The Power of History – By Thomas Koester

I was asked by a friend what inspires me to write and what resources do I use?

Five things that influence and inspire me:

Lifetime of reading Scripture.
Reading and understanding Church history.
Observation of current events, (watching and listening to reliable men and women, and paying attention).
Observation of the spiritual and political times/climate in which we live.
Application of these fundamentals determines probable outcome, i.e. cause and effect.

These are the five things that impact me everyday. However, there is one other impact in my life, and since it is not a thing, it’s on its own list and category. It is none other than the Holy Spirit, the Voice of Scripture and the Whisperer of God’s heart.

God’s Spirit makes alive the Holy Scriptures, in an almost four-dimensional way. Speaking at times, to the center of my being; awaking my conscience, convicting my mind, easing my worries, and wooing my heart. So, there it is, six areas of impact and influence.

Aside from the Holy Spirit and Scriptures, History is a very reliable teacher. History truly does repeat itself. It’s not hard to look at the past to understand our future. The old saying is true:

“Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it.” – George Santayana, The Life of Reason, 1905

This explains the Cancel Cultural. They want to forcibly cancel and erase the past to assure the past will repeat itself. More pointedly, their objective is to implement the Marxist past into our current reality without notice and without resistance. But if the masses knew the past atrocities of Marxism and Communism and the failure of Socialism, we would still be a free nation. I say this with meaning and unfortunate intentionality, as we are no longer a free nation.

Sadly, our “freedom” is a mirage, an illusion. We lost it some time ago. What we perceive as “freedom,” is what “they” tell us. Most of what is broadcasted are lies, misstruths, misstatements, well crafted and expertly produced propaganda.

If Christians knew Church and secular history it wouldn’t be stuck and steeped in Romanism, Hinduism, and paganism. If American Christianity didn’t sell its birthright of light and salt to the nations for the warm stew of a 501(c)(3) tax advantage, Christianity would’ve been an enormous and effective influence over culture and politics. Freedom would still be a reality.

If Christianity would’ve understood the impact of unbiblical eschatology and the recent emergence of premillennial dispensational theory of the late 1800s and early 1900s, the Gospel would have singlehandedly changed our nation and the world.

So I write to inform. To inspire. To alert and to awaken curiosity and hopeful action.

Interestingly, when I write on my favorite topic, matters of the heart, and the Father-heart of God, it gets little attention. But when I write on political issues or commentary, it gets much more notice and conversation.

The truth is being connected to God and deriving our core identity as his beloved children should supercede politics, religion, health, and beauty. But it does not. This is a very sad and unfortunate commentary of 21st Century Christianity. It is being replaced by humanism, the occult, sadosexism, gender disforia, and the sexulization of children, all being done in broad daylight!

The Church is to be about the Father’s business not about Church business. We’re left to expand and preach the Gospel of the Kingdom. But alas, Jesus’ Great Commission to the Church has become the “Great Recommendation,” and so our culture and the world suffers.

There is preaching going on in the world and culture, don’t get me wrong, but it’s the antithetical gospel of heathenism and hedonism. The Kingdom Gospel is to the world and not to the Church. The Kingdom of God is meant to expand into the world and nations from the Church.

So, the opposite happened. Instead the world has entered the Church, taken over its mission, the proclamation the Kingdom’s righteousness to the proclamation of their unrighteousness. Therefore, unrighteousness has entered into and metastasized throughout culture and society more rapidly and deadlier than a virus.

Jesus didn’t leave us behind to simply hold-on or to hold-out until he comes back — quite the opposite!

This word “occupy” means to be busy, it literally means “to carry on business of investing and trading. Jesus’ meaning is not too difficult. He is telling us to “TAKE CARE OF BUSINESS,” TO KEEP BUSY UNTIL HIS RETURN. It means to carry on with his work, his commands, and his commission. He came to save the world not to condemn the world. He showed his disciples (us) how to carry on his plan of redemption. But instead, we’ve condemned the world with our silence and our misunderstanding of occupying.

The Roman army didn’t confuse the concept of occupying when they sacked kingdoms. They knew that to occupy was to culturalize the conquered territory; to make it Roman, to Romanize the people, politics and religion. Roman generals were also called apostles.

Did you know that the term apostle, oringally came from Greece? Jesus borrowed the term “aspostolos” when he declared his twelve disciples as “apostles.”

“And He Himself gave some to be apostles…”
— Ephesians 4:11

“During the time of the ancient Greek orator Demosthenes (384-322 BC), the word apostolos was a naval term that described an admiral, the fleet of ships that traveled with him, and the specialized crew who accompanied and assisted the admiral.

The fleet would be sent out to sea on a mission to locate territories where civilization was nonexistent. Once an uncivilized region was identified, the admiral (called the apostolos) — along with his specialized crew and all their cargo and belongings — would disembark, settle down, and work as a team to establish a new community. Then they would begin the process of transforming a strange land into a replica of life as they believed it should be. Their purpose was total colonization of the uncivilized territory.” Source: https://renner.org/article/the-historical-meaning-of-the-word-apostle/

Do you now have a better understanding of the concept of occupying until he returns?

You see, if Christianity does not see itself as a spiritual and cultural occupying force, another force will occupy and it won’t come with “healing in its wings.” It comes with a spirit of devastation and destruction in its horns.

