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ESCAPE
FROM CHRISTENDOM
Robert Burnell
{Originally
Published by Bethany House Publishers in 1980.
Also MorningStar Journal Vol
2 #1. MorningStar Website:-
www.eaglestar.org }
The Journey
In my
dream I see the lone figure of a man following a road. As the sun sets beneath the
hills, a city comes into view. Nearing it, the traveler sees what appears to be
a large group of churches.
"Is
this the City of
"No
this is
"But
I thought this road led to the City of
"That's
what we all thought when we arrived," she answers, her tone sympathetic.
"This
road continues up the mountain, doesn't it?" He asks.
"I
wouldn't know, really," she answers blankly.
I
watch the man turn away from her and trudge on up the mountain in the gathering
darkness. Reaching the top, he starts out into the blackness; it looks as
though there is nothing, absolutely nothing, beyond. With a shudder he retraces
his steps into
Strangely
unrefreshed, at down he arises and follows the road
up the mountain again; in the brightening light of the sun he discovers that
what seemed like a void the night before is actually a desert--dry, hot,
rolling sand as far as the eye can see. The road narrows to a path which rises
over a dune and disappears. "Can this trail lead to the City of
Indecision
slowing his steps, he again returns to
"Don't
be a fool!" his neighbor replies quickly. "Everyone who has ever
taken that path has been lost... swallowed up by the desert! If you want God,
there are plenty of good churches in this town. You should pick one and settle
down."
After
leaving the restaurant, looking weary and confused, the traveler finds a spot
under a tree and sits down. An ancient man approaches and begins pleading with
him in urgent tones, "If you stay here in
"What
you say sounds wonderful," the traveler replies. "But I'm afraid I'd
never survive that desert. I'm probably better off here in
The
ancient one smiles. "
Then I
see the traveler look away from the old man's burning eye to the bustle of
In my
dream I imagine the traveler turning things over in his mind. "If I do go
out there, how can I be sure that I will really be lost in God? In the Middle
Ages Christians tried to lose themselves in God by putting the world behind
them and entering a monastery. And how disappointed many of them were to find
that the world was still there! And the people here in Christian City who are
preparing to go to some jungle or a neglected slum, maybe they're coming closer
to what it means to be lost in God. But then, a person can travel to the ends
of the earth and not lose himself."
The
traveler turns again to see the old person starting up the road for the narrow
path down to the deserts edge. Suddenly, his decision mobilizes him and leaps
to his feet, chasing after him. When he catches up, they exchange no words. The
ancient man makes an abrupt turn to the right and guides him up still another
slope which steepens as it rises toward a peak shrouded in a luminous cloud.
The climb upward is very difficult. The traveler appears dizzy and begins to
stagger. His guide pauses an offers him a drink from a flask hanging over his
shoulder. Panting, he drinks it in great gulps. "No water ever tasted sweeter
than this," he says with great feeling.
"Thank
you."
Now
look there." The old man points beyond them to a vista not nearly as
monotonous and desolate as it had seemed earlier. The desert below has taken on
many colors and gradation. In the far distance blazing light is throbbing and
moving on the surface of the horizon like a living thing. "There is the
City of
"How
can they survive the loneliness?" Asks the traveler.
"Wouldn't they benefit from traveling together?"
"Well,
they aren't really alone. Each one of them is accompanied by the forgiveness of
God. They are being swallowed by the desert of the Lord God's vast mercy. The
Holy Spirit is saying to them as they travel, 'Behold the Lamb of God, who
takes away the sin of the world!' They are made whole as they travel."
Just
beyond there is an expanse of blue. "Is it sea?" Inquires
the traveler.
"It
looks like water, but it's a sea of sand. That's the Wilderness of Worship.
Here, look through these glasses and you will see that people are walking
there, too. Notice how they begin to group themselves here. They are having
their first taste of the joy of the City--worship. They are discovering how
they were made for the worship of God. It is becoming their life, the white-hot
source of everything they do."
