My Church!

By Pastor Bill Taylor

A publication of My Father's House, inc. Volume 8/Issue 14

            Prophecy: The treacherous dealers have dealt very treacherously. They have destroyed My vineyard, they have ravished My garden. The deceiver has deceived until the people who ought to be the temple of My Spirit have come to think that all they need to be a Christian is to acknowledge Me as their Savior and to visit with Me on occasion, to praise Me on occasion, to pray to God on occasion while they go on about their carnal lives. But I tell you, everything in My New Covenant, everything in My Word says that My people will be a body and a temple, a body of which I am the Head and a temple in which I am the Spirit. And they will not have a life of their own but they will serve Me with all their heart, soul, mind and strength. And they will love Me and keep My commandments and do My will and seek My face; and they shall be My people and I shall be their God. And they will not come to visit with Me, but I will come to visit with them, and I will abide in them, and I will not leave them and they will not depart from Me. And I shall conform them completely to the image of Christ, and I shall make them children of God in Word and in deed and in truth and in Spirit. And they shall have no other gods before Me, no other interests but My interests, and they shall have no other life but My life. And I am telling you that is what I am bringing forth in this place, and I shall demonstrate it to the treacherous dealers and to the deceived around you until their eyes are opened to see what they have thought was of Me has been of the devil and been of the deceiver; and what is of Me agrees with My Word and agrees with the things which pertain to being conformed to Christ completely and perfectly. For I shall have the Glorious Church I have foreordained, and nothing, nothing will stop Me from having it. And I shall have it here in this place. And I shall demonstrate real Christianity in this place where you have given up your lusts and even your lives, and you will have no other life and you will have no other desire and have no other passion except to do My will, where your pleasure is found fully in My pleasure, thus saith the Lord.  (Prophecy delivered at "My Father's House") 

              “Bring charges against your mother; for she is not My wife, nor am I her husband! Let her put away her harlotries from her sight, and her adulteries from between her breast; Lest I strip her naked and expose her, as in the day she was born...” (Hosea 2:2-3) God has given us infallible proofs that almost all the churches of today are not His churches but are harlots. And if you are in a church that isn’t His church you will not be saved.

            When Jesus says, “on this rock I will build My church, and the gates, (strategies) of hell shall not prevail against it.” (Matt 16:18) He is speaking concerning His true church and not the harlot churches. And when Jesus says, “upon this rock (Petra in the Greek which means a mass of rock) I will build My church” He’s not just talking about Peter, (Petros – which means a piece of the rock.) But He is talking about “the one who hears My Word and does it is the one who’s built his house upon the rock.” (Matt 7:24)  And the word for rock used here is Petra – the massive rock. So the church is to be built upon the petra – the massive rock of God’s Word. And Jesus is that Massive Rock “Petra.” The Rock that was cut out without hands. (Dan 2:34,45) And Jesus is the Word made flesh. (John 1:14) As it is written: “Behold, I lay in Zion a stumbling stone and rock of offense, and whoever believes on Him will not be put to shame.”(Rom 9:33) And all drank the same Spiritual drink. For they drank of that Spiritual Rock that followed them, and that Rock was Christ. (1Cor 10:4) Therefore, to you who believe, He is precious; but to those who are disobedient, “The stone which the builders rejected has become the chief cornerstone,” and “A stone of stumbling and a rock of offense.” They stumble, being disobedient to the Word, to which they also were appointed. (1Pet 2:7,8) In each of these verses Jesus is referred to as the rock “Petra.” So this disproves the Roman Catholic heresy that Jesus was building His church on Petros (Peter) meaning a piece of the rock, who they call the first pope. But Peter was neither a pope of Rome nor Jerusalem. For we see James holding at least equal authority with Peter in the Jerusalem council of Acts 15. And Peter was not even a part of the Roman church at the time Paul wrote the Roman Epistle. Nor was Peter “infallible” as we see in Now when Peter had come to Antioch, I withstood him to his face, because he was to be blamed;(Gal 2:11)

            So it is obvious that the Roman Catholic church is based on lies and not the true interpretation of God’s Word, nor on Christ, the Word made flesh, but she is a harlot and not His church at all. So the gates of Hell have already prevailed against and conquered the Catholics. For only Christ’s true church is safe from the gates (which means the strategies) of Hell. And that is the church that is built upon Christ, who is the solid rock of God’s Word, as it’s foundation. “I’m going to build My church upon this rock” and that rock is Christ the Word of God, having been built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ Himself being the chief cornerstone, (Eph 2:20) And when Jesus says “I’m going to build My church on this rock” in one place and that His church is built upon apostles and prophets in another there is no contradiction here. The apostles and prophets are the ones who speak the Word of God and teach others to obey it. And it is the Spirit of Christ who speaks through them. Of this salvation the prophets have inquired and searched carefully, who prophesied of the grace that would come to you, searching what, or what manner of time, the Spirit of Christ who was in them was indicating when He testified beforehand the sufferings of Christ and the glories that would follow. (1Pet 1:10-11) So they are also “Petros” as in pieces of the “Petra,” whole rock, which is Christ and the entire Word of God, which is the rock; the same rock He’s talking about in “Therefore whoever hears these sayings of Mine, and does them, I will liken him to a wise man who built his house on the rock (Petra); And in so far as Peter is to be a part of that house, Christ’s true church, it’s because as an Apostle he’s obedient to the Word of God and he is teaching others to obey the Word of God. And the church that belongs to Jesus is the church that is hearing and obeying the Word of God. That’s the only church that is His.

            Now the word “church” actually means congregation as in a family of brethren. So who are Jesus’ brethren? “Those who hear the Word of God and do it.” (Luke 8:21) So once again, the true church is composed only of those people who hear God’s Word and do it. Christ’s church is based on the foundation of the apostles and prophets who have given us the Word of God, but it is also built up out of those brethren who hear the Word of God and do it; Jesus Christ is the chief cornerstone because He is absolutely perfect in obedience to God’s Word and the source of God’s Word that was spoken by the prophets. (Rev 19:10) Jesus is the Word made flesh. Now, just on that criteria alone most of the contemporary churches today fail the test of being Christ’s church because for the most part they have despised God’s Word; they are not hearing His Word and doing it. And Jesus has proven that to us in so many ways. And when Jesus said the gates of hell will not prevail against M-Y, capital M-Y, MY church; He did not say the gates of hell will not prevail against y-o-u-r, little y-o-u-r, your church.

