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church, but we continue to base

the things we do on the ideas of

man. Scripture says that God will

set the members of the church in

place to accomplish His will, but

we go on as if the Bible said

nothing. Is this really the wayGod intended for us to live? Of

course not!

God pointed out on two

separate occasions in Scripture

(Num. 11:23, Isa. 59:1) that His

arm has not been shortened. As

His people looked around and

wondered how His promises

might become a reality God re-

minded them that the all-

powerful creator is still all-

powerful. The King who sat onHis throne as the earth was creat-

ed is still seated on His throne.

Many Christians long to see the

miraculous, and experience a

power that is impossible for us to

attain or manipulate. The key to

witnessing the work of God is a

submission to Him. We cannot

allow the deflated spiritual lives

of Christians today to keep us

from pursuing a closer walk with

God, though we so often do. Ifthe Old Testament teaches us

anything for sure, it is that the

failure of man to realize Gods

promises is not an excuse for us

to cease pursuing a relationship

with Him. If we are ever to see

God move in power it will be

because His people have put off

all the excuses and sought His

presence. You will seek me and

find me, when you seek me with

all your heart (Jer. 29:13).

And the Lord said to Moses, Is

the Lords hand shortened? Now

you shall see whether my word will

come true for you or not. -

Numbers 11:23

There are days in our Christian liveswhen the promises of God seem

frustrating. We see what He has

proclaimed to us and look around at

our circumstances and it just seems

impossible that His will could be

done. In fact, many Christians have

convinced themselves that it cannot

be done. We see what the Bible

says about the church and the devout

lives that Gods people are supposed

to live and tell ourselves that it will

never happen. But often we dont

just stop there; we allow our frustra-

tion and an occasional disappoint-

ment to get the best of us and we

begin to live like the promises of

God are impossible. Scripture be-

comes little more than a guideline

that offers sound advice when we

have no place else to turn, but it is

not really our rule of faith, or some-

thing that carries authority. For

many it certainly does not carry theauthority of the Holy God by whom

it was inspired. This is a dangerous

way for a Christian to live, and a

perilous way for the church to func-

tion, but this is often the case none-

theless.

The world has been living

like God does not exist for millen-

nia. They spurn His commands and

live lifestyles that offend His charac-

ter. Many of the atheists of our day

have done a good job of con-

vincing the secular world that

God is not a factor in our lives

and He has been eliminated

from almost every aspect of

public life. As alarming as thismay be, it is the attitude of the

church that Gods arm is

shortened and cannot help us

today as He did generations ago

that has allowed this idea to be

promoted to the point of ac-

ceptance. We look at the ways

that the Spirit led the church of

the New Testament and resign

ourselves to the idea that this

just does not happen anymore.

And rather than seeking the

work of the Spirit that Scripture

portrays to us we use that lack of

visible power as our excuse to

do things our way rather than

Gods way.

When we lower our

expectations of God to meet our

experience we are cheating our-

selves of the opportunity to wit-

ness the power of God. We hear

sermons about Gods power, andread books and articles about it

and agree wholeheartedly with

what we hear. Some of these

things excite us and lift our spir-

its for awhile, but when we

leave that setting we go back to

living the way we think we

should without giving any

thought to Gods direction, or

His Word. We believe that

Gods Spirit will lead the

Bringing Truth into Focus

Buy truth, and do notsell it; buy wisdom, in-

struction, and under-

standing.

=Proverbs 23:23

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P A G E 2

To catch the reader's attention, place an

interesting sentence or quote from the story

here.

From that time Jesus began to preach, saying, Repent, for the

kingdom of heaven is at hand. -Matthew 4:17

Despite the claims of the evolutionist, since the begin-

ning of time, animals have not become anything besides that

which they were created to be. Fish have been fish since the

day God filled the seas with life, and birds have been birds

since the hour God set them in the skies to take flight. And God

said, Let the waters swarm with swarms of living creatures,

and let birds fly above the earth across the expanse of the heav-

ens. So God created the great creatures and every living

creature that moves, with which the waters swarm, according to

their kinds, and every winged bird according to its kind

(Genesis 1:20, 21). Even those animals that walk the earth have

done exactly what God created them to do. And God said, Let

the earth bring forth living creatures according to their kinds

livestock and creeping things and beasts of the earth according

to their kinds (Genesis 1:24).

This is not to say that the earth has not changed. We

look around us and see a world that is drastically different from

the accounts of the garden God placed in Eden. Scripture tells

us that God created the heavens and the earth, and God saw that

it was good (Genesis 1:25). How, then, did the things that hap-

pen in this world come to be? Did God really intend for us to

fight wars, and for the pestilence and violence that have con-

sumed all of His creation? Of course not! The world was es-tablished according to the specific plan of its Divine Architect.

You do not have to be a Bible scholar to look around this world

and realize that changes have been made, and things are not

always according to Gods plan. But these changes were not

made by God, and cannot be attributed to the Creator.

The pinnacle of Gods creation was the one who was

formed in His image, man. God breathed life into the body of

the first human and placed Him in the world as a steward over

the creation. The Lord God took the man and put him in the

garden of Eden to work it and keep it (Genesis 2:15). It wasthis man, whom God had given the freedom to reason and

choose right from wrong, that changed the heavenly plan of

God. When man chose to disobey the mandate given by God,

he gave up his God-appointed position as steward of Gods cre-

ation in an effort to become its king.

