The Army Of The Lord

Welcome. We hope you enjoy your visit.

You're currently viewing our forum as a guest. This means you are limited to certain areas of the board and there are some features you can't use. If you join our community, you'll be able to access member-only sections, and use many member-only features such as customizing your profile, sending personal messages, and voting in polls. Registration is simple, fast, and completely free.

To speed up the registration process, please email admin at: stace@eaglewayministries.com

If you're already a member please log in to your account to access all of our features.

The Army Of The Lord; Ref: Rick Joyner Parts One-Nine
Topic Started: Feb 25 2008, 10:20 PM (118 Views)
Stace	Feb 25 2008, 10:20 PM Post #1
Administrator Posts: 3,579 Group: Admin Member #1 Joined: March 6, 2004	The Army of God Mobilizes, Part 1 There is an army gathering like no other that the world has ever seen. It will be both an irresistible force and an immovable object. Where it marches, it will conquer. Where it takes a stand, it will not be moved. That it is now gathering is one of the great signs that the end of this age is at hand, and the King will soon come to establish His kingdom. It is time to prepare the way for the Lord. Those who are mobilizing to help prepare the way for the Lord are the ones who see Him. They see what others cannot now see. If we truly see Him, we cannot help but to bow the knee to Him. If we truly see Him, we will obey Him. That is why we often see the term “the obedience of faith” (see Romans 1:5, 16:26) in the New Testament. Many claim that Christianity is the most arrogant of all the religions because we claim to be the only way to be reconciled to God. The truth is that if God sent His own Son to provide the way for us to be reconciled, and we reject Him, believing that we can get there on our own merit, wisdom, or strength, and do not need His provision, then we are the most arrogant of all creatures. The greatest arrogance of all is to not bow the knee to Him. Christianity is in truth the most humble of all of the religions, accepting and acknowledging our need for Him as our Savior and Lord. The great army of God is now being mobilized in thousands of locations. It is going through basic training. The great emphasis upon the basics of faith is from the Holy Spirit. If we are not strong in these, we will be weak and easily defeated. However, those who have a strong foundation will soon have much built upon it. We are going higher. All of the gifts and ministries of the Spirit will go higher. The authority that He will entrust to His faithful ones will greatly increase this year. Walking in leadership in His church is a most serious matter. To be entrusted with God’s own children cannot be taken lightly. If I entrusted my children to someone to take care of them, and then came back and found them sick, hungry, and filthy, I would not be happy! It is the ultimate honor and privilege to be entrusted with the Lord’s own children, but it is also the ultimate responsibility. It is crucial that His people are prepared for the times. There will be a new resolve, a new seriousness, coming upon His leaders this year, but the result of this will be a great strengthening of His people. We are exhorted in James 3:1, “Let not many of you become teachers, my brethren, knowing that as such we shall incur a stricter judgment.” The judgments pronounced against false teachers and false shepherds are much more severe than those pronounced against false prophets. Of course, we don’t want to be one of them either! Therefore, we must be devoted to truth, integrity, and settle it in the beginning that if we have been entrusted as a shepherd of the Lord’s sheep, we will lay down our own lives for them. We will resolve to only provide them with the very best spiritual food and training. This year we will see increasing signs that a recovery of basic honesty is transforming science. We will also see this in the church as well. There are many doctrines that whole movements are built on that have no basis in Scripture, but are rather built on human preferences, in reaction to disappointments, or other problems in the church. These, too, will start to flow back toward the mainstream of the River of Life. We need to build bridges between the common ground that we have with other parts of the body of Christ, always treating those who are at least embracing the basic doctrines of the faith as sons and daughters of the King who deserve the greatest respect. I was once walking around Buckingham Palace in London when I heard the Lord speak to me and ask what I would say if I ran into the queen. I braced myself because I thought this question was to prepare me to actually meet her and I did not know the protocol. I resolved to simply treat her with as much respect as I knew how. The Lord then said that I must always remember that the church is His queen, and to always treat her with the utmost dignity and respect. I got the message. Even if you do have to bring some correction to a queen, you do it with the utmost dignity and respect—she is the Lord’s own bride—His Queen! It is an unfathomable honor to be a part of the church—how much more so to be one of her ministers, her servants. She may have many problems right now, but she is still His bride that He loves. She will become increasingly awesome as these times unfold. God is in her, she is the temple. As Einstein considered it an endeavor worth his whole life to be able to comprehend even a tiny portion of the reason that manifests itself in nature, we have been given much more than that! The prophets of old longed to see just a tiny portion of the knowledge of the mystery of God that has been given to the least of the saints. We are also told that this great mystery is the union of the Lord with His bride, the church. This great mystery will now capture more and more hearts, resulting in its manifestation in His people. The bride is also an army. She is an awesome queen! She is glorious and beautiful, and growing in passion for her King. Even so, she will likewise be growing in a fierce irresistible devotion to truth, and the biblical standards of morality and integrity. She will know how to keep her vessel with the honor and dignity that the true royalty in the earth have. She will walk in “the beauty of holiness” that is so compelling that the rest of mankind will begin to marvel at her, and be drawn to her and to her King. Let us resolve this year to honor God with our devotion for having received the gift of salvation, to be a part of His bride, and to be alive in the greatest of all times to serve Him. He has saved His best wine for last. Those who have eyes to see and ears to hear will begin to stand out in radical contrast to those who do not. We must have the courage to be different, radically different, never compromising the sure Word of God and His ways. If we do not stand out, then we are not standing up for the truth. This year the great separation, the great distinction, will become increasingly clear. One way that this distinction between the true servants of God and the pretenders will be manifested will be by the spiritual food that we eat. It has been said that an army marches on its stomach, or that it has to be fed to have the strength to march. This year even better, richer, spiritual food will be provided for the army of God, and those who are in it will partake of it daily. Those who do not will begin to weaken and fall behind. Only those who devote themselves to growing in the Lord actually grow. They care enough to seek Him and to seek spiritual food that He provides for them. Those who do not care enough to do this will fall increasingly behind this year. They have set their own judgment by what they really worship and give themselves to. This year the great distinction will become more clear, and every day the distance between those who truly follow the King, and those who do not, will become greater. Where will we be? Does that sound too hard? Too serious? We had better get used to it. The spiritual drill sergeants are being released to get the army ready for battle. The less you like your drill sergeants when in training, the more you will love them when you get into battle. Like it or not, the battles are looming. Those who are obedient are assured of victory, but those who do not follow the King will pay a most terrible price. Follow the King! A Note From Rick It is becoming increasingly critical for God’s people to know His voice better. If God is speaking to you prophetically through dreams, visions, or prophecy, please consider attending our ADVANCED PROPHETIC CONFERENCE January 31-February 2. We must go to a much higher level in prophetic ministry if the church is going to be prepared for these times, and we believe this conference will help thrust many who have prophetic gifts to go to a level they have not known before as they join with other prophetically gifted people from around the world at H.I.M. during this conference. There are also special rates at the Heritage Grand for those who want to come early, or stay after the conference to pursue the Lord, and have interchange with our local ministry teams. This will be an important time. Do not miss it if you can possibly come. It is easy to register and book your room at H.I.M. You can do so on our website, www.morningstarministries.org and go to “EVENTS.” Or you may call our toll free number at 1-800-542-0278. I hope to see you there. www.morningstarministries.org Rick Joyner, 12/31/2007