“But for you who fear my name, the sun of righteousness shall rise with healing in its wings. You shall go out leaping like calves from the stall” (Malachi 4:2, ESV)

I don’t think we, or our neighbors, are “leaping like calves from a stall,” these days.

“But for you who revere my name, the sun of righteousness will rise with healing in its wings.”

“But for you…,” but, who is the you?

“…who reverence my name,” thats the “who!” The “who” can also mean the unsaved. It is our responsibility to bring about reverence of God’s name and rule to the nations, so that they too would have reverence for the Creator-God.

The point is that Christianity has so far, failed its mission, and, among many other things, has disobeyed Jesus’s commands. Christianity is fragmented, into what some are reporting, as many as 44,000 denominations among Evangelicals, Protestant, Pentecostal, and Charismatic churches. Talk about ignoring history, how about Christianity ignoring His Story? Ignoring the power of history has affected the unity of Christianity.

What must we all do?

Repent, believe and obey the Gospel!

Re-engage community and culture with the Kingdom Gospel and stay busy occupying every sector of society in the Name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.

Let’s create a better history together!

Until Jesus returns. Amen

Thank you, Cor Dolor, for your inspiration!

If We Only Had A Brain – By Thomas J. Koester

If you were an alien arriving to earth from a far faraway galaxy, what would you report back to planet Vagus, located deep within the Andromeda Galaxy?

Would you report that intelligent life exists? Would you find anything of value to justify your 2.5 million light year journey?

The truth is that after careful study of earthlings, you might conclude that earth’s prime species is in a quick and steady course of de-evolution. The prime species had long ago reached its pinnacle and is quickly reverting into primitivism and tribalism. You may even report back that the earthling’s three-pound central organ had lost its use like their appendix. No faculty of learning. No intelligence, and absolutely no commonsense!

I think your data would prove there’s no reason to be introduced to earth’s brain dead leaders, especially if you were planning on invading North America!

I love the story, The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, written by Frank L. Baum in 1900. I love the characters he developed; the homeless Dorothy, the heartless Tin Man, the cowardly Lion, and the brainless Scarecrow. It almost seems as though Mr. Baum was writing prophetically, a fitting allegory of 21 Century North America!

But today, due to our current sexual and culture war, I’m going to focus on the Scarecrow and his quest for a brain.

If the average American could have the same drive and quest that Mr. Scarecrow had, maybe we wouldn’t be a nation in decline and a de-evolved species. “If I only had a brain,” would become America’s quest and desire, maybe then, she could survive the 21 century.

Brain inactivity is rampant. Not only society in general, but in our institutions, such as grammar schools, universities, colleges, governments, corporations, and yes, even in many religious organizations. The evidence is indisputable and is absolutely inexcusable!

Who’s to blame?

All of us! Left, Right, Atheist, Saint, Pastor, Priest, Parishioner, and Patriot, we all are culpable and guilty for America’s decline. You and I are responsible for the current cultural absurdities. Our passivity is killing America, just as it has destroyed many kingdoms, nations, and civilizations.

“Bullies may be the perpetrators of evil, but it is the evil of passivity of all those who know what is happening and never intervene that perpetuates such abuse.” -Philip Zimbardo

“Passivity is fatal to us. Our goal is to make the enemy passive.” – Mao Zedong

So, there it is in plain view! We’re all guilty of passivity. And, yes, we were lulled into passivity by an evil enchantment cast upon us by an unseen enemy.

Don’t you recognize what’s been going on? Have you so easily forgotten our original story? Don’t you remember Evil’s entrance into paradise? Its enticement to cause earth’s first parents to doubt God?

“The serpent was the shrewdest of all the wild animals the Lord God had made. One day he asked the woman, “Did God really say you must not eat the fruit from any of the trees in the garden?”

“You won’t die!” the serpent replied to the woman. “God knows that your eyes will be opened as soon as you eat it, and you will be like God, knowing both good and evil.” – Genesis 3:1, 4-5

Where was Adam when the serpent was deceiving Eve?

He was standing right there, next to her!

“The woman was convinced. She saw that the tree was beautiful and its fruit looked delicious, and she wanted the wisdom it would give her. So she took some of the fruit and ate it. Then she gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it, too. Genesis 3:6 [Emphasis mine]

You see, Adam was actually the first of the brainless scarecrows. His brainless passivity ruined it for all mankind. (Whoops, I meant “people-kind” how insensitive of me!) Adam concluded that God had been holding out on him. It is that thought that gave rise to Adam feeling offended by his Creator.

Mao Zedong’s quote above, about passivity, is as deadly today as it played out during his dark evil reign over the Chinese people. “His rule was from the 1^st of October 1949 – 27 September 1954. Mao’s government was responsible for vast numbers of deaths, with estimates ranging from 40 to 80 million victims due to starvation, persecution, prison labour, and mass executions, which drew criticism for being considered totalitarian rule.” Source, Wikipedia.

All offenses find their origin in the unfortunate story of doubting God’s goodness and His generosity. And so, Adam and Eve’s son, Cain, becomes offended by Abel, and so kills his brother. This stupidity of offense has spread throughout our planet more rapidly and deadlier than a virus.

Is it possible that our fate will be that of China’s?

No one can accuse the Chinese people of being ignorant or unintelligent. To the contrary. However, they were conquered by the Marxist and Communist. Their enemies were passivity and brainless tolerance. Their captors brilliantly used these psychological tools to lull the Chinese nation into slavery and death.

