The Passing of My Brother

Thy Word, O God, is a swift sword

You shall fight against your enemies

with the double edged sword proceeding from your mouth

Your Name, O God, is exalted above all

You are Redeemer, Creator, Lord of all

To thee shall I go in time of need

Thee only shall I seek in distress

Thou hidest my soul in the cleft of the Rock

Thou dost cover me in the shelter of thy wings

You, O God, shall I worship

Your name, O God, do I praise

I received the news yesterday of my brother's passing. I stood stunned. I thought, "To whom shall I go? Who will care?"

I have tried to tell him the Gospel, though he did not seem to receive it. I certainly prayed for him, nearly 32 years. But there is that great, precious promise, "Whatsoever ye shall ask, in my name, that will I do for you, that the Father may be glorified in the Son."

I've asked for his salvation. You gave the promise. It is your will that all men come to repentance and be saved. I lift mine eyes unto Thee, O God.

Before sleep sank me into unconsciousness, I was praying for those ministries and saints who benefit from this post. I had previously been meditating on Moses' ministry. English scholars would have referred to him as a Christ type because he was as God to the people.

We consider Moses to be a super prophet. The fact is, we are to be as Moses to the people we know. We are called to draw nigh unto God into the thick darkness where God is. We are called to bring the Word of God to the people we have about us. We are called to be as Moses unto the God of Heaven and He will be God unto us.

He has called us out of darkness into His glorious light. He has called us out from among defiling spirits; out of religion; out from the world.

Ask Much

Thou, O Lord, our dwelling place

We, in prayer, do seek thy face

unworthy servants we humbly be

Yet with thy blood thou has redeemed

Laws demands we could not meet

But Jesus' blood thou didst esteem

Into the holiest thou dost invite

Sinless we thou dost now deem.

You have promised, O Lord, you will do for us whatever we ask, in thy name,

that you may bring glory to the Father.

Amazing! You bring glory to the Father when you do whatever we ask (Jn. 14.13). We ask in your name, according to your will so your kingdom will come because we have your mind (1 Co. 2.16).

Your Holy Spirit guides us into all truth, causing us to have the mind of Christ (Jn. 16.13).

May we ask much, in prayer, for you, Jesus, to bring much glory to the Father.

God is Infinitely Forgiving

But the LORD is in his holy temple: let all the earth keep silence before him (Ha. 2.20).

We shall never take lightly the presence of the Lord. The building we designate as His house should never be considered something as common. Neither should the true temple of the Lord be lightly considered. God's name represents who He is. His name represents His presence.

"Thou shalt not take the name of the LORD thy God in vain; for the LORD will not hold him guiltless that taketh his name in vain (Ex. 20.7)."

I must ask myself, "Do I have respect for the temple of the Living God? Do I recognize the full power of God rests within? Do I despise the work of God if the appearance of His temple does not meet my specifications?"

Beloved, I find myself not only halting to consider the blood of Jesus and His work at Calvary and myself as one "scarcely saved (1 Pe. 4.18)," I also agree with His Spirit I must repent for considering less of His presence that I ought.

His presence is found within every believer. Almighty God has made His dwelling within men. Should we not afford Him the respect of His ark, temple, dwelling place He deserves. Do the heathen have greater respect for the shrines of their idols?

What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own (1 Co. 6.19)?

Folks, the Bible insists the full power of God is in His inheritance, the saints.

The eyes of your understanding being enlightened; that ye may know what is the hope of his calling, and what the riches of the glory of his inheritance in the saints, And what is the exceeding greatness of his power to us-ward who believe, according to the working of his mighty power, Which he wrought in Christ, when he raised him from the dead, and set him at his own right hand in the heavenly places (Ep. 1.18-20).

Please read the passage carefully. Compare with other versions. The importance here is astounding. I took this to prayer. Now I must say to you, "Consider the greatness of His power in you, that power which was wrought in Christ when He raised Him from the dead."

There is no greater power than that which lies within you and within other believers. The tragic thing is, we are either ignorant of that, being taught by those who don't believe or we simply trust more in academic bile of the last century. Even the seminaries have fallen prey to the same anti Christ spirit.

