BEHOLD, I SEEK MY OWN

Divine House-Cleaning

Isaiah 1:25-26; Malachi 3:2-3; Matthew 3:12; 10:7-8; 21:12-13; Mark 11:15-17; John 2:14-17; Luke 19:45-46; Galatians 1:8-9; I Peter 4:17

Martin Luther exposed the corruption of religious racketeers who profiteered from the fears of people kept ignorant of My Word. As this Church Age draws to a close, I am about to purge My House again, even as I drove out the buyers and sellers of merchandise from My Father’s House in Jerusalem.

When I gave My disciples the Great Commission just prior to My Ascension to heaven, did I command them to fish for funds rather than men? No! I sent them out to heal the sick and to preach deliverance to those held captive by satan. I wanted to show mankind MY loving nature, and to manifest it through My followers. They were to freely give, as they had freely received.

There were many charlatans in Jerusalem who called themselves by My Holy Name, who claimed to be My earthly representatives. They exhorted (and extorted) as religious tax collectors, forcing others to cede to them even the tithe of mint, anise, and cumin. But they were not so zealous to perform those duties which would not bring them immediate rewards. Instead of taking pity on poor widows, those heartless religious scoundrels robbed them of their very subsistence. What leeches they were!

How enraged those racketeers were when I drove the merchants, birds and beasts out of the Temple! How frantically they scrambled to recover the coins clattering on the pavement! Their hearts and souls were bound up in that filthy lucre, and they perished with it.

How insulted I am, to be associated with con artists preying on weak souls. MY Prophet Ezekiel prophesied against false pastors who exploit the flock of the Lord and drive away those who are thirsty for the Truth (Ezekiel Chapter 34). Many lost souls are lampooning the Gospel of Christ, just because of all the con games which are going on in My name.

I am finished with being patient with those who deliberately turn My Holy Gospel into a Greed Creed, and the Lord of Heaven into a slot machine!

I know of more than a few fools who say: "So what if I’ve got to stand before God someday and give an account of my true motives? I will already have had my piece of pie, with ice cream piled on top."

But bitterness will fill the bellies of all those who lived to serve self and gratify their carnal lusts. Too late they will realize how false was their maxim: "I can eat my cake and have heaven too!"

A Lethal Dose of Error

Isaiah 5:20; II Corinthians 2:14

Satan is quite clever, the way he deceives people. He dispenses doses of deadly error in a sugar cube so people will more readily swallow it. And even when the spiritual error isn’t exactly swallowed, a person will be on the verge of swallowing it. He will hold it in his mouth while he decides whether to go for the error or not. No realizing that digestion begins in the mouth, that one will not spit the false teaching out immediately. No wonder he feels deep unease in his inner parts and gets a spiritual stomach ache, for some errors are so deadly dangerous that mere contact with them ministers death.

If you suspect that some teaching does not line up with the Word of God as originally imparted to My Church, it is time to reflect on whether it is a doctrine of devils. There are many false apostles and prophets who try to revive a dead code of ceremonial ordinances I nailed to the Cross of Calvary and reimpose them upon you, by telling you that "I am doing a new thing" because this Age of Grace is almost over and you’d better become more expert on the old ways or else. If some self-apointed apostle or spiritual guru tells you you MUST observe and teach to others some "new revelation" not given to the early church through the original apostles, and you’ll suffer My wrath for not doing so, watch out! Either spit that poison out immediately or you’ll feel the turmoil of spiritual bondage within. The Spirit of Life in Christ Jesus within you resists coming back under the yoke of the Law of Sin and Death.

Whatever the brand of error, misguided, gullible souls will stray from their Good Shepherd, eat weeds in the devil’s pasture and end up with a spiritual belly ache. It is then that I must minister to their inward parts so they can recover.

Giving is Much More Than Money

II Kings 1:8; Matthew 3:1-4

Some pastors let it be known (particularly to younger converts) that living an "orderly" life is of the utmost importance in being My disciple, and that I will not be patient with those who deviate from conventional standards of what constitutes an orderly life.

It is taken for granted that a Christian young person will get all the secular education he can, then pursue either a highly-paid profession or open his own business, unless he opts to serve on a foreign mission field. Any job requiring a sharp suit and tie, and situated in an air-conditioned office must be a good one, their pastors think. To them, that is putting godly diligence and good stewardship into action, and the only decent way for a Christian to live.

A young person is expected to marry young enough to start a family, and continue in his chosen field until retirement age. Throughout his working life he should faithfully make payments on a a mortgaged home, so as to put down roots . He should update his car every two or three years to a shiny new model. Even the church parking lot must bear testimony to the popular Gospel of Materialism.

The believer’s prestigious job will enable him to contribute decent tithes and offerings to the church treasury. That, supposes his pastor, is true responsibility, and the only acceptable Christian example. To become a service worker or low-paid laborer is to fall short of My glory, many are told in various insidious ways. Obviously, a poorer person’s donations do not excite the church accountant very much.

Elijah and John the Baptist lived unconventional lifestyles, yet these two saints gave far more of themselves to Me than carnal, materialistic believers do. Neither of them ever married or took out a mortgage on a fine home. Elijah was not spirited away from Queen Jezebel in the back of a sleek limousine. He ran on tired, sore feet over stony ground.

I was the only insurance policy those godly men ever had. I kept John alive until the day his ministry on earth was finished, then he was martyred for his faith. Elijah was translated to heaven in a chariot of fire.

These two men did not steep their brains in the godless wisdom of this world’s prestigious universities. Nor did they seek lucrative positions in the world of finance. Neither man had a penny. They never ran for political office. Neither patronized hair salons or fretted much about the labels on their sweaty garments. And they weren’t very fussy about the style of their daily cuisine. They certainly didn’t draw their strength from power lunches! John the Baptist dined on locusts and wild honey, and ate only enough to keep himself alive and active in the ministry. He wore a humble hairshirt held together by a strip of leather. The respectable religious leaders of his day thought he was nuts because of his no-frills faith. They were incensed because he never paid his respects to the Temple with an envelope full of cash. Neither he nor Elijah were liked much by the Religious Establishment.

Neither man was affluent, but both were rich in faith. Each man simply gave Me everything he had.

Name-It-And-Claim-It

Galatians 1:8-9; Jude 3

The enemy cannot entice My people to bow down before idols of wood or stone. He cannot persuade them to venerate the prince of darkness who tempted My Son in the wilderness. If he were able to put an end to My Church, or at least completely neutralize its witness, he would have done so long before now.

When satan realized that My Son’s death on the Cross of Calvary spelled doom for all the forces of darkness, he reacted just like a crooked politician caught red-handed. "Damage control" became his top priority, for he knew that he had been judged as wicked, and his kingdom on earth was destined to be ousted by My glorious Kingdom. If the devil could not extinguish My Holy Fire entirely, he was determined to at least water down its effectiveness through My Church.

How sneaky satan is! He knows his time is short, even if My own people choose to ignore that fact. Time is a precious commodity, especially in cold congregations which cannot concentrate on a service longer than ninety minutes, or two hours at the outermost.

So the adversary reasons that if he cannot silence the preacher, he can at least "tone down" the message by instilling fear in his heart. I must preach what they want to hear, the pastor reasons. MY offerings will nosedive if I offend anybody, and I will lose MY flock and MY respectability in this community.

Who are so blind as such church ministers? The hour is perilously late, and so many of them carry on playing church as usual. My people are lulled to sleep, made to think they will be on this earth forever, piling up corruptible possessions and continually seeking more.

Abraham My servant is touted as being the progenitor of the Gospel of Materialism. I did bless him in every area of his life, but greed was not his god. Rather, he confessed that he was a stranger and pilgrim upon earth, and looked forward in faith to that Heavenly City whose builder and Maker is God.

Indeed his grip upon material things was loose, for he always put Me first. He was even ready and willing to offer up Isaac his heir upon the Altar of Sacrifice, knowing that I could raise this chosen son of his from the ashes of death and still fulfill the promises I had made concerning his life.

Name it and claim it, this new gospel proclaims. Jesus, who had possessed all the wealth of heaven, came to earth to become poor for your sake. Prosperity profiteers lead you to believe He died so you could pile up a stash of toys bigger than your neighbor’s. Give ten dollars and get a hundred back. The Lord is better than the lottery. Just believe you receive, and that Cadillac will exist in the spirit before it manifests in the visible realm. What sickening, self-centered idolatry of the grossest kind! I meant no such thing! I head a Church, not a gambling casino! You can only truly believe you receive your petition if I impart My pure faith to your heart. I did not come to inundate you with childish toys, or to fan the fires of your carnal lusts. I came to transform you into My image which had been marred by the Fall of Adam, and to share all the riches of My heavenly Kingdom with you, including life eternal.

Covetous church leaders bear the greater share of responsibility for this end-time deception, and I will hold them accountable for how they mislead My sheep. Let those who have deliberately furthered this lie repent now of this vile wickedness. Let those who did it out of ignorance humble themselves before Me NOW and seek My face, that I might take them by the hand and lead them back to the gospel which was first delivered to the saints, that work of faith and power which has its roots in My love, not in greed.

Learning to be Content

John 6:27; I Timothy 6:5-6; Philippians 4:11; Hebrews 13:5; Revelation 3:17

The Laodicean Church was so materialistic so that its members lost sight of the Master Who bought them for Himself. That same spirit of carnality now pervades My end-time Church.

My Son said, "Labor not for things which perish." He meant that nothing should dethrone Me in an individual’s heart, not even the quest for legitimate necessities. How much more grievous is it when My dear people feel pressured by their fellow believers to toil extra hours to pay for superfluous extravagances in order to keep up the appearance of "prosperity"? Those who are content with cheaper apparel or humbler household furnishings are often painted as slothful, slovenly or irresponsible.

Materialism in a Christian is often regarded as a sure sign of godly diligence and industry, rather than as a pitfall of the flesh. Indeed, so many of My people fear they show a poor testimony to the world if they don’t look "successful" enough. These misguided ones imitate the world by competing with one another to appear the most prosperous; and, by association, the most spiritual.

What burdens My people put upon one another! I expressly commanded you to be content with whatever things you possess. My resources are often wasted to replace things which are still in perfect working condition, but which a capricious, money-hungry world says are no longer "in". Driven by feelings of insecurity, many will even go into deep debt to buy more stylish cars, or fancier furniture.

Prudence and moderation were once considered signs of spiritual growth, but such virtues are out of sync with those demanding immediate gratification. The Children of Israel were once enslaved to Pharaoh. But now My children are in bondage to credit cards and life-long mortgages. They are investing in future anxiety. They are much too encumbered to freely serve Me.

What will the Ministers of Materialism say when they bring Me the fruits of their erroneous doctrine? Their status symbols, fine jewelry and electronic toys will not stand the test of fire. Neither will they endure as eternal treasures.

You are bought with a price. Do not devote your lives to the acquisition of transitory, perishable things. You are here to serve Me, not to be greedy of gain, leading others astray down the perilous paths of covetousness.

Monument$ to Ego

Isaiah 66:1; Hosea 6:6; Matthew 12:7

It is written: I would rather have mercy than sacrifice. So many of My precious saints are laboring under grievous burdens which I never laid upon them.

Men and women struggle in today’s unjust economy working at one, often two, jobs, just to meet the exorbitant cost of living and to eke out a survival. They often feel like beasts of burden chafing beneath a heavy iron yoke.

They should find rest and refreshment in My church, a refuge from the dog-eat-dog environment of the world. Very often just the opposite is the case. Much unnecessary building and other superfluous projects are undertaken by over-ambitious church leaders, who exert pressure on My people to finance whatever they fancy. Their monuments to selfish human pride must go up at any cost. Egocentric preachers build for themselves, rather than for Me!

I do not demand that an opulent palace be erected in My honor. A humbler location will suffice as a gathering place for My flock. Souls of men are My primary concern in these end times. I am far more concerned about building up the Body of Christ, My Spiritual Habitation, with living stones of saints, than working in brick and mortar.

I counsel those who would offer Me a gift to use it to show charity to the needy, to make adequate provision for their shepherds, and to invest in the salvation of souls. My appearing is near, even at the very doors. Set my people free to serve Me with their whole heart. My precious resources must not be frittered away on fancy fixtures.

Church: Green Pasture Or Pork Barrel?

Ezekiel 34:1-10; Hosea 6:6; Matthew 23:23

Yes, I behold across the land countless scenes of silver-tongued ministers badgering and cajoling overburdened church members to give, give, give. There is an insinuation that I will not give to them unless they succumb to all this pressure.

Do you not comprehend that unless I first give you , you cannot give back to Me? I am the Giver of every good and perfect gift. I want to share My abundance with you, My people. Tell Me what you truly need. Tell Me what satan has stolen from your lives. I want to restore every broken area of your being. Let Me love you. Take the time to linger in MY Holy Presence, that I might build you up in your spirit and fortify you with the riches of My Word. I would have your cup to overflow with a joy that no man can take from you.

How could you ever think I am so unloving and petty that I would change My attitude toward you if you were unable to buckle and bend to the demands of men? My mercy and love are unspeakably greater than I am given credit for in many churches.

The browbeaten congregation feel they are being fleeced and policed as inquisitive envelopes and intimidating pledge cards pop up in the offering plate. Their money-driven leaders need to know who gives regularly, and above all, how much. No matter that I commanded that giving be done in secret!

Worse yet, many subtly insinuate that My blessings are for sale. After all, "God can’t multiply zero."

Don’t tell Me what I can and can’t do! I set in motion the laws of mathematics. I created the world out of nothing but the power of My Word. I spoke, and visible things were made from that which is invisible.

I alone am the righteous Judge of hearts. I know when people are deliberately being stingy with Me, and won’t render that portion which I have shown them should be rightfully set aside for My Kingdom. I also know when pockets contain only pennies and people are backed up against the wall, struggling for daily food and shelter. Far better that these burdened saints buy a bit of sustenance without condemnation, than that some well-fed preacher lay the Law down on them and pry their last dollar out of them with threats of My retribution! The poor widow indeed gave her very last mite, but she did it because she was much richer in faith than all those rich men who proudly dumped their surplus funds into the treasury. The widow was not afraid I would punish her if she bought a bit of bread with that money instead. She gave it out of love and gratitude for all I had done to sustain her in her affliction. Her faith was such that making an offering was a joyful act of worship she wanted to participate in. She trusted that I, the Defender of orphans and widows, would be faithful to meet her own need that day. And I surely did. I did not let that dear woman starve. But many have not matured to her level of faith, and it would be cruel to force them to pretend otherwise.