Stace	Feb 25 2008, 10:43 PM Post #2
Administrator Posts: 3,579 Group: Admin Member #1 Joined: March 6, 2004	The Army of God Mobilizes, Part 2 This will be a year of gathering together for the mobilization of the army of God. Many Christians who have slipped away from fellowship in the body of Christ will be gathered back into fellowship. Many churches will be joined to larger movements, which will help give them more definition, focus, and a greater sense of their purpose. Many movements will join with other movements, and even denominations will begin to develop relationships with other denominations. This great gathering together is from the Lord. Isolation or loneliness was the first thing the Lord said was not good. Mankind was created with the need of community, and we will have a void in our lives if we are not a vital part of a community. The body of Christ, as it was designed to be and as it will be, is the ultimate community. There is nothing else like it in all of creation, and as it emerges in its ultimate form, it will be the desire of every human being to be a part of such a fellowship. None of us will ever know complete peace or fulfillment until we are in the place we were called to be in the Lord’s body, His church. This is because we cannot be properly joined to the Head, Jesus, without also being properly joined to His body. Just as the Apostle John wrote in I John 4:20-21, “If someone says, ‘I love God,’ and hates his brother, he is a liar; for the one who does not love his brother whom he has seen, cannot love God whom he has not seen.” Like it or not, without all of the frustrations and irritations that come with the true commitment to a local body of believers, there is a serious limit on our spiritual maturity. We would like for the church to mature and get over all of its problems before we join it, but then we would miss out on what we need for our maturity and growth. If we are waiting for the church to mature before we join it, by the time it gets to the place where it would be acceptable to us, it will be so far down the road that we will never catch up to it. A vital, local church life is essential for true spiritual maturity. We can grow in knowledge without it; we can still have spiritual experiences and even operate in the gifts of the Spirit, but we will be limited in our true maturity in Christ, and the authority we can be trusted with. In the times to come, even survival itself will be dependent on our being a vital part of the body of Christ, just as we are warned in I Corinthians 11:23-29: For I received from the Lord that which I also delivered to you, that the Lord Jesus in the night in which He was betrayed took bread; and when He had given thanks, He broke it, and said, “This is My body, which is for you; do this in remembrance of Me.” In the same way He took the cup also, after supper, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in My blood; do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of Me.” For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until He comes. Therefore whoever eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner, shall be guilty of the body and the blood of the Lord. But let a man examine himself, and so let him eat of the bread and drink of the cup. For he who eats and drinks, eats and drinks judgment to himself, if he does not judge the body rightly. The way we partake of communion in an unworthy manner is to partake of the history which has been the tendency to substitute rituals for the realities they represent. By this, one drinks “judgment to himself, if he does not judge the body rightly.” To “judge the body rightly” is to discern the body and our part in it. If you were to cut off any part of the body, it would get weak and sick, and then die fast if it was not quickly reattached. This, too, is true of Christians when they leave the body. They may temporarily feel relief when they leave because they no longer have certain pressures and trials, but those are the pressures and trials that are intended to fashion them into the useful vessels that they are called to be. In the times we are entering, it will become increasingly costly not to be in our proper places in the Lord’s body. Then it will become a matter of life and death. In all ways, there is no safer place to be on this earth than in the Lord’s will, and it will become increasingly dangerous not to be in it. On the other hand, for those who are in His will, in their place in His body, there will be ever increasing joy, peace, and fulfillment. Truly, the greatest times of all to be alive and in Christ are the times we have been chosen to live in. The bride of Christ will become all that she is called to be, like nothing the earth has ever seen before. Even the first century church was but a seed of what the church will be at the harvest, the end of the age, when all things come to their full maturity. Mobilizing is but the first stage of the development of an army. Once mobilized, it must be trained, equipped, and then deployed to engage the enemy. This is a year for mobilization and the beginning of training. To mobilize, you must hear the trumpet call. If you are hearing it, get in your place. How will you know your place if you are not in it? Use the “key to the kingdom.” The key to the kingdom is what we use to unlock the door to the kingdom. The key to the kingdom is to seek the kingdom first in all major decisions that we make. Many Christians do not feel that there is a church near them that they fit into because there isn’t, and there isn’t because they are in the wrong place. They are in the wrong place because they made the decision about where they would live based on the best job opportunity, geography they liked, or so they could be close to friends or relatives, instead of making the decision based on where they are supposed to be in the Lord’s body. If we would make these decisions based on seeking the kingdom first and His righteousness, which means what is right in His sight, then He promises that everything else will be added to us. However, if we do not seek the kingdom first, then we can count on there being -constant discord. You can be in the wrong place and have a great job, make a lot of money, accumulate many possessions, and be empty and not have peace in your life. Even if we have been out of the will of God for a long time, we can take the key to the kingdom and right now open the door to the kingdom and enter it. It may mean leaving where you are, changing jobs, even for a lower salary, but that should not be what matters the most to us. Rather, what matters most should be doing the Lord’s will. What we make does not really matter when He promises to add everything else that we need. The important and crucial thing is that we get in His will.