It is happening here, now, in America!

We have become a nation of cultural pacifists and controlled, whether you admit or not, by a brainless tolerance, allowing the moral and political destruction of the greatest nation in modern history!

So, the moral of the story – Go get your brains back! Before it becomes too late!

Or…

…Buckle your seatbelt, Dorothy, cause [America] is going, bye-bye!”

Don’t be a Mr. or Mrs. Scarecrow!

Where Have All The Good Men Gone? – By Thomas Koester

“All that is necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing.” Edmund Burke

“Where have all good men gone, and where are all the gods?

Where’s the streetwise Hercules to fight the rising odds?

Isn’t there a white knight upon a fiery steed?
Late at night, I toss, and I turn, and I dream of what I need

I need a hero

I’m holding out for a hero till the end of the night

He has to be strong, and he has to be fast, and he has to be fresh from the fight

I need a hero

I’m holding out for a hero till the morning light. He’s gotta be sure, and it’s gotta be soon, and he’s gotta be more significant than life…” Lyrics by Bonnie Tyler

“In peace, nothing so becomes a man as modest stillness and humility; but when the blast of war blows in our ears, then imitate the action of the tiger; stiffen the sinews, disguise fair nature with hard favored rage. . .” William Shakespeare

We live to fight for others; there’s no time for the cowardice of heart or the indulgence of sorrow and pity…we have no time for what might have been, but only for what must be done! …Stop licking your wounds, get’m healed, then back into the fight we go!

We men, must, in great haste, understand the times in which we live. It is no accident or coincidence that you’ve been born in such infamous days. You will not survive what lies ahead unless you ready yourself, strengthen your heart, and clear your mind of worry.

Your soul is witnessing your actions; your wife and kids are watching; angels are gathering, and demons are unsettled.

Become the man you’ve been destined and chosen to be, give God his due, or die trying.

Our warfare is not against men and politics; we’re not battling flesh and blood, minorities or extremist; our fight is with spiritual wickedness in high places and unseen principalities; evil puppeteers are preying on the weakness of mortal men, enticing them with absolute power to cause absolute corruption.

Pay attention! If you refuse to battle the spiritual darkness of our time, you’ll be swept up into its evil, neutrality is equality with darkness, and bystanders will soon become backsliders.

“All that is necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing.” Edmund Burke

Good men, do something! Doing nothing is an abandonment of your masculine soul and God-given role in this world. There are only two kingdoms, the Kingdom of Darkness and the Kingdom of Heaven. Your convictions and actions dictate which Kingdom you belong to and not your “good” intentions.

Turn your gaming and playtime into the prayers of warriors and saints. Act like the heroes of our ancient faith, who’ve never seen their victories in the land of the living, but gave their lives nonetheless. They are in the heavens, cheering us towards glory and final victory.

“As it goes, everyone will receive what his actions in life have cultivated. Whoever has labored diligently and patiently to do what is right—seeking glory, honor, and immortality—God will grant him endless joy in life eternal. But selfish individuals who make trouble, resist the truth, or sell out to wickedness will meet a very different fate—they will find fury and indignation as the fruit of living in the wrong.” – Romans 2:6-8 (VOICE)

Start doing what is proper; do it with everything you’ve got. What you do, or do not do, has eternal consequences.

Say: “goodbye” to selfishness and passivity, and say: “hello” to glory, honor, and immortality!

Earn your crowns to have something to lay down at the feet of your King of Kings and Lord of Lords.

There is no room for second-place winners in the Halls of Heaven.

“Remember, there is only one foundation, the one already laid: Jesus Christ. Take particular care in picking out your building materials. Eventually, there is going to be an inspection. If you use cheap or inferior materials, you’ll be found out. The inspection will be thorough and rigorous. You won’t get by with a thing. If your work passes inspection, fine; if it doesn’t, your part of the building will be torn out and started over. But you won’t be torn out; you’ll survive—but just barely.” 1 Corinthians 3: 12-15 (MSG)

“Cowards die many times before their deaths; the valiant never taste death but once.” William Shakespeare

We need men to be men and transition into warriors rather than women.

“Watch and keep awake! Stand true to the Lord. Keep on acting like men and be strong. Everything you do should be done in love.” 1 Corinthians 16: 13-14

Where have all the good men gone?

He’s you!

Faith In The Fiery Furnace – By Thomas J. Koester

Is your faith ready for the fiery furnace?

“If our God, whom we honor, can save us from a blazing furnace and from your power, he will, Your Majesty. But if he doesn’t, you should know, Your Majesty, we’ll never honor your gods or worship the gold statue that you set up.” Daniel 3:17-18

As the banks fail, global economies collapse, and protests around the world turn violent; we believers everywhere must cling to God and His Word and never cease from honoring our God. We must resist men who threaten to seize control over our lives and who are progressively replacing the God whom we worship, with false gods and ideologies increasingly infesting our sacred institutions.

We will never bow to a false president, nor accept fraudulent elections. We will not honor any decrees which dishonor God or the sanctity of life. We will never worship the government or live by every word from the mouth of Washington DC.

We refuse to listen to fakers and thieves, whether in Church or government, cable news, or podcasts.

