“For ‘Living‘ is the Word of God, and active, and SHARPER than any two-edged sword,
– … penetrating as far as a division – of soul and of spirit …”
– Hebrews 4:12a
“I was in the Spirit on the Lord’s day,
–And I heard behind me a loud voice, like of a …
–And I turned to see the voice that was speaking with me.
–And having turned I saw … one like a son of man …
–His voice, like the sound of many waters …
– … and out of His mouth came a sharp TWO-EDGED
– Sword“
– excrpt frm Revelation 1:10-16b (NASB)
– “a sword, a sword sharpened“
– “And the word of the LORD came to me saying,
– “As for you, son of man, make TWO WAYS for the sword…” “
– excrpt frm Ezekiel 21;9a, 18-19 (NASB)
– Many of us are familiar that Paul the apostle’s original Hebrew name was Saul (Acts 26:14). We often think and believe he got his name change when he believed into Jesus.
– Paul’s name change, the kairos moment in which it is announced in the book of Acts, is so strategic, yet did not occur until years after he had received salvation. The occasion takes place in an “in your face” confrontation with a false prophet in order to cut off the latter’s diabolical scheme to keep a Proconsul, a Roman leader, from believing the Good News being proclaimed by Paul and Barnabas.
“But Elymas the magician … was opposing them,
–seeking to turn the proconsul away from the faith.
–But Saul, who was also known as Paul, [having just
-been] filled with the Holy Spirit, fixed his gaze upon
–him, and said, “You who are full of all deceit and
–fraud, you son of the devil (lit, “devil’s son“), you
–enemy of all righteousness, will you not cease
–to make crooked the straight ways of the Lord?
–And now, behold, the hand of the Lord is upon
–you, and you will be blind and not see the sun for
–a time.” (lit. “a Kairos season.”)
–And immediately a mist and a darkness fell upon
–him, …
–Then the proconsul believed when he saw what
–happened, being amazed AT THE TEACHING
–of the Lord.“
– excrpt frm Acts 13:8-12 (NASB)
– The bold authoritative force of this encounter, what Holy Spirit blatantly does through this new apostle of the Lord Jesus, unveils Almighty God’s ardent intent to, wherever necessary, confront and, with resolute vehemence, boot out the stripped ruler and rule of the kingdom of darkness from off of people’s lives, even from off of regions (see the incident of the Gadarene demoniac whom Jesus set free – Mat. 8, Lk 8) and/or leaders, where a harvest of people unto the Kingdom of the Son of His Love can come to be, so that precious souls can come into the liberty and freedom of God’s awesome goodness through the message of the cross of Christ.
– Father God is bringing us into a kairos season where His people must step into the inheritance of Christ Jesus’s Authority (Lk 10:19; Rom. 5:17b; Eph. 1:22-23; I Pet. 3:22).
– If you have been following last year’s “Unveiling Holy Spirit” series, especially the “Unveiling the Fire part of Baptism By Christ Jesus of Us in Holy Spirit”, as well as the previous year’s series on “Hearing the Blood that Speaks”, you understand how Jesus clothing us with this Power of the breath of the Throne of heaven, from of the Voice of His Blood on the Judgment/Mercy Seat – the very testimony of God’s Holy Spirit from the victory of Jesus’s Resurrection AND ascension – that this baptism of us in Holy Spirit IS the authoritative force of this mantel.
– Stepping into this inheritance of Christ Jesus’s Authority is going to be, for many, a (major) paradigm shift towards actively believing this and therefore taking grasp of this Stewardship entrustment that IS being Graced us by God.
– This is a Kingdom dominion believing, even a spiritual understanding and mindset that realizes Holy Spirit in US is deliberately going to get into the fray – through us, through you and I, Christ’s present body on earth – of designated confrontation with the kingdom of darkness (as He willfully intentionally did when He first drove Jesus into the wilderness to face satan himself after Jesus was baptized by God His Father in Holy Spirit – Mk. 1:9-13a).
– This is going to be a baptism (a supernatural washing & regeneration) by Holy Spirit into the spirit of Caleb bold believing in the face of any sized giant. For it will be rooted and grounded in the confidence in the blood of a Lamb that stripped the pharaoh of this age of his power from holding us in a slavery to always missing the mark of the glory of God ( … it will be a spiritual foundation shift – for the believer specifically – from a Romans 3:23 mentality of oneself onto the solid rock faith confidence of Romans 5:2b; also Rom. 6:6-7, 14).
“For this reason the Son of God was revealed,
–so that He might destroy the works of the devil.“
– I John 3:8b (Berean Lit. Bible)
– God’s Holy Spirit is going to do this in order to purposely, and overtly where need be, dispossess strongholds and principalities; (Deut. 11:23-24a; Rom. 15:4; Eph. 6:12). (Link back to this Kairos which explains the boldness of Holy Spirit pertaining to this issue). The result of these intentional confrontations will manifest the Grace-truth of the ripped-open veil of heaven between this Awesome, Holy, non-finger-pointing God and sinners (lost sons & daughters of a Loving, Heavenly Father), that which materialized as a fact to mankind from the unseen spirit realm into view of natural eyes with Jesus’s last breath from the cross.
– Holy Spirit, I believe, is going to actively increase this eternal purpose; for this is towards both expanding and escalating intentionally through the church [- the Bride of Christ – her beauty, the church’s glory, is linked to her Lord’s Royalty, which is the resurrected, ascended, throne-seated King Jesus’s authority from ALL-Mighty God from heaven’s throne] the glory due Christ Jesus, God’s Son, because of His Sacrifice, where the full light reality of this free/Grace-gifted ripped veil access unto Holy God is seen over whole regions and nations by those presently blinded by the god of this age, so that the light of the gospel, this GOOD News, is unveiled to the eyes of their hearts.
