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Major Kingdom/Apostolic Articles
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A Major Shift Has Occurred In The Spiritual Realm - Ron McGatlin
Suddenly in one day, in one hour the lives of millions in Pakistan have changed forever.
In their nice homes mothers get their children ready for school, seeing that they are dressed in a fresh clean uniform, making sure they have a good breakfast and brush their teeth and hair. With a hug and a kiss they remind the happy child to be careful and to watch for traffic. Only about an hour later the earth violently heaves and the child with hundreds of other children are crushed to death by the collapsing school buildings as the entire city crumbles. Nothing is as it was only an hour before. Life as it has been no longer exists. Death and misery are everywhere. Multitudes are dead and injured. Many are trapped in the debris of the fallen city. Millions are left homeless and there is no one in sight to help. In one day, life as it was is no more. The things that seemed so stable and so dependable, the sense of security and all that was familiar are gone.
On the gulf coast of the USA they know Katrina is coming and hundreds of thousands flee the area. Thousands of others stay because they made it through storms before. In one day their homes and all of the buildings of some towns are reduced to scattered rubble. Many of those who stay drown and many of those who flee the storm have no place to return to. In one day the lives of hundreds of thousands are forever changed.
A group of men gather to sign up for work as policemen in Iraq. As they wait in the morning sun and pass the time talking with one another suddenly a bomb explodes in their midst and men are blown to bits and many are severely injured. In one day their lives and their families lives are forever changed.
Devastation has suddenly ended the lives of hundreds of thousands in numerous events around the world in the past year. Multitudes have had there lives forever severely changed in one day. Many survivors have lost everything including parts of their families, their homes, their jobs, businesses, and schools. Entire communities have been destroyed.
The stories of the many events in which multitudes of lives were snuffed out or forever changed in one day would fill many pages. The scope of human suffering is unimaginable.
What is going on?
Our human compassion begs that we not investigate this question but that we rather focus on helping to save those who are perishing both naturally and spiritually. The extraordinary events of devastation are being used to awaken the sleeping church with shouts of a clear call to repentance from pleasure seeking lifestyles to setting their affection on things above and not things on this earth.
My heart is burdened with the word of God weighing heavily within my spirit. Please bear with me and seek to hear the depth of what God is speaking in this moment. Please give serious consideration to the following frail attempt to express the gravity of this moment in God.
A major shift has occurred.
In this moment in time we have come to a door in the spiritual realm. The door has been opened in the past and even opened wider for the past few weeks but it is closing. This door is an opening for repentance for the large, broad but shallow major portion of the Israel of God. The "Sunday only" religious lukewarm "socially correct" church that is rich in worldliness and traditions of men but is weak, poor, and wretched in the Spirit. Institutions filled with good people who have been baptized, who are on the church roll, and attend church and give offerings, but have turned away the fire of God and do not focus on things above but on things of this worldly life. Those who have lived in comfort and who love their lives.
The door has been wide open for the lukewarm church to find reformation through revival and renewal bringing repentance and change. As this door closes, it will become impossible for the broad-shallow institutional church to experience reformation across the board. The institution will not be transformed. A way will no longer be found for the religious church to repent from dead works and be changed. A fresh living expression of the body of Christ is arising like fresh spring grass in a field. Individuals will be drawn to the sacrificial life of seeking God and things above with their whole hearts. They will move from dead religious structures to living relational experience with God. The closing of the door marks the end of a season and the beginning of another.
A door is opening wide
A door is being opened wide unto a remnant people. These have little or no religious or earthly reputation, and are often without much of this world's goods. They do not fit into the religious social structure. They are despised by the politically correct high church society. They are the outcasts of the Israel of God, who have endured much pain and suffering and who have no life apart from God. These called out ones are often seen as the dregs of church society, however they have anchored their lives in the heart of Jesus and set their affection on things above.
They are destined to become "New Jerusalem" people of God - the heart of the true spiritual Israel of God - the "Christ in you" people - the "Joel's army" who will become the defenders of the faith - the warriors of God, the intercessors that will claim the kingdoms of this world for the kingdom of our God. These are the ones in whom Christ dwells and to whom a door into heavenly oneness with God is opening wide. These are those who will do mighty exploits and proclaim the glory of God to the ends of the earth.
The rapid succession of cataclysmic events
The rapid succession of cataclysmic events are being used as warnings to turn people from a life of sorcery and idolatry worshiping gods of pleasure. The broad religious church of the past has failed to release the love and power of God into the world to protect the world from the take over of evil. The bold remnant church is being raised up to release the purity, love, and power of God into the world. To do the job that the religious church failed to do. To subdue the world gone astray and destroy the works of the devil. Christ is being raised up outside religion in His purified Body.
Jesus called together fishermen, tax collectors and untaught people who would follow Him as His disciples and released them to do exploits in the world. The religious institutions had no part in the new thing Jesus was doing. Only a few who came out of the religious system and followed Jesus were part of the new church He was calling forth.
