"Peacekeepers versus Peacemakers!"

"Blessed are the peacemaker's for they will be called the sons of God."
                                                          
                                                                    (Matthew 5:9)

What side of the fence are you on? Are you a peacemaker or a  peacekeeper? The shameful thing would be if you were somehow straddling the fence!

A peacekeeper looks to maintain peace at all costs. They compromise truth to avoid confrontation and work hard to convince onlookers that nothing is wrong and that nothing bothers them. They are quick to hide from tense situations and bristle at disagreements of any kind. They like the status quo and fake spirituality and humility as a devise to sidestep conflict by any means necessary.

On the other hand, a peacemaker seeks to create peace and will endure hardship, turmoil and adversity to achieve it. They will confront the adversary with truth, no matter what the cost. He will sacrifice relationships and status and social acceptance to maintain his integrity. He hates sin and loves God. His only desire is to point people to Jesus Christ.

How does one become a peacemaker? By fasting! (Isaiah 58:6-14). I am not talking about changing your diet or turning off your TV for two weeks. I am talking serving God's people in the marketplace. A servant's heart is that of a peacemaker (one who is a light bearer and messenger of the gospel of peace, which is the Word of God). Amen...

"HOPE in the Shadow of FAITH!"

"Now faith is the substance of things hoped for , the evidence of things not seen..."
                                                    
                                                                                       (Hebrews 11:1)


The paradigm of hope versus faith is a resounding and reverberating clarion call for all Christians and Believers alike to reconcile themselves to the truth of the revelation of how the truth can polarize the most well meaning of folk.

Hope precedes faith but does not and cannot exceed it. The only thing that exceeds faith is "belief." It is written, "As soon as Jesus overheard what was spoken, He immediately said to the ruler of the synagogue, "Don't be afraid, only believe." (Mark 5:36)

Hope resides in the wheel house of fear. Hope takes away your comfort. How do I know this? Most people that are hoping (waiting) for something are rooted and grounded in fear. They are desperate and they have anxiety. They are, in fact, uncomfortable! Hope immobilizes you and makes you complacent whereby you are waiting for someone else to do something for you.

Conversely, faith empowers and engages the individual. Faith looks the "lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes and the pride of life" square in the eyes and declares, "I will not submit to you." Faith is the evidence of the presence of God through the person of the Holy Spirit. Faith is righteousness, holiness, peace, love and joy in the Holy Spirit. Faith corrects me. Faith ties us to adversity (kinship with Christ). Faith matches our thoughts with the mind of Christ (His awesome Word). Faith affirms that Jesus Christ is the standard that I measure my spiritual maturity against.

The conclusion of the matter is this: Hope is an occurrence that is deferred sometime off in the future but faith is now...

The Holy Spirit will not stop His work until I am like Christ! Selah...

"Pursuing the KINGDOM of GOD!"

"...But seek ye first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness and all these things shall be added unto you." 

                                                                      (Matthew 6:25-33)


The key to being successful in pursuing any dream or vision is possessing the ability to be diligent, remain focused and minimize or eliminate distractions. In this passage of scripture, Matthew draws parallels in our everyday life and in creation where God meets and exceeds our needs without our help!

"Do not worry!" God has given us a clear directive and declaration. Worry is the byproduct of fear. Fear and faith cannot co-exist in the life of a Believer. The practical approach to pursuing the KOG can be achieved by first understanding that it is a "spiritual territory" where Believers have the ability to dominate and rule contingent on their level of faith.

There is a profound difference between the KOG and a democracy. In a democracy, the leader has to answer to someone (in most cases it is the people whom they are elected by). However, in the KOG there is only one ruler (God Almighty) and it is incumbent upon the citizens of the KOG to abide by its laws and commandments in order to retain the rights and privileges (salvation, eternal life, etc.) associated with being a son of the King.

Believers have "dual citizenship" in heaven and earth. Seeking the Kingdom first is a kerygmatic statement that offers the listener no alternative. You MUST SEEK GOD FIRST! The Holy Spirit directs us to stop chasing alternative plans for a limited time which binds the Believer in various snares that have the tendency to cripple our witness.

We must prioritize, organize and discipline ourselves to stay connected to the King. Prioritizing the development of our spiritual lives protects us from falling away from God. The KOG has established the priorities of God in the earth. We have been given a righteous priority which is the opposition to selfish prayers (whereby the immature Christian tries to manipulate God through prayer).