None of the

animals fashioned by God had the ability to do anything more

or less than God created them to do. They function by in-

stinct, and react naturally to the circumstances around them.Animals realize no need for change, they were created in a

state that allows them to see only that which God programmed

within them. If they were created to hunt then they hunt. If

they were created to eat the grass of the field, or fly through

the air, or even swim in the seas that is what they do. Even

the slight changes we see in some of their physical character-

istics are not generally natural phenomenon. The variances

result from the domestic breeding controlled by man to manip-

ulate their traits for our benefit. Some are bred to be bigger,

and some smaller. Some are bred to produce certain things,

while others are intended to look a specific way. But thechanges (while many times beneficial) are the result of mans

work and study.

Only man was created with the capacity to change

the creation of God in some way. While animals know noth-

ing but the natural order of creation, man can aspire to be

something different than what God created him to be. Though

he was created to be a steward of Gods domain on earth, he

aspired to take the place of Jehovah and become the king him-

self. Over the course of history we see Gods redemptive

work intended to restore man to his rightful place as a subject

of the Most High, but man continually aspires to rule himself,

rejecting the rule of Almighty God.

The Old Testament provides us countless examples

of mans rejection of the rule of God in favor of the things of

this sin-cursed world. But in spite of his best efforts, all the

ingenuity he can conjure, and the greatest technological ad-

vances conceivable, man can reject and dishonor God, but

cannot take His place. We were created to be subjects of a

King, and without Him we find a void that cannot be filled by

anything this existence has to offer. We find within our hearts

the need for the more than the limited stability of this world,or the futile attempts of governments and rulers to ensure our

safety. Man needs the presence of God; a real presence that

invades his soul and becomes an integral part of his life. Man

needs a revolution that delivers him from the uncertainty and

upheaval of this earth and gives him a peace and comfort he

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P A G E 3V O L U M E 2 , I S S U E 7

can stand on.

God provided for the needs of the heart of man by

stepping across the vast gulf that separates creator from crea-

tion and invading this world with a divine kingdom. Not

another worldly government but a peace that overwhelms

even the hardest human heart and satisfies the spirit of everyperson who will submit to the reign of Jesus Christ, the Son

of God who was sent to establish this Kingdom. Max

Gaulke wrote, Now in Christianity all the doctrines in the

Bible converge upon this one the Kingdom of God. Christ

came to establish this kingdom. The Bible is the divine doc-

ument that presents the history of Gods redemptive plan as

He endeavored to make His kingship acceptable to the world.

Everything else the bible says can be incorporated into this

briefly stated - but major thesis of the Word of God.

While this topic of the Kingdom of God draws

much speculation in Christian circles today, Scripture teach-

es of Gods invasion of this world in a way that transcends

any kingdom this world has ever known. The New Testa-

ment does not teach of a political kingdom, but one that is

spiritual, where God has more than land and worldly wealth,

but the hearts and affections of His creation. Though this

doctrine was expounded by Jesus Christ Himself it was an

aberration to the Jews who simply wanted to rule over the

Romans who had enslaved them and left the nation impover-

ished. The people of Israel would have been happy with an

overthrow of the Roman government, but God had a greater

plan an overthrow of Satan and the evil that controlled and

reigned over the hearts of man.

The invasion of Gods Kingdom was not an unex-

pected event among the Jews. Long had they awaited the

day Gods throne would be among them. The Old Testament

predicted the coming of the Messiah and the establishment of

Gods Kingdom for centuries. And in the days of those

kings the God of heaven will set up a kingdom that shall nev-

er be destroyed, nor shall the kingdom be left to another peo-

ple. It shall break in pieces all these kingdoms and bring

them to an end, and it shall stand forever (Daniel 2:44).

With great anticipation the Jews waited for what they ex-

pected to be mighty armies and a benevolent ruler who

would inhabit a literal earthly throne, but the promises of

Scripture never foretold such a throne. All of these promises

point to the coming of Jesus Christ who preached, Repent,

the kingdom of heaven is at hand (Matthew 4:17), and the

establishment of His SPIRITUAL KINGDOM. While count-

less thousands wait even today for a literal political establish-

ment, the New Testament clearly teaches us that they wait in

vain. A.F. Gray reminds us, There is no promise on which

one can rely for the restoration of the political kingdom of

Israel. Promises that the Jews will return to the favor of God

(which promises are conditional) do not imply a restoration of

their political kingdom. Certain promises relied on to prove

such a restoration have found their fulfillment in the Messianic

Kingdom.

While many will argue that a spiritual kingdom can-

not fully fulfill the promises of God contained in the Old Tes-

tament, this kingdom possesses all the features necessary to

embody the fulfillment of Gods promises. According to H.M.

Riggle, This is called a kingdom because it has laws, all the

moral precepts of the gospel; subjects, all who believe inChrist Jesus; and a King, the sovereign of heaven and earth.

Throughout Scripture there is a consistency in the reference to

the spiritual nature of Gods Kingdom:

Your throne, O God, is forever and ever. The scepter of

Your kingdom is a scepter of uprightness (Psalm 45:6).

On that day there shall be a fountain opened for the house

of David and the inhabitants of Jerusalem, to cleanse

them from sin and uncleanness (Zechariah 13:1).

