In preparation for the harvest the Lord has been calling us to seek Him as never before. This call is now resounding with growing urgency. It is time to give ourselves to the pursuit of his heart with unwavering commitment. This should not be mistaken as a call to increased 'spiritual activity'. While in some cases this may be a requirement, the present call is for a change of heart demonstrated in the mundane everyday matters of life. Spiritual activity can easily be 'lips which draw near' while the heart is far off. Rather, the Lord is requiring a willingness to be challenged at the deepest levels of our heart saying, 'Seek the Lord while He may be found, call upon Him while he is near(Isaiah 55:6)'.
High School
While this is not a new word, there is an added intensity since it first resonated in my heart five years ago. At the time I understood the Church was being prepared for it's greatest days. Yet many, who were holding to the promise of approaching harvest, were not embracing their preparation. It was as though we were High School students, caught up in the social politics of adolescence, oblivious to the real world. Preoccupied with a 'quest for status' and a place of prominence in a fading limelight, many were being distracted from their primary purpose. The parallels were clear!
High School presents a compelling atmosphere where young people begin to make their mark on the world. It comes complete with its own cultural taboo's and social order. The extreme passion for identity creates a vacuum wherein teenagers strive for acceptance and position. Personal worth is measured in achievement and popularity. Consequently, a great deal of devotion is laid on this altar. Escaping it's grasp requires young people with a longterm vision. Those who do can give themselves to goals which are more enduring.
Nevertheless, being at the hub of social activity is vital for a good portion of students. Many, if not most, are consumed with some portion of High School's environment and are blinded to the things which are truly critical. In this environment, skipping classes and being accepted by peers becomes more important than studying, and making the most of High School's educational opportunity. Yet, soon the day comes when High School finishes, and in a manner of speaking, life begins. Before long students begin to realize life does not consist of High School. Rather, it is a tiny picture of a much larger reality in which High School status counts for little. It is at this moment when our time in High School becomes our foundation, or the lack thereof.
In the Church
Likewise the Church has been in a time of serious training. Like in High School, the attributes developed within us will ultimately determine our future success. Our training has less to do with how we appear on the outside than on the inside. When we are concerned about prestige and our position before men, we will focus on what others think of us. Unfortunately for many, appearances, while vital in High School, count for much less in life. On the other hand, multitudes of believers are currently being prepared for their hour, having understood this fact. Because of this, they are being prepared beyond the view and understanding of men.
Like the eagle which soars to the highest heights the Lord has been preparing his vessels through brokenness and humility. Soon strong fresh winds will begin to blow. It will force many to look for shelter and a place of safety. At the same time, seemingly out of nowhere, a new generation of leaders will emerge from the confines of their 'spiritual wind tunnels'. Having undergone years of vigorous training they will know how to ride the wind. They will have embraced the discipline of the Lord and will be ready when the time comes.
The Training
To this end we have been teaching, exhorting and warning believers. Our preaching has focused on words which help us understand and cooperate with the breaking of our heart's fallow ground. We cry out as the prophet Hosea cried:
"Sow for yourselves righteousness; reap in mercy; break up your fallow ground, for it is time to seek the Lord, till He comes and rain righteousness on you."(Hosea 10:12)
The object of the Lord's training has been to produce a true faith in our hearts. This requires a two-edged sword piercing to the division of soul and spirit. It divides between the holy and the profane, bringing to light the intents of the heart. The training the Lord has been bringing has not been to bring conformity to our behavior. Rather, His dealings expose us from the inside out in order to bring genuine transformation. In our next publication we will deal more decisively with the process.
For the time being let us focus on the urgency of this admonition. The Spirit of God is pleading with us to embrace the exposing and thus breaking of the fallow ground of our heart &endash; not later, but now! The key to this word surrounds the issue of timing. The urging of the Spirit is that this should happen before the outpouring begins.
While being personally convinced this was indeed what the Spirit has been saying, I wondered at the urgency of the call. 'If there was coming a time of unparalleled glory and authority in the Church, why would there not be time for additional preparation and the pruning of hearts? New converts would certainly require it. But what would keep us from undergoing a heart circumcision at the outset of this new period?' I did not have a clear answer but continued to seek the Lord. On a recent trip to the East Coast the Lord gave me a clear answer.
The Burned Grass
It came while a friend was telling me about the heat wave and the shortage of rain throughout this summer. As we looked at their severely burned lawn the Lord gently spoke 3 things to my heart:
The first came as I observed how despite the heat and the lack of rain, the weeds were still green. Scattered throughout the shriveled yellow grass were spots of rich green color. The contrast brought to mind the curse which said, 'cursed is the ground for your sake... thorns and thistles shall it bring forth for you'. (Genesis 3:17-18) Indeed this was true! Grass and flowers struggle along for their existence while weeds flourish no matter what the situation. Looking on the Lord spoke into my spirit saying, 'In the Kingdom everything is reversed'. I instantly realized that the Kingdom of God brought redemption. Meaning our times of dryness will wither the weeds of our heart, while what is born of the Word of God endures forever (1 Peter 1:23). In the trial of our faith what is born of faith overcomes the world while everything else fades. I became immediately grateful for the periods when the Lord led me into the wilderness.
