Believe it!

God's astonishing power and Presence continues to amaze me as He privileges us to see the manifestations of His signs and wonders in our Monday Night meeting.
Judy is cancer free today. She was diagnosed with stage 4 Ovarian cancer. She was given two months to live. In July our healing team prayed for her.
Recent tests confirm that she remains cancer free.
John came in this past Monday Night and reported that his latest PSA numbers (tests indicating Prostate cancer) were now below normal, his tumor had shrunk 50% after prayer two weeks ago, now these tests show further healing. Thank you Jesus!
Though the healing of cancer seems to us as a greater miracle, I am consistently blessed by the pains and sicknesses that flee in Jesus' name every week. He cares for all our needs. He heals all our diseases and carried all grief and sorrow.
He heals the sick and the brokenhearted.

For me, the revelation of the finished work of the cross that brings healing
to hearts and minds is a very great miracle.
It cannot be separated from the miracles of healing, nor all the signs and wonders.
It seems to me that it should be the easiest thing.
It is, after all, the central message of the gospel. We should know this.
But for some it is difficult to believe.
We might even be able to believe for healing of our bodies before we can grasp the wonderful reality that is the basic message of the gospel: we are totally new creatures in Jesus Christ.
And as such we have access to an open heaven and all the promises of God.

"His grace gift inspires me to say to you that your thinking
must be consistent with everything that is within you
according to the measure of faith that God has apportioned to every individual.
Let the revelation of redemption shape your thoughts."
Romans 12:3 (the Mirror Translation).

"Let the revelation of redemption shape your thoughts."
This is another way of revealing how our minds can be renewed,
transformed, by the message of His finished work.
The word for 'transformed' in Rom.12:2. is 'metamorphic',
like the change from a caterpillar to a butterfly.
Utter and total transformation.

Paul is writing with an understanding that this is not an instant revelation for the Christian who is born of the Spirit.
It is implied in this chapter of Romans that we need to have our minds renewed to realize who we are!
We need to remind ourselves, and each other, of our new identity in Christ.
One way to do this is to minister to one another with the understanding
that we are already new creatures in Christ.
Done deal, past tense and finished.

So I preach to this reality, I minister with this assumption. My words and my prayers are directed to what has been done, not what needs to be done.
The mystery of the gospel should be no longer a mystery...it has been revealed.

"He has made known to us the mystery of his will, according to his purpose,
which he set forth in Christ as a plan for the fullness of time,
to unite all things in him,
things in heaven and things on earth." Eph.1:9-10

He has united, in Jesus, all things in heaven with the things of earth.
Wow!
Now read Ephesians 1:1-10 and you will note that Paul says these words after he
thoroughly makes the point that we are 'holy and blameless', he writes: ' we are destined in love', 'purposed in His will', 'freely bestowed with grace', 'lavished with grace', 'redeemed by His blood' and 'forgiven from all our sins according to His riches in grace'.

That was His mystery revealed in Christ, and it is a 'uniting of heaven and earth' because we must think from heaven when we look in the mirror and when we look at each other.
"From now on, therefore, we regard no one from a human point of view;
even though we once regarded Christ from a human point of view, we regard Him thus no longer.
Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation;
the old has passed away, behold, the new has come.." 2 Cor.5:16-17
I posted a thought on FaceBook that was re-posted several times and commented upon in several countries. It struck a cord.

Ray LeBlond: Imagine yourself as a totally new creature in Christ...

Ok,... now stop imagining it and believe it.

Believe it.

We are continuing to meet on Monday Night with the expressed purpose of learning to think and 'believe' from heaven instead of earth.
This in demonstrated by how we prophesy , preach and pray.
We do not ask God to heal the sick, we command sickness to go in Jesus name,
knowing that it is His power but our authority as new creatures in Christ.

We preach to the transformed man and consider the 'old man' dead, crucified with Christ.
We believe that a revelation of your true identity in Christ will 'transform' you, complete you, heal you, and restore you, bless you and refresh you and renew your mind!

And Believe!

Monday Night Supernatural

We have been meeting every Monday Night for five months now. We started out in an 'upper room', which is quite appropriate for a class on the Supernatural.
It has been a wonderful and wild experience. It has become much more than a 'class'.

In March I was asked to start a new class for people who were interested in learning more about the supernatural gifts. Some people are hungry for revival. Many are interested in the 'things' they are hearing about in church.
There is a definite 'buzz' in the Body of Christ surrounding the move of God in the realm of the supernatural. Everywhere people are hearing about someone getting healed of major illness. The 'prophetic' gifts are being expressed in many of churches. Signs and Wonders are becoming common place. (if you are paying attention to that sort of thing).

