The Way It Is

chapter eighteen
—————————————————-“BEHOLD THE LAMB”

Revelation 5:11,12: and the number of them was ten thousand times ten thousand, and thousands of thousands, saying with a loud voice: “Worthy is the Lamb who was slain

(I again thank you for permission to speak to you directly, person-to-person, one-to-one. I desperately want to reach you. Speaking us and we and they instead of you, it seems to me, dilutes the impact. Please know that in preaching to you I am preaching to myself; I also need and want pruning.)

I share with you a sure strategy for a successful account at the judgement seat of Christ. (“We must all appear before the judgement seat of Christ.”) If you would praise Jesus Christ as the “thousands of thousands” praise Him you would be a mighty force in your community, your nation, the entire world. Such is the power of praise.

Revelation 4:8: And they do not rest day or night, saying: “Holy, holy, holy, Lord God Almighty,

If the sincere and fervent praises of heaven could somehow be transported to earth demons would flee this planet in panic, the crippled would dance, masses would turn to Christ, joy would flood the land, broken relationships would be restored. Such is the power of praise.

Revelation 5:9: And they sang a new song, saying: “You are worthy to take the scroll, And to open its seals; For You were slain, And have redeemed us to God by Your blood

Sing. Sing loudly. Sing with fervency. Earnestly and consistently pray an increased anointing on your worship unto Jesus. You will soon be a force that would damage darkness considerably. Such is the power of praise.

Revelation 5:13: “Blessing and honor and glory and power Be to Him who sits on the throne, And to the Lamb, forever and ever!”

If you will simply ask the Father to make of you a worshipper of the Lord Jesus Christ, relying solely on His power to do so, you will be one who rejoices at the judgement seat of Christ; your life will be a collection of “gold, silver, precious stones”. Such is the power of praise.

Revelation 15:3,4: And they sing the song of Moses, the servant of God, and the song of the Lamb, saying: “Great and marvellous are your works, Lord God Almighty! Just and true are Your ways, O King of the saints! Who shall not fear You, O Lord, and glorify Your name? For You alone are holy.

If husbands and wives would praise the Lord in unison on two or three designated times throughout the day that marriage would be blessed and protected and enjoyed, the children would grow strong in the Lord, a multitude of problems would be brushed aside before they landed. Such is the power of praise.

Psalm 113:1: Praise the Lord! Praise, O servants of the Lord, Praise the name of the Lord!

Praise the Lord because He is worthy. Praise the Lord because of the optimum power of praise. And praise the Lord because you are commanded to do so.

Psalm 22:3: You are holy, Who inhabit the praises of Israel.

Likewise He inhabits “the praises of” His church. That is why there is such power in praise. When Jesus comes He never leaves His power behind. He comes “with healing in His wings”. He comes “to set at liberty those who are oppressed”.

John 15:4: As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in Me.

The fruit we bear is relative to the quality of our abiding. Praising Jesus causes a healthy connection to “the vine”, and via that connection comes fruit.

Psalm 22:23: You who fear the Lord, praise Him!

Praise is the antidote for every problem. It brings peace and joy and love and “unity of the Spirit”; it brings health and freedom and financial stability, simply because it brings Jesus to the problem.

James 5:16: The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much.

The same is true of praise. “The effective, fervent (praise) of a righteous man avails much.” We are all equally righteous (“the righteousness of God which is through faith in Jesus Christ”). But we are not equally “fervent”. Your fervency is determined by none other than you.

Hebrews 13:15: let us continually offer the sacrifice of praise to God,

God was pleased with some animal sacrifices of the Israelites (i.e., unblemished), not so pleased with others (i.e., blemished). There are also calibres of “sacrifice of praise”. The praise of one is fervent, another dispassionate, most somewhere in-between. The resultant power is comparatively profound, feeble, or somewhere in between.

What can we give to God who has ‘everything’, something that will delight His heart? We can give our “sacrifice of praise to God”. He “is seeking such to worship Him”. Saints should gather for the purpose of giving praise to “the name which is above every name”, more than other incentives. Amen?

——————————————————————————APPENDIX

So here we are, the end of part two, The Way It Could Be and the entire book, The way It Is.

Was it a rough ride? Are you okay?

You have heard things you haven’t heard before. Your world has been shaken. Now you need time to consider. Jesus will help you. (“One is your teacher, the Christ.”)

Personally, I am happy to have reached the end. Like every chore, even labours of love, it’s the end one aims for. Now I intend to press Jesus for more of Him. His Spirit will help me.

Many times I have prayed: “Lord Jesus, I hereby deposit all who I am into who You are. And Lord Jesus, I hereby receive all who You are into who I am.” Will you say similar words to our Christ?

I have often asked the Father to be a worshipper of His Son. It took several years, but that prayer has been answered. Praise comes spontaneously, not always but often. It oozes out me when I wake up throughout the night. I appreciate Him more with every passing year. Praise to You, Lord Jesus Christ! Will you, precious saint, be like Mary who “sat at Jesus’ feet and heard His word”?

I will never write another book except at His beckoning. I will not build, I will not do, I will not presume. I have deep longings…. to be sanctified, to be used, to be involved in evangelism, to heal the sick, to cast out demons, to preach “Jesus Christ and Him crucified”, to lay up “treasures in heaven”…. and these longings I submit to the lordship of the Holy Spirit. He can, I can’t.

Likewise you can’t but He can. What is of God will happen if you simply trust in Him. You will be amazed at your accomplishments as the life of “the true vine” flows unheeded through the surrendered and determined branch. Jesus may give you a few major assignments throughout your remaining earth years or many smaller ones. Whatever, the collective fruit will be bountiful.

I don’t know who will read The Way It Is; I only know you have. I think of you. Where will you go from here? Have I (Christ in me) inched you closer to Christ? Have I salted your christianity, making you thirsty for more of Him? Have I convinced you that fervency will slowly but surely mould you into one of Christ’s rare overcomers. (“He who overcomes, I will make him a pillar in the temple of My God, and he shall go out no more. I will write on him the name of My God and the name of the city of My God, the New Jerusalem, which comes down out of heaven from My God. And I will write on him My new name.” Rev.3:12)

Blessings, blessings, and more blessings be upon your life!

Praise to You, Lord Jesus Christ!!

—————————————————–A TRIBUTE TO JESUS CHRIST

may the theme of your life
be
jesus christ
and him crucified
may your boast and glory
be
jesus christ
and him crucified
may your gaze
be upon
jesus Christ
and him crucified
may you preach
only
jesus christ
and him crucified
they will say
follow us
play with us
be with us
but you will say
my heart is
attached to
jesus christ
and him crucified
one day
soon
you will see him
him crucified
jesus christ