The conclusion of the matter is this; righteousness validates our relationship with God and citizenship in the Kingdom and prayer is our motivation for intimacy with God through our priority of pursuing and seeking Him first! Selah...

"The ENIGMA of CHRIST!"

"Behold My Servant shall deal prudently; He shall be exalted and extolled and be very high. Just as many were astonished at you, So His visage was marred more than any man, and His form more than the sons of men; So shall He sprinkle many nations. Kings shall shut their mouth at Him; For what had not been told them they shall see, And what they had not heard they shall consider."

                                                                                     (Isaiah 52:13-15)

The notion that God Almighty would manifest truth and glory through sin is remarkable! An "enigma" by definition is a paradox, a puzzle of sorts, but not a contradiction. It is the proverbial "bait on the hook" that entices you and draws you in to intimacy with the Father. The enigma is rooted and grounded in "not knowing the Father."

Christ was the "Sin Bearer" and "Light Bearer" at the same time! He was Light because of sin and became sin because of Light. How could this be? How could He manage the weight of sin? Because He is Light (Genesis 1:3):  

         "I have come into the world as light, so that no one who believes in Me should remain in darkness (John 12:46)"

He came as the sacrifice for sin to afford us (sinners) direct access to God through the knowledge of the truth of the gospel of peace. His words, His deeds and His life all point to His relationship with the Father. His deference to His Father is the source of His power. Why is Christ so omnipotent, omniscient and omnipresent? It is because He has mastered the gift of staying out of God's way and trusting Him to do what He said He is going to do.

Jesus has a symbiotic connection to God. They are One (the entire gospel of John reinforces this declaration). They "know" one another because they are connected by the Spirit of Truth. It is the Holy Spirit that leads us into God's Presence and gives us the grace to endure the suffering that is certain to come and the blessing to have our names written in the Lamb's Book of Life after we have endured to the end.

Our suffering is where God's gives us a name that we might call Him that He will answer to because we are sons. God will only call you or answer you if you know Him. The conclusion of the matter is this, 

                  ...If you know Him, He is NOT an enigma! Selah...

"What is Your SPIRITUAL DNA?"

"This I say, therefore, and testify in the Lord, that you should no longer walk as the rest of the Gentiles walk; in the futility of their mind, having their understanding darkened, being alienated from the life of God, because of the ignorance that is in them, because of the blindness in their heart; who, being past feeling, have given themselves over to lewdness, to work all uncleanness with greediness. But you have not so learned Christ, if indeed you have heard Him and have been tatught by Him, as the truth is in Jesus: that you put off, concerning your former conduct, the old man which grows corrupt according to the deceitful lusts, and be renewd in the spirit of your mind, and that you put on the new man which was created according to God, in true righteousness and holiness."

                                                                                 (Ephesians 4: 17-24)

Out with the old, in with the new is the mantra most people have every year with the anticipation of New Year's Day. They sit and they meticulously plan the changes they want to make to improve their lifestyle, health, financial security and romance. They spend hours poring through books, magazines and videos listening to dozens of stories and "proven" remedies to fix whatever ails them.

But one the the areas that is almost always overlooked is the spiritual health of the individual. They should be asking this question, "If the Holy Spirit were to give me a spiritual check up today, would I pass?" Is my heart pure? Is my mind sound? Are the symptoms of lewdness traceable? Is my sin in remission?

As a Believer in Christ Jesus, the spirit-led man or woman has to recognize the characteristics of a son of God. They must fully engage in and exhibit all the traits and tendencies of Christ as Lord and Savior. They must transfer that same Spirit to others they encounter in the marketplace who are seeking refuge, peace, love and joy as they crossover from hope to faith and bastard to son.

The Spiritual DNA is determined by your father. Whoever your father is will determine your spiritual DNA. If your father is Satan, then you will act like Satan. If your Father is the Lord God, then you will display all the traits, characteristics and tendencies of Christ! The hard truth is that people you know and people you meet will be able to tell you who your father is when they meet you for the first time...

The final analysis is this, do you want anger, fear and turmoil or love, joy and peace? The decision is yours...Selah.

" A Train of Vanquished Foes!"

"Therefore it says, "When He ascended on high (Mt. Zion) He led captivity captive and He bestowed gifts upon men."