"But
don't people also worship back in
"Worship,
that is true worship, can begin only when a life has been utterly abandoned to
the
Looking
beyond the blue wilderness to where the desert rises in red and fiery
mountains, the old man explains to the traveler that among those reddish
mountains is the Wilderness of Prayer.
"Passing
through that wilderness travelers find it necessary to turn away from every
distraction and concentrate on prayer. They quickly learn that there is no
possible way for them to survive but by crying out to God continuously. By the
time they reach the outer extremes of that wilderness, prayer is their
consuming passion and their supreme joy. It appears at first that the City of
"Nightfall
doesn't seem to be a particularly propitious time to begin a journey like
this," he says.
"Don't
go back to
"Not
even at this hour? That way I could get a good night's sleep and start first
thing in the morning," the traveler adds hopefully.
"But
your rest is out there," he urges. "Walk on now, into the desert. The
Holy Spirit will help you. Don't be afraid to be lost in God. You'll find your
life nowhere else."
The Wilderness of Forgiveness
The old
man has left the traveler standing alone at the edge of the desert as darkness
falls. The lights of
As
dawn breaks he sees nothing but sand and sky and a path which can be
distinguished from all the others by the cross which hovers where the trail
meets the horizon. As the day wears on it is obvious that the traveler is
weary, thirsty, sick with heat. Just when it appears he cannot trudge another
step, a stranger appears at his side.
"Over
the next hill you will find a spring," she says.
"Keep
going, you are almost there," she encourages him.
He is
soon lying by a spring, drinking water and eating food which the helpful
stranger provides.
"This
is the Wilderness of Forgiveness," she explains to the traveler.
"People often expect God's forgiveness to be like a beautiful park with
fountains and rivers and green grass. They cannot understand why it should be a
desert. Yet one has to learn that God's forgiveness is everything--everything!
And this is possible only in a desert, where a Christian comes to see nothing,
appreciate nothing, hope in nothing but the cross of Jesus." She quotes
several passages from Galatians to the traveler:
But
far be it from me to glory except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by
which the world has bee crucified to me, and I to the world. For
neither circumcision counts for anything, nor uncircumcision,
but a new creation. Peace and mercy be upon all who walk by this rule,
upon the
I have
been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in
me; and the life I now live in the flesh, I live by faith in the Son of God,
who loved me and gave Himself for me. I do not nullify the grace of God; for if
justification were through the law, then Christ died to no purpose.
"Do
you think the apostle Paul traveled this Wilderness?" Asks
the traveler.
"Yes,
he did. For years Paul had worked very hard in the City of
"So
I'm walking where the apostles walked." The traveler's voice is full of
awe.
"Remember
when Peter lowered the net at the command of Jesus and brought it up loaded
with fish? His immediate response was, 'Leave me Lord, I'm a sinner!' Jesus
answered, 'Don't be afraid; from now on you will be catching men.' Implied in
Jesus' answer was, 'I will take care of your sin.' And when they brought their
boats to land, they left everything and followed Jesus--followed Him here into
this Wilderness of Forgiveness in pursuit of a cross. After Jesus had died for
Peter's sins and risen for his justification and was about to fill Peter with
the Holy Spirit, He said to this man who ha denied Him three times, 'Simon, son
of Jonas, Do you love me?... Feed My sheep.' And with
this thrice-repeated question and command, Peter's life was healed with the
forgiveness of his Lord."
"For
years," the traveler tells her, "I've been trying to get beyond
theoretical, doctrinal forgiveness, most probably what is taught in
"You
have come to the right place. Before you reach the other side of this
Wilderness, you will experience the relief of having that load of guilt, which
still, in fact, weighs you down like a rock, rolled away. You will begin to
walk before God without shame. Just as you were once obsessed with the need to
build yourself up, you will soon be obsessed with the forgiveness of God."
"Obsessed
with the forgiveness of God?"
"You
will become so obsessed with God's mercy that you will be free, for the first
time in your life, of other peoples opinions."
"Ha!
Not me." His response is immediate.