Elijah prayed earnestly for rain to appear, for the ground was parched and cracked. Cattle and people were dropping dead from the severe, prolonged drought. Only a miracle could save them all from death.

There was not even one tiny cloud in the sky for Me to use as seed to multiply into more cloud mass. Elijah’s fervent prayer of faith was all it took to release My power over nature. Soon a tiny speck of a cloud appeared. It expanded into a cloud mass large enough to unleash a heavy downpour upon the thirsty land.

I created the whole universe out of what you term nothing, through the power of My Spirit-activated Word of faith, even through My dear Son Who was with Me in the very beginning. And I would emphasize it is MY faith imparted to you through My grace which produces fruit, not your own futile human efforts to "muster up" faith. False "faith" is a fruit of the flesh, not a fruit of My Spirit!

Throughout history there have been those poor in this world’s goods but rich in faith. These faithful ones lay up treasure in heaven, far beyond the reach of the enemy. In heaven there is no depreciation of the value of possessions.

But money-obsessed leaders lightly esteem the less affluent among you, and, by their example, teach others to do the same. One who is temporarily out of work or who toils at a minimum-wage job is thought to be flunking in the so-called School of Faith. No matter how dearly that saint loves Me, no matter how much of the Life of Christ is reflected through his life, hypocrites scorn him. If only that poor brother weren’t harboring some secret sin, if only he were more adept at working the "foolproof" faith formulas, he would be basking in Canaan Land and never again suffer setbacks. Didn’t my servant Job suffer similar criticism when he was tried? In the end, who received My approval; him or his critics?

David’s Desperate Need

I Samuel 21:1-6; Matthew 12: 3-7

David once ate that which was holy and reserved for the priests, the loaves of consecrated bread from off the altar. He was desperately famished. No other food was available to him. Only the priests might eat that bread. He is another Biblical patriarch who is often cited as an example of how righteous men become wealthy. But did I value him any less when he was persecuted, and fleeing from Saul in the wilderness?

Had David yielded to the counsel of his cohorts, he might have spared himself a prolonged exile in the barren wilderness by killing King Saul. But he would not sin against Me by harming a man whom I had anointed to be King of Israel. For a time he suffered great privation and discomfort, living on the verge of starvation, for food was extremely difficult to obtain in the Judean desert. Was David’s great trial ironclad evidence that he was an unrighteous man who didn’t know how to work the ABC’s of prosperity?

Tithing: The Untainted Truth

Romans 8:2; Galatians 5:1; I Corinthians 16:1-3; Hebrews 7:1-10; 8:10; I Pet. 2:9

Don’t eat the seed, they say. Even if your refrigerator is empty, pay your tithe on time. What a merciless, hard-hearted attitude! Although I have set believers free from the ordinances of Old Testament Mosaic Law, Church rulers often keep their people under subjection to the ones they like. If they insist on enforcing the ordinances of ancient Israel, why not become more expert on those old ways? This will surprise many legalists, but there were times when the tithe WAS eaten by the worshipper himself! There was more than one type of tithe proscribed by Mosaic Law. I refer you to Deuteronomy 12: 17-21; and Deuteronomy 14:22-29. This tithe spoken of in these passages was used to provide choice foods for the worshipper and his family in a joyous meal of thanksgiving, as well as to provide for the priesthood. And if anyone insists on sticking meticulously to the letter of the Old Law, Deuteronomy 14:26 encourages the worshipper to even buy beer or wine as part of that fellowship meal, if he so desires! Also, every third year, a special tithe was rendered to provide sustenance not only for the landless Levites, but also for the needy among what is now termed "the laity": widows, orphans and even hungry aliens in the land. Tithes were not originally used to construct fancy monuments to human ego!

Some will object that Jesus commanded his hearers to meticulously observe all the ordinances proscribed by the Jewish religious leaders, including the tithing of tiny garden herbs (Luke 11:42). In the same breath, He rebuked the Pharisees for neglecting the weightier issues of the Love and Mercy of God. When that scene transpired, Jesus and the Pharisees were still living in the Old Testament, and were still under the Old Law.

But ever since the Resurrection of Christ, My people have lived under a New Covenant of Grace. Self-appointed tax agents of heaven have no right to chain My redeemed ones to their version of their favorite ordinance of Jewish Law. Enforcing such an edict of legal compulsion upon My people is contrary to the Mind of Christ, Who has set His people free to walk in holy liberty. Your salvation is free, not a taxable commodity!

The epistles of Paul, Apostle to the Gentiles, never bind upon his flock the heavy yoke of tithing. He exhorted his followers to give liberally, according to how I had prospered them! I even pour upon My obedient children a Spirit of Liberality toward Me, and out of gratitude for all I have done for them they ought to respond to needs upon My heart. A little given in love by a poor saint pleases Me much more than a big "tithe" grudgingly paid by a millionaire who had the law laid down on him from the pulpit. There is the written Law, and there is the Law of the Spirit of Life in Christ Jesus, which I write upon the hearts of My New Testament saints.

The Jews were very familiar with the tithing ordinances of Israel. In the Book of Hebrews, the writer strives to reason with Jewish Christians who long to return to life under the Law of Moses. Under the old economy tithes and offerings were received by mortal human priests. Abraham, who lived before Moses,paid tithes of the booty of war to One Who lives forever.1 He did this not out of compulsion but as an act of thanksgiving for My help in giving him the victory over his foes. Christ, the only Mediator between God and men, still receives gifts which are given out of a willing heart of love and faith.

Always act according to the true degree of faith and maturity to which you have grown, and you will be rewarded for being a faithful steward. Seek ye first the things of the Kingdom of God, and I will recompense you.

You MAY resolve in your heart to render a minimum of 10% of your disposable income to My work, but you are not living under a law which would coerce that much out of you. Yet hard taskmasters will pressure you to tithe even if you are near-destitute and struggling to buy food or medicine or keep a roof over your head. Tithes were used to keep food in My own house (see Malachi 3:10). And who eats the food at their Father’s Table? My children, not just religious leaders! Do you think I want compulsory tithing for church upkeep to be a white elephant on the backs of My overtaxed and underpaid children?

Tithing on money is a lucrative, man-made tradition which overbearing ministers eagerly enforce to keep "the laity" in line, because they’re really afraid to let them walk in liberty! Actually, there is no such thing as a laity in the true Body of Christ. All My New Covenant children are called to be a Holy Priesthood and a Holy Nation. So when you say today’s paid clergy are the equivalent of Old Testament priests and make yourselves their bondservants, so as to surrender to them 10% of your salaries and wages as forced tribute, you deny your own priesthood in My Holy Nation. NOT ONCE, even back in the Old Testament, do I command as law the tithing of money, just tithes of the produce of My Land Israel. If you were a sandalmaker or tentmaker, you didn’t tithe on those things. Nevertheless, a saint with a giving heart will look after the true needs of someone in full-time ministry. If a shepherd of My flock shares with you spiritual things you ought to contribute to his support as I lead. A true man of faith will allow My Spirit to lead each saint in the matter of contributing to the work of the ministry, rather than resorting to veiled threats to exact a tithe tax from them.

A great many of today’s ministers KNOW that compulsory tithing on money is nowhere sanctioned in My Word! Yet they also know that most of their sheep are not nearly so Scripture-savvy as they are, and will being afraid to question what they are taught, wil go along with their dictates on any issue! I shall indeed hold false teachers accountable for deviating from My Word in order to keep the money rolling in.

King Saul of Israel also claimed that it was zeal for the Lord’s offering which made him deviate from My instructions "just a little". But the Prophet Samuel’s response to that was: "Does the Lord delight as much in burnt offerings and sacrifices as in obeying the voice of the Lord?"

Regardless of deeply entrenched traditions of men, I never gave anyone permission to add one single commandment to My written Word!

I have seen so many elderly saints eaten up by guilt because they paid off pressing debts or bought a decent meal with their Social Security check instead of paying a full tithe. Then, out of fear, not faith, they would struggle to repay their "debt" to Me so I wouldn’t punish them! All because some erring preacher bound their hearts with fear that they would fall under a curse if they didn’t.

A few gladly give more than 10% of their disposable income to my work, for they have prospered in this world. But some people are taught that I require them to tithe on their before-taxes income. This can give rise to the most grievous bondage of weariness instead of the Rest of Faith into which I have called My children. It can cause bitterness and resentment in those who must work an extra job just to meet their own needs after tax-paying and tithing on the first paycheck. Do you think I take pleasure in the fact these opressed churchgoers must neglect time with their own families to do this?

I am a loving Father, not a cruel taskmaster.

Sheep or Pack Mules

Ezekiel Chapter 34; Isaiah 2:3; Luke 11:46; Rev. 7:17

Many pastors look at what other religious leaders have and they grow green with envy. Palatial sanctuaries, impeccably groomed grounds with "inspirational" landscaping, vast office and Sunday School complexes, even conference centers with visitor facilities. There is such a competitive spirit controlling some of these men that they will scarcely pause long enough to count the cost of being a copycat. Only perfunctory prayers, if any, are offered before these men rush off to the bank to sell My people into bondage.

Even congregations of very modest size have been informed by their leadership that they’ve "just gone into escrow" and they’ve all just taken out a monstrous mortgage to finance a spiritual wonderland which will surely attract more visitors unto Jesus. The new burden of debt is praised as a blessing of the Lord, something to give Me thanks and glory for. But that’s just a smokescreen to prevent resentment. Any member of the congregation who objected would be made to feel like a sinful rebel after the show of "praise and worship" offered up for the decision taken to sell My people down the river. Carnal leadership can always spiritualize away any reservations about how the "laity" might feel about being saddled with a gigantic debt, to be paid for with unscriptural money tithes and offerings given out of guilt, not love.

I am against those shepherds which feed themselves and not the flock, who lade My people with burdens too heavy to bear. These men (and occasionally women) cannot feel the strain they’ve placed on others, because they themselves are supported by the labor of the flock and are spared the weariness of day-to-day toil. But I will deliver My flock out of their hand. I will lead them out of the House of Bondage. I will lead them into a higher spiritual place: the Mountain of the Lord, where they shall find streams of Living Water which have never been tainted by sin. I will give them a choice pasture to graze in and I will rid them of parasites. All these things I shall do unto them as their Good Shepherd. But the overfed wolves in sheep’s clothing will I judge for muddying the clear waters of refreshing with their dirty feet, and for making pack mules out of My sheep whom I have called unto rest.

Unmasking the "Force of Faith"

I Tim. 4:1; Jude 3

One of the worst pitfalls of this so-called Prosperity Doctrine is that I am dethroned in the minds of many immature converts. In My place has been put an imaginary "Force of Faith" to which even I am obligated to bow. Some teach that so long as your "faith" is strong enough, and you chant "positive confessions" long enough, that alone will move My hand to do what you want, regardless of how I might view the situation. This is a doctrine of demons satan designed to sway the hearts of My people to a mass delusion. Satan’s aim is to blind My people to what should be their central focus: Christ and Him crucified being their all-sufficiency.

Do not be deceived, My people. Some think that the apostate church will emerge exclusively from the ranks of big religious organizations of men, and suppose that so long as you stick with small informal congregations of evangelical believers, you can’t possibly go wrong. But satan has infiltrated both huge cathedrals and small storefront churches with this positive-thinking Prosperity lie.

Set My People Free!

Exodus 10:26

Indeed it was Pharoah, the cruel taskmaster King of Egypt, who first tried to set limits on how far I could go in setting My people free. But Moses said: "Not one hoof of any animal shall be left behind." The Israelites would not just barely escape Egypt with the clothes on their backs, but everything they owned would also be liberated! That included their cattle, their flocks, their silver, their gold, and the labor of their hands. Never again would the Israelite nation toil to make bricks for Pharaoh’s monuments.

My Word must never be compromised by any religion peddler. If the Son of God sets you free, that includes your paycheck as well. Not one hoof shall remain in bondage.

The Glorious Freedom of Faith

Nehemiah 10:39; Isaiah 55:1

Yea, saith the Lord, proclaim liberty to all who have been held captive by legalists. Spread the glad tidings far and wide, and set My children free. You are not legally bound to tithe at all!

In ancient Israel, tithes were levied on the yield of the land, and consisted of agricultural produce! Every tribe of Israel, except the Tribe of Levi, possessed a portion of the Promised Land, to be farmed and bequeathed to their descendants in perpetuity. Tithes were never meant to be garnished by the priests from the paltry pay packets of landless laborers! The vast majority of today’s Christians do not own farmland. More than a few of the earth’s Christians earn a subsistence wage, just barely squeezing by. It enrages Me to see the lavish lifestyles of today’s self-ordained "priests" financed by so-called tithes grudgingly given out of fear, not faith. This fear charlatans have instilled even in the hearts of babes in Christ, and I will not hold them innocent for perverting My Word.

People are taught to treat Me as a celestial vending machine which requires the insertion of money before I loosen up and dispense any kind of blessing. Pay "the Lord" first, and the big jackpot will shower out of the slot machine, so much you won’t have room to receive it. I am provoked to anger by this crass corruption! I am grieved at the disgruntlement of My wounded sheep, who, impoverished both financially and spiritually, wander away to seek some promising new panacea for their ills.

The Sincere Milk of My Word which enables believers to grow in grace is to be freely imparted to all those who will receive it in humility. Any true minister of Christ will serve others, not himself. It is written: Let everyone who is thirsty come to the Waters, and HE WHO HAS NO MONEY, come ye buy and eat. Yea, come buy wine and milk WITHOUT MONEY AND WITHOUT PRICE.

Rejoice in Me, My people. Cast off your shackles and dwell in the glorious liberty which is your birthright in Christ Jesus.

