DREAM- 18TH NOVE: 'TO THE CHURCH IN LAODICEA WRITE...'

I posted something on the Church on facebook earlier today, and then went for an afternoon nap. I dreamt that someone had responded to my post saying that not all Churches were like what I had described. I responded by saying that I was talking about a specific Church, and half jokingly but half seriously said that I should've probably started off sharing by addressing the post: 'To the Church of Laodicea.' Then the dream ended.

In the first post I put on Facebook, I described the kind of Church today that is becoming filled with those things that are more akin to being at a theme park and a party, than a place of worship. This makes for false and frivolous worship, and this is the kind of Church that is spoken about in the book Revelation- the Laodicean Church. In Revelation Chapter 3v17 it says of this Church that, 'You say, 'I am rich; I have acquired wealth and do not need a thing. But y

ou do not realise that you are wretched, pitiful, poor, blind and naked.' While the Church of today is buying much that it believes is making it rich, Jesus continues to call out for it to buy what He treasures: v18: I counsel you to buy from me gold refined in the fire, so you can become rich; and white clothes to wear, so you can cover your shameful nakedness; and salve to put on your eyes, so you can see.

The wretchedness that the passage talks about is threefold. Firstly, it speaks of the Church placing its value in riches that aren't true riches. Secondly, it speaks of not being either 'hot or cold' spiritually, thirdly, it speaks of walking in and after sin. The Lord is saying that the type of Church that is largely characterised by placing an inordinate affection on material things and riches is largely characterised by the three things just stated. The Lord is characterising this kind of Church as the modern day Laodicean Church, and it's people need to repent, and to buy from Jesus those things that really matter and to walk fully in His ways. When the passage in Revelation ends, it ends with the Lord saying, v19: Those whom I love I rebuke and discipline. So be earnest, and repent.' He is standing outside the door of this modern day Church and because He loves them so much, He is wanting to fellowship with them in His way if they will let Him by obeying Him in this.

Many have all kinds of opinions about this modern day Church, but only one opinion matters, because Jesus is the only faithful and true witness: v14 ...'These are the words of the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the ruler of God's creation.' Men are not rulers of God's Church, Jesus is the only ruler there is, and He wants what is best for His people, so we must lay aside our opinions and obey Him.

God bless

JESUS, PLUS OR MINUS A FEW THINGS

Churches used to be where men wanted to focus on and love Jesus. Now they're places where men want to focus on and love Jesus PLUS lights, Jesus PLUS music, Jesus PLUS self, Jesus PLUS deceit, Jesus PLUS show, Jesus PLUS thrills, Jesus PLUS shallowness, Jesus PLUS business, Jesus PLUS dollars, Jesus PLUS unwholesome doctrinal mixture, Jesus PLUS idols, Jesus PLUS the market place, Jesus PLUS buying and selling, Jesus PLUS false gifts, Jesus MINUS whole counsel, Jesus MINUS reverence, Jesus MINUS whole hearted focus, Jesus MINUS discernment, Jesus MINUS meaningful fellowship, Jesus MINUS seriousness, Jesus MINUS power, Jesus MINUS His presence, Jesus MINUS prophecy, Jesus MINUS the true gifts of the Spirit. 

This is grievous beyond words. The true Bride of Christ is so precious that Jesus does not want His people conforming to this world, and He will strive with His people until they see and understand that He will not allow this to happen. In adding much that is unlike Christ, we have taken away so much that is. We have sold much of His Holy things for vain things, and so our religion is becoming much like what the world believes. How long will the Lord have to call out to His people for their hearts to be swayed?