On that day living waters shall flow out from Jerusalem,

half of them to the eastern sea and half of them to thewestern sea (Zechariah 14:8).

Seek first the kingdom of Godand His righteousness, and

all these things will be added to you (Matthew 6:33).

For the kingdom of Godis not a matter of eating and

drinkingbut of righteousness and peace and joy in the

Holy Spirit (Romans 14:17).

The truth is, God never intended to establish an earth-

ly political kingdom and reign from a literal throne. God did

not want or need the wealth of the world. He wants the

affection of His people. He does not want our money in the

form of taxes, or your allegiance by way of royal edict, He

wants our love. Henry Blackaby describes the Kingdom this

way, The kingdom of God is the rule of God in the hearts of

people around the world. Every church that follows Christ is

part of the kingdom of God. If you are a true disciple of Jesus,

you must obey His clear command to seek first the kingdom

of God.

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P A G E 4

According to Scripture, Jesus Christ reigns over His

kingdom today. That was His purpose in coming into this

world, and it was taught throughout His ministry. Even when

Jesus stood before the Roman authorities He claimed this pur-

pose for His presence on earth. Then Pilate said to him, So

you are a king? Jesus answered, You say that I am a king.

FOR THIS PURPOSE I have come into the world to bear

witness to the truth. Everyone who is of the truth listens to my

voice (John 18:37)

Through his death on the cross and resurrection, Jesus

overcame the authorities of the world. Satan the prince of

this world could not kill off the Son of God with his wicked

schemes, and the Roman cross could not extinguish His life. In

one act, through self-sacrificing love, Jesus overcame the au-

thority of the world and the penalty for sin death. This left

nothing outside of His own authority. Revelation 12 teaches us

of the authority gained by Christ through the crucifixion andsubsequent resurrection. Now war arose in heaven, Michael

and his angels fighting against the dragonAnd the great

dragon was thrown down, that ancient serpent, who is called

the devil and Satan, the deceiver of the whole world he was

thrown down to the earthAnd I heard a loud voice in heaven,

saying, NOW salvation and the power AND THE KINGDOM

of our God and THE AUTHORITY of his Christ have come, for

the accuser of our brothers has been thrown down, who accus-

es them day and night before our God (Revelation 12:7-10).

This passage is described by many as the fall of Sa-

tan before time began, but this cannot be. The passage dates

itself in verse 10: NOW salvation and power and the kingdom

of our God and the authority of his Christ have come When

did salvation come? It came at Calvary! But it says here that

the kingdom of God and the authority of Christ came when

salvation did. This passage gives us proof that the reign of Je-

sus Christ over the hearts of believers is a present reality today.

Through the work of Jesus, God overcame the greatest act of

treason ever committed. The very men and women who tried to

take the place of Jehovah are the subjects of His holy kingdom

through their submission to the love and mercy of Jesus Christ.

A.F. Gray tells us, The kingdom of God is not an outwardly

visible kingdom, geographically located and coming with

pomp. It exists within the heart. It is a tremendous spiritual

force ruling uncounted millions, molding the hearts and lives of

men, and affecting all history. Therefore, we must remember

that the kingdom is an experience for each and every believer.

And this experience begins here and now.

It is a disturbing sight to walk into a Christian

bookstore and see the countless books written about the

worldly kingdom of God that is to come. With each passing

day we consume this erroneous doctrine, and all the while,

living beneath our privilege as citizens of Gods kingdomtoday. Man was created for God, and to live within His rule

and kingdom. When we look at the world around us and see

the chaos and turmoil, we must be aware that this is all a re-

sult of human failure to submit to the reign of God. It was

failure to do so in the beginning, and remains so today. Con-

sider the teaching of Jesus in Matthew 6:33, Seek first the

kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things

will be added to you. Leading up to this Scripture Jesus

asked why people worry about their clothes and their food,

and the circumstances of this life. He pointed out that the

birds neither sow nor reap, but God takes care of them. Andthe beautiful flowers of the field are clothed better than any

king who has ever lived, but they are of very little im-

portance. For a long time the 33rd verse troubled me because

this verse about the kingdom did not seem to fit the context of

worry. But one afternoon it occurred to me that all of the

animals God create have the provision they need, and every

one of them does what they were created to do. They fulfill

Gods holy purpose. Jesus commanded us not to worry, but

to be like the birds of the air, or the flowers of the field in that

respect. Jesus taught this because His intention was for us to

do what we were created to do: live under the reign of God inHis kingdom!

When we consider the kingdom of God as we see it

in Scripture, we understand that God has given us everything

we need to live in submission to Him. He has given us a con-

stitution in His Word. He has provided a benevolent, merci-

ful ruler in Jesus Christ. He has given us a guide as we jour-

ney through this world to our home in heaven His Spirit.

Leonard Ravenhill reminded us, God has nothing more to

give this world. He gave His only begotten Son for sinners.

He gave the Bible for all men; He gave the Holy Spirit to con-

vict the world, and equip the church.

Gods kingdom is a reality in the world today. It is

here among us, after having invaded this world nearly 2,000

years ago. God has provided all that we need in this king-

dom. How, then, should we live?

