Coming Out of the Kingdom of the Fatherless
Originally entitled: "Coming Out of the Kingdom of the Fatherless to the Fountain of Living Water"
I'm not experienced as a public speaker, but recently was asked to be a presenter at an eight day convocation to share what I was learning about the Father and the Son. My prayer has been for doors to be open to this truth and I thank the Father for arranging this appointed time. Instead of using only my own words I adapted this talk from “Serpent’s Lie Destroys Knowledge of the Son” and “The Comfort of Elijah Part 1 and Part 2” by Adrian Ebens and “The Kingdom of the Fatherless” and “In Christ Alone” by Oliver Saade. I praise our Heavenly Father for the inspiration in their words.
There are two kingdoms that vie for the souls of men, one has a true Father “Our Father” who in His rightful place in Heaven blesses because He is a real Father. In the other kingdom stands a pretender holding only a usurped position. One who can give no life. Only a confused image and understanding. Ultimately this kingdom brings a curse.
One of my favourite passages of Scripture is Malachi 4:4-6, “Remember ye the law of Moses my servant, which I commanded unto him in Horeb for all Israel, with the statutes and judgments. Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord: and he shall turn the heart of the fathers to the children, and the heart of the children to their fathers, lest I come and smite the earth with a curse.”
Have we turned our heart from the Fathers and slipped into the kingdom of the fatherless without realizing it? Ask yourself if you believe the following statements.
“The heavenly Trinity met and developed a plan for our salvation. We describe it using the word atonement.” Atonement and the Cross of Christ, Adult Sabbath School Bible Study Guide 4th Quarter 2008, Principal Contributor: Angel Manuel Rodriguez.
“Entirely through Their own initiative, the Godhead arranged for One among Them to become a human being. They did so in order to (1) provide us with our Substitute and Surety, (2) make God's ways plain, (3) restore us to our pre-sin perfection, and (4) settle the debate about God's Justice. Our Wonderful God, Adult Sabbath School Bible Study Guide, 4th Quarter 1998, Principal Contributor: Edwin R. Thiele.
At precisely the right time and in the right way, the three Members of the Godhead put into operation a plan They had devised before the world was created. They surrendered a portion of Themselves—the Divine Son—to become the Saviour of the world.” (Ibid)
“While God the Father didn’t have a baby boy named God the Son, we use those terms to help understand that the parts of the Godhead are separate yet closely linked, the way a father and son bond together. Steve Case, “why was it Jesus?", Signs of the Times, March 2011.
I don’t know of a specific verse in the Bible that explains how Jesus was the Member of the Trinity that was chosen to come to earth to live and die… I don’t know how the Trinity decided that it would be Jesus who would come to earth…” (Ibid)
"We are left with no alternative than to accept that Jesus could not have become a literal son of God in eternity – He could not be His own son. He clearly accepted that role for the purposes of the Plan of Redemption… His Sonship can only be figurative. Correspondingly, the Father has not always been the Father. These must have been adopted titles suitable for the parts the Two played in the Plan of Redemption." Max Hatton, “The Trinity Doctrine for Seventh-Day Adventists.”
“But imagine a situation in which the Being we have come to know as God the Father came to die for us, and the One we have come to know as Jesus stayed back in heaven (we are speaking in human terms to make a point). Nothing would have changed, except that we would have been calling Each by the name we now use for the Other. That is what equality in the Deity means.” The Wonder of Jesus, Adult Sabbath School Bible Study Guide 2nd Quarter 2008, , Principal Contributor: Roy Adams.
“According to Genesis…God lived in a kind of united community we cannot begin to understand, so we argue about it all the time. God lived within something we call a Trinity, or Godhead, and even then, began to create other beings to love. This Word of Love eventually created this world, hand-sculpted beings to live on it, personally breathed Life or Spirit into them, and put itself into some sort of form that could “walk and talk with them in the cool of the evening.” “Love”, iFollowdiscipleship.org, Discipleship Resource for Seventh-Day Adventists, 2010.
I believe these statements come directly from the serpent and his kingdom of the fatherless. It’s a kingdom built on a lie and John 8:44 says Satan is the father of lies. The serpent’s lie destroys a knowledge of the Father and the Son. Do away with Their literal relationship and They have no identity.