“And they shall not teach everyone his fellow
–citizen and everyone his brother, saying,
“know (experientially) the Lord,”
–for ALL shall know (by recognition) Me,
–from the least to the greatest of them.”
(how can this be?)
“For I will be Merciful to their iniquities,
–And I will remember their sins NO MORE.” !!!!
– Hebrews 8:11-12 (NASB)
– (If you can hear, then hear; the above incredibly bold decree of these Scripture verses through Holy Spirit IS a present prophetic word…the last statement, v12, is going to shock many believers as God causes this to become reality, & it will set whole nations to tears at such incredible kindness from Holy God Whom they always only saw as ready to judge them – see Rev. 1:7)
————————————————-
– This Kairos is not so much a word of Divine judgment unto people, rather a proclamation, a decree, that the Earth is going to see manifest Judicial decisions being actively carried out, being exercised, as a judgment from Heaven’s THRONE against the kingdom of darkness (Daniel 7:21-22; Ps. 37; & esp. Esther 8). It is a word that God, our Father, wants us aware, AND ACCORDINGLY WANTS US TO PARTICIPATE – by the Spirit of Christ Jesus and God’s Holy Spirit (as ONE -Jhn. 15:23b) in us – with His intentional, even overt, exercise of this judicial action against any rule and ruler of darkness, that which has illegally possessed tribes and tongues and peoples and nations for way too long, in order that the proclamation of the gospel might go forth unhindered and in full light (ref. Josh 10, esp. vs 24-25).
– Yes, this Judicial judgment carried out will fall upon those who choose to stay under the love of darkness, though God’s intent has never been for this judgment to befall mankind for whom Jesus died (Ez. 33:11; 2 Pet. 3:9; Acts 12:1-24; Mat. 25:41; Jhn. 3:36b; I Tim. 1:20). We are not fighting flesh and blood. (I do not see precedent in the New Covenant Scriptures for praying for judgment upon even the wicked, rather a cry to God for His justice, giving Him the place to have His judgment touch flesh and blood, if need be – Acts 4:23-31; 12:20-23).
– Vengeance belongs to Him alone, not us (Rom. 12:17-21). Even so, there will still be strong decrees from God’s people, as we see by Holy Spirit through this Saul/Paul in Acts 13, which will give place to the severity of God, still in kindness ( Holy Spirit did not take this Elymas’s life, only his sight for a season), to touch flesh and blood, in order to make known, with boldness, the Truth of the reality of ALL-Mighty God Most High to any who would mock, especially in blatant hindrance, the entrance of the gospel proclaimed.
“…the Ancient of Days came, and judgment was passed
IN FAVOR OF THE SAINTS of the Highest One,
AND THE TIME ARRIVED WHEN THE SAINTS TOOK
POSSESSION OF THE KINGDOM.
Then the sovereignty [kingdom], and the greatness of all
the kingdoms under the whole heaven will be given
to the people of the saints of the Highest One;
His kingdom will be an everlasting kingdom,
and all the dominions will serve and obey Him.”
– Daniel 7:22, 27 (NASB)
– The conviction of judgment is not for the purpose of people knowing they’re going into eternal damnation, rather that they might know that the king of darkness and all his angels are already under an eternal judgment, and that people don’t have to stay under an already condemned kingdom, that there is a deliverance unto a Kingdom of Light and freedom. The warning is true. But the option to be transferred is glorious.
– The conviction of Holy Spirit through believers to the world comes differently to every soul, even as we see through the life of Jesus in the gospels. To one it is a warning, to another the conviction to this truth comes through the kindness of God expressed – through a miracle, a healing, a demon cast out. The evidence of Holy Spirit expressed through us, in such open dispossession of satan’s hold of people’s lives, indeed brings that conviction of truth that the ruler of this world has been judged.
“For God did not send the Son into the world to
–judge the world, but that the world should be saved
–through Him. He who believes in[to] Him is not
– judged; he who does not believe has been judged
–already, because he has not believed in[to] the name
–of the only begotten Son of God. And this is the
– judgment, that the light is come into the world,
–and men loved the darkness rather than the light;
–for their deeds were evil. For everyone who does
–evil hates the light, and does not come to the light,
–lest his deeds should be exposed.”
– John 3:17-20 (NASB)
“And I will ask the Father, and He will give you another
–Helper, that He may be with you forever; (that is) the
–Spirit of truth, …”
“… the Helper … I will send Him to YOU.
– And He, when He comes (to YOU), will convict
–THE WORLD concerning … judgment;
– … concerning judgment, because the ruler of this world
– HAS BEEN JUDGED.”
– John 14:16-17a, 16:7b, 8b, 11 (NASB)
– Father is after us giving ourselves wholly to His Holy Spirit in us, through Jesus’s life – Jesus’s very faith – living and growing boldly through us, no matter what our natural disposition. (See the lit. of Mark 11:24 – “have God’s faith” ; Galatians 2:20 – “the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith OF the Son of God“. Ref. also Eph. 1:17, 19-23; 3:14-18).
– Father, Almighty God our God, wills and, I believe, adamantly wants that the conviction of this truth – that the ruler of this world, of this age, has been judged – be made known in the earth.
– He WILL do this through the saints, no matter how bold or how timid. This is a kingdom mandate towards expressing and enforcing the stalwart (fearlessly bold) judicial Lordship of Christ Jesus, the Man, THROUGH HIS BODY STILL ON EARTH, the Eklessia – (oh that we would learn, & accordingly grasp and take hold of what this word so utterly denotes from its Greek practice in the natural realm) – that He has indeed stripped satan & his horde from the cross, and was resurrected and was seated on the Throne of all thrones to take dominion (Col. 2:15; I Cor. 2:7-8; Rev. 11:15b & 12:10a;).