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Shout it aloud, do not hold back. Raise your voice like a

trumpet. Declare to my people their rebellion and to the

house of Jacob their sins. For day after day they seek me

out; they seem eager to know my ways, as if they were a

nation that does what is right and has not forsaken the

commands of its God. They ask me for just decisions and

seem eager for God to come near them. Why have we fast-

ed, they say, and you have not seen it? Why have we hum-

bled ourselves, and you have not noticed? Yet on the day

of your fasting you do as you please and exploit all yourworkers. Your fasting ends in quarreling and strife, and in

striking each other with wicked fists. You cannot fast as

you do today and expect your voice to be heard on high.

-Isaiah 58:4 NIV

I pray that God will allow this article to com-

municate some things that I have been seriously searching

recently. I read things and see things, and go here and

there in the church, and along the way I have really been

trying to determine what God really wants. I really have no

concern or care anymore for what man desires the churchto be. Maybe it is just mebut it sure seems that the life

of the church is consumed not with battling the spiritual

forces in the heavenly realms, but it is more of a battle

over everyones opinion on how to fix the church.

Againmaybe Im totally off base herebut I dont have

any answers. I am not going to attempt to be the guy that

sits on the sidelines hurling his opinions at the coach,

though, sadly, I have to admit that I have done that. I hope

I am wrong, but I would guess that I am not the only one

guilty of this. God forgive me for times I have valued my

opinion over submission and waiting for Your Spiritslead.

The spiritual battle we face is so far beyond any

of us. If we could step into the spiritual realm and get a

true vision for the battle that rages daily, and truly how in-

tense it actually is, how it affects our loved ones, friends,

brothers and sisters in Christ, I believe that our foundation

would be so rocked that we would never again entertain use-

less conversations about this and that...but we would humbly

go before our creator in submission proclaiming that we are

terribly weak and powerless. That our attempts to forge ahead

on our own power are beyond futile. That our spirit is nothing

without HIS sovereign power, plan, and provision. I wonder

if we are similar to the nation of Israel in the passage above.

All our attempts that we call good end in quarreling and

strife, and in striking each other with wicked fists, and in

that our voice is not heard.

The pulpit commentary said this concerning the pas-

sage above: They adhered to the forms of religion, but the

heart was not in them. Relying on those forms, they were

surprised the Divine favor was not vouchsafed to them. A

hypocrite has no true and real delight in the service of God or

in His truth; but, at the same time, there may be a great deal

of professed interest in the ways of God. A great deal of busy

and bustling solicitude about the order of religious services,

the external organization of the Church, the ranks of a clergy,

the claims of a liturgy. There may be a great deal of pleasure

in theological discussion, in the metaphysics of theology, in

the defense of what is deemed orthodoxy. There may be

much pleasure in the music of devotion, in the pleasant voice

of a preacher, in the triumphs of a party, the advancement of

our sect. But true religion is delight in religion itselfin the

service of God as such, and because it is holy. It is pleasure,

not even in the triumph of Christianity as a mere party meas-

ure, but in God as He is, His holy service and truth.

I am concerned. I do not want to miss Gods plan. I

pray that God will give us clarity and that we all surrender to

Him. I found myself wondering about this recently. Consider

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P A G E 6



here.

the things that we have as the church in America.

We have big buildings, stage lights, comput-

ers, videos for everything you can imagine, television

cameras, sound systems, comfortable chairs, decora-tions hung with pictures of crosses and scriptures, and

curriculum for every possible small group or Sunday

school class you can conceive. We have church din-

ners, and do community service. Some people wear

suits, some wear ripped up jeans and t-shirts. We have

coffee bars in our church buildings, give new people

gifts, and some have valet parking. We have pastors,

visitation pastors, youth pastors, worship pastors, media

pastors, administrative pastors, and I guess now we

have life coaches. We have a committee for anything

and everything, whether it is in local congregations orbroader ministries. We have consultants, experts, con-

ventions, leadership training, and 5 and 10 year plans.

We attempt to come up with new ways to make the

gospel relevant (and Im not even sure when it became

irrelevant). We have done and tried just about every-

thing you can possibly try. We have all these things,

but the question is do we have power!?!?

I am not saying that all the things I listed (and

there are countless more things that could be listed) are

inherently wrong. But what I want to know is, when are

we as the church are going to realize that we cannot sitas a committee or a small group or whatever it is and

come up with some crazy new idea that is going to take

the world by storm and bring the world to a true

knowledge of the truth? When will we stop allowing

ourselves to be daily tied to things that are feeble and

passing away? We say we are diverse when in reality

we are divided. It seems that we feel we always have to

be doing something new to advance the gospel. A new

training program for leaders, a new conference about

how to communicate, a new church plant, a new format

for this or thatIs it possible that maybe we shouldjust be quiet and wait? Is it possible that for a time we

are supposed to do absolutely nothing but seriously

seek the face of God? What if God said The only thing

I want you to do the next 5 years is watch and pray

wait for me. Could we really do that? We all want re-

vival but it seems that we are more concerned with how

we can organize a move of God than we are about watch-

ing and praying for a move of God.

Man has always had a problem with just waiting

and trusting. Isaiah 30:1-2 says this:

Woe to the obstinate children, declares the Lord, to

those who carry out plans that are not mine, forming an

alliance, but not by my Spirit, heaping sin upon sin; who

go down to Egypt without consulting me; who look for

help to Pharaohs protection, to Egypts shade for ref-

uge.

