PREFACE In October of 2019, the Lord told our little house of prayer in the mountains of Arizona to enter into a season of intensified prayer and fasting because the Church was about to enter into “the time of trouble” (Psalm 27:5). We invited hundreds of pastors, worship leaders, intercessors and believers to join us. There’d be no program, no conference speakers, simply a “tent of meeting” where anyone could come to seek the Face of God in a pure atmosphere of worship and listening to the Lord.
When we wrote the letters explaining the experience, and the Lord encouraged us to use the phrase, “the time of trouble”, I thought to myself, “The pastors will think we’re being sensationalistic’.”
Now, that we’ve passed through the seventh month of this tumultuous year, I’m no longer concerned about being discarded as an “alarmist”. The Lord’s insistence to use this term for this hour of history has proved appropriate. We are indeed in “the time of trouble”. We herald the King, and blow the trumpet unapologetically.
Through His grace the Lord faithfully led dozens of us at All Nations House of Prayer to navigate this “time of trouble” with five, six, seven and eight hours of corporate prayer each day; through the winter, the onset of COVID, weeks of sheltering-in-place, ZOOM prayer-meetings, Holy Week, Easter, Passover, Pentecost and ultimately into the summer months. By June, 180 days, and 1700 hours of prayer later, we were exhausted, but exhilarated. We were also filled with courage to boldly pray and proclaim a message the Holy Spirit is declaring across the globe.
In a nut-shell the message is this: I. The Father is preparing the earth for the coming reign of His Son. And He’s calling His Church to understand His Psalm 2 storyline.
II. The Lord is humbling, judging and purifying the Church. In this hour He’s graciously exposing key unrighteous issues that are alive and fomenting in the heart of the Church. These seven issues are listed below.
III. He is giving the Church ample opportunity to seek His face and adjust ourselves to the ways of the King and the administration of His government. He’s calling His Son’s Bride to embrace a new paradigm of humility and repentance.
IV. As we humble ourselves before His judgements, the Lord will do 3 things:
He will release a viral end-time harvest built on humility and repentance.
He will strengthen the Bride to resist the mounting anti-Christ spirit that will soon come to the entire earth.
He will prepare the heart of the Bride in first-commandment love so that we hasten the coming of our Bridegroom.
7 UNRIGHTEOUS ISSUES THE LORD IS CALLING US TO REPENT FROM During the six months of seeking the Lord, He highlighted seven unrighteous matters that stand in opposition to His Son’s reign, and are provoking His judgement upon us as a people. It’s intriguing to note that each of the following issues grabbed our nation’s attention at different times between January and June of 2020. During #SeekMyFace2020 we diligently brought our weak prayers before the Lord, dialoguing and inquiring with Him intently, sometimes with fasting, and sometimes through late-night hours, regarding each of these affairs. What follows are wind-rattled and tear-stained observations that the Lord has graciously shown us in “between the porch and the altar”. (Joel 2:17)
The Creator God is calling our nation to repent, and take up our cross to the national sin of ABORTION. He is also calling our evangelical family repent of our own contribution to abortion through apathy, politicization, pornography, the sexualization of women, and the abortion of the Word of God. Abortion is murder. And it is humanity’s capital crime against our Creator God’s most fundamental assertion of human life. On June 28, the United State Supreme Court struck down a Louisiana law that would have required abortion providers to have admitting privileges to a nearby hospital, dealing a blow to anti-abortion efforts.
The Father of the Bridegroom is calling our culture to repent and take the redemptive cross to the curse of HOMOSEXUALITY. Just as abortion is a crime against God’s fundamental act of creation, same-sex-marriage is a prideful act of sedition against God’s foundational design for the most intimate of all human relationships. In June, the Supreme court also decided, by a 6-3 vote, that the Civil Rights Act of 1964 that bars job discrimination because of sex, also must now be applied to sexual orientation and/or gender identity. The threat of a federal ban of “conversion therapy” has also significantly grown over these past six months.
The Lord of the Nations is calling America to repent and take the cross to our centuries-old national sin of racial pride. He’s calling us to finally turn from our incessant, self-justification, and confront the dysfunctional, abuse-perpetuating behavior that’s deeply rooted in our hearts. He’s calling us to humble ourselves, and to live in meekness with those affected by the generational sins of our fathers. We need a thorough, not a superficial cleansing of our father and forefather’s sins of RACISM, slavery, discrimination, murder, and genocide. And where necessary, we must engage in the hard, Kingdom work of making personal, and societal reparations for our family’s systemic and personal racial hostility and indifference. Racial pride is an abuse of God’s distinctive design for human community. He loves the diversity of nations and their multifaceted ways… The riots that rose from the race-based murders of George Floyd and Ahmaud Arbery etc. served as stimulants for a tsunami of protests, debates, retaliations, not only in the United States but around the world for more than 7 weeks during the spring of 2020.
