TRANSCENDENT MOMENTS

TRANSCENDENT MOMENTS

                It doesn’t happen all the time. You can’t make it happen. It can’t be worked up as some would think and while your emotions are involved, it is something other than emotions that are at work.

                It happened Sunday morning as we were worshipping the Lord. I was playing bass and I was enjoying worship as I always do, when suddenly the worship of the singers and the musicians and the worshippers became a wall of sound that seemed to operate on its own. Everything went into a sort of slow motion as people in the audience began to shout “Glory” while others, young and old came unbidden to the altar to weep and pray.

                One five year old boy came to the altar praying with tear stained eyes. (His father is the drummer in our band and I commented to him after the service that his little boy seemed very sensitive to the Holy Spirit. He replied that his boys are both very sensitive to the Holy Spirit… and I knew that because they often come up to shake hands with us and to give us hugs after service. They are young men of prayer even as their father is. So he had asked his boy Levi why he had come forward to pray and he replied, “It was because grandpa is dying and he isn’t ready to meet the Lord.”) Intercessory prayer from  a 5 year old… praise the Lord!  Revival is coming and our young people and children are going to be very much a part of it.

                An older man came forward to give his heart to the Lord as did a young black girl. So as these people and others came forward, elders and wives and prayer teams came up to surround those who came forward, so that pretty soon the altar was full of people praying for one another even as the worship music continued to play. There had been no altar call, but that given by the Holy Spirit.

                The air was charged with the sovereign presence of the Lord and we were struck with a profound sense of awe as the Lord ministered to His people.

                Some Christians having never experienced the living presence of the Holy Spirit will say that it is just good old Pentecostal emotions, but that is not true. When God decides to sovereignly drop in on a service it is quite independent upon whether the music is loud or soft or the preaching animated or quiet.  Even within the congregation there are those who only go through the motions of worship and they have no clue that anything special is happening at all. They look at their watches and think about lunch and wish that someone would get on with the sermon.

                At the same time, others that spend a lot of personal time with the Lord and who know His presence are caught up in these transcendent moments with God and they are awe-struck and humbled.

                This wonderful presence of God lasted the whole day because at the evening service, as the guest speaker preached on sanctification and living holy lives; the presence of the Lord was with us again. The sermon was not an emotional one as such, as he urged us all to put away sin and to live holy lives that are set apart for God. He made mention of the false grace that is sweeping the church and then gave plenty of Bible texts showing that  God has equipped us to be conformed to the image of Christ and that grace is the power of God to overcome sin in our lives, to walk in purity and holiness. He also made mention of the imminent return of Christ as signs of His coming are everywhere.

                Soon there were more people up front than there were in the audience and again, we experienced the sovereign presence of God.  About twenty teenagers came forward for prayer along with others young and old. Our drummer, who also happens to be a youth leader, is passing on to them that same sensitivity and hunger for the Holy Spirit that he has passed on to his own sons. I call him the “Son of encouragement” because he goes everywhere loving on and encouraging people just as he encouraged me when Bonnie and I first came to Tennessee. It was his encouragement that kept me in the worship team even when I felt inadequate as a bass player compared to the advanced excellence of the other players. But by God’s grace I am catching up.

                These are times of refreshing from the Holy Spirit and these times hold in them the promise of a greater revival that will come to those who are praying for it. The Lord desires to equip us for the final harvest and He needs clean vessels to work with. God cannot pour out His Spirit upon unclean and unsanctified vessels. As we can see from the first Pentecost, there must be unity. There must be a group of people who are in one accord, praying for the same thing… people who have spent time with the Lord even as those 120 disciples had spent time with Jesus.

                And while I say that God sovereignly “drops in” quite apart from anything we can do, it can also equally be said that He doesn’t just drop in on people who are not praying for the Holy Spirit and fire. Elijah had to pray for the fire to fall. Moses had to meet with God on the mountain. The children of Israel had to come out of Egypt. Joshua had to spend many days at the door of the tent of meeting, hungering for the presence of God as Moses spoke with Him face to face.

                All great revivals of the past came out of the unknown people who prayed for the return of the Lord to their lost generation. Preachers that bring God’s presence are preachers that spend more time in prayer than they spend preaching. If we are operating without the anointing presence of the Holy Spirit then nothing of eternal value is taking place. Intellectual sermons will not do. Formal services with a proper 27 minute sermon containing 3 points and a poem will not bring down the presence of God.

                In fact the presence of God does not need to be brought down at all, for He is in the hearts of His believers. But the problem with Laodicea was that He was on the outside of the door knocking to get in. They were lukewarm and their services were lukewarm and their expectations were lukewarm and they were satisfied to live carnal lives in which there was no gold tried in the fire… no open eyes to see into the spiritual realm… no hearts to invite Him in.

