Manifesting Presence of the Holy Spirit

As the world is upon the brink of an amazing manifestation of the Holy Spirit, this following word is meant to encourage you as regards Revival in the days ahead. For it will be impossible to reap THIS harvest without the fullness of the Holy Spirit manifesting in you, upon you, and around you. Be blessed as YOU set out to reap this very great harvest of souls!

In Christ,

Scott

Apostolic Leadership in Revival

Love

If we are members of the Body of Christ, then we all know that the key to all things is love. Love unifies. Love makes two one flesh. Love poured Himself out for His Bride. Love makes the Bride of Christ and the Bridegroom one flesh. Love consummates the covenant. Love sent us the Holy Spirit. And by the Holy Spirit, we love God as one, and His people as one. 

So now faith, hope and love abide, these three; but the greatest of these is love. 1 Cor 13:13

We, all of us are called to be exactly alike of heart. It’s why God brings us together. Yet always there is at work in the world, a spirit of division forever working to find its way in. Most of us are the same in our desire for the Church. Yet when the mind of man overcomes the revelation of the Holy Spirit, it’s only a mater of time before people diverge from the truth in many different directions. 

It’s not the work of the enemy to cause man to disagree that is the problem. Always at work in every church is an attempt to remove the manifest Presence of the Holy Spirit from within the walls of the church. That is Satan’s first work against today’s church. That is our primary problem. 

“I still have many things to say to you, but you cannot bear them now. When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all truth, for he will not speak on his own authority, but whatever he hears he will speak, and he will declare to you the things that are to come. He will glorify me, for he will take what is mine and declare it to you.” John 16:12-14

If the Holy Spirit is the Counselor who leads us into all truth, then without the Holy Spirit, we have no confirmation of what truth is. We are left to our own devices to figure out what Kingdom truth is. We diverge, we deviate we divide. 

Like any good military commander, we should target the railhead so that all things down line will grind to a halt. So it is with the enemies of God against God’s church. 

If I had a firecracker in one hand and a nuclear bomb in the other, which hand do you think my enemy will attack first? Certainly he would first attack the hand with the nuclear bomb. For it is true that the church without the Holy Spirit is like the hand holding a firecracker. But the church that manifests Revival is like the hand holding the nuclear bomb.

Kill the queen bee and the rest of the hive will scatter. It’s the same concept within the church. Stop the Spirit and the church divides from within. 

God wants us to understand the war that we are in! No military general would send his troops into a war without fully briefing his army of the strategies and capabilities of his enemy. Nor should we be ignorant of the works of Satan to silence the Spirit within Father God’s church. 

Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour. Resist him, firm in your faith, knowing that the same kinds of suffering are being experienced by your brotherhood throughout the world. 1 Peter 5:8-9

We then see in this next verse that states how we overcome the enemy in our trials… namely in times of restoration directly from the Father. This is a picture of the church operating in the Manifesting Presence of God.

And after you have suffered a little while, the God of all grace (of all power), who has called you to his eternal glory in Christ, will himself restore, confirm, strengthen, and establish you. 1 Peter 5:10

After this supernatural restoration and renewal, we then are made able to fight the fight with supernatural weapons that we have been given. In times of His manifesting Presence by Grace through faith in the power of His cross, fearlessly and in full assurance of the working of angels and the Holy Spirit all around us, we go, we fight, we win easily. Just like Gideon did, we fight our fight supernaturally. 

For though we walk in the flesh, we are not waging war according to the flesh. For the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh but have divine power to destroy strongholds. 2 Cor 10:2-3

We put no obstacle in anyone’s way, so that no fault may be found with our ministry, but as servants of God we commend ourselves in every way; by great endurance, in afflictions, hardships, calamities, beatings, imprisonments, riots, labors, sleepless nights, hunger; by purity, knowledge, patience, kindness, the Holy Spirit, genuine love; by truthful speech, and the power of God; with the weapons of righteousness for the right hand and for the left; through honor and dishonor, through slander and praise. 2 Cor 6:3-8

Our weapons are spiritual, they are powerful, they are truth filled… they are LOVE!

Our love draws us to the Holy Spirit to draw upon the Holy Spirit. Our lack of love turns us away from the Spirit, left only to depend upon our woefully insufficient selves. Independent of the Holy Spirit, we are thrown into this battle with no weapons, no coverage, no protection and no backup! We need His Presence desperately and permanently. It’s what Jesus died for. 

But seek first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you. MA 6:33

Seek first…. Seek FIRST… SEEK FIRST… the Kingdom of God.

What is the very first request that Jesus tells us to pray for in the Lord’s prayer? Look carefully: 

… Your Father knows what you need before you ask Him. Pray then like this: “Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name. Your Kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in Heaven. MA 6:8-10

Your Kingdom come on earth as it is in Heaven! That is our first request of God, who already knows what we need before we talk to Him. It’s like Him saying, “Don’t ask me for what you think you need, I already know what you need. Ask me to bring My Presence down to you as My Presence is up here! That is really what you need above all else.”

What does the Kingdom of God in Heaven look like? Who can describe the indescribable? The air of the Kingdom of God is love. You breath it in and out wherever you go always. There is no sickness in Heaven. There is no fear in Heaven. There is no anger in Heaven. There is no punishment in Heaven. There is no sadness in Heaven. The joy of the Lord is everywhere in Heaven. Worship is continuous in Heaven. Laughter fills the air in Heaven. Beauty indescribable is everywhere in Heaven. Eye has not seen and ear has not heard… And this is just the beginning of what could hardly be expressed in words about the Kingdom of Heaven!

THAT is what God is asking us to ask Him for as our very first request of Him in the Lord’s prayer, that He would bring the Kingdom of Heaven down in our midst, on earth as it is in Heaven. 

Who is it that brings to us the Kingdom of God on earth as it is in Heaven? He is the Holy Spirit of God. And how does this happen? When we seek first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness in our midst. Everything else follows His Presence! Everything of Kingdom worth. 

The church without His Kingdom come in manifest form is like a car without an engine. And the church without the Holy Spirit is like the engine without the gas. Jesus died so that His church can be complete, steadfast, lacking in nothing. 

And so the very first work we should always press in to is to love in all things. Love starts it. Love brings it. Love reveals it. Love consummates it. Love changes everything. The very manifestation of the Holy Spirit of all things, is first the manifestation of love amongst us. For who can explain the glorious Presence of God outside of the revealed word of love? Yet love itself is a revelation!

