KINGDOM BIBLE STUDIES
studies in end-time revelation
THE HEAVENS DECLARE
Part 4
The natural sun is the brightest luminary in the natural heavens. And to help us in correctly interpreting the meaning of the prophetical sun, Gen. 1:16 informs us that God made "the greater light to RULE the day, and the lesser light to RULE the night: He made the stars also." Here we first have the idea expressed of both the sun and the moon being RULERS. Then we find that God, the supreme Ruler, is called in the Word a "Sun." "For the Lord thy God is a SUN and a shield" (Ps. 84:11). Also, our Lord Jesus Christ, the King of kings, is in Mal. 4:2 called "the SUN of righteousness." He rules. Furthermore we find, in reference to men, that II Sam. 23:3-4 reads, "He that RULETH over men...shall be as the light of the morning, when the SUN riseth." And in II Sam. 21:17 we find David the king called "the LIGHT of Israel." This same meaning is found in Kings 8:19 where we read: "Yet the Lord would not destroy Judah for David His servant's sake as He promised him to give him alway A LIGHT." This is exactly the same promise that we find in Jer. 33:17 where the Lord says, "David shall never want a man to SIT UPON THE THRONE of the house of Israel." David' s offspring were to be the "suns" or RULERS of Israel, the source of light, influence, and direction for the nation. In Mat. 13:43 we find, concerning saints who are to be Kings and Priests and rule with Christ (Rev. 3:21; 5:9-10), that they are compared to the sun: "Then shall the righteous SHINE FORTH AS THE SUN in the Kingdom of their Father." Of these same ruling saints Jesus says, "And he that overcometh, and keepeth My works unto the end, to him will I give power over the nations and he shall RULE them with a rod of iron..." Then He hastily adds: "And I will give him the MORNING STAR" (Rev. 2: 26-28). That is, "I will give him power over the nations- rulership and I will give him the POSITION AS THE MORNING STAR to give direction to mankind." Now consider these meaningful words of Daniel the prophet wherein he foretells the manifestation of the sons of God in the end of the age: "And they that be wise shall SHINE AS THE BRIGHTNESS OF THE FIRMAMENT; and they that turn many to righteousness as the STARS forever" (Dan. 12:3). Then we find in Dan. 4:26, "the HEAVENS DO RULE." God's heaven is H]~ throne. "Heaven I-S M-Y T-H-R-O-N-E" (Isa. 66:1). Heaven in the spiritual terminology of prophecy is the seat where the SUN, the mighty God sits and RULES. And as God's heaven is His throne, so the prophetical heavens include all the governmental realm THROUGH WHICH GOD RULES, and He is LORD OF ALL. Individually, the SPIRIT WITHIN YOU is God' s SUN of dominion in your personal universe.
Earthly tongues and natural images can but dimly describe things that belong to heavenly realms, but this great truth of the stars being RULERS is also set forth in Job 38:31-33. "Canst thou bind the sweet influences of Pleiades, or loose the bands of Orion? Canst thou bring forth Mazzaroth (the twelve signs of the Zodiac) in his season? or canst thou guide Arcturus with his sons? Knowest thou the ordinances of the heaven? canst thou set the dominion thereof in the earth?" Here the almighty Creator speaks of the "sweet influences" of Pleiades, the "bands" of Orion, the "seasons" of Mazzaroth the "ordinances" of the heavens, and the "dominion" of these constellations in the earth! Each of these powers and influences of the constellations over the earth is indicated by God Himself as FACT! The truth of the constellations of the heavens includes many wonderful examples of that which is taking place in the realm of the Spirit. The stars of the heavens exist in a realm where God is absolute Sovereign and Lord, where His life prevails. Therefore, in their highest meaning, in their spiritual meaning, the stars are used to represent HEAVENLY, SPIRITUAL RULE AND DOMINION. Can we now open the eyes of our understanding to behold the wondrous truth that God's elect sons ARE THE CONSTELLATIONS OF THE SPIRITUAL HEAVENS, THE LUMINARIES AND RULERS IN GOI)'S SKY, of which the signs of the Zodiac, sprinkled by the hand of God across the night sky are but the dim type.
There is no truth within the pages of God' s blessed Book more certain than the fact that God is creating a new heavens and a new earth, and the constellations of the new heavens are not made up of the physical stars which comprise the signs of the Zodiac, but of living stars of God's sons formed and fashioned into an order and image through which to influence creation and rule all things. Beyond question this is the allegory proclaimed by the Lord to the prophet Isaiah, "And I have put My words in thy mouth, and I have covered thee in the shadow of Mine hand, THAT I MAY PLANT THE HEAVENS, and lay the foundations of the earth, and say unto Zion, THOU ART MY PEOPLE" (Isa. 51: 16). The sons of God are the promised STAR-SEED of the Kingdom. "Do all things without murmuring and disputing," says the apostle, "that ye may become blameless and harmless, SONS OF GOD, without blemish in the midst of a crooked and darkened generation, AMONG WHOM YE SHINE AS LIGHTS IN THE WORLD" (Phil. 2: 15). The word here translated "lights" is the Greek word PHOSTER, meaning luminary, light container, or simply star. The sons of God, then, are the STARS of God to shine in this darkened world. In the same wonderful way that the heavenly constellations of the signs of the Zodiac rule by cosmic energy the men of earth, so do the heavenly, spiritual sun, moon and stars rule over the earth realm by the spiritual authority and power of the Kingdom of God. The physical Zodiac in the natural heavens of the material universe is but a faint shadow of the true and spiritual and heavenly Zodiac composed of the blessed Sun of righteousness, the Lord Jesus Christ; and the moon, which is the bride of Christ and the Queen of heaven; and the brightness of the stars constituting that vast family of the sons and daughters of the Most High.
