Moving with the Lamb requires no Clothes you can BUY

The buzz this weekend is a movie called Superman V Batman. I won't see it.  When I was a kid I thought if I only had a cape and an outfit like Superman I could fly..   Of course it didn't work. Then there are movies like Ironman, Spiderman, and of course Batman who don some kind of power-suit and do great exploits.   IF I ONLY HAD SUCH AN OUTFIT.

This carries over into later life. If you are of a certain age you will recall the books about "Dress for Success".    If you just wore the right clothes you would be strong in business.  Then there are many people enslaved to fashion.  Look at the long lines formed to buy air Jordan shoes at any price. This goes beyond the clothing and outfits, people buy cars because they think it will impute to them power and prestige. Vanity.

These things always disappoint.  I have suits I no longer wear.  I drive a 13 year old car and like it.  My shoes are for work and look like it.  Age has a way of revealing that what you wear, even if it's a Superman cape, you won't be stronger for it.


There is only one "OUTFIT" that matters.

Isaiah 61:10-11 
I will greatly rejoice in the Lord;
my soul shall exult in my God,
for he has clothed me with the garments of salvation;
he has covered me with the robe of righteousness,
as a bridegroom decks himself like a priest with a beautiful headdress,
and as a bride adorns herself with her jewels.
For as the earth brings forth its sprouts,
and as a garden causes what is sown in it to sprout up,
so the Lord God will cause righteousness and praise
to sprout up before all the nations.

I have wondered often if our desire for physical worldly enhancements to help us in life are noting more than counterfeits.  The world's culture says buy this, wear this, own this and you too can... fill in the blank.

I must be so hidden in Christ that there is no way to see me.. and that's how God sees me.  IF he saw me for who I am, without Jesus, I am lost. 

I hear the Lord saying as I think about this:

I will cloth you in white, purity because I dipped My robe in Blood for you.  I paid the price for you to walk clean and pure, I have clothed you in holy robes of righteousness as you move with the Lamb of God.  

Moving with the Lamb.. a song (do you remember it?)

I'm moving with the Lamb moving with the Lamb I'm surrounded
Moving with the Lamb moving with the Lamb I'm surrounded
I'm strolling with the Lamb I'm strolling with the King of Kings
Stepping with the Lamb stepping over my sins
[ Lyrics from: http://www.cloverlyrics.com/e86241-rita_springer~moving_with_the_lamb_lyrics.html ]
Chorus:
For I'm dressed in a holy robe of God I'm surrounded
By the Host from Heaven's court and the King of Kings
And I drink from the holy cup of God I'm surrounded




 

Graceless Mediocre Christianity

Is there any limit to God's Grace? No.. but there are barriers to receiving the grace of God.  We erect them all by ourselves.  It's witchcraft, open rebellion, hard hearted deception and double-mindedness.

I can say for certain for the one who comes with a repentant heart, who tries and sometimes fails to turn from sin there is always grace available.  It's the direction, not the destination.  The Love of God leads us to repentance.  His grace is more than sufficient. 

Yet what of the person who professes some level of Christian Belief, If a person says he or she is without sin, according to the word of God he deceives himself and lacks truth.  Even in that case if a person confesses his sin and turns, God's grace is more than enough.  Judas could have been saved.  He might have been as great as Saul became.

I'm concerned about the person who goes to church, who answers YES to the question, “are you a Christian”, can recite the Lord's prayer, the Apostle's creed.   The one who in the face of all that commits murder (I think of a scene of Baptism in the Godfather), commits adultery, steals without shame, slanders others, one who is by any objective measure an open sinner without repentance or trying to turn from his or her rebellion and sin.

There is a theology that Martin Luther spoke of when one time he said, “Sin Boldly”.  What he meant was not that we sin intentionally, but that if we do, we can expect the Grace of God to put us back in right standing.. repentance and the forgiveness linked. 

Romans 6: 1-2 says What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin, that grace may abound? God forbid. We who died to sin, how shall we any longer live therein?

I am all for engaging the grace of God in every way but not as a get out free card.  A person who is out of sync with God's grace reveals himself when they use phrases like:

• God knows my heart (Unfortunately he does indeed)
• I was forgiven for all my sins past present and future.  Yes-   yet, the blood of Jesus can be trampled underfoot.
• Only God can judge me (meaning I dare not even ask about your open rebellion)

I actually know people who pray with their adulterous partners just before having illicit sex and believe God is hearing them. 

