Days For Awe!
If God struck someone dead
before
your eyes, how would you react? If you saw a man blinded or
paralysed because of his persistent rebellion, how would you respond?
You shouldn’t need to
see such awesome things to fear God, but physical people often don’t
fear God before they experience something that induces such awe. It
is written:
Let all the earth
fear the Lord; let all the inhabitants of the world stand in awe
of Him, for He spoke and it was done... (Ps 33:8-9).
Yes, God spoke and it
was done. God has taken the lives of individuals who blocked the
spread of God’s truth. When people ignore the warnings, God’s
judgement falls.
You know about some
astounding judgments of God recorded in the Bible:
1. Israel at the Red
Sea, where God completely destroyed the Egyptian army (Ex 14:24-28).
2. The earth opening up and swallowing Korah, Dathan and Abiram (Num
16:23-33).
3. Fire coming down from heaven, destroying those who presumptuously
offered incense (16:35).
4. A plague suddenly killing 14,700 dissenters who rose up against
Moses (16:41-49).
And there are several
more shocking accounts. But most people think those remarkable
happenings are biblical only, and that God doesn’t perform such
terrible feats today. Well, they’re
dead wrong!
God has just as much
vehemence against wrongdoing today as back then.
It is a fearful
thing to fall into the hands of the living God! (Heb 10:31.)
We are all warned:
See that you do
not refuse Him who speaks. For if they did not escape who
refused Him who spoke on earth, much more shall we not escape if
we turn away from Him who speaks from heaven (Heb 12:25).
These are days for awe.
God is at work!
God speaks to call
people to repentance, not to scare them out of their wits. In fact,
that’s one reason you don’t see Him blitzing sinners on every
corner. He would rather see them repent than destroyed.
But make no mistake, if
you desert Him, He will desert you:
Therefore we must
give the more earnest heed to the things we have heard, lest we
drift away (Heb 2:1).
How shall we
escape if we neglect so great a salvation...? (Heb 2:3).
How, Indeed!?
In September
2007, Alex Odhiambo in Kenya wrote:
"The day
is truly at hand. We are not in darkness, but we are the children of
the Light. We don’t have to be ignorant or asleep at the wheel. It
is urgent that we remain AWAKE, watchful and sober-minded through
the Holy Spirit, as it was foretold by Christ. The arrival of Jesus
Christ is much nearer than when we first believed!”
I would interject:
Therefore let him who thinks he stands, take heed lest he fall
(1 Cor 10:12).
"Last
time I was given a dream of the coming war with Iran. [God did not
say with which country Iran will be at war – perhaps it will be
Israel]. And now I was
given a dream with some strange numerics in at night. It has
disturbed me and for that reason it has forced me to write to you
for more revelation on it.”
I will repeat that here,
together with what God is cleverly conveying [my comments in square
brackets]:
"...I
saw, as if carried onto the top of a tree that had many branches
with beautiful flowers on it. [The Tree of Life, a symbol of all
that is good and wonderful that is in God. It depicts also His
working with humanity, His kingdom on earth, etc.
The top of this beautiful tree
is where most truth is available.]
"At
the top a Man appeared to me with pen and paper [reminiscent of
the experience Ezekiel had when a Man appeared to him with a
writer’s inkhorn by His side – Ezek 9:2,3,11. Interesting last
reference in that chapter – 9:11!] The pen was like a bird’s
feather [a quill]. This is what I was given:
"REMAIN
VIGILANT FOR HE IS COMING AND IT WILL BE VERY SOON. REMEMBER
10 IS A VERY SIGNIFICANT NUMBER. Read Numbers 14:34. Count the
Jubilee year from 1967, then add 10 years, which is DAYS FOR AWE, A
YEAR FOR A DAY = COMING OF JESUS CHRIST.
"BE
HONEST AND FAIR, AND TAKE NOTE OF WORLD EVENTS. CONTINUE PRAYING
AS DIRECTED BY THE HOLY SPIRIT. [Underlined words
explained later.]
"After
that information the Man disappeared."
Understanding The Revelation
I explained previously,
in a letter, some of what God was conveying. I repeat that here:
I want
to explain what I can of that revelation from the Angel, besides the
inserts I have put in square brackets above.
What a
spiritually-minded person deduces from it will be totally different
from what a physically-minded person takes from it. At first, you
might think God is saying that Jesus’ coming is 50 years on from
1967, plus ten years. That would bring us to 2027. Immediately the
heart sinks, and you think, "Oh no, not that long, please!!"
But His
words are very urgent, telling us that IT WILL BE VERY SOON.
The other thing that stands out to me is His mysterious emphasis of
the number 10. Is He inferring that Jesus’ coming is merely ten
years away? That would be 2017.
