Search Results

Let’s Do It Right This Time Introduction I have been releasing posts on the subjects of revival  and reformation , based on Christ’s two commissions in Mark 16 and Matthew 28. They are very different, and understanding those differences is critically important.  Today’s post deals with the devastating outcome of fulfilling only the Great Commission found in Mark 6:15-18 (preaching the gospel and restoring people to God’s family), without accomplishing Matthew’s commission of discipling nations (Matthew 28:18-20). Here is a brief review of the previous 3 days.  In Review The concepts of revival and reformation are linked to Yahweh’s assignments to Adam and Eve - and therefore all of us. Today’s post is the fourth teaching in this series. Each post builds on the next, so if you haven’t listened to or read the first three, you might consider doing so. ( Part 1 ,   Part 2 ,   Part 3 ) In Genesis 1:26-28, Adam and Eve were told to: 1) multiply God’s family, and 2) steward/govern/manage His earth. Christ re-commissioned the church to these assignments in Mark 16:15-18 and Matthew 28:18-20. In Mark’s gospel, He told us to “preach the gospel”  in order to see people saved, i.e., multiply His family. When this happens with great momentum and a large number of people coming to Christ, we refer to it as revival.  In Matthew’s commission, Christ instructed us to “teach” His “commandments” in order to disciple nations, enabling them to steward/manage/govern the earth in accordance with God’s ways.  When this occurs on a broad scale, we call it reformation. We have analyzed the differences involved in these assignments.  And Now for Today The Charismatic and Jesus People movements of the late 1960s through the early 80s saw millions of people in America and tens of millions around the world come to Christ. It was a wonderful example of Christ’s commission in Mark 16:15-18, occurring with great momentum, truly a significant revival. However, there was a deficient understanding of our calling to disciple nations in Matthew 28:18-20. For the most part, the minimal awareness of “discipling” that existed was limited to discipling individuals who came to Christ, rather than also discipling nations, societies, and cultures. As we have stated in the previous posts, discipling nations involves teaching, modeling, and implementing God’s ways in all spheres of society, including family, religion, government, business, education, arts/entertainment, and media. It is NOT dictating or forcing God’s laws upon people and nations, as some who misrepresent our words accuse us, but rather teaching and modeling His ways and principles in every sector of society. Salvation, the new birth, opens the human heart and will to being discipled, which is why revival must occur first.  When a person is born again, Holy Spirit writes God’s laws in their heart (Hebrews 8:10), making them hungry for His Word and truth. Also, their conscience becomes alive, active, and desirous of pleasing God (Hebrews 9:14). When a nation experiences significant revival, the portion of the populace affected by it does not have to be “forced” to obey God’s laws and walk in His ways; they desire to do His will and obey Him (Psalm 40:8). New believers, however, must be taught these ways - retrained. They, in turn, must teach their children. If this training and discipling do not occur, satan attempts - and often succeeds - in counteracting a revival by infusing wrong thinking, ideas, and philosophies, etc., into the culture.  As we stated, during the Jesus People/Charismatic movements of the ‘70s, Christians focused primarily on Mark 16: seeing people come into God’s family and be able to go to heaven one day. And in an incredibly oxymoronic turn of events, in a revival with millions of people coming to Christ, humanists, secularists, and atheists were busy doing their version of Matthew 28, reforming a nation, while we saved individuals, they discipled a nation. We preached the gospel; unbelievers taught dogmas and doctrines. We went to church once or twice a week; they indoctrinated our schools and universities five days a week. We carved out a new, small niche of Christian TV; they made hundreds of movies and programs, increasing their hold on the industry. We sang and worshipped at church; they took over the airwaves and discipled a generation 24/7 with their music. We built a few radio and TV stations; they adopted new technologies, developed social media, and dominated all communication platforms. The results: America experienced one of the greatest revivals in history…AND LOST THE NEXT GENERATION TO DEMONIC CONTROL AND INFLUENCE!  This is almost incomprehensible! The irony is beyond belief, the tragedy beyond words. But it happened.  Adding to the devastation, the generation discipled by humanists, secularists, and atheists filled positions of influence, and has been in charge of our nation for years: governing, teaching, entertaining, etc. AND, they have been grooming the next generation, our kids. Sadly, today, social media and the entertainment industry have a far greater influence on the minds of our children than parents. This is the fruit of revival (Mark 16)…without reformation (Matthew 28).  And it’s how you lose a nation.  It’s sad to say, but had the church obeyed the commission of Matthew 28:18-20, we would not have lost 67 million babies to abortion. Our children would not be confused as to their gender, some going so far as to mutilate their bodies. And the law of the land regarding marriage would still be defined by a sacred covenant between one man and one woman. The cost of our ignorance and disobedience has been astronomical. Had we obeyed Matthew’s commission, we would not have an anti-law enforcement movement, thousands of criminals roaming our streets, socialists in high positions of government and antichrist religions ruling entire regions of America. We would not have 42 million Americans on food stamps, and millions of Americans who can’t read, write, or do basic math. We would not have had a senile president, controlled by a shadow government, inviting 20 million unvetted illegals into our nation, many of whom are supported by our taxpayer dollars. America would not be $37 trillion in debt. We would not have a lukewarm church, half of whom don’t believe in a literal Holy Spirit, the virgin birth, or the inerrancy of the Word of God. Revival without reformation is like building a house without a foundation; it cannot survive. We must not make this mistake again. Another powerful outpouring of Holy Spirit has begun that will ultimately produce an even greater revival than the Charismatic and Jesus People movements. In this outpouring, the body of Christ, His Ekklesia, must accomplish BOTH commissions. If we do so, it will reverse these failures and produce the greatest transformation of nations in earth’s history.  Pray with me: Father, You created Your family in Genesis 1, assigned them the responsibility of multiplying Your family, and commissioned them to manage their home, planet Earth, according to Your ways. Although this was temporarily stalled, Your plan has been relaunched. Jesus restored it, and said He would build an Ekklesia, a governing family that the gates/government of hell would not be able to overcome. He then recommissioned His followers to once again multiply Your family and steward the earth for You.  We embrace these commissions! We now see this two-fold plan of Christ’s gaining momentum. His bride is growing in numbers, and the Ekklesia’s revelation of its authority is also growing. Release another wind that exponentially increases this growth. Cause the greatest season of revival and reformation in earth’s history to erupt - Mark 16 and Matthew 28 fulfilled simultaneously. Release the greatest wind of evangelism the world has ever experienced, and fully reveal Christ among the nations.  We love You, Father, and pray these things in the name of Your glorious Son, Jesus. Amen. Our decree: We decree that the two Great Commissions of Christ WILL be fulfilled by His family and co-laborers, the church. Previous posts in this series: The Two Mandates The Mission, Clearly Defined Receiving, Then Representing Click on the link below to watch the full video.

Receiving, Then Representing In Review We have been looking at the concepts of revival and reformation, and the fact that they are linked to Yahweh’s assignments to Adam and Eve–and therefore all of us. Each post builds on the next, so if you haven’t listened to or read the first two [ The Two Mandates and The Mission, Clearly Defined ], please consider doing so. In Genesis 1:26-28, Adam and Eve were told to: 1) multiply God’s family, and 2) steward/govern/manage His earth. Christ re-commissioned the church to these assignments in Mark 16:15-18 and Matthew 28:18-20. In Mark’s gospel, He told us to  “preach the gospel” in order to see people saved, i.e., multiply His family. When this happens with great momentum and a large number of people come to Christ, we refer to it as a revival.   In Matthew’s commission, Christ instructed us to “teach” His “commandments” in order to disciple nations, enabling us to steward/manage/govern the earth according to His ways. When this occurs on a broad scale, we call it reformation . The fact that we did not focus on both commissions in the Charismatic/Jesus People movements caused us to lose much of the fruit and was devastating to America’s well-being. I’ll discuss this in tomorrow’s post. Yesterday, I pointed out some differences in our goals regarding revival (Mark 16) and reformation (Matthew 28). I want to make several more comparisons between the two today, focusing on differences in their messages  and activities.   Messages It stands to reason that with different goals regarding revival (Mark 16) and reformation (Matthew 28), the messaging would also differ, as would the methods of delivery.  In Mark 16, Jesus told us to “preach the gospel,”  which is the good news of Christ’s redemption; in Matthew 28, He told us to “teach”  what He  “commanded.”  The difference between preaching and teaching is more than style and volume. The New Testament word for preaching means to announce or proclaim a message, whereas teaching means to explain, expound, instruct, etc. We announce the good news of Christ’s saving work; we teach His ways, precepts, desires, and the principles of His Kingdom. (Obviously, Mark’s commission must occur before Matthew’s can be accomplished. Only those who have accepted Christ as Savior and Lord, desiring to obey Him, can be taught and discipled according to His ways. Without this change of heart, they could only be coerced and forced, which is never God’s plan.) In revival, we emphasize the provision  of Christ–His Cross, mercy, and grace; in reformation, we teach the principles  of Christ–His Word, justice, righteousness, and truth.  When we enter God’s family, the result of Mark 16, the emphasis is on our inheritance and  rights  as joint heirs  with Christ (Romans 8:17); as we are discipled and mature, the result of Matthew 28, the focus expands to our assignment  from Christ and our responsibility  as citizens  of His Kingdom. As a person matures, naturally speaking, they should take on more personal responsibility and require less from others. They should serve more, be served less. Otherwise, they become narcissistic, believing life is all about their needs and desires. The same is true spiritually. As we grow in Christ, our focus should become more and more on serving the needs of others, and on the cause of Christ. The American church is filled with believers who have been taught that the goal of a church service should be to meet their needs and satisfy their desires. Never having been taught otherwise, everything revolves around them: the worship, the sermon, the fellowship–it’s all for them. It rarely enters their minds to ask, “Where/how can I serve?” What does God need and want from me today? I don’t mean to criticize those in the pews; they’re simply living what they have been taught. Activities And lastly, the church’s activities must be different when accomplishing Christ’s two commissions.  In the family mandate of Mark’s gospel, we serve the needs of people: feeding, protecting, and nurturing our spiritual family just as we do our natural families; in Matthew’s mandate, we serve the purposes of God, ministering our gifts, laboring, sacrificing when necessary, even laying down our lives for His cause.  To fulfill Mark’s commission, we gather to worship, be fed, filled, and empowered; we  receive . To accomplish Matthew’s, we also gather, but do so to be trained, and eventually sent into our kingdom assignment; we represent .  In revival (Mark 16), we release the power of Holy Spirit for salvations, deliverances, signs, wonders, and miracles - performing the works of God; in reformation (Matthew 28), we speak and teach truth , the ways of God, doctrine, wisdom and revelation, in order to transform minds, the culture, government, laws and systems, aligning them with the will of God. As God’s family (Mark 16), our prayers are priestly –petitions, requests, and intercession offered heavenward; as the Ekklesia (Matthew 28), our prayers are kingly –decrees and declarations released earthward from our position with Christ. To accomplish Mark 16, multiplying and nurturing God’s family, Christ’s ministry gifts of pastor, evangelist,  and teacher  are predominant; to function as the Ekklesia (Matthew 28), producing the transformation and reformation of nations, Christ’s ministry gifts of apostle, prophet,  and teacher  are needed most.  In the Charismatic/Jesus People movements, the church failed to accomplish Matthew’s commission. We did not adequately disciple converts to Christ, and we most certainly did not disciple nations. Tomorrow we will examine the tragic results. Pray with me:  Father, we have been entrusted with the all-important task of preaching  “the glorious gospel”  of Jesus Christ (1 Timothy 1:11), of announcing the good news of Christ’s provision and blessings. We also nurture one another, teaching the gifts and inheritance You made available through Jesus. In the growing revival, cause an increase in the anointings required to announce these blessings with clarity and power. Increase the strength and scope of this revival. And as we birth/harvest new family members, enable Your Ekklesia, the church, to properly mature them into givers, not just receivers. May every convert become a responsible citizen of Your Kingdom, employing the gifts You placed within them for heaven’s great cause. Raise up powerful reformers in all of the mountains of culture: family, religion, government, business, education, arts/entertainment, and media. Give them wise and brilliant strategies with which to transform. As You did for Daniel and his colleagues, make them wiser than those who do not know You (Daniel 1:20).  Send the greatest revival and reformations the world has ever seen or experienced. All of this we ask in Yeshua’s name. Amen. Our decree: We decree that anointed revivalists, as well as wise and skilled reformers, are arising throughout the earth. Two previous posts in this series: Tuesday’s post:  The Two Mandates Wednesday’s post: The Mission, Clearly Defined Click on the link below to watch the full video.

