Now Is The Time

As I sat there my whole being felt like it was vibrating. Something had been released, something new. After watching so much healing and unity take place from the stands of the LA Coliseum at the Azusa Now event on April 9th, 2016, Something was unlocked. It was as if the Lord now had a church that was pliable and usable for his purpose in a way that had not existed, or at least not for a many years. One week after returning home I felt the Lord say to release the word I gave you 3 years ago. Below is the word I was given in 2013:

I have regular devotional time that I read my Bible, pray or just worship and be in his presence. I’m going to list the scriptures he walked me through. I asked the Holy Spirit one day where I should read in scripture for revelation. He told me Joel 2 and 3. So I started to read. The beginning of Joel 2 is a warning to his people. Then it talks of repentance of his people by returning to Him and he has mercy on them. Then suddenly the scriptures give us revelation on something that will come to pass.

The Lord Will Pour Out His Spirit Joel 2:28
“And it shall come to pass afterward, that I will pour out my Spirit on all flesh;
your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams,
and your young men shall see visions. Even on the male and female servants
in those days I will pour out my Spirit.”

What God is saying is that this time is now. He is pouring out his spirit like never before. First to the leaders. He is raising up unknown people to lead. Take me for example I am not much or known for anything. I just happen to have a relationship with my Father in heaven. Even you who are reading this, you are so powerful that you too are one of these leaders. This is the last thing that Satan wants you to know. He want you to keep believing the lies he has been telling you over the years to keep you from rising up.

God spoke to me about Joel 3 the main purpose for writing this book. This is what God is saying to his people now. He wants us to know what is happening and what we’re supposed to be doing. However I need to break it down in the various sections in how it’s been revealed to me. So let’s read the scriptures first.

Joel 3:1-8
“For behold, in those days and at that time, when I restore the fortunes of Judah and Jerusalem, I will gather all the nations and bring them down to the Valley of Jehoshaphat. And I will enter into judgment with them there, on behalf of my people and my heritage Israel, because they have scattered them among the nations and have divided up my land, and have cast lots for my people, and have traded a boy for a prostitute, and have sold a girl for wine and have drunk it.
“What are you to me, O Tyre and Sidon, and all the regions of Philistia? Are you paying me back for something? If you are paying me back, I will return your payment on your own head swiftly and speedily. For you have taken my silver and my gold, and have carried my rich treasures into your temples. You have sold the people of Judah and Jerusalem to the Greeks in order to remove them far from their own border. Behold, I will stir them up from the place to which you have sold them, and I will return your payment on your own head. I will sell your sons and your daughters into the hand of the people of Judah, and they will sell them to the Sabeans, to a nation far away, for the Lord has spoken.”

God tells us that in “those” days which is now, of the things that will take place. He will restore Judah and Jerusalem which is Israel. Then he will gather the nations and bring them to the Valley of Jehoshaphat. This valley runs along the right side of the temple mount. So what God is saying is that he will bring all the nations before himself. He will enter in to judgment with them there. We must be careful here as the word for judgement is not what most of the western culture thinks it to mean. The Hebrew word שָׁפַט or shâphaṭ means to enter into or an action of judging. The Lord said to me how many times do you use judgement in a day? When you open the refrigerator and are seeking the ketchup. Every item you look at you are using judgement or entering into an action of judgement to resolve if said item is ketchup or not ketchup?

God will enter into judgment with the nations. He will see if they are for him or not. The scriptures continue on to tell us that the nations have scattered his people, divided his lands and sold children for things of this world. Children are gifts from God. People are selling gifts God has given them so they can seek the things of this world. Abortion is an example of this, the mother doesn’t want to be pregnant and does not see the child as a gift but wants to continue living her lifestyle. Please keep in mind while this example is extreme and does not necessarily apply to all abortion cases, there are much more subtle examples out there. My intent is not to convict any one action over the other as that is not my job but the Holy Spirits.

The rest of the above passage is a dialogue with Tyre and Sidon whom at the time were enemies with Judah and Jerusalem. Simply put God is saying that anyone who is against him or his people, that their plans to do harm or evil will end up back on them. If God can confound the wise he can certainly expose darkness before it can carry out its plans. This is something we will see more and more of. His people are praying for the light to expose the darkness. One of the bigger exposures in recent months would have been the NSA spying on the people of the world. I believe this happened because of the prayers of his people and God is already exposing the plans of the enemy.

In summary of this passage of scripture God will examine all of the nations before himself. He will make a judgement if they are for him or for the world. You cannot serve two masters. There is an old Native American saying that goes “If you chase two rabbits, you will lose them both.” God will expose the plans of darkness so that their evil ends up falling back on our enemies.

