Posts Tagged ‘reformation’
The best sermon I’ve ever heard : New teaching and notes
First—Friday I taught at New Wineskins Ministry on “Becoming Unoffendable,” and my son Skylar ran up to me when I was done and said, “Dad, that was the best sermon I’ve ever heard!” And, get this, it was nearly two hours long!
Go to www.detroitrevivalchurch.com/teaching and search for “Unoffendable” and listen to that sermon. I regularly hear that it’s one of the most powerful messages people have ever heard.
Also, I strongly urge you to listen to Sundays teaching on the Prophetic Mandate for the Church. I’ll include those notes below. It’s also found at www.detroitrevivalchurch.com/teaching and as of today it’s the most recent message (should be right on top).
I discuss four key messages that we’re mandated to run with including the pandemic of ‘false assurance of salvation’.
Here’s the notes. (The first segment is from last week’s sermon and this week’s picks up at “The Terror of Hell”):
Some Key Prophetic Mandates for the Church
1. Introduction
a. We’ve been given a clear mandate at Revival Church to help introduce revival to Detroit.
i. This means the way things are now must morph into something very different.
ii. The most successful way to ensure the coming outpouring remains for decades is to introduce reformation before it arrives.
iii. It’s the upper room strategy—respond to an extreme lifestyle call and carry it out forever.
iv. Do you ever get frustrated when a new road is under construction forever?
1. This situation is just like a road under construction—hundreds of thousands will benefit from it. But, it’s still being built. We are not those who are frustrated, we are the ones with the hard hats and gloves on. We are the workers!
2. The fact that it’s a long term project doesn’t frustrate us because we understand the scope of the project. We know it takes a long time to pull together a work force, to survey the area, to bring in the bull dozers, to dig, to lay asphalt… for it to harden, and on and on.
3. We need the work force to simply show up for work every day.
4. Greek: technites- an architect, one who plans, calculates and constructs a building
5. Have you ever gotten frustrated watching construction workers just standing there by the side of the road doing nothing while you are backed up in traffic?
b. Hebrews 11:8-10 (ESV) 8 By faith Abraham obeyed when he was called to go out to a place that he was to receive as an inheritance. And he went out, not knowing where he was going. 9 By faith he went to live in the land of promise, as in a foreign land, living in tents with Isaac and Jacob, heirs with him of the same promise. 10 For he was looking forward to the city that has foundations, whose designer and builder is God.
1. The process of building is critical
2. This passage is true for individuals, and it’s also true for mission driven churches.
3. Luke 6:46-49 (ESV) 46 “Why do you call me ‘Lord, Lord,’ and not do what I tell you? 47 Everyone who comes to me and hears my words and does them, I will show you what he is like: 48 he is like a man building a house, who dug deep and laid the foundation on the rock. And when a flood arose, the stream broke against that house and could not shake it, because it had been well built. 49 But the one who hears and does not do them is like a man who built a house on the ground without a foundation. When the stream broke against it, immediately it fell, and the ruin of that house was great.”
4. Now, the enemy understands what a unified group of people who are determined to build can do.
5. In fact, he borrowed this Godly strategy himself and was on pace to do great things for his kingdom.
6. Just as the Holy Spirit is calling us together to build, an unholy spirit was orchestrating things behind the scenes here.
c. Genesis 11:1-8 (ESV) 1 Now the whole earth had one language and the same words. 2 And as people migrated from the east, they found a plain in the land of Shinar and settled there. 3 And they said to one another, “Come, let us make bricks, and burn them thoroughly.” And they had brick for stone, and bitumen for mortar. 4 Then they said, “Come, let us build ourselves a city and a tower with its top in the heavens, and let us make a name for ourselves, lest we be dispersed over the face of the whole earth.” 5 And the LORD came down to see the city and the tower, which the children of man had built. 6 And the LORD said, “Behold, they are one people, and they have all one language, and this is only the beginning of what they will do. And nothing that they propose to do will now be impossible for them. 7 Come, let us go down and there confuse their language, so that they may not understand one another’s speech.” 8 So the LORD dispersed them from there over the face of all the earth, and they left off building the city.
1. We are seeing the enemy do to the church what God did to his mission—people are being scattered.
2. So, our goal, and God’s goal is for us to put on the hard hats, pick up the shovels and have one language.
- Rom 8:31 What, then, shall we say in response to this? If God is for us, who can be against us?
i. If we agree, if we align ourselves together in the purpose of God for Detroit- who can stop us? Who can be against us?
ii. Every noble work is at first impossible. Thomas Carlyle
1. On the contrary, if we are not aligned, we cannot win- we need each other, in a place of agreement, in a place of health and maturity and fully devoted to taking city for Jesus!
2. I challenge you—take inventory of your alliances. Who and what you are aligned with will determine your destiny.
3. Agreement is a powerful force.
ii. Matthew 18:18-20 (ESV) 18 Truly, I say to you, whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven. 19 Again I say to you, if two of you agree on earth about anything they ask, it will be done for them by my Father in heaven. 20 For where two or three are gathered in my name, there am I among them.”
1. This is usually used when talking about prayer—but this is really talking about mission.
2. Do you see the focus is on being together and warring against the enemy and moving ahead in agreement?
iii. You know the old saying, "United We Stand, Divided We Fall." This saying is applicable within the church too. In the battle for Stalingrad during World War II the Russian commanders ordered their soldiers not to give up any more ground. Any soldier who fled from the Germans was shot on the spot. The Russian commanders knew that if even a couple of soldiers fled their post the Germans would have an opening through which they could pour into the city. Likewise, when the church is divided, Satan finds it so much easier to attack and to conquer.
