Accessing God’s Presence

Do you long to experience God’s presence more than you now do? If you are a believer — one who has accepted Jesus’ atonement on your behalf and who has yielded your life to His Lordship — you don’t have to jump through hoops to get there. You don’t have to follow a ritual, say a certain set of words, or ask God’s permission to enter into His presence. He invites you to perpetually live there.

Let’s see what the Bible has to say about this:

Psalm 91:1 — “He who dwells in the secret place of the Most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty.” This first verse of this beloved psalm is the gateway into all the other promises it contains. God desires for us to constantly live in His presence.

John 15:7 — “If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, you shall ask what you will, and it shall be done for you.” John 15 starts out with Jesus telling us He is the vine, and we are the branches. If the branch is not attached to its source, the vine, it withers and dies. The implication, once again, is that we are meant to stay attached to Him continuously (and thereby also to His presence). We are not meant to come and go.

Under the Old Covenant of the Law, there was a specific form which had to be followed exactly in order to enter the presence of God.

The progression for getting into the Lord’s presence started with the outer court of the tabernacle/temple, where sacrifices were brought to be burned on the altar by the priests. Past the outer court was the Holy Place, where the golden lampstand, the table of showbread, and the incense altar were. Only the priests were allowed in the Holy Place. Finally, there was the Holy of Holies, where God’s presence rested upon the mercy seat of the Ark of the Covenant. The high priest was the only one who ever got there, and then only once a year. If he did it wrong, he died.

That was all before Jesus’ atonement on the cross.

But what happened when Jesus said, “It is finished”? The curtain which divided the Holy Place and the Holy of Holies in the temple ripped, from the top down. God had torn the veil between Himself and the common man. He made the way of access to Himself available for every believer, and it all came about through Jesus’ once-and-for-all sacrifice of Himself. His blood forever speaks for us on the mercy seat in heaven.

Too frequently, we hear Christian leaders inviting us to perform certain steps to “get into the presence” of God. It sometimes involves a sequence of actions they want us to take, much like passing from the outer court, where we spend time reflecting on and repenting of wrongs we have done. Some teachers talk about making a “sacrifice” of some sort, in order to enter an intermediate “holy place,” where we praise and worship for a period of time. After the leader feels we have praised and worshiped sufficiently, he might invite everyone into a process of saying certain ritualistic words, such as asking God for permission to enter into His courts. Then, after we have done all the right stuff, we can confidently come before the Lord with our requests.

Ugh! It’s not right. The apostle Paul exhorts us to “rightly divide the word of truth” (2 Timothy 2:15), and this ritualistic attempt to gain favor with the Lord so we can enter His presence is not discerning the divide between the Old Covenant and the New Covenant in Christ. It is coming back under the Law, but not with animal sacrifices like the Old Testament saints did. Now it’s got a new spin — still with ritual attached. In the process, we have forgotten the veil is already rent, so that we now have the privilege of dwelling in God’s presence.

I love both private and corporate worship, and yes, I understand that spending time adoring the Lord makes us feel nearer to Him — rightly so. With all the distractions we experience on an hourly basis, we tend to forget to stay in our dwelling place in Him. Worshiping the Lord helps us draw near again. It lifts us out of our everyday distractions. Really, it is not that we have stopped being in God’s presence; it is that we have become unaware of His nearness.

In the prayer gatherings my husband and I lead, worship is our first priority. Before we head into intercession, we spend time worshiping God with the help of music which lends itself well to that goal. It helps us all to lay aside the busyness of the day, to settle in, and focus on the Lord. As we all get our attention fully centered on Jesus, His presence does seem to be more tangible to us as a group. But mostly, we worship Him because He is worthy, not so we can experience the goosebumps of feeling His nearness, and certainly not to butter Him up so we get our prayers answered!

The Lord wants us, heart and soul. He wants our attention. And, He wants us to come to the place of recognizing that we have constant access to Him — not through steps and forms, but because He has thrown open the way through His Son. He wants us to see ourselves as living continually in His presence, not coming and going on visits to His throne room.