The 'buzz' is not always positive. There is always the fear of weirdness and abuse. Still, the news of 'revival' is out there. People are curious.
There is coming a time when it will not be able to be ignored. But for now, it is enough to say that the 'revival' is being noticed. The 'fruit' of this renewal is touching many lives in a very positive way.

So I began the 'class' intending to continue for 10 weeks. We wanted to cover the various gifts. We had a special evening on the prophetic gift, then one on healing the sick. Some of our guest 'instructors' were regular folk who had a strong gift in some area. Most of them were members of the 'class' itself.
We never really advertised it. We sent out a few emails. Put a note in several church bulletins.
The response on the very first night gave a hint of things to come. We had more than 25 people show up and five churches were represented. This went on for several weeks. New people kept coming, the curious and the hungry, the questioners and the seekers. Before long we lost track.
(I have been told that we have had over 100 people come and visit the meeting over the past five months, they have come from 10 or more different churches, 30-50 return every Monday and new people keep coming).

The classes were, at first, instructional. We also had times for prayer and ministry. The fellowship was always good. But we soon realized that something else was happening.
The Holy Spirit was the One leading the meeting. The 'atmosphere' in the room could not be explained by good teaching, great fellowship or ministry.
Our 'worship' consisted of a couple of songs on CD or Video. The teachings on the various gifts were not given by experts or great speakers. But the Holy Spirit showed up every time, and we began to recognize that something extraordinary was happening.
Before the '10 weeks' were up we all decided that we were having too much fun to stop. We decided to keep the meeting going every Monday. After a while we realized 'this is no longer a CLASS'. (unless we were to admit that the Holy Spirit had become the Teacher). We recognized that there was some other dynamic happening.

This meeting had the atmosphere of revival.

I think it is important to recognize when the Spirit is at work. It is not something that allows us to claim special favor or blessing, rather, it is a attitude of 'honoring' His Presence and being grateful. In that light, I am very grateful for this moment.

We lay no claim to a 'revival atmosphere' like Azusa Street. Nor are we anywhere approaching the full measure of what 'revival' can look like. I have been to places like Brazil, Kansas City and Redding Ca., where the manifestations of His Presence are astonishing. I have been out of my own 'comfort zone' in some of these places. I have seen people touched by the Spirit in ways I cannot explain with any natural language.
Still, I sincerely believe that we must honor what we do have on Monday Night and not compare it to what we might think is 'better'. When we focus on what (we think) we 'lack' we inevitably dis-empower the very thing we 'have', and the result is that we get stuck there.

Honoring what God IS doing is extremely important. It is important as it pertains to our own growth in our own gifts, and it is important in our churches and ministries.
When we 'see' God's hand moving elsewhere, in one Christian or in another location, it is an invitation to 'go after that thing' for ourselves.
God never shows us something we 'lack', He only reveals something we can have. When we see something in the Spiritual realm that we desire, we 'press into' it, It is an invitation for 'the MORE' that is always available to us through the finished work of the Cross.

What we do have on Monday Night is wonderful. We have His Presence. We have community. We have people being healed of sickness. (a woman was healed of stage 4 ovarian cancer last month). We are seeing consistent manifestations of the prophetic gifts. Words of knowledge, Words of encouragement, Words of wisdom. Angelic visitations. People falling in the Spirit.
There are many reports of His tangible power in the form of heat and tingling throughout a persons body. And more testimonies of people being touched by a sense of His love then can be counted.

It is the atmosphere of revival.
To call it anything else would be dishonoring to what God is doing in our midst.

To illustrate this point Bill Johnson uses an apple orchard: In an orchard you could pick, of one tree, a ripe apple and find it full of flavor and satisfying fruit. Then you might find a small unripe apple on another tree. But to say it is 'not an apple' is untrue. It may be immature, yet it is still an apple.
Be thankful for the apple, it is full of potential !
Just as Jesus gave thanks for one boy's tiny lunch of loaves and fish, before it was multiplied to feed the thousands, we must thank God for what we have, bless it and watch it grow.
God always multiplies what we are thankful for!

I am very thankful for what God is doing on Monday Night.
But I realize that there is more going on than 'signs and wonders'.
I believe people are coming to Monday Night for more than the curious manifestations of His Spirit.
The atmosphere in the room is filled with His Presence because we focus on His Presence.
We expect it because we have come to understand something wonderful about our God: He is good.!
The Holy Spirit reveals Jesus, He loves it when the gospel is preached. And the gospel is a Person, Jesus.

When we focus our attention on the Finished Work of His Cross, we focus on Jesus.
When we take our eyes off ourselves, and even off the manifestations that touch us in the supernatural, we begin to 'see' the Kingdom. We can see the Kingdom of God best when we first recognize the King. (read my previous Blog: 'The Kingdom of God').

