Sheep without a Shepherd.

It is 3AM and I woke up from a very vivid dream and could not return to sleep so here I am to write about it. As I lay in my bed trying to get back to sleep the reason for the dream and the message it contained just kept going through my mind and I knew it was no random dream.

Over the past several weeks I have been experiencing an increasing sense of foreboding coupled with a feeling of depression that is uncharacteristic for me and I have been puzzled by it. I believe this dream gave me the answer.

In my dream I am in what seems to be an informal church meeting or maybe it was just a gathering of Christian people that I knew in a plain large room. Anyway I was hearing people telling their troubles and some had really big ones and some were quite minor but everyone had spoken and received comfort from others or had been prayed over by the pastor. The I suddenly realize it is my turn and I cannot speak. I have a very sad countenance and I am surrounded by people who are trying to comfort me. I was especially aware of a couple of young pre-teen girls that were clinging to me and hugging me and telling me they loved me (very much in a father/daughter way) and were trying to encourage me. Suddenly I found my voice and began to speak and here's what I said. "I am grieved and broken hearted because these sheep have no shepherd. I hear their cries for help in the midst of their troubles but there is no one to help them. They go to their friends and they do not have answers, they go to their pastors and talk for hours and they do not have answers but they do willingly devote their time to listen to them and offer prayers on their behalf but this only shows how shallow their religion is. I do not blame the sheep for they do not know better, I blame the shepherds who are but hirelings because they will not tell the people the truth of the Word. There is but one true Shepherd and God has provided surrogate shepherds for the purpose of directing the sheep to the true Shepherd who can deliver them from their troubles and can give them true peace. The people were looking at me in astonishment and saying Amen amen and even the pastor was nodding his head and then I woke up. What I have written so far was written with much difficulty because I had to keep editing because I found myself writing as though I was God speaking. I do not want anyone to think that I said I am speaking for God or speaking His very words, I am merely relating what I dreamed and what I have to say concerning the dream after this point I speak on the authority of the written Word. It is there and you can check it out for yourself.

Irresponsible Shepherds Ezekiel 34:1-10
1 And the word of the LORD came to me, saying, 2 “Son of man, prophesy against the shepherds of Israel, prophesy and say to them, ‘Thus says the Lord GOD to the shepherds: “Woe to the shepherds of Israel who feed themselves! Should not the shepherds feed the flocks? 3 You eat the fat and clothe yourselves with the wool; you slaughter the fatlings, but you do not feed the flock. 4 The weak you have not strengthened, nor have you healed those who were sick, nor bound up the broken, nor brought back what was driven away, nor sought what was lost; but with force and cruelty you have ruled them. 5 So they were scattered because there was no shepherd; and they became food for all the beasts of the field when they were scattered. 6 My sheep wandered through all the mountains, and on every high hill; yes, My flock was scattered over the whole face of the earth, and no one was seeking or searching for them.”
7 ‘Therefore, you shepherds, hear the word of the LORD: 8 “As I live,” says the Lord GOD, “surely because My flock became a prey, and My flock became food for every beast of the field, because there was no shepherd, nor did My shepherds search for My flock, but the shepherds fed themselves and did not feed My flock”— 9 therefore, O shepherds, hear the word of the LORD! 10 Thus says the Lord GOD: “Behold, I am against the shepherds, and I will require My flock at their hand; I will cause them to cease feeding the sheep, and the shepherds shall feed themselves no more; for I will deliver My flock from their mouths, that they may no longer be food for them.”

Where are the shepherds who speak the Word of God? they sit in their offices all day long and listen to the cries of the troubled ones but why do they not teach them how to have a relationship with the One who can fix them and also equip them to comfort and guide others. I just heard of a man who told a Christian man of long standing that he needed God in his life. The Christian man replied, "you need to contact pastor so and so". You know what I mean "the professional Christian". There are no professional Christians, only true Christians and any true Christian knows Christ well enough that he or she can lead another person to Him.