“Who is a liar but he that denieth that Jesus is the Christ? He is antichrist, that denieth the Father and the Son. Whosoever denieth the Son, the same hath not the Father: ...” - (1 John 2:22-23)
The lie of the serpent is a poison that disconnects us from our Life Source in Christ and the Father. This lie speaks to an inherent life source. E.J Waggoner understood this when he wrote;
"He who receives Jesus Christ as the Life will not cut off the life which is in Him by the old serpent fable of Eden, "Thou shalt not surely die." In the light of God's presence in his Word the humble soul will acknowledge his sinfulness, and thereby his mortality, and look to Jesus Christ alone as the Source of righteousness and eternal life to the believer now, the Bestower of immortality at his coming." {Signs of the Times, November 25, 1897}
In this context, consider the following quote from Ellen G. White and its significance.
“Satan has long been preparing for his final effort to deceive the world. The foundation of his work was laid by the assurance given to Eve in Eden: "Ye shall not surely die." "In the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil." Genesis 3:4,5. Little by little he has prepared the way for his masterpiece of deception in the development of spiritualism. He has not yet reached the full accomplishment of his designs; but it will be reached in the last remnant of time. … Except those who are kept by the power of God, through faith in His word, the whole world will be swept into the ranks of this delusion.” {Great Controversy, page 561}
Now consider this principle of looking to yourself for strength as a philosophy and see how Ellen White clearly shows how it destroys our ability to see Christ as the Son of God.
"Their principles and faith are "after the traditions of men, after the rudiments of the world, and not after Christ." Jesus has not taught them this philosophy. Nothing of the kind can be found in his teachings. He did not direct the minds of poor mortals to themselves to a power which they possessed. He was ever directing their minds to God, the Creator of the universe, as the source of their strength and wisdom. Especial warning is given in verse 18 (Colossians 2:18). "Let no man beguile you of your reward in a voluntary humility and worshiping of angels, intruding into those things which he hath not seen, vainly puffed up by his fleshly mind." The teachers of Spiritualism will come in a pleasing, bewitching manner to deceive you, and if you listen to their fables you are beguiled by the enemy of righteousness, and will surely lose your reward. When once the fascinating influence of the arch deceiver overcomes you, you are poisoned, and its deadly influence adulterates and destroys your faith in Christ's being the Son of God,.... {Spiritual Gifts Book 4, page 88}
I hope you can see how the serpent's lie totally destroys our ability to see Jesus as the Son of God and that it's infection goes far deeper than simply believing in the immortality of the soul which is only the obvious outward manifestation of this deadly teaching.
This lie was the cornerstone of Nimrod's kingdom and is at the heart of Babylon. The god they worshipped was completely independent and self-sufficient.
"Now it was Nimrod who excited them to such an affront and contempt of God. He was the grandson of Ham, the son of Noah, a bold man, and of great strength of hand. He persuaded them not to ascribe it [Strength] to God, as if it was through his means they were happy, but to believe that it was their own courage which procured that happiness. He also gradually changed the government into tyranny, seeing no other way of turning men from the fear of God, but to bring them into a constant dependence on his power..." {Josephus, Antiquities Book 1 Chapter 4 Para. 2}
If we believe that Jesus is totally independent from the Father when we read that He is pre-existent and self-existent and ignore the plain fact that He became these things through His inheritance then we are deluded by the lie of the serpent and worship a Christ or rather a Nimrod after our own devising fed by the lie of the serpent.
“But turning from all lesser representations, we behold God in Jesus. Looking unto Jesus we see that it is the glory of our God to give. "I do nothing of Myself," said Christ; "the living Father hath sent Me, and I live by the Father." "I seek not Mine own glory," but the glory of Him that sent Me. John 8:28; John 6:57; John 8:50; John 7:18. In these words is set forth the great principle which is the law of life for the universe. All things Christ received from God, but He took to give. So in the heavenly courts, in His ministry for all created beings: through the beloved Son, the Father's life flows out to all; through the Son it returns, in praise and joyous service, a tide of love, to the great Source of all. And thus through Christ the circuit of beneficence is complete, representing the character of the great Giver, the law of life.” {Desire of Ages, page 21 par.2}
“In heaven itself this law was broken. Sin originated in self-seeking. Lucifer, the covering cherub, desired to be first in heaven. He sought to gain control of heavenly beings, to draw them away from their Creator, and to win their homage to himself. Therefore he misrepresented God, attributing to Him the desire for self-exaltation. With his own evil characteristics he sought to invest the loving Creator. Thus he deceived angels. Thus he deceived men. He led them to doubt the word of God, and to distrust His goodness. Because God is a God of justice and terrible majesty, Satan caused them to look upon Him as severe and unforgiving. Thus he drew men to join him in rebellion against God, and the night of woe settled down upon the world.” {Desire of Ages, page 21 par.3}
There has always been one true kingdom. It is the kingdom of the Father. Jesus said “Our Father in Heaven” Matthew 6:9, “thy kingdom come.” Matthew 6:10. Lucifer has passed on his fatherless self-governing mind to man through the receiving of a lie; you shall not surely die Genesis 3:4; a lie that distorts man’s view of God and how he ultimately receives life.
