God's Presence

The Wonder of God’s Presence

by Marc Dupont

Two weekends ago I ministered in a very well known renewal church in the southern part of the US. The building was big and beautiful and the worship was both passionate and, from a technical standpoint, excellent. We experienced authentic moves of the Holy Spirit during both the worship and the ministry times. The pastor informed me several days later they would be videoing several people who experienced significant healings.

Tonight, I have just returned from a welfare type of hotel in an inner city where we had a church service. The city has suffered financial downsizing, decay, and unemployment over the last several years. Two weekends ago I was with hundreds of mainly middle class people who passionately love God and have experienced Gods grace in a myriad of ways. Tonight there were less than fifty people, the majority of whom struggled with very serious issues ranging from severe health problems to poverty level incomes to substance addictions. Instead of a large very accomplished worship team of professional ability tonight the worship was led by an acoustic guitar player who along with a lone female accompanist struggled to maintain the group’s enthusiasm. Except for a couple of the faster songs there was little visible passion in worship and the atmosphere seemed so lackluster in comparison.

However, (and this is a huge however) the Spirit of the Living God showed up tonight just as He had two weeks ago. And although things seemed so different outwardly (with both the building and the people) God was attracted to the worship of the people tonight just as He was two weeks ago. And He performed several healings including an amazing one of a woman who has barely been able to walk for over 10 years. She testified that often when she walked the pain had been excruciating in her legs and back. As well, when she walked she constantly had to look down at her feet because she had lost all sense of feel and could not tell what was happening without watching her feet. All that changed in just a few moments of prayer. She walked for the first time in over 10 years with no pain and with complete feeling restored to her feet. She walked and walked through out the room in amazement.

The faith level and the praises dramatically escalated as people realized what God had just done for her- most of the small church knew her well. At that moment no one, myself included, would have rather been anywhere else in the world than there- where the Holy Spirit was touching lives and giving beauty for ashes and praise replacing strongholds of discouragement (Isaiah 61.3).

I have felt for years that the most under utilized resource in the contemporary church is the Person of the Holy Spirit. By that I do not simply mean that the spiritual gifts are not appreciated and sought after by many. Rather that the awesomeness of who God is and His transforming Presence are too often neither very appreciated or hungered after. Usually the Holy Spirit is simply viewed as the messenger and/or the deliveryman of God. While it is true He does disclose to us the things of Jesus the greater truth is that He is the Presence of God Almighty in our very lives and our very midst as we gather in Jesus’ Name. He is the Immanuel- God with us! And when He shows up with just a bit of His manifest glory it doesn’t matter whether one is in a hot and dilapidated inner city hotel, or a big, beautiful, modern, air conditioned church building, or even a stable. It’s the only place you really want to be- simply because the wonder of Gods Presence changes everything.

For with You is the fountain of life; In Your light we see light. Psalm 36.9

Marc Dupont

mopm@earthlink.net 

www.marcdupontministries.org

Church or Kingdom?

Church or Kingdom, Earth or Heaven? Where do you live? 

[An appeal to discover our true citizenship and the fullness of God's purpose in our lives.]

By Greg Austin

As followers of Christ, our continual call is upward. The directive come up here in Revelation 4 is the recurrent appeal of heaven. The direction of Gods intent for our lives is always above what we have known and where we have trod. Yet the upward direction, the above life may not be up in any physical sense. Up in the realm of the Spirit may well be in or it may merely be an awareness, a discernment of something unseen yet authentic.

A dictionary description of the word up yields in part, with greater intensity, in or into a better or more advanced state; into evidence, prominence, or prevalence, and into operation or practical form; into possession or custody.

Could it be that the current generation of followers of Christ is experiencing a revealing from heaven of something coming into evidence, prominence or prevalence? Something, which is coming into operation in a practical form? Something the Bible describes as the kingdom of God?

We will always live and have our being where our hearts are, where our perception is active, where our minds are engaged.

If our awareness our set point is anchored in an understanding of life and experience within the concept of the church, we tend to live with a temporal, earthly and it might be argued, a worldly view of life.

If on the other hand, we have developed a sense of life within the kingdom of God, we tend to live with an eternal, as opposed to a temporal perspective. This Kingdom Perspective or kingdom life means that the various and myriad vicissitudes of life which political party is in power, whether we are employed or not, whether we enjoy physical health or we daily endure pain, and countless other potential obstacles have no bearing on our manner of life. 

Witness the Apostle Paul, speaking of many tears and trials which happened to him by the plotting of the Jews . . . And now he proceeds, bound in the spirit to Jerusalem, not knowing the things that would happen to him there, except that the Holy Spirit testifies in every city, saying that chains and tribulations awaited him. 

But none of these things move me; (emphasis mine) nor do I count my life dear to myself, so that I may finish my race with joy, and the ministry which I received from the Lord Jesus, to testify to the gospel of the grace of God (Acts 20:24ff).