Jesus said if anyone is burdened, has heavy heart and needs help should come to Him for it. Matthew 11.33 28"Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. 29Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. 30For my yoke is easy and my burden is light."

Many of God's people are sick and some are dieing but all they get is human comfort and generic prayers. Here is what the Word of God says.
The Prayer of Faith
13Is any one of you in trouble? He should pray. Is anyone happy? Let him sing songs of praise. 14Is any one of you sick? He should call the elders of the church to pray over him and anoint him with oil in the name of the Lord. 15And the prayer offered in faith will make the sick person well; the Lord will raise him up. If he has sinned, he will be forgiven. 16Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective.
17Elijah was a man just like us. He prayed earnestly that it would not rain, and it did not rain on the land for three and a half years. 18Again he prayed, and the heavens gave rain, and the earth produced its crops. 19My brothers, if one of you should wander from the truth and someone should bring him back, 20remember this: Whoever turns a sinner from the error of his way will save him from death and cover over a multitude of sins.

I cannot even remember the last time I heard anyone refer to this portion of scripture much less claim it's promises. Why did Jesus gather so many followers?
Here again is what scripture tells us.Matthew 7:28-29 (New King James Version)
28 And so it was, when Jesus had ended these sayings, that the people were astonished at His teaching, 29 for He taught them as one having authority, and not as the scribes.
We have exactly the same problem today. The shepherds act as though they have authority but they believe it is authority in their church which is authority given by man. Jesus spoke with authority because He knew the Father and knew His authority did not come from man but from the revealed Word of God and the presence of the Holy Spirit in His life. When He departed earth He imparted His authority to His Apostles who were to train and pass it on to others. What is that authority that should still be with us today? The authority of the written Word of God as revealed and performed by the Holy Spirit Who is still among us today but is no longer given His rightful place and recognition. I have been a pastor, I know these things, I have had people beating a path to my door to seek my council or to get me to pray for them. It feels good to be needed by so many but that was never God's plan. We are robbing God and fleecing the sheep when we do not direct them to Him. I know that many pastors will tell me that they do but I never hear these messages from the pulpit. They should be teaching the people to know the promises of God are to them personally but they can only be obtained personally. There is no substitute or go between for them. Here again is the scripture to prove that.1 Timothy 2:5
For there is one God and one Mediator between God and men, the Man Christ Jesus,
Your pastor can pray for you and yes we are instructed to pray for each other but if you read the Word you will find out that it is written mostly to individuals as sheep. Not to shepherds. It is a personal book written to us by our true Shepherd. But if the shepherds would teach it in that manner they would work themselves out of a job or so they think but the truth of the matter is that they would have so many more lambs being born that they would never run out of a job, they would simply be helping the sheep to mature so they could go out and procreate.

The truth of the matter is that they have no authority from God because they have gutted the Word. That means that they either ignore certain passages or explain them away instead of accepting that it is the eternal Word given for all time until the return of the Living Word, Jesus Christ.

I will bring this to a close but I must say that this has helped to explain the feeling of depression I have been struggling with for a while. As a councilor I learned that underneath most depression is lurking unresolved anger. Now I can admit that I am feeling anger over the failure of pastors to perform their God given duties because I see the suffering of the people. As for the sense foreboding I think the last portion of Ezekiel 34 tells the story. Here it is.
11 " 'For this is what the Sovereign LORD says: I myself will search for my sheep and look after them. 12 As a shepherd looks after his scattered flock when he is with them, so will I look after my sheep. I will rescue them from all the places where they were scattered on a day of clouds and darkness. 13 I will bring them out from the nations and gather them from the countries, and I will bring them into their own land. I will pasture them on the mountains of Israel, in the ravines and in all the settlements in the land. 14 I will tend them in a good pasture, and the mountain heights of Israel will be their grazing land. There they will lie down in good grazing land, and there they will feed in a rich pasture on the mountains of Israel. 15 I myself will tend my sheep and have them lie down, declares the Sovereign LORD. 16 I will search for the lost and bring back the strays. I will bind up the injured and strengthen the weak, but the sleek and the strong I will destroy. I will shepherd the flock with justice.