So, even if our God delays, our most sincere prayers and longing for a New Heaven and a New Earth, we’ll never honor false gods or fake news broadcasts, nor will we honor their czar-gods, or worship “the golden woke programming” that they continue to force upon us!

Why? Because the Church will be too busy searching and for the lost and reaching them in the four corners of this darkening world.

Rise O’ Bride of Christ, your finest hour has dawned this year of tragedy, our window of opportunity to exploit the last rays of freedom’s daylight is closing. Otherwise, the day of our persecution and times of trouble spoken about in the Scriptures will soon provide the contrast which should have been there all along.

Our listening to glorious Sunday morning messages, to talk radio, Christian branding, and marketing of worldly delights have caused us to forfeit the grace and culture that could have been ours. We’ve lost our nation not because we adhered to our Christianity but because we did not preach its redemptive messages outside of our pretty church buildings and corporate structures.

We’re losing our Nation not because we’ve not read enough Christian authors, or followed each crazed Christian fad, but rather because we chose passivity and embellished ourselves on “Turkish Delights” of Worldliness, and gazed too long at the bewitchment of the Queen of Goodies and new Technologies. (For which I, too, am guilty).

Because we used our freedom to form and fashion false gods of tolerance — gods of laughs and giggles -— and thumbs up and “Likes” to our sins and compromises. So, we branded our “Golden Calf” with the name “Yahweh” to ease our guilty consciences and silence the voice of God’s whispering Holy Spirit of repentance.

Our Nation’s ruin is not our failed politics or lack of political might, but rather our refusal to preach the Gospel of a better order and of an eternal and expanding Kingdom. A Kingdom led by the King of Kings, Lord of Lords, and the Presidents of Presidents, that is Jesus Christ, The Righteousness of God!

But there is still hope. And, the God of all hopes dwells within you. The time is NOW to declare the Hope which is inside of you. For how can it be hope unless you speak it out to the hopeless and the hope-lost?

Put down the false gods of our age, and thus brighten the future of America. Our liberty was won by people whose God is the Lord!

Get your faith and houses in order. Decide now, not later what you will do when the world crashes around you.

“Fear nothing—not wild wolves in the night, not flying arrows in the day, Not disease that prowls through the darkness, not disaster that erupts at high noon. Even though others succumb all around, drop like flies right and left, no harm will even graze you.” – Psalms 91:5-7

Whether God does or does not come through for us and our nation, we will never cease from honoring our God!

President Biden and presidential candidate, Harris, you may be destroying our Great Nation, besmirching America’s great name among the nations, robbing our liberties, destroying our securities, and devaluing our properties.

But, Mr. President, you should know this; as you darken America, even to the point of collapse, we’ll never honor your gods or worship the golden statute of wokeism that you set up. We will never turn our backs against the Lord God All Mighty, Maker and Redeemer of Heaven and Earth!

We will face the coming fiery trials like Daniel and as his friends did. We will obey God and not foolish rulers. We will defy your false gods. We will stand firm in our faith no matter the circumstance.

People of God, be brave, be strong, and very courageous! You have the God of the Angel Armies watching over you!

The Tale of Two Churches – By Thomas Koester

Your soul will follow the fate of the church you attend. Make sure it’s the true Church.

The Early Church

While the First Century Church had its challenges, it was devoted to unity, brotherly love, the holy scriptures, apostles teaching, prayer, and evangelism. It was One Church, One Gospel, One Spirit, One Baptism, and one Faith. It was an unincorporated, organic, relational, and Christ-alone hierarchy. It was mobile redemptive communities spreading and growing exponentially by the Spirit of Grace and authentic gospel power. Every believer was required to participate and exercise their spiritual gifts.

The early Church was Apostolic, in that it was a sending and outward reaching movement. Churches then had no fanciful or catchy names, no! The name of the Church was the name of the City. The city was their objective and not their mailing address. Its power source was the resurrection and its message was transformational, not only to one’s life but to the whole community. The Early Church was validated by miraculous signs and wonders.

The Modern Church

For many modern-day churches, most of everything, including religious practice, is influenced by Greco-Roman paganism and occult practice. The influence of First Century authentic Christian practice has nearly been vanquished by emotionalism, relativism, universalism, and progressivism. Many charismatic and pentecostal churches have adopted pagan practice and occult ritual.

This is why today’s evangelical, fundamental, and charismatic [organizations] are nearly ineffectual in propagating a true gospel message and producing true Saints of God. They cannot reproduce in accordance with biblical authority, because they lack authentic spiritual seed. In a metaphorical sense, many modern-day churches have become “GMO,” Genetically Modified Organizations.

The Modern Church has become dynastic, whereby it gathers and reaches inward, within the confines of a building. Rarely do these churches raise up pastors, rather they appoint search committees to seek pastors abroad rather than within. Just like businesses do when searching for a new CEO or chairmen.

These corporate structured churches are known for its emphasis on numbers and not disciples. It is a dynasty governed by an elite celebrity class. Its power source is an institutional and collective hierarchy. Validated by street signs and billboards.

The Herodical and Pharisaical leaven has permeated modern Christianity, along with occult and pagan influences, requiring a second and deeper reformation. Therefore, a time may be coming whereby we exit the modern “church” and start from the beginning. The early reformation did not go far enough and left too much Greco/Romanism and pagan practice intact. The gulf between clergy and laity is too wide and impassable. This ministry fissure wasn’t created or caused by Jesus Christ, but by some other force.