Stace	Feb 25 2008, 10:44 PM Post #3
Administrator Posts: 3,579 Group: Admin Member #1 Joined: March 6, 2004	The Army of God Mobilizes, Part 3 In the Scriptures, two of the worst curses are to have arrogant, immature, or unrighteous leaders and prophets speak words to tickle the people’s ears, or who only say what they think the people want to hear. The prophecies about the end of this age speak of a similar devotion of many. There are a number of things that separate the wheat from the tares at the end. There is a separation going on presently in the body of Christ where those who will only listen to what they want to hear are being given over to immature or unrighteous leaders. When a friend of mine recently preached on the difficulties that are prophesied to come upon the world at the end of this age, some people complained because the message was “discouraging.” These people could only hear about happy times and blessings, and I knew that without a profound change in their mentality they would not last long in the times to come. A large part of the Christians in the West are in this weak, vulnerable, delusional condition. This can change, but if it is not confronted very soon the consequences will be devastating for many people. This is not to imply that all we should talk about are the hard times to come, but rather we must walk in faith through even the most difficult times, seeing an opportunity for the glory and victory of the Lord. As we have said often, true warriors do not run from the sound of battle, but to the sound of battle. It is a truth that the Scriptures verify that mature leaders are those who have been through the fire, through the trials, and even mistakes and failures, and have remained faithful. Do you want someone who has never failed to be your leader? Well, just consider that Captain Smith was chosen to be the skipper of the Titanic because he had never had an accident at sea. If our leaders prove to be immature or unrighteous, we would be wise not to condemn them or others for this, but look to ourselves. What caused us to follow such people? To possibly answer this, consider this rebuke from the Apostle Paul to the Corinthians: For you, being so wise, bear with the foolish gladly. For you bear with anyone if he enslaves you, if he devours you, if he takes advantage of you, if he exalts himself, if he hits you in the face (II Corinthians 11:19-20). It is remarkable how many Christians still gravitate more toward those who minister in a control spirit than to those who minister in the Holy Spirit. Carnal people will follow carnal authority and reject true spiritual authority. Just as many people are conditioned to respond to the hype of television advertisements, many Christians respond more quickly to hype than to the anointing, and actually believe that hype is the anointing. Now if you think that I am being negative, please consider that some truth is negative, and some of the most important truth at times is negative. If we cannot hear it, we will not find the Lord’s salvation. If we do not accept the negative truth that we are sinners, we will never repent of our sins and turn to the cross. John the Baptist had to preach repentance to prepare the way for the Lord, and the Holy Spirit is about to come as the One who convicts us of our sins to prepare for the coming move of God. If we are not willing to be convicted of our sin or our irrational and continuing immaturity, we will miss the greatest move of God. Weak, immature Christians gravitate to the preachers who tell them what they want to hear, not what they need to hear. The greatest preachers and teachers in history, who accomplished the most for the gospel and the kingdom of God, were those who brought much conviction and repentance to the church. The strongest Christians have always been those who embraced the message of repentance when it was needed. We have some great strengths in the Western church at this time, but we also have some glaring weaknesses. The weaknesses can be corrected. There is one simple answer that will begin to correct them all—the cross. The cross will become the central theme of Christianity again for all who go on to maturity. Those who do not embrace the cross will fall away from the faith very soon. Carnal, immature, and unrighteous leaders will draw them away. Some of these may have some of the biggest churches and movements, but they are the blind leading the blind, and they will all fall into the ditch if they do not repent. The army that God is raising up in these times is the army of the cross. They will be those who live the cross, taking it up daily, and thereby prove themselves to be the Lord’s true disciples, just as He said. Just as we are told over and over in the one book in the Bible devoted to wisdom, the Book of Proverbs, the wise love correction and embrace it, and even count reproofs for discipline as the path of life. A very wise and very strong army is about to mobilize. For a time, their numbers may be much smaller than those gathering around other messages, but when all others fall away, they will be standing strong, holding to the banner of the Lord, and refusing to retreat before the enemies of the cross. They will not be afraid to die because they will have already died to this world, and they live to do all things for the sake of His gospel. Are you one of these? He is calling you.