            Now, the gates of hell mean the strategies, the councils of hell. And the gates are the places where the leaders in hell get together and plan their attacks. And Jesus has proven to us that the gates of hell have already taken over every other church except Jesus’ true church that obeys all His Word and follows His Spirit. They cannot take over Jesus’ church because Jesus’ church is founded upon hearing God, and obeying God, which is true faith. And you’ll never be taken over when you’re doing that. But when you stop hearing and obeying God you are already being taken over. The Baptists are not Jesus’ church; they’ve already been taken over by heresies. They are a man-pleasing church. They despise and argue with God’s Word every way they turn. Catholics long ago departed from God. They are not His church; they are a synagogue of Satan. And every church that is serving themselves and serving men while they ignore major portions of God’s Word and they are not walking in the Spirit, crucifying the flesh, picking up their cross and serving the Lord according to His Word; they have already been taken over by the gates of hell; the devils. Now you can’t find salvation in a church that is run by devils. And it’s a very important thing that people wake up to the fact that to be “saved” you have to be in Jesus’ church; “the one that the gates of hell won’t prevail against;” the church that Jesus calls His, not the churches men call His while they behave as harlots.  “So they come to you as people do, they sit before you as My people, and they hear your Words, but they do not do them; for with their mouth they show much love, but their hearts pursue their own gain. (Ezek 33:31) A church where they hear the Word but do not do it is not built on the rock; “Therefore whoever hears these sayings of Mine, and does them, I will liken him to a wise man who built his house on the rock: “Now everyone who hears these sayings of Mine, and does not do them, will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand: and the rain descended, the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house; and it fell. And great was its fall.” (Matt 7:24,26-27)

            So we see that just because people come to church, “they come to you as people do,” that doesn’t mean they are God’s people. It’s a characteristic of carnal “unsaved” people to pretend to have religion. And they may even sit before a preacher as though they were God’s people and listen to God’s Words but they will not do them. Now most churches today are not even preaching the true Word of God; most are preaching heresies. Most of them are preaching social morality. They are encouraging you to be good along the lines of society’s standards but they are not in any way building up their people in faith for Christ to live His righteous life in them. And what they are doing is vain and useless if it’s not producing Christ in the people. Because even though they are encouraging people to do what they think of as good, it is man’s idea of good and not God’s good. No one is good but one – that is God. (Matt 19:17)

            He answered and said to them, “Well did Isaiah prophesy of you hypocrites, as it is written: ‘This people honors Me with their lips, but their heart is far from Me. And in vain they worship Me, teaching as doctrines the commandments of men.’” (Mark 7:6-7) Their religion is vain if it’s not producing Christ in them. And their good is a different kind of good if it is not Christ’s good. And all our righteousness is as filthy rags. (Isa 64:6) And what is going on in most so-called churches is not the good that comes from Jesus. It’s like the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees. “For I say to you, that unless your righteousness exceeds the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, you will by no means enter the Kingdom of Heaven.” (Matt 5:20) They are not really participating in God’s plan. They are not obeying His Spirit or His Word. What good can they do when it’s not of Him. “I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing. (John 15:5)

            Any “good” that’s not done in obedience to God is a “rebellious good” – an independent good. Men have no justifiable right to operate independent of God in God’s creation. If someone came into your house without your permission and began moving your furniture around without asking you, wouldn’t you consider them a trespasser and a nuisance? “Good” that is done without God’s guidance is not good. And how can you be a good Nazi? Good to your fellow Nazis? Being kind to them, helping them? That doesn’t make you good. To be a Nazi is to be very bad. It makes even the good you try to do be bad. And to be doing “good” apart from God puts you in a league with the devil. You are a rebel – independent and contrary to God’s government. Even your “good” is therefore bad. There is no presence of God in such a people. They are not His church.

            But even if contemporary churches were preaching the true Word of God, it wouldn’t make them God’s true church. When the people don’t do God’s Word they are not built on the rock. And if they are not doing God’s Word then they are already captive to the gates of hell. And their house is coming down even though they have heard the true Word if it isn’t being obeyed. So people who are in bad churches won’t be saved and they had best get out of them. You are not going to change a bad church by staying with them. The Pastor or leader of even a bad church has the authority. And if you don’t get a leader that’s of God such a church won’t turn around. When Caiaphas, the high priest, thought he was losing his position because of Jesus, he plotted to crucify Christ. (See John 11:48-50) And a bad preacher will get rid of you too in order to hold on to his job. Even today most so-called believers will crucify Christ if necessary to save their jobs. And in a bad church many of the people will side with the bad leader, mistakenly thinking that they’re serving God when they do because they usually presume their leader is a man of God even if he’s not, and they do not know God. After all they are in a bad church. How could they know God? And neither can they know what a good church or a Godly leader is or ought to be.

            You want a real church? You have to begin with a real man of God. It takes a man of God with Godly authority to start a real church and to keep that church on the right path for God. That’s the way a true church is built. It can only happen that way. It has to come out of the calling and authority that God gives to a true man of God; an apostle. And He Himself gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers, for the equipping of the saints for the work of ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ, (Eph 4:11,12) God didn’t send Jesus into the temple to take over the Jewish priesthood. He let the Jews have the temple and He started a new work and He gave authority to those who He used to start that new work. And they started it in new places on new grounds. And that’s what has to happen in this age too. So get out of your bad church and find a good one. And you’ll find that the man of God who has the greatest heart to build God’s church God’s way is the one God will put in the place of authority in His church.

            But sadly, the great majority of even so-called “christians” today are carnal – and carnal people have no real interests in God’s things except as it may be a benefit to the their worldly pursuits. Even those who regularly attend what they call “church” will listen and not do. They are entertained by religion. They pretend they love God but what they’re really after is their own gain. Most of us here in My Father’s House have come out of such “churches” where they have no interest in the glory of God and the glorious church. The people have an interest in getting their bills paid, getting healed, getting personal private needs met. They cry out to God for their selfish concerns but they don’t have an interest in God’s Kingdom. And God may take pity on some of these people because He’s a merciful God but such places are not His church. His church is not made up of people who are just concerned about their own needs. His church is made up of people who have a heart to do God’s will and who delight to do God’s will. (Heb 10:7)

            “Indeed you are to them as a very lovely song of one who has a pleasant voice and can play well on an instrument; for they hear your Words, but they do not do them.” (Ezek 33:32) To many people church is entertainment. And that is what goes on in most of the large churches today. The people come to hear, but they do not come to do. They come to be entertained. They may have some things of God to talk about so they can claim they are God’s people but in general if there’s anything going on in their lives it’s all about personal gain. It is not about serving the Lord. And it may be about getting God into helping them meet their personal needs but it is certainly not about performing the will of God so they’re not real Christians and these are not real churches. Jesus is not their head. In every place we look in the Bible concerning what the real church is like we can see that what is happening in the congregations that surround us today is not God’s real church.