                                                                            (Ephesians 4:8)

In His ascension, Christ led a train of vanquished foes (those who had been captured by Satan, his angels, sin and death) up to Mount Zion symbolizing the third heaven where God dwells (1 Kings 8:30). He had successfully defeated Satan and the spoils of war was the gathering of the spirits He held captive through the power of repentance, reconciliation and redemption.

In captivity with Satan, you are bound by sin and death but in captivity with Christ, you are holy and free as a son and member of the Kingdom of Heaven complete with all its benefits, privileges  and protection. How glorious it must have been to be a part of that procession. Glory be to God that He had the grace and mercy to leave us the deposit of the Holy Spirit to watch over us until His return!

Will you be in the number? Will you ascend to Christ in the earth realm? What gifts has He bestowed upon you? Do you have the gift of faith? Do you have peace? What about love? Do you have the gift to love and what about forgiveness? That's a bigee! Can you even consider forgiving someone who has transgressed against you?

Have you received the gift of service to freely give of yourself to God's people in the marketplace? When was the last time you exemplified Christ to someone living in darkness?

What must Satan have been thinking as he witnessed the procession of those whom he thought belonged to him being led by the King of Glory into the Presence of God the Father....FOREVER? Selah....

"DELIVERANCE from the FIERY FURNACE!"

"Daniel 3:8-30"

In the Book of Daniel Chapter 3, there is a story of three men who were sentenced to death by King Nebuchadnezzar for not submitting to his authority. The "fiery furnace" was the ultimate behavior modification tool used by the King to get everyone to obey him and worship his idol gods out of fear of certain death! Who would want to die like that? Who would dare refute the King?

The three men had no fear of man, but they did fear God! it was because the were afraid of God that the furnace was a preferable fate than facing the wrath of the Elohim. Would you choose to be burned alive rather than abandon God? When the trials of life have come knocking on your door, have you buckled under the pressure of adversity? Did you whine, cry and complain or did you remain steadfast, immovable and unyielding while praising and worshipping God?

You have to know that people are watching you and your reaction to tribulation. Your family, friends and co-workers who have heard you declare that you are "blessed and highly favored" time and time again are just waiting to see how you handle your lackluster quarterly evaluation at work, negative doctor's report or unexpected expense from your daughter in college. Yes, my friend, they are watching you to witness your reaction to the "fire."

The man in the midst of the fire is the Holy Spirit. Only the Holy Spirit can call you out of the fire because He is the same One who put you in! The fire is a type and shadow of "testing, reproving and purging" the things that so easily beset us. In short, all Believers are made "subject" to the fire. John the Baptist said of Jesus, "...He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire (Matthew 3:11-12)." 

How does the fire lose its power? The answer can be found in (Daniel 3: 13-18). The fire loses its power when the man's perspective, belief and knowledge of who God is and what God can do or will do to manifest His Will in the earth. God's will is perfect (it does not change because of my circumstances).

This story was never about the three men or the fiery furnace; it was ALWAYS about GOD! It tells the truth about how He goes before us, is in the fire with us and delivers us out of it. It talks about how He had already made provision for us in the midst of the fire by the "name" He had given us in eternity (which is "son"). God's name for you will prevail in midst of your most difficult circumstances and sustain you to the glory of God. Amen...

"The Pitfalls of a MAZE!"

"There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus; who do not walk according to the flesh but according to the Spirit. For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has made me free from the law of sin and death. For what the law could not do in that it was weak through the flesh, God did in sending His own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, on account of sin: He condemned sin in the flesh..."

                                                                             (Romans 8:1-13)

A man that pursues the lusts of the flesh is subject to (controlled by and manipulated by these spirits to the point of the inability to recognize what they are doing). Every turn in a maze is met with another wall. In a maze, a lab rat (a man who is reliant on his own strength) never stops moving; he never stops and reflects, he just hits one brick wall after another.

The purpose of a maze is to create suffering and torture. In ancient Egyptian times, mazes were used to bewilder their prisoners. They frustrated, confused and infuriated their captives. A maze is a complex series of passages. These passages themselves fork and eventually do one of only two things: either they come to a "dead end" (Satan) or the passage closes in on the lab rat in a loop with itself or connects with another passage separate from itself that does not provide a solution (escape). There is usually "only one correct path" (the Lord God) in the maze from start to finish.