I Provide For You Out of LOVE!

Matthew 6:25-26; Acts 14:17; Romans 8:32; I Timothy 6:17 (faithwriters)

Consider the Children of Israel who wandered in the desert in the days of Moses. Did they pay tithes? No. They had not yet inherited the Land of Promise, and could not yet tithe on its fruits. Did they pay tithes on the daily food which I regularly provided for them? No. The priestly tribe of Levi had to get up in the morning along with everybody else and go collect their own.

I loved the Children of Israel just as much before the giving of the Law as I did when they were settled in the Land and tithing on its produce.

Birds and wild animals never pay one cent of tithe money, yet I never fail to provide for them.

Some of My dearest children are undergoing times of severe testing in their own personal wilderness.They must lean on Me daily for the provision of all their daily needs. They trust in the God Who not only provided manna for the Israelites in the wilderness, but clothes the lilies and feeds the birds.

Don’t ever let any shameless preacher shame you out of what I give you to survive on.

Giving in Adversity

II Corinthians 8:1-6; Philippians 4:14-19

Some will stress that it is scriptural to give out of poverty, as well as prosperity. That is true, but only if you do it because you’re rich in faith, not because you fear I’ll punish you for not doing so. A person who knows he is rich in faith depends upon Me to meet his need, not the pittance he possesses. If I, not some fly-by night charlatan, tell you to make a gift to a certain ministry, you will gladly do it if your heart is full of faith and you know you possess great riches in My Kingdom.

Even Scripture can be quoted with the wrong motive. Satan himself did that. Desperate preachers, sensing their disgruntled listeners are no better off financially and were getting wise to their game, have reminded them that the Macedonian Christians gave even out of their deep poverty. These dear ones shared with Me out of their very limited means, although so many of them were near-destitute at the time Paul collected their donation.

Paul was not in the habit of dunning poor people for money. Tears sprang to his eyes as he considered how sacrificially these dear saints gave. They absolutely insisted he take the money, wretchedly poor though they were. They wanted to share in the ministry of liberal giving, and would listen to none of his mild objections.

Those Macedonian saints were knit together in love with their brethren who were enduring a great famine in Judea. They, who knew privation, wanted to do what they could to send relief to people they had never even met. Thus they willingly gave out of their need, expecting Me to meet their own need.

It never occurred to Paul to buy a Cadillac with that money.

YOU Are a Holy Nation

Ezekiel 18: 34: 1-22; I Peter 5:2-4

Many money-mad ministers use this line as a crowbar to pry an easy living out of so-called "lay members": "WE, who minister from the pulpit, represent the Levites (priestly tribe) of the Church Era." In the Old Testament, there were twelve tribes of Israel who were My Chosen People on earth; and out of the whole nation, only the Tribe of Levi might approach My Presence in the Tabernacle to render service unto Me. My original intention had been that the whole nation would be holy unto me, and free to draw near unto Me, as New Testament Christians are privileged to do.

But the Israelites grumbled against Me in the Wilderness. Moses was delayed in returning from his meeting with Me on from Mount Sinai, and they grew impatient. They forgot My former kindnesses toward them, and judged Me as unfaithful and powerless. They had a golden calf made for them, and they began to throw a wild orgy around it, worshipping it and committing all sorts of lewd acts. Only the desperate intercessions of Moses persuaded Me to not to wipe out the entire nation of Israel. Only members of the Tribe of Levi made a stand against the rebellion of the malcontents. Upon that tribe only did I confer the honor of ministering as priests before Me.

But in this dispensation, all who are redeemed and sanctified by the Blood of Christ are holy unto Me. My Spirit has taken up residence in their hearts by faith. I have said: YE are the Temple of the Living God! So why should you be coerced into bringing tribute to a brick building presided over by unconscionable opportunists who take advantage of your ignorance and set themselves up as taskmasters over you? If professional preachers had an inalienable right to take tithes to support their ministries, you would also.

I would have you to remember that you are called in My Word a Kingdom of priests and a holy nation. Not just a favored few, but every believer who is consecrated and set aside for My service. I desire that there be no want in My Body, but that everyone have tender care one for another. If the humblest member of your body is hurting, you will give it the very best of care, for you share its hurt.

"I feel your pain" is a popular catch-slogan today. But are self-appointed lords over the Body of Christ truly sensitive to the hurt and frustration of its more obscure members? I am sickened by the sight of heartless ministers taking their offering bags to the back room and cackling over the big haul they’ve taken in for themselves,when they are well aware that so many of My sheep are jobless or hungry. They feed themselves, and not My flock.

Unless they repent, I shall have to feed those fat cats with judgment.

$kimming Off the Fat

Exodus 29:37; Leviticus 3:16; I Samuel 2:12-17, and 27-36; James 5:5

The offering of the Lord is a most holy thing, for it is sanctified by the Altar of the Lord. Yet religious thieves have profaned it in the sight of both believers and unbelievers, and made it a reproach among the heathen.

The two sons of Eli the priest demanded the choicest part of the sacrifices. They forcibly seized the fat from the offerings of the people, although I had reserved that part of the animal strictly for Myself, along with other choice portions coveted by Eli’s sons. They just brazenly snapped up whatever they wanted, right out of the worshippers’ cooking pots. They bullied the worshippers and ignored My specific instructions on what they as priests were entitled to, and even on how it was to be prepared. Because of their contempt for Me and My offering, those two men fell under a terrible curse, and removed themselves and their descendants from My protection.

Today I see greedy preachers dipping their hands into the offering baskets and running off to do whatever they please with the money, without first consulting Me.

They are only fattening themselves up for their Day of Judgment.

A Busine$$ Proposition

Acts 8: 18-24

The blessings of My Kingdom are not to be had in exchange for filthy lucre, although many gold-diggers set themselves up as My sales representatives, and try to corner the market.

Simon the Sorcerer had just been converted and baptized, but he had not yet made a complete break with his old ways of thinking. Simon still considered himself a magician, and wanted to be able to impress people by working showy miracles. He asked the Apostle Peter to sell him the power of the Holy Ghost. Peter replied: "May your money perish with you, because you thought that the Gift of God could be bought with money."

Only Simon’s immediate repentance saved him from death. If I was furious with a new convert who tried to purchase My favors, then how much more am I indignant against those who have known the Way to Life for years, and yet have made a fortune by pretending to sell My favors to gullible souls!

The Huck$ter

II Corinthians 11:13-15; II Timothy 4:3-4; II Peter 2:1-3

Many spurious teachings are generated when a simple principle of My Word is adapted to cater to the tastes of this self-obsessed generation. A few words of Scripture can be isolated from their true context, then twisted and contorted until varying degrees of error crop up among many ministries or groups. Some itinerant ministries are markedly similar to secular success seminars, and My Holy Name is used to endorse them. But it is sheer blasphemy to make Christ the mascot of materialism.

Bogus ministries usually center around a colorful, scintillating character sporting beguiling mannerisms and ostentatiously expensive apparel. I have yet to see a single one staging his show without gold rings on his fingers or glittery props in the background. In fact, the more bombastic his presentation, the more credence his viewers seem to put in him. There might even be an electronic bug in his ear which imparts "divine" knowledge about a particular person’s ailment, so he can thrill the crowd that much more.

This dynamic character deludes his devotees into thinking that the life of faith is as simple as 1-2-3. No mention is ever made of denying one’s self, or the daily cross-bearing of discipleship. It’s "Whatever I want from God, I must get...NOW!" This deceiver proudly points to his own "success", and brags that he no longer works for money ,but makes money work for him instead. He boasts of HIS fleet of luxury cars, HIS mansion, HIS private jet, HIS freedom to travel, HIS liberation from the rat race. All you need do, he says, is sow a "sacrificial seed" (to HIS ministry, of course!). And it doesn’t hurt to intone the "key confessions of the kingdom". Supposedly, that’s how HE got HIS Rolls Royce. If you keep it up long enough, he insinuates, the devil will tuck tail and run. And I will get so tired of your pestering that I must relent and give you whatever you want just to get you off My back_regardless of just what it is, or just why you want it. And furthermore, he implies, if your "faith" were strong enough, you would always get immediate answers.

A favorite quotation he uses is Hebrews 11:1: Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. WHATEVER YOU DESIRE, one bamboozler proclaimed, is conceived within your spirit before it is born into the visible realm. One goofy con man made quite a show of it. He used the "parroting technique" to get the the gullible audience to repeat phrases after him, and copy his ridiculous motions. Gripping his stomach in mock pain, he grimaced and groaned: "I’m travailing in birth with MONEY!" The audience, following like dumb sheep, grabbed their own stomachs and "travailed in the spiritual realm" along with him, hoping that they, through their positive confession, really would give birth to money. These misled saints were so desperate to get the same blessing as the preacher, they gladly mimicked everything he did and said, unquestioningly. How ridiculous it looked to angelic witnesses! They certainly didn’t laugh at this foolish farce, though the devil did!

My original apostles never resorted to such buffoonery! If they could look down from heaven and see the travesties which are taking place today in the Holy Name of Jesus, they would be outraged to witness those carnal clowns going through their paces! My heavenly saints would wonder why, after 2000 years of the Church Age, so many people are still missing the true meaning and mission of My Kingdom!

According to these Scripture-twisters, you can ALWAYS have whatsoever you say! It’s a good thing it doesn’t work that way for people whose "faith" is of the fallen nature, rather than of the spirit. Countless times I’ve heard immature backsliders pray prayers such as these: "O Lord, please don’t let him be reconciled with his wife. That man is my true soul mate, and You KNOW those two married outside Your will. You said I could have whatever I claimed. I claim HIM, in Jesus’ Name!" Or: "Your Word says I can have whatever I say, Lord. Please give me a revelation of next Saturday’s winning Lotto numbers, so I can glorify You by living like a son of the Great King."

How could such carnal, unholy requests possibly be birthed within that pure spirit-room I have reserved for Myself? Is adultery the substance of faith? Is carnal luxury the substance of faith? Even the most casual student of My Word would realize that there are certain things I can never endorse. It is possible to ask amiss, according to James 4:3, and not to receive your request because you are motivated by the lusts of the flesh. But today’s spin-doctored sermons don’t like to "dwell on the negative".

I see many misled saints wandering around in a bewildered haze, wondering why it didn’t work, why THEY don’t drive a luxury car or dwell in a mansion. They’ve mumbled "positive confessions" thousands of times, but they never did win the lottery, and they still have to work for their living and pay rent.

My apostles were not sent to put on a thrilling show to squeeze money out of people, or conduct success seminars for the upwardly mobile. They were called to bear My Cross. They were sent to further My own ministry of liberating souls from the kingdom of darkness. Christians are commissioned to carry the Light of the true Gospel of Salvation to the furthest corners of the globe, and to proclaim that I am Victor over that old serpent the devil, who has bound the souls of men with the keys of hell and death. I want people to know I died to give them eternal life, that I love them as individuals, that I care when they are oppressed in any area of their lives,and that I want to deliver them from bondages of every sort. I want to loose satan’s grip on their health and circumstances, and set them free from the spirit of poverty, as well as the spirit of covetousness which plagues many individuals and churches. These insidious attacks of the devil rob people of the joy of My abundant Life. To know Me is to have Life eternal.

Faith vs. Foolishness

Faith is the bridge you must cross to reach Me, not a cliff to leap from. And it is I Who carry you across it, even as I uphold that bridge to keep you from falling.

Carnival Con Artist$

Deuteronomy 16:17; Ezekiel 34:1-22 ; Micah 4:11; II Corinthians 9:6-8; Philippians 4:19

I say to all mercenary charlatans masquerading as ministers of light, I detest your marketing gimmicks. To fatten your already bulging bank accounts, you turn Me into just another marketable commodity. You perceive Me as the ultimate slot machine, and thus you misrepresent Me to your vast television audience.

"You can’t outgive God" is your favorite motto. You serpents! How cunning you are, the way you twist a bit of Scripture and lace it with lies until it becomes a very lucrative heresy to enrich you. "Put God to the test," you say. "Go fetch that money set aside to pay the rent."

I did promise to bless My people whenever they followed My directives in giving liberally, but the exact amount will vary from person to person, according as he is truly able. I did exhort My people to prove My promise to bless them for their obedience in this area, but I also specifically commanded them never to put the Lord their God to foolish tests. Yet you greedy ones tempt My sheep to jump off the cliff, just like satan tempted Jesus in the wilderness. Gullible souls are told to give "the Lord" the rent money, because "there’s bound to be be a divine safety net to avert a disaster on rent-paying day." Some of you even promise that special angels will move into the donor’s house to keep the blessings rolling in. Thus you counsel your listeners to overreach the boundaries of their immature faith, and act presumptuously, so as to force My Hand. But I am not a circus animal Who must jump through a hoop at your slightest whim. I am tired of the way slick hucksters weave a snare out of portions of My Word they can bend and twist. I will not be roped and tied by religious cowboys who wish they could corral Me into doing their will to entertain the crowd.

"Send it in as a special, ‘one-time’ offering to this ministry, and trust God to meet you at the point of your need, just before the landlord brings the sheriff to the door to serve an eviction notice on you," you imply. God might be late by your standards, but He’s always on time. So step right up and lay your money down. Don’t worry, God has bound Himself in His Word to multiply it back to you a hundred-fold! One hundred dollars will yield ten thousand. You can’t get better odds in Las Vegas! Plant a seed out of your need, is your jaunty jingle.

I am weary of your clever catch-slogans. I hate your phoniness, your studied gestures and mannerisms, your gaudy carnival act cloaked in cunning craft. I detest your subtle, manipulative techniques which border on sorcery. I loathe your slick, multicolored mail-outs with warnings not to "miss Jesus as He passes by" (your mailbox?). I even hate the way you modulate your voice when you make a syrupy appeal on TV for a special "Prove God" offering. Rather, I say, it is a "Tempt God" offering, the way you workers of deceit court my displeasure.

My, how slick your routine has grown with practice. Even the melodramatic groans of the canned organ music rise and fall in sync with the convulsive contortions of your phony face as you shed crocodile tears and extend your hand in supplication for ever more money, playing people’s emotions like a fiddle. And your usual closing line is: "God bless you. We love you."