1. We have to know that we are aligned, agreed, together and committed as builders, workers and warriors.
iv. Tonto and the Lone Ranger were riding through a canyon together when all of a sudden both sides were filled with Native American warriors on horses, dressed for battle. The Lone Ranger turned to Tonto and asked, "What are we going to do?" Tonto replied, "What you mean ‘we,' Whiteman?"
v. 1 Cor 1:10 I appeal to you, brothers, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that all of you agree with one another so that there may be no divisions among you and that you may be perfectly united in mind and thought.
1. In a Peanuts cartoon Lucy demanded that Linus change TV channels, threatening him with her fist if he didn't. "What makes you think you can walk right in here and take over?" asks Linus. "These five fingers," says Lucy. "Individually they're nothing but when I curl them together like this into a single unit, they form a weapon that is terrible to behold." "Which channel do you want?" asks Linus. Turning away, he looks at his fingers and says, "Why can't you guys get organized like that?"
2. So, what must we be agreed on?
2. The Terror of Hell
a. Intimacy
b. Salvation
a. Many in the church will be surprised one day, just as you were surprised in the dream, to find themselves under the control of demons as they are taken to hell.
a. Proverbs 14:11-14 (ESV) 11 The house of the wicked will be destroyed, but the tent of the upright will flourish. 12 There is a way that seems right to a man, but its end is the way to death. 13 Even in laughter the heart may ache, and the end of joy may be grief. 14 The backslider in heart will be filled with the fruit of his ways, and a good man will be filled with the fruit of his ways.
b. Matthew 7:21-23 (ESV) 21 “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. 22 On that day many will say to me, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many mighty works in your name?’ 23 And then will I declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from me, you workers of lawlessness.’
b. This message is probably the number one mandate from God for me.
a. It’s all about two things:
i. Intimacy- seeking, knocking and finding Jesus, hunger, desire
ii. Lawlessness- in control of ones own life, not surrendered, not responsive, following Jesus on one’s own terms like the Rich Young Ruler.
1. There’s an anti-authority, anti-submission, scattering spirit in the church today, and it’s exceedingly dangerous!
2. 2 Peter 2:9-10 (ESV) 9 then the Lord knows how to rescue the godly from trials, and to keep the unrighteous under punishment until the day of judgment, 10 and especially those who indulge in the lust of defiling passion and despise authority.
c. House of prayer movement
a. The house of prayer is not a splinter movement, it is a call to calibration for the entire church.
b. Luann Zettle- "..a house of Prayer for all Nations..yep, totally agree with you John. Biblically this is so clear. And there are SO many I know that do see it that way. But, I think the biggest problem is that we don't know how to get there from here. The current church structure just seems to throw prayer in as an "add-on" or an additional ministry/program or that 10 minute exercise we do in the morning as opposed to the driving furnace of the Church, through which all other church Life flows. And i agree. IHOP,KC looks a lot more like Church than most anything else I've seen. "
3. Reformation in the Church
a. 20 Elements of Revival
b. Ancient and emerging
c. Dangerous scattering in the church
d. Cares of life
e. Misunderstanding of the purpose of the church
i. A wrong understanding of why we go to church will immediately result in a faulty understanding of how to participate.
ii. Many are saying that they don’t need the church anymore, or they only need the church a few times a month. This is an indicator of a wrong understanding of what the church is.
iii. Have we ever considered whether the church needs us?
iv. Can you imagine the USA military being strong if the soldiers only reported one day a week? No way! America would have been defeated and held captive long ago—and this is what has happened to the church.
v. Old paradigm- God first, family second, ministry third
vi. New paradign- all of it happening in the same places at the same time
1. We’ve come to believe that our families are healthier as we sit in front of the TV together instead of in the prayer room.
2. We might have a measure of personal health as we participate at a low level, but it comes at the expense of the church.
f. Some are saying that the Kingdom must advance out of the four walls of the church and into society. I agree! But, this can only happen if we are strategy minded and mission oriented in a place of burning prayer within the four walls of the upper room.
4. Encountering God
a. Making it easy for people to thoroughly enjoy God
b. We want people to know God, not just know about God.
c. 2 Chronicles 7:1-3 (ESV) 1 As soon as Solomon finished his prayer, fire came down from heaven and consumed the burnt offering and the sacrifices, and the glory of the LORD filled the temple. 2 And the priests could not enter the house of the LORD, because the glory of the LORD filled the LORD’s house. 3 When all the people of Israel saw the fire come down and the glory of the LORD on the temple, they bowed down with their faces to the ground on the pavement and worshiped and gave thanks to the LORD, saying, “For he is good, for his steadfast love endures forever.”
5. Prophetic Atmosphere
a. A command center for the region.
b. Manitou Springs—a revival command center for the nations.
Audio and notes : Reformation in the Church
The change that must come to the structure and the day-to-day operation of the church is extreme. It’s considered “normal church attendance” if someone attends less than two services a month.
That’s four hours out of 720 in a month!
THe 24/7 City Church must arise!
Can you imagine the United States military having sufficient training, unity, common vision, education and impartation if soldiers only had to report four hours per month?
It wouldn’t work. It can’t work in the church.
Consider the Chinese underground church. They are willing to risk death or imprisonment and torture just so they can gather together as the corporate body. In America we are often not willing to even risk missing the Super Bowl or relaxing on the couch.
