this is what I want you to do, send for one Simon Peter in the city of Joppa and he will come and instruct you more what you are to do. Peter at the same time had to hear from God as to why he was to go with Gentiles and meet with Gentiles in Caesarea. When Peter was convinced to go with them he came into their house where many had gathered and he gave them the message of God. Peter might have been at the beginning of his message or at the middle, and while he was yet speaking the Holy Spirit fell on everyone there. God can win a whole house of people if we do as He instructs. Even He can win them in an “unholy” (Gentile) house (but God called them holy at this time). They were also won to the Lord “out of order,” are we not to baptize them in water first and then they are baptized in the Holy Spirit? They didn’t even have to hear the whole message and God saved them! If we will learn to hear what God says, like people did in the Bible, we can write down what He says, it should be so clear, we need to know and hear God’s voice in our day! All these Bible characters have died and are in heaven, they completed the work they were to do while they were on the earth. But now we are here, Joe, John, Henry, Kathy, Roberta, George, or whatever your name is. We are the ones He wants to speak to now. We are surrounded by a great cloud of witnesses, they are in the stadium all around us and we are down in the arena, and they are rooting us on. They are saying, “Come on you guys, you are the ones for now! You will do greater works than we did, the latter house will be greater than the former house! Come on, grab hold of your destiny, get it straight from God what you are to do!” God’s eyes are searching to and fro through the earth to show Himself great through someone, will He find one? Will He find none? If God were to line up 100 people or a 1,000 people He has a job or a commission or a mantle for each of them. Will we step forward and receive our commission, receive our mantle? He wants to speak to people just like He did in the Bible. He will put a mantle on everyone who says yes, use me! Look at Elijah and Elisha. Elisha put on Elijah’s mantle and had a double (greater) anointing. Elisha would say, where is the God of Elijah, if He felt he needed to see or hear God more. Will we say to God, where are you, where is God in all this? We must say over and over again, where is God in my life? Where is God in these church services? In Jeremiah chapter 2 it says that no one was asking, Where is the Lord? The leaders of Israel were not asking where is the Lord. The people were not asking either. If we do not see or hear the Lord speaking to us clearly we must ask, Where is the Lord? God is waiting. God is wooing. God is calling. He is saying I want someone to hear what the next step is like Paul and Cornelius did. God speak to me. God teach me to know your voice. That is all I want to know how to do these days is hear your voice, know your voice, get ahold of your plan, get your vision, your dream for me. Just like Joseph had dreams from the Lord, and because these dreams came from God, they would come to pass in God’s time, nothing could stop God’s plan or what He said. Look at what it says in Habakkuk chapter 2, we must take our place on the watchtower to see and hear what the Lord says. A person on a watchtower, during his watch, it might be from midnight to 3:00 A.M., if he sees or hears nothing then he has done his job. I saw nothing. I am not supposed to make up something, I am not to say that I saw a thief or a band of soldiers or some wild animal if I really didn’t. No, I am to say what I saw and heard only and report that. If it was nothing, then I did my job. So, when we see something spiritually, something clear from the Lord, something we can write down and report as a vision from God, this is what God wants us to wait for and get from Him. It says in Habakkuk that when we get His vision we can write it down, make it clear, so that others may read it and run with it when they read it. It may seem that your dreams are taking a long time and they may seem slow, and we may ask when will God fulfill this vision? But wait for it, it will not be late, it will surely come, God gave the vision, it is clear, He will do it! But we must know that we have heard from God. When you hear from God you will get fire. I don’t want the words of man any more. They don’t satisfy. Look at your church services, they don’t satisfy. God is not satisfied either. At the burning bush fire touched Moses feet and the fire of God’s words went into his heart. The ground Moses was on was holy ground and he took off his shoes. In Jeremiah 23 God said He did not speak to the false prophets and yet they claimed to hear from God and said, “Thus saith the Lord,” (but God did not speak to them). And so they do not profit the people at all. But who will stand in the council of the Lord to perceive and to hear His word? (Jer. 23:18) Who will do it? If one person will hear from God, what God puts into his mouth will be like fire and like a hammer that breaks rocks! (Jer.23:29) When we hear from God and when we speak it we will change people’s lives, God’s fire and God’s hammer will break their hard hearts. Phinehas in Num. 25 had the fire of God in him (the zeal of God). He understood God’s heart and mind and he had the zeal of God (the fire and truth of God), and he acted on that zeal. The Scriptures