For the moment, the lonely shut-in gets a nice cushy feeling. Why, you have him or her eating out of your hand. How could that dear saint deny money to someone who says "I love you?" So she hurries to get pen and paper to write down all her prayer requests. With a boldness gained from being psyched up by your spiel, she writes out a much larger check than is wise, and sends it to someone who is only using My Holy Name to further his own tawdry kingdom.

The dear lady thinks: Oh, glory! That sweet brother said he’d PERSONALLY touch God for my needs. I can’t wait to hear from him!

But little does she consider that you hear from thousands of poor souls just like her, and you couldn’t possibly read, much less bother yourself with, her personal trials. And just what do you mean by "love"? What good would your ministry be to someone made homeless by following your counsel and doing something presumptuous which I never commanded him to do? After all the hundreds or thousands of dollars which he sent in to your religious racket, would you send him so much as a dime to keep him fed and off the street? And why wouldn’t you help that person, if you truly believe giving makes a person richer? Aren’t you motivated by money? Why, then, don’t you practice what you preach?

Get your cheap trash out of My sight! You’ve got no right to stamp My Holy Name on those Miracle Key Chains and other cheap trinkets mass-produced by impoverished laborers in third-world nations! Neither do I endorse your assortment of Faith $eed Packets mailed out to vulnerable, hurting souls! Your slick junk mail implies that if the recipient’s "seed packet" is not postmarked for tomorrow’s mail, there will be no answer to prayer, because God’s Special Season of Miracles has an expiration date, and will soon pass you by like a fleeting wind! As if the flow of My mercy were regulated by the flow of the Almighty Dollar, or the schedule of the U.S. Postal Service!

"Claim a Cadillac," you say. "But first plant the seed, and what better seedbed than this ministry? Don’t stop paying on your $2000 vow, or you’ll stop God from blessing you. How dare you undercut the magnitude of My fathomless love! How dare you insult My mercy! How do you greedy snakes expect to escape the damnation of hell!!!

Judgment must begin in My House. I behold you fat preachers gorging yourselves on delicacies while you fail to feed the flock what they need, and preach only mild messages which won’t rouse them from their torpor. "Go away, I don’t have time for your troubles," is your attitude. Yes, all you see out there is a shapeless gray mass of common peons who render their tribute to you as one of the ruling elite. You always travel in style. Your clothes are the finest money can buy. Your home is a virtual palace filled with the latest in electronic gadgetry. Some of you possess several homes. You take frequent vacations to to exciting destinations, and always go first-class. And all because some lonely, frightened, desperate soul "sowed a seed out of his need."

Yes, the laborer is worthy of his wages, and those who faithfully serve Me in full-time ministry must be honored and well provided for by the rest of My Body. From the beginning I ordained it to be so. But I also said to my disciples who were to take My spiritual blessings to the four corners of the earth: Freely ye have received, freely GIVE!

All you fraudsters ever give Me is grief!

Turning on the Tears

Certain preachers have played people’s sympathies like a fiddle to get them to open their hearts and wallets, not to Jesus, but to themselves. They turn on the tears like a water spigot. The Scripture speaks of phony religious people as clouds without rain. Their timely tears flow copiously. Ironically, all those stage performers do is promise their hearers the Water of Life and give them a good soaking instead.

One man insisted he wasn’t a con, but managed to butter up his audience enough to collect an extra offering from them, by saying his mother had just died. There were very few objections when the big buckets went around again, after being heaped high the first time. My, how that "evangelist" was comforted after his purported tragedy. A starving fox in a henhouse has more integrity than a money-hungry fox in a pulpit pretending to be an innocent lamb.

The lowest of the lot make appeals for starving children who never see a penny of the donations. What a despicable thing to do in My Name! Be very discerning about what ministry of mercy you support. As I enable you, give generously to genuine Christian relief organizations and I will bless you for it.But always act on the basis of My leading, and don’t ever be manipulated by theatrics.

Beware of those who cry and plead for money because "the devil is attacking their ministry" and they are in danger of folding. My Son’s financial resources were limited, but His life was exceedingly fruitful. If those people truly had an anointing of faith, they would rest in the certainty of My daily provision.

Charlatans will cry very real tears when they stand before Me in the Judgment. If any of them think they will escape divine justice by resorting to phony tears, then they’re in for a big shock.

Satan's Infernal Revenue Service

Isaiah 56:11; Prov.22:16; Hosea 4:6; I Tim.6:5,10

My heart is grieved by the mass exodus from the church of people who truly love me and can take no more pressure to give until it hurts. Many are so blinded by their tears of frustration that they not only desert the institutional church but keep their distance from anything which even remotely resembles true commitment to Christ. In their bewildered minds they cannot discern the difference. Why? These former followers of Mine were brainwashed and hoodwinked into casting their bread upon the waters so they could wait many, many days for their shipload of fruit to come in for seed sown.

Well, I cannot put My seal of approval upon error, even when that error is obeyed out of ignorance. My people are destroyed through lack of knowledge of the truth. He who gives to greedy dogs who can never have enough shall sink into the despair of deeper darkness and poverty. So many of My people found that their ship sank long before it reached the happy shore of fulfilment of their desires. But deception is like an intoxicating drug. You swear that you have had your very last fix and will take no more, but so many lack the courage to break free of error. It is a binding spirit of deception which holds My people in grievous bondage. Multitudes of disappointed Prosperity devotees are told to wait for the next wave to come in, then the next and the next. Perhaps next month, maybe next year, Scripture-twisters say, I will pour out blessings from heaven too numerous to count, if only those poor souls will keep on tithing out of their poverty and cheerfully do without the things they and their children need daily.

Those who cannot be persuaded to continue giving to satan's infernal revenue agents without visible reward are bound to their masters through other means. Threats issue from the pulpit that I will punish those who refuse to surrender to their teachers a tenth of their earned income or other monetary assets. Marinated in error, saints are brainwashed into associating Me, their loving Heavenly Father, with Pharaoh, who would not relent on the daily quota of bricks his overworked slaves must deliver. Only eternity will tell the heartbreak, emotional trauma and family feuds which are directly attributable to being taught a flawed, demonic concept of my nature and My relationship to My beloved Bride, the Church. Such crafty peddlers of lies who oppress my people skate on a very thin line which borders on blasphemy against the Holy Spirit because their slanderous sermons on giving cast a shadow on my character and rob Me of reputation as a God of perfect love.

Guilt-ridden saints fear to approach My Presence anymore, because they are taught that you must never appear before God empty. Yet those same unscrupulous prosperity teachers who teach you to come before Me with both hands full sometimes teach that you can only receive from Me if you hold out empty hands to receive! Why the inconsistency? To deny My all-sufficiency in presenting you guiltless before God the Father is to blaspheme against the precious offering of My Blood upon the heavenly Altar and to call it an inadequate offering on your behalf.

Just as sharks can smell blood a mile away, so those greedy infernal revenue agents can smell money from afar. So they hold infernal revenue services geared toward buttering up the congregants and getting them to open wide their purse strings, much more than their hearts, supposedly to Jesus.

These sleazy snakes are not My representatives anymore than Judas was my representative after he betrayed Me. And in My sight, they are every bit as bad because they have sold out My reputation in the sight of men for a bag of filthy lucre.

Those who know the real truth but hide it beneath a bushel basket in order to profiteer from the childlike innocence of babes in Christ, such shall suffer the greater damnation in the Day of Judgment, saith the Lord unto His Beloved Bride the Church. So do not cater to their lusts, and do not bow down before them as Baal lords. For most assuredly I have not sent these infernal revenue agents to bleed you dry. Satan has.

The Party’s OVER!

Acts 5:1-11; II Peter 2:1-3

I say to that disgraced "evangelist" who feeds his insatiable appetite for luxury by devouring vows: I, in My mercy, permitted you to experience this lull in your so-called ministry to give you an opportunity to reflect on your evil ways and turn to Me in deep repentance. This, Brother Fleshpot, you have stubbornly refused to do, supposing you’ve still got many years to "live it up like a King’s kid".

Instead of humbling your heart in repentance, you wallowed in self-pity, wondering how you would "ride out the storm" of government "persecution" and maintain yourself and your cronies in the lifestyle to which you have become accustomed, as your offerings nosedived!

Little did you trouble yourself over the deep hurt you inflicted on the Body of Christ. The memory of Joe Six-pack out there in TV Land is short, you reasoned in your evil heart. He won’t hold a grudge for long, and he’ll come around. He’ll open his heart (and his wallet) to this "ministry" again, you hoped.

My, how you’ve hurt My too-trusting sheep. Broken hearts and bitterness are the fruit of your life. Many hardened, cynical hearts have turned from Me forever because of you; for you, Brother Fleshpot, claimed to represent the innocent Lord Jesus. You have made My Holy Name to stink from coast to coast, and your judgment shall be very fearful. Better would it have been for you if you’d never come to salvation than to have degenerated into such a cunning enemy of the Cross of Christ Jesus. I count it a crass insult whenever you claim to represent Me!

Now you’ve got the gall to say you’re getting ready to ride the new wave coming in. There’s a whole new generation of babes in Christ out there you can con with your sales pitches. Easy pickin’s, as you term it. Gullible suckers to replenish your depleted coffers. Virgin territory, you say, still unexploited and unburnt.

Don’t bet on it, Brother Fleshpot. Remember Ananias and Sapphira, and the swiftness with which I punished them for just one act of deception? It wasn’t Peter who killed those two. It was by the word of My mouth that they fell dead at the apostle’s feet. In fact, Peter was just as terrified as anyone else who either witnessed that awful event or heard of it.

After Pentecost, Peter was possessed of a holy boldness, but he also had a human tenderness about his nature. After all, he himself had denied his Lord, and he could feel for weak saints who made errors of judgment. Had it been left up to his own human inclinations, he would have failed to see the extreme gravity of the offense and dealt with the couple much more leniently. But he received a divine revelation about the exact nature of their sin, and its awful seriousness. Peter had no option but to pronounce the words of judgment imparted to him by My Spirit.Those who reflected on the suddenness and severity of the fate of Ananias and Sapphira were very afraid to play perverse games with a Holy God.

Now I am raising up not just one voice, but many prophets to warn you and those like you to repent. It is no mere human crying out in indignation, but the Spirit of God in My chosen vessel.

The party is over, Brother Fleshpot!

Pre$$ure Tactics

I Kings chapter 17; John 5:1-9; II Corinthians 8:11-15

There was once a famine in Israel. It took My miracle-working power to provide food for My servant Elijah. Wild blackbirds delivered food to him, as he lingered beside a brook, drinking of its waters. Eventually it dried up because of the relentless drought. At that point, I directed Elijah to go to a Syrian village, and ask a poor widow to sustain him with what little food she had.

At first she hesitated, for she had only a tiny drop of olive oil and a handful of meal left in a jar. She and her son would eat that food for their last meal, and then slowly starve to death. But My servant Elijah had good news for her: If only she would share what she had with him, she and her boy would have plenty to eat, enough to keep them alive till the famine was over. She fed him first, trusting in Me to perform My Word and keep them all alive. To her delight, she was able to bake cake after cake, until the three of them had had enough. And there was food left over for future meals.

During the famine, the prophet dwelt in a guest room of the woman’s house. He watched over her house for good. He raised her son from death when he succumbed to an illness. Elijah had a very real concern for this woman’s welfare. There was mutual support in seeing one another through that awful famine. That’s the kind of empathy I meant for the members of My Body on earth to have one with another, an attitude where the life of each member is deemed to be very precious.

But this Biblical incident has been twisted by "faith" preachers. The poorest TV viewers are pressured to sacrifice all, and to do it immediately, or else "they’ll miss the stirring of the waters", and someone else will get the blessing instead. This ruse is used by unscrupulous preachers who recall the story of the pool called "Bethesda", a place whose name means "House of Mercy". An angel would descend from heaven at widely spaced intervals and impart temporary healing properties to its water. Whoever dipped into that water first was healed of whatever disease he had.

But My Son brought a fuller revelation of My merciful grace and lovingkindness to a nation which had, up to that time, known only a partial revelation. He came to fulfill My Word, and to reveal the fullness of My glory. Moreover, He came to lift up those deemed to be the underdogs of society, and to confound the wisdom of the proud. He declared that those who had always come first would be last, and those willing to take the lowest places would be the exalted ones in His Kingdom. He took pity on one poor man who had always been unable to dip into the pool first. That man, who had been paralytic for 38 long years, received healing from far better waters; even through the Water of Life, imparted by My Holy Son Who is One with Me, the Fountain of Living Waters. For the man who had encountered Yahweh-Rapha, the Healing God of Israel, there was glorious rest. No longer would he live daily in unrestful vigilance and anxiety, competing with others to get My blessing first. The con artist ministers unrest to those whom I have called to enter into My Rest of Faith! And unrest gives rise to foolish decisions based on fear, not faith!

The viewer impulsively gives out of her poverty, afraid to pray an extra day to make certain that I, not some fly-by-night operator, direct her giving. And her gift goes, not to provide food for a prophet, but profits for a fool.

An Unspeakable Cruelty

Ezek. 34:4

This is the cruelest, most despicable, extortion of all, used by an evangelist whose beginning with Me had been sincere: "If you have made a pledge to this ministry and later decide not to send it in, you’re in BIG trouble! That amounts to the greatest sin of all, lying to the Holy Ghost! And don’t go around acting like you’ve already sent the money in. You could be dead within days if you don’t keep faith with God and honor your promise!"

It wouldn’t have fazed this evangelist one bit if his dire predictions had come true, and those who welshed on their "faith pacts" dropped dead. In his opinion, I wouldn’t have even spared a "faith partner" who fell on hard times and had nothing to send in. I have had to restore many a shattered soul who lost My peace, worrying that the devil would bump him off for not paying the preacher.

What psychological trauma has come to souls who have been told they’ve sinned against the Holy Ghost, just because they were unable to fulfill a pledge made to a TV preacher who preyed on people’s emotions!

