Restoration of the Church

“They have not rejected you, but they have rejected Me, that I should not reign over them.” (1Sam. 8:7).

Even though this happened in the days of Samuel, there is a principle here that applies to believers today.  Of course, we do not want to be guilty of rejecting the Lord as our King, but unless we understand this principle, we may be doing just that.  From the time of Joshua to Samuel, the Israelites were governed through judges.  This relationship with the Lord as their King required a walk of faith and obedience.  If they turned to other gods, the help of the Lord was withdrawn.  When the prophet Samuel was old, the nation was concerned that they would fall back to the failures of the past.  Rather than rely on faith for national security, they decided to ask for a king like the nations around them.  We are doing the same thing if we allow our churches to rely on human structures instead of the Holy Spirit.  God’s method for building the Church is still: “Not by might, nor by power, but by My Spirit, says the Lord.” (Zech. 4:6).

The church was founded by the outpouring of the Spirit on the day of Pentecost.  Everything was new to the disciples, so they relied entirely on the Holy Spirit.  As the church grew, leaders were set apart by the Spirit to minister to the Lord and to the people.  After the apostles passed away, and the reliance of the church on the Spirit decreased, the role of the leaders changed.  By the time of the Dark Ages, they had accepted a religious system instead of “men of good reputation, full of the Holy Spirit and wisdom.” (Acts 6:3).  During the Reformation, the process of restoring the church to its original design began.  This is a process that will continue until the Lord returns and the Bride becomes “a glorious church, not having spot or wrinkle or any such thing.” (Eph. 5:27). 

In the nineties, my wife and I pioneered a church in Saskatchewan.  As the manifestation of the Spirit increased among us, and our numbers grew, we began to establish a cell group structure.  This is when a major conflict occurred.  Some of the new leaders were teaching against speaking in tongues in the services.  More specifically, they had issues with our practice of praying in tongues during worship.  As we prayed about this, it became clear what the real issue was.

My wife was the worship leader.  As a prophetic intercessor, it was normal for her to lead the congregation in prayer when a breakthrough was needed for worship.  We still had much to learn about flowing in the Spirit, but we would not learn it by quenching the Spirit.  To help discern the spirit behind this conflict, the Lord gave us this verse: “O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the one who kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to her!” (Matt. 23:37).  Jerusalem was the centre of the religious system.  The Lord revealed to us that a key aim of the religious spirit is to kill the prophets.  This revelation set us free.  We took authority over the religious spirit and continued to allow freedom in the operation of spiritual gifts.

One of the roles of the prophets is to see and hear the plans of the Lord.  For the church to move into all that God has for her, she has need of the prophets.  She also has need of the other leaders. Together they must shepherd the flock into new pastures.

As I ponder what the Lord is doing today, I find myself returning to the vision of the Body of Christ that was given to Tommy Hicks in 1961.  I wrote about this vision in my two articles on “End-Time Vision”.  In this vision, the church is represented as a great giant lying on the earth with his head at the South Pole and his feet at the North Pole.  A great outpouring of the Spirit of God occurred after the giant stood up with hands lifted, reaching into the heavens.  We read in the account of the vision,

“Slowly this great giant began to rise and as it did, his head and hands went into the clouds.  As he rose to his feet he seemed to have cleansed himself from the debris and filth that was upon him, and he began to raise his hands into the heavens as though praising the Lord, and as he raised his hands, they went even unto the clouds.”

Hearing the testimonies of the encounters the prophet/seers are having with God, the angels, and the cloud of witnesses, I am reminded that when the giant got up, his head reached into the clouds.  The head represents authority; the clouds represent the heavenly realms.  One of the results of these spiritual encounters is a restoration of spiritual authority.  These prophets are declaring on the earth what they are hearing the Lord speak to them in the heavens.  They are participating in a form of intercession that is greater than what was seen in previous decades.  Although there is nothing new under the sun (Eccl. 1:9), the increase of these experiences is new for us today.

The reason why leaders pull back from the prophetic is because they want order in the church.  God is a God of order, but He does not bring that order by domination.  He offers freedom in love, and judges (disciplines) what is evil.  We cannot plow new fields without some unwelcome challenges.  “Where no oxen are, the trough is clean; but much increase comes by the strength of the ox.” (Prov. 14:4).  Rather than resisting the prophetic, we should “test all things” and “hold fast to what is good” (1Thess. 5:21).  I always try to hear what the Lord is “saying”, not what the prophet “thinks about” what He is saying. 

As we put our faith in the Lord and His prophets, we will prosper (2Chron. 20:20).  This increase in prophetic experiences will bring an increase in power for the whole Body of Christ.  These experiences are not limited to a few prophets or seers, but we are all invited to experience these manifestations of the grace and glory of God.  “And it will come to pass in the last days, says God, that I will pour out of My Spirit on all flesh; your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your young men shall see visions, your old men shall dream dreams.” (Acts 2:17).