AMBASSADORS

[SW092] 05/19/2013 message notes by Rev. Susan J. Wynn ©2013
“Ambassadors”

My heart is opened wide to you, O church and O world! Open wide to me also, and hear Christ’s heart, for I am His ambassador!

Ambassador – an accredited diplomat sent by a country as its official representative to a foreign country; a person who acts as a representative or promoter of a specified activity.

The Lord has made me — and He wants all His children to be — His ambassadors.

What is the heart of Christ’s ambassadors, official representatives of the kingdom of God?

2 Corinthians 5:9 Therefore we also have as our ambition, whether at home or absent, to be  pleasing to Him.  10 For we must all appear before  the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one may be recompensed for  his deeds in the body, according to what he has done, whether good or bad. 11a Therefore, knowing the fear of the Lord [5401, respect and reverence and awe toward the Lord], we persuade men . . .” [we convince them, we assure them of God’s truth, we act as a mediator for them].

We know that we will appear before Christ to account for what we have done, good or bad.

So we persuade men!

2Corinthians 5:11b  . . . but we are made manifest to God [5319, we appear before God]; and I hope that we are  made manifest also in your consciences.

We act as a mediator for men, we convince them of God’s truth, but we are made manifest we appear before God! And He is the One we answer to! And we hope that we appear in the consciences of those who hear our words, that our words ring in their ears and penetrate their hearts.

Go to verse 13:

2Corinthians 5:13 For if we  are  beside ourselves [1839, considered to be insane, to have lost our senses], it is for God; if we are of sound mind, it is for you.  14 For the love of Christ  controls us . . . [4912 controls us, grips us, holds us in custody, compels us, takes us prisoner]

Our detractors say we are insane, beside ourselves, and have lost our senses.

But if we were, it would be for God, because He is the One we aim to please.

But we are of sound mind, so you may be convinced of God’s truth.

The very love of Christ, the love of God, agape, the same love the Father has for the Son — THIS love controls us, grips us, holds us in custody, compels us, takes us prisoner!

That is the heart of Christ’s ambassadors!

What do Christ’s ambassadors say?

2Corinthians 5:14 For the love of Christ  controls us . . . having concluded this, that  one died for all, therefore all died;  15 and He died for all, so that they who live might no longer  live for themselves, but for Him who died and rose again on their behalf.

Ambassadors of Christ say that One died — Jesus Christ.

Therefore, all died.

God would not have sent Christ had we not been condemned ones.

His death proves our hearts’ condition. We are “dead men walking” without Him,
death row prisoners.

But because He died for all, those who turn to Him and away from their sin
no longer live for themselves but for Him who died and rose again FOR THEM.

2Corinthians 5:16   Therefore from now on we recognize no one   according to the flesh; even though we have known Christ [according to the flesh [1097, we have knowledge, of Him, but not full knowledge], yet now we know Him in this way no longer.  17 Therefore if anyone is  in Christ,  he is  a new creature [2537, new as to form or quality, of different nature from what is contrasted as old];  the old things passed away [3928, perished, is dead, has come forth out of us]; behold, new things have come.  

We knew Christ, we knew He lived and died and rose for us, say Christ’s ambassadors. We knew Him as the disciples knew Him when He walked the earth in the flesh.

But now we don’t know Him that way. We know Him as far more — we know Him as the One who made us new creatures,  say Christ’s ambassadors.

New creatures, new as to form or quality, of different nature from what is contrasted as old!

The old things, our old nature, the flesh has passed away, has perished, is dead,  has come forth out of us, and has been replaced by a new nature!

Behold! See! This is what Christ’s ambassadors say!

New things have come, IF we are in Christ.

Have new things come in you?

Has the old nature in you perished, replaced by a new nature, even Christ’s?

If the old has not perished, you are not in Christ, and Christ is not in you!

Christ’s ambassadors continue –

2 Corinthians 5:18 Now  all these things are from God,  who reconciled us to Himself through Christ and gave us the  ministry of reconciliation,  19 namely, that  God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself,  not counting their trespasses against them, and  He has  committed to us the word of reconciliation.

We cannot reconcile ourselves to God,

We cannot make our natures new.

This comes from God. This is what it is to be reconciled to Him, through Christ.

And as ambassadors, we have a ministry of reconciliation, announcing God’s reconciliation of you and the whole world to Him, through Christ, changing everyone who will come to Christ from being hostile toward God to being full of God’s actual love — when we are filled with His Spirit!

To whom are we ambassadors of Christ? To the world, certainly. But also to the church at Corinth, and today’s church, today’s Christians.

This letter from Paul is addressed to the Corinthians/ This message today is addressed to you, today’s Christians.

What do I say to the church, as Christ’s ambassador to her?

2Corinthians 5:20   Therefore, we are  ambassadors for Christ,  as though God were making an appeal through us [3870 I am exhorting you, I am beseeching you, I am urging you,I am begging you] ; we beg you on behalf of Christ [1189, I bind myself to a post and petition to you, beseeching you],  be  reconciled to God.  21 He made Him who  knew no sin to be  sin on our behalf, so that we might become the  righteousness of God in Him.

On whose behalf do I do this? Christ’s!

God makes His appeal to you through me, and I beseech you, I exhort you, I urge you with great passion!

What appeal is God making through me? Be reconciled to God,  O church of today!

Remember that God made Christ carry our sin, though He did not sin. And He bore the punishment we deserve.

He did it so we BECOME [not “might become” -- there’s no “might” in the original Greek]!

Become what? Something new — a new creature with God’s righteous nature in us,
because we are in Christ, and Christ is in us, ruling and reigning!

2Corinthians 6:1   And  working together with Him,  we also urge [3870 in verse 20] you not to receive  the grace of God in vain [2756 and end up empty-handed when you stand before Christ] —  2 for He says,

    “ AT THE ACCEPTABLE TIME I LISTENED TO YOU,
    AND ON THE DAY OF SALVATION I HELPED YOU.”
    Behold, now is “THE ACCEPTABLE TIME,” behold, now is “THE DAY OF SALVATION” —

God gave you great grace, O church of today. Do not receive it and throw it away, so you stand before Him empty-handed!

NOW is the acceptable time –  the year of the Lord’s favor (Isaiah 61:2) –

NOW is the day of salvation, even for you, O church!

2Corinthians 6:11    Our mouth  has spoken freely to you, O Corinthians, our  heart is opened wide.  12 You are not restrained [4729 crushed, compressed, placed in a narrow space]  [47by us, but  you are restrained in your own  affections [i.e., you crush, compress, and place yourselves in a narrow space by what your hearts love].  13 Now in a like  exchange — I speak as to  children — open wide to us also.

As an ambassador, my mouth has spoken freely to you, my heart is opened wide!

I do not crush you, I do not compress you, I do not place you in a narrow space.

But you crush and compress and put yourselves in a narrow space, because of what your hearts love.

Open wide your hearts to me, O church!

What your hearts love, O church:

2Corinthians 6:14    Do not be  bound together [2086, unequally yoked] with  unbelievers; for what  partnership have righteousness and lawlessness, or what fellowship has light with darkness?  15 Or what  harmony has Christ with  Belial [955, “lord of the forest,” Beliar, a name of Satan] , or  what has a  believer in common with an  unbeliever?  16 Or  what agreement has the temple of God with idols? For we are  the temple of  the living God . . .

As Christ’s ambassador to you, I tell you that you are yoked with unbelievers.

But what intercourse, what fellowship, what binding can a righteous one have
to a lawless one, to a sinning one?

You are to go out among them, but not be of them (1Corinthians 5:10).

What fellowship has the light in you with the darkness of sin?

What harmony (4857), what agreement, what accord can Christ have with Satan?
What agreement has the temple of God –  you, if you are in Christ and He is in you — with idols?

What are your idols? Everything you place above God and Christ, O church.

2Corinthians 5:16b . . . For we are  the temple of  the living God; just as God said,
    “ I WILL  DWELL IN THEM AND  WALK AMONG THEM;
    AND I WILL BE THEIR GOD, AND THEY SHALL BE MY PEOPLE.
17 “ Therefore,  COME OUT FROM THEIR MIDST AND BE SEPARATE,” says the Lord.
    “AND DO NOT TOUCH WHAT IS UNCLEAN;
    And I will welcome you.
18 “ And I will be a father to you,
    And you shall be  sons and daughters to Me,” says the Lord Almighty.

Does God dwell in you? Then you are His — His temple, His abode, His sons and daughters.

God’s command is this, and this is what I exhort you to do, as an ambassador of Christ:

Come out from their midst and be separate, and don’t touch that which is evil,
that which is not holy, that which is vile and godless and against God!

Be among them, but not of them.

1John 2:15   Do not love  the world nor the things in the world.  If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him.

If you will come out from among them, and become separate from them, so you no longer look and act like them, and go after what they go after, here is what will happen!

Isaiah 49:8   Thus says the LORD,
    “In a  favorable time I have answered You,
    And in a day of salvation I have helped You;
    And I will  keep You and  give You for a covenant of the people,
    To   restore the land, to make them inherit the desolate heritages;
9 Saying to those who are  bound, ‘Go forth,’
    To those who are in darkness, ‘Show yourselves.’
    Along the roads they will feed,
    And their pasture will be on all  bare heights.
10 “They will  not hunger or thirst,
    Nor will the scorching  heat or sun strike them down;
    For  He who has compassion on them will  lead them
    And will guide them to  springs of water.