We have the Holy Spirit living, breathing, and burning in our hearts at all times, always wanting to remind us that not only do we live in His presence, but He has brought His presence right into our hearts. He is always there inside. You don’t have to go through rituals to be catapulted into His audience. You might not always “feel” Him, but He’s still there. Believe His promise, and make it your goal to grow in your awareness of your constant union with Him.

 Seeing then that we have a great high priest, who has passed into the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our profession.

For we do not have a high priest Who cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities, but one Who was in all points tempted like we are, yet without sin.

Let us therefore come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need. — Hebrews 4:14-16

Come boldly, because Jesus has already made the way, and your Father has invited you to live in His presence. Come boldly, because the Holy Spirit’s dwelling place is now inside of you. Live in His fire, His counsel, His love, and His peace. Because He said you can.
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Yes and Amen
God’s Promises from Genesis Through Revelation

(Choose from King James Version or Modernized King James Version)

Before Whom We Stand

You Are Not Elite (And That’s OK)

In the more than fifty years I have been involved in Spirit-filled churches and parachurch groups, I have seen in most of those groups the notion that we were the best group in town. The theme was consistent: We are where it’s at. We are the ones who carry the plan of God. Ugly, when stated so matter of factly, isn’t it?

I heard it said in private conversations and, sadly, from the pulpit. (One pastor apologized publicly the following week.) Sometimes it was subtle, and at other times, it was quite blatant.

Or, how about these lines?

• Revival will start with us.
• This group knows how to pray God’s kingdom in like no other.
• The destiny of America/Israel/our state/region/city depends on our prayers alone.
• If we don’t do it, nobody will.
• We are God’s instrument to bring about __________.
• Jesus can’t come back unless we usher Him in. (Seriously???)

Honestly, we need to stop it. It is delusional! We should love our local fellowship, but at the same time realize that we aren’t the end-all. Other people besides us have the call of God on their lives — separate from being part of our group. It doesn’t all hinge on our little corner of Christianity. In fact, if we could see the big picture, our group or flavor of the Church is probably a small sliver of the whole.

Consider Elijah’s conversation with God in 1 Kings 19:14 and 19: Elijah says, “I have been very jealous for the LORD God of hosts, because the children of Israel have forsaken Your covenant … and I, even I only, am left.” God responds, “I still have left to Me seven thousand in Israel whose knees have not bowed to Baal and whose mouths have not kissed him.”

Or how about what John the Baptist told the religious leaders in Matthew 3:9: “Don’t think to say to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham as our father.’ For I say to you, God is able to raise up children to Abraham of these stones.”

So much for thinking it all hinges on us — any of us. While it should humble us to realize we are not the elite ones, people who are necessary for God’s plan to survive, it also takes from us all inordinate pressure.

Consistently through the years, I have reminded our prayer group that we are one small gathering among thousands of intercessory groups who are also praying the same things we are, led by the same Holy Spirit. When we see that we have gained a mighty answer to prayer, we rejoice, but always with the understanding that we are a piece among many other pieces in God’s vast army of prayer warriors. We all work together.

No, you are not elite. Your group is not elite. I would especially like to repeat this to our friends in the apostolic/prophetic movement, which I have identified with for many years. We are each special in God’s eyes, yes — special simply because we are loved by Him and moving with Him by His grace. But so is every true believer and every gathering of true believers. We are one with the greater Body of Christ, not elevated over our brothers and sisters.

It’s important to consider this often. And if we drift back into thinking we are of a higher caliber than others, it is time to repent from the depths of our hearts.
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The Winnowing Fan

Photo by Anna Tarazevich from Pexels

For several months I have been praying deeply into sexual and spiritual abuse going on in the Church, particularly among leaders. This was mainly triggered by the awful things being revealed daily about IHOPKC — The International House of Prayer in Kansas City. But it doesn’t stop there. We continually see reports of sexual and spiritual abuse going on throughout the Church here in the United States and across the world — again, almost daily. We will see much more in the weeks and months ahead.

