Dangerous Reaction

I was praying and felt the Lord give me a warning for His bride.

I saw a ship cruising at a quick/efficient speed. The ship had a handful of seats at its front, overlooking the foreword progress. Saws (blades) were affixed to the ship’s main mast; their purpose was to sever tethers that were suspended over the ocean. This was the ship’s purpose. As I kept watching it soon became apparent that the blades along the ship’s mast were not being guided accurately, and that the tethers would soon entangle the ship to point of rendering it immobile. This happened; the ship became hopelessly entangled, and all forward momentum was stopped.

Pondering this, I wondered why the ship was not able to accurately position/guide its main purpose. I then saw, transposed above the ship, a Bald Headed Eagle, but it was struck by lightning.

Here is how I interpret this.

The ship symbolizes a ministry. Its quick speed reveals that the ministry was making efficient progress, most likely succeeding within its ministry. Initially, it was effectively achieving its purpose by severing the suspended cords/tethers. The handful of seats at the ship’s forefront shows that the ministry’s leadership team was relatively united. It wasn’t a one man show; they had a decent team effort, probably within the Five-Fold-Ministry. Though, they no longer had an eagle, or prophet. The result was failure.

Why was an eagle struck by lightning above the ship? The ministry was most likely in relationship with a prophet in the past. The prophet, then, either fell morally or actually physically died. The ministry did not align itself with another prophet in time, resulting in the loss of all forward momentum.

I gleaned a few main points with this vision.

First, the necessity of prophets to help council and guide ministries, ministries will fail from short-sightedness without them.

Secondly, prophets can, and most likely will to some degree, fail or stumble at some point in their ministries. Some failures can be easily rectified, yet others can be quite devastating to a ministry. As with every minister, prophets need accountability and wise council too. They aren’t infallible.

Lastly, despite the struggles and hardships produced by prophets who make mistakes, and potentially lead people astray, their ministry role is vital to the Lord’s body. God has stationed His prophets as pivotal voices in the past, and He has stationed them as pivotal voices in the present (Ephesians chapter 4; 1 Cor. Chapter 12).

In these last days there will be many voices claiming to speak prophetically for God, but are not of Him and will lead many people astray. In Matthew 24:5 Jesus said that “many shall come in My name, saying, I am Christ; and shall deceive many”. Christ means ‘anointed’. So basically, people will claim to be anointed and proceed to lead many people astray. With this said, it is vitally important to not blindly receive or accept someone as a prophet simply because they claim to be anointed, or even are anointed to some degree. If we are plugged into the community of Christ’s body, then we will be surrounded by many trustworthy, wise, discerning people who can keep us on track and balanced with our personal walks.

If the unfortunate circumstance happens where some are led astray for a time by false prophecies, then it is vitally important to not react by this sour experience and divorce from the prophetic ministry all together. Despite the pain and disillusionment produced by man’s problems let’s not forsake God’s ordained structure for His body.

The Prophet Contrasted with the Prophetic

There is a difference between being prophetic and being a prophet. Paul says in 1 Cor. 4:1 that everyone should desire to prophesy. I interpret this as meaning that everyone has the potential to prophesy. A prophet is different. The prophet is one of the five-fold-ministry callings. Paul says in Ephesians chapter four that the prophet is a gift from God to men. A prophet is commonly depicted as an eagle mainly because they can see great distances. I feel that God showed me an analogy distinguishing the prophet from the prophetic. I feel that He showed me that as a chicken can jump decently high and float for an extended moment that this is comparable to the prophetic. The distance that a chicken can jump, and the length of time they can stay afloat is equivalent to their ability to catch glimpses into the prophetic realm. They may see accurately the things that are within their vision’s range, and their vision will effectively minister to those that are within their sphere of influence. However, they will never see with the clarity and vision of an eagle. An eagle literally lives in the heavens. When they aren’t flying at great heights, they are resting in their nest which is also at great heights.

I feel that God showed me without the partnership of the eagle that ministries won’t survive these coming days. Some ministries may feel that they have a strong grasp on the prophetic, and they very well may. Though, in order to survive the coming crises they will need an eagle’s vision. Without the eagle they won’t be prepared for the drastic worldwide changes that are quickly approaching, and the result will be catastrophic.

In 1 Cor. Chapter 12 Paul strongly encourages the bride to embrace the various members of the body. I believe that in this illustration the prophet represents the body’s eyes, and we will need their vision in the coming months and years.

