Hello, brothers and sisters and Heartdwellers family.
This morning in worship I found myself being held in the Lord’s arms. Then I turned around and began to hold him. He was in all-white but had the crown of thorns on. We were sitting down then I stood up on my knees and held his head to my chest as he looked so somber, and I just held him tenderly there.
After I received Holy Communion I sat before the Lord to hear his heart.
Good morning Lord, what is on your heart? I love you, Jesus.
Jesus began,
“I love you too, My beloved one. Thank you for holding Me this morning. You have no idea what consolation that means to Me—being held by you, My beloved bride. When so many have gone wayward or worse, fear being intimate with Me. So many in My church fail to realize I am still suffering, suffering from the consequences of the sin of mankind even more so, than when I walked the earth.
“Because now I inhabit souls and it pierces My heart when one of My very own falls into willful sin and then runs from Me in shame, or lives a life full of the world, and of worldly desires, but call Me their own.”
As he was saying that I could envision Jesus in the throne room of someone’s heart. He is in the closet, sitting with clothes piled on top of Him and all you see is his face poking out as he looks so sad and rejected.
“I have no room to move or live within a soul like that because they are not really dead to themselves yet. You were right to say that you have died, you are dying, and you will die to yourself eventually. All the things of Heaven and the ways of God are a process. Many truly think they have arrived they have got it all wrong.
“It is good to declare that word of faith in scripture, be ye holy as I am holy, (1 Peter 1:16); You are the righteousness of Christ Jesus, (2 Corinthians 5:21); because, My beloved ones, you are all these things. But you have not arrived yet and many are teaching that. So there are souls who sit and live in a life of mediocracy, doing good deeds and thinking they are okay when I am calling souls much, much higher.”
As an aside here the Lord is addressing what I have noticed mainly in the Protestant church and this gospel that many pastors are preaching about the “finished work of Christ”. Yes, Jesus finished on the cross the redemption of mankind, but the salvation of a soul is another thing. And that takes work and sacrifice. I have had a couple of friends I know feel as though I was being legalistic when striving after holiness because after all the Lord says you are Holy, and He said you are righteous, so it’s already done. You just have to believe it and walk in it. I used to think that way before becoming a Heartdwellers. Once I came to this ministry I was flabbergasted at the Lord’s perspective and how every little sin grieves him. I was brought to deep conviction and true repentance for the first time because there were many things I didn’t know displeased the Lord.
He revealed my misery as I saw myself in the light of his mirror for the first time and not man’s mirror, which measures itself to other men. Holiness is simply complete self-denial, to be perfect in charity as Jesus was. I don’t know about you, but I have never met anyone who is perfect in charity yet. If we are holy why does the church still have corruption? Why do we still sin? If we are righteous why do we still have struggles with our flesh? So you see the Lord in scripture is
speaking of how he sees us, what we are called to, but we haven’t arrived yet. That is why all through the New Testament Paul fervently and firmly instructs us how to live a righteous life, how to be holy.
1 Timothy 6:11, “But you, man of God, avoid all these things. Strive for righteousness, godliness, faith, love, endurance, and gentleness.”
2 Timothy 2:21, “So if anyone cleanses himself of what is unfit, he will be a vessel for honor: sanctified, useful to the Master, and prepared for every good work.”
Hebrews 12:10, “They disciplined us for a little while as they thought best; but God disciplines us for our good, in order that we may share in his holiness.”
And here Jesus says in Matthew 16:24, [I like the amplified version] Then Jesus said to His disciples, “If anyone wishes to follow Me [as My disciple], he must deny himself, [set aside selfish interests] and take up his cross [expressing a willingness to endure whatever may come] and follow Me [believing in Me, conforming to My example in living and, if need be, suffering or perhaps dying because of faith in Me].
So there is a great process of sanctification that has to take place in our lives once we say yes to Jesus. We receive all his promises and in scripture he speaks prophetically at whom he has called us to be, to become. I love what my pastor said one time in church explaining salvation. He said, you are saved, you are being saved, and you will be saved.
Because we are not there yet and we cannot live on the profession of faith alone, being hearers of the word professing the word, but not doers thereby claiming the Lord imputed righteousness, but living sinful lives. It doesn’t work that way. We are called to “work out our salvation with fear and trembling” Philippians
2:12. Keyword, work, it takes work on our part to cooperate with the Lord’s grace to make us holy, to live in his righteousness.
Jesus continued,
“To be seated with Me in the heavenly places means to have My perspective, My mind on things looking down and not submitting yourself to the ways and thoughts of this world. That takes much intimate time with Me, and sacrifice on your part. The more you deny yourself the more of Me you get.
“Me living in you, the hope of glory upon this earth. My brides, I am transforming you, each of you into dead bodies. Souls who no longer have a desire, a preference, an opinion, or attachment to anything. A vessel that completely wants My will, desires My will, and lives by My will alone even in the smallest thing from moment to moment and that takes time. If I were to cause you to die to self all at once who could live through it? No one, but I know the human frailty and weakness and I am meek and gentle and humble of heart, so I never encroach or demand, but gently I nudge you, gently I woo you to fall so in love with Me that you desire all that I am and all I want from you. In that place, I can then have your will because you give it to Me out of love, not fear, or out of rules.
“So, My brides, each of you have been chosen to sit on the Heavenly thrones next to Me, and you are seated there now. I desire that each of you would relinquish all rights to yourself, to your bodies, to your soul, and to your spirit and give it to Me. Little by little as we climb this mountain of holiness you are shedding your old self—that old man—with each climb, with each sacrifice, and with each cross given to you. That at the end you may be presented before the Father Holy and blameless before our sight. This is My work, and your job is to simply correspond. Be open to My Spirit, His inspirations, and His convictions. There are daily sacrifices I present to you every day in the smallest way you can give to Me and remember, nothing is ever too small for I am grateful for every single one of your selfless actions.
“Look to My Mother, she is a great example and a great model for each of you to follow. She will help you in this journey of holiness if you entrust your heart to Her. She knows very well how each of you is uniquely formed, and My will for each of you. She will make sure that you are indeed transformed into another Christ as I desire that you be transformed as well. So imitate Her as She imitated Me in complete perfection and you will become lilies of the field, the most fragrant flowers my Father’s garden, and the most pure brides as I live, breath, and work through you. For it is no longer YOU who live But I who lives in you.”
And that was the end of Jesus’ message.
God bless you, family, until the next message.
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