As I have been praying into the many facets of the abuse tragedies that are taking place, a major focus has been to plead that the Lord would utterly cleanse His house of all the gangrene in our midst. He gave me this word about what He is doing at this time:

… He [Jesus] shall baptize you with the Holy Spirit and with fire. His winnowing fan is in His hand, and He will thoroughly purge His threshing floor and gather His wheat into the barn. But He will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire. — Matthew 3:11, 12

A winnowing fan or basket (some translations call it a fork) is a utensil, often woven, which acts as a sieve to separate the useful grain from the chaff (the inedible husk).

Jesus is in the process of separating the vile from the holy in His Church. And He is doing it furiously in this hour.

Many of us have watched as conservative Christian leaders have scrambled to cover up or minimize the sins of major figures in their particular stream of Christianity. They have scornfully labeled those who have courageously spoken out against wrongs perpetrated against women (and men) within the Church as just being left-wing radicals, rabid feminists, and #MeToo folks.

I am a morally conservative woman, who is not in any way a feminist. I have been of the opinion since Day One that God has been behind the #MeToo movement. Yes, it is a secular movement. Yes, there are extreme people within it. But when the Church drags its feet and refuses to address sin issues, God will often take those same issues to the secular front and sound the alarm there. Such a shame that we, His people, have not been doing the job! I thank God for the awareness that #MeToo has brought to the table.

What a grief this is, that in the Church, no matter what denomination or persuasion, we have looked the other way as sexual assaults have been acted out against women, men, teenage girls and boys, and even younger children, within church walls. Too many refuse to believe it is happening. Too many just want it to go away, because, “Look at all the fruit of Minister So-and-So’s ministry! — the healings, the prophecies, the powerful teaching! He couldn’t have done what they’re saying!” (Yes, he could — and did.) And then the next cry, “Let’s just forgive him and RESTORE him!” (Yes — restore him to Jesus, but not to platform ministry, please, or to any other position where he can do it again. And by the way, report him to the police.)

What about those whose lives have been forever devastated? What about those who have turned away, not only from the church doors, but from Jesus, because they were not believed, and then were accused of being the problem instead of the victim? How did they see Jesus being lived out in His people?

When I was young, I could not fathom what Jesus meant, when He said in Matthew 7:21-23:

Not everyone who says to Me, “Lord, Lord” shall enter into the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father Who is in heaven.
     Many will say to Me in that day, “Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name? And in Your name have cast out demons? And in Your name have done many wonderful works?”
     And then I will plainly say to them, “I never knew you. Depart from Me, You who work iniquity.”

I understand it now, for we see it going on all around us.

We must stop making excuses for them. They are being led by their flesh and demons, not by the Spirit of God. They are not “such a good man (or woman).” We also must stop hiding their sins to save the organization or to make our nice, comfortable little world roll on untroubled. Jesus Himself is pulling the covers off. Don’t resist that. Stand with Him and with righteousness, no matter the cost.

And please, please, pray for the victims. Pray for them to be healed. Pray for them to be believed and accepted in Christ’s body. Embrace them and cry with them. Pray for the Good Shepherd to go after those who have left Him behind because of the sins of hireling shepherds. Intercede for them to come back to the fold and to feel safe among us once again.
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Note: If you have recently subscribed and have not received my free e-book, Overcoming Spiritual Bondage, please contact me at leeann@leeannrubsam.com. I’ll be happy to send it out to you by return e-mail.
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Yes and Amen: God’s Promises from Genesis Through Revelation

KJV or Modernized KJV

Proceed

I feel I have a current word for the Church in general, but some of you will find it is also for you about a specific matter.

I heard the word, “Proceed.” As I waited, I felt the Lord expounded on it further.

In God’s dealings with His people, there is a time to camp and stay still, and there is a time when He says to move forward. When Israel left Egypt and had come as far as the Red Sea, they became afraid when they realized the Egyptians were pursuing them. Moses comforted them and assured them that God would fight their battle for them. He said to the people, “Fear not. Stand still and see the salvation of the LORD, which He will show you today. For the Egyptians whom you have seen today, you shall not see again forever. The LORD shall fight for you, and you shall hold your peace” (Exodus 14:13, 14). This was all true. He did fight for them and save them with the miraculous parting of the Red Sea for Israel and the drowning in it of the Egyptians.