My friend Oliver lives in Ghana in a neighborhood he describes as having gradually become a place of vagabonds. It’s a harsh word, but unfortunately well describes a place inhabited by men, women and children, who all hold to an unspoken form of equality, where everyman lives unto him/herself with no regard for authority. While ascribing to an unheeded cry of reality seen in creation itself, we really don’t believe in it, don’t want it and only see it as a choice. In other words the choice of the people is what we prefer, to govern our own selves and no need for a father let alone a God and who is to say what is right and wrong; everyman is a law unto himself.
This is a place where the distinction of parents and children, fathers and sons has become mere addendum and an unwanted burden for which one can choose to perform or not with no sense of the need for relationship. The lines blurred to the point where all that remains in the ranks of families is what Satan has longed for, power. Remove Father and Son and the relationship between them, the life and blessing that is passed on in the relationship and all that remains is power; corrupted power.
The law of life denotes relationship and submission for life to flow. Satan wants none of that, he wants ruler-ship and power and when men behold this image (no view of true fatherhood) they receive this mind also. But how do we behold this image? Simply, when we no longer see fathers as fathers and sons as sons. The Son’s life and honor to the one He calls Father only becomes a means to an end and not reality. Satan’s mind is seen through this; man wants to be saved but still hold to “ye shall not surely die” eat of the tree of life, (salvation) live and still not accept the relationship between a father and a son from which his very life originates. By doing this he is giving allegiance to another instead of being in submission to his Father in heaven as the source of all life.
To have power as a created being in spite of the recognition of the relationship that requires submission, one has to destroy the relationship to get to the power; power which in essence is bound in its core in the self-existence of God. A power that no other being possesses by himself of which the Son received from the Father and is the law he possesses in the relationship He holds with the Father. Relationship derives its name from who They are.
With corrupted power comes the worship Satan has long wanted.
Relationship as many know it today comes from the same lie, “you shall not surely die.” It is to coexist and bear a similitude of mutual respect for one another. But the relationship of the Father and Son gives us our very moral principle of love for one another in which due honor and respect is given; it is a relationship of life and life to all creation, the law of life.
In this world the strongest rule: no father required; the curse has been passed on and each succeeding generation gets worse till it gets to the point that fathers are literally becoming extinct. This is Satan’s kingdom, a kingdom with no fathers, no recognition of fathers, no recognition of headship and regard for authority, no honor, no law and ultimately no life. To remove Our Father, and make Him only one of three Beings called “God” is to remove law. It is to seek to touch Life provokingly at its core (power). To have life but not the relationship, simply stated is to have power in and of yourself, self-sufficiency, in other words “not surely die”. But man will surely die for Gods nature and character is the law we obey and that law is required for life to flow. It is the law of life for all living, loving, honoring, adoration and worship. But there is a power we are to receive, a power that enables us to truly live. “Ye shall receive power” Acts 1:8. When the Lord speaks of this Power, it proceeds from a restored relationship with Him, a receiving of His very spirit, but Satan’s power is that of the world; men seeking fame and glory for themselves and independent of God.
Are we not robbing God? We don’t need to allude to it, we only have to subscribe to the mentality and to bypass the cry of our nature and the very image of the Father and Son given us. We can have one foot in Gods kingdom as it were, profess doctrines and allegiance to it, live close enough to pray the Father but in life and true worship deny the Father and in our heart of hearts not receive the blessing for we know not the Father.
There is a Father who seeks to bring His children back into His fold and bless them. A Father who wants to give us a true sense of belonging, life, purpose and will. He sent His literal Son to restore us unto Himself, redeem us back from our fallen state, restore His image in us through the recognition of Him, a waking up to the Sons love and honor, His example for us of which His own spirit, gives us power to do and to will His good pleasure Hebrews 13:21 and give hope to the hopeless. By the Spirit of the Son in us we can cry Father once more Galatians 4:6. Through His Son, we can know true relationship. But will we rob Him of the honor due Him when we subscribe to Satan’s theology and forsake the ways of our Heavenly Father?