The Mission, Clearly Defined America and many other nations are about to experience mighty revivals, accompanied by great reformations. This is extremely high on God’s agenda. It is critical that we understand these two phenomena from a biblical perspective. They will not occur simply because God desires them to take place, but also because He has a people prepared to partner with Him. Understanding them is part of that preparation. Therefore, I am teaching on these two important concepts this week, though I have done so before. They cannot be emphasized too much at this point in time. Each post builds on the next, so if you haven’t listened to or read yesterday’s , please consider doing so. Let’s review briefly. In Genesis 1:26-28, Adam and Eve were given two mandates: 1) multiply God’s family, and 2) steward/govern/manage His earth. Christ re-commissioned the church to these assignments in Mark 16:15-18 and Matthew 28:18-20. In Mark’s gospel, He told us to “preach the gospel” in order to see people saved, i.e., multiply His family. When this happens with great momentum and large numbers of people coming to Christ, we refer to it as revival.   In Matthew’s commission, Christ instructed us to “teach” what He “commanded” in order to disciple nations, thereby enabling them once again to steward/manage/govern the earth according to His ways. When this occurs on a broad scale, we call it reformation . The fact that we did not focus on both commissions in the Charismatic/Jesus People movements–we focused only on Mark’s–caused us to lose much of the fruit of those revivals. (I’ll discuss this in Friday’s upcoming post.) In yesterday’s post , I listed a few comparisons between revival (Mark 16) and reformation (Matthew 28) to help us understand the differences. I want to give several more today and tomorrow, breaking them down into three categories: their goals , their messages,  and their activities.  Today, we’ll look at the differences regarding the goals: The goal of Mark’s commission is to impact and save  people,   individuals ; the goal of Matthew’s is to impact and save entire cities and nations.  Mark’s goal is to birth spiritual children ; Matthew’s goal is to mature  and train  them as citizens  of God’s Kingdom, and commission them as Kingdom soldiers,   ambassadors,  and legislators.   Through Mark’s commission, people receive  God’s life and nature; through Matthew’s commission, they are trained to release  His life and nature. Mark’s commission produces the family  of God, the  bride  of Christ, worshippers; Matthew’s commission produces the Ekklesia , ambassadors and warriors  of Christ. The fulfillment of Mark’s commission brings wholeness and life to individuals;  the fulfillment of Matthew’s brings wholeness and life to entire cultures, societies , and nations.  Mark’s commission is intended to deliver people  from demons and sin; Matthew’s is designed to also deliver nations  from principalities and powers, philosophies, laws, unrighteous systems, and strongholds (humanism, racism, etc.).  In Mark’s commission, the fruit  primarily manifests within individual believers ; in Matthew’s commission, the fruit also manifests in societies  and nations.   Mark’s assignment is to transform the heart and nature of individuals ; the discipling of Matthew’s is to transform the minds and thinking of a society .  Mark’s commission will heal individuals  of brokenness, diseases, oppression, etc.; Matthew’s will heal nations  of poverty, hunger, violence, and other evils.  The salvation released through Mark’s message fills  individuals with Holy Spirit; Matthew’s teaching is intended to fill the atmospheres, the spiritual realm of regions and nations with Holy Spirit’s presence and peace. In Mark, Holy Spirit is poured out ; in Matthew, the Word and truth  are  taught.  Mark’s is an outpouring ; Matthew’s becomes an outworking.  Through Mark’s commission, personal destinies  are awakened and accomplished; through Matthew’s, national destinies  are also awakened and accomplished.  The fact that many in the church have not fully understood what each of Christ’s commissions was meant to accomplish has greatly hindered our overall assignment. A mission must be clearly defined in order to be fully accomplished. There must be a target to hit, a mark to press toward. Tomorrow, we will further define these two missions, examining the messages associated with each and the different activities involved. We’ll see when to emphasize the provision  of Christ, and when to teach the principles  of Christ; we’ll look at our inheritance  from Christ, versus our  assignment  from Christ.  Pray with me: Father, we thank You for Your heart to redeem and save. Thank You for the power of the gospel, the authority in the name of Jesus, and of Holy Spirit’s enablement. Thank You for Your Word, which transforms, instructs, and teaches us Your ways. And we thank You for Your promise that America shall be saved and of revival also impacting other nations of the earth. We are honored to partner with You in these endeavors, as Your Word instructs us. We will preach the gospel of Jesus Christ throughout the world, baptize those who believe, lay hands on the sick and see them recover, and cast out demons. This will produce the revival You speak of. But we will also teach Your Word, Your commandments and ways, discipling individuals and nations. We will do so with Your authority, as You instructed us in Matthew 28. This will produce the reformation You have spoken of. So, Father, we boldly and passionately ask You for this revival and reformation to be released in its fullness. Let Your power and the outpouring be such that they cannot be ignored. Awaken the church, save unbelievers, and transform nations. And all of this we ask for in Jesus’ mighty name. Amen. Our decree: We declare that the greatest revival in history has begun, and will lead to reformation throughout the world. Tuesday’s post: The Two Mandates Click on the link below to watch the full video.

