At the moment I am in London ministering at the Gospel Centre for a month. A long lost friend from Guernsey had arranged to meet me this Wednesday in Salisbury, which is a place I have never been too before. He had bought me a ticket to go and look around the Salisbury Cathedral with him, which has the highest church steeple in the country. My train left Waterloo Station at 9:20 am so I had to give myself plenty of time to get there in the morning rush, as it was quite a distance away. I decided to leave the house at 7am and go by bus, which is about a 70 min journey, instead of going by tube. I love sitting next to the window on double Decker Buses seeing all the sights of London instead of being cramped in a tube train. The last part of the bus ride took me across the Waterloo Bridge on the Thames River.
Unfortunately my friend came down sick and had to cancel coming, which was a shame, so I was now to go on my own. I’d paid for the train tickets to Salisbury and back and could not get a refund. The thought came to me that maybe God had something special for me on this day. Maybe I’d meet an Angel or have a divine encounter with someone on the train or in Salisbury. I thought of how the disciple Ananias had been told by God to go and find Paul of Tarsus and give him some instructions concerning his destiny. Had God something like that for me today? I’d try and be nice to people in case one of them was an Angel. Lol. The thought came that if this messenger had had a vision of a grey haired man, should I wear may cap or not?
My reading for the day was amazingly the same story of Ananias meeting up with Paul with a word from God, so this had to be a sign?
“In Damascus there was a disciple named Ananias. The Lord called to him in a vision, “Ananias!” “Yes, Lord,” he answered. The Lord told him, “Go to the house of Judas on Straight Street and ask for a man from Tarsus named Saul, for he is praying. In a vision he has seen a man named Ananias come and place his hands on him to restore his sight.” Acts 9:10-18
I left the house expectant, with my head on swivel for any possible Angels or Messengers from God. On the train to Salisbury, I had a seat next to the window and was willing to let someone sit next to me – just in case. Usually you make it known by putting your bag there that you are not wanting anyone to sit there. As we travelled along, I had such peace on me as I praised the Lord. Suddenly I heard the voice of the Spirit say. “A greater than Ananias is here.” This hit me like a ton of bricks. Jesus the creator of all things is with me right now.
This is a statement from Matthew 12:42 that says, “A greater than Solomon is here.” Jesus was speaking to the Religious Leaders of His day who revered the teachings of Solomon yet despised the words of Jesus. He rebuked them for not recognizing who He was. ‘I am the Word of God and far greater than Solomon.’ The Spirit was saying to me, I want to open your understanding afresh to realise the great ‘I Am’ is here, greater than any Angel, or Prophet, and far greater than Ananias.
I felt the Lord say, “Blessed are this who have not seen yet believe.” John 20:28-29
Believe that I am here with you, let’s enjoy each other. We can have a day out together, so enjoy it. Praise me. I needed to cast aside all care, and fully focus on Him.
As I waited for the door of the train to open at Salisbury, there was a delay before the platform, so I chatted to this elderly man next to me. He said that he was coming to Salisbury to meet up with a lady friend from another place and they were just coming to enjoy the town and each other. I later saw them walking through the streets together. The Lord was confirming that I was to have a praise walk with Him today.
I had a ticket to the Cathedral given to me by my friend so I went around on my own admiring all the amazing sights from days gone by. This was a unique and amazing place full of historic treasures. This is an ancient House of God, but something I now know is that the true House of God is us, and He lives in us. In in sense Cathedral was just a beautiful empty shell, but we are full of life. In the end I left the Salisbury Cathedral but I didn’t leave Jesus behind, He was with me.
All day I had a continuing vision every time I closed my eyes. It was of a table or altar that was being cleared of rubbish with the sweep of a mighty hand. It’s as if all that was there on the table was displeasing to the person who owned the arm. Nothing was carefully taken off and wrapped in tissue paper for a future date; everything was swept onto the floor to be disposed of. Once the table had been cleared there was a beautiful object that took centre place. The place of honour. I couldn’t work out what it was at first. Was it a jewel, or a fiery light? It appeared to be alive. It was like a living fire, so intense like the core of a nuclear reactor. I felt that this Altar was the heart of His Bride, the Church. I thought about idols and how God had been dealing with them in my life. The Lord wants to be Number One in our lives and deserves to be in pride of place, He wants to be the King of our Hearts. I thought of Malachi chapter 3 and 4 where the Lord says He will cleanse the Sons of Levi before His return.
“I will send my messenger, who will prepare the way before me. Then suddenly the Lord you are seeking will come to his temple; the messenger of the covenant, whom you desire, will come,” says the Lord Almighty. 2But who can endure the day of his coming? Who can stand when he appears? For he will be like a refiner’s fire or a launderer’s soap. 3He will sit as a refiner and purifier of silver; he will purify the Levites and refine them like gold and silver. Then the Lord will have men who will bring offerings in righteousness, 4and the offerings of Judah and Jerusalem will be acceptable to the Lord, as in days gone by, as in former years.” Malachi 3:1-4
“Surely the day is coming; it will burn like a furnace. All the arrogant and every evildoer will be stubble, and the day that is coming will set them on fire,” says the Lord Almighty. “Not a root or a branch will be left to them. But for you who revere my name, the sun of righteousness will rise with healing in its rays. And you will go out and frolic like well-fed calves. Then you will trample on the wicked; they will be ashes under the soles of your feet on the day when I act,” says the Lord Almighty.” Malachi 4:1-3
These verses speak of a purifying of the Levites (God’s people) before His return. A Holy fire burning up the wood, hay and stubble. A getting rid of idols. Even Christians can have idols in their lives. Idols for us are those things that take God’s place in our hearts, and the Lord wants to sweep them away.