Living with Kingdom Perspective does not mean that we are exempt from the experiences of the world around us: Pain still hurts, our bodies continue to deteriorate with age, our physical dimensions remain subject to physical law, bad things still intrude, but they do not impinge on our lives. Our spirits, the eternal us, find balance and meaning living within an eternal kingdom. Life, for the child of the kingdom begins to make sense and finds order. Within the kingdom of God we begin to sort out the significance of temporal conditions in the light of an eternal purpose and place of Gods providence.

Jesus and the apostles after Him taught that those who have been redeemed by the blood of Christ are living now, in this present moment in the kingdom of God. The arguable reality of this condition is that we are now living in eternity, we are living our eternal lives now and we are not waiting for our entry into heaven some day in the future when we will at long last begin to experience eternal life. 

Because we are creatures of time and space, we have always known beginnings and endings, starts and finishes. Eternity has no such encumbrances: Even the thing we call eternity is largely misapplied simply because of the space and time confine we were born into. 

But when an eternal Christ stepped out of an eternal heaven and pierced the shroud of time and space, He brought to humanity the potential to escape those confines, even while existing within them. It is part of being in, but not of the world. 

That Christ was in the world before His fleshly birth in Bethlehems stable is obvious. John declares in the first chapter of his gospel, He was in the world, and the world was made through Him, and the world did not know Him (Jn 1:10).

Christ was in the world, but He was not confined to the limits and the laws of the natural world. His existence was supra-natural as well as supernatural; that is to say He lived above the limitations of the physical laws of the natural universe and He lived a supernatural life, which is to say He was inseparable from and fully part of God and thus had access to Gods capabilities while at the same time abiding within a fleshly, human body. His physical body grew weary, it required food and water, rest and protection from the elements, but Christ, the Person within the fleshly body of the Carpenter from Nazareth, was capable of all of His Fathers will and capacity.

Church or Kingdom, or Church within Kingdom?

Jesus spoke about building His church (Mt 16:18), but He articulated an existent and broader kingdom. 

In Matthew 3 John the Baptist declares that the kingdom is at hand. In the following chapter, Jesus began to preach and to say, Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand (Mt 4:17). In Matthew 5, Jesus tells the poor in spirit and those who are persecuted for righteousness sake that theirs is, present tense, now and not in the sweet bye and bye the kingdom of heaven. 

In Matthew 11, Jesus declares from the days of John the Baptist until now the kingdom of heaven suffers violence, with the clear implication that the kingdom was existent in the hour of His speaking. More than 100 New Testament verses reference the kingdom. 

We are living now, in the kingdom. The kingdom displaces the here and the now with the cognizance of a greater reality and hence, a greater purpose. Within this reality is a focus and a consciousness impacted not by the day-to-day minutiae of life, but in the kingdom we consider all that takes place about us in the context of heavens eternal purpose, in the light of eternity. 

So the Apostle Paul lived not within the temporal confines of the time and space restriction, but he lived within the greater expanse of the kingdom. He worshiped a King Who dwells both within and without the restrictions of space and time.

The eternal King calls us to a higher plain of awareness and experience. He bids us rise with Him to an eternal kingdom so that we can say with the apostle, to live is Christ and to die is gain (Phil 1:21). if we live, we live to the Lord; and if we die, we die to the Lord. Therefore, whether we live or die, we are the Lord's (Ro 14:8).

Jesus taught us to pray, Thy kingdom come, thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven.

This pulling down of the kingdom through prayer is in part a verbal reminder of an extant reality: That the kingdom of heaven is even now among men, whether it is recognized, received and benefited from or not. Wherever the kingdom is acknowledged, Gods will is done on earth. When our perspective becomes the kingdom of God, our life direction aligns with the kingdom of God. When our awareness is of the kingdom, our focus becomes kingdom.

Suddenly, the baubles and trinkets that this (earthy) life advertises have no meaning or value to us. The things of life truly, grow strangely dim, in the light of His glory and grace as we begin to live and to move and to have our being both in Christ and in the kingdom.

Generations of believers have been taught the doctrines, the practices, the purpose of the church while the concept and doctrine of the kingdom of God has largely been ignored or misunderstood. Yet it would be this gospel of the kingdom and not the gospel of the church which was commanded to be preached in all the world for a witness. . . (Mt 24:14) before the end would come.

As followers of Jesus, we are children of the kingdom and not of the church. 

If our focus ought to be the kingdom, what then is the church, and what is its purpose in the economy of God? 

First of all, The church is the structure which accommodates believers moving within the kingdom. 

The kingdom is the eternal and magnificent dwellingplace of Jehovah God, Creator and sustainer of all that exists. The church may be understood as the lesser box (not with regard to importance, but to purpose) within the greater box of the kingdom. The church consists of all believers in Jesus Christ; they are the people of the kingdom. The church is the people of God, called by God to make their habitation in the kingdom.

The church manifests and demonstrates the kingdom. The church is the realm in which the kingdom is expressed in this current phase of Gods purpose. Observe that every function of the church has to do with this present age; 

The church is the place of entry into the kingdom of God.

It is in the church that believers are welcomed as redeemed souls.

It is the church which provides a place for baptism, preaching, teaching, the observance of the Sacraments, witnessing, discipleship, and so on. 