The fact is, I need to repent for I have considered His great power in the saints as something to be scoffed. Does the whole Church need to repent or am I the only one to whom this revelation is given. Is it something only I have overlooked? I know the mocking I have received of many churches in this area. I am aware of the scoffing of others. I come before our Holy God and ask, "Is what I have sensed an area I need to repent of and is my sensitivity in this simply a thorn to cause me not to be exalted but to draw nigh unto thee? Thy grace shall be sufficient in my weakness."

The Altar of Prayer

And another angel came and stood at the altar, having a golden censer; and there was given unto him much incense, that he should offer it with the prayers of all saints upon the golden altar which was before the throne.

And the smoke of the incense, which came with the prayers of the saints, ascended up before God out of the angel's hand (Re. 8.3-4).

On the Day of Atonement the Golden Altar of Incense was moved from the Holy Place to the Holy of Holies. This signifies the transition from our having to worship afar off to the veil being rent and our freedom to boldly approach the Throne of Grace.

The shedding of blood was a necessity for us to be redeemed and become able to enter the Holy of Holies. Our response is to come before Him with fear and trembling (cf.: Ph. 2.5-13). As I've written before, if we fear God, we will not fear man. I halt here, for the blood of Jesus has paid our price. Thank Yeshua and praise Him forever.

The time is perilous. Notice current events. The world is forever changed and increasingly dangerous. Don't think for a moment the efforts of unredeemed man exist for your good. The Bible declares, "But evil men and seducers shall wax worse and worse, deceiving, and being deceived (2. Ti. 3.13)." The remaining things for us is to be used of God for men's salvation. That is why Jesus told us to pray, "Thy Kingdom come, thy will be done."

There is some talk about transitioning to the next dimension in God in order to impact the earth. I know what you're thinking. "MY church don't never say nuthin' about impacting no earth." Okay, Connecticut is the uttermost end of the earth and hasn't learned about the will of Christ (which is why we must be about the Father's work of putting burning prayer upon the altar). Other parts of the Church are asking the question of transition to the next dimension that His Kingdom come.

The incense is offered with our prayers which ascend as a sweet smelling savor before God. Any work to be done in the name of Christ without that burning prayer as the foundation will be work of the flesh and a stench before Almighty God. I minister to senior citizens who either can't get out at all or, if they can, have little physical impact in society. The thing they can do is pray. That is much more effective than the work of skilled architects, builders, machine operators or the strongest laborers. We too, must take the position as those confined to a chamber before the Lord of lords to just be with Him.

The Golden Altar of Incense has transitioned to the place before the Throne of the Almighty. Our part in this next dimension in God is first, to offer much prayer, which burns in the Father's heart, upon the Golden Altar, the Altar of Prayer.

The Lord's Promise to Answer Prayer

In seeking the face of Almighty God in prayer, I find myself interceding for a group of neighbors I meet with monthly. Some in this group believe in New Age spirituality, some are Catholic, some agnostic and others atheistic.

I believe those people are my neighbors in order to have their names written in Heaven. Two people, speaking for this group, insist I speak no longer in the name of Jesus. I must be tolerant of other religions (though that doesn't stop the most foul talk from proceeding out of the mouths of those seated near me). In short, Jesus is not allowed.

When asked to give the invocation, I imagine many think I'm indicating they are going to hell.

If I were to insist they are going to hell, I'd not be believing in my intercession and the Lord's promise to answer my prayer. I have asked the Father to cause each person to draw near to Jesus and be saved safe within Him. I've asked the Father to ensure their names are written in the Lamb's Book of Life. I've stood before the Father and stand now with chutzpah, brazenly stating Jesus' promise, "Verily, verily, I say unto you, Whatsoever ye shall ask the Father in my name, he will give it you (Jn. 16.23).

"Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you: For every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened (Mt. 7.7,8).

"Again I say to you, that if two of you agree on earth about anything that they may ask, it shall be done for them by My Father who is in heaven (Mt. 18.19).

"And all things you ask in prayer, believing, you will receive (Mt. 21.22).

"Therefore I say to you, all things for which you pray and ask, believe that you have received them, and they will be granted you (Mk. 11.24).

"So I say to you, ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you (Lk. 11.9).

"Whatever you ask in My name, that will I do, so that the Father may be glorified in the Son (Jn. 14.13).

"If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you.

"You did not choose Me but I chose you, and appointed you that you would go and bear fruit, and that your fruit would remain, so that whatever you ask of the Father in My name He may give to you (Jn. 15.7,16).