17 " 'As for you, my flock, this is what the Sovereign LORD says: I will judge between one sheep and another, and between rams and goats. 18 Is it not enough for you to feed on the good pasture? Must you also trample the rest of your pasture with your feet? Is it not enough for you to drink clear water? Must you also muddy the rest with your feet? 19 Must my flock feed on what you have trampled and drink what you have muddied with your feet?

20 " 'Therefore this is what the Sovereign LORD says to them: See, I myself will judge between the fat sheep and the lean sheep. 21 Because you shove with flank and shoulder, butting all the weak sheep with your horns until you have driven them away, 22 I will save my flock, and they will no longer be plundered. I will judge between one sheep and another. 23 I will place over them one shepherd, my servant David, and he will tend them; he will tend them and be their shepherd. 24 I the LORD will be their God, and my servant David will be prince among them. I the LORD have spoken.

25 " 'I will make a covenant of peace with them and rid the land of wild beasts so that they may live in the desert and sleep in the forests in safety. 26 I will bless them and the places surrounding my hill. [a] I will send down showers in season; there will be showers of blessing. 27 The trees of the field will yield their fruit and the ground will yield its crops; the people will be secure in their land. They will know that I am the LORD, when I break the bars of their yoke and rescue them from the hands of those who enslaved them. 28 They will no longer be plundered by the nations, nor will wild animals devour them. They will live in safety, and no one will make them afraid. 29 I will provide for them a land renowned for its crops, and they will no longer be victims of famine in the land or bear the scorn of the nations. 30 Then they will know that I, the LORD their God, am with them and that they, the house of Israel, are my people, declares the Sovereign LORD. 31 You my sheep, the sheep of my pasture, are people, and I am your God, declares the Sovereign LORD.' "

There is coming and soon disaster that will shake every person on earth to the very roots of their being. Those who know God and are being fleeced by the hireling shepherds will be rescued by God and they will come into a new close intimate relationship with the true Shepherd and never again will they look to man for their help. Then there are those who's hearts are not right, they know God but are filled with guile. They will receive severe discipline and if they repent they will be forgiven and restored. Others who are called goats in the above scripture will find themselves on the outside looking in and unable to enter because they have been defiling the body and will no longer be tolerated.
At this point I can only plead with everyone to ask God to search your heart and bring His fire to burn up whatever is not holy.

God bless you all.
Your replies and comments are welcome. I encourage everyone to forward these messages to anyone who might be helped by them.
email acts2216@eoni.com or justjohn@eoni.com

The Measuring Rod and the Plumbline

In the book of Amos 7:7-8 is mentioned the plume line and also in Zechariah4:10
and Ezekiel Chapter 40:3,5 and 42:16 speaks of an angel with a measuring rod and especially Revelation:11.1 is an angel who gives a measuring rod to the Apostle John and instructs him thus, "Then I was given a reed like a measuring rod. And the angel stood, saying, “Rise and measure the temple of God, the altar, and those who worship there". I will not attempt to get into all the prophetic aspects of these scriptures but rather want to use them to illustrate the fact that God is an exacting God. A measuring device is used to enable a workman to create something precise or to determine if something is not precise. A plumb line is used to determine if an object is straight up and down or if it is leaning. When I built screen doors for a living I soon learned how important precise measurements were to creating a properly functioning product. A couple of times I failed to check if the door jamb that I would be installing a door into was plumb on both sides and the result was that one corner of my screen door stuck out and looked terrible.

Now back to the verse in Revelation 11. John is told to measure the temple of God, the altar and the people who are worshipping there. This is not a temple of timbers and steel and cement that isbeing measured but a temple of flesh and blood for the New Testament tells us that we are the temple of God 1 Corinthians 6:19.