Note that all these functions have to do with this present age. As the kingdom of God is fully established and revealed, these functions become obsolete, and the kingdom will supersede the church, because kingdom functions are eternal.

The church finds its function in making the kingdom observable. It is within the church that we witness the power of the kingdom to transform lives from death to life, from earthly to heavenly, from brute beast to living representatives of Christ Jesus, Savior of the world.

The Church then is the instrument by which the kingdom is established in the earth. When Jesus spoke of the salt of the earth He had in focus the church. His word pictures of the light of the world and a city set on a hill which cannot be hidden are references to the church. 

A Vital Difference

But here is a vital distinction: The church always was intended to be a temporary manifestation of the Kingdom, and not a permanent structure. The church is to be understood as a bridge between fallen man and the ultimate kingdom which eventually will permeate, saturate and fill all the earth. 

The seventh angel is heard in Revelation 11: And there were loud voices in heaven, saying, "The kingdoms of this world have become the kingdoms of our Lord and of His Christ, and He shall reign forever and ever!"

More than half a century after Jesus had ascended to His Father, John would write Love has been perfected among us in this: that we may have boldness in the Day of Judgment; because as He is, so are we in this world (1 Jn 4:17). This is kingdom language. This is the language of eternity. It also is the language of our emerging reality:

. . . as He is, so are we

. . . in this world 

. . . in this kingdom. 

Greg Austin

GAustin218@aol.com

www.GregAustin.org

Rise up Sons of God!

Come Up Here

By Ron McGatlin

Are you one of the many who are hearing a call to come up to a higher place with God in the Spirit? Are you hungering to be lifted above the cares of this world? There seems to be a desire in many to soar into the heavens far above the pettiness of human strife into unfathomable love to receive spiritual resources to deal with the issues of this life.

Rev 4:1: After these things I looked, and behold, a door standing open in heaven. And the first voice which I heard was like a trumpet speaking with me, saying, "Come up here, and I will show you things which must take place after this."

My precious brothers and sisters, there comes a time when we must leave dependency on our natural human understanding if we are to be freed to soar in the Spirit into the realm of love and wisdom that dissolves all of our temporary understandings and connects us to the eternal source of love, creativity, truth, and wisdom.

For it is at the throne of God, the apex of all life, that we can become one with the Spirit who creates and generates all truth with all power and all wisdom in perfect love that goes well beyond all human understanding. It is there at the apex of life that the redeemed are privileged to approach the throne of God through the Lord of all.

It is here in this place of becoming one in the Spirit with God that we connect with the foundation of all life. It is from this source that redeemed Spirit-filled beings, God’s kings and priests on earth, are privileged to draw from eternal wisdom and heavenly understanding. It is here that transformed human beings access the flow of God’s love and power to live on this earth as sons of God in Christ Jesus implementing the kingdom of God on earth as it is in heaven.

The answer to every problem on earth is stored in the abundance of God’s ultimate resources. Limitless love, power, wisdom, and understanding wait in the endless reserves of heaven. Christ Jesus, Son of God, the One through whom and for whom all things were created, has full access to and authority over the entire reservoir of the assets of Father God. Everything needed to bring forth the kingdom of God on earth as it is in heaven is awaiting the purified holy sons of God to receive it and release it into the world.

There is a problem.

There was no separation between Adam and God before the fall. However, when sin entered mankind was separated from God and separated from the resources of heaven. The last Adam, Jesus, was not born under the sin of the first Adam and lived completely holy. Therefore Jesus had access to the resources of heaven after the Holy Spirit descended on Him and remained with Him. Again for the first time since the fall of Adam there was a man on earth with no sin separating Him from God, a man who was fully able to access the full resources of heaven.

However, Jesus could be in only one place at one time as a man in an earthly body. God’s purpose included bringing forth many sanctified sons through Jesus to have access to the resources in heaven and complete the work assigned the first Adam to be fruitful and multiply and have dominion.

Heb 2:10-11: For it was fitting for Him, for whom are all things and by whom are all things, in bringing many sons to glory, to make the captain of their salvation perfect through sufferings. For both He who sanctifies and those who are being sanctified are all of one, for which reason He is not ashamed to call them brethren.

Gen 1:28: Then God blessed them (Adam and Eve), and God said to them, "Be fruitful and multiply; fill the earth and subdue it; have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over every living thing that moves on the earth."

The invitation to come up here is real. The door is open. I proclaim to you today that the prison doors are open. You can be free to soar into the spiritual heavens and come into God’s holy throne room. Here in His presence seated at the table of the Lord, intercession can be made for the needs of life and the world. Requests can be granted from the resources of heaven. Wisdom and power to deal with every need on earth is freely given. The desire and will of God can be clearly imparted into the hearts of sanctified sons to be brought forth into the world. The ultimate empowerment of the love of God can be poured into humble sons in the presence of His holy fire to be carried to heal and transform the people of the world.

Isa 61:1: "The Spirit of the Lord GOD is upon Me, Because the LORD has anointed Me To preach good tidings to the poor; He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted, To proclaim liberty to the captives, And the opening of the prison to those who are bound.”

