THE KINGDOM OF GOD COMES TO EARTH

Part Sixteen April 2002

The kingdom of God is coming to the earth in many different ways. The coming of His kingdom to earth is as a mystery; it is coming in secret and is hidden from the view of most, for it is coming by the Spirit. And only those who are spiritually-minded will know that His kingdom is coming to the earth. The carnal-minded cannot know, for they mind only earthly, worldly things. The religious-minded cannot know, for they mind religious things, the things that belong to the religious doctrines and systems of man. The church-minded cannot know, for they are living in the dead past; their minds are centered on all that belongs to the obsolete church system. The elect are spiritually-minded, for they mind the things of God; their hearts and minds are centered on all that has to do with the Spirit of God and His spiritual kingdom of love, life, truth, justice, righteousness, joy and peace.

The kingdom of God is not coming to the earth all at once, or immediately and with all its mighty power and authority. Should it come that way, the kingdom of God would overwhelm everything in its path. God's kingdom must come to the earth in parts or segments; He knows that the people of this world must be changed gradually and according to the limits and restraints of their carnal minds and immature spirits, just as it was with us. We now know that the work of God and of His kingdom within us took place gradually and according to the limits of our spiritual growth. With each test and trial we experienced, we grew spiritually, progressing from glory to glory and from faith to faith. It has taken us many years to get to where we are now spiritually. But we rejoice to know that our Father is now doing a quick work, not only with us but also with many others.

The kingdom of God is also coming to the earth in mercy and grace to fully redeem, restore and reconcile all things. Before He will restore all things, our Father must first judge all things and then bring forth the appropriate correction in His wonderful process of the restoration of all things. Christ, the King and Lord of all, is exercising His royal authority; He is bringing the first dominion of His kingdom to the earth, specifically to His chosen elect of Zion, who also are the "tower of the (His) flock" (Micah 4:8). Our Father, in His prophetic wisdom and foresight, has purposed that His kingdom should come to the earth gradually, in parts and in many different ways. The first phase of the kingdom of God that has come to the earth will replace everything that does not express and manifest the peace, joy and righteousness of our Father, and His matchless kingdom of Life and Love.

The prophetic word of the Lord tells us that a light would shine in the earth "at evening time," which is the beginning of a new Day and a time of increased spiritual darkness in all the earth (Zech. 14:6-7). And that light, which is Christ, would shine into the hearts of the Lord's elect to begin a new Day on earth. This has already taken place at His evening-time appearing. None but the Lord's elect could receive that light of Christ, for they alone have been prepared of their Father to receive the light that He is. All the attributes and characteristics of our Father are manifested and expressed in the kingdom of God. It is impossible to separate God and all that He is from His kingdom, for they are one and the same. Therefore, the manifestation of the glorious light of Christ is also a manifestation of the glory and power of the kingdom of our Father (Mk. 11:9-10). Evening time is only the beginning of a time of spiritual darkness. Spiritual darkness has increased in the earth, to show that we are now entering the midnight hour of this new Day, which began at evening time.

Our Father has a purpose for the spiritual darkness that now troubles the world, just as He has a wonderful purpose in all that takes place everywhere and at all times. The Light of Christ shines during a prophetic night just as He does during a prophetic day. The darkness and the light are alike to Him (Ps. 139:12), and it should be the same with us as well! God has a purpose for the darkness just as He does for the light! Father wisely uses spiritual darkness to bring corrective judgment on people to bring them to repentance and to a new and higher spiritual walk with Him. And He will also impart the light of Christ to His obedient sons, enabling them to dispel the darkness in this world. However, we do not yet see very many of God's people repenting. Is it possible that the tragic events of last September were not sufficiently powerful enough to bring God's people to repentance? The Lord knows what is needed to bring His people to repentance, and we will not be surprised if we should see more trouble and darkness. The false doctrines of Christendom are responsible for alienating the world's unbelievers. Such books as "Left Behind," and other false doctrines of the church system, have created a vast chasm between the needy of this world and the churches of today. Therefore, when God's people repent, many nonbelievers will also repent and turn to the Lord, replacing the judgments of the Lord with another, more glorious phase of the kingdom of God on earth.

The present war may be one of the worst in many years! Only the Lord can deliver us out of this war and its effects, and I believe He will when His people repent! Repentance is God's way of opening us up to Him and to the fullness of the truth and the Life that He is for this new Day! Not until God's people repent will there be deliverance and a spiritual change from darkness to light. And that deliverance may be the manifestation of the sons of God! When we repent, the Lord will fulfill His word, which is, "then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land" (2 Chron. 7:13-14).