say that God was pleased with Phinehas when he impaled a man and a woman with a spear because of their sin, because he acted with God’s zeal and God’s jealousy for the truth. Our God is a consuming fire. Jesus also was very angry with how people were degrading the Temple of God when he saw the money changers and all the dishonest business going on there. Jesus made a whip and angrily threw tables over and he drove the dishonest money changers and animals out of the Temple. The Scriptures said in the Old Testament concerning the Messiah, The zeal of God will consume Him. Jesus knew God’s heart and acted with God’s zeal and fire. What must we do to get God’s fire and draw near to Him? We must go out in the wilderness and learn to be alone with God. In Deut. chapter 8 the people of Israel were learning to be alone with God in the wilderness. They learned how to walk with God there. At first we go out with our knapsacks on our backs with all our food, water, and provisions that we have provided, and we are ready for our exciting adventure with God. But soon our food is gone and our water is low and we are getting nervous with no drinking fountains or stores as we go deeper into the wilderness with God. When we desire to walk close with God like this He will purposely let us deplete our food and water so that we will look to Him and rely on what He wants us to do next. I will teach you, says the Lord, how to live by every word that proceeds from my mouth (and not just living by your own devices, resources, or ideas). I, saith the Lord, want to have a relationship with you that you hear and do only as I show you, one day at a time, on a need to know basis, not storing up manna for many days so that you don’t need me for a while, but getting your manna and instructions fresh from me every day. We are to watch, wait, hear, see. Jesus said, I only do those things I hear and see from the Father, I do nothing on my own authority. We must want to hear God only, know when He is speaking and when He is not. The voice of God must be so clear to us that we can write down what He says. That is all I want from now on. I mean it, that is all I want to do is learn how to hear the voice of God, know the voice of God, and do what I hear. God please give us discernment and strength to do that! God promised and has said in His Word, “There will come a day when those who are mine will all know Me from the least to the greatest.” And those who you thought were feeble will be a mighty warrior like David, and those who you thought were average soldiers will be like the mightiest angels in heaven! (Zech. 12:8) My sheep will know my voice and they will follow me, a stranger they will not follow. This is what God wants, His fire in you. He has a work for you, instructions He wants to give you, step by step, what He wants you to do. Will we step forward and take the mantle He has for us? Even if He just wants to have a close relationship with us and we are not really to do anything right away, we are to just be close to God. Whatever God wants to do with each of us we do not want to be one step behind what God wants or one step ahead, but we are to do His will. What saith the Lord to you? This is the individual revival that must come into each of our hearts. And when it comes we will receive it, we will know it, and others will see it in us and know that God has spoken to us. And we will meet others who have the fire of God in them. This is what will bring us to Chapter 2, corporate revival. Chapter 2 will be coming soon (less than a week). You do not need to go to READ MORE for chapter 1, this is the whole chapter Some thoughts on the serious times we live inPosted: 2012-06-27 19:55:44 by: David Nelson Some thoughts on the serious times we live in by David Nelson 6-27-12 I haven’t written anything for a while but I want to share a couple of things that I have been thinking. I read this verse in Luke 21:26 recently that jumped out at me: (some of this I am paraphrasing) Jesus said (as it gets closer to the end of the world and His return), people will be so troubled, perplexed, fearful, their hearts will fail from fear and the expectation of those things coming on the earth…. People are seeing more things happen on the earth and are starting to expect that more things are coming. It is not just Christians who feel that the world is entering a time of trouble but maybe a time of trouble that is the greatest that ever has been or will ever be. Non-Christians too through the news, programs on television and even movies coming out are sensing that we may be getting closer to the end that God predicted. God is warning everyone but we are to know better what it all means. TWELVE (12) has always been a number that has to do with God’s government, God’s kingdom authority, and leadership. We are in the year 2012. Maybe that is just a coincidence. Someone shared with me that God is going to solidify more His government and His authority and His giftings and callings in His people this fall at the time of the Feast of Tabernacles (Sept., 2012). This seemed very important to me. The Feast of Tabernacles will be celebrated every year during the 1,000 year millennium it says in Zech. 14:16-21 and that everyone is called by God to attend it. The U.S. presidential elections will be in November, 2012. People also are a little concerned about the Mayan calendar predictions for December, 2012 of the end of