Note:
The following message is the first part of a teaching that consists of two parts and we recommend to read the message chronologically.
The following message is the first part of a teaching that consists of two parts and we recommend to read the message chronologically.
The structure of the church – the ekklēsia is in a time of spiritual upheaval, with high attention to the leading of the Holy Spirit, who guides us in the revelatory truth of the Father and the Son for this time and the time to come (cf. John 16:13-15).
John 16:13-15:
13 But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all the truth. He will not speak on his own; he will speak only what he hears, and he will tell you what is yet to come.
14 He will glorify me because it is from me that he will receive what he will make known to you.
15 All that belongs to the Father is mine. That is why I said the Spirit will receive from me what he will make known to you.”
13 But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all the truth. He will not speak on his own; he will speak only what he hears, and he will tell you what is yet to come.
14 He will glorify me because it is from me that he will receive what he will make known to you.
15 All that belongs to the Father is mine. That is why I said the Spirit will receive from me what he will make known to you.”
The Intensification of the Presence of the Holy Spirit and the Great Open Effective Door
Accordingly, as saints we are in a phase in which the Holy Spirit intensifies in the lives of those who go forward in obedience to the Word of God, which is Jesus Christ (cf. John 1:1.14 i.c.w. Luke 24:49).
John 1:1.14:
1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.
14 The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.
1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.
14 The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.
Luke 24:49:
“… 49 I am going to send you what my Father has promised; but stay in the city until you have been clothed with power from on high.”
“… 49 I am going to send you what my Father has promised; but stay in the city until you have been clothed with power from on high.”
By this the purity of God is made manifest in the midst of His people, because they move forward with the weight of His glory, speaking fearlessly the words which the LORD inspires by His Spirit (cf. Titus 2:11-14 i.c.w. Acts 2:1-4).
Titus 2:11-14:
11 For the grace of God has appeared that offers salvation to all people.
12 It teaches us to say “No” to ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives in this present age, 13 while we wait for the blessed hope – the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ, 14 who gave himself for us to redeem us from all wickedness and to purify for himself a people that are his very own, eager to do what is good.
11 For the grace of God has appeared that offers salvation to all people.
12 It teaches us to say “No” to ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives in this present age, 13 while we wait for the blessed hope – the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ, 14 who gave himself for us to redeem us from all wickedness and to purify for himself a people that are his very own, eager to do what is good.
Acts 2:1-4:
1 When the day of Pentecost came, they were all together in one place.
2 Suddenly a sound like the blowing of a violent wind came from heaven and filled the whole house where they were sitting.
3 They saw what seemed to be tongues of fire that separated and came to rest on each of them.
4 All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit enabled them.
1 When the day of Pentecost came, they were all together in one place.
2 Suddenly a sound like the blowing of a violent wind came from heaven and filled the whole house where they were sitting.
3 They saw what seemed to be tongues of fire that separated and came to rest on each of them.
4 All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit enabled them.
With this increase of the Holy Spirit, a great effective door opens that leads into the light of the ‘star of Ephesus’, which is the walk in the first love – agąpē.
This walk and moving forward in the first love leads to an increase of understanding of the dimension of divine wisdom that is in the governmental realm of God, as well as the proper biblical understanding of time in order to bring heaven to earth (cf. 1 Corinthians 16:8-9 i.c.w. Revelation 1:20; Daniel 12:3; Genesis 1:14).
This walk and moving forward in the first love leads to an increase of understanding of the dimension of divine wisdom that is in the governmental realm of God, as well as the proper biblical understanding of time in order to bring heaven to earth (cf. 1 Corinthians 16:8-9 i.c.w. Revelation 1:20; Daniel 12:3; Genesis 1:14).
1 Corinthians 16:8-9:
8 But I will stay on at Ephesus until Pentecost (Note: Shavuot is celebrated in the biblical month of Sivan), 9 because a great door for effective work has opened to me, and there are many who oppose me.
8 But I will stay on at Ephesus until Pentecost (Note: Shavuot is celebrated in the biblical month of Sivan), 9 because a great door for effective work has opened to me, and there are many who oppose me.
Revelation 1:20:
20 The mystery of the seven stars that you saw in my right hand and of the seven golden lampstands is this: The seven stars are the angels of the seven churches, and the seven lampstands are the seven churches.
20 The mystery of the seven stars that you saw in my right hand and of the seven golden lampstands is this: The seven stars are the angels of the seven churches, and the seven lampstands are the seven churches.
Daniel 12:3:
3 Those who are wise will shine like the brightness of the heavens, and those who lead many to righteousness, like the stars for ever and ever.
3 Those who are wise will shine like the brightness of the heavens, and those who lead many to righteousness, like the stars for ever and ever.