The inspired Psalmist penned these words of beauty and truth: "The heavens declare the glory of Cod; and the firmament showeth His handiwork. IN THEM HATH HE SET A TABERNACLE FOR THE SUN. Which is as a bridegroom coming out of his chamber, and rejoiceth as a strong man to run a race. His going forth is from the end of the heaven, and his circuit unto the ends of it: and there is nothing hid from the heat thereof" (Ps. 19:1,4-6). The shining constellations spreading across the enormous expanse of the heavens represent the Lord's dwelling place in the Kingdom of His new creation people. Cod has set a tabernacle for the, Sun (Christ, Spirit) in the heavens- in the midst of His star-sons. The position of the sons of God among the stars is revealed in the fact that they are declared to be citizens of heaven, or as Moffat so beautifully translates, "We are a colony of heaven" (Phil. 3:20); their home center or citizenship havens been moved there from the earth. Their names would, therefore, appear only among the celestial beings, in any true census of the universe. These are the same morning stars which sang and the sons of God who shouted for .joy in that long ago when the foundations of the earth were laid (Job 38:4-7).
All the' signs of the Zodiac are placed in a massive circle in the hemisphere. The path of the sun passes through one of these signs (houses) each month. This shows forth His glorious plan of redemption as the SUN ()F RIGHTEOUSNESS WITH HEALING IN Ills WINGS passes through the heavens. The sun is but a type of the true Son of God. He, as THE HEAD of this GLORIOUS SONSHIP COMPANY, is coming out of His chamber in the bosom of the Father to run a race on the great race-track of the heavens. He passes through every sign (house), seeking His elect from the four winds of heaven, heralding the rise, of their influence and rule in the heavenly Kingdom of God. I hear a Voice, my brother, my
sister, bidding me to distinguish between the "dwellers on earth" and the "dwellers in heaven." "Therefore rejoice, YE HEAVENS, and YE THAT DWELL IN THEM. Woe to the [NHABITERS ()F THE EARTH... for the devil is come down unto you..." (Rev. 12:12). In the. thirteenth chapter of Revelation w~, arc told that the "dwellers in heaven" are, the, TABERNACLE OF GOD, which is the tabernacle for the Sun. The tabernacle of God is that blessed company of the overcomers- the sons of God. Ah, YOU, precious saints of God, ARE THE PEOPLE THE SUN (SON) OF GOD PASSES THROUGH UNTIL HIS DAY IS ACCOMPLISHED AND HIS PURPOSES FULFILLED IN ALL CREATION.
Twinkle, twinkle little star,
How I wonder what you are;
Far above the earth so high,
Like a diamond in the sky...
Ah- you are a son of God,
Once to walk on earthen sod;
Now transformed by His great hand
To reign forever o'er the land.
THE DWELLERS IN THE HEAVENS
The revelation of Mazzaroth (Job 38:31-33) is the revelation of the power and glory of the heavens--God's spiritual Zodiac, His sons and daughters of LIGHT, REVELATION AND POWER. Heaven does not have a present significance in the mind and spirit and understanding of vast numbers of God's people. Somehow the churches relegate heaven as an aftermath, something beyond this life, the category that awaits us after death. And that is to the great detriment of the church. The church is, by definition, a heavenly institution on earth and in time--NOW. Those who dwell in heaven (spirit) are required to bring the dimension of heaven into their present experience and expression. So if we save the word heaven for the future we are striking a death-blow at the very nature and character of the Kingdom of Heaven and God's purpose in His people as a heavenly people presently in time. We need to become alive to heaven; heaven needs to become vital; it must be made real; it needs to have substance within our hearts, our lives, our speech, our thoughts, our convictions, and our manifestation. In a word, we need to be made HEAVENLY MINDED!
Everything in the world militates against this kind of consciousness in the world. Everything in modern civilization, everything in the scientific, educational, medical, industrial and social institutions of the world is calculated against heaven, against eternity, against SPIRIT. They want to delude the masses of mankind to believe that this is it--this temporal, spacial, physical and visible world is the sum and substance of REALITY. That is the wisdom of the world, the wisdom of this age that undergirds and permeates the entire kingdom of corruption and death. The world operates on the supposition and premise that everything of value is now, in time, material, the things that are seen, tangible, felt and held, and that when this life passes it is over. Therefore, eat, drink and be merry; therefore fornicate; therefore aggrandize; therefore grasp; therefore get all you can get and enjoy all you can enjoy, for this is all there is. And that is a LIE! The world is living in a lie. And the church world is living in another (and just as serious) LIE. The churches tell us that heaven is a future hope--beyond the grave. They understand not that heaven and spirit are synonymous--you cannot have SPIRIT without having HEAVEN. And the KINGDOM OF HEAVEN IS W-I-T-H-I-N Y-O-U!