Where was this evangelist when some of his supporters paid their protection money and STILL endured hard trials during the New Year?

Religiou$ Blackmail

II Corinthians 11:13-15; I Peter 5:7-9; II Peter 2:15-16

Blackmailing My saints, no matter how tactfully it is done, even if it is perfumed by calling it something else, is an abomination in My sight. I will never hold any preacher guiltless who sends out intimidating mail in My Name to extort money from My sheep! Deliberately putting people into spiritual bondage in order to control them is witchcraft of the basest sort!

Sometimes it’s very evident that con artists aren’t getting their orders from Me. A certain man continues to receive strange mail from all sorts of religious quacks, many years after his death from cancer. He was put on a master mailing list which can be purchased by any "non-profit" organization. One false prophet had some dismal news for him: "The Lord has revealed that in the coming year, satan is going to launch an attack on you as never before. Please fill out this prayer request form, and tell God what you need from Him.

Always remember, faith without works is dead. Act out your faith by enclosing a one-time "Defeat the Devil Donation". In this way, you’ll release heavenly angels to put to flight the powers of hell that are hindering God’s blessing on your finances. Be sure to use the specially marked envelope we’ve enclosed, so your prayer petitions will be RUSHED to us! Then we’ll storm the gates of heaven for you, so that God will protect you from all your enemies and prosper you."

How ridiculous! What more could satan do to a poor man whom he slowly killed with cancer? And if the sufferer was converted before his death and now dwells in Paradise, how can he mail a donation to anyone? What need has he of their bogus intercessions anyway, when all is well with him now?

Priming the Pump for Prosperity

A certain televangelist gazed out over his harvest field and saw ripples of ripened money leaves, from sea to shining sea. But reports were coming in that people were not so naive as they had been at the beginning of the big religious Gold Rush which had begun in the 1970’s. A whole generation of being bilked and bamboozled had bolstered people’s resistance to the reaper on their TV set. Jaded by a generation of hyped-up prosperity promises, their wits were just a bit sharper. Those stubborn money vines would not willingly be stripped of their foliage.

So the overbearing lord of the green harvest bellowed, gyrated in the pulpit, and shook his finger in the faces of his Prey TV vineyard. He threatened them with fire and brimstone unless they rendered their tribute unto the man upstairs (namely, himself). God would plunge them into poverty, he decreed. He would take his tithes out of their hide in hospital bills and medicine if stubborn saints refused to keep his ministry afloat. Unless they treated Jesus’ representative with due veneration and met the need of the hour, they were no disciples of His!

The weakest, most vulnerable sheep were easily picked off by this wolf in sheep’s clothing. Little old ladies joined their cats for dinner, only this time they all dined on Plain Wrap Cat Food instead of Tender Vittles. A teenager or two sacrificed a trip to the dentist to help fund a trip to the Holy Land for the king of Prey TV. People rendered unto him their rent money and ended up with no place to lay their heads.

But still the barns of the lord of the money harvest were only half-full. "Go find more knaves and fools to render their tribute unto me!" cried the king of Prey TV. It was then the king’s treasurer came unto him, saying: "Reverend Brother, might I be so bold as to suggest a softer approach, lest the fish be driven away from thy nets?"

"Speak on," said the king. "I’ve mortgaged this ministry up to the eyeballs, and a drowning ministry will seize at any rope."

"Venture beyond the still waters, my lord, Launch out into the deep. Bait the hook and prime the pump. Make your money vines feel good about themselves, and the fish will fight one another to enter thy nets with rejoicing. And as for those stubborn money vines, they will gladly yield up their juicy green leaves."

"You speak wisely," said the king. "I appoint thee, O wise treasurer, to enact my royal decree: Let a special commemorative coin be minted in honor of every subject who renders tribute of $2,000 or more to my ministry. Fill those fools with with the sweet wine of flattery. Give just a little that we might gain a lot."

So it came to pass that the king’s craftsmen designed bait to bewitch the multitudes. Carefully crafted words were spoken from the studio of the fearsome king: "Give and ye shall receive. This ministry has gone into hock for the sake of the kingdom of God. Be partners with us in paying it off the massive debt we ran up to purchase the latest technology for our ministry . Show your faith by stepping out upon the waters. If you don’t have the money, borrow the money. Sell what ye have and give generously. We need a Silver Seed Miracle to bail us out of deep waters. Unto you who sow $2,000 or more into this ministry to pay off this debt shall be given a specially minted commemorative coin which bears testimony to you as a man or woman of faith. This precious heirloom is crafted from a whole ounce of sterling silver. Your name shall be inscribed upon it unto all eternity. What greater legacy could you possibly leave unto your descendants, even unto the thousandth generation, than this precious heirloom of YOUR faithfulness as a child of God? " The king held up the coin, which sparkled beneath the starry TV lights. The camera focused on a scene of the harvest field being reaped. It was inscribed with "Silver Seed Miracle". The king turned it over. "And thus shall thy name be written on the edging of the reverse side, whereupon ye shall see a star-spangled crown of glory suspended above a cross. So give in faith, that ye may receive everlasting treasure."

And so it was that slaves in a far-off factory churned out the king’s miracle coins by the tens of thousands, earning a paltry sum of fifty cents per hour so they could go home to their huts and rice bowls. It was just a job to them.

One elderly lady put off paying her mortgage so she could be counted among the faithful. When the bank threatened to foreclose, she regretted her "faith" offering, given on a tidal wave of religious sentiment instead of true faith. She begged the bank for extra time. She was given just one more day to meet her obligation. She made haste and went to her pawnbroker’s. He laughed when he saw the coin and heard her explanation of how she got it. Tearfully she begged for at least $1,000 of the $2,000 back.

"So you got suckered in?" he asked her. "Why, this coin isn’t even worth $50! Silver’s only worth $25 an ounce, and that’s stretching it! But I’ll give you ten, just because I’m a nice guy, and I feel sorry for you. I doubt anyone would buy it off me, but it sure would look nice on a charm necklace. I’d do the same for my own mother if she was in your shoes."

"And so it came to pass that the lord of the money vineyard purchased his first-class ticket to Hawaii...and his one-way ticket to hell.

Creed of the Greedy Preacher

The loot is my shepherd, I shall not work.
It maketh me to lie in green pastures.
It leadeth me beside the spa waters.
It restoreth my bank balance.
It leadeth me in the paths of covetousness for my fame’s sake.
Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of debt
I will fear no evil, for thou, O "faith partner", art with me.
My Rolexes and my fundraising staff, they comfort me.
Thou preparest a table before me at a ritzy restaurant away from the presence of poor people.
Thou anointest my head with sun screen; my champagne cup runneth over.
Surely goodies and Mercedes shall follow me all the days of my life,
and I shall dwell in my houses galore forever.

Spread It Out Before the Lord

Numbers 23:8, 19-21; II Kings 19:14

I tell you, some false ministers get hopping mad when their accountants warn them that their income is slipping, and their "ministry" might go under if revenues are not increased. They actually get to the point where they hate their followers for not being more generous! Their monthly correspondence begins to reflect that ill will, so they tell their "faith partners" in no uncertain terms that the devil is out to get them, and will, if their instructions (send them money) are not followed to the letter!

If you get a piece of mail which fits that description, don’t go to bed worrying about it. Bring it directly to Me, your Good Shepherd. When King Hezekiah received an intimidating letter, he spread it out before the Lord, and asked his God to deal with the threat. Certain apostate preachers have actually prayed for misfortune to strike those who fail to send in donations. The most delusional of them are so totally given over to a reprobate mind that they actually begin to believe their own lies! They complain to Me about the stubbornness of believers who won’t send them money on a regular basis, and ask Me to teach them a lesson. That is tantamount to a curse!

The bitter charlatan accuses prudent saints of being selfish and sinful, but I see those believers as spotless and sanctified by the Blood of the Lamb. In the Old Testament, Balaam tried to open his mouth and curse Israel in exchange for a monetary reward. But he could lay no curse upon them because of their faith in the God of Israel. I did not behold ungodliness in Israel, for this people was shielded by the Atoning Blood. You who believe in Me are accounted as righteous.

Many who are now false prophets were once mightily used to bless others, but now they are so overcome by their carnal lusts that the devil darkens their motives. Once I said to Peter: "Get thee behind Me, Satan," because in that particular moment, it was the enemy who was controlling his words.

Don’t ever give in to the extortion of religious rackets. Instead, pray for MY angels to surround you and all your loved ones with divine protection. Whenever calamity struck a saint who crossed a greedy preacher, it was not I who enforced his prayer of ill will. It was the devil! Don’t just laugh off the reality of satan. He is deadly dangerous to those who fail to war against him in the Spirit, upholding the Shield of Faith. Call daily upon Me for victory and protection. I will be a Wall of Fire round about you, and you who trust in Me need never fear for your safety.

Greedy Gehazi

II Kings 5:1-27; Romans 2:24

My Blessed Son never once charged one red cent to meet a need or perform a miracle. Neither did the prophet Elisha, whose life-style was one of unaffected simplicity. Once I used him to minister My healing to a Syrian army captain who had leprosy. This man was so grateful to Elisha that he offered him a great material reward. Elisha refused to take it, for he knew that it was I Who had healed this man, and he would touch neither the gold nor the glory. He even swore by the Living Lord that he would take no payment for his services. It was his cunning servant Gehazi who wanted payment for this miracle. Through stealth he resolved to filch a small part of what the Syrian would have given Elisha. He caught up with the man, claiming that two of Elisha’s disciples had just arrived, and needed some clothing and silver. Although Naaman was only too happy to give Gehazi these things, this deception reflected upon the integrity of Elisha’s earlier pronouncement, which he had made in My Name.

Naaman’s joy and gratitude toward Me were boundless, but ever after questions nagged at the back of his mind: Just why had Elisha firmly refused any material reward, only to change his mind so quickly? Had his God been unable to foresee the arrival of two needy visitors? Had He been forced to go back on His Word and depend on Naaman’s resources to meet their needs, because He had no other options? Were there, after all, limits on the power of the God of Israel, just like the gods of the Syrians? Or was this change of heart really Elisha’s idea, and a mere resort to situational ethics? Did the Word of the Almighty change like the wind? Because of greedy Gehazi, Elisha’s testimony was unjustly tarnished and My Glory was diminished in the eyes of the heathen.

Gehazi considered none of these things, as he hauled his treasures back to a hiding place, grinning so proudly. He thought all his bases were covered. He hadn’t really been greedy, he thought. He had filched only a small part of the Syrian’s silver, and none of his gold. Even if his master discovered his deed, surely he wouldn’t crack down on him too hard for such a minor league foible.

But I had already given Elisha divine revelation about Gehazi’s sin. When questioned, Gehazi lied to his master, saying he hadn’t gone anywhere. But Elijah wasn’t fooled.

The culprit never got to enjoy his illicit booty. My judgment fell upon this man because of his greed and deception. That same leprosy which had been lifted from Naaman fell upon Gehazi and all his descendants.

If, in that age of lesser light, I executed fearful judgment upon a man who made a one-time bid for a comparatively paltry sum; how much more will I take to task modern charlatans who, having been shown a far more glorious revelation, pillage My people again and again and again?

Fearful Judgment is Coming on Deceivers

II Kings 4:1-7; Matthew 23:14; Mark 12:40; Luke 20:17

One favorite example used by these slick operators is the story of the desperate widow whose late husband’s creditors threatened to sell her sons as slaves to satisfy the debt. Elisha asked her: What do you have in the house? She replied, "I have nothing but a pot of oil."

The prophet instructed this woman to go and borrow all the extra jars her neighbors could lend her. Once she did this, she began to fill them with the oil from her own jar. The amount of oil multiplied to fill all the other jars. Elisha said she was to go sell the oil and use the money to pay off her creditors. Whatever was left over, she and her sons could live on. My prophet required no fee for this miracle. Many "faith" teachers twist the meaning of this story to infer that their audience (the widow) should send in to them (symbolized by Elisha) their last dribble of money. And in their eyes, money is king.

Such sinners have pushed Me too far. How dare they claim kinship with My servant Elijah, who denounced the spirit of idolatry which brought ruin to My Nation of Israel! These ministers of darkness have utterly corrupted themselves, and seared their own consciences. Thinking that I am just benignly looking the other way, they have carried their wickedness to the grossest extremes. They stand in peril of eternal hellfire, for they cunningly claim an anointing of My Spirit which they know full well they don’t have! And they plead and beg for donations, on pretense that they’re going to help the needy or spread the Gospel of Salvation around the globe. But these fraudsters have already earmarked their projected annual donations for their own lusts.

I say to such thieves: When you deliberately steal money My precious saints have prayed over and consecrated to Me, you are stealing from Me and telling lies in My Name! How dare you lay claim to a temporary unction of My power which will expire for your victim if he fails to insert a fat donation for this week in your pink envelope, and then neglects to send next week’s installment in the green envelope! My Holy Spirit is exceedingly precious, and not to be trifled with!

Did I not pronounce judgment upon false leaders of the blind who devoured the sustenance of widows, and only pretended to be pious? How dare you rascals identify themselves with the Holy God of Israel and call yourselves by the Name of Christ! My Visage is so fearfully holy in its Brightness, you hypocrites would be stricken through with unutterable horror were you to be called before Me for judgment. I am moved with indignation against you! You who have offended in these things, fall now on your faces and repent, in hopes that I may yet spare you an outpouring of My fierce wrath..

Behold, I am about to deliver the entirety of my true flock from this end-time deception. Yes, I shall demand an accounting from greedy purveyors of Carnival Christianity. When I ask them what they have done with all the money they amassed in My Name, they will shiver from head to toe with great dread, these wily foxes who had the temerity to continue in their evil ways until they could no longer repent. They shall then know that they robbed My Kingdom of money which could have been used to spread the message of My love, and that they used devious methods to bribe, beguile or bully their hearers into giving, methods I even denounce in My Word.

Woe be to you who have created your own paradise on earth with My money you have bilked out of naive believers. You have already received your reward, which is corruptible and shall quickly pass away.