Listen to this new teaching on the coming reformation in the church at www.detroitrevivalchurch.com/teaching or simply listen using the player below:
I’ll include the notes below:
I. The Goal
a. The ancient and emerging 24/7 church
i. Acts 2:42-47 (ESV) 42 And they devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers. 43 And awe came upon every soul, and many wonders and signs were being done through the apostles. 44 And all who believed were together and had all things in common. 45 And they were selling their possessions and belongings and distributing the proceeds to all, as any had need. 46 And day by day, attending the temple together and breaking bread in their homes, they received their food with glad and generous hearts, 47 praising God and having favor with all the people. And the Lord added to their number day by day those who were being saved.
ii. The Chinese church: "It is estimated that there are at least 20 million Christians who are part of the underground movement," said Newton. "The Chinese have a saying, ‘God embraces the fire,' meaning that through persecution and hardship faith grows stronger." Newton says this is apparent in their willingness to risk their livelihood to practice their faith. "These Christians are a powerful reminder of the first church as described in the Acts of the Apostles. I saw in them a strong fire and conviction, the work of the Holy Spirit," said Newton. He also explains that the difficulties they face have made them a cohesive group "There are no denominations in China underground churches. There are simply Christians worshipping together, sharing the one message of the Savior," he added.
iii. Peter Xu: "They hung me up across an iron gate, then they yanked open the gate and my whole body lifted until my chest nearly split in two. I hung like that for four hours." That is how Peter Xu Yongze, the founder of one of the largest religious movements in China, described his treatment during one of five jail sentences on account of his belief in Christianity.
iv. Peter Xu said that while he was in jail, he saw several people even being killed for their faith. "A believer was praying, so a jailer made other prisoners lift him up to the ceiling and drop him to the ground many times until he died," Mr Xu said. But government crackdowns – and even torture – may not make people like Peter Xu give up their faith. "Despite all the persecution and suffering, God is calling more and more people in China," he said.
v. …police in a remote region of China had interrogated a woman named Ma Yuqin, but their efforts seemed unsuccessful. Kristof wrote: “She never broke when she was tortured with beatings and electrical shocks. Even when she was close to death, she refused to disclose the names of members of her congregation or sign a statement renouncing her Christian faith.” While the physical abuse was almost unbearable, the mental torture was even worse. Throughout her ordeal, Ma Yuquin could hear the sounds of her son being tortured in the next room. They could hear each other’s screams-additional incentives to betray their friends and their faith. Recalling this, Ma Yuquin began to sob. “They wanted me to hear (my son’s) cries,” she said. “It broke my heart.” According to VOM sources, Sister Yu was beaten to death while in custody.
b. The church is so important to the Chinese that they are willing to risk death to gather—in America many aren’t even willing to risk missing the Super Bowl or relaxing on the couch.
c. The primary issue that this issue is hinging on is found in Matthew 21.
i. First, we see the triumphal entry
1. Everybody celebrating, a huge church service
2. Most in the church would be thrilled at this level of commitment to Christ, but the problem is that the hundreds of thousands of people there actually didn’t have commitment to Christ, they had commitment to self.
3. They embraced a ‘bring your own bar’ to church mentality.
a. The bar of commitment was determined by themselves, and the moment they realized that they weren’t going to get what they wanted, the lowered the bar to zero.
b. We see this in churches all over, except instead of holding the bar high and letting people dismiss themselves, leaders are lowering the bar in order to keep the people.
c. The problem is that they are generally not Good Friday Christians—those who embraced the cross of Christ. They are more often Palm Sunday people.
ii. But then, we see Jesus dealing with the spirit that drove the Palm Sunday crowd.
1. Matthew 21:12-13 (ESV) 12 And Jesus entered the temple and drove out all who sold and bought in the temple, and he overturned the tables of the money-changers and the seats of those who sold pigeons. 13 He said to them, “It is written, ‘My house shall be called a house of prayer,’ but you make it a den of robbers.”
2. Religion- man’s attempt to use God to get what he wants.
3. The message of salvation must also be discussed here.
a. The Palm Sunday people didn’t find salvation and cleansing from their sins because they celebrated Jesus.
b. Only the cross, which resulted in all but two, plus a thief on a cross to Jesus’ side, will suffice.
iii. Then, as this religious reformation continued, we see Jesus restoring the Temple:
1. Matthew 21:14-15 (ESV) 14 And the blind and the lame came to him in the temple, and he healed them. 15 But when the chief priests and the scribes saw the wonderful things that he did, and the children crying out in the temple, “Hosanna to the Son of David!” they were indignant,
iv. Then, Jesus established the reality of supernatural faith and fruit as a normal life experience for those who dismiss religion and who embrace Jesus as Lord.
1. Matthew 21:18-22 (ESV) 18 In the morning, as he was returning to the city, he became hungry. 19 And seeing a fig tree by the wayside, he went to it and found nothing on it but only leaves. And he said to it, “May no fruit ever come from you again!” And the fig tree withered at once. 20 When the disciples saw it, they marveled, saying, “How did the fig tree wither at once?” 21 And Jesus answered them, “Truly, I say to you, if you have faith and do not doubt, you will not only do what has been done to the fig tree, but even if you say to this mountain, ‘Be taken up and thrown into the sea,’ it will happen. 22 And whatever you ask in prayer, you will receive, if you have faith.”
v. Then, the cross.
d. Our focus right now is to gather, pray and communicate the prophetic word of the Lord.
Are you a reformer?
A key mission at Revival Church is to effectively communicate and advance
reformation in the church that is necessary to handle the coming outpouring in Detroit.
We are calling together people who are being made ready by God to run the race with us.
My favorite definition of religion is this:
Man’s attempt to use God to get what he wants
It has become normal to settle into a church that gives us what we are looking for. It’s the same mindset people use when making most decisions in their lives.
What career will give me what I’m looking for? What movie should I watch? Where should I go on vacation? Should I buy something now or wait for a sale?
Now, many decisions in life warrant this kind of analysis.
The way we participate as the church, however, is not one of them.