"The
woman who washed Jesus' feet with her tears was obsessed with His forgiveness
to the point where she was heedless of the jeers and opinions of others. Or the
cleaned leper--he joyfully fell at Jesus' feet giving thanks for more than the
cleansing of his body; he had received the inner healing of forgiveness. When Zachaeus climbed a tree to see Jesus, he was watching his
own forgiveness walking toward him down the road. So obsessed was he with the
forgiveness which visited his life that day the chains of covetousness broke
from his heart. You have come to the place where it will happen to you."
The
traveler resumes his journey, his mysterious companion walking silently by his
side for an hour or two then suddenly disappearing.
"What
joy I feel!" The traveler exclaims aloud. "This must be what the
disciples felt as they returned to
"In
the cross-shaped light, the traveler makes out the figure of another woman
rising over the crest of the next dune and walking slowly down the slope toward
him. He appears to recognize her. From his expression I gather that this person
has wronged him. Her eyes are fixed on the traveler as she comes up to him.
"Will
you forgive me?" She asks.
The
traveler stops still. The woman draws closer, asking a second time, "Will
you forgive me?" They are face to face when she asks for the third time,
"Will you forgive me?" The traveler's mysterious companion is again
at his side, quietly instructing him, "This Wilderness of Forgiveness is
not only a place for receiving forgiveness, but also for giving it. This woman
is but the first of a procession of people from your past whom you have never
really forgiven. The supernatural forbearance which has flooded your being all
day is being challenged by the bitterness buried in your soul for all these
years. You have to make a choice. The sterile, shallow, lip service forgiveness
of your past life is powerless even to be polite to this woman. But the
forgiveness of God which has been flowing in to the point of becoming an
obsession can flow out now if you will allow it to."
The
traveler reaches out, takes the woman by the hand, looks
into her eyes and replies, "Of course I forgive you!"
She
weeps. And just as she forms the words, "Thank you," she is gone.
Then
the man who called the traveler a fool in the restaurant back in
"Of
course, of course," the traveler replies heartily. "It's nothing.
Don't think another thing about it."
"Please
don't take this matter so lightly. I NEED your forgiveness. Will you REALLY
forgive me, from the bottom of your heart?"
"But
I already have," returns the traveler. His companion illuminates the
situation for him: "He needs your FORGIVENESS. Not courtesy, but active,
genuine forgiveness. He needs your LOVE."
"My
friend, you are forgiven," the traveler tells him earnestly with respect
in his voice.
With
visible relief the man sighs, "Thank you!" And
disappears into the desert air. His companion reminds him of the verse
in Matthew 18 which reads:
Then
Peter came up and said to Him, "Lord, how often shall my brother sin
against me, and I forgive him? As many as seven times, but
seventy times seven."
The Wilderness of Worship
"Water! Who would have thought that in the middle of this desert there
would be a sea!" The traveler is exclaiming to
himself when next I see him in my dream. From the brow of a mammoth dune he
looks down into an expanse of blue stretching to the horizon. "But no, it
isn't water," he remembers. "The old man on the mountain pointed to
this as the beginning of the second wilderness." As he descends the hill
to its edge, the strange sea of sand is not as flat as it seemed from above.
There are waves of blue extending into the distance like a frozen ocean.
"Perhaps there is a relationship between this and 'the sea of glass'
before the throne of God. Perhaps the waves will flatten out as I approach the
City of
Suddenly
a person of unearthly beauty is standing a few feet away from the traveler.
"Greetings," the being says. "It's a long way across this
stretch. Many have perished trying to make it on foot. I offer you a better
way."
"A better way?" Asks the traveler. "Yes, I
have the power to cross this wilderness in a split second. And if you will let
me, I can take you with me. I can have you safe on the other side
directly."
"What
must I do?"
"All
I require is a token act. If you will merely kneel to pay me homage, I will
lift you across this wilderness with the speed of light.."
"But
that would be to worship you, wouldn't it?"