The Absent Church

I am sorry to say, my dear brothers and sisters, we have entered into, and for quite some time, a post-Christian Era. We have surrendered our biblical authority to political correctness and a democratic culture rather than an other-worldly Spiritual Kingdom Economy. Our churches, therefore, are ruled by mass appeal and in-vogue stylistic theologians and fad-mongers.

Did you know that there are nearly 38,000 denominations within the Protestant and Evangelical movements?

Without unity of faith, doctrine, and authentic discipleship, Christianity cannot impact culture and society. What we do inside our denominational buildings is powerless to the outside world.

Authentic biblical truth that could bring deep conviction and godly sorrow has been prohibited in most Sunday morning services. That kind of preaching would send the majority out the doors, never to return, which would negatively affect “church business.”

It is time to make ready and oil up our lamps. Darker days are approaching. The time to cease following false Christs and false teachers is now — the time to end populating and financing false churches has arrived. If you cannot discern while there is light, what will you do when it becomes dark?

The Triumphant Church

Ready yourselves by reading the scriptures like never before. Strap yourselves into God’s promises. Bolt yourselves down to the foundation of God’s word and be prepared to be shaken until all shakable things have been rooted up and out. Cling to your faith, for it will be tried and refined. Trust in Jesus Christ and, by all means, love one another.

Jesus is expecting a triumphant Church and not a worldly tramp.

We know the end of the story. While it will be a bumpy ride, our triumph is secured in Jesus Christ. He is our victory and the Great Shepherd of all who believes and obeys the Truth.

Our inner and outer peace comes from a ruling and reigning King. If He is Lord of your life and Church, He reigns within your heart and congregation. He is the Prince of Peace, and He has chosen to expand His rule and peace through you and His Church.

Your soul will follow the fate of the church you attend. Make sure it’s the true Church.

Untapped Spiritual Power of The Resurrection – By Thomas Koester

The Most Powerful Event In All History, The Resurrection of Jesus Christ

It is undeniable that America is in a post-Christian era. The culture of death and darkness is everywhere. I truly believe the lack of preaching on the single most important event in history has created a vacuum for evil to flourish and death to prevail.

When eternal life is unoffered, uncelebrated, and relatively unknown, and the resurrection of Jesus Christ diminished to a mere annual holiday, overtaken by pagan ritual, the power of the resurrection becomes unknown and untapped.

Target, Walmart, Macy’s, and Hallmark are not to blame for the commercialization of the most powerful event in all human history. This is Christianity’s doing. For they are the arbiters of this most important truth, not department stores!

The sad thing about what this Sunday has become in many churches across America is summed up in one word, “powerless.” Matter of fact, the title Resurrection Day has been replaced with the title ‘Easter Sunday.” The Gospel replaced with Easter eggs, chocolate bunnies, colorful baskets, pastel dresses, and shiny shoes.

It’s not the world offering Easter egg hunts. No, it’s thousands and thousands of churches.

In their minds, it’s the ends justifying the means. A marketing strategy, if you will.

However, I see no such market strategies in the Bible, by either prophet or apostle, preacher or evangelist.

“Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. The one who believes in me will live even if he dies, and the one who lives and believes in me will never die. Do you believe this?” John 11:25-26

The Resurrection of Jesus Christ is the central theme of The Gospel!

For Christianity to impact the world and chase the demons and devils of death back onto the shadows, the Resurrection of Jesus Christ must once again become the central theme of The Gospel.

Immediately prior to Jesus’s crucifixion, he appeared as a failure; deserted by his closest followers, deceived by one of his disciples, and rejected by his own people that he came to save. Silent before his accusers, no one spoke on his behalf.

His Father let him suffer a naked and terrible death on a cross. He was buried in a borrowed tomb, which was carefully guarded by nearly a dozen Roman soldiers. He certainly was despised and rejected.

Yet, Christianity finds its roots in the single and most important act:

The Resurrection of Jesus Christ.

“…and if Christ has not been raised from death, then we have nothing to preach, and you have nothing to believe.” – 1 Corinthians 15:14

It is the power of Christ’s resurrection, which should both compel and propel churches and not budgets, charismatic preachers, or in-vogue programs, pageants, and parades.

“The apostles testified powerfully to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, and God’s great blessing was upon them all.” – Acts 4:33

The focus of a Church living from the roots and foundation of the resurrected Lord of Life is to seek and save the lost rather than a mausoleum of inactive Christians.

To the early Christians and First Century Church, the Resurrection was their main message. For us today its become an annual holiday.

“I want to know Him inside and out. I want to experience the power of His resurrection and join in His suffering, shaped by His death, so that I may arrive safely at the resurrection from the dead.” – Philippians 3:10-11

If you want a vibrant and alive Church, preach the Resurrection of Christ throughout the year.

If you want a dead church, stay with your religious tips and tricks, and keep following those mainstream, so-called Christian fads and fashions. You may get your numbers and budgets, but you’ll have no real spiritual power.

Without real spiritual power, you’ll have no real spiritual fruit.

The Church was founded and propelled by an Outlaw, and today, the Church is held back by its bylaws.

Get back to the message of Resurrection, and not just on once a year on “Easter” Morning.

Preach powerfully the Resurrection of the Lord Jesus, and God’s great blessing will be upon you all.