You’ll be guided by Him to the Fountain Who will purify your heart! He goes on:

11 “I will make all  My mountains a road,
    And My  highways will be raised up.
12 “Behold, these will come  from afar;
    And lo, these will come from the  north and from the west,
    And these from the land of Sinim [5515, a distant Oriental region].”
13  Shout for joy, O heavens! And rejoice, O earth!
    Break forth into joyful shouting, O mountains!
For the  LORD has comforted His people
    [5612 He has breathed strongly, He has sighed, He has pitied, He has     consoled, He has caused you to turn to Him]
And will  have compassion
    [7355, He has been merciful, and has loved and restored you]
on His afflicted [6041, humbled, needy, oppressed, poor].

Many will come to Christ because you will have come to Christ.

O the heavens will shout for joy, and the earth, and the mountains!

Why? Because you have come out from their midst, and the Lord has comforted you, O church!

He will have compassion on you, O church, He will be merciful, He has loved you,
He will restore you.

He will comfort and have compassion on you, O church, WHEN you come out from among them, and are separate.

All heaven and earth will rejoice, O church, when you have come out and be separate when you have become afflicted,when you have humbled yourself,
when you see that you are needy and oppressed, a poor and wretched one.

All heaven and earth will rejoice, and I will rejoice, because by the power of the Holy Spirit, your hearts have opened wide to the words the Lord has given me today!

A FOUNTAIN

Oh, there is a Fountain, and He is opened! There is a place where we can go when we are hungry and thirsty for righteousness, and be filled! This is the Gospel of Jesus Christ!

[SW092] 05/15/2013 message notes by Rev. Susan J. Wynn ©2013
“A Fountain”

Zechariah 13:1   “In that day a  fountain [4726 spring, flow] will be opened for the house of David and for the inhabitants of Jerusalem, for  sin and for  impurity.

Zechariah 13:2   “It will come about in that day,” declares the LORD of hosts, “that I will  cut off the names of the idols from the land, and they will no longer be remembered; and I will also remove [5674 take away, overrun, do away with] the  prophets and the  unclean spirit from the land.”  

Oh, there is a Fountain, and He is opened! There is a place where we can go when we are hungry and thirsty for righteousness, and be filled! This is the Gospel of Jesus Christ!

The Spirit speaks out of God’s grace,
to convict the world
and the world-loving church of sin,
and turn them to Jesus Christ.
How gracious is our God!

He offers you today a fountain, an endless spring, opened for you –
for sin AND for impurity.
It’s the one the Lord showed Zechariah, in advance.

This fountain washes away your past sins,
and then, if you drink of it, it will purify your heart.

Will you come to the fountain? “It” is a “He” — Jesus Christ.

I will tell you a story (courtesy of Smith Wigglesworth).

There was once a boat in the mouth of the Amazon River.
The people on board thought they were still in the ocean.
They were dying of thirst, some of them nearly mad.

They saw a ship and asked if they would give them some water.
Someone on the ship replied,
“Dip your bucket right over;
you are in the mouth of the river.”

There are a number of people today in the middle of the great river of life,
but they are dying of thirst
because they do not dip down and take from the river.

Are you hungry and thirsty for His righteousness?
Seek His kingdom, and His righteousness (Matthew 6:33)!

Are you thirsty?
–Do you lack the liquid, living water that will give you life,
zoe (2222), God’s actual life in you?
–Do you strongly, urgently desire it?
–Do you crave and yearn for it?

Come to the fountain, be washed and drink!
But you must agree with God that you sin,
that you need to be cleansed by Christ,
and that your heart and nature must be transformed!

I look at the world and see great hunger and thirst!
Everyone is searching for something.
They passionately chase after natural things, like I used to do:
false gods, worldly treasures that rust and become moth-eaten,
drugs, alcohol –
these enslaved me, and they enslave you,
until you come to Christ, to be cleansed,
to be made pure, to be set free!

If you are thirsty, come to the waters!

Isaiah 55:1   “Ho! Every one who  thirsts, come to the waters;
    And you who have  no  money come, buy and eat.
    Come, buy  wine and milk
     Without money and without cost.”  [Jesus paid it for you!]

Let the wicked forsake his way,
and the evil man his thoughts.

O Church! Why do I weep for you?
Because in so many places,
sin and impurity are not spoken of,
so the people have no idea
of the true gospel of Jesus Christ.

“We can’t preach that,” the leaders of the church say.
“It will offend people and drive them away.”
But people cannot receive God’s mercy
until they know they must turn
from their wicked ways and evil thoughts
and come to the Fountain.

The church deprives them of God’s mercy
if they do not tell them to turn.
“Let him turn to the Lord, He will have mercy on him,
and to our God, for He will freely pardon!”
That is the glorious gospel of Jesus Christ!

It was at great cost to the Father,
in order to restore you to Himself.
It was His Son, who took on Himself
the punishment we deserved.
Oh, what grace!!!

When you turn to Him,
you will sing as Isaiah sings:

Isaiah 12:3 Therefore you will joyously  draw water
    From the  springs of salvation.
4 And in that day you will  say,
    “ Give thanks to the LORD, call on His name.
     Make known His deeds among the peoples;
     Make them remember that His name is exalted.
5  Praise the LORD in song, for He has done  excellent things;
    Let this be known throughout the earth.
6  Cry aloud and shout for joy, O inhabitant of Zion,
    For  great in your midst is the Holy One of Israel.”

Oh, praise be to God! Hallelujah!

If you will turn from your sin,
you will JOYOUSLY, JOYOUSLY draw water from springs,
from a Fountain that never runs dry!

You will draw water from THE Fountain,
the source of salvation (3444 yeshua) — that is “Jesus” in the original Hebrew!

He will save you,
and you will draw living water from Him!

Jesus had asked a woman whom he knew was living in sin
for water from a well, a cistern, a hole with water poured into it.
She asked him why He’d speak with someone like her.

Oh, here is what the Fountain said to her,
Here is what the One who will cleanse us of sin
and of impurity:

John 4:10 Jesus answered and said to her, “If you knew the gift of God, and who it is who says to you, ‘Give Me a drink,’ you would have asked Him, and He would have given you  living water . . .” 13 “Everyone who drinks of this water will thirst again; 14 but whoever drinks of the water that I will give him  shall never thirst; but the water that I will give him will become in him a well of water springing up to  eternal life.”

He had the water that would cleanse her,
that would purify her of her sin.

Are you thirsty?
–Do you lack the liquid, living water that will give you life,
His life, life as God has it, abundantly?
–Do you strongly, urgently desire it?
–Do you crave and yearn for it?

There is a Fountain, Jesus Christ!
He has living water for all who thirst,
for all who turn to the Lord,
and away from their wicked ways and their evil thoughts!

Just as it says in Zechariah 13:2,
the Lord will remove (take away, overrun, do away with)
those who teach falsely,
who neglect this essential truth of the gospel of Jesus Christ.

As I have said before,
if the gospel you are hearing doesn’t deal with
the condition of the human heart,
it is not the gospel of Jesus Christ!

He wants your heart, your whole heart! It is all that he wants. 
    Not good deeds, not “I’m a good person.” You and I are not good.
But the Father is here today saying, “My Son will make you clean!”

O Church, O world, if you will drink,
if you will turn from your wicked ways and evil thoughts,
Christ will come and rule and reign in you,
and He will flow out from your belly,
to quench the thirst
of others who thirst for righteousness
and have found no remedy
in the world.

John 7:37   Now on  the last day, the great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried out, saying, “  If anyone is thirsty,  let him come to Me and drink. 38 “He who believes in Me,  as the Scripture said, ‘From  his innermost being will flow rivers of  living water.’” 39 But this He spoke  of the Spirit, whom those who believed in Him were to receive; for  the Spirit was not yet given, because Jesus was not yet  glorified.

In many in the church,
I do not see the Holy Spirit,
but rather, the spirit of this world.
The teachers and preachers are false,
presenting another Jesus,
one who would never correct,
one who would never command repentance.
This Jesus can never quench anyone’s thirst!

Turn away from false teachers, O Church!

Come to the Fountain, Jesus Christ!
He is a Fountain for sin and for impurity,
and when you partake of Him,
you will never thirst again,
for His blood cleanses you outwardly,
and His Holy Spirit will purify you,
when you are filled with Him.

Zechariah 13:9 “And I will bring the third part through the  fire,
    Refine them as silver is refined,
    And test them as gold is tested.
    They will  call on My name,
    And I will  answer them;
    I will say, ‘They are  My people,’
    And they will say, ‘The LORD is my God.’”

THE LORD’S HOUSE

I stand at the threshold of the Lord’s house, to show you what is there, how to enter, and how He will make YOU his house!

[SW091] 05/05/2013 message notes by Rev. Susan J. Wynn ©2013
“The Lord’s House”

Last week, the Lord asked me to speak of
how to enter the Kingdom of God –
through repentance for personal sin.

I spoke of His great mercy,
because if we turn from our personal sin,
He forgives,
and is glad to cleanse our hearts when we ask Him.

I spoke as His ambassador,
and now I speak to you as one who would choose
to simply stand at the threshold of His house,
rather than than dwell in the tents of the wicked.

Psalms 84:10 For  a day in Your courts is better than a thousand outside.
    I would rather stand at the threshold of the house of my God
    Than dwell in the tents of wickedness.

