“The Covering”…

Have any of us ever been told anything similar to the below?

“You need to be under the Covering of your Pastor, if you are not under the Covering then you will fall away from God and all manner of terrible things will happen to you”…

I remember at the time when my wife and I were married that we had this lie told very believably to us by a very close friend who was not involved with the church which we had attended and had been members of prior to our engagement…

It was in the week leading up to our wedding – it shook us, as prior to this, this very close friend had been very supportive to us (this very close friend remained supportive to us after our wedding – it was just a “barb” from the enemy)…

Praise the Lord that we had a very strong man in the Lord who was sent by the Lord at the time our church “deserted us” who spoke words of wisdom to us regarding this lie when I rang him for confirmation of what I sensed the Lord was telling me…

“Jesus is your Covering”, he said evenly and with love, “You don’t need a Pastor to be your covering”…

This man was himself a Pastor and was and is to this day the man that I have most seen the likeness of Jesus Christ through in the leadership role which I watched him fulfil from quite close quarters…

I am indebted to this man for his understanding as I am to the Lord for providing him to us at that time…

The Blood of Jesus – Christ our Passover has been Sacrificed – is the Covering which we need (this is, in so many words, what he told me)…

The husband is also to Cover the wife in the sense that he is to be – as Christ is to the Church – a protection for her in that he is to lay his life down for his wife in wishing all the best for her and for her to be transformed into the likenss of Christ – even above his own transformation into the likeness of Christ he is to wish this and pray this – not forcing this on his wife – for her and to live this infront of her (again, in so many words, this is what he spoke and subsequently taught me through his life)…

When our Pastor friend gave us this confirmation we were at peace…

And have remained so since with respect to this issue (12 years and counting)… 🙂

So many lies have been fed to the Church by the enemy of our souls, so many lies…

Another lie is tithing…

“You must tithe to your church otherwise God will not bless you and you will be under a curse”…

This is not applicable to New Testament believers…

Each man should give what he has decided in his heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver. (2 Corinthians 9:7 NIV)

Another lie is church membership…

We are members of the Body of Christ if we are born again, born of God…

for no one ever hated his own flesh, but nourishes and cherishes it, just as Christ also does the church, because we are members of His body. (Ephesians 5:29-30 NASB)

If we are not born again or born of God even if we are members of a church this does no good for us before a Holy God…

He needs to see the Blood over us, if He does not see the Blood over us, then our church membership will do us no good in His Sight…

We have so many other lies within the church, sown by the enemy of our souls, regarding, “If you do this, God will do this”, “If you don’t do this, God will not do this”…

False authority, false leadership, false anointings…

O God have mercy on us all – open our eyes to see the truth and to remove iniquity far from us, far from us all, give us Your Heart to see Your Ways, O Lord God the Almighty…

God is the One who appoints leaders in His Church and this is what He says through the Apostle Paul,

And God has appointed in the church, first apostles, second prophets, third teachers, then miracles, then gifts of healings, helps, administrations, various kinds of tongues. (I Corinthians 11:28 NASB)

 But what do we see in the church today?

“You must obey your Pastor”…

“You must submit to your Pastor”…

“You must honour your Pastor”…

“You must respect your Pastor”…

“You must be under your Pastor”…

“You must have a Pastor”…

But what does the Lord say?

He says that in the Church He has set first Apostles, second Prophets, third Teachers, then, then, etc…

I personally am quite happy to believe that the Lord “lumps” Pastors & Teachers under one title in Ephesians 4,

And He gave some as apostles, and some as prophets, and some as evangelists, and some as pastors and teachers, for the equipping of the saints for the work of service, to the building up of the body of Christ; until we all attain to the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a mature man, to the measure of the stature which belongs to the fullness of Christ. (Ephesians 4:11-13 NASB)

Some biblical exegetes believe this to be the case – in the original text of Ephesians 4:11 – which would make the so called “5 fold ministry” into the “4 fold ministry”…

Apostle, Prophet, Evangelist, Pastor & Teacher and if this meaning was applied to 1 Corinthians 11:28 – where the Evangelist clearly does not operate in the Church but outside of the Church to bring converts into the Church – then this would make absolute sense of this scripture and place the Pastor & Teacher at “number 3” in the “pecking order” – in terms of God’s Divine Authority Structure – in the Church – the Church of the Living God…

But where are the Apostles and Prophets?

Ephesians 4:13 tells us that they will be around “until we all attain…” – have we already all attained?

I do not believe that we have…

So should they still be around?

Yes, I believe that they should…

But where are they?

I believe, sadly, for the most part that they have been “kicked out” of the church (or stifled) by those spirits who do not want them to be there – they are, for the most part, I believe, right now living in “the wilderness” being prepared by the Lord for the coming move of God…

Who would want to kick these ones out?

Which spirit would want to do this?

Who is it who now appears to be “lord” of the church?

The Pastor…

Is this God’s Order?

Not even the Pastor & Teacher – it appears to just be the Pastor…

The Apostles are required to submit to the Pastor…

The Prophets are required to submit to the Pastor…

The Evangelists – even though they are not even “in the Church” – are also required to submit to the Pastor…

The Pastor in turn is not required to submit to the Evangelist or to the Prophet or to the Apostle but submits only to himself (or herself)…

If this occurs then it is a complete reversal of biblical Authority…

Which spirit would want this to occur?

The Spirit of God?

Or the spirit of antichrist?

If this is the case and we find ourselves in a church where this is in operation what should we do?