One morning I awakened early and was led to commune with God in the Spirit. There, in the Spirit, I heard the voices of His people. They were not praying, but were telling the Lord: "Lord, it is your turn, do something!" It was as if God and His people were playing a game of chess. God's people kept telling the Lord, "it is your turn; it is your move." But the Lord responded, telling His people in a firm and commanding manner, "No, it is your turn; it is your move. I must have your repentance before I will do anything more." The next move is ours. God will have us all repent, then He will make His move!

The Lord has given us examples in scripture to illustrate our relationship with the world of today and its gross, spiritual darkness. When the Lord was preparing Pharaoh to let Israel go free, He told Moses to stretch forth his hand toward heaven "that there may be darkness over the land of Egypt, even darkness which may be felt." For three days there was such gross darkness in Egypt that the people could not see one another, nor could they go out of their homes. But in spite of the gross darkness that overwhelmed Egypt "all the children of Israel had light in their dwellings" (Ex. 10:21-23). So it is with us during this midnight hour of gross, spiritual darkness! As the Lord prepared the Egyptians to release Israel in history, so is He now moving in the earth to deliver us of the Babylon world systems and establish us in the fullness of His kingdom. We have a light within us, even the glorious Light of Christ! And that spiritual Light within will eventually replace the gross darkness in the world. Then the sons of God will be unveiled and manifested and the morning of this new Day will dawn in great glory, bringing the greater fullness of the kingdom of our Father to all the earth! Then and only then will the world know true and lasting peace, even the enduring and everlasting peace of our loving and merciful Father!

Nothing will change in this world until we, as the elect of the Lord, repent and see Christ to become all He is. The signs around us tell us we are entering the midnight hour of this new Day, which is an hour of increased spiritual darkness in the earth. But we are sons of God and are, therefore, sons of Light; we have no relationship with this darkness! Our hope is in Christ, and in His imminent appearing, not in man and his corrupt ways. We believe Christ will appear during this present midnight hour (see Mk. 13:35-37). Therefore, we will continue to watch for Him, keeping our "lamps" trimmed and filled with the precious oil of His Spirit, as we prepare to see Him as He is and become all that He is. There is nothing else we can do now that is more important than this!

Called to Sonship, not to Care for the Needy

Some time ago we saw a news program that showed the wonderful work of volunteers in New York City. Scores of them were very busy helping the workers clean up the terrible mess left from the World Trade Center destruction. Some women had worked at their regular jobs for eight hours and then came to Ground Zero to work there for another eight hours without pay. Their dedication to that task was inspiring to behold. Some men also came to New York City to help with the many needs there. One group of men brought two large eighteen-wheeler trucks from Texas. One truck was loaded with twelve cords of wood and the other large truck carried 30,000 lbs. of meat. Those men came to New York City to help supply food for the needy. The meat they brought was for making hamburgers, and the wood was to be used to build a fire on which to grill the meat. It was reported that they supplied 4000 meals a day to the hungry of New York City. The dedication of those people to help the needy filled my eyes with tears as I thought on that noble deed done by good people who may have no relationship with our Lord Jesus Christ and His kingdom.

It was then that the Lord reinforced His call on my life as a son of God. He let me know that He did not call me to feed the hungry or to help the workers in New York City, or to serve people and their many needs any where in this world. My Father called me to become a son of God! He did not call me to talk about sonship and the wonders of His kingdom. Nor did He call me to relate only to people. My Father called me to commune with Him in the Spirit! He also called me to walk the sonship walk, by the Spirit, and to continue walking with Him in the Spirit, ascending the heights of mount Zion, until I became a fully manifested son of God. Some of us may feel an urge to help the needy, whether in New York City or some other place of great need in this world. But if we are chosen of our Father to become a son of God, then we are not called to help the needy of this world. Ours is a unique call, resulting in a separate walk with God!

Let others who are not called of God to sonship care for the needy! There are multiplied thousands who are not called to sonship, who are people-centered and can help the needy. But there is only a small remnant who are called to the full maturity of sonship fulfilled. As long as this world continues as it is, there will always be poor and needy people. Jesus said, "ye have the poor always with you" (Mt. 26:11). But we are called of our Father to grow to full sonship and become fully manifested sons of God, displaying the power and glory of sonship fulfilled. The wondrous miracle of our transformation will break the curse of sin and death and release the whole creation and everything in it from its many bondages, including the bondages of sickness, poverty and want. If we are really concerned about the needy of this world, we will seek the Lord for our change with increased urgency, stripping ourselves of all that is of the flesh, as we continue running this spiritual race unto our appointed goal in Christ.