The greatest critic and deniers of the resurrection of Christ are not disbelievers and atheists, but those who refuse to preach and live it.

True spiritual success still comes from the most powerful event in all human history…

The Resurrection of Jesus Christ.

“Do you believe this?”

If you did, you’d be full of life and full of power, and no worldly or spiritual force could stop your message.

Tap into it and live it and gain true spiritual power, power the Lost and the Broken are waiting for.

Dying To Self – The Secret to The Fountain of Life – Thomas Koester

In the Fall of 1984, Toni and I joined Youth With A Mission in Canada. While there, a young Canadian woman handed me a folded white sheet of lined paper as though she was on a clandestine mission. I unfolded the paper and found the following poem written in pencil. I read it every now and then to remind me and ground myself in the significance of true living through the death of self.

I confess that this is a huge struggle in my life, saying yes to God and no to self. As a matter of fact, it is my biggest daily battle, and many times, the battle is lost. On those days that I lost the battle of wills, I realized that I was saying no to the abundant life that God offered me.

I realize that physical death is, and always will be, the final threshold we must cross over one day. For some, this crossing will take us into the very eternal presence of God and, for others, into eternal separation and darkness. I have witnessed both my parents crossing the threshold of death into the everlasting joy of God.

We can practice dying to ourselves and self-importance. We can choose those things which promote life in others and for others. If we begin living in eternity now, we can, therefore, experience the Father’s everlasting joy in our present life and even in our suffering.

In other words, by living as Jesus lived and being made conformable to his death, we can become living fountains of life. Through our daily dying, we are reborn into his daily living. It opens us up to hear the same words Jesus heard from his Father and inspires us to do the same things Jesus did in obeying his Father’s wishes.

“This is my beloved Son,” said God, “in him, I am well pleased.” –Matthew 3:17

True Christianity is a daily battle of wills. We either obey the Father’s will and find life, or we obey our will and find death (separation). Dying to self is the proverbial “Fountain of Life” because it makes us into that fountain, a spring of Living Water, which is the Spirit and nature of Christ bubbling up from within us.

Okay, now that poem I had spoken about…

The poem, Dying To Self

“When you are forgotten, neglected, or purposely set at naught, and you don’t sting and hurt with the insult or the oversight, but your heart is happy, being counted worthy to suffer for Christ, that is dying to self.

When your good is evil spoken of, when your wishes are crossed, your advice disregarded, your opinions ridiculed. You refuse to let anger rise in your heart or even defend yourself, but take it all in patience with loving silence; that is dying to self.

When you lovingly and patiently bear any disorder, irregularity, impunctuality, or annoyance; when you stand face-to-face with waste, folly, extravagance, spiritual insensibility – and endure it as Jesus did – that is dying to self.

When you are content with any food, any offering, any climate, any society, any raiment, any interruption by the will of God, that is dying to self.

When you never care to refer to yourself in conversation, record your good works, or itch after commendations, when you can truly love to be unknown, that is dying to self.

When you can see your brother prosper and have his needs met and honestly rejoice with him in spirit and feel no envy, nor question God, while your own needs are more significant and in desperate circumstances, that is dying to self.

When you can receive correction and reproof from one more petite stature than yourself and can humbly submit inwardly as well as outwardly, finding no rebellion or resentment rising within your heart, that is dying to self.” – Author Unknown.
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Are you dead yet?

In these last days, the Spirit would bring us to the cross. “That I may know Him…being made conformable unto His death. –Philippians 3:10

It is exchanging our will for God’s will, whereby we die to our will, which is no easy thing. But the rewards outweigh the difficulty.

If you let your own will and life go, you’ll become a fountain of life, and the Lord of Life will bubble up from within your heart and into the lost and lonely.

Let Jesus become that Fountain of Life within you by dying to self.

The Blessings of Poverty – Thomas Koester

Today the choice is yours. Go, sell all that you have, give to the poor and you will have riches in heaven.

A few years ago I met a homeless man, named Aaron. Aaron wouldn’t say he was homeless but instead, he’d say he’s houseless. He and his dog were used to living outside and on their own. In other words, Aaron had chosen poverty as his lifestyle. He didn’t yearn for more, but only just enough to get by each new day. He had little to no envy for guys like me or even a desire to acquire more than he could carry in his backpack or bedroll.

Maybe Aaron had chosen a better way. He chose poverty long ago.

As our economy is slipping away, banks failing, and baby formula scarcity, Aaron has learned to live without, while we cling to what we have. Now, he’s watching men like us lose everything. He’s witnessing our agony and hearing our complaining and woes.

For Aaron, he has known no difference and no loss, because he had little investment in the world, and therefore, the world has taken little from him. Amazing! Now, it is Aaron who speaks wisdom. Not necessarily with words, but with his life. He chooses a better way. He’s become, my counselor, cheerleader, and advocate.

Our pain and hardship are not the sharpening of steel or the clanging of iron; it’s not the heated furnace, the violent remaking, reshaping of our lives, but the hand of correction ripping the world out of us.

Why? It is because we are true sons. It is because God is our True Father, and he desires that we live no longer in the World. We stink of worldliness. Our attics, garages, storage rentals, living rooms, game, and family rooms are witnesses of this fact.

We are in it deep. Oh man, does it hurt to watch these things disappear; house-by-house, boat-by-boat, car-by-car, credit-card-by-credit-card; life!?