Paul went first to the religious institutions that he had come out of and delivered the gospel of Christ to them. But when they would not repent and change he went to others outside the camp and the first century church became a powerful reality in the world outside the religious institutions of the day,
Acts 13:46: Then Paul and Barnabas grew bold and said, "It was necessary that the word of God should be spoken to you first; but since you reject it, and judge yourselves unworthy of everlasting life, behold, we turn to the Gentiles.
God was not well pleased with many of His people in that day. They were the broad major religious part of natural Israel. Today God is not well pleased with much of the Israel of God. They may be in church on Sunday, been baptized, made a profession of faith, and even tithed but with much of the "church" God is not well pleased. God IS well pleased with His Son Jesus. Only the manifestation of sons in whom Christ dwells and who are anchored in the heart of Jesus are well pleasing to God.
1 Cor 10:1-6: Moreover, brethren, I do not want you to be unaware that all our fathers were under the cloud, all passed through the sea, all were baptized into Moses in the cloud and in the sea, all ate the same spiritual food, and all drank the same spiritual drink. For they drank of that spiritual Rock that followed them, and that Rock was Christ. But with MOST of them God was not well pleased, for their bodies were scattered in the wilderness. Now these things became our examples, to the intent that we should not lust after evil things as they also lusted.
Like the religious church of today, they had all done all the stuff and even drank from the spiritual rock that followed them and that rock was Christ. Why then was God not well pleased with them? They mixed lust and idolatry into their lives along with their religion in spite of having experienced the works of God.
What was the idol that brought them down? According to this passage, it was the same god of pleasure that affects the world and much of the religious "church" today. They sat down to eat and drink and rose up to play and committed sexual immorality. There idol was fleshly pleasure or pleasing self above pleasing and obeying God.
1 Cor 10:7-13: And do not become idolaters as were some of them. As it is written, "The people sat down to eat and drink, and rose up to play." Nor let us commit sexual immorality, as some of them did, and in one day twenty-three thousand fell; nor let us tempt Christ, as some of them also tempted, and were destroyed by serpents; nor complain, as some of them also complained, and were destroyed by the destroyer. Now all these things happened to them as examples, and they were written for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the ages have come. Therefore let him who THINKS he stands take heed lest he fall.
Isa 47:8-11: Therefore hear this now, you who are given to pleasures, Who dwell securely, Who say in your heart, 'I am, and there is no one else besides me; I shall not sit as a widow, Nor shall I know the loss of children'; But these two things shall come to you In a moment, in one day: The loss of children, and widowhood. They shall come upon you in their fullness Because of the multitude of your sorceries, For the great abundance of your enchantments. "For you have trusted in your wickedness; You have said, 'No one sees me'; Your wisdom and your knowledge have warped you; And you have said in your heart, 'I am, and there is no one else besides me.' Therefore evil shall come upon you; You shall not know from where it arises. And trouble shall fall upon you; You will not be able to put it off. And desolation shall come upon you suddenly, Which you shall not know.
A door is opening wide for the humble.
A door for repentance and intimate oneness with God is opening wide for the outcast, the lower caste, the third world, the native people, the foreigner, the broken, the halt and the lame, the blind and the oppressed, the foolish of this world who will humble themselves before God.
Not many mighty, not many noble, not many with big names are chosen to become part of the "New Jerusalem" people. It is time to preach the gospel of the kingdom to the poor and the poor in spirit. Time to proclaim liberty to the captives and sight to the blind and set the oppressed free.
Mat 5:3 Blessed are the poor in spirit, For theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
Luke 4:18 The Spirit of the LORD is upon Me, Because He has anointed Me To preach the gospel to the poor; He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted, To proclaim liberty to the captives And recovery of sight to the blind, To set at liberty those who are oppressed.
1 Cor 1:26-28: For you see your calling, brethren, that not many wise according to the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble, are called. But God has chosen the foolish things of the world to put to shame the wise, and God has chosen the weak things of the world to put to shame the things which are mighty; and the base things of the world and the things which are despised God has chosen, and the things which are not, to bring to nothing the things that are,
Just as Paul & Barnabas came to a point in time when God instructed them to no longer seek to reform the religious system of their day but sent them to those outside, the time has also come in this day that the shift be made from seeking to reform the religious systems of today who will not hear the gospel of the kingdom. The shift is now being made to proclaim the gospel of the kingdom to those who are outside the religious systems and those who will come out of the Babylonian institutions of religious "church" - those who will hear, repent and change and become the purified holy city of New Jerusalem, the true Bride of Christ.
A part of this shift is setting our affection on things above not on earthly things. Only as we draw near to Him and become consumed in His love can we remove our affection for the traditions of religious trappings and the idolatry of seeking fleshly pleasure. As we become anchored in the heart of Jesus we will no longer be anchored in our doctrines, creeds, and religious practices and we will no longer need to seek self pleasure.
Our hearts are longing for Him, for His kingdom and His righteousness. In these things is the fullness of joy that wipes away our need for the gods of earthly pleasures. The door is wide open enter into the heart of God and be consumed in His love. You will become a world changer.
Mat 6:33 But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you.
Pursue Love, It Never Fails,
Lots of Love,
Ron McGatlin
archive.openheaven.com
ronmcgatlin@earthlink.net
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