So now faith, hope and love abide, these three; but the greatest of these is love. 1 Cor 13:13

The kingdom of God is a Kingdom of pure and perfect love. The very air we will breath in Heaven is love. Love will utterly surround us. Love will permeate us. Love will be in our every word. 

When the Holy Spirit manifests upon us here on earth, we are touched by Father’s Kingdom love. We are touched by Jesus forgiving power. We are immersed in love. We are then endued with love. Love is our everything. And the Holy Spirit is the bringer of it. Oh how we need the Holy Spirit to love well! 

I have found, as part of my testimony of Revival, that I was unable to love well until I was filled by the Holy Spirit in times of His Presence. Yet even so, as much as I was full of myself, I was quickly able to turn away from Him. What I found was that Father wants a people who will live both the lifestyle of confession and repentance and the lifestyle of Revival. Combine this with knowing who we are in Father’s eye will stabilize our walk and define our ministry works here on earth until we go home to be with him. 

By walking both privately and corporately in the continuous manifesting Presence of the Holy Spirit, my love is made able to align with His love. My heart is made able to love well. My heart would be continuously revealed to love so that my life would be a living walking testimony of His love. 

It’s my love that saved me. It’s His love that fills me. It’s our love, Hand in hand, that saves the nations! 

Our Call

Where we tend to fail is in how we express this love. We must first be revealed to love. Then we must be revealed to our identity and individual call from the Lord. Then we must connect this wonderful love within our hearts to our identity and our call. We live our love best when we operate within the confines of our detailed call from the Father. 

Two things we must fully come to know. 

1. We must fully recognize who we are in Christ Jesus. We have been saved through the blood. We have been resurrected into new life, having been made a new person through Christ Jesus by the resurrection power of the Holy Spirit. We are dead to the old person that we were, and made alive in the new person that we now are. Fully saved, fully delivered and set free from the power and the cost of all sin forevermore. We are not the old man that we used to be. We are a totally new creation, having been made righteous, made new, totally forgiven, walking in the Spirit and in the full knowledge of our righteousness by grace through our faith. This is our identity. Do you believe this in your life? Is this you? It must be, or your are missing the very point of your salvation!

• Then we must know our call according to the Biblical references of what calls are. Evangelist, Pastor, Teacher, Prophet, Apostle and there are many other calls made known within the written revealed word of God. We fit into one of these calls according to what God formed in us before we were conceived in our mother’s womb. We are not what we think we are, we are, by revelation knowledge what the Bible says we are. There are many who go off into non-biblical definitions of what a call might be. Therein lies great error. Our power to succeed rests in the accurate revealed knowledge of who we are called to be according to the revelation of the Spirit aligned with the revealed Word of God. 

Herein lies a serious problem that we must understand. There are many strategies of the enemy against the church. The primary strategy is to snuff out the fire of the Presence of God from within her walls. But another key strategy is to leaven, or falsify the truth of the knowledge of our identity and our call. We must be revealed to our identity in Christ. We must be revealed to the call within which we are to operate. It all starts by grace through faith, then is made whole by grace through faith. 

As the Body of Christ, together as one, we desire the power of God. We love the Holy Spirit. We love the Body of Christ. We are broken hearted to see the wounds of humanity. We seek to bring love and to be love. We seek to bring forgiveness. We seek deliverance and healing. We seek to bring reconciliation, not by good sounding arguments, but in the power of love. We hunger for the lost to be found. We hate division, but we love the Church. We are the same of heart. Yet how we reconcile ourselves to these facts is critical. How do we do these things well? We seek first the Kingdom of God and all these things follow! How do we know our identity and our call? We seek first the Kingdom of God on earth as it is in Heaven, and all these things will follow!

One Body of Christ, Many Parts

Each of us rightly differ in one very critical area. Our call. What you bring and what I bring is full of love but a different expression of it. You are the knee, I am the elbow. 

The following words mean so much to me. Because I have seen, time and again, how ministers consider their call to be the most important of all. Prophets think prophesy is first. Worshipers think worship is first. Evangelists thing evangelism is first. Teachers think teaching comes first. Encouragers think encouragement comes first. The Word brings clarity to the problem. And it brings the solution, all in one precious wonderful paragraph. Here it is:

For just as the body is one and has many members, and all the members of the body, though many, are one body, so it is with Christ. For in one Spirit we were all baptized into one body-Jews or Greeks, slaves or free-and all were made to drink of one Spirit. For the body does not consist of one member but of many. If the foot should say, “Because I am not a hand, I do not belong to the body,” that would not make it any less a part of the body. And if the ear should say, “Because I am not an eye, I do not belong to the body,” that would not make it any less a part of the body. If the whole body were an eye, where would be the sense of hearing? If the whole body were an ear, where would be the sense of smell? But as it is, God arranged the members in the body, each one of them, as he chose. If all were a single member, where would the body be? As it is, there are many parts, yet one body. The eye cannot say to the hand, “I have no need of you,” nor again the head to the feet, “I have no need of you.” On the contrary, the parts of the body that seem to be weaker are indispensable, and on those parts of the body that we think less honorable we bestow the greater honor, and our unpresentable parts are treated with greater modesty, which our more presentable parts do not require. But God has so composed the body, giving greater honor to the part that lacked it, that there may be no division in the body, but that the members may have the same care for one another. If one member suffers, all suffer together; if one member is honored, all rejoice together. Now you are the body of Christ and individually members of it. And God has appointed in the church first apostles, second prophets, third teachers, then miracles, then gifts of healing, helping, administrating, and various kinds of tongues. Are all apostles? Are all prophets? Are all teachers? Do all work miracles? Do all possess gifts of healing? Do all speak with tongues? Do all interpret? But earnestly desire the higher gifts. And I will show you a still more excellent way. If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. And if I have prophetic powers, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have all faith, so as to remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. 1 Corinthians 12:12—13:2

Our call for the Body is different. But we need each other in love. Our desire is the same. But we each express our ministry according to our different call. And for all of us, our love is paramount. I honor each of you for the individual part of the Body that you are. 

For all of us, this is always the time to go lower and to be pressed in the wine press. That’s such a good thing, however uncomfortable it might feel. Father’s goal is for us to get rid of the flesh within the expression of our call. To squeeze out the anger and the frustration that comes out of our words. It’s a precious time, this crushing and breaking within the Body. But as we go through it, this process of pruning, we encourage each other by honoring each other for the unique call we have to sow into our sphere of influence. 