God's vantage point is the same as the scientist (Satan) who is observing the lab rat he placed inside the maze. The difference is that God can see the way of escape (1 Cor. 10:1-13) while Satan's goal is to keep you bound. God has afforded each of us a way of escape (through the power and authority of the Holy Spirit) from temptation.

God has also given us examples of what has happened to those who have fallen prey to temptation. They become crushed by the lusts of the flesh, the lusts of the eyes and the pride of life. The only way out of a maze is for the hand of God to reach down, push Satan out of the way and lift you out of your futility with His Mighty Right Hand (Christ Jesus).

"WANTING to Hear versus NEEDING to Hear from GOD!"

"My sheep hear My voice, and I know them and they follow Me."

                                                       (John 10:27)

There is a profound difference between "needing" to hear from God and "wanting" to hear from God.

"Needing" to hear from God is a reactionary response, in most instances, to an adverse situation in one's life. Perhaps it involved injury, loss of a job, sickness, debt or loss of life. It is not the desire of the individual to seek God but, in fact, he/she is seeking and "answer" (or more specifically a solution to his/her problem). In essence, the Presence of God or the relationship has very little or nothing to do with this petition. Needing to hear from God has a definitive time limit assigned to it for a response.

Conversely, "wanting" to hear from God does not require an answer or remedy from Him. The encounter has no time limit assigned to it and is solely motivated by the individual making himself/herself "available" to hear from God whenever He decides to make the visitation. Wanting denotes the existence of a relationship between God and the individual. Intimacy, reverence, fear and love motivate the Believer into wanting to be in the Presence of God eternally. Selah...

"The MINISTRY of SUFFERING!"

"This things I have spoken, that in Me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world."

                                                                                                 (John 16:33)

This might be hard to hear for the modern day Christian but "suffering is a ministry!" Jesus gave every Believer the promise that they would suffer tribulation because of His name. Jesus, like Job and so many other patriarchs, was given the "ministry" of suffering as a badge of honor and test for qualification and acceptance into the Kingdom of God.

Suffering goes with the territory. It is the Holy Spirit who administers the test. The ministry has a weightiness (heaviness, pressure) to it. The Hebrew word is "kabod" or "the glory of God through the sheer weight of His majesty, power and might." The suffering gets lighter the closer you get to God because there is a spiritual transference.
God's glory absorbs our pain, agony and despair and turns the anguish into love, joy and peace in the Holy Spirit.

Suffering can't be avoided by sleep; it will chase you into you right into your dreams and be waiting for you when you wake up. Suffering begats hopelessness, frustration and turmoil. It also can create dillusions whereby the sufferer can miss the opportunity for an encounter with the Holy Spirit because of their depression and fear.

Did you see what happens? The suffering never leaves, God just changes your perspective, maturity and endurance. In essence, the suffering becomes your "witness" because the suffering is not for you: it is for the people God has assigned to you. Your witness is more than your testimony. Your testimony is a good story but your witness is signed, sealed and delivered by the Blood of Jesus Christ as a testimony of His sacrifice (suffering) so that we may have eternal fellowship with the Father. This is how a sufferer can be free; through the Blood of Christ!

Finally, the weight is also the "world." The world is simply translated "temptation." Jesus said that in this world you will have temptation; but don't be concerned because, I have overcome temptation (the lusts of the flesh, the lusts of the eyes and the pride of life). Selah...

"There is no SAFETY in IGNORANCE!"

When it comes to the things of God, the Christian cannot use, “I didn’t know” as an excuse for repeated offenses against the Gospel of Peace. Being “ignorant” is just pure laziness. There is no reason whatsoever to “not know” unless you just don’t want to. Of course, as we have discussed many times in the past, many Christians enjoy their sin too much to cross over into the realm of repentance, redemption and reconciliation.

Don’t be lulled to sleep thinking that you are “safe” because you act like you don’t know what you are doing is perverse, rebellious or wicked. If you are above the age of five you know right from wrong and, I can state emphatically that when I was engaging in sinful activity, I knew exactly what I was doing! There is no sugar coating the truth here. I did it. I enjoyed it. And the rest is history.

          

The deception of “safety” is manufactured by Satan. He wants you to be “comfortable” in your sin; so comfortable in fact that you feel safe committing the sinful activity over and over again while being a hypocrite before the eyes of God. The deception is rooted and grounded in the fact that you will be concerned with your wife and kids finding out what you are doing than God! Imagine that; being more afraid of your wife or husband than God?

