Dr. Terry Threadwell's Blog

“the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees Him nor knows Him, but you know Him, for He dwells with you and will be in you.  “I will not leave you orphans; I will come to you.  “A little while longer and the world will see Me no more, but you will see Me. Because I live, you will live also.  “At that day you will know that I am in My Father, and you in Me, and I in you. (Joh 14:17-20 NKJ)

Do you not know that you are the temple of God and that the Spirit of God dwells in you? If anyone defiles the temple of God, God will destroy him. For the temple of God is holy, which temple you are. (1Co 3:16-17 NKJ)

 The promise was that when Jesus went to be with the Father that the Father would send the Comforter, the Spirit of Truth, the Holy Spirit and that the fullness of the Godhead will dwell in those that have been filled with the Holy Spirit.  Paul reminds us that our bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, literally a dwelling place. Some years ago now we asked a realtor to find us a home.  We listed all the specifications, the number of bedrooms, how many bathrooms, etc.  He provided us with a selection that meets the specifications of the house, but they all weren’t  home. If you were the Holy Spirit would you want to live inside your temple, your dwelling place?  How would you list it, prime location, light and airy, warm and cozy?  Or is it in need of remodeling?  When we found the right place, it wasn’t perfect and needed some work, but we made it home.

So let us take ourselves back to first century Corinth and we’re sitting around on the floor, listening to the letter from Paul, the Apostle, being read aloud and feeling the weight of those words as they pierce deep into our hearts, searching for an affirmative response, “Yes I know, God’s Spirit lives in me and is manifest in my life.”   Is that how you would respond, or are there still areas that need to be remodeled?  The good news is that God is still in the construction business.

“Therefore I say to you, every sin and blasphemy will be forgiven men, but the blasphemy against the Spirit will not be forgiven men. “Anyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man, it will be forgiven him; but whoever speaks against the Holy Spirit, it will not be forgiven him, either in this age or in the age to come. (Mat 12:31-32 NKJ)

 “There’s nothing done or said that can’t be forgiven. But if you deliberately persist in your slanders against God’s Spirit, you are repudiating the very One who forgives. If you reject the Son of Man out of some misunderstanding, the Holy Spirit can forgive you, but when you reject the Holy Spirit, you’re sawing off the branch on which you’re sitting, severing by your own perversity all connection with the One who forgives. (Mat 12:31-32)

 No sin is unforgivable as John tells us, “ If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” (1Jo 1:9 NKJ) That being the case then what is the unforgivable sin.  Matthew tells us it is blasphemy against the Holy Spirit.  If you’ve ever been concern that you might have done such a thing, let me put your mind at rest by assuring you haven’t.  Having that concern and conviction shows that you have an inner conviction to do right.  Remember the Holy Spirit convicts us to make the right moral, ethical and legal judgments.

The scribes attributed the work of the Spirit to Satan, thus showing that they had hardened their hearts and were not able to receive the truth.  John tells us that, “the Spirit of truth, has come, He will guide you into all truth; for He will not speak on His own authority, but whatever He hears He will speak; and He will tell you things to come.” (Joh 16:13 NKJ)  To do what the scribes did was as the Message translation puts it, “you’re sawing off the branch on which you’re sitting, severing by your perversity all connection with the One who forgives.”

Be ever hearing, and if you’re not quite sure of something, put it on the shelf until the Holy Spirit reveals the truth.  Don’t let dogma or tradition guide you—it just might be wrong.