Genesis 1:14:
14 And God said, “Let there be lights in the vault of the sky to separate the day from the night, and let them serve as signs to mark sacred times, and days and years, …
14 And God said, “Let there be lights in the vault of the sky to separate the day from the night, and let them serve as signs to mark sacred times, and days and years, …
The creation of the stars is associated with the fourth day of creation, and the number ‘4’ is associated with the Hebrew letter ‘Daleth’, which corresponds to an ‘open tent door’, so the deeper meaning of the great door is revealed as described by the Apostle Paul in 1 Corinthians 16:9.
In connection with this, it deals with the recognition of the Son of God on the basis of the first love – agąpē, who holds the seven stars in His right hand and walks under the seven golden lampstands (cf. Revelation 2:1).
Revelation 2:1:
1 “To the angel of the church in Ephesus write: These are the words of him who holds the seven stars in his right hand and walks among the seven golden lampstands.
1 “To the angel of the church in Ephesus write: These are the words of him who holds the seven stars in his right hand and walks among the seven golden lampstands.
The Church of Ephesus and the Light of the Seven Stars and Seven Golden Lampstands
The two attributes, namely the seven stars and the seven golden lamp stands carry two different potentials of the light of God, which are divine government and spirit-filled passion toward the Lord.
The light of the seven stars encompasses the impulsive supernatural light of the angelic realm. The potential warm light of the seven lampstands is the passion of the church in the richness of faith as well as the attention towards the King of eternity, who is also her Bridegroom.
The fusion of the two kinds of light brings forth that the church serves the LORD as a huge satellite of His eternal reign, releasing His supernatural impulses on earth in the first love. The ekklēsia is appointed to cooperate with God’s spiritual world and its institutions as contributing in reflecting the activities of the unseen.
In relation to the fellowship of saints in Ephesus, it can be described as a so-called ‘guiding star’ among the churches mentioned in Revelation, since it is the church where the ‘first love – agąpē’ is called by Jesus Christ and is first in place with God (cf. Matthew 22:36-40 i.c.w. 1 Corinthians 13:1-3).
Matthew 22:36-40:
36 “Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?”
37 Jesus replied: “ ‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’
38 This is the first and greatest commandment.
39 And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’
40 All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.”
36 “Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?”
37 Jesus replied: “ ‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’
38 This is the first and greatest commandment.
39 And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’
40 All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.”
1 Corinthians 13:1-3:
1 If I speak in the tongues of men or of angels, but do not have love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal.
2 If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have a faith that can move mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing.
3 If I give all I possess to the poor and give over my body to hardship that I may boast, but do not have love, I gain nothing.
1 If I speak in the tongues of men or of angels, but do not have love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal.
2 If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have a faith that can move mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing.
3 If I give all I possess to the poor and give over my body to hardship that I may boast, but do not have love, I gain nothing.
Without the first love for Jesus Christ, we as saints are not able to implement the will of God and receive the love of the Father, because Jesus is the love of the Father (cf. John 14:21).
John 14:21:
21 Whoever has my commands and keeps them is the one who loves me. The one who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I too will love them and show myself to them.”
21 Whoever has my commands and keeps them is the one who loves me. The one who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I too will love them and show myself to them.”
The True Love of God – ‘agąpē’, the New Way and the Time of Unusual Miracles
The apostle Paul described the way of God’s love as a higher or even better way, which because of this fact contains higher revelation for those who walk on this way (cf. 1 Corinthians 12:31b).
1 Corinthians 12:31b:
… 31b And yet I will show you the most excellent (Note: higher) way.
… 31b And yet I will show you the most excellent (Note: higher) way.
The excellent or higher is always associated with the first with God because, among other things, the first, acts like a pinnacle that completes the construction of a building. ‘Peaks’ are often associated with beginnings in God, as are the beginnings of times such as Rosh Chodesh, the beginning and peak of the month, or Rosh ha-Shanah, the beginning and peak of the year.
Thus, the appointed biblical feast times by God that are linked to the people of Israel correspond to great effective open doors. It is the Holy Spirit who desires to move through the people of God to glorify the Father and the Son in these open doors (Note: appointed times).
The characteristic of the great effective open door encompasses a higher dimension of the truth of the Word of God, which is first opened by the Holy Spirit, the Spirit of Truth. At the same time, this open door includes unusual miracles as well as the confrontation with darkness, which is accompanied by much resistance.
It is for us to surrender ourselves completely to the guidance of the Holy Spirit for this time and the time to come, allowing Him to lead us without restriction, even if we do not know His sending and destination (cf. John 3:8).