Our spiritual growth and communion with Christ by the Spirit will enable us to see Him as the Light that He is. We shall then be transformed; and that glorious event will turn this long, dark night into endless Day. The morning of this new Day will surely dawn in great glory and splendor for all the world to witness when we are changed into the glorious image and likeness of the risen and glorified Christ! Our transformation will turn this night of gross, spiritual darkness into the brilliance of the new kingdom Day! The Light of Christ shall shine forth from us in great glory to illuminate all the earth! His lightning-like appearing will join this Christ-body, which now is as a carcass in the earth, to His spiritual saints of the heavenlies, making one complete, anointed, transformed and glorified Body of Christ (Mt. 24:27-28)! Are you ready to see Him as He is to become all that He is? Are you groaning in the spirit with a longing deep within to be where He is and as He is? The hour is upon us when all we have hoped for will be made available to us, in the Spirit and by the Spirit!

Israel's Example Speaks to us Today

There is more truth to be gleaned from Israel's experiences that will help us make it through this midnight hour of gross, spiritual darkness. The Lord went before the nation as Light while they traveled through the dark and foreboding wilderness. Whether by day or by night, the Lord went before the nation to lead them every step of the way on their journey to their promised land. By day, He went before them in a pillar of cloud, to lead them in the way they should go. And they did not travel only during the day. When Israel traveled by night, the Lord went before them in a pillar of fire, to give them light by night. Therefore, whether Israel traveled by day or by night, the Lord went ahead of them, as a guiding Light, to lead them in the way they should go, as they journeyed to their promised land (Ex. 13:21-22).

Israel's example speaks to us today, for "these things happened to them as examples and were written down as warnings for us, on whom the fulfillment of the ages has come" (1 Co. 10:11, NIV). Israel's examples and warnings are relevant for us today. All those literal experiences were recorded and preserved specifically for us, "on whom the fulfillment of the ages has come." The Day is here, and the fulfillment of the ages has come upon us! We are the people for whom all the examples, warnings and promises of ages past have been given! Let us take full advantage of them and use each one to fulfill all our Father's prophetic purposes and promises given in ages past.

In the scripture above, we can see that Israel traveled by night as well as by day. Christ, who is Light, appeared before them as a pillar of cloud by day and a pillar of fire by night. This tells us that our spiritual growth and progress will take place during this prophetic midnight hour just as it did during the previous, spiritual, prophetic evening time. He who is our Light will be with us to guide and direct us with every spiritual step we take, whether it is night or day, spiritually speaking. In fact, it is my personal experience that I have grown by night as well as by day, for Christ was my constant Light, as He shall be for all His sons as well. As I look back on my life, I can see that I made as much or more spiritual progress during prophetic nighttime experiences, as I did during the experiences of the typical, spiritual daylight or evening hours. We may not like these nighttime experiences but Father knows they are good for us!

A nighttime experience can be described as a difficult experience in our lives, perhaps a severe test or trial, which brings the spiritual darkness of a prophetic night into our lives. It can also be a time when we may feel as though the Lord has forsaken us, as in Is. 54:7-8, and left us to handle our problems without an awareness of His constant, abiding, restoring and healing presence. Then there are the prophetic nighttime experiences that negatively affect the whole world, as it is at this time. But He who is our Light is the same illuminating, transforming and guiding Light, whether it is a spiritual day or a spiritual night. This is especially true in our individual lives!

Another illustration given for our edification is seen in Israel's tabernacle in the wilderness. By the command of God and on behalf of the children of Israel, a lamp was put before the testimony of the Lord in the tabernacle. That lamp was filled with special, beaten olive oil, and then was kept lit "from evening to morning before the Lord." This order was established as a statute forever. It is given to show us that the Light of the Spirit is always available to us, even during these dark, spiritual hours of midnight. When we ascend in the Spirit to worship our Father in the heavenlies of His Spirit, we are assured that His Light is always shining to guide and direct us on the pathway we should take, by the Spirit. We will never be left alone in this world without the guiding and sheltering Light of our beloved Lord! Thus, it is written, "Then the LORD will create over all of Mount Zion and OVER THOSE WHO ASSEMBLE THERE a cloud of smoke by day and a glow of flaming fire by night; over all the glory will be a canopy. It will be a shelter and shade from the heat of the day, and a refuge and hiding place from the storm and rain." (Is. 4:5-6. NIV). Thus, our true assembly is not in some building, but on Mt. Zion!