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Then Jesus returned in the power of the Spirit to Galilee, and news of Him went out through all the surrounding region.  And He taught in their synagogues, being glorified by all. So He came to Nazareth, where He had been brought up. And as His custom was, He went into the synagogue on the Sabbath day, and stood up to read.  And He was handed the book of the prophet Isaiah. And when He had opened the book, He found the place where it was written:   “The Spirit of the LORD is upon Me, Because He has anointed Me To preach the gospel to the poor; He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted, To proclaim liberty to the captives And recovery of sight to the blind, To set at liberty those who are oppressed;  To proclaim the acceptable year of the LORD.”  Then He closed the book, and gave it back to the attendant and sat down. And the eyes of all who were in the synagogue were fixed on Him.  And He began to say to them, “Today this Scripture is fulfilled in your hearing.” (Luk 4:14-21 NKJ)

 In this passage, we have a direct quote from Isaiah 61 in which Jesus sees himself as the fulfillment. Having returned from the wilderness in the power of the Spirit, He went to the synagogue and was handed the scroll of the prophet Isaiah.  This text speaks of the Holy Spirit’s anointing, investing with the necessary power to get the job done.  We are then given a list of situations where divine intervention is needed.  The Message Bible translations puts it this way, “God’s Spirit is on me; he’s chosen me to preach the Message of good news to the poor, sent me to announce pardon to prisoners and recovery of sight to the blind, to set the burdened and battered free, to announce, “This is God’s year to act!”

Jesus declared that this scripture had been fulfilled in their hearing—today!  Jesus set out to tell people of God’s unconditional love, healing the sick, demonstrating forgiveness and relieve people’s burdens.  Can you hear the Holy Spirit asking you the question, “will this scripture be fulfilled today” reminding you that you have that same anointing and that the Holy Spirit has ‘invested in you the necessary gifting and power to get the job done.’  The question is, as we meet people today that are at the end of their rope, burden with guilt, wounded and hurting or just needing to make right choices, what will we do—will this scripture be fulfilled today in and through you?

Lady Wisdom has built and furnished her home; it’s supported by seven hewn timbers.  The banquet meal is ready to be served: lamb roasted, wine poured out, table set with silver and flowers. Having dismissed her serving maids, Lady Wisdom goes to town, stands in a prominent place, and invites everyone within sound of her voice: “Are you confused about life, don’t know what’s going on?  Come with me, oh come, have dinner with me! I’ve prepared a wonderful spread—fresh-baked bread, roast lamb, carefully selected wines. Leave your impoverished confusion and live! Walk up the street to a life with meaning.” Prov 9:1-6 MSG)

Wisdom in proverbs is personified; she (Sophia) has a house built on seven pillars.  She prepares a banquet and invites whosoever to come in and dine.  Human nature however is attracted to the foolish woman next door.  She has nothing to add to your life, glitz and glamour is all she has.  Wisdom tells us, “He who corrects a scoffer gets shame for himself, And he who rebukes a wicked man only harms himself. Do not correct a scoffer, lest he hate you; Rebuke a wise man, and he will love you.  Give instruction to a wise man, and he will be still wiser; Teach a just man, and he will increase in learning.  “The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom, And the knowledge of the Holy One is understanding. (Pro 9:7-10 NKJ)

Isaiah shows us that the Holy Spirit has those same seven traits, “The Spirit of the LORD shall rest upon Him, The Spirit of wisdom and understanding, The Spirit of counsel and might, The Spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the LORD. (Isa 11:2 NKJ).

It is not surprising that in the gifts of the Holy Spirit (1 Cor 12:8) a word to the wise is included in the gift of the Holy Spirit.  That word, however, doesn’t come by chance, but by taking the time to enter wisdom’s house and partaking of the feast prepared for you. Knowledge comes from study, wisdom comes from God.

We need wisdom in America today!

On the land of my people will come up thorns and briers, Yes, on all the happy homes in the joyous city; Because the palaces will be forsaken, The bustling city will be deserted. The forts and towers will become lairs forever, A joy of wild donkeys, a pasture of flocks–Until the Spirit is poured upon us from on high, And the wilderness becomes a fruitful field, And the fruitful field is counted as a forest. Then justice will dwell in the wilderness, And righteousness remains in the fruitful field. (Isa 32:13-16 NKJ)

The land of ‘milk and honey’ was about to become a wilderness, with the inhabitants of the land taken captive. They had been warned not to forget that it was, “the LORD, who brought you up from the land of Egypt with great power and an outstretched arm, Him you shall fear, Him you shall worship, and to Him, you shall offer sacrifice.” (2Ki 17:36 NKJ) They choose instead to trust their military might, finances, and they allowed religions that would take the people away from God. Nothing was going to change until the people cried out to God is repentance, sought after the God and a fresh outpouring of the Spirit of God.