Stace	Feb 25 2008, 10:44 PM Post #4
Administrator Posts: 3,579 Group: Admin Member #1 Joined: March 6, 2004	The Army of God Mobilizes, Part 4 The army of God that is mobilizing will carry the most powerful weapon ever carried—the power of God. There is no bomb that has ever been made, even all of the bombs made put together, which have the power contained in a single believer who has the Spirit of God living in them. However, we only see occasional tiny glimpses of this power being demonstrated by believers.This will change as Christians are trained and equipped so that they can be trusted with this power. The most basic training in the use of God’s power is to understand the most basic principle of His supernatural power. This is stated in I Corinthians 1:18: “For the word of the cross is to those who are perishing foolishness, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.” So, “the word of the cross . . . is the power of God.” This is the Word that the army of God is going to get to know, carry, and preach from the heart because it is in their hearts—from this the river of living waters will flow. Remember, this army does not come to destroy, but to give life. It does not come to conquer, but to set free. Is this not how the Lord Jesus walked in power? He taught the truth that would set men free, and then He delivered them from what was oppressing them and healed their bodies from what was afflicting them. As we have also discussed before, God’s love is the foundation of authority. It was when Jesus felt compassion for the sheep without a shepherd that He became their Shepherd. When He felt compassion for those who walked in darkness, He became their Teacher. I know when I have been given authority in a certain place or country, I begin feeling God’s compassion for that place or people. This is also why we are commanded to love our enemies. If we will love them, we will be able to help heal them and set them free, leading them to salvation, the greatest victory of all over our enemies! Now let’s look briefly at how this might apply practically. If you feel compassion in your heart for a people group, a nation, or even something more general such as music that seems unnatural or supernatural, (which means there is no natural explanation for it), it probably is at least a hint about your calling. Now let’s take something as general as a supernatural love for music. This is more than just loving to listen to it or even play it, but a deep care for its purity and health. Maybe you are called to help bring healing to music, to give it direction and purpose that would keep it more pure. But how could you practically do this? Basically, there can be a proclamation of truth, a prophetic word, which has the power of God behind it that so captures people’s attention and their hearts, that music will then be used the way that it was intended when God created it. This music that is more pure would also need to be backed up with a demonstration, which would have such power that all perversion of music would then look crude and perverted in comparison. In the MorningStar School of Ministry, we have watched as an increasing number of remarkable musicians come each year. Many have already gone on to write some of the greatest worship music being used today and are recognized as extraordinary worship leaders. This is the foundation of a force that I know will change music in the times to come. Some of them are bonding together into powerful teams that I think will have apostolic authority. All are learning from each other. You don’t have to be around here long to see the “critical mass” forming that will release a spiritual atomic explosion. I also see the same thing happening here with those who have prophetic gifts. As these gifts combine, which they are, the power will be even greater. Why is this happening at MorningStar? It began with us going to the cross—sacrifice. For years, both immature prophetic ministries and some of the musicians cost us a lot. We had to love both of these through some very trying times, but we never had any doubt that it would be worth it, and we didn’t care even if we would see the reward as long as the Lord did. This is about Him, not us. Also, let me be clear about one thing—the prophetic people and gifts, and the musicians, have always brought more glory and benefit than what it cost us in trials, by far. I also know that we were probably more of a trial to them than they were to us. Even so, just one moment of the glory and anointing of God that we have experienced would have been well worth it all. We have had years of things happening that were so great that I would not trade it for what was experienced in the Book of Acts. I am being sincere. So don’t feel sorry for us for the price that we paid—we always received much more in return, even though at times it was hard. My point is, part of our training to walk in what we are called to do is going to be found in the wilderness that is located between the place where we receive the promise of God and the Promised Land itself, or the fulfillment of what we have been promised. I think every year our School of Ministry is getting better, but it has been through a dozen years of development and trials for it to become what it is now, and we are just beginning to see what we foresaw it to be. The same is true of the prophetic ministry in our midst and the music. We have seen great glory and miracles, just like Israel did in the wilderness, and while the wilderness has been a wonderful, awesome experience, it has also been hard. However, now we are starting to eat some of the fruit of the land. Things are moving along faster now in some ways. Even so, it is still true that anything that happens too fast or too easily is usually insignificant. If we develop faster spiritually, it will probably require much more intense training or trials. A great mobilization is taking place, but it will always take “faith and patience” to inherit the promises (see Hebrews 6:12). Those who do not have either of these will be weeded out. Those who have faith and patience will gain more of each through training so that they can be trusted with the unprecedented power that is being released in our times.