Law in itself cannot not save us. We need the spirit in the Son of God to receive of life. The law of life cannot be plugged into independent of Him. Jesus Christ the Son gives us His Spirit so we can partake in this life, for it is received through Him from His Father in the channel of blessing.
Let’s look again at the Scripture we began with. The Elijah message in Malachi 4 verse 4 points to the law of life with the word “Remember.”
“Remember ye the law of Moses my servant, which I commanded unto him in Horeb for all Israel, with the statutes and judgments.”
This verse is a vital key to turning the heart of the children to the fathers. Notice the word “fathers.” This word has many applications from the patriarch fathers Abraham, Isaac and Jacob to the fathers of the Adventist faith. More importantly it speaks of “Our Father who art in heaven” and Isaiah 9:6 identifies another Father.
“For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace.”
The prophecy of Malachi 4 came true as the ministry of John the Baptist burst upon the consciences of the Jewish nation with a confronting message of repentance and preparation for the Messiah, Jesus our Everlasting Father. Gabriel told Zachariah that his son would be filled with the spirit of Elijah; he would turn the hearts of the fathers to the children; he would prepare the way of the Lord. Luke 1:17
His message stirred the nation so much that the leaders of Israel sent a delegation party to find out his identity, purpose and mission. The very questions that they asked him betrayed what they feared. “Are you Elijah?” “Are you that prophet?” John made it clear that he was not actually Elijah or the promised Messiah but he gave them a passage of Scripture that connected with what Gabriel had told his father.
He said, I am the voice of one crying in the wilderness, Make straight the way of the Lord, as said the prophet Esaias. John 1:23
This is a reference to Isaiah 40:3 and takes us right to the heart of the work of John the Baptist. They wished to know who John was and what was he about and he gave them the most direct answer by pointing them to this passage. A careful examination of Isaiah 40 provides for us the key ingredients of the man who came in the power and spirit of Elijah.
The chapter begins with a command. “Comfort ye, comfort ye my people, saith your God.” Isaiah 40:1
The words Elijah and comfort are not ones that we would normally associate together. Also when we consider the message and lifestyle of John the Baptist, his clothing and diet is simple and disciplined. He is removed from the comforts of life and preaches in a confronting manner.
How can this message be considered comforting? Let us consider again the passage of Isaiah 40:3, “The voice of him that crieth in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the LORD, make straight in the desert a highway for our God.”
Remember that John came in the spirit and power of Elijah. That Spirit is the Spirit of Christ that flows from the heart of the Father.
“Of which salvation the prophets have enquired and searched diligently, who prophesied of the grace that should come unto you: Searching what, or what manner of time the Spirit of Christ which was in them did signify, when it testified beforehand the sufferings of Christ, and the glory that should follow.” 1st Peter 1:10,11
Exodus 23:22 states, “But if thou shalt indeed obey his voice, and do all that I speak; then I will be an enemy unto thine enemies, and an adversary unto thine adversaries.”
“I can of mine own self do nothing: as I hear, I judge: and my judgment is just; because I seek not mine own will, but the will of the Father which hath sent me.” John 5:30
Christ is the Word of God, He speaks on behalf of His Father and communicates the will and desire of His Father. The voice crying in the wilderness is the voice of the spirit of Christ in John the Baptist and the Spirit of Christ carries the Word of His Father.
That voice is the voice that has followed the human race from the moment Adam and Eve ate the fruit.
“And they heard the voice of the LORD God walking in the garden in the cool of the day: and Adam and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the LORD God amongst the trees of the garden. And the LORD God called unto Adam, and said unto him, Where art thou?” Genesis 3:8,9
It is the voice of the Father crying out to his children who have distanced themselves from Him, not some Trinity, or Godhead, that put itself into some sort of form that could “walk and talk with them in the cool of the evening.” The voice is intense because of concern for the welfare of His children. The voice is direct because it wishes to avert complete disaster and the loss of His children. Yet it is a voice of comfort to those willing to hear, because in that voice we recognize the love of the Father for His children and desire to have them come back to Him. It is the desire to turn the disobedient to the wisdom of the Just.
The voice is most powerfully conveyed in the Ten Commandments when God spoke through His Son with a powerful voice His law designed to protect and bless His children
“And God spake all these words, saying,…. And all the people saw the thunderings, and the lightnings, and the noise of the trumpet, and the mountain smoking: and when the people saw it, they removed, and stood afar off. And they said unto Moses, Speak thou with us, and we will hear: but let not God speak with us, lest we die.” Exodus 20:1,18-19
Deuteronomy 4:12 exclaims, “And the LORD spake unto you out of the midst of the fire: ye heard the voice of the words, but saw no similitude; only ye heard a voice.”