They thought they needed to make their own way. They

had to make something happen. To organize help and

protection.

Gods response, In repentance and rest is your

salvation, in quietness and trust is your strength, but you

would have none of it. You said, No, we will flee on

horses. Therefore you will flee! You said, We will ride

off on swift horses. Therefore your pursuers will be swift

(Isaiah 30:15-16 NIV)!

I have a habit of jumping to speak or act. Again,

I hope I am wrong, but I would guess that I am not the

only one. I believe that we simply need to overcome that

impulsive nature in the church. We need to get to a point

where we can live in quietness and trust. As we do that I

believe we will experience a move of God that will shake

the world. But I am convinced that we will not see the

revival we seek as long as we are quick to act and speak-

as long as our fasting ends in quarreling and strife, and

in striking each other with wicked fists. Romans 1:16

says that the gospel is the power of God for the salva-

tion of everyone who believes. The true gospel is pow-

er. Are we really living in that power today?

I will finish with something that it troubles me

to say. It is a struggle for me to even write this. I guess

most would still consider me a young man. I am 27 years

old. But I remember when I was young that there was

still a great excitement about Gods church. You could


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feel something when you were with the people of God. You

could feel a unity and an excitement about where we were

going and who we are. I pray that I am wrong, but it seems

we are losing the excitement over the message in the words

that were written in these old hymns:

Theres a mighty reformation sweeping oer the land,

God is gathering His people by His mighty hand;

For the cloudy day is ending and the evening sun is bright,

with a shout of joy we hail the.

When the voice from heaven sounded, warning all to flee

From the darksome courts of Babel back to Zion free;

Glad my heart to hear the message, and I hastened to obey,

And Im standing in the truth today.

Zions walls again are building as in days of yore,

And the scattered hosts returning to their land once more

Are rejoicing in their freedom pledging evermore to stand

In the reformation truths so grand.

Christians all should dwell together in the bonds of

peace,

All the clashing of opinions, all the strife should cease;

Let divisions be forsaken, all the holy join in one,

And the will of God in all be done

(The Reformation Glory, Charles W. Naylor)

How sweet this bond of perfectness,

The wondrous love of Jesus;

A pure foretaste of heavens bliss,

Oh, fellowship so precious!

The bond that circles heavens pure

Oh, wondrous, wondrous story!

Has dropped around the holy here,

And fills us all with glory.

Oh, praise the Lord for love divine

That binds us all together;

A thousand chords our hearts entwine,

Forever and forever.

God over all and in us all,

And through each holy brother;

No powr of earth or hell, withal,

Can rend us from each other.

Oh, mystery of heavens peace!

Oh, bond of heavens union!

Our souls in fellowship embrace,

And live in sweet communion.

Refrain:

Oh, brethren, how this perfect loveUnites us all in Jesus!

One heart, and soul, and mind we proveThe union heaven gave us.(The Bond of Perfectness, Daniel S. Warner)

My plea comes with a request of those of

you who have read this article. We have an email

address that you can use to respond on the back page

of our publication. If you get a chance, and feel led,

write us an email about your experience, when you

truly saw the Church. When God revealed the Church

and maybe the words to the hymns above came alivein you. I dont want to dwell on everything that we

see wrong with the church. But just the excitement

you felt when you saw the Church. With your per-

mission maybe we will be able to share one or two of

your experiences in the next newsletter. If you write

please tell us your name and where you are from. I

believe there is a greater need than ever for Gods

people to share their blessed experiences in His

Church. There has been enough strife. It is time we

reflect on our blessed lives as a part of Gods eternal

church and communicate that for others to hear.Again I pray that this article will communi-

cate effectively what I am searching through. Pray

for the church that we would be able to rest and be

quiet as we wait for Him.

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P A G E 8



here.

And behold, the angel who talked with me came forward, and

another angel came forward to meet him and said to him, Run,

say to that young man, Jerusalem shall be inhabited as villages

without walls, because of the people and livestock in it. And Iwill be to her a wall of fire all around, declares the Lord, and I

will be the glory in her midst. -Zechariah 2:3-5

Its not surprising that the people of God desired to

build up protective walls around the city after being taken cap-

tive by the Babylonians. They wanted to keep Jerusalem safe,

free from enemies. Jerusalem has been a city of significant im-

portance ever since God promised his blessing on it.

As soon as Solomon had finished the house of the Lord and

the Kings house and all that Solomon desired to build, the Lord

appeared to Solomon a second time, as he had appeared to him

at Gibeon. And the Lord said to him, I have heard your prayerand your plea, which you have made before me. I have conse-

crated this house that you have built, by putting my name there

forever. My eyes and my heart will be there for all time(1 Kings

9:1-3).

After a time of great prosperity, Israel was taken cap-

tive and prayed to return to the Holy City, Jerusalem. Zechari-

ah, coming back to rebuild the temple, was given a vision that

discouraged the building of walls (Zech. 2). Why did God have

such a problem with walls? Consider what walls prevent you

from doing. Walls hinder growth within the city. Gods people

are a people of continual growth. And so, from the day weheard, we have not ceased to pray for you, asking that you may

be filled with the knowledge of his will in all spiritual wisdom

and understanding, so as to walk in a manner pleasing to him,

bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the

knowledge of God (Col. 1:9-10). Building up walls also pre-

vents mobility for those within the walls. Gods people are a

people of continual movement. Beloved, I urge you as sojourn-

ers and exiles to abstain from the passions of the flesh, which

wage war against your soul (1 Peter 2:11).