John 3:8:
8 The wind blows wherever it pleases. You hear its sound, but you cannot tell where it comes from or where it is going. So it is with everyone born of the Spirit.”
8 The wind blows wherever it pleases. You hear its sound, but you cannot tell where it comes from or where it is going. So it is with everyone born of the Spirit.”
The reason for not knowing His place of sending and His destination is because the Holy Spirit brings the truth of God’s Word from the supernatural realm, where the Heavenly Father and His Son Jesus Christ dwell in order to bring His people with revelatory power to the new partial destination that the LORD has already predestined.
That is why it is so important to go forward in the power of faith, which includes complete trust towards the Holy Spirit. This is accompanied by new knowledge that leads to greater power in the Holy Spirit and the leaving of the ‘old way’ by believers in order to walk in the ‘new way’ in Christ, which includes the standards of the Word of God in its fullness. In addition, the spiritual ‘culture’ of people will change, which will be clearly evident in their expressions.
The apostolic quality will increase because of the prophetic anointing within the church which is associated with an increase of light in the form of revelation (cf. Acts 19:1-7).
Acts 19:1-7:
1 While Apollos was at Corinth, Paul took the road through the interior and arrived at Ephesus. There he found some disciples
2 and asked them, “Did you receive the Holy Spirit when you believed?” They answered, “No, we have not even heard that there is a Holy Spirit.”
3 So Paul asked, “Then what baptism did you receive?” “John’s baptism,” they replied.
4 Paul said, “John’s baptism was a baptism of repentance. He told the people to believe in the one coming after him, that is, in Jesus.”
5 On hearing this, they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus.
6 When Paul placed his hands on them, the Holy Spirit came on them, and they spoke in tongues and prophesied.
7 There were about twelve men in all.
1 While Apollos was at Corinth, Paul took the road through the interior and arrived at Ephesus. There he found some disciples
2 and asked them, “Did you receive the Holy Spirit when you believed?” They answered, “No, we have not even heard that there is a Holy Spirit.”
3 So Paul asked, “Then what baptism did you receive?” “John’s baptism,” they replied.
4 Paul said, “John’s baptism was a baptism of repentance. He told the people to believe in the one coming after him, that is, in Jesus.”
5 On hearing this, they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus.
6 When Paul placed his hands on them, the Holy Spirit came on them, and they spoke in tongues and prophesied.
7 There were about twelve men in all.
In the coming time, there will be more frequent talk of the Kingdom of God as ‘the church’, which will be accompanied by opposition from the darkness that has settled in the hearts of believers. In those believers, the hardness and bitter attitude of their hearts will be revealed, which will show itself in mockery toward the message of the Kingdom.
This has to happen this way because this resistance ultimately leads to the Kingdom message reaching the right people in the right place. This is associated with a higher dimension of dominion, so that the concerned saints increase in understanding about it and walk in governmental dominion as sons of God in Christ Jesus (cf. Acts 19:8-10).
Acts 19:8-10:
8 Paul entered the synagogue and spoke boldly there for three months, arguing persuasively about the kingdom of God.
9 But some of them became obstinate; they refused to believe and publicly maligned the Way. So Paul left them. He took the disciples with him and had discussions daily in the lecture hall of Tyrannus (Note: means 'tyrant' => supreme in authority).
10 This went on for two years, so that all the Jews and Greeks who lived in the province of Asia heard the word of the Lord.
8 Paul entered the synagogue and spoke boldly there for three months, arguing persuasively about the kingdom of God.
9 But some of them became obstinate; they refused to believe and publicly maligned the Way. So Paul left them. He took the disciples with him and had discussions daily in the lecture hall of Tyrannus (Note: means 'tyrant' => supreme in authority).
10 This went on for two years, so that all the Jews and Greeks who lived in the province of Asia heard the word of the Lord.
Walking in the governmental reign of God results in unusual miracles that are linked to the outward and inward nature of God and to the finished work and Spirit-filled walk.
These unusual miracles are signs that do not happen directly with the intervention of any devoted saint, but with the objects with which they are brought into contact by people who stand in faith, so that healings and deliverance are experienced on an expanded level without making the carriers of the anointing aware of it. This is because it is the zeal of the Heavenly Father that His Son Jesus Christ alone receives the glory (cf. Acts 19:11-12).
These unusual miracles are signs that do not happen directly with the intervention of any devoted saint, but with the objects with which they are brought into contact by people who stand in faith, so that healings and deliverance are experienced on an expanded level without making the carriers of the anointing aware of it. This is because it is the zeal of the Heavenly Father that His Son Jesus Christ alone receives the glory (cf. Acts 19:11-12).
