Friday, April 17, 2015

A Generation of Simon the Sorcerers HAS risen

A Generation of Simon the Sorcerers Is Rising

http://www.charismamag.com/spirit/prophecy/22844-a-generation-of-simon-the-sorcerers-is-rising
JEREMIAH JOHNSON

Are we empowering illegitimate authority in the body of Christ?
Are we empowering illegitimate authority in the body of Christ? (Lightstock)
I see more of a hunger in the prophetic movement to obtain power than to walk in intimacy. I see more of a desire to live under the anointing than to demonstrate Christlike character. I see more of an appetite to publicly prophesy over thousands than to privately pray to the Father in heaven. I see more of an obsession to chase after someone else's prophetic mantle than to giving our time to discovering our own unique divine design given by the Father alone. I see more of an urge to chase gold dust, feathers and angels than to encounter the person of Jesus Christ.
All of these pursuits lead to one terrifying end: The rise of a generation of "Simon the Sorcerers" who are currently operating in illegitimate authority!
These individuals carry an appearance of walking in deep relationship with Jesus, but in reality, they are collateral damage to the body of Christ. These men and women are dangerous, their motives are impure, and what they primarily pursue and emphasize causes them to live in continual dysfunction. One of the main reasons the prophetic movement is headed for shipwreck is because we are continuing to honor and give individuals positions of authority that have quit on intimacy. These prophetic individuals consistently tear down with their character what they have built with their gifting.
The Story of Simon 
The account of Simon the Sorcerer is told in Acts 8:9, when it says, "Now a man named Simon was previously in the city practicing sorcery and astonishing the nation of Samaria, saying he was someone great, to whom they all listened, from the least to the greatest, saying, 'This man is the great power of God.' They listened to him, because for a long time he had astonished them by his sorceries."    
Phillip began preaching the good news of the kingdom in Samaria and many men and women were baptized. Even Simon the Sorcerer himself believed and was baptized and immediately started following Phillip because he was amazed at the miracles taking place. When Peter and John heard that Samaria was receiving the word of God, they came down and began to pray that people might receive the Holy Spirit. Laying hands on the new believers, many of them began to be filled and touched by God.
In Acts 8:18-24 it says: "When Simon saw that through the laying on of the apostles' hands the Holy Spirit was given, he offered them money, saying, 'Give me also this power, that whomever I lay hands on may receive the Holy Spirit.' Peter said to him, 'May your money perish with you, because you thought you could purchase the gift of God with money! You have neither part nor share in this matter, for your heart is not right before God. Therefore repent of your wickedness, and ask God if perhaps the intention of your heart may be forgiven you. For I see that you are in the gall of bitterness and in the bond of iniquity.' Then Simon answered, 'Pray to the Lord for me that nothing you have spoken may come upon me.'"
One of the keys to understanding the deception Simon the Sorcerer lived in is to identify what he hungered for. He said to Peter and John, "Give this authority to me as well." Simon's desire for a position of influence and attention was the driving force behind his request to have the apostles lay hands on him. He was quickly becoming addicted to ministry and it was becoming an idol in his life.
When this deadly deception overtakes an individual, destruction is right around the corner. Simon was not interested in deep union with Jesus. He was only interested in the miracle-working power of Jesus. All activity in the kingdom of God that is not born out of intimacy is unauthorized by heaven!
Peter and John had not only walked with Jesus, but as the crowds noted in Acts 4:13 as the lame crippled beggar had been healed, "they had been with Jesus." Peter and John had waited in the Upper Room to be filled with power from on high, but Simon the Sorcerer was looking for a quick impartation to launch him into ministry.
Peter responds to Simon's request and says, " May your silver perish with you because you thought you could obtain the gift of God with money!" In other words, Simon wanted authority and power so badly that he was willing to use soulish means to obtain them. Peter continues and says, "You have no part or portion in this matter, for your heart is not right before God. Therefore, repent of this wickedness of yours, and pray the Lord if possible, the intention of your heart may be forgiven you."