I understand our hearts in the matters of love. We have it ingrained in our being to love and be loved by God. We were made by love for love to be love. Indeed love comes first. I love this truth. I love the truth of loving on those who have been missing love. And there is no one in my life walk that has manifested love to the Body of Christ more endearingly that I have witnessed from the Spirit filled church. But love follows the Presence always! It does not precede His coming, it follows Him. It’s why Jesus told us to pray asking first for the Kingdom of God to come on earth as it is in Heaven. We need our cup filled before we pour ourselves out. 

But seek first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you. MA 6:33

As I have been before the Lord in times of His dealings with me, I can definitely see how at times my heart is unloving. I bear witness of my occasionally cold heart. I also know of this anger that rises up in me from time to time, this frustration that so few people see the need for the Presence in the church, or don’t understand the fullness of His coming and seek it not. After so many years of witnessing religious error around the world, I know that I have become frustrated and at times angry in how I talk about religion or error.  

It’s been a wrong way in my sometimes cold heart. But I have gone before the Lord and truly repented from my heart. 

I find myself needing to be re-reminded to these three key points in how I present these things. 1) Right timing in the release, 2) Removal of any sense of anger in it, and 3) Always encourage in love as I express it. 

Here in this book, it is my desire to be completely transparent with you so that you might see where I have fallen that you might find the better way to bring Revival in your sphere of influence.

Just recently, my wife and I went to see the Mel Gibson movie, “Hacksaw Ridge”. 

Amongst so many spiritual lessons from this movie, there were two things the Lord told me through this soldier “Doss” that spoke deeply into my spirit. 

Firstly, Doss didn’t force his beliefs on anyone. He lived his beliefs. He explained his heart when pressed by everyone who thought him crazy. He never changed away from what he knew to be the truth. But he more lived it then spoke about it. When the time came for him to prove his faith, he did so without fear and with great courage. He knew his call, walked in his call and was true to his call. We are NOT Doss! His call is not our call. Yet we can learn from Doss in how he lived his faith. 

The second thing the Lord spoke to my heart was a confirmation and an affirmation to me from the Lord. Even when not one person, family or friend, understood Doss, he did not change his beliefs. 

This has been the story of much of my life. And I have indeed received persecution for it. 

As Doss was standing in the court of accusation, with absolutely no one on his side, there I saw myself. I have been where Doss has stood, literally. That is a story for a different day… Yet as Doss stood, so I also am to stand, so we are all to stand even when no one sees our faith or our call. 

Of many things I saw in this movie, here are a few thing I saw that must change in me. I must respond to accusations in love. I must express God’s heart in love and in courage as the Spirit leads when the opportunities arise. 

Some say that if no one affirms you, you must be operating in error or sin. Others say that if no doors open to you, you must be walking in error. Sometimes this is true, yet this is not always the case. After Doss’ faith was made known, at every turn, doors were closed to Doss in his face. I very much know how he feels. 

It’s the hardest thing to carry a truth that very few see. And I’m not speaking in pride here at all. 

I was in tears as the Lord lovingly affirmed me, even in the face of persecution from those closest to me. Twice in that movie I was in deep tears as Father confirmed and affirmed in my heart who He made me to be, as well as how Father wants me to change.

That was only one of many words Father gave me from that movie. Same with every one of Mel Gibson’s movies by the way. How God is using Mel Gibson is ways we will only fully know when at Home with Father! 

Speaking to the Need for Change in the Church

Yes! We are a family. I’ve spoken on this issue from the heart before our groups time and again. All who believe are a family. No one is disqualified who accept Christ from the heart. This is my true heart in this matter. Every church is family, and we are all a part of it. No one is disqualified who declare the name of Christ Jesus. Yet even so, our goal is maturity. And there is only one way to maturity, by the infilling and manifesting Presence of the Holy Spirit in all we do. This is my encouragement to the institutional churches. Be filled with the Holy Spirit. Seek first the Kingdom of God. 

From my childhood to young adult, I grew up going to Catholic Mass on Saturday nights, and then on the very next morning to Congregational Church, or the Methodist Church, or the Episcopal Church (all four churches my mother was connected with, my step dad a Catholic). I witnessed it all. And I loved them all! 

I witnessed full Revival in an Episcopal Church in the late 1970’s in Darien, Connecticut USA. Imagine that! It was my first witness of the Holy Spirit… right in the denominational church! I loved it, though I did not understand it. I felt the love! I was just 19 years old…

I’m a direct descendant of John Knox, the founder of the Presbyterian Church in Scotland. Knox was world renown as the “Great Reformer”. I’m his direct descendent. It’s why my parents named me “Scott.”

John Knox was world famous for exposing church error, which brought about the Great Reformation of the mid 1500’s throughout Europe. And you can well imagine, as Knox was speaking these things, he was not very popular! Now you see, I’ve got reformation in my blood! That’s who I am! That’s the primary part of my call! That’s who God made me to be. 

For me to stop speaking on the need for change is like taking a fish out of water. 

I LOVE the Catholic Church, the Methodist Church, the Episcopalian Church and the Presbyterian Church. No church is disqualified who preaches Jesus. Yet there remains the need for the Holy Spirit to come and to stay.

Yes, I see Spiritless error and I openly speak about it. But, please hear my true true heart…  I don’t hate anyone for their error. I want them healed of it! That is love expressed rightly, that is not judgment. 

How can darkness flee if it is not exposed by The Light? How will they know unless someone tells them? This was John Knox’ part to play. And history shows, he was deeply persecuted for it. This is my part to play, even if no one has ears to hear. 

I’ve adored the Chinese people! It is by no means in my heart to beat anyone into submission with my words. My heart is to show them and whomever else might listen, that religion and the ways of man put above or ahead of the ways of the Spirit leads to lifelessness in the church!

Yet still, it is impossible to explain the right way without sometimes expressing what is in error. Certainly the best way is to have them experience the right way; to invite them into the Presence in love and let them hear of it from the Spirit Himself. Yet, times of speaking it are necessary. 

Evil Report

Read the story of Numbers 13-14.

What was the evil report of the 10 spies who spoke their report to Caleb and Moses? 