I don’t
think so. God is not concerned like we are with all this
pigeon-holing. He is trying to convey to the spiritually perceptive
the SPIRITUAL purpose He is working out with man. He is not
emphasising physical timing. That is not important. It is the
spiritual that is important. His last words above about praying
in the Spirit are most important!
Shallacasema, hasamala.
Do you
pray in tongues? Then intercede like never before in tongues! These
are days for awe. Seek Him for a fresh outpouring of the Spirit so
that you can be more useful to Him, then you can pray as guided by
the Spirit, even if He has not given you tongues for intercession.
Count 50
years – the Jubilee is the 50th year (Lev 25:8-11) – count 50 years
from 1967, and you come to 2017. To this present year, 2007, 40
years has passed, the number of trial (4 x 10). [People must be tried.]
10 years
remain until that Great Jubilee and full release. So, I deduce that
we can expect the whole world to be fully released from the bondage
of Satan by 2017. The day of Atonement depicts this release, which
is the 10th day of the 7th month, nine days after the Feast of
Trumpets on the 1st day of the 7th month. But that doesn’t mean
Jesus’ coming is in 2017. Jesus’ coming PRECEDES what the Day of
Atonement predicts. It will take some
time for various nations to
be brought to heel during the beginning of Jesus’ Millennium (Zech
14:16 onwards).
We don’t
know how long. Perhaps
a year? Only God knows.
But why
did He say, then add 10 years? He’s not actually adding years
to Jesus’ return, He’s adding mere days. Notice the wording
carefully. Jesus did not say "a day for a year" as in Num 14:34. He
said the reverse: "a year for a day." So, He is emphasising
something else, and it’s not time in years.
For the Lord does not see as man sees; for man looks at
the outward appearance, but the Lord looks [much deeper] at the heart (1 Sam
16:7).
With the pure You will show Yourself pure; and with the
devious You will show Yourself shrewd (Ps 18:26; 2 Sam 22:27).
God is
not emphasising Jesus’ physical coming, but His spiritual coming –
His invisible coming for JUDGEMENT. That’s why 10 (depicts man) is
singled out as significant. He is dealing with mankind now in a
dramatic and awesome way. You will read about the awesome things God
is doing in Kenya, taking people’s lives where they have obstructed
God’s Work.
The prophet Elijah
called down fire from heaven on those who opposed him (2 Kings 1).
‘Elijah’ does the same today. The true prophet carries fire in his
briefcase from heaven.
So, the
"days for awe, a year for a day", not only refer to the time we are
entering now of God’s incredible miraculous and powerful activity,
leading up to the Great Tribulation and Jesus’ coming after 3½
years of those horrors, but could also refer to the awesome time of
destruction of earth’s armies at Armageddon, which could take 10
literal days. His wording employs reverse
or inverse
symbolism, if that is the
right way to put it.
What
about now? What are the days for awe now? Jesus’ coming is a
NOW thing, too, you know. He comes to fill our hearts with fire for
Him, to purify us, to cleanse us, to anoint us, to distil us. [And
He comes to JUDGE US for sin!]
These
appointed times are times to come before Him, to prepare our hearts
to worship Him. These are our days for awe now. And as we delight in
Him, He will delight in us, and do His works on earth. We are
getting so close to the days for awe, when dead people will arise
and declare the awesome name of Jesus, the God who will soon rule
this world and banish Satan and all evil.
Remember, you are commanded to come before Him, bringing Him an
offering (Deut 16:16). But it is not merely pecuniary. It is to be
"an offering made by fire" (Lev 23:25,36). An offering of sacrifice
and praise brings you into His courts (Ps 100). As you give
yourself, He gives to you. It’s awesome.
God
bless you as you worship and praise Him – one of the commands for
these occasions is to rejoice before Him (Lev 23:40). In a recent
prophetic word in one of our meetings, the Spirit was saying we
should all appreciate God more. We should appreciate Him,
love Him, extol Him – let Your name be magnified forever (2 Sam
7:26).
I wrote the above just
before the Feast of Trumpets
in 2007, hence my closing comments.
In Jewish tradition, the
10 days from the Feast of Trumpets to the Day of Atonement, are
known as the Days of Awe. You and I are called by God to
self-examination and repentance before the Day of Atonement.
He Comes To JUDGE!
The angel said: “He is
coming and it will be very soon!” This coming is not His physical
coming. For Alex and Polycarp, and those near them
in Kenya and Tanzania, His coming was
to test them, to try them, to prove them.
That has now happened.
God warns
before He acts. He is purging sin from His people.
Revelations like the
above can lift up, puff up,
inject pride. A novice is warned (1 Tim 3:6), as are all.
Pride destroys whatever God builds. So beware!
