Five-Fold Today - The Absolute Lordship of Christ - Kingdom Order - The Rose of Sharon - I Will Not Quit - The Sound of a Drum

July 7, 2000

THE ABSOLUTE LORDSHIP OF CHRIST,
Frank Viola

And He is before ALL THINGS, and by Him ALL THINGS consist. And he is the Head of the Body, the Church: who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead; that in ALL THINGS He might have the preeminence (Col. 1:17,18).

...According to His good pleasure which He hath PURPOSED in Himself: that in the dispensation of the fulness of times He might gather together in one [sum up] ALL THINGS in Christ, both which are in heaven, and which are on earth; even in Him (Eph. 1:9,10).

And [God] hath put ALL THINGS under His [Christ's] feet, and gave Him to be the Head over ALL THINGS to the Church (Eph. 1:22).

The eternal purpose of God is centered upon the absolute Lordship of Jesus Christ. The Divine focal point is the establishment of the complete sovereignty and supremacy of God's Son whereby He is given the preeminence over all things. All of God's activities and movings are toward this end. Hence, the chief work of the Holy Spirit in this dispensation is to establish the absolute Lordship of Christ in the universe.

Accordingly, the Holy Spirit will break down and devastate everything that opposes, obstructs, and hinders the Lord's sovereign rule in the hearts of His people. In a word, God's ultimate intention is to establish the centrality and supremacy of His Son over all things, nothing excluded. However, before Christ can be made preeminent over all things, He must first have the preeminence among His own people--the Church. Colossians 1:18 puts it this way,

And He is the Head of the Body, the Church...THAT in all things he might have the preeminence.

This finds many of us out, does it not? The great need today among the Lord's people, then, is for them to recover the place of the absolute Lordship of Christ; it is to reinstate the Headship of Christ in His Church. Tragically, however, all sorts of things have replaced Christ's Headship. Our boards, committee meetings, councils, and ecclesiastical systems--our books, seminars, and conventions--our clever ideas, schemes, building projects, and enterprises--have all too often substituted the Headship of Christ.

Whenever there is a decision before us regarding the Lord's work or the Lord's people, the salient question should not be, "what do we think should be done," or "what can we agree upon as spiritual leaders," but rather "what does the Lord want in this situation?" In effect, for two people to make a decision independent of the Head constitutes spiritual conspiracy!

Christ alone has the right to rule His Church--not us. It is His Body, not ours. We all belong to Him; He has purchased us with a costly price, and hence, He alone possesses full rights over us. Let us, then, submit to His Headship in a practical way.

Although the question of Christ's Headship is a weighty one, few of us realize that therein lies the answer to all of our spiritual problems. When Christ has His full and rightful place as Head and absolute Lord over His people, then all of our problems are resolved.

Consider the multifaceted problems that the Church in Corinth faced--carnality, division, envy, spiritual stagnation, self-absorption, blasphemy, pride, immorality, civil discord and rivalry, etc. Chapters 1-11 paint a pitiful picture of the corruption in that assembly. What a tremendous burden to carry for the apostle Paul. But what was his answer to it all? What was the all-inclusive solution that he shared with them in his epistle? It was simply this,

For I determined not to know any thing among you, except JESUS CHRIST, and him crucified...For other foundation can no man lay than that is laid, which is JESUS CHRIST (1 Cor. 2:2, 3:11).

The answer was quite plain and simple: that Jesus Christ be given His rightful place in the assembly! Can you see the force of that? Dear brethren, when we truly apprehend the greatness of our Lord and put Him in His rightful position of absolute centrality and supremacy, all of our troubles are dealt with. Oh, what a simple, yet profound answer.

God's aim in this hour, then, is for us to make Christ's Headship a practical reality in our assemblies as well as in our personal lives. Such a way, however, is truly costly. It is a hard thing to yield our rights over to the Lord, to wait on the Lord, and to put the absolute rulership, authority, and decision-making rights into the hands of the Holy Spirit. It tests whether or not we are going to put our hands on things or whether we are going to yield all rights to Christ. We must understand, however, that if Christ will return to reign on this earth, we must first give Him that place in our own hearts.

In God's economy, all things begin with the Church; James tells us that we are the firstfruits of His creation. It is hypocritical to pray "thy kingdom come" if we ourselves haven't made Christ the absolute King over our own lives. Therefore, may we all give Christ the centrality and the supremacy in our hearts, corporately as well as individually, so that He might have the preeminence over all things.