            Now we’ve already seen that Jesus appoints the leaders in His true church. And He Himself gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers, (Eph 4:11) Real men of God do not come out of seminaries. Paul, an apostle (not from men nor through man, but through Jesus Christ and God the Father who raised Him from the dead), (Gal 1:1) They are called by Jesus, appointed by Christ and taught by Christ. But I make known to you, brethren that the gospel, which was preached by me, is not according to man. For I neither received it from man, nor was I taught it, but it came through the revelation of Jesus Christ. But when it pleased God, who separated me from my mother’s womb and called me through His grace, to reveal His Son in me, that I might preach Him among the Gentiles, I did not immediately confer with flesh and blood, (Gal 1:11-12,15-16) Likewise when Christ called me He audibly spoke to me that I was not to study scripture commentaries written by men but Christ Himself would teach me. And this is why at “My Father’s House” and in The Glory of His Grace we are so unique and our teachings are so much different from what is commonly being taught in the contemporary “churches” because what I give you is not according to man but it comes through the revelations of Jesus Christ.

            Now notice, “And I do not permit a woman to teach or to have authority over a man”(1Tim 2:12) One thing this proves is that in God’s true church a teacher has authority. And if the teacher has authority so does the pastor, so does the prophet, so does the apostle, and so does the evangelist. So these men who Christ gives as gifts to the church are also authorities. If God gives you a good king, he’s in authority but he’s also a gift. To have a good king or a righteous leader is a blessing. A good ruler will protect you, guide you, and watch over you. In many places Pastors are called shepherds; to shepherd the sheep there has to be authority, and such authority as can be used to forward the welfare of the flock. For even if I should boast somewhat more about our authority, which the Lord gave us for edification and not for your destruction, I shall not be ashamed. (2Cor 10:8) There has to be authority in the church, for example, because the church has to be protected from unrighteous leaven. For I indeed, as absent in body but present in spirit, have already judged (as though I were present) him who has so done this deed. In the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, when you are gathered together, along with my spirit, with the power of our Lord Jesus Christ, deliver such a one to Satan for the destruction of the flesh, (1Cor 5:3-5) when Paul says to cast out that sinner; to deliver him to Satan for the destruction of his flesh, Paul is exercising his God given authority to protect the church from Satan’s corrupting influences. And you have to have authority to do that.

            When Paul tells Titus to, “Rebuke them sharply, that they may be sound in the faith”  (Titus 1:13) you have to have authority to do that. So Titus has authority. “I charge you therefore before the Lord Jesus Christ” (2Tim 4:1) Paul is exercising his authority toward Timothy. “Remain in Ephesus that you may charge some that they teach no other doctrine” (1Tim. 1:3) And now he’s telling Timothy to exercise authority. Church leadership has to exercise authority to keep bad doctrine out of the church. Speak these things, exhort, and rebuke with all authority. Let no one despise you. (Titus 2:15) As an officer of God’s true church Titus has authority. Without authority there can’t be a real church. Jesus has all authority. And in His church His authority will flow through His chosen leaders to maintain order and discipline in His church. Without that authority the church will not obey God but every man will do what’s right in his own eyes. (Deut 12:8) And in such a place flesh will rule not the Spirit.

             Most so-called churches today are man-made organizations with man-appointed leadership. And man-appointed authorities do not support what God wants to do. They are supporting what their man-made organization wants to do. And they do not belong to Jesus and they are not His church. When Christ says, “the gates of hell will not prevail against My church” He isn’t talking about them. They are not His church. They are man’s church. A real church must have leadership that has been given by God. And that is the kind of leadership we see in the seven churches where Jesus says to John, “The mystery of the seven stars which you saw in My right hand... The seven stars are the angels (the pastors) of the seven churches” (Rev 1:20) The word “angel” means “messenger” and Jesus calls the pastor of the church “His messenger.” And His “messengers” are in His hand.” And that means they belong to Him. And when the Lord has a man in His hand that He’s given the authority to lead His church He can truly control the destiny of that church. The people in the church still have a free will but a Godly leader with Godly authority has a great influence in showing them what ought to be done, and causing them to do it.

            And this is what happens in the seven letters. (Rev 2-3) Jesus is showing the pastors of the churches their church’s problems; their virtues, their faults and telling them what to do to straighten things out or how to be prepared for things to come. Jesus has a man He can work through in each of those churches; and also an Apostle, John, He can work through towards them. So the authority of the Apostle John and the authority of those pastors gives great benefit to the churches that they can indeed receive the instructions from their Head Jesus and function accordingly. Whereas in most so-called churches today the pastors wouldn’t even listen to such criticisms and advice let alone do anything about it. Who say to the seers, “Do not see,” and to the prophets, “Do not prophesy to us right things; speak to us smooth things, prophesy deceits. Get out of the way, turn aside from the path, and cause the Holy One of Israel to cease from before us.” (Isa 30:10,11)

            False christians like to say, “don’t judge” but Jesus says, “I can of Myself do nothing. As I hear, I judge; and My judgment is righteous, because I do not seek My own will but the will of the Father who sent Me. (John 5:30) And a real leader appointed by Jesus doesn’t judge of himself either but he hears God’s judgment as the Apostle John does. But he who is Spiritual judges all things, yet he himself is rightly judged by no one. For “who has known the mind of the Lord that he may instruct Him?” But we have the mind of Christ.” (1Cor 2:15-16) So the first requirement to be a real church is to have real Christians and real God given leadership. Real leadership isn’t leadership that comes out of seminary or some organization giving you a piece of paper to hang on your wall. Real leadership is of God and your credentials are of God and God backs them up with real power and real fruit. Do we begin again to commend ourselves? Or do we need, as some others, epistles of commendation to you or letters of commendation from you? You are our epistle written in our hearts, known and read by all men; clearly you are an epistle of Christ, ministered by us, written not with ink but by the Spirit of the living God, not on tablets of stone but on tablets of flesh, that is, of the heart. (2Cor 3:1-3) in mighty signs and wonders, by the power of the Spirit of God, so that from Jerusalem and round about to Illyricum I have fully preached the gospel of Christ. (Rom 15:19) God given leadership produces Godly believers.

            And another very important requirement in what goes on in a real church is the saints are equipped to work. They don’t just listen to a sermon and leave. For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them. (Eph 2:10) And He Himself gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers, for the equipping of the saints for the work of ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ, (Eph 4:11,12) So the leadership equips the saints to do the work of building up the body of Christ. The leaders build up the saints and the saints build up the church. In a real church the goal of every member is to come to the “perfect man” individually, and to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ corporately. All the true believers are involved in building up the body of Christ.