What is wanting is a people that are in consciousness so in the heavenly dimension now, presently, are so alive to the things that are eternal, the things that are SPIRIT, that even without them speaking this explicitly, their very presence exudes the atmosphere of life and the fragrance of eternity. God is after a people, a heavenly and celestial race, set in time. "...and hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus: that in the ages to come He might show..." (Eph. 2:6-7). This is meaningless prattle unless the Spirit opens our understanding. We have been warned by the carnal minded of this age about the danger of being so "heavenly minded" until we are "no earthly good." That is what the world says, and what should you expect from the world but to controvert and to take the wisdom of God and so distort and pervert it until it appears ridiculous and absurd to have mankind believe exactly the reverse! But these words are being written to show that we have no choice, no option as to whether we will be heavenly minded or not; for the truth is, IF WE ARE NOT HEAVENLY MINDED IT IS I-M-P-O-S-S-I-B-L-E TO BE OF ANY EARTHLY GOOD! It is only as a power from above reaches down and touches earth that it can be raised and quickened, transformed from the image of the earthly into the image of the heavenly. And Paul, the apostle of apostles, through whom the sacred secrets of God were revealed by the grace of God, defying the empty and inane cavillings of men and their fruitless doctrines and meaningless traditions, admonished those who would be the sons and daughters of God in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation, "Wherefore, holy brethren, partakers of the HEAVENLY CALLING... if ye then be risen with Christ, seek those things which are ABOVE, where Christ sitteth on the right hand of God. Set your affection on things ABOVE, NOT ON THINGS ON THE EARTH. For ye are dead, and your life is hid with Christ in God" (Heb. 3: 1; Col.3: 1-3).
It is when we are quickened to the realm of SPIRIT, to the heavenly and celestial, to that bright glory world where alone can be perceived eternal truth and reality, that we hear our heavenly Father speaking from the throne of eternity, long before the ages were formed and before cosmos appeared out of the wastes of chaos, there in the glory and wonder of His presence, from out of the depths of His omniscient mind, His purpose for the ages, the dispensations, the worlds, and for eternity itself was laid down upon the infinite blue-print, plan by plan, purpose by purpose, age by age, so that each eonian purpose and every divine decree shall be guided and controlled by His omnipotent hand to grow and mature from glory to glory until His vast family of beloved sons shall deliver up to Him all things in perfection that God Himself might be all in all. The very idea that one could in some way become so "heavenly minded" that he would be "no earthly good" reveals the incredible darkness and deluded stupidity of the carnal mind and its pitiful inability to comprehend things that belong to heavenly realms. Oh that the wisdom of man which is foolishness with God might be torn from our hearts that we might see beyond the mists and theories of time and tradition right into the very heart of the eternal where is found the infinite wisdom that teaches us how it is that until one becomes truly HEAVENLY MINDED he CANNOT be of any EARTHLY GOOD! The fact is, the only reality in the universe is S-P-I-R-I-T. The things which are seen are TEMPORAL, says the Lord, and the things which are not seen are ETERNAL. This is '~ wisdom of God in a mystery. Until one learns how to live and have his being OUT OF SPIRIT, out of the invisible realm, out of his very innermost being, he will continue to be held captive by the corruption of the flesh and dwell in the shadow of death.
"Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with all SPIRITUAL BLESSINGS IN HEAVENLY PLACES in Christ," the inspired apostle wrote. In the Old Testament the blessings of the people of God were temporal and physical in nature. They were seen in financial prosperity, the multiplication of the herds and the sheep and the goats, in many children, in servants and in wealth. That was because they were a people of another age and God had to make His blessings visible to their eyes so that their faith could comprehend and grasp it. In the New Testament we move to a higher plane and see that our blessings that God bestows upon us are primarily spiritual blessings in heavenly places. We might have physical blessings in this world, and God does pour them out upon us in the overflow--He does help with many physical needs of finances, healing, and answers to prayer, but all these things have a problem. They are like that gourd on the vine under which Jonah sat in Nineveh! A worm came up and ate the gourd and it rotted and corrupted. So it is with all the physical blessings of the physical life. They all have a worm in them and when the day of withering is at hand, soon they shall have corrupted. When we face the blasts of eternity, if we have nothing but the temporal blessings of this world, we shall face those blasts naked.