These truths also apply to the "tabernacle" of the Spirit that is within us (see Lu. 17:21, 1 Cor. 3:16, 6:19, 2 Cor. 5:1, 4, 2 Pet. 1:13-14). The presence of the Lord, including His throne, His temple and His kingdom are all within us as the Seed of Christ! Therefore we should be filled with the Light of Christ at all times, whether it is a time of more light in a spiritual day or a time of the darkness of a spiritual night, for His Light is always shining in His heavenly, spiritual tabernacle within us. By His glorious Light within, we are able to make it through this dark night with faith, confidence and trust in Him. Not only will we make it through this night of spiritual darkness, but we will do so triumphantly and victoriously, overcoming all the darkness of this present, worldly order of man's wrath, evil and corruption. We will also turn this dark night into the endless Day of the power and glory of the kingdom of God in all the earth!

If we are reigning with Christ, the glorious Light of Christ must always be shining from within us. David, one of the greatest of the kings of Israel, spoke from experience when he said, "He that ruleth over men must be just, ruling in the fear of God. And HE SHALL BE AS THE LIGHT OF THE MORNING, when the sun riseth, even a morning without clouds; as the tender grass springing out of the earth by clear shining after rain" (2 Sam. 23:3-4). The sons of God are those elect and chosen ones who shall eventually rule over men. And we are to do so with the Light of Christ shining out from within us to dispel all the darkness in people and eventually in all the earth. We are to be filled with so much of the Light of Christ that we will shine forth as the bright sun in its brilliance, when it rises over the horizon to bring light to all the earth. The people of the world, who are ruled by the kings of Father's kingdom, will then grow in the Spirit "as the tender grass springing out of the earth by clear shining after rain." They will be set free of all their former bondages, and will then worship the Lord in spirit and in truth. They will grow to the full stature of Christ, according to our Godly example, in the power and glory of the kingdom of God! And our growth to the full maturity of sonship manifest will make all this possible!

To rule over men, according to the New Testament meaning of the word, means we are to shepherd them as a shepherd tends or cares for a flock of sheep. We are to rule or shepherd all mankind with the grace, mercy and love of God. All who are chosen to rule and reign with Christ must first learn to be shepherded by the Lord. We must know that He is our chief Shepherd and another we will not follow! We must also know what it is to allow our chief Shepherd to guide and shepherd us on this earthly, yet spiritual journey. In knowing Christ as our Shepherd, we have learned the importance of trusting our lives to Him, so that we depend on His ability to lead us and not on our own feeble and sometimes inept ability to follow Him. His ability to lead us is far greater and more competent than our ability to follow Him!

Then, having learned to rely on the Lord's leadership ability alone, we are well able to shepherd, rule or lead others. This is what it means to "rule" in the kingdom of our Father! We must also be just and we must rule, reign or shepherd men in the fear of God. Because we fear the Lord and desire only to do His will and to please Him, we will make every decision and every spiritual judgment with the fullness of the mind of Christ. We fear the Lord and therefore fear to do anything that is not an expression of His perfect and holy will for this earth and all the people of it and in it!

The Psalmist David helped us understand the Lord's purpose for His judgments, when he sang this song to the Lord: "The Lord rewarded me according to my righteousness [my conscious integrity and sincerity with Him]; according to the cleanness of my hands has He recompensed me. For I have kept the ways of the Lord, and have not wickedly departed from my God. For all His ordinances were before me, and I put not away His statutes from me. I was upright before Him and blameless with Him, ever [on guard] to keep myself free from MY SIN and guilt (obviously, each of us have our own individual sins and iniquities). Therefore has the Lord recompensed me according to my righteousness [my uprightness and right standing with Him], according to the cleanness of my hands in His sight. With the kind and merciful You will show Yourself kind and merciful; with an upright man You will show Yourself upright; With the pure You will show Yourself pure, and with the perverse You will show Yourself contrary. For You deliver an afflicted and humble people, but will bring down haughty looks. For You cause my lamp to be lighted and shine; the Lord my God illumines my darkness" (Ps. 18:20-28, Amplified).

What a wealth of truth there is in this passage! Our Father has many different "sides" of Himself, which we might describe as being similar to human personalities or characteristics. And He wisely uses them on each of us, according to our individual needs. The nature or characteristic of every one of us is described by the Psalmist in the passage above. All mankind are included here, from the totally carnal, perverted, fleshly people, to those of us who have been redeemed by the precious blood of Christ, who have also been thoroughly tested and tried by our loving and merciful Father. If we have been thoroughly processed by the Lord and have come forth with clean hands, are upright before Him; have kept the ways of the Lord; and have been kept free in Christ from our own, individual sin and guilt; the Lord will reward us with His pure righteousness. He will also recompense us, or cause us to return to Him, according to our righteousness, which is really the righteousness of Christ.