            The word “church” is primarily a New Testament term. In the Old Testament the word “congregation” is used, which reminds us that the word “church” actually means congregation. We’ve shown you that one of the lies that is very common today in “christianity” is that: “We all belong to the mystical heavenly church if we believe in Jesus. So it doesn’t really matter what church we belong to down here. And if we believe in Jesus we can be in the mystical church without even being in the visible physical church.” But this is another one of those doctrines of demons that has overtaken those who are untaught and unstable and don’t know the Word of God. (2Pet 3:16) In other words, where this is believed the gates of hell are already prevailing against those so-called believers. In the New Testament there are about 120 Scriptures that speak of the church. Every one of those 120 scriptures is clearly speaking about the visible congregation of believers residing physically in the earth. And “the gates of hell will not prevail against My church” is not speaking about some mystical church in heaven because there aren’t any gates of hell to prevail against her up there. The mystical church in that sense is a figment of man’s imagination. Jesus is building a visible church, a physical church. And it is that visible, physical church in the earth that is designed to be the habitation of God in the Spirit. And God is not going to let the gates of hell stop Him from building it.

            So to be in the body of Christ you must be a member of the visible church in the earth which is composed of true believers in Christ who fellowship in Christ with one another and are obedient individually and corporately to Christ their Head. That which we have seen and heard we declare to you, that you also may have fellowship with us; and truly our fellowship is with the Father and with His Son Jesus Christ. (1John 1:3) The true church was born from above but in the earth on the day of Pentecost and God put her in the earth to operate in the earth. And the true church must come to be without spot or wrinkle in the earth. And you are not in Christ’s body if you are not in His physical church. Now those who have been true and faithful members of Christ’s church in the earth and have gone on to be with Him in Heaven may constitute the “church” which will return with Him in His second coming but to be absent from the body is to be present with the Lord. (2Cor 5:8)

            For we are members of His body, of His flesh and of His bones. (Eph 5:30) So to be His flesh and bone we must be in the body of flesh and bone not in some “mystical” spiritual church, but in His visible physical church. The saints in Heaven are not flesh and bone. They are spirit. And it has to be His church we are the flesh and bones in, not the Baptist church or the Catholic church or any church that is run by man. And He put all things under His feet, and gave Him to be head over all things to the church, which is His body, the fullness of Him who fills all in all. (Eph 1:22-23)  And any church that is not obedient to Christ as their Head in all things and to every Word of God is being run by man, not Christ who is the Word.

            And He Himself gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers, for the equipping of the saints for the work of ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ, till we all come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a perfect man, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ; (Eph 4:11-13) Everything that God does to conform you to the image of Christ comes out of the working of the apostles, prophets, evangelist, pastors and teachers who work in the visible physical church to equip the believers to minister to each other until they are all perfected in Christ. That we should no longer be children, tossed to and fro and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, in the cunning craftiness of deceitful plotting, but, speaking the truth in love, may grow up in all things into Him who is the Head-- Christ--from whom the whole body, joined and knit together by what every joint supplies, according to the effective working by which every part does its share, causes growth of the body for the edifying of itself in love. (Eph 4:14-16) That can only happen in a real church where Jesus is the Head and the Holy Spirit is free to operate. Where this is not happening and where the “believers” are not making visible progress in perfecting each other in Christ – they are not having church. You can’t have that kind of growth in Christ at home where there are no gifts to equip you and no “every part doing its share” to edify you. Even if you read the Bible at home and do some praying at home you will not have the major benefits of the gifts to the brethren that God has placed in the church.

            Therefore He says: “When He ascended on high, He led captivity captive, and gave gifts to men.” And He Himself gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers, for the equipping of the saints for the work of ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ, (Eph 4:8,11,12) Unless you participate in the real church you will not be equipped to help others. And outside the visible physical church you will not be in a place where you can be edified by the brethren. (Eph 4:16) But he who prophesies speaks edification and exhortation and comfort to men. (1Cor 14:3) How is it then, brethren? Whenever you come together, each of you has a psalm, has a teaching, has a tongue, has a revelation, has an interpretation. Let all things be done for edification. (1Cor 14:26) Outside the visible physical church you will not be edified by prophecy, or preaching, or the psalms, teachings, or revelations that come through the brethren.

            So how greatly are they deceived who think they can be “saved” and made acceptable to Jesus when they do not participate in a real church where Jesus is the Head. Such people have already been taken captive by the gates (lies) of hell, and their hearts are not right. If your heart was really right, God would get you into a real church where you could grow properly because that is where the mechanics of the blessings that bring about a real Christian growth are taking place. The sincere milk of the Word is given there. (1Pet 2:2) The cleansing is done there. (Eph 5:26) Much of the chastening is given there. (Heb 12:7) The preaching and teaching of the Word is found there. (2Tim 4:2) The prophetic direction of the Holy Spirit and the gifts of the Spirit operate there. But the manifestation of the Spirit is given to each one for the profit of all. (1Cor 12:7) which means if you are not present in a church where the Spirit manifests you will not be profited.

            But now God has set the members, each one of them, in the body just as He pleased. That there should be no schism in the body, but that the members should have the same care for one another. (1Cor 12:18,25) And if you are not in the visible physical church you can’t really have any care for the brethren. How can you care for one another when you are continually absent from one another? We know that we have passed from death to life, because we love the brethren. He who does not love his brother abides in death. (1John 3:14) My little children, let us not love in word or in tongue, but in deed and in truth. (1John 3:18) You cannot love the brethren in deeds; you cannot practice real Christianity unless you are a part of a real church. You’ll never be able to grow right outside of the real church. You will never be acceptable and fruitful in the kingdom of God outside of a real church. Some make the excuse that they would go to church but they can’t find a real church.

            Well, “My Father’s House” is a real church and we’ve made that known to many who use that excuse but they don’t come because they really don’t want to go to church; they just want an excuse to feel righteous while they indulge themselves in their selfish independence. And when God takes their excuses away we can see what they really are – deceivers, liars and hypocrites who have already been captured by the gates of hell. God’s Word proves you must be a part of a real church where Jesus is Head if you are to be a real Christian. So if you would ask Him to show you a real church where you can be a real Christian He would not fail you. If there is no real church available to you, God would have to start one. And He can call you to do that – all you need is two or three real Christians to gather in His name (Matt 18:20) for where two or three true Christians are gathered in Christ’s name that becomes a real church and it will start growing from there. So in Christ’s true church there is no such thing as sit at home Christianity; “All the churches are bad so I’m not going to church.” That’s a lying excuse. Although it is true many so-called churches are bad – they are not all bad. And you are wicked to reject the righteous because of the wicked. And you’d better repent and find a true church because without a true church you will not be saved. And if God is to save you He must get you into a place where you can gather together with people of like precious faith, where the Spirit can have access to you and be able to work in you through the true brethren with the benefits of the gifts and the things that take place only where there is an interacting of the believers, edifying each other in love. (Eph 4:16) And that’s called “church.”