That’s why Alex was told
Jesus would come soon – to test them (implied in 2007,
when first written, 40 years
from 1967). Jesus said in ten days, the number of man.
There are many impurities in the heart of man.
God was seeing things in
them that He was going to have to expose, for their own good. That’s
why He said “Be honest and fair.” He knew they would not be honest
and fair.
They know what I am
talking about. There is much
deceit in Kenyan society, and in Christians!
A prophet’s duty is to
“cry aloud, spare not, and tell My people their transgression” (Is
58:1).
If you do wrong, and
cover it up, deluding yourself that you are OK (Jer 17:9), you
don’t fool God. If you do not turn from wrongdoing, He will turn
away from you until you either repent, or you commit sins that are
unpardonable, from which there is no return.
In October 2010, Alex
died. God took him because he didn’t give up trying to deceive. He
pulled the wool over my eyes for a while. God let him do that so
that sin would reach a peak in his life. Then, judgement fell.
But that’s not the end
of the story. God does some drastic things to wake people up, to
bring them to their senses and to instigate their repentance and
change. Then, He can properly use them in His service.
God raises the dead!
These are days for awe
(fear), but which way will it be for you? There are two kinds of
fear. One is positive, the other negative.
For the wicked boasts
of his heart’s desire; he blesses the greedy and renounces the Lord
(Ps 10:3). But my heart stands in awe of Your Word (Ps 119:161).
Warned About Being Tested
From Kenya I received this report about a vision
which a lady received during their worship meeting on the Last Great
Day:
8th Oct 2007
...There was also a widow who was possessed by
[inspired; strongly moved by the] Holy Spirit and she had a vision
for the congregation.
The woman said that in that congregation, she saw
that each of us had a bar-magnet in their body. Then we were all
carried in a fast moving chariot whose pilot was not easily seen at
the time. As the chariot was moving, some of the members started
falling down and turning to ash, unless they had a strong magnet to
hold them to the body of the chariot. Few people were remaining.
She was also told that the people who fell down in
the race had a magnet which was iron mixed with clay.
Meaning: The fast moving chariot is MM’s work
guided by God. Falling down and turning to ash depicts the result of
the fiery trial that God was bringing upon them. It has now
happened. Some in the group have fallen, and become like worthless
ash. Their internal character was poor and was like the useless mix
of iron and clay.
Now they need to repent and change; clinging to the
chariot [bringer of truth that can defeat Satan] that can take them
to the safety of going with God.
Revival Amongst The Outcasts
This dream, given to Kassahun Ayele in Ethiopia,
depicts some of the rejection of man you must be prepared to accept
to be true to Jesus, but the wonderful spiritual assurance that
comes to those who are faithful:
Sept. 6/07. K. I was joined by Christians who were
cast out of their churches. They were full of faith, and sang a very
beautiful song. My spirit was inspired by their song and I began to
sing with them. I felt the fire of God inside me and spoke with
tongues. A revival broke out in our midst.
Comment: Pure truth is unacceptable to all
organised churches. So, believers who want all that God offers are
cast out of churches, as Jesus predicted (Jn 16:2) and Isaiah (Is
66:5). Their spiritual beauty is very appealing to others of like
mind who want pure truth above all else. We rejoice with them,
appreciate their praise, and we can all be revived by God, doing
“great things”.
Gifts At Midnight
Sept. 14/07. K. In this dream a Man came to my home
at Midnight with many gifts. I didn't expect such gifts. My heart
filled with unspeakable joy.
Comment: This is the Midnight Hour, prophesied
in Scripture – the few years at the very end of this age. God is
doing a Work on earth (Matt 25:6; Mal 3:1; 4:4-6) that will be
short. He will cut it short in righteousness (Rom 9:28) – because
the majority will reject the outpouring of the Spirit with
restoration of all God’s truths. Accompanying this is an outpouring
of God’s spiritual gifts to those who accept all God offers! It
brings wonderful joy.
Days For Awe
The Feast of Trumpets, on the first day of the 7th
month in God’s calendar, depicts Jesus’ coming to assert His rule on
earth. Nine days later, on the 10th of the month, is the Day of
Atonement, a time of fasting to “afflict the soul” (Lev 23;
mentioned also in Acts 27:9).
Traditionally, this period of time between Trumpets
and Atonement was known as the Days of Awe. A trumpet was blown as a
warning sound, to alert the people. It warns of danger, of war; or
in the spiritual it warns of sin. God wants to wake you up to your
need for repentance.
The days of awe are meant to be days of
self-examination and repentance, as you prepare to enter into the
Presence of God.
On the Day of Atonement, the High Priest went into
the holy place after having made a sacrifice of atonement for
himself and the people (Lev 16). Sin must be atoned for. Sin must be
recognised for the destructive evil that it is. No one can come into
God’s presence without a recognition of personal unworthiness and of
the awesome sacrifice of Jesus that paid for our sins.