One of the principles of the kingdom of God is that our Father is to us what we are to Him! We receive from God according to what we already have. And if any man have not His primary salvation and His gifts and abilities, that which they have shall be taken away from them. To the righteous, He will show Himself to be righteous, giving us more of His righteousness, and that in abundance. With the kind and merciful, He will also be kind and merciful. With the pure God will show Himself to be pure, and with the perverse, or the crooked and distorted, He will show Himself to be contrary, revealing to them their iniquities. To be "contrary" means God will be as an adversary to them, revealing their sinful, perverse nature and taking away from them that which they have. By this process, God will remove from them their crooked and distorted nature, which is the sinful, Adamic nature and mind within them, thereby redeeming them. Because the ungodly have not His pure righteousness, God will remove from them that which they have, which is the Adamic nature, thus making them pure and righteous in His sight. How wonderful is our Father's all-inclusive plan of salvation, reconciliation and restoration of all!

The last portion of the passage quoted on the previous page states: "For You deliver an afflicted and humble people, but will bring down haughty looks. For You cause my lamp to be lighted and shine; the Lord my God illumines my darkness." What does this tell us, but that the Lord will deliver His chosen ones who have been afflicted and humbled by the Lord's processings in their lives. To be "afflicted," as used in this passage, means to be depressed in mind or circumstances. And many of us know all about that! When we are faced with a difficult trial, no matter what type of trial it may be, we should rejoice with joy unspeakable, for that trial is our Father's way of letting us know that He plans to deliver us. Father will deliver an afflicted and humble people, but He will bring down the proud and arrogant who may be in an exalted worldly position. In a universal, corporate sense, we can see that the judgments of the Lord have come to the earth to bring down those with haughty looks, who are high-minded and proud.

The elect of the Lord will be delivered during this Day of the Lord, for they have been judged and afflicted with the sufferings of Christ. We allowed the Lord to judge and correct us in advance, before the general judgment of the world. Therefore, we shall not be judged and chastened of the Lord along with the rest of the world. Thus, Paul wrote, "For if we would judge ourselves, we should not be judged. But when we are judged, we are chastened of the Lord, that we should not be condemned with the world" (1 Cor. 11:31-32). To be chastened means to be trained and educated as a child unto adulthood. Our chastening is a sign to us that we have already been judged of the Lord. It also shows that we shall not be condemned, or judged and sentenced, along with rest of the world. This judgment is taking place in the world now. If each of us is being judged of the Lord and chastened, then we should also know that our Father is causing our inner, spiritual lamps to be lighted and to shine forth with the glorious Light of Christ. The Lord indeed illumines all our darkness! And the Light that we are shall turn this spiritually dark night into a brilliant and radiant Day, by the Light and power of the indwelling Christ, when God's purposes for this night have been completely fulfilled! In Christ there is Life, and His Life is the Light of men. His Light and His Life are one and the same (Jo. 1:4-9); they are qualities and attributes of Christ and His majestic kingdom of Love!

The Psalmist David also said, "The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? the Lord is the strength of my life; of whom shall I be afraid? When the wicked, even mine enemies and my foes, came upon me to eat up my flesh, they stumbled and fell. Though an host should encamp against me, my heart shall not fear: though war should rise against me, in this will I be confident" (Ps. 27:1-3). Many of the negative events or trials that could come upon a person in this world are listed here. When we finally know for certain that the Lord is indeed our light and our salvation, we will then have nothing to fear. If the wicked should trouble us, we know they will stumble and fall. And although a host should encamp against us, either literally or figuratively, our hearts will not fear. We know of a certainty that we are in Christ and that He will protect and keep us through all that could possibly come against us.

Although war should also rise against us, we will be confident, which is to say, we will trust the Lord and will be confident and sure in our relationship with our Father. The present war cannot move the true believer to fear! We are anchored in Christ; our place in Him is unmovable! Where there is Love, there is no fear, for perfect Love casts out all fear (1 Jo. 4:18)! What is this war, but a blip on the screen of our lives! It is like a grain of sand on our pathway to the kingdom; it cannot affect our walk with God or impede our journey. These things cannot affect us or our spiritual walk, except in a positive way. The events of this Day of the Lord should cause us to repent - to open our hearts to the Lord and His truth, and to grow to higher heights in Him. This is our Father's holy, sovereign purpose for us, as we walk through this life and all that may take place during this time of gross, spiritual darkness!