            And this is another evil in many contemporary churches. Many of these so-called churches, the largest ones especially, are run by a professional ministry and the laity do nothing except to attend the meetings. “And you have not kept charge of My holy things, but you have set others to keep charge of My sanctuary for you.” (Ezek 44:8) God rebukes His people for having hired outsiders to run the church. The church is to be run by a leader that has been raised up by God out of their own midst. Their nobles shall be from among them, and their governor shall come from their midst. (Jer 30:21) To be effectual in equipping the saints church leadership must know the people intimately – and to minister to one another the people must know each other. An outsider cannot do this. Greet Mary, who labored much for us. Greet Andronicus and Junia, my countrymen and my fellow prisoners, who are of note among the apostles, who also were in Christ before me. Greet Amplias, my beloved in the Lord. Greet Urbanus, our fellow worker in Christ, and Stachys, my beloved. Greet Apelles, approved in Christ. Greet those who are of the household of Aristobulus. Greet Herodion, my countryman. Greet those who are of the household of Narcissus who are in the Lord. Greet Tryphena and Tryphosa, who have labored in the Lord. Greet the beloved Persis, who labored much in the Lord. Greet Rufus, chosen in the Lord, and his mother and mine. Greet Asyncritus, Phlegon, Hermas, Patrobas, Hermes, and the brethren who are with them. Greet Philologus and Julia, Nereus and his sister, and Olympas, and all the saints who are with them. (Rom 16:6-15) Notice how all the saints are involved in the work of the ministry. And look how well Paul is acquainted with the brethren in Rome and he so much desires to bless them. For I long to see you, that I may impart to you some Spiritual gift, so that you may be established. (Rom 1:11) So equipping the saints, means more than teaching; it means giving them gifts so they can be strengthened, established; that they may be baptized in the Spirit – be able to prophesy – be able to heal. In a true church, gifts are being distributed and the brethren are being equipped for the work of the ministry to build up the body of Christ. And everything that has to do with building up the body of Christ should involve the saints in every way.

            Until we all come to the unity of the faith and the knowledge of the Son of God, to the perfect man, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ; (Eph 4:13) Fulfilling this scripture is the work of the true church, the work of the leadership and the work of the brethren. And where that work is going on and only where that work is going on do you have a true church. But in most of what calls themselves church today if you were to ask the laity, “What is anybody here doing to build up their brethren till everybody comes to the fullness of Christ? Who’s doing something like that here?” In most contemporary churches the laity would not be able to say a word. Their leadership isn’t even telling the believers what they are called to be doing that let alone equipping them to do it. Then such churches cannot be Jesus’ church. In Jesus’ church the saints are being equipped for the work of the ministry. You go into a Baptist church and what do they tell you? “Works! No you don’t need works. We are saved by grace.” But in Jesus’ true church every saint is being equipped for the work of the ministry, and obviously in the Baptist church they’re not being equipped. So who’s church is it? It isn’t Jesus’ church. But in Jesus’ church the goal of every Christian; leadership; laity; everyone in His church is to come to the unity of the faith; to the fullness of the stature of the Son of God; to attain to the resurrection of immortality. (Phil 3:11) That all believers have this same hope of their calling has much to do with their being of one Spirit and of one mind.

            Or if our brethren are inquired about, they are messengers of the churches, the glory of Christ. (2Cor 8:23) True churches are the glory of Christ. But they cannot be the full glory of Christ unless they have the fullness of Him who fills all in all. (Eph 1:23) And Ephesians is telling us that we are to edify each other until we come to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ. (Eph 4:13) And it also tells us that Jesus gave Himself for the church; That He might sanctify and cleanse her with the washing of water by the Word, that He might present her to Himself a glorious church, (Eph 5:26-27) because she must be the glorious church in the earth before He will come for her.

            Now those who hold to the unscriptural idea of the church being a mystical church have nothing to do with this because the mystical church as it is conceived of is invisible and if it can’t be seen it can’t be to the glory of God in the earth. So if Jesus is to present the church to Himself a glorious church and we’re to come to the stature of the fullness of Christ so that He may be properly glorified in the church that all has to happen in the visible physical church. And it must be the goal of every true believer to do his part in bringing the visible church to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ. (Eph 4:12-16) And it is my job as an Apostle of Christ to His church to equip you to do that part which is your share in the edifying of the church. From whom the whole body, joined and knit together by what every joint supplies, according to the effective working by which every part does its share, causes growth of the body for the edifying of itself in love. (Eph 4:16) Until we all come to the unity of the faith and to the perfect man. (vs 13)

            “That we should no longer be children, but, speaking the truth in love, may grow up in all things into Him who is the Head—Christ” (Eph 4:14-15) So if “believers” are not growing up into the Head, Christ, they are not having church. It is the primary function of the true church to cause the believers to grow up in Christ, so if there’s no growth taking place there is no church taking place. Growth in Christlikeness is what happens in a real church. This defines a real church; from whom the whole body, joined and knit together by what every joint supplies; notice every joint supplies something from Christ to help the others grow up into Christ. This is how we love in deed and in truth. (1John 3:18) By speaking the truth in love, (vs 15) each one of us helps the others to grow up until we are all conformed to Christ. And Christ is not divided. Nor does Jesus cast out Jesus. Nor does God argue against Himself. So even though the members of the body may have different functions (1Cor 12:7,12) The various functions all contribute to the advancement of God’s people which is to present the church blameless in holiness at Christ’s appearing (Col 1:22) and to bring every believer to the perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ. (Eph 4:13) And the various works that Jesus does through each one of us all contribute a needful part towards reaching the same goal. Therefore true Christians are not working against these goals or at cross purposes toward one other. And when there is resistance or opposition to these God given purposes such as the Baptists who wickedly oppose perfectionism in the Church or the believer, this is an irrefutable evidence they are not of God – nor is Jesus their head. But in truth they are emissaries of antichrist and they actually oppose the will of God, and they stand in opposition to the true brethren and the work of Christ.

            True Christians are not working against each other but helping each other to attain to the goal of being perfected in Christ. Him we preach, warning every man and teaching every man in all wisdom, that we may present every man perfect in Christ Jesus. (Col 1:28) And every true Christian has a part to do in reaching this goal. From whom the whole body, joined and knit together by what every joint supplies, according to the effective working by which every part does its share, causes growth of the body for the edifying of itself in love. (Eph 4:16) And it is love for the true brethren that is our motivation “A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another; as I have loved you, that you also love one another.” (John 13:34) And this work has to be done in the visible physical church where we can actually minister to one another the needful things Christ gives us as His love is working through us until we all become the glorious church without spot or wrinkle, until we come to the fullness of the stature of Christ. And this will happen because the love Christ puts in you works effectually on behalf of your brethren. So how important it is to be devoted in love to the edifying or the building up of the brethren.

