Stirred Up

Beloved! The grace of God IS multiplied unto you this day.

The word, “epistle,” means, “letter,” (or could be, “email,” in today’s language). So, I want to open my epistle with these words from 2 Peter chapter 3 verses 1-4:
This second epistle, beloved, I now write unto you; in [both] which I stir up your pure minds by way of remembrance: That ye may be mindful of the words which were spoken before by the holy prophets, and of the commandment of us the apostles of the Lord and Saviour: Knowing this first, that there shall come in the last days scoffers, walking after their own lusts, and saying, Where is the promise of his coming? for since the fathers fell asleep, all things continue as [they were] from the beginning of the creation.

Every week, when I write these messages, I desire to have powerful impact for your life, divine destiny, and the Kingdom purposes we share as the Beloved Family. So let me highlight a few things from this section of scripture, as the leader of the church, Peter, did to the people of his day:

• “I stir up your pure minds” is meant to direct this exhortation and teaching towards the born-again identity that is alive in the God-part of us all now. We need to be continually prompted to think and believe from the high place of our divine nature, just as the first church was.
• “Ye may be mindful of the words which were spoken before” – my impetus is repetitively directed around the simple truths of the goodness and love of God, the Finished Work of the Cross, and the Divine Destiny we all have been graced to receive as we walk together in this Great Awakening. I desire to always keep “the main thing the main thing.”
• “Knowing this first, that there shall come in the last days scoffers” – in, “such a time as this,” we are living, not all people have faith. I have said over-and-over that we are the 0.1% of peculiar peeps who are humble enough to believe for the full truth and manifestation of what our Savior has purchased for us. If it was important enough for Jesus to bleed for it, it is important enough for us to believe for it!
• “Where is the promise of his coming?” – Whoop, whoop! IT IS HERE! Are you bold and courageous enough to expect this for yourself?
• “For since the fathers fell asleep, all things continue as [they were] from the beginning of the creation” – The people of Peter’s day, just like today, were struggling to see and believe in the high truths that belonged to them and were constantly distracted by the fallen state of the world. The were missing the big, Kingdom picture because of the fake media of their day, and Peter used this statement in a provocative way to challenge them to embrace the message instead of complaining about what their lack of discernment was implying. He was being a little cantankerous and a smidge sarcastic by using their comments as a place of potential repentance. I wonder who else talks that way sometimes… (you still love me though, right?)

I am aware of the perceived problems, issues, and challenges we are all facing together, BUT… I am not moved by what I see. That is not how we were created to operate in our, “pure minds.” There is a deficit in the Body of Christ for those authentic believers who are willing to submit to the grandiose plans that the Father has for this generation, but I will not let that hinder me in any way… and, to the contrary, it inspires me to fight even harder for us all to embrace a biblical worldview. We should want to see what our Father sees.

Although a recent survey revealed that only about 6 percent of American adults have a biblical worldview, according to a prominent Christian researcher there is reason for optimism.

“The truth of the matter is God has his remnant here in America,” says Dr. George Barna of the Cultural Research Center at Arizona Christian University. “There are millions of devoted followers of Christ here in America who are willing to do anything that God calls them and prepares them to do.”

According to Dr. Barna, discipleship is the key to developing a biblical worldview, and Christians have to start making it a priority.
“The goal in ministry needs to be: We’ve been called by Christ to develop disciples,” says Dr. Barna. “If everything that we’re doing isn’t related to that outcome then we’re missing the boat.”

A major reason that discipleship is of such high value today is because there are more lives at stake than ever before in the history of mankind. The enemy knows this and is fighting tooth-and-nail… the Father knows this and is stirring up His people like never before… and we know this at Beloved which is why there is such concerted effort for genuine discipleship to take place.

In verses 14 through 16, this is highlighted in a unique way:
Wherefore, beloved, seeing that ye look for such things, be diligent that ye may be found of him in peace, without spot, and blameless. And account [that] the longsuffering of our Lord [is] salvation; even as our beloved brother Paul also according to the wisdom given unto him hath written unto you; as also in all [his] epistles, speaking in them of these things; in which are some things hard to be understood, which they that are unlearned and unstable wrest, as [they do] also the other scriptures, unto their own destruction. 

Peter (chief apostle) was saying that Paul (non-chief apostle) was teaching and revealing some powerful and transformative truths that many were, “wrestling,” with because they were, “hard to be understood,” and it was causing their own, “destruction.” These folks were missing out because they were not humbly embracing the message or the messenger… much like today. This is a clear call to passionate discipleship that will disempower lies and temporality with the strength of the Word and the almost-too-good-to-be-true, “great and precious promises,” of the Gospel.

This is the fervency behind my clarion call for all of the Beloved Family to embrace the uncomfortable process of transparent discipleship. It is more than a Sunday service! It is intimacy in Grace Groups… fellowship in koinonia… Sunday’s that embrace multiple hours of worship, word, altar time, and manifestations of the Spirit… kitchen table bible studies… and many more. There is SOOOO much more yet in my heart about what the future looks like for the Beloved Family and I earnestly desire that YOU allow yourself to embrace what is being offered for you and your precious family!

The Best Is Yet To Come!

I love you more than you will ever know!
Steve