The psalms of David are prophetic psalms! They are songs written by a king for other kings who shall rule and reign under the Kingship of the King of kings and the Lord of lords. The psalms of David, along with the glorious Light of Christ, give us guidance and direction on this pathway to the throne of our Father. David warned us of our attitude during times such as these. He said, "Fret not thyself because of evil doers, neither be thou envious against the workers of iniquity. For they shall soon be cut down like the grass, and whither as the green herb." The words, "Fret not," mean to blaze up in anger, zeal or jealousy. To be "envious," means to be zealous in a bad sense, or to be envious or jealous of those who work iniquity. We are not to be angry with evil doers, nor are we to envy the workers of iniquity. They seem to be rewarded with the good things of this world, while we face the judgments of the Lord for our correction and restoration. But they shall also be judged for their iniquities, and in that process, the old Adamic man within them also shall be "cut down like the grass, and whither as the green herb."

Father's Steadfast Love and Good Pleasure For His Elect

"How precious is Your stedfast love, O God! The children of men take refuge and put their trust under the shadow of Your wings. They relish and feast on the abundance of Your house, and You cause them to drink of the stream of Your pleasures. For with You is the fountain of life; in Your light do we see light. [John 4:10, 14.]" (Psalm 36:7-10.) And again, "Commit your way to the Lord - roll and repose [each care of] your road on Him: trust (lean on, rely on and be confident) also in Him, and He will bring it to pass. And He will make your uprightness and right standing with God go forth as the light, and your justice and right as [the shining sun of] the noonday. Be still and rest in the Lord; wait for Him, and patiently stay yourself upon Him: fret not yourself because of him who prospers in the way, because of the man who brings wicked devices to pass. Cease from anger and forsake wrath; fret not yourself; it tends only to evil-doing. For evildoers shall be cut off; but THOSE WHO WAIT AND HOPE AND LOOK FOR THE LORD, [in the end] SHALL INHERIT THE EARTH. [Isa. 57:13C.]" (Ps. 37:5-9, Amplified.)

No matter what happens in this old world, we will keep our trust in the Lord and in the spiritual abundance of His house and kingdom. If we do this, we may be absolutely certain that our Father is also causing us to "drink of the stream of Your (His) pleasures." God has a people today, an elect remnant in the earth, who are drinking of the stream of His pleasures. That which pleases and delights the Lord is as a stream flowing out from Him to the elect of the Lord. Therefore, we should consider that which is pleasing to the Lord. The Lord takes pleasure in uprightness or righteousness (1 Chr. 29:17). It is His pleasure to do good to Zion (Ps. 51:18). He takes pleasure in those who fear Him and who hope in His mercy (Ps. 147:11). He takes pleasure in His people (Ps. 149:4). And it is His pleasure to build His temple and the spiritual Jerusalem (Is. 44:28 & 46:10).

It is also the Lord's pleasure to destroy the three-part city, known prophetically as Babylon (Is. 48:14). That "city" of evil is divided into three parts, according to the systems of this world, which are first religious, then political-governmental and economic. God will destroy those systems, not the people who are enslaved within them. The Babylon world systems were created by the old man, Adam, that is within us all. All the world's corrupt systems along with the old man, Adam, shall be completely destroyed by the sovereign power of our almighty Father, releasing all mankind from Babylon's curses and her many bondages. And it is our Father's good pleasure to do so!

The pleasure of our Father is also seen in Jesus the Christ, who was bruised, put to grief and made to be an offering for sin. And all the good pleasure of our Father shall prosper in His hand (Is. 53:10). Our loving, merciful Father has no pleasure in the death of the wicked! This is a truth that is contrary and directly opposite to the false doctrines of the corrupt church system. It is our Father's pleasure rather, that every person of every age or time should return to Him (see Eze. 18:23 & 33:11). And they surely shall, in Father's time and according to His good pleasure and purpose (1 Tim. 2:3-4)!

That which is declared to be a "pleasure" to the Lord in the Old Testament, becomes "His good pleasure" in the New. And that which is declared to be "His good pleasure" in the New Testament, now becomes His highest and utmost pleasure in the greater glory of the kingdom of God. This must be so to show the increase of the kingdom of God from one age to the next (Is. 9:7). The zeal of the Lord of hosts has done this, for His glory and honor! Jesus told us not to seek after or be worried about our needs for the things of this world. Then He said, "For all the pagan world is [GREEDILY] seeking after these things, and your Father knows you need them. Only aim at and strive for and seek after His kingdom, and all these things shall be supplied to you also. Do not be seized with alarm and struck with fear, LITTLE FLOCK, FOR IT IS YOUR FATHER'S GOOD PLEASURE TO GIVE YOU THE KINGDOM" (Lu. 12:30-32, Amplified). Indeed, it is the "little flock" who shall inherit the kingdom of God!