"Why
do you find that strange? People do it every day. You did it yourself long
before you came to this wilderness. The citizens often worship me in
"You
aren't reaching me with your talk of money. It's never been a problem in My life," the traveler retorts. "How
about romance? What could be more beautiful or innocent than being in
love? But when the state of being in love becomes a goal and dominates the
mind, there is idolatry involved. And it is 'yours truly' behind that
idol," he says triumphantly. "But the most personally satisfying
worship I receive comes from men and women who are pursuing religious
successes."
"Well,"
the traveler cuts his boasting short, "If I have to worship you in
exchange for quick trip across this wilderness, I'll gladly walk, if it takes
forever!"
At
this, the bewitching creature vanishes in defeat.
I soon
hear the traveler reasoning with himself again: "In
"Perhaps
such worship can be formed only in this desert, with its dryness and pounding
heat, searing light and eerie silence."
These
reflections are interrupted by a sudden crescendo of indescribable music,
singing of unearthly beauty. Voices seem to be everywhere. Yet no one is
visible. From the top of a blue wave, the traveler sees seven people standing
in a hollow with their hands raised heavenward, uttering the praises to God. In
the midst of this music, his mysterious companion returns. Filled with joy, the
traveler tells her, "Do you notice how the seven worshipers are really
surrounded by a multitude of magnificent beings whose voices blend with theirs?
I fell that out here in the desert I have, in a mystery, already entered the
outskirts of the City of
"But
you have come to Mount Zion and to the city of the living God, the heavenly
Jerusalem, and to innumerable angels in festal gatherings, and to the assemble
of the firstborn who are enrolled in heaven, and to a judge who is God of all,
and to the spirits of just men made perfect, and to Jesus, the mediator of a
new covenant, and to sprinkled blood that speaks more graciously than the blood
of Abel... Therefore let us be grateful for receiving a kingdom that cannot be
shaken, and thus let us offer to God acceptable worship, with reverence and
awe; for our God is a consuming fire."
After
some time the song ceases. Everything becomes still. No one is in sight but the
seven worshipers, who bid the traveler God's peace and file over the dune,
leaving him alone with his companion. She leads him to a rushing steam and
provides him another meal.
"So
this is the Wilderness of Worship," exclaims the traveler, still in awe
from his experience.
"Yes,
here Christians learn to worship God the Father in spirit and truth. You might
call it the outer court of the City of
"I
have never experienced such worship as this. But will it last?" Asks the traveler. "Will I still be able to worship the
living God with such grace in the deserts beyond?"
"Changes
are taking place in you which, if you let them, will last forever. Your heart
is being opened by the outpoured Spirit. Your mouth is being opened to speak as
God gives you utterance--'Your sons and your daughters shall prophesy.' And
your eyes are being opened to see visions and dream dreams. You are receiving
eyes which see God"
"But
don't these same things happen back in
"The
difference, brother, is that here you do not merely taste worship or dabble in
worship. Here in the desert you are lost in the worship of God so that all your
praise and thanksgiving goes to Him. Everything you do is done for Him."
"But
isn't there a danger of fanaticism?"
"Fanatics
worship principles, ideas, human personalities and even demons, but never God.
Consuming worship of God is the doorway, not to fanaticism, but to liberty such
as you have never known. When you are lost in the
worship of God, you no longer worship such things as money, romance, or
success. You have found the one true object of worship, and as you worship Him
you are fulfilled."
With
these words his companion departs. Once again the traveler is alone on a sea of
blue sand, lost in the worship of God.
The Wilderness of Prayer
Now
the sea of sand comes to an abrupt end in the foothills of a fiery mountain range.
There is no vegetation, only walls of dry, hard, burning rock. Bones cluttering
the sand at the base of the rocky barrier are mute testimony to the dangers of
this desolate land. The traveler fixes his gaze on the cross shaped star as he
walks, and recites to himself:
"Enter
by the narrow gate; for the gate is wide and the way easy,
that leads to destruction, and those who enter by it are many. For the
gate is narrow and the way is hard, that leads to life, and those who find it
are few."