God ordered that no walls be built around Jerusalem,

but what does Jerusalem have to do with us? In order to see theapplication of this passage (Zechariah 2), we must understand

that there are two Jerusalems: Old Jerusalem and New Jerusa-

lem. Both have been Gods dwelling place, and both were sub-

ject to this command (Zech 2:4).

Then came one of the seven angels who had the seven

bowls full of the seven last plagues and spoke to me, saying,

Come, I will show you the Bride, the wife of the Lamb. And he

carried me away in the Spirit to a great, high mountain, and

showed me the holy city Jerusalem coming out of heaven from

God (Revelation 21:9-

10)

New Jerusalem is called the Bride/wife of the Lamb.

New Jerusalem is the church of God, and it comes down fromheaven. We become a part of the church, not by signing any

sort of document or going through a class; but we join the

church when we accept the grace of God, asking for him to

take away our sin and redeem us. Salvation opens the doors of

the church to us. I dont know about you, but when I received

salvation, I do not remember floating down from heaven. This

phrase symbolizes a great truth for us; though we did not liter-

ally come down from heaven the moment we accepted Christ,

we were added to the church that comes from God. Only God

can build up the church by his grace. The phrase coming out

of heaven from God illustrates the necessity we have for Godto add us into his Church. The passage (Rev 21:9-27) also

informs us that New Jerusalem is adorned with the glory of

God. When God comes into our lives and sits on the thrown

seat of our hearts, His glory reigns in our lives. Jerusalem is

the dwelling place of God; it is his domain. Therefore, also

understand this to be the kingdom of God.

If we go into Matthew and read carefully the Sermon

on the Mount (Matthew 5-7), we see the description of how

kingdom servants (Christians) must conduct themselves. Look

at Matthew 5:14-16, we begin to understand more why this

New Jerusalem should not have walls. You are the light of theworld. A city on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor do people light a

lamp and put it under a basket Now we see that putting

walls up not only hinders God work in us, but we see that

walls hinder Gods light to be seen by the world. This teaching

reveals the dangers and evil of darkness by challenging us to

live in the light so that God would be glorified.

Tearing down walls is necessary for growth, yet

many today continue building up walls. When we make deci-

sions based on our own desires, rather than looking to God, we

have built up a wall for him, saying, God does not need to be

in this part of my life. When we decided to justify ourwrongdoings, another wall goes up. Before we know it, we

have taken over all areas of our lives and have put God in the

corner of our heart surrounded by walls. God will not stay

long in a heart that does not want him. but whoever denies

me before men, I also will deny before my Father who is in

Heaven. (Matt 10:33)

Persevere, keeping God in all the decisions you

make. Tear down any walls that are hindering His light from

shining in and through your life.

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At times it can be difficult to find books that point ustoward God and His Word rather than the most re-cent trend within the church. Though some mayconsider many of these behind the times it issometimes helpful to rediscover some of the work of

great men of God. To that end, here are some booksthat might be helpful:

Theology of Holiness and Love - Kenneth Jones

The Pursuit of God- A.W. Tozer

Lectures in Old Testament Theology- Dennis Kinlaw

Revival- Martyn Lloyd-Jones

Why Revival Tarries- Leonard Ravenhill

Wholeness In Christ- William Greathouse

The Gospel Day- C.E. Orr

Books of Interest

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here.

"Then have them make a sanctuary for me, and I

will dwell among them. -Exod. 25:8 NIV

So I will consecrate the Tent of Meeting and thealtar and will consecrate Aaron and his sons to

serve me as priests. Then I will dwell among theIsraelites and be their God. They will know that I

am the LORD their God, who brought them out ofEgypt so that I might dwell among them. I am the

LORD their God. -Exod. 29:44-46 NIV

Did you ever talk about the character of ahouse or make a statement like, Boy, that househas character! The character of a house is basedon the style and the time and energy someone put

into it. Houses built in certain areas of some com-munities or towns have different looks and styles.Houses in different areas of the country or differ-ent parts of the world are different in their styles

and looks also.

However, a house is only a house when

theres no one there. It doesnt become a housewith character until a person or family dwells

there. Then it will take on the character of thedwellers. The house will take on their personality.The house is a reflection of the person or personswho live there. Some folks are more particularthan others about their house, how clean they keep

it, how it is decorated, but no matter what it is wedo to our dwellings, it is probably going to be areflection of our character with regard to the tastes

we have in houses.

My wife and I happened to like, for exam-

ple, the rustic look, so some of our decorating hasthat flavor. If I could ever build a house, it would

probably be a log house back in the woods some-where in that rustic setting. I like wood on the in-side and out. That is my taste. Some may like

brick on the outside and painted walls on the in-side. It is our character and taste that is reflected in

the house.

In some circles the house in which we oc-

cupy is called a dwelling. Websters defines the word

dwelling as: a residence; abode. The Hebrew in the

verses in Exodus is translated: to reside or perma-nently stay (literally or figuratively): - abide, contin-

ue, (cause to, make to) dwell (-er), have habitation,

inhabit, lay, place, (cause to) remain, rest, set (up).

