Archive for the ‘Kingdom Articles’ Category
This is the first time the EMI/KMNI Annual Southern Hemisphere Conference will be held in Australia.
September 28th-Oct 3rd is only a short three months away. We look forward to a fruitful time of spiritual growth and KMNI face to face family connection. We can only imagine the work God will do through this conference to strengthen relationships throughout the world. Imagine the ripple effect – Discipling the Nations.
To assist with your planning, for booking and catering purposes, full registration payment is required by August 24th. This is only a short time away.
Click Here to Register in Australia
Stanley Frodsham was a contemporary of Smith Wigglesworth:
THIS PROPHECY WAS GIVEN at the Elim Bible Institute USA , in 1965 by the late Stanley Frodsham. Stanley Frodsham was one of those who received his Baptism in the Holy Ghost at Sunderland in 1908 where the Pentecostal movement in Britain had its beginnings: I believe Smith Wigglesworth was baptized in the Holy Spirit there as well.
With Great Judgments: will I plead with the population of this country. Great darkness is coming upon the countries that have heard my gospel but no longer walk in it. My wrath shall come upon them. The darkness shall be so great, and the anguish so sore that men will cry out for death and shall not find it. There shall be a lingering death, famine, and great catastrophes.
My wrath shall be manifested against all ungodliness. It shall come with great intensity. You have known My love but have not known My wrath, My severity. My judgments are literal and not a thing to be lightly passed over.
Realize the severity of My judgments and My intense anger against the sin in My household. My judgments shall begin in My house. For I will cleanse My house that it be not partaker of My wrath against the iniquities of the cities. Before I visit the nations in judgment I will begin at My house…
When I do cause My wrath to come upon the cities of the world My people shall be separate. I desire a people without spot or wrinkle, and such shall be preserved by Me in the time of My wrath coming upon all iniquity and unrighteousness.
Cry Out Continually: I am going to prepare you for the coming days by a hard path that will cause you to cry out continually unto Me. For when the going is easy, men do not seek Me, but rejoice in a temporary blessing. And when that blessing is removed they so often turn this way and that way but do not come to Me. I am showing you these things that you may seek Me continually and with great diligence. As you seek Me, I will open up truths to you that you have not seen before, and these very truths will be that which will enable you to stand in these last days.
As you are persecuted, reviled and rejected by your brethren then you will turn unto Me with all your heart and seek Me for that spiritual life you have need of. And when tribulation comes you will have that which will enable you to stand. For many shall be tossed to and fro. Men’s hearts shall fail them because of trouble on every hand. For these days shall be very terrible, the like of which has never been seen before.
When I visit My people in mighty revival power, it is to prepare them for the darkness ahead. With the glory shall come great darkness, for the glory is to prepare My people for the darkness. I will enable My people to go through because of the visitation of My Spirit. Take heed to yourselves lest you be puffed up and think that you have arrived.
Many shall be puffed up as in the olden days, for many then received My message but they continued not in it. Did I not anoint Jehu? Yet the things I desired were not accomplished in his life.
Listen to the messengers, but do not hold men’s persons in admiration. For many whom I shall anoint mightily, with signs and miracles, shall become lifted up and shall fall by the wayside. I do not this willingly, I have made provision that they might stand. I call many into this ministry, and equip them, but remember that many shall fall. They shall be like bright lights, and the people shall delight in them. But they shall be taken over by deceiving spirits and shall lead many of My people astray.
Seducing Spirits: Hearken diligently concerning these things, for in the last days shall come seducing spirits that shall turn many of My anointed ones away.
Many shall fall through divers lusts, and because of sin abounding. But if you will seek Me diligently I will put My Spirit within you. When one shall turn to the right hand or to the left you shall not turn with them, but keep your eyes wholly on the Lord. The coming days are the most dangerous, difficult and dark, but there shall be a mighty outpouring of My Spirit upon many cities, and many shall be destroyed.
My people must be diligently warned concerning the days that are ahead. Many shall turn after seducing spirits, many are already seducing My people. It is those who DO righteousness that are righteous.
Many cover their sins by great theological words. But I warn you of seducing spirits who instruct My people in an evil way. Many of these I shall anoint, that they may purify and sift My people, for I would have a holy people.
Many shall come with seducing spirits and hold out lustful enticements. You will find that after I have visited My people again, the way shall become more and more narrow, and fewer shall walk there in. But be not deceived, the ways of righteousness are My ways. For though Satan come as an angel of light hearken not to him, for those who perform miracles and speak not righteousness are not of Me.
I warn you with great intensity that I am going to judge My house and have a church without spot or wrinkle when I come. I desire to open your eyes and give you spiritual understanding, that you may not be deceived but may walk with uprightness of heart before Me, loving righteousness and hating every evil way.
Look unto Me and I will make you to perceive with the eyes of the Spirit the things that lurk in darkness, that are not visible to the human eye. Let me lead you in this way that you may perceive the powers of darkness and battle against them. It is not a battle against flesh and blood, for if you battle in that way you accomplish nothing. But if you let Me take over and battle against the powers of darkness then they are defeated, and then liberation is brought to My people.
I Warn You: to search the Scriptures diligently these last days. For the things that are written shall indeed be made manifest. There shall come deceivers among My people in increasing numbers, who shall speak forth the truth and shall gain the favor of the people. For the people shall examine the Scriptures and say, “What these men say is true.” Then when they have gained the hearts of the people, then and THEN ONLY shall they bring out these wrong doctrines.
Therefore, I say that you should not give your hearts to men, nor hold people’s persons in admiration. For by these very persons shall Satan enter into My people.
WATCH FOR SEDUCERS: 1 John and also 2 John as well as Revelation 13:11-18.