Hearing
voices in the distance, the traveler follows the path at the foot of the
mountain toward them. There the path abruptly turns into a gash in the
mountain. Entering the opening, he listens as a voice echoes and resounds with
such intensity that no words can be distinguished. Moving deep into this rock
pass, the traveler nears a huge wrought iron arch under which a man is
addressing an assembly of men and women. "This is the way, believe
me," pleads the man, his words now distinct. "This narrow gate to my
left is so rusty it will hardly swing. Who in his right mind would want to
follow that steep path, when this well paved, well traveled way is open and
ready? Come through this gate and you will be out of the wilderness before the
day is over. Good food and a clean bed await you at the other end. There are
prayer meetings arranged at the rest stops every hour along the way."
Without
hesitation the traveler passes under the wrought iron arch and proceeds down
the road. Others join him. The route on which he now walks is smooth and
pleasant in contrast to the blue sand he has just plodded through. A sign
repeats the information that there are rest stops every hour, consisting of a
prayer meeting and a light lunch.
At the
first such stop he talks with a pleasant hostess: "I've come a long way.
Please tell me where this path is taking us."
She
smiles and replies, "You will be beautifully housed and well taken care
of. Your journey will be over by nightfall."
"The
traveler walks on, increasingly perplexed. Just as darkness begins to fall
after a scenic journey through the rocks and trees, he finds himself on the
brow of a hill looking down on a city.
"Welcome!"
Exclaims a man standing beneath a wrought iron arch identical to the arch
through which he had passed earlier.
"Thank
you," replies the traveler. "But where am I?"
"Why,
this is
Without
another word the traveler turns and runs back the same way he came. With
Daybreak
finds him on a narrow path winding up through scarlet rocks. There is a hum in
the air as of a wind through trees, but neither wind nor trees are found here.
The hum grows louder and finally can be distinguished as a chant of many
voices. Now the traveler sees the people on the path ahead. He has become part
of a procession of people all moving toward the City of
The
traveler's mysterious companion now returns and addresses him. "Here in
the Wilderness of Prayer the contrast with
Now
when all the people were baptized, and when Jesus also had been baptized and
was Praying, the heavens opened, and the Holy Spirit descended upon Him in
bodily form, as a dove, and voice came from heaven, "Thou are my beloved
Son; with thee I am will pleased" (Luke 3:21-22)
But so
much the more the report went abroad concerning him; and great multitudes
gathered to hear and to be healed of their infirmities. But he withdrew to the
wilderness and Prayed. (Luke 5:15-16)
In
those days he went out into the hills to Pray; and all night he continued in
prayer to God. And when it was day, he called his disciples, and chose from
them twelve, whom he named apostles...(Luke 6:12-13)
Now
about eight days after these sayings he took with him Peter and John and James,
and went up on the mountains to Pray. And when He was Praying, the appearance
of his countenance was altered, and his raiment became dazzling white. (Luke
9:28-29)
He was
Praying in a certain place, and when he ceased, one of his disciples said to
him, "Lord, teach us to Pray, as John taught his disciples" (Luke
11:1)
And he
came out, and went, as his custom, to the
And
when they came to the place which is called The Skull, there they crucified
him, and the criminals, one on the right and one of the left. And Jesus said.
"Father for forgive them; for they know not what they do" (Luke
23:33-34
"A
prayer life is something we engage in alone, yet it brings us into fellowship
with God and man as nothing else will," his companion tells him when he
has finished reading. "prayer is going to God, to
the Father's door, and asking for bread so that you can give it to your needy
brother. When you knock and keep knocking always opens. Always.
Out of that communion with God comes something you share with others. And as
you share what God gives you, you have a communion with them. A person will have
this communion even if he's shy or clumsy. For this life of prayer delivers one
from the fear of other people's opinions and the fear of one's own
blunders."
"But
does it take these eerie mountains, these cliffs, this continuous danger to
learn to pray?" Asks the traveler.