The Father is calling His sons and daughters to repent, and take the cross to our self-centered view of the Kingdom and our laissez-faire attitude toward Israel and God’s covenant promises regarding the Jewish people. This is a sin of arrogance against God’s Word and His intentional leadership. It’s also passive toleration of ANTI-SEMITISM – a cultural dynamic that will tragically only increase in the months and short-years ahead. God’s heart for Israel was most vividly underscored when the height of the world-wide lock-down coincided with the feast of Passover; a time when the Jewish people celebrate God’s jealous protection from the judgments on the earth, and His faithful leadership into the land of blessing. God’s zeal for Israel was also brought up during the International Day of Rage on June 28th; a world-wide day to protest the existence of the nation of Israel. This day, passed, barely noticed by most believers.
The Lord, Who is King, is calling His Bride to repent and take the cross to our IDOLATRY of NATIONALISM and the many ways we are exchanging our godly zeal for political zeal, and championing carnal and even “anti-christ” behavior over the ways of God. This compromise deeply grieves the heart of the Lord, and (to be forthright) is about to be cut off in His wrath and displeasure. It’s no coincidence that this series of crises befell our nation in an election year, and at the end of the first term of one of the most contentious presidencies in American history; just after the President had been impeached by the House of Representatives and exonerated by the United States Senate.
The Father is calling His children to repent and take the cross to the ways we’ve embraced the anti-Sermon-on-the-Mount spirit of antipathy, hostility, animosity and UNFORGIVENESS toward one-another. These sins of bitterness are severe enough to defile the whole body (Hebrews 12:15) and even warrant the punishment of hell. (Matthew 18:21-35) The tempest of evils that have besieged our world during this season have set our social-media platforms ablaze with cursing, anger, racca, mocking and “unfriending”. With a few strokes of a keyboard, we possess the capacity to fan every social firestorm into infernos of untempered hatred and hostility…
The Sovereign Lord Himself is calling us to repent and take the cross to our STUBBORN PRIDE. We have not humbled ourselves in response to His world-wide judgments in this hour. Instead we have defiantly filled our mouths with suspicious accusations and malicious demands for our rights; contra-Kingdom behavior that seeks to justify our hostile ways, while desperately refusing to bend in contrition to the Lord.
A WORD ABOUT GOD’S JUDGEMENTS Examples of God judging His covenant people are found all throughout the Bible. In Genesis the Lord drove Adam and Eve out of the garden (Genesis 3:24). In Revelation Jesus affirms, reward & warns the 7 Churches (Revelation 2 & 3).
The Lord judges His own people for at least four reasons: A. To curb and contain the harmful effects of sin and unrighteousness. If God didn’t contain sin it would quickly overrun and destroy His family. B. The second reason He judges is to actually punish those who are perpetuating and causing the way of sin and unrighteous to prosper among a people or region. If they don’t repent, and they influence others to not repent, the Lord says He will deal with them. Ananias and Saphira are two knee-knocking examples of God’s judgement as punishment. And it was swift! C. He judges to refine the heart and ways of the Bride, so we learn to operate in the righteous ways of the King. The word righteousness literally means “the right order of the King”. Like a good Father, the Lord wants to “train us” and “discipline us” into mature righteousness and godliness. Isaiah 26:9 tells us “When the Lord’s judgments are in the earth, the inhabitants of the world will learn righteousness.” D. Finally, the Lord judges the Church in order to reward His sons and daughters who are embracing His way of righteousness. This element of the temporal judgments of God is largely ignored. The Lord is a “rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.” (Hebrews 11:6) (Proverbs 8:17 and Lamentations 3:25)
Every one of God’s judgements are issued to amplify love and life. Even the Lord’s most severe judgements are meant to improve the quality and depth of creation’s experience of life and love. 100% of His judgements are focused on bringing forth good on the earth; not evil.
God’s judgements are gentle to begin with, but will increase in order to bring forth maximum love and maximum, abundant life. “He always uses the least measure of pressure to produce the deepest level of response unto the greatest expression of love and faithfulness in us.” – Mike Bickle
If we won’t come to Him in our rest, the Lord will increasingly drive us to Himself in our unrest.