Stace	Feb 25 2008, 10:45 PM Post #5
Administrator Posts: 3,579 Group: Admin Member #1 Joined: March 6, 2004	The Army of God Mobilizes, Part 5 We are still speaking in generalizations, but let us back up a bit and think about what the army of God will look like when it is fully equipped and ready for battle. To really understand it, we must first understand how it will relate and not relate to a human army. First, let’s list just a few general similarities: Ways that God’s army will be like a human army: 1) It will be composed of people mobilized and trained for the purpose of defeating an enemy. 2) There will be people trained to specialize in the use of specific weapons. 3) The most effective armies are the most disciplined ones, and we can expect God’s army to have the highest degree of discipline. 4) As is the case of every army, there will be two basic parts—those who go to battle and those devoted to the support and supply of those on the frontline. Ways that God’s army will not be like a human army: 1) God’s army will fight to give life, not take it. 2) God’s army will fight to free people, not conquer them. 3) The victory for God’s army is not the destruction of the enemy, but the tearing down of his strongholds that are keeping people in bondage in order to set them free. 4) The weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but spiritual, such as truth and love. 5) The enemy and the battles will be fought by spiritual people with spiritual weapons in the spiritual realm. The above is biblically corroborated in a number of verses, but let’s begin with II Corinthians 10:3-6: For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war according to the flesh, for the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh, but divinely powerful for the destruction of fortresses. We are destroying speculations and every lofty thing raised up against the knowledge of God, and we are taking every thought captive to the obedience of Christ, and we are ready to punish all disobedience, whenever your obedience is complete. This is what we want to study in some depth so that we can start to live it, seeing an army that is able to confront specific strongholds of the enemy, see them torn down, and the captives set free. For this we must remember that we are called to be the true “freedom fighters.” Our goal is not to just win arguments, but to see those who now have arguments against God and His purposes converted and set free. To understand this army, we must also learn the ways of the Spirit, which are very different from many of the ways we have learned in the natural. The natural realm is called “a shadow” of the spiritual realm, and it is. What we think of as “real” has far less substance than the spiritual realm, just as a shadow is but a reflection of what is real. Even so, most of the natural laws do relate to spiritual laws, but there are also many that do not. There is also a spiritual communication or “spiritual words” that are of such greater substance than any human language that human languages are like a shadow when compared to them. They are hard to even comprehend with our natural minds. So, to be this spiritual army of God we must have our minds renewed and greatly expanded. There are whole basic ways that we will have to learn to think differently, but it is a better and more accurate or truthful way to think. When we even begin to glimpse into the spiritual realm, the whole natural realm seems incredibly puny, insignificant, and like a shackle to our souls. This is true, but we must always remember that God gave infinite value to this natural realm by coming into it, living as a man, making atonement for us, and then determining that He would dwell on the earth with man. Therefore, our purpose is to reach into heaven and begin to live there so that we can bring heaven to the earth and His will can be done on earth as it is in heaven. Our goal is not to just become spiritual, but to be utterly practical in helping to save and prepare the earth for His coming.



Stace	Feb 25 2008, 10:46 PM Post #6
Administrator Posts: 3,579 Group: Admin Member #1 Joined: March 6, 2004	The Army of God Mobilizes, Part 6 The church is called to be the bride of Christ as well as an army. As we approach the end of this age, we will begin to take on more of the nature and demeanor of both. This is hard for many to understand because the bride is to be feminine, and the martial nature of an army is more masculine. However, we will take on both of these natures at the same time, and it will greatly strengthen the health and effectiveness of the body of Christ. Before continuing with this thought, we need to understand that men are called to be devoted lovers and worshippers of God. Likewise, women can and are some of the greatest warriors. Even so, one basic strategy of the devil is to blur the distinctions between men and women, trying to make the women into men and men into women. There are differences, and these differences must not be compromised. The great female warriors can and will be feminine. The great male worshipers can and will be masculine. What I am about to share is a generalization. Therefore, it is neither totally accurate nor accurate for all churches, but presently, even though the church is led mostly by men, its nature is more feminine. This is why more than 70 percent of the church is composed of women, and many of the men who are in the church today are not really connected in their hearts. It is not just that women tend to be more spiritual than men, though this in fact may be the case, but most men just do not relate to the church in its present form, are bored with it, or just feel out of place. However, as the church takes on more of the martial nature for which it is called, men will flock back to the church. As the church begins to take on more of its martial nature, the feminine nature that will also grow as the church prepares to be the bride of Christ will help keep it in balance. Just as King David was one of the greatest warriors in Scripture, but also one of the greatest worshippers, the church is going to grow up in both of these aspects. They will fit together perfectly just as they did in King David. This is why we started Worship and Warfare Conferences many years ago, and they remain some of our most powerful conferences. I have studied the military and military strategies for many years because I was shown that the body of Christ at the end of this age would become the army that it is called to be. As we have discussed before, God uses the title “Lord of hosts,” or “Lord of armies,” more than ten times as much as all of His other titles combined. He is a martial God, and we must understand this aspect of His nature and how His people are going to begin to conform to it. How this practically relates is a very important issue for those who will be prepared for the times. We must understand that there are many ways in which human martial demeanor is not the same as God’s martial demeanor. As we read Isaiah 55:8-9, “For My thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways My ways,” declares the Lord. “For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways higher than your ways, and My thoughts than your thoughts.” God’s martial nature is much higher than man’s martial nature, but there are also ways that they are alike. These, too, we need to understand. For example, the ways that our human martial nature is different from the Lord’s is that human armies are devoted to destruction and God’s army is devoted to construction. Human soldiers are taught how to kill and to take the lives of their enemies, while God’s soldiers are taught how to give life and even to lay down their own lives for the sake of their enemies. One way that they are alike is that both armies are built on discipline, obedience, and the resolve that when given an objective, you pay the price required to accomplish it. There are also similarities in strategies between human armies and God’s army. One is the most basic military strategy called “concentration of forces.” This is the strategy of concentrating forces at a point in the enemy’s line in order to create a breakthrough. Once a breakthrough in the lines is accomplished, then the enemy must retreat to keep from allowing the opposing forces into its rear area, destroying its supply lines and surrounding its frontline troops. Concentration of forces has been the most successful military strategy, and the reason for most of the decisive military victories in history. Contrary to this, in military history the strategy that has been the least successful and has often led to decisive defeats, has been the attempt to spread the forces out and to fight battles on too many fronts. Now let’s apply this in a practical and personal way. Most of us still have a couple of hundred things wrong with us that need fixing. It is the devil’s strategy to get us to try to fix all of them at once. However, just as the Apostle Paul wrote, “but one thing I do” (see Philippians 3:13). If we were to concentrate on a breakthrough in just one area, we would probably realize a quick victory and begin to see one breakthrough after another come as we concentrate on them. Soon, whatever footholds the enemy had in our own life would give way. Now let’s think about how it might relate to the church as a whole. Presently, the church is fighting battles on too many fronts to count. What would happen if we started to concentrate on just one or two of these areas? We would probably realize swift victories and see big advances begin. Right now the church is so divided that it is hard to imagine the kind of unity that this would require, but the foundation of this unity is now beginning. We must also consider that if the enemy is attacking on more than one front, we often have to fight on more than one front. However, Christians would do well to learn from these tactics and strategies. Some of the greatest victories in military history were achieved by wise generals, ignoring the enemy’s attacks and concentrating their forces to attack the enemy in an unexpected place and way that was not expected. When we start moving from triumph to triumph the way we should be, we will not be continually reacting to the enemy, but we will be the ones setting the agenda with our attacks on the strongholds of the enemy, and he will be constantly reacting to us. First, we must resolve that we will retreat no further—we will not give up any more territory to the enemy, and we are going to start taking back territory that has been lost. In many countries, the church was far more effective being the salt and light that it was called to be fifty years ago than it is now. In fact, we have probably lost more ground in the last fifty years than in the previous five hundred. We cannot give up any more ground, and we must retake what has been lost. We must solidify the gains, occupying the land taken, and then keep going. As we are told in Psalm 24:1, “The earth is the Lord’s, and all it contains, the world, and those who dwell in it.” The Lord’s kingdom is going to come to the earth, and His will is going to be done on the earth, just as it is in heaven. We are here now to help prepare the way for it. Our ultimate goal must be big, but we must also be practical and able to concentrate on the next step. It is time to see some victories. When the church starts to behold a few breakthroughs and victories, Christians everywhere will arise, gather in unity, and fight the good fight of faith.