This is all ablout God determining the condition of His Church and His measuring rod and plumb line are exacting. Any timbers that are twisted, too short or too long will simply be removed. If any are found to not be standing straight they too will be removed. He states very clearly that He is returning for a Church without spot or wrinkle or any such thing but that she should be holy and without blemish. Ephesians 5:27 Wow, that sounds impossible and it is for man without God but with God all things are possible. Matthew 19.26

This is where man's idea of the gospel and the true gospel part ways because man has concocted the idea that if I believe in Jesus then God already sees me in this perfect state and that is simply not what scripture teaches.
Scripture says this; Philippians 2:11-13 (New King James Version)
11 and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.
12 Therefore, my beloved, as you have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling; 13 for it is God who works in you both to will and to do for His good pleasure.

The first part of the above scripture gives us a key but is seldom understood. It simply says that we must confess that Jesus Christ is Lord. Biblically Lord means "BOSS". How can anyone know what the boss wants if they don't read His word. The bible is God's instruction manual for living and developing into the character and stature that He purposes for us. How can we understand what the bible is saying if we don't have someone to explain it for us? That is the role of the Holy Spirit 1 John 2:27 How can you be taught by the Holy Spirit when He is no longer taught in the church? If the Holy Spirit is mentioned at all from the pulpit He is spoken of in mystical terms rather than as a Person, the third Person of the Godhead that was sent to carry on the earthly ministry of Jesus. When Jesus was on earth he was followed by literally thousands of people and many folks walked for days just to get a glimse of him or to hear Him speak but he came for primarily one purpose and that was to die and after death to return to the Father and send the Holy Spirit to carry on His ministry of teaching, healing and working of miracles but in a way that no one would need to travel for miles and days to experience Him. He is as present as Jesus was,and for those who choose to experience him, He is just as real, but more accessable.

I believe the Holy Spirit has been marginalized because when He is present man is not in control and todays leaders want control and I believe that is indisputable. Just walk into any church and try standing up and telling what God has been doing in your life or what he has been showing you in scripture and find out what happens. A skunk would find a better welcome. And yet here is what scripture has to say about church meetings:
1 Corinthians 14:26
[ Orderly Worship ] What then shall we say, brothers? When you come together, everyone has a hymn, or a word of instruction, a revelation, a tongue or an interpretation. All of these must be done for the strengthening of the church.
I could go on more about church but that is not my purpose here. I think the church already has enough critics and will answer to God for her failures. However my point is that many people when they think about Christianity or religion, going to church is the first thing that comes to mind. Let me say this; When we stand before the throne of God and face judgement chances are very good that church and how many times you attended will not even be mentioned. This is not even a mark on the plumb line. What are the marks on the plumb line and the measuring rod?
Galatians 5:21-23 (New International Version)
21and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I warn you, as I did before, that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God.

22But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law.

Now the good characteristics are listed, love joy, peace etc. are looked upon as desirable Christian characteristics but they are not the result of good behaviour or religous activity and in many cases not the result of years of church attendance. They are called the "Fruit of the Spirit" and are simply the result of a life that is given over to obedience to the revealed will of God and the direction of the Holy Spirit in our life. We all know that if we let our kids hang out with losers it is more likely they will develope a loser mentality themselves but it is much more serious in spiritual life because we become like what we worship. A person given over to pornography becomes obsessed with sex. A person given over to any appetite develops traits associated with that particular obsession. Now some would say being spiritually obsessed is equally bad. Here is my interpretation of a religous fanatic.
A religous fantatic is "anyone who loves Jesus more than me". I have a level of love and dedication to Christ determined by a whole series of factors going back 34 years this october. To some who perhaps have a different view or less experience with Him I am a fanatic. There are others who have different and perhaps greater experience with Him than I, and therefore to me they may be fanatics.
In the end it is God who is the judge and He has the measuring rod and plumb line in His hand and the standard He will apply is His written word as revealed to us by His Spirit. Do not trust me, Ask God to give you His Spirit and then devote yourself to spending time with Him and in the Word and see what He reveals to you. I promise that we will find ourselves to be in agreement because Our God is not a God of confusion but a God of order. 1Corinthians 14:33, James 3:16
I think it is clear that all the denominations we have today are the result of confusion of the first order and we all know who is the father of confusion.