Luke 4:18-19: "The Spirit of the LORD is upon Me, Because He has anointed Me To preach the gospel to the poor; He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted, To proclaim liberty to the captives And recovery of sight to the blind, To set at liberty those who are oppressed; To proclaim the acceptable year of the LORD."

John 20:21 … " As the Father has sent Me, I also send you."

Earthbound thinking can limit our assent into the heavenly realm of the Spirit and thereby limit our potential of available heavenly resources for effective ministry to bring real change to the people of the world.

Earthbound thinking relates heavily to the natural Adamic mindset in which the broken spiritual connection caused by sin still exists to those who do not yet believe and those who are still seeking victory over sin in their lives. This mindset is characterized by I cannot – I cannot overcome and be without sin – I want to truly move in the spiritual realm, but I cannot get there somehow – I cannot really believe these things are real for me now in this life and so on. The “I cannots” are based on the “I cans” of human pride from the tree of knowledge and has no part with the tree of life. In other words they stem from a dependency on human understanding and endeavor.

To know by experience the pure love of God is the most humbling reality of life. The intensity of the power of His love overwhelms us and instantly fills our hearts with tears of gratitude and reflective love for Him. A moment in His love can transform our minds. The pride of this world and the value we have placed on our natural human understanding and strengths become meaningless to us. To know His love is to be broken.

Through our brokenness, the way for the humble is opened into kingdom wisdom from the throne of heaven. A single burst of direct impartation from God can fill our being with wisdom and understanding of God that is far superior and supersedes all of our human precept upon precept accumulation of knowledge.

Isa 57:15: For thus says the High and Lofty One Who inhabits eternity, whose name is Holy: "I dwell in the high and holy place, With him who has a contrite and humble spirit, To revive the spirit of the humble, And to revive the heart of the contrite ones.

Rom 12:16: Be of the same mind toward one another. Do not set your mind on high things, but associate with the humble. Do not be wise in your own opinion.

James 4:6: … "God resists the proud, But gives grace to the humble."

James 4:10: Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and He will lift you up.

1 Pet 5:6: Therefore humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you in due time,

Col 3:1-2: If then you were raised with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ is, sitting at the right hand of God. Set your mind on things above, not on things on the earth.

Father, we come to you to humble ourselves before you and ask for your mercy and grace. We repent from our pride and arrogance of seeking to live life and solve the problems of the people of the world with our natural human understanding. We choose to turn from all of our foolish ways of sin. Cleanse us, Father, with the precious blood of Jesus, our Lord and Savior. Cleanse us from every residue of sin and religious ways. We come to you again emptying ourselves and laying our everything upon Your heavenly alter. Father, receive our contrite and humble spirit; revive our spirits and hearts with Your life.

Father, as we look up to You, we see the open doors to our prison of earthbound thinking. We lift our faces, our hands and our hearts to You. We set our hearts and minds on Your heavenly reality, and with all our hearts and souls we call upon Your Holy Name; lift us into heavenly places and fill us with Your love that we may be pleasing in your sight. Cast us not away, oh Lord, for we are consumed with Your love and cannot - will not - live without You. You alone are worthy and glorious above all. Look not upon our lack, but complete us with Your sufficiency. Purify us in Your holy love to become one with You forever. Father, make us carriers of Your love ----

Ron McGatlin

www.openheaven.com

basileia@earthlink.net

The Mighty Apostolic

Paul Keith Davis:

"The Coming Apostolic Movement"

Over the course of several weeks the Holy Spirit has once again given several prophetic experiences pointing to the coming apostolic movement. Although the Western Church has several ministries that are functioning in apostolic ways, we have yet to see the true demonstration of New Testament apostolic ministry the way it will be revealed before the end comes. It is crucial at this point in history that we as a generation not settle for anything less than the fullness of our Biblically defined heritage.

Clearly we are living in what the Bible defined as the "end of the age." Even so, the Word is emphatic that the Gospel of the Kingdom must be preached in all the world before the end can come. There is a Gospel that has been preached throughout the world, but not the Gospel of the Kingdom in its fullness as outlined by Scripture and demonstrated by the Lord Jesus Himself and His early apostles. Nevertheless, because time is short, the imminent emergence of this ministry is apparent for a quick work to facilitate the great harvest.

This ministry will come forth not only with insightful revelatory messages of divine truth but also miraculous demonstrations of power through righteous vessels of honor and valor. There is something coming that has not yet been given birth that will provide clarity and identity to numerous ministers and ministries to facilitate their mandate and accomplish their commission. We must hold out for the best wine!

Several years ago the Lord gave me a very compelling prophetic experience or vision to depict the qualities and nature of apostolic ministry according to His definition. In the experience a heavenly messenger entered a room with the loud and definitive announcement, "The Apostolic is coming." As he did, a voice of ultimate authority echoed from Heaven saying, "The Apostolic IS coming."