Restoring America's Covenant With God Introduction It was an honor to serve my friend, Lou Engle, at the A Million Women gathering at the Washington Mall on Saturday. Though there were not a million gathered, I’ve heard estimates ranging from 250,000 to twice that; by noon their website had received 10,000,000 hits. Fifty nations also held companion events. It was truly unprecedented.  Though challenging for people to sit or stand for such a long time in the heat of the day, they remained attentive and engaged. It was inspirational watching them! The words, testimonies, prayers, and decrees were VERY strong; the worship was powerful.  I was asked by Lou to share for a few minutes regarding America renewing covenant with the Lord and lead in prayer to do so. Several people have asked for a copy of what I shared, so I am sharing portions of it on today’s post. From the Million Women Gathering When we state that America has a covenant relationship with God, we are NOT saying the Lord entered into the type of covenant with our nation that He did with Abraham. And we’re certainly not suggesting that it is on the level of the covenant we enjoy with God through Christ. Nor are we implying that it is based on a blood sacrifice of some sort. We are saying that early Pilgrims, settlers, and America’s Founders entered into alliances, agreements, and covenants with God. They did so through prayers, declarations, and written documents - including our founding documents. Our Founding Fathers made sacred, covenantal promises pledging to function under God’s government and care, to serve His purposes, to partner with and honor Him. And most importantly, America’s founding was inspired by God Himself. HE put HIS desire for this country’s birth into the founders’ hearts. America absolutely has covenantal alliances with God… Restoration We are asking God to restore America’s covenant/alliance with Him. The word restoration in Scripture is a powerful word. It means “to reconstitute something back to its to its original condition and purpose.” We are asking for a reconstituting of our covenantal alliance and purpose as a nation. America's Covenant With God That America’s early leaders and Founders desired this type of covenantal relationship with God is undeniable. Here are a few statements/facts that demonstrate this: Robert Hunt planted a Cross on the beach at Cape Henry in 1607 and declared, “We do hereby dedicate this Land, and ourselves, to reach the People within these shores with the Gospel of Jesus Christ, and to raise up Godly generations after us, and with these generations take the Kingdom of God to all the earth. May this Covenant of Dedication remain to all generations, as long as this earth remains, and may this Land, along with England, be Evangelist to the World. May all who see this Cross, remember what we have done here, and may those who come here to inhabit join us in this Covenant and in this most noble work, that the Holy Scriptures may be fulfilled.” After the prayer, he and the company read Psalm 22:27-28:  “All the ends of the world shall remember and turn to the Lord, and all the kindreds of the nations shall worship before thee. For the kingdom is the Lord's, and he ruleth among the nations.” The Puritans in 1630 stated in the Mayflower Compact that their voyage was made “for the glory of God, and advancement of the Christian faith.” Their leader and first Governor of the Massachusetts Bay Colony, John Winthrop, declared that they had “entered into covenant with God for this work.” He also declared that God “shall make us a praise and glory… a city upon a Hill”  (Matthew 5:14), which has been referenced by no less than 12 U.S. Presidents.  At the time of America’s quest to become a sovereign nation, the colonists openly declared, “We have no king but Jesus.” George Washington stated, “It is impossible to rightly govern the world without God and the Bible.” Samuel Adams, known as the Father of the American Revolution and a signer of the Declaration of Independence, stated, “The right to freedom is the gift of God Almighty… The rights of the Colonists as Christians may be best understood by reading, and carefully studying, the institutes of the great Lawgiver and head of the Christian Church: which are to be found clearly written and promulgated in the New Testament.” After signing the Declaration, he declared: “We have this day restored the Sovereign, to whom all men are to be obedient. He reigns in heaven, and from the rising to the setting of the sun, let his kingdom come.” The Liberty Bell,  which rang out at our birth as a nation, states,  “Proclaim liberty throughout the land to all the inhabitants thereof.”  (Leviticus 25:10) Founder Patrick Henry stated, “It cannot be emphasized too strongly or too often that this great nation was founded, not by religionists, but by Christians; not on religions, but on the gospel of Jesus Christ.” Our sixth U.S. President, John Quincy Adams, declared, “The highest glory of the American Revolution was this: it connected in one indissoluble bond the principles of civil government with the principles of Christianity.” America’s Declaration of Independence refers to God four times: as nature’s God, the Creator who gave them their inalienable rights, the Supreme Judge of the world to whom they were appealing, and as the God of Divine Providence.  America’s independence was won under a banner of prayer that read “Appeal to Heaven.” George Washington, president of the Constitutional Convention in 1787, opened the gathering by saying, “…the event is in the hand of God.” When those present at the Convention struggled to agree on aspects of the Constitution, Benjamin Franklin appealed for prayer to ask God for His help. In his request to those present, he referenced God’s “superintending providence,” then stated: “To that kind providence we owe this happy opportunity of consulting in peace on the means of establishing our future national felicity. And have we now forgotten that powerful Friend? Or do we imagine we no longer need His assistance?  “I have lived, Sir, a long time, and the longer I live the more convincing proofs I see of this truth – that God governs the affairs of men. And if a sparrow cannot fall to the ground without His notice, is it probable that an empire can rise without His aid?  “We have been assured, Sir, in the Sacred Writings, that ‘except the Lord, build the house, they labor in vain that build it.’ I firmly believe this; and I also believe that without His concurring aid, we shall succeed in this political building, no better than the builders of Babel…  “I, therefore, beg leave to move – that henceforth prayers imploring the assistance of heaven, and its blessing on our deliberations, be held in this Assembly every morning before we proceed to business, and that one or more of the clergy of this city be requested to officiate in that service.” This request was approved, the prayers occurred, and the Constitution was born. And what of the individual states? God or the Divine is mentioned at least once in each of the 50 state constitutions, and nearly 200 times overall.  Our Founders were intentional about their honor of, reliance on, submission to, and partnership with Yahweh and His Son, Jesus Christ! Renewing Covenant   (We will make this our prayer and decree today) (many of these are the literal words of our Founding Fathers) Declare with me:  Whereas God is the Creator and rightful Owner of all the earth, including the United States of America; Whereas He oversaw the creation and establishment of the U.S.A. for His purposes, including being “a city on a hill,” a light to other nations, and an “Evangelist to the world”;  Whereas our ancestors covenanted with Him to honor “this most noble work” of partnering with Him “for the glory of God and the advancement of the Christian faith”; Whereas we were founded “not by religionists, but by Christians; not on religions, but on the gospel of Jesus Christ.”  Whereas our founding documents refer to Him as  “nature’s God,” “Creator,” “the Sovereign,” “the Supreme Judge,” the God of “Divine Providence,” and “our Lord”; Whereas we are in covenant with God through Jesus Christ, which qualifies us to intercede, and are citizens of the USA, qualifying us to stand as her representatives;  And whereas the USA has broken our agreements, our covenants with Almighty God, but we have repented for this. We now appeal to You, Judge of Heaven and Earth, in the name of Yeshua, to forgive and cleanse our land. We pledge ourselves to You. And we ask for a restoration, a reconstituting of America’s covenantal relationship with You.  We ask You to send a sweeping revival that impacts every area of our society and culture, including our government. And we ask that this revival restores a heart of humility, along with Your holy purpose of evangelizing the nations. May we represent Your Kingdom in every way You intended. We agree with our brother and forefather, Samuel Adams: “From the rising to the setting of the sun, let [Your] kingdom come.” We ask for all of this in the name of Jesus, Amen. Click on the link below to watch the full video.

The Two Mandates Iran’s leaders, in their maniacal and suicidal determination to destroy Israel and America, dominate the Middle East, and terrorize the world, refused to agree to any concessions in their so-called negotiations with American leadership. This was not unexpected. One can’t help but think of the crazed Pharaoh in Exodus whose heart was so hardened that it mandated his and his army’s destruction. Vice President Vance ended the meetings fairly quickly, and Trump has taken decisive action by blocking the Strait of Hormuz. In this turning of the tables on Iran’s attempt at blockading the strait, Iranian oil will not be allowed to flow from Iran, which will completely cripple the nation financially. Trump has not backed off on his pledge that Iran will not have nuclear weapons and will no longer be able to terrorize other nations. Their bullying days are over.  We will pray regarding this at the end of today’s post. However, the subject Larry Sparks wrote about in yesterday’s post - combining reformation with revival - is so profoundly important, I want to continue addressing it somewhat this week. I have written on this subject in previous posts, but it cannot be emphasized enough. Just before He left for heaven, Jesus gave two commissions to His followers.  The First Commission: “And He said to them, ‘Go into all the world and preach the gospel to all creation. The one who has believed and has been baptized will be saved, but the one who has not believed will be condemned. These signs will accompany those who have believed: in My name, they will cast out demons, they will speak with new tongues; they will pick up serpents, and if they drink any deadly thing, it will not harm them; they will lay hands on the sick, and they will recover.’”  (Mark 16:15-18 NASB) The Second Commission: “And Jesus came up and spoke to them, saying, ‘All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to Me. Go, therefore, and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to follow all that I commanded you; and behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”’  (Matthew 28:18-20 NASB) The Genesis Connection These two commissions must be understood in the light of Genesis 1, for they are actually recommissions  of what took place then. Jesus came to re store -  re start, re birth, re vive, re deem, re cover,  re form, re fill, and  re commission. Commission One in Genesis was: “Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth” (Genesis 1:28). God told Adam and Eve, “Reproduce! I have placed in you the ability to multiply My image and likeness. And I want a big family!” Then came Commission Two: “Rule over... all the earth...over every living thing that moves on the earth” (Genesis 1:26-28). Psalm 8:6 restates the mandate, “Thou doest make him to rule over the works of thy hands, Thou hast put all things under his feet.” Obviously, this plan was interrupted at the fall. When Adam sinned, he lost the image, likeness, and Spirit of God; he also lost his dominion, the delegated authority to manage and steward the earth. And God lost His family. Jesus Came to Restore These two losses are what Jesus came to restore: 1) God’s family, and 2) their lost governance and stewardship of the earth. Regarding the first, He said in Matthew 16:18-19,  “I will build My church.”  The word “build” is  oikodomeo , (1)  which means to build a family or household. In choosing this word, Christ was saying, “I’ve come to get the family back!” He followed this in Matthew 16 by calling this family His “church,” the first mention of this concept in Scripture. “Church” is the word ekklesia, which means “called out from.” (2) It was not a building, worship service, or organization; at that time in history, ekklesia  was not even a religious term. It referred to an assembly or group of people “called out from” the general population in order to govern. Study.com says an  ekklesia/ecclesia  “played a central role in the political life of the city [Athens]. The Ecclesia had the power to nominate and elect magistrates, who were responsible for administering the city’s affairs and carrying out the assembly's decisions. The Ecclesia also had the authority to pass laws and to decide on issues related to foreign policy, defense, and the administration of justice. In addition to its legislative powers, the Ecclesia also participated in the judicial process in Athens. The Ecclesia members would try cases involving serious crimes, such as murder, and they could impose punishments.” (3) By choosing this well-known secular word, ekklesia , Jesus was saying, “Not only will I recover My family, but I will also reestablish them as My spiritual government, My ambassadors on earth” (See also 2 Corinthians 5:20). His other comments in Matthew 16 amplified and explained this further. Jesus said that this Ekklesia would be given the keys (authority) of His Kingdom, through which they would bind and loose (lock and unlock, forbid and allow), and that the gates or government of hell would not overpower them. (4) Jesus was clearly stating that the spiritual authority He would give His family would enable them to represent His Kingdom as ambassadors here on earth, and that they would not be overcome by the government of hell. The Recommissioning After declaring this, Jesus was crucified and rose from the dead, legally recovering the family and its authority. He then recommissioned His body on earth–twice. The “Great Commission” in Mark 16 was/is intended to multiply God’s family through salvation.  