Make no mistake about it, holding fast to the Headship of Christ is not something that we are to practice as a last resort. Too often the mentality among Christians is this: "I will do whatever I can using my own cleverness, gifts, and abilities, and only rely upon the Lord when I cannot do anymore." Brethren, do you see the folly in such thinking? Oh, how we need to see that we in our own strength cannot fulfill one fragment of God's work!

Our clever ideas, natural gifting, and self-motivation are all but wood, hay, and stubble; hence, they will never realize the purpose of God. How we need to see that the Church is a spiritual organism, and that only that which comes out of God's indwelling life can accomplish His purpose. Under the Old Covenant, Moses commanded that no oil be poured upon flesh. So too, the Spirit cannot anoint what comes out of self and not from Christ. How we need to come to grips with the words of the Lord Jesus, "Without me, you can do nothing."

In conclusion, God desires to sum up all things in His Son. All that originates out of ourselves will not last; only that which comes out of Christ can find God's highest blessing. Even now, the Lord is awaiting His people to give Him that place of preeminence among themselves. Let us, then, in reality, make Christ "the Head over all things to the Church," nothing excluded. May God be merciful to us.

Submitted by the Diggers

KINGDOM ORDER

Shelly Mathis

I am the Alpha and Omega, the Beginning and the End. Before Me, the Kingdom lies in chaos, division and rebellion. I am in your midst to bring Kingdom rule and Divine order to My church. I will re-establish the foundations that have become waste places and purify the offices that are set to equip and edify My Body, even as they were of old. What is Kingdom rule, you ask? It is when My Body is united in one spirit, one mind, one purpose, and one doctrine and submits to the Head's authority. The individual members do not serve themselves by seeking recognition, fortune, or personal "kingdoms". The members function in their proper place by being about the Father's business and doing what they see Him doing. I set the example for you while here on the earth. I did nothing apart from My Father. I was not about My own agenda or doctrine, but about His. I demonstrated the proper function of every office, gifting and calling while ministering here on the earth. Satan has crept in unawares and perverted these positions. Man's flesh has crept in and twisted them to their own glory. I am the Head and I will bring proper order. I am purging My House of all chaos, division and rebellion. You ask, what hinders us from submitting to Your Kingdom rule? I say, it is pride. My people are guilty of obtaining their belief system from man's traditions, creative imaginations, and doctrines of demons. Pride and fear hinder you from abandoning all and seeking My face for My pure doctrine. So, I say to those who will not release their pride and submit to My authority - you will continue on in your heresy and will fight against My glory as it manifests in the True Church; you will find yourself on the outside looking in. To those who will abandon all and submit to My authority, I say that you will be purified and edified by My Spirit as I cleanse your hearts, purify your doctrine, and set you in proper position for the greatest effectiveness in My Kingdom. I will shake out and expose the false doctrines and false concepts attached to the offices; then, I will teach you what is true, proper and holy. My Bride will be blameless and spotless in these last days to magnify and glorify the Great I Am before all the world... that those destined for discipleship might enter in and be saved from the coming wrath of the Almighty God. My Church, My Bride... yield to My shaking.

SHELLY MATHIS
http://www.NothinButJesus.com
samathis@uswest.net

The Rose of Sharon

Doug Patterson

I have asked you individually to come forward, draw close to seek My face, to know Me and to listen to the sound of My heart beating. For as your ear hears the beat of My heart, it matches the beat of yours. We are to march together, laugh together, and cry together. You are My precious ones.

You have come up the mountain and received instruction, have sought My face and found Me. You have learned and known My ways. Yes, I have asked you to even go back down the mountain to be planted. I have placed you as a seed into the ground. At times you have felt insulated and alone but I have always been there with you. I have brought nutrition, nourishment to you. I have watered you, covered you and protected you. It has been these years that the root system has gone down so deep. Realize that I have planted you and you have grown.

Now you flower and you create and release a fragrance of peace, joy and tranquillity in the Holy Spirit. You are resting in me, waiting for new instructions. As you look around you distinctly observe it is a bit of a dry place. My children you see correctly. For some have been planted at the base of the mountain of the Lord. I will keep My eye upon you.

A hothouse, a gardening center will cause you to grow into the potential and the beauty that I the Creator want to see brought forth in you. You are like roses in the desert. Although it has been dry and sandy, you have overcome the conditions and have matured, blossomed into a fresh call, newness of vision. Now My promises will be fulfilled, for I am sending one to pick, uproot you and transplant you into the promised land, the promised soil.

So prepare yourselves for a move, My precious roses in the desert. For the one who will transplant you, will continue to minister to you and cover you in His anointing, His name, the Rose of Sharon.

Doug Patterson
eaglevw@golden.net

I WILL NOT QUIT!!!