“but He, having offered one sacrifice for sins for all time,
–SAT DOWN AT THE RIGHT HAND OF GOD,
–WAITING from that time onward UNTIL HIS ENEMIES
–BE MADE A FOOTSTOOL FOR HIS FEET.”
– Hebrews 10:12-13 (NASB)
“For this reason I … do not cease … making mention of
–you in my prayers; that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ,
–the Father of glory, may give to you a spirit of wisdom
–and of revelation in the [true] knowledge of Him
–[Lit. “in His true/detailed knowledge / that true
–knowledge that is God’s”] ... the eyes of your heart being
–enlightened, SO THAT YOU MAY KNOW …
–the surpassing greatness of His power towards those
–believing, in accordance with the working of the
–dominionative-might of His forceful-strength,
–which He brought about in Christ when He raised Him
–from the dead and seated Him at His right hand …
–far above all rule and authority and power and dominion
–and every name named, …
–And ALL things He placed-under UNDER His feet, and
– gave Him as head OVER ALL things TO THE CHURCH …”
– Ephesians. 1:15-22
– Paul’s prayer IS the will of God for us, Beloved, that we actually receive a spirit of wisdom and revelation of this express Lordship of Jesus towards us OVER ALL principality and authority and power, that our LORD Jesus really, in practical truth, is actually given to us as Lord over all things. God, our Father, really, REALLY wants us to take advantage of this gift of Jesus’s headship …
Let it be stated again:
– God, our Father, really, REALLY wants us to take advantage of this gift of Jesus’s headship …
– … because that dominionative might of the forceful-strength of the power of the resurrection, of His Resurrection, becomes ours in Christ Jesus.
…
– … and all hell is scared to death that we might actually believe and walk in this Truth!!!
————————————————-
The Joshua Mandate – The Cornerstone to
– The “Paul” Anointing
“Every place on which the sole of your foot treads,
– I have given it to you, …
—No man will be able to stand before you (Heb. txt carries this weight; “there is not a man (giving himself to) standing before you”) all the days of your life.
–Just as I have been with Moses,
– I will be with you [Lit. Heb. “I Am with you”];
– I will not fail you or forsake you.
– Be strong and courageous,
– for YOU shall give this people possession of the land
– which I swore to their fathers to give them.”
– Joshua 1:3, 5, 6 (NASB)
– The YHVH mandate to Jesus, Christ Jesus our Lord, from Joshua 1:2-9, is very much right now upon the body of Christ upon the earth (Lk. 10:19; Mk. 1:17, 21-26, Jhn. 14:12-14).
– Those words of the LORD through those verses were very specifically to Joshua, yet the benefits of inheritance possessed are worded in the Hebrew text to the entire nation as one man (i.e. the Hebrew text of v3 states, “Every place on which the sole of y’all’s {plural} foot {singular –“foot”, not “feet”} treads, I have given it to y’all”). For it was to be a mandate to Jesus very specifically, for Him to wholly keep and follow the entire Law (Mat. 5:17), in order that the fulfilled requirements and consequential blessings of possessed inheritance, might be, through Him, OURS (Josh. 1:6; Rom 8:3-4; 16-17a; et al).
– Consequentially, though, they are to still be the mandate of Christ Jesus presently on earth – His body, we who are the ekklesia church – through us, (that is, the active taking possession of promised inheritance as a result of the finished work of the cross – (Heb. 4, esp. V1)), yes, for the benefit of the Church, of each other in Christ; yet this is also for the world, that they might taste and see how good is God through the Gospel believed (Ps. 34:8; Rom. 2:4b), that they might know what is righteousness’s inheritance laid up for them because of Jesus’s death for them and as them.
. We, therefore, have got to take this mandate to heart, Beloved, of stepping into the Grace-gifted Authority of our Lord, King Jesus, again, no matter our disposition in the natural.
– Joshua’s mandate to keep the word before his eyes, to meditate in (mutter) it day and night (vs7-8) was because God the LORD had set apart him specifically, in order to cause the people to inherit his promise … they were literally going to walk in his, Joshua’s, footsteps, so that, as every place on which the sole of his foot touched was given to him, every place on which the sole of their feet touched would accordingly become theirs. They would therefore realize that his keeping the law and consequently receiving every inherited blessing became as though they had kept every word of God which thus accorded them his every inherited blessing (Josh. 1:5-6; Mat. 5:17; Rom.8:4, 16-17a; Eph. 1:3).
– But now that Christ Jesus is in us and we in Him, that Joshua/Jesus mandate, not having whatsoever dissipated, rests upon us for the benefit of others.
– This is going to require of us, then, that we let Holy Spirit, through the Grace of His Word, cut off and eliminate from us any hindrances towards augmenting in our faith growth, that is, in believing God our Father outright! … (selah) … even as a little child simply believes his/her father outright. (II Tim. 2 will become, for many, Holy Spirit’s Hebrews 4:12 Sword of Grace working towards attaining this, esp. v4. He that has ears to hear, let him hear. There will be some criticism from some fellow believers for this pursuit – II Tim. 3:12 ).
– This, therefore, comes to be in each one of us in our private time with Him in His word, in His presence, with incredible outpouring by Holy Spirit, of Grace from the victory of the finished work of Jesus’s cross. Yet remember; this is, and always is, ““Not by might, nor by power, but by My Spirit” says the LORD“ – (Zech. 4:6b).
– He will do this transformation by His power – by Holy Spirit – if we will give ourselves to Him to do this, to believe and go after believing His word outright concerning Who we are in Christ Jesus our Savior. You must understand that this has everything to do with God our Father’s purposed intentionality to mantel the church, the Bride of Christ, with her Lord’s authoritative voice, that the “Paul” anointing, the rhema/Living-Word of Christ Jesus, be the necessary Sword of the Spirit with power, towards cutting off anything of the kingdom of darkness’s overt hindrance of the gospel being proclaimed in full light.