With that affirmation, the messenger continued, "We had better get a good understanding of apostolic ministry under us...for it will be on top of us before we know it. Samuel is a type of this apostolic leadership. The Lord let none of his words fall to the ground nor did he beg his bread from the people."

The Spirit of Prophecy

In this experience the Lord indicated valuable attributes through the life and ministry of Samuel the prophet, depicting qualities He desires to impart to the apostolic leadership soon to emerge. Careful study in Samuel's life provides key secrets to help qualify for this mandate and touch the Father's heart in preparation.

Very often, prophetic experiences of this nature highlight personalities we know and recognize as a true prophet to symbolize the Lord's Voice or the Spirit of Prophecy bringing a timely and relevant message.

When the messenger announced on the earth that the apostolic is coming, it was verified with a Heavenly Voice to accentuate its certainty. In Scripture, when the Holy Spirit descended upon the Lord to take up His residence in Him, a Heavenly Voice was heard affirming this great reality (see Luke 3:22).

Likewise, when the disciples witnessed the Lord's transfiguration, they also heard the confirming Voice declaring Him to be the Son of God Whose words were eternal. The attesting Voice indicates a truth that is established with certainty to be readily accepted.

True apostolic ministry is coming and the more thorough our understanding of it, the more likely we will be to sustain this awesome ministry without being overcome by the intensity and power of it. Let us pray that we can faithfully administer this notable responsibility with character and integrity.

Saying Only What He Says

The Lord did let none of Samuel's words fall to ground. What a profound indication of intimacy and fellowship between the Lord and His leadership.

"And Samuel grew, and the LORD was with him, and did let none of his words fall to the ground."—1 Samuel 3:19

Like Samuel, true Apostles must become so intimate with the Lord that they say nothing in His name but what they receive by revelation of Jesus Christ (see Galatians 1:12). Samuel did not speak in the name of the Lord presumptuously nor carelessly. Therefore, God's Spirit was able to perfectly support the words he spoke in the Name of the Lord.

Scripture describes the Lord, our ultimate example, as being so yielded to the Holy Spirit that He said nothing but what He heard from the Father and did nothing but what He saw the Father doing. John 14:10 affirms this saying:

"Do you not believe that I am in the Father, and the Father is in Me? The words that I say to you I do not speak on My own initiative, but the Father abiding in Me does His works."

This apostolic generation can likewise abide in such a place of total surrender to God's Spirit that He would let none of our words "fall to the ground" because we would not speak in His name unless we first heard from Him. Romans 8:14 declares, "For all who are being led by the Spirit of God, these are sons of God." The Holy Spirit abiding in us will do the same works through us that He did in the Lord, fulfilling the prophetic promise of John 14:12.

He Did Not Beg His Bread

One of the most notable attributes in Samuel's life was his determination not to abuse his position and privileges before God and the people. There was not one person in all of Israel who could bear witness against Samuel for pleading for money, possessions or property. Neither did he allow the spirit of this world to affect his ability to judge the people in righteousness and equity. The apostolic leadership soon to emerge should likewise be characterized by humility and genuine love for the people. 1 Samuel 12:2-4 declares:

"I have walked before you from my youth even to this day. Here I am; bear witness against me before the LORD and His anointed. Whose ox have I taken, or whose donkey have I taken, or whom have I defrauded? Whom have I oppressed, or from whose hand have I taken a bribe to blind my eyes with it? I will restore it to you. They said, You have not defrauded us or oppressed us or taken anything from any man's hand."

The apostle Paul admonished the Church of Corinth, and the 21st-century Church, to stand in righteousness to judge the affairs of men with wisdom and truth. To do so we must possess the character of Christ reflected in Samuel to be free from the tendency to abuse the anointing and authority of God for unrighteous gain.

Certainly, there is a place for giving and supporting the work of the ministry and sharing in the fruitful labors of the anointing. This is an issue of the heart and like Paul we must pray to be trustworthy stewards of the mysteries, power and provisions of God. The prosperity coming to the Church will be for Kingdom purposes not personal luxury and extravagance. The Apostolic Church in the book of Acts shared all things in common and delegated resources according to need, thus reflecting love and unity.

The Lord's Spokesmen

Like Samuel, the anointed leadership the Lord desires to bring to His church will stand before Him as His spokesmen, extracting the precious from the profane. To them, the Lord will be as a fortified wall of bronze and though the enemy will contend with them, he will not prevail because the Lord will be present to save and deliver. This will further the restoration promised through the prophet Joel as evidence of God's manifest presence.

Psalm 99:6-7 speaks of Samuel saying:

"Moses and Aaron were among His priests, and Samuel was among those who called on His name; they called upon the LORD and He answered them. He spoke to them in the pillar of cloud; they kept His testimonies and the statute that He gave them."

Samuel's ministry was established by the Lord's manifest presence in the order of Moses and Aaron. As priests, they were charged with the role of intercession on behalf of God's people and instruction in the ways of righteousness. Faithfulness in these areas will begin to lead the Church out of Babylonian confusion and restore her to a place of loyalty and consecration to the Lord. As it has been said, if the Lord can find a people without mixture...He will send the Spirit without measure.