          

Ignorance and stupidity are two different paradigms. Ignorance is defined as not knowing something, while stupidity is being comfortable with not knowing something. Think about a person who has high blood pressure, feels bad all the time but won’t go to the doctor out of fear. The person knows he is sick but he is afraid that the doctor is going to confirm what he already knows. So he stays away from the doctor because he doesn’t want to hear the truth, however, the truth will save his life. The truth will identify the problem, expose it and then cure it! This is a prime example of how ignorance and stupidity can be symbiotic. The man who remains ignorant of his health is a ticking time bomb waiting to explode. There is no doubt a major a major heart attack waits him in his future.

Because of ignorance, he thinks he is safe.  He thinks that he is safe because he does not know. But stupidity will replace life with death and add another chump to the growing number of Christians serving the devil through deception.

"The NEW BIRTH: A WORD in the WIND!"

"The wind blows where it wishes, and you hear the sound of it, but cannot tell where it comes from and where it goes. So is everyone who is born of the Spirit."

                                                                             (John 3:8)

In the Gospel of John Chapter 3, the Beloved Disciple received the revelation of a "new birth" from the Holy Spirit (HS). The HS is a type and shadow of the wind; possessing all of its physical and spiritual qualities. Just as God rebuked Job (Job 38-41) in his arrogance against the knowledge of God, so to must the Believer submit to the Wind (the HS). His wisdom, understanding and faith all come from the Wind.

The Wind and the Word are symbiotic; they are one in the same. The Wind carries the Word and the Word carries the Wind. You will never see one without the other. The Wind baptizes the New Believer and carries him with the Word. Like I said, they are One! They come from the same source; Yahweh, God Almighty and the Ancient of Days.

The root of the revelation is mastered in the "intent" of the son or daughter seeking Truth (Christ). Jesus repeatedly implores us to "only Believe." His incessant urging to compel us into His Presence through peace, love and joy in the HS requires a servant's heart and a renewed mind. Only a renewed mind can received a Word in the Wind.

Nicodemus' quest for relationship with the Father in secret sealed his fate from the beginning. The Word says that he was condemned already because he didn't believe (John 3:18). The Wind ushers in a new birth in that the Believer has received a new identity (he is transformed from a bastard (one who does not believe and follows Satan) to a son (one who does believe and submits to the Lord God) and can now enter into (inherit) the Kingdom of God and fellowship with the Father for eternity.

The Modern Day Christian is always seeking for a Word. They are obsessed with going to get a Word from somebody. You can't really "go" anywhere (in the "natural realm") to "get a Word." Don't be like Nicodemus. There is only One source for the Word...

The WORD always comes to you in the Wind! Selah...

"ELEVATION Comes Through OPPOSITION!"

"For exaltation comes neither from the east, nor from the west nor from the south. But God is the Judge: He puts down one and exalts another."

                                                                             (Pslams 75:6-7)

One thing I love about exercise and physical fitness is manipulating my body to do what it doesn't want to do. Actually, it's not my body at all; it is my mind that doesn't want to do certain things. My body does not have the ability to do things on its own. If I decided (in my mind) to stay in bed instead of going to the gym, then my body would just lay there and enjoy the comfort of my bed. The downside, however, is that I would not benefit from the exercise I missed by being lazy!

So I make the decision to go to the gym and place the weights on the bar, plug in my "Beats" headphones pumpin' Marley, lay back on the bench, take a few deep breaths and go to work! After a few reps, I feel the "burn" in my arms and chest, the weight get heavier and heavier with each rep. This is called "resistance" and, although it hurts like the hell, it is good for you! With each set, I get more and more fatigued, and the thought of quitting starts to trickle into my mind. Should I lessen the weight? Should I move on to another machine? I must remember what I came here for; I came here to live.

The thing I learned a long time ago is that "comparison" will kill you! I'm not talking about competing; I'm talking about comparison. I used to get sucked in to how much the guy next to me was lifting; I used to see people get hurt trying to out do one another. I saw people develop a lot of bad habits and have major breakdowns in form and technique. Ultimately, I saw many people, including myself, begin to cheat and lie about how many reps I did or how much I lifted. These were significant breaches in integrity. I had forgotten why I was coming here. I had come here to live.