However, it was not the sum total of God’s counsel. More needed to happen. God responded to Moses, “Why are you crying out to Me? Speak to the children of Israel that they go forward” (Exodus 14:15). It was in the going forward that He saved them.

While Israel was in the wilderness, there were God-ordained times of resting in one place, even for months at a time. At other times, He directed them to move forward. When they were to rest and stay put, the cloud of His presence remained stationary over the tabernacle by day and His pillar of fire did the same by night. But when the cloud or the pillar of fire moved, the Israelites did, too.

The Church is called to be a people of rest as well as a people on the move. Sometimes one aspect is more prominent than the other for a while. Sometimes we completely rest in intimacy with Him on the inside, while outwardly we are expending unusual amounts of energy on action. “Rest in the LORD, and wait patiently for Him” (Psalm 37:7) is balanced against “Go in and possess the land which the LORD swore to [you]” (Deuteronomy 1:8).

For some of you in particular, the Lord says, “I have given you a mandate. You have prepared for it and prayed into it. Now it is time to set forward, to proceed.”

With this, He reminded me of Revelation 3:8: “I know your works. Behold, I have set before you an open door, and no man can shut it: for you have a little strength, and have kept My word, and have not denied My name.”

Follow the cloud; follow the fire. Take courage in Him, and let Him lead you in moving forward.

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Books and audio by Lee Ann (click link for full list):

Full Gospel Family Publications

Coping

Image by artbykleiton at Pixabay

“Just get over it.”
“It’s mind over matter.”
“Just deal with it.”

Unfortunately, in times of distress or emotional trauma, this is what many of us have been told. Too often, it has been Christians who have treated each other this way — more, even, than those outside the Church.

You know, we can’t “just get over it.” We really can’t. And the demands of others that we do so are not only unhelpful, but deeply wounding.

The major flaw in this advice is that it commands us to operate in the realm of the soul, whereas the only place of real healing and overcoming is in our spirit-man, where we understand that we cannot fix our own problems. We need the grace of God, the aid of the Holy Spirit. Otherwise, all we have are the self-help techniques of the world, and they don’t work, because, while they can cover our problems with a bandage, they cannot produce true healing.

Many times, those who tell us to “just get over it” think that they have overcome in this way, so we should be able to as well. But, generally speaking, the person who thinks he has conquered his issues just through willpower has really only repressed his problems, encasing them deep down inside in a hardened shell. And that won’t last forever. At some point it will burst forth unexpectedly in ways which shock everyone — anger, bitterness, a meltdown, or letting fly with unkind words.

How do we truly get free from the pain? It starts with crying out to our Father, Who loves us and desires to make us whole even more than we desire wholeness. When we acknowledge our helpless condition to Him, He steps in. He sets the wheels in motion.

We may need the help of understanding people in Christ’s body — perhaps those who have been through similar issues and can offer their compassion and support, or maybe those who are well-versed in inner healing or deliverance ministry. We might need professional counseling coming from a Christ-centered perspective. There is nothing wrong with seeking the help of others.

It is true that we have to do our part.

If the source of pain is what someone has done to us, we do have to make the decision to forgive and commit ourselves to staying in that place of forgiveness. But forgiveness is a two-fold process. We make the decision and adhere to it, but only the Lord can heal our hearts. That often requires bringing Him the pain again and again, asking Him to heal us from the inside out, until it has no hold over us anymore. Only He can do that.

When we find our thoughts straying into unhealthy places, we need to bring them back to what the Bible says — about us, about the Lord, and about how to treat other people. But to do any of those things, we require God’s grace. When it’s hard, and we don’t want to do the right thing, if we cry out to Him, He will come to our aid.

A big area for many people is depression or anxiety. We’ve been wrongly taught in the Church that these are mind-over-matter things, and if we just quote the right Scriptures about peace and joy often enough, we should be fine. So, when we don’t succeed, we hide our issues, because they are not “acceptable.” We don’t want anyone to judge us for our failure to overcome.

It’s time we started giving each other more compassion. Sometimes people do need medical intervention, and that’s okay! Don’t let anyone guilt you out of getting the professional help you need. Most of us would not tell people that it’s wrong to visit a doctor for a physical need. We shouldn’t be laying that trip on people who need help with mental and emotional health.