The “Great Commission” of Matthew 28 was and is meant to align people’s thinking back to the ways of God through discipleship– enabling them to function as His ekklesia , stewarding the earth. The first (Mark 16) changes people’s nature—who they are—transforming their spirit. The latter (Matthew 28) changes people’s thoughts and actions–how they live–transforming their soul (mind, emotions, and will). God not only wants kids; He wants them to become mature, responsible sons and daughters who know His ways and think His thoughts, enabling them to partner with and represent Him.  When Mark’s commission occurs in mass, resulting in the salvation of many people, we call this a revival ; when Matthew’s commission occurs in mass, resulting in societal change—government, laws, morals, education, culture, etc.—we call it a reformation.  Obedience to BOTH of these mandates is absolutely essential. I will highlight the differences between them more fully in tomorrow’s post, but here are a few comparisons and differences between revival and reformation: Revival brings people into God’s family; Reformation teaches them His ways. Revival births them spiritually; Reformation trains them practically. Revival transforms human hearts (our nature); Reformation transforms human minds (their thinking). Revival restores God’s life to individuals; Reformation restores His laws, principles, and ways to cities and nations. Revival’s fruit is internal, produced within us; Reformation's fruit is external, released from us. Revival is accomplished through “preaching” (Mark 16:15); Reformation takes place through “teaching” (Matthew 28:20). Revival creates converts; Reformation creates disciples. Revival produces God's bride, family, and worshippers; Reformation produces God’s Ekklesia, those who represent His Kingdom authority and rule. In the Charismatic/Jesus People revivals, which Larry addressed yesterday, the body of Christ worked toward fulfilling Mark 16 - growing God’s family. The commission of Matthew 28 - discipling nations - not so much. We will look at this more tomorrow. Pray with me: Father, You have said through Your prophets that revival and reformation have begun. As Your voices on earth, we declare that all nations will experience outpourings of Holy Spirit. As the waters cover the sea, Your glory will cover the earth. Even as sin abounds, grace and glory will abound more! Entire regions of the earth will be delivered and see the light of the gospel, and strongholds will melt under Your power and fire. Youth will see Your light and become volunteers in this day of Your power. They will run with endurance, war with strength, speak with prophetic insight, and build with apostolic depth. They will be the Amos 9:13 generation: plowmen will overtake reapers.  And, Lord, we realize the war in Iran is connected to the great revival that has begun. The powers of darkness controlling that region are being dislodged, just as Baal was in Pharaoh’s day. We ask that this process be finished–leave nothing undone. End this evil regime and its reign of terror. Give Your wisdom to President Trump and our leaders in this endeavor. Let no miscalculations be made, no wrong moves. All this we ask in Yeshua’s name, Amen. Our decree: We decree that we will  experience the rain of revival and the wisdom to reform nations in the great outpouring of Holy Spirit that has begun. Click on the link below to watch the full video. James Strong, The New Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible (Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson Publishers, 1990), ref. no. 3618 and 3424. Ibid. Ref. no. 1577. https://study.com/academy/lesson/ecclesia-ancient-greece-history-facts.html In those times, city councils often met at the gates of their cities because, in their thinking, the gates were a picture of government. Why? Gates determined what entered the city physically, just as government did so legally.

Introduction Today’s post is from Larry Sparks, our friend and revivalist. The post is based on an e-book he recently released, which is available to the Give Him 15 community for Free  at Larry’s website. This information will be given at the end of today’s post. The Missing Move of God While recently in Australia, I was taken into an unusual vision. I caught a glimpse of Dutch Sheets weeping over the American flag, as he did when Holy Spirit marked him years ago with a mandate for awakening in the United States. Then, beside Dutch, I saw an Australian man embracing and weeping over the Australian flag. Next, as if to unite both prayers, I saw the Appeal to Heaven  flag waving behind them both: two nations, one banner, one cry.  Regardless of the nation we call home, God’s commission is that we must run toward our nation in prayer and engagement, not  away from it. This vision was a doorway into something the Holy Spirit has since been pressing upon me — a word about “The Missing  Move of God,” and how it connects to the story of the Hebrew prophet Jonah. Now the word of the LORD came to Jonah the son of Amittai, saying, “Arise, go to Nineveh, that great city, and call out against it, for their evil has come up before me.” But Jonah rose to flee to Tarshish from the presence of the Lord.  (Jonah 1:1-3) Jonah was called to a dark and wicked place in order to be a catalyst for landscape-changing awakening. His response? He fled to another location. Is it possible that decades ago, the church was entrusted with a cultural moment we were called to speak into — and we fled from it? The Charismatic Renewal and the Jesus Revolution In the 1960’s and 70’s, parts of the world experienced two explosive moves of God: the Charismatic Renewal and the Jesus People Movement. The Charismatic Renewal began in part with Episcopalian priest Dennis Bennett’s historic baptism in the Holy Spirit. His denomination responded unfavorably and sent him to a struggling congregation in the Pacific Northwest, hoping his spiritual zeal would quietly fade. The opposite happened. His community in Washington State became a hub of Holy Spirit outpouring that inaugurated what church history recognizes as the Charismatic Movement — a season where every major Christian denomination was impacted by the Holy Spirit baptism and supernatural gifts of the Holy Spirit. But the Charismatic Renewal was not meant to be an  end ; it was a womb.  The mothers and fathers who were filled with the Spirit in the early 1960’s were taught to travail in prayer for their sons and daughters — the unfortunate victims of the counter-cultural upheaval of that era. Drugs, the sexual revolution, Woodstock, and cultural anarchy defined the climate. America was like Nineveh of old. And yet, God heard the desperate prayers of parents and answered by birthing the Jesus People Movement — a sprawling historic revival where young adults turned to Christ by the tens of thousands. A Staircase with a Missing Step When you survey this spiritual history of the twentieth century, a pattern emerges that looks less like random events and more like a divine sequence. The Charismatic Renewal renewed believers and produced the Jesus People Movement; this movement brought a revival-sized harvest. But there was a missing final step. Reformation  was meant to be the third: a generation of Spirit-filled, Scripture-grounded believers carrying the kingdom of God into every sphere of culture. The vacuum left by that missing third step produced consequences we are still facing today. Revival  without reformation  is like a fire that blazes brilliantly and then burns itself out, without igniting anything around it. The discipling of young people who came to Christ during the Jesus Revolution focused on the  inward  aspects of personal maturity and Christian community — rather than outward movement   also ,  toward the spheres of society where culture was being shaped.  Individuals were discipled, but not nations,  as Matthew 28:18-20 instructs us. To be disciples of Jesus, a generation was encouraged to disengage from the world and its sinfulness, corruption, and impending end-times destruction. Darkness moved into the vacuum this created, as it always does. Every sphere of cultural influence that the people of God vacate does not remain neutral. It gets occupied.  But our God is rich in mercy! In the account of Jonah, he fled, resisted his assignment, and famously ended up in the belly of a great fish. But He cried out to the Lord and was redeployed to Nineveh (after being vomited out by the fish, of course). Jonah 3:1 became one of the most quietly stunning verses in all of Scripture — and an encouraging prophetic signpost to us right now: “The word of the Lord came to Jonah the second time” (Jonah 3:1). Grace Hidden in a Transition Not a new word or a revised assignment. Not a lesser calling now, since Jonah had proven his unreliability. The same word . The same territory and people group. The same command: arise, go, preach to the people you tried to run away from. God did not write Jonah off. He came back with the original assignment–fully intact, fully alive, fully expectant. We Are Living in a Jonah 3:1 Moment During the Jesus People Movement, thousands were gloriously born again, and that is to be wildly celebrated. But the assignment to disciple culture — to occupy every sphere of society with the presence and values of the Kingdom — went largely unclaimed. We saw Mark 16 unfold, where the Gospel of salvation was preached and received enthusiastically by multitudes; however, we did not witness new converts deployed into culture to do the work of Matthew 28: disciple nations. But God has not abandoned the assignment. Though we ran from our cultural Nineveh back in the 60’s and 70’s, Yahweh is a God of second chances. Another Jesus People moment is happening right now . University campuses are stirring. Young people are encountering the Holy Spirit in ways that cannot be manufactured. Major influencers are asking bold questions about the Christian faith, demonstrating clear spiritual hunger. The question being whispered in the Spirit over this generation is not whether they will experience revival; that is already happening. The question is whether or not revival  will become reformation. Calling Forth the Awakeners This is why the vision in Australia shook me. Two believers wept over their Nineveh assignments, their nations hanging in the balance. And yet, their tears were not hopeless; they represented a fiery love for their nations, a love that thrust them into intercession and divine assignments. The great Christian thinker, G.K. Chesterton, wrote about appropriately loving and engaging the world: “The world is not a lodging house, which we are to leave because it is miserable. It is the fortress of our family, with the flag flying on the turret, and the more miserable it is, the less we should leave it .”(1) If the world seems miserable, that is a call to you and me: Jonah, arise ! Awakeners, come forth, and be voices of righteousness and Kingdom standards in a broken world. Revivalists evangelize the lost and call the church to wake up. Awakeners, however, are commissioned to call the world to account  as righteous standard-bearers, sprinkled like salt in every sphere of culture.Jonah has been in the fish for a season—but he is coming out. A new breed of believer is emerging, the   awakeners, called to boldly teach and display the Lordship of King Jesus. As theologian N.T. Wright describes in his book God’s Homecoming , such believers “are called to stand humbly in the divine council, in order then to stand boldly in human councils.”(2) Appealing to heaven, then engaging the earth. The Word Has Come a Second Time When Jonah finally arose, went, and preached, the result was one of the greatest city-wide revivals in Scripture. An entire population repented and was transformed. That is what happens when the people of God hear the call to go,  to run towards the world instead of trying to escape it. You do not need a platform to be an awakener. You simply need to show up where the Lord has called you. Your Nineveh may be a classroom or a courtroom, a film studio or a Senate chamber, a living room or a legislative hall. But whatever your Nineveh, the word of the Lord has come to you: Go! The Third Move will not be missed this time. Renewal has occurred. Revival is here. Reformation is coming.  Arise, church. The word of the Lord has come a second time. And this time, we are going to Nineveh. Pray with me: Father, like Jonah, we are sometimes tempted to run from our Nineveh assignments. They can feel intimidating. But Lord, You are not intimidated. Your commission has come a second time—and we say “Yes.” We appeal to Heaven in prayer and will engage earth by showing up in the places of our divine assignment. We declare that the mountains of education, media, government, business, arts, family, and the church are our mission fields. Raise up and deploy Your “sent ones” into every sphere of culture! We will boldly respond:  Here I am, send me. Our decree: We decree that the word of the Lord has come to us a second time, and our answer is yes  — we arise, we go, and we will not turn back! As mentioned in the Introduction, you can access the free E-book:  The Word of the Lord Came a Second Time by going to LarrySparksMinistries.com/SecondTime You can find out more about Larry at LarrySparksMinistries.com .   Click on the link below to watch the full video. 1. G.K. Chesterton, Orthodoxy . 95. B&H Books. 2.  N.T. Wright, God’s Homecoming . 302. Harper One.