The Lord wants me to show you the kingdom today.

So you know how to enter the kingdom — repentance for personal sin.

Here is what the kingdom looks like!

Revelation 4:1-11

The One sitting on the throne is God the Father.
He is a majestic and glorious and powerful!
If you have repented, you are one of the elders (the true church).
It is a very “other” place, with no darkness (1John 1:5).
It is a holy place for a holy God.
And all who there are His creation,
and all who are there worship Him alone.

They cry, “Holy, holy, holy!”
They cry, “Worthy are You, our Lord and our God!”

Psalms 84:1   How lovely are Your  dwelling places,
O LORD of hosts!
2 My  soul longed and even yearned for the courts of the LORD;
My heart and my flesh sing for joy to the  living God.
4 How  blessed are those who dwell in Your house!
They are  ever praising You.     Selah.

Revelation 5:6-14

And look! There is the Lamb standing as if slain –
even slain from before the foundation of the world (Rev. 13:8)
(for God knew what mankind would do,
and that they would need a Savior).

Worthy is He!
for He was slain,
and purchased for God with His blood
men from every tribe and tongue and people and nation!

He still bears the marks, and will forever!

The Lamb has made them a kingdom of priests to our God, (1 Peter 2:9)
and they will reign upon the earth.

Myriads upon myriads and thousands of thousands,
more than can be numbered,
all cry out, “Worthy is the Lamb!”
And the worship is continual!

What a kingdom is this Kingdom of God! Holy, majestic, filled with worship!
The time will come,
for all who have repented and come to Christ,
when they will see this firsthand.

But here and now,
there is a kingdom of God established, too.

It is one for which a person will sell all he has
to obtain it.

Matthew 13:44   “ The kingdom of heaven is like a treasure hidden in the field, which a man found and hid again; and from joy over it he goes and  sells all that he has and buys that field.

Matthew 3:2 “ Repent, for  the kingdom of heaven  is at hand.”

Matthew 4:17    From that time Jesus began to  preach and say, “ Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.”

Matthew 5:3   “  Blessed are the  poor in spirit, for  theirs is the kingdom of heaven.”

Matthew 5:10   “Blessed are those who have been  persecuted for the sake of righteousness, for  theirs is the kingdom of heaven.“

Matthew 5:20   “For I say to you that unless your  righteousness surpasses that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will not enter the kingdom of heaven.“

Matthew 7:21   “ Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father who is in heaven will enter.“

Jesus says,  “If you repent for your personal sin,
and believe in Me and ask me to forgive you,
you will be My disciples”

AND Jesus says,
“YOU will be My house,
while you are on the earth!”

John 14:15-24, 29

NOTE in John 14:29
He tells His disciples BEFORE it happens
so that when it happens, they will believe.

He tells you, follower of Jesus, before it happens. You will certain believe, when He makes it so in you!

He requires it of them, commanding them:

Luke 24:49 “And behold,  I am sending forth the promise of My Father upon you; but  you are to stay in the city until you are clothed with power from on high.”

Acts 1:4  Gathering them together, He commanded them  not to leave Jerusalem, but to wait for   what the Father had promised, “Which,” He said, “you heard of from Me; 5 for  John baptized with water, but you will be baptized  with the Holy Spirit   not many days from now. 8 . . . you will receive power  when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be  My witnesses both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and  Samaria, and even to  the remotest part of the earth.”

When you are filled with the Holy Spirit,
it will be for you
joy unspeakable and full of glory! (Go to 1 Peter 1:8)

But even more,
His Witness will dwell in you,
and the kingdom of God established in you, here and now!

And what will happen as you walk about
with the kingdom of God in you,
His Witness dwelling in you,
ruling and reigning in you?

Psalm 84:5-7

As you pass through the world,
with His Witness in you,
valleys of weeping
will become valleys of blessing!

You will go from strength to strength,
and from image to image,
just as Paul promises in 2 Corinthians 3:18!

2Corinthians 3:18 And we, who with unveiled faces all reflect the Lord’s glory, are being transformed into his likeness with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit.

As you carry around in you the death of Jesus
the Witness, the Holy Spirit who proves He died and rose and was glorified,
you will bring life to others (2 Corinthians 4:10ff)!

All of this –
this kingdom of God within you
and the coming kingdom which I showed you first –
all of this is based on your repentance from your sin,
and your surrender of yourself for God’s purposes,
waiting in the city until His kingdom
is established in you!

Psalm 84:10 For  a day in Your courts is better than a thousand outside.
    I would rather stand at the threshold of the house of my God
    Than dwell in the tents of wickedness.
11 For the LORD God is  a sun and  shield;
    The LORD gives grace and  glory;
     No good thing does He withhold  from those who walk  uprightly.

Walk uprightly, waiting in the city to be clothed with power from on high, obeying the command of the Lord! No good thing will He then withhold from you!

Psalm 24:3 Who may  ascend into the  hill of the LORD?
    And who may stand in His holy  place?
4 He who has  clean hands and a  pure heart,
    Who has not  lifted up his soul  to falsehood
    And has not  sworn deceitfully.
5 He shall receive a  blessing from the LORD
    And   righteousness from the God of his salvation.

To ascend the hill, to stand in His holy place,
to see the kingdom that will be,
to have the kingdom established in your heart,
to become the Lord’s house here and now,
your heart must be pure (made pure),
and your hands must be clean (made clean).

Repent! Turn from your personal sin, O Church!

Obey the Lord’s command to wait, to pray, to seek the face of God until you are clothed with power from on high!

Then you will gladly do what the Father does,
and say what He says,
and your heart will continually say,
“Your will be done, Father,
on earth as it is in heaven!”

40 Days of GOD’S Purpose

O Church, what are God’s two great purposes that the church is to serve? Are you doing them?

[SW090] 04/28/2013 message notes by Rev. Susan J. Wynn ©2013
“Forty Days of God’s Purpose”

The Bible teaches us that there are two great purposes of God.

He accomplishes His purposes by putting people through trials.
The trials show us what’s in our hearts.

When we see the sin that’s in our hearts,
we either repent AND turn from our sin AND ask Him to change our hearts
or reject what God shows us.

We can learn both great purposes of God through one prophet — Jonah.

He was a prophet in northern Israel, used by the Lord in 2 Kings 14:25-27 –

2Kings 14:25  He [King Jeroboam] restored the border of Israel from  the entrance of Hamath as far as  the Sea of the Arabah, according to the word of the LORD, the God of Israel, which He spoke  through His servant  Jonah the son of Amittai, the prophet, who was of  Gath-hepher.  26 For the  LORD saw the affliction of Israel, which was very bitter; for  there was neither bond nor free, nor was there any helper for Israel.  27 The  LORD did not say that He would blot out the name of Israel from under heaven, but He saved them by the hand of Jeroboam the son of Joash.

The second Jeroboam committed the same sins as Jeroboam son of Nebat.
But Jonah gave this word of the Lord:
That He saw the affliction of Israel.
The Lord had mercy on them,
and spared them an enemy invasion.
Church, you have been spared many times.

The Lord  offered them more opportunities to repent of their sins,
through other prophets He sent.

But after 82 years and 7 months of continued wickedness,
(assuming Jonah prophesied at the beginning of this Jeroboam’s reign)
northern Israel was decimated by Assyria.

Those who didn’t perish in the battle
were sent into exile,
and were scattered across the known world by the Assyrians.
They rejected the warnings of the Lord.

The Lord spoke to watchmen on the walls.
He showed them the sin of the people
and they blew the trumpet of warning.
If they didn’t, the blood of His people was on them.

So we see God wants to save His own people,
and He and His Son, Jesus Christ, want to save the church today.
He makes strong and courageous
the prophets He sends
to proclaim and warn.

Christians must stop sinning,
and that is only through repentance for their personal sin,
and baptism in the Holy Spirit!
Otherwise, they will perish
or be exiled and scattered.

That’s God’s first purpose. Saving His own people — Israel, AND the church. But they must: 1) confess their sin to God and 2) ask Him to forgive them and change their hearts.

God’s second purpose?
We see it by way of the same prophet,
in the Book of Jonah.

He wants to save people who worship everything but Him –
    IF THEY REPENT OF THEIR WICKEDNESS
        WHEN HE SENDS A PROPHET TO WARN THEM!    

Jonah doesn’t want to do what the Lord says,
because the Lord wants him to warn the wicked city of Nineveh
the capital city of Assyria.

The Assyrians are great enemies of Israel.
Why should they be saved from destruction?

Jonah’s reaction to God’s command to warn Nineveh
is like that of James and John, when the Samaritans
wouldn’t let Jesus and them pass through their town.
Like Jonah, they did not have the Lord’s heart YET.
That would happen at Pentecost.

Luke 9:54 When His disciples  James and John saw this, they said, “Lord, do You want us to  command fire to come down from heaven and consume them?”  55 But He turned and rebuked them, [ and said, “You do not know what kind of spirit you are of; 56 for the Son of Man did not come to destroy men’s lives, but to save them.”] And they went on to another village.

The Lord wants Jonah to warn Nineveh?
“I want You to call down fire, Lord!”
He tries to run from the Lord.
But when he tries to run,
the Lord provides a storm.

The ship he escapes on is about to to sink.
He’s sleeping below and has no idea.
No one else on board knows the Lord.
They’re calling out to their gods.
But there’s no answer.