Remember first that God gave Abraham the promise that this “promised land” would be given into the hands of Israel. Moses already had the promise, that regardless of the circumstances, this was their land. The spies returned to Caleb and Moses and their report included a discouragement designed to lead Israel to not believe in God’s promise of that land! 

Why was the report bad/evil? The report was designed to lead Israel to disbelieve the supernatural power and promise of God, by which He would, in power, give this land into their hands. 

It’s like me standing before a heart felt seeking church who has never experienced Revival and saying to them, “Yes the Holy Spirit moves in power! But, what happens is weird and crazy and maybe you should think twice before you go there.”

That is an evil report. 

Discouraging people away from the power and promises of God, that is an evil report. Certainly, I have never done this. Not ever. 

Speaking of the need to change is not giving an evil report. Exposing religious error is by no means speaking an evil report over anyone.

Any report designed to convince a people to turn away from God’s Presence, His supernatural power and His promise is an evil report. It is our ministry call to do just the opposite, to turn people to His Presence and promises and to help them believe it. We are leading them into the Presence, not turning them away from it. 

Not in any one of our meetings, have we ever walked into a meeting not seeing the good of the people in those places. Never have we done that. We would never have done such a thing. We have always spoken of church error without ever pointing a finger at anyone in our hearing. Yet many times I knew that the word of correction that I was bringing was for some in the room. 

Yet in every case of discussing religious error, the purpose is for a change out of it, never for the purpose of bringing guilt, shame and certainly not to condemn. That has never ever been in my heart. 

If by speaking of the error of religion has turned people away, that is not because of an evil report. If people turn away in offense, so long as we were not hateful against them, this is not our fault. 

The fear of offending man has no power against the expression of the truth in love. It should be very much expected that when expressing the need for change amongst those who do not see the need for change, there will arise an offense. The enemies of God hate truth revealed. When truth is expressed in places of darkness, either on the one to one or corporately, darkness is confronted with Light! Either people will cling to it who have a teachable pliable hungry heart, or the result will be confrontation and persecution. Where truth is rejected, the guaranteed result is persecution. We don’t shy away from persecution for fear of man. We speak truth in love, and we speak truth in boldness. 

Persecution is not an indication that we are doing things in error. Persecution is proof positive that we are doing things right! (I would add that times of crushing and braking from the Lord is not persecution. We need to know the difference.) 

This would be different if we speak with hatred. Of that, of coarse repentance is in order. 

I want to see people healed of rejection, church or otherwise, but never at the expense of truth. 

I will say this… Any teaching that suggests that anything should be put ahead of the work of the Holy Spirit or the revealed Word of God… that is an evil report. 

Conversely, if the bringing of the word of correction leads one or many into the joy of the Lord, how can this be spoken of as an evil report? 

We are family. No one is disqualified from the love of the Body. I have spoken these exact words before our groups time and again. However, one thing I will never say is that anyone is “disqualified.” No person and no church is disqualified from the hope of glory! And so we move forward to express that truth to whomever has ears to hear and eyes to see.  

The Apostle’s Call

There is an important reason why we should ask each other what our call is for the church. If you see my call and accept it, then it becomes necessary to release me in my call. As I always release others, without question nor with any judgment whatsoever, so the Body must also understand my call and release me in it. 

We must know what our call is according to the revealed written Word of God, and then walk in it. 

If I am seen as a father, then my role is to love the Church like a father would love, teach, exhort and at times correct his children. There is no Biblical call of “father”. The closest thing that fits this description is apostle. Those who are “fathers or mothers” in the church have an apostolic call. They must be seen as such and released as such. 

If I’m seen as apostolic, then my roll is to lead, teach, encourage, exhort and when need be, correct like a father. 

What father does not guide his children? What father does not discipline his children? What father does not teach his children? What father does not adore his children? This is my heart. This is why I speak. 

Without right vision, children throw off restraint. Prov 29:18

I am apostolic. And I was released this way from Chuck Pierce and Global Spheres. Likewise, the Spirit made it clear to me in my season at the Toronto Airport Christian Fellowship in 1999-2004 that my roll was to lead people into Revival, an apostolic call. 

I didn’t ask for it, Father sent me to Toronto on a divine appointment. And in Toronto, Father placed this mantle on me. As God has made each of the Body parts for the church, so He has made of me an apostolic Revivalist. 

My wife and I have a formal responsibility. But far greater than that, I have a responsibility first to my Father. Even if not one door opens to me. That’s not pride, that’s obedience. 

The Modern Day Apostle

The Apostle never looks to be honored. He looks to honor. He does not care about a title yet walks firmly in his call.

The Apostle never seeks to be served. He serves always. 

The Apostle leads by himself first being led by the Holy Spirit.

The Apostle spreads Revival by walking in Revival. He is a Presence seeker always.

The Apostle is a representative of the Holy Spirit. He is a messenger. 

The Apostle leads by having relationship with those whom he leads. He loves in all things. 

The Apostle restores that which is broken with truth. He turns people away from paths of error.

The Apostle is a peacemaker who shuns divisions be speaking against that which divides. 

The Apostle spreads Gospel truth by walking in the Word of truth, not by good sounding arguments.

The Apostle is an advocate. He is chosen by the Holy Spirit, not by any person. 

The Apostle is a missionary. He has a mission. But missionaries are not always apostles.

The Apostle is one who is sent out. But “sent out” has many meanings. 

The Apostle is a warrior. Because the Apostle is constantly confronted and his roll always is to advance his troops into new grounds. He wars with the weapons of the Spirit. 

The Apostle is fearless. Because he faces accusations time and again. 

The Apostle walks as Christ, so that all who do accuse would be revealed to truth. 

The Apostle fathers by himself being fathered by the Spirit. There are no earthly fathers but apostles. 

The Apostle walks in the fruits of the Spirit, so that souls might witness true love.

The Apostle always seeks the next leader to minister in to. Because many who would lead have many doors in front of them to choose from. He guides them through the right doors. 

The Apostle is a pioneer. He is always on the edge of the unknown, always leading the church into the spiritual by faith. 

The Apostle leads the church off the map of what is known into spiritual realities that are formerly unknown, now revealed, yet always aligned with the Word of God.

The Apostle is just as invaluable to today’s church as they were in the first church. His roll is being restored as we speak in the Light of Truth. 

Footnote: As to gender, there are female apostles as well as male. This call is not gender specific. 

