LIVING WATERS from Lightbearers

…but speaking the truth in love… Eph 4:11 NKJV

Live not by lies – Aleksandr Solzhensityn

The two great biblical subjects I have always pursued is the integrity of the Word and the gifts of the Spirit. This subject we are dealing with today deals with both!

I read THE GULAG ARCHIPELAGO back in the seventies while in Bible college. A strong prophetic voice, Alexandr Solzhensityn sought to warn the West of the encroaching communist ideology that would soon engulf it. Solzhensityn, a Russian/Eastern Orthodox believer and Soviet dissident who had been exiled to its Siberian labor camps for criticizing the Soviet regime, told his tale of the camps and had his book published in 1973 which raised his international profile, outraged the Soviet authorities and caused him to lose his Soviet citizenship in 1974. He moved to the West and began to prophesy about what was coming. What Solzhensityn saw has come to America, and is presently consuming it…

The biblical solution to the communist ideology corrupting the West from within is found in Ephesians 4. This section we will study also shows the biblical proof of international conspiracies, and how to overcome them. Let’s get into it…

And He Himself gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers, for the equipping of the saints for the work of ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ,  till we all come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a perfect man, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ;  that we should no longer be children, tossed to and fro and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, in the cunning craftiness of deceitful plotting, but, speaking the truth in love, may grow up in all things into Him who is the head — Christ —  from whom the whole body, joined and knit together by what every joint supplies, according to the effective working by which every part does its share, causes growth of the body for the edifying of itself in love. Eph 4:11-16 NKJV

And He Himself gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers…

The calling of every believer to every type of ministry involves the whole Godhead (1 Corinthians 12:4-6). The striking emphasis here of ‘He Himself’ shows the particular relationship the Lord Jesus has with each of His servants in the fivefold ministries. It is the calling of the fivefold ministries to lead the Church to take on the ‘big boys’ of the other side. What is at stake is the present condition of the whole world – who lives, who dies, who prospers, who doesn’t, etc.

…for the equipping of the saints for the work of ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ…

The most powerful force in the universe is the body of Christ because its strength, power and authority flow from the throne of God. The united, equipped, and matured Church cannot be stopped. Unity is built on the essentials of Jesus and His word and mutual respect and love, not conformity to every particular doctrinal opinion. The Church needs to be equipped in two great elements – the Word of God and the Spirit of God. The Word of God, especially the NT Pauline Church epistles, and the Spirit of God, especially all nine gifts of the Spirit enumerated in 1 Corinthians 12:7-10, must be in the personal arsenal of every believer. Without one or the other we are like a one-legged man trying to run a race. Maturity comes from practice and training, so we train all…the…time!

…till we all come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a perfect man, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ;  

I was always taught that this was not available until we were all in Heaven, which discouraged me from believing it was ever possible here. But that belief flies in the face of Jesus’ prayer in John 17, that we may be one, as He and the Father are one. So, thankfully through the ministry of my friend Henry and others I am holding that ideal before the eyes of my heart and beginning to see it come to pass!

 …that we should no longer be children, tossed to and fro and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, in the cunning craftiness of deceitful plotting…

Now we have come to the first half of the crux of the problem and its solution. ‘That’ introduces a purpose clause – the answer to why the fivefold ministries are training and equipping the saints to do the work of ministry for the edifying of the body of Christ. ‘We’ the body, should no longer be NEPIOS, babies – Corinthians says that NEPIOS are indistinguishable from unsaved persons (1 Corinthians 3:1-3). Without the direct or indirect tutelage of fivefold ministers, babes don’t grow up. This explains a lot of what we see in the Church today.

‘Tossed to and fro’ is KLUDONIZOMAI, and refers to the action of waves, and implies the work of demons. The sea of glass before the Throne has no waves (Revelation 4:6), no demonic activity. ‘Carried about with every wind of doctrine’ – doctrine is teaching, and waves are moved by the wind, and the wind is analogous to the spirit realm (John 3:8, Acts 2:4), thus we see that spiritual babes are like driftwood on the ocean, and are deposited wherever the wind and waves set them. How serious is it then when communist ideology, however it is cloaked, is taught to our children? Solzhensityn, though with the Lord, still cries, still warns…

‘By the trickery of men, in the cunning craftiness of deceitful plotting.’ Trickery is the word KUBEIA, implying gambling with the use of dice, but in this situation, they are loaded dice, so that the gambler (the NEPIOS) will surely lose. The cunning craftiness of deceitful plotting – this is your biblical justification for those who believe in conspiracies. Craftiness is PANOURGIA, referring to adroit deception, a skillful trap. Its first used of the schemes of the chief priests against Jesus (Luke 20:23). Deceitful planning is the word METHODEIA with the word PLANE. To emphasize the wickedness of METHODEIA, the only other place it is used is Ephesians 6:12. Deceitful plotting…

The wicked plots against the just, and gnashes at him with his teeth. The Lord laughs at him, For He sees that his day is coming. Ps 37:12-13 NKJV

Gorbachev said that the home of international communism would be the ecology or green movement. ‘Save the planet’ would be the red herring for the imposition of communist control. ‘Green’ literature has long espoused the idea of reducing the human population to five hundred million, from 7.8 billion. Kissinger in 2009 at a eugenics conference predicted a virus and vaccine that would ‘cull the herd’ and ‘the herd would pay us dearly for it.’ The UN at the outset of the covid plandemic said that one hundred thirty million would die of starvation. We are losing our precious freedoms, and millions have lost their lives because of their deceitful plotting!