They awaken Jonah.
Maybe his God will care about them,
so they won’t perish.

Lots are cast to determine who’s responsible for the storm.
The lot falls to Jonah; he himself does not tell them.
Only when the lot shows it is him
does he confess that he fears the Lord, who created everything,
and that he is fleeing from the presence of the Lord.

He tells them to throw him overboard.
He says the sea will become calm when they do so,
because he’s the cause of the storm.

They try to fight the sea, anyway.
It’s no use; the storm rages even more strongly.
Then they pray to the Lord,
these men who had been praying to their own gods.
Do not let us perish!
And don’t blame us for throwing Jonah into the sea
for You, O Lord, have done as you have pleased!

When they throw Jonah overboard,
the sea suddenly calms,
just as Jonah said.

Many storms come to the world
because the church
disobeys her Lord.

The church tries to flee from the presence of the Lord,
because she doesn’t want to warn unbelievers
that they must repent.

O Church, He’s sending a storm your way.
It is His mercy to you,
and to the unbelieving world.

He’ll save unbelievers who aren’t responsible for the storm
when they turn to Him in the storm
and cry out for Him to save them from their sins.
And they’ll believe in and worship Him
because He will save them!

So Jonah offers himself,
after his sin is discovered.
Jonah’s sin against God was found out.
The Lord provided a storm,
and caused the lot to show Jonah’s sin.
Jonah couldn’t hide any more.

He does the same with His church,
when He brings storms.
He makes sure your sin is found out,
because He wants to save you,
O Church that disobeys Him.

But there’s more — the Lord is not done with Jonah yet.
Jonah is swallowed by a big fish, sent by the Lord.
He’s in darkness in the fish’s stomach
for three days and three nights (Matthew 12:40) –
very possible in the natural.

When you flee from the Lord’s presence, O Church,
because you refuse to warn the wicked to repent
He’ll put you in a dark place, in the belly of the fish.
And then you will cry out.
Many of you are in the fish’s belly even now.

In the darkness, Jonah cries out.
He doesn’t repent, though.
He just says He remembers the Lord.
And He gives thanks in advance to the Lord,
for bringing his life up from the pit.

He says he’ll do what the Lord commanded Him to do.
But his heart is not in it.

The church cries out in that dark place,
and you say you remember the Lord’s faithfulness
and give thanks in advance for His deliverance,
and promise to obey Him.
But your heart is not in it, O Church!

So, He will deliver you when you cry out, O Church,
and will command you again to preach repentance from sin,
warning wicked people that judgment is coming.

In Nineveh’s case, judgment will come in 40 days.
Now we will see God’s purpose in those 40 days.

Jonah still hates Nineveh.
just like some Christians hate their enemies,
and do not pray for them.

Jonah quickly forgets the Lord saved him, too,
when he disobeyed the Lord.
O Christian, you forget that He saved you
out of your wickedness.

But he tramps through the huge city,
obeying the Lord,
though his heart is not in it.

“Yet forty days and Nineveh will be overthrown.”
That’s all he says.

But Nineveh repents, to the max!!!
The people believe in God!
ALL of Nineveh fasts and puts on sackcloth.
The king even orders their livestock to be put on a fast
and to be covered with sackcloth.

Here are the king of Nineveh’s words:

Jonah 3:8 “But both man and beast must be covered with sackcloth; and let  men  call on God earnestly that each may  turn from his wicked way and from the violence which is in  his hands. 9 “ Who knows, God may turn and relent and withdraw His burning anger so that we will not perish.”

And when God sees their repentance from their wicked ways,
He relents concerning the calamity
which He declared He would bring upon them –
the one the disobedient Jonah finally warned them about.

That’s His second purpose –
to bring the whole world to repentance,
so they are saved.

If they will repent,
He will spare them.

But northern Israel, 82 years and 7 months later?
They did not repent for their personal sins,
and either perished or were dragged into exile.

O Church!
If you do not repent,
you will either perish,
or be dragged into exile!

Repent first of your own wickedness,
your own rebellion against the Lord.
And then repent for not warning others to repent of THEIR sins.

What did Jesus say to the Jewish leaders who refused to repent?

Luke 11:32 “The men of Nineveh will stand up with this generation at the judgment and condemn it, because  they repented at the preaching of Jonah; and behold, something greater than Jonah is here.“

The Jewish leaders
did not repent at His preaching.
O Church! Listen!
Repent for “avoiding” the issue of sin,
and refusing to warn the wicked.

If you do not repent, O Christian, O Church,
the men of Nineveh will stand up against you
along with this generation,
and condemn you.

How do I know Jonah’s heart is not in it,
when he finally obeys God and warns the wicked?

Jonah is not happy that Nineveh repented.
He rebukes the Lord in prayer.
He says he knew the Lord would spare Nineveh.
That’s why he ran in the first place.
He didn’t WANT the Lord to forgive them.

He prays, confessing what God IS –
gracious,
compassionate,
slow to anger,
abundant in lovingkindness,
who relents concerning calamity.

But Jonah still does not see his heart.
He does not see that he is NOT those things.
He’d rather die than see Nineveh spared.
He’s angry.

The Lord asks him if he has good reason to be angry,
to show Jonah his heart.
But Jonah doesn’t see it.

Jonah goes to sulk and to watch,
still hoping Nineveh will be destroyed,
like Sodom and Gomorrah.

The Lord gives him one day’s comfort via a plant for shade,
and Jonah is very happy.

Jonah seeks Jonah’s happiness
while he hopes for the destruction of hundreds of thousands at Nineveh.

But then the Lord removes his happiness,
with a plant-withering worm.
Jonah loses his shade,
and the Lord sends a scorching wind.

Jonah is angrier than ever –
so angry he could just die!

The Lord won’t let Christians seek their own happiness
while those around them are destroyed
because they halfheartedly warn the wicked to repent of their sin.

He’ll remove your protection, O Church,
and send a scorching wind,
so you cry out to Him.

Jonah again pleaded with God to die.
He didn’t want Nineveh saved,
and now he had lost his comfort.

He did not have good reason to be angry.
God saved Jonah when Jonah repented.
Why shouldn’t God save WHOSOEVER WILL believe in His Son,
if they repent and turn from their sin?

The Lord said to Jonah,
You enjoyed the plant.
You loved it.
You didn’t work for it or cause it to grow.
It came up overnight and perished overnight.

The Lord created the people of Nineveh.
He caused them to grow.
He created the animals there.
Therefore, He has compassion on them.

He will save them because they repent of their sin.

The Lord says to Jonah,
You want them to perish, Jonah.
You don’t understand My purposes.
You don’t have My heart.

O Church, here is God’s conclusion about you, based on your actions:

YOU MUST want those who are wicked to die in their wickedness.

You MUST want to run and hide from God’s purpose — their salvation.

You MUST want to see them destroyed like Sodom and Gomorrah.

WHY?

Because you do nothing to call the perishing to repentance for their personal sin.

And so He brings storms to you, O Church,
And darkness,
And worms that wither your comfort,
and scorching east winds.

I pray the Holy Spirit causes this word to be a scorching east wind that robs you of your comfort, O Church.
WHY?

So you might see your own hearts,
and repent of your own personal sin against God,
and your disobedience in refusing to call the wicked
to repent and turn from their sins.

O Church,
you  MUST be about the Father’s business,
warning the wicked of destruction,
so they repent and believe in Jesus Christ,
who is their Savior!!!

Turn from your rebellion, O Church,
and the Lord will forgive you.
Ask Him to change your hearts,
and He will do it in a moment of time!

FLATTERY WILL GET YOU NOWHERE

When I was young, people flattered me, but I always quipped, “Flattery will get you nowhere.” Flattery is the language of much of today’s church, and Father God and Christ are grieved, for it will kill you, O Christian.

[SW089] 04/21/2013 message notes by Rev. Susan J. Wynn ©2013
“Flattery Will Get You Nowhere”

Isaiah 30:8 Now go, write it on a tablet before them
    And inscribe it on a scroll,
    That it may  serve in the time to come
     As a witness forever.
9 For this is a  rebellious people,  false sons,
    Sons who  refuse [14 & 3808 never, ever consent to, are never, ever willing]
    to listen
    To the  instruction of the LORD;
10 Who say to the  seers, “You must not see visions”;
    And to the prophets, “You must not  prophesy to us what is right,
     Speak to us  pleasant words [2513, smoothness, flattery, smooth things],
    Prophesy illusions [4123 deceptions].
11 “Get out of the way,  turn aside from the path,
      Let us hear no more about the Holy One of Israel.”

Pleasant words, smoothness, flattery, smooth things.
Illusions, deceptions.
As I look from the wall,
the Lord says,
“Much of the church in America knows nothing but these.”

What smooth things do we like to hear?

Success theology –
Your best life,
no mention of sin except on their websites in the sinner’s prayer or a quick scripture.
The evil you do is not “God’s best for you,”
the power of positive thinking — “think” yourself successful,
claim the promises of God though you do not obey Him.
No call to holiness (1Peter 1:15, Matthew 5:48)
No cross or blood.

Ezekiel 13:10 and elsewhere: These say “Peace, peace” when there is not peace between God and you.

Success theology is a man-centered gospel. It is humanism.

Definition of humanism per the Merriam-Webster Dictionary:
a doctrine, attitude, or way of life
centered on human interests or values;
especially : a philosophy that usually rejects supernaturalism
and stresses an individual’s dignity and worth
and capacity for self-realization
through reason [thinking].