“Dear children, keep yourselves from idols.” 1 John 5:21
“Dear children, keep away from anything that might take God’s place in your hearts.” The New Living Bible.
I have had a dream ever since I first got saved, of a Glorious Victorious Church before the Lord’s Return and I want to be part it. John 14:12 speaks of a people who will do the works Jesus did and even greater than He did. We have hardly done the works He did let alone anything greater. Peter tapped into it in his ministry with his shadow healing the sick, which Jesus never did, and Paul used to cut up pieces of cloth and send to them sick people and they were healed. You had to touch Jesus’ garment while He wore it if you wanted to be healed. So this work of Paul was a greater work.
What has God got in store for those who believe in Him these days? I watched a YouTube clip last week of a minister who had had an encounter with the Lord, speaking with Him in a vision. Afterwards he went to the Supermarket and people fell over in the isles as he passed by. With the magnitude of the task before us, we really need something greater than what we have now, for the task that lies ahead and the lateness of the hour. Bows and arrows can kill in warfare but going nuclear is on a far greater level.
In Genesis 35:1-5 we read of Jacob and his family coming back from Mesopotamia. God had dealt with him over the years and now Jacob wanted to get it right with God. He told his family to cleanse themselves, change their garments and throw away their idols. When they did this the fear of God fell on all those around them.
“Then God said to Jacob, “Go up to Bethel and settle there, and build an altar there to God, who appeared to you when you were fleeing from your brother Esau.” 2So Jacob said to his household and to all who were with him, “Get rid of the foreign gods you have with you, and purify yourselves and change your clothes. 3Then come, let us go up to Bethel, where I will build an altar to God, who answered me in the day of my distress and who has been with me wherever I have gone.” 4So they gave Jacob all the foreign gods they had and the rings in their ears, and Jacob buried them under the oak at Shechem. 5Then they set out, and the terror of God fell on the towns all around them so that no one pursued them.”
They were like a people on fire and the enemy couldn’t touch them. Demons had to flee. As I have said earlier, “Flies can’t land on a hot stove,” For us today we need to be cleansed by the blood of the Lamb and also change our garments. To put on the garments of Salvation and Praise and especially the Robes of Righteousness. We need to understand that He has given us His righteousness as a gift and can’t be earned. This is the Message of Grace that is so necessary if you want to experience a love relationship with the King. Lastly we too need to throw away the idols that are cluttering up our hearts and give Jesus 1st place. He is a Jealous Lover.
Jesus said that the Devil had nothing in Him. There were no idols that the Devil could use to have access into His life - no strings attached. There were no flies on Him. God wants to sweep our heart’s clean so that we are His alone and receive His Holy Fire. In Psalm 48 we read of the glory of Zion. In the Book of Hebrews, Zion is also called the church (His Bride). His Zion where He dwells. The enemy sees the glory within and backs off.
“When the kings joined forces, when they advanced together, they saw her and were astounded; they fled in terror. Trembling seized them there, pain like that of a woman in labor. You destroyed them like ships of Tarshish shattered by an east wind.” Psalm 48:4-7
God has a plan for us in these Last Days. Allow Him to cleanse us of all idols so that He is number 1. Let Him be the King of our hearts and have His rightful place. We desperately need a greater vision of God. He is not just onboard as a ticket to heaven. He is to be our life and our supernatural energy. The same Spirit that raised Christ from the dead is in us and God wants us to really know this. As we set our gaze on Him the things of the earth will grow strangely dim in the light of His Glory and Grace.
Give Him more of our time and meditate on these amazing truths so that His Kingdom will indeed be established in our hearts. God wants to mirror what is in heaven here on earth. That is why we are told to pray in the Lord’s Prayer. “Thy Kingdom come, thy will be done on earth as it is in Heaven.”
I have seen many things and been to many beautiful places in my lifetime. I have stood on Mount Taranaki and looked across New Zealand at Mt Ruahepu at sunrise. I have seen countless sunrises and sunset from ships and even planes in New Zealand, Australia and Africa. I have walked along rugged beaches and tramped in the natural wonders of this country. I’ve been around the world many times looking from World’s view in Nyanga, Zimbabwe and even had our honeymoon at the Victoria Falls just to name a few amazing sights. But nothing compares to the pleasure of gazing upon Jesus. You may say; “Have you had a vision of Him?” “No I haven’t, but the word says blessed are this who have not seen yet believed”. I have meditated on the verses that have been given to us in the bible of Jesus and they now excite my heart. They satisfy and change me more than any natural wonder could ever do. You may never leave your home town, but if you have a bible the beauty of Jesus is made available to you.
We need this revelation of Him today. Think on these things and they will be like nuclear fuel to your hearts. A Greater than Solomon is Here.