Whatever you are facing, remember that it is not wrong to struggle. It is a given that our spiritual warfare here on earth will involve struggle. Few of our conflicts will be won instantaneously. Some battles are lengthy. What is wrong is trying to fight them in our own strength or to quit running to the Lord for His help.

In summary: Do the practical things you can to alleviate whatever inner problem you struggle with, but know that it must always start and end with bringing it to the Lord. Stop trying to fix yourself, and depend on Him. He will show you the steps to your personal freedom. And don’t take on the judgment of others who think you ought to be able to fix yourself entirely through your own efforts.

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All-Surpassing Peace in a Shaking World

He Calls You Beloved

Moving on with God

It was a sad time in our lives, nearly twenty years ago. Our beloved church of nineteen years went through a horrendous upheaval, changing us all forever. We had experienced the deep, abiding presence of God (in every service!) during a mighty, sovereign move of God which lasted nearly nine years. I frequently said to the Lord in my heart, “I will never go back to anything less than this.”

Then, the unthinkable happened.  Our dear pastor fell apart emotionally and resigned. People were understandably wounded by the sudden loss and resulting change. Many blamed the pastor, each other, and even the revival we had experienced and loved for so long. The division between us was heartbreaking. God’s presence could no longer be felt in our services.

The day came when a new pastor was hired, and the reaction of some went beyond relief to an idea which shocked me. I heard several people gleefully saying, “Isn’t it great? Now we can go back to the days of ‘Pastor Jones'” (a previous pastor from before the time of the revival). And I thought, “They can go back if they want to, but I can never go back.”

Now, I had very much enjoyed the ministry of “Pastor Jones” myself, back in the day. He was a wonderful person and one of the most accurate Bible teachers I have ever heard speak. But God’s presence was not mightily, tangibly felt among us then, except on rare occasions when the Spirit moved. It was not what I had since tasted and was unwilling to ever step away from again. Our family moved on.

While I couldn’t agree with them, I did understand why people wanted to go back to what they had known a decade before. They wanted to forget the deep pain by reverting back to an era remembered for its stability and comfortableness. Our human nature loves those things. The unknown makes us nervous! 

The Israelites reacted the same way, once Moses led them out of Egypt. When they were challenged by their journey through the wilderness, even though God was taking care of them all along the way, they became uncomfortable, complained, and reminisced about how great it had been in Egypt — totally forgetting that they had been abominably oppressed in slavery there!

They were willing to live without the demonstration of God’s power, as long as they knew what was coming next.

While our natural tendency is to cling to the comfort of the familiar, God wants much more for us. He is always moving forward, and He loves to take His people on new adventures. However, we often prefer to camp in what appears to be a safe spot. We need to realize He is not a stay-in-your-comfort-zone kind of God. As C. S. Lewis put it in The Chronicles of Narnia series, Aslan (depicting Jesus) is not a tame lion, and neither is He safe.

You know, while God is not “safe,” He always keeps us safe when we move ahead into new territory with Him. (His “new” always stays within the boundaries of Scripture, so, as a caution, if we’re into something new which is not in keeping with His Word, it’s not really the Lord leading it.) But He does want to expose us to new things, planned in detail by Him.

It will often look scary in the moment. We might question Him, “Why is this happening?” “How are we going to get out of this place?” “Do You see what’s going on? And aren’t You going to do something about it???!!!”

He might explain things to us, or He might simply say, “I know what I’m doing. You’re just going to have to trust Me and know that I’ve got this.”

Every one of us, if we are going to experience all the Lord has for us, must make a conscious choice. We can be like the Israelites, who desired to go back to Egypt and the life they had known there, or we can swallow hard, take Jesus’ hand, and agree to let Him lead us into unfamiliar, seemingly unsafe territory, keeping in mind that we are always safe with Him.

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The Intercessor Manual

The Dream Book: A Practical Guide to Christian Dream Interpretation

Division and Clarity

Image by Leeds Museums and Galleries (LEEDM.E.1963.0109) via Flickr.com. Copyright 2010.
Licensed under CC BY-NC 2.0.

