100th blog!!!

It’s definitely been a journey. So what spurred me onto doing a blog? Glad you inquired so inquisitively (yes I spelled that correctly the first time).

Basically I was blowing up my Facebook friend’s timelines, news feeds, or walls depending on whatever it was called at that time. My aunt from Minnesota, where I was born but moved away when I was 3 then moved back when I was 19, where God got ahold of me, and then left again at 21, (ok breath now) said, “Why don’t you start a blog?” I believe someone else recommended that to me also but I don’t quite remember. So I himmed and hawwed (or is it “hemmed and hawed”) about starting one for a while. The thing is previously I wasn’t really serious about growing and seeking His face that much. I went to a great church with great speakers (big name Charismatic speakers) and great prophetic worship that sometimes last hours without needing scripted music lyrics. I was comfortable being fed by someone else’s hand, so to speak. Now this is not to say you can’t be fed by someone else’s hand but with maturity comes self-sufficiency but not self-sufficiency where you isolate and become above rebuke or think more highly than yourself. The self-sufficiency that I’m talking about is where you no longer look to someone else for your growth but you press onto maturity in Him. (See Isaiah 28:9 and Isaiah 28:9)

My problem was I didn’t think I had anything to share. In the real-life world of shapes, sounds, and time I am a man of few words. Very introverted. Introverted to the point when I hear “Stand up and greet someone” in church I either stay seated or go on my phone…but not all the time. Part of that had to do with being raised to not ask questions, not to inquire with “Why?” but just reply, “Yes, dad.” Now over a period of 4+ years I have been regaining my voice back and realizing I do have things to share, maybe wrong or maybe right I don’t know. Even now very few of the people I know is this real world share, comment, or inquire much about my blogs, which I’m ok with. My wife does support me in it 100% and supports my desire to want to write a non-fiction and fiction book sometime in the future. I am however really encouraged to those on WordPress, Facebook, and even Twitter by people sharing, liking, and commenting. It encourages me to continue on with a 101st blog and not quit. If you knew me before I was 20 and before I started this blog in January 2014 you would be surprised I am where I am.

Before I started walking with the Holy Spirit I hated reading, so much that I did maybe 1 or 2 summer reading assignments in High School or 8th grade (I was homeschooled from 1st-7th and skipped 5th (because I didn’t like it…just kidding. I skipped it…I was smart…back then)). I hated reading. I loved being outside or playing video games however. But after I started following the Lord I started to pick up every Christian book I could. Read the Bible all the way through, I was a sponge at that point. But I still hated writing. Then someone mentioned starting a blog so I launched out and signed up. It’s been an amazing thing in my life.

I did leave that one church and started going to another local church which has few speakers but still good worship and good teaching. This kind of incentivized me on to going after the Lord for myself by seeking what has been implanted instead of waiting in a prayer line for an impartation all the time. I realized that I have something to offer to others and being as I’m not a pastor nor an itinerant minister or singer/songwriter I had to vehicle until I started this blog. It was like the floodgates opened to me and a rush of new thoughts, ideas, personal applications, revelation, etc came to me. And they only left when I wrote them down but then more came. It continues to this days. That’s why it is 100 and counting.

So I have a question to those who have read to the end. What has been your take away from this blog? Has it helped or not? Is it applicable in your life? Do you have questions, concerns, or would want my thoughts concerning things either general or specific? Above all I do my best not to take sides or be involved in the schisms of isms. I like balance and riding the fences on some things. However I am firm on the essentials. My aim to know Him and to offer different views with different applications. Our life and issues do not come pre-packaged so neither will our growth or healing. I always want an open toolbox with the filter of 100% Scripture and 100% Spirit.

Thanks to all those who have liked, following, reblogged, comments, and shared. I am excited for the next 100 posts.

 

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One Birth Preceding the Next Birth

I am going out on a limb here. From my reading of Scripture I see Adam coming first in order for Christ to come. I see John the Baptist coming first in order for Christ to come as well. Could I also saw I see the Bride coming before Christ can come again?

Adam was the first man and Christ the second or last Adam. Adam had to come first and prepare the way for Christ to manifest as the last. John the Baptist had to come first, be birthed, to bring about the way for for Jesus to come forth in His ministry. So likewise the Bride of Christ must come forth in full manifestation in order for Christ to come back in full manifestation.

From what I can see from Scripture is that the Bride must come into her full expression and manifestation in order to prepare a place for the Bridegroom to come into her. Revelation 19:7-8 declares

⁷ Let us be glad and rejoice and give Him glory, for the marriage of the Lamb has come, and His wife has made herself ready.” ⁸ And to her it was granted to be arrayed in fine linen, clean and bright, for the fine linen is the righteous acts of the saints.

The term “made herself ready” is very interesting in the Greek. It means – drawn from the oriental custom of sending on before kings on their journeys persons to level the roads and make them passable. Make herself ready by leveling the roads to make them passable for Jesus to come as King. I believe firmly that Christ is coming back for a beautiful bride and not a confused divorcee. There is only one thing we need to be divorced from and that is the law (see Rom. 7:1-6). Only to be married to Christ. Did you know even God is divorced (see Jer. 3:8)? No wonder why He hates it so much, because He understands it.

This is why I have a distaste for pre-trib rapture eschatology. This idea of Jesus is coming back for a broken down, defeated Church in order to deliver her from the world. This is not the case in my opinion. He is coming for a Warrior Bride who has made herself ready by destroy that which prevents Him from coming in fullness. We have spent to much time with a veil over our faces out of false humility. Lets take down and remove that veil by Christ and allow His light to overtake us so others can see it. No more baskets covering us. The Ekklesia must walk in her fullness for Him to come in His fullness. Adam came before Christ, John came before Christ, and the Bride must come before Christ. We must comes to place where we no longer wonder where we can go from His Presence but to a place, like the disciples, to where else would I want to go, because He has the words of eternal life. We must allow Him to get personal with us. May I say expose us. To be utterly naked before Him and others…full known and fully loved. No defilement. No spots. No blemishes. Total and complete God consciousness. Where our oneness with Him becomes a dance of mutual honor and respect. Complete perichoresis! A dance with Him leading the whole way! A Bride wrapped in adoration for the bridegroom. As we adore Him, as His Bride, we hasten His coming. His coming in fullness of Spirit prior to His physical reign. I’ll end with this beautiful Scripture in Revelation 22:17

“Come!” say the Spirit and the Bride.
Whoever hears, echo, “Come!”
Is anyone thirsty? Come!
All who will, come and drink,
Drink freely of the Water of Life!