Scriptural references: 1 Cor 12:11,28-30, John 15:16, Acts 20:28, 2 Tim 1:11. Eph 2:20, Acts 11:28, 21:10-11, Eph 3:5, 2 Cor 12:12, Acts 8:6-7, Heb 2:3-4. Heb 3:1, Acts 1:26, Gal 1:15-17, 1 Cor 15:7-9, 2 Cor 11:5, Rom 1:1, 2 Cor 8:23, 2 Cor 12:12, Luke 10:1-3.

Biblical example of Apostles included Paul, Barnabas (Acts 14:4), Silas (1 Thes 2:6), Timothy (1 Thes 2:6) and Titus (Book of Titus), amongst others.

False Apostles: 2 Cor 11:13, speak to the importance of right apostleship. 

Works of the Apostolic Person

If I am the apostolic man God has released me to be, then I respectfully disagree with any notion that suggests that I should cease bringing words of correction where the Spirit leads. To be clear, this is a responsibility required of a leader, especially the apostolic man. 

It is not speaking an evil report to bring a correction, unless the intent is to manifest hatred and haughtiness. That has never been in my heart. Nor should it have anything to do with today’s apostolic person. 

So do not let what you regard as good be spoken of as evil. For the kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking but of righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit. Romans 14:16-17

Bringing a correction in love does not bring division it brings maturity. Bringing a correction from control or manipulation, or in judgment or hate, that is what brings division. And many in the Church are wounded by it. 

How are people led out of these wounds? In Spirit and in truth. That is to say, in love and by the expression of revelation truth.

But the hour is coming, and is now here, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for the Father is seeking such people to worship him. God is spirit, and those who worship him must worship in spirit and truth.” John 4:23-24

In Spirit, we love. And in truth, we speak. Both are necessary. Truth requires the expression of it! That is the work of the apostle. 

To stop bringing the word of correction altogether is to stop bringing truth. What needs to change in how we speak truth is the lack of love, and the lack of honor. 

When correction comes, people are wounded by one of two ways. Rejection, or self-defense.

If a correction is rightly given, those who depart wounded do so in self-defense. They will not agree out of pride. 

But, when wounds happen by corrections from a controlling leader, this is a spirit of rejection. 

We minister love in healing to all who have been wounded, regardless of the reasons. No one is disqualified from love. But we do not altogether stop the need for correction for the purpose of preventing woundedness. To stop right correction for fear of hurting people, that is humanism. More on humanism in a minute… 

I don’t want to bring division, I want them healed of it! That is the first work of the apostle.

This is where the movie Hacksaw Ridge comes to play. The soldier Doss stood FIRM in his faith and true to his call as a medic. The Lord made this very clear to me… so am I to remain true to my prophetic and apostolic call, even if no one sees it, even if I receive persecution for it, even if no doors open.

I am accountable, not to man but to Father God in what I speak and how I speak, just as each of you are accountable to Him alone in how you lead people into the Presence. 

As this truth is part of my faith, then if I do not speak as He directs, it is sin for me. 

For whatever does not proceed from faith is sin. Romans 14:23

What this really means is, if I violate a Spirit given conviction that God has placed upon my heart… it’s a sin for me. Conviction is the fruit of faith. 

Yes, if I speak in anger and frustration, this is a sin. But if I remain silent, this also is a sin. Therefore, I must speak, but always speak it in love.

Responsibilities of the Apostolic Person

The Apostolic work is to speak to the churches the truth based upon the Gospel of Jesus and by the Spirit of God. His job is to highlight what is being done right, with encouragement. His job is, in love and encouragement, to expose what is being done wrong to bring correction. All these things are done through the release of the Spirit in love and with authority. 

In most of the epistles written by the Apostle Paul, he starts the writing with these words, “Paul, a servant of God and an apostle of Jesus Christ…” Paul knew his calling. Paul spoke boldly but in love. Paul always operated in love, but also in the firmness of truth, not interested in man pleasing but in pleasing God over all. Paul was our very obvious example of right apostleship. 

Amongst so much scripture on these matters, there are three very key scriptures that guide me in my calling: 

“Through (Jesus) and for his name’s sake, we received grace and apostleship to call people from among all the Gentiles to the obedience that comes from faith. And you also are amongst those who are called to belong to Jesus Christ.” Romans 1:5-6

“Paul, a servant of God, and an apostle to Jesus Christ for the faith of God’s elect and the knowledge of the truth that leads to godliness – A faith and knowledge resting on the hope of a eternal life, which God, who does not lie, promised before the beginning of time, and at his appointed season he brought his word to light through the preaching entrusted to me by the command of God our Savior.” Titus 1:1-3

Paul speaking exhortation to Timothy said this: “All Scripture (the revealed Word of God) is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work.” 2 Timothy 3:16-17

Jesus establishes the call upon all members of the Body. The apostle raises up the faith of the Body by the expression of truth. The apostle corrects error, and brings teaching that manifests completeness in the Body and equipping of the Body for every good work. 

Apostles Call to Correct

How did Paul deal with error in the church? We find these words to the Galatians: 

O foolish Galatians! Who has bewitched you? It was before your eyes that Jesus Christ was publicly portrayed as crucified. Let me ask you only this: Did you receive the Spirit by works of the law or by hearing with faith? Are you so foolish? Having begun by the Spirit, are you now being perfected by the flesh? Galatians 3:1-3

“Foolish Galatians?” “Who has bewitched you?” These are real harsh sounding words! 

What if the Apostle Paul entered into our meetings and spoke this way before certain people today, would we call him angry, unloving or judgmental? How would you respond to such a direct rebuke? 

How did Jesus minister against error in the church? Consider how Jesus responded to Peter’s error… This very same Peter upon whom Jesus would found the church:

From that time Jesus began to show his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem and suffer many things from the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and on the third day be raised. And Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him, saying, “Far be it from you, Lord! This shall never happen to you.” But Jesus turned and said to Peter, “Get behind me, Satan! You are a hindrance to me. For you are not setting your mind on the things of God, but on the things of man.” Matthew 16:21-23

Peter was in the error of wrong thinking, the primary root of religious error. Jesus exposed Peter’s error very directly. Was Jesus angry with Peter? Was Jesus judgmental of Peter? Was Jesus unloving or hateful of Peter for speaking these words? 