Do you think a seducer will brandish a new heresy and flaunt it before the people? He will speak the words of righteousness and truth, and will appear as a minister of light, declaring the Word. The people’s hearts shall be won. Then, when the hearts are won, they will bring out their doctrines, and the people shall be deceived.
The people shall say, “Did he not speak thus and thus? And did we not examine it from the Word? Therefore he is a minister of righteousness. This that he has now spoken we do not see in the Word, but it must be right, for the other things he spoke were true.”
Be Not Deceived: For the deceiver will first work to gain the hearts of many, and then shall bring forth his insidious doctrines.
You cannot discern those who are of Me and those who are not of Me when they start to preach. But seek Me constantly, and then when these doctrines are brought out you shall have a witness in your heart that these are not of Me.
Fear not, for I have warned you. Many will be deceived. But if you walk in holiness and uprightness before the Lord, your eyes shall be open and the Lord will protect you. If you will constantly look unto the Lord you will know when the doctrine changes, and will not be brought into it. If your heart is right I will keep you, and if you will look constantly to Me I will uphold you.
Great Dangers: The minister of righteousness shall be on this wise — his life shall agree with the Word, and his lips shall give forth that which is wholly true, and it will be no mixture.
When the mixture appears then you will know he is not a minister of righteousness.
The deceivers speak first the truth and then error, to cover their own sins which they love. Therefore I exhort and command you to study the Scriptures relative to seducing spirits, for this is one of the great dangers of these last days.
I desire you to be firmly established in My Word and not in the personalities of men, that you will not be moved as so many shall be moved. I would keep you in the paths of righteousness. Take heed to yourselves and follow not the seducing spirits that are already manifesting themselves.
Diligently inquire of Me when you hear something that you have not seen in the Word, and do not hold people’s persons in admiration, for it is by this very method that Satan will hold many of My people.
Truth In The Inward Parts: The truths that I have revealed to you must become a part of you — not just an experience, but a part of your very nature. Is it not written that I demand truth in the inward parts? It is the truth of the Lord expressed in your very being that shall hold you. Many shall experience the truth, but the truth must become a part of you, your very life.
As men and women look upon you they will hear not only the voice but see the expression of the truth. Many shall be overcome because they are not constant in My ways, and because they have not permitted the truths to become part of them. I am showing you these things that you may be prepared, and having done all, to stand.
Fear not the days to come, but fear this only, that you shall walk in a manner pleasing to the Lord.
In this time I am ordering and setting up My church and it shall indeed be pure, without spot or wrinkle. I will do work in My beloved that has not been seen since the foundation of the world. I have shown you these things that you may seek the Lord diligently with all your heart, and that you may be a preserver of His people.
Stanley Frodsham 1882-1969
by J. Lee Grady @ Fire in My Bones
We’ve faked the power of Pentecost long enough. Let’s set aside the imitations and reclaim the real deal.
Shortly after Elijah was carried to heaven in his fiery chariot, a group of young prophets asked Elisha to go with them to build new living quarters near the Jordan River. While one of the young men was cutting down a tree, the blade of his axe fell in the water and sank into the murky depths of the riverbed (see 2 Kings 6:1-7).
The construction project came to an abrupt stop. This was before the days of flashlights and sonar devices. These guys were in trouble.
“Let’s ditch our counterfeits and our cheap substitutes, and ask the Lord to restore the axe blade. Let’s cry to Him for a pure, unadulterated, genuine, life-changing, planet-shaking revival.”
Knowing that his friends could not replace this expensive iron tool they had borrowed, the young prophet cried to his mentor Elisha for help. The wise prophet threw a stick in the water where the axe head had sunk. Immediately the heavy iron blade floated to the surface—defying the laws of physics and proving that nothing is impossible with God. Elisha’s faith saved the day.
We can gain so much comfort from this story. It reminds us that God has power over the natural world. It also proves that He cares about the seemingly trivial details of our lives—and that He is even willing to bail us out of the messes we make.
As I have meditated on this passage in recent days I’ve also applied it to our current situation in the American church. It illustrates how desperately we need to recover what we’ve lost.
Perhaps you’ve noticed that our blade is missing. I don’t know exactly when it fell off the handle, but it seems as if we’ve been trying to build God’s house without the sharp edge of His genuine anointing. We’ve traded the real for the phony. We’ve cheapened Pentecost to the point that it’s been reduced to dry religious programs and circus sideshow antics.
We’ve mastered the art of hype. We know how to fake the anointing. We push people to the floor during our altar times. We know how to manipulate music and crowds so that we can create the atmosphere of the anointing. But in so many cases the real anointing isn’t there. In its place is a hollow imitation.
Some charismatic leaders today are even selling specially handcrafted oils that promise the Holy Spirit’s power. Others sell scented candles that claim to bring God’s presence. And last year one brother was traveling the country with feathers in a jar—claiming that these belonged to an angel with healing powers.
Lord, forgive us for our charlatanism. We need the blade back! We must cry out to the God Who has the power to raise iron from the bottom of a river.
We are not going to advance Christ’s kingdom, or build His victorious church, using scented oils, fake charms, ear-tickling prophecies and goofy charismatic gimmicks. This is all wood, hay and stubble destined for the furnace. What we need today is the sharp blade of the Word that is empowered by the Holy Ghost and fire.
In my world travels during the past few years I have met humble Christians who carry the genuine anointing of the Spirit. I’ve spent time with Chinese believers who see miracles inside their prison cells. I’ve met an Indian evangelist who has seen six people raised from the dead. I’ve met a Pakistani apostle who regularly sees Muslims healed during outdoor gospel meetings.
