Hey Ash, can we talk about the church now? Lord, I don't see how I am qualified to give any message to anyone let alone to the church. It's not your message Ash, it's mine, and someone has to say it. Alright, lets talk about the church Lord, what about it. These aren't my churches Ash, that's what. Let's look at Galatians real quick. Lord, it's like 2am why do you always wake me up with these revelations? When have you had time to calm your mind and come sit with me lately, Ash? I shouldn't have to wake you up to get you to spend time in the word. Messages on you tube, 20 mins in church, and evening worship services don't take the place of reading the word and you know this. Ok, lets look at Galatians, Lord. I'm sorry. It's been a fleshy few days.
Galatians 1:6-16 ESV
6 I am astonished that you are so quickly deserting him who called you in the grace of Christ and are turning to a different gospel 7 not that there is another one, but there are some who trouble you and want to distort the gospel of Christ. 8 But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach to you a gospel contrary to the one we preached to you, let him be accursed. 9 As we have said before, so now I say again: If anyone is preaching to you a gospel contrary to the one you received, let him be accursed.
10 For am I now seeking the approval of man, or of God? Or am I trying to please man? If I were still trying to please man, I would not be a servant of Christ.
Paul Called by God
11 For I would have you know, brothers, that the gospel that was preached by me is not man's gospel 12 For I did not receive it from any man, nor was I taught it, but I received it through a revelation of Jesus Christ. 13 For you have heard of my former life in Judaism, how I persecuted the church of God violently and tried to destroy it. 14 And I was advancing in Judaism beyond many of my own age among my people, so extremely zealous was I for the traditions of my fathers. 15 But when he who had set me apart before I was born, and who called me by his grace, 16 was pleased to reveal his Son to me, in order that I might preach him among the Gentiles, I did not immediately consult with anyone;
Well Lord, that is fitting regarding the gospel of truth, and the way you speak through your disciples but how does this relate to today's churches not being your churches? When I appeared before my disciples and instructed them with the great commission, do you think this was what I had in mind, Ash?
Matthew 28:16-20 ESV
The Great Commission
16 Now the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain to which Jesus had directed them. 17 And when they saw him they worshiped him, but some doubted. 18 And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19 Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”
Do you remember the telephone game? The one where everyone stands in a line. The person starts with one sentence, or word, and by the time it gets down the line to the end, the message is not at all what the original message was? As the words get passed on, some will pick and choose what to remember, what gets highlighted in their minds, and the rest is forgotten. Only the key words that the next person remembered will get passed on down the line. It's almost like having tin cans tied on strings. The disciples heard my message and truth straight from my mouth, then they were sent to preach the gospel to others. Those others, heard the message from my disciples and then shared my word to other generations. This goes on for hundreds of thousands of years watering down and perverting the message of truth. Yet, everyone today want's to act like they know the message, when in truth, they only know the words that have been highlighted to them, indoctrinated in them or that make them feel good inside. The gospel is truth, it's not always going to make everyone feel all ooey gooey inside, Ash. We have denominations upon denominations, churches on every corner. If you don't like what one preacher says, you hop on over to the next. People practice changing churches like they change clothes, wanting to hear the gospel that makes them feel forgiven, loved and saved; without understanding that if you love the Lord, you will obey the entire truth of the word. It was never meant to be this way. There was never a need for Baptist, Methodist, Catholic, Lutheran, Orthodox. Some preach the love without the conviction, some teach that you are approved in my sight by works, some preach the resurrection of Jesus but deny the power of the Holy Spirit. What we are left with are a bunch of "Christians" who go to church to see what they can get from the Lord. Thinking that by going to church for 20 mins a week with nothing but a prayer list of requests, shows that they have done their good deed, and they will get to squeeze into heaven. That is not RELATIONSHIP. That is not what I died for.
The vision the Lord put on my heart was thousands and thousands of those tin cans on strings, going from churches to homes all over the globe. They had been twisting and getting tangled with one another. They were stretched all across the world, intertwined like this giant messy spiderweb of mixed messages. Words being taken out of context, scriptures being used to back up bias points in messages that are spewed from the mouths of preachers. Words spoken in ways that were never the true intent of the Lord in the way they are stated. It was a mess. I looked up to Him and asked him how He could stand to see this mess of twisted gospel spreading across the world the way that it has. He looked at me and said watch this, Ash.
