We have briefly studied three phases of development, maturity, and operations in the church. For the purpose of this study, “Taking the Land,” I would categorize them:

1) Taking the land
2) Occupying the land
3) Making the land fruitful

Our text for this week is Ephesians 5:11-12:

Heaven is real. The most wonderful experiences on earth cannot compare with the glory we will experience in heaven. And it will never end! Our life today will be filled with wonder and awe to the degree that we can perceive this unfathomable inheritance we have in Christ. It is the basic calling of every Christian to perceive and experience heaven now, and bring evidence of it back to earth so that others will begin to look up.

         Our world is becoming more polarized. This is to be expected. We are coming to the end of this age, which will be the ultimate battle between light and darkness. Every person must enter the “Valley of Decision” and choose which they will serve. Every person will choose a path for their life that leads to the light or the darkness. As we have covered before, we are told in Proverbs 4:18-19:     

The year 2007 will be a significant year, and 2008 will be even more so. We can expect each year to ratchet up in intensity and significance. This means that the consequences of our choices will continue to increase in importance. This is why asking God for wisdom should be one of our highest priorities. Therefore, we have a great promise and warning in James 1:5-8:

          What would the perfect President be like? What would the perfect Senator or Congressman be like? Of course, we do not have perfect people to choose from for these positions, but if we set the standard of what we’re looking for, and then start looking for the right people to fill the positions, we would likely end up with much better leaders than we have now.

On February 5, 2005, I dreamed that I was in the house with an invalid, crippled woman. She rose up out of her bed and began to walk. Immediately she wanted to go outside. I checked and it was a beautiful day, and all who were in the room knew that it was right for her to go outside immediately. There was great joy in this, and we knew that it would be a very big event. The dream ended as we were about to open the door for her.

    Remember that the three aspects of the prophetic are the following: 1) revelation, 2) interpretation, and 3) application. To help illustrate these, I will relate some personal stories as well as other peoples’ stories that I personally witnessed. I will start with one that reaches back 24 years but is becoming relevant today.

         We continue here our study of how Revelation was given to the Lord to give to His bondservants. In Revelation 7, we are told that the Lord will hold back the four winds of the earth until His bondservants have been sealed. Therefore, only those who have embraced the life of a bondservant can fully understand this vision and are assured of not taking the mark of the beast.

There are many forms of democracy. If there is a form of democracy that takes its place in the kingdom of God, we can expect it to be much more brilliant than any form that we have now. Even so, the basic premise that the Lord wants our participation in His government is right. Now what about communism?