– Please hear me, Beloved: Jesus is waiting on His Throne, as it were, for His bride to come into the Throne room to gain justice for peoples, as in the story of Esther before her husband, the then mightiest king in the world (Esth. 4:13-14; 5:1-3, et al).
– The picture I see is that of King Jesus wanting to take her by the hand, sit her down beside Him on His throne (Eph. 2:6; Col.3:1) and request of her her heart … which is for justice from the Haman of this age to be carried out, to be exercised, towards redeeming … multitudes (Esth. 7; 8:17-2nd last statement; Rev.5:9b, 7:9).
– But she’s going to have to enter that “terrifying” Throne room of the King’s justice – where justice & judgement ARE decreed – dressed in the Royalty that was already His gift to her in His choosing her. Please hear, Beloved: she cannot approach in the trepidation clothing of a beggar, rather as a redeemed queen (Heb. 3:14; 4:16: 10:22, 35, 39; et al). Are you listening?
“For God did NOT give to us a spirit of dread-fear;
rather, (He gave to us a Spirit) of power and of
love and of wise-discretion/of sound-reasoning.”
– 2 Timothy 1:7
– God expects faith from us towards Him. He has the right to expect a return, as it were, of His investment (Is. 55:10-11; Num. 14:11; Lk.13:6-9). Yet we must realize and know that His investment – of the sacrifice of His Son – was not merely towards our receiving eternal life “after this life”; God has given to us exceedingly out of His Son’s sacrifice by giving us the very Spirit of Jesus. Why? In order that we might live here by the faith OF Jesus through Jesus living His life through us.
– The resurrection breath of Jesus (Jhn. 20:21-22; Rom.8:11, 15) is that Grace-gift from God of the Spirit of Jesus, His Son (& therefore His sonship, everything accorded Him by rightful / legal inheritance – Heb. 1;1b-2a; Rom. 8:17a) allowing us, by this power now working in us, to live by the faith OF Jesus … before God, open-faced, unhindered, as though we are Jesus Himself requesting of GOD the Father from His mighty power … ( selah … Let that sink into your heart and mind for a moment … ).
– Moreover, Jesus’s baptism of us in God’s Holy Spirit, this dunking / clothing of us in power, is, as it were, the double portion of Holy Spirit into and onto us, so that the life of Jesus and God are one in us (Jhn. 14:10-23; 17:20-23), such incredible Grace-gifting of the power and authority of Who He is, this Mighty “I Am”, even as He’d declared to Joshua (Josh. 1:5, 9).
– It is in this clothing, Beloved, that the uncanny bold fearlessness of Holy Spirit can, in that intentional purpose of God to throw satan under Jesus’s feet, fill us, to suddenly being that intrepid, undaunted ‘Paul’, that stalwart Caleb spirit, which confronts and cuts off immediately the kingdom of darkness’s voice, power, influence. For this is Holy Spirit’s boldness, Jesus’s very faith through us, the sword, as it were, of the Fullness of Grace & Truth, capturing the attention of the soul(s) who will believe the Good News through such teaching, as did the Roman proconsul, in Acts 13:12. (Ref. Josh. 14:6-15; Josh. 10-11; Mk. 1:27).
– The Gracing, through the power of Holy Spirit, to “be strong and courageous” unto a faith confidence to “cause to inherit”, comes through the obedience of heart to “meditate day and night” in God’s word, towards letting Holy Spirit through the Word unveil Jesus and the finished work of His cross in having stripped the kingdom of darkness, in making known to us the authority and power of Jesus’s righteousness and Holiness, which is our clothing as sons and daughters of Almighty God, joint-heirs (as a Bride – the church) to the King of kings.
– Look back at the Acts 13 encounter; Luke writes, “But Saul, who was also known as Paul, [having just been} filled with the Holy Spirit,”.
. Do you see how bold is the Authority of Holy Spirit IN Paul?
– We have the SAME Holy Spirit!
– satan may not recognize Holy Spirit in us; I do not believe he’d recognized Holy Spirit in Jesus out in the wilderness. Our Lord, King Jesus, knows, God, our Almighty God, Who is adamant intent on throwing ALL the enemies of Jesus under Jesus’s feet, (that is, under our feet), knows this, and knows when to fill us in that Holy confrontation moment, exactly as he did Saul, who was also known as Paul. (His name change will be discussed shortly).
– As was written in the Kairos The Kingdom Force of Holy Spirit Baptism, “There is an uncanny, COMPLETELY unfearful boldness of Holy Spirit in the face of satan and every manifestation, deception, or lie from his nature and kingdom.” This “unveils this confrontative boldness in the face of darkness – with intent to dispossess – in order to take over, towards setting up Kingdom dominion.” This truth must take root in who we are as Redeemed sons & daughters of God.
– We have to take whatever fears, whatever causes dread-fear – where we would fall down in shaking submitting to overwhelming dread – and bring this to our Awesome God Who is Abba Father to us, and take His word, and before Him let our hearts and our lips voice this truth above penned by Paul to Timothy (II Tim. 1:7; ref. also Isaiah 51;12-16) through Holy Spirit in him.
– Do not be pressured by time to try to be changed, precious one. This is not at all about becoming a super-saint. However long it takes, just take whatever daily time you can with Father till you know the foundation under you is your solid rock Jesus. It is about going after all that Jesus’s sacrifice purchased for us and to be through us unto others, that we make it our heart’s desire and pursuit through Holy Spirit’s help (remember that Jesus calls Him our “Helper” from the Father) to not come short of a remaining promise of God’s goodness unto us through the Cross (Heb. 4:1ff).