He who writes these lines testifies to those who read them that all who live after the flesh, out of the flesh, and for the flesh are earth dwellers, and woe! unto them that dwell upon the earth, for the world passeth away, and the lust thereof: but he that does the will of God abideth forever. All who by faith live after the spirit, out of the spirit, and for the spirit have now become PART OF THE ETERNAL. Neither can they die anymore. Death's cruel sting, filled with its venom of sin, has passed away, and victory has been snatched from the yawning jaws of the tomb. We have passed from the realm where all is death to the realm where all is life. Our citizenship in this present age has been revoked and we have had a new citizenship conferred upon us from the eternal and undying realm. And just as the stars influence and control the destinies of earth, so does the power of the SPIRIT quicken and metamorphose all natural things and even our mortal bodies as we live out of the high and eternal realm of the Spirit. We are not citizens of earth, we are the true SPACE PEOPLE. Neither are we to be governed by the laws of earth. We are to be governed by the laws of heaven, for we are citizens of that realm. In the realm of heaven there is life more abundant, incorruption and immortality. There is fullness of joy, peace, love and righteousness. There is no lack of anything, for all is out of God (spirit) and GOD IS ALL IN ALL. Even the natural world is blessed and made fruitful and quickened and raised when it comes under the rule of the heavens. Jesus was showing us this principle when He fed the five thousand from five loaves and two small fish, when He turned the water into wine, when He sent Peter to catch a fish in whose mouth was clenched the money to pay their taxes, and when He healed the sick and raised the dead to life again. Jesus lived out of spirit, He knew God the Spirit as the source and substance of all things, He knew the power and reality of the Father who dwelt within Him, and all supply came out of the realm of spirit rather than from the limited and perishable capacity of the flesh.
When the day of Pentecost was fully come, and the Spirit was shed forth, Peter stood up with the eleven. Consider the scene that day! There was Peter, a fisherman, a little man, an uncouth and apparently inconsequential man. But on that day of the outpouring of the Spirit, when he rose to testify and proclaim that Jesus was resurrected and ascended to the heavens, this little man was in a position higher far than the most exalted rank of earth. The greatest and highest on this earth could not compare with Peter and those standing with him. Why were they so high? How could such as them be so exalted? it was because at the very moment their spirits were quickened by HIS SPIRIT they were in the ascended Christ. They were not men on this earth; they were men in the heavens. By the power of the Spirit these disciples were resurrected people, new creation people, people in the heavens. They transcended everything on this earth. The high priest, the rulers, the kings and the emperor were all under their feet. They surpassed the highest rank of man because they were seated in the heavens in God's Christ. They were living in Him, walking in Him, talking in Him, manifesting out of Him. They were living on this high plane and in this exalted realm of the Spirit.
Living, experiencing, and expressing out of the heavenlies is not a matter of geo-graphics, not a question of physical location at all. It is a matter of experience and consciousness. Our citizenship IS in heaven. We do not move in and out of heavenly realms at our whim. But according to the positive declaration of the scripture, we exist constantly in the heavenlies. This is a state of constant spiritual existence, but because our outer man is still in this flesh realm, we are not always AWARE or CONSCIOUS of the greater privileges of our heavenly existence. We must continually heed the admonition of scripture: "Be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the RENEWING OF YOUR MIND" (Rom. 12:2). Transformed by the renewing of the mind! Almighty Father! what words are these which instruct us to be transformed by the way we THINK and PERCEIVE! I am sure that as the Holy Spirit illumines these significant words to your understanding you will find them among the most revealing and deeply meaningful and most powerful and life changing of all inspirations. In the beautiful words of the chorus, the Lord bids us...
Come into this place--Ascension,
Where no death can enter in.
My own life through resurrection,
Qualifies this Corporate Man.
AM ready now to speak as
I am righteous evermore--
New Ascension brings authority,
And I've opened up your door.
-- Charlotte Torango --
REIGNING FROM THE HEAVENS
The heavens are the realms of spirit where the Lord now rules with absolute authority and dominion. How do we know this to be true? Because of the words of Jesus, when He taught us to pray, "Our Father...Thy Kingdom come, Thy will be done in earth, AS IT IS IN HEAVEN." These words lead us to the certainty that GOD'S WILL IS DONE IN THE HEAVENS; and, if you can discover a realm or a person anywhere where God's will is perfectly done, such is a heavenly place and a heavenly person. The will of the Father is being done in heaven, in the realm of spirit, and it is our expressed desire that His will shall also be done in earth, the realm of the physical, AS IT IS IN HEAVEN. There is no sin in heaven, for the will of God is done in heaven, and where the will of God is done there is no sin. There is no foul, loathsome disease in heaven eating away at the vitals, weakening, crippling and destroying the life, for the will of God is done in heaven, and where the will of God is done there is no sickness. There is no sorrow nor pain in heaven, for the will of God is done in heaven, and where the will of God is done there is no grief. There is no death in heaven, no crepe on the door-knob, no winding funeral processions, no weeping and wailing of heartbroken, disconsolate mothers, fathers, and children, no silent, waxen forms lowered into the cold stillness of earth, for the will of God is done in heaven, and where the will of God is done there is no death. My Father and my God! Guide me to that place where Thy will shall be done in me upon this earth, as Thy will is done in heaven! The heavens declare the GLORY of God, for the heavens are His eternal domain. His throne occupies the heavens, and the earth is His footstool (Acts 7:49). Our Lord Jesus Christ rules all the heavens having ascended "far above all heavens, that He might fill all things" (Eph. 4:10). Throughout the vast and boundless expanse of the heavens, the will of God is expressed and fulfilled. How our hearts cry, "Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven!"
God rules and God speaks from heaven. If you will but listen, you can hear (rod speaking from heaven, even the Kingdom of Heaven that is within you. There is a secret to hearing His voice. It will not be heard above the excited babble of the multitude. He will not boom and thunder to drown out other voices that clamor to be heard. He waits t{11 all other voices are hushed and you have put away from your heart and mind all your own striving, and the uproar of the throng that shouts for your attention has completely died away.