                To such people the Day of the Lord is going to come as an overwhelming surprise. To them He will come as a thief.

                “For you yourselves know full well that the day of the Lord will come just like a thief in the night. While they are saying “Peace and safety!” then destruction will come upon them suddenly like birth pangs upon a woman with child; and they shall not escape. BUT YOU BRETHREN are not in darkness that the day should overtake you like a thief and you are all sons of light and sons of the day. We are not of the night, nor of darkness; so then let us not sleep as others do, but let us be alert and be sober.” 1 Thess.5:2-6.

                By the way, do you know which book of the New Testament was written first? It was first Thessalonians… and the second book was 2^nd Thessalonians. These two books by Paul set the stage for   all that Paul taught hereafter and they were about the coming of the Lord and how to prepare for it.

                The entire Bible it seems was written to our generation upon whom the ends of the age have come.  We are taught how to be saved by the blood of the Lamb… how to come out of Egypt… how to be born again and to receive the Holy Spirit. We are taught how to receive the added baptism of the Holy Spirit for power to witness. We are taught not only justification, but Sanctification without which no one will see God. Heb. 12:14

                But today it seems like a large portion of the church is in a stupor. They are unable to endure sound doctrine. They are unwilling to come out of Egypt. They do not seek after the Holy Spirit that they might be sanctified and empowered by Him for the work of service. They are unwilling to be set apart for service to God. They are unwilling to be touched by the sovereign presence of God and so while some glory in His presence, others remain unaware and unmoved.

                Everywhere in scripture we are urged to press in. Our faith must be engaged, for without faith it is impossible to please God. And God is the rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.  Heb. 11:6. We have been predestined by God to be conformed to the image of His Son. Romans 8:29. And we are told that we must come into maturity in this life, to attain unity and to come into the measure of the stature which belongs to the fullness of Christ. We are to grow up in all aspects into Him who is the head even Christ.” Ephesians 4:13-15

                How can we skip by these things to preach sermons that no longer have any meat in them? How can we preach false doctrines of false grace in which we need do nothing but believe and to eventually get yanked out of here as sinners? It is the Holy Spirit by whom we are sealed for the day of redemption. Eph. 4:3. It was the Holy Spirit who breathed life into the church on the day of Pentecost and He made them drunk with His presence so that people staggered and fell and spoke in unknown tongues. But when all was said and done, they were totally transformed from lifelessness and confusion to boldness in the preaching of God’s word with clarity so that 3000 people came to Christ in one day.

                Friends, we cannot pray for church as usual, with everything done according to our pride and our control. The presence of the Holy Spirit is an awesome and wonderful thing, but it lays flesh in the dust and it deals with the eternal part of man… the new creation man that has been placed in us by the Holy Spirit. And it is time for us to begin living by that new creation that has been placed inside of us rather than the constant desires and dictations of our unsaved flesh.

                We need to understand that our flesh controlled and flesh organized services must be laid low in order for God to begin to act sovereignly among His people. We need to throw away our watches and our oven timers set at 12:05 and we need to invite the sovereign Lord to do His work His way.

                I’m not talking about bedlam and confusion here. I’m saying that when the Holy Spirit is in the house we ought not say, “Time’s up God” and then walk out. True revivals are famous for lasting well into the night. In Solomon’s day, when the glory cloud of God’s presence filled the sanctuary the priests could no longer minister, for the glory presence of God overwhelmed them so that they were unable to stand in His presence.

                Do we think that the glory of God will come with any less power in this final harvest? NO!  In fact it is going to be at least 7 times greater than any sovereign act of God in history. It will come at a time of chaos and apocalyptic events in the world. It will come amidst the greatest darkness known to man. But the glory of the Lord will rise upon us. His glory will be seen upon us and the nations will come and kings to the brightness of our rising. Isa. 60:1-3.

                This time is rapidly approaching and the glory that some of us experienced this weekend was only a faint and momentary glimpse of what is to come. But we must pray for it and we must prepare our hearts for it, for only those who have been sanctified of heart and mind will receive it. And we in turn will lead all who are willing to repent and to be saved.  God is going to pour out His Spirit upon all flesh so that everyone that calls on the name of the Lord will be saved. Joel 2:32.

                You have an appointment with destiny. Open up your heart now and let Him prepare you… let Him cleanse your temple… let Him empower you with His Holy Spirit so that you can be a part of the final harvest.

                The final harvest is going to be full of transcendent moments… times that can only be brought about by the sovereign work of God. Our emotions may run high simply because the presence of God is overwhelming to human senses. Everyone that experienced it in Bible times fell to the ground as if dead and they were changed forever… and God is going to do it again.