In America, we can change administrations, but in reality, nothing will change until we turn back to God, and he, in turn, pours out his Spirit one more time on the earth.

“For I will take you from among the nations, gather you out of all countries, and bring you into your own land. “Then I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you shall be clean; I will cleanse you from all your filthiness and from all your idols. “I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; I will take the heart of stone out of your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. “I will put My Spirit within you and cause you to walk in My statutes, and you will keep My judgments and do them. “Then you shall dwell in the land that I gave to your fathers; you shall be My people, and I will be your God. (Eze 36:24-28 NKJ)

The Word of God can express the will of God. However, nothing is guaranteed.  Sometimes in the Word expresses the foreknowledge of God and the reality of man’s rebellion, that goes against and in opposition to the divine Will of God. The Jews rejection of Jesus as Messiah may have surprised the disciples, yet scripture in other places talks about the gospel and the outpouring of the Spirit being poured out on all flesh.

Contextually, Ezekiel is talking about Israel and a:

1.      Returning to a land

2.      Cleansing

3.      Filling with his Spirit

4.      Salvation (new heart + spirit)

5.      Transformation (change)

6.      Causing the people to want to keep the commandments (Dabar = words) and statutes

This isn’t a case of choosing four out of six.  When this happens, you will see everything mentioned in Ezekiel take place. Israel will be changed, not the man-made political state of Zion we see today. The Orthodox Jew will tell you; they are looking for a city who’s builder is God.

So what about America? Why is it that we seem to expect God to turn a blind eye to all our antics, such as ‘manifest Destiney’ (typical of all imperial colonial empires, not just America) and bless us anyway? As a Christian how should I pray for this great nation?

1.      Pray for the land. Asking forgiveness from those First Nation peoples that I (we) oppressed and stole from. Then ask God for forgiveness for the way we have taking his creation and in places made it void and empty. (Fracking, oil exploration, open cast mining, dumping of waste and chemicals) Then and only then, asking him to bless the land.

2.      Cleanse us from all idolatry. (our trust in the power of money, military might and nationalism that takes the place of God)

3.      Ask him to pour out his Spirit on all flesh. (Joel 2+3)

4.      Give America a new heart and spirit

5.      Change us.

6.      Trust in the LORD with all your heart, And lean not on your own understanding; In all your ways acknowledge Him, And He shall direct your paths. Do not be wise in your own eyes; Fear the LORD and depart from evil. (Pro 3:5-7 NKJ)

Then and only then can we truly ask God to bless America.

And the devil said to Him, “All this authority I will give You, and their glory; for this has been delivered to me, and I give it to whomever I wish. “Therefore, if You will worship before me, all will be Yours.” (Luk 4:6-7 NKJ)

You were in Eden, the garden of God; Every precious stone was your covering: The sardius, topaz, and diamond, Beryl, onyx, and jasper, Sapphire, turquoise, and emerald with gold. (Eze 28:13 NKJ)

The Garden of Eden was a beautiful place. Looking at Revelation 21, where we see the garden restored, God was the temple and worship was a fundamental aspect of man’s existence. According to Ezekiel 28, Lucifer was in the garden, possibly involved in the making music for mankind to worship God. His desire, however, was to be worshiped rather than to worship.

The Devil (Lucifer) craves worship; we cannot give it to him, all worship goes to God. Those who follow him in darkness, the  murderers, terrorists, and ISIS seek attention; they strive to steal our freedom and hold us captive to fear; we cannot let them.

