I'm so excited to share what the Lord showed me yesterday. It's was one of those light bulb moments where all of a sudden all the pieces He's been showing all fit together. It started in 2 Kings 22 with the introduction of King Josiah. Now I'm going to first give you a brief background so that you can grasp the magnitude of Josiah's story. We know about the great exodus out of the 400 year enslavement in Egypt, the 40 years wandering around in the desert and the entrance into the promised land. During the time in the desert God gave Moses the law and the blessings and curses that would overtake the people for choosing to abide by or break the law (Deut. 28). The people were led by prophets of God until they demanded a King to rule over them just like all the other nations. This began a long line of kings who slowly turned the people from God to all the gods of surrounding nations and caused a split in the nation of Israel (Israel and Judah). There were some good kings scattered in that did what was right in the sight of the Lord but most of them just kind of turned a blind eye to the evils being done by the people. The people would just add worshipping God to their list of gods but not stop any of the evil. As time went on these kings who did evil desecrated the house of the Lord. They removed the gold vessels used to serve the Lord and used them to worship false gods. They set up alters to these false gods in the Lord's house and all over the nation. They "passed their children through the fire" in worship to the god Molech. They sought out fortune tellers, mediums and omens and provoked the Lord to anger. This leads us to Josiah.
2 Kings 22:1 tells us that Josiah began his reign at 8 years old and reigned for 31 years. He did what was right in the sight of God and did not turn to the right or to the left. He became frustrated with the condition of the Lords house and ordered his scribe to go to the high priest and have him take all the silver that the people had brought into the house of the Lord and use it to do the much needed repairs. While in the house of the Lord, Hilkiah, the high priest, found the Book of the Law. He gave it to the scribe to read and the scribe took it and read in to Josiah. Verses 11-20 says, "11When the king had heard the words of the Book of the Law, he tore his clothes. 12 Then the king commanded Hilkiah the priest, Ahikam son of Shaphan, Akbor son of Micaiah, Shaphan the scribe, and Asaiah, a servant of the king, saying, 13“Go, inquire of the Lord for me, for the people, and for all Judah concerning the words of this book that has been found, for great is the wrath of the Lord that is kindled against us, because our fathers have not obeyed the words of this book by doing according to all that is written concerning us.”14 So Hilkiah the priest, Ahikam, Akbor, Shaphan, and Asaiah went to Huldah the prophetess, wife of Shallum, son of Tikvah, son of Harhas, keeper of the wardrobe (she lived in Jerusalem in the second quarter), and they spoke with her.15 She said to them, “Thus says the Lord God of Israel: Tell the man that sent you to Me, 16 Thus says the Lord: See, I will bring evil on this place and on its inhabitants—all the words of the book that the king of Judah has read. 17 Because they have forsaken Me and have made offerings to other gods, so that they have provoked Me to anger with all the works of their hands, therefore My wrath will be kindled against this place, and it will not be quenched. 18 But to the king of Judah who sent you to inquire of the Lord, thus shall you say to him, “Thus says the Lord God of Israel with regard to the words you have heard: 19 Because your heart was timid, and you humbled yourself before the Lord when you heard what I spoke against this place and against its inhabitants, that they should become a desolation and a curse, and you have torn your clothes and wept before Me, I also have heard you, declares the Lord. 20 Therefore, I will gather you to your fathers, and you will be gathered to your grave in peace. Your eyes will not see all the evil which I am about to bring upon this place.”
I just can't help but feel like we are literally repeating history. You see this progression of leading the people away from the Lord began with small steps in hiding and removing history and making exceptions to the Law of God. It started with not passing down the observance of feasts. Stories of redemption and the works of God were not taught. God told the people not to allow the surrounding nations to dwell with them or else they would turn them to other gods. Stones of remembrance were forgotten and symbols used to point the people to the coming Messiah and remind the people what God set them free from became idols. And ultimately the Book of the Law, the Word of God, the instruction manual to life and health and prosperity was stripped away and forgotten.
2 years ago the Lord gave me a vision. What I saw was a baby surrounded by excited adults all speaking words that were clothing the baby. Some good and some not so good. I watched the child grow and throughout all the stages they were constantly having shirts with these labels put on them. I then saw adults , all wearing these shirts with these words/identities across them (gay, straight, black, white, Baptist, Lutheran, Catholic, athiest, mom, dad, professional, laborer, trailer trash, thug, stupid, loser, dropout, graduate, abused, broken, sick, cancer, autoimmune, etc...). The Holy Spirit impressed on my heart that, "My people do not know who they are. Clothe my people in the truth". You see we all walk around with worldly identities trying to get everyone to accept us as we are clothed. We fight and get ugly and clothe others in more labels/ identities if they do not accept ours and the whole time we are looking at the wrong things. The last part of the vision I saw these people pulling off these worldly identities to reveal who God created them to be. These shirts are lies that the enemy puts on us to cover and hid truth but you can take them off and expose Christ in you. Your true identity does not change just because you pick up a false one and wear it. Who God created you to be is still there and everyone of these worldly identities, though not all bad and sinful, fall short of the glory and goodness of God.
