COMMANDING LIGHT TO SHINE OUT OF DARKNESS
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”Arise, shine; for your light has come, And the glory of the LORD has risen upon you. “For behold, darkness will cover the earth, And deep darkness the peoples; But the LORD will rise upon you, And His glory will appear upon you. “And nations will come to your light, And kings to the brightness of your rising. “Lift up your eyes round about, and see; They all gather together, they come to you. Your sons will come from afar, And your daughters will be carried in the arms. “Then you will see and be radiant, And your heart will thrill and rejoice; Because the abundance of the sea will be turned to you, The wealth of the nations will come to you. (Isaiah 60:1-5).
We are living in a time when the deliverance of the message of the gospel has exceeded its application within the corporate body. As a result, the desire to stay in God has become greatly challenged. After all, how much preaching does it take to become actively engaged with gospel of Jesus Christ? I am a firm believer that we should be constantly learning new truths about the love and power of God’s kingdom, but the fact is, the action of the word has to, at a minimum, be equal to what you hear.
Paul writes, “And my speech and my preaching were not with persuasive words of human wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power, that your faith should not be in the wisdom of men but in the power of God. (1Cor 2:4-5)
He writes again, “For our gospel did not come to you in word only, but also in power, and in the Holy Spirit and in much assurance, as you know what kind of men we were among you for your sake.” (1Thess 1:5)
The demonstration of the word is a means to bring people into a greater realm of faith in God. While it certainly should have a tremendous affect on those witnessing the power of the word, the fact is, unless the rest of the body becomes a demonstration of the Spirit and power, the effectiveness of the word and the retention level is lessened. It’s easy to acquire a lot of head and heart knowledge about the love and glory of God and even witness the supernatural realm, without ever exhibiting an effective demonstration for yourself.
How many demonstrations of the Spirit does it take before a group of believers do the same? In all actuality, it only takes one. So for those of you who have repeatedly encountered the love and power of God, the question being asked is, “How much of that love and power are you demonstrating outside of the four walls of a Sunday gathering?”
More and more, people are becoming less enthused about the latest revelation of the kingdom of God. I believe this is largely due to the lack of self motivation and kingdom manifestation. Recently a news report was released on Fox News that read, “Losing the Faith.” Its meaning was that more and more Christians appeared to be losing their faith in God. The contents of the article revealed, without directly saying so, those who were less active outside the church appeared to be steadily decreasing, verses those who were participating beyond the internal function of a spiritual institution.
For instance, the Mormon Church seemed to be holding a pretty steady pace. I found this as no surprise since the Mormon Church is very active in the community at various levels outside its religious walls. Another increase of spiritual participation was those who called themselves non-denominational Christians. A large part of these groups were connected to what is known as “Mega Churches.” Many of which, are also known for their active involvement in the market place. I am by no means minimizing the importance of continual spiritual instruction and the demonstration thereof within the local church. However, outside the numbered few across this nation, the kingdom ship seems to be heavily tilted to one side.
There is no doubt that the institution of the Church is dramatically changing. Increasing evidence is revealing that the workings within the church are less able to retain the attendance of Christian believers, let alone get the attention of non-believers. It appears that most Christians are far more influential with their own kind, but not near as effective beyond the perimeters of the local congregation.
Even some of the more adventurous groups that are able to offer a larger range of the supernatural, eventually grow dim if the demonstration thereof does not reveal itself more fluently throughout the corporate body, thus into the various kingdoms of the world. While the internet cannot replace the personal contact of Christian fellowship, more and more it is becoming one of the leading driving forces of communicating the glory and power of God’s kingdom throughout the world.
Yet, at the end of the day, the internet can never replace your deepest longing to actively engage with the glory of God for yourself. This means that you must find the courage, faith and boldness to release the kingdom of God that is within you. You must discover for yourself what it means to live in the presence of God for yourself. You have to know what is like to encounter the love of God face to face. No amount of revelation or demonstration of the Spirit of God, via anyone or anything else, will ever satisfy you’re longing to live and move in Him.
Right now there are countless believers in the earth who are being challenged to have communion with God and with one another at whole new level in the Spirit. I believe the outward conflict that is going on in the world is directly linked to an inward conflict that is occurring within the church at large. For years many have believed that the institution of the church was the safest place to be, until hidden abuses and perversions were revealed.
Just recently the entire nation realized how vulnerable the church can really be, when they heard how a supposed mentally ill man barged into The First Baptist Church in Maryville, Ill, shooting and killing a pastor while standing behind the pulpit of the congregation.
What once viewed as a safe place, is no more. No spiritual institution, contrary to what others might think, has the power to protect you from the forces of darkness. Instruct, teach and demonstrate? Yes. But actually become the sole covering to keep you from harms way? No. Only you as an individual can ultimately make the decision to relate with God and with one another, which in turn, will lessen the vulnerabilities in your own life. It was noted that the pastor held up his bible as his only defense against his attacker. On the surface it appears that even the word of God was not sufficient enough to save his life. But do not be fooled by the tactics of the enemy. While we know that the written letter by itself is not sufficient enough to overcome the powers of darkness, we do know that the spiritual application of it in our lives is more than sufficient.
No doubt there will be many prophetic words released about this particular incident, but underneath these prophetic observations, a wife, mother, children and friends will still question, why? I can’t help but think that as these many questions are asked and fewer answers are known, somehow the merging of the two reveal a seed that is planted in the ground, and instead of death, life will emerge out of darkness.
I am reminded of the words of Paul when he writes:
“For it is the God who commanded light to shine out of darkness , who has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.” (2Cor 4:6)
As our hearts and prayers are directed toward the survivors of this senseless act of violence, I find myself all the more determined to prophetically demonstrate the power of God by commanding light to shine out of this dark day in Maryville, Illinois. I have a strong sense in my spirit that God is about to manifest unusual signs and wonders in Maryville, Ill. I sense an unusual realm of the miraculous being stirred in that region.
“Truly Maryville, a hub you will be and many spokes of glory will emanate from you. From tears of sadness and fear will emerge joy and courage and great faith. Like Peter, you shall step out of the boat into the waters of faithful demonstration. Unlike Peter, the fear of the storm will not keep you from recognizing your fullest potential in God. God is restoring the spirit of adventure back into your region and state. You will venture out into the supernatural realms of the Spirit and exhibit the love and glory of God at an unprecedented level.”
The spirit and power of participation is upon the body of Christ right now. I declare that we will never be satisfied to just attend a Sunday gathering or any other kind of gathering, just to set and listen, without actively engaging and demonstrating the love and power of God, through signs, wonders and miracles.
I command the light of God to drive away the shadows of death that have been lingering over those we love, in this region and in this nation. I command light to come out of the economical darkness that seems to be hovering over this nation. I command light to shine in the darkest and hardest heart that has said, “I will never give my life to the Lord.” I command light to emanate from the White House of these United States and declare a fresh new demonstration of the glory of the Lord. I declare that we will never be satisfied until we engage with the kingdoms of this world for the sole purpose of revealing heaven on earth. A time will come when you will no longer look for someone to give you a word from heaven, because you will know;
“The word has become flesh and dwelt among us and now we behold the glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth.” (John 1:14)
Get ready for the most unsatisfying time of your life, until you engage with God at a level of intimacy; unlike you have ever known before.
3/09/2009
Blessings,
Michael
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