Stace	Feb 25 2008, 10:46 PM Post #7
Administrator Posts: 3,579 Group: Admin Member #1 Joined: March 6, 2004	The Army of God Mobilizes, Part 7 Last week we began addressing some of the basic military strategies and how they relate to where the church is headed in our times. Again, much of what I am sharing is a generalization, and generalizations are never true in all cases. That being said, the church has tried to fight too many battles at once, resulting in little or no success in spite of a huge expenditure of effort and resources. We have also, at times, taken ground that we were not able to hold, ending up ultimately in a worse defeat. It is no small matter to mobilize people for a campaign. They will only respond to the call because they believe in it. Then they must stay encouraged, which means to have courage, which comes from believing you can win. Any army will lose courage after it has suffered repeated defeats. In recent times, the body of Christ has not had many victories, and much of it is in automatic retreat mode. Much of the church even has an eschatology (study of the biblical prophecies about the end of the age) which is basically to get ready to abandon ship. Even so, an encouraging trend has been for much of the church to begin to embrace a much more victorious eschatology. I have studied many different views of eschatology and found some merit in almost all of them. However, there are many ways that they conflict with each other, and some even have basic conflicts with themselves. That does not concern me as much as when they have basic conflicts with Scripture, which some of them do. This is usually the result of making bold, overly specific conclusions about something the Scripture is quite ambiguous about, and then neglecting the other biblical prophecies that might give a different perspective. It is true that almost every heresy is the result of someone trying to take to a logical conclusion what God has only revealed in part. Then they start to use believing in their revelation as a litmus test for the “faithful.” When this begins to happen, we would do well to get far away from that group—they are headed into deception. I am addressing this here because it is hard to promote a teaching about being prepared for the times without addressing some of the issues of eschatology. What the Scriptures are clear about, we should all embrace, but the rest of the theories we need to hold very lightly and be fine with others disagreeing with us about them. I am also not claiming to have perfect knowledge of this matter of eschatology, but what I am presenting here I think is clearly biblical and is not in basic conflict with any of the popular views of eschatology. One basic issue I think we can all agree with is the Lord’s own statement in Matthew 24:14: “And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in the whole world for a witness to all the nations, and then the end shall come.” This is clear and is the basic mission that the army of God is going to mobilize for, and will accomplish. We must also understand that the gospel of the kingdom is not the same as the gospel of salvation. The gospel of our redemption and salvation is the foundation of the gospel of the kingdom, but it is far from the complete gospel. The gospel of the kingdom is not about our salvation as much as it is about the King returning, His kingdom coming to the earth, and His will being done on the earth as it is in heaven. The gospel of the kingdom is therefore about the salvation of the whole earth, not just personal salvation. As we covered this in some depth the last two years, I am not going to belabor more here other than to keep it as our objective, occasionally review aspects of what this means, or how it will be carried out, and add insights we have not yet discussed. The first characteristic of this army that is gathering is that it is an army of the kingdom of God, not any earthly kingdom. It will not be used to promote the interests of any nation on earth, though almost every nation on earth will try to use it for its own purposes. This does not mean that Christians should not be involved in politics, business, or the affairs of this world, or even mobilize to aid them, but there is an army that will be gathered that cannot be distracted from its purpose—preaching the gospel of the kingdom and preparing the way for the Lord. The Lord is not coming as a Republican or a Democrat, a liberal or a conservative, a socialist or a capitalist—He is coming as King! The basis of every kingdom is that the king’s authority is recognized. Obedience to King Jesus is the most basic principle of living in the kingdom, preparing the way for the kingdom, and preaching the kingdom. Knowing His voice and obeying, are the most basic characteristics of those who would mobilize to be a part of the army of God. I shared before that in boot camp or basic training the first thing you are taught to do is to march together with others. This is true whether you are in the Army, Navy, or Air Force. The reason for this is basic to any military force: teaching recruits to listen to commands and obey them. A Scripture for this is what the Lord said about the Good Shepherd in John 10:4, “When he puts forth all of his own, he goes before them, and the sheep follow him because they know his voice.” All of God’s people need to know His voice, not just prophets, pastors, or church leaders. When in basic training, every person had to be keen to hear the commands when marching, or they would quickly be out of step, turn the wrong way, or not turn when the rest of the company did, to their great embarrassment. At first the punishment was the embarrassment. After there had been training for a while and the company should know better, the punishment became more and more severe. This was about far more than just messing up the cadence of a troop, but in a field, fleet, or in the air, not hearing and responding correctly to a command could put the whole troop, ship, or flight in jeopardy. In general, the church is right now more like a mob than a disciplined army. Not many can even hear the commands of the Lord. Many who know He is speaking cannot understand what He is saying and fewer still obey Him. The ability to know His voice and obey Him is fundamental. As the army mobilizes and starts its training, those who do not know the voice of the Lord will stand out more and more. If this does not compel them to get to know His voice, and always be listening for it in order to obey Him, ultimately they will be removed as they will be a danger to all. The times that we are entering will be such that it will be a life and death matter to know His voice and obey Him. This is one reason why we have spent two decades at MorningStar, seeking to know His voice better, and have hosted prophetic equipping conferences to help others to recognize His voice. That is the main goal of these conferences, not just to prophesy to people, but for everyone who comes, to leave knowing His voice better. We have helped train thousands from all over the world to know His voice, and many of these have gone on to train others. These include many pastors, leaders of movements, countless home group leaders, as well as many Christians who are not leading anything now, but will. Again, knowing the voice of the Lord is not just for prophets or the super spiritual, but for all believers. Every private in God’s army will have to know His voice and respond to it. Those who grow in this are usually promoted, and at times may be used as His voice. The more we grow, the more we may be able to help lead in this way, but the foundation is the same for all—His sheep know His voice, and they follow Him because they know His voice.