At the heart of the voice is the commandments of God with the statutes and judgments. It is an earnest voice sent through Christ into the prophets to call the people back to our Heavenly Father. This is the voice that Elijah speaks with. The Spirit of Elijah is Christ working in the hearts of His servants on behalf of the Father.
We notice that the voice is crying in the wilderness. What is significant about the wilderness? The word wilderness can mean open pasture, an uninhabited land but can also imply a desert. One of the first places we see this word used is concerning Hagar and Ishmael.
“And Abraham rose up early in the morning, and took bread, and a bottle of water, and gave it unto Hagar, putting it on her shoulder, and the child, and sent her away: and she departed, and wandered in the wilderness of Beersheba… And God was with the lad; and he grew, and dwelt in the wilderness, and became an archer. Genesis 21:14 & 20
Hagar and Ishmael are forced to leave the protective care of Abraham. They go into the wilderness, an open uncovered place, a desolate place, a dry place. A child that grows up without the protective caring love of his father is emotionally placed in an unprotected place that causes the soul to be desolate. The child is no longer directly living by the streams of living water that flows from the mouth of his father that flows from the heart of Christ, which flows from the heart of the Father. A child that remains unprotected becomes the perfect candidate for the abomination of desolation. Their hearts become so desolate from the lack of blessing that they seek to dominate and control all around them. But before this occurs, God comes into the wilderness crying for His children to save them from the abomination of desolation.
Notice how Joseph was disconnected from his father in the wilderness, “And Reuben said unto them, Shed no blood, but cast him into this pit that is in the wilderness, and lay no hand upon him; that he might rid him out of their hands, to deliver him to his father again.” Genesis 37:22
His brothers put him in a pit (valley) in the wilderness. Reuben intended to deliver him back to His father, but it became the door for his removal from him.
The wilderness can also be a good place to disassociate from bad associations and connect with God. Moses was 40 years in the wilderness being prepared for his work. The time there allowed him to unlearn what he was taught under his Egyptian masters. So when you find the rock in the desert that has water, then the wilderness can be an excellent training ground.
The wilderness is also a place of judgment for nearly all the Israelites perished in wilderness for their rebellion. It is also full of serpents, scorpions, drought and no water.
“Your carcases shall fall in this wilderness; and all that were numbered of you, according to your whole number, from twenty years old and upward, which have murmured against me,” Numbers 14:29
“Who led thee through that great and terrible wilderness, wherein were fiery serpents, and scorpions, and drought, where there was no water; who brought thee forth water out of the rock of flint;” Deuteronomy 8:15
The wilderness is a place of fiery serpents and scorpions that can bite, kill and destroy the soul. The lack of the Father’s blessing in a family environment, leaves the soul exposed to temptation and disaster.
The wonderful news is that the Spirit of Elijah comes into the desert with a message of comfort for His people.
In His great love the Father issues the command to prepare the way of the Lord and make a straight path or highway for our God. The preparation involves the removing of mountains, filling in of valleys and smoothing the path for the Lord to come.
The word ‘way’ in Hebrew is “derek” which means a road or a course of life, mode of action. The voice of our Father calls for the preparation of “THE WAY” of His Life. The word highway means thoroughfare, path and even staircase. The Bible clearly tells us of someone that is God’s course of life, that is a staircase or ladder, and that is His Son.
“Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me. If ye had known me, ye should have known my Father also: and from henceforth ye know him, and have seen him.” John 14:6,7
“And he saith unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Hereafter ye shall see heaven open, and the angels of God ascending and descending upon the Son of man.” John 1:51
Jesus stands at the door of our hearts (Rev 3:20) and is seeking to come in and abide with us and connect us to the Father. He is God’s way, He is God’s mode of action, His divine example of how we all should live. This is why the Father has placed the government upon His shoulders for He is the cornerstone upon which all other living stones must be patterned. We do not pattern the mountain, but the Rock that was brought forth from the mountain – the chip off the old or ancient block or mountain.
The ability for Jesus to come into our hearts has been blocked by mountains, valleys and rough places. Let’s consider the significance of these obstacles.
Lucifer refused to be patterned after the chief cornerstone but rather wanted to be like the ancient mountain.