Just like exercise and resistance training; when it comes to the things of God you have to know and understand that the mind can manipulate the body to do good or evil. The mind can send you into the abyss through submission to the kingdom of darkness or elevate you through opposition to the workers of iniquity. The Lord God will beckon you to, "Come on up a little higher!" He will place His "kabod" (glory, weightiness) upon you to test you and send you through the fire so that you will come out a pure gold. Can you hear Him by FAITH?

At the end of the day, all Believers who are "fit" for the Kingdom must remember why they accepted the invitation to come to into His Presence; as for me, I came here to live! Selah...

"The Ministry of PERSECUTION!"

"Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary, the devil, walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour."

                                                                                      (1 Peter 5:8)

The Ministry of Persecution [MP] ("personal execution") is exemplified by the dying to oneself and the ruthless pursuit of fleshly desires. It encompasses the anatomy of death rooted and grounded in the person of Christ Jesus.

The MP represents the cutting away of strongholds. The "cutting" is a type and shadow of the the Covenant Believers have with God. Persecution [P] brings the Believer in right relationship with the Father. P is adversity; the thing we have most in common with Jesus that we seldom discuss.

In the midst of P, it is not important to defend yourself; it is more important to defend the God in you by resisting the evil that comes upon you. The goal of the Believer is "spiritual integrity" with regard to sacrificing self as Jesus did for us. The destruction of His flesh allowed us to see His mortality (His ability and willingness to die), void of His works which did not save Him. But what did save Him was His obedience to death. 

Likewise, we are empowered the same as Christ. Every Believer must take the same path. Persecution is a ministry and it is necessary; but most importantly, it is unavoidable! It is not how many times you suffer, or how long you suffer, the details are irrelevant, the character of the perpetrator against you is not a factor and your life and present economic status is a non-issue. 

All that matters is your posture (your vertical relationship with the Lord God and and your horizontal relationship with the Body of Christ) and your "spiritual compass" (the Holy Spirit) that helps navigate you through the deep waters of divine revelation. Selah...

"The VANITY of PHILOSOPHERS!"

           "Beware lest anyone cheat you through philosophy and empty deceit, according to the traditions of men, according to the basic principles of the world, and not according to Christ. For in Him dwells the fullness of the Godhead bodily; and you are complete in Him who is the head of all principality and power."
                                                                            
                                                                       (Colossians 2:8-10)

The Apostle Paul offers all Believers a stern warning that putting your trust in vain philosophers will cause you to be cheated and deceived.

Socrates, Aristotle and Hippocrates are all considered great philosophers. Much of the Greek culture and their various writings, debates and public demonstrations have influenced, captivated and infiltrated the American institutional church in the form of pagan rituals and traditions that have bastardized the priesthood legacy born out of the life of Christ Jesus.

These men were, in essence, paid entertainers who traveled from house to house, village to village and city square to city square telling stories in attempts to provoke thought, persuade influence and sway public opinion. This term has been defined as rhetoric. The basis of the arguments did not merit truth as much as it invoked passionate exchanges between the participants. At the end of the day, the winner would be rewarded with cash, gifts and, most importantly, an enhanced reputation for being a great rhetorician.

The calamity in this paradigm is that man has wrestled the alpha position away from God for vainglory. Mankind has allowed intellect to overtake wisdom and pride to circumvent reverence and fear of the Lord. It always amazes me that Christians are shocked that Lucifer desired the "place of God" in the spiritual hierarchy of the ethos. Why are we shocked? We are doing exactly the same thing as the devil in the earth realm today.

God gave us the highest ranking position in the earth realm; dominion over ALL CREATION! He gave us free will; the right to choose whether or not we would worship and praise Him (even after He created us from nothing)! The shocking thing to me is that so few Christians really BELIEVE HIM and LOVE HIM and HONOR HIM and WORSHIP HIM and SERVE HIM. The sad reality is that the majority of Christians will ever really get to know Him in true fellowship with the Holy Spirit.

The vanity of philosophers is that they are in essence criminals. They are hijackers, murderers and thieves. They have corrupted the Body of Christ and done irreparable damage to the institutional church; and the truly unforgivable thing is that they have done it all...

In the Name of Jesus! Selah....

"The Anatomy of a PRAYER WARRIOR!"

"Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, in everything give thanks; for this is the will of God for Christ Jesus in you. Do not quench the Spirit. Do not depise prophecies. Test all things; hold fast what is good. Abstain from every form of evil."

                                                                (1 Thessalonians 5:16-22)

Prayer, is perhaps the most talked about subject in Christendom, but surely the most enigmatic. Simply put, prayer is misunderstood. For generations, prayer has been taught as a one dimensional act; but it is anything but that. Prayer is a multi-dimensional, cross pollenation of the physical and spiritual attributes of the Believer. In short, you can pray in the Spirit, then walk out the prayer (or action) in real time by faith in the natural realm by getting up and doing something. You see, faith is a verb; it is an action word!

The authentic Prayer Warrior (PW) confronts the demons face to face in the Spirit calling them out by name and exposing them to their brothers and sisters in the faith who are under attack by every form of evil. When you counsel a group of young people about the dangers of unprotected sex, drugs and pornography, you are engaging in spiritual warfare. These demons are real and they have names (Satan, Lucifer, Leviathan, Asmodeus, Belphegor, Beelzebub and Mammon). These are the names of the demons associated with the Seven Deadly Sins. The true PW knows who these demons are because he/she has been trained by the Holy Spirit who knows all things.

PW's enter into the Presence of God, receive their instructions and then exit the spirit realm and go into the marketplace to carry out their assignments. The days of sitting holed up in the corner of a room moaning and groaning for hours are gone because the demons we are fighting ain't sittin' in their Grandma's closet rubbin' her Bible and asking Jesus to fix it!

So to, these are the blessings of the PW: 

• He knows who the enemy is; it is not a person, it is a spirit;
• He knows how to prepare for war (in the Presence of the Lord God);
• He is always in attack mode; advancing toward the enemy (never retreating) by putting on the whole armor of God (Ephesians 6:10-20);
• He must protect his mind; He believes God and is fully persuaded;
• He is willing to sacrifice his body for the Body of Christ.

Fellow Believers, we are at war; make no mistake about it. The casualities of this spiritual war are all around us. In every quarter, we see the hearbeat, loss and despair of thousands of God's people. But do not despair, I have good news! We serve a Risen Savior and HIs Name is Jesus. He is the King of Glory and the devil is a defeated foe...he has already lost!

In the end, WE WIN! selah...

"Kings & Priests!"

"...And He has made us kings and priests unto God and His Father; to Him be glory and dominion for ever and ever. Amen."

                                                                                      (Revelation 1:6)

The Book of Revelation is the "unveiling" of the celestial glory that was hidden in Christ during His earthly reign as King. This "revelation" was the true nature and, in fact, expectation that all Believers fulfill their prescribed roles as either "king" or "priest." In some instances, remnant Believers have the anointing for both offices.

In the Body of Christ [BOC] (the remnant of Believers "called" to Christ from the foundation of the world), divine teamwork and mutual respect is paramount. The "priest" is the "visionary" and he receives his spiritual direction from the Holy Spirit for his assignment in marketplace ministry. On the other hand, the "king" is the "provisionary;" his job is to receive guidance from the Holy Spirit on conceptualization, administration and implementation of "witty invention" to generate finances, businesses and generational wealth to advance and sustain the Kingdom of God in the earth.

It is critical that the BOC not try to make priests out of every man. Kings must be cultivated through commerce, business and entrepreneurship to finance the vision of the BOC. To do this, (forcing priesthood on every man) would severely upset the balance of vision and provision. Please be clear, I am not talking about financing the church and the prosperity gospel. I am talking specifically about the team of soldiers that God has called to go into the marketplace to build systems and destroy the paradigms of darkness. These are the people that will walk out (Matthew 25:31-46) in real time!

Unfulfilled kings become "spectators" and, eventually, "drop outs" because they were unable to find their place or realize the "gift" that God placed in their hearts. Unfulfilled priests become "dictators" and, eventually, "sell outs" when they try to operate outside of their calling. There is a profound need for priests to honor and respect the role of the king so that he feels free to go to war for the KOG. God made men to thrive on conquest and engagement. When men see their lives as vital and relevant, something miraculous changes inside of them (this is called a "quickening" of the spirit).

This burden ("kabod" - Hebrew lexicon) is the weightiness or glory of God. His yoke (the Holy Spirit) will lead and guide you and His burden (His glory) is light (easy to carry because you are doing what you are called to do and you have love, peace and joy doing it)! (Matthew 11:29-30) 

The ultimate revelation for us is that we are to rule and reign as Believers until He returns! Selah...