Spiritual Loco Weed

Every wise rancher keeps a careful eye on where his cattle go to forage. But sometimes they’ll graze in places where poisonous plants abound. Some of My children stray into pastures unwatered by My Word. They’ll place themselves under false teachers because it’s so much fun to listen to their brand of "Christianity". These ministers of darkness contaminate Bible passages by seasoning them with some sensational new heresy which has mass appeal. All they can see is the flash and glitter of something different.

Ever wonder why so many strange doctrines spring up, why lives are ruined and congregations are thrown into confusion to the extent that the true message of the Gospel is lost completely?

Spirits of confusion abound in pastures where straying sheep feast on spiritual loco weed.

The Pro$perity Hoax Destroys Lives!

Ezekiel 34:1-10

Some people become so disconsolate after exercising "faith" in a Prosperity purveyor that they sink into deep depression when strong disillusionment sets in.

Among those who respond to con artists are unbelievers genuinely seeking the true Way to Life. When they discover that they’ve been had, they are far less likely to turn to Me for salvation. Being largely ignorant of My Word, it’s no wonder they associate Me with a cruel con game played "in the Name of Jesus." Many souls are in hell today because lying hypocrites soured them on Christ!

So many tearful people have written back to their spiritual guru pleading for him to personally touch God to get Me to release My miracle blessings. "Remember?" they’ll write. "You promised that this would be my Month of Miracles! Well, Brother, this month is almost over, and I’m still poor."

Chances are this dear one will be lucky to get a form letter which offers weak reassurances to a heart devastated by disillusionment. The prosperity guru has no time to make amends for the damage he’s done. He’s too busy luxuriating in the paradise he’s amassed for himself on earth.

The rip-off artist rushes his funds to the bank, laughing with a giddiness which is satan’s counterfeit of My joy. Meanwhile, his victim cries his heart out, wondering why his "faith seed" didn’t sprout up.

A few unstable souls even lose the will to live after being duped! They discover the real truth about the preacher they’d so idolized, and just aren’t able to bear up under the humiliation of knowing they were so easily suckered in. The shock of losing one’s life savings to a liar and fraud is far more than some are able to endure.

It infuriates Me, the way a few covetous ministers of deceit can so easily destroy souls. But they will be held accountable for all the wrecked lives they leave in their wake as they fall headlong toward their own destruction.

Stirring Up Discontent

Numbers 11:4; Psalms 106:12-15; I Corinthians 10:1-10

Graciously I provided the necessities of life for My Chosen People whom I had redeemed from Egyptian bondage. They enjoyed a daily provision of manna for their hunger; food they didn’t have to farm, or earn money to buy. I even quenched their thirst in that scorching hot desert. Faithfully I sustained them on their way to the Promised Land. They should have realized their sojourn in the wilderness was meant to be only temporary, that had they kept faith with Me they would have entered into the Land of Milk and Honey much sooner than they did.

Among them was a mixed multitude, composed of other peoples who knew nothing of faith in God. They only wanted immediate gratification of their appetite for finer things. These evil ones went so far as to incite discontent in the hearts of their Israelite neighbors. Soon the whole camp was grumbling that I was such a poor provider, I couldn’t even supply meat for them along with manna.

I see the same thing happening today. In Prosperity Theology, the Heavenly Manna is no longer enough. When Christians turn on the TV and see the carnal luxuries (typified by the flesh food demanded by the Israelites) which prosperity charlatans enjoy, many of them grow resentful. Worse yet, their so-called teachers tell them not to settle for "living below their privileges in Christ Jesus".

Many fall away from me because of discontent. Babes in Christ and older saints alike would be so influenced by "Name-it-and-claim-it" spouters that they would lose their tenderness of heart toward Me. Thinking they were merely coming boldly before the Throne of Grace to claim their inheritance in Christ Jesus, they would barge rudely into My Holy Presence to snap at Me and bark orders, as if I were a slave. Their so-called prayers were really surly complaints. And I knew why: They were jealous of the lavish lifestyles flaunted by their favorite "Word teachers".

In mercy My Spirit would gently caution those misguided saints, and warn them to repent of their irreverence toward Me. When envy sets in, it is impossible to maintain a thankful heart for the wonderful ways I have already blessed you. How it wounds Me to see saints sink so low that they even complain about the quality of their blessings, as the Israelites did in the desert!

And all because of that perverse "mixed multitude"! Within the heart of a minister of deceit is an evil mixture of opportunism, greed, and irreverence.

I will hold them accountable for all the souls whom they corrupted; people who had to receive My chastisement because they stopped approaching Me with godly fear. Carnal ministers of deceit teach My little lambs to grumble and complain in the wilderness of this world!

Picking Up the Pieces

Luke 4:9-12; Revelation 3:17-18

Many an impulsive disciple has hastened to the mail box, a broad smile on his or her face. He thinks: At last I’ve discovered a way out of my problem. That brother on TV promised my troubles would be over if only I would step out in faith and "give till it hurts".

So who had to pick up the pieces and clean up the mess once the hurt hit them? There have been times when I gently cautioned certain of My children to exercise discretion and sanctified common sense in their giving. These deceived people would say: "Go away, devil. I sow a seed out of my need. Whatever I believe I now receive." Of course, My compassion went out to them, for they could not believe it was the Lord Who had cautioned them.

One impoverished saint was so moved by a TV preacher’s message, he didn’t hesitate to donate a month’s rent money. He set it inside his curbside mailbox. Anxiously he kept peeking out the window, breathlessly waiting for his "seed" to begin its long journey to the tender-hearted preacher who would surely take a personal interest in his problems; hoping against hope that he’d be recompensed with the miracle of a lifetime.

But once it was picked up by the postman, anxiety seized his heart. Had I truly commanded him to give that generously to that ministry, he could have rested in the joy and peace of faith. Once the afterglow of the bewitching preaching performance wore off, the man was horrified at what he’d done. His wife and children might suffer the consequences of his impulsive deed.

Night after night he lay awake, punching his pillow and flopping like a fish on his bed, wondering if the promised miracle would arrive in time to meet his rent obligation. Of course, I rescued that precious saint. I am able to have compassion on those who must daily contend with the imperfections of their mortality. I know My little children make mistakes when they first learn to walk by faith. I have redeemed these precious saints with My Blood, and will not let them sink beneath the raging waves of life.

I have had to console many simple-hearted saints who waited months and even years for the expected $10,000 windfall promised in return for a "one-time" gift of $100. They had fantasized endlessly about the new start in life their "Big Ble$$ing Harvest" would give them, how smooth the road of their life would become. Instead, satan swooped into their lives with a fiery trial to thoroughly trounce them with disillusionment. Guess Who gets the blame when this slot machine theology fails?

Only later would the stronger souls wake up and admit that they’d been bewitched into making MONEY their god. They realized that it is possible to have FAITH IN FAITH rather than faith in their loving Heavenly Father Who FREELY GIVES every good and perfect gift to His beloved children. Truly, there is little difference between endless intonations of faith formulas and practicing sorcery, for trust is put in the repetition of an incantation rather than in Me. To say that I must grant each and every whim of your heart when you go through your ritual is to deny My very sovereignty and authority over your life.

Sadly, many saints do not have sufficient grounding in My truth to withstand the damage done by this fake Go$pel of Get. Hour after hour their "faith teacher", either live or electronically, drills faith formulas and catch-slogans into them, to help them to pry what they need or want out of Me. "King’s Kids" must always go first class, they are taught. "If the Mafia can have a Cadillac, why can’t you?" fires their worldly imaginations. But what help do they get from their mentors when the enemy floors them and spiritual warfare against satan is needed? More slogans and catch-phrases, even a rebuke for "speaking a negative confession". Thus they are left feeling like a failure instead of being edified. And those who do achieve the dreams of country-club church members boast by their attitude: "I am rich, my wealth has increased, I wear the finest designer clothes, and I have need of nothing." Yet these souls do not realize that they are spiritually poor, blind, and naked in My sight.

Where Gain is Godline$$

I Corinthians 4: 8-13; Galatians 6:14; I Timothy 6:5

The writings of Paul the apostle are often used to justify the get-rich-quick gospel of these end times. If he really were the father of such a heresy, he was undoubtedly a failure at getting its principles to work for him.

No other minister of the early Church was more faithful and hard-working than My servant Paul. He willingly assumed the responsibility for the oversight of many churches. In his numerous travels, he diligently sought to impart My Truths, wherever they were lacking in the faith of the churches he visited. He saw the need for the operation of spiritual gifts in the life of the Body of Christ. Through praying with the laying on of hands and the word of prophecy, many other ministries were raised up to edify the people in My congregations. Paul lived to propagate My Truth. Many ignorant people living in darkness were converted to the Lord Jesus Christ and had great spiritual riches imparted to them, because of the faithfulness of this one apostle and his associates.

There was one assembly in particular which this long-suffering apostle had problems with, the church at Corinth. Having been converted to the Faith through the ministry of this apostle, and nurtured on the good things of My Kingdom by him, these people were too tight-fisted to give him financial support.

This was a wealthy church, by the standards of that day. The carnal Corinthians luxuriated in their prosperity, and didn’t see much point in sharing it with someone who had poured out his life to serve them at My Table. Instead, they found an excuse to try to wiggle out of their obligation to him: Paul was not one of the original twelve who had known Jesus during his lifetime. They dismissed him as a jailbird, because he had the chains to prove it. So what if Paul was doing the job of an apostle? Why call him one, or give him the monetary support due his office?

I had foreordained that those who labor in My Vineyard by preaching the Gospel as a vocation should receive their living from it. Paul knew that while he and Barnabas had to work for their living, Peter, John, and all others in full-time ministry were receiving due support from their flocks. Many, like the apostle Peter, were even free to take a wife with them on their travels. Peter certainly did not go back to fishing for a living once He got involved in My work of fishing for the souls of men.

Rather than court the risk of bringing reproach upon his office and hindering the work of the Gospel, Paul waived his claim to financial support. He decided not to make an issue of his right to share in the prosperity of the Corinthian Church. He continued his tedious toil as a tent maker, laboring late into the night, and sharing My Word at every opportunity.

For My sake Paul suffered privations, as well as persecutions. The bitter irony of it all is this: A certain measure of his sufferings were inflicted by ungrateful believers who refused to treat Him as one of My own! While he fasted, rich Christians feasted, thinking they were living like King’s Kids. They had the carnal mindset of a spoiled child who attacks a box of chocolates, and refuses to share any.

I wonder how poor Paul would have been received in modern-day Prosperity Churches. Reduced to rags, his rough-shod feet blistered from thousands of miles of torturous travel, gaunt, windburned and unpolished, I strongly suspect he would have been mistaken for a vagrant and shown the door. What a pitiful advertisement for Prosperity Theology this fellow made!

Paul gloried in the Cross of Christ. Thus, he was dead to the world and the world was dead to him. Very much alive to this present evil world, con artists wallow in the cash of Christians, and dare to cross Christ.

Paul would have been disgusted by today’s "sale-vation" promoted by money-hungry propheteers.

True Poverty-True Riches

Psalms 22:1; and chapter 88; II Corinthians 5:21; and 8:9; Galatians 3:13-14; Revelation 21:7

My Son was made poor so that you could be made rich in the riches which endure. It is true that while He was on earth, He reached the point where he had no certain dwelling place, and sometimes had to forage for food. That was unpleasant enough. But what was the very worst poverty My dear Son ever knew?

You have no idea how unutterably precious and intimate the relationship between the Father and the Son was before Christ came to the earth to offer Himself up for your sins. No friendship on earth, no closeness between earthly parent and child ever approaches the profundity of the bond that is between us. Here in the splendor of heaven, he dwelt in a realm of of unadulterated Holiness, where love permeates all things. My Glorious Presence was ever His greatest delight, and He Himself shared in My Glory. All the Holy Angels adored and worshipped Him, even as God Himself, for We are One. That is the unspeakable wealth My Son possessed in heaven. All the bejewelled buildings, gold adornments and lovely scenery of this place are beyond compare; yet they are but the glorious setting of the True Wealth My Son gave up to come to the earth to redeem fallen mankind.

The greater the value of the treasure, the greater the anguish of losing it. Even after Christ came to earth in a body of flesh to live for a time in a far less glorious setting, He still maintained a sweet intimacy with His Heavenly Father. My love was ever the joy of His heart. He loved Me so much He would joyfully do anything I commanded Him to do without reserve.

Do you know why His anguish in the Garden of Gethsemane was so great, as He prayed for the strength to give up His Life for you? The prospect of being scourged, mocked and nailed to a Cross was terrifying enough, but He knew He faced an even worse ordeal_temporary alienation from Me.

He Who knew no sin became sin for the sake of sinners, nailed to the Cross in their stead. At that moment I had to avert My eyes from the One Who had always been so dear to Me. Now My pure eyes of Holiness could not look upon that loathsome bundle of sin He had taken upon Himself.

Deep in His soul He felt My absence. All He could feel was the dreadful stroke of My wrath against sin falling upon Him. This terrified Him, as He hung on that Tree. There is nothing more frightening than to sense that My wrath is descending upon you, that My indignation is kindled against you, and there is nowhere to flee. There is no greater poverty than to be utterly bereft of My love! When I am absent from your life, your situation is utterly hopeless indeed. There is a most horrible emptiness inside of you, infinitely worse than the black vacuum of outer space. That is the kind of desolation felt by lost souls in hell. The fearful darkness of My absence, the utter cutting off from everything pertaining to divine purity and love.

Jesus suffered all this horror for you, to pay the penalty of your sins, to open the Way into My Presence. For I have earnestly desired that you would justly have the right to fellowship with a Holy God, to partake of the choice things of My Kingdom, to fellowship with Me at My table as one of My children. Christ has, through His own Atonement for you, purchased ALL this unfathomable wealth for you.

Now you have the right to know the same loving relationship with Me as He does. You My faithful ones shall reign with Him in His Kingdom as fellow-heirs of all created things.

Yes, My dear child, there is a vast difference between a heart centered on transitory dollars-and-cents, and a heart centered on the riches which endure for all eternity. One heart is covetous, and the other is consecrated on My Altar.