Isaiah 14:12-14 tells the story. “How art thou fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning! How art thou cut down to the ground, which didst weaken the nations! For thou hast said in thine heart, I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God: I will sit also upon the mount of the congregation, in the sides of the north: I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will be like the most High.”
Lucifer wanted to be another mountain, to sit upon the mount of the congregation and rule over others and set his throne above the stars or sons of God. Ignoring the pattern of the chief cornerstone who always submitted in loving obedience to His Father, Lucifer sought to exalt himself. The philosophy behind this exaltation came to the human race via these words.
“And the serpent said unto the woman, Ye shall not surely die: For God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil.” Genesis 3:4,5
At the heart of the exaltation was the belief that life does not come from God but from ourselves or at least that once God had given it, He could not take it away. This is where the rival mountain arose and blocked the path of the cornerstone.
It is the spirit of Christ that is intended to flow into every heart. The ability to trust, submit and obey the Father was to be given to all creatures through Him.
“And because ye are sons, God hath sent forth the Spirit of his Son into your hearts, crying, Abba, Father.” Galatians 4:6
The Spirit of the Son cries out in submission to the Father in the hearts of those who have no obstacles in the way. But Satan erected a mountain to stand in the way; a mountain of pride and self-sufficiency that tried to crush the seed of the woman.
“And they said, Go to, let us build us a city and a tower, whose top may reach unto heaven; and let us make us a name, lest we be scattered abroad upon the face of the whole earth.” Genesis 11:4
The making of one’s own name involves the building of a tower or mountain to demonstrate the ability of self. The city that was built alongside the tower was called Babel – “another path to God or salvation.” This mountain is the enemy of God and His Son and is challenged by the voice of Elijah when he cries “every mountain and hill shall be made low.” Our Father in heaven makes the issue clear when He states:
“Behold, I am against thee, O destroying mountain, saith the LORD, which destroyest all the earth: and I will stretch out mine hand upon thee, and roll thee down from the rocks, and will make thee a burnt mountain.” Jeremiah 51:25
A heart that seeks to be known by achievement and obtain a name through sheer merit will knowingly or unknowingly build a mountain that blocks the way of the Lord. Such a man will seek to pattern himself on the mountain, the original life source rather than the Rock, who inherited all He has and whose gratitude, affection and allegiance are always directed to another than Himself. Such a frame of mind is a Rock of offence to the man wishing to build his own tower. He refuses to build on the Rock Christ Jesus and therefore is left to build on the sand.
Satan is a cunning deceiver and knows that a direct opposition to Christ would meet with alarm and concern, so the spirit of Babylon turns the word ‘anti’ into “in place of.” Sitting in the temple of God claiming to be God. Satan develops a Christ that has Life original and unborrowed not in quality and inheritance only, but as source as well. He turns Christ from being the Rock brought forth from the mountain to being the very mountain of God Himself – exactly the thing he desired for himself. Thus Satan turns men towards worshipping a Christ patterned after himself and men flock to worship at the feet of this false Christ, for Christ is a rock of offense to all who would glory in their own wisdom, riches and strength.
Since all of God’s children are meant to be brethren and none of us were intended to think himself better than another, the process of exalting oneself must come at the expense of others. A man must take from another to build his own mountain and so valleys are created.
Instead of drinking from the fountain of the Throne of God via the Tree, they become replenished from the east or Babylon.
“Therefore thou hast forsaken thy people the house of Jacob, because they be replenished from the east, and are soothsayers like the Philistines, and they please themselves in the children of strangers.” Isaiah 2:6
Men in their pursuit of wealth, riches and a name, turn their hearts from their wives and children and focus on their own development. They cease to function as priest and protectors of their home, and children are forced to live in the desert without the protection, love and seed of their father. The life that was meant to be in the tongue turns to the curse of death and the sting of the scorpion.
“Death and life are in the power of the tongue: and they that love it shall eat the fruit thereof.” Proverbs 18:21
Children are forced to grow up in the valleys of depression and worthlessness and are sacrificed in the valley of Hinnom.
“And they have built the high places of Tophet, which is in the valley of the son of Hinnom, to burn their sons and their daughters in the fire; which I commanded them not, neither came it into my heart.” Jeremiah 7:31
The children of such parents drink from a stream that has disconnected itself from the parental authority of the Father and they learn to despise the authority of their parents and go deeper into the valley where the birds of prey circle.