Dear Pastor Bill,

             I am writing to let you know why I’ve been requesting so many Glory of His Grace pamphlets. But first let me tell you about some experiences I’ve had. When I got saved in my county jail, I knew that God was with me because I had a witness of the Spirit that God had received me into His family. He opened the scriptures up to me mightily. And I know my calling to overcome sin and to allow God to change me.

             After I was born again I started going to church a lot. All kinds of denominations came to teach. I went to the Baptists and Pentecostals, and non-denominational services. I knew something had to be different about them or they wouldn’t be of different organizations. But I did not know what it was. All I knew is that I loved God and I wanted Him to help me live for Him. So I prayed and studied all the time. I did not take man’s words but I took what God had been teaching me. I always prayed for God to keep me in truth and not let me be led away with the error of the wicked.

             I shared what I knew and some people agreed and some did not. So when I came to prison I continued to go to church. And one day I heard some Southern Baptists say something that seemed quite wrong to me. They said that, “once you’re saved always saved.” So after church I asked one of them about it. I said to him, “you mean once saved if you walk in the Spirit to overcome sin you’ll be saved.” He said, “No, ‘once saved always saved.’” And started telling me about justification and imputed righteousness without works of Christ working in you His righteousness for us to live righteous. And every time other Baptists would come (including them) I heard the same thing.

             I told them some scriptures that were against what they were saying. But they told me if I wasn’t secure I wasn’t saved. I said, I was secure because I let God keep me. They went on to say no one can snatch you out of His hands and so you can’t leave Him. But Jesus was talking about those who love Him and follow Him and are humble (and not to the disobedient.) They said, “You’ll still go to Heaven but lose rewards.” But I did not buy it because God was showing me different and I love Him. I don’t want an easy way because He is with me and I love Him.

             I come to Jesus in love and for a change, not just for a scapegoat for sin. I thank God for teaching me His words. But after my conversation with the Southern Baptists I started to feel bad. Because no one felt the way I felt. And I kept asking God why do I see the Word different than these people? Even the inmates that went to their meetings didn’t see what was going on. But some people did see what I was saying. But no one was really concerned like I was though. But sometimes it still brought confusion on me. Because I didn’t understand why they felt or taught that way. I thought how can they love God? What’s wrong with them?

            I prayed and prayed at night laying there thinking “how could I be wrong, because I know what I see.” And then one day I met this boy who gave me your booklet about “Once Saved Always Saved” on what the Bible really says. At first I thought no thanks because I don’t believe that stuff. Then he told me he didn’t either. So I took the booklet and I read it. And the same things that I saw in the Word you were saying. The same things the Baptists were using to back up their false doctrine; I saw you open up the same scriptures correctly that they were using wrongly to back up their false belief. That was grieving me sometimes on how can these people say this stuff. God doesn’t say these things in His Word. I felt good because I saw someone on my side for once, someone who sees that this is an important thing and should be addressed. And who was seeing what these people were doing. God used your booklets to let me know I wasn’t the only one. God bless you*

            I’m going home next month so I need several copies of “Once Saved Always Saved” for inmates here. Because mostly Baptists come here so maybe I can help save some from the lies. When I go home in March, I will send for more. I’ve been born again and I want to help this truth be known. And even now I have many adversaries here so pray that me and my brothers here may speak boldly. AMEN.

AJ

            What is it God is doing when He puts it on my heart to expose the fallacies of  “Once saved always saved” in The Glory of His Grace? Here we have a letter from a brother we never even knew about who God was talking to while he’s fighting a battle for truth with the false christians. Then our book gets to him and confirms God’s Word to him and strengthens him in the truth. See how Christ’s love has been at work to edify His church. It’s the love of Jesus for His elect that causes me to write these books. It’s Christ’s love in me for His glorious church; to see the true church glorified and the true brethren edified that causes us to put these books out. As of now we have over 50 titles of The Glory of His Grace. Everyone of them is a revelation from God to His church to help them overcome the cunning lies of the deceiver so the elect may take hold of the true faith and have Christ really live in them. Every one of these books is an act of love for the glorious church, for God, and for the brethren. And where that is going on you have a real church. So when you look at some place that calls itself a church and you don’t see these things happening, then what you’re seeing is a counterfeit – It’s not the real thing.

            And that is what God is saying here, “Son of man, describe the temple to the house of Israel, that they may be ashamed of their iniquities; and let them measure the pattern.  (Ezek 43:10) Here God describes in great detail the true plan for His temple. And the purpose of giving this plan to Ezekiel is so that the people of Ezekiel’s day can look at their way of having church, their way of having temple, and they can look at God’s way of having temple and they can see they are not doing it God’s way. And that when they see that they are not doing it God’s way, it is God’s purpose that they would be ashamed of what they are doing. “Son of man, describe the temple to the house of Israel, that they may be ashamed of their iniquities; and let them measure the pattern.” (Ezek 43:10)

            And what they’ve done is described as, “When they set their threshold by My threshold, and their doorpost by My doorpost, with a wall between them and Me, (Ezek 43:8) So these people built an imitation church that stands in the way of God’s true church. And when people come looking for God they can’t get to God’s true church because the imitation is in the way. “But woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you shut up the kingdom of heaven against men; for you neither go in yourselves, nor do you allow those who are entering to go in. (Matt 23:13) And that is exactly what is happening today. Covetous men have built imitation churches, in order to make money off of people who should be getting to know God through God’s real church but instead are wasting themselves in a false church and throwing their resources away in a false christianity. By covetousness they will exploit you with deceptive words; for a long time their judgment has not been idle, and their destruction does not slumber. (2Pet 2:3) There is no benefit to God in what is going on in these man made churches and there isn’t going to be any blessing to those in them. “In vain they worship Me, teaching as doctrines the commandments of men.” (Mark 7:7) But God will show what His real church is like so He can make the false ashamed. And that is what God is doing in “My Father’s House.” He is showing what they have doesn’t measure up to what we have. Because they follow man but we follow God. I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service. And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God. (Rom 12:1-2) Because we have presented our bodies a living sacrifice and are obeying God’s Word and His Spirit, He is able to demonstrate through us His good and acceptable and perfect way of having church – a church where Jesus is truly the Head and the brethren are truly “sons of God” led by the Spirit of God (Rom 8:14)