These faithful leaders were transitional men in covenant relationship with the Lord for transitional times and marked a point of demarcation for God's people. This perfectly illustrates the nature of the Apostolic leadership the Lord will use in this day. These three represent the Priest/Prophet/Judge (Kingly) anointing that will be entrusted to this maturing leadership. To each of these three, God proved Himself in mercy and in judgment.

Priest-Prophet-Judge Anointing

The coming apostolic ministers will be as pillar of cloud by day with prophetic anointing that will function as a pillar of fire by night giving illumination. Each will provide a canopy of protection through the Holy Spirit even as Israel was protected during the judgments of Egypt. The shelter of Goshen will become apparent in the coming season.

The Lord will allow nothing to come upon the earth unless He first reveals His secret counsel to His servants (see Amos 3:7). Moses, Aaron and Samuel each represent types of the coming government. The manner in which the Lord used these men will also portray the coming leadership and God's dealings with them. He is going to give divinely granted understanding. God's Word declares that His breath gives understanding and He is going to breathe upon us to give comprehension of these times and the things we must do to walk intimately with Him as His habitation.

Commissioning and Release

Even though Samuel was born through covenant relationship with incredible destiny, he did not experience the supernatural dealings of God until his prophetic commissioning.

"Now Samuel did not yet know the LORD, neither was the word of the LORD yet revealed unto him."—1 Samuel 3:7

Many of God's people have experienced introductions into this realm and tasted the fruit of this promise. There may be many others who feel as though they do not qualify for this type leadership because they have not had prophetic or supernatural experiences in their life. However, Scripture make it plain; the Word of the Lord had not appeared to Samuel until a very specific commissioning experience released him into his purpose and calling. Many of today's "Samuels" are hidden and unfamiliar with the visions and revelations of the Lord. Nonetheless, great and profound expressions of the Spirit are imminently awaiting these leaders once the grooming is complete and the timing appropriate for their full and complete release.

Paul Keith and Wanda Davis
WhiteDove Ministries
Email: inquiries@whitedoveministries.org
Website: www.whitedoveministries.org

A Paradigm Shift

Facilitating a Paradigm Shift from Religion to the Kingdom of God

Helping God's people transition from the Christian religion to a dynamic relationship with Jesus Christ - advancing His kingdom 24/7 as a lifestyle in every area of life.

Helping people change the way they view and experience reality is no easy task. Some call it a "paradigm shift". Thousands of stories describe just how difficult it is to get a large segment of the population to see and do things differently. One story concerns the Swiss watch industry. Not long ago, the Swiss led the world in making the finest watches. These watches were powered by springs which drove moving gears. Watches were built like this for hundreds of years, and no one expected or desired a change. Thousands of companies and millions of workers had a vested interest in the traditional watch paradigm. Any change was a perceived threat to the old paradigm watch makers which in turn, supported its work force. Along came a creative Swiss engineer who designed a completely different kind of watch. It was digital, powered by a small battery with no moving parts. He took his new paradigm watch to the largest Swiss watch companies, and every one of them scoffed at his idea. Finally he decided to attend an international trade show and make his patent available to all bidders. Texas Instruments and Seiko paid relatively small sums for the idea and the rest is history. Because the Swiss refused to see and apply the new paradigm, they lost approximately 80 percent of their market share. Once dominant, they became almost irrelevant.

How about those Wright brothers and their flying machine? Most people thought that no object that heavy could ever fly. The so-called scientific experts were convinced that even if they could make an airplane fly, it would serve no practical purpose. The new paradigm of transporting millions of people by jet-powered airplanes over great distances was inconceivable to 99.999% of the population less than a hundred years ago. And think of wireless phones and internet, two more staggering examples of a paradigm shift in communication.

An even more dramatic paradigm shift is occuring worldwide, one that will cause global transformation. It is the change from the Christian religion into the reality of Christ and His kingdom. Christianity as a religion is declining everywhere, including in the United States. However the Kingdom of God is an ever-expanding reality that will ultimately be the ONLY reality on earth. (see Psalm 2 and Revelation 19-22)

One version of Christianity is a religion invented by people. It is much different from the Kingdom of God, led by Christ the King. Religion is an attempt to reach God and improve our lives now and for eternity by obtaining some state of heaven through human ideas, efforts, and strategies. Religions are designed so that we can remain in power while attempting to get God and others to do what we want, in the way we want it. Religion is a clever enterprise to stay in control, so we can function as our own god. At the same time we try to manipulate the One True God into serving us by using religious language, rituals and sacrifices. But the Kingdom of God is initiated by God, for God's own glory, and involves His will, done His way, by His Spirit, all the time, and in every area of life. He is a living King, who rules another dominion or realm of reality. He has every intention of fully bringing His rule and realm onto Planet Earth through His sons and daughters by His Holy Spirit.