What A God! “Another powerful move of the Holy Spirit erupted this week at Florida State University in Tallahassee as the spiritual awakening on America’s college campuses isn’t showing signs of slowing down. Tonya Prewett, founder of the UniteUS   Ministry,  reports, ‘What a night!! 4500 students gathered at FSU for a powerful night of worship! Hundreds made decisions to follow Jesus and were baptized! What a God!’ “This is the second time America’s Number 2 ‘party school’ has been hit by the power of God after thousands turned to Jesus and hundreds were baptized in an FSU fountain in 2024. “‘The hunger, the faith, the joy, the surrender, it's all been incredible to witness. Students who gave their lives to Jesus in 2024 stepped up to lead at Unite FSU 2026! God continues to move at FSU!’ Prewett added. “As CBN News has been reporting, the UniteUS outreaches are ongoing here in 2026. Last week, thousands turned out at the University of Pittsburgh for an evening of worship and preaching. More outreaches are planned for upcoming weeks, including Samford on April 8 and Oklahoma State on April 28.” (1) I have now heard firsthand reports regarding the UniteUS gathering at Samford from my friend Larry Sparks, who will be sharing with us about revival in an upcoming post. Larry was deeply moved and said the same thing happened there as occurred at Florida State. America’s Third Great Awakening has begun, and the revival will also take place in many other nations. The Lord first showed me in 1990 that another great revival was coming to America, and that it would begin with the youth. It has been a little over 35 years since Holy Spirit gave me this open vision, and it has been largely charting the course for my life ever since. I’ve shared it before on Give Him 15, but it will encourage you to hear it again, along with what occurred afterward. While teaching a class on prayer, suddenly, I began seeing – with eyes wide open! – not what was before me physically, but an open vision. I saw thousands of young people in a stadium or arena passionately worshiping and crying out to God. The scene changed, and they left the stadium. I then watched as they arrived back in their hometowns as flames of fire. Everywhere they went, the fire of revival sprang up. As I prayed about this, Holy Spirit said He was showing me what was coming: “There will be a Third Great Awakening in America, which will begin with the young generation.” I was deeply impacted.  A month later, Ceci and I went to Washington, D.C., to participate in the National Day of Prayer. Upon arrival, I was told of a unique event taking place all that week called a Biblethon. A canopy tent and small PA system were set up on the Capitol lawn. Individuals signed up for 15-minute slots, and the entire Bible – Genesis through Revelation – was read over the Capitol and nation 24/7 for the entire week. Those participating didn’t choose the passages they read; each participant had to continue where the previous person had stopped. When the entire Bible had been read, they started again in Genesis.  When Ceci and I arrived in D.C., a friend told me of this Biblethon and said, “I knew you would want to participate, and the slots were almost gone, so I signed you up.” “Yes! That’s awesome,” I replied. “The only slots remaining were through the night, so I signed you up at 2:00 AM tomorrow night,” he said with a smile. Instantly, I heard Holy Spirit say, “Through the passage of Scripture you read in the Biblethon, I’m going to confirm what I told you after the vision – that another great awakening will occur, and will begin with the young people.” My quiet response to Holy Spirit was, “Sir, I trust YOU, but I don’t trust MYSELF in this situation. I could find the concept of revival in ANY 15-minute reading of Scripture. Any! Whether the passage is about holiness, righteousness, love, You judging evil, a miracle, or someone You used, I could get the concept of revival from it. I am not trying to manipulate or force You to conform to my demands, but because of the Scriptures You’ve been speaking to me from in my ‘quiet times,’ there is only one way I would know for certain that a passage was confirming that word: if I get to read either the book of Haggai or Habakkuk.”  Haggai is two chapters long, Habakkuk is three, totaling 5 of the 1189 chapters in the Bible. I knew the odds were almost impossible that the reading progression would have arrived at one of these books just when it was my time to read. But that’s what I told the Lord.  When I arrived at the Biblethon tent the next night, thirty minutes early as instructed, they were nowhere near Haggai or Habakkuk. Someone was reading from the gospels. I didn’t want the Lord to feel badly about being unable to have them at one of the passages I requested, so I assured Him it was okay, and that I still believed the vision and word from the previous month were from Him. I knew He was comforted! A couple of minutes before my time slot, the lady in charge approached and told me I was next. Then her expression changed; she looked at me and departed from protocol, saying, “Mr. Sheets, you have your choice; you can read either the book of Haggai or Habakkuk.” I was stunned! God was saying, “Not only can I arrange it so you can read one of those two books, I can do better than that. You said ‘Haggai OR Habakkuk.’ Okay, you have your choice, son: Haggai or Habakkuk.” That, my friend, is how much the Lord wanted me - and wants you - to know He is going to send a Third Great Awakening to America, beginning with young people.  I prayed and waited over 35 years to see the fulfillment of what I saw in this vision. I have now seen it. In April of last year, Ceci sent me a video clip, adding the words: “Your vision!” As I watched it, tears began to flow, and I said to myself, “This is it. It’s here.” The video is from a Passion Worship Gathering in 2024, just over 2 years ago. Since then, there have been over 18 million views. I have been blessed to have been in many amazing worship times, but this one is the scene I saw in 1990 . It is a gathering of tens of thousands of young people, caught up in worship, in awe of, and overwhelmed by Jesus. The lingering presence of Holy Spirit, the expressions of adoration on their faces, the depth of what was occurring is beyond words…and is what I saw in the vision from 1990. Now, gatherings with the same passion and presence of God are occurring on college campuses across the nation, with the added element of salvations and baptisms. The Third Great Awakening has begun. Find a quiet place where you won’t be distracted and, using the link below, WATCH  all 20 minutes of the  video . The longer it goes, the better it gets. Don’t just listen to it – watch it! If you’re older and don’t know how to use YouTube,  have someone assist you, but watch it. Pastors, show it to your congregations and encourage them with what has begun. Youth pastors, show your youth group and let the kids see who they were made to be. Pray with me: Father, in Habakkuk, You said to  “Write down the vision…So that one who reads it may run. For the vision is yet for the appointed time; It hurries toward the goal, and it will not fail. Though it delays, wait for it”  (Habakkuk 2:2-3). Like the shepherds at the time of Christ’s birth, who heard the promise, then waited many years for Jesus to burst onto the scene, we have waited over 30 years for this great awakening. It has begun. Now, we ask for the fire to break out all over this nation, and the nations. Shake the earth and send “the desire of all nations”  to us. Fill this nation and the nations of the earth with the greater glory (Haggai 2:6-9). And Lord, prepare the church for this revival. We pray that no traditions of men, preconceived ideas, or wrong expectations will hold us back. Blow the lid off. Rock the boat. Stretch our wineskins and challenge our paradigms. Give us new wine, fresh wind, and an abundance of rain. We ask for the greatest, biggest, and most far-reaching revival in history. Outdo Yourself, Holy Spirit. In Yeshua’s name! Amen. Our decree: We declare that Jesus, the desire of the nations, will be revealed in His glory throughout the world. Click on the link below to watch the full video. Here is the link to the video from  Passion Conference 2024 . https://cbn.com/news/us/americas-2-party-school-gets-hit-second-wave-awakening-hundreds-turn-christ

My Response Regarding the Ceasefire Tuesday evening, President Trump agreed to a two-week cease-fire between the U.S. and Iran. Talks are slated to continue during this two-week timeframe, with the intent being to iron out terms both nations can live with, as long as Iran keeps the Strait of Hormuz open. Opinions differ on whether the cease-fire will survive, and the talks will lead to peace. Throughout the course of this war, opinions have also differed on whether or not we should have engaged militarily with Iran in the first place. Some Americans are isolationists and were adamantly opposed, some are interventionists and were strongly in favor, and others are somewhere between these two ideologies, believing that at times we must involve ourselves in military conflicts, but only when there is no other choice.  I have stated more than once in my Give Him 15 posts that I believe this war was necessary. I certainly don’t like war, but neither do I like murderous dictators and thugs. Does this mean I believe America should involve itself in every skirmish happening around the world, or run to the rescue of every group of people being persecuted by another? No, not unless: The bad guys are close to obtaining a nuclear weapon. They have promised to use this weapon against us and our allies. They have proven that they are conscienceless, murderous monsters capable of heinous actions. They control a great portion of the world‘s oil and intend to blackmail the rest of us with this control. There is only one way to deal with the Hitlers of the world, and that is to destroy them before they destroy others. Trump knows this and refused to “kick the can” down the road for the next president and/or generation to deal with. The world has tolerated the terrorist regime leading Iran far too long, and Trump knew it. And when it became clear that Iran was close to producing a nuclear weapon, he had the common sense and strength of will to say “No!” He also faced other facts that previous leaders have responded to by burying their heads in the sand and simply hoping for the best. Iran and Venezuela possess and/or control much of the world’s oil. And they are aligned with China and Russia (at least Venezuela was), two nations also ruled by murderous dictators intent on ruling the world. It doesn’t take much intelligence to see the plans behind these alliances: world domination.  But we finally have a leader – and military – that faced the facts and said this was NOT going to happen. Due to Trump’s actions and an incredible military, America now controls Venezuela’s oil. Iran’s military has been decimated, although they still possess some of their missiles and drones, which also need to be destroyed. And, of course, Iran’s nuclear capabilities must be terminated. Will the cease-fire and the discussions lead to these results? Time will tell. But if Iran does not hand over all of their enriched uranium supply, our military should find and destroy it, whatever it takes.  