You must become insensible to the demands of all other voices and hear only the Voice of the Holy Spirit speaking out of your spirit. "Be still and know that I am God." When your soul is agitated to a turmoil and your flesh demands with insatiable desire that its claims be met, and the outer world evokes utter confusion and despair with its myriad exasperating problems, it is time for silence, repentance, and listening to the voice of Christ.
God is always speaking. In the February, 1990 issue of THE LIVING WORD Paul Mueller wrote the following words which carry this truth home powerfully to the heart. "The heavens declare the glory of God because Cod speaks from that realm and sends forth His word which is heard through all the earth, and to the ends of the world. Within the last few months, God spoke words of freedom, liberty and deliverance from His heavenly sanctuary. Those words of liberty and freedom were sent into the hearts of millions of East Europeans, causing them to send up a shout and demand for freedom that is bringing down the whole communistic system. And what did Cod do to bring an end to the oppressive governments of Soviet domination? He simply sent a word out of His heavenly sanctuary, and the work was done. The Lord accomplished this unbelievable task without the help of man and with the simplicity of the power of His Spirit. When God speaks from His heavenly sanctuary, that message goes out to find lodging in the hearts of those to whom the message was directed. Thus, when the Psalmist described this heavenly, spiritual activity, he said, 'Day unto day pours forth speech, and night unto night declares knowledge. There is no speech, nor are there words; their voice is not heard; yet their voice goes forth through all the earth, and their words to the ends of the world (Ps. 19:2-4, Smith Goodspeed). The Lord' s message of liberty and freedom shall accomplish the will of God, according to His omnipotent purpose. There is no speech, nor words, nor voice of man, yet His message is received to the ends of the world. The Lord thus bypasses all human instruments to fulfill His word. Just as His word cannot fail, so the heavens cannot fail to send forth that word with all the life and energy of the realm of the Spirit.
"God's word, sent forth from His heavenly sanctuary, cannot fail to accomplish His purpose. If He wants to eliminate the whole communistic society, He will do so by simply sending a word of liberty into the hearts of the multitudes, just as He has done. Mighty armies of hundreds of thousands could not have accomplished what the Lord has done in a few months, though they might have fought for many years in constant struggle and intense warfare. The blood of multiplied thousands of men has been spilled over the world in two bitter world wars for far less than this. Instead of bringing a deliverance, those wars resulted in greater oppression and bondage. The very fact that the communistic empire is falling should cause every child of God to renew their faith and trust in God, and to believe for the fulfillment of the remainder of all His holy word of truth.
"These are truly exciting days. This is a day like no other in the history of the world. God has taken to Himself His great power and is reigning in all the universe. This is the day of the Lord. It is the very day of which the prophet prophesied, when he said, 'For the day of vengeance is in mine heart, and the year of My redeemed is come' (Isa. 63:4). It is the day of the Lord's vengeance upon all disobedience and unrighteousness, and it is also the time designated as 'the year of My redeemed.' Just as the Lord spoke a word of liberty and freedom from His heavenly sanctuary, and sent that word to the oppressed peoples of Eastern Europe, so He will speak a word from His heavenly sanctuary that will impart new life to His elect, thus raising us up in resurrection life to be transformed thereby. All He needs to do is speak a word, and it will be done. This truth is being demonstrated now before our very eyes as He dismantles the communist system. And when He speaks that word of Life to His elect that word will not fail to accomplish the divine purpose, so that all of us shall be changed.
"I hereby charge all who read these lines to remember what our omnipotent Lord has already done in Eastern Europe. Remember that He has sent a word out of His heavenly temple that has reverberated throughout the world, and has brought down a portion of the Soviet empire. The fact that the Lord has begun to dismantle man's kingdoms should encourage us to believe for this complete dominion over all things everywhere in the fullness of time, including His dominion over death. 'The mighty God, even the Lord, hath spoken, and called the earth from the rising of the sun unto the going down thereof. Out of Zion, the perfection of beauty, God hath shined. Our God shall come, and shall not keep silence: a fire shall devour before Him, and it shall be very tempestuous round about Him. HE SHALL CALL TO THE HEAVENS FROM ABOVE, AND TO THE EARTH, that He may judge His people. Gather My saints together unto Me; those that have made a covenant with Me by sacrifice. AND THE HEAVENS SHALL DECLARE HIS RIGHTEOUSNESS: for God is judge Himself. Selah. ' (Ps. 50: 1-6).
"We will learn a great truth when we learn, with full understanding, that the Lord accomplishes ills purposes by speaking a word from His heavenly temple. He spoke from heaven, 'and called the earth from the rising of the sun unto the going down thereof.'
The Lord shall shine out of Zion. How shall tie shine out of Zion? By the effulgent glory of the manifestation of His Spirit. When the Lord chooses to .judge His people, He sends forth the spirit of judgment by calling 'to the heavens from above, and to the earth, that He may judge His people.' When He has concluded His purpose in the judgment of Ills saints, 'the heavens shall declare His righteousness: for God is judge Himself.' Thus, we are righteous, not because of our good works, but because the Lord spoke forth His righteousness into our hearts to make us righteous. Just a word from His heavenly sanctuary is all it takes to make us righteous, or to accomplish anything else" --end quote.