I see thousands of Christian young adults in America who, like Simon the Sorcerer, are hungry for the supernatural and are therefore looking for an impartation, prayer or touch from a well-known leader in the body of Christ to launch them into their ministry. Rather than seeking intimacy with Jesus Christ and walking in true legitimate kingdom authority like Peter and John, many, just like Simon, are seeking a drive-thru experience because they are hungry for authority, but aren't willing to obtain it legally through intimacy.
Empowering Illegitimate Authority       
We who are prophets and leaders have placed so much emphasis on activation and impartation in our prophetic and supernatural schools in America, and so little time connecting people to the character and nature of God and what Jesus is really like, that we ourselves have blessed and commissioned a generation of Simon the Sorcerers who are operating in illegitimate authority in the body of Christ.
Because intimacy and deep union with Jesus Christ are no longer a focus in the prophetic movement, our horrendous levels of discernment have built stages for these Simon the Sorcerers and given them platforms. We have been incredibly gullible as leaders and therefore produced extremely gullible prophetic people.
Peter told Simon the Sorcerer that his heart was not right before God. I believe Simon's desires for power and authority were not only not pleasing to God, but I believe deep within Simon's heart was an impure motive to have the apostles' hands laid on him: He was full of jealousy!
The Spirit of Jealousy
We are witnessing a mass production of parrots, echoes and mimics in the prophetic and supernatural movements in America. Too many prophetic people are forfeiting authenticity and originality for formulas and models, even in the supernatural. A large portion of immature and young prophetic people are worshipping well known names in the body of Christ and are hungry for them to have hands laid on them by these individuals. Simon the Sorcerers are signing up for their conferences, their ministry schools and their meetings. The motive behind this crazy frenzy is not a love for Jesus, but a jealousy of others possessing what we do not carry and a total disregard for the need for deep union with Jesus.
I believe that the fuel behind this rapidly growing movement is the spirit of jealousy cloaked in a desire for impartation and activation. Simon did not want the Holy Spirit and power from a pure heart that can only be found in those who spend time with Jesus. He was jealous of the power and authority that Peter and John walked in out of an insecure and wicked heart.
Deep Union
The new prophetic generation rising in the earth will walk in legitimate authority because of their deep union with Jesus Christ and central pursuit of His character and nature. They have been trained and raised up by prophetic fathers and mothers who saw and understood early on that God was more interested in changing them than using them. This new prophetic generation is not obsessed by or enamored of another's mantle or gifting, but simply enthralled by the invitation to come sit at the feet of Jesus.
The Coming Distinction
There is a divine confrontation quickly approaching the prophetic movement. I see a collision between a breed of Simon the Sorcerers who are going to be exposed for the illegitimate authority that they walk in and a new prophetic generation who walk in true kingdom authority birthed out of intimacy. Beware of these Simon the Sorcerers. They are addicted to ministry and crave the power and anointing of God from an impure heart of jealousy and a selfish desire to be famous.
Instead of carrying a living and active spirit of revelation, Simon the Sorcerer types have to borrow revelation because they have no prayer life. Simon told Peter and John in verse 24, "Pray to the Lord for me yourselves, so that nothing of what you have said may come upon me." The greatest distinction between this breed of Simon the Sorcerers and the new prophetic generation rising in the earth will be deep intimacy with Jesus that can only be birthed through deep intercession and travail. Simon the Sorcerers are looking to get launched into ministry by another's touch, but the new prophetic generation is looking to grow in humility under heaven's touch. This can only be accomplished through prayer, fasting and time in the secret place where private battles are won.