By the Spirit, we know how deeply Jesus loved Peter. Yet, out of love and the authority, Jesus brought a timely correction, not in anger or judgment, nor self righteousness or hate or frustration but of encouraging yet very direct correction. 

These words appear in the Bible to guide us into doing the very same things Jesus did, by those released by the Spirit. Jesus was our example. 

“Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever believes in me will also do the works that I do; and greater works than these will he do, because I am going to the Father. John 14:12

What Jesus was saying was, “Because I’m going to the Father, because of My shed blood sacrifice and My resurrection Power, I’m going to send to you My resurrection Power who is My Holy Spirit. In the Power of My Word, in the Power of My Name, by the Power I give you in the Holy Spirit, you will do even greater things than I exemplified to you while I was on earth!”  Powerful words!

The last thing I want to be seen as is an angry judgmental man! Yet many times when a correction was given, however loving I was, this was the accusation I received, even when no such thing was in my heart. 

I’ve had to deal with many wounds of rejection over the years. And not just from the church, but also from those closest to me. And I believe that many of my frustrations (my sins) came from this wounding. And so I repented as much as I have forgiven…

Certainly anger does nothing but wound people. It doesn’t change anyone. It only deepens the divide. And so for every manifestation of anger in frustration that has come from my mouth, I have indeed repented before the Lord. 

Know this, my beloved brothers: let every person be quick to hear, slow to speak, slow to anger; for the anger of man does not produce the righteousness of God. James 1:19-20

I desire then that in every place the men should pray, lifting holy hands without anger or quarreling… 1 Timothy 2:8

It breaks my heart to think that the ministry that I have brought has ever been seen by anyone as being hateful, loveless or divisive. That has never been in my heart or of my intent. Yet I see it… I have been angry and frustrated at times. And so my heart is broken into repentance! And so it always should be with the apostolic person. Success is found in the lowest place of all.

Yet, to witness a people embrace a change and then move in it which results in a greater release of the Spirit, is this not love in action? Is this not what we are after? 

This is what my wife and I have sown into China as best we have been able. And the fruit of it is clearly evident. We have seen so many who have changed from darkness to Light! Why are you they where they are right now? They embraced change. 

Error of the Galatians

As to correction to the religious or those in my charge who move into error, that is part of my call. And it is clearly the responsibility of those with an apostolic call. It was this very issue that led Paul to write the entire book of Galatians. 

The very essence of Galatians is about correction. The only person who has the responsibility to bring a correction like this to a large group of believers is the apostle who has been released by the Lord to do so.

So here we have the church of Galatia who started on the right path but quickly turned to religious legalism. The Galatians started out with a Spirit filled revelation of truth, and then turned towards myths and the laws of man, and away from truth. They made the same mistake Peter did! Someone needed to come and bring a correction to the Galatians. Who was that man? He was the apostle. The apostle Paul operating within the role of his responsibility. And these were his words:

“I am astonished that you are so quickly deserting the one who called you by the grace of Christ and are turning to a different gospel which is really no gospel at all. Evidently some people are throwing you into confusion and are trying to pervert the gospel of Christ.” Gal 1:6-7. 

“Am I now trying to win the approval of man, or of God? Or am I trying to please man? If I were still trying to please man, I would not be a servant of Christ.” Gal 1:10

Hard words? Unloving words? Judgmental words? What do you think? 

Was Paul operating in hate or judgment? Certainly not, the Lord included these examples in His Word. 

There is a night and day difference between the correction brought in hate, and the correction brought in love, though even the words used might be exactly the same! Out of the overflow of the heart, the mouth speaks. 

All I say below is of my heart. 

I completely agree with the need to minister in love in all things. But my question is this. Which is more loving? Is it to so please man, that we remain silent as to error for form of love? Or is it to bring correction in love that leads to newfound liberty for the few who have ears to hear it? 

If a worship leader’s love in worship brings them to the table of repentance, that is wonderful. That is the call of the worship leader. If the apostle’s love in an expression of truth brings them to the table of repentance, that is wonderful. That is my call. We must know who we are and walk in the call we have been assigned, in that and that alone. The mistake is when we think that our way and our call is the only way. This is what is changing in today’s church!

I am the elbow. You are the knee. The elbow cannot do the job of the knee, nor the knee do the job of an elbow. 

Considering Apostles Who Have Gone Before Us

Ruth Ward Heflin was a great woman of God. She was an intercessor, a prophet, a worship leader, song writer and an author of many books. She knew who she was and she walked in it. She was a Revivalist in every way. 

Ruth Heflin was a diplomat. She worked in Washington DC with Presidents, Congressmen and governmental leaders of nations. She operated with the wisdom of diplomacy, honoring everyone. It never was her primary call to bring correction into the church, nor into American government. Her call was to bless the nations through prophetic intercession. To establish a prophetic foundation for the nation of Israel. 

Though at times in Heflin’s prophetic visions she probably did bring corrections. She was more a prophetic intercessor, walking with amazing faith. And by way of her diplomatic prophetic heart, she gained audiences with many great world leaders to give prophesy. Correction of error was not her focus, she was not apostolic.

It’s different with Cindy Jacobs. Because Cindy is also an apostle. Time and again, she would deliver extremely hard words to national and church leaders. And they followed her direction. But she faithfully gave the word of correction. Different from Ruth Heflin. And I know, Cindy has been persecuted… 

What’s the difference between sisters Heflin and Jacobs? The call. 

And, if Cindy Jacobs had persecution, Heidi Baker had fifty times more! How many times have I sat under Heidi’s teaching against religious error?  She speaks of it far more than I do. And with hard direct words, though permeated with love. Yet there she is with tens of thousands of healings, over ten thousand church plants, hundreds raised from the dead. If there is anyone to testify to the necessity of speaking to religious error, it is Heidi Baker. Why? It’ is her apostolic call. 

Consider the life of William Branham. He was so full of the Holy Spirit when he stood to speak and minister healing, the stage would literally glow under the light of the legion of angels that surrounded him. Photos show this. He would call people out and prophetically publicly walk them through their life of sin and goodness. He was pinpoint accurate in detail. This always resulted in repentance, and a few people running out the door! 

Branham was one of the greatest apostolic evangelists and healers that ever lived. Talk about persecution! And he was much poorer than Ruth Heflin. Branham loved in the way God released him to love. And he was fearless of any man as he brought the word of correction in every meeting. 

Branham publicly brought correction in every one of his public meetings and not to groups but individuals openly and publicly. 