Last week I interviewed an Iranian church leader whose ministry is leading 5,000 Iranians to faith in Christ every month. In the midst of persecution and political upheaval, a New Testament—style revival is erupting in that Shiite Muslim stronghold-all because the church in Iran is weilding the axe head of genuine Holy Spirit anointing.
Where is the God of Elisha? There is a cry in the American church today that resembles the cry of the desperate young prophet in 2 Kings 6. We have not been good stewards of the Holy Spirit’s gifts, and now the precious power of God has eluded us. We dropped it. Yet we are beginning to acknowledge our blunder.
Let’s fully humble ourselves. Let’s repent of fakery and fraud. Let’s ditch our counterfeits and our cheap substitutes, and ask the Lord to restore the axe blade. Let’s cry to Him for a pure, unadulterated, genuine, life-changing, planet-shaking revival.
The prophet is a fool, the spiritual man is mad…” (Hosea 9:7).
“What then is genius? Could it be that a genius is a man haunted by the speaking Voice [of God], labouring and striving like one possessed to achieve ends which he only vaguely understands?”
A. W. Tozer
The Prophetic Savant is a person afflicted with a heavenly autism, making him nearly incapable of normal relations with those around him. Accused of being aloof, cold, and distant, he is apt to hide himself from people, withdrawing into a world of his own. He never seems to be all “there”. Even if he forces himself to come down to Earth for a moment, those around him may have the sense that there is an unspoken dialogue going on somewhere inside of him, a secret communion carried on beneath the surface that never allows him to be fully “in the moment”.
How do we explain this? As a prophetic savant he sees, hears, and relates to the world differently than the rest of the population. They have not seen what he has seen; they have not heard what he has heard. And so he finds very little camaraderie, very little sympathy or understanding, no one with whom he can open his heart and share his soul, because he no longer speaks the same language, and they no longer speak his. Of course, he may have surface-level exchanges with anyone: he is approachable, not haughty, or high-minded. He may even be personable and likeable. Yet there is something so other-worldly in his demeanour that he is more often frightening that friendly, in spite of his best efforts. He is a spiritual autistic, and no matter how hard you try to know him, he is generally unknowable, and to a certain degree, he resists all attempts to know him.
If a prophet is anything, he is extra-terrestrial – above the Earth. He walks the Earth with others, but he is not of the Earth. He is from beyond; he is from above. If we trace his history we will find that he may or may not have had a normal childhood. He may or may not have come through extraordinary experiences. But at some point in his life, either as a child, or as a young adult, or as an old man, something from another realm broke through the thin membrane between Heaven and Earth and took hold of him. It may have been a burning bush, or a Voice crying out to him from beyond the veil, or a Heavenly Vision which brought him briefly into contact with something and Someone that he could not completely fathom.
However it happened, for one moment at least, the clouds parted and the Veil was rent, and he saw something that is un-see-able; he heard something that is un-hear-able; Heaven itself was opened up to him, and he saw into another world. The thing he saw and heard now burdens him like a mantle that has been draped over his shoulders. He feels its weight, for it is with him day and night, whether he is eating or drinking, working or resting. It is the impression that everything around him is a lie, and what he has seen and heard is the Truth, and this Truth is not static, but it is living, growing, and increasing within him from the day it comes to him in the form of a seed.
For a long time he struggles to find words and vocabulary to express the inexpressible. He cannot explain why he feels the need to try and express it, but for some inexplicable reason something drives him to open his mouth, or take up his pen, and make it known. Whatever it is, it will not permit him to savor it or keep it to himself, and it seems intent on coming to the surface and interrupting the normal course of his life. This process can be frustrating and painful, so much so that he may give up several times, content to simply walk in what he has seen and heard and leave it at that.
But try as he might, he cannot run away from what he has seen and heard, and he cannot deny the compulsion to bring it forth. On the one hand he cries out for a “normal” life, while on the other hand he knows he cannot deny what has been revealed to him. When he does achieve some modest success in articulating something of Heaven he is pleased for a time, but soon grows impatient with it, and eventually is dissatisfied with it altogether, because it cannot do justice to what he has seen and heard. And so the process begins again, the continual search for words to more perfectly express what he is trying to communicate (and a subtle fear in the back of his mind that he may never be able to adequately express it), which leads him to invent words which may have never before existed, or to look for Spirit-inspired words in some unknown tongue that can be translated into something others can understand.
The prophets of old correctly called it the “burden of the Lord”, for it is like a woman who must live the rest of her life being in perpetual labor, delivering the same child over and over again. What relief there is only comes in discharging the burden, but that is not to say it ever really leaves: it merely allows the prophet time to catch his breath until the next contraction doubles him over again. The burden is with him the rest of his life, and he never fully discharges it.
Even when he tries to be disobedient to the Heavenly Vision and flees from the presence of the Lord he is pursued and hunted down like some kind of a wild animal who has gotten loose, knowing it is only a matter of time before he is captured again. The Voice never leaves him, the Vision never lets him go. When he refuses to speak then the fire which is already kindled only burns hotter, until he ends up doing what he has resisted doing all along, just to relieve himself of the unbearable tension and inward pressure. He cannot extinguish or quench the fire no matter what he does, he can only be obedient and find temporary relief, until the next word comes, and then off he goes. He may beg God to send someone else, and may protest his inability to speak, or to write. But he is already ruined for anything else, and even when he denies the Lord Who called him and returns to his former occupation, it is all dull and lifeless, and he meets with nothing but frustration and failure. There is no way to escape it. He knows he is called to something Higher, even when he is clinging with everything he has to something Lower.