A New Prophetic Generation Is Rising

Editor's Note: This the second part in a series. For part one, click here: A Generation of Simon the Sorcerers Rising.
I was in the Garden of Gethsemane while visiting Israel last May and as I was deep in prayer and meditation, the Holy Spirit spoke to me and said, "If you do not deal with your flesh privately, your flesh will deal with you publicly. This is what has happened to many prophets that have gone before you."
I believe God the Father is raising up a new prophetic generation that is going to seek to put to death every idea in people's minds regarding words that are associated with prophets and the prophetic movement. I see strategic days in the body of Christ that are quickly approaching where synonyms for a new prophetic generation that carries the glory and anointing of God will be: holy, uncompromised, righteous, loving their spouse as Christ loved the church, above reproach, not lovers of money and—most of all—radically given over to character transformation.
One of the most grievous sins of the prophetic movement in the past has been the acceptance of powerful gifting and huge moral flaws as a packaged deal. We have been deceived into believing that we cannot walk in the anointing of the Holy Spirit and the power of God without having huge character issues that must be addressed. This type of thinking does not reflect the ministry of Jesus Christ in any way.
How many more Christian leaders are going to use the example of David and Bathsheba as to why their affair is OK? Do we realize that the Bible is full of flawed individuals to show us how much we really need Jesus, the model of perfection, instead of using the sin of a Bible character to excuse our sin? The new prophetic generation is going to fix its eyes upon Jesus and His sinless life and example like no other generation before them. They will define success in the prophetic ministry not based on how accurately they can prophesy or how many dreams and visions they've had, but on how well they are submitting to being conformed to the image and likeness of Jesus Christ.
The new prophetic generation will be taught by a new breed of prophets who will accurately instruct them in the revelation that God is more interested in changing them than using them. Some of the most prophetically gifted individuals that I personally know are also some of the most emotionally unstable people that I know. These men and women have been wounded by numerous leaders and family members and are convinced that God is more interested in opening up ministry doors for them than leading them to the foot of the cross to find inner healing and deliverance.
Holy Father
There is a direct connection between our revelation of who God is and its immediate application in our lives. In other words, people operate their lives according to their revelation of who God is. Much of the immorality and sin that we are currently witnessing and have witnessed in the prophetic movement is directly connected to a misunderstanding and oftentimes distorted perception of who God is. Many are currently voicing a revelation of God being "Father" that somehow now excuses their sin, rather than confronting it in love. Connecting the revelation of "Yahweh" in the Old Testament and "Father" in the New Testament has proven to be a very difficult task for this current prophetic culture.
In the midst of the confusion of who God is in the 21st century and its direct effect upon the lives of people, Jesus Christ Himself gave us revelation and insight into who God really is in John 17:11 as He said, "Holy Father, keep them in your name which you have given me, that they may be one, even as We are" (ESV). We must understand as the new prophetic generation that God is not just "Holy," nor is He just "Father." He indeed must be embraced, received and related to as "Holy Father."
As our Holy Father, He invites us into a love relationship where He tenderly and affectionately affirms and speaks destiny over our lives. But make no mistake about this: He is also the same God who will remove everything in our lives that hinders His love because He is Holy. I warn you, beware of false prophets in the earth who are divorcing the "Holy Father." He is not one or the other, He is both/and.
Hallowed Be Thy Name
I believe the very reason why the greatest need in the prophetic movement right now is to embrace every aspect of God's character and nature is because it is directly affecting the moral decisions that prophetic people and the body of Christ are making. Paul appealed to the believers at Ephesus in Ephesians 5:1 and said, "Therefore be imitators (mimics) of God, as beloved children" (parenthesis added). Why? Because what we behold, we will imitate. In other words, the lifestyle choices of prophetic people are a direct reflection of their revelation of who God is.
The prayer that Jesus prayed in Matthew 6:9-15 has completely changed much of the current church culture. "On earth as it is in heaven" has become an affectionate tag line for much of the charismatic/Pentecostal movement. While I exceedingly rejoice in this pursuit to see heaven invade earth as revealed in Matthew 6:10, I wonder why verse 9 is never included with verse 10, and for the large part, completely ignored by many?
In verse 9, Jesus begins to pray and says, "Our Father who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name" (ASV). Then in verse 10 it says, "Your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven" (ESV). I firmly believe that verse 10, which has so radically impacted this current generation, completely hinges upon verse 9 taking place! What is Jesus saying when He prays to the Father and says, "Hallowed be thy name"? A paraphrased translation would be: "God, make your name Holy."