"The Perils of TRADITION!"

         "Beware less any man spoil you through philosophy and vain deceit, after the traditions of men, after the rudiments of the world, and not after Christ."

                                                                    (Colossians 2:8)

The Holy Scriptures hold warnings against any man-made traditions, customs, precepts, laws or opinions that are diametrically opposed to, contradictory to or that nullify God's Word. These customs, rituals, practices and devices are the inventions of men; their creation, implementation and execution have nothing to do with the Lord God. These multi-generational fallacies have polluted the transference of the glory of God and have created an entire generation of young Christians who are spiritually immature, deaf (can't hear the voice of God) and selfish.

Tradition has unbelievable power and influence over a person's mindset. Tradition says, "This is the way we have always done things and, no matter what, we ain't changin' our program foe nobody!" Tradition spits in the face of change and truth. Tradition bristles at the suggestion of destroying dead doctrines and trashing antiquated practices. Tradition is a top donor for the spiritual survival of the idolater and his pursuit of demonizing the faith of God's people in the marketplace.

There has been a "spiritual mutation" created by a new generation of Christian through the vestige of tradition that most people don't know about. They are still elusive in the eyes of Christ; like trying to grab a handful of smoke. These "traditionalists" are there, but they aren't there; if you know what I mean? They exist in a vacuum insulated by ignorance, fear, stubbornness and superstition. 

Unfortunately, most Christians exist "outside" of Christ (meaning their lives do not reflect the glory, power and authority of the Risen Savior). How can it be that you are a Christian or Believer walking in a different "light" than hundreds of thousands of other Christians or Believers who are hearing the same Word? The conclusion of the matter is that they cannot be reading, studying or meditating on God's Word for themselves.

Jesus was the "poster child" of Truth who stood in flat-footed defiance against the spirit of tradition because He knew that tradition was killing the people. Nobody wants to challenge the rituals of man that are blotting out Christ from the hearts and minds of God's people because it is unpopular and dangerous (to the person's reputation). Jesus called these individuals hypocrites, vipers and wicked.

The institutional church (IC) is entrenched in tradition because of filthy lucre's sake (Titus 1:10-11). Translations: the IC loves money more than it loves God! You have to be dead to miss that...!

"Heavenly versus Demonic Wisdom!"

          “Who is wise and understanding among you? Let him show by good conduct that his works are done in the meekness of wisdom. But if you have bitter envy and self-seeking in your hearts, do not boast and lie against the truth. This wisdom does not descend from above, but is earthly, sensual, and demonic. For where envy and self-seeking exist, confusion and every evil thing are there. But the wisdom that is from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, willing to yield, full of mercy and good fruits, without partiality and without hypocrisy. Now the fruit of righteousness is sown in peace by those who make peace.”

                                                                   (James 3:13-18)

          Newsflash: Everyone is NOT going to heaven. Many people professing to be Christians are not going to make it. Some people are smart, others are stupid. Still others are woefully ignorant. This WC is psychological (spiritual) so you can’t defend yourself against it carnally (physically).

          How does a person recognize if the involved in a church that practices WC? If the activities, events, preaching and teaching of the ministry are “self seeking” (self-serving), then the ministry is submissive to WC. You might ask, “What forms do they take?” Here are several possibilities of how these demons might manifest:

Ø Subtle forms: non-invasive, almost unrecognizable phrases, suggestions, etc.

Ø Spiritual forms: manipulation of God’s Word (you gotta read, study and meditate on God’s Word in order to be able to defend yourself);

Ø The unseen thing: spiritual wickedness: mean spirited, envious, bitter and quarrelsome people in leadership working undercover to derail what God is doing in your life;

Ø Do you see the manifestation of “fruit” in your life or in the lives of the people you fellowship with?

Ø Does every function in the ministry point back to one man or one woman? Most notably, your pastor or bishop?

Ø Is there an atmosphere of fear emanating from the pulpit that would discourage any challenges to unscrupulous behavior by the pastor?

Ø Is there correction from the church leadership to anyone (including the pastor) that steps out of bounds, violates the order of ministry or stands in direct opposition to God’s Word?

 Following instruction from the Holy Spirit will always lead you on the pathway to truth!