Like a wild horse, he resists the dealings of the Lord and must be broken before he will obey. Eventually he learns not to resist the Lord, but to cooperate with Him. He becomes pliable and bendable in order to survive. His very life now is bound up with what he has seen and heard. He cannot be disobedient to the Heavenly Vision, and if it means he dies, then he dies. If it means a renunciation of everything he once believed, then he renounces it …… reluctantly at first, then cheerfully. If it means suffering the loss of all things, then he lets them go.
Over time the one who has seen and heard becomes the very essence of what he has seen and heard. The Man becomes the Message. He bears the Testimony in himself, and becomes one with it. He needs no preparation to speak; indeed, preparation does nothing to help the message he brings, and it often gets in the way. His whole life is the preparation, and since he is the Message, it is with him constantly. He can no more separate himself from the Message than he can separate his head from his body. If there is an “On/Off” switch then it was long ago turned on and then disabled so that it can never be turned off again. After many seasons of God’s dealings he finally perceives that this is what the Lord has sought for all along, not just to GIVE him a Message, but to MAKE him a Message; to gain for Himself a Messenger and capture him completely, embossing the Message into his very being.
And so he goes about his daily business, constantly haunted by that voice, torn between the menial task at hand which calls for his physical and mental exertion, and the Higher Calling which seeks his undivided attention. He knows he should do all things, great and small, as “unto the Lord”. But he also knows that Heaven and Earth are locked in mortal combat over him while the stands there in the middle, torn between the two, desiring to depart the Earth altogether and be with Christ, but knowing that it is more profitable for his brethren if he remains. Heaven calls him to rise up, but Earth tells him to keep his feet firmly planted. His heart is constantly breaking and longing to go, to ascend, to rise up, to stop seeing through a dark glass, and see face to face, without the distraction of the natural, the fleshly, the temporal, because he knows the Earth is not his home. Yet he struggles with the fact that Earth is where he must live and work. This accounts for why he may sometimes seem difficult to be around.
As a savant he possesses insight and skill which others do not possess. But it is a gift, not anything of himself, nothing of which he could boast of. If you were to ask him if he considers this to be a blessing, he would probably say it is more like a curse, because it sets him apart from others even when he tries his best to be hidden and to blend in. He cannot Read the Scriptures as others do, for after only a few verses the Heavens are opened up to him again and he is lost in its depths. A single passage may keep him occupied for months as Heaven unfolds it to him, and he cannot tear himself away from it.
His preaching is affected, because he cannot decide in advance what he will say, and even when he would like to bring forth something new and exciting, he usually ends up saying the same thing, like, “Repent!” He often does not say what he wants to say, and does not say it in the way he would like to say it. If he wants to be serious, he finds himself laughing. And when he wishes to be friendly, he finds himself screaming at the top of his voice to a startled congregation of people, who wonder how this fellow was ever allowed access to their inner sanctum in the first place. When he leaves a place he almost never sees the result of his labor, and only eternity can reveal the true significance of what was said. For now, it is all hidden, and he has to live with the fact that his fruitfulness will never be measured in terms that human beings, including himself, can see and appreciate.
He cannot go through the motions of religion like most mortals. It is a dead, shallow thing to him because it cannot compare to the reality of what he has already experienced. He finds it difficult to listen to another person preach when he knows they have not yet ascended to the heights nor plumbed the depths that he has already navigated. And when he tries to lead them into these heights and depths himself he is often misunderstood or rejected altogether. So either he attends the meeting and suffers in silence, or stays home and suffers in solitude; but either way, he suffers.
His seeing is affected by a sort of “spiritual dyslexia”. While others view things from a one or two dimensional viewpoint, he sees them through several dimensions at once – forward, backward, reverse, upside-down, right-side up: life and death, light and dark, Spirit and flesh, Heavenly and Earthly – which often puts him at odds with his more pragmatic and doctrinally-correct brethren. He is so at one with what he has seen that he speaks of it as having already happened, because he has, in essence, already experienced it and lived it. It is the Prophetic Tense, which calls those things that be not as though they were. In his world, the world of the Spirit, they exist already. We call it “prediction” because we cannot yet see it with our natural eyes, but he simply stands outside of Time and views Past and Future as one unbroken and continuous Present.
His hearing is affected so that he is increasingly sensitive to his surroundings, even though it seems as if he is not paying attention. He is listening, but he is listening inwardly. He no longer trusts his natural ears, because the Heavenly Voice and the inner witness are more reliable. Thus, he is able to hear God speaking, while the rest of the crowd says, “It thundered!” or “It was an angel!” He is also able to hear when God is not speaking, and does not get carried away with the multitudes who claim to speak, see, and hear things from God when they have not heard or seen anything from Heaven. He cannot bear to listen to them.
His concentration is affected in such a way as to make him appear obstinate and unyielding to others. The truth is that he is actually quite flexible and pliable before the Lord, but before man he is as solid and impenetrable as a rock. No amount of persuasion or argument from man will move him – but the slightest touch from the Lord will bring him to his knees. Having discovered the One Thing that is needed, he will tenaciously and ruthlessly shun the “many things” which crowd in to seek his attention, for he sees everything else as a distraction. Indeed, he is quite willing to sacrifice the good in favor of the holy. And when the Lord has him focused on a particular thing he is as a beam of light fastened upon a singular point until everything melts before it.
Even his praying is affected, for he can no longer pray as he wills and for what he wants. He seemingly has no will of his own. Instead the Heavenly Voice bids him to pray with a Heavenly perspective, and all too often the Heavenly perspective is at odds with the Earthly perspective. So when his brothers and sisters pray for blessing and increase, he finds himself praying for destruction and decrease; and when they are resisting and praying against something, he finds himself asking God to perform the very thing the rest of the world is against.