Stace	Feb 25 2008, 10:47 PM Post #8
Administrator Posts: 3,579 Group: Admin Member #1 Joined: March 6, 2004	The Army of God Mobilizes, Part 8 A popular saying has been “Get a life!” This is typically used as a rebuke to those who are so trapped in the mundane that the insignificant is significant to them. We want this series to help all believers live lives of significance and leave a trail of significant accomplishments. To use biblical terms, it is fulfilling the Lord’s command to bear fruit, and fruit that remains (see John 15:16). First, if your life is boring, you are definitely not in the right place. There is nothing more interesting than God and getting close to Him. There is no greater adventure than the true Christian life. There is nothing more boring than religion. There is nothing more exciting than the true Christian life, but there is also nothing more difficult to live in these times. This is not for wimps! God is mobilizing an army of the most resolute, fearless warriors. These will not be controlled by fears, but by faith. They are also constrained by their mission. When God created man, He commanded him to “be fruitful and multiply.” So there is a part of our very nature that wants to accomplish and to accomplish big things—to “multiply.” This desire is not pride or selfish ambition, though it can be perverted by those, but it is really our basic makeup. When we have been redeemed by embracing the atonement sacrifice of Jesus, it is the beginning of our realignment to the ultimate purposes of God. The calling on every Christian is to be fruitful and multiply. This is so important that the Lord also stated in John 15 that He would cut off the branches that did not bear fruit. Therefore, having a life that is not bearing fruit is not an option. This is why we are mobilizing. When you mobilize an army, it is to begin the training that will lead to the building of an effective army that can accomplish its objectives. As we have covered, very basic to being a part of the effective force of the Lord is to be able to hear His commands and obey them. Knowing His voice is basic, and though this remains something of an ultimate purpose with many believers, it is just the beginning of our training. We cannot go further without this ability, but we must go further once we do have it. The four stages of developing an army are: 1) Mobilizing 2) Training 3) Equipping 4) Deploying Mobilizing into the army of God and finding our right place in His body is not the goal, but a goal that is necessary before we go on. There is also a factor of timing for this. When I was in the Navy, after basic training I was sent to various schools for more advanced training before I was assigned to a squadron and sent to the fleet. It is for this purpose that we are sometimes shifted from one congregation to another. Each congregation may specialize in something we need for our training, but ultimately we have a more permanent assignment that could well be the church body that we will be assigned to, possibly even for the rest of our life. Even so, we must always be ready for the Holy Spirit to place us in the body as it pleases Him. Of course, one of the biggest problems we have in the body right now is that most Christians do not have a vital local church life, and are therefore stymied in their development. A lot could be said about this, as we have in the past, but for now we will focus on those who are being mobilized, who are either in their right place for now, or are getting there. We must also keep in mind that the army is being mobilized because there is a desperate war going on. We do not know how many salvations are dependent on our obedience, but even if we are called to the most seemingly obscure helps ministry, it is likely that many souls are depending on us. How could there be such a responsibility put on us? That is the nature of the call of God. Think about the consequences of Adam’s obedience of disobedience. We may not think this is fair, that Adam did not ask to be put in a position where his actions would affect billions. However, he was given authority over the earth, and with authority comes responsibility. The clear teaching of Scripture is that what we do affects many more. The answer to this is to obey! We were not called just so we could be saved and go to heaven, but we were bought with a price, and we are no longer our own. We are soldiers, like it or not. We can reject our calling and bury the talents we have been trusted with, but if we do, we can be sure that on that great judgment day we will hear, “You wicked, lazy slave” (see Matthew 25:26). If we have embraced the cross, the atonement of the cross of Jesus, we no longer have the right to do what we want to do. We have a calling, a mission, and a purpose that no one else on this planet is equipped to do like us. We can reject our calling, and it will be given to another, as we see a pattern of this in the Scriptures, but I am sure anyone serious enough to be reading this has no intention of that. We have been enlisted in the army, and there is a desperate war going on. There is no doubt about the ultimate outcome of this war, but there is much to be decided about how we will do in the war and how the nations and people we have been called to defend or win will do. The right way to look at this is not fearfully, but as an opportunity. You could be used to set many free from their bondage, maybe even whole nations. You may not be called to the frontline of the battle, but just to stay with the baggage. However, you will receive a great reward for doing your part. Next week we are going to begin looking at some very serious, but exciting principles about the war itself. This is a part of our training. This is an army of light, and the Lord likes for everyone in His army to be marching in the light, knowing where they are going and what they will be called to do. We are going to march into battle, and we can count on there being conflicts, but we can also be sure that this will be the most fulfilling adventure we could ever be a part of.



