Wednesday, July 25,
2012, 6:54 a.m. – The Lord woke me this morning with the song “My Sheep” playing in my mind. Speak,
Lord, for your servant is listening.
I read Acts 27-28
(NIV 1984). I will include links to the entire passages and will quote only
some of the verses. I believe the Lord would have me write a narrative based
off the life of Paul and this text, only as applied to the church today and its
leadership, instead of to the Jewish faith and their leadership. So, I pray for
the Lord’s leading and guidance in this.
A servant of the Lord was somewhere with leaders of the
church and the world, and then she went to a gathering of the church. The
servant was inside the institutional church, as a whole, with many segments in
various places of the nation. Yet, she felt out of place there. She was not one
of them. Still, she followed their customs and their way of doing things,
because she had been taught that was the way to reach people for Jesus Christ. Her
husband, representing some of the church and family leadership, was supposed to
join her there, but he never showed up. He was absent spiritually from the
scene. She saved a place for him, but eventually it was filled by someone else.
Yet, she watched for him for a while.
She was first of all seated on one side of the table, where
her husband was also supposed to sit. She was part of the system at that point
in time, doing what she was taught by men, though not entirely. She was
listening to God, too, and he was revealing his truth to her. Then, at some
point she was now on the other side of the table. A change had taken place in
her heart. She was no longer one of them doing what they were doing, but she
stood opposed to many of their forms of religion and their hypocrisy, and their
following men and the teachings and philosophies of men. She shared with them
her testimony of how, from birth, she had been a part of the institutional
church, but how the Lord brought her out of man-made religion, and how he led
her to follow him and his ways only. She shared her testimony of how the Lord
had opened her blinded eyes so that she could see the truth of what was going
on inside the institution of church in the name of God, too (see Acts 26).
The Voyage
Then, she went to look for her husband. She was traveling
inside a vehicle representing the institutional church in which resides much of
the true church. The vehicle was a ship with sails. She was not in control of
the vehicle but was merely a passenger. The ship set sail. Winds of doctrine of
men were fighting against the church (the true church). The winds of false
doctrine would not allow the church to hold its true course, i.e. the teachings
of Christ and of scripture. Much time had been lost for the church to be
effective in its witness for Jesus Christ to the world. The servant of the Lord
warned them that they were headed into dangerous territory spiritually, and
that there will be great loss to human lives because of watered-down gospel
messages that leave people still in their sins and without hope.
Yet, the church leadership did not listen to the servant, or
to the Word. They followed the advice of the men at the top of the food chain
in government, politics and religion who are directing this ship (the institutional
church), and who are leading it in a path of destruction.
Then, a wind (doctrine; teaching) of hurricane force called
a “northeaster” swept down on the ship, and the ship was caught in the storm
and could not resist the wind, but gave way to it and was driven along by this
wind. The northeaster is a set of religious and political leaders, and their
teachings, in our nation who have come against the church with such force that
the church has been swept up in their philosophies, and the church is not
resisting, has given way to these false teachings, and is being driven along by
them.
The most critical of these “winds,” and there are many, are
the ones permeating the church in America, which have swept our nation, and
consist of teaching people that turning from theirs sins and turning to walk in
faithful obedience to Jesus Christ and his commands are not required for
salvation. All we have to do is read Jesus’ own words, the teachings of Paul
and the other apostles and we will see “it ain’t so!” We must repent and obey!
God said so!!
And, then they add on to that the belief that God is pleased
with us no matter what we do, which means he is pleased with us when we sin,
and that ain’t so, either. It grieves the Holy Spirit when we sin. When we
teach that nothing is required of us, it not only contradicts the teachings of
scripture (see Eph. 4:17-24, for example), but it leaves people in their sins,
and with a false hope of eternity with God, which is no hope at all. Remember
Jesus’ words when he said that many would come to him on that day and say, “Lord,
Lord,” we did this and that in your name, and he is going to say, “Depart from
me, I never knew you!”
The servant told the church leadership they should have
listened to the warnings. Then they could have spared themselves this “damage
and loss,” i.e. the destruction (or judgment) of the institutional church. Yet,
the servant urged those within the true church to remain strong and courageous.
The true church is comprised of the people of God, i.e. those in genuine
relationship with Jesus Christ; the Body of Christ; his temple, and they have
the hope of eternal salvation. Only the ship will be destroyed, i.e. only the
institution of church will face the judgment of God upon it (see Revelation 2-3
– the letters to the churches).