“The eye that mocketh at his father, and despiseth to obey his mother, the ravens of the valley shall pick it out, and the young eagles shall eat it.” Proverbs 30:17
This is the eye that Jesus said that if it offends thee, pluck it out; it is the eye of one that mocks and despises authority and all authority ultimately comes from the Father. Those who reject the Son of God are rejecting His authority and are indeed blind men.
The children of men who seek to climb the mountain Satan has created having lived in the wilderness with the curse of the serpents, often become desperate to escape the valley of depression and become much more determined to ascend into the holy hill and make themselves a name. Such men will stop at nothing to enter a more powerful circle of friends that they might be men of renown.
Such men become rough, crooked and perverse. They adopt the maxim that ‘the end justifies the means’ in their pursuit to reach the top of the mountain, and cry with the king of Babylon – “Is not this great Babylon, that I have built for the house of the kingdom by the might of my power, and for the honour of my majesty?” Daniel 4:30. It is the most desperate men that seek to gain to highest pinnacles of this burnt mountain and this is why God allows the basest of men to rule in this world. This is the mountain that Satan carried Jesus to when he asked Him to bow down and worship him. Matthew 4:8,9
Praise the Lord Jesus that He said, “Get thee hence, Satan: for it is written, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve.” Matthew 4:10
Jesus rejected the mountain of Satan and his lie of the source of life coming from self. He worshipped the Father and acknowledged Him as His God. Jesus wants the Father to be our God. He tells us:
“…for verily I say unto you, If ye have faith as a grain of mustard seed, ye shall say unto this mountain, Remove hence to yonder place; and it shall remove; and nothing shall be impossible unto you.” Matthew 17:20
It is the Faith OF Jesus, the seed, the Word, the Rock that comes into our hearts and removes our mountains.
The Greatest Love Story reaches an effectual moment when the knowledge of the Father and His Son breaks in. It begins in such a precious way I do not believe one can effectively convey it to another; It is a gift that comes from the Father and His Son alone which one has to receive in the heart and experience for themselves.
To see the rock which Peter saw, the foundation of the Body and of all created things; the revelation of the Rock on which the Church is built. To see the Son as He really is, is such a precious thing, an experience so utterly fundamental. This truth in many ways beggars the understanding of the ways of the world.
Seeing this one thing is to see truly. It is to see the beauty of salvation and God’s love for us and all that ails the hearts of men, all they seek to attain to, all they have lost and seek to regain. And also to see through in a simple way all that has become a wrong basis for life on which many have been destroyed.
What more could one possibly ask for? There is much more to discover in the relationship of the Father and His Son and the Fathers love for us. It requires no super intellect and yet the joint heads of the world could never suggest such great wisdom.
“But to the called out ones, both to Jews and to Greeks, Christ is the power of God and the wisdom of God; because the foolish thing of God is wiser than men, and the weak thing of God is stronger than men.” 1st Corinthians 1:24,25
No fame, no greatness, no pride nor prestige, only a truthful and simple yes Lord I believe, reveals a heavenly blessing straight to the soul. No more books to absorb to solve the maladies of men, no intellectual brainstorming, only a heart that He has prepared and made ready for Him alone.
Aligned to His way, the mountains brought low, the valleys levelled, the crooked made straight and the rough roads made smooth for His fountains to flow to an open heart who has been prepared for a better way.
It requires only what the Father has made available even to the simplest of men; no adding nor taking away but taking the Word as it is given. That is the key to break the many lies of the deceiver. It can be hard to accept especially if all we’ve known is how to live in the kingdom of the fatherless.
Prayer and genuine repentance for ourselves and the church collectively are vital for coming into harmony with the truth of our Heavenly Father and His eternal son Jesus. A friend shared something profound, “Israel was only released from Babylon when Daniel began to pray the prayer of repentance for His people as one of them.”
“If My people, which are called by My name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land” (2 Chronicles 7:14). This is true revival and reformation for only then will the Father bless us with a greater outpouring of His indwelling Spirit.
“We have sinned, and have committed iniquity, and have done wickedly, and have rebelled, even by departing from thy precepts and from thy judgments… To the Lord our God belong mercies and forgivenesses, though we have rebelled against him; neither have we obeyed the voice of the LORD our God, to walk in his laws, which he set before us by his servants the prophets. Yea, all Israel have transgressed thy law, even by departing, that they might not obey thy voice; therefore the curse is poured upon us, and the oath that is written in the law of Moses the servant of God, because we have sinned against him.” Daniel 9:5, 9-11
“O my God, incline thine ear, and hear; open thine eyes, and behold our desolations, and the city which is called by thy name: for we do not present our supplications before thee for our righteousnesses, but for thy great mercies. O Lord, hear; O Lord, forgive; O Lord, hearken and do; defer not, for thine own sake, O my God: for thy city and thy people are called by thy name.” Daniel 9:18,19
The results of this kind of prayer are redemptive to the soul for it brings in that which flesh and blood could not reveal, a knowledge of the beloved Son of God.