The World gives, and the World taketh away.

The truth: because we are true sons, and God our True Father, he is choosing for us. We stinketh of the world, we stinketh of “flesh,” and if we truly want the presence of our Father, we must be baptized in the Fire of His Holiness! We must be pure because he is pure.

We must repent of our worldliness, the sooner the better. To chose poverty is a better process than being overcome by poverty. You will like it better.

“If you want to give it all you’ve got,” Jesus replied, “go sell your possessions; give everything to the poor. All your wealth will then be in heaven. Then come follow me.”That was the last thing the young man expected to hear. And so, crest-fallen, he walked away. He was holding on tight to a lot of things, and he couldn’t bear to let go. Matthew 19:21-22 (The Message)

The virtue of poverty is more beautiful, more stunning to Poppa God than the finest fashions the world offers. For through a lesser garment, He can see the radiance of his Son, Jesus, and, therefore, so can the World.

Before, the World could only see the world in our lives. Heaven was at a loss because of the riches we adorned ourselves with, masked the greatest gift a father could bestow, the Glory of the Son. The radiances of Jesus are muted by our worldliness.

We shall soon be better dressed. Poverty is the latest fashion but seldom chosen. Not the poverty of what the world would think. But, the poverty of Christ. The setting aside of all his rights as God, to become a simple man, shows us that simple men can change the world. To confound the Wise. To sap the strength of the Strong. To confuse the Sophisticates. To baffle the Wealthy. To enrage the Religious. To magnify Christ. To point to Heaven. To reveal True Life, Real Living. To unveil True Freedom. To bring us to our True Father.

This world is not our home, never was, and never will be. We’re Evangelical Sojourners. The sooner we evangelize, the sooner we will journey home, our True Home.

“If the walls of your life have boxed you in, then kick the walls down, and make a dance floor!” – You Got To Keep Dancing – By Tim Hansel

Oh, how freeing it is to dance in open spaces. How much more we can see God when our lives are less cluttered with junk? Let’s get changed, let’s dance!

Don’t confuse worldly poverty with spiritual poverty. They are not the same. Those who choose spiritual poverty, are the wealthiest of all. Their investments are held in the security of heaven’s gates. Their wealth will never end and will never know depreciation or recession. It will not rust or wear out. No government shall confiscate it nor tax it.

Even if one were to choose physical poverty, blessed are we, for:

“Blessed (happy, to be envied, and spiritually prosperous–with life-joy and satisfaction in God’s favor and salvation, regardless of their outward conditions) are the poor in spirit (the humble, who rate themselves insignificant), for theirs is the kingdom of heaven!” Matthew 5:3 (Amplified Bible)

“You’re blessed when you’re at the end of your rope. With less of you, there is more of God and his rule.” Matthew 5:3 (The Message)

Being needy is the state of poverty, which profits us the most. It is more easily attained by choice, rather than theft, confiscation, or repossession. The former comes by release and opened hands, the latter by ripping, tearing, and white-knuckled gripping.

Why is it “…more blessed to give than receive?” Because in giving, we increase our capacity, we make more room for the kingdom of God within. In receiving, we crowd and burden ourselves with more earthly responsibility and possession. Soon our possessions possess us, and not the Spirit of Christ.

If it all must go, let it go, that we may gain Christ. Only let it be done for love, not for ambition, recognition, title, or position, but simply because of the love of God. Less of me, my wants, desires even hopes and dreams; more of Christ and what pleases him, so that in all of our potential emptiness, we fully contain all of Christ.

Christ was cursed on his own because he chose a better way. He chose not the kingdoms of the world as offered by Satan. Not the leap off the temple heights, to attain a spectacular ministry of men and angels, nor independence by commanding stones to become bread.

Rather Christ chose to live in simplicity, neither owning nor possessing. He chose silence before accusers, seclusion instead of acclaim, prayer instead of food, and sinners instead of the righteous. He accepted the ignominy of the cross, and the poverty of a borrowed tomb, and left justice to his God. In seclusion, angels ministered to him when he was starved, naked, and thirsty.

Brennan Manning, the celebrated lover of God and author, wrote:

“I think moments before Christ gave up his spirit into the embrace of his Father, his Father whispered the following words:

“Come away with me my love, my lovely one come. For you the winter is over and gone, the snow has melted. The cooing of the turtle doves can be heard on the land, the flowers are in bloom. Come away with me my love, my lovely one come. Your face is beautiful your voice is sweet. Come away with me my love, my lovely one come.”

At that exact moment the weary and impoverished son, bloodied and beaten, naked and pierced, inhaled his last and final breath and said; “It is finished!” He hung his head and died. His broken body swept up into the loveliness of his Father.”

Because he chose poverty, he has made us all rich. Because he chose death we now live.

Today the choice is yours. Go, sell all that you have, give to the poor and you will have riches in heaven.

Your retirement is in heaven not here on earth. You may have earned it and saved for it, but there is a higher call, a higher law, and a higher love. Only a few find it, and less than a few stay with it. Those who endure, understand that their reward is not here, but in an eternal kingdom that’s not of this world.

“Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.” Jesus of Nazareth.

The kind of poverty Jesus is speaking about is seldom understood and even less seldom lived.

According to Jesus, no poverty, no Kingdom. If you have a problem with this, take it up with the King of kings.

