A few weeks ago, I had two of the most powerful visions I have had in years. I was basically shown the Lord's heart at the beginning of creation and what the main desire of His heart is now. It was His bride, the church. From these visions, I understood profoundly that the love He has for His bride is so impacting that the church does not exist for the kingdom, but the kingdom exists for the church. This was a reorientation of my thinking, and I am therefore sharing this with those who have been with me in this study of the kingdom for nearly two years.

We have briefly covered how the Reformers considered that many of the biblical prophecies were fulfilled in history by the church in the Middle Ages which had become apostate. A counter eschatology arose within the Catholic Church which presumed that the Middle Ages had in fact been the 1,000 year reign of Christ, and the Reformation was Satan being let loose for a short time to deceive the nations again, which of course is a very interesting perspective. However, to this day we tend to have new perspectives on eschatology quickly followed by counter-perspectives.

The next aspect of the fruit of the Spirit is “goodness” (Galatians 5:23). The Greek word that is translated for “goodness” is agathosune, which is defined as “virtue” or “beneficence.” This is still a very broad concept that I would like to narrow down a bit so we can practically apply it. However, we do need to keep in mind that it is a broad and expansive characteristic that every Christian should have.

As we covered previously, Psalm 89:14-15 states one of the most basic truths that we must understand about the Lord and His ways if we are going to be His followers:

One of the great biblical keys to understanding many of the current events is Zechariah chapters 12 through 14. This week we will look at 12:1-10:

      The recent breaches in the White House security are not only shocking, they are prophetic. It was just revealed that the man who recently jumped the White House fence did not just make it to the front door, but actually got inside the White House, and deep inside of it. He was tackled by an off-duty agent who “just happened to be passing by.”

There are moments in history when a door for massive change opens and great revolutions for good or evil spring up in the vacuum created by these openings. In these divine moments, key men and women and even entire generations risk everything to become the hinge of history, the pivotal point that determines which way the door will swing.

         We will continue our study of how the kingdoms of this world are in conflict with the coming kingdom of God, but I would like to take this opportunity to be thankful for all the Lord did in 2013 and for all of the potential of 2014.

          Because we are commanded to “enter His gates with thanksgiving” (see Psalm 100:4), I ask you to take a few minutes to think of all the things that took place in 2013 for which you are thankful, and thank Him.

In previous Special Bulletins I felt that it was important to biblically establish how there are different mandates given to the civil government and the church. This is crucial for us to understand if we are to know our own specific purpose in the times ahead.