Stace	Feb 25 2008, 10:48 PM Post #9
Administrator Posts: 3,579 Group: Admin Member #1 Joined: March 6, 2004	The Army of God Mobilizes, Part 9 One of the best and most unique characteristics about the army of God is that every private can have a close, personal relationship with the Commander-in-Chief. In fact, any private can become His very best friend. He will even share with the lowest private His ultimate strategies and plans, but even better than that, even the lowest private can come boldly into His very throne room at any time and be most welcome! That really is one of the best parts about being in God’s army. However, there is even more! There is a comradeship in the army of God that cannot be found any place else. That, too, is needed in our life—true friends. Remember, when the Lord made Adam, all Adam had for companionship was God, so God Himself said that this was not good enough, but that man needed human companionship also. In fact, the very first thing that God said was not good was loneliness: “It is not good for the man to be alone” (see Genesis 2:18). Companionship with others is crucial to our spiritual and mental health, and God seeks to give His people the very best. As I have and will reiterate often we can never be fulfilled or have peace in our lives until our relationship to God has been restored. There is nothing as fulfilling as our relationship to Him because we were created for this purpose, and nothing else can fill that void. He also created us to need each other, and there will be a void in our lives without proper human companionship. The army of God is intended to be, and will be, the ultimate human society on the earth. It is meant to be built upon the place of the family, but a family can never be all that it is called to be without also having a right relationship to God and the church. Of course, a part of our training can include being called away to be alone for a while to develop a closer relationship to God, or families being called away to be alone to get closer to God and one another. But ultimately, a vital local church relationship is essential for our maturity. This is the cord of three strands that is not easily broken (see Ecclesiastes 4:12), but in every relationship getting closer to God is essential. Now let’s look at some basic factors and strategies for our times. You may have heard the statement, “The impassioned few will control the neutral masses.” This is a historic fact. A tiny percentage of people have controlled the world for good or evil. Let’s consider this for just a moment. We have probably all witnessed a dominant five-year-old controlling a whole family, determining where they go and what they do. If we have been in the church for long, we have probably experienced small groups arising that are seeking to control the whole church and are often successful. When this happens, in a family or in a church, it establishes a very bad atmosphere in which no one is happy or at peace. These situations often, if not always, lead to a breakup of the family, church, or other organization. Right now in America and Europe, the most ungodly forces have been taking over and controlling the neutral masses. In just the last few decades, the high places that control a culture, such as education, the media, and government have almost all been taken over by forces hostile to Christianity, displacing Christians. In just a few decades, we have gone from the place where it was considered almost unthinkable in the West to belittle or attack Christianity, where it is now considered politically incorrect not to attack Christians. We are quickly crossing from what has been called “the post-Christian era” to “the anti-Christian era,” at least in the West. There are extreme groups who have been quite vocal about their agenda to destroy Christianity and are driving any remaining Christians underground. A very tiny percentage has this agenda, but because the rest of the population is so neutral, including the Christians, the agenda is easily controlled by this tiny group of anti-Christians. This is the nature of the antichrist spirit, and it has been very effective in history and in the present. It can be defeated and this whole process reversed. How? All it will take is for Christians to not be neutral or lukewarm, but to take their stand as bold, courageous, defenders of the faith that they are called to be. To be neutral or lukewarm is one of the worst things that could happen to a Christian according to Revelation 3:14-15: “The Amen, the faithful and true Witness, the Beginning of the creation of God, says this: ‘I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot; I would that you were cold or hot. ‘So because you are lukewarm, and neither hot nor cold, I will spit you out of My mouth.’” How could anyone who has met the living God, the all-consuming fire, become lukewarm about Him? The cause of this is one of the ultimate gates or openings through which hell gains access into our lives. Shutting this one gate of hell is one of the most important battles that we must fight. If we win this one, many more victories will soon follow. We must also keep in mind that cowardice is never an option for a Christian. Cowards are listed along with murderers and the other ungodly ones who will not inherit the kingdom of God. As the Lord Jesus exhorts us in Matthew 16:24-26: “If anyone wishes to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me. “For whoever wishes to save his life shall lose it; but whoever loses his life for My sake shall find it. “For what will a man be profited, if he gains the whole world, and forfeits his soul? Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul?” We have no option but to walk by faith, rejecting fear as any means of guidance in our life. If we will fight the good fight of faith, we cannot lose. If we do not want to fight this fight, we cannot win. Let’s play to win!



1 user reading this topic (1 Guest and 0 Anonymous)


« Previous Topic · Spiritual Warfare · Next Topic »

Eagleway

Are You Saved?

Resources

New Topics