Worship

“Miracle in the Works” by Bryan & Katie Torwalt

Scripture Foundation

“Grace and peace to you from him who is, and who was, and who is to come, and from the seven spirits before his throne, and from Jesus Christ, who is the faithful witness, the firstborn from the dead, and the ruler of the kings of the earth.

To him who loves us and has freed us from our sins by his blood, and has made us to be a kingdom and priests to serve his God and Father—to him be glory and power for ever and ever! Amen.

‘Look, he is coming with the clouds,’ and ‘every eye will see him, even those who pierced him’; and all peoples on earth ‘will mourn because of him.’ So shall it be! Amen.

‘I am the Alpha and the Omega,’ says the Lord God, ‘who is, and who was, and who is to come, the Almighty.'” -Revelation 1:4-8, NIV, emphasis added

The Current Moment

We’re taking a short break from Acts in light of what is at the forefront of people’s minds today.

As you open this, I will be in South Asia in a Muslim country, taking Jesus to thousands and thousands of people. Once the election has been decided in America, many will be experiencing the tumult of joy and anger based on their candidate preference. Regardless of who has just won, it’s time to take a deep breath, drop to our knees, and refocus our sight on the next four years with this passage of Scripture as our lens.

Jesus is coming with the clouds, and every eye will see Him!

The Call to Alertness

How will you therefore live?

The plan of Jesus for the end of the Church age has not changed based on who sits in the White House. Scripture’s timeline isn’t being rewritten to accommodate our understanding of God’s mercy on America. He’s still walking through the lampstands, seeing whose light will remain in these last days. And, beloved Bride of Christ, we must take these days very seriously. Is your light dim and flickering? Oh God, this is where we need mercy, lest You remove our lampstand in this hour. Awake, awake, beloved Bride!

Our Present Response

This is not an hour when we hide away and put our feet up. This is an hour when we should refocus on the person of Jesus and get in alignment with His purposes for the Church!

In times of uncertainty and unease, we have a propensity to hide until the storm ceases. The storm isn’t going to cease, unfortunately, because the labor pains are only intensifying. A presidential candidate doesn’t rewrite Scripture. As we read above, Jesus is the ruler of the kings of the Earth! Therefore, our resolve to press in and go forth in uncertainty or chaos is going to have to come by the Spirit at a bone-deep level that only He can deposit.

Living with Urgency

We need an urgency like never before to seize us in this hour and anchor us firmly to the love of Christ where we declare like Paul, “For to me, to live is Christ…” (Philippians 1:21, NIV). You must determine, eye to eye with Jesus, “How will I pour everything I’ve got out at the feet of Jesus so that my life wins souls before the rapture of the Church?” If we, the Church, have a fourth quarter timeline ahead of us, how then should we live?

Our Kingdom Identity

Here’s our answer:

“To him who loves us and has freed us from our sins by his blood, and has made us to be a kingdom and priests to serve his God and Father—to him be glory and power for ever and ever! Amen.” -Revelation 1:5b-6, NIV

We live as kings and priests in the Earth, governing and occupying until He comes, releasing the very Kingdom of God in the Earth, regardless of wars and rumors of wars. The sick still need a Great Physician. The lost still need to be found. Prodigals still need to come home.

Staying Alert and Ready

If you are wide-awake, stay awake. If you need Jesus to revive your own heart, as I have needed in this season, press in and take hold of Him with all you have. Please hear me with all of the unction I can ascribe to you: the hour is urgent (though no less urgent than before the election), and we must know the times and the seasons in which we are living. Is your lamp filled with oil? Can you interpret the signs of the times like Jesus spoke of in Matthew 16:2-4, NIV? Are your spiritual eyes fixed heavenward with your feet firmly planted in His Word and on His mission?

Biblical Directives

Beloved:

• Contend for the faith in this hour, that which has been entrusted to you (Jude 3, NIV)
• Build yourself up in the faith and pray in the Spirit (Jude 20, NIV)
• Keep yourself in God’s love as you wait for His mercy to take you home (Jude 21, NIV)
• Live holy and godly lives as you wait for His coming (1 Peter 3:11-12, NIV)
• Number your days that you may gain a heart of wisdom (Psalm 90:12, NIV)
• Hold unswervingly to the hope you profess because He is faithful (Hebrews 10:22, NIV)
• Don’t be like others who are asleep, but be wide-awake, alert and self controlled (1 Thessalonians 5:6, NIV)
• Wake up and trim your lamps (Matthew 25:7, NIV)

Final Encouragement

“May God himself, the God of peace, sanctify you through and through. May your whole spirit, soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. The one who calls you is faithful, and he will do it.” -1 Thessalonians 5:23-24, NIV

“He said to them, ‘Go into all the world and preach the gospel to all creation.'” -Mark 16:15, NIV

Today doesn’t change the exhortation of God’s Word that our body, soul, and spirit need to be in total alignment with His Word, His commissioning of His Bride, and a life consecrated to holiness. Let’s get ready for the coming of Jesus, wide-awake and alert, knowing that our time is short. But take heart, He knows how the story ends, and it’s going to be glorious for those in Christ Jesus!

“‘I am the Alpha and the Omega,’ says the Lord God, ‘who is, and who was, and who is to come, the Almighty.'” -Revelation 1:8, NIV