I like how Bill Johnson talks about trains and tracks they run on. We have become so accustomed to choosing our own course, our own level of participation, our own pace. However, with a train, everybody is on board, nobody can choose to divert from the track by going left or right. Everybody is moving at the same pace. I love that! That’s the call of reformation in the church! We must lay down our own plans and move in unity with the rest of the body at the pace God sets through apostolic ‘engineers’! This is what happened in the Upper Room! One goal, one agenda, everybody together, everybody responsive. There were no other life focuses that took precedence over the call to mission!
What’s more honorable—a soldier who enlisted in the military because of the opportunity to advance his or her career, or a soldier who enlisted simply because of their love of their country. And, they are willing to pay a great price because of that love.
The church has a mission and we must not put that mission at risk by determining our level of participation based on what it can give to us.
I believe the watering down of the call to mission in the church is a direct result of our human nature and the Western culture to get as much as we can at the lowest personal cost.
The problem is that the call to the church is a call to paying a great price for the sake of mission fulfillment with little promise of personal gain.
I’d love to find a dusty warehouse somewhere, open the doors, spread the word, start praying with fire and see who shows up.
No air conditioning, no chairs, no plethora of ministries… just a call to be in position, stay long, day after day, pray in unity and contend together for the days, weeks months or years necessary for an outpouring to occur.
So, the question is this—are you one who would respond? There will be several movements like this in the Detroit region, and Revival Church is one of them. IHOPE (www.ihopedetroit.org) is another.
I challenge you to drop your demands and desires for what you are looking for in a church and simply embrace the exciting call to zealous prayer, passionate community and to take up our crosses in pursuit of a dramatic encounter with Jesus!
See you tonight at 6pm!
(You can read more about the coming reformation in my books 20 Elements of Revival and Covens in the Church. Order online at www.johnburtonministries.com/resources.)
Audio and Notes : Massive change in the church : New Teachings
There’s a message of reformation that’s been burning within me for years, and it’s intensified radically since I moved to Detroit.
In a day where normal church attendance means less than two times per month, there’s an alarm sounding for the soldiers of God to gather corporately on a continual basis! I believe we’ll move from two days a month to over twenty. We’ll be receiving apostolic instruction on Sunday, responding strategically as a corporate body on Monday and Tuesday and through the rest of the week. Prayer will be 24/7. Ministry to the lost will have dramatic impact. Everybody will raise their families in a revival atmosphere of fire day after day!
Martin Luther brought us a reformation of doctrine. Today, we need a reformation of culture. Churches are limiting services to an hour or even less today. Why? Because they have become reactive to the demands of people instead of being drivers of the culture!
Busy lives and full calendars have demanded that the church submit and drop in priority—or die.
I taught on this last night, and you can listen to it now at www.detroitrevivalchurch.com/teaching. It’s titled A Drama for the Ages.
This call isn’t for the feint of heart. Many are what I call revival participants. They will jump in when the outpouring comes.
But, the outpouring won’t come if we have a revival participant mindset. We must be revival builders.
I’ll include the notes below for you to follow along with as you listen to the teaching.
There are also some other brand new teachings available:
- The Spirit of Pilate in the Church
- Six Enemies of Fulfilled Destiny (two parts, taught at the IHOPE Intensive)
A Drama for the Ages
I. The Blueprint
a. Joshua 3 is our blueprint, and we’ve focused on it considerably.
II. Joshua 3:16 (ESV) 16 …And the people passed over opposite Jericho.
i. A massive focus on the church, on preparing the army will come before we find ourselves staring at the city of Detroit.
ii. We need to pray for revelation so we can understand the magnitude of this mission that we are involved in.
iii. We’re about to be in the middle of a magnificent drama that will compare to some of the most magnificent times in history.
iv. The skeleton outline for Joshua 3 is:
1. Be alert and in position
2. Sanctify yourselves
3. Carry the presence of God
4. We’ve never been this way before
5. Step into an impossible situation
6. Cross over opposite Jericho
b. Understand, you are not simply sitting in a church.
i. This isn’t just a place to gather together, to worship God and to grow in the Word. It is that, but much, MUCH more.
ii. You are sitting in a Joshua 3 level military operation where normal people are about to do extraordinary things—and the masses will be changed forever.
iii. We are fervently calling people from all over Detroit to gather and follow the Joshua 3 protocol of readiness, holiness and wild faith.
III. Radical Preparation
a. We’re in the phase where we are awaiting dramatic deliverance and miracles, we’re setting a pattern of Kingdom living that results in extremely dramatic manifestations of God’s provision, glory and intervention.
i. The cost is crazy huge!
ii. I understand Detroit is tired and discouraged, but we cannot simply look for a quick fix. It’s imperative that every one of us understand that this call is a severe one, and this mission is the big one.
iii. God was ensuring that the Israelites understood the magnitude of their season of advance as well.
1. The precision of leadership that Joshua was exhibiting was phenomenal.
2. After this wild river crossing he told people to run back into the dry riverbank and bring back some heavy stones. They immediately responded.
iv. Joshua 4:4-7 (ESV) 4 Then Joshua called the twelve men from the people of Israel, whom he had appointed, a man from each tribe. 5 And Joshua said to them, “Pass on before the ark of the LORD your God into the midst of the Jordan, and take up each of you a stone upon his shoulder, according to the number of the tribes of the people of Israel, 6 that this may be a sign among you. When your children ask in time to come, ‘What do those stones mean to you?’ 7 then you shall tell them that the waters of the Jordan were cut off before the ark of the covenant of the LORD. When it passed over the Jordan, the waters of the Jordan were cut off. So these stones shall be to the people of Israel a memorial forever.”
1. God was drilling home the extent of his power and how deeply involved in their process he was. Remember this! I told you in Joshua 3:5 that I would be working wonders and I was true to my word.