In 1983 the Lord spoke to me in a dream. In the dream I was standing on a wide boulevard at a busy intersection in a large city in the Soviet Union. In my consciousness I presumed the city to be Moscow. At this intersection was a large vacant lot, and erected on this lot was a tall pole at the top of which were affixed crucifixes and religious emblems of the type used by the Russian Orthodox Church. I stood in transfixed wonder, astonished that in a nation ruled by an atheistic government which harshly suppressed l outward expressions of religion, this religious symbol should be planted in such a prominent place with no connection to any nearby church edifice. As I marveled, I turned and saw to my left a vast throng of people coming--marching down the boulevard. The street was completely flooded with this crowd of demonstrators, and those at the head of the parade held out in front of them a great number of crucifixes and religious emblems identical with those on the pole. Again I was amazed that in an atheistic nation where public demonstrations of religion were forbidden, this multitude of people should be uninhibitedly parading their religious symbols through the thoroughfares. At that moment I started across the side street, but the demonstrators turned toward me and I found it necessary to run in order to keep from being trampled.
Immediately the scene changed. I was in the same city, but found myself in a store-front building. There was nothing in the large room where I stood except a number of folding chairs. I was aware that this building was used by certain believers who met for prayer, counsel, preparation and planning; for from this place teams of ministry were sent forth through out the length and breadth of the Soviet Union. Suddenly I was transferred to a small] room at the back of the building. The room was furnished with only a single cot with a small table at its head, upon which lay a book with a dark purple cover, and embossed across the front in gold letters was this title: THE UNITED STATES IN PROPHECY. The next scene was back in the larger room where several people had congregated. I knew that a meeting was soon to begin, with prayer and a strategy session for sending out the ministry teams. In connection with this activity I was shown a massive intervention of Cod's power accompanied by a dramatic move of the Holy Spirit across the. Soviet Union, by which the nation would be stirred with the manifestation of the glory of God. With this electrifying knowledge planted within my consciousness, I awoke
upon awaking the interpretation of the dream flooded my spirit. It was clear that a new condition of RELIGIOUS LIBERTY was to come to the people of the Soviet Union. Remember- this was 1983. At that time Yuri Andropov was in power and Mikhail Gorbachev was unknown to the Western world. We had not yet heard the words GLASNOST and PERESTRO-IKA. The Spirit revealed to me that the advent of religious liberty would be followed by an unprecedented move of the Holy Spirit which would shake the nation to its very foundations. It seemed to me a thing neither incredible nor impossible--though not explicitly revealed- that this move of God would effect the demise of Marxism in Russia and that! breaking up of the atheistic communist malignancy. I was made to understand that the book -- THE UNITED STATES IN PROPHECY- indicated that American ministries were destined to play a pivotal role in the move of the Spirit in Russia, in terms of ministry, and the impact of the Kingdom of God.
in ]984, first at a Convention in Daytona Beach, Florida, I commenced to proclaim the word the Lord had given me; following that in meetings in E1 Paso, Texas and in other parts of the! country. Beginning in March, 1985 with the ascendancy of Gorbachev to power, reports began to come, and continue to come, to us of actual changes taking place in the Soviet Union involving increased religious freedoms, release of most religious prisoners, public harassment relaxed, thousands of new churches opening, the Lord has opened doors---tremendous avenues for the Gospel. Teaching services in Soviet churches are. now diverted to evangelistic messages in deference to the masses of unbelievers (most first-time attendees) flooding the meetings. invited by friends or attracted by a printed invitation, many Soviet people come to churches seeking an answer to their great spiritual hunger. Evangelical churches in the Soviet Union are filled with new inquirers, and many newcomers are converted to Christ. Most have dramatic and emotional salvation experiences- all are life-changing. Excitement permeates Soviet churches as believers have the joy of leading unbelievers --people who have never prayed before in their lives- to the Lord. And there is a very significant revival in the cities, especially among the young.
Late in 1989 as I watched the NBC Evening News, suddenly- THERE IT WAS! The reporter was giving a report from Moscow. Down the broad Avenue I saw them coming...a vast throng, literally hundreds of Christian believers marching on foot...and at the forefront of the crowd strode the Russian Orthodox Priests holding out the crucifixes and icons- the exact scene I had witnessed in my dream six years prior! I shouted through the house to my wife, "Honey, come, look! That's it! There is the procession I saw in my dream!" But--much that is happening in Russia today is taking place within the precincts of Babylon. The sovereign move of God in miracle working power that the Lord showed me in 1983 HAS NOT YET BEGUN- but it looms on the horizon. Without a doubt, strange, unforeseen events are taking place in that land. The groundwork is being laid. The preparation is in progress. The stage is being set. And regardless of what events, positive or negative, may yet transpire, the mighty God, in due time, will send His word from the heavens and great shall be the sound of abundance of rain. The truth is- throughout the ages, just when the opposition seemed too formidable--when all seemed hopeless- GOD stepped in! God has stepped in the Soviet Union. Daniel prophesied of an hour such as this when he interpreted Nebuchadnezzar's dream. He saw the final collapse of all world governments- CRUSHED BY A STONE CUT OUT OF A MOUNTAIN WITHOUT HANDS- rolling out of the eternal cosmos- crushing the clay feet and toes of the great image, and becoming a Kingdom which fills the whole earth. Our God is rolling as this great stone over Eastern Europe and Russia. The Russian leader is but a pawn in God' s hand- he is doing what the mighty God is making him do, just as God stirred the tent of king Cyrus (Ezra 1:1). God is crushing the governments into powder. The clay is crumbling! God is opening the doors, pulling down all the walls, crushing the curtain- in preparation for the outpouring of the Holy Spirit upon ALL FLESH. The word of the Lord is being fulfilled before our very eyes, "And the Lamb SHALL OVERCOME THEM" (Rev. 17: 14).