Within a fraction of a second I could feel the presence of the Holy Spirit. As the Spirit descended upon the world I saw the strings begin to disintegrate. The web of confusion that had spread across the world had simply disappeared. The Lord put in on my heart that this is how to clear up the confusion of the gospel, the confusion of the church; by simply inviting the Holy Spirit to come. The Holy Spirit is what provides the clarity, the truth, and the power of the living gospel of Jesus Christ. The Holy Spirit is what Jesus died for us to have. The ability to have the living truth inside of us, providing revelation, clarity, truth and comfort to us, every day. It wasn't so we could have a ton of rules and never enjoy anything in our lives, it wasn't so we could earn our way to heaven one day by doing enough good works, it wasn't so we could consider ourselves Christians and act better than everyone else. Holding ourselves in higher regard. It is so we can be the living embodiment of Jesus Christ walking on this earth. It's not our duty as disciples to be the most liked, to have the most friends, the biggest congregation, the largest sphere of influence. It is simply our job to preach the truth of the Word. The only way that we will hear the truth from the Lord, is by spending time in the Word with the Holy Spirit as our guide.
Wake up and be the embodiment of the gospel that we were created to be here on this earth. He died for it.
John 16:13 - Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak: and he will shew you things to come.
1 John 3:18 - My little children, let us not love in word, neither in tongue; but in deed and in truth.
Galatians 2:15-21 Justified by Faith
15 We ourselves are Jews by birth and not Gentile sinners; 16 yet we know that a person is not justified by works of the law but through faith in Jesus Christ, so we also have believed in Christ Jesus, in order to be justified by faith in Christ and not by works of the law, because by works of the law no one will be justified.
17 But if, in our endeavor to be justified in Christ, we too were found to be sinners, is Christ then a servant of sin? Certainly not! 18 For if I rebuild what I tore down, I prove myself to be a transgressor. 19 For through the law I died to the law, so that I might live to God. 20 I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me. 21 I do not nullify the grace of God, for if righteousness were through the law, then Christ died for no purpose.
Galatians 5:13-18
13 For you were called to freedom, brothers. Only do not use your freedom as an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another. 14 For the whole law is fulfilled in one word: “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” 15 But if you bite and devour one another, watch out that you are not consumed by one another.
Keep in Step with the Spirit
16 But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh. 17 For the desires of the flesh are against the Spirit, and the desires of the Spirit are against the flesh, for these are opposed to each other, to keep you from doing the things you want to do. 18 But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law.
Do not take signs and wonders out of the church by saying that they are not for this day and age. The only reason you believe that, is because you were indoctrinated during the telephone game of life to believe that way. Miracles, signs and wonders are happening right now, welcome them. Embrace the gifts of the Holy Spirit. I can tell you without a doubt that discernment will be your best friend these next few months as things continue to get worse.
Mark 16:15-20 ESV
15 And he said to them, “Go into all the world and proclaim the gospel to the whole creation. 16 Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned. 17 And these signs will accompany those who believe: in my name they will cast out demons; they will speak in new tongues; 18 they will pick up serpents with their hands; and if they drink any deadly poison, it will not hurt them; they will lay their hands on the sick, and they will recover.”
19 So then the Lord Jesus, after he had spoken to them, was taken up into heaven and sat down at the right hand of God. 20 And they went out and preached everywhere, while the Lord worked with them and confirmed the message by accompanying signs.
Matthew 10:1 KJV
10 And when he had called unto him his twelve disciples, he gave them power against unclean spirits, to cast them out, and to heal all manner of sickness and all manner of disease.
1 Corinthians 12 KJV
12 Now concerning spiritual gifts, brethren, I would not have you ignorant.
2 Ye know that ye were Gentiles, carried away unto these dumb idols, even as ye were led.
3 Wherefore I give you to understand, that no man speaking by the Spirit of God calleth Jesus accursed: and that no man can say that Jesus is the Lord, but by the Holy Ghost.
4 Now there are diversities of gifts, but the same Spirit.
5 And there are differences of administrations, but the same Lord.
6 And there are diversities of operations, but it is the same God which worketh all in all.
7 But the manifestation of the Spirit is given to every man to profit withal.
8 For to one is given by the Spirit the word of wisdom; to another the word of knowledge by the same Spirit
9 To another faith by the same Spirit; to another the gifts of healing by the same Spirit;
10 To another the working of miracles; to another prophecy; to another discerning of spirits; to another divers kinds of tongues; to another the interpretation of tongues:
11 But all these worketh that one and the selfsame Spirit, dividing to every man severally as he will.
12 For as the body is one, and hath many members, and all the members of that one body, being many, are one body: so also is Christ.
13 For by one Spirit are we all baptized into one body, whether we be Jews or Gentiles, whether we be bond or free; and have been all made to drink into one Spirit.
14 For the body is not one member, but many.
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