I have now found the greatest truth. By the grace of our heavenly Father, I have seen His Son, the desire of the ages, whom I truly cannot wait to see face to face. His way is so precious to me and I will never want to forget for He has become the very foundation of my entire life.
And in seeing Him I have seen the Father, His Father and my Father. For in Him I have the pattern, “And because ye are sons, God hath sent forth the Spirit of his Son into your hearts, crying, Abba, Father.” What sweet, comforting and precious words they are to me! They are my very heart's cry; these words hold the very essence of all life, the very fountain from which I live.
To see my Father in heaven as He truly is, to understand Him and receive life from Him is a treasure, but oh to know Him even in a deeper sense; to enter into His way and to flow on with praises to Him. For this O Lord, consume my thoughts and write thine Law within my heart.
Look again at 1st John chapter 2. We only quoted part of verse 23 previously. “Whosoever denieth the Son, the same hath not the Father: [but he that acknowledgeth the Son hath the Father also]. Let that therefore abide in you, which ye have heard from the beginning. If that which ye have heard from the beginning shall remain in you, ye also shall continue in the Son, and in the Father.” 1st John 2:23,24
Continuing on in Chapter 3 verse 1 and 2; “Behold, what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be called the sons of God: therefore the world knoweth us not, because it knew him not. Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is.”
‘We shall see Him as He is”, what a beautiful promise. Hold fast to this Truth and share it with others because the world is dying for lack of a Father.
I long to see true fathers. “That thy Kingdom come” Matthew 6:10, the true kingdom.
Having a true knowledge of Sonship as it is in Christ is the way of life to all created things. It is the key that unlocks all understanding of the Father’s design and relationship to all created things. All consciously and unconsciously look to the Father through the Son, and through the Son to understand their position and relation to our heavenly Father.
With this Truth I am inclined to burst into praise and to say once more with all the saints “Behold, what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be called the sons of God:”
"For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life." John 3:16
Because I know the truth shall my will then be my creed? Will fear hold me fast and never let go? Should pride lift me up, or worthlessness hold me down? Will I hide from my maker, be desolate inside and perish from within? Will hardship turn me back, and sin be a stumbling block? By the grace of God I am redeemed and I have put my hands to the plough. I have received of His joy, His love and His acceptance. Not because I feel it, but because He has said it. No longer trying to prove myself to attain to any righteousness, but in humility looking on to Christ the author and finisher of my faith and my heart. Lock me into Your love alone Father that in You I will remain and through the gift of Your Son I will live.
If you genuinely want to turn your heart to the Fathers please pray this prayer with me.
Our Father who art in Heaven, hollowed be Thy name. Mere words are not adequate enough to express my gratitude for your many gifts. Let me know what it means to draw my daily bread and life from you alone. Consume my mind and will that I might see and be changed by beholding your Son the Everlasting Father. Your Son has become wisdom to me for He is my example as the Way to Your heart. He is the Truth and the Life for You have loved Your Son, in whom You are well pleased that I might live if I look to Him alone. If I confess my sins He is faithful and just to forgive my sins and to cleanse me from all unrighteousness. Because of His forgiveness I can in turn forgive those who sin against me.
Forgive me for my part as a subject in the kingdom of the fatherless. I no longer want to live under that curse. Deliver me from the evil of the serpent’s lie and lead me from the temptation of self-will, self-sufficiency and self-exaltation. Help me to remember You in the law of Moses with the statutes and judgments for You have promised that if I do this I will live in them. Your Son spoke truth when He said, “I can of my own self do nothing.” I am allowing You to write Your law on my heart so that I seek not my own will, but Your will Father.
Thank you for bringing me into Your marvellous light by showing me who You truly are for this is life eternal to know Thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom Thou hast sent. Abide in me by Your Spirit. Let the fountain of living water flow from Your throne, through Your Son into my heart. From there may it swell into a river in your Channel of Blessing so that out of the life Jesus lives in me He will shine and make me a blessing to others for thine is the Kingdom the power and the glory, forever. Amen.