The message of God's grace opens up our hearts to understand why God would touch us with tangible expressions of His love. When He heals the sick, it is a touch of His love. When He gives a prophetic 'word' that reveals to a person something only He would know, God is saying, "I see you and I care to speak to you of my love".
We can understand why God would allow us to 'sense' or see the presence of His angels, and why He might let His Spirit fall so gloriously upon a heart that the person would 'fall' at His touch.
Even laughter and shaking, gold dust and feathers can be seen as the gentle revelation of His goodness. When we discover that He really is good.

He is good to us because He likes us. His goodness is expressed in His love.
The ultimate expression of love is the laying down of one's own life. So it is as Jesus defined it in John 15: 12-13.
It is interesting to note that Jesus used the word 'friend' when He spoke of laying down a life. Clearly He was referring to His own 'greater love'. And then, in context, He tells us that we 'are His friends'. (vs 14). He likes us!

I have noticed a wonderful thing.
I point it out simply because some people are sure to draw attention to the following words Jesus spoke in verse 14: "I call you friends if you do what I command you".

Some would say that this makes His love conditional. Some would point to this as an admonition to avoid (what some might call) 'the nonsense' of the supernatural. Some would say that we are not focusing on the command when we take pleasure in the supernatural manifestations of His love.

But the wonderful thing I have noticed is that the people who are touched by His tangible love are the very ones who are most likely to DO the thing Jesus said was His command, they tend to love one another. (vs 17). and they tend to demonstrate His love with real action and genuine expression.

I think people are coming on Monday night because they know that they are loved.
Loved.
By God, and each other.

We also know that, as 'friends' of God, we are capable of hearing what He is saying. We know that because of the finished work of the cross we all have access to everything Jesus paid for.
We are new creatures in Christ.
Supernatural ones. And because of His love, He does not play favorites.
We all are filled with His Spirit, gifted and called.
On Monday night we tend to remind each other of who we are in Him. Personally, I think that is what Biblical encouragement should really look like.

So it is, in our Monday Night meeting, that I find we have a group of people who are loving one another because He first loved on them with tangible expressions of His love.
Not to mention that they are taking His love to the streets, healing the sick and inviting the lost to discover a God of power and love.
Not to mention that in context of John 15: 14-17 that we are 'no longer called servants, but friends', and as such we are capable of 'knowing what the Master is doing'.

I think the Master is doing miracles!

And Monday Night is miraculous.

THE KINGDOM OF GOD

There were many in Israel who saw Jesus, a few saw Jesus Christ.

There were many in Israel who saw the power of God upon Him, a few realized that the Kingdom of God had come unto them!

When Nicodemus came to Jesus by night in the 3rd chapter of John, he was aware that the power of God was upon Jesus. But Jesus' 'answer' to his observation was unexpected. Jesus told him that one must be born anew, or from above, in order to 'see' the Kingdom of God. Jesus went on to explain that to be born from above is to be born of the Spirit.
I believe that when we receive Christ as Lord and savior we all receive the Holy Spirit. That means we have the ability to 'see' the Kingdom. But lately I have become aware of a simple conviction; I have not seen the Kingdom at any time, in my 30+ years of being a Christian, as I now see it.

What I mean is this; Jesus invited us to see something more. More then fellowship, church, tradition, ministry, prayer, Bible study, conferences, Sunday school and programs. He invited us to a relationship that can experience the invasion of heaven upon our tangible world. My world has been turned up-side right by this invasion and I am overwhelmed by the wonder of it.

Three Gospels record the event where Jesus heals a blind and dumb man and He is accused of doing so by demonic powers. His answer is astounding; first He makes it clear that it would be stupid of satan to heal the disease he inflicted upon the man, then He challenges them to see what really just happened. "If it is by the finger of God that I cast out demons then the Kingdom of God has come upon you!" (Lk.11:20) It was an invasion of heaven. A touch from the Kingdom into the realm of this reality with super-natural power.

It is just here that I want you to see something significant; the Kingdom of God is now! And it has power for us to be able to tap into a realm of glory we have always been meant to access but only a few realize. It is available to everyone who believes!
The Pharisees asked Jesus when the Kingdom of God was to come, they imagined it to be a earthly restoration of the house of David with a Messiah to rescue them from worldly oppression.
They looked for a prophetic 'sign' of that appearing. Jesus told them that "the Kingdom of God was not coming with (outward) signs that can be observed (in the natural realm); nor could anyone say 'Lo, here it is!' or 'there!' for behold, the Kingdom of God is in the midst of you (or within you)." (Lk.17:2o-21) 'It is like the wind,' as Jesus told Nicodemus.
Like the wind in the sense of the Spirit.
Like the Spirit in the sense of 'wind'.