To those criticizing President Trump for his actions, accusing him of war crimes and of killing innocent people: if you have not screamed as loudly over the murder of 65 million babies in the womb; if you have not protested the mutilation of thousands of confused children by ideologically driven adults; if you did not weep and cry out over the 45,000 innocent Iranians tortured and murdered in the past few months by the evil regime in control there…then spare us your hypocrisy. Your rants ring hollow; your clamoring is meaningless, and your complaints are beyond hypocritical. President Trump and our military are doing the world a favor by dealing with this wicked regime. And we, as Americans, can endure some high fuel prices and a lower stock market for a short season as they do so.  Pray for our leaders, especially our President. He is making difficult decisions that will impact the world for years. He has the guts and backbone to make tough calls, but only the wisdom of God can move us through these times successfully. Pray also for those advising him. Ask the Lord to block counsel that is not wise, allowing only His wisdom to get to the President. And pray for those in negotiations during this two-week period; ask the Lord to give them supernatural discernment and wisdom. Pray that any evil intentions and lies from Iran’s leaders be exposed, and pray against the powers of darkness involved in this situation. The Bible speaks of “principalities and powers, rulers of the darkness of this world, and spiritual wickedness in high places” (Ephesians 6:12). We are to stand against them! Ask the Lord for the continued overthrow of the prince of Persia/Iran mentioned in Daniel 10. This spirit seeks to interrupt God’s messages, wear down His people, and thereby disrupt His timing.  Don’t simply watch the news;  make  the news through your prayers! The greatest weapon we have is appealing to heaven. When we do not pray, the enemy can prevail in the earth’s situations. But the effectual, fervent prayers of the righteous still avail much (James 5:16)! Pray with me: Father, we trust You, Your heart, and Your wisdom. But You have entrusted much to us, as well. You actually said we sometimes have not because we ask not (James 4:2). We refuse to allow that to occur at this moment in time - we are making our appeals and know that You will answer. Please lead President Trump, his advisors, our military leaders, and those negotiating with Iran during this season. Keep them from making wrong decisions, from receiving bad information, and from being deceived by Iranian leaders. Give them great wisdom and supernatural discernment. Please do the same for Israel in their involvement. Give our leaders the understanding needed to end the control of this evil regime. And we also ask You to end all control and influence of the prince of Persia in the Middle East. End his reign in the region once and for all.  Cause all that takes place to produce relief and freedom for the people of Iran, and please protect innocent lives. Even more importantly, cause what occurs in the region to lead to success in the preaching of the gospel in the Middle East. Send a glorious revival! These things we ask in the name of Jesus and for His glory. Our decree: We declare that Jesus is Lord over the nations, and He will have His inheritance (Psalm 2:8).  Click on the link below to watch the full video.

Introduction Today’s post is from our friend, Will Ostan, a retired U.S. Army Major and seasoned patriot. You might recall that Will is the soldier who introduced me to the Appeal to Heaven flag. I believe that his message today, shared from a combat veteran’s perspective, will inform and encourage you. Christian Courage As world events continue to escalate due to America and Israel’s just war against Iran, Russia’s illegitimate long war in Ukraine, and an aggressive China making its intentions known for eventual world domination by the end of this decade, the church has a stark choice on how it responds to these volatile times. Will we retreat? Or will we stay engaged in the culture through prevailing prayer and a resolute determination marked by Christian courage?  In his book, Impossible People: Christian Courage and the Struggle for the Soul of Civilization, author Os Guinness (1)  writes,  “In the golden era of the Roman Empire, Pliny the Younger advised Emperor Trajan that Christians should be executed solely for their tenacity and intransigence. ‘Whatever the nature of their admission, I am convinced that their stubbornness and unshakable obstinacy ought not to go unpunished.’” (2) Christians in the early church confronted far more dire consequences than we do today in America - including instantaneous death or dismemberment for illegally proclaiming the gospel - yet they refused to stay silent and cower in fear! Instead, they became known as “impossible people” because of their courageous stand marked by what the world called “unshakable obstinacy.” We would be wise to draw inspiration from their strength for our current cultural moment! Guinness accurately describes the typical mindset in some segments of today’s American populace by stating,  “Christians throughout the West often appear to be on the back foot. They have been told repeatedly that their prospects are hopeless. In a thousand withering dismissals, we have heard that we are fighting a losing battle and the game is already over. Christians are ‘yesterday’s faith,’ our day is done, our disagreements with others are a matter of bigotry, and we are reactionaries and on the ‘wrong side of history.’” (3)  We are constantly fed these lies by the world and sadly, sometimes even by leaders in the church. For years, countless books, articles, and speeches have stated that a “post-Christian” America is a fait accompli, and her eventual doom is imminent.  How did some in the church come to believe these lies? In my opinion, one of the main reasons is that we’ve had far too many preachers who promote either hopeless, defeatist theologies or comfort-driven lives of ease and self-aggrandizement. But instead of being lulled into complacency by these false messages, we are in desperate need of hearing a roar from the Lion of the Tribe of Judah, reawakening us to our holy calling as courageous Christians – those who will gladly stand resolutely for the glorious cause of Christ in the face of cultural decay.  To put it more succinctly, Guinness teaches us that,  “As salt and light in today’s extraordinary world, our contribution is indispensable. We are not simply guardians of some of the best of the past, but pioneers whose task is to stand against the world for the future of the world – and for the very sake of humanity.” (4) This truth is echoed in eternity past by the Bible’s “Hall of Faith” heroes whose lives compel us to continued engagement by their incredible exploits. Allow these words from Hebrews 11:32-34 and 12:1-2 to permeate deep into your soul:  “And what more shall I say? For time would fail me to tell of Gideon, Barak, Samson, Jephthah, of David and Samuel and the prophets – who through faith conquered kingdoms, enforced justice, obtained promises, stopped the mouths of lions, quenched the power of fire, escaped the edge of the sword, were made strong out of weakness, became mighty in war, put foreign armies to flight…Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising its shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God.” (5)   Overcoming evil by exhibiting Christian courage is not just in our historical spiritual DNA; it is our destiny and duty. Winston Churchill, a man whose leadership helped save what he called “Christian Civilization” from annihilation in the 20th century, may have put it best when he proclaimed the following to all freedom-loving people,  “When great causes are on the move in the world…we learn that we are spirits and not animals, and that something is going on in space and time, which, whether we like it or not, spells ‘duty.’” (6) Brothers and sisters in Christ, a worldwide crisis is actually the greatest time to be alive, as we follow in the footsteps of the mighty men and women of the past who did their duty as courageous Christians! John chapters 14-16 record Jesus’ exhortation to His disciples before He was betrayed and arrested. These were His final instructions to the men who were about to change the world in His name. He concludes by saying, “I have said these things to you, that in Me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world.” (7) Today, I am calling upon my fellow Christians to respond courageously in the face of global uncertainty. In the midst of tribulation, we have a duty to set our hearts and minds on Christ, be continually filled with His peace, and then overcome the world through the quality of our lives and the fervency of our prayers. It is our great responsibility and calling to carry our nation and the nations of the world in intercession before the throne of heaven.   Pray with me: Father, we join with the prayers of Your people across the globe. Give us renewed strength to act courageously in the face of so much uncertainty in the world. Fill us afresh with Your Spirit so we will resist the temptation to shrink back as the nations rage around us. Remind us who we are in Christ, and of the lineage of faith-filled heroes in our family tree. Embolden Your church to be courageous, manifesting our spiritual DNA as courageous overcomers.  Father, we acknowledge that the course laid out before us hasn’t changed, though the conditions have become uncomfortable. Therefore, fill us with a spirit of boldness as we set our faces toward the mark and run our race with endurance for the sake of humanity. Empower us to make this the church's finest hour! In Jesus’ name, Amen. Our decree: We decree that the church is rising up in fervent prayer to stand for Christ in our troubled world, for the future of the world! Bio: William J. Ostan is a medically retired U.S. Army Major and combat veteran of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. He is the Founder and President of Arc of Justice , a nonprofit organization that advocates for wounded warriors still on active duty. Will is currently spearheading the Wounded Warrior Bill of Rights  in Congress. I invite you to find out more about his story at WillOstan.com  and ArcofJusticeUSA.org . Click on the link below to watch the full video. End Notes: This post draws heavily from insights gleaned from Os Guinness’ books. In my opinion, he is one of the most important public intellectuals for the church today. He is extremely intelligent, humble, and sensitive to the leading of the Holy Spirit. I’ve found this to be a rare trifecta. Os still has a paradigm for the possibility of nationwide reformation through another Great Awakening. I highly recommend all his books, but especially Renaissance, Last Call for Liberty, The Magna Carta of Humanity, and Impossible People. Os Guinness, Impossible People: Christian Courage and the Struggle for the Soul of Civilization (Downers Grove, IL: Intervarsity Press, 2016), 30. Quoting Robert Louis Wilken, The Christians as the Romans Saw Them  (New Haven, CT: Yale University Press, 1983), 23. Guinness, Impossible People , 26. Ibid., 27. ESV.  Guinness, Impossible People , Quote Section.  John 16:33, ESV.

