Brethren,
It is time for us all to understand the call to separate the Holy from the profane. For generations the church has marched according to tradition rather than the Word of God alone. There is a price that must be paid to walk as Jesus walked, In the Whole Word of God. That price is YOU.... you must be willing to die to all you think you want and die to all the pleasures of this world and Live unto God alone. When we truly begin to walk as Jesus walked we will be hated and persecuted as we have never before experienced. The lies will fly against us, accusations beyond measure but rest dear ones in His Truth, I will never leave thee or forsake thee, I will be with you. Moses, when asked of God to go to Pharaoh and tell him to let My people go, asked God "Why would you send me, I am a man of unsure lips? God's reply was merely "I WILL GO WITH YOU". God has assured us all that He will indeed go with us, beloved it is time, yea it is time... to go as He leads and say what He says and touch what we see Him Touch.
Years ago the Lord helped me write a short article for the Midnight Herald Newspaper, I humbly submit the above as well as the article below for your heartfelt consideraton:
TORN, TATTERED, ABUSED..... RESTORED
The choice one makes to come to service of the Lord cannot be taken lightly; we must realize that in choosing Him we put ourselves last in the process. “But Jesus called them unto him, and said,
"Ye know that the princes of the Gentiles exercise dominion over them, and they that are great exercise authority upon them. But it shall not be so among you: but whosoever will be great among you, let him be your minister; And whosoever will be chief among you, let him be your servant: Even as the Son of man came not to be ministered unto, but to minister, and to give his life a ransom for many." (Matt 20:25-28).
Many say they are in service of the Lord and still do all they can in service of themselves. The common teaching of the day is that when one comes to Jesus, everything is going to be wonderful. We will never have to face another moment of heartache or abuse. This is not so. The moment we choose to truly accept Jesus Christ as the Head of our lives, we place ourselves on the front lines, open to every wicked attack of the enemy.
There are so many “ministries” that claim to be “serving the Lord” when what they are doing is merely making merchandise of the people of God. Most of these “ministries” stop at nothing to destroy anyone that stands in their way. In my own experience I have been lied about, had a book written about me and my bride, accused of every wicked thing imaginable and it is still going on. The reason for these attacks is simple, I repeatedly told the “head” of that ministry the “he” was not in charge. I told him that God was the head of every true Christian ministry. In so doing, I took a stand for truth and selflessness. As the attacks began, I wondered what I had done wrong. Was God angry with me? After much prayer and fasting the Lord began to show me that we are all called to be persecuted for His Name’s sake. In John 15:20 it says,
“Remember the word that I said unto you, The servant is not greater than his lord. If they have persecuted me, they will also persecute you.”
Note what Jesus says about the servant. We are not greater than our Lord. What could possibly exempt us from being persecuted too? We are all called to be servants of the Living God. To truly serve Him we must become servants. We must give up ourselves and live only for Him. In so doing we will be attacked. Those that attack will do so because they are being convicted by the selflessness they see in our lives compared to the selfishness that drives theirs. In these attacks we are threatened with being “exposed” to the world. Are we not all “exposed” to the Living God? Is there something you have been successful in hiding from Him? God forbid, He has heard and seen all that we have ever said or done or even thought about doing, so how can anyone expose you? God knows you. He knows you better than you know yourself and He has not thrown you to the wolves. Why do you fear those who would accuse you? 2 Timothy 1:7 says,
"For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind."
The devil is the accuser of the brethren. God does not accuse you; He simply states what He knows. There is no scripture that mandates that we threaten and expose each other.
Understanding that we will be persecuted, one might ask why? In the book of James 1:2-4 it says,
“My brethren, count it all joy when ye fall into divers temptations; Knowing this, that the trying of your faith worketh patience. But let patience have her perfect work, that ye may be perfect and entire, wanting nothing.”
The words "count it all joy" refer to our counting all the persecution as an opportunity to stand in the Victory Shout of God. Through the tearing and tattering of abuse we are being tried; we are being perfected for the purposes of God. Imagine that great and terrible day of the Lord is upon us and we are untried. We will be of no use to God. We must be trained in the art of truth and selflessness. Look at the life and death of our King; He was torn and tattered; He was abused beyond recognition; Yet He has overcome. Listen to our Savior… He is calling…
“The stone which the builders rejected, the same is become the head of the corner: this is the Lord’s doing, and it is marvelous in our eyes? Therefore say I unto you, The kingdom of God shall be taken from you, and given to a nation bringing forth the fruits thereof. And whosoever shall fall on this stone shall be broken: but on whomsoever it shall fall, it will grind him to powder.” (Matt 21:41-44)
Is it any wonder that we are being broken? God wants us to be broken and humble before Him. We are not called to be exalted or lifted high in this life. We are called to give up ourselves and walk humbly with our Lord. Why is it that God calls us the clay and He is the potter? Clay vessels falling on the Corner Stone will be broken. Many want to be vessels of gold or silver, how can a gold or silver vessel fall upon the Stone to be broken? This is why we are earthen vessels now… Breakable…. Moldable…. Shapeable into His perfection and purpose. This why we must be tattered and torn by the wickedness of this world, abused by those that despitefully use us and finally restored by the Hand of our Potter.
All quotations of scripture come from the Authorized (King James) Version, Cambridge Press, 1769 edition.
There is no god but YAHWEH and YESHUA is His Son!
chris