the world. I am not one who sets dates. (but I do want to hear what people are saying through visions, dreams, or just what He is saying clearly into each person’s heart). Things could go on like they are for longer than we think. Could 2013 be a year where things really unravel??? Maybe, maybe not. Will we ever have to leave our homes and live in the woods? Don’t think that that could not happen. I am on the watch tower every day (by God’s grace) watching to hear what is the Lord saying. I hope you too are looking up to the Lord, getting closer to Him, and sharpening how to know and hear His voice. Let’s keep in touch with each other letting each other know what we are hearing from the Lord. Let’s be friends with each other who can connect with each other as these coming times may require this. Bless you all and love you all! Let’s keep talking. You do not need to READ MORE, this is the entire writing "What Mormons Believe That They Do Not Want You To Know"Posted: 2012-05-03 16:04:14 by: David Nelson What Mormons Believe That They Do Not Want You To Know by David Nelson 4-26-12 When Mormons come to your door as missionaries they want to present to you the best picture of what they stand for. They can share a lot of attractive “truths.” But they are taught not to say anything that will “scare” you or “surprise” you or cause you not to want to become a Mormon. They don’t want to push you away before you have a chance to come into their flock. They are taught that they can lie about what they believe to cover up things so that you will still want to come into their faith. They call it “lying for the Lord” or we must give you “milk before meat.” Few people would want to become Mormons if they knew ahead of time how drastically different they are and believe from Christianity. Here are some of their core beliefs that they will deny: Their god and father was a man with flesh and bone before he became god. He attained godhead and now rules over the planet earth but he is still flesh and bone. He cannot be in more than one place at a time, in other words, he cannot be everywhere at one time, or even be in two places at one time. This god and father of the Mormons had a father before him who brought him forth, and that father had a father before him that brought him forth. In other words, the god and father of this world had a father and a grandfather before him (and on and on back into eternity). The Mormons believe there are many gods all over the universe who each rule over their own planet. And so the Mormons believe that the “God of the Christians” and their god only rule over the planet earth. Their god and father has a wife where they create new spirit beings all the time. It is the goal of each Mormon to produce children here on earth and that someday they too will attain to godheadship, will produce spirit beings through eternity through one or many wives, and will someday be god over their own planet. All over the universe are gods producing spirit children with their wives. These spirits will come to inhabit babies on new planets and then that god (man) will rule over that planet of men. Mormons believe that each person on our earth now was a spirit created by the god and father and his wife of this world and that when a baby is born those spirits come to inhabit that baby. Each of us existed as a spirit before we were born on the earth. Jesus and Lucifer were sons of the Mormons god and father (they are brothers), but Jesus’ ideas about salvation were favored more by god. So Jesus had a beginning, he was created, he is not, according to the Mormons, without beginning like we Christians believe our God is. The Mormons god and father was like an imperfect man at one time but he attained to godhead by getting better through following laws. Mormons believe they are to do the same and that each one will attain godheadship and rule over a planet by getting better, following laws, and will rule over a planet like their god now does. They believe Jesus had wives when he was on the earth and had children too. (It is very important that Mormons have wives and/or as many children as they can for it will be their job through eternity). There is no hell in their beliefs. There is no getting to the heaven where their god is unless a person joins the Mormon church and that they be baptized by them. All other Christian churches are wrong and are of Satan. There is salvation only in the Mormon church. Again, Mormons will hide their beliefs or lie about their beliefs because what they teach is not accepted by normal Christians. But many things written today were written by former Mormons who got out of that cult and became real Christians. One very good book that is like this is “Secrets Mormons Don’t Want You To Know” by Richard and Cindy Benson (Publisher is Chick Publications). Mormons are a dangerous cult that the God and Father of the Christian faith wants to warn us about. They are heretical and not of God. They are not Christians. You do not need to READ MORE, this is the entire writing Listening to GodPosted: 2012-04-03 19:51:10 by: David Wilkerson and David Nelson Listening to God by David Wilkerson (with conclusion by David Nelson 4-1-12) Please read this very good short message by David Wilkerson and at the end I will give a conclusion. This little article sparked my thoughts and what came out in my conclusion was bigger and bolder than I thought it would be.