As the High Priest went into the awesome presence of
God in that inner sanctum, for the sake of the people, so Jesus has
made a way for us to enter in with Him into the Holy of Holies. His
cleansing gives us the privilege of accepting His Spirit and His
holy ways, and of being taken into God’s holy place to dwell with
Him (Heb 10). For without the desire for holiness you cannot see the
Awesome God of Glory (Heb 12:14).
Entering The Presence
In April 1995, Terry Law, World Compassion (Terry Law
Ministries), wrote this lovely piece to his mailing list:
We are now ready to enter the presence of God!
In our journey through the Tabernacle of Moses, we
have finally reached the golden altar of incense. The only thing
separating us from the presence of God in the Holy of Holies is the
final veil!
Here at the altar of incense, we release the love
that's in our hearts for the One who made us, redeemed us and
blesses us. Our heart-felt adoration rises up from the altar of
incense. Suddenly, a divine connection is made and our praise is
changed to worship, which carries us into the Holy of Holies, into
the very presence of God.
The golden altar of incense stood in the Holy Place
immediately in front of the veil. This golden altar was 18 inches
square and stood three feet high, with a golden horn on each corner.
Every morning and evening, the priests burned a special incense
here, and a beautiful, fragrant, white smoke rose up from the altar
before the curtain into the Holy of Holies.
This incense represents our emotions – our heart-felt
praise.
To Enter The Holy Of Holies
The high priest could never approach the presence of
God without bringing two things: blood to sprinkle upon the mercy
seat, and incense from the golden altar to burn before the Lord. If
he tried to get into the presence of God without either one, he
would be struck dead!
These are also the two things that bring you to God:
the awareness of the work of the blood of Jesus in your life, and
your praise and worship [which is also shown in your submission and
sincere obedience]. These are two vital components of true worship.
When you express your gratitude to God for the blood of Jesus,
something happens in your spirit that propels you into the presence
of God.
An Example Of Worship
A powerful illustration of this is found in Luke 7.
While Jesus was eating at the home of Simon, a Pharisee, a sinful
woman of the city entered with an alabaster box of ointment. First,
she stood weeping at Jesus' feet, then...
...she washed his feet with her tears and wiped them
with her hair. She kissed his feet and anointed them with the
ointment.
Here is a picture of a true worshipping heart. This
woman knew she had nothing to be proud of. She knew her mistakes –
in fact, the whole town knew her mistakes! She came with brokenness
and tears.
She washed Jesus' feet and kissed them again and
again. What an incredible display of emotion! She didn't care
what other people thought. She was there to lavish the love of her
heart on Jesus.
Who Loves Most?
At this point, Jesus said something very significant.
He said, "Her sins, which are many, are forgiven; for she loved
much." (Lk 7:47.) The woman poured out her heart to Jesus. And He
forgave her sins... Praise God!
Then Jesus turned to Simon, the proud Pharisee, and
rebuked him, saying, "Simon, you don't think you've been forgiven
much because you're so good. So you don't love very much. This woman
knows she has been forgiven a whole lot and that is why she loves so
intensely." You see...
The fervency of your worship is directly related to
how much you know you need the grace of God. If we start trusting in
our own reputation, and in what we've done for God, we will miss
out, because a person filled with pride cannot worship! So examine
yourself. Then come to God knowing that even though you were a
sinner, you have been given the awesome privilege to actually be in
the presence of the Holy God.
The Alabaster Box
When the woman brought the alabaster box of precious
ointment, she had to break the box. That was the only way the
perfume could flow out. In like manner, some of us keep our emotions
stored up in an alabaster box. We need to break the protective walls
that surround our feelings, so we can let them flow out and lavish
them on the Lord.
Breaking Through Barriers
In our culture it is hard for some of us to express
what we feel in our hearts towards someone else. Your reluctance to
express the passion and love of your heart will stop you from
embracing the Lord and moving into where He is, into the power of
His presence. If you're going to worship God you've got to be
willing to let the barriers down and to throw yourself in adoration
upon the Lord.
How do you begin? Let me explain it this way: Worship
is like love – if conditions are right – you will do it naturally.
If you love someone, you will want to hug or kiss them as an
expression of the way you feel; but if you don't love them, hugging
and kissing them won't cause love to grow. The hugs and kisses are
an expression of something you have inside, not a performance you do
to stir up love.
In the same way, you don't 'perform' worship. Rather,
when you love God, you are going to express that love. You may sing
or clap, you may dance, or you may be absolutely silent and do
nothing. Each individual has his own unique response. It's the
presence of God that actually creates worship... (End of excerpt.)
In God’s
presence you will have nothing but awe!
Malcolm B Heap
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