2. This was mentioned way back in Exodus:
a. Exodus 13:11 (ESV) 11 “When the LORD brings you into the land of the Canaanites, as he swore to you and your fathers, and shall give it to you,
b. Exodus 13:14 (ESV) 14 And when in time to come your son asks you, ‘What does this mean?’ you shall say to him, ‘By a strong hand the LORD brought us out of Egypt, from the house of slavery.
3. What memorial stones do you have?
4. We can look back over the last 14 years of our marriage, and I can look even further back than that and fill a notebook with miracle after miracle of God working in dramatic fashion in our lives.
5. Having memorial stones will make it easy to advance through mission after mission, season after season—and you’ll have something to share with your kids!
b. Joshua 4:13-14 (ESV) 13 About 40,000 ready for war passed over before the LORD for battle, to the plains of Jericho. 14 On that day the LORD exalted Joshua in the sight of all Israel, and they stood in awe of him just as they had stood in awe of Moses, all the days of his life.
i. 40,000 people ready for war.
ii. I’m looking for 1000 intercessors.
iii. What caused them to be ready for war?
1. Radical intentionality
2. Being together and in position
3. Carrying God’s presence—a lifestyle of intercession
4. Watching God move in power
5. Remembering what God had done
c. Joshua 4:23-24 (ESV) 23 For the LORD your God dried up the waters of the Jordan for you until you passed over, as the LORD your God did to the Red Sea, which he dried up for us until we passed over, 24 so that all the peoples of the earth may know that the hand of the LORD is mighty, that you may fear the LORD your God forever.”
i. God desires to establish a testimony, to function in dramatic fashion so that people know he’s mighty and that we fear him.
ii. We aren’t there yet. We’re in the process prior to this, which means we must follow the instructions of God carefully.
iii. It’s worth it! A city will be taken!
d. Joshua 5:1 (ESV) 1 As soon as all the kings of the Amorites who were beyond the Jordan to the west, and all the kings of the Canaanites who were by the sea, heard that the LORD had dried up the waters of the Jordan for the people of Israel until they had crossed over, their hearts melted and there was no longer any spirit in them because of the people of Israel.
i. This is a significant goal! In order to take Detroit, we must cause fear of God to settle into the principalities and powers over the city.
ii. This was a fulfillment of a recent prophecy:
1. Joshua 2:24 (ESV) 24 And they said to Joshua, “Truly the LORD has given all the land into our hands. And also, all the inhabitants of the land melt away because of us.”
iii. Now, you’d think that the Israelites would be full of fire and ready to charge ahead.
1. In fact, they might have been.
2. But God understood the magnitude of the mission and the struggle that man has with pride, with emotions getting the best of them.
3. So, bring out the knives!
e. Joshua 5:2 (ESV) 2 At that time the LORD said to Joshua, “Make flint knives and circumcise the sons of Israel a second time.”
1. And here’s a ‘duh’ verse:
f. Joshua 5:8 (ESV) 8 When the circumcising of the whole nation was finished, they remained in their places in the camp until they were healed.
1. Ummmm, yep. That’s what I’d be doing.
2. They went from being ready for war to whimpering in their tents.
3. Adam Clarke—When adults were circumcised they were obliged to keep their beds for about three weeks, or at least during that time they are not able to walk about but with great difficulty.
4. Adam Clarke—Joshua, as an able general, would at once perceive that this very measure must expose his whole host to the danger of being totally annihilated; but he knew that GOD could not err, and that it was his duty to obey; therefore in the very teeth of his enemies he reduced the major part of his army to a state of total helplessness, simply trusting for protection in the arm of Jehovah!
5. God didn’t call them to circumcision on the east side of the Jordan where they were safe from their enemies. He removed all measures of safety as he knew he was capable of protecting them all by himself—and he wanted them to know this too.
6. Not only were they immobilized, when they crossed over the Jordan, out of the wilderness, the manna stopped too. Everything was changing.
7. Joshua 5:11-12 (ESV) 11 And the day after the Passover, on that very day, they ate of the produce of the land, unleavened cakes and parched grain. 12 And the manna ceased the day after they ate of the produce of the land. And there was no longer manna for the people of Israel, but they ate of the fruit of the land of Canaan that year.
g. Then, a dramatic encounter prepared them for what was coming next.
i. Joshua 5:13-15 (ESV) 13 When Joshua was by Jericho, he lifted up his eyes and looked, and behold, a man was standing before him with his drawn sword in his hand. And Joshua went to him and said to him, “Are you for us, or for our adversaries?” 14 And he said, “No; but I am the commander of the army of the LORD. Now I have come.” And Joshua fell on his face to the earth and worshiped and said to him, “What does my lord say to his servant?” 15 And the commander of the LORD’s army said to Joshua, “Take off your sandals from your feet, for the place where you are standing is holy.” And Joshua did so.
h. This launched Joshua and the Israelites into what was a dramatic and world shaking mission—the taking of Jericho.
i. Joshua 6:1-2 (ESV) 1 Now Jericho was shut up inside and outside because of the people of Israel. None went out, and none came in. 2 And the LORD said to Joshua, “See, I have given Jericho into your hand, with its king and mighty men of valor.
IV. Conclusion
a. Do you understand the magnitude of this mission that you have been called into?
b. Under Moses there was disorder and dispute as people refused to move into the Promised Land.
c. Under Joshua everything changed.
d. What’s your plan? Are you ready? Alert? Sanctified? Circumcised? Ready for war?
e. Do you remember what God has done? What specifically are your memorial stones?
Bring your blanket & pillow to Revival Church Sunday
FIRST—have you registered for the upcoming Michele Perry event? Do so asap at www.detroitrevivalchurch.com/events.
Jet’s going to bring his blankie.