            When somebody asks us, “Do you think that you’re the only church in town?” Our answer is this, “We know we’re the only real church in town. We know what real church is.” Then you start defining what real church is. “Real church is a place where the brethren not just the leaders are edifying each other in love until they come to the perfect man, the fullness of the stature of Christ. Real church is a place where the Spirit is moving freely, and the gifts of the Spirit operate abundantly; where the preachers and the pastors and those in authority are men of God, appointed by God and their whole life’s purpose is to bring about the glorious church without spot or wrinkle. In the real church the people are not pew sitters; they don’t just listen; they don’t have hirelings leading them. Their leaders didn’t get their degrees from some manmade organization somewhere, but they are called of God and they and all the brethren are having church for the purpose of glorifying God. And we do God’s will and we are not seeking our own. But we are seeking to become perfected in Christ. Now that is what is happening in Jesus’ church! What’s happening in yours? If that isn’t happening in your church don’t tell me you’re having church! You aren’t even having church! You’re just pretending.” And such people think that when they accuse us of saying that we’re the only church in town that they can rest their case and we are guilty of some terrible sin to think that we are the only ones really having church. But the Truth is we are. “Which of you convicts Me of sin? And if I tell the truth, why do you not believe Me?  Jesus answered, “If I honor Myself, My honor is nothing. It is My Father who honors Me, of whom you say that He is your God. “Yet you have not known Him, but I know Him. And if I say, ‘I do not know Him,’ I shall be a liar like you; but I do know Him and keep His Word. (John 8:46,54,55)

             Because we do know Him and we do keep His Word, we really are His church. And in reality these false christians have just convicted themselves. Their organizations are not churches. And when they see the measurement of what it means to be God’s church it should make them ashamed. And God has called us to be like the Ezekiel of today and show these false christians their errors and the many books of The Glory of His Grace that we are publishing, are designed to show these false christians the measurements of God’s church so that they can see what they have is not His church. And if they will be ashamed and repent then God will make known to them how to have church His way. “And if they are ashamed of all that they have done, make known to them the design of the temple and its arrangement, its exits and its entrances, its entire design and all its ordinances, all its forms and all its laws. Write it down in their sight, so that they may keep its whole design and all its ordinances, and perform them. (Ezek 43:11) And if they are ashamed of what they’re doing God will show them how to do it right. And that is what He’s doing here, now in “My Father’s House,” showing us how to do church right.

            So everybody in the real church has a part to do in bringing the whole church to perfection. From whom the whole body, joined and knit together by what every joint supplies, according to the effective working by which every part does its share, causes growth of the body for the edifying of itself in love. Till we all come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a perfect man, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ; (Eph 4:16,13) “Every joint supplies and every part does it’s share.” You’re a joint when you are joined to something. Now what are you joined to? First of all you are joined to the Head. If you are not joined to the Head you are no good to the church, you are not even in the church. “Apart from Me you can do nothing.” (John 15:5) Only if you are joined to the Head can you become someone Jesus can use to supply grace to the other members of the church. Then He can give you a part to do where you can do your share.

            So the first thing you must do to become a joint is be joined to the Lord. But then you have to be a joint joined in some way to the brethren. Unless you are joined to the visible church you can do nothing for them. So you must be joined to the real visible church brethren. And you must be doing your share, ministering to the brethren the things which you get from the Lord. Now where the brethren are doing that you have a real church. And when we have a church where Jesus is the Head, the Lord will lead us in such a way that it will result in our coming to the fullness of the stature of Christ. That we should no longer be children, tossed to and fro and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, in the cunning craftiness of deceitful plotting, but, speaking the truth in love, may grow up in all things into Him who is the Head-- Christ. (Eph 4:14-15) When Jesus is Head He will get rid of the childishness, and the instability of being tossed to and fro by winds of doctrine. When Christ is truly Head it will bring about stability and true unity; the unity of the faith; and He will bring about the glorious church, the glory of God and the fullness of Christ in the church.

             But in the false church “You have not kept charge of My holy things, but you have set others to keep charge of My sanctuary.” (Ezek 44:8) This means they’ve hired professional ministers to do the work of the ministry because the people don’t want to be bothered with doing God’s work. For the equipping of the saints for the work of ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ, (Eph 4:12) In God’s true church the Saints, not the leaders are equipped to do the work of the ministry but in the false church the members are too busy serving themselves and the world so they want someone else to do the work for them. “You brought in foreigners, uncircumcised in heart and uncircumcised in flesh, to be in My sanctuary to defile it   (vs 7) Uncircumcised means they are not “Born again.” They are still carnal and don’t have a heart for God. In Him you were also circumcised with the circumcision made without hands, by putting off the body of the sins of the flesh, by the circumcision of Christ, buried with Him in baptism, in which you also were raised with Him through faith in the working of God, who raised Him from the dead. (Col 2:11-12) Such people have not been “raised” into the new life with Christ. They are still serving the flesh; giving an appearance of serving God but without the Spirit. So it is all a sham, deception, and falsehood. The false church allows disobedient people to participate in the sanctuary and defile it. ‘Thus says the Lord GOD: “No foreigner, uncircumcised in heart or uncircumcised in flesh, shall enter My sanctuary.” (vs 9) “No one who has a disobedient heart is to be permitted in God’s true church.” 

            Take heed therefore unto yourselves, and to all the flock, over the which the Holy Ghost hath made you overseers, to feed the church of God, which he hath purchased with his own blood. (OKJ Acts 20:28) Feeding is a very important part of what goes on in God’s true church. And the leadership is responsible to be sure the brethren are properly fed. You can see that again where Jesus says to Peter, “Do you love Me? Then feed My sheep.” (John 21:15-17)

            A recent edition of The Glory of His Grace titled “Christ Our Passover” is very much related to the feeding that goes on in the church. The true church is actually to be continually feeding on Jesus, the Word made flesh, that we might become conformed to the image of Christ. The feeding is a very, very important part of what goes on in a real church. It is the only way you can be conformed to Christ. And you must be feeding on the true Word of God. It has to be God’s truth. And it has to be rightly divided. (2Tim 2:15) It has to be rightly understood. And it has to be applied in such a way that the hearers become doers. The Word must be brought home in the sense that it has application to the way you live. If it doesn’t change you it doesn’t do you any good. It is no good to have a lot of knowledge if it doesn’t become something that changes the way you think and act, so that your actions and thoughts are conformed to Christ. The Word must change the way you live. It must change your home life. It changes how you operate on the job. It changes everything about you.