Most Christians don't listen to God. They go to Him only to talk! Yet the Scriptures reveal that any person who was ever used of God learned to remain in His presence until hearing from Him.
This is a message God has laid very heavy on my heart and I’ve been speaking this message in the past years as often as I can. Many Christians are not hearing from God. (David Wilkerson says most Christians are not). This is more serious of a problem than we realize. Just about everyone in the Bible who did anything for God heard from God and got instructions from Him. Do we just talk in prayer or do we also hear things from God? God may speak to us at any hour of the day and give us instructions, but have we trained our heart and spirit how to hear and discern His voice? Here is the cruxt of the matter, the meat, the main thing. Can we say, “I will not move till God moves.” Moses said to the people we move when the cloud moves, we stay when the cloud stays. Moses also said, I will not go Lord, unless you go with us. But we become nervous, we want to push ahead, we want to accomplish and succeed and be active. We ask ourselves, Am I missing His will, am I dull of hearing, am I waiting when I should be doing? The rest is to trust that He will show us what to do. If we are nervous, worried, troubled, that is not rest. Trust that He will speak loud enough and clear enough that we will hear and know what to do and when to do it. “I will keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed upon Me, because he trusts Me. But don’t we already know what to do, the Bible tells us, just do what it says? Jesus did not heal everyone he saw, only the ones the Father told him to heal. Jesus did not visit prisoners, widows, and orphans every day but as the Father showed him when and where. He only did every day what the Father told him to do, and we are to do the same (do what the Spirit shows us). “You will fulfill all the righteousness of the law who walk by the Spirit.” (Rom. 8:4) I have wanted nothing more in my life than to preach and teach everywhere, every day, everything God is showing me, but things don’t always happen the way we have imagined. I am preaching and teaching on the internet as God gives me things to write and I go to the places where God has opened a door (or where He has said, you are to go there). If we can learn to rest and wait upon Him, and hear and move as He speaks, this is what He wants. God is ready to speak and give instructions to each of us. Will we learn to hear? Do we trust that He can speak loud enough and clear enough so that we will not miss His will? First say, “I want to do your will, I want to hear you Lord.” Then say, “I want to have the heart like your servant of old David, a man after God’s own heart, who will do all God’s will in his generation.” I want to have a heart to do all your will Lord. If you are sincere in this and seek the Lord diligently, God will speak to you and show you what to do. Can you say, “I will not move till God moves?” I will not do, till God speaks. Jesus did nothing on his own authority or of his own initiative but only what the Father showed Him. This is not a new idea, this is something old from the Bible. It may sound like something new and daring. But what good will it be if we build a house that the Father did not tell us to build, we labored in vain. “Unless the Lord builds a house, those who labor, labor in vain.” Noah built an ark, Abraham left his country and heard promises from God, Moses went back to Egypt to set the Jewish people free, Gideon tore down idols and got a hand-picked army as God showed him what to do, Jesus began His ministry at 30 and ministered for only 3 years, Paul began a new ministry and ended up writing letters to churches from prison, etc. as the Lord gave them all instructions. God wants us all to come back to a time of instructions. A time where we clear away other things, we wait upon the Lord, know His voice, and do the things He has called each of us to do. We are to be like watchmen on a watch tower and only what we see and hear from the Lord is important. That will be a vision for us to write down and pass on to others as He directs. (our gift to the Church) Your work may be different than you thought or may work out different than you would like, but you will know that God spoke to you and you will know your God. That’s what God wants for each of us now. You may say this is too scary, it’s too bold, I can’t do it or I won’t do it! Maybe that is why God has so few who are listening to Him and doing exploits? Will you be one of the bold ones who will say, I will wait for God, I will go out where He is and find out what He wants, He will speak, He said I will know His voice (His sheep know His voice), I will wait and hear. He is ready to show someone His daring plan! Are we ready to do what He says? Do we really want to hear God? He is ready for someone to step forward. Draw near to God and He will draw near to you. He may give you a Big Idea. If it is His idea it is Big. Enough with man’s mediocre works! Where is the God of Elijah? David Wilkerson has said in the past that he has built things that God never told him to build. The time is now for us to hear clearly and build what He says. You do not need to READ MORE, this is the entire writing Could there be a great move of God coming soon? (2012/2013)Posted: 2012-03-29 18:59:40 by: Article from Andrew Strom A short message from Andrew Strom sent to you by David Nelson, Prophetic Ministry of Iowa. Could there be a great move of God coming soon (2012/2013)?