The poor in spirit are blessed because they chose wisely.

Be blessed!

The Vacuum of The Prayerless Church – By Thomas Koester

The prayerless Church creates a vacuous people, void of conscience and the heart of God.

It wasn’t that prayer was taken out of our public school systems, which harmed the Nation. Rather it was prayer removed from many Churches; from our homes, and businesses that pushed our country into the depths of paganistic hedonism.

A few minutes of silent corporate prayer is no substitute for a church on its knees. Prayer must once again become the culture of the church rather than a brief moment of liturgy.

While the Supreme Court decided favorably for Madalyn Murray O’Hair’s 1963 lawsuit against the Baltimore School System that public school prayer was “unconstitutional,” the opportunity and vacuum for which this lawsuit was created were missed by the Church and Christian families.

“Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might. And these words that I command you today shall be on your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your children and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise. You shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as front-lets between your eyes. You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and your gates.” Deuteronomy 6: 4-9

“My son, obey your father’s commands and don’t neglect your mother’s instruction. Keep their words always in your heart. Tie them around your neck. When you walk, their counsel will lead you. When you sleep, they will protect you. When you wake up, they will advise you. For their command is a lamp and instruction a light; their corrective discipline is the way to live.” Proverbs 6:21

We cannot blame a secular government for the failings of the Church and the lack of responsibility of “God-honoring” parents.

Yet the cure is not to politic or legislate but to dedicate and dictate God’s Word beginning from our homes and into our Churches, and out into the public square. To reinstate prayer, true repentant prayer, into our Churches, from our Temples, and our closets to family rooms and boardrooms.

“If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land.” 2 Chronicles 7:14 (KJV)

I don’t see any mention of school prayer here!

To blame our Nation’s moral tragedy on our children not praying?

This can only be because Churches and homes have lost their moral courage to do what is clear and accurate; humility, prayer, seeking God’s face, and repenting and turning from our wicked ways. Don’t blame the children or the ungodly and the unrighteous for our failure as a People of God. Just get it right and do the things which God has commanded and Christ has taught.

The prayerless Church creates a vacuous people, void of conscience and the heart of God.

Cry out to God so that prayer everywhere will be heard once again.

The Secret Psychological Weapon – By Thomas Koester

Don’t fall for the secret weapons of psychological warfare. They’re after your mind!

This may be one of the most important articles that I’ve written. Copy, paste, and share, or better yet, print this out while you can.

The Psy-war is WWIII in broad daylight and without bullets. Don’t be mistaken. WWIII has already begun!

Political Psy-war:

This is the weapon our government and the alphabet media organizations use to inflict fraud after fraud upon the American people. Inflation, presidential elections, wokeism, cancel culture, January 6th, green energy, the border crisis, etc., just to name a few.

Through their “psy-war,” they’re also responsible for creating a two-class society of the jabbed and non-jabbed – the unmasked and the masked, the rich and the poor, etc.

“Psychological warfare involves the planned use of propaganda and other psychological operations to influence the opinions, emotions, attitudes, and behavior of opposition groups. RAND has studied military information support operations (MISO) in many countries and war zones and has provided objective and supportable recommendations to policymakers on methods and tactics to employ or defend against these operations.”

[The RAND Strategy Assessment Center (RSAC) is an ambitious multiyear effort to improve methods of strategy analysis by combining the best features of war gaming and analytic modeling].

The Secret Weapon:

“Reversive Blockade”

Here’s how they do it…

This mechanism is called “reversive blockade.” The secret psychological weapon of psychopaths in power. Hitler revealed it bluntly because he knew it would work anywhere and on any people.

“Reversive blockade: Emphatically insisting upon something which is the opposite of the truth blocks the average person’s mind from perceiving the truth. By the dictates of healthy common sense, he starts searching for meaning in the “golden mean” between the truth and its opposite, winding up with some satisfactory counterfeit.

People who think like this do not realize that this effect is precisely the intent of the person who subjects them to this method. If the counterfeit of the truth is the opposite of moral truth, at the same time, it simultaneously represents an extreme paramoralism and bears its peculiar suggestiveness.” Paramoralisms are moral-sounding statements that seek to blame, manipulate, or mislead. Paramoralism is used to achieve political evil upon the masses for political control.

Source: Andrzej Łobaczewski, “Political Ponerology: A Science on the Nature of Evil Adjusted for Political Purposes,” page no. 151

Does it make sense to you now, why the government and the news media tells you what you see with your eyes and what you hear with your ears are lies? They do this to control and shape information and ideologies. They want to control all sources of information, including what you see and hear over social media. Their agenda must succeed at all cost. They’ll lie about, deceive, and character assassinate their opponents, or worse.

We must reject their psychological warfare and their usurpation of our right to free speech, freedom of thought, and our God-given use of common sense.

Usurpation: “to seize or exercise authority or possession wrongfully, to seize and hold (office, place, functions, powers, etc.) in possession by force or without right.” Definition & Meaning – Merriam-Webster

Don’t fall for the secret weapons of psychological warfare. They’re after your mind.

They do this so that their wretched and godless ideology becomes your ideology. This is all done without your awareness or permission. Look around, we’ve already lost two generations due to reversive blockade and paramoralism.

Our ignorance and indifference are causing us to lose the psychological war!

SNAP OUT OF IT!