The most profane thing I ever hear from such is, "I heard from the Holy Spirit that I was right about doing this".  That is taking the name of the Lord in Vain.  I doubt Holy Spirit is condoning those things that are clearly forbidden.  IF you think you need to have special word from God to sin without repentance you are in dangerous territory.

James 4:7-10 
Humble yourselves before God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Come close to God, and God will come close to you. Wash your hands, you sinners; purify your hearts, for your loyalty is divided between God and the world. Let there be tears for what you have done. Let there be sorrow and deep grief. Let there be sadness instead of laughter, and gloom instead of joy. Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will lift you up in honor.

God wants to bring you up higher. He wants you to find a better place. On the mountain top. He wants you to get out of the trap of saying, "I'm not what I want to be, I'm not what I'm supposed to be, but Thank God, I'm not what I was".   That is settling for something less than the call of God on your life.  I haven't yet attained but I'm not giving up. The Apostle Paul said that.  We should not accept the mediocre life.

Mediocre means halfway up the mountain.  It's a word from the old French.  You can read more here.

We are not called to live a life that is neither up nor down, only halfway.  We are called to escape the trap of comfort zone Christianity.  It is faith we must contend for.  We ask to be Led to the Rock that is Higher than I.. yet we don't seem to reach up.  Even when Jesus says "Come up here".

Mark 3:13 Jesus went up on a mountain and called out the ones he wanted to go with him. And they came to him.   

Those who were called on that day had to go UP.  That call still stands.

The world is at war with our desire to go higher, so it substitutes a false grace that doesn't challenge.  Mediocre Christianity.  Halfway.  The enemy doesn't want you to enter into the higher thoughts that Father wants to share with you.

This time of year is when we recognize those things that bought and paid for the Grace of God in our lives, that get us out from under condemnation and the law, we need to also not treat grace cheaply.

God knows our heart..and that is good .. or maybe not so much for some.

Satan's Manifestation

I got this word a while ago. It wasn't appropriate to release it till now.  It has become clear that the Lord wants to identify a scheme of the devil as he manifests himself today.  When Jesus saw this during His earthly ministry he called it out.  As a prophetic voice in the land, it is my duty to do likewise.

When the disciples asked Jesus if He wanted them to call down fire on a town, Jesus said to them, "You don't know from what spirit you are speaking". 

He did with Peter when Peter tried to forbid Jesus from going to the cross.  "Get thee behind me satan"... he said, to the rock.

When Judas was about to betray Him, Jesus said, ""Have I not chosen you, the Twelve? Yet one of you is a devil!"

Looking to the historical record, satan uses group think and mob rule as a manifestation of his effectiveness.  It is hard to get ONE person to commit a terrible act, but a mob of people are capable of horrible things.  God is NEVER behind a mob.  If you see a MOB of people doing anything, you can be fairly certain satan is manifesting himself among them. 

That doesn't mean that large groups of people are always wrong, it's just that they are more easily led of the enemy in a crowd.  His voice is such that it sounds just and righteous when spoken in a large group.  This can even be a danger in a group environment like a church.  A leader like a Jim Jones can lead people into terrible consequence.  It has happened time and time again.  We are to be on guard for the enemy, who like a roaring lion seeks those he may devour.  When we personalize that it seems pretty easy, but peer pressure and group dynamics have the effect of devouring people in ways we don't even comprehend without reflection.

Let's look back in history for a pattern:

In Sodom a mob attacked Lots house and demanded the "Young Men"  Genesis 19

Then the men of the city said to Joash, "Bring out your son, that he may die, for he has torn down the altar of Baal (Judges 6)

When Jeremiah finished speaking all that the LORD had commanded him to speak to all the people, the priests and the prophets and all the people seized him, saying, "You must die!  Jeremiah 26

People in the synagogue were filled with rage as they heard these things; and they got up and drove Him out of the city, and led Him to the brow of the hill on which their city had been built, in order to throw Him down the cliff.  Luke 4

The city was filled with the confusion: and they rushed with one accord into the theatre, having seized Gaius and Aristarchus, men of Macedonia, Paul's companions in travel.  (The Devil uses Demetrius to stir up hatred)  Acts 19

This mob led to the stoning of Stephen:
And they stirred up the people, the elders and the scribes, and they came up to him and dragged him away and brought him before the Council. Acts 6

"These men who have upset the world have come here also; and Jason has welcomed them, and they all act contrary to the decrees of Caesar, saying that there is another king, Jesus." They stirred up the crowd and the city authorities who heard these things.  Acts 6

Of course the most visible of Biblical Riot is the Crucifixion of Jesus by the crowd calling Crucify, Crucify. 