A little over a week ago, I experienced two significant visions which I’d like to share with you.

in the first one, I saw a giant meat cleaver thrust down into a chopping block. I then heard the words, “Choose you this day whom you will serve”  and, “the valley of decision” (Joshua 24:15 and Joel 3:14).

I understood that the meat cleaver represents a dividing work the Lord is about to do on a global scale. It will be a clear-cut division between truth and deception, day and night, light and darkness. He will make the difference clear to Christians and non-Christians alike, so that people will be required to decide which they side with. Those who cast their loyalties in with deception and darkness will do it because they consciously, rebelliously choose to do so.

I also heard, “How long will you halt between two opinions?” It comes from the story of Elijah and the contest on Mount Carmel (1 Kings 18:20-40). Elijah asked, “How long will you halt between two opinions? If the LORD is God, follow Him, but if Baal, then follow him.” The people did not answer, seemingly because they did not know what the correct answer was (v. 21).

Right now, many, even in the Church, are confused in who and what they side with. Deception has blinded their thinking to the point where they blithely stand with opinions and policies which are the opposite of the Lord’s viewpoint. That is about to change. Clarity is coming to those who are confused or deceived. If they continue in their deception, it will be because they want to.

When will this become obvious? I believe it is coming quickly, but how soon, I don’t know. It is time for those of us who claim to be Christians to start seeking the Lord’s direction. We can be assured that “The Spirit of truth … will guide [us] into all truth” (John 16:13) if we want Him to.

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In the second vision, I saw the Lord as a huge man, striding forcefully across the U. S. from the west to the east. He was bent forward in urgency and determination, violently overthrowing and overturning everything which stood in His way, tossing what looked like boulders to the left and the right. (I don’t know if the west to east direction was significant or just the way I saw it.)

With that, I had the thought of the Lord as a mighty man who roars. In looking up where that idea is in Scripture, I found it in Isaiah 42:13: “The LORD shall go forth as a mighty man. He shall stir up jealousy like a man of war. He shall cry, yes, roar; He shall prevail against His enemies.”  Isaiah 42:13-23 all follows that theme, if you are interested in looking into it further.

Have any of you heard similar things from the Lord? If so, please comment on what He has been speaking to you.

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The Dream Book: A Practical Guide to Christian Dream Interpretation,
by Lee Ann Rubsam

The Intercessor Manual,
by Lee Ann Rubsam

A Nail in a Sure Place

I love the names of God, especially because He is so intentional in revealing His nature to us through them. In His names, He invites us to know Him intimately — how He thinks, what He feels, how He acts.

One of my favorite names is “a nail in a sure place.” It is a hidden reference to Jesus, the coming Messiah, found in Isaiah 22:23.

The backstory starts in Isaiah 22:15, where God sends Isaiah to inform Shebna, the proud, self-serving treasurer under King Hezekiah, that he is about to be replaced by another man, Eliakim. God says,

And I will clothe him with your robe, and strengthen him with your sash [indicating official authority], and I will commit your government into his hand. And he shall be a father to the inhabitants of Jerusalem and to the house of Judah.

And the key of the house of David will I lay upon his shoulder: so he shall open, and no one shall shut; and he shall shut, and no one shall open.

And I will fasten him as a nail in a sure place, and he shall be for a glorious throne to his father’s house.

And they shall hang upon him all the glory of his father’s house….
— Isaiah 22:21-24

Eliakim appears as a foreshadowing of the coming Messiah, Jesus, Who is our “nail in a sure place.”

In earlier times, people didn’t have cupboards and closets. So they hung their clothing, pans, and other possessions on pegs or nails, which were firmly secured in the wall. Jesus is like such a nail. He is firmly, unshakably anchored, so that we can hang all our hope and trust on Him.

How do we know the nail in a sure place is talking about Jesus? Because in Revelation 3:7, Jesus specifically applies the previous verse in Isaiah 22 to Himself. He references verse 22 (“And the key of the house of David will I lay upon his shoulder: so he shall open, and no one shall shut; and he shall shut, and no one shall open.”) in telling the Philadelphia Church, “These things says He Who is holy, He Who is true, He Who has the key of David, He Who opens and no man shuts; and shuts, and no man opens.”