Christianity as a religion is nearly dead in Europe, where only 1-3% of the population identifies themselves as Christian. However the Christian religion is being replaced by another more aggressive religion called Islam. What does Europe, America, and the rest of the world need? Do we need more religion, even if it's the Christian religion? Absolutely not! The earth needs the Lordship of Christ, His powerful, compassionate kingly rule over all of life... a paradigm shift from religion into the Kingdom of God. We need the Reclaiming Of Christ's Kingdom all over the world. That is why we named our international spiritual family, "The R.O.C.K.". It reminds us of the centrality and supremacy of Christ, and our only mandate - to advance Christ' s kingdom in every area of life.

Here are a few of the changes that will occur in order to produce this kingdom "paradigm shift":

1. From a secular humanistic people-centered worldview, to a God-centered biblical Kingdom worldview.

2. From emphasizing the clergy or priest as the primary minister, to the priesthood of all believers.

3. From religious activities in a church building, to practicing faith everywhere.

4. From practicing religion in church services, meetings, programs and events, to constantly exchanging the life of Christ to everyone, all the time, anywhere.

5. From restricting our spiritual lives, to a certain day and time to "being and doing" church all the time.

6. From a religious institution, to a spiritual family that connects deeply with one another.

7. From unifying around doctrine and church policy, to unity around the Person of Christ, core values, kingdom vision, and convenant relationships.

8. From a transactional leadership model, to a transformational leadership model.

9. From an institutional model - organizing based on political power, position and pay, to organic relational servant leadership - everyone submits to Christ in one another.

10. From compartmentalizing faith so that it affects only certain areas of life, to integrating Christ's will and ways into every dimension of life - body, soul, spirit, finances, sexuality, relationships, time, work, play, etc.

11. From emphasizing church work as the main way to serve God, to advancing Christ's kingdom everywhere, all the time, in all arenas of life. This includes marriage, family, community, friendships, work, media, arts, education, social services, and civil government.

Janet and I have committed our lives to training and modeling this paradigm shift from Christianity as a religion, to Christ and the Kingdom. It has been a long and hard journey for us personally. We have had our own religious baggage to deal with, let alone helping others to change. However we are enjoying sweet victories. A viable Kingdom family has been forming in the inner city of Kansas City, which has impacted the neighborhood, even helping to reduce crime. We practice being and doing the church as a lifestyle. From small ways (like raising chickens and planting gardens together), to more dramatic ways (like planting small covenant families - house churches), we are trying to be part of this global Kingdom revolution. Our international family is growing in size and depth. Thanks to your prayer and financial partnership we able to help others move out of religion and into Christ and His kingdom.

With deep gratitude... we bless and love you!

Dr. Timothy and Janet Johns

ROCK Tribe
info@rocktribe.org
www.rocktribe.org

Apostolic

BOARDERS - BOUNDARIES - GATES -FOUNDATIONS

IAN JOHNSON

Jul 2, 2009

Recently when we were in Israel I observed an interesting event. We were in the Eliat area and you could see a reasonable amount of the boarder between Israel and Jordon from where we were. Obama had just been putting some pressure on Jordon regards the boarder (so called Palestinian state). In Jordon a huge dust storm arose, the unusual thing about this storm is that it defined the boarder between Jordon and Israel, the air was crystal clear on the Israeli side so it formed a line right along the boarder and out into the sea also defining Israeli territory. The Lord was making it clear where he saw the boarders.

DUET 32:8 When the Most High assigned lands to the nations, when he divided up the human race; he established the boundaries of the peoples according to the number of angelic beings.

ACTS 17:24 from one man he created all the nations throughout the whole earth. He decided beforehand which should rise and fall and he determined their boundaries.

I’ve also been pondering the absolute necessity for obedience which opens gates or portals into the realm of heaven. The opposite is also true, that disobedience opens portals into the enemy’s realm. I saw a good example of this in Israel also. The tribe of Dan was allocated land in the area around modern day Tel Aviv, like all the other tribes they were commanded to go in possess and subdue the land. They chose not to and instead went and possessed land in the far north of Israel, Dan’s disobedience is what really led Israel off into Idolatry. Tel Dan is the area Jeroboam, one of Israel’s most wicked kings set up an altar to Baal and made the northern tribes go and worship there instead of Jerusalem, The area of Dan became the place where Pan Worship developed during Greek and Roman times it became known as the gates of hell. The same place where Jesus said “I will build my Church and the gates of Hell shall not prevail against it” Even to this day there is a propensity to have lucky charms and items with the eye of Oris on it in the area of Dan. So, one act of un-repented disobedience can have generational impact. The same way one act of obedience will have generational impact.

If you look at the life of David he opened both good and bad portals all of them were carried on by his son Solomon. Israel grew under Solomon because David started a process, The temple and pure worship was introduced in Solomon’s reign, but David’s weakness for a pretty face was accelerated in Solomon. This eventually caused the kingdom to be split and the northern tribes lost.

No ones perfect, and we all have issues handed down, but in Jesus we have been given a way to break off the disobedience of generations past. Through His blood we can turn generational disobedience around, close old portals and open a new one into the heavenly realm. The thing that remains very clear to me is that if these portals are not closed, the issues will raise their head in our lives and ministries. I’m not suggesting going on a witch hunt to find stuff but when the Holy Spirit asks for change or action we need to act quickly.