To the rest of the world, the autistic savant is a bit of a retarded genius, an unfortunate mixture of idiocy and brilliance, caught up in a world of its own. The prophetic savant bears a similar stigma. But if you engage him at all, you soon discover that he sees all of this as absolutely normal; the way it is supposed to be. He no longer wishes for a normal life, because the life he has now IS normal: he has lost his own life in exchange for a new life. He lives in the Heavenlies while he walks on the Earth. He does not think of himself as special, as anything other than a regular person, but often wonders aloud why others cannot see what he has seen when it is all so self-evident and plain. To him, maybe; but the rest of us are blinded by the Light he exudes without knowing it.
Author Unknown
- Daniel Stephens
Compromise is defined in the Oxford dictionary as “an agreement reached by each side making concessions,” or “an intermediate state between conflicting opinions, reached by mutual concession.” Therefore, to compromise is to “settle a dispute by mutual concession or expediently accept standards that are lower than is desirable
Jesus himself set an example and gave instruction on how we are to live our lives. In living a life with Christ and seeing His kingdom established in the earth, He did not ask for compromise in our lives, he asked us to give Him all of our lives. In accepting standards below that which is asked of us from our heavenly father and our Lord, we are putting ourselves in a position of compromise.
Then he called the crowd to him along with his disciples and said: “If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me and for the gospel will save it. What good is it for a man to gain the whole world, yet forfeit his soul? Or what can a man give in exchange for his soul? If anyone is ashamed of me and my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, the Son of Man will be ashamed of him when he comes in his Father’s glory with the holy angels.” And he said to them, “I tell you the truth, some who are standing here will not taste death before they see the Kingdom of God come with power
Mark 8:34-9:1 NIV
Unfortunately we have a tendency to make compromise in our lives in order to accommodate Christ. This places a great weight upon our shoulders, causing the cross to become a burden too heavy for us to bear. Gladly though, Jesus tells us to take his yoke upon us and learn from Him, for He is gentle and lowly in heart. In Him we will find rest for our souls. For His yoke is easy and His burden light (Matt 11:29-30).
When we make the decision to receive Jesus, we are sacrificing our flesh, or worldly life, in order to attain to the purposes that God has for us in the earth. This is not about compromise as God does not make concessions. He is the same yesterday, today and for ever (Heb 13:8). It is in fact accepting standards far above what our flesh desires. Living in the fullness of Christ means living a life without compromise.
This is a hard pill to swallow as we think more deeply on the matter: For the sake of Jesus and the gospel we are to leave our houses, family and property (Mark 10:29) or even fortune and fame. Why would anybody want to? However, these things and many more that satisfy our flesh alone are idols that inhabit our time, thoughts, priorities and actions. The upside of living a life without compromise before God are the attached promises.
Assuredly I say to you, there is no one who has left house or brothers or sisters or father or mother or wife or children or lands, for My sake and the gospel’s, who shall not receive a hundredfold now in this time – houses and brothers and sisters and mothers and children and lands, with persecutions and in the age to come, eternal life.
Mark 10:29-30 NKJV
It is important to understand that leaving these things does not indicate immediately filing for divorce and running away from our family and responsibilities. It does mean placing God first in every situation we find ourselves, and following Him alone. It means building relationship with Him and listening to His voice in order to fulfil all of the responsibility that He has given us, even in a hundredfold measure. In describing the characteristics of a deacon or elder, Paul tells Timothy that an elder or a deacon must be the husband of one wife, managing his children and household well (1 Tim 3:2,4,12). Therefore, we are not required to become monks or nuns in order to fulfil the words of Christ, but we are to live diligently, responsibly and above reproach.
If we choose to only live for now, we will place ourselves in a position of compromise, rather than placing ourselves in the centre of the will of the Lord, and the knowledge of the promises that lie before us. The scripture tells us that it will not always be easy, that there will be persecutions. However, there is a promise of something far more valuable than what we will receive in this present age, that of intimate relationship with the father (eternal life) in the age to come.
If we are content to live with compromise, and not fully submit our lives unto the will of the Lord, we are bowing down to idols that desire to control us. It is very easy to serve our flesh rather than our spirit, but to be in the will of the Lord we must resist the temptation to do so. It is impossible to serve two masters, and the Lord promises to clothe us, feed us and care for us as we follow Him in the fullness of His will for our lives.
“No one can serve two masters. Either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money.
Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more important than food, and the body more important than clothes? Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life?
And why do you worry about clothes? See how the lilies of the field grow. They do not labour or spin. Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendour was dressed like one of these. If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? So do not worry, saying ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink? or ‘What shall we wear?’ For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.
Matt 6:24-34 NIV
The scripture clearly states that the things of the world that pre-occupy our mind, time and actions are not what God desires, but we are to seek first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness and all these things will be added unto us. Therefore, in order to live a life without compromise, we are to seek first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness. Our response needs to be just the same as Andrew and Peter when Jesus said to them, Come, follow me. (Matt 4:18-19) They did not stop and hesitate, the scripture tells us that they immediately left all that they had and knew to follow him (Matt 4:20).
The hardships that come when living a life without compromise are due to the battle between our flesh and the Spirit. However, a fully committed life that involves submission to God rather than compromise is one of fulfilment and joy as we make Him and His desires our number one priority. As we have already seen, God’s desire is that we first seek the Kingdom of God and His righteousness. Paul describes this in further detail in Romans:
For the Kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking, but of righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit, because anyone who serves Christ in this way is pleasing to God and approved by men.
Romans 14:17-18 NIV
This requires that we take time to listen and then respond. It is not about “me” (eating and drinking), but all about Him (righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit). No matter what others may say or do, we no longer have time to bury our fathers or return to our homes (Luke 9:59-62), attend our newly purchased field or test our new oxen (Luke 14:18-19). These are idols or excuses that fill our hearts and keep God out of position number one. He must be our priority and our life. When He calls we must respond. Being lukewarm will not suffice (Rev 3-.16), it will not help us grow or, in turn, attain to the fullness of God (Eph 4:13) and move beyond the elementary teachings about Christ (Heb 6:1).