Acts 19:11-12:
11 God did extraordinary miracles through Paul, 12 so that even handkerchiefs and aprons that had touched him were taken to the sick, and their illnesses were cured and the evil spirits left them.
11 God did extraordinary miracles through Paul, 12 so that even handkerchiefs and aprons that had touched him were taken to the sick, and their illnesses were cured and the evil spirits left them.
This walk in the governmental concept of the sons of God in Christ Jesus results also that false or illegal spiritual procedures for ‘deliverance’ come to light, so that the ‘supernatural darkness’ acts against the ‘natural darkness’, which appears in the form of ‘the sons of the father of lies’ (Note: the seven sons of the Jewish high priest Skevas; cf. John 8:44).
John 8:44:
44 You belong to your father, the devil, and you want to carry out your father’s desires. He was a murderer from the beginning, not holding to the truth, for there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks his native language, for he is a liar and the father of lies.
44 You belong to your father, the devil, and you want to carry out your father’s desires. He was a murderer from the beginning, not holding to the truth, for there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks his native language, for he is a liar and the father of lies.
This paves the way for the glory of Christ, which emerges from the summary that has been drawn of the destruction of the value of the ‘teaching of darkness’, so that the Word of God increases in influence and strength in the earth realm (cf. Acts 19:13-20).
Acts 19:13-20:
13 Some Jews who went around driving out evil spirits tried to invoke the name of the Lord Jesus over those who were demon-possessed. They would say, “In the name of the Jesus whom Paul preaches, I command you to come out.”
14 Seven sons of Sceva, a Jewish chief priest, were doing this.
15 One day the evil spirit answered them, “Jesus I know, and Paul I know about, but who are you?”
16 Then the man who had the evil spirit jumped on them and overpowered them all. He gave them such a beating that they ran out of the house naked and bleeding.
17 When this became known to the Jews and Greeks living in Ephesus, they were all seized with fear, and the name of the Lord Jesus was held in high honor.
18 Many of those who believed now came and openly confessed what they had done.
19 A number who had practiced sorcery brought their scrolls together and burned them publicly. When they calculated the value of the scrolls, the total came to fifty thousand drachmas.
20 In this way the word of the Lord spread widely and grew in power.
13 Some Jews who went around driving out evil spirits tried to invoke the name of the Lord Jesus over those who were demon-possessed. They would say, “In the name of the Jesus whom Paul preaches, I command you to come out.”
14 Seven sons of Sceva, a Jewish chief priest, were doing this.
15 One day the evil spirit answered them, “Jesus I know, and Paul I know about, but who are you?”
16 Then the man who had the evil spirit jumped on them and overpowered them all. He gave them such a beating that they ran out of the house naked and bleeding.
17 When this became known to the Jews and Greeks living in Ephesus, they were all seized with fear, and the name of the Lord Jesus was held in high honor.
18 Many of those who believed now came and openly confessed what they had done.
19 A number who had practiced sorcery brought their scrolls together and burned them publicly. When they calculated the value of the scrolls, the total came to fifty thousand drachmas.
20 In this way the word of the Lord spread widely and grew in power.
In connection with the seven Jewish conjurers, it should be noted that the practice of so-called exorcism (Note: exorcism without spiritual legality in Christ Jesus) is made clear by the statement of the Pharisees at the time of Jesus, who had projected their action onto Jesus’ delivering intervention, accusing Him of casting out evil spirits with the supreme demon ‘Beelzebul’ (cf. Matthew 12:22-24).
Matthew 12:22-24:
22 Then they brought him a demon-possessed man who was blind and mute, and Jesus healed him, so that he could both talk and see.
23 All the people were astonished and said, “Could this be the Son of David?”
24 But when the Pharisees heard this, they said, “It is only by Beelzebul, the prince of demons, that this fellow drives out demons.”
Furthermore, this illegal spiritual practice of ‘exorcism’ is evident from the intervention of Jewish conjurers at the time of Paul’s ministry, where Jewish conjurers distanced themselves from the truth of God’s Word, which is Jesus Christ. They were being attacked in their unlawful spiritual intervention by the evil spirit.
Exorcism is the practice of persons who remove demonic spirits from people through the use of oaths, vows, and promises made to them or the idols they represent. They do this by placing themselves under a demonic power that gives them access to a subordinate demonic level on the basis of an oath.
This results in a demand by the demonic power for the person to illegally enter the spirit realm and request a supernatural manifestation (e.g. a healing). This procedure has its root in a wrong attitude of heart, which springs from a false compassion coupled with the search for honor and recognition from people. The oath comes about for example by the relevant person giving the summoner consent and money or any form of value as a reward for this ‘performance’.
Amen and Amen.
In His Wisdom,
Daniel Glimm
For part II of the message please click here.