The Apostle Paul tells us that we have obtained an inheritance and were predestinated according to the purpose of Him who works all things after the counsel of His own will. We were chosen in Christ before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before Him in love. He predestinated us unto the adoption of sons by Jesus Christ to Himself, "according to the good pleasure of His will" (Eph. 1:4-5, 11). He has made known to us the mystery of His will, "according to His good pleasure which He hath purposed in Himself" (Eph. 1:9). And then the anointed apostle tells us, "For it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of His good pleasure"(Phil. 2:13). Everything that takes place in our lives, whether we think it might be good or bad, is an expression of our Father's "GOOD PLEASURE." He is always working within us, both to will something concerning us and then to fulfill that thing or purpose in our lives, which is always His good pleasure. And since all that happens to us is our Father's good pleasure, we need not fear anything that is of this world and its man-oriented systems!

The Apostle Paul wrote to the Thessalonians, telling them of the appearing of Christ, "When He comes to be glorified in His saints. (That is, on that day He will be made more glorious in His consecrated people) and [He will] be marveled at and admired [in His glory reflected] in all who have believed - who have adhered to, trusted in and relied on Him - because our witnessing among you was confidently accepted and believed [and confirmed in your lives]. With this in view we constantly pray for you, that our God may deem and count you worthy of [your] calling and [His] every gracious purpose of goodness (the King James has it as "all the good pleasure of His goodness"), and with power complete in every particular [your] work of faith [faith which is that leaning of the whole human personality on God in absolute trust and confidence in His power, wisdom and goodness]" (2 Thess. 1:10-11, Amplified).

The good pleasure of God is that which gives Him satisfaction; it is also His delight, His desire, His kindness, His wish and His purpose revealed and fulfilled! This is true of both the Old and the New Testament usage of the word, "pleasure." When the "four and twenty elders" worshiped the Lord, they said of Him, "Thou art worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honour and power: for thou hast created all things, and FOR THY PLEASURE they are and were created" (Rev. 4:11). All things were created by God and are continually being created by Him for His pleasure! Therefore we may be absolutely certain that the same loving and merciful Father would never want to destroy this world and the people in it. Such false doctrines came out of the carnal mind of man and are contrary to the wonderful truths of God and the eternal purposes of His kingdom. Not only were all things created by God for His pleasure, but those same all things shall be fully restored by our devoted and compassionate Father, according to His sovereign purpose and the good pleasure of His will!

Vessels of Mercy Created by our Father to Represent His Kingdom

The absolute and total sovereignty of our Father is a truth the Spirit is revealing now, more than any time in recent history. The Lord declared that He raised up Pharaoh, a non-Israelite, heathen king, "that I might shew my power in thee, and that my name might be declared throughout all the earth. Therefore hath he mercy on whom he will have mercy, and whom he will he hardeneth. Hath not the potter power over the clay, of the same lump (of flesh) to make one vessel unto honour, and another unto dishonour? What if God, willing to shew his wrath, and to make his power known, endured with much longsuffering the vessels of wrath fitted to destruction: And that he might make known the riches of his glory on the vessels of mercy, which he had afore prepared unto glory, EVEN US, WHOM HE HATH CALLED, not of the Jews only, but also of the Gentiles?" (Rom. 9:17-24).

In this scripture, God is portrayed as a master Potter, Who skillfully takes a lump of clay, or a lump of flesh, and makes vessels or human beings out of that lump. Some people are made to be vessels of wrath fitted or prepared for destruction, and others of us are made of God to become vessels of mercy, to make known the riches of His glory. And both groups are made by God out of the same lump of clay or flesh. The word "vessel," comes from a Greek word, meaning "a vessel, implement, or equipment, whether literally or figuratively, specifically a wife as contributing to the usefulness of the husband." (From Strong's Concordance.) We are as a wife to the Lord, our Husband, for we contribute to His usefulness in the kingdom of God. The Father of all did not ask any of us which one we wanted to be, whether a vessel of wrath, or a vessel of mercy. He simply, diligently and with great purpose, made us to be the vessel our Father purposed us to be from the beginning. This is the absolute sovereignty of God in a nutshell! And the knowledge of it will eliminate any carnal thought of any of us boasting of our place in God! We are what we are by the grace, mercy and sovereign purpose of our God and Father of all!