The rich young man who approached Jesus is a great example of one who was not prepared to give up all that he had in order to walk in all that He had. Even though he believed in Jesus and the scripture, diligently following the law, he built up treasure for himself in the earth rather than in heaven, exemplifying how impossible it is for those that compromise and serve more than one master to enter the kingdom of God.
Now as He was going out on the road, one came running, knelt before Him, and asked Him, Good Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?
So Jesus said to him, Why do you call Me good? No one is good but one, that is, God.
You know the commandments: ‘Do not commit adultery’, ‘Do not murder’, ‘Do not steal’, ‘Do not bear false witness’, ‘Do not defraud’, ‘Honour your father and your mother.’
And he answered and said to Him, “Teacher, all these I have observed from my youth.
Then Jesus, looking at him, loved him, and said to him, “One thing you lack: Go you way, sell whatever you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, take up the cross and follow Me.
But he was sad at this word and went away grieved, for he had great possessions.
Then Jesus looked around and said to his disciples, “How hard it is for those who have riches to the enter the kingdom of God!
And the disciples were astonished at His words. But Jesus answered again and said to them, Children, how hard it is for those who trust in riches to enter the kingdom of God! It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God.
Mark 10:17-25 NKJV
Jesus was not asking the young man for compromise. He was in reality asking the opposite he was saying that the only way to inherit eternal life is to stop trusting in and making idols of the things of this world and instead store up treasures in heaven. Jesus desired commitment and change in the young man’s life. After all, we are to offer ourselves as living sacrifices to God and be transformed by the renewing of our minds.
I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service. And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.
Rom 12:1-2 NKJV
Jesus desired that the young man give all of his life to God, and submit himself to His teaching. This way he would not be conformed to the world, or find himself in a place where compromise was necessary. It is simply a reasonable service unto God, and the only way to inherit eternal life. In submitting ourselves to the teaching of Christ, our minds will be transformed and we can begin to walk in the perfect will of God for the earth and our lives.
Jacob was a man who lived out the character of his name. He was a trickster, a conman and a supplanter, even stealing his brother’s birthright (Gen 25:31-34) and tricking him out of his blessing (Gen 27). He was also determined and committed to the task at hand, taking whatever measures were necessary to achieve what he wanted. He was prepared to work seven years for Laban’s daughter Rachel, and when he did not receive her, he worked a further seven years (Gen 29:15-30).
Jacob was determined not to give up, no matter whom he was facing, and wrestled with the Angel of the Lord until he got what he desired – the Lord’s blessing (Gen 32:24-26). What he also got was a new walk when the angel touched his hip to remind him of his point of transformation (Gen 32:25), as well as a new name – Israel (Gen 32:28). From here on God no longer called him a “trickster”, but rather, a “Prince with God” or God prevails, and from this Prince the Government (12 tribes) of God would be established in the earth.
This moment of encounter was only the beginning of what was to come for Jacob. Although the new characteristics had been spoken / prophesied to him and the reminder of his Godly encounter was evident in his walk, the Bible does not describe Israel walking the earth until after the death of Rachel.
So Rachel died and was buried on the way to Ephrath (that is, Bethlehem). And Jacob set a pillar on her grave, which is the pillar of Rachel’s grave to this day. Then Israel journeyed and pitched his tent beyond the tower of Eder.
Genesis 35:19-21 NKJV
Why is this significant? Israel could not be released into his fullness and absolute potential until his idol, the thing (or person in this case) he had lusted after for so long, passed away. In other words, not until we let go of the things that prevent us from putting God first and place in a position of compromise can we enter into the fullness of God’s promise for our lives.
Jacob was prepared to serve his uncle Laban for 14 years in order to receive his daughter. He had worked extremely hard to receive his reward, and all of the work was for his Father-in-law’s profit, not his own (Gen 30:30). It is no wonder that Rachel had become such an idol in his life. However, Jacob still could not walk in the fullness of the character that God had placed in him until the idol that he had worked so hard for was buried.
Seeking first the Kingdom of God and taking up our cross requires repentance (Matt 4:17; Mark 1:15), or in other words, a change in our mind. (Repent = metanoeo = to change one’s mind). It requires a change in our attitude, thoughts, priorities and at times even our character. It requires a burial of our idols in order to be proactive in transforming our lives. Repentance is far more than being sorry for our sins, for they were forgiven on the Cross. Repentance does not require compromise. It demands change.
God’s grace gave us Jesus (John 3:16), and the right to become children of God (John 1:12), and be transformed in His likeness. God’s grace asks us to come before Him with an offering, giving us an opportunity as kings and priests (Rev 5:10-11) to stand at the altar. Grace, however, does not just allow us to live as we please, but rather, it allows us to bring an acceptable offering before the Lord. Our offering is to be our first fruits, our best; otherwise we will be rejected and not able to enter into eternal life.
Cain and Abel give us a good example of this.
And in the process of time it came to pass that Cain brought an offering of the fruit of the ground to the Lord. Abel also brought of the firstlings of his flock and of their fat. And the Lord respected Abel and his offering, but He did not respect Cain and his offering. And Cain was very angry, and his countenance fell. So the Lord said to Cain, “Why are you angry? And why has your countenance fallen? If you do well, will you not be accepted? And if you do not do well, sin lies at the door. And its desire is for you, but you should rule over it.