Peace in the Turmoil As we come nearer to the projected end of the military campaign in Iran, it is imperative that we pray for wise decisions to be made by the President and his military leaders. The evil regime in Iran has been a cancer to the people of Iran, the Middle East, and other portions of the world. Allowing the leading sponsor of terrorism throughout the world - with stated objectives of annihilating the U.S. and Israel - to possess nuclear weapons would have been insane, if not suicidal.  Many of our previous Presidents have stated that this must not happen, but kicked the can down the road to the next commander-in-chief, while the evil regime kept inching ever closer. President Trump decided to take action and do so in a way that keeps them from rebuilding their nuclear and terrorist ambitions anytime soon. And if regime change occurs in the process, great.  Our military, along with Israel’s, has achieved great success in the endeavor, while trying to leave intact as much infrastructure as possible for future Iranians. Two considerations are now critical in the decision-making process:  The Strait of Hormuz is now a complicating factor. How far do we go to eliminate Iran’s control over it, choking off oil flow to many nations, since our annihilation of Iran’s military has been largely accomplished? Trump doesn’t want to get bogged down long term, and he wants other nations - especially those that need the oil - to step up and help deal with this evil regime. At this point, many of them are saying no, signaling that they want Americans to continue footing the bill to protect the world, as we have been doing since WWII.  Secondly, how far do we go to take out the evil regime, positioning the Iranian people to rise up and establish a sane government? The stated goals were to destroy Iran’s Air Force, Navy, missile, and nuclear capabilities, with the hope that this would also cause regime change. Most of this has been accomplished - Iran obviously still has some missiles and launchers - but how much more should we do beyond simply finishing off the military? How far should we go to destroy the evil, murderous regime itself?  In essence, these two questions - and others I may not be considering - essentially translate to: How do we finish this war? President Trump and his team will need to make very wise decisions in the coming days. These decisions will impact not only the lives of millions of people, but the spiritual harvest in the Middle East! We can help generate the right decisions through our prayers. We can! Resurrection Day On the heels of Resurrection Day and in a tumultuous world,  I thought I would share with you an encouraging event that occurred on the actual day Christ rose from the dead. Two of His followers had a revelatory encounter with Him. To say that their world had recently turned topsy-turvy would be a gross understatement. To have discovered, lived with, and traveled with Jesus for three years, only to lose Him to death on the Cross would be life’s cruelest injustice. These two men were informed earlier in the day that Christ had risen from the dead. But, really, who would believe two grief-stricken ladies claiming to have been visited by angels (Luke 24:1-12)? As these men walked the seven-mile journey to Emmaus, they discussed this too-good-to-be-true report and all that had transpired over the past few days.  That’s when He arrived . “And it came about that while they were conversing and discussing, Jesus himself approached, and began traveling with them. But their eyes were prevented from recognizing Him”  (Luke 24:15-16). “What are you discussing?” He wanted to know. They gave Jesus a brief summary, expressing their surprise that He would even have to ask. “What else would we be discussing?” was the inference. It seems everyone in Jerusalem could think of little else than what had transpired with Christ the last few days, since so many of them had thought He might be the long-awaited Messiah. They spoke to Him of their devastation and also of the rumor that He had risen from the dead. Jesus, His identity still hidden from them, “explained to them the things concerning Himself in all the Scriptures”  (v. 27), including the fact that He had to suffer and die. Though they still didn’t know it was Jesus, His words began impacting their hearts.  “Were not our hearts burning within us while He was speaking to us... explaining the Scriptures to us?”  they stated (v. 32). When they reached their destination, the men pleaded with Jesus to stay longer with them, perhaps spend the night. The Lord agreed to do so, and during dinner, “He took the bread and blessed it, and breaking it, He began giving it to them. And their eyes were opened, and they recognized Him”  (vv. 30-31). He disappeared from their sight at that moment, and they hurried back the seven miles to Jerusalem with the good news: Christ was risen, indeed. I find it more than a coincidence that Jesus chose to temporarily hide from these men who He was, waiting to release the revelation “in the breaking of the bread” (v. 35). Was the timing His way of saying to them, “Sup with Me and I will reveal to you hidden things?”  I believe so. Feed on Christ’s Word (Matthew 4:4). As you do, revelation will be given. He will reveal Himself to you along with other treasures from His Word, just as He did to these two men.  In a troubled and tumultuous world, stay focused on the Lord, the resurrected Lord of the harvest. He brings peace in the midst of it all. Pray with me: Father, we thank You for answering thousands of prayers regarding saving the two U.S. servicemen whose fighterjet was recently shot down in Iran. The serviceman who hid for two days was Your son, and our prayers were joining his. We are grateful for their lives being saved. Now, we pray for our President and military leaders, asking for Your all-knowing wisdom to flow through them at this time; their decisions impact the future of millions of people. Remind them of their need for Your guidance, and that it flows to humble hearts. Remind them also that trusting in “horses and chariots” (Psalm 20:7) - even though ours is the greatest military in history - is a recipe for failure. And remind them that “many are the plans in a man’s heart, but it is the counsel of the Lord that will stand” (Proverbs 19:21). Father, there is so much we need to hear from You. Jesus said Your words are spirit and life (John 6:63). Filled with revelation and wisdom, they give us the insights we need to succeed in life. Remind us, in these perilous times, to take the time and sup with You. As we walk with You, we know You will reveal Yourself to us. Help us all to remember that times with You are the most important in our lives. Open our eyes, just as You did the two disciples on the road to Emmaus. We pray for one another the words of Paul found in Ephesians 1:17-20 (TPT‬‬):  “I pray that the Father of glory, the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, would impart to you the riches of the Spirit of wisdom and the Spirit of revelation to know Him through your deepening intimacy with Him… I pray that you will continually experience the immeasurable greatness of God’s power made available to you through faith. Then your lives will be an advertisement of this immense power as it works through you! This is the mighty power that was released when God raised Christ from the dead and exalted Him to the place of highest honor and supreme authority in the heavenly realm!” ‭‭ Our decree: We declare that our eyes are open to see You, our Savior and Lord. Portions of today’s post were taken from my book, The Pleasure of His Company , published by Baker Books. Click on the link below to watch the full video.

History’s Divine Orchestrator We are in the Hebrew month of Nisan, “the first month of the year” on God’s calendar (Exodus 12:2). This is when the Genesis creation occurred, as well as the Cross–the “new creation.” Consequently, it is considered the month of creation, of redemption, and of miracles. It is also considered “the month of speech,” for it is when God said,  “Let there be…” (Genesis 1). In past posts, I have summarized many events that occurred throughout history during this month, and which symbolized redemption and new beginnings. [ Link 1  and Link 2 ] If you have not read these previous two posts, I highly recommend that you do so; they will give greater context for today’s post, which is about seven events that took place in history on the 17th day of Nisan, the day Christ rose from the dead, which we believers celebrated yesterday. In Scripture, the number 17 represents “complete victory, overcoming the enemy” (1)  and “the perfection of God’s divine order.” (2) Here are the seven events that occurred on Nisan 17, the seventh being the resurrection of Christ. The first six picture our redemption and Christ’s resurrection. Noah’s Ark came to rest on the mountains of Ararat. (Genesis 8:4) The Israelites entered Egypt to survive a severe famine and lived there for 430 years. (Genesis 46; Exodus 12:40-41) Israel crossed the Red Sea in the Exodus on Nisan 17, 430 years to the very day from when they entered Egypt. (Exodus 12:40-41) After crossing the Jordan River under Joshua’s leadership, Israel ate the fruit of the promised land for the first time on this day. God had told them they would spend 40 years in the wilderness because of their unbelief (Numbers 14:34). On the 40th anniversary of their crossing the Red Sea - “on that very day”  – they ate the first fruits of Canaan. (Joshua 5:10-11) King Hezekiah, in his reformation, rededicated and reopened the cleansed temple that had been defiled (2 Chronicles 29:1-28), which, of course, pictured our cleansing and becoming God’s “temple.” After Queen Esther led a three-day fast, the tables were turned on wicked Haman, (of Persia, present day Iran), and he was hanged on the gallows he had built for Mordecai. (Esther 7:10) Jesus rose from the dead. (Luke 22:1-8) We don’t have time in one post to look at each of these events in detail. But it is inconceivable, apart from divine causation, that these events all occurred on the same day in history, Nisan 17. One article said the odds against it are about 1 in 784 quadrillion (1 in 783,864,876,960,000,000, to be exact!). (3)  Think about the flood, followed by Noah’s Ark coming to rest ON THE SAME DAY Jesus rose from the dead. “Thousands of years before the Resurrection, God engineered history to point toward the pinnacle event of salvation. Just as the ancient judgment ended on the day the ark touched the ground, so the judgment of the restored world ended on the same day of the year, when the tomb could not hold [Jesus].” (4) What, other than the omniscient mind and omnipotent power of God, could produce such a feat? The exact amount of rain had to fall; the weather patterns had to cause enough water to evaporate, causing the Ark to touch ground  ON THAT DAY,  which would later become Resurrection Day! Causing Israel to leave the land of Egypt ON THE EXACT SAME DAY,  430 years after they entered, is just a bit mind-boggling also. As you think about just how incredible that is, remember that God had to orchestrate all the events leading up to it occurring at the exact right time. He orchestrated Moses’ birth and rescue. He had to encounter Moses at the burning bush well in advance to overcome his insecurities and get him back to Egypt. He had to calculate the timing of all the plagues, factoring in how long the Egyptians would take to give their answers. He had to time how long it would take the thousands of Israelites to pack and journey to the Red Sea. Then he had to roll back the Red Sea at exactly the right time for them to cross out of Egypt – ON THE EXACT DAY they had entered it 430 years earlier! Then there is that Nisan 17, just after Joshua had led Israel across the Jordan and into the promised land. They ate the first fruits of the land  ON THAT DAY , and began the seven-day conquest of Jericho (Joshua 5:13-6:5). That means that the day Joshua met Jesus, “the Captain of the host of the Lord” (Joshua 5:13), was THE EXACT SAME DAY hundreds of years later that “ The Captain ” stepped onto earth’s battlefield, conquerred death and emerged from the tomb. Did you get that?  ON THE VERY DAY!  This might be a good place to pause and remind yourself that God can do what He says. If He can take out Haman on the very day He would rise from the dead a few centuries later, He can deal with all that Haman’s bosses, satan and the Prince of Persia, sends your way. (Feel free to pause the video and run around the room for a few minutes, if necessary.) Nisan 17 – Resurrection Day – was yesterday. As you move forward, remember – in the face of all adversity and difficulty – that Pharaoh was destroyed, Jericho fell, Haman was hanged, satan is defeated, and the tomb is empty. Your “Captain” won the war, and He will take care of you. Pray with me: Father, You are Creator and Redeemer, well able to save and redeem. Christ our Savior, Healer, Deliverer, and conquering King, will not fail us; He will do all He has promised. In this “month of miracles,” we ask You to release another wave of Your mighty redemptive power, bringing victory and new beginnings throughout the earth. In this “month of speech,” we declare that we will experience breakthroughs, salvations, miracles, the return of prodigals, and the great awakening You have promised. Lives will be saved, and America shall be saved. And millions around the world will be saved. As we move forward, we will celebrate the victory of the Cross and Resurrection every day, doing so with a new and fresh revelation of our salvation and Your desire to save. You love to save and redeem, not destroy. You love to bless, not curse. You are the Giver, not the taker. And you are our Father. Our decree: We have crossed from spiritual death to abundant life, and with grateful hearts will eat the fruit of our salvation. Click on the link below to watch the full video. https://www.biblestudy.org/bibleref/meaning-of-numbers-in-bible/17.html#google_vignette . Ethelbert W. Bullinger, D. D., Number in Scripture  (Grand Rapids, MI: Kregel Publications), p. 258. https://servantofmessiah.org/nissan-17th/   Ibid.