Let the Children First Be Filled

Mark 7:11-13, verse 27

Remember the widow who gave her all. Her way of giving was to donate to the Temple treasury, and she was able to do it cheerfully. If all you have is a penny, a penny is all I require you to handle responsibly at this particular moment. But consider this: This is the Age of Grace. You are My own dear children. I would much rather have mercy than sacrifice. First pray over that penny and ask Me to multiply it as I did the loaves and the fishes. Don’t automatically assume everything you devote to Me must go into some offering plate. Unless I clearly direct otherwise, let your own children first be fed. Whenever you serve your own family members, you are serving Me just as much as if you were serving the deacon or pastor. Giving is to be done solely to meet legitimate needs and expenses of people I love, not because you feel obligated to perform some routine ritual of placing cash in a bag or offering plate.

I know when you are needy and hungry, and I know when things get so tight you’re almost too ashamed to admit it even to Me. I know many of you have sometimes skipped church services because you feel bad that you have little or nothing to put in the plate. But I would serve your own dinner plate first, that you might be strengthened to receive the spiritual bread from My hand and walk in the light of it to serve Me.

My Children are Free

Matt. 17:25-26

I do not put My own children under tribute. When the need ceases, the sacrifice should also cease. Put away that offering plate. I want to heap your plates high with ample servings of the hidden manna of My eternal provision and goodness.

My ministers should ask themselves: just what are the needs on my heart? What really counts for eternity? What will stand the test of fire at the Judgment seat of Christ? Not fancy programs or opulent buildings but: To feed the widow, the orphan and the penniless among you, and to shelter the homeless who are lying under a bridge because they've got nowhere else to go. Carry the Good News of Life eternal far and near. Provide for the legitimate needs of those laboring full-time in the harvest. Meet their need, not their greed. Send forth ambassadors for the Kingdom of God as you are truly able.

And giving needn't always involve money. Even those who are without much cash can give a word of encouragement to the heavy heart and to another person who is ready to faint in the way. You can serve one another in the Love of Christ and in the Bond of the Spirit. But woe unto you if you find yourself entangled in the bond of a religious overlord's greed!

Break free of their bonds, My people. My immediate need is just for you to love Me first and foremost, and all other giving will follow as I truly lead. I would give first to you and then out of the overflowing cup of My blessing upon your own life you can touch other lives with the anointing which I place upon you. You can rekindle another candle which is weary and ready to go out by ministering from the flame of My life within you. You can refresh a thirsty soul by allowing the Fountain of Living Waters within you to spring up to water the parched and dry land which is sometimes characteristic of My Body. There are dry spells when every drop of water is precious and then there are seasons of an abundance of rain. Give of your inner Treasure to one another, My children. My resources are boundless. Walk in the Liberty of My Spirit and be not entangled in the false religious systems of "give to get" anymore, for they are doomed to perdition.

Be free to receive from Me, for I have much to share with you in these last days, saith the Lord your God.

Which Has Which?

I Timothy 6:6-10

The hearts of so many of My children are all wrapped up in this world. Many have prospered materially and gained great possessions. Some older saints now own beautiful homes they could only dream about when they were younger. Others are caught up in the social whirl, or struggling to climb the corporate ladder. Their lives are so compartmentalized that they relegate Me to the "Religion" file, and give Me only an hour or so a week, on Sundays. After all, they’re so wrapped up in feeding their own self-image that they have all but forgotten Me. Such people have made an idol of success.

The crucial question is: Do you have things, or do things have you? Many who have modest means but are rich in faith will be only too happy to leave this world behind when I come for them, for their hearts and their treasures are in heaven. Would luxury-loving Christians be eager to leave all their toys behind?

You brought nothing into this world, and you will carry nothing out.

Was Christ REALLY All That Affluent?

Matthew 8:20

Some have even claimed that Christ was not really poor. He lived, they say, like a millionaire’s son travelling incognito. He just wasn’t in the habit of carrying a lot of cash with him; but still, He was well-to-do. Why, then, did Jesus’ disciples need to break the Sabbath by picking a little barley in a field to assuage their hunger? If they had so much money, why hadn’t they just purchased food for the Sabbath the day before, rather than laying Jesus open to accusations from the uncharitable Jewish religious leaders?

When Jesus rode into Jerusalem and the people hailed Him as the anointed Son of David, He used a borrowed donkey. He often slept out in the open, for He had no fixed abode during His brief earthly ministry. There was no Rolex watch or diamond ring among His meager possessions when the soldiers at the Cross gambled over His clothing. Yet My Son had lived as the most joyful of men; a much more contented Person than wealthy King Solomon, who discovered to his dismay that all his billions in gold could not satisfy the deepest need of his heart.

Millions have gained an incorruptible inheritance because of the faithfulness of My Son, Whose wisdom far exceeds that of Solomon. He Who knew privation, is able to have compassion on the poor, and make them princes in My kingdom. I consider the Life of Christ the greatest Success Story of all, and it’s MY opinion which truly counts.

Only Christ’s Life lived through you is acceptable to a Holy God.

Don’t Get Taken for a Ride

Isaiah 56:11; Matt. 23:14; Mark 12:40; Luke 20:47; I Cor. 5:8; I Tim. 6:5; Titus 1:11

Wake up, My people! Don’t you have eyes to see and ears to hear? Your oppressors who profit from your ignorance are laughing all the way to the bank...and all the way to exciting destinations like Hawaii and the Holy Land. While you sweat and toil endlessly to keep creditors off your back and put food on your table, rich preachers are lading you with bondages I died to set My people free from.

These shysters are either keeping you under their thumb with guilt-based "tithing" or promising you pie in the sky on this earth, just to pry your last penny out of you. While you toss and turn in bed wondering how to feed your children, they’re using "tithes" to buy themselves a fancier car, or some diamond ensemble they admired in a shop window. Why should they jet around town in a Lincoln Continental while you can’t even afford a Schwinn to get to work each day?

The day is coming when I will penalize not only wolves in sheep’s clothing who bilk you and lie to you, but those who disregard My warnings and keep on playing Prosperity Doctrine Roulette with money they should be using to provide for their own households. If you are able to provide what your family needs but pamper some lying preacher with your money instead, you are no better than an infidel and will suffer for it, rather than reaping a rich harvest of blessings for gambling My money away!

My people are being taken for a ride in someone else’s Cadillac as they play foolish numbers games in casinos masquerading as churches!

Humble Beginnings

Galatians 5:7; Revelation 2:5

Many money-mad preachers began their ministries with a humble, sincere heart. Some were once hungry, penniless, and in need of My miraculous deliverance out of great straits. A vow was made to Me by one desperate man: "Lord, if you will lift me up from the dunghill of poverty and enable me to preach Your Word, I’ll give You all the glory and live only to testify of Your greatness."

In those austere days, every scrap of food was precious to him, and every penny was an object of stewardship. Once this double-minded man got beyond the subsistence level of fund raising and the money began to roll in, that preacher had second thoughts about putting Me first. He was hooked on the thrill of fat envelopes returning to him in response to his monthly mail-outs. He began to turn into a contented cow fattening himself on the finest. Money had become a goal in itself, and the high it gave him supplanted the joy of loving Me and manifesting My life to others.

Let those who have reached the pinnacle of earthly success remember the Valley of Humiliation from which I lifted them, lest their souls become corroded with idolatrous pride. The gold of this world is transitory, and love of money is a deep pit into which many fall and from which they never return.

Remember to acknowledge My Lordship in financial matters, as in every other area of life. It is dangerous to forsake the Lord and serve Mammon. Not only did I lift you out of satan’s pits, I am actively keeping you out of them!

$elfi$h $UCCE$$

Luke 12:16-21

What I detest most about this Gospel of Prosperity is that oftentimes My work of making hearts tender toward the true Gospel is hindered. It’s bad enough that the materially wealthy have grabbed all all the choicest things of My earthly creation to hoard and squander on themselves. In order for a few to corner the material wealth of this world, millions more must be wretchedly poor. But the core philosophy of the Gospel of Greed is that to be seen as acceptable in My sight, a believer must be "successful" in the art of accumulating transitory things. Oftentimes, a radical change of personality accompanies this so-called success. People who formerly reflected the sweetness of Christ with crystal-clear transparency, become aloof and proud, and more "discriminating" as to which of My children he or she will deign to associate with.

The heart of the haughty flies higher than an eagle, ever so proud that he has sunk his talons into his piece of the pie, and that it is larger than his neighbor’s. Truly, if they could, worshippers of wealth would even commandeer all the wealth of My Eternal City. They would make heaven an enclave of the rich and famous and bar the lowly in heart from entering in. There have been many false belief systems which have operated according to this rotten philosophy, and the Prosperity Gospel is one of them. No wonder those of limited means shy away from going to church when they feel an aching need to reach out to God! Many would have been faithful to My Church, had they not seen first-hand how money talks in the operation of the church. Those who make the biggest donations often pull the preacher’s puppet strings! My heart aches for the multitudes who truly believe in Me, yet have elected to stay home from most church services. The bitter irony of it all is that these poor souls often feel closer to Me outside of church than in it.

The high and mighty of this world have their price, but I can’t be bought off. This will surprise many of you: There is no money in heaven!

A Grim Gospel

Ezekiel 13:22a

Maintaining sound doctrine is a lot like riding a bicycle. Balance is required in where you place your emphasis. The fact that trials or even illness can be used to strengthen the faith of a believer has been hyped up by many to the extent that they actually believe that adversity does more to perfect people into the image of Christ than anything else.

I have created you in such a way that you can only focus on one thing at a time. If you continually dwell on the subject of personal suffering and its possible benefits, you ignore Christ and the all-sufficiency of His Atonement. You subconsciously seek out situations which impose suffering on you, just to assuage a feeling that you must do your share of suffering just like every other truly consecrated Christian. And if you let a complaint escape your lips about having to endure it, some judgmental holier-than-thou might call your love for Me into question.

I have seen so many radiant faces age prematurely and so many joyful personalities wither away because satan got them into bondage to this warped lie that it is unspiritual to feel happy and enjoy your life on earth in a wholesome way, and that all true happiness must wait till heaven. The enemy has convinced many saints that the unique personality I created them to be must be crucified with endless trials and vexations, or they’re unworthy of heaven.

When you are full of My Spirit, you will overflow with a holy joy. No one has the right to make you feel guilty for enjoying your joy, or tell you that Christ’s work of redemption on the Cross isn’t sufficient to guarantee your power to persevere. I am certainly able to work in you according to My good pleasure to bring you to perfection, through the power of My Spirit within you and the washing of the pure Word of God.

Christ’s victory cry: "It is finished!" is your passport to heaven, as you remain in Him by faith.

Treasure in Heaven

Matt. 19:21-22; Luke 12:13-15; and 33-34; Acts 4:32-35; Hebrews 13:5; I Timothy 6:6-10

Beloved, if anyone insinuates that you are a failure in My school of faith because repeating "faith formulas" didn’t make you wealthy, don’t let it discourage you. My own Son was despised by wealthy religious rulers because of His humble background and lack of earthly wealth. The apostle Paul often suffered hunger, thirst and privations as a result of persecution for Christ’s sake. He was even despised by carnal religious folk because he had been beaten and chained up in jail, and evidence of spiritual conflict with satan was etched into his weather-beaten features.

I remember the day a man came to Jesus complaining that his brother refused to share their inheritance money with him. To all appearances, it was a simple matter of justice, and the man was entitled to what was legally his. He wanted Christ to exert His influence to compel his brother to give him his fair share. But Jesus knew the innermost motives of this man’s heart, and refused to take sides. He emphatically stated that a man’s life does not consist of the hoard of possessions he has piled up for himself.

Was Jesus obsessed with amassing costly possessions for Himself? A thousand times, no. Rather, He instructed His little flock to sell their possessions and use the money to help the poor. The treasures accumulated by His followers were to be heavenly ones, enduring riches which would never deteriorate or be subject to theft or other earthly calamity. In the earliest days of the Church, the believers loved one another so much that they were of one heart and one soul, and no one claimed that anything was exclusively his own. What a precious memory I have of those days, when outsiders marvelled: "Behold, how they love one another!" What joy this brought to My Father- Heart! They were so concerned for one another’s welfare that they sold their real estate and houses, put the proceeds into a common fund, and possessed all things in common. If I were to require this of you today, could you obey Me even to this extent? I doubt that many "faith" ministers could. They would say "OUCH!"

The money-obsessed man seeks his security in a big bank account. Like Solomon, he accumulates more and more, but he never feels that he has stockpiled enough. Some wealthy Christians think: I’ve done well for myself. Living by faith is fine, but just in case God doesn’t come through, I’ve squirrelled away funds for a rainy day. This is wealth he has reserved for his own enjoyment, not for My Kingdom.

And, most likely, the rains WILL fall, and the winds of adversity WILL blow against his house, for satan loves nothing more than a cocky attitude in one of My children. This is an open door for him to enter. Anyone who removes himself from under the umbrella of faith in My all-sufficiency is liable to be severely tried. Any house built upon the shifting sands of earthly prosperity, rather than upon Jesus Christ the Solid Rock, will be washed away in the flood.

The day will come that the world will be thrown into a panic by the cataclysmic events of the Tribulation Period and all money will lose its value. When I return to earth and judge who is fit among surviving mortal men to enter as subjects into My 1000-year Kingdom, I will separate the sheep from the goats. I will place the sheep on My right hand, and the goats on My left. Many famous, but faithless individuals will even try to buy a place at My right hand. Too late they will realize that though they spent their entire lives striving for what the world deems "success", they were poor in eternal riches, and on that dreadful day I weighed them in the balance and found them wanting.

Keep to the Narrow Way

Jeremiah 6:16; Matthew 7:13-14; Luke 13:24

The ground in front of the Cross is the beginning of a narrow, rocky road to Life. The Prosperity Gospel is a slippery smooth bypass away from the true Gospel originally delivered unto the saints.