Another Prophecy

Below is a pdf link that will take you to a transcription of a conversation that Mike Bickle had with a prophetic gentleman named Terry Bennett. Terry received an angelic visitation and was informed of some drastic events, some of which are scheduled to unfold this upcoming June of 2011. This prophecy is in the same vein as the others that have been, and are being, released by people such as Rick Joyner, John Paul Jackson, David Wilkerson, Bob Jones, and Jim Baker.

http://glorichards.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/Mike-Bickle-shared-this-conversation-Sunday.pdf

I feel an incredible urgency to this present hour. I feel like the church needs to be equipped, practically and spiritually, to handle these foretold events. There are a number of ways that I feel are necessary to prepare. Primarily, to be in God’s will. I believe that our ‘practical preparations’ may look differently depending on our geographical location, and respective callings. God desires to align us with this world according to His plans, which sometimes conflict with our own preconceived notions and desires.

I believe that the church’s finest hour is approaching. In these times of darkness, the Lord will shine that much brighter. His love will pierce the darkness and set the captive free. I believe that God will bless His people with courage, strength, and love in these coming days and years. We will have the honor of exhibiting His love to the nations that are gripped by the claws of fear, and to show them the way into His grace.

As mentioned, the church’s finest hour is soon here; when the world quakes with fear, we as Jesus’ bride will soar above the chaos with the commission of setting the captive free. In order to accomplish this we need to be prepared. In Jesus’ parable there were ten virgins awaiting the wedding feast; five were prepared and five were not. I believe that Jesus is sounding a clarion call to America: Prepare!

Blessed are Those Who Make Themselves Ready

This is an important update.

There have been a number of prophecies from credible/established people that all seem to point to the next ten years.

John Paul Jackson's prophecy, called, 'The Perfect Storm' can be viewed via Youtube. He has outlined very vivid, destructive happenings for the next ten years.

Rick Joyner sends out a weekly prophetic word or teaching. He claims that America is about to enter into a financial meltdown at any time between today and a number of years down the road. I recommend subscribing to his 'word of the week'.

David Wilkerson gave a prophecy describing riots and looting in every major city nation wide. In another prophecy he fortells that America's banks will close for six months immediately after Mexico defaults on its debt (which is caused by another country defaulting on its debt).

Terry Benet (with the IHOP in Kansas City) can be found via Youtube: he claims that America is about to go through major natural and economic disasters.

My recommendation is to store six months worth of food, water, and supplies in order to be prepared. If I were you I would also read and listen to the above prophecies for yourself. There is much more information that I did not mention.

Stay connected with your Christian community; or, join one.

Learn to hear Holy Spirit's voice.

Learn to thrive in the thrill of these times. You were intentionally created for the Lord's last day army. He knew you before birth. That's why you're here; to be a light for those lost in the darkness. The harvest is ripe, and will be much more ripe in these coming days or years; it's time to exhibit God's love.

With love,

david

A word of knowledge

Last night I had a brief, and simple, dream. I believe this dream is a message that someone needs to hear.

I was praying for an ethnic woman, probably Hispanic, and had a word of knowledge for her: ‘God is pleased with your faithfulness.’

Another man who was also laying hands on her immediately told me to stop. When I asked why, they said that she had received a prophecy in the past stating that she would marry a certain man and that the marriage turned out to be disastrous.

After an awkward moment I was filled with the Holy Spirit and turning to the man, I exclaimed, “If you want power then you must embrace the Holy Spirit!”

My thoughts are simply:

1. Some have been burned by false prophecy and thereby shun prophecy altogether.

2. Or, some have observed false and seemingly false manifestations of the Holy Spirit and thereby shun all manifestations of the Holy Spirit.

3. These will need to embrace the Holy Spirit—namely true prophecy as well as the other gifts—in order to receive God’s power.

4. Also, it is important to be very careful when criticizing and condemning any manifestation that is claimed to come from the Holy Spirit, because: Jesus says, “Whoever blasphemes against the Holy Spirit never has forgiveness, but is guilty of an eternal sin. (Mark Ch. 3 vs. 29: NAS). The context of this passage is simply that some were accusing Jesus of operating under the influence of a demon, when in reality He was acting under the influence of the Holy Spirit.