The sons of God are soon to arise on the world scene. It will be MORE than revival this time, my beloved, IT WILL BE THE KINGDOM OF GOD WITH POWER! There is yet another move of the Spirit and work of God that transcends by far anything that has ever been seen or known. We are nearing the hour of the manifestation of the sons of God. The long, long awaited liberation from the bondage of sin, sorrow and decay is near at hand. The greater works which Jesus, our eider brother, told us of are soon to begin on the earth. The hour is at hand when the GOVERNMENT SHALL BE UPON HIS SHOULDER and the enduring Kingdom of God which shall never be destroyed shall consume and destroy forever all other kingdoms. The sons shall reign in the power and authority of the Spirit over all dominions from pole to pole and from sea to sea, and all nations shall know and serve the Lord. There shall be peace on earth and goodwill to men, with justice and judgment and equity and LIFE ABUNDANT FOR ALL.
Even now God's apprehended ones, His heavenly and spiritual constellations of star-sons, are reigning from the heavens of the Spirit. Through prayer and the spoken word the satanic influence over men and nations has been broken and the heavens opened and the Spirit poured out from on high. How we cry out to be participators in the outflow of HIS LIFE! The celestial influence of God' s star-sons over affairs on earth is graphically illustrated in an experience shared some years ago by Ralph Mahoney. He related that "a missionary friend of mine was carrying on a ministry of literature evangelism in a little town situated on the border of Uruguay and Brazil. He had been ministering in Uruguay for some time and was much concerned that the people had been so unresponsive to the Gospel. His experience and ministry in Brazil had been quite limited but he heard the stories from other missionaries of thousands of people turning to Christ each month. Sweeping revival had transformed many cities of brazil. He was puzzled why he wasn't having similar results in Uruguay. The main street of this little town sat right on the border of the two countries with the international boundary cutting right through the center of the main street. No one paid much attention to the border as this was a rather insignificant rural area. Neither country restrained the people from crossing back and forth.
"My missionary friend was on the Uruguayan side of the main street offering attractive gospel leaflets to the Saturday morning shoppers. As usual, they would refuse or, if accepting the literature, might discard it a few steps down the street. Mid-morning he crossed over to the Brazilian side of the main street and began offering the same literature to the shoppers there. To his amazement, the people eagerly accepted the gospel leaflets and would often pause to start reading them before moving on down the boardwalk. Thinking that perhaps his mind was "playing tricks" on him, he passed back to the Uruguayan side of the street. The people still showed little or no interest. With a non-committal attitude they might accept the literature to discard it a short time later.
"He thought, 'I am going to test this.' He offered literature to a woman who refused the tract. Immediately after, she crossed to the Brazilian side of the street and began walking slowly past the windows of the stores casually observing the items for sale. The missionary, noticing this, walked a half block ahead in the direction she was moving and to his amazement, when he offered the same gospel leaflet, the woman eagerly took it and thanked him with several enthusiastic 'Gracias! Gracias!' This process was repeated several times with the same results each time it was tested. As the missionary pondered and prayed about this phenomenon, the Lord brought back to his mind an incident that had taken place in Argentina some years before when, as a teacher at a Bible School, he was part of an extended intercessory prayer ministry that had resulted in the spiritual release of that nation. The weeks of intense crying and intercessory tears culminated in a prophetic proclamation, 'Weep no more, the Lion of the tribe of Judah hath prevailed. The STRONG MAN of Argentina hath been BOUND. In this country you shall know that your God reigns. "'
Through faith and prayer and prophetic decree the STRONG MAN'S influence over Argentina had been broken, and the nation was released for a massive response to the Gospel and the power of God. Ralph Mahoney continues, "Great healing and miracle crusades packed the largest stadium in the country (seating capacity over 200,000) and in the cities everywhere people were responding by the thousands to the invitation to receive Jesus as Lord and Saviour. But Uruguay had not known this 'purging of the heavens' of the covering of darkness. Here, ten years after the great Argentine revival, people were still unresponsive to the Gospel. Meantime Brazil had also had mighty sweeping visitations of the Holy Spirit with God's power and glory displayed in almost every sector of the nation. The heavens over Brazil had been opened. Under the release from the covering of darkness the people in Brazil found themselves responsive to the good news about Jesus. This, concluded the missionary, was the reason for the great difference in the people on one side of the street from the other. In crossing that street they were passing out from under the covering of darkness in Uruguay into a country which had experienced, in part, the removing of this covering." --end quote.