    It is only when God makes His name Holy among His people that His kingdom will truly come and His will be done on earth as it is in heaven. We have a generation crying out for the kingdom of God to come, but where are the prophetic voices crying out to God, asking that He would make His name Holy first?
    God's Name Is Being Defiled
    Is it not strange that Jesus begins teaching the disciples to pray by telling them to ask God to make His name holy? We might casually or flippantly say, "Well, God is holy. That's like telling a desk to become solid or fire to become hot. Why bother?" The answer lies in the fact that God is the most holy reality there is, but still His name can be and is being defiled in America.
    Ezekiel 36:20-23 addresses this very issue as the word of the Lord came to Ezekiel and he prophesied and said,
    "When they came to the nations where they went, they profaned My holy name, because it was said of them, 'These are the people of the Lord; yet they have come out of His land.' But I had concern for My holy name, which the house of Israel had profaned among the nations where they went. Therefore say to the house of Israel, 'Thus says the Lord God, "It is not for your sake, O house of Israel, that I am about to act, but for My holy name, which you have profaned among the nations where you went. I will vindicate the holiness of My great name which has been profaned among the nations, which you have profaned in their midst. Then the nations will know that I am the Lord," declares the Lord God, "when I prove Myself holy among you in their sight"'" (NASB).
    God Is Jealous for His Name
    It is absolute foolishness and unbiblical to believe that God is not concerned about His name and how it is being distorted by numerous prophets and teachers in the earth. Why is God so concerned about His reputation and how people see Him? Once again, because it directly affects the way people live! A distorted revelation and interpretation of who God is among the prophetic movement in the earth is directly poisoning the word of the Lord in America.
    The new prophetic generation being birthed in the earth is going to cry out for God to make His name Holy once again. These messengers are going to give their lives to seeing His name restored because they understand that it is the secret to holy and righteous living. When we behold a Holy and Righteous Father, we order our lives accordingly.
    Encounters Like Isaiah
    No one can make God's name Holy except God. In asking God to make His name holy, we are asking Him to do something only He can do. Why then did Jesus ask us to pray in this way? I believe it is because when God makes His name holy, there is only one right response from a generation, namely, to therefore live and be holy.
    In Isaiah 6, Isaiah describes an incredible encounter where he sees the Lord sitting upon the throne and the train of His robe filling the temple. In verse 3 he says the Seraphim cry out to one another and say, "Holy, Holy, Holy is the Lord of hosts, the whole earth is full of His glory." The temple shook and Isaiah cried out and said, "Woe is me, for I am ruined! Because I am a man of unclean lips, and I live among a people of unclean lips; for my eyes have seen the King, the Lord of hosts" (v. 5).
    The new prophetic generation is going to be marked with encounters like Isaiah. They will be the burning ones released to the American church who will cry out to God, asking Him to make His name holy, and when He does, it will release encounters with the holiness of God like no other generation has experienced in history. I believe God is about to redeem His name in America like never before and He is going to do it through the new prophetic generation that embraces every aspect of His character and nature.
    Mark my words, the kingdom of God will never become fully manifested in America unless we begin to cry out for Him to come and make His Name Holy once again. Jesus Christ fully understood this and that is why He taught His disciples to pray in Matthew 6 and why He referred to the Father in John 17 as "Holy Father" and "Righteous Father" (17:11; 17:25).

    One of the Most Confusing Elements of the Prophetic Movement


    Want to know more about the next great move of God and an appeal to heaven for spiritual awakening? Click here to see Jennifer LeClaire's new book, featuring Dutch Sheets, Reinhard Bonnke, Jonathan Cahn, Billy Graham and others.
    Jeremiah Johnson is the servant leader of Heart of the Father Ministry in Lakeland, Florida. A gifted teacher, book author, and prophetic minister, Jeremiah travels extensively throughout the United States and abroad as a conference and guest speaker. Jeremiah and his wife, Morgan, reside in Florida with their two children: Bella Grace and Israel David. Visit Jeremiah online at www.hotfmlakeland.com or Unknown Dreamer Ministries.