I’ll be bringing the worlds most comfortable, warm, fuzzy blanket.
The last two Sunday nights I’ve been surprised by an open Heaven over the sanctuary at Revival Church. Even as I type this the anointing is hitting me… God is hovering over the hungry right now! God is preparing an outpouring for Detroit—full blown reformation and revival that will flood the city and people of Detroit and the entire state of Michigan!
This Sunday we will be soaking in God’s presence as worship music plays over us.
We’ll be encouraging everybody to find a place to get alone with God, whether it’s on the floor, at their seat or as they pace around the room.
The night will be marked by a refreshing atmosphere of worship, scripture reading and prophecy.
Invite your friends and come expectant! Let’s enjoy the presence and person of the Holy Spirit this Sunday at 6pm! (If you are REALLY zealous, come at 5pm for our pre-service prophetic prayer time in the Asbury Room!)
Here’s how we used to do it at Revolution Church in Manitou Springs, Colorado:
Five Concerns I have Regarding the Local Church
First—Revival Church is a REGIONAL strategic center of revival. We are calling all of the hungry people in Detroit, everybody who’s ready for a move of God, to converge every Sunday night with us. TONIGHT we’re gathering the army and preparing for revival at 6PM. Come on out if you are anywhere within 50 miles! www.detroitrevivalchurch.com
Those of you who follow my ministry know a key component is the preparation for a massive reformation in the church. Extreme change to the current structure, style of service and day-to-day operations of the local church must come—and quickly.
I trust that you’ll understand that I am intensely positive and driven by excitement and joyful expectation for the coming revival in the church. I love and currently lead a local church myself. However, we’re at a critical point in history where honest analysis must come forth. Everything is not OK, and a reformation is coming.
Here are some key concerns I have in regard to the local church:
- THE LOSS OF CITY CHURCH IDENTITY—Scripturally we see the church of the city emphasized much more than the smaller, localized church. Today, it seems that the concept of a city church to many is more a fable than a biblical reality. Without question, the proposal to function as a city church has little positive response when
discussed among pastors and other leaders. It’s one thing to participate in token city church functions a few times a year, but it’s something entirely different when we’re talking about weekly city church staff meetings, shared responsibilities, pooling of resources and releasing the body to intentionally connect several times a week in other local churches.
Witness Lee said this: “…we cannot have a street church, nor an avenue church, nor a church on a college campus, nor a church in a house that is not also the church in the city. According to the New Testament we can have only a city church, that is, the church in the city where we are.”
Watchman Nee said, “I believe God in His great wisdom made the locality the boundary of the church in order to eliminate the works of man, which try to divide the church within one locality.”
The local church is a puzzle piece. A single puzzle piece has no purpose or value if it’s not connected to the completed picture. But, when connected, it’s powerful. - A TEMPERED ENVIRONMENT—When I led Revolution Church in Manitou Springs, Colorado I made a promise to the church. I would never tone down the activity of the Holy Spirit out of respect of those less hungry. If we fear that extreme Holy Spirit activity will drive people away, I’ll propose we’re in an extremely dangerous place. Ou
r true motive of church growth ahead of Holy Spirit freedom becomes clear. We presume we have a more natural, logical, social and appropriate way to touch lives. We actually say, “Holy Spirit, I’ll take it from here.” The reality is that it takes a supernatural infusion to touch lives. A logical, social approach as the primary strategies just can’t work.
Today it has become rare to find a church that is exploding in life, power and heavy moves of the Holy Spirit. The reality is that, at least in the formative stages, a church that emphasizes Holy Spirit liberty and allows a weighty manifestation of God’s presence is at risk of losing people. Most people do enjoy a quick touch, a healing, an experience in God’s presence—at a low cost. However, few—very few—are willing to pay the price, week to week, to go into the deep. The cost is high and the Western church has created a culture of satisfying the desires of the people ahead of mission advance and intimacy with God. I wonder how many people have been lulled into a false sense of eternal security due to a tempered corporate expression. - IT’S DIFFICULT TO EMPHASIZE AND FACILITATE A CULTURE OF PRAYER—Why is this? Poorly steward time, for one. Most churches today intentio
nally limit the length of the Sunday service to less than two hours. Most people today only attend a Sunday morning service. We have little choice but to reform this model and introduce deep, zealous, faith-driven prayer and intercession for the nations back into our primary services. Today, pastors, on average, pray six minutes a day. This is a horrifying statistic. The church of our nation is being led primarily by people who know certain things about God, but may not deeply and intimately know him. - COMPETITION BETWEEN CHURCHES—I’ll make my feelings on this point clear. It’s tragic and often sickening when churches compete, exhibit jealousy and aren’t clearly connected to each other. We have to admit that something’s wrong when established churches aren’t rushing to the front of the line to welcome and help a new church plant.
I’ll share my own story of insecurity from the early days of Revolut
ion Church in Manitou Springs, Colorado—a city with only five churches, and only two that were open to a move of the Spirit. We had a huge vision for that region. We had invested much and were working hard to advance the mission. On day I stumbled upon a new church’s website that highlighted a vision of their own to plant a satellite church in Manitou Springs. Though I handled the news just fine publicly, I’m embarrassed by my personal, emotional response. I was nervous. I didn’t want to lose ground, lose people or be upstaged by something more successful. Sad but true! What should my response have been? What should the response of established churches be when other churches are on the move and advancing in their mission? - I should have sent them money.
- I should have celebrated their arrival.
- I should have found some of my best leaders and families and sent them to the new church for several months to help them get established( even if those families felt led to remain in that new church indefinitely).
- I should have taken the pastor and his wife out to dinner.
- I should have rejoiced at the greater opportunity to expand the Kingdom of God in Manitou Springs!