What makes these things hold together is if you were to have gone to any single individual in the crowd, they would have sworn their cause was just, that it was necessary, that the action of the crowd was the right thing to do.  Democratic rule can mean Mob Rule.

We have all seen movies where a crowd is coming with torches and pitchforks to kill or rout some perceived evil.  We laugh at these scenes from Young Frankenstein... yet in real life they exist in the hearts of men.

You don't have to go back very far to see this manifest again and again.  Certainly there is a place for standing up against evil as a group.  Our founding fathers did.  The Polish people stood up against communism recently.  The difficulty is knowing that which is inspired of satan from that which is a just cause.  If you want to know the difference, you have to look at the heart of the action.  What does it look like?  What are the words and actions?  Could you take them into the holy place and speak those things out loud without shame?  If not, then there is suspicion.  It very well may be a demonic manifestation. 

Look at the French Revolution.  The rising up against an oppressive government was right, but when satan took over, and it's clear that he did, the mob and riot became the new oppression.

Look at the Bolshevik revolution in Russia.  Red October.  It was a mob of people who rose up against the Tsarist government and it's oppression.  A noble cause, but satan soon entered in and it became the darkest of times in Russia almost to this day.  Every mob rule mentality starts out pure until satan enters.  A just cause deteriorates into injustice and eventually the horror that killed millions of people in Russia.

Look at the Rise of Hitler.  Starting out in beer halls.  Loud riots caused otherwise good people to follow a man who was a personification of evil.  Mob Rule.  He didn't win over the people with good policy but with the backing of the brownshirts that ultimately led to gas chambers and death of millions. 

Look at Mao Tse Tung and the Cultural Revolution.  While he was a communist, it was the Red Guards who were mostly young that installed mob rule that nearly destroyed the country.  This was up until 40 years ago.

The KKK and such groups that lynched thousands were driven by satan.  If you took a single person aside and said, is this a good plan?  They would have said no for the most part.  But how do you go against such things?  Peer Pressure is Powerful.

Isis while it looks like a centralized force is substantially Mob Rule that commits unspeakable acts. 

Mob rule is the manifestation that satan uses to get otherwise good people to go along to do evil.  Using peer pressure. Using lies.  Using deception.  Using delusion.  He starts by pointing out to people how they have been oppressed, used, discriminated against or controlled by some unseen force.  The constant drumbeat becomes a force unto itself.  Like a pack of dogs.  By itself a dog is a docile loving animal.  Put them in a large pack chasing a small animal or even a child the pack will kill with abandon where alone they would not have done any such thing.

In recent years we have seen the same thing in the USA.  Protests in the 60s for civil rights and against the war were for the most part peaceful.  The image of a protester placing a flower in the barrel of a guardsman's gun stays with me.  Arms locked as they marched across that Selma Bridge was effective. 

Yet today we see a different spirit. It is one that has been allowed to operate without question from the pulpits and the leaders who occupy them in the world.  Look at what has gone on thru ungodly mob mentality.  We see that in celebrations after the winning or loss of sporting events.  We saw that in Ferguson, Baltimore and Sanford Florida after Travon Martin was killed.  We saw that after MLK was killed and the city of Chicago burned.  People who had a legitimate grievance influenced by satan burned, rioted, destroyed and became an evil demonic manifestation. 

Satan has a voice. He has a microphone.  He comes in the form of a person. a convincing motivating person. If you are being encouraged to "Take Action" and the action becomes profane and violent you can be pretty sure what evil force is behind that "Action".  His name is satan who came disguised as an angel of light.

We are in the middle of a difficult election season.  Once again we see the hand of satan in riots and mobs.  Large crowds incited to riot.  IF you think I am talking about Donald Trump or the mob that manifested last Friday in Chicago the answer is YES to both.

What is most concerning is the silence. This is an open rebuke to the Body of Christ and it's supposed leadership. Where is YOUR Voice?  You should be drowning out the voice of the enemy that is calling people who should be guided by you into riot and mob mentality. You should be calling for peace. Where are those speaking the word of God?