    Wednesday, November 19, 2014

    Command performance

    SheepTrax (Bryan Hupperts)

    Command Performance

    The invitations, laid in gold leaf, were sent out announcing a command performance in the great theater. God himself would be attending. The people were excited as they returned their RSVPs.

    All came at the appointed time to witness this great performance.
    The program bill proclaimed that two choral symphonies would be performed. Chilled in the air conditioning, all sat in anticipation of seeing God as they waited for the performance to begin. A special seating box, high above the audience, was marked Reserved and many whispered that must be where God would be seated.

    The house lights dimmed to black and a spotlight beamed down center stage at a lone mic stand. An unknown man stepped out of the shadows and announced, “There will be a delay.” And he turned his back to the audience and walked back behind the curtain. The house lights went abruptly up leaving the throngs of people staring at each other.

    At first, most sat in reverent silence waiting patiently for the arrival of God and for the two choral symphonies but, as the evening wore on, the air conditioning quit and the room was getting hot and stuffy. As the temperature climbed, tempers began to flare.

    “Com’on. There is no sign of God or his choir. Where is the promise of his appearing?” some asked. Others, seeing people in the audience with whom they had long running, unresolved disputes, began to stir the waters of resentment telling their tales of woe until they were exaggerated beyond recognition with accusations running like wildfire, the destructive flames fanned along by willing, wagging tongues.

    Others sat sweltering in resentment dressed in their finest, seething that they had dressed for the event and now had to wait, and for what? Couldn’t God have fixed the air conditioning? Didn’t he see this coming? And where was the so-called choir? Did God even have a clue how badly they were being inconvenienced?

    Amid the clanging cacophony, amid the darkness and din, and the Babel of crescendoing voices, a different sound was heard. There were a few who feared the Lord who began to say to one another, “We don’t understand the delay either but, while we’re here, let’s worship God anyway.” Despite their discomforts, they praised Him.

    As for the rest, the greater number in the vast audience began to divide along racial, political, and economic lines. Someone had to do something! Manipulators, adept at creating an “Us vs. Them” mentality, arose to draw men after themselves, exploiting the general discontent. Open warfare soon began. Kidnappings were common as seating groups would conspire together to “save” souls from other seating sections from their obvious deceptions, to get them into the “true work” of God.

    The theater management issued a call for help. The audience was immense and, because of the delay, would anyone volunteer to help pass out food and water? Many of the quiet worshipers left their seats, and, in spite of the heat, donned the black jackets of servants and began to wait on others, passing out food and drink. While some received it with genuine gratitude, most murmured and complained. It was either too this or not that enough; whatever the complaint, it was not up to their standards.

    The theater seemed ready to tear itself apart. Angry voices were rising; tempers flaring, while the few faithful worshipers still tried to encourage any who would listen that God was yet in control even if they had to take that statement on raw faith. They defended the name of Him who was Faithful and True while others openly scoffed.

    Suddenly, a cool breeze blew through the packed house. The house lights dimmed as a sigh of relief went through the crowd. In the blackness a lone spotlight again shone about the mic stand. The unknown man again stepped up to the microphone and announced, “The performance is now ended. Good night.”

    He again turned his back to the audience, walking towards the curtain as stunned audience members jumped to their feet in fury, demanding an explanation. Where was God in this so-called command performance? What about the two promised choral symphonies?

    The man turned to face the crowd, and, after pausing for a long moment as if listening to an unseen Friend, motioned for silence.
    He said, “You do not understand. Two choral symphonies were played out here tonight but you were the performers, not the audience. God himself was the audience and out of the abundance of your mouths, whether it was sweet worship or bitter complaint, you each sang to Almighty God what was truly in your heart. And those appointed to write in God’s Book of Remembrance recorded every word.”

    With which of the two choral symphonies playing in the world do you willingly blend your voice? There is a Command Performance being played out with every word we speak.