– There really is a Grace impartation from God, our Heavenly Father, Beloved, through the Spirit of Christ Jesus in us, towards transforming the most timid of us into the bold, single-faith-focused, spirit of Caleb, that sees every giant as “bread for eating” (Num. 14:24; Zech. 12:8; Josh. 23:10).
– Go back, if it will help, and read the Kairos “The Kingdom Force of Holy Spirit Baptism”. (You can click the title to go there immediately. Please take the liberty to print it if it will be easier for your study). Learn this Awesome Holy Spirit in us from our God.
– So then, let’s lay a foundation for understanding “The Sword of Grace” and let’s look at this very kairos/strategic name change of Saul to Paul. The revelation of the Sword of Grace, I believe, is revealed from here, and will continue through this apostle’s entire ministry as a bond servant of Christ Jesus, for the sake of a redeemed Bride learning what her redemption utterly means into the liberty of the royal authority of Her Lord, her King, her Redeemer-Groom.
——————————————————–
Unveiling Grace’s Sword,
– and The “Paul” Anointing
“In the beginning was the Word
–And the Word was with God,
–And ‘God’ was the Word”
–And the Word became flesh
–And tabernacled among us.
–And we beheld the glory of Him,
–(a) glory as of an only Begotten from Father, FULL – – of Grace and of Truth.”
– John 1:1, 14 –(last line of v1 in exact Grk wrd order-
– it shows Holy Spirit emphasis)
– John’s introduction to us of Jesus unveils the purpose of ‘God’ in revealing HIMSELF – the exact truth of Who He is – through His word become flesh and blood, in the person of His Son, Jesus Christ, that is FULL – of Grace and of Truth – [as one complete whole].
– While it is that we read that Jesus is “full of GRACE and of truth”, as you continue through John’s gospel, you see fairly quickly the severity of God through Jesus, which seemingly makes it appear contradictory as to what we think and believe is “Grace”.
“And the Passover of the Jews was at hand, and Jesus
–went up to Jerusalem. And He found in the temple
–those who were selling oxen and sheep and doves,
–and the moneychangers seated.
–And He made a scourge of cords, and [He-]drove them all
–out of the temple, with the sheep and the oxen;
–and He poured out the coins of the moneychangers,
–and [He-]overturned their tables;
–and to those who were selling the doves He said,
–“Take these things away; stop making My Father’s
–house a house of merchandise.”
–His disciples remembered that it was written,
–“ZEAL FOR THY HOUSE WILL CONSUME ME.””
– John 2:13-17 (NASB)
– You find these confrontations continually through John’s gospel, revealing the sword that is in God’s Grace and Truth. For it stems from a zeal that is in God the Father in the exact-image-of-Him Son, in order to set man free from every subtle deceit of the tree of the knowledge of good and of evil – most especially against a form of religion which, in truth, holds people under the bondage of legalism (to the Mosaic Law) that makes ‘God’ (the Father) look both harsh and unreachable – as well as to set at liberty, entirely, from all that is the clutch of sin and of the kingdom of darkness.
– Any wrong motive, any grip of satan upon one’s body, anything that hindered the free gift of Grace to set man free, including Pharisaical hypocrisy, Jesus confronted boldly.
– The incident of the man with the withered hand whom Jesus healed on a Sabbath day, in Mark 3:5, bears witness before us of Jesus’s (God’s) anger at any hindrance towards receiving the free gift of His kindness in physical healing, in setting utterly free; (This Mark 3:5 account is the one time in all the gospels where He healed somebody “with anger” in His Spirit – at the religious leader who loved the Law more than God’s sheep).
– But this “Sword”, of this One Who was given to us as “FULL – of Grace and of Truth“, was prophesied as part of the very first prophetic word over Jesus shortly after His birth.
“And behold, there was a man in Jerusalem whose
name was Simeon; and this man was righteous and
devout, looking for the consolation of Israel; and the
Holy Spirit was upon him. And he came in the Spirit
into the temple; and when the parents brought in the
child Jesus, to carry out for Him the custom of the
Law, then he took Him into his arms, and blessed
God, and said ” … my eyes have seen Thy
salvation, which Thou hast prepared in the presence
of all peoples, A LIGHT OF REVELATION TO THE
GENTILES, And the glory of Thy people Israel.”
And Simeon blessed them, and said to Mary His
mother, “Behold, this Child is appointed for the fall
and rise of many in Israel, and for a sign to be
opposed— and a sword will pierce even your own
soul—to the end that thoughts from many hearts may
be revealed.“”
– Luke 2:25,27-28, 30-32, 34-35 (NASB)
Do you see Simeon’s decree over Jesus as a part of Jesus’s purpose?
and a sword will pierce … —to the end that
thoughts from many hearts may be revealed.”
– This is exactly what the writer of Hebrews declared of God’s word, God’s John 1:1 “Logos”, as we saw in the opening passages of this Kairos.
“For ‘Living’ is the Word of God, and active, and SHARPER than any two-edged sword,
– … penetrating as far as a division – of soul and of spirit …”
– Hebrews 4:12a
– This severity of the Sword of this One given to us as “FULL – of Grace and of Truth” was made starkly evident in Jesus’s words to the religious leaders in Matthew 23:13-39, unveiling the Truth of God’s purpose in His unmerited Grace towards mankind, to free them from bondage to religion unto an open-faced/without-fear relationship with Him as God; (see Zacharias’s words in Lk. 1:71-79).
“Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites,
–because you travel about on sea and land to make
–one proselyte (convert); and when he becomes one
–you make him twice as much a son of hell as
–yourselves.”
– Matthew 23:15 (NASB)
– Paul would write of this seeming dichotomy of Grace years later, in Romans 11:22a:
“Behold then the kindness and severity of God;”
– (NASB)
– This can be difficult to understand (and almost hard to swallow) when your foundation in Grace has unveiled the immensity of God’s kindness to you through the Cross.