Joel 3:9-12
Proclaim this among the nations: Consecrate for war; stir up the mighty men. Let all the men of war draw near; let them come up. Beat your plowshares into swords, and your pruning hooks into spears; let the weak say, “I am a warrior.” The Hebrew word for warrior is (Ghib-bore – powerful, by implication warrior as they are talking of going to war)

Hasten and come, all you surrounding nations, and gather yourselves there. Bring down your warriors, O Lord. Let the nations stir themselves up and come up to the Valley of Jehoshaphat;
for there I will sit to judge all the surrounding nations.

What an exciting time we live in. God is saying that the next 10-15 years will be some of the most exciting times in the Kingdom of God that anyone has ever seen. In Joel 3:9-12 this is our commission for this season. God is telling us to tell all the nations to get ready for war. To take you plowshares and pruning hooks and turn them into weapons of warfare. This is significant because Plowshares and pruning hooks were tools of the professions. He is telling people to turn your businesses and careers into weapons of warfare. Businesses ran by kingdom minded people will prosper. New start ups by spirit led people will flourish. Whole cities and regions will be altered because of this. Examples are things like out of work farmers being contracted to grow non-GMO and organic foods for organic restaurants. There is nothing wrong with marketplace ministry. In doing this anyone whether they be male, female, tall, small, strong or weak. Let them say “I AM A WARRIOR

The word warrior is pronounced Ghib-bore which means – powerful or strong, by implication warrior as they are talking of going to war. To be strong in warfare is to be a warrior. In today’s terms you could translate this as ‘Hero’ of war if you wanted to.

Continuing on in the scriptures we see the Lord saying hasten and come. So quickly these things will happen. The nations themselves will have a stirring of people. He then calls out all the warriors from all the nations. God is literally examining the earth at this time. Searching the hearts of the people. He is doing a new thing. He is surpassing the religious establishments. No longer are the days of the big cannon individuals like Billy Graham. Those times have passed. It’s to easy nowadays to smear one person’s reputation. God is saying now is the time of the equipping centers, the 24 hour worship centers, Small groups, house churches etc… The mainstream churches of America will still exist however I do believe in a lesser capacity than in the past.

Today’s model of the Church doesn’t and has never worked to the fullness that it could have. The pastoral centric model is not a biblical based model. It is completely unfair to the lead pastors that we ask them to get on stage every week and tell us about God. It’s like a religious circus show that they must entertain us in order to receive our financial giving. I’m not against teaching so please listen carefully. I am simply trying to relay that we as the church put entirely too much pressure on the pastors of today’s church models. We literally ask them to carry all the weight in their shoulders. Then some people get offended if the pastor doesn’t acknowledge them or call them if they missed church or show up to every church event. It’s not right and it needs to stop. That is why a new model of gathering is arising. One that teaches and equips the believer.

I recommend a book from Frank Viola called “Pagan Christianity”. The book is very well written in a non condemning way. It lays out facts on where we get some of the order of service we use in the Church today. After reading it I couldn’t help but chuckle when I went back to church. It’s a quick read and the information is priceless.

In summary on this passage of scripture, God is calling all people from all nations that are for the Kingdom to prepare for war. This is not a war of flesh but a spiritual war. He will examine the world for these people. Do not be surprised if you feel called in new directions and/or operating in new circles of people.

Joel 3:13-16
Put in the sickle, for the harvest is ripe. Go in, tread, for the winepress is full. The vats overflow,
for their evil is great. Multitudes, multitudes, in the valley of decision! For the day of the Lord is near in the valley of decision. The sun and the moon are darkened, and the stars withdraw their shining. The Lord roars from Zion, and utters his voice from Jerusalem, and the heavens and the earth quake. But the Lord is a refuge to his people, a stronghold to the people of Israel.

This passage of scripture is amazing. We are seeing what will happen as a result of the coming season and shift in the kingdom. Once the church rises up and shakes off doctrines of fear and doubt. When we start walking in the finished works of the cross and seeing ourselves as saints. We are no longer sinners if we have Jesus in our lives. If we have relationships with Jesus instead of religion. If we begin to understand the goodness of God and stop blaming him for many things that are not holy. The glorious church will arise. God is currently pouring out his spirit in a way that has never been seen before. He is calling this time on earth “The Kingdom Age” and has nicknamed it “The Heaven Invasion”.

The Great Harvest! It is here at last. This will be a long and fruitful season for the Kingdom of God. Put in your sickle for the harvest is ripe the Lord says. Multitudes are in the valley of decision. They must pick which kingdom they will serve. The kingdom of Light or the kingdom of Darkness. There will be many signs, miracles and wonders. God is shaking the heavens and the earth up in a new way. The Lord is calling out from his throne and he is our stronghold from which we operate.

In summary of all these passages God is examining all the earth. He is calling out the ones who are after his own heart. He is calling those that want to go deeper into revelation. The result will be spiritual warfare against the kingdom of darkness. Many will choose to come into the kingdom of light. So get ready it is going to be an amazing time.