God bless you all and may He reveal His truth to you as you seek Him.

comments are always welcome.
Email acts2216@eoni.com or justjohn@eoni.com
john Martin

Time is shorter that we think.

I am concerned as I look out over the political landscape these days. With each passing election I am more convinced that elections and the change of guard that takes place in various places of power are pointless and are held only for the benefit of distracting the public which they are supposed to be serving in order that they do not bother to find out what is really going on behind the scenes. I believe that politicians are not just self serving as some would believe but are also serving a higher power to which they themselves are subservient. Their reward for going along with the flow is lifelong financial gain and a life of leisure.Their failure to go along will result in removal. Someone will show up with a brown envelope containing pictures or other information designed to persuade the reluctant. They are serving a shadow government whose agenda moves ahead no matter who is in office. As far back as the 1980's I was aware of changes being permitted or implemented that were leading to the reduction in the standard of living for the majority of Americans. I was also aware of legislation being proposed and passed that would resulted in loss of liberty but people are easily deceived. I remember a day in 1994 that a man who was working for me joined me for lunch under the shade tree in my front yard. During our conversation I asked him what he thought of the proposed bicycle helmet law that would be voted on that November. He replied that he thought it was a good thing. I asked him why and he said that many parents would not require their kids to wear a helmet so somebody had to do it. I asked his what gave him the right to force me or my kid to wear a helmet or do anything else that was not a danger to the public? He did not have a good answer. I told him that if he went along with that one that soon someone would be telling him what he could or could not do in almost any situation and that is what we have today and it is only going to get worse because through small incremental things such as the environment or recycling and the green movement and on and on the country has been divided to the point that there could even be a civil war. Actually there already is, it just hasn't progressed to the point of taking up arms but the hatred is there and could explode into violence at any time. With the upcoming election and the possibility of upsetting the status quo in Washington I think for every conservative there's a liberal to block any real change not to mention the fact that most of the so called conservatives running for office are still first and foremost politicians. What we need is a majority of Statesmen. The difference in case you don't know is that a politician is self serving and a Statesman is dedicated to the good of the country even if he doesn't see the results in his own lifetime. They truly look to the future and do what is right even to their own hurt. Let's face it folks there will not be anything to change the direction of the country for it is focused on globalism and those now in power are intent on securing for themselves a position in the new One World Government. What they don't realize is that they are mere front men to do the dirty work of the global elite who will cast them off like a dirty shirt when they achieve their goal.