How well I remember the following quotation I read somewhere from Robert Schuller.

"When faced with a mountain. I WILL NOT QUIT, I will climb over it, go around it, tunnel through it, or if I cannot do any of these, I will stay where I am and turn it into a goldmine, with God's help, BUT I WILL NOT QUIT !!!"

God Saves!
"This is the victory that has overcome the world – Your faith." -I John 5:4
"If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in and dine with him and he with Me." -Revelation 3:20
"Whoever walks blamelessly will be saved." -Proverbs 28:18
"Lord, I believe; help my unbelief!." -Mark 9:24
God cares!
"When you pass through the waters I will be with you; and through the rivers, they shall not overflow you; when you walk through fire you shall not be burned, and the flame shall not scorch you. For I am the Lord your God!" -Isaiah 43:2,3
"When you walk through the Valley of Weeping it will become a place of springs where pools of blessing and refreshment collect after rains!" -Psalm 84:6 (LB)
God is Able!
"Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, ... the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, that we may be able to comfort those who are in trouble." -II Corinthians 1:3, 4
"The very hairs on your head are numbered. ... Do not fear, you are of more value than many sparrows." -Matthew 10:30 & 31
"Is anyone among you suffering? Let him pray ... the effective, fervent prayer of a righteous person avails much." -James 5:13-16
"He is also able to save to the uttermost those who come to God through Him."
-Hebrews 7:25
"For I know whom I have believed, and am persuaded that God is able to keep that which I have committed to Him until that day." -II Timothy 1:12
Forgiveness
"He who forgives an offense seeks love." -Proverbs 17:9 RSV
"Now is the time to forgive." -2 Corinthians 2:7 (LB)
"God can be depended on to forgive us..." -1 John 1:9 (LB)
"we see God's abounding grace forgiving us." -Romans 5:20 (LB)
Abundant Living
"How precious is your loving kindness, O God ... for with You is the fountain of life."
-Psalm 36:7-9
"Jesus said to him, `If you can believe, all things are possible to him who believes."
- Mark 9:23
I have come that you may have life, and that you may have it more abundantly."
-John 10:10
Prayer Is The Key
"May my spoken words and unspoken thoughts be pleasing to you, O Lord my Rock and my Redeemer." -Psalm 19:14
"Cast your burden on the Lord, and He will sustain you." -Psalm 55:22 RSV
"When you pray, go into your room and when you have shut the door, pray to your Father who is in the secret place and your Father who sees in secret will reward you openly." -Matthew 6:8
"I love the Lord because He had heard my voice...therefore I will call upon Him as long as I live." -Psalm 116:1,2

Dearhearts if there is ONE THING the Lord has given me lately it is this:
"A WILL TO WIN."
I am literally PUSHING myself to exercise, go for walks and look after this tent I live in as best I can,
I never want to be as low as I was when I came out of the hospital in March and especially when I lay in another hospital for 12 days in April.

I have resolved that:
If I can sit I will sit, If I can stand I will stand, If I can walk I will walk. If I can climb stairs I will climb stairs.
I may have scars all over my body, and grafts and wires leading into my heart, I may have a Pacemaker, BUT I WILL NOT QUIT.

Brother Alan

THE SOUND OF A DRUM

This morning as I spent time with the Lord I heard a drum beating in the Spirit.
I saw that many were hearing this beat, turning to listen, and rising up into the purposes of God.
I saw the forerunners come up through the clouds - the breakthrough - (as in a previous vision) and they are streaming ahead.

There is the sound of an army rising, a rustle, like leaves blown by a wind throughout the whole earth.
God's people are beginning to hear.
God's people are beginning to stand.
God's people are beginning to turn!
in a way that has never been known before.

They are all hearing the same sound, they will all move to the same beat, it is the insistent drum beat that accompanies an army moving forward into position.

Many are putting down work they have pursued faithfully for years. Many are turning from the things of this world they have served. Many are moving into the river of God's purpose for this time; so many that they form streams and tributaries that feed the river and cause it to swell and become as a river in flood.

There is a new sense of fellowship, friendship, and camaraderie flowing over those who respond to the call. They recognise one another instantly and are delighted to be together. This is unity beyond anything prayed for or imagined in the past - a hand on a shoulder, a pat on the back with love and trust, without reservation.

They are gathering together with joy, not in buildings, but in the open places, they are coming into the open and will be seen. They are coming into the light. They are beginning to shine forth light into the darkness, and illuminate large areas.

Be listening, be ready to run, be ready to come. BE READY.

From: Judith Grobelny
jaygee@ihug.co.nz

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