Genesis 4:3-7
Abel gave an acceptable first fruits offering to the Lord, but Cain compromised and just made an offering. On the surface it is difficult to see the problem. After all Cain did bring a substantial offering to the Lord. However, God asks for the first fruits, the best (Ex 22:29-30). So even when we think we are doing “good” things, we can still face rejection if our life is not in line with God’s desires.
It is not a harsh God that loves us, but God desires that we give all of ourselves to Him. With this in mind, we must devote ourselves to living a life of absolute commitment and obedience.
Our lifestyle should reflect our commitment and devotion with our actions and deeds being a reflection of our inner character. Our external appearance should be a reflection of our inner self. We must follow our words with our deeds and live not just in knowledge, but have that knowledge and relationship with God become our heart attitude. For where your treasure is, that is where your heart will be also (Matt 6:21; Luke 12:34).
If we relate to God in an uncompromising, ever enduring way, that is where our treasure and heart will be, and how our life will be a reflection of God. It will not be a labour to live in an uncompromising relationship with Him. However, there is a good indication that other areas of our life have been placed ahead of Him if we find it difficult living according to God’s plan and purpose, or it is stressful to open ourselves fully to the Lord.
It may seem that placing God first is in conflict with God’s own command to honour our Father and Mother (Ex 20:12), but who is our family? We are to take care of our natural parents, but who are our Fathers and Mothers really? When faced with his mother and brothers wanting to see him, Jesus responded by saying that his family were those that do the Father’s will.
Then His brothers and His mother came, and standing outside they sent to Him, calling Him. And a multitude was sitting around Him; and the said to Him, “Look, Your mother and Your brothers are outside seeking you.
But He answered them, saying, Who is My mother, or My brothers? And He looked around in a circle at those who sat about Him, and said, “Here are My mother and My brothers! For whoever does the will of God is My brother and My sister and mother.
Mark 3:31-35 NKJV (also Matt 12:46-50; Luke 8:19-21)
In order to fulfil the commandments “love the Lord your God with all your heart, mind and soul,” and “love your neighbour as yourself” (Matt 22:34-39; Mark 12:30; Luke 10:27) we need to be 100 percent committed to the Father with uncompromising faith. Surely there are those that have wronged us, but we need to love them as ourselves. There are those that have persecuted us, spoken ill of us and not acted according to God’s will, but it is our duty to love and forgive, just as God does for us. As humans this is not possible as we have a natural tendency to judge and condemn, but when we live a transformed life and display the character of God, we can love one another without hesitation, even against our natural human judgement.
To live a life without compromise we must first recognise the areas of our lives in which we are in compromise. This can be achieved through prayer, and by asking ourselves the serious question – “Am I giving all of myself to God?” If our answer is no, then we are in a place of compromise and therefore outside of the perfect will of the Lord. He has a plan for you and I, which will be fulfilled, provided we submit ourselves unconditionally to His discipline, teaching and guidance. We no longer have time to work out what suits us best, and try to fit Him into our agendas.
We are to be presented to Jesus as a chaste virgin (2 Cor 11:2). If our life contains compromise, then this is not possible and we will become like the man who came to the wedding feast without a wedding garment who was cast into outer darkness (Matt 22:11-14). Alternatively, with compromise in our lives we are like the virgins who did not have any oil left for their lamps and subsequently missed the coming of the bridegroom and were locked out of the wedding feast because they were not adequately prepared.
Then the kingdom of heaven shall be likened to ten virgins who took their lamps and went out to meet the bridegroom. Now five of them were wise and five were foolish. Those who were foolish took their lamps and took no oil with them, but the wise took oil in their vessels with their lamps. But while the bridegroom was delayed, they all slumbered and slept. And at midnight a cry was heard: ‘Behold, the bridegroom is coming; go out to meet him!’
Then all those virgins arose and trimmed their lamps. And the foolish said to the wise, ‘Give us some of your oil, for our lamps are going out.’
But the wise answered, saying ‘No, lest there should not be enough for us and you; but go rather to those who sell, and buy for yourselves.’
And while they went to buy, the bridegroom came, and those who were ready went in with him to the wedding; and the door was shut. Afterward the other virgins came also, saying ‘Lord, Lord, open to us!’
But he answered and said, ‘Assuredly, I say to you, I do not know you.’
Watch therefore, for you know neither the day nor the hour in which the Son of Man is coming.
Matt 25:1-13 NKJV
If we are not adequately prepared by living in an appropriate relationship with God, there can be no growth or development in us. When the time comes for the bridegroom to return we must be ready so that we will not be caught short and cut out of the wedding feast. God does not accept mixture, not even the smallest amount of compromise. He is a jealous God who will not accept our idols or our excuses. He simply wants us; committed, covenanted and uncompromising. Then he can fulfill His purposes in the earth.
Daniel Stephens
Finland
- Seeking the Heart of God
This is the prayer of a man called to be a witness to the nations. This is what he said to his Lord on the day of his ordination. After the elders and ministers had prayed and laid their hands on him he withdrew to meet his Savior in the secret place and in the silence, farther in than his well-meaning brethren could take him.
And he said: O Lord, I have heard Thy voice and was afraid. Thou has called me to an awesome task in a grave and perilous hour. Thou art about to shake all nations and the earth and also heaven, that the things that cannot be shaken may remain. O Lord, my Lord, Thou has stooped to honor me to be Thy servant. No man taketh this honor upon himself save he that is called of God as was Aaron. Thou has ordained me Thy messenger to them that are stubborn of heart and hard of hearing. They have rejected Thee, the Master, and it is not to be expected that they will receive me, the servant.
My God, I shall not waste time deploring my weakness nor my unfittedness for the work. The responsibility is not mine, but Thine. Thou has said, “I knew thee – I ordained thee – I sanctified thee,” and Thou hast also said, “Thou shalt go to all that I shall send thee, and whatsoever I command thee thou shalt speak.” Who am I to argue with Thee or to call into question Thy sovereign choice? The decision is not mine but Thine. So be it, Lord. Thy will, not mine, be done.