I absolutely love Mike Bickel’s philosophy—anybody at any time can walk through the doors of his ministry and recruit anybody they want to leave and join them in their own ministry. That’s the way it should be! The time is growing short where building our own kingdoms and jealously guarding them is coming to an end. We simply have to keep our hands open. I encourage the people at Revival Church to serve, enjoy and connect with other churches in the city. We also welcome people with open arms from other churches to connect at Revival Church. - REDUNDANCY—This point is so simple that it’s shocking that we haven’t figured it out. The secular business world is sharper than the church on this issue. McDonalds would never attempt to build a restaurant on each of the four corners of an intersection. It would be foolish beyond description to do so. The world knows this, and also finds it easy to laugh and mock when they see four Christian churches, one at each corner of the same intersection. It’s madness!
Our independent, controlling methodologies as church leaders have resulted in an extreme waste of resources. You see, it would make perfect sense for there to be one McDonalds, one Taco Bell, one KFC and one Pizza Hut on each of the four corners of an intersection. Each restaurant has a specialty, a fresh take on the dining experience. On Monday the family enjoys McDonalds, on Tuesday it’s Pizza Hut, etc.
If we in the local church could understand that we are to create departments of the city church as opposed to autonomous and independent local churches, and it’s ok to specialize on one or two Kingdom focuses instead of unsuccessfully trying to do it all, the Kingdom will advance very quickly. Let’s take those four churches, consider the pastors to be associate staff members on the city church staff, allow them to only focus on what they are gifted to do and encourage their members to visit all four at different points during the week.
Thoughts?
Do you go to church? Read this.
FIRST—Have you registered for the RADIANT WORSHIP event THIS SUNDAY? Head on over to www.detroitrevivalchurch.com/events and register TODAY!
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After wrestling with the emotions that invaded my life after my Dad’s death on Good Friday, and dealing with the extreme shortness of time for all of us to fulfill our missions on the Earth, and also considering the reality of eternity, I’m finding myself freshly challenged.
(By the way, check out a new site under development in honor of my Dad at 
www.johnburton.net/bobburton.)
I was scheduled to minister on Good Friday at my friend’s church in Sarnia, Ontario, Canada on this topic that’s stirred me more since my own Dad went home that very day. The topic? The church and the cross.
That seems to be a likely subject matter to minister on the day set aside to remember the death of our Lord Jesus. However, the message is different than what you might expect. It’s a message of concern for the church. A message that calls for deep personal analysis. It’s a message that clearly reveals the necessity for radical reformation in the church.
Matthew 21:8-11 (ESV) 8 Most of the crowd spread their cloaks on the road, and others cut branches from the trees and spread them on the road. 9 And the crowds that went before him and that followed him were shouting, “Hosanna to the Son of David! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord! Hosanna in the highest!” 10 And when he entered Jerusalem, the whole city was stirred up, saying, “Who is this?” 11 And the crowds said, “This is the prophet Jesus, from Nazareth of Galilee.”
hōsanna—“save us”
The masses, upwards of 1/2 million people, were crying out for a better life. They were desperate for salvation. They cried out to their only hope, SAVE US!
So far, so good! We have the same cry resounding now in our nation and around the world. Desperate people are seeking relief, peace, abundant life.
We know that Jesus offers all of that and much more! I’m a huge believer in the grace of God, in extreme joy, in freedom. It’s a significant mark of my ministry. My mission statement is, “Making it easy for people to thoroughly enjoy God.”
It’s very good to seek the blessing of God. We are commanded to be blessed—to be a blessing! Life in Jesus should be phenomenal!
THE PROBLEM
Jesus heard the prayers, the requests, the cries of the people on what has become to be known as Palm Sunday. He was very much intent on “saving them.” He was in agreement with their need to cry “Hosanna.”
In the modern church it has become quite acceptable to appeal to the Palm Sunday masses with promises of excellent programs, wonderful teaching and an edifying and comfortable environment of worship. For many, Palm Sunday is the goal. People crave an exciting atmosphere full of committed and desperate people.
The problem? Jesus knew that 1/2 million worshipers in a Sunday worship ‘service’ was not the goal. There was no way their desire for freedom and salvation could be realized without another radical element. The cross.
On Good Friday the 1/2 million group diminished to only 2. It couldn’t even be considered a cell group.
The call to the cross was not what the masses wanted. Their demands were unmet. They rebelled against Jesus because they weren’t willing to embrace the cross.
If people are “Palm Sunday Christians” we have a very serious problem. Without the cross, we cannot be Christians at all. There are many who have been appeased and affirmed in their participation with other worshipers… all while they may not be saved at all! Without the cross, the masses on Palm Sunday were absolutely hopeless. The same is true today.
THE ANALYSIS
I’m wrecked. How often do people choose their church based on how good the children’s program is, or how friendly the pastor is or what the church can do for them and their family? How often do churches actually maximize this “Palm Sunday” scenario by offering everything the people are looking for?
It’s time the cross returns to the church, and the church returns to the cross. It’s time to raise the bar. It’s time to leave our demands behind and take up our cross and die—daily.
The revival and refreshing and abundant life that our cities and nation needs can’t come through big ideas, amazing programs or by meeting the needs of the people—as great as all of this sounds.
Revival comes through a death and resurrection. It’s through a baptism. It will arrive through zealous people who leave their desires behind and serve with passion. It will come through gutsy leaders who are willing to leave the large crowd behind and lead the few to the stinging, painful, demanding cross of Christ.
You see, it’s that cross that will turn us from death to life, from fear to faith, from apathy to revival that will rock this planet.
CONCLUSION
Time is short. We’re all almost done here on the Earth. We have to see reformation come if we hope to see abundant life flood our churches.
