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Such as I Have, I Give Unto You
By Ron McGatlin
Almost 60 years of being involved in the things of God in many varied church, business, and ministry experiences, seeking to serve God with my whole heart and all that is within me, have brought me to this place and this time. Surely the most significant time, the greatest season of God is now unfolding on earth and we (all who will) get to be a part of it.
Over two millennia of history have brought us from the time of the Cross to this time of the early years of the beginning of the third millennia since Jesus and the restoration of the preaching of the gospel of the kingdom. We have entered the third one thousand year period since Peter, James, and John and the other disciples of Christ walked upon Planet Earth planting the precious seed of the gospel of the kingdom of God on earth as it is in heaven.
It would be a grave error to look back in history and think it would have been better to have been in that day or to look ahead to the future and think it will be much greater in that day. All that has gone before us has brought us to this time of the fullness of the gospel of the kingdom of God being boldly proclaimed in power by the Spirit of Christ that has multiplied and is maturing in His many sons coming to glory (Heb 2:10).
The Kingdom Coming Within
Can you feel the explosion of fire and love within your spirit as the blazing glory of Christ Jesus erupts within us to consume all it touches? We are like those who dream or those who have died and resurrected into heavenly life. We are removed from natural concerns and earthly triviality to be transformed by the love and fire of heaven come to earth in us.
Even in the darkness of religion’s valley of the shadow, the glory of God is bursting onto the scene of our world destroying evil - cleansing the vile from our lives. Harlots are becoming purified holy brides. Broken men from the darkest corners of life are becoming purified holy sons of God carrying the love of Christ in their hearts and the fire of his life flowing from their hands.
Religion’s false limiting dogmas are being washed away as Truth Himself manifest in His sons. The resurrection life of Christ is alive and consuming the fallacious doctrines derived by demons planted by the traditions of men (1 Tim 4:1) (Mark 7:9, 7:13). Emptiness and boredom of self-centered pleasure-seeking is zapped away by the light of the joy of loving and serving God with all our strength and all our minds. Truly abundance of life abides in the resurrection life of Christ (John 10:10).
The 21st century outpouring is restoring the next layer of the kingdom of God that Jesus brought to earth over two millennia ago (Mat 4:23). The gospel of the kingdom seeded by Christ Jesus into the earth is growing into maturity in this the seventh millennium since Adam and the third millennium since Christ Jesus. The Spirit of God is producing the love and power of the sacrificed life now resurrected. We are truly becoming living sacrifices set apart to God for Him to fill with His resurrection life to be poured out to cleanse, heal, and deliver the people to become sons of God to bring forth His kingdom here and now on earth.
More to Give
We now have much more to give. Like Peter, John, and the other first century disciples after the Holy Spirit came at Pentecost and filled them all with power from heaven, we now have power to preach and demonstrate the true kingdom of God. After the disciples had waited in Jerusalem to receive the promise of the Father, as Jesus had instructed before ascending to the throne, they were empowered by the Holy Spirit just as Jesus had said they would be (Acts 1:4-8) . Christ Jesus became a life-giving Spirit and returned to dwell in them by the Holy Spirit (1 Cor 15:45) (John 14:18). Christ in them by the Holy Spirit filled them with all the attributes of the resurrected life of Christ Jesus. They had more to give than ever before. They had the love, the fire, power, wisdom, and authority of Christ Jesus abiding in them as they lived and walked in the Spirit. They were filled and saturated by the Spirit of God. Christ was now abiding in them, and they were abiding in Him by the Spirit.
Peter and John walked into the temple at the hour of prayer. They passed a lame beggar that they probably had passed before sometime in the past prior to the Holy Spirit’s coming at Pentecost. Perhaps they had even given him alms before when they had some coins to give. They had given him such as they had at the time. This time would be different. They had something much greater to give the lame beggar now.
And Peter, fastening his eyes upon him with John, said, Look on us. And he gave heed unto them, expecting to receive something of them.
Then Peter said, Silver and gold have I none; but such as I have give I thee: In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth rise up and walk.
And he took him by the right hand, and lifted him up: and immediately his feet and ankle bones received strength. And he leaping up stood, and walked, and entered with them into the temple, walking, and leaping, and praising God. (Acts 3:4-8)
As I considered this encounter I began to imagine two religious men of that day stopping to answer the beggar’s request with questions like, What sin have you committed to cause this lameness? Was it the sin of your parents that caused you to be born this way? If you will properly repent for those sins and bring the proper sacrifices and pay a proper tithe on the alms you receive, perhaps God will help you. And turning to his companion, “Aren’t you glad we are not in sin like this poor man?”
Then a compassionate good man, but a man who was not experiencing the fullness of living and walking in the Holy Spirit, came by and sought to comfort the beggar. He sat down beside him and put his arm around him and said, “Oh you poor fellow, I am so sorry you are in this condition. I know it’s not your fault that you are lame. Someday when Messiah comes and establishes His kingdom, life won’t be like this. But if Messiah does not come in your lifetime, you will be all well in heaven.” The good and compassionate man gave him some alms and comforted him in his condition and promised to come again to help him more.
Each of these men gave what he had to the beggar. It was the very best they had to give. Like the religious legalistic church systems, the first men had only legalistic religious instruction that added condemnation to the lame man. The compassionate man like the lukewarm and liberal church systems gave compassionate comfort and money to help the situation but left him crippled still. They each gave what they had, and they all turned the man toward faith in something other than Christ and His kingdom that had come to earth in the Holy Spirit. The legalist had faith in human works and the priestly order of the passing old covenant. The good man had faith in human compassion, heaven some day and a kingdom to come some day in the future.
However, Peter and John filled with the Holy Spirit had Christ and His kingdom love and power in them by the Spirit to completely heal the man and set him free.
The kingdom of God is righteousness, peace and joy IN THE HOLY SPIRIT and is not in word but in power (Rom 14:17)(1 Cor 4:20).
1 Cor 4:20: For the kingdom of God is not in word but in power.
To me this is a picture of where we are today. We have endured the religious legalistic church system and the lukewarm powerless church system that could only try to correct us or comfort us in our deformed cripple state. Now in the New Century (21st century) outpouring outside the religious church systems, ordinary people are powerfully encountering the presence of God by the Holy Spirit and are being cleansed by the work of the Spirit of Christ. We are receiving a pure heart and moving into a holy life by the power of God.
We are being prepared and released to bring forth the kingdom of God in the world as it is in heaven. We are beginning to move as one with one focus and one life in which to serve God by serving His people with the fullness of Christ in us by the Holy Spirit – lifting our eyes and setting our minds on things that are above. We are no longer seeking after the things of this life but seeking Christ Jesus and His kingdom first and above all else in this life. We are here in this life in this time to bring forth the glory of our Lord and His kingdom.
Mat 6:31-33: "Therefore do not worry, saying, 'What shall we eat?' or 'What shall we drink?' or 'What shall we wear?' For after all these things the Gentiles seek. For your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you.”
Keep on pursuing Love. Love never fails
and His kingdom never ends.
Ron McGatlin
http://archive.openheaven.com/ - archive.openheaven.com
mailto:basileia@earthlink.net - basileia@earthlink.net
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