“You shall not follow a multitude to do evil” (Exodus 23:2).

Owe nothing to anyone except to love and seek the best for one another; for he who [unselfishly] loves his neighbor has fulfilled the [essence of the] law [relating to one’s fellowman]. ⁹ The commandments, “You shall not commit adultery, you shall not murder, you shall not steal, you shall not covet,” and any other commandment are summed up in this statement: “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” ¹⁰ Love does no wrong to a neighbor [it never hurts anyone]. Therefore [unselfish] love is the fulfillment of the Law.
¹¹ Do this, knowing that this is a critical time. It is already the hour for you to awaken from your sleep [of spiritual complacency]; for our salvation is nearer to us now than when we first believed [in Christ]. ¹² The night [this present evil age] is almost gone and the day [of Christ’s return] is almost here. So let us fling away the works of darkness and put on the [full] armor of light. ¹³ Let us conduct ourselves properly and honorably as in the [light of] day, not in carousing and drunkenness, not in sexual promiscuity and irresponsibility, not in quarreling and jealousy. ¹⁴ But clothe yourselves with the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for [nor even think about gratifying] the flesh in regard to its improper desires.
  Romans 13:8-14 (amp)

Do not be deceived; neither the sexually immoral, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate [by perversion], nor those who participate in homosexuality, 10 nor thieves, nor the greedy, nor drunkards, nor revilers [whose words are used as weapons to abuse, insult, humiliate, intimidate, or slander], nor swindlers will inherit or have any share in the kingdom of God. Corinthians 6:9-10 (amp)


If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone. Romans 12:18
Yet we are treated to words as weapons from candidates and the mob alike.  Both are satanic manifestations.  Deliverance is needed, but not to be delivered and then return to the vomit like a dog.

I speak prophetically to leaders, your silence and even consent in these times condemns you.  The Lord says:

"I have longed for watchmen and prophets to speak against the rise of satan, yet I see none.  Your hidden cowardly heart is not hidden from me. I will deal with your lack of stewardship over that which I gave you.  Your lamp stand will be removed. I will withdraw.  I called you to be light and you sanction the darkness.  I called you to speak life and you speak death by your apathy.  Rise up called ones, for I would take this time of unrest to show myself mighty in the land.  I will but it must be in spite of you not because of you.  You were to be my body in the earth, yet there is a cancer you allow to grow without objection.  It is time for you to repent of  the sin of safety in the face of evil.  Where is your boldness?  How have you allowed the world to press you into it's mould?  Speak truth, MY NAME is truth."

Tension in the House

While we are a long time married couple (50 years) sometimes there is argument or tension.  Not because of a big thing, just disagreement.  It's a disturbing feeling when it happens.

Recently after one such the Spirit of God said to me, "My love for you and your love for me is perfect but then when you rebel or fall even briefly, the grief I feel at your momentary departure is even greater than the loss you are feeling right now".

I was stunned.  What seemed to me to be a brief disagreement over an issue that will be resolved turned out to be a type of the breech that happens in our relationship with Jesus sometimes.

HE doesn't change, but we sometimes get cranky, angry, disappointed, intemperate.  OR SIN.. knowing better.

He is immutable, we are mutable (assuming that's a word).

This is not so much a prophetic word as a prophetic feeling of how the Lord sees us and our relationship with Him.. and it really matters to Him.. He feels real loss when we drift, even for a moment.

You Can Disagree but I'll Still be Here

The last several months have been interesting are revealing of the true heart of so many.  I have taken certain stands in what has turned out to be a tumultuous time in this election cycle.  Some of it is Gene the political observer.  Some is Prophet Gene.  Don't mix them up.

When I see something really wrong I call it out.  When I see something out of whack I cry aloud.  In a soft way because I do have a voice that many people access, I have suffered the same fate that Mitt Romney did recently.  He is being punished for speaking out about what he believes is true.  The fact that I speak up makes me invalid in many people's eyes.  If I did any other I would not be true to my calling.

That has always been the role of a prophet. I do not do what I do for popularity.  IF I wanted to be popular I would put my finger in the wind and go that way or I would be a Pastor. The fact that it offends those who do not see things my way and they doubt my purposes fills my inbox. You would be shocked to see how many opinions I have had to wade thru.  To be frank, I didn't need this.  I have other battles the Lord has called me to.