Chasing After the Wind

Psalms 39:6; Proverbs 23:4-5; Mark 8:36; Luke 16:13;I Cor. 7:31

I have said in My Word: "No man can serve two masters, for he will hate the one and love the other, and he will cling to one and despise the other. You can either have possessions or they can have you. The resources of this world I make available to My children that they might have their true needs met, and so that they might serve Me more effectively in this world. But many have slidden into the snare of making the accumulation of material goods their chief goal in life.

Some people have bought the illusion of wealth, for that is all it is. People are in this world for a very brief time, and it makes them look good to others and feel good about themselves to surround themselves with beautiful things. Even people who own their possessions outright will have to leave them behind when their earthly life is past, so in the truest sense, they don’t really own anything at all. And as for people appearing outwardly prosperous by living in a fancy home; more often than not, it’s really the bank THAT holds the title deed to that home, not the occupants. Daily such bound people worry that their beloved possessions will be repossessed if they fall behind on payments, and how would this make them appear to others?

The devil convinces overburdened married couples that if they struggle and slave their very hardest, neglecting their spouses and families for a "brief" time, they will one day hold the title deed to that luxury home filled with all brand-new furniture, or they will be able to get that sleek new car to impress their friends and neighbors. Then they will finally be able to relax and find time for their loved ones...and for Me, in the case of Christians caught up in this bondage.

Yes, even some of My people have fallen for this lie of satan, who is ever setting out snares to de-rail the righteous from their true calling in the earth. They go on chasing the elusive wind of prosperity, which can slip so easily out of their hands. Children see little of their own parents. Husbands and wives hardly ever cross paths, and when they do meet at home, they are cross with each other because they are too tired even to be civil to one another. Satan sells his lies with an "easy payment plan" but he exacts a terribly high cost for keeping up a facade of wealth to impress others with. Broken health, shattered marriages, traumatized children who wonder if they’re just another burden for weary parents to juggle.

I have said in My Word: Come unto Me, ye who are weary and heavy-laden, and I will give you rest. There is no rest in worrying that your friends and peer group will think ill of you for driving a second-hand car, or having re-covered furniture, or renting out an extra room to a Christian student to cut the cost of living. You need daily bread. You need nutritious food. You need a decent home to live in and reliable transportation. But you don’t always need the finest of everything. You need a few fixtures in your life, but they don’t have to be gold-plated. You’ll get plenty of gold in heaven. Your self-esteem comes from being in Christ, not some fancy convertible.

Spiritual Malnutrition

A certain mother desired above all else to remain popular with her children. She fed them only sweets for breakfast, lunch and dinner. They grew anemic on this poor diet. Their teeth rotted away and they nearly died from malnutrition.

When the authorities found out she was charged with child abuse.

Preachers are roaming the earth telling people what they want to hear, not what they need to hear! Thus My work of sending forth the true Gospel of Repentance is hindered. People swallow a lot of deceitful candy. Then when it leaves them hurting inside, they cannot stomach any more preaching, even when the true Bread of Life is presented to them.

I have had to heal a lot of spiritual tummy aches in My children.

How Can You Tell the Difference?

Do not be deceived, My people. Those who truly minister in My Name manifest My nature. Next time you go to a service, wondering what manner of man (or woman) is addressing you, consider these questions:

1. Do you discern the peace of God in this place? If there is extreme discord between My Spirit and that prevailing in the meeting hall, a Spirit-filled visitor will invariably feel ill at ease there, no matter how much he tries to persuade himself that nothing is really wrong.

2. Do you sense the love, peace and joy of Christ in the speaker? My Spirit within you will bear witness with your own spirit when you are in the presence of one who is letting Christ shine forth His glorious light through his life and message. A Spirit-led individual will exude a joyous enthusiasm for what he is doing. You will feel refreshed by that one, because you are really being drawn to the Christ within him.

3. Is Christ being lifted up through his ministry, or is the speaker merely trying to promote "faith formulas"? I said in My Word: Have faith in God. It is possible to have faith in faith itself, and be preoccupied with the notion that you are not generating sufficient "faith" through mental exertion, and thus, will miss out on your miracle. Faith is an inner knowing, deep in your spirit, which is one with My own Spirit. Faith is a divinely imparted grace. Faith is not mental gymnastics!

4. Is there an undue emphasis on donations? Do you feel pressured to "give till it hurts"? Consider the example set by My Son. On those rare occasions Christ told people to sell all their possessions, He told them to give the proceeds to the needy, not directly to Himself!

5. Does the speaker infer that God will not undertake for you if you fail to give money in the meeting? That is spiritual blackmail, plain and simple, and I resent that inference as a slur on My loving nature!

6. Does the speaker manifest a meekness of bearing and tenderness of heart? People should go to meetings of the saints to encounter Christ, not to watching a show centering around a vociferous stage performer. A minister with a true heart will want to get the people’s eyes off himself, and direct them instead to the Christ he envisages through the eyes of faith. He will literally exude the tender love of Christ, and genuinely care that people are hurting and need a touch from the Master’s hand.

7. Does the speaker share with you the whole counsel of God, or does he fudge on vital issues to avoid criticism? Holiness has never been a more unpopular topic in My Church than it is in this permissive age. Sometime I’ve had to be blunt with an individual seeking special prayer for healing or deliverance from problems. Through the Gift of Divine Knowledge, My servants might receive a revelation from Me as to why the supplicant’s prayers have been blocked. Whenever besetting sin is the cause, I can do nothing to help that person unless he first repents and gets that hindrance out of the way. Proud individuals have often stalked angrily away when I told them the whole truth, blamed the speaker and forfeited their miracle. A false minister will never say anything which would diminish the market value of his message!

8. When you leave the service, do you feel like you’ve had an encounter with Christ Himself? If My Son has truly touched your life, you will never be the same person afterward. You will feel like a recharged battery, renewed in inner strength and affirmed in My love. You will feel cleaner inside. If all you’ve done is heard a sales pitch, you will feel let down. You might even feel like you were "taken to the cleaners" if you fell prey to the speaker’s wiles and gave him too much of your money. You might try to keep a positive attitude and hope that the books or tapes you’ve just purchased will help you to eventually get My help. And in your heart you’ll sigh: "Oh, well, maybe next time."

The "Ble$$-me" Club

Jeremiah 9: 23-24; I Corinthians 11:22

I look down from heaven and see so many new churches springing up. Many are badly needed, and are an excellent testimony in the community, and salt in this world of sin. But many others are only social clubs masquerading as houses of worship. Some believers come only to put themselves on display, and to receive assurance from the preacher that their worldliness is acceptable in My sight, and a valid expression of true discipleship. There is an undercurrent of competition among My children who frequent such churches. Testimony time is viewed as an opportunity to stand up and brag about how I’ve blessed My affluent children, especially in temporal things.

The more such a person goes on and on about how much he has and how successful he is, the more shouts of acclaim he gets from those who enjoy similar circumstances. Sometimes there is much squirming in the pews, as others itch for the chance to also get up and boast of their new car or big pay hike. In these last days, there is less emphasis on how I’ve worked in a person’s soul, and more emphasis on how well faith formulas have worked to make life more pleasant.

While some love to come to church to magnify themselves, there are others who feel considerably worse after such testimonies are given. There are saints who love Me dearly, yet are embroiled in bitter conflicts with satan, who is attacking their circumstances. THEY can’t stand up and shout ‘hallelujah’ over having a big pile of new toys, or cozy circumstances in their personal lives. Sometimes these sorely tried saints feel very much out of place, and out of sync with the prevailing theme of the church. They feel intimidated by the windfall of the well-to-do. The devil seizes the opportunity to try to make them envious, or at least persuade them to denigrate themselves for not being so "blessed" as that brother who’s just won the lottery jackpot. In order to flee such temptations, those who are enduring trials will elect not to be around the blessings of others, and just stay home.

My original intention was for people from all walks of life to be able to fellowship together around their Savior, and really enjoy it. It is the way of the world to accept only those who are just like you in exterior things. In the world, there are societies and clubs which accept only those of the same color, ethnic group or financial status. Pride is the glue which holds those people together, not love.

If My love is absent from a church, it is nothing but an exclusive social club, a cloister of insular religious people loath to go out into all the world and make disciples.

Where there is no love there is no life.

Beware of Extra-Biblical Mysticism

Col.2:8, 18-19; II Pet.2:1-3; Jude 3

It has reached the point where many of My children are reinventing the Gospel to suit their own tastes, much like a party of people at a big smorgasbord luncheon who assemble their own sandwiches. Spread out on the huge table are many tasty religious tidbits. In the condiment section are shaker jars of New Age influence, white witchcraft disguised as "believer's authority", Positive Affirmation, Toronto Blessing, angel worship, gold dust, and other stimulating seasonings. All but ignored is the item pushed far to the side of the buffet table: the Gospel of Grace once delivered unto the saints by the original apostles.

My children, it is oh, so easy to start off right on your spiritual journey. But in a rainstorm or snowstorm, a driver can become blinded by a fog of confusion and the road can become very slippery and treacherous. You can veer so far off course that at first you venture onto the shoulder of the road, and that is the so-called gray area of compromise with New Age influence or "deeper life" mysticism. Unless you take quick measures to place your focus back where it belongs, on Christ and Him Crucified, you end up sailing off the road altogether, to the destruction of your spiritual life.

I know that the wicked spirits of the air are busy in the earth creating confusion and havoc to lead My dear children astray, so as to neutralize their influence in the earth and minimize damage to satan's own kingdom of darkness. Storm conditions prevail in the world and often in the Church, for much spiritual battle has had to be waged in the heavenlies to fend off satan's attacks in these latter days of deception. But keep Christ and Him Crucified the focus of your life and your ministry. Read My Word to see what My Son really did say, and what the early apostles taught about what the goals of the true Christian life ought to be. They were not into all this weird mysticism which is being peddled as spiritual enrichment. Repetitive chanting and wild hysterics were never encouraged or permitted by churches under the oversight of Peter, Paul, John or James. They would have been outraged if they'd been able to foresee the garbage which passes itself off as Christianity today. Even pagans will resort to endless repetitions of key phrases, or mantras, to try to influence the invisible world to get the things they want out of their false gods. Some things taught in today's institutional churches are not found in My Word as doctrine intended to be taught believers in Christ. Old Testament-style rituals and trappings have been spun and spiritualized and used as fetishes to "empower" believers, thus implying that the victory I won on the Cross is insufficient to give the victory. The power of the Holy Spirit within the believer is sometimes thought not to be enough, so some "brand new revelation" is sought after to boost that power. Beware of what satan presents as a "new revelation". That's exactly what he did to Eve in the Garden of Eden. He "improved" on My original Word which I spoke to her concerning eating the forbidden fruit. He "revealed" unto her that I didn't really mean what I said when I told her and Adam not to eat of it, and it was okay to go ahead and have some of that pretty, sweetly scented fruit. Satan's new revelation led Eve to sin and rebel against My true Word. If it's new, it can't be true.

What sickening idolatry I see so many venturing into: the worship and invocation of supposed angels of light. What happens so many times is it is angels of darkness who come to a misguided believer and give that one comforting feelings of reassurance when they are invoked. Even the very elect are being deceived by calling on so-called guardian angels or spirits of departed "saints". The devil will allow some lying benefits to be received by those who invoke them, in the way of emotional relief or some other pleasant thing, in order that destruction might be wrought in the soul of the one who wanders far from the pasture of the Good Shepherd. It is satan's chief goal to warp a believer's spiritual vision so that he no longer considers Christ all that important to his own spiritual well-being. The devil is malicious, evil and cunning. He knows full well a human being cannot truly focus on more than one thing at the same time, so he will introduce all sorts of lies and pretty diversions to take the eyes of the believer off Christ, the only Redeemer. That is the spirit of Antichrist at work in the religious world today, which resists My Holy Spirit's work of sanctifying the believer.

My children, there's a lot of unclean flesh being peddled at the religious meat market. Beware of what you buy and consume.

The Top Priorities of My Kingdom

Micah 6:8; Romans 14:17-18; II Corinthians 3:2; James 1:27; and 2:14-17

I speak to the heart of that dear saint who feel he has let Me down because he doesn’t seem to be "living like a King’s Kid". I know your heart. I have seen your hunger to learn more about My Word, your earnest desire to follow Me and be daily conformed to My image. These are sure signs that you are a son of the Living God. Such a heart as yours is priceless in My sight. If you are a child of the Heavenly King, you will desire the things of My Kingdom. My Kingdom does not center around carnal, transitory things.

I am looking for those who hunger and thirst after righteousness. I delight in being merciful and kind. Is there someone you know who is hurting and needs to be shown a little kindness? Would you please tell them that I love them and want to be their Refuge in the time of distress, that I want to be their Shepherd and care for them? Your life is the only Bible that many lost people will ever read.

Why not invite your troubled neighbor over for a cup of tea and a chat? I always have time to listen to you tell Me your troubles. Maybe there is some small gesture you could make to brighten that person’s day. There is always the possibility that people will take advantage of you, but I will give you discernment to know who to really help, and how far to go. There are times when it is against My will for you to get involved too deeply, especially with a manipulative soul who really isn’t interested in knowing more about the Way to Life.

Close associations with such people can adversely influence My weaker sheep. Be tender-hearted as I am; be compassionate. But I am not asking you to just hand money over to a beggar who is obviously drunk, and would only like more liquor. I will help you to deal wisely with those around you. My Son could not give money to every beggar, or heal every sick body on the street, for people can only get lasting help by approaching Me through faith. Even some destitute people are openly hostile to the Gospel. I admonish My children to be as wise as serpents, and harmless as doves.

Invest in the salvation of souls. Give freely to ministries which you know are busy in the harvest field and preaching the glad message of My redemptive Love in Christ Jesus. Give alms to the poor, as I lead you. But don’t feel bad when you have no money to give. It costs nothing to pray, except a willing heart. I even give you the anointing of My Spirit to know HOW to pray, and for whom. Many of My less affluent saints are rich in faith. They make use of their faith by praying day and night for revival in their churches, and for all obstacles to the going forth of My message to be removed. I tell you, these people who give of themselves in this way are precious in My sight, and they have treasure in heaven which shall never fade away. Those who walk in the Spirit of My dear Son are the ones who are living like sons of the Most High.

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