In these troubled times, we see institutions and ways of life we have always taken for granted becoming unsteady, crumbling, or even disappearing. Many of us may also be going through personal trials which threaten to shake us to the core. In the midst of it all, we can trust in Jesus, Who is that “nail in a sure place.” He will keep us steady.

He is also the One with supreme authority to open doors of His choosing before us and to close doors which would only mean harm to us. He opened the door of the ark to Noah’s family, but closed it to the wicked when the time of repentance had passed. He opened the Red Sea to the Israelites, but closed it upon the Egyptians.

So, when life is shaky, remember that Jesus is your “nail in a sure place.” He is available — and eager — to take care of you.

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The Names of God
An alphabetical list of over 650 names and titles of God in the Bible

He Calls You Beloved
An alphabetical list of the names God gives to us in the Bible

  

 

 

Pride, Submission, and the Local Church Group

During our life on earth, we never get past the place of needing to crucify and re-crucify our pride. Just about the time we think we’ve got that ugly thing licked, stomped down, and completely dead, it pops its disgusting head up and yells, “Hey! I’m still here! Remember me?” If we smugly start to believe we are immune to pride, well, that’s just another way it’s showing up again.

I think pride is the reason why Jesus said more than once, “Whoever would come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross [as in, it’s time to die], and follow Me” (Mark 8:34; Matthew 16:24; Luke 9:23). It’s also why we are told,“Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord” (James 4:10), and “Submit yourselves one to another in the fear of God” (Ephesians 5:21).

God gives us numerous opportunities to subdue our pride as we come together with the body of Christ — particularly in how we relate to our leaders. They might be pastors, Bible study or small group facilitators, discipleship mentors, or prayer group leaders. God has deliberately placed them in our lives for our good, and we should therefore defer to their leadership and show them honor. New Testament believers understood the need to entrust themselves into these God-ordained shepherds’ care. They submitted to the apostles’ instruction. The entire Church looked to the council of elders and apostles at Jerusalem to give the final word on serious questions or disputes.

Unfortunately, in our day the concept of submission is not popular. That is partly due to illegitimate, ungodly leaders who abuse their position with control tactics, manipulation, and intimidation (and this is all too prevalent in the Church). The Lord does not require His body to subject themselves to such people. However, where true shepherds are in place — men and women who are doing their best to lead like Jesus would — it’s tragic that we still have many unruly Christians who refuse to accept their leadership. Unruliness is a symptom of that pride we should be dying to.

In our local churches, home fellowships, prayer groups, or whatever manifestations of church life we may be part of, we should not get huffy if the leader doesn’t do things the way we would prefer. It works to “have it your way” at Burger King, but not with the King of Kings. In His household, we are to defer to the leaders He has put in place. Their vision for the group may not fit all our ideals of what should be happening down to the last iota. But we still need to trust God to speak to them and use them to lead. They won’t do it perfectly, but they will  do it to the best of their ability and current maturity. When they fall short, we can give them grace and leave any improvements they need in the Lord’s hands.

My husband and I have a specific vision for the prayer gathering and home fellowship we lead. This overall vision has remained the same since the beginning, although some of the details of how we carry it out have changed through the years. We feel confident that the plan we follow is from the Lord, and we try to help the people within our groups understand what it is and why we do things the way we do. Paul and I also attend other prayer groups, where we are not the leaders. The vision in these groups is different from ours — but we respect their leadership, see the value in what is being done there, and enjoy being a part of them. We appreciate knowing what their purpose is, so we can move joyfully with it. God allows for widely different visions between churches and church groups — yet they can all come from the Lord and be pleasing to Him.

Whatever church fellowship or para-church group you participate in, I encourage you to be supportive of its leaders, respect them, and graciously defer to the way they do things. Commit yourself to unity with their vision. Having a humble, cooperative attitude will help that group be productive for Jesus, and it will enable you to keep the pride monster at bay, too.