As I thought about this the Lord spoke again saying the drought conditions slowed the growth of both the weeds and the grass. This meant the times of 'spiritual drought' were windows of opportunity. They were times when we could prepare the ground of our heart by weeding it. Since the growing cycle of thorns and thistles was slowed to a fraction of what it could be, it would be far easier to deal with them.
Again the Lord spoke, this time asking a question: "What happens when the rains come?" The answer was clear! Rain increases the rate of growth. Suddenly, grass and weeds which had not grown in weeks surge forward at an astounding pace. If we failed to use the dry season to weed the ground of our heart, their presence would become increasingly prominent. This was both exciting and scary. Exciting in the sense that we would see the power and ministry of Jesus unveiled. Scary in that the weeds left untouched in the soil of our hearts would spring forward at an alarming rate.
Living in a climate where there is an abundance of rain provided a clear illustration. A healthy lawn is in a precarious position if it is not diligently maintained. Moss, weeds, thorns, clover and a broad variety of undesirable growth, is always waiting to dominate. The prudent will not tolerate any amount, and move quickly to remove them. Likewise, if we have tolerated sin or areas of selfish gratification during dry seasons, these will surge forward when the rains of the Spirit descends. What were previously controlable impulses will quickly escalate into raging beasts. For this reason we must make the most of the time we have.
A Fresh Call to Follow
The truth is we have not pursued holiness with the level of diligence necessary for the future. Yet, these prophetic words are resounding in the spirit for the Church to hear.
"Break up your fallow ground, and do not sow among the thorns. Circumcise yourselves to the Lord, and take away the foreskins of your hearts, you men of Judah and inhabitants of Jerusalem, lest My fury come forth like fire, and burn so that no one can quench it, because of the evil of your doings."(Jeremiah 4:3-4)
It is particularly interesting that we are exhorted not to sow among the thorns. Many have been faithfully and diligently sowing the Word of God into their lives. Unfortunately much of the sowing has been among the thorns. In some cases spirituality, the scripture and the anointing have been used to further our own selfish agenda's. It is a useless venture to invest in teaching tapes and the confession of God's Word, if we are not willing to break the fallow ground of our hearts. If we are consumed with a desire for success, wealth and position we are sowing among thorns. It is time to circumcise the heart and break the fallow ground.
"Come, and let us return to the Lord; for He has torn, but He will heal us; He has stricken, but He will bind us up. After two days He will revive us; On the third day He will raise us up, that we may live in His sight. Let us know, let us pursue the knowledge of the Lord. His going forth is established as the morning; He will come to us like the rain, like the latter and former rain to the earth."(Hosea 6:1-3)
Again the Spirit is calling us to an unwavering commitment. It is not enough to desire an outpouring of God's Spirit. We have been praying and asking for the outpouring of the Lord's glory in the Church without realizing the potential cost. Consider this: Why has there not been revival year by year? Surely, it is in the Lord's power to release a continuous wave of the miraculous. Is there any sensible reason why He would not want a perpetual witness? The answer comes when we understand the cycles of harvest, which are the cycles of revival.
The Cycle's of Harvest
When Moses led Israel out of Egypt He did it with great fanfare. The children of Israel saw the acts of God like no other generation before or since. What was the cost to them? Their corpses fell in the wilderness on account of their unbelief and idolatry (Hebrews 3:17). To whom much is given, much is required. The outpouring of the manifestation of God not only accomplishes His end, it requires a higher level of response from the people.
There are numerous analogies we could use to illustrate this truth. For example, you cannot put molten iron into a wooden cup. The cup is not sufficient to sustain it without the iron first destroying the cup. The power God is going to pour out will fall on all flesh. Whenever there are outpourings of God's anointing it not only falls on those who are ready but those who are not.
The flow of God's river is arbitrary. We see this with the degree of power in the Corinthian Church who, while they were not short of gifts (1 Corinthians 1:6), were carnal and ill suited to rule God's Church. What did the blessing of God bring in their midst? Harmony and sweet fellowship? No, it brought a harvest of strife and division because their hearts were not circumcised. Some responded by despising the gifts but that was never really the issue. You do not know a river by it's fruit, you know a tree by it's fruit. The river is the vehicle which helps bring to light the things which are hidden.
During every major revival in History, there are always those whom God's uses mightily, who never finish their course. One has but to study the Latter Rain outpouring of 1948 along with the Healing Revival. One after another leaders fell into immorality, doctrinal error, and premature death. Why? Because when it rains, it rains on the just and the unjust; it falls on the good seed and the bad seed; it waters the weeds and the grass.
Jesus said in the parable of the wheat and the tares that the harvest is the end of the age. Daniel writes, "Many shall be purified, made white, and refined, but the wicked shall do wickedly; and none of the wicked shall understand, but the wise shall understand" (Daniel 12:10). The harvest is the moment when everything comes to maturity. "God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, that will he also reap. For he who sows to his flesh will of the flesh reap corruption, but he who sows to the Spirit will of the spirit reap everlasting life" (Galatians 6:7-8). The sound of the abundance of rain has begun to be heard which means the harvest is approaching. He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.