    Bryan Hupperts (c) 2000 - 2014
    SheepTrax on Facebook

    Friday, January 17, 2014

    Aglow Notes 1.16.14

    Chuck Norris
    Resolutions
    Failure--Personal
    Failure--Of Idols
    Failure--Of the Church
    We should know God loves Us
    We should know Our Identity in Christ
    Make this a year that....
    .........................................................
    CHUCK NORRIS posted on Facebook on 1/15/14 that 95% people have already broken their 2014 resolutions.
    RESOLUTIONS--put us into bondage of improving ourselves. World sys we are failures and we need resolutions to get better and to clim to God. Even in the church--Memorizing scripture, etc.

    FAILURE--PERSONAL

    the shame ... my self-righteousness.It happens without notice. It's the air we breathe and the food we eat. It's the incessant need to compare ourselves to others. We need to be the best we can be, or at least to measure ourselves against someone who is struggling to make sure we aren't failing too badly.

    It's my brokenness, my mess, and all of my failures that continues to draw me into the arms of Jesus. It is by the grace of Jesus Christ that I see the silliness of the idea of failure  and that whatever I am stressing about failing about is just a little blip in MY well-programmed system. The truth is that MY system is broken, badly. And I am in great need of outside intervention. I am in need of Someone who can do for me what I cannot do for myself. Christ has taken my sin, failures, and the weaknesses that beset me, and he's redeemed me at the cost of his own life.

    Big and small, every failure, culminates in the failure of all failures.the crucifying of the Lord of glory. The tragic event that happened on Calvary 2,000 years ago was because of your failure and my failure. It was the most epic fail of all mankind. The necessity of the crucifixion of the perfect Son of God exposed us all for the failures that we are. No one is righteous in God's sight-no not one.

    When we understand that the cross was about us and our sin and our failure, we see that there is nowhere left to hide. We no longer have to fear exposure. The cross said it all. And as the hymn says, "Jesus paid it all," so we can stop pretending that we really aren't that bad. We can start loving the people around us because we know that we really are that bad and so are they. The shame and the masks and the walls. they all come to a blinding halt. The beauty of the cross is that we no longer have to use fig leaves to cover our shame at our failures.

    Apply the gospel to the mundane daily life. The little choices become big paths. Raindrop by raindrop, the mighty rivers are filled.

    If our identity is in our work, rather than Christ, success will go to our heads, and failure will go to our hearts. Paul spoke aout his many successes (Phil 3:4) and how he counted them all as loss.

    Two things we want so desperately, glory (worth, search for significance) and relationship, can coexist only in God.

    ...............................

    FAILURE--OF IDOLS

    Idols--Humanism, self, food, music, gym, sports, other religions, etc.

    "When people say, "I know God forgives me, but I can't forgive myself," they mean that they have failed an idol, whose approval is more important than God's."― Timothy Keller, Counterfeit Gods: The Empty Promises of Money, Sex, and Power, and the Only Hope that Matters
    "Have you heard God's blessing in your inmost being? Are the words, "You are my beloved child, in whom I delight" an endless source of joy and strength? Have you sensed, through the Holy Spirit, God speaking to you? That blessing- the blessing through the Spirit that is ours through Christ- is what Jacob received and it is the only remedy against idolatry. Only that blessing makes idols unnecessary. As with Jacob, we usually discover this only after a life of "looking for blessings in all the wrong places." It often takes an experience of crippling weakness for us to finally discover it. That is why so many of the most God-blessed people limp as they dance for joy."
    God cares and He cares about us, what we do and who we are. He has made a plan for you and for me in His great foreknowledge all teh way from the beginning of time. (ex: Father's Love Letter, also in other languages)  
    If we don't realize the love of God, we cannot by filled with His fullness and walk in the fullness (abundant life) He has for us. We desperately need to know His deep love for us. If the church didn't fail us and satan didn't lie to us, then we would know our identities.
    HE SAYS, therefore WE ARE
    WE think HE says, therefore we think we are.
    Disconnected from the WORD!
    God speaks to who He has created us as. Gideon (Judges 6:12) was cowering in the basement, hiding from his enemies, when the Angel of the Lord appeared to him and said to him "Might man of valor! The Lord is with you!"