Jesus would have flunked success theology. He preached:

Matthew 10:38 “And  he who does not take his cross and follow after Me is not worthy of Me. 39 He who has found his  life will lose it, and he who has lost his  life for My sake will find it.”

Matthew 16:24   Then Jesus said to His disciples, “If anyone wishes to come after Me, he must deny himself, and  take up his cross and follow Me.”

Utterly deny myself?
Not live for myself?
Not seek my own success,
using scripture to justify my pursuit
of my own personal happiness?

Selfless giving away all that I am
So I can be God’s instrument here?
Being crucified with Christ so I no longer live?

Becoming a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing? (Romans 12:1-2) And by the way, STAYING ON THE ALTAR until God has completed His work.

It seems the whole New Testament, and all its truth,
does not pass the “success theology” test.

Next, liberation theology:

This teaching says that the freedom Jesus spoke of in His earthly ministry
is freedom from social injustice and political oppression.
He came so we could be free of tyranny from evil governments.

Jesus would have flunked liberation theology.
Jerusalem and all of Israel
was under the oppression and social injustice of Rome,
while Jesus walked the earth!
Roman rule was cruel, indeed,
Yet He did not rebel against it.

He even prophesied that all of Jerusalem
would be destroyed by the Romans!
And He did nothing to prevent it –
Jerusalem was indeed destroyed in 70 A.D.

What Jesus DID do
is speak of freedom from slavery to sin (John 8:31-36)
He secured that freedom for all who believe
and are filled with the Holy Spirit.

He whom the Son sets free is free, indeed,
regardless of poverty
and political oppression
and social oppression!!!

Ask any of today’s Christian martyrs
(and there are more since the 20th century
than in all centuries prior).

Jesus came to set us free from the tyranny of sin in our hearts,
and free us from our selfishness.

The Apostle Paul never rebelled against Gentile governments,
nor Jewish leaders.
He preached Christ,
and was free, indeed,
though he was accused and tried,
beaten and scourged,
stoned and left for dead,
and imprisoned for the sake of the gospel.

Next, prosperity theology:

Jesus wants you to be rich!
God owns the cattle on a thousand hills.
When you have three Bentleys in your driveway,
people will know you are blessed by God.
(I personally heard that at one of their conferences.)

Jesus would have flunked prosperity theology. Here is what He says:

Matthew 6:19   “ Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal.

Matthew 6:20 “But store up for yourselves  treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys, and where thieves do not break in or steal;

Matthew 6:21 for  where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.”

Matthew 6:24   “ No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and   wealth.”

These false teachers twist the words of Christ.
They use “pressed down, shaken together” (Luke 6:38) to make money.
But that scripture’s context is not monetary — it is selfless living.

The words these false teachers use is ear-tickling (2 Timothy 4:3).
It pleases our ears.
It is flattery.
It will get you nowhere but hell.
It does not deal with the fallen condition of our hearts.

Anything that does not deal with the fallen condition of our hearts
is not the gospel of Jesus Christ.

I tell you, as Paul did Timothy:

2Timothy 4:3 For  the time will come when they will not endure  sound doctrine; but wanting to have their ears tickled, they will accumulate for themselves teachers in accordance to their own desires, 4 and  will turn away their ears from the truth and  will turn aside to myths.  

Listen to the Lord, through Jeremiah:

Lamentations 2:14 Your  prophets have seen for you
    False and foolish visions;
    And they have not  exposed your iniquity
    So as to restore you from captivity,
    But they have  seen for you false and misleading  oracles.

They have not exposed your sin
so you would repent
and cry out to be purified.
So you are captive to your own lusts.

And if you continue on with Lamentations,
you will see that the Enemy, Satan,
has his way in your lives,
O Christians,
O Church!

Listen to the Spirit-inspired Paul:

Galatians 1:6   I am amazed [2296, I marvel and wonder at it] that you are so quickly deserting  Him who called you  by the grace of Christ, for a  different gospel;  7 which is really not another; only there are some who are  disturbing you and want to distort the gospel of Christ.  8 But even if we, or  an angel from heaven, should preach to you a gospel  contrary to what we have preached to you, he is to be   accursed!  9 As we  have said before, so I say again now,  if any man is preaching to you a gospel  contrary to what you received, he is to be   accursed!

Galatians 1:10   For am I now  seeking the favor of men, or of God? Or am I striving to please men? If I were still trying to please men, I would not be a  bond-servant of Christ.

It is a different (2087) gospel,
not of the same source, altered, strange.

It is a gospel which is really not another of the same kind –
it is not like it, it is not even a gospel.

It is not a good message, like Christ’s gospel.
It is a distortion, a perversion of it.

By following it, O Christian,
you desert God.

It is contrary, it sounds nearly like Christ’s gospel, but it is not.
Christ would flunk it.
He is grieved, O Church!
The truth will not please you
and gain your favor,
but it will please God
and gain His favor,
for all who dare to speak it.

Much of the church likes to hear Galatians 5:17,
but does not want to hear Galatians 5:24.

Galatians 5:17 For  the flesh  sets its desire against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; for these are in opposition to one another,  so that you may not do the things that you  please. Whew! I can go on struggling and sinning because that’s just the way it is.

Galatians 5:24 Now those who  belong to  Christ Jesus have  crucified the flesh with its passions and  desires.

Much of the church likes to hear the second half of Romans 7:25,
but does not like to hear Romans 7:24 or the first half of 7:25.

Romans 7:25b So then, on the one hand I myself with my mind am serving the law of God, but on the other, with my flesh  the law of sin.

Romans 7:24 Wretched man that I am! Who will set me free from   the body of this  death?  25  Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord!

Most of the church chirps Romans 5:20,
always changing it to the present tense (which is incorrect) –
“Where sin abounds, grace abounds even more” –
but does not like to hear Romans 6:1-2.

Romans 5:20   The Law came in so that the transgression would increase; but where sin increased,  grace abounded all the more,

The Law was given to show us our hearts, and that we are unable to change them. But then came Jesus, the grace of God personified, the One who frees us from our captivity to sin and transforms our hearts so they obey.

Most of the church loves to say their sin only makes God’s grace increase. But what does the Holy Spirit say through Paul?

Romans 6:1    What shall we say then? Are we to  continue in sin so that grace may increase?  2  May it never be! How shall we who  died to sin still live in it?

We like to stamp our feet and sing, “Satan is under my feet,”
while we disobey God!

If nothing else has touched you up to this point, I pray this does:
In Ezekiel 6:9, the Lord says our spiritual adultery,
our exaltation of ourselves,
shatters His heart!

Much of the church likes to say “We are born again,”
but they do not turn our feet to follow Christ to Calvary
and so they bear no resemblance to Him.

The Lord longs to be gracious to you, O Church, O Christian!

Isaiah 30:18   Therefore the LORD longs to be gracious to you,
    And therefore He  waits on  high to have compassion on you.
    For the LORD is a  God of justice;
    How blessed are all those who long for Him.

He longs (2442) to be gracious to you.
To Him, it feels like piercing to Him.
It is a very strong word!

He waits (2442) to have compassion on you.
He longs for it.
It feels like piercing to Him.
He offered a pierced Son,
pierced for our transgressions!

Isaiah 30:19    O people in Zion,  inhabitant in Jerusalem, you will  weep no longer. He will surely be gracious to you at the sound of your cry; when He hears it, He will  answer you.

O Church!
A shaking is coming,
and many will be weeping who do not turn to Him now!
All you have to do is cry out (2199),
to shriek (from anguish, extreme distress)!
When He hears your brokenness and contriteness,
He will not despise it.
He will answer you!

THE PRAYER OF THE DESPERATE

What we know as “The Lord’s Prayer” is really a prayer of desperation for the followers of Jesus who seek the intimacy He has with our Father!

[SW088] 04/14/2013 message notes by Rev. Susan J. Wynn ©2013
“The Prayer of the Desperate”

The Lord’s Prayer, per the Spirit-inspired Matthew:

Matthew 6:9   “ Pray, then, in this way:
    ‘Our Father who is in heaven,
    Hallowed be Your name.
10 ‘ Your kingdom come.
     Your will be done,
    On earth as it is in heaven.
11 ‘ Give us this day  our daily bread. 12 ‘And  forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. 13 ‘And do not lead us into temptation, but  deliver us from   evil.  [For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.’]  

Matthew 6:14 “ For if you forgive  others for their transgressions, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. 15 “But  if you do not forgive  others, then your Father will not forgive your transgressions.”

The Spirit-inspired Luke gives an abbreviated version, but the truths therein are the same:

Verse 1 –
Jesus is praying.
He prays like no other.
The disciples want to know how to pray like Him.

They are following Him
and they see that He is connected to the Father
in a way they do not yet know.
They can tell by the way He prays.

Verse 2 –
And so He shows them. We who follow Him are to pray like this:
Father, Your name is venerated in my heart,
I regard Your name, Your very nature with great reverence.
You are like no other.
You are entirely different.
You are holy.
And You are actually my Father.
I have been adopted by You.

Your kingdom come.
Establish Your kingdom within me (Luke 17:21) in my heart,
so Your will is done by me in the same way it is done in heaven — fully.

And establish Your kingdom in the hearts of many,
any who will come to Your Son.”