Now to the real reason for this article, I comment on politics only for the purpose of trying to point out the futility of making that our focus. We talk a lot about conservative values and republican administrations versus liberal administrations but I think an honest review of all the acts of George Bush while in office would reveal a great deal of loss of liberty for the average American citizen. Many people do not want to know the truth about 9-11 or the reasons for it nor to consider all the freedoms we have given up in order to supposedly protect ourselves from the perpetrators. There's no blindness worse than willful blindness. There is so much available evidence out there that something was very fishy about that whole ordeal but many people refuse to examine anything that does not come from the main news organizations that are no better than the communist propaganda organs of the cold war era. The most dangerous part of willful blindness is that it leaves a person with no time or opportunity to prepare for the danger that is bearing down on them with the force of a runaway train. Political action will not change the direction the country and the entire world is now heading and has been for the last few generations. Careful examination of history will reveal that plans have been in the works back before most of us were born to bring about a one world government and it's all behind the scenes and cannot be stopped. It is no accident that our current president is in power, he has been groomed for that purpose most of his life. The folks pulling the strings are very patient and now everyone is alarmed because all the plans and preparations made many years ago are now being implemented at lightning speed. You can rest assured that they also took into account the reaction of the conservative populace in an upcoming election and have made preparation for that as well.
I have said all this in order to get to my real point and my regular readers know it is going to be about spiritual matters. In Christ is our only hope and we must take individual responsibility for our relationship with Him. His promises are great and His power to bless, provide and protect are greater than any earthly or heavenly force. I suggest that you read Psalm 91 the entire chapter and see if you cannot see in there the promises of protection from every weapon of mankind. I believe this psalm is a prophetic promise of future protection for the people of God in the coming times of turmoil but it is not going to be of any benefit to the casual christian. I wrote an article earlier this year titled "The Secret Place"http://acts2216.blogspot.com/2010/07/secret-place.html and I suggest that you read it for further understanding. There is news that few are taking notice of and even fewer understand the significance of it. That is the news concerning the nation of Israel and the meetings being held to attempt to settle the Palestinian issue with an independent Palestinian state within Israel. Anyone who has studied bible prophesy knows that most major world events of the past several thousand years were foretold in prophesy and there are future events foretold as well. Unfortunately prophesy is rarely understood accurately until it is fulfilled and we can look back on it and then it is possible to understand what some of the strange sayings mean. If we were to write about events of 500 years from now we could only use terms that we have at our disposal today but in 500 years, should we be here that long, the terms used to describe almost anything would no doubt be very different. How many of today's kids know what a record player is or an 8 track player and I could go on an on. However in some prophesies many of the things spoken of are pretty clear with only a few minor terms that cannot be known for certain but the event foretold is very clear. This one in particular is found in the Book of Ezekiel chapters 37-38. It speaks of a time when a final solution is reached with the enemies of Israel and a 7 year peace agreement is signed.
The safety of Israel is guaranteed by a third party but at 3-1/2 years into this agreement the treaty is broken and a whole host of nations invade Israel. This will launch the worst conflict the world has ever seen. The beginning of this 7 year peace agreement also signals the beginning of the 7 year period known as the Great Tribulation recorded in the book of Revelation.

Right now in Washington and Telaviv discussion is going on about the particulars of this peace agreement. The Israeli Prime Minister declared they did not want any Muslims to be among the peace keepers but has since relented. One issue after another is being settled and I can see an agreement being reached very soon for a variety of reasons including the fact that Iran is provoking them a great deal and the world leaders are afraid that if they do not find a way to restrain Israel that they will launch a pre-emptive military strike against Iran and start WW3. Israel seems ready to trade almost anything for a solution.
Folks we must wake up and realize we must take immediate action to prepare ourselves for difficult times the likes of which we have never seen nor ever thought would happen in our lifetime. Soon the only choice remaining will be the choice to serve God or reject Him. The earlier that a person accepts Christ and determines to allow Him to work in their life the more time there is for Him to make you strong enough to stand when the difficult times come. We will all face the decision whether to accept the coming Mark of the Beast. If you do accept there is no turning back and if you don't accept then you will need to have enough faith (which is gained over time through interaction with the Lord) to believe what He has promised to do for those who refuse the Mark. He will feed and protect and care for you when all seems lost. We can only know God enough to really trust Him through doing business with Him on a regular basis. I think a very high percentage of professing Christians don't even know how to pray and couldn't find their way through the bible if they even have one. I don't blame the Christian for in most cases now the Pastors don't even mention the need to know your bible and they make it easy for them not to even open their bibles by posting the scriptures on a screen if they use the scriptures at all. These pastors are what scripture calls hirelings because a true Shepherd will feed the people what they need, not what they want, and if the people don't like it they can go somewhere else. Of course no Pastor wants his congregation and support to leave so they just avoid anything that would make people uncomfortable. This is not the way to prepare people to endure the must horrific time the world has ever seen and those who are not doing their job will give answer for all those lives that were lost as a result. I think pastors should not be paid, that way they would see their job as a ministry for which God provides rather than a job by which they support themselves. That way there would be no incentive to withhold the truth but then again many of them don't even know the truth for they have been trained in man's schools rather than in the school of the Spirit.
Anyway friends I want to encourage everyone to deepen your roots with Christ and ask Him to fill you with the Holy Spirit if you have not yet received so that He can teach you and guide you into all truth for the time is short.
God bless you all. If you have questions or comments please leave them here in the comment section or write me at justjohn@eoni.com or acts2216@eoni.com and I will answer every one personally.
john Martin