"The voice of one crying in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of The Lord, make His paths straight" MK 1:3
There comes a time when we must stop trying to be who we are not and embrace who we really are.
Consider the birth of John the Baptist.
When he was born, it seemed that everyone wanted to see him.
His mere existence was a miracle in itself. Considering that he had been birthed from a barren womb to aged parents, everyone wanted to see this miracle of God's handiwork.
It was there in the crowd that came to see him, someone asked 'What would be the name of this new baby?'
His father Zachariah announced, "His name will be John" This literally meant 'Yahweh is gracious'
This new prophet being birthed onto the scene would be the first significant 'move of God' in over 400 years.
His birth in and of itself signaled a new thing that God was doing in the earth.
Just as this prophets name was announced, someone had the gall to reject his name.
This objection has always proven to be the stalwart excuse of the religious.
"There is no one among your relatives called by that name" Lk 1:61
And so today they continue to reject the identity of an entire move of God.
-They announce, "We've never done it that way before"
But John represented a move of God that was fresh and new.
His message was sure and firm. His message didn't sound like or resemble the culture that birthed him.
He would not embrace the mundane traditions that would attempt to confine him.
His sound, his voice was not what the religious status quo of his day were murmuring.
He thundered "Prepare the way of The Lord"
He preached repentance, and his cry was for revival!
Many would deny his God given identity and prophetic destiny in an attempt to force him to deny it himself.
The religious system of his day would demand he be given a new name.
They would insist he be bound by centuries of tradition.
There is always a diabolical attempt every time God begins to do a new thing, to take an old garment of the past and fill it with the new.
The church has long tried to place new wine in old wineskins with disastrous results.
When this happens, believers never walk in or gain the identity destined for them.
Understand this, someone will always resist the new and truly relevant move of God.
Revival is messy, it makes the religious system of the day uncomfortable and makes demands that the status quo will never accept.
The religious system of today much like John's critics retort:
"We've never done it that way"
"Your worship is too extreme"
"Your demand of commitment is unreasonable"
"Your preaching is too radical"
This outpouring of the Holy Spirit cannot be contained by the box of religious tradition.
John couldn't bear his fathers name, because he was a new breed.
He didn't have his calling, or his priestly traits.
John had a different attitude, appearance and possessed a unique appetite unlike anything ever experienced.
His father was a priest-accepted by the people.
John was a dreaded prophet, shunned by the system of his day.
John did not feast on the usual diet of his fathers house. There would be no lamb, unleavened bread and herbs for him.
His diet would consist of only locust and wild honey.
His diet represented the meal of a man who only ate to survive. He had no time to waste by feeding his carnality and superficial sense of self gratification. His diet was for a man on a mission.
It would seem that this prophet was out of sync with everyone around him, but it was those around him who were out of step.
This prophet represented a refreshing move of God that would be fed on something totally different than what satisfied the carnal.
The remnant church has a differed appetite than what the world does.
This remnant group can only be satisfied with New Wine in New Wineskins.
John prophesied a collision course with hypocrisy and dead cold religion.
Like John, God is raising up prophets unsatisfied with church as usual.
We have a different appetite.
We have a different look.
We have a different name.
We have a different message.
-We are the voice crying in the wilderness, Prepare the way of The Lord!-
#revivalfire #prophetsarise