“Or do you think lightly of the riches of His
–kindness and forbearance and patience,
–not knowing that the kindness of God
–leads you to repentance?”
– Romans 2:4 (NASB)
“The Lord is not slow about His promise, as
–some count slowness, but is patient toward you,
–not wishing for any to perish, but for ALL
–to come to repentance.”
– 2 Peter 3:9 (NASB)
– When that stark, distinct line in the sand, which so completely separates Law from Grace, has been laid in your heart and mind, this aspect of the Sword (God’s manifest judicial decision in expressed judgment though the truth of the finished work of the cross, I.e. as seen in the Acts 13 Saul/Paul incident, and what took place with Herod in Acts 12:1-23) in Grace can be easily misunderstood.
– God WILL hold accountable to the Law those who hold others to that standard; He WILL allow the Law the judge those who use it as a standard against anyone, if they choose to esteem little, or not at all, True Grace’s – by faith – working. (Matt 7:1-5, esp. v 2; Jhn. 5:45; Rom. 2:12b, ff).
– Likewise, (and it is this I believe that Holy Spirit is expressly indicating through this Kairos), He will also cut off the kingdom of darkness’s stranglehold from those who’s heart’s search for openness for truth, who’s heart’s cry for freedom, rises up to God the Father for heaven’s answer. The account of a deaf man, who also couldn’t talk but with difficultly, caused Almighty God to have His Son journey, from Tyre in Northwestern Israel, in an east-southeasterly direction, across the width of the country and across the sea of Galilee, just to set this one single man free from the devil’s oppression of him. (Mk.7:24-37; (Acts 10:38)).
. What you find in this is that earlier, in Mark 5:1-20, Jesus had set one man free from a terrorizing set of demons in him, which had brought violent terror on that region of the sea of Galilee; but at the end of that account you see the people of that region pleading with Jesus to leave. Even so, the power & influence of the goodness of God in cutting off hell’s grip from off of that one single man, which also set an entire region free from the immensity of fear wrought through the demons that had been in him, eventually brought about a hunger for God’s Kingdom power and goodness to return to them … and God the Father saw this.
– It is here that the evidence – the fruit of the sword of Grace’s working – of the kingdom of darkness’s severing from off of certain lives, actually results in the Dominion of Jesus’s Lordship being welcomed.
– Accordingly we see why Father God is adamant concerning throwing the enemies of Jesus under the feet of His body … on earth as in heaven!
– This is where the revelation from the Greek text of Acts 13:9-10 gives us that “epiginosko” understanding as to why Holy Spirit unveils the name change from a Saul to a Paul pertaining to the direct confrontation with Elymas and the rule of darkness in which the latter was operating.
– I saw this many years ago from Strong’s concordance, yet never had a breakdown from the Greek, from Strong, as to why his concordance was declaring what was written, until this writing.
– This new apostle of the Lord Jesus was “Saul”. It is a Hebrew name. The name change is literally, in the Greek and in English, a one letter change; yet it indicates a language change, and accordingly, a definition change.
– “Paul” is a Latin name. However, the New Testament was written in Greek, not Latin. And it is from the Greek text, through Paul’s decree against Elymas, that Holy Spirit’s intention, through this apostle who will unveil and expound through his epistle’s to the churches what is Grace, what is Grace’s working & accomplishment in the lives of believers through the finished work of the Cross of Christ Jesus, is mage known to us.
– Paul would pay with his life for this single, Caleb-spirit, boldness, which manifests in Holy Spirit’s Greek definition’s purpose through this name change, towards adamantly holding fast to Grace’s working, and not allowing mixture, nor demonic grip, to maintain any “right” in what Grace does to set at liberty.
– The intent of YHVH, of Almighty God, in the purpose of “Jesus”, His Son, His Son’s Name, to glorify Jesus so utterly, concisely, and completely, is the reason for the “sharper than any two edged sword” aspect that IS a part of manifesting through Jesus’s body on earth the judicial righteousness of Grace as a reality, His Kingdom’s increase and rule across the earth (Is. 9:6-7; et al).
– It is from this point on, from this Holy Spirit confrontation with Elymas, that Saul will hardly ever again, to this day, be known by his birth name. He will rather be known by this new name unveiled to us through the action of the Sword of the Spirit – “Paul”.
– Let’s look momentarily only at the Latin definition; for in this nugget is a precious leadership stewardship gem, and instruction for any who are, or would desire to be, leaders within the ekklesia/church that is Christ’s body on earth.
– The Latin root of “Paul” means, “little/few”. Paul was never about himself, but about making Jesus known to as many people as possible, towards unveiling, explaining, laboring diligently for the work of true “righteousness of God” by-faith grace transformation into the image of Jesus, from out of the “Adamic” nature, through being born again AND growing up in Christ. He was never about believers idolizing him or setting him up on a box (I Cor. 1:11-13; 2:1-5). Any imitation of his faith was for the sole purpose of manifesting the person and Spirit of Jesus in the growth of every single convert / believer into Jesus (Acts 14:8-18, esp. v15; 1 Cor. 3:3-7; 9:14-18).
– Paul’s intent to stay true to this mission and stewardship is made clear to us through one single, yet powerful statement.
“for I betrothed you to ONE husband, that
– to CHRIST I might present you as a pure virgin.”
– II Corinthians 11:2b (NASB)
– Paul’s name, however, has an amazing Greek root, and it is expressed through his decree against Elymas. The Greek word will be set by his name and by the clue word. Look again at the Acts 13:9-10 passage:
“But Saul, who was also known as Paul {Παῦλος–Paulos}
–[having just been} filled with the Holy Spirit, fixed his gaze
–upon him, and said, “You who are full of all deceit and
–fraud, you son of the devil, you enemy of all
–righteousness, will you not CEASE {παύσῃ–pause}
–to make crooked the straight ways of the Lord?”