"Well,
in the past you cried to god in you occasional emergencies. Here you are
learning to see your life as a continuous crisis, driving you to call on God
day and night. "Shall not God vindicate his elect who cry to him day and
night?' The clearer our vision of what happens in the world--how close to the
edge of chaos the nations are--the more we understand that the only way to know
life is to come close to God the Father in prayer, to cry to Him day and night.
We pray without ceasing because the crisis in earthly life is never over."
"But
why does it all have to be so hard? It looks to me as though the climb through
these mountains is the toughest part of the journey yet."
"Because prayer is our main work. It takes thought, concentration,
an active will land the best of one's strength to pray for the hallowing of
God's name, the coming of God's kingdom, to pray for laborers in the harvest,
or to pray for specific people and their needs. You have barely begun to
scratch the surface of the awesome things that wait to be done in answer to
your prayers, if you will keep going."
"That's
it, though! To keep going. I'm getting so tired."
"This
is because your prayers are becoming engaged in the Real Battle. Prayer is the
ground where we overcome evil with good. In these mountains you will learn to
pray for your enemies. The life of overcoming evil with good
starts with asking that good will come to those who have done evil to
us."
The
narrow path leads to a lookout where the traveler and his companion share a
meal. Afterwards they walk to the edge of the lookout where she points to the
path winding down through the mountains which diminish in size until somewhere
near the horizon they appear to reach their end.
"You
see, there begins the Harvest," the travelers
companion says, pointing to a view beyond them, "Remember these words
which Jesus said:
'Do
you not say, there are yet four months, then comes the
harvest? I tell you, lift up your eyes, and see how the field
are already white for harvest. He reaps receives wages, and gathers
fruit for eternal life, so that sower and reaper may
rejoice together. For here the saying holds true, "One sows and another
reaps." I sent you to reap that for which you did not labor; others have
labored, and you will have entered into their labor.'"
The
traveler look into the distance while his companion explains further: "In
"But
what kind of mission field is this desert?" The traveler asks. "Whose
soul are you going to save in the Wilderness of Forgiveness except your own?
And when you get to the Wilderness of Worship, everyone there is already alive
with God's glory. In the Wilderness of Prayer there is wonderful communion with
other travelers, and I'm learning to intercede. But there aren't any lost
souls..."
The Harvest
Reaching
the outer extremity of the Wilderness of Prayer, the traveler in my dream is
taking in his first clear view of his destination. In the far distance, radiant
with a holy splendor, is the City of
A woman doubled up with pain begs the traveler, "Please,
please do something
for me. I can't tolerate this pain anymore!"
"I'm
powerless," he tells her. "What do you think I could do for
you?" "A little water is all I need. Please bring me some
water!"
"Where
am I going to find water in the desert?"
"How
long do you think YOU'LL last," she replies, "unless you find water
for yourself? Please find some and bring it to me."
As the
traveler scans the desert in bewilderment, his mysterious companion returns and
guides him to a spring surrounded by thousands of empty flasks.
"Drink
some yourself," she suggests, "and then fill a flask for the
woman."
After
drinking this water, the traveler is immediately strengthened and brings some
to the woman. By the time she has finished drinking her health is restored.
Immediately she takes the flask, runs to the spring and begins helping her
neighbors. There are men with deep wounds, children lying on their backs with
faint, rapid breathing, and elderly people with dirty bandages around their
worn faces. Some victims are screaming with pain and others are weeping
silently to themselves. Some are revived with a single flask of water. Others
need much more. I see other travellers engaged in
this same effort. As victims are healed, they too participate in the labor of raising up others. As they carry water from the spring, the
traveler shares this passage from the Gospel of John with another man:
"meanwhile the disciples besought him saying, "Rabbi,
eat." But he said to them, "I have food to eat of which you do not
know. So the disciples said to one another, "Has anyone brought him
food?" Jesus said to them, "My food is to do the will of him who sent
me, and to accomplish his word."
"I
guess we're learning what this means," added the traveler.
He
spends many days in that place involved in the work of revival. One evening as he rest by the sprig his companion returns and sits down
beside him.