    "Our need for worth is so powerful that whatever we base our identity and value on we essentially 'deify.' We will look to it with all the passion and intensity of worship and devotion, even if we think ourselves as highly irreligious. " ― Timothy Keller

    ............................
    FAILURE--CHURCH
    The world is watching. Millenials leaving the church in droves. Is that all that there is? Then let's keep dancing. Our problems can't be fixed by us.

    To-do lists, rather than My Yoke is easy & my burden is light (Matt 11:30). Life coaches, my best life NOW. Immediate gratification. Lightshows & performances rather than worship. Cultural Christianity, Christian celebrities rather than lifting up Jesus. Disconnected from teh Word.

    The targets of some of the parables are not "wayward sinners" but religious people who do everything the Bible requires. Jesus is pleading not so much with immoral outsiders as with moral insiders. He wants to show them their blindness, narrowness, and self-righteousness, and how these things are destroying both their own souls and the lives of the people around them.

    If Jesus rose from the dead, then you have to accept all that he said; if he didn't rise from the dead, then why worry about any of what he said? The issue on which everything hangs is not whether or not you like his teaching but whether or not he rose from the dead." ― Timothy Keller, The Reason for God: Belief in an Age of Skepticism. You can't pick & choose what you want to believe!

    The basic premise of religion-that if you live a good life, things will go well for you-is wrong. Jesus was the most morally upright person who ever lived, yet he had a life filled with the experience of poverty, rejection, injustice, and even torture.

    The gods of moralistic religions favor the successful and the overachievers. They are the ones who climb the moral ladder up to heaven. But the God of the Bible is the one who comes down into this world to accomplish a salvation and give us a grace we could never attain ourselves.

    "I asked her what was so scary about unmerited free grace? She replied something like this: "If I was saved by my good works -- then there would be a limit to what God could ask of me or put me through. I would be like a taxpayer with rights. I would have done my duty and now I would deserve a certain quality of life. But if it is really true that I am a sinner saved by sheer grace -- at God's infinite cost -- then there's nothing he cannot ask of me."--Tim Keller

    If you try to add to God's salvation you subtract. If you try to add to God's salvation you subtract. If you try to merit God's salvation you haven't believed at all, even if you try to do a little bit.

    When we get a good gift, we think we have to give one back, an obligation. Repaying the gift becomes a burden. Works!  Little children (Matt 19:14 & Luke 10:21) are just happy to have the gift.

    If we say, 'I believe in Jesus,' but it doesn't affect the way we live, the answer is not that now we need to add hard work to our faith so much as that we haven't truly understood or believed in Jesus at all.

    Self righteousness--all OUR righteousness is as filthy rags. Isaiah 64:6

    Identification with occupations, politics, sexual identity, sins, and identification with causes and diseases rather than with Christ. Even among Christians. Denominations held higher than Jesus! We are the Bride, the Body. Identification should be with Jesus First!

    God Says IT IS FINISHED John 19:30 on the Cross. Mark 14:14 to his disciples, it is enough. At the End, Rev. 21:6

    All scripture inspired by God 2 Tim 3:16. (Ruach?) Inspiration/expiraton needed for life, the very air we breathe. Nothing nonessential in the Bible. All scripture is for today. Don't give the devil a foothold for unbelief by listening to someone who says a section of scripture was only for that time.

    When we don't realize who we are in Christ, our faith will be crippled. If you don't feel worthy to exercise your authority in Christ, then you won't be doing it in the fullness of faith and will lack assurance. Satan works diligently to program people's minds to feel unworthy and unable to walk in power of God here on earth. This is one of the most popular strongholds in existence today in the body of Christ! The truth is that we, by our own power and effort, are unworthy, but it is the Blood of Christ that makes us worthy. And if we say we are unworthy when the Blood says we are, then we are denying the work that Christ did for us on the cross!