Well do I know, Thou God of the prophets and the apostles, that as long as I honor Thee Thou will honor me. Help me therefore to take this solemn vow to honor Thee in all my future life and labors, whether by gain or by loss, by life or by death, and then to keep that vow unbroken while I live.
It is time, O God, for Thee to work, for the enemy has entered into Thy pastures and the sheep are torn and scattered. And false shepherds abound who deny the danger and laugh at the perils which surround Thy flock. The sheep are deceived by these hirelings and follow them with touching loyalty while the wolf closes in to kill and destroy. I beseech Thee, give me sharp eyes to detect the presence of the enemy; give me understanding to see and courage to report what I see faithfully. Make my voice so like Thine own that even the sick sheep will recognize it and follow Thee.
Lord Jesus, I come to Thee for spiritual preparation. Lay Thy hand upon me. Anoint me with the oil of the New Testament prophet. Forbid that I should be come a religious scribe and thus lose my prophetic calling. Save me from the curse that lies dark across the modern clergy, the curse of compromise, of imitation, of professionalism. Save me from the error of judging a church by its size, its popularity or the amount of its yearly offering. Help me to remember that I am a prophet – not a promoter, not a religious manager, but a prophet. Let me never become a slave to crowds. Heal my soul of carnal ambitions and deliver me from the itch for publicity. Save me from bondage to things. Let me not waste my days puttering around the house. Lay Thy terror upon me, O God, and drive me to the place of prayer where I may wrestle with principalities and powers and the rulers of the darkness of this world. Deliver me from overeating and late sleeping. Teach me self-discipline that I may be a good soldier of Jesus Christ.
I accept hard work and small rewards in this life. I ask for no easy place. I shall try to be blind to the little ways that could make life easier. If others seek the smoother path I shall try to take the hard way without judging them too harshly. I shall expect opposition and try to take it quietly when it comes. Or if, as sometimes it falleth out to Thy servants, I should have grateful gifts pressed upon me by Thy kindly people, stand by me then and save me from the blight that often follows. Teach me to use whatever I receive in such manner that will not injure my soul nor diminish my spiritual power. And if in Thy permissive providence honor should come to me from Thy church, let me not forget in that hour that I am unworthy of the least of Thy mercies, and that if men knew me as intimately as I know myself they would withhold their honors or bestow them upon others more worthy to receive them.
And now, O Lord of heaven and earth, I consecrate my remaining days to Thee; let them be many or few, as Thou wilt. Let me stand before the great or minister to the poor and lowly; that choice is not mine, and I would not influence it if I could. I am Thy servant to do Thy will, and that will is sweeter to me than position or riches or fame and I choose it above all things on earth or in heaven.
Though I am chosen of Thee and honored by a high and holy calling, let me never forget that I am but a man of dust and ashes, a man with all the natural faults and passions that plague the race of men. I pray Thee, therefore, my Lord and Redeemer, save me from myself and from all the injuries I may do myself while trying to be a blessing to others. Fill me with Thy power by the Holy Spirit, and I will go in Thy strength and tell of Thy righteousness, even Thine only. I will spread abroad the message of redeeming love while my normal powers endure.
Then, dear Lord, when I am old and weary and too tired to go on, have a place ready for me above, and make me to be numbered with Thy saints in glory everlasting.
Amen. AMEN.
A Water Bearer in India had two large pots; each hung on each end of a pole, which he carried across his neck. One of the pots had a crack in it, and while the other pot was perfect and always delivered a full portion of water at the end of a long walk from the stream to the Master’s house, the cracked water pot arrived only half full.
For a full two years this went on daily, with the Bearer delivering only one and half pots full of water in his masters house. Of course, the perfect pot was proud of its accomplishments, perfect to the end for it was made. The cracked water pot was ashamed of it’s own imperfection, and miserable that it was unable to accomplish only half of what it was made to do.
After two years of what it perceived to be a bitter failure, it spoke to the Water Bearer one day by the stream. “I am ashamed of myself, and I want to apologise to you. “Why? ” Asked the Bearer. What are you ashamed of? “ “I have been able, for these past two years, to deliver only half my load because this crack in my side causes water to leak out all the way back to your master’s house. Because of my flaws, you have to do all this work, and you don’t get full value for your efforts, “the pot said ”.
The Water Bearer felt sorry for the old cracked water pot, and in his compassion he said, “As we return to the Master’s house, I want you to notice the beautiful flowers along the path.”
Indeed as they went up the hill, the old cracked water pot took notice of the sun warming the beautiful wild flowers on the side of the path, and this cheered him some. But at the end of the trail, it still felt bad because it leaked out its load, and so again it apologised to the Bearer for its failure. The Bearer said to the pot, “Did you notice that there were flowers only on your side of your path, but not on the other pots side? That’s because I have always known about your flaw, and I took advantage of it. I planted flower seeds on your side of the path, and every day while we walk back from the stream, you’ve watered them. For two years I have been able to pick those beautiful flowers to decorate my Masters table. Without you being just the way you are, he would not have this beauty to grace his house. “
Moral: Each of us has our own unique flaws. We’re all cracked pots. But it’s the cracks and flaws we each have that make our lives together so very interesting and rewarding.
You’ve just got to take each person for what he or she is, and look for the good in them. There is a lot of good out there; there is a lot of good in us! Blessed is the flexible, for they shall not bend out of shape.
Remember to appreciate all the different people in your life! Or as I like to think of it – if it hadn’t been for the cracked pots in my life, it would have been pretty boring and not so interesting.
Author Unknown
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