Then he said to me, “Do not fear, Daniel, for, from the first day that you set your heart to understand, and to humble yourself before your God, your words were heard; and I have come because of your words. “But the prince of the kingdom of Persia withstood me twenty-one days; and behold, Michael, one of the chief princes, came to help me, for I had been left alone there with the kings of Persia. “Now I have come to make you understand what will happen to your people in the latter days, for the vision refers to many days yet to come.” When he had spoken such words to me, I turned my face toward the ground and became speechless. (Dan 10:12-15 NKJ)

For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places. (Eph 6:12 NKJ)

The angel Gabriel gave Daniel insight into the spiritual reality of the warfare playing out in the heavenly realms.   This reality reproduced in the earth, Daniel taken captive by the Babylonian King, saw the rise of the Persian empire, with the Greeks waiting in the wings. What does America look like in the spiritual realm and how can we affect this dimension through prayer? What we see in flesh and blood, therefore, is only a manifestation of something that can go far deeper. The rhetoric of greatness that no man can provide because only God is great. If we desire greatness, then we should desire God.

Though we live in a three-dimensional, temporal, material world, we should realize that as a child of God, I have been invited to warfare in a far greater spiritual dimension. One where there is a hierarchy of power both good and evil, an institutional malevolence that permeates every aspect of our society and systemic corruption of truth, the roots of which can be found way back into the eons of time. So as we pray, be open to the Spirit’s leading and guiding and take nothing for granted, the future of America  may depend upon it.

²⁸ After that I will pour out my spirit upon everyone; (Joe 2:28 CEB)

¹⁵ Blow the horn in Zion; demand a fast; request a special assembly. ¹⁶ Gather the people; prepare a holy meeting; assemble the elders; gather the children, even nursing infants. Let the groom leave his room and the bride her chamber. ¹⁷ Between the porch and the altar let the priests, the LORD’s ministers, weep. Let them say, “Have mercy, LORD, on your people, and don’t make your inheritance a disgrace, an example of failure among the nations. Why should they say among the peoples, ‘Where is their God?'” (Joe 2:15-17 CEB)

The outpouring of the Spirit promised for the last days to usher in the Kingdom of God comes with certain conditions.  One condition is that everyone in the house (oikos) prays.  Not just the ministers, or the intercessors, but every age, gender, social standing, and culture, without excuse, should fast and pray specifically for renewal.

Like the Babylonian army that was coming upon the people in Joel’s day, so we have allowed evil, darkness and even thick darkness to encroach upon our society, pulling down the very moral and ethical values that we should hold dear.  Will we care enough to spend the time in prophetic prayer, waiting to hear what the Spirit will say to the Church?

And He Himself gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers, (Eph 4:11 NKJ)

If Christ gave his Church the ministry gift needed to:

• . Equip the saints for ministry internal and external
• . Edifying of the body of Christ,
• . Build faith, knowledge, and maturity.

Now the prophets today should not think of themselves as an Isaiah or Jeremiah, that dispensation has gone. Today’s prophets do not bring the Word of God; they are subject to the Word. But where are they?

In the 40’s and 50’s the Church, in general, was silent, with the exception of people such as Dietrich Bonhoeffer. In general, the job was given to several writers that had a voice to societies ill’s, people such as Charles Wright Mills was an American sociologist, and a professor of sociology at Columbia University from 1946 until his death in 1962., American-Canadian writer /activist Jane Jacobs, and David Riesman, sociologist, educator, and commentator on American society. These academics were not overtly Christian, but they stood against injustice. Within church circles, Billy Graham was making a name for himself as a voice for the gospel, yet for some reason saw no problem cozying up to evil. His conversation with President Richard Nixon, as they discuss the pending Watergate fiasco is evidence of that fact. In the 60’s Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. raised a prophetic voice for civil rights, against social injustice, and for peace. In true biblical fashion, society responded by killing the prophet.

Our intellectual class today is very anemic. They’ve withdrawn into the arcane world of academia. Corporate funding of research projects on the one hand, and fundamentalist religious constraints on the other have tied the hands and duck taped the academic mouthpiece. Of course, it’s very hard to financially sustain yourself as a so-called “public intellectual.”

The recent elections are proof that the Church has lost its voice. The writing was on the wall long before with G. W. Bush and the Iraq deception and Obama’s wiliness to bomb innocent civilians abroad and arrest and detain citizens at home without due process.

We need the prophets to speak before it is too late.