Verse 3 –
Give me and all Your followers each day our daily bread,
our needful bread,
the bread we need, the Bread of life,
the Bread from heaven –
give us more of Your Son, Jesus Christ.

If we seek first Your kingdom, O God,
all earthly things that we need
will be provided by You. (see Matthew 6:33)

Verse 4 –
“And forgive us our sins
BECAUSE we forgive everyone who sins against us.
You will not forgive us unless we also forgive.
So, even before praying this prayer,
we have forgiven everyone who has ever done us wrong.

And lead us not into temptation.
We are tempted not to forgive.
Change this, in our hearts.
————————————————————————————————-
That’s the prayer He teaches us,
we who are following Him
and see that He is connected to the Father
in a way we do not yet know –
we can tell by the way He prays.

Verses 5-6 –
Then He goes on to speak of a Friend (the Father)
to whom a man goes at midnight and says,
“One of my friends has come to me from a long journey.
But I have nothing to give him.”
I see that I lack what this friend of mine needs.
Your life is not yet abiding in me, Jesus.

Verse 7-8 –
Not because He is my Friend,
but because I am persistent in asking,
the Father will give me AS MUCH AS I NEED.

He knows exactly what I need.
But I must understand my lack,
and ask even to the point of desperation
and utter contriteness and brokenness,
understanding that against God only have we sinned,
and I cannot change my heart — He must.

Such a heart the Lord will not despise (Psalm 51).

Verse 9 –
Jesus gives an invitation to the desperate.
Ask and keep asking,
and it will be given to you.
Seek and keep seeking,
and you will find what it is that you lack;
knock and keep knocking
and the door to heaven will open IN YOU.

Verse 10 –
It will happen, Jesus says!
Everyone who desperately asks, receives;
everyone who desperately seeks, finds;
for everyone who desperately knocks, the door WILL be opened.

Verse 11-12 –
A natural father,
when his son asks for something nourishing,
will give him what he asks for.

Verse 13 –
We know how to give good gifts to our natural children,
though our hearts still have in them a sinful nature (evil).

HOW MUCH MORE
will your Father in heaven
give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him?

He is your Father.
He is perfect.
He is in heaven, on His throne, in absolute power.

The Holy Spirit is our Heart Changer.

The Holy Spirit is the one who makes us partakers of Christ’s nature,
and wipes away the sin nature in us.

The Holy Spirit is who we, God’s children, must desperately ask for.

The Holy Spirit is who we, God’s children, must desperately seek.

The Holy Spirit is who we must desperately knock on His door to receive.

The Holy Spirit is who we lack.
He will hallow us on the inside,
He will fill our hearts with God’s holiness and love.
so we will revere and love God with His actual love.

The Holy Spirit will establish the Father’s kingdom in our hearts,
so that we delight to do His will (Psalm 40:8),
and so that we have no one in heaven or on earth but God (Psalm 73:21).

The Holy Spirit will give us changed hearts that readily and easily forgive     EVERYTHING and EVERYONE.
Period.

He will give us the Bread of life to give to others who are desperate.
By the Holy Spirit, the Father and the Son will dwell in us,
and we will share them with all who are likewise seeking.

When we pray this desperate prayer,
the prayer the Lord tells us to pray,
we are asking God for His Holy Spirit.
And He will answer our prayer.

This kingdom that He establishes in us is and will always be unshakable:

Hebrews 12:26 And  His voice shook the earth then, [at Mount Sinai] but now He has promised, saying, “ YET ONCE MORE I WILL SHAKE NOT ONLY THE EARTH, BUT ALSO THE HEAVEN.” [Haggai 2:6] 27 This expression, “Yet once more,” denotes  the removing of those things which can be shaken, as of created things, so that those things which cannot be shaken may remain.  28 Therefore, since we receive a  kingdom which cannot be shaken, let us  show gratitude, by which we may  offer to God an acceptable service with reverence and awe;  29 for  our God is a consuming fire.

The kingdom of God that He establishes,
the kingdom we must pray to receive,
the kingdom we receive when we ask our Father for the Holy Spirit,
is unshakable.
When God shakes everything, we will stand.

Paul writes to a church
that is not yet standing
but is troubled,
like today’s church.

1Corinthians 4:8   You are  already filled, you have already become rich, you have become kings without us; and indeed, I wish that you had become kings so that we also might reign with you . . . 14   I do not write these things to  shame you, but to admonish you as my beloved  children. 20 For the kingdom of God does  not consist in  words but in power.  21 What do you desire?  Shall I come to you with a rod, or with love and a spirit of gentleness?

I come today to you, O troubled church, in a spirit of gentleness.
You are lacking the one thing needful — the Holy Spirit.
I can tell by the things you do,
and by the way you pray.

O Christian, ask yourself:

Do I display God’s actual love, His joy, His peace,
His patience, His kindness, His goodness,
His faithfulness, His gentleness
and am I controlled by His Spirit? (Galatians 5:23-24)

Am I sinning?
Those who belong to Christ Jesus
have crucified the flesh [the sinful nature]
with its passions and desires. (Galatians 5:24)

Do I still wrestle with the sinful nature, or is it dead?

Am I free, indeed (John 8:31-36)?

Will you see your lack today, O Church, O Christian?
Will you become contrite and broken before your Father in heaven?

You have nothing to give those who come to you.
Are you desperate to give them something?

Then ask, seek, knock, in your desperation.

He is a perfect Father! He will give you the Holy Spirit!

Then others will know you have been with Jesus
and that you are connected to God the Father
in a way they do not yet know.
They can tell by the way you pray.
And they will say, “Teach us to pray!”

HALLELUJAH!

RAISING THE DEAD

[SW087] 04/07/2013 message notes by Rev. Susan J. Wynn ©2013
“Raising the Dead”

We have a Christ who does the impossible!
He raises the impossibly dead!
And, He is the same yesterday and today and forever (Hebrews 13:8).

I was dead, and He raised me to life.

It would be easy for Jesus to gather
those who already have His life in them.

But do we believe He can raise a dead church to life?
THAT will bring the Father and Him glory!

John 11:1-46 –

Verses 1-2 –
The One whom He loves, His church,
is sick, to the natural eye,
and even to those of His who He’s given discernment
so we intercede for her.

Verse 3 –
It looks hopeless,
but Christ says His church’s sickness will not end in death.

But her sickness,
and her resulting “natural death”
are for the glory of God,
so Jesus Christ may be glorified by it.

Verses 5-6 –
He waits to the point where raising her up
is no longer possible,
by man’s reckoning.

Verses 11-15 –
He will come
so that He may awaken His church from her deadness.
Why?
So we may believe!
Verse 17 –
Four days dead –
the Spirit has left the Body of Christ, His church.
There is no hope.

Verse 21 –
Those who have seen the church’s deadness
and have given up all hope say,
“Lord, she died. Why didn’t You come sooner?”

Verse 22 –
But they correct say the “right” words:
God will give You whatever You ask of Him.

Verse 23 –
Jesus says,
“The church will rise again.”

Verse 24 –
But she’s dead, Jesus.
You must be referring to the last day,
when the great resurrection happens.

Verse 25-26 –
Jesus corrects her. “I am the Resurrection and the Life.
He who believes in Me will live even if he dies.
Those who live and believe in Me will never die.”

He asks those who have given up on the church,
“Do you believe this?”

Verse 27 –
They say, “You are the Christ. This we believe.”
Implicitly they say, “But we don’t believe that.”

Verse 32 –
Another from the church,
a great worshiper of Him
who has given up on the church says,
“If you had been here she would be alive.
Now she is dead.
Why didn’t you come sooner?”

Verse 33 — Jesus is:

embrimaomai, from 1722 and brimaomai (to snort with anger); to have indignation on, to sigh with chagrin (distress), to sternly enjoin: — rigorously charge, groan, murmur against.

He is indignant! Angry!
He groans and sighs,
Why? The display of lack of faith !

Verse 35 –
Jesus weeps (1145).
He sheds tears because of their lack of faith.

Verse 36 –
Of course, the onlookers misinterpret Him.
He loves the church and now she is dead.
Look! He is weeping with sadness!
Why didn’t He come sooner?
He could have saved her!

Verse 37 –
Again, Jesus is indignant! Angry!
He groans and sighs and snorts at the lack of faith she displays!

Verses 38-39 –
At the tomb, “Remove the stone!”
Again, unbelief.
The church will stink.
She’s been dead too long.
Don’t open her grave!

Ezekiel 37:12 “Therefore prophesy and say to them, ‘Thus says the Lord GOD, “Behold, I will open your graves and  cause you to come up out of your graves, My people; and I will bring you into the land of Israel.  13 “Then you will know that I am the LORD, when I have opened your graves and caused you to come up out of your graves, My people.”

Verse 40 –
Jesus asks, “Have you forgotten that I said,
‘If you believe,
you will see the glory of God?’”

Verse 41-42 –
Jesus speaks aloud to the Father,
so we may believe.
The Father always hears Him.

Verse 43 –
Church, come forth!

Verse 44-46 –
The church comes forth,
still wrapped in grave clothes.
“Take them off!”

Oh, for that day!
Many will believe in Him!!!!!

Lazarus lives.
The church will yet live.

But there was more to do in Lazarus
after he was raised,
and in the church,
after she is raised.

She is physically raised up.
She is clothed with His righteousness.
But now she must wait in the city.
He will clothe her with power from on high:

Ezekiel 37:14 “I will  put My  Spirit within you and you will come to life, and I will place you on your own land. Then you will know that I, the LORD, have spoken and done it,” declares the LORD.’”