– The Greek root “pau” is in Paul’s name, derived from the verb, “παύω–pauo“. Here is the definition, both from Strong’s Concordance and from Biblehub.com:
“from Homer down; to make to cease or desist: τί or τινα ἀπότίνος, to restrain (A. V. refrain) a thing or a person from something, “
Two very distinct judicial actions are going to start occuring, I believe beginning immediately; and they will not take place in secret, that is, out of view of the public, or without the church beginning to see this openly and increasingly, not only in this nation, but wherever the cry of believers has risen, in all the nations where they are, and especially from private places of the heart, even in gatherings not done in “YouTube’s” eyes – [pls. see Matthew 6:5-6]. (To whomever this comes as “conviction”, do not receive this statement as condemnation, rather as precious instruction from Holy Spirit, from Father God – Heb. 12:5-13).
– Look back at the opening passages, especially the words of Ezekiel. I do not believe Holy Spirit through the Word uses “Two” indiscriminately in the number of times “sword” is referring to the Lord’s action pertaining to His involvement in the affairs of His people.
“a sword, a sword sharpened”
– “And the word of the LORD came to me saying,
– “As for you, son of man, make TWO WAYS for the sword…” “
– excrpt frm Ezekiel 21;9a, 18-19 (NASB)
“And I turned to see the voice that was speaking with me.
–And having turned I saw … one like a son of man …
–His voice, like the sound of many waters …
– … and out of His mouth came a sharp TWO–EDGED Sword“
– excrpt frm Revelation 1:10-16b (NASB)
– I believe these two things, the “TWO ways for the sword”, will occur simultaneously. This roots from out of Daniel’s vision in Daniel 7:22.
“…the Ancient of Days came, and judgment was passed
– IN FAVOR OF THE SAINTS of the Highest One,”
– (NASB)
As was stated early on, Father God is adamant about seeing that Holy Spirit conviction of the truth – that the ruler of this world, of this age, has been judged – be made known in the earth, and that He WILL do this through the saints. I believe we are going to witness, openly, an acceleration of God, by His Holy Spirit, many times through the saints in dispossessing the kingdom of darkness’s grip – from off of individuals, from off of communities, yet also a number of times sovereignly, apart from the saints, to the point of affecting regions in the sudden exposure of lawlessness. This will open up the free flow of the proclamation, with power, of the gospel of Jesus, where individuals to whole areas that were seemingly closed or indifferent to the gospel will suddenly be hungry to receive the Good News. The Acts 13 Saul to Paul account will begin happening increasingly.
– Give place, therefore, and allow Holy Spirit to breathe and fill you in that Saul-to-Paul suddenly moment. Give Holy Spirit your willing heart and breath to work through you according to His will … because it will be an anointing for which many of you have been asking pertaining to seeing people come to faith in Jesus through you. It will be a Joshua 1:6 revelation to you that Christ Jesus through you has anointed you to “cause to inherit”. (I believe when some of you realize this goodness of God through you, you will start weeping, realizing what God Himself is working through you).
– I believe this ties, in part, to the Holy Spirit grace-gift of faith – I Cor. 12:9a. A number of you are going to have let Jesus baptize you in Holy Spirit, who have before been taught this is no longer a grace truth of today. (Go through the “Unveiling Holy Spirit” series of the last two years for a Biblical foundation and assurance that this indeed has not faded or been removed from the body of Christ).
– There are going to be confrontations which will actually be instigated by the kingdom of darkness. Watch Holy Spirit fill you with boldness; the Sword, of which you read from John’s vision of Jesus in Revelation 1, will become the Sword of His words through your lips, because Holy Spirit in you is not at all intimidated by any face of the kingdom of darkness. Holy Spirit’s will is Father God’s heart towards boldly dispossessing darkness’s hold, towards setting precious souls free into the liberty (and dominion) of Christ Jesus.
– As I was asking Father and praying in the Spirit as to this final part, looking carefully at Paul’s words to Elymas from the Greek text, one of the words referenced over to Acts 18:12-16, and Holy Spirit spoke through this account causing me to begin to weep. The second thing that is going to happen is that judicial decisions from this world’s judges are going to fall IN FAVOR OF THE SAINTS OF THE HIGHEST ONE! Cases that are, or have been, set against believers, because the enemy, satan, just hates them and wants to steal, wreak havoc, bring trouble, are going to suddenly be turned against those who unrighteously brought accusations. I believe this is going to happen, not only at an individual level, but at levels that affect believers in numbers, even towards communities and regions and nations, where the shower of the goodness of the Only God through the gospel, has overtly and intentionally been hindered by those who are in league, knowingly OR unwittingly, with the kingdom of darkness.
– The grey areas that brought confusion will be sliced sharply by this Sword of Grace, to unveil the true Light of the Gospel of Jesus Christ, the exact, express working and goodness that comes through faith into Him. The “division between soul and spirit” so that hearts and motives are revealed will unveil the deception and fraud of the kingdom of darkness in having brought about the grey confusion that hindered the truth of the clear working of the cross, the clear truth of God’s righteousness by faith in the Good News of Christ Jesus. The fruit of this Sword of Grace’s working will be the “Sergius Paulos/Roman proconsuls” believing, being persuaded by the Teaching that came in the Saul to Paul Holy Spirit confrontation.
– I believe we will see influential leaders at many levels suddenly come to faith in Jesus. This will affect nations, even national policies, in the area of righteousness in legislation that will shock many, including hell itself. I believe we will see unprecedented arrests in areas that will cut wickedness’s onslaught against such things as human trafficking. There will be a spreading of this conviction by Holy Spirit pertaining to the kingdom of darkness already being under judgement, tying in with those who have loved darkness rather than the light, unveiling that their deeds and motives have been evil, from hell itself. It will cause agnostics who did not even believe in a hell to really see the subtlety and evil of the kingdom of darkness, and this will cause them to turn their heart’s ears and attention to the gospel.