DREAM: WORSHIP THAT KNOCKS YOU OFF YOUR FEET

A couple of months ago I dreamt I was in a Church. I was with another couple of people, and there were some youth sitting off to my side. The worship had begun and I started to really focus and go to that secret place in worship that His people go to when they're so intent on worshipping Jesus. The worship music was accommodating to that kind of worship too, until the style of worship changed. Instead of music that was beneficial to that kind of heart to heart worship, loud and boisterous music started playing. It was quite overwhelming, and it straight away knocked me out of the focused worship I'd been in previously. I tried to go along with it, and attempted to worship with music that was now more like heavy rock. Along with the music was intense bright lighting, and although I tried, I could not concentrate like before. It went beyond that however. Along with the all-consuming sound of the rock-like worship music, the very ground started to move and sway from side to side! The music and the base seemed to rock the very ground, so much so, that the two people beside me started to lose their footing, and eventually fell over. Although I was able to stand for a longer period of time, eventually, because the ground was swaying quite violently from one side to the other, I too fell. I laughed it off, but myself and the others all still fell. While all this had been going on, the young people to my right had sat the entire time, and not entered worship at all. At the start I had thought that this was really strange. 

When I woke, I knew what the Lord was saying. Church worship and the worship of His people is so precious to Him, but a few things are going on at the moment which are disturbing, non-beneficial and quite harmful to His peoples' spiritual lives. Firstly, many young people are starting to disengage and sit back when it comes to Church worship, no matter what worship is going on (no matter what music). Young people everywhere need to stand up in this regard, and enter into worship, as it is so precious and important to the Lord, and it is a time where we fully commune with Him and especially set our hearts and minds to worship Him. 

Secondly, the loud, boisterous and rock-like worship music that is going on, is not only distracting people from REALLY and intimately worshipping Jesus, it is also knocking them off their spiritual feet (Eph 6:13). Although His people sincerely are trying to focus on Jesus and worship Him passionately and wholeheartedly, no matter how hard they try, such music is knocking them out of such a focus of Him. The sound of the music and the lighting is demanding full attention. Furthermore, and most disturbingly, the disruption to the inward focus of worship in His peoples' hearts is causing them to fall spiritually. Ephesians 6v13 depicts standing up as standing upright spiritually. To fall over, therefore, depicts falling over in His peoples' spiritual lives. How and why this is taking place, the dream does not reveal, but suffice to say that it is, because it is causing His people to be distracted from Him.

Issues of focus and distraction are very dear to the Lord's heart, as such things are pivotal in His peoples' lives, because they are the very thing that either make a way for us, or block us from spending time in the secret place with Jesus. These things should also, therefore, be very dear to our heart, and we should leave our beliefs and understandings about these kind of things at the door. 

God bless

HARD OF HEARING

Mark 8v34-38: 

Then he called the crowd to him along with his disciples and said: "If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me and for the gospel will save it. What good is it for a man to gain the whole world, yet forfeit his soul? Or what can a man give in exchange for his soul? If anyone is ashamed of me and my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, the Son of Man will be ashamed of him when he comes in his Father's glory with the holy angels.

Wow. Jesus just said if you don't lose your life for His sake, you'll lose your soul.

He just called his generation 'adulterous' and 'sinful'

He just said that the Son of Man would be ashamed of the one who is ashamed of Him and His words, salvation or no salvation.

He just said it, not only to His disciples who He knew, but also to the crowd of unbelievers; those He didn't even have a relationship with.

I wonder how many today would've called Him 'unloving' and just plain 'wrong.' It seems as though today, if we don't say something that considers someone's feelings, it's unloving. Sorry folks, Jesus cared for feelings more than any Christian does, and there were times when He just put it out there PLAIN, SIMPLE & DIRECT. He didn't qualify it, He didn't say, 'now I know there are those out there that believe this, and believe that, but....' He didn't say, 'now I know this is hard to hear, so bear with me...' He didn't say, 'let me give you the whole background and reason why I'm doing this...' He didn't say, 'I know this is debatable, but...' He didn't say, 'Now, the reason I'm saying this is because I love and care for you and want the best for you...' (although He obviously does!). He didn't say, 'this generation has some good qualities about it, but...' He didn't say, 'If you're ashamed of me and my Words, it'll be ok, because you'll be forgiven...' 

Do we love the same Jesus that, not only died and was raised for us, but also who said the hardest truths for us to fathom? Jesus knew, that there will be times in our lives when the 'Word' for us at that moment, must and will be hard to hear. It must be that way because some of the greatest Words ever given were hard to hear and hard to bear, but brought the greatest fruit and the greatest triumph of grace and goodness to those that rightly heard them. 