            And concerning leadership in God’s church “the Lord has made you overseers,” it says “the Lord,” not man. So we know only that is the true church where the apostles, prophets, evangelist, and pastors are given by Christ as a gift to the church and God has made them overseers. And as overseers Christ is commending them, and admonishing them, and charging them to feed and lead His sheep. Shepherd the flock of God which is among you, serving as overseers, not by compulsion but willingly, not for dishonest gain but eagerly; nor as being lords over those entrusted to you, but being examples to the flock; and when the Chief Shepherd appears, you will receive the crown of glory that does not fade away. (1Pet 5:2-4)

            And again “shepherding can only occur in the visible church. Those who think they can stay at home and be part of Christ’s church are fools. There is no shepherding going on in the “invisible” church. And as we’ve already shown the “invisible” church cannot be the Glorious church.  The visible church has to be the glorious church. The visible church must grow up into the fullness of the stature of Christ. The visible church is where the saints are working so they can bring the church to perfection. All of this is happening in the visible church. And it is in Christ’s true visible church that the Shepherd is shepherding and if you are outside the visible church you are not being shepherded. It is in the visible church that the Shepherd is feeding the flock and if you are not in the visible church you are not being fed. It’s in the visible church that the Shepherd and His overseers are leading you and being an example to you. And if you are not in the visible church you are not getting any benefit of that. Where does this idea come from? That “I can be a Christian but I don’t have to be in church?” Or “Because I’m a Christian I’m in the mystical church even if I don’t attend the visible church.” By not being in the visible church, by forsaking the assembling of yourselves together as the manner of some is, (Heb 10:25) you deprive yourself of every benefit that Jesus has for you in His true church and that is why He is building the church; to give you these benefits.

            And there are no such benefits outside of His true visible church. All of these benefits are given in His visible church. He never intended anybody to be outside His visible church and receive any of these benefits. So where are people getting this idea they can be a Christian and not go to church? Or where do they get the idea that they can be a Christian and go to a “church” that is not a true church; a place that isn’t doing all these very important things that Jesus says His church must do? The gates of hell have prevailed against these false churches. But we are not like them. We are Jesus’ church not man’s church. The gates of hell haven’t prevailed against us. And if you don’t want to be taken captive by the devil you better get in the church that is Jesus’ church because that’s the only one that He says the gates of hell won’t prevail against; “My church.” (Matt 16:18)

            Prophecy: Thus saith the Lord, To My servant, Pastor Bill Taylor and to the members of “My Father’s House” who actively participate with My Spirit; My Spirit has watched and observed and looked upon your works. I have seen that you have been made ready, you have been prepared, and you have become gifts unto men. You have become awesome gifts unto My elect people. And I tell you My people that to My elect you are a delight and even a surprise, and an exquisite blessing, for your gift is one of true usefulness and has great value to it. My men and women around the world have seen your books; have heard your testimonies and they are being edified. And these things have been given by you through My Spirit. And what My Spirit says to you, My people, to My servant Pastor Bill, is that as My Word is a sure foundation and it is a rock; My Word says that I will reward you according to your works. And I tell you I will reward you with gifts that will delight your heart. And these gifts will come from My Spirit and they will be glorious and they will be useful and you will rejoice. And I, the Spirit and the Lord say, that I will give you extraordinary gifts because you have been a extraordinary gift unto others and I delight to reward you according to your works, thus saith the Lord.

            Prophecy: This charge is what I have against the false churches: They eat up the sin of My people, for they set their heart on their iniquity and it shall be like people – like priest. I will punish them for their ways and reward them for their deeds. For they shall eat and not have enough. They shall commit harlotry but not increase because they have ceased obeying the Lord. And I tell you My people here at My Father’s House; you have obeyed Me and I told you that if you obey Me, My blessing will come upon you and overtake you. You will be filled with My glory and you will prevail against those who say they are Mine and are not. And you will continue to show forth that I am the Christ that dwells amongst My people here in the true visible church. You are loved by Me and blest by Me. And I will fill you with all the fullness of God, thus says the Lord.

             Prophecy: To those who have taken hold of My grace and have looked into My Word to find out what I have said on the subject. To those who have listened carefully to My faithful Word and have not despised it, but you have mixed it with faith. To those who do not have a will of their own, but you have diligently sought to find out what is acceptable to Me and do My will. To those who have taken steps of faith to obey the things that I have shown them to do and have spoken to them by My Spirit in the hearing of faith. To those who enter into this battle of faith and hold onto My Word and the promise of what I have said I would do. And to those who have prayed according to My will and are waiting upon Me. And to those who are continuing to fight the good fight of faith without wavering and you have suffered in the flesh and have ceased from sin to do My will. To these I say that My grace will abound toward you in all things, and that your labors of love and your obedience to Me is not forgotten, nor will I ever forget what you have done in obedience to Me. I have remembered you and your love for Me, and today I tell you that your reward is sure and your eternal victory is coming and My grace shall abound toward you, and you will have a sufficiency in all things and an abundant supply for every good work.

            And what I have promised you, you will receive concerning the gifts, concerning miracles, concerning prophecy, concerning all of My fullness that I have you will also have in Me. And many will see My blessings upon My obedient ones. The things that I have spoken to you and I am doing here in this church are not an end in themselves, but they are a means to an end. And the end is My glorious bride without spot or wrinkle that I may come for her. I say that the work in this place is the work of My hand. And I shall cause and direct the Word of what I am doing here in this place to go forth into the earth, and I will direct it into the hearing of My elect who I am saving right now in the earth. I will cause them to hear of My awesome works and My mighty deeds. And not only will they hear of My awesome works, but I will stir up faith in many of them to come to see the report of what they have heard. They will come themselves just as the queen of Sheba came to hear and see with her own eyes the things she had heard concerning Solomon. I will bring many to this place, and they will see with their own eyes the things that I have done here for My obedient ones. I tell you that the Word will spread like a fire. This Word of what I am doing, the work that I am doing in this church will spread like a consuming fire today. And what I am showing and what I will also accomplish is an obedient church. I will show all that My obedient ones are the ones who receive My blessings. My obedient ones are the ones who have My Spirit poured out upon them and their prayers are answered. I will provoke them, and I will cause everything that is not of Me to come down in them. They will fear and tremble as they see My work, as they see the signs and wonders that I bring forth in this church; they will fear and tremble at My Word. And I will cause the obedience of My elect ones to come into place, and they shall come and glorify Me, and I will do these things. I say to you, My church, this is just the beginning, and I have great and wonderful things that I am bringing about. I am delighted in My heart to see your faith. To see you look to Me expectantly to move and to manifest in the earth. For My glory and for the sake of My elect I will do these things. I desire to manifest and show that I am the King of kings and I am the Lord of lords. You are My obedient ones, and as you look to Me My grace is sufficient and My fullness shall be seen in My church, and all will come and they will glorify Me and serve Me in My church with their whole hearts. And thus I shall have a church that is glorious and without spot or wrinkle, saith the Lord. (Prophecies delivered at "My Father's House")

My Church II

             To those who have obtained like precious faith with us by the righteousness of our God and Savior Jesus