Let’s leave our Palm Sunday dreams behind, dismiss our plans for the huge crowds and lead whoever is willing to the cross.
Leaders, that means much will be at risk. Our salaries, our positions, our freedom of time. We may have to get a second job. We may make a lot of enemies. People will talk. People will leave. But, if we do it, many, many, many will be saved.
Others, this means that much will be required. You may not get to choose the ‘perfect church’. Your children may not have the best programs. It may be a challenge to respond to the extreme call. Your time may be treaded upon as the call to ministry increases. But, believe me, it will be worth it.
We must set a precedent for the next generation. We have to embrace God’s desire to bring reformation and restoration to his beloved church.
What do you think?
Interesting prophetic insight : Detroit, Michigan : Time Magazine
The week of a key ministry event with Chuck Pierce, Barbara Yoder and other prophetic leaders in Ann Arbor, I received a strong prophetic word regarding Detroit. Time Magazine just reported on an element that I mentioned in the prophecy.
Here’s the word I received:
“Now, now, now! The church must arise and strategically contend for reformation and restoration in Detroit and throughout Michigan.” The Lord revealed that there is a “race of rooms” in this region. There are strategic and brilliant secular people gathering in a board room, strategically thinking, brain storming, discussing and making plans for the new economic structure in Detroit. I saw them in suits and ties sitting around a large board room table. I also saw another room. It had no table, but the walls were covered in LCD screens and white boards. There were several people on their knees groaning and crying out for breakthrough, for revelation from Heaven. This was a war room.
The race of rooms is between these two gatherings. Which new wine skin, new strategically developed foundation will be implemented?
Church Pierce mentioned something similar as he was sharing. He mentioned that those represented by the board room will ‘win’, will establish for a time. But, the church will initiate reformation shortly thereafter.
I just read the latest Time Magazine article on Detroit. Check out some of it and notice the similarities to the prophecy I received:
What do you get when you mix 60 Millennials, a dozen of Detroit's brightest thinkers and lots of coffee?
The potential to solve some of the city's policy problems.
This past weekend, I attended a conference that sparked some incredible discussions about Detroit, the region's significant challenges and what they both need to do to create lasting change.
The regional workshop is part of a year-long initiative, in which Roosevelt Institute members from across the Midwest will focus on creating actual public policy proposals for Detroit and the surrounding cities.
About 60 MSU students came together in suits, ties and dresses to talk about Detroit.
Detroit was a “magnificent middle-class society. Detroit has been devastated. People did this. It was not an act of God.”
Read more: http://detroit.blogs.time.com/
Rick Joyner and Larry Jackson will be here this weekend to help give direction to the church, to intercession and strategic advance in Detroit.
Many people are converging here. One of my intercessors saw four large (the size of a 747) eagles, each one looking different, but they each had a serious, determined look in their eyes. The flew from the four corners of the nation and converged in Detroit. These are prophetic/apostolic people that God is gathering to bring the sledgehammer to the demonic strongholds in Detroit. Reformation and revival is coming.
The times we are in are more important than any of us realize.
So goes Detroit, so goes the nation. This call is for every person to contend, pray and declare the Word of the Lord over this region.
City strategy : Multiple church commitment
It's time to stop presuming people will only commit to one local church or ministry.
I regularly consider how we are going to see the massive reformation in the church come to pass. The way we see church today will become a distant memory as the entire structure changes.
We’ll need to take intentional steps toward a city church structure, which means the face of the local church is going to morph considerably.
Some preliminary steps:
- Multiple church commitment: We will begin to see people primarily commit to one church and also commit (truly commit, no hopping allowed!) at a lesser, yet still significant level at other churches. When this happens, every church won’t have to be focused broadly on everything, but they will focus intently on the few areas they are called and gifted to facilitate. When the body is expected to connect at only one church, they in turn have no other option but to expect that church to have a broad focus. The current system works against itself. When the reformation comes, a family will connect in one church where they will serve and sit under apostolic leadership that’s running with strength in a streamlined ministry, and on other days and nights of the week they may serve at another church’s youth ministry, Bible study or small group.
An important element here is that instead of limiting themselves to senior leadership at the local level, the various leaders of the churches in the city take on the role of associate leaders of the city church. So instead of thinking of it like people frequenting multiple local churches, they are actually strategically connecting in multiple departments of a single city church. One night they are in the teaching department growing in discipleship and on another night in the prayer department serving in intercession. These departments are actual churches and ministries spread out all over the city.
The five-fold ministry does not have to function in every single church or ministry. It's not realistic for that to happen. One church might be led by someone in a teaching office while another is led by a prophet. Pastors will give leadership to small groups and other ministries. Evangelists will train and lead out in strategic soul winning events. Apostles will govern and serve all of the city's leaders by casting vision, gathering the Ekklesia in the region and instructing at a high level.
Local church pastors will have to surrender their solitary leadership position in people's lives and begin to emphasize the city church more than their own local church. Senior pastors will then lead the way multiple times a month into other events, conferences, prayer meetings, church services and small groups in the region. People under their leadership will truly experience refreshing and renewed passion as they are no longer limited to what a single local church can provide.
- Prayer as a primary ministry: We must start where the first church started in Acts 2- in the prayer room. It’s shocking how absent prayer is in the church, and it’s terrifying how few Christians are intimately connected with Jesus in the place of prayer. I propose we cancel most everything we’re doing in the church and hit our face night and day and pray, and soak, and intercede and declare as a corporate body.
- Connecting with apostolic and prophetic leaders: We need to pray in, invite in and partner with apostolic and prophetic leaders who God is preparing right now. Who is God going to use regionally to help give leadership to a move of God? It probably won't be your local church pastor, but your pastor and everyone in your church should support whoever it is.