Many today amass a cult following because they simply say things people want to hear. They appeal to their sense of love and their sense of truth, which sounds great but is nothing but candy cane Christianity, and a humanistic love that is, at its core, only selfish and self-serving. The hard word is meant to heal, it is meant to bring a channel for life and love, but before it can bring those things, it is still a HARD WORD to hear. Let hard words be hard for your feelings and your flesh to accept, because then you know that they really are words of love, truth and life. After all, if we cannot hear hard and direct words, we might as well just close up the Word right now and never read it again, because, if we are rightly reading it as we should, nearly ever Word will be hard to hear, because we will all battle with our flesh till the day we die. 

John 6- 
60 On hearing it, many of his disciples said, “This is a hard teaching. Who can accept it?”

61 Aware that his disciples were grumbling about this, Jesus said to them, “Does this offend you? 62 Then what if you see the Son of Man ascend to where he was before! 63 The Spirit gives life; the flesh counts for nothing. The words I have spoken to you—they are full of the Spirit[e] and life. 64 Yet there are some of you who do not believe.” For Jesus had known from the beginning which of them did not believe and who would betray him. 65 He went on to say, “This is why I told you that no one can come to me unless the Father has enabled them.”

66 From this time many of his disciples turned back and no longer followed him.

67 “You do not want to leave too, do you?” Jesus asked the Twelve.

68 Simon Peter answered him, “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life. 69 We have come to believe and to know that you are the Holy One of God.”

DREAM: DISTRACTION & SNAKES

DREAM: DISTRACTION AND SNAKES 

A few weeks ago I dreamt that I was in a Church. The Church was taking communion, and yet, amazingly and quite disturbingly, much of the congregation were talking and joking and seemed to be focused on anything accept for the communion. I was quite simply horrified at this. I tried to take the communion fairly quickly so that I wouldn't be distracted by anyone next to me, and yet still someone next to me made a joke and pushed me at the same time. 

After this I tried moving to the front of the Church with a friend, however, I didn't feel comfortable up the front, as I thought to myself that I didn't want people focusing on me instead of Jesus, and it just felt uncomfortable seeing as the worship band was right in front of us, and it was hard to focus on the Lord when they were right there. Instead, I went right to the back of the Church with my friend. I remember thinking to myself that we didn't need to go right to the back, but there we were anyway. It was then that the snakes started to appear from what seemed to be nowhere. Under my feet, and under the feet of the person in front of me that just kept coming, no matter how many times they were thrown away. Then the dream ended.

The Lord is saying a couple of things through this dream. Firstly, He is saying that some in the Church are becoming distracted from focusing on Him and on worshipping Him in Church services. Not only were people talking in the dream, and at the most inappropriate times (during communion), but also JOKING during communion- a time that is obviously a really serious time and a time that needs to be solely focused on remembering, honouring and thanking the Lord. This is not just a serious matter, but it's idolatry. The idolatry is represented by the snakes. These things are popping up in places of worship now, and they are distracting those that are truly wanting to worship and focus on the Lord. Whether they go to the front of the Church or the back, they are not finding that they can escape this distraction and this idolatry that some of His people are allowing in their hearts. The place of worship in the Church is such a sacred time to the Lord, and the Lord is jealous for the hearts, minds and focus of His people. To become distracted from that by focusing on ourselves and joking during such important times shows incredible disrespect to the Lord and to what He's done for us on the cross. Church services are also not times that the worship band should be the focal point of the attention, nor those that are up the front, but it should be a time to focus on the Lord alone. The Lord is calling for His people to be obedient to Him in this, and to stop the distractions and thus the idolatry that is going on. 

Job 33v14-18:
14 For God does speak—now one way, now another—
though no one perceives it.
15 In a dream, in a vision of the night,
when deep sleep falls on people
as they slumber in their beds,
16 he may speak in their ears
and terrify them with warnings,
17 to turn them from wrongdoing
and keep them from pride,
18 to preserve them from the pit,
their lives from perishing by the sword.[b]

Acts 2
17 “‘In the last days, God says,
I will pour out my Spirit on all people.
Your sons and daughters will prophesy,
your young men will see visions,
your old men will dream dreams.