Seek the Lord /
An Original Work / July 20, 2012
Based off Isaiah 55
“Come to Me all you
who thirst; come to waters.
Listen to Me, and eat
what’s good today,
And your soul will
delight in richest of fare.
Give ear to Me, and
you will live.
I have made an eternal
covenant with you.
Wash in the blood of
the Lamb.”
Seek the Lord while He
may be found; call on Him.
Let the wicked forsake
his way, in truth.
Let him turn to the
Lord, and he will receive mercy.
Freely, God pardons
him.
“For My thoughts are
not your thoughts,
Nor are your ways My
ways,”
declares the Lord, our
God.
“My word that goes out
of My mouth is truthful.
It will not return to
Me unfulfilled.
My word will
accomplish all that I desire,
And achieve the goal I
intend.
You will go in joy,
and be led forth in peace.
The mountains will burst
into song… before you,
And all of the trees
clap their hands.”
On Shore
The servant was on her way still to locate her missing
husband (see Ezekiel 34, a prophecy against the shepherds of Israel). Note:
Israel (the people of God) is now the church. Along the way a viper, a
poisonous snake (malicious; treacherous), fastened itself on her hand, i.e. Satan
tried to hinder her work and testimony for the Lord Jesus with vicious lies and
attacks against her character, but she shook the snake off and suffered no ill
effects. She did not allow Satan’s lies and character assassinations to stop
her from doing the work to which she knew she was called to do. And, she kept
going in the strength of the Lord.
The Missing Shepherds
(Ezekiel 34)
The servant found her husband “in the toilet” with a known
atheist. The husband of the institutional church in the U.S. is the U.S.
government, under the 501c3 non-profit status for incorporation. A husband is
also the leader of the home and the protector of the family, so he is to be
applied here as some of the leaders of today’s church who are “in bed” with the
world and in really bad shape spiritually speaking. A toilet is a place for
disposing of body waste. This is speaking spiritually of those within the
church who have wasted their lives on what will never satisfy. A toilet is also
a gutter. Someone in the gutter is living a degraded way of life or is of the
most vulgar, corrupt or morally degraded kind (Encarta). The leaders of our
churches, or I should say many, many of them are down in the gutter with the
world doing what the world does, and they have brought that worldliness into
the church and are leading their people in the same way. They may be physically
present among us, but they are spiritually absent in leading the people of God
to follow God.
“‘Go to this people
and say,
“You will be ever
hearing but never understanding;
you will be ever seeing but never
perceiving.”
For this people’s
heart has become calloused;
they hardly hear with their ears,
and they have closed their eyes.
Otherwise they might
see with their eyes,
hear with their ears,
understand with their hearts
and turn, and I would
heal them.’ ~ Acts 28:26-27 (cf. Is. 6:8-10; Mtt. 13:13-15)
Persevering in the
Faith
The servant of the Lord continued boldly to preach the
kingdom of God and taught about the Lord Jesus Christ to all who would listen.
She did not waver in unbelief, but she persisted in following her Lord wherever
he led her, and to do whatever he asked her to do, despite all opposition,
rejection or persecution or attacks of the enemy along the way.
My Sheep / An
Original Work / June 24, 2012
Based off John 10:1-18 NIV
My sheep hear me. They
know me.
They listen to my
voice and obey.
I call them and lead
them.
They know my voice, so
they follow me.
They will never follow
strangers.
They will run away
from them.
The voice of a
stranger they know not;
They do not follow
him.
My sheep hear me. They
know me.
They listen to my
voice and obey.
I call them and lead
them.
They know my voice, so
they follow me.
So, I tell you the
truth that
I am the gate, so you
enter in.
Whoever does enter
Will find forgiveness
and will be saved.
Nonetheless whoever
enters
Not by the gate; other
way,
He is the thief and a
robber.
Listen not, the sheep
to him.
So, I tell you the
truth that
I am the gate, so you
enter in.
Whoever does enter
Will find forgiveness
and will be saved.
Oh, I am the Good
Shepherd,
Who laid his own life
down for the sheep.
I know them. They know
me.
They will live with me
eternally.
The thief only comes
to steal and
Kill and to destroy
the church.
I have come to give
you life that
You may have it to the
full.
Oh, I am the Good
Shepherd,
Who laid his own life
down for the sheep.
I know them. They know
me.
They will live with me
eternally.
They know my voice, so
they follow me.
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