– I believe that one of the main fruits that we will witness to this fresh outpouring will be an increase throughout nations of Bible sales and Bible give-aways. I believe this will affect giving, to where we see wealth pour into the spread of the gospel, towards an acceleration of Bible translation as fast as can be done, funded, in large part, by those who currently are not even believers. I believe we will see integrity pour into ministries by those who are presently in the world yet live by a standard so excellent in business, those who in their fields despise corruption and do not allow it to even have a whisper.
– Father God will glorify Jesus, the holes He will not give up in His hands, His feet, and in His side, through this working of the Sword of Grace, towards setting Righteousness in the fabric character of the lives of those naming the Name of Jesus, so that the lack of this standard in morality will be cut off of Believers lives that it is not even named among us, increasingly and publicly, ever again (Eph. 5:3-13; II Tim. 2:19).
– The ultimate working of the Sword of Grace will be the incredible fruit of righteousness and peace in the lives of Believers who have no more love for this world, rather for their Savior, for the body of Christ, and for the lives of those from every tribe and tongue and people and nation who are moving from all over the world into their neighborhoods. This Sword of Grace will cut off of us wrong motives, wrong believing, and will accordingly set before the eyes of our hearts the gleaming light of Life that is the gospel, this treasure that already lives in this earthen vessel in which we live.
– We will see, in and through our lives, as an Ekklesia Bride united with her Groom in faith & hope & love, what we read of Christ Jesus in John 1:14, the FULLNESS of All that is Grace and Truth, the glory of this Only begotten Son of Father, glowing through His transformation of us.
– First love, of our Savior to us and thus of all our heart towards our Savior, will be our single eye focus, out of which will flow the issues of life in how we live every minute of every day. It will unveil of Love, the true, pure, unconditional Love that is God our Father, our awesome, CRAZY AWESOME, amazing God.
– May your heart not resist Grace’s Sword, either Holy Spirit’s dividing of soul and of spirit in you, for unbelief to be completely severed from you, that faith and faith’s obedience might augment beyond what you even imagined possible for yourself, … and/or Holy Spirit’s sudden filling you with that “Paul” anointing in His (Holy Spirit’s) bold confrontation to cut off the kingdom of darkness’s voice of deceit that blinds a precious soul from seeing or hearing the light of the Good News through you.
You are so loved, Beloved.
Mark D.
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** – Beloved, you are free to print this and any Kairos for your own study. Take the time to go through these scriptures, and let the Holy Spirit write them and bear witness to them in your hearts and minds. Let the Word of God and the Blood of Jesus and the witness of the Holy Spirit who lives inside of you wash through you and renew your mind. These blogs are meant to be Bible studies, so you are free to print up any newsletter of this blog site for your own study. Feel free to copy and reset these Newsletter with lines in them for notes.
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– If you have never believed into Jesus Christ, you can do so now, from your own heart and words. If you wish help to pray, pray, “LORD Jesus, I believe You died for me and as me because You love me. I receive Your Forgiveness for my sin. Thank You for shedding Your blood to cleanse me, for making me clean, for breaking the power of sin in my life, for transforming me as a gift of Your Grace to me. I ask You to live inside of me. I thank You, Jesus, for giving me eternal life, that I might know You and Your Father, as my God, forever. In Your Name, LORD Jesus. Amen!”
_ If you just believed into Jesus, if you prayed this prayer to believe into Jesus, it is of great importance that you be water baptized (Mk. 16:16a; Acts 10:47-48a; Rom.6:4). And ask Jesus to baptize you in Holy Spirit & fire. Share your faith, what Jesus has done for you.
– For those of you who have believed into Jesus; take communion often (I Cor. 11:23-26; Lk. 24:30-31a). Let communion be a refreshing of the Blood and the Spirit (Heb. 9:14) to cleanse your conscious from sin consciousness to righteousness consciousness, that you are indeed clean, as a gift of His grace. You are no more, Dearly Beloved, under condemnation; rather, you are under justification – eternally! (Rom. 4:25b, 5:21;b; Heb. 9:11-12). You will find the Holy Spirit of Jesus unveiling Jesus to you from the scriptures like you’ve never seen Him before.
kairos – (Kahee-ros’) – Strong’s concordance defines this word: “an occasion, I.e. set or proper time.” The Hebrew-Greek Key Study Bible (NASB) defines this word; “season, time, but not merely as a succession of moments, which is chronos,” [from which we derive the English word ‘chronology’]. “Kairos, however, implies not the convenience of the season, but the necessity of the task at hand, whether the time provides a good, convenient opportunity or not.” This must be understood. Strategic times of the Lord do not necessarily imply good or convenient times. We are in Kairos times. Maybe not good or convenient times, but definitely strategic, opportune times because of the season we are in. We must have “ears to hear what the Spirit is saying to the churches,” (Rev. 2:29), so as to respond correctly to the Kairos time.
* Some Scripture for this letter is taken from the (NASB) – NEW AMERICAN STANDARD BIBLE, (c) 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. Other references translated from Grk. Txt as presented in T. Newberry’s Englishman’s Greek New Testament, Zondervan Publishing – 1982- originally published in London, Eng. 1877 Scripture references not showing a Translation in Brackets are this writer’s translation from the Hebrew Massoretic Text as it appears on the web-site “qbible.com”, our from the Greek text of Thomas Newberry’s “Englishman’s Greek New Testament”. Some definitions given to Hebrew words are also referenced from qbible.com website, as well as from Gesenius’ Hebrew-Chaldee Lexicon to the Old Testament, Baker Book House Company, (C) 1979
Several Translations and study guides to which this author refers are taken from biblehub.com website.