For those who would like to participate, will be taking communion together at the end of today’s post.  Passion Week: Good Friday Today is Good Friday, called this because of an ancient usage of the word “good” as a synonym for holy. (In the same way that the Holy Bible at times is called the “Good Book.”) Holy Friday, indeed. From Gethsemane, Messiah was led to a mock trial, after which He was beaten mercilessly with a cat-o’-nine-tails. This procedure was so brutal that some victims didn’t survive it. The leather cords, tipped with sharp metal, tore at the flesh of the victim, ripping off pieces of flesh. The whip, with its nine cords, delivered 39 times, made a total of 351 lashes. This was barbaric and brutal, not only lacerating the back, but the cords wrapped around to the front of the victim’s body, including the face. It is hard to describe this lashing without being too graphic for most readers. The depiction of the horrific damage in The Passion movie is no exaggeration. Suffice it to say that when finished, the victim was often unrecognizable. The soldiers also beat Christ with their fists and spat on His face. To mock Him as “the King of the Jews,” a crown made of thorns was placed on His head and pressed into His skin, causing great pain and more loss of blood. When the ordeal was finished, Jesus was so mangled and covered with spittle and blood that He literally was unrecognizable. Isaiah said, “Many people were shocked [astonished; appalled] when they saw Him. His appearance was so damaged [disfigured; marred] He did not look like a man; His form was so changed they could barely tell He was human ” (Isaiah 52:14 The Expanded Bible). The added punishments and torture, much more than the typical victim of crucifixion was afflicted with, can only be explained as the fury of hell. Yeshua endured this for you and me. Isaiah 53:5 and 1 Peter 2:24 tell us it was this beating that purchased our healing. Place your faith for healing in this substitutionary sacrifice today. Christ was then led to His crucifixion. There are several prophetic references and/or occurrences in the Old Testament pointing to the Cross. One passage of extreme importance is Deuteronomy 21:22-23, which references one who experienced death by hanging on a tree as being “cursed.” It is abundantly clear from Galatians 3:13 that this verse refers to Jesus hanging on the “tree,” taking our curse. “Christ redeemed us from the curse of the Law, having become a curse for us—for it is written, ‘Cursed is everyone who hangs on a tree.’” Yeshua’s crucifixion took place at Golgotha, which means “the place of the skull.” God, millennia before, had ordained that this would be the place and, with the forces of nature, carved the international symbol of death onto the hillside. This was also the location of Isaac’s interrupted sacrifice (Genesis 22), which pictured the Cross. Like Isaac, we were spared, and God Himself provided the sacrifice.  “Then Abraham looked up [lifted his eyes] and saw a male sheep [ram] caught in a bush by its horns. So Abraham went and took the sheep, offering it as a whole burnt offering to God, and his son was saved [in the place of his son]. So Abraham named that place The Lord Provides [or Sees; Hebrew: Yahweh Yireh]. Even today, people say, ‘On the mountain of the Lord it will be provided [or seen]’” (Genesis 22:13-14; The Expanded Bible). In this chosen place, high on a hill so all could see the Passover Lamb bearing our sin, suffering, and shame, God provided the sacrifice for our sins. Jesus carried His own Cross, though He was able to carry it only part of the way. It was actually the crossbeam that He carried. When He arrived at the place of crucifixion, He was first tied and nailed with spikes to this crosspiece, which contained a hole in the center, enabling it to slide down onto the permanent upright post. After a victim was tied and nailed to this portion, it was lifted and placed onto the top of the vertical section, whereupon it would fall down and slam into place. This is often when dislocations would occur in the crucified person–as the crosspiece slammed down, and stopped. And indeed, we know this occurred with Christ, as was prophesied of Him in Psalm 22:14. The sliding down of the crosspiece is also why the spikes were placed at the bottom of the hands where they joined the wrist; this placement would sustain more weight. It’s also why the victim was tied to the crossbeam. If they were not secured in this way, they would often be torn loose. Yeshua hung on the Cross for six hours in this emaciated state. While there, He spoke seven times. Time does not permit me to comment on each, but they are all significant. Halfway through the ordeal, at noon, the sun disappeared, and the sky grew dark (Luke 23:44-45). This was a fulfillment of Amos 8:9-10: “‘It will come about in that day,’ declares the Lord God, ‘That I will make the sun go down at noon and make the earth dark in broad daylight. Then I will turn your festivals into mourning, and all your songs into lamentation, and I will bring sackcloth on everyone’s loins, and baldness on every head. And I will make it like a time of mourning for an only son, And the end of it will be like a bitter day.’” Surely this is a prophetic picture of the Light of the World being snuffed out for us.  It was at the end of the three hours of darkness that Jesus cried out,  “My God, My God, why hast thou forsaken Me?”  (Matthew 27:46-47; Mark 15:34). He was quoting from Psalm 22, which is a detailed prophecy of the Cross. Christ was crying out in anguish because, for the first time in all of eternity, He was experiencing separation from His Father. It is also the only record we have of Him addressing God as anything other than Father. Christ took our sins upon Himself (2 Corinthians 5:21; Isaiah 53:5). Most scholars agree that when this occurred, He bore our separation from the Father. Though Jesus no doubt knew this would occur, the actual experience was more than He could endure, and cried out in anguish. It is worth noting that Christ never cried out during the beatings, scourging, thorns, spikes, or dislocations - only when this separation occurred from His Father, as He bore our sin. Finally, it was enough. The price had been paid. Christ made His final two statements. The first,  “It is finished, ” I have written of before in the GH15 posts. This was not a quiet statement referencing His death, but a loud declaration by Christ, also a quote from Psalm 22:31. This decree was one word in Greek (tetelestai ) (1)  (John 19:30) and also in the Hebrew of Psalm 22 ( asah ). (2)  Using the literal meaning of these words, Christ was declaring that He had fully accomplished His assignment, paid our debt in full, and was bringing forth the new creation! Yeshua then released His spirit to the Father. Death did not take Him; He “yielded up His Spirit ”  (Matthew 27:50). It was 3 o’clock in the afternoon. The priests in the Temple were performing their customary duties when, at the very moment Jesus yielded up His Spirit , the veil in the Temple was torn in two from top to bottom (Matthew 27:51; Mark 15:38; Luke 23:45). The purpose of this veil had been to separate humans from the Holy of Holies, the dwelling place of God on earth. With this symbolic act, God was declaring that the separation caused by our sin was removed, and we could now draw near to Him, entering His presence once again! Why don’t you spend some additional time with Him today? He would like that. Pray with me: Thank You, Father, for the Cross and the pain it caused You. Thank You for sending Christ to be our substitute. Thank You for placing our sins upon Him in order to bring us back into Your family. Thank You for allowing the lashes, the wounds, the crown of thorns, and the separation, for surely it was agonizing for You, as well as for Yeshua. And thank You, Jesus, for Your heart of humility and love. You are both Son of Man and Son of God. Through Your sacrifice and our faith in it, You have made us sons and daughters of the Most High. We are so grateful. Now, by faith, we appropriate all of the cleansing power of Your shed blood, and the healing virtue that flows from every wound You suffered. By Your stripes, we are healed! And in remembrance of You and what You did for us on Calvary, we partake of the Communion Meal. We take the bread, which represents Your body, broken for us - a price paid so we can be restored. [Pause; eat the bread]  We take the cup, a representation of Your blood, spilled for us, the price paid for our redemption from sin. We give You thanks today, Jesus. We give You thanks. [Drink the cup] Click on the link below to watch the full video. James Strong, The New Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible (Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson Publishers, 1990), ref. No. 5055. Ibid. Ref. no. 6213.