Gods character was reflected in His dwellingplace, the Old Testament Tabernacle. God took greatsteps to communicate to Moses how He wanted the

tabernacle built and He gave meticulous instructionsto get it the way He wanted it. In fact He put His Spir-

it on some of the craftsmen were overseers of thosewho built it (Ex. 31:1-6). The tabernacle was built to

represent God and His character.

In the New Testament, the tabernacle stillrepresents Gods dwelling place, but the difference isthat the dwelling place of God is in the hearts of be-lievers. "Don't you know that you yourselves are God'stemple and that God's Spirit lives in you? If anyone

destroys God's temple, God will destroy him; forGod's temple is sacred, and you are that temple (1

Cor. 3:16-17). "Do you not know that your body is atemple of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom youhave received from God? You are not your own (1Cor. 6:19)" I think it is right to refresh your

memory as long as I live in the tent of this body (2Pet. 1:13)

Therefore, if Gods dwelling is in this tent,

our body, then His character is what is (should be)reflected by the character of the dwelling place,Christians! This indwelling is by the Holy Spirit. That

is the way He manifests Himself to believers.

An example is the fruits of the Spirit. "But the

fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kind-ness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-

control. Against such things there is no law. Thosewho belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the sinfulnature with its passions and desires. Since we live bythe Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit (Gal. 5:22

-25)."


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The fruit are works or deeds being the visible

expression of the power of the Holy Spirit working in-

wardly and invisibly. The character of the fruit is evi-dence of the character of the power of God producing it

in His dwelling, the lives and hearts of the believer.

Gods holiness comes with Him. If we have

God, we have His character being expressed in Hisdwelling place. God cannot part with some of His holi-ness and give it out apart from Himself. In other words,it is not rationed. All of His holiness is available to us,

the questions is how much of it will we allow ourselvesto have? We only have as much holiness as we have orwant of God himself (if that is even possible, and I dont

think it is). To have him truly and fully, we must haveHim as the Indwelling One.

The measure of His indwelling, or rather of His

revelation of the indwelling Christ is the measure of ho-liness. His holiness is not only supernatural, but is also

by revelation. By Him revealing more of Himself to us.

His revelation is based on our desire, not His. The morewe want of God, the more effort we will make to get

more of Him. "Blessed are those who hunger and thirstfor righteousness, for they will be filled (Matt. 5:6). "Asthe deer pants for streams of water, so my soul pants for

you, O God. My soul thirsts for God, for the living God.

When can I go and meet with God (Psa. 42:1-2)?

That leads to the question, are there varyingdegrees of holiness? First, let us be clear, holiness

comes from God's indwelling. If you are not a Christian,you don't have God's indwelling and cannot have Hisholiness. For those who do have the indwelling of God,

it is a constant growing process to be more like Christ.We sing that old chorus, "He's still workin' on me, to

make me what I ought to be. It took just six days tomake the moon and the stars, the sun and the earth andJupiter and Mars. How loving and patient He must be,

He's still workin' on me."

So much of that work depends on us. What we allowHim to do! In the Tabernacle in the wilderness, they sawGod at a distance, the camp surrounded the tabernacle.The outer-court is where people came for pardon and

peace. They came with their offering for sacri-

fice.

The holy place could only be entered bythe priests, but the Israelites knew little about

true nearness and holiness; they did not have thesame privileges as the priests. Some Christiansdwell in the camp, but know little about draw-ing close to the Holy One nor have a desire to.The Outer-Court Christians long for pardon and

peace, they always come to the altar of atone-ment, but know not true nearness. Then there

are those that know that there is more, they longto draw near. "But you are a chosen people, aroyal priesthood, a holy nation, a people be-

longing to God, that you may declare the prais-es of him who called you out of darkness into

his wonderful light (1 Peter 2:9)."

It is Gods will and calling on you andme to be His holy temple. The God who calls usto holiness is the God of the indwelling life. Thetabernacle typifies it, the Son reveals it, the

Spirit communicates it and the eternal glory willfully manifest it. We must yield ourselves to His

full indwelling, We cannot seek it anywhereelse than from God, and we must not seek it as a

gift from God, but seek it rather as God Himselfliving and dwelling in the hearts of those who

are born-again.

When almighty God indwells in onesheart He will be worshiped in the beauty of Hisholiness. "One thing I ask of the LORD, this is

what I seek: that I may dwell in the house of theLORD all the days of my life, to gaze upon thebeauty of the LORD and to seek him in his tem-

ple (Psa. 27:4).

The place where God dwells is vibrant,

radiant, and holy. His glory is manifested in Hisdwelling place, Christians. Does your house

have Gods character showing since He is theOne living there? How is God's character seen

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here.

Ephesians 3:14-21 is amazing in its challenge to

us to expect more from God! The more spoken of

is Gods work in us, renewing in us the very im-

age of Christ. Whatever I experience today, to-

morrow in Christ can surpass it.

Raymond McAfee served with A.W.

Tozer as his assistant for more than 15 years.

They met regularly for prayer. During one of

those times of prayer, McAfee described it likethis, Tozer was resting on his bent ankles, by his

chair, his hands clasped and his face raised with

eyes closed and prayed, 'O God, we are before

thee.' With that, there came a rush of Gods pres-

ence that filled the room.