    ..........................
    Freedom From Fear!
    by Chip Brogden
    "There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear. For fear has to do with punishment, and whoever fears has not been perfected in love" (I Jn. 4:18, ESV).
    Most of our fears are a consequence of not knowing God well enough. Fear comes from uncertainty. If we are confident, secure, and certain about who we are in Christ, and who Christ is in us, then we won't be worried about what the devil might do, and we won't be worried about what other people might do.

    ALSO: Most of our sins come from either not believing in God's sovereignity (who He says He is) or His provision (what He says His will do)

    "Your private prayer life is one of the key indicators that your Christianity is inner and true and not just the product of your environment."
    "Out of weakness comes real strength. Out of repentance and admitting you are weak comes real power. Out of giving away and serving others comes real strength. Out of generosity and giving your money away comes real wealth."

    Galatians 2:20, "I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God
    .............. 

    GOD LOVES US:
    ............... 

    Believer's Identity in Christ
    Romans 3:24     We are justified (declared "not guilty" of sin)
    Romans 8:1        We await no condemnation
    Romans 8:2        We are set free from the law of sin and death
    1 Cor. 1:2             We are sanctified and made acceptable in Christ
    1 Cor. 1:30          We are righteous and holy in Christ
    1 Cor. 15:22        We will be made alive at the resurrection
    2 Cor. 5:17          We are new creations
    2 Cor. 5:21          We receive God's righteousness
    Gal. 3:28              We are one in Christ with all other believers
    Eph. 1:3                We are blessed with every spiritual blessing in Christ
    Eph. 1:4                We are holy, blameless and covered with God's love
    Eph. 1:5-6            We are adopted as God's children
    Eph. 1:7                We are forgiven - our sins are taken away
    Eph. 1:10-11       We will be brought under Christ's headship
    Eph. 1:13              We are marked as belonging to God by the Holy Spirit
    Eph. 2:6                We have been raised up to sit with Christ in glory
    Eph. 2:10             We are God's work of art
    Eph. 2:13             We have been brought near to God        
    Eph. 3:6               We share in the promise of Christ
    Eph. 3:12             We can come with freedom and confidence into God's presence
    Eph. 3:29-30     We are members of Christ's body, the church
    Col. 2:10              We have been given fullness in Christ
    Col. 2:11               We are set free from our sinful nature
    2 Tim. 2:10          We will have eternal glory

    For many years, I called myself a Christian, but I didn't have a relationship with God. I still went to church every Sunday, and I was a "good" kid. But I did not put my identity in Christ. Instead, I created my identity based on who my friends were, what activities I was involved in, and what I looked like. (How many testimonies begin like this??)

    This is one elementary subject that most Christians still don't fully understand, and it is a powerful key to spiritual breakthrough! Don't believe something because some pastor tells you so--Be a BEREAN. Look these things up in the Word of God for yourself and know the truth. For Jesus said clearly that if we continue in His Word, we will know the truth and the truth will set us free! John 8:32, "And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free."

    Satan loves the Church too. It's his favorite playground. He is the father of lies (John 8:44).

    The opposite of truth is deception or false beliefs... and will cause you to live in bondage unnecessarily. This subject is no exception. If you see yourself as a failure, you will not be able to boldly exercise your authority in Christ because you will feel unworthy (even after the Blood of Christ has made you worthy). If you claim to be unworthy after the Blood of Christ has made you worthy, then you are denying the work of Christ in your life (and your feelings become your idol! We walk by faith & not by sight 2Cor 5:7)

    You are loved by God, not because of what you've done, but because of who you are. The Bible tells us that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. He longed to have a relationship with you even before you became His child! 
    ..............................
    "MAKE THIS A YEAR WHERE...
    ...We are not trying to fix ourselves but we are looking at the One who has already fixed us
    ...We don't need new resolutions but we look to the One who has made the Great Resolve
    ...We look to Christ and not to ourselves to accomplish the work we can never accomplish ourselves"
     (Duane Mellor, 1/5/14 service)
    And make this a year we thank Christ for our identity found only in Him.