Kings and Priests by Linda Schreckenberg  writers_inkhorn@yahoo.com   “John to the seven churches which are in Asia: Grace be unto you, and peace, from him which is, and which was, and which is to come; and from the seven Spirits which are before his throne; and from Jesus Christ, who is the faithful witness, and the first-begotten of the dead, and the prince of the kings of the earth.  Unto him that loved us and washed us from our sins in his own blood, and hath made us kings and priests unto God and his Father; to him be glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen”

The Lord awakened me at 3 A.M. this morning with a word for his church.  He began to show why we do not have what we desire to have in the area of his power.  In the hour in which we live, we must have his power, for it is all about him.  It is not about us.  For years we have heard message after message about seeing the mighty hand of God.  We desire to see signs and wonders, yet the Word tells us that “signs and wonders were wrought at the hands of the Apostles.”  We must define and understand the office of an Apostle, when we desire “signs and wonders”, for all are not Apostles, although we do have Apostles within the church.  All are not prophets although we do have prophets within the church. All do not have the Gifts of Healing, which include the miracles of healing, although if we truly believe, we can “lay hands on the sick and they shall recover.” One simply cannot move within a gift or calling unless God has called him to that calling or given to him that particular Gift of the Spirit.  There are definite callings with defined purposes within the Word of God, just as there are different Gifts of the Spirit given to different parts of the body.  If the Gifts are not in operation within the body, then the body should ask for the Gifts so the church may be edified and encouraged.  Any Holy Ghost filled child of God can ask for the Gifts.  Any child of God can seek to be called of God in certain functions of the Spirit.  Once a child of God understands which calling or which office or which Gift they are called to, there will be no frustration and disappointment within their soul and no confusion or lack within the body.

The church of the living God is structured perfectly so that no part of the body will be inferior to another.  There is only one head, the Lord Jesus Christ, and everything is structured for his purpose, for his body.  There are different offices, different ministries, different callings, but every part of the body is necessary for the church to function in the power of God.  When the power of God is really present, man cannot be in control.  When the power is not moving, the church is not moving.  Every mighty display of the power of God is spontaneous!  He moves when there is perfect harmony, perfect love toward one another within the body, and when there is true humility.  He moves when he alone receives all of the Glory.  He literally “fills” the temple!  When God fills the temple, anything can happen.  The body has to be active together to prepare an atmosphere for the power of God.  In the scripture, the Apostle Paul said it this way regarding the true order of an Apostolic meeting, “ How is it then, brethren?  When ye come together, every one of you hath a psalm, hath a doctrine, hath a tongue, hath a revelation, hath an interpretation.  Let all things be done unto edifying.” I Corinthians 14:26 This type of Apostolic service was evident in the early 1900’s when God’s power was manifested at Azusa Street and across this nation.  This is the reason we do not have the power of God as we used to see it.  The body is not moving.  The Lord cannot move without his body moving with him, for he is the Head.  A head cannot be without a body, and a body cannot be without a head.  They are one.   In the verses above this, the Apostle Paul describes the proper use of the gifts, specifying that all cannot speak in tongues at the same time, causing the unlearned or unbelievers to think the people of God are mad.  The word ‘doctrine’ simply means “a teaching of truths to be believed.”  The Word of God refers to teachings of aspects of truth as doctrines.  Then he says this of prophecy, “But if all prophesy, and there come in one that believeth not, or one unlearned, he is convinced of all, he is judged of all; and thus the secrets of his heart made manifest; and so falling down on his face he will worship God, and report that God is in you of a truth.”  Maybe this is why the Apostle Paul said this in Chapter 14, verse 1; “Follow after charity, and desire spiritual gifts, but rather that ye may prophesy”, for this causes men to fall down and worship God.  The Apostle Paul made a very powerful statement in Chapter 14, verse 6, “Now brethren, if I come unto you speaking with tongues, what shall I profit you, except I shall speak to you either by revelation, or by knowledge, or by prophesying, or by doctrine?”   The power of God has to be in control or there is no profit to the body of Christ or within the body of Christ.  His power is displayed through his anointing and through his Gifts of the Spirit.  We can structure services and promote so many rules and regulations on how a service should be conducted until only man is in control, and the absence of the power of God will prove it.  The body of Christ can actually be controlled and regulated until all we have is a ‘form’ and not the power.

A few weeks ago, I encountered the true power of God in a service where I would least have expected to see it!  We went to a little country church for the funeral of a Baptist pastor friend of my husband.  This man had been preaching on the power in his church, even though he was being ostracized for it.  His mannerism showed that he had a relationship with God, even though he did not have truth.  We were seated in the rear corner of the building, where there was standing room only, even around the walls.  As we entered the building, a group of simple country people were singing together on the platform, in what I would guess was their “choir.”  They were singing the old Pentecostal songs I knew as a child.  Suddenly the power of God began to fill the building.  People stopped weeping and began to sing with all their hearts.  The power of God increased and they began to raise their hands and worship.  The Holy Ghost began to fall upon a Baptist lady beside us, until she had stammering lips and tears coursing down her face.  Her husband was trembling with the power of God, weeping with all his heart!  My husband and I watched with amazement as God literally filled the house and the funeral lasted 5 hours, because no one could stop the power.  The funeral home director, also Baptist, stepped to the pulpit and said, “people, no one can deny that God is in this place!”  It was the most beautiful funeral I had ever attended.  Singers would come up to sing, just simple country people, but the talent and the power was astounding!  No one wanted to leave the building.  The power of God was there!  The deceased pastor had told the board during a meeting the week before, “we are going to have a revival, and I hope the building is full until there is no place to stand.”  As they had to open the doors because the building was full, the sunlight streamed across his casket, as if to confirm his words!  It was definitely an eye-opening experience for us as Apostolics.  God is not bound, except by our own words and actions.

The entire body of Christ is referred to as Kings and Priests.  As Kings, we conquer and rule over the earth, and as Priests, we teach and instruct in the way of the Holy Scripture.  We are an entity that should be moving continually, in the Spirit of God, and in every area of the earth, until it is shaken.  When we cease to orchestrate the power of God, he will move within his body and shake this United States .  When we cease to promote our own spirituality or understanding, he will move.  If we do not fulfill our purpose, he as God can choose to use someone that will.

The Lord impressed upon me this one last thing.  It is a trick of Satan to get us to focus so much on perfecting ourselves, when each and every child of God knows what he or she should do to live for God.  The Word gives every instruction for every facet of life.  The enemy knows if we focus on ourselves, our ministries, our callings, rules and ordinances, and perfecting our services, the millions out there that are lost will still remain lost!  The task of winning the lost lies before us and cries out to us continually.  It is not an easy task, because the enemy has strongholds that will only be broken by the power of God.   It is time to reclaim the evidence of his power.  It is time to let God be God!

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