Tozer seemed to always expect God when

he prayed; he never seemed to pray as a duty, but

as a quest to meet with God. Our expectations of

God are often way below the desire of God for us.

Maybe the lowered expectation goes hand in hand

with not fully appreciating the nature of man.

Genesis 1:26-27 tells us, God created man in His

own image, in the image of God He created him;

male and female he created them. Wesley spoke

of the image of God as having three aspects: natu-

ral, political and moral. A spiritual being, endued

with understanding , freedom of will, and various

affections; -not merely in his political image, the

governor of this lower world, having dominion

over the fishes of the sea, and over all the earth;-

but chiefly in his moral image.

Kenneth Jones, in his Theology of Holi-

ness and Love, points out that Wesley often

stressed the moral aspect of the image of God, as

it manifested itself in righteousness and true holi-

ness. (Eph. 4:2)

What has happened to our appreciation for

what God did in creating us? Sin of course happened.

God gave us free will, and yet he did not make us im-

mutable because, as Wesley states, that would have

been inconsistent with that state of trial in which God

was pleased to place him. He was therefore created

able to stand, and yet liable to fall.

Wesley went on to say this condition of fallen man is,

The foundation of the new birth, -the entire corrup-

tion of our nature, hence it is, that, being born of a

woman must be born of the Spirit of God.

Maybe our current expectation for what God

could do in us is hindered by our relationship with

God. Not that God is at fault, but that the fire of our

heart needs renewal and our expectations raised to

Gods level for us.

How do we rise to

Gods level in our desire and

passion for his expectations

of us? Wesley in the ser-

mon called The Wilderness

State mentions, No sin of

omission more frequently

occasions this, (the wilder-

ness state), than the neglect of private prayer; thewant where of cannot be supplied by any other ordi-

nance whatever.

Lets look again at Ephesians 3:14-21 to see

what it has to say about renewal. The first thing is to


How do we rise to

Gods level in our

desire and passion

for his expecta-

tions of us?

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call upon God, just what Wesley said, man neglects

prayer to his own peril. We must pray and truly seekHis face. The example of Tozer cant be ignored. His

life of living in the presence of God and ministry in the

power of God challenges us to rise above the mediocri-

ty of just getting by. The passage reveals to us the

Apostle praying for the Ephesians as the Holy Spirit

moved him and brought it to

us. We must follow the

example of spiritual lead-

ership here. Can you im-

agine what might begin tohappen if the Church took

this seriously and began

to pray verse 16 day and

night until God poured

out His Spirit upon His

people, that the Lord

would strengthen us with

His Spirit so that the

Body of Christ stood firm

in Him and became HisWitness? Colossians 1:11

states, May you be

strengthened with all power." The power of God was

evident in the resurrection of Christ from the grave and

that power is available to all who call upon Him. God

has not changed, His power isnt diminished, there is

plenty available for us. Our low expectations can be

overcome in God. Today more than ever we need a

move of God in our lives, and in the Church as a whole.

The term revival has been the common expression forsuch a move but sometimes even a good term takes on

baggage. That doesnt mean we should discard the term

but we do need reminded of its real meaning. Tozer

said, Most peoples idea of revival, however, runs the

gamut of a week of meetings to a high-energy display

of emotionalism. What is real revival? Its the

king that has changed the course of human his-tory. Throughout Church history, every revival

resulted in a sudden intensification of the pres-

ence of God, resulting in the spontaneous wor-

ship of God. Anything less is superficial, artifi-

cial and even detrimental to true Spiritual

health.

Isaiah 62 is a great passage that gives us

a lot of insight into turning to God for revival.

The Lord has sworn by his right hand and by his

mighty arm, verse8 tells us. He reveals that His

desire is to restore the people of God as A City

Not Forsaken that they might be to His praise

throughout the earth. The right hand always sig-

nifies strength or power and Gods desire is to

move in His people, the Church, with His pow-

er. Why is that important, that it is His power

moving in the Church? The Bible makes it clear

that God will not share His glory with another

(Isaiah 48:11). When we call upon God with the

expectation of Him meeting our need and pour-

ing out His power to renew and revive, then

when it happens He receives all the glory. God

has promised to act on behalf of His people

through His strength to revive them and show

them to the world as His City not forsaken

and animated in His power.

When the Church turns to God for an

outpouring of His power, then the Church will

rise and again be the City not forsaken and theCity on the hill giving all glory to Him.

Lets join as Watchman who do not give God

rest until revival comes!

Can you imagine what

might begin to happen if

the Church took this seri-

ously and began to pray

verse 16 day and night

until God poured out His

Spirit upon His people,

that the Lord would

strengthen us with His

Spirit so that the Body of

Christ stood firm in Him

and became His Witness?

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The Truth In HD is cir-culated in an attempt to

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write the articles con-

tained in this paper are

committed to carrying

this truth to wherever

God will lead us, and of-

fer our help in whateverwe can do to aid you in

promoting doctrinal

truth. If we can offer

something to help you to

this end please dont

hesitate to contact us.

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Some of the writers areavailable for revival

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preaching engagements

that you might have. We

send this paper each

month to carry the mes-

sage of the gospel into

the world, and our heart

is to walk through anydoor God may open as

we journey on this earth

as ambassadors of His

Word.

The Truth In HD

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