A similar mentality exists today, not only with those who hold a dispensationalist view (the gifts, and manifestations, of the Holy Spirit are not for today), but also with many in the charismatic circles, who accept some gifts and manifestations, but claim some others to either stem from sensationalism or the Devil!

My advice is to refrain at all cost from judging or criticizing anyone who may or may not be ‘manifesting’, or ‘operating’ under the influence of the Holy Spirit. This is predominantly an issue that is between them, God, and their spiritual leadership (it's their leadership's responsibility to provide accountability).

With reference to prophecy, my advice is to ‘test all things’ especially when the prophecy is given to you personally. There are true, and false, prophetic words flittering about. To complicate things further, there is also frequently a blend of true and false within the same prophetic utterance—discernment and wisdom are a must.

Clarification on 'Salvation' from Sin

This post is a clarification on ‘Salvation’ from Sin.

I believe that Christians can be grouped into two categories: the Regenerated, and the Carnal (1 Cor. Ch. 3 vs. 1). In this passage Paul says, “I could not speak unto you as unto spiritual, but as unto carnal, as unto babes in Christ. The word ‘spiritual’ here is pneumatikos in the Greek, which means regenerate.

God has graced both groupings of believers with the honor of having a ‘positional’ standing in His family. For instance both groups are justified because of Christ’s sacrifice, and I believe will therefore ultimately join the Father in the New Life.

In my previous posting, ‘Salvation’ from Sin, what I was attempting to say is that I believe a taste of the New Life is available to us while on Earth, not just for when we make it to Heaven. I wanted to propose that ‘salvation’ (as used by Paul) means to be truly set free from the slavery of sin, where this state of regeneration is evident in our earthly lives. Where the Holy Spirit brings us from the state of ‘positional’ regeneration to ‘actual’ regeneration. Whereas believers we mature from the carnal state of being to the spiritual state of being. I’m not saying that we will achieve perfection while on Earth, but simply suggesting that salvation from the bondage/slavery (addictions, or any sin that holds us in captivity: like lust, pornography, drugs, fear, doubt, pride, and etcetera) is available to those who persevere in lifting their gazes up to Him with hope. He will deliver in time. These are prayers that He will answer.

For this maturation to happen we need to die with Christ in order to partake in His resurrection. John 12:24 says that a seed will only produce fruit if it first dies. Jesus then says that to find life we first must lose our lives vs. 25. After we pick up our crosses, a symbol of dying daily, we will then be lifted high into the wings of His resurrection glory! And this is when, I believe, that He will freely flow from our bellies as rivers of living water (John Ch. 7, vs. 38).

The death will happen when the Holy Spirit does a transformational work on our hearts and spirits. True deliverance can only come from Him. It can’t be achieved by our soulish striving and works. At times all we can do is to continue asking Him for freedom; and He will then bring us into circumstances where that freedom becomes our reality. It’s prudent to realize when one of these circumstances is knocking on our door, and to embrace the trials and tribulations as opportunities for true regeneration.

Then His resurrection power will be all the more unhindered within us!

Authority

I was talking with some friends when the topic of obeying our callings came up. In reference to mission trips to foreign countries it was mentioned that some hold the methodology that if someone feels called to the nations but doesn't have much of a track record with 'conversions' at their home country that they should refrain from going until they're fruitful at their present location. The thought is that everyone is a missionary regardless of where they are (which is true); so why go to another country when your track record is so poor at home?

The thought came to me that even though the above argument makes rational sense that it is totally based from a natural thought process. It reminded me of the Esau mentality, where a person's life is operated by their natural mind. In a sense, where the logic of the human mind dictates our decisions and plans. I believe that the extreme form of this path leads directly into a humanistic lifestyle (which on another note I believe is directly linked to the great End Times deception).

At that moment I felt a powerful sense of the Holy Spirit. He descended on me like a burning cloak, and I felt Him both in my spirit and in my every limb. He then spoke and said, "At times a person's life doesn't have authority because they aren't walking in their calling. It is when we obey our calling that we will see the fruit of our labors. This is when we will walk in authority."

After this was spoken I exclaimed to my friends that I could sense the Holy Spirit all over those words! My friend immediately concurred that he too felt the Holy Spirit come with the above statement!

So, I think what God is saying is don't let a stagnant, or seemingly stagnant, Christian life deter us from obeying the calling that He has for us Today! Because it's when we embrace His calling and mandate for our lives that He flourishes through us to touch the world with His love and power.