The world is in chaos right now trying to make people accept these earthly identities. If you refuse to elevate one over another or bow to the false idol then you are labeled (white supremacist, hater, bigot, science denier, anti- vax, homophobe, trailer trash, stupid etc..). The reality is that you may be black or white, gay or straight, a follower of science or a questioner of everything but you were created to be so much more. In Christ you are HOLY (Col.1:2), CHILD (Gal. 3:26, 1 John 3:2), BLESSED (Rom. 4:7-8, John 16:13-15, Luke 12:30-32, Deut. 28:1-14), HEALED (1 Peter 2:24), LOVED (John 16:27), PREDESTINED (Rom. 8:29), VALUABLE (Luke 12:7), FORGIVEN (1 John 2:12), RIGHTEOUS (2 Cor. 5:21, Rom. 5:19), JUSTIFIED (Rom. 8:30), PROSPEROUS (Jer. 29:11, Josh. 1:8), WANTED (2 Peter 3:9), APPOINTED (John 15:16), POWERFUL (Acts 1:8), SENT (Mark 16: 15-18), HEIR (Rom. 8:17), PROTECTED (Ps. 91), ADOPTED (Gal. 4:5), BEAUTIFUL (Rom. 10:15), GOD'S TEMPLE (1 Cor. 6:19), FAMILY (Eph. 2:19), OVERCOMER (1 John 5:5, John 16:33), REDEEMED (Gal. 3:13), FREE (John 8:36, Rom. 8:2), STRENGTHENED (Phil. 4:13), RECONCILED (Rom. 5:10), AUTHORATIVE (Mark 11:22-24), CHOSEN (1 Peter 2:9), IN HEALTH (3 John 1:2), ANOINTED (Ps. 23:5), DELIVERED (Jer. 1:8), SON OR DAUGHTER (Rom. 8:14), SANCTIFIED (John 17:17), PURSUED (Ps. 23:6), VICTORIOUS (1 John 5: 4-5), WONDERFUL (Ps 139:14), FRIEND (John 15:15), FULL OF JOY (Gal 5:22).
Just like Josiah, our nation has had the truth hidden for so long that the people don't even know it or where to find it. Sadly, it is the church that has allowed all our nation to become a nation in distress. The church has been quiet on every moral issue, not teaching the consequences of sin. They have, just like all the kings of the past, turned a blind eye to the evil of our day in order to not offend. But in doing so they have hidden the truth. The church has had only one message and although it is important, Salvation, it has led to an even more lost and hurting people. Just like the kings of the past, the people of today have just halfheartedly added God into the mix of their life and idols and not turned from evil. The church needs a Josiah moment. We have gotten people saved but not introduced them to the Living God or taught them to love the word. The average American today does not have a love for the word or a love for truth. They will not allow the Bible to interrupt their doctrine. They don't know the Spirit living in them and they certainly do not know how to hear from Him or be led by Him.
It is not my job as a believer to convict unbelievers of sin. It is my job as a believer though to call my brothers and sister in Christ out of sin. It is not my job as a believer to look the other way when alters to LQBTQ and BLM and Planned Parenthood are being erected. I do not care what color your skin is, whether you are gay or straight but I do care about you. If you know my God and love and abide in His word He will transform you into who He created you to be, I do not have to try to change you into my image. It is my job as a believer to never stop speaking the Truth of the Word in and to every situation, letting believers and unbelievers know what Christ died to set them free from (a life of bondage to sin which will lead to death, the curse of the law). As a church we have let the world in confusion and chaos have our schools, our prisons, our medical system, our government and even our church. We have even allowed a world that has denied Jesus Christ to interpret the Word of God for us. The world has told us what it means to "love your neighbor" but I promise you it is not the same interpretation that Jesus modeled for us. The old Testament has been such an eye opener for me over the last 6 months. Ecclesiastes 1:9 says, "What has been will be again, what has been done will be done again; there is nothing new under the sun." Church, we are in a repeat of many times past. How this will end if we continue to remain silent and complacent is all recorded for us in scripture. It's not pretty. It is time for us to wake up and humble ourselves. We have to repent for staying silent, for staying out of politics, for not loving and abiding in the Word and not sharing the full truth.
I encourage you today, get in the word. Seek wisdom, not in the world but in the Word and allow it to disrupt your doctrine. Ask for the guidance of the Holy Spirit and let His truth reign in you! Church, you have so much more than just salvation to share but do you know that? When Jesus began His ministry people traveled far and wide to hear it. Today we struggle to get people into our churches to hear a quick water down salvation message and a good tutorial of adding one more god to our list of things to worship. It's not ok. We get to decide our future and on this beautiful Independence Day I pray our eyes would be open and we will see the plans of the enemy with clarity. That we will stand up in unity as ONE NATION UNDER GOD and declare His goodness. Church you were created for such a time as this!
I am going to leave you with Galatians 5:13-26
13 You, my brothers and sisters, were called to be free. But do not use your freedom to indulge the flesh[a]; rather, serve one another humbly in love. 14 For the entire law is fulfilled in keeping this one command: “Love your neighbor as yourself.”[b] 15 If you bite and devour each other, watch out or you will be destroyed by each other.
16 So I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh. 17 For the flesh desires what is contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit what is contrary to the flesh. They are in conflict with each other, so that you are not to do whatever[c] you want. 18 But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law.
19 The acts of the flesh are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery; 20 idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions 21 and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I warn you, as I did before, that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God.
22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law. 24 Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. 25 Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit. 26 Let us not become conceited, provoking and envying each other.