I believe Lazarus was in that upper room in Acts 2.
The Lord will complete His work in the church, too!

Ezekiel 37:23 “They will  no longer defile themselves with their idols, or with their detestable things, or with any of their transgressions; but  I will deliver them from all their  dwelling places in which they have sinned, and will cleanse them. And they will be My people, and I will be their God.

He wants to put His Spirit WITHIN YOU today!

But you must turn, O church.
All those who do, He will raise up.

Then the church will once again stand on her feet, an exceedingly great army!Will we who see and discern believe that He is able? Do we remember that He raised us from our deadness?

Ezekiel 37:10 So I prophesied as He commanded me, and the  breath came into them, and they came to life and stood on their feet, an  exceedingly great army.

HE IS RISEN, INDEED!

What the early Christians said in greeting one another: One would say, “He is risen!” The other would say, “He is risen, indeed!” Why “indeed?”   We KNOW — absolutely!

[SW086] 03/31/2013 message notes by Rev. Susan J. Wynn ©2013
“He Is Risen, Indeed!”

My notes are brief . . . please view the video at http://vimeo.com/myfathersplace

What the early Christians said in greeting one another:
One would say, “He is risen!”
The other would say, “He is risen, indeed!”

Why “indeed?”
We KNOW — absolutely!
He is in us!
We are filled with His Spirit!
He is risen IN US!

Christ IN us, the HOPE of glory (Colossians 1:27).
Not just a “maybe someday” hope,
but an expectation,
a knowledge that His glory has filled us,
and that we will see His glory,
just like He prayed in John 17:24!

It is not just belief,
or just a mental assent,
but an experience–
daily, 24/7 communion with Father, Son and Spirit!

John 20:29 Jesus to Thomas: “Blessed are they who do not see and yet believed.”

Why are we blessed if we have not seen Him?
Because He is in us!
He is a 24/7 experience!
We have a continuous conversation,
one that will continue through all eternity!
He is risen, INDEED!
CAN YOU SAY THIS, O CHRISTIAN?

1 Peter 1:8  We did not see Him
BUT
We LOVE Him
We do not now see Him
but believe,
and rejoice
with joy unspeakable and full of glory!
DO YOU?

2 Peter 1:4 His precious and magnificent promises! Partakers of the divine nature!

We live this truth!
He is RISEN indeed!
We have escaped the corruption
that is in this world by lust.
We no longer lust for anything.
DO YOU?
John 14:21 He has revealed Himself to us!

Why?
Because we have obeyed Him out of love for Him
AND THEN
He loves us and He discloses,
He appears,
He manifests,
He shows Himself to us.
HAS HE APPEARED TO YOU?

John 14:23    He and His Father take up permanent residence in us.
HAVE THEY, IN YOU?

On that Resurrection Sunday:  Luke 24:36-49
–Spoken to His disciples who had followed him for three years.

40 days later:  Acts 1:8

10 days after that: Acts 2
–Resurrection power IN them. Not just witnesses OF, but the Witness is WITHIN!

2 Timothy 1:12    Paul: “I KNOW (present tense, intimate knowledge)
whom I have believed,
He IS (present tense) able . . .

Paul’s prayer for the church at Ephesus and my prayer for the church:

Ephesians 1:15-23

Ephesians 3:14-19

RESTORATION!

O, hallelujah! The Lord has living water for the church today
that she may be reconstituted!
He has breath for her today — His very Word!

[SW085] 03/24/2013 message notes by Rev. Susan J. Wynn ©2013
“Restoration”

I look out from the watchman’s wall,
and the Lord shows me a great need for restoration in His Church.
He asks me to speak of it all the time.

Restoration — something is wrong . . .
lacking . . . in disrepair . . . broken down . . . dried up.

There is great unbelief in most of the church!
The proof? We make God into our own image.

Restoration! Tell us, Jesus, what brings it:

Matthew 17:11 And He answered and said, “Elijah is coming and will restore all things; 12 but I say to you that Elijah already came, and they did not recognize him, but did  to him whatever they wished. So also  the Son of Man is going to suffer  at their hands.” 13 Then the disciples understood that He had spoken to them about John the Baptist.

Restore (600) to reconstitute, restore (again).

Reconstitute –
to build up again from parts
to reconstruct
to change the form of
to restore something dried to its original state
by adding water to it.

O, hallelujah! The Lord has living water for the church today
that she may be reconstituted!
He has breath for her today — His very Word!

Again, what brings restoration/reconstitution?

John the Baptist had the spirit of Elijah upon him.
So I answer a question with a question:
What message did Elijah bring?

Repentance.
As with the first Elijah, John the Baptist asked,
“How long will you hesitate between two opinions?
But if the Lord is God, follow Him.” (see 1 Kings 18:21)

Repentance brings restoration.
John the Baptist preached
according to the Lord’s instructions
in the Book of Isaiah:

Isaiah 40:6 A voice says, “Call out.”
    Then  he answered, “What shall I call out?”
     All flesh is grass, and all its  loveliness is like the flower of the field.
7 The  grass withers, the flower fades,
     When the  breath of the LORD blows upon it;
    Surely the people are grass.
8 The grass withers, the flower fades,
    But  the word of our God stands forever.

O church, the word of our God stands forever.

Do not assume that God does not know or care
when you sin,
or that somehow, He has changed His mind,
and no longer hates sin.

Such assumptions WILL wither like grass and fade like flowers!
They won’t survive the LORD’s breath — His word!

Isaiah 40:27    Why do you say, O Jacob, and assert, O Israel,
    “My way is  hidden from the LORD,
    And the  justice due me  escapes the notice of  my God”?
28  Do you not know? Have you not heard?
    The  Everlasting God, the LORD, the Creator of the ends of the earth
    Does not become weary or tired.
    His understanding is  inscrutable.
    
Luke 3:7   So he [John the Baptist] began saying to the crowds who were going out to be baptized by him, “ You brood of vipers, who warned you to flee from the wrath to come?  8 “Therefore bear fruits in keeping with repentance, and  do not begin to say  to yourselves, ‘ We have Abraham for our father,’ for I say to you that from these stones God is able to raise up children to Abraham.  9 “Indeed the axe is already laid at the root of the trees; so  every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.”

That is a call to repentance!

For all who responded to the repentance John the Baptist preached,
their hearts were prepared for the Restorer,
who John clearly identified — Jesus Christ.

Isaiah 40:9 (NIV) You who bring good tidings to Zion,
        go up on a high mountain.
    You who bring good tidings to Jerusalem,
        lift up your voice with a shout,
    lift it up, do not be afraid;
        say to the towns of Judah,“Here is your God!”

John 1:29   The next day he  saw Jesus coming to him and  said, “Behold,  the Lamb of God who  takes away the sin of the world!”

John 1:36 and he looked at Jesus as He walked, and  said, “Behold,  the Lamb of God!”  [Here is the One who will Restore and Reconstitute you!]

The Lord speaks through Malachi of John the Baptist:

Malachi 3:1   “ Behold, I am going to send  My  messenger, and he will   clear the way before Me [in hearts]. And the Lord, whom you seek, will suddenly come to His temple;  and the   messenger of the covenant, in whom you delight, behold, He is coming,” says the LORD of hosts.  

Malachi 3:2 “But who can  endure the day of His [The Lord’s] coming? And who can stand when He appears? For He is like a  refiner’s fire and like  fullers’ soap.

Many were offended by this call to repentance:

Matthew 17:12 but I say to you that Elijah already came, and they did not recognize him, but did  to him whatever they wished. So also  the Son of Man is going to suffer  at their hands.”

“They” — many Jews, including leaders and Pharisees and Sadducees –
did not recognize (1921), did not  fully perceive,
were not attentive to,
what John preached.
Why? With all their learning,
with all their “head” knowledge,
they had no intimate knowledge of God.

Instead of repenting at John the Baptist’s words,
they rejected and mocked and were offended.
King Herod finally silenced John the Baptist by beheading him.

In the same way, Jesus Christ suffered at their hands.

The message of repentance comes to the church today
through modern-day prophets
who preach the truth,
just as Wilkerson said.

But for the same reason –
head knowledge
and not intimate knowledge –
many do not recognize their words,
and reject and mock and are offended.
Jesus suffers at their hands. (Hebrews 10:26-29)

To the natural eye, it looks quite hopeless!

The devil will say, as did Sanballat,
when Israel returned to the land after the Babylonian exile:

Nehemiah 4:2  “. . . What are these feeble Jews doing? Are they going to restore it for themselves? Can they offer sacrifices? Can they finish in a day? Can they revive the stones from the   dusty rubble even the burned ones?”

But we who intercede for the church say,
“The LORD is the God of all flesh
and nothing is too difficult for Him!” (see Jeremiah 32:27)

We say, “The devil is a liar and the father of lies . . .
there is no truth in him, and it is his very nature to lie.” (see John 8:44)

We prophesy the breath, according to the Lord’s Word  (Ezekiel 37:9-10)
so that the dried up is reconstituted into a mighty army!
We believe His promise in Ezekiel 36:25-27,
that He will do it for His name’s sake.