William Branham knew his call. Ruth Heflin knew her call. Cindy Jacobs knows her call. Heidi Baker knows her call. I know my call. 

Your call is not their call. Heidi Baker said this many times, “Don’t copy me. Be who God made you to be!”

This is not to reject the principle need to honor and express unconditional love in the churches. But God will manifest His love through you in His unique way and in your uniquely personal way. 

Division

If correction is necessary, whose roll is it to express but the apostolic prophetic leader. Even if the word is a hard one to hear, even if leaders are offended at what they hear. 

What did Jesus say? 

“Do you think I came to bring peace on earth? No, I tell you, but division. From now on there will be five in one family divided against each other, three against two and two against three. They will be divided, father against son and son against father, mother against daughter and daughter against mother, mother-in-law against daughter-in-law and daughter-in-law against mother-in-law.” Luke 12:49-53.

I certainly don’t seek division, nor did Jesus. I seek reconciliation, so did Jesus. But in this world, much of the church is blinded by pride. Jesus knew this. It’s exactly what Jesus was saying here. It’s just how it is… Some have ears to hear and a humble heart to repent and to change, but most do not. Hence, we have divisions. We don’t reject or exclude those who don’t have ears to hear. But, we are not wounded if those who disagree with what they hear turn away. 

We want them to have the chance for change. 

Some are called to bring the correction. Some are called to be the correction. 

Holy Spirit FIRST

As right change further purifies our message, we must be careful! Be careful that the change you choose is in righteousness and in truth. There is right change. But there are thousands of good sounding ideas in this world that can lead us down the road of wrong change that leads to error. 

If Kingdom truth comes forth, we change, old things die in us. The Spirit can now come forth. And the single truth of the Kingdom can be made known. Is that not what we are after? 

Love is the key! However, no one is capable of love without first being filled with the Holy Spirit, the manifest revealer of love. 

The Holy Spirit is the Councilor who leads all into all truth. And the gifts of the Holy Spirit are these: LOVE, joy, peace, patience…. the first over all manifestations of the Spirit is love. How can anyone love in power without first receiving love in times of revelation from the Holy Spirit? 

This is why we meet to seek His Presence in times of soaking. This is why people are in tears when we do. Because they recognize real love, they feel that real love upon their hearts, and for some, for the very first time. The Manifestation of the Spirit as defined by the revealed Word of the Bible MUST come first. People enter in broken, they receive love and revelation in power, and then they walk out changed. 

Is that not exactly what is happening when the Spirit enters the room? Would you say it was people loving people first? May I suggest, it is God who is first loving them, through the Spirit who first poured His love into us who lead. 

We love because he first loved us.  1 John 4:19

Anyone who brings Revival Presence into a meeting knows that they did not have anything to give them without first receiving it from the Holy Spirit themselves. We walk in full dependence of Him always.

Many argue that love comes first. I fully understand what they are trying to say about loving the brothers and sisters of Christ in all things, and I totally agree, but never in any way that contradicts or precedes the revealed Word of God or rejects the primacy of the Holy Spirit. 

Some might say, “The need for us to unconditionally love is before the Spirit, before the Word.” 

I respectfully but directly disagree that our human love comes first. Such a statement is moving towards humanism. 

The definition of humanism is this:

“An outlook or system of thought attaching prime importance to human rather than divine supernatural matters. Humanist beliefs stress potential value and goodness of human beings, emphasize common human needs, and seek solely rational ways of solving human problems.”

In essence, humanism is placing anything ahead of or before God. Man solving man’s problems with man’s ideas and man’s love. 

Most of today’s charities are humanistic. Good works, but willfully or ignorantly cutting Jesus or the Spirit out of the equation. It’s an insidious disease that starts with a good sounding idea that in time manifests into a wall between man and God. 

Many churches in America are humanistic. As a result of independent human beliefs and rejecting God’s divine power and truth, they have become powerless, devoid of the Holy Spirit, focused only on man’s interpretation of the Bible. 

This is not an angry statement. This is not being judgmental at all. This is the truth. 

Even though they claim the name of Jesus, there is no Spirit. Even though they may be saved, there is little or no fruit. 

How does God fix this? He places upon certain people who are filled with the Holy Spirit the call to bring and to speak of the need to experience Him! God releases us to love and to speak. 

The worshiper calls upon the Presence. The Revivalist speaks of the Presence. It’s our individual call in the Body of Christ. 

The Kingdom of God on earth as it is in Heaven… this is Revival. It’s our first request in prayer. 

Pray then like this: “Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name. Your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.  Matthew 6:9-10

The Manifestation of the Presence of God comes fist above all things. If not, its religion. And we are not just talking about soaking. We are talking about in all things! Every meeting. Every event. 

The idea that love comes before the Spirit and even before the Word is not only deep error, it is a dangerous humanistic belief. The result over time will exchange the Presence of love and truth for happy emotions that do not heal the inner man. This is the beginning of humanism. This is man pleasing.

And you may find doors fling wide open before you as you manifest this way. People will love it. Tears will flow… But doors open to you are not a justification of being right. 

If we started out in the Spirit, how quickly He will depart from us when we put anything ahead of Him. 

God opens doors before us… so does Satan. Especially if you change away from what is Kingdom truth… Think on these thoughts carefully.

We might argue that love leads them in the door, then the Spirit changes their hearts. But it’s the Spirit who leads them in the door, it’s the Spirit that changes their hearts. This is more than a subtle difference. The Spirit comes first in all things to testify Jesus into a dying world.

The Holy Spirit is like a multi faceted diamond that in the Light of Christ shines every color of the rainbow into the room. We have no idea of the volumes and volumes of wounds and hurts and pains and fear that people have when they walk into that room, all of which the Holy Spirit sees.

Then the diamonds starts to spin, the Light spreads all around, and the people get changed to the core and walk out of the room completely shifted. Having been revealed to healing love in an instant. That is the exact opposite of humanism. 

Think of it this way…

I might go out on the street and feed a poor man a sandwich. But he will become hungry again. Or give him water, he will thirst again. Or give him a hug, a temporary peace… 

Did I love this man by feeding him and giving him a drink? Yes. But by doing so, was this man saved? Was he healed and delivered? Was he changed forever under the weight and Power of revealed love?

Our goal is to, by the Presence in us, love them into the Presence where, from the Holy Spirit, they can learn for themselves to go out and feed the poor with delicious things from the banqueting table of the Father.