Depending on the sphere of influence some incur stricter judgement than others. James 3:1 advises us: let not many of you become teachers, knowing that we shall receive a stricter judgment. We don’t simply, personally engage in sinful ways alone. When we embrace sin we also seek to influence others to think like us we also “give hearty approval to others” to engage in destructive patterns of unrighteousness. (Romans 1:32) God hates all sin. But He especially detests sin that establishes evil norms in our families, culture & churches.
A general judgment of God may become a “finger of God” (Exodus 8:19) judgement upon an individual, family or culture. When hearts refuse to humble themselves in crisis; to ignore the beatitudes (where Jesus declared the blessings of the Lord would be found), and pridefully assert our rights in the midst of the numerous inconveniences brought about by the judgements, God will bring increasing judgement upon that person. He directly intervenes in ways that are more than one merely experiencing the natural consequences for their sin.
Again, every one of God’s judgements are issued to amplify love and life. Even when the Lord judges severely He is inviting His people to return to Him deeply. His relentless intent is to keep His promise to His Son and have a Bride who is filled with first-commandment love and fidelity, waiting and prepared to co-reign with Him when He returns to this planet.
The late Leonard Ravenhill observed, “In his mercy, God will produce a new race of Christian, anointed with a new zeal, a new passion, a new love. They’ll say goodbye to the sports-world, business-world and every other world, and say: ‘I’m going to live from the crown of my head to the souls of my feet – on the altar.”
This reality is also the fulfillment of Jesus’ promises in John 17 and His prophecy of first-commandment love on the earth. “You SHALL love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.” (Matthew 22:37)
Halleluia! This is where we’re going, friends! Through all the shaking and refining the Holy Spirit is producing wholehearted, sacrificial love for Y’shua in our hearts. Holy, faithful love is what God means for all His judgements to produce. It’s the quality that the Bride adorns herself with in order to “make herself ready” for the Lamb. (Revelation 19:7)
MAKING IT PERSONAL So, how are we to understand where we are in this hour?
The apostle Peter declares: “Judgement must begin with the house of the Lord” (1 Peter 4:17) Judgement must begin with the people of God so that when the Lord’s judgements fall on the nations, (and they will) the unbelievers, whom God loves, will have seen a living example of how to respond appropriately to this God they’ve never known.
In a few short weeks at the beginning of this year, the Lord brought all of humanity to a standstill in naked humility – at the same time – for the first time since the days of Noah (Genesis 7:6) – over passover – and provided 7.4 billion souls with “ready-made-space” to turn from their self-focused wisdom and “seek His face” (Psalm 27:8).
He was issuing a summons to His people: “Respond to Me! Seek My face! Humble yourselves and offer Me the response of a Joel 2: “Turn to Me with all your heart, with fasting, with weeping, and with mourning. Rend your heart, and not your garments; return to the Lord your God, for He is gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and of great kindness; and He relents from doing harm. Blow the trumpet in Zion. Consecrate fasts. Call sacred assemblies. Gather the people. Sanctify the gathering places. Assemble the elders. Gather the children and nursing babes. Let the bridegroom go out from his chamber, and the bride from her dressing room. Let the priests, who minister to the Lord, weep between the porch and the altar. Let them say, ‘Spare Your people, O Lord, and do not give Your heritage to reproach, that the nations should rule over them.” (Joel 2:12-17)
Though His invitation was filled with unction and unending mercy and grace the leaders largely failed to heed His call. Though prophets and politicians promised visions of quick relief. And the people pridefully protested our right to have our lives, schools, economies, amusements, politics, and Sunday mornings return to normal. We would not shift, kneel, nor seek His face. And the rate of reproach, blind rage, self-justification and righteous demanding within the Church continues to spike.
Again, Ravenhill comments: “I used to say that before long the Church will suffer for the sin of America. But I’ve turned it round. I believe that America will suffer for the sin of the Church.”
The upshot of our poor response is that the Bride did not learn righteousness (Isaiah 26:9) in this hour of judgement. And the world saw no pattern for how to respond to the Lord when His judgement falls upon them.
DECAPITATION In May – around day 130 of our 180 days of seeking the Lord, the Holy Spirit began to share another word with us; a word that numerous other believers were hearing. He was about to bring targeted judgement against those who were leading His people into rage vanity and rebellion – the antithesis of the spirit that He was wanting to bring His Church into.
From May until the end of June, through dreams, prayers and and incredible acts of nature, the Lord gave us eight warnings (listed below) about a focused judgement that was coming in August to those who are scornfully leading the body of Christ to turn a deaf ears to the Lord’s call to seek His face in humility and repentance.