The Lord will build up His church again
from her brokenness
just like He restored the walls of Jerusalem.
The Lord will have a spotless and blameless bride.
The Holy Spirit says so, through Paul:

Ephesians 5:27 [speaking of Christ’s love for the church]
“. . . that He might  present to Himself the church  in all her glory
[literally, “the church glorious” -- that is, filled with His kabod],

. . . having no spot or wrinkle or any such thing;
but that she would be  holy and blameless.”

He will reconstruct her,
changing her form!
He will reconstitute the dry bones
with water from His limitless spring,
with living water,
and with the breath of His Spirit.

BUT you have something you must do, O Church, you who have disobeyed the Lord and are under a curse — REPENT! RETURN!

Paul tells the church in Rome that the promises of the Father, in Christ,
are not too difficult for them, nor for you, O Church of this day.

Romans 10:6 But  the righteousness  based on faith speaks as follows: “ DO NOT SAY IN YOUR HEART, ‘WHO WILL ASCEND INTO HEAVEN?’ (that is, to bring Christ down),  7 or ‘WHO WILL DESCEND INTO THE  ABYSS?’ (that is, to  bring Christ up from the dead).”  8 But what does it say? “ THE WORD IS NEAR YOU, IN YOUR MOUTH AND IN YOUR HEART” — that is, the word of faith which we are preaching,

We do not need to bring Christ down from heaven,
in order for us to obey,
for He has already come down!

The Restorer has come, O Church!

AND — We do not need to bring Him up from the dead,
for He is risen
and ascended,
and glorified,
and He has poured out the Holy Spirit!

Alright then. It boils down to this:

Isaiah 53:1    Who has believed our message?
    And to whom has the arm of the LORD been revealed?

If you believe Christ’s words,
then you ask Him to be your Master and Owner.
You lay down your life and take up His.
You ask the Father to fill you with His Holy Spirit (Luke 11:13).

Then He is in your heart, and you obey,
because God’s actual love has filled your heart,
and His Spirit controls you.

O Church,
call to Him and He will answer you and teach you great and unsearchable things that you do not know! (see Jeremiah 33:3)

His promise, if  you will turn –

Jeremiah 33:6 ‘Behold, I will bring to it  health and healing, and I will heal them; and I will reveal to them an  abundance of peace and truth.”

WILD ABANDON

Wild abandon! ALL OF YOU! That’s what the Father and the Son want!

[SW084] 03/17/2013 message notes by Rev. Susan J. Wynn ©2013
“Wild Abandon”

Abandon —     Verb:    giving up completely (an action, practice, or ways)
leaving without intending to return
giving in to the control of
surrendering to

Noun:    Completely lacking inhibition or restraint

I desire wild abandonment to Me,
giving no thought to yourself,
just as I gave no thought to Myself.

I am grieved by external adherence to do’s and don’ts
and a form of religion that denies and rejects
My miracle-working power to transform a human heart.

Matthew 9:13 “But go and learn [3129 in a prolonged way] what this means [2076 what it is]: ‘ I DESIRE  COMPASSION [Hebrew 2617 checed] ,  AND NOT SACRIFICE,’  for  I did not come to call the righteous, but sinners.”

Who was Jesus speaking to?
The Jewish leaders and super-religious sects,
because they were not wildly abandoned to God.

They had a form of religion,
but were self-righteous,
thinking they could do good deeds,
dot their “i’s” and cross their “t’s”
and those things would please God,
and would get them to heaven.

Jesus wasn’t following their rules at all!
They denied, disavowed, rejected
the miracle-working power of God –
that He is a transformer of men’s hearts (2 Timothy 3:5ff).

They did not enter into life,
and kept others from entering (Matthew 23:13)!
They knew the Word of God,
but didn’t recognize the Word made flesh (John 1:14)!

They sinned the sin of unbelief –
for He promised He would give them new hearts (Ezekiel 36:25-27).

It is like that in much of the church in America today.

But God is speaking through me today,
for He seeks and desires intimacy with you, O church!

Here is what Jesus said to those who trusted in “sacrifices” of their own choosing
(and what He says to His church today):

Matthew 9:13 “But go and learn [3129 in a prolonged way] what this means [2076 what it is]: ‘ I DESIRE  COMPASSION [Hebrew 2617 checed] ,  AND NOT SACRIFICE,’  for  I did not come to call the righteous, but sinners.”

It is only when we know we are sinners that He can save us
and heal us of our sin.

Jesus quotes Hosea often –

Hosea 6:6 For  I delight in loyalty  rather than sacrifice,
    And in the knowledge of God rather than burnt offerings.
Delight (2654), He inclines to,
    He bends over at . . . what?

Loyalty (2617 checed),
marital devotion and love,
faithfulness.

AND . . .

Knowledge of God (from 3045 yada) –
intimate knowledge,
experiential knowledge (knowing by experience)
the knower personally knowing the One known,
having met personally Him.
It is inward sanctification.
The NT equivalent?
Filled with the Holy Spirit.

Wild abandon is required!
Cast all caution to the wind!
This is your Maker, calling you into intimacy,
it is your Lord, Jesus Christ,
who prays for us to be sanctified,
to have the same unity of Spirit
as the Father and Him
and the Father’s love filling our hearts!
(John 17:19, 23, 26)

He desires CHECED, not sacrifice.
Not outward acts we think will make us pleasing to God.
He wants inward intimacy.

He wants your TOTAL, UNRESERVED devotion,
CONTINUALLY!

Christianity is a heart religion, not traditions and rote learning –
He wants your heart!
He wants to change it!

If you totally give Him your heart,
He will make it totally His,
and He will give you HIS heart –
you will be a partaker of the divine nature:

2Peter 1:4  For by these He has granted to us His precious and magnificent  promises, so that by them you may become  partakers of the divine nature, having  escaped the  corruption that is in  the world by lust.

When God’s checed has filled our hearts, we say:

Psalm 40:6     Sacrifice and meal offering You have not desired;
    My ears You have  opened [pierced];
    Burnt offering and sin offering You have not required . . .
8  I delight to do Your will, O my God;
     Your Law is within my heart.”

Who can have such a heart?
Anyone who brings their heart to Him in this condition:

Psalm 51:16 For You  do not delight in sacrifice, otherwise I would give it;
    You are not pleased with burnt offering.
17 The sacrifices of God are a  broken spirit;
    A broken  [7665 shattered]
     and a contrite [1794 crushed, crouching] heart,
        O God, You will not despise.

You must come to Him with a shattered heart,
You must come to Him with a crushed and crouching heart.
You must come to Him lowly and humble, like He came to you.

That is true sacrifice, in God’s eyes –
that is what it is to offer yourself as a living sacrifice,
holy and pleasing! (Romans 12:1).
It is not a sacrifice of your own choosing,
but what He commands.

He will bind up your heart (Isaiah 61:1)
but it must be shattered and crushed and crouching first!

Isaiah 61:1   The  Spirit of the Lord  GOD is upon me,
    Because the LORD has anointed me
    To  bring good news to the   afflicted;
    He has sent me to  bind up the brokenhearted,
    To  proclaim liberty to captives
    And  freedom to prisoners;
2 To  proclaim the favorable year of the LORD!

Shattered, crushed, crouching –
He will not despise such a heart.
It is what delights Him,
it is what makes Him bend down and incline toward you!

He loves the fragrance of TRUE sacrifice,
of brokenness before Him,
when we see who we are and repent,
and cry out like Isaiah in Isaiah 6:1 and forward!

Isaiah 6:5 Then I 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.”

The present state of much of the church:

Hosea 6:4   What shall I do with you, O  Ephraim?
    What shall I do with you, O Judah?
    For your  loyalty is like a  morning cloud
    And like the dew which goes away early.

Hosea 6:5 Therefore I have  hewn them in pieces by the prophets;
    I have slain them by the  words of My mouth;
    And the judgments on you are like the light that goes forth.

But He wants marital love and devotion and intimacy
and unity between you and Him.

What we have done that prevents that unity and intimacy and devotion:

Hosea 6:7 But  like  Adam they have  transgressed the covenant;
There they have  dealt treacherously against Me.

What we must do:

Hosea 10:12  Sow with a view to righteousness,
    Reap in accordance with  kindness;
     Break up your fallow ground,
    For it is time to  seek the LORD
    Until He  comes to   rain righteousness on you.

He will bring the rain — the Holy Spirit:

Joel 2:23 So rejoice, O  sons of Zion,
    And  be glad in the LORD your God;
    For He has  given you  the early rain for your vindication.
    And He has poured down for you the rain,
    The  early and   latter rain  as before.

Joel 2:28   “  It will come about after this
    That I will  pour out My Spirit on all   mankind;
    And your sons and daughters will prophesy,
    Your old men will dream dreams,
    Your young men will see visions.

He will bring rain IF you seek the Lord diligently and passionately!  AND . . .

Hosea 14:4   I will  heal their apostasy,
    I will  love them freely,
    For My anger has  turned away from them.
5 I will be like the  dew to Israel;
    He will blossom like the  lily,
    And he will  take root like the cedars of  Lebanon.
6 His shoots will  sprout,
    And his  beauty will be like the  olive tree
    And his fragrance like the cedars of Lebanon.
7 Those who  live in his shadow
    Will  again raise  grain,
    And they will blossom like the vine.
    His renown will be like the wine of Lebanon.

In His hand, you will bear His fruit!

Come to Him broken, and He will heal you.
He will give you a new heart.

He will fill you with
His Spirit, His love,
His power, His checed.

He is calling you TODAY.