You do not need to READ MORE, this is the entire writing Why I Believe Kenya, Africa Is Catching The VisionPosted: 2012-03-29 18:48:24 by: David Nelson Why I Believe Kenya, Africa Is Catching The Vision by David Nelson You do not need to READ MORE, this is the entire writing The Lord's Call for Gatherings in the 21st CenturyPosted: 2012-01-31 06:44:45 by: David Nelson The Lord’s Call for Gatherings in the 21st Century by David Nelson 1-29-12 Chapter 1 Making a Place for the Lord Chapter 2 Looking for the Lord’s Jewels Chapter 3 The Lord Writes His Symphonies Introduction There is an internal stirring in our hearts and there is a movement among God’s people here and there and everywhere. The Lord is wanting us as His people to gather by 2s and 3s (or as many as will) here and there to seek Him, to find what He wants us to do. He wants us to gather to get closer to Him and find much more of Him than ever before. We can receive a lot from the Lord being by ourselves, in our own prayer closets, but we will receive more as the Lord connects us with others, He is building His Church. The sum of the “parts” (you and I connecting with others) will be greater than us remaining separate individuals. How God will bring us together, how God will do it is not clear, but that He will do it is certain. Jesus said, “I will build My Church.” This book is for those who have already decided and know that God is up to something and they can see some of the pieces of the puzzle coming together. Some are seeing part of His plan, others are seeing different parts of the plan. As we talk with each other more the picture of what God wants to do will become more clear. Part of His plan is to orchestrate gatherings here and there, in homes, in buildings, outside, wherever. This book is for those who are called to be forerunners of what God wants and who are willing to step out and do what He is calling us to do (or at least you want to know and hide away in your heart what God is saying for now). What I am writing about is gathering with a few (or as many as will), to seek the Lord and find out what we are to receive from Him. The main point is not how often we get together or for how long but that our main goal is to seek Him and not give up until we discover how to find Him, experience the beginnings of finding Him, and decide that we will keep going until we find His fuller purposes for getting together. The Lord said, “You will seek Me and you will find Me when you search for Me with all your heart.” We must make a place for Him, we must learn to find His jewels, we must allow Him to write His symphonies, conduct them, and play them through us! This is what we will be talking about in the next 3 chapters. If the things in this introduction are what you have been hearing and seeing from the Lord then let’s continue the journey now. I will share with you what I have been seeing. Chapter 1 Making a Place for the Lord This is one of the first things we need to do. Someone has to decide to make a place for the Lord. It could be in any city or any area (out in the country). It could be in a house, in a building, or outside in a field. But there needs to be 2 or 3 (or more) who will come together in Jesus’ name to find out what He wants and to be willing to be all He has called us to be. The main point is that someone has decided to seek the Lord, to find out how we can become part of His movement for His Church to be built the way He wants it to be. If you will make a place to seek Him and pray and tell Him that you are available to hear and do as He bids you, you are knocking on His door, he has been waiting for someone to come, He is ready to show you what He wants. You know in your heart that He wants more of you and more for His Church and you are now saying yes to His call. He is calling us, He is wooing us to Himself and we are saying yes to Him. The “place” He wants is where 2 or 3 have decided to seek Him regularly and not give up. By regularly, it could mean once a week for an hour or once a month for 4 hours (perhaps on or two days of getting together). But the important part is that we make a place where the Lord knows there are seeking people who want to hear from Him and that they have decided not to give up till they hear, and when they do they will continue with what the Lord says. It will take some seeking and some effort but in time the Lord will notice, will forge a plan for you and will reveal Himself and guide you. Because now He knows there is a place for Him to come, a place that will host His revival, where some people have sincerely and diligently decided to stand in the gap with the Lord. At times in the past the Lord has sought with His eyes throughout the earth for someone to work through powerfully or for someone to stand in the gap and He has found no one. But now He is stirring in hearts here and there and raising up a remnant who will say yes, we will make a place for the Lord to come, to speak what is in His heart to us, but we don’t want just visits from time to time, but we want to make a place for Him to dwell (stay) among His people. He will teach us how to stay and wait for Him so that He can do all