The Lord created Moses to be a vessel of mercy to deliver His people out of Egyptian bondage. So also did He choose Pharaoh, raised him up to be Egypt's king, and hardened his heart to resist the will and purpose of the Lord, "that I might shew my power in thee, and that my name might be declared throughout all the earth." Even so has the Lord raised up leaders in this present Day of the Lord, who are vessels of wrath fitted or prepared for destruction. As Pharaoh resisted the will and purpose of God to deliver His people, even so do the present powers of darkness resist the will and purpose of our Father, which is to deliver His elect from the corruption, the confusion and the destroying influence of the Babylonish, worldly systems of man.

While we appreciate the work of the Spirit to reveal the truth of the powers of darkness in this day, our greater concern is for those of us who were chosen of our Father to be His vessels of mercy. The vessels of wrath are prepared by God to do what they are doing in the world today. They were chosen of God and given hardened hearts to resist the will and purpose of God, as Pharaoh did, and that is what they must do. The vessels of wrath have no other choice but to do the will of God for them. Nor do we have any other choice but to do the will of our Father and represent His kingdom in the earth. Let us dedicate ourselves anew to the will and purpose of our Father, for we are His vessels of mercy. We have been prepared of the Spirit unto the glory of the kingdom of our Father from the beginning of time, long before this great, new kingdom Day began.

The apostle Paul wrote to say, "For God, who commanded the light to shine out of darkness, hath shined in our hearts, to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ. But we have this treasure in (these) earthen vessels, that the excellency of the power may be of God, and not of us" (2 Cor. 4:6-7). We are those "earthen vessels," within whose lives the great Treasure of the kingdom and Spirit of God has been planted! The spiritual Treasure within us is soon to be released in a glorious manifestation of the power of God! The excellency of the power of the kingdom of God within us is clearly not our power; it is His power! The term "vessels," as used in some passages of the New Testament, refers to people. Some of those vessels are vessels or human beings of wrath, and others are people of mercy, who show forth the glory of God and the power and the authority of His kingdom.

The apostle Paul also wrote to say: "But the firm foundation [laid by] God stands, sure and unshaken, bearing this seal (inscription); the Lord knows those who are His, and, Let every one who names [himself by] the name of the Lord give up all iniquity and stand aloof from it. [Num. 16:5; Isa. 26:13.] But in a great house there are not only vessels of gold and silver but also [utensils] of wood and earthenware, and some for honorable and noble [use] and some for menial and ignoble [use]. So whoever cleanses himself [from what is ignoble and unclean] - who separates himself from contact with contaminating and corrupting influences - will [then himself] be a vessel set apart and useful for honorable and noble purposes, consecrated and profitable to the Master, fit and ready for any good work" (2 Tim. 2:19-21, Amplified).

To do good, righteous, spiritual work in the kingdom of our Father, we must be free and separate "from contact with contaminating and corrupting influences" in this world. We must be free of the corrupting influences of the church system, to serve as vessels of mercy in the kingdom of God! We must be free and separate from any contact with the contaminating and corrupting influences of the great harlot, Babylon! We must be gloriously free in Christ from anything that is not of the power and glory of the kingdom of God! The Spirit is speaking in this hour, specifically and particularly, of our involvement with the Babylon systems of this world. Our Father would have us to be free of both the religious and the political-governmental realms of the great harlot woman, called Babylon in scripture.

All who shall serve Father's purposes in the power and glory of the kingdom of God shall be free indeed "from contact with contaminating and corrupting influences" in this world. Think not that you can dabble in sin and iniquity, ignoring your Father's call to holiness! Think not that you can play church, going to meetings to hear man, when God is calling His elect to hear only His pure word from His pure mind! Think not, that you can ignore the word of your Father and then become His vessels of mercy, who shall display His glory and power to the waiting world and eventually to the whole, groaning creation! God is righteous and holy, and so is His kingdom! None but the purely righteous shall share with Christ in the glory of His royal throne of all power and authority! Our Father has predestined us and called us to this high calling of God in Christ, according to His holy and sovereign purpose. But we show gross disrespect for this high calling as vessels of honor and mercy when we ignore His Word and the holy will of our Father and go our own way. The elect are obeying every revealed Word given them of their Father! They are becoming vessels of honor and mercy, profitable for the Master's use! Through them the kingdom of God shall be displayed in glorious fullness for all the world to receive and be blessed! Amen, and blessed be His great Name!

Paul and Emily Mueller

P O BOX 25055, PORTLAND, OR 97298-0055

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