"I
don't suppose we'll be able to go on to the City of
"That
is true," she replies.
"But
will they wait for us?"
"Don't
worry. Just keep reviving these people until they're all on their feet. Then
the gates of the City of
'Do
not say, There are yet four months, then comes the
harvest. I tell you, lift up your eyes, and see the fields are white for
harvest. He who reaps receives wages, and gathers fruit for eternal life, so
that sower and reaper may rejoice together. For here
the saying holds true, "One sows and another reaps." I sent you to
reap that for which you did not labor; others have labored and you have entered
into their labor.'"
"But
these needs are so staggering that I am beginning to feel overwhelmed. The joy
of seeing restoration take place before my eyes is offset to some degree by the
vastness of this sea of despair. Is there and end to it?"
"Brother,"
replies his companion, "just as you had to lose ourself
in God's forgiveness, and in worship and prayer, you are now losing yourself
fin the harvest. It is one thing to dabble in the harvest. It's quite another
to be lost in it."
"But
will I have the strength to keep on working among people with such great
needs?"
"Isn't
that what Jesus did?"
And as
he sat at the table in the house, behold, many tax
collectors and sinners came and sat down with Jesus and his disciples. And when
the Pharisees saw this, they said to his disciples, "Why does your teacher
eat with tax collectors and sinners?" But when he heard it, he said,
"Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick.
Go and learn what this means, 'I desire mercy and not sacrifice.' For I came not to call the righteous, but the sinners."
"It
must have become discouraging for Him, though"
"Jesus
wept over religious
Don't
be satisfied until the mercy of god has raised them ALL to their feet."
"Yes.
Think about this passage in Revelation;
"And
I saw the holy city, New Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared
a bride adorned for her husband; and I heard a great voice from the throne,
prepared as a bride adorned for her husband; and I heard a great voice from the
throne saying, 'Behold, the dwelling of God is with men. He will dwell with
them, and they shall be his people, and God himself will be with them; he will
wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, for the
former things have passed away.'"
"As
you first experience the labor of the harvest and discover you are actually able
to raise these perishing ones to their feet by giving them living water from
the divine spring, Jesus, you have tremendous joy. The wilderness experiences
of forgiveness, worship of god and prayer have issued in the power to heal the
sick in the name of Jesus."
"'He
who believes in me will also do the works that I do; and greater works that
these will he do, because I go to the Father.' The challenge is to
endure."
The Vision
When I
next see the traveler in my dream, he has begun to complain, "How long is
this gong to go on? I would have thought that by now the work would be finished
and we could go on. I'm sorry, but I'm tired. I'm going over by that boulder to
rest in the shade for a couple of days."
Later
another traveler passes the boulder and finds him lying there almost dead.
Running to the spring he fills two flasks, returns and pours the precious water
down his throat.
"Drink, brother, drink!"
"Thank
you! Oh, thank you! I was almost done for," says the traveler between
gulps. "But how did I come to this? What went wrong?"
His
mysterious companion joins him again. "Brother," she says, "you
lost your strength because you lost your vision. The City of
"The
traveler resumes his work in the Harvest with fresh vigor. But at nightfall
overcome by weariness. He goes to the spring; approaching it is a woman who
looks to be quite elderly, yet doesn't appear the least bit tired.
"What
is your secret?" Asks the traveler. "You
look so youthful and vigor while I have no strength left."
"I
have taken my cue from Daniel," she tells him. "Daniel must have been
a busy man, yet in the midst of the daily pressures he continued to return to
his upper chamber where the windows opened westward. There looking toward
When
the traveler left the old woman, he seemed to be consciously attempting to keep
his vision before him. In low voice he was singing the words of Revelation:
"And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from
God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband; and I heard a great voice
from the throne saying, 'Behold, the dwelling of God is with men. He will dwell
with them, and they shall be his people, and God himself will with them; he
will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither
shall there be mourning nor crying nor pain anymore, for the
former things have passed away!"
When I
last see the traveler, his mysterious companion had returned with a final
admonition for him: "KEEP looking to that City and remember who waits for
you there. He has prepared a place for you and will soon be coming for you.
