BLOG

Resurrection and Earthquake

Thank-you for praying with us in regard to our 'Tabernacles conference this past week end. It was truly the best conference that I have ever seen. There is no way that I could begin to do justice to it in giving you a report in writing.

Briefly, the Lord led us the first day (Friday) to search our hearts and pray for release from the spirit of bitterness. Then the next day we dealt with the second great hindrance of humanity--the spirit of fear. Then on the third day (Sunday) Thom and I were led by the Spirit to anoint everyone present with a blessing from the Lord. He used an oil called Red Root, and I used Frankincense.

I discerned that this signified the anointing of King and Priest and had a Melchizedek flavor. In that Thom is from Canada, he represented the Kingship anointing, and I was led to consecrate them as Priests of God with the Frankincense.

Because we are at the time of both the seventh vial and the seventh sign in John (i.e., Lazarus), the Spirit told me to call forth "Lazarus" from each person. Lazarus signifies (in this case) the New Man within each of us. I spoke to each, saying, "Lazarus, come forth!" followed by, "I bless you in the name of the Lord." I don't think we bless each other nearly enough, because so often we really do not understand the spiritual effect that a simple blessing has upon those who are blessed.

Those who were anointed at this conference were a token group of people, 120 in all, representing the greater body of believers worldwide. We have learned over the years that by the principle of "one body, one spirit," what one part of the body does is beneficial to the whole body. When the head is anointed, the whole body is automatically anointed.

Thus, this anointing signified raising the body of Christ into its calling. Of course, each person has a different calling. We have had a vision of our callings in some cases for many years, and, like Isaac, every vision has to die before God can raise it back to life as a new creation. And so on Sunday, October 15, the Word was spoken to call forth this "Lazarus" from the dead, breathing life into that inner man.

This resurrection of "Lazarus" runs directly parallel to the resurrection of Jesus Himself, for it is "Christ in you the Hope of glory" that is being raised up at this time. When Jesus arose, there was a great earthquake as the angel of God rolled the stone from the mouth of the tomb. Likewise, in the book of Acts there was an earthquake that opened the prison at Philippi where Paul and Silas were being held prisoners. Thus, we saw a significant earthquake hit Hawaii at nearly the same time on the same day. Hawaii is the 50th state and is a natural type of the Jubilee that sets us free.

We have discerned for some time that we would see an earthquake that would be associated with the seventh vial, simply because of the statement made in Revelation 16. Is the Hawaii quake the fulfillment of this? I do not think so, for I see it as having a different purpose, marking the time of the New Man ("Lazarus") coming forth from the tomb. Perhaps we should continue to watch for another quake or even multiple quakes on the mainland. But there is no doubt that the "quake" in our innermost being is raising the New Man (calling) within us from the dead, and that this signifies the overthrow of Babylon within each of us that has kept our callings prisoner.

God did so many things at this conference that it was almost hard to keep up with it all. There were many themes and sub-themes in the flow of revelation, and I cannot begin to share all of this here in a short web log. But overall, I do believe that our general discernment seen previous to this conference has been confirmed. Our questions have now been answered as to the specific manner in which these things have been fulfilled.

As I strongly suspected, we did not see the highest fulfillment of the feast of Tabernacles, since we did not see the preliminary events occurring at Trumpets, Day of Atonement, and the beginning of Tabernacles. Yet we did see a powerful move of the Spirit, the resurrection of Lazarus, and the beginning of a new work of ministry for the body of Christ in the days ahead. Many people who witnessed these events will never be the same again, especially those who attended for the first time.

I might add one strange story that occurred as a result of the anointing. A woman from Michigan showed me her fingernails. They were still somewhat gray in color and still had black residue under her nails as if she had been digging in the ground. After the anointing, she noticed it, and when she washed her hands and scrubbed her fingernails, the water was black in the sink. This obviously signified a cleansing of the hands, as we read in Scripture, for before the priests were allowed to minister in the Holy Place, they had to wash their hands and feet. "Now you are clean through the Word which I have spoken unto you," Jesus said.

Perhaps the most important factor in these meetings was the outpouring of love. In my view, the love factor was what made the big difference. In other years, the meetings were very good, of course, but this past year people have grown tremendously in love, the character of Christ. I realized that this is what makes these conferences seem better and better each year. Ultimately, it is not about external miracles or fiery preaching, but upon the miraculous change in people's character as they draw closer to Him.