Should we remain in that church paying our unbiblical tithes to support a system which is antichrist?

Is this pleasing to God?

No, I do not believe that it is…

What are we to do?

I believe, as the Lord leads, that we are to leave and that we are to forsake the ungodly system in our hearts…

Feeling no bitterness towards our brothers and sisters in the Lord and feeling no bitterness towards those who do not know Him who are involved in these ungodly systems, we are to forsake the ungodly system and wait upon the Lord for Him to re-establish the True New Testament Church in our midst…

Which He will do…

In His time…

If He subsequently calls us to go back into that system, that ungodly system, to “save some” then it will be as “cleansed ambassadors” for His Kingdom and not as “submissive servants” to the spirits which operate in – blinding the eyes of those within – and control those systems…

If He called us, it would be going back in “under Him”…

Let’s join together in seeking the Lord for the re-establishment of the True New Testament Church – if a candlestick has been removed by the Holy Spirit or wasn’t even established by the Holy Spirit then we should not be there – if a Candlestick has been placed by the Holy Spirit and not yet removed then we should fight in the Spirit for it to be restored…

The signs of an Apostle are the following according to scripture,

The signs of a true apostle were performed among you with all perseverance, by signs and wonders and miracles. (2 Corinthians 12:12 NASB)

Paul performed signs (true signs), wonders (true wonders) and miracles (true miracles)…

Apart from this and more importantly than this he could say, “Imitate me as I imitate Christ” – his life was a fragrance of Christ…

For we are a fragrance of Christ to God among those who are being saved and among those who are perishing; (2 Corinthians 2:15 NASB)

He was the “real deal”…

He appointed leaders who were the “real deal”…

And it is with respect to these leaders that the writer to the Hebrews wrote,

Obey your leaders and submit to them, for they keep watch over your souls as those who will give an account. Let them do this with joy and not with grief, for this would be unprofitable for you. (Hebrews 13:17 NASB)

Imitate me as I imitate Christ…

Apart from such external things, there is the daily pressure on me of concern for all the churches. (2 Corinthians 11:28 NASB)

For this reason I bow my knees before the Father, from whom every family in heaven and on earth derives its name, that He would grant you, according to the riches of His glory, to be strengthened with power through His Spirit in the inner man, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith; and that you, being rooted and grounded in love, may be able to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth, and to know the love of Christ which surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled up to all the fullness of God. Now to Him who is able to do far more abundantly beyond all that we ask or think, according to the power that works within us, to Him be the glory in the church and in Christ Jesus to all generations forever and ever. Amen. (Ephesians 3:14-21 NASB)

Therefore He is able also to save forever those who draw near to God through Him, since He always lives to make intercession for them. (Hebrews 7:25 NASB)

God has appointed in the Church, first Apostles…

If we find ourselves in a Church where there is an Apostle who has submitted all to the Lord, given up all their “worldly wealth”, does not require any tithes or offerings or “free will” offerings from the “congregation” but who instead works “night and day” with their hands (or allows the Lord to provide for their needs Supernaturally – as Rees Howells & George Muller did) so that they won’t be a burden to anyone and who is performing, true signs, true wonders and true miracles and is also proclaiming Jesus Christ as Lord – as the Apostle Paul did – and “night and day” who is investing themselves in the lives of those whom they are training – to imitate me as I imitate Christ – and showing them the way practically and living with them having all things in common with them – someone who is devoted to prayer never ceasing in it in the Holy Spirit – if we find ourselves in such a Church where this is occurring then we have a biblical mandate to submit ourselves to such an Apostle and to any Prophets or Pastors & Teachers who are operating under such an Apostle as the Lord leads us…

What if the church we are in does not (or if none of the churches in our city) have such an Apostle?

Then we have a biblical mandate to pray – as the 120 did in the Upper Room – for the Holy Spirit to come and Clothe the believers in our city with Power from on High…

And we have a biblical mandate to do this until He comes and does just that…

This is where Revival commences from…

This is where is is birthed…

Through desperation for “the real thing”…

Where we cannot live and we will not live with anything other than “the real thing”…

Where we will not be hypocrites…

Where we will not “play the game”…

Where we will live for the Lord or we will die trying…

Where we will not accept the “status quo”…

Where we will give ourselves to pray – even if we die in the attempt and we will allow our lives to be poured out like a drink offering on the sacrifice and service of the faith of the Saints…

But we will not die in the attempt for He will come to us… 🙂

Where we will not surrender…

Where we will die trying…

This is true travail and this will move the Heart of God…

Thank You Jesus… 🙂

He will bring Revival when we cry to Him with our whole hearts…

Nothing less…

Nothing more…

He will meet us in this place and give us what we so desire…

Thank You Jesus…

Praise His Holy Name…

Thank You Jesus, Thank You Father, Thank You Holy Spirit…

Glorify Your Name in all the earth…

Let the Fire of Your Holy Presence burn brightly throughout the entire earth in the Mighty Name of Jesus, Thank You Lord, Thank You Father, Thank You Jesus, Thank You Holy Spirit…

Give us this desire Father – to travail before You – and let none of us faint as we wait before You to bring Revival to this earth in the Mighty Name of Jesus, So let it be, Come Lord Jesus and Breathe on these slain that they may come to life an exceedingly Great and Vast Army for Your Glory in the Mighty Name of Jesus, Amen and Amen…

Come Lord Jesus and take Your Place in Your Church and let Your Name be Glorified above all others in the Mighty Name of Jesus…

Reign King Jesus Reign…