I am constant in calling out things like this: Coming against victimization of all kinds (I have been speaking out against the response to the Flint Water Crisis), coming against any expression of racism of any kind, coming against false apostles in the Body of Christ, coming against rampant ignorance, coming out in favor of freedom of expression, coming out in favor of self direction, self reliance, encouraging people to get in it for themselves and stop looking for a get rich quick scheme. There are only get rich slow schemes.  These kinds of admonitions are the most salient.  The word of God speaks to quick fixes and the invalid application of them.

Wealth gained hastily will dwindle, but whoever gathers little by little will increase it. Proverbs 13:11

Whoever oppresses the poor to increase his own wealth, or gives to the rich, will only come to poverty.  Proverbs 22:16

A faithful man will abound with blessings, but whoever hastens to be rich will not go unpunished. Proverbs 28:20 

So please, until this election season washes out, don't bother trying to tell a prophet something that he knows from the throne of God.  If you don't like it, take it up with HIM.

Here from another prophet is wisdom, hear his heart:  

I'm Ready for a Cold Shower of Pure Water

It's Sunday Morning.  The sun is up.  It's cool.  It's been a busy week.  Politics have captured me.  Business is good but very busy.  God has blessed me.. yet I find myself occupied.

I need a shower. 

The dirt of the days behind soil my mind.

There is a WASHING OF REGENERATION that the word brings.

Titus 3:

3For we ourselves were once foolish, disobedient, led astray, slaves to various passions and pleasures, passing our days in malice and envy, hated by others and hating one another. 4But when the goodness and loving kindness of God our Savior appeared, 5he saved us, not because of works done by us in righteousness, but according to his own mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewal of the Holy Spirit, 6whom he poured out on us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior, 7so that being justified by his grace we might become heirs according to the hope of eternal life.

So I need a shower.  Sometimes the raw presence of God is enough, sometimes it takes more.  I need to feel the rain down my back, the water in my face, the purity of the word of God washing me.  Sometimes renewal comes and I feel all fresh again.

So.. I'm off to take a shower.. and I hope you will find your place of washing this morning.

Why the World SEEMS SO Upside Down

This is not about politics.  But you can look at the current situation and see what is happening.   It is not a cause, but a reflection of a climate that has changed right out from under our feet.

The heart of man has been in rebellion since the Garden.  Doubting God.  Satisfying personal desires.  Selfishness as the opposite of Righteousness.  It is a demonic influence but not without much flesh in cooperation with the influence of demons.

God blesses those who are Righteous, Generous, Selfless, Long suffering and full of Faith.

Lawlessness results in not as much in a curse but a withdrawal of the grace of God from a rebellious generation.  He withdraws His hand of protection and allows us to go our own way like a prodigal.

The world is so much upside down such that man will not repent until he comes to himself.  Until things become so desperate that there is no hope other than from God.  It is his plan.  He is in the process of allowing things to wax worse to the point where once more lost men return to the father like the prodigals they are.  As they do they will bring others with them.  I have seen this before.  We will see it again.  The kingdom of God is always expanding.  The unaffiliated non christian non anything population which represents a third of our national population will find themselves empty and hopeless when the pressure becomes greater.

The current climate of turmoil in government and elections means many are placing their hope in man.. and that in itself is a curse.

Jeremiah the Prophet spoke of this by the Holy Ghost in Chapter 17:

5. “Cursed is the one who trusts in man,

who draws strength from mere flesh

and whose heart turns away from the Lord.

6That person will be like a bush in the wastelands;

they will not see prosperity when it comes.

They will dwell in the parched places of the desert,

in a salt land where no one lives.

7“But blessed is the one who trusts in the Lord,

whose confidence is in him.

8They will be like a tree planted by the water

that sends out its roots by the stream.

It does not fear when heat comes;

its leaves are always green.

It has no worries in a year of drought

and never fails to bear fruit.”

The word of the Lord is immutable.  It stands today as a beacon as it did for Jeremiah in his day.  Take hope from the prophetic word.  Do not put your trust in a man, in the strength of man, in what man might do.  I is all vanity.

Take heart, even though the world is upside down.. God is still UP.. Higher than our ways, thinking above us, begging us to look to Him.  To see the world from His Throne Room Perspective.

He is the only right side up thing in your life or mine. Everything else is upside down. It's counter cultural to see things this way.. but the Kingdom of God has always seemed upside down to the world and that for the Kingdom subject is why the worlds seems so upside down.