"In that day you will not question Me about anything. Truly, truly, I say to you, if you ask the Father for anything in My name, He will give it to you (Jn. 16.23).

"And this is the confidence that we have in him, that, if we ask any thing according to his will, he heareth us: And if we know that he hear us, whatsoever we ask, we know that we have the petitions that we desired of him (1 Jn. 5.14,15)."

My case has been made, O Lord. Your promises are cast in the framework of eternity. Yeshua came to seek and to save that which was lost (LK. 19.10). I'm asking you now, O Father, to save those people for whom I have been interceding. You have stated, it is not your will any should perish but all come to repentance (2 Pe. 3.9).

I stand before you, Father, washed in the blood of Jesus with Jesus as my advocate (1 Jn. 2.1) who is seated at thy right hand ever living to make intercession for me and is completely able to save to the uttermost those who come to God through Him (He. 7.25). He is at your right hand, O God, interceding for me (Ro. 8.34). What is more, the Holy Ghost maketh intercession for me in groanings that cannot be uttered (Ro. 8.26).

I have the perfect case for the fact the names of those for whom I intercede must be in Heaven: Your Word and Your Promises, O God.

No one comes to the You but by Jesus (J. 14.6) and no one can come to Jesus except You draw him (Jn. 6.44). You will draw those for whom I have interceded and you must draw them for you will never go against your Word.

Now unto Him who liveth forever and ever with no beginning of days nor end of years,

The Alpha and Omega, the Beginning and End

In whom time is but a drop in the ocean of eternity

and eternity is but a wisp of vapor within God's permission,

Be all praise and worship. Amen.

Immortal, invisible, God only wise,
In light inaccessible hid from our eyes,
Most blessèd, most glorious, the Ancient of Days,
Almighty, victorious, Thy great Name we praise.

- Walter C. Smith (1867)

Today's Burden

Does anyone, in today's church, talk about the wonders of our Lord or do we say, "Hush! We must not

make mention of name of the LORD (Am. 6.10)."

O, Living God, help me to fear thee. Help me to know thy fear. I will fear no other.

Sanctify the LORD of hosts himself; and let him be your fear, and let him be your dread

(Is. 8.13).

In these perilous times, I find myself drawing ever so much nearer our LORD. Indeed, I should tremble, as I see so many simply getting used to the noose the Prince of the Air draws about our necks (that metaphor comes from a fellow truck driver who knows not the LORD). There are so man Christians and non Christians alike, who are engrossed in the world, are getting used to the loss of freedoms and the trampling of the Constitution.

Our Constitution, nation and freedom therein is from God and for the proclamation of the Gospel. Check the quotes of the founding fathers. That is what the United States became a nation for. The enemy took liberty to slip in with his chief spirit, Greed and cause all manner of perversion (that's just a side note).

Let me ask, are you aware of the perilousness of the times? Do you realize we have an enemy or are you just waiting for the rapture and trust God will keep you?

What about that truck driver and others like him? I will witness to him and spend significant time in intercession for him.

Surely, there are people in your sphere of influence I trust you are interceding for and when they least suspect it, you will give them a word which will burn in their hearts leading them to repentance and belief in the Gospel.

O saint reading this post, the last statement refers to you who know and are aware of the time. I'm, in effect, preaching to the choir. Maybe more correctly, I'm one of the congregation preaching to the preacher.

I just started writing a word to encourage those who are lukewarm, yet I know such a word goes unheeded, at least in Connecticut.

So I encourage you, beloved, keep seeking God, let Him be your fear, let Him be your dread. As such, you will have no fear of man nor the perilousness of the times. Pray for me to be instant, in season, out of season when those unsaved men complain about the noose tightening. Then I can be there with a word from heaven, when they least suspect. Faith will come by hearing and hearing by the Word of God. They simply need Almighty God.

Here's a quote I find appropriate to today's burden:

The believing fear of God preserves against the disquieting fear of man. If we thought rightly of the greatness and glory of God, we should see all the power of our enemies restrained. The Lord, who will be a Sanctuary to those who trust in him, will be a Stone of stumbling, and a Rock of offence, to those who make the creature their fear and their hope. If the things of God be an offence to us, they will undo us.

- Matthew Henry