Can you comprehend, dear reader of these lines, what effect you can have upon creation by REIGNINC FROM THE HEAVENLIES? There is no need to board a great airliner and fly to far-away nations with strange-sounding names and quaint customs in order to bless the world. I have never set foot on the soil of the Soviet Union, yet I do not doubt for one instant that the declarations of God's word through my mouth aided in some mysterious and divine way the amazing events that are unfolding in that land. The apostle Paul instructed the young Timothy, "I exhort therefore, that, first of all, SUPPLICATIONS, PRAYERS, INTERCESSIONS, AND GIVING OF THANKS be made for A-L-L M-E-N... for this is good and acceptable ~n the sight of God our Saviour; who WILL HAVE ALL MEN TO BE SAVED, and to come unto the knowledge of the truth. For there is one God and one mediator between God and men, the Man Christ Jesus; who gave Himself a RANSOM FOR A-L-L, to be testified (proven, demonstrated, fulfilled) IN DUE TIME" (I Tim. 2:1-6).
You will note that the command to pray for all men is rooted in the fact that God W-I-L-L HAVE A-L-L MEN TO BE SAVED. The prayers of the saints! Prayer, precious friend of mine, is not a useless exercise, it is part of God's cosmic purpose. I don't pretend to understand it, but when Jesus was going away He said, "Hitherto have ye asked nothing in My name, from now on you will ask the Father in My name, and whatever you ask the Father I will do it." Ah, we have missed the importance of prayer in the redemptive and reconstructive and restorational purposes of God! Our prayers ARE important! Don't ask me to explain the mystery of the apparatus, but they are important. You'll find yourself praying, you'll find yourself desiring to pray, and that's the Holy Spirit urging you to do what is necessary to enable things to happen the way they are supposed to happen. There is a relationship between the decrees of God and the response of God's people! God created all things by a Word. God SAID, "Let there be...and it was so." That's a CREATIVE WORD! Prayer is a participation in the creative Word of God, speaking the new creation into existence. It's a mystery I don't fully understand, but there are times when I have to pray, there are times when the altar of my soul is full of clouds of holy incense as I send up to God petitions, as I decree a Word, not for myself, but for others, and when I can't articulate them in English I send them up in an unknown tongue. And there is that deep inner consciousness that somehow I am participating in a great tableau and drama of history.
What power pertains to those who are seated with Christ in the spiritual constellations of the heavens! And you, dear saint of God, are seated with Christ in the highest of the heavens! And you are not seated there to sing and shout and dance all over God' s heaven. You have been placed there in the heavenly constellations to RULE, to REIGN OVER THE EARTH. "...Thou hast redeemed us to God by Thy blood out of every kindred, and tongue, and people, and nation; and hast made us unto our God KINGS AND PRIESTS: and we shall REIGN ON THE EARTH" (Rev. 5:9-10).
Simply speaking, to reign is to exercise authority for God- to rule all things. God's one intention from the beginning has been that He may make man in His image and likeness and GIVE HIM DOMINION- that he may reign for Him in the universe. Although this matter of reigning will not be completely realized until the manifestation of the sons of God, yet today God wants it to have a beginning on earth. If any believer has not yet reached the degree of reigning for God, he has missed God' s purpose in creating man. There must be such people prepared by God that through them the authority of God can be executed and the Kingdom of God can come upon earth.
The Lord says, Behold, I have given you AUTHORITY to tread upon serpents and scorpions, and over all the POWER of the enemy: and nothing shall in any wise hurt you" (Lk. 10:19). True, the King James Version states that Christ has given us "power" to tread on serpents and scorpions, but the Greek word is "exousia" meaning AUTHORITY or JURISDICTION. When Jesus speaks of the "power" of the enemy, however, He uses a different word, "dunamis," meaning POWER. Our English words dynamite and dynamo come from that Greek word. Praise Cod, all that the adversaries of this present age have is POWER- but what the Lord gives us is AUTHORITY. This shows that authority is over power and can control power; therefore authority is greater than power. The Lord gives us authority in order to deal with all the power of the enemy. We may illustrate this by an automobile moving along the road. Although it is full of power, yet a traffic policeman has authority over it. When he blows his whistle the mighty engine must slow to a whisper and the car must stop. Again, it is like an army. Although it has great power with its men, guns, tanks, airplanes, and bombs, yet the General has the authority. When he gives an order, the army must obey. He has authority over the power. Authority is over power and can control power, therefore authority is greater than power. The Son of God has given us AUTHORITY over all the POWER of the enemy! Rejoice, YE STARS! Exult and shout, YE CONSTELLATIONS OF THE HEAVENS!
As the "sweet influences" of Pleiades, how sweet shall be the influence of Cod' s beloved sons! How precious the positive force of God's spiritual energy--Holy Ghost nature and Holy Ghost power r, ministering His life His love, his joy, His peace righteousness, His victory unto creation.
These shall not only declare His Word, but have authority and ability to see it established in the earth. When the power of God arises {n all fullness in His body of sons, and He is exalted in the people He has prepared, how unspeakably glorious and honorable He will be in the eyes of His creation!
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