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The Intercessor Manual,
by Lee Ann Rubsam

Your Intercession Questions Answered,
by Lee Ann Rubsam

What Is the Gospel of the Kingdom? (Part 4)

I love the watchcry of the sentries in David and Karen Mains’ allegorical trilogy, Tales of the Kingdom (Amazon affiliate link):

“How goes the world?”
“The world goes not well, but the Kingdom comes!”

We are members of a very real kingdom which is now, but not yet. In Romans 16:20, Paul says, “And the God of peace shall bruise Satan under your feet shortly” — not yet, but soon.

Hebrews 2:7-9, quoting Psalm 8, says of mankind, “You made him a little lower than the angels. You crowned him with glory and honor, and set him over the works of Your hands. You have put all things in subjection under his feet.” But it then comments, “For in putting all in subjection under him, He left nothing that is not put under him. But now we do not yet see all things put under him. But we see Jesus, Who was made a little lower than the angels for the suffering of death, crowned with glory and honor….” Jesus is crowned with glory and honor, but we have not yet come into that glory.

In the meantime, we are to do the works of Jesus. I truly believe we will see the Church moving in great supernatural power in the near future. We look for a worldwide great awakening, with multitudes of people coming into God’s family. As glorious as all that will be, it should not be our end-all focus. It is merely preparation for what comes next.

The Rapture (meaning the catching away) is yet ahead of us. 2 Thessalonians 2:1 calls it “our gathering together unto Him.”  We will be caught up in the air to meet Jesus, and we are promised that “so shall we ever be with the Lord.” This will be resurrection time for those who have died trusting in Christ, and it will also be the time when believers who are still living will be “changed, in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye.” We will all receive our glorified bodies together.

In our day, many who profess to be Christians openly scoff at the literal catching away of the Church. They spiritualize it away, and ridicule those of us who still believe in it, calling us ignorant or even heretics. It is time to reread 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18 and 1 Corinthians 15:49-54, and to again take these passages at face value for what they say.

Also coming is the marriage supper of the Lamb. Again, this is not some mystical experience to be minimized or explained away. It is a real, tangible event yet to come. If the ending chapters of Revelation are in chronological order (I believe they are), this marriage event takes place in heaven before Jesus returns to physically rule on earth (Revelation 19:7-21). The apostles believed in a literal marriage supper of the Lamb, Jesus taught about it in the gospels, and we should believe in it, too.

Revelation 20 tells us that Jesus will physically reign on earth for one thousand years. The Old Testament prophets speak at length on what this time of “the restoration of all things” (Acts 3:21) will look like. We will be with Jesus then, for He has promised that we will always be wherever He is (1 Thessalonians 4:17; John 14:3).

Finally, after Satan’s last rebellion, we will see a new heaven and earth, with the new Jerusalem coming down out of heaven. We are given glimpses of this era of the kingdom in Revelation 21 and 22, but we really cannot fully comprehend what it will be like. John put the end-time events this way: “Beloved, now we are the sons of God, and it does not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when He shall appear, we shall be like Him; for we shall see Him as He is” (1 John 3:2). God has wonderful surprises awaiting us.

No matter how much we study the Bible on the end times, no one has the complete picture of how it will all play out. I lean toward a pre-Tribulation catching away of the Church. Others feel it will happen mid-Tribulation, post-Tribulation, or somewhere in between. We shouldn’t get into unkind arguments about the details. When everything is complete, we will all see some elements of our theology which we didn’t get quite right, but it will all make sense in the end, down to the last detail.

The important thing is to look for King Jesus and for His glorious Kingdom to come — His way. He will be “the desire of all nations” (Haggai 2:7) in that day. We live in expectation of a perfect future together, where “the Lamb is the light” (Revelation 21:23). It will be far more wonderful than we can imagine, for “eye has not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man the things which God has prepared for those who love Him” (1 Corinthians 2:9). 

May His kingdom come and His will be done. “Even so, come Lord Jesus.”

Part 1

Part 2

Part 3

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Before Whom We Stand: The Everyman’s Guide to the Nature of God,
by Lee Ann Rubsam

River Life: Entering into the Character of Jesus,
by Lee Ann Rubsam