A Kingdom that becomes 'tangible' for those who are born of the Spirit.
A 'Kingdom of heaven' which is more 'real' than the 'reality' we touch with our five senses.
It is there/here all around us. It is available to everyone who believes.

I believe that Jesus gave an invitation. Mark 1:14-15 records: "Jesus came preaching the gospel of God, and saying, 'the Kingdom of God is at hand; repent (change your mind), and BELIEVE the gospel'."
Many believe the 'good news' of salvation and are saved. Many believe in spiritual gifts and experience the wonderful blessing of tongues. Most Christian love Jesus.
But is there MORE to 'believing' the gospel? Can we experience greater levels of intimacy? Can we experience more of His tangible love?

There were many in Israel who saw Jesus, but only a few saw Jesus Messiah.
A King with a Kingdom.

It is my belief that the Kingdom of God is greater than many of us yet see.
I believe that Jesus is greater than we think.
I believe that there is more to the Christian life than we have experienced.

If you have read any of my previous Blogs you will certainly know what I am alluding to.
I am experiencing astonishing things.

The Kingdom of God is in our midst, it is 'with-in' us.
The King is inviting us to MORE.

Astonishing Things Are Happening

The amazing journey I have been on these past few years gets more exciting every day. I believe we are living in the greatest moment in Church History. The exponential increase of the signs and wonders of His Spirit are daily reported across the planet if you care to take notice and know where to look. It is not in the media news. Yet.
Why? Why the increase? I truly believe that it is not because God is pouring out His Spirit in greater measure, rather, I think the church is catching on to what has always been available to us. Because more people are understanding who they are in Him, more is happening!
That is not to say that there is not evidence in history of unusual and seemingly unexplainable outpourings of His Spirit. Done by His will and His design and His purpose alone.
But as a student of Revival History I have discovered that most of these seemingly arbitrary events of great outpouring can all be traced to a few who believed God. They believed God to be greater than their experience and sought Him for the power they read about in the Book of Acts! God was more than willing to answer. The Holy Spirit is attracted to faith.
He always has been. It is irresistible to Him. We did not establish the principle of faith, He did.
It is everywhere HIS word.
Many of these 'revivals' were short lived. Lasting only a few years and confined to certain geographical areas. (Though these revivals had a real 'ripple effect' across the planet the benefits of which are still felt today).
Still there is something different about what is happening now. Thousands of people at all points on the globe are seeing signs and wonders in astounding measure. Healing, deliverance, miraculous provision. The dead are raised, the lepers are cleansed, the hopeless are encouraged.
Young people are finding a reason to live for God. Thousands are being saved. (The reports of the youth leaving the church in droves are drawn from statistics provided by traditional churches. Look to the non-traditional churches and ministries if you want to be encouraged).
Powerless Christianity holds no draw for this generation. We blame a lack of character on their part for their inability to attend a service with 3 hymns and a four point message. "Kids these days have no respect for tradition". "Parents haven't trained them to sit still so maybe they would learn something".
Frankly as a former church 'pastor', I am with the youth, this is my generation, I am as bored with the messages I once preached as they are.
I want Revival, I want God, I want His power, I need His Presence.
By 'revival' I do not mean ol' time religion. I do not mean a tent, an alter call and a 'mourners bench'.
I mean honest to goodness Holy Spirit signs and wonders with the 'wind' of His Spirit and the presence of angels. I mean healing of disease, the lame walk, the deaf hear, the blind see, the dead are raised to life.
I mean a worship service where the atmosphere is thick with the tangible sense of His Presence.
Where lifted hands are covered with oil and chests are pounding with an awareness of His astonishing love.
It is happening whether you are in touch with this news or not.
And the young (and old) love it.

In the Mall last week a group of giggly teenagers gathered around my friend Coelho, my daughter Hannah and a few others from various ministries in our area. They were caught up with amazement as their friends were healed of various ailments. They had stopped giggling when the first healing happened before their eyes. A few ran away, most stayed to talk, several gave their lives to Jesus.
This is revival.
Coelho goes out everyday. He likes to take people with him. But whether alone or with friends he heals the sick shares the gospel and demonstrates its power.
It is just one story but it happening everywhere.
And this is what this generation is looking for.
A wondrous revival that is all over the planet because leaders and preachers have learned that it isn't about them, it is available to anyone who has the faith to believe it. And because many are being encouraged to believe, it only 'appears' to be a great 'outpouring'. It is, in fact, a great 'infilling' that is 'spilling-out' from individuals with the rivers of living water they always had within them.
This is a great moment in history, I am happy to be alive.
This is my generation.