This leads me to the main point, when we were in Turkey the question arose, how could a nation that was almost entirely Christian become so barren in Christian life? It soon became obvious, Paul and the other Apostles opened huge portals of apostolic authority and within two years the entire region had been impacted. This apostolic foundation was continued for 300 years and growth continued, Antioch & Ephesus became the mission sending centre of the world. The foundation was still Apostolic and the Church was very Hebrew in its thinking. Then in 326AD the church shifted from Apostolic power to the council of men. The first council in Nicea expelled all Jews and divorced the church from Jewish thinking. The second council in Ephesus introduced the worship of Mary, the very seat of Diana worship became the place worship of Mary was introduced. Other councils ( 7 in total) introduced Icon worship and other abominations, thus the doors opened by the Apostles were closed and doors to the demonic were wide open. Thus Turkey and the Church were plunged into darkness within 200 years.

The Church has been in a state of recovery for several centuries now and there is still a way to go. The pattern for how the church is supposed to look is in Heaven. we declare “As it is in heaven so shall it be on earth” we are declaring a vision of foundations, boarders, boundaries & gates. In Revelation 21 there is a vision of the new Jerusalem. How it looks in heaven and what we are declaring on earth.

Revelation 21:10-14
So he took me in spirit to a great, high mountain, and he showed me the holy city, Jerusalem, descending out of heaven from God. It was filled with the glory of God and sparkled like a precious gem, crystal clear like jasper. Its walls were broad and high, with twelve gates guarded by twelve angels. And the names of the twelve tribes of Israel were written on the gates. There were three gates on each side—east, north, south, and west. The wall of the city had twelve foundation stones, and on them were written the names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb. It was filled with the Glory of God; this is what we are looking for, “as it is in heaven so shall it be on earth” Its foundations are the twelve Apostles, in other words the foundation laid by the apostolic is our foundation as well. The Church has been in a period of darkness because its been operating on the foundation of the council of men.Its time to repent and bring the wrong from the council of men under the blood of Jesus and into apostolic authority.

Apostolic confronts, Paul in Acts 19 is a good example of apostolic confrontation of spiritual powers, he took on Artemus (Diana) and won. He closed a portal and opened a new one. Peter opened a portal for the gentiles at Cornelius house, Philip opened a door into transportation and so on. The whole Church is called to operate from this apostolic foundation.

Apostolic releases the power of Heaven Acts 2 showed us the intention of the Holy Spirit in building his church,. There’s no sickness suffering or sorrow in heaven and the apostolic foundation released this on earth. Nothings changed

Apostolic released woman contrary to popular belief the apostolic released woman into leadership and the fullness of the power of God.

Apostolic releases us into fellowship and feasting Our celebration went from ritual and form into fellowship and celebration.

Apostolic released a Kingdom on earth Jesus declared it and the apostles released it. To the point that within 200 years the world was a different place. Kings and princes yielded to the King of kings.

There is a whole book in here but I hope you get the drift. The council of men took the apostolic authority and said only a few men have power, when in actual fact the apostolic foundation allows all believers to move in this power.

This is the season to walk again on the foundation, not to lay new ones but to release the original plan. Push aside all the rubbish the council of men has bought in over the centuries and move forward by stepping back into the perfect plan.

The gates in Revelation are the 12 tribes (less Dan but plus Levi) The Nicea council put out the Jews but God still has them in the gates of the eternal city.

According to Romans 11 the gentiles are grafted into the root stock which is Israel. Romans 11:15 says “the acceptance of the Jews is life from the dead”

He says that if braches were broken off to allow gentiles (wild olives) to be grafted in how much easier is it to graft back in the true branches. We are coming into a season when the church will again recognise her Jewish roots, start thinking Jewish and not Greek and walk in the favour of the God of Abraham.

Jewish thinking sees every aspect of life as spiritual, Greek thinking separates natural and spiritual, therefore if you think like Greeks there are no consequences for our natural actions. Hebrew thinking however would see everything as having a consequence. There is an end time thinking that is about to be released into the Church again. For nearly 1650 years the church has been thinking like Greeks. There is a call to repent for our acceptance of the Nicene councils expulsion of the Jews. Its time to see Romans 11:15 fulfilled in our time.

There is a Messianic move happening in Israel it’s exciting and it’s a signal that we are entering a new season. When the former (Jews) and latter (gentile church) come together. Its life from the dead, its resurrection glory.

The Holy Spirit is calling us to come as one new man in Messiah moving in apostolic foundations and gates of glory. In order to do this we must move from old ways and thinking and allow this reformation to be activated in our lives. This may require repentance from mindsets and attitudes that stop us seeing the heavenly pattern.

Rev 21 It was filled with the glory of God and sparkled like a precious gem, crystal clear like jasper. Its walls were broad and high, with twelve gates guarded by twelve angels.

This is what the Church is about to look like, reformation is at hand things are about to shift and change. This is Life from the dead.

IAN JOHNSON
Email: ianjohn@xtra.co.nz
www.hisamazinggloryministries.org