We can do it the way of the world or by way of the Spirit. Which water do we choose to give?

Jesus said to her, “Everyone who drinks of this water (man’s water) will be thirsty again, but whoever drinks of the water that I will give him (Holy Spirit) will never be thirsty again. The water that I will give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life.” John 4:13-14

By the manifesting Spirit, false thoughts become exchanged for truth by revelation in power. Without His manifestation, we quickly fall into religious error, however love focused we may be. 

In the Presence, The Word of truth comes alive and they supernaturally realize true love. It becomes for them a revelation that changes them forever. Only then can they, or you, give it away to others. 

The Presence and the revealed Word comes first… always, He must. Or people will only love by the flesh. And this is the danger of which I speak. 

While loving in the flesh is good, it changes nothing. Only by the Spirit does one change spiritually. It’s what Jesus died for. 

People might repent in tears and with hugs from the heart. But, go back a few months later and check and see if the change was supernatural or not… 

Please hear this warning very carefully… at every turn in your life-walk, you will find every single argument and all forms of division, persecution and anger leveled against you to stop the manifestations of the Holy Spirit from working through you. You must be very careful what you choose to believe! 

This is the root of all persecution. The purpose of persecution is to silence the power manifest works of the Holy Spirit.  There is a war going on in the second Heaven realms trying to stop the Spirit and block revelation truth even as we are speaking. It rages on all around us. 

So maybe you have been persecuted for seeking the Presence of God. Has this persecution changed you in any way? Has this persecution changed your resolve in any way? Has it changed your heart? If so, you must carefully examine your heart as to why. 

Please hear this carefully, and consider this very seriously:  If, in today’s church, the Holy Spirit is effectively silenced by our fleshly choice, in time ALL of God is silenced. They might be saved, but the church is rendered ineffective. If we even start to place anything ahead of God’s Presence, we un-invite the Spirit. This is how Revival comes to an end. 

In my studies of Revivals that have failed, this is the number one reason why they have failed. Man’s good sounding ideas replaced revelation truth.

If anyone I am connected with in ministry chooses to go down this road, it is a road down which I will not follow. Nor can I encourage anyone to follow. It is a road down which I never will go. 

Dear reader, be wise in understanding these things before you so quickly cling to a new theology from any book, or any idea from the mind of any person, or any good sounding conclusion even from your own mind. 

There is only one Word of truth, the Bible. There is only one revealer of that truth, the Holy Spirit. There is only one power by which we succeed, He is the Holy Spirit who testifies Christ in our midst. The Word, the power of our salvation. The power of our healing. 

For Jews demand signs and Greeks seek wisdom, but we preach Christ crucified, a stumbling block to Jews and folly to Gentiles, but to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God. For the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men. 1 Corinthians 1:22-25

For the Word of the cross is folly to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God. 1 Corinthians 1:18

Jesus is the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of his nature, and he upholds the universe by the Word of his power. Hebrews 1:3

For the Word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart. Heb 4:12

By faith we understand that the universe was created by the Word of God, so that what is seen was not made out of things that are visible. Hebrews 11:3

He is clothed in a robe dipped in blood, and the name by which he is called is The Word of God. Revelation 19:13

Love follows revelation… Love is defined by revelation, the revealed Word of the Bible who is Jesus Christ. Love manifests by the move of the Holy Spirit. 

Rejecting these truths is to reject Christ Himself. He died that the Spirit of revelation could be with us. Love is powerless and of the flesh if it is not first of the Spirit.

And again:

We love because he first loved us. 1 John 4:19

Last Thought

Certainly, anyone who consistently acts outside of love in ministry has no place in ministry. 

But, God is not looking for our perfection. As you well know, He’s looking for our love rightly expressed. We are all seeing the need to love better. And so am I. But this is a life-walk. We are growing up in this. It’s a process. Not one of us is perfect in love. But we are perfected not by the flesh but by the Spirit.

Let me ask you only this: Did you receive the Spirit by works of the law or by hearing with faith? Are you so foolish? Having begun by the Spirit, are you now being perfected by the flesh? … “The righteous shall live by faith.” Gal 3: 2-3,11

I honor each of you for who you are in Christ Jesus! So many of you love face to face to so many who know not love. You are so encouraging to those totally discouraged. You carry the power of the Spirit to heal the sick, cast out demons, cleanse lepers and raise the dead. Cling only to these truths and do not go outside of that which is written. 

I have applied all these things to myself and Apollos for your benefit, brothers, that you may learn by us not to go beyond what is written, that none of you may be puffed up in favor of one against another. 1 Cor 4:6

Walk in the revealed Word by the Spirit in the Spirit and all the minor things you might be worrying about will resolve easily. 

Read these words and if you understand them, then you will understand my heart:

For our appeal does not spring from error or impurity or any attempt to deceive, but just as we have been approved by God to be entrusted with the gospel, so we speak, not to please man, but to please God who tests our hearts. For we never came with words of flattery, as you know, nor with a pretext for greed-God is our witness. Nor did we seek glory from people, whether from you or from others, though we could have made demands as apostles of Christ. But we were gentle among you, like a nursing mother taking care of her own children. So, being affectionately desirous of you, we were ready to share with you not only the gospel of God but also our own selves, because you had become very dear to us. 1 Thessalonians 2:3-8

No words can say it any better that these. This is what is in my heart. This is who I am. 

Exhortation

There are three things I would bring as a final exhortation within this word: 

1) Don’t strive for open doors. The open doors will find you. Have ears to hear which ones that Father leads you through. But seek first the Kingdom of God (Presence first over all) and his righteousness, and (then after) all these things will be added to you. Matthew 6:33

2) Success in ministry quickly leads to a certain pride and independence. I’ve seen this happen over and over again… It leads to a closing of ears, the blinding of eyes, a development of false theologies and then division. The pride of successes, in time closes the portals of Heaven. But humility softens the heart.  

3) The enemy will come at you with every good sounding argument, dressed as an angel in white, to cut you off from the Holy Spirit and the revealed Word of God. But unity in the Spirit is a wall of protection.

I pray that you will forever have a tender heart to know these things and the courage to stand firm against every work of darkness. I pray that you will always have eyes to see and ears to hear what the Spirit says to the Churches, and that you walk in fearless love. 

T. Scott Morton

Tscottmorton.com