Now, the answer to their wicked schemes…

but, speaking the truth in love, may grow up in all things into Him who is the head — Christ — from whom the whole body, joined and knit together by what every joint supplies, according to the effective working by which every part does its share, causes growth of the body for the edifying of itself in love.

‘Speaking the truth (Grk. ALETHEUO) in love’ – The Greek word means to live the truth, not just speaking it – living it as a lifestyle. The antidote to all their schemes, their deceptions is to release God’s power through praise, love, forgiveness and generosity. Instead of caving in to fear…praise! Love is the great antidote to fear. Love energizes the gift of faith which makes one very, very powerful. Think about that for a minute. I’m talking Moses…Samson…Elijah…Paul, that kind of faith and power in YOU.

‘May grow up in all things into Him who is the head -Christ’ – Grow up is the Greek AUXANO, meaning growth from within without effort, natural growth because the conditions are right. What makes the conditions right? Living the truth as a lifestyle. We treat each other like we are one. When Carl and I started traveling all over the USA I told him I had only two rules for all of our travels. He looked at me with a look that said, “Oh boy, here it comes…” I said, “Number one, take care of one another, and number two, have a lot of fun. If we do those two things, we’ll be ok!” Those ‘rules’ have worked…

‘Christ — from whom the whole body, joined and knit together by what every joint supplies, according to the effective working by which every part does its share, causes growth of the body for the edifying of itself in love.’

The phrase explains itself so well that it needs little comment. Each of us has a unique job in the Body of Christ and, as we fulfill it the whole body is edified in love. Just do your part! As we close, let me lay out some general encouragement to fivefold ministers and to the rest of us that we can do in light of the current situation.

WHAT TO DO – FIVEFOLD MINISTERS

This may sound harsh, but get your ‘life message’ in its most perfected form and get it distributed far and wide, because YOU might not be around for long (meaning prison or something more permanent) if the hammer and sickle finally does come down. Secondly, replicate yourself, make it a priority to train up your most important sons and daughters to replace you.

Third, win your local and statewide/national business and political leaders to the Lord. Minister from a position of personal moral integrity and strength. You are their peer, prove it to them. Dress appropriately. Get in their company and prophesy to them in love. Heal their children! Show them you are NOT there for their money or influence, but for their hearts. Don’t take anything from them. Win their hearts, then disciple them to the Lord. Have a lot of fun doing it, but don’t ‘drink the Kool-Aid of power.’

Fourth, find all the witches in your area and tell them to get saved or get out of town. They are not permitted to operate in your God assigned area. Same with drug dealers, organized crime folks, and the real crazies, the communists. Be wise but be bold. One pastor I met told me that when he took over his church, he personally went to every home in the city and prayed with everyone there. He established his staff of authority over the whole city and became its spiritual servant. If you love all these guys, doors will open up to you.

Now in the morning, having risen a long while before daylight, He went out and departed to a solitary place; and there He prayed. Mark 1:35 NKJV

Finally, double and triple your daily time with the Lord.

WHAT TO DO – THE REST OF US

Brethren, pray for us. 1 Thess 5:25 NKJV

First of all, pray fervently for the fivefold leaders, and support them generously. Ask HS what you should do, and how you should do it. Even sharing the equivalent of a restaurant meal or a tank of gas monthly with a man or woman of God can help them enormously. Secondly, start a church in your home. If the communists get their way, conventional churches will be shut down or compromised. House churches will be the home of the Church as they are today in communist lands, and were during the time of the Soviet Union, and the book of Acts. Finally, win your neighbors and friends to the Lord.

When I bring the sword upon a land, and the people of the land take a man from their territory and make him their watchman, when he sees the sword coming upon the land, if he blows the trumpet and warns the people, then whoever hears the sound of the trumpet and does not take warning, if the sword comes and takes him away, his blood shall be on his own head. Ezek 33:2-4 NKJV

By God’s sovereign hand, Solzhensityn saw what was coming and blew the trumpet back in the ‘70’s. What he saw has come and even now stands at our doorstep ready to kick the door down. We are blowing the trumpet today! May we rise up and believe God and with His sword, turn the enemy from the gates. Amen? Love you!

Remember dear ones, we must be about our Father’s business…