Warning #1 • May 14, 2020 There’s a decapitation coming through the affliction that we’re so indignantly casting off. Suddenly, we will find ourselves in a land where there is no place to rest. (Hebrews 3:11) Warning #2 • May 17, 2020 Woe to what the enemy is sewing into the American evangelical body of Christ in this hour. The hour is passing. We’re not responding. There’s a decapitation coming… August. Judgment is beginning in the house of the Lord… Warning #3 • May 19, 2020 I had a dream that God was in a giant thunderstorm judging America. In the dream, several national evangelical leaders who feared for their lives, chose to lash themselves to the base of the Washington Monument – rather than humble themselves and repent before God. As soon as their rope was tied, the Lord struck the monument with lightning. It was a terrible vision. At the end of the dream, as the top third of the monument lay scattered around the carnage below, I heard a voice say: “Decapitation”. Warning #4 • May 27, 2020 A decapitation is coming within weeks. It will pierce the inflated hearts of millions who have bound themselves to idols and will not join the Lord into the wilderness. Warning #5 • June 5, 2020 Last night the Washington monument was struck by lightning. (https://www.foxnews.com/…/see-it-lightning-strikes-washingt…) I am wondering/praying if in 12 weeks (the beginning of August) we will begin to see/experience a “decapitation” in our country. Warning #6 • June 13, 2020 The Lord knows how to amplify the alarm. In May, the Lord showed me a decapitation that was coming to America – within 12 weeks. It will be a sign to the Church of the Lord’s great displeasure with our ways. But even this, many will misread and use to embolden themselves in unrighteousness. Warning #7 • June 20, 2020 In 12 weeks from May 19, will we begin to see a decapitation in our country? Warning #8 • June 23, 2020 Four bolts of lightning strike behind the Statue of Liberty abcn.ws/2CE9pe1
Now, in the month of August, we’re watching the beginning of this decapitation, as four prominent nationalist leaders have been “removed” from places of influence by abrupt and foreboding means.
Beloved, there are more, intensifying judgements to come upon the body of Christ. Jesus is returning, and He will not have His Bride remain in our self-centered, compromised, confused and passionless state.
This is an hour for everything in our lives: the way we do church, the way we evangelize, the way we engage politics, the way we pursue justice etc. to be marshaled to seeking the Lord’s face – without mixture or compromise.
Until we do this, all the energy we spend investing in conspiracies, saving constitutional conservatism, corona-virus cures; all our talk about revival, all our attempts to restructure the Church, and all our works for societal reform will prove to be ruinous, idolatrous distractions.
An hour is coming that we don’t have a grid for; an hour when pride must have no foothold within us. The Lord is profoundly serious about His Church embracing His paradigm of humble repentance so we may operate in wholehearted faithfulness to what He’s about to do. “In that day… I will take away from your midst those who rejoice in your pride, and you shall no longer be haughty in My holy mountain. I will leave in your midst a meek and humble people, and they shall trust in the name of the Lord.” (Zephaniah 3:11-12)
Let me say this plainly. The Lord has already set His hand to judge our nation, but first He must judge His slumbering and stubborn people. We are being sifted and separated. We’re no longer in a Joel hour when the judgements of God may come upon us in the future. We’re in a Jeremiah hour when judgement is here, now, on our doorstep. Any future talk of revival must include the primary and practical consideration of how we, as the sons and daughters of the most high, turn from our own wickedness and develop a new normal of humbled, meek, cross-bearing abandonment to Him and His approaching way. Revival may not come, even if we do let the Holy Spirit purge us of our deep, culturally-enhanced unrighteousness. But if we don’t engage in the deep repentant work, the faith of millions of our American sisters and brothers will certainly be shipwrecked, and perhaps even lost, through the mounting cultural rage that’s building all around us.
Pray with us that the Church in our nation will turn from her many distractions and seek the face of the Lord in the fear of the Lord, so that the Church implements a repentance that is sufficient for our preparation for the coming of the Lord.
“Prepare the way of the Lord; Make straight in the desert a highway for our God. Every valley shall be exalted and every mountain and hill bright low; The crooked places shall be made straight and the rough places smooth. The glory of the Lord shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together…” (Isaiah 40:3-5)
We value your dialogue in this profound hour, friends.
Originally published by dear friend Pastor JS Boegl at https://allnationshopsw.org/anhopsw-blog/f/the-lord-is-judging-the-church-calling-her-to-repentance
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