He wants to do. Chapter 2 Looking for the Lord’s Jewels Now let’s assume you are willing to gather and make a place for the Lord (or are already doing so). This chapter will explain how to look for His jewels. What I mean by jewels, in other words His fire, His revelations, His light, etc. Jewels are something to look for among thousands of common rocks that are much more precious than all the other rocks. When Moses bowed at the burning bush he heard words directly from God. God was giving Moses fire from His own heart, instructions from God’s mouth, revelations, light from heaven, fresh bread from God’s throne. These are the kind of jewels we want to hear from God. In Habakkuk 2:1-3 it says, take your position on the watchtower and hear and see what the Lord will say, then write it down and make it plain so others can read it and run with it. All through the Bible it says that God spoke to people and showed them what to do or gave them instructions. See Moses, Gideon, Jeremiah, Jesus, John the Baptist, the apostle Paul. It is no different today, God wants to speak to people and show them what to do. In Acts 10:1-48 Cornelius sought the Lord by praying regularly. One day an angel was sent to him and said to him, your prayers have been heard in heaven and now the Lord will show you what He wants you to do. Go to such and such city and call for a man named Peter to come and speak to your group. At the same time God was speaking to Peter in Joppa by a dream and showing him that he must and speak to Cornelius and his people. And so when Peter came and spoke revival came to that house where they were gathered. But it took seeking and it took hearing what does the Lord want us to do? In looking for jewels when you gather it is not necessary that you have a sermon or a teaching or a song service or anything we normally associate with church meetings (though these things may be present). What is necessary is that we seek the Lord with some prayer and that we say to ourselves at each meeting, “Did the Lord say anything to us today or tonight?” We always ask, “What (if anything) did the Lord really speak today?” If He speaks it will be fire, it will be a jewel, we will know it was from Him! If He doesn’t speak every time that is OK, because we are only interested in fire from above, jewels from His mouth, fresh bread from heaven. We have had enough of man-made things, that is why we are seeking for more. Just like in Habakkuk, if we are on the watchtower all night and we see and we hear nothing, we have done our job just as well as if we see something. What we see or hear we will report to the others, if we don’t see anything we have nothing to report. The Lord promises, “My sheep will know My voice and they will follow Me. The voice of a stranger they will not follow.” What we must learn in our day is how to know and discern the voice of the Lord better, when He is speaking and when He is not speaking. Churches today are not emphasizing how to do this or how important it is. What if the Lord spoke to you in a regular church service today, would you be free or welcome to get up and share what God spoke to you? Is there really freedom and a welcome platform to do that today? God wants the freedom to say or do whatever He wants through whomever He wants. He wants a place to do this through humble and seeking people. Eventually as you gather to seek Him the Lord may reveal things to people when they are at home, not just at the meetings. Does it not say in Acts 2:17, 18, In the last days I will pour out My Spirit on all flesh and they will prophecy and have dreams and visions? Young and old, rich and poor shall hear. Maybe you will sit up in your bed in the middle of the night and you will write down a prophecy that the Lord gives you. Or maybe you will have a dream or a vision from the Lord? Are these not jewels from heaven, fire from the throne of God, God speaking to us? That’s what we must look for and atune ourselves to hear, the voice of God. We must know His voice, recognize His voice, and share what He shows us. So, when we gather we look only for jewels from the Lord, not just the words of man (common rocks not given by the Spirit of God). God wants His gifts and His Spirit to move through each one gathered. And He will even reveal things to us when there is no meeting to bring His fire to the next meeting. Chapter 3 The Lord Writes His Symphonies We want to have a place for Him to come, not just once in awhile but to stay and dwell with us. We are preparing our hearts for His revival and to know how to receive Him and He is preparing us because He wants this too! He will sharpen us to hear only Him, recognize His jewels, and not really want man-made stuff any more. Then, what kind of symphonies is He going to write and how is He going to conduct them through us? Happy New Year 2012!Posted: 2012-01-12 14:20:38 by: Sybil Nelson
Happy New Year to All! We are thankful for the opportunities For our website readers and all people of the world, we pray for increased faith in God, increased wisdom, and a whole lot of peace, love and joy! |
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that are ahead in 2012!