Meanwhile, as you look to the City, He will renew your strength so that you
will mount up on wings as the eagles, you will run and not be weary, you will
walk and not faint."
Two Revivals
At
this point I was swept away from the scene of the traveler's journey to the top
of a high cliff. I found there a stone tablet inscribed with these words from
Revelation 19:
"Then
I saw heaven opened, and behold a white horse! He who sat upon it is called
Faithful and True, and in righteousness he judges and
makes war. Hies eyes are like a flame of fire, and on
his head are many diadems; and he has a name inscribed with no one knows but
himself. He is clad in a robe dipped in blood, and the name by which he is
called is the The Word of God. And the armies of
heaven arrayed in fine linen, white and pure, followed him on white horses.
From his mouth issues a sharp sword with which to smite the nations and he will
rule them with a rod of iron; he will tread the wine press of the fury of the
wrath of God the Almighty. On his robe and on his thigh he has a name
inscribed, King of Kings and Lord of Lords."
Looking
up from the tablet, I saw beneath me two revivals simultaneously in progress.
There
was a feeling in
At the
same time, I saw across the desert far distant from
Finally
I saw the last prone body raised to life. What one appeared a battlefield of
defeat had become the camp of a mighty army. Suddenly an earthquake shook the
ground beneath my feet. The Sky darkened and a sound of war rolled in from the
east.
Then I
saw
But
near the wall of the City, the army of revived ones waited poised and ready.
When the enemy came within range, the gates of the City burst open. Out marched
the Army of Light led by a King of such splendor that the enemy horde had to
shield its eyes. The revived ones merged with the Army of Light and joined
battle with the enemy. Three-and-a half days later the war was over. The enemy
was destroyed and the triumphant ones entered the City of
Again
I was swept away to read another large tablet engraved with further words from
Revelation:
"Then
I saw an angel standing in the sun, and with a loud voice he called to all the
birds that fly in midheaven, 'Come, gather for the
great supper God, to eat the flesh of kings, the flesh of captains, the flesh
mighty men, the flesh of horses and their riders, and the flesh of all men,
both free and slave, both small and great.' And I saw the beast and the kings
of earth with their armies gathered to make war against him who sits upon the
horse ad against his army. And the beast was captured, and with it the false
prophet who in its presence had worked the signs by which he deceived those who
had received the mark of the beast and whose who
worshiped its image. These two were thrown alive into the lake of fire that
burns with brimstone. And the rest were slain by the sword of him who sits upon
the horse, the sword that issues from his mouth; and
all the birds were gorged with their flesh.
"Then
I saw an angel coming down from heaven, holding in his hand the key of the
bottomless pit and a great chain. And he seized the dragon, that ancient
serpent, who is the Devil and Satan, and bound him for
a thousand years, and threw him into the pit, and shut it and sealed it over
him, that he could deceive the nations no more, till the thousand years were
ended. After that he must be loosed for a little while. Then I saw thrones, and
seated on them were those to whom judgement was
committed. Also I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded for their
testimony to Jesus and for the Word of God, and who had not worshiped the beast
or its image and had not received its mark of their foreheads or their hands.
They came to life, and reigned with Christ for a thousand years."
When I
had finished reading this, as abruptly as my dream had come to me it ended,
leaving me with a deep sense of awe, a new awareness of the undercurrents in my
own life, and a renewed desire to seek to know God in spirit and truth.
Never
has it been more clear to me that two revivals are in
progress on the earth. One is the revival of the Spirit of God by which dead
men and women are freed from their sins by the blood of the Lamb and raised to
a life which is the life of the sons of God, a life which bears God's nature,
manifests God's mercy. The other revival is the revival of religious flesh, a revival which is so appealing and gather such multitudes
and wield such power in this world because it offers all the comfort of
religion while allowing you to keep your ego and all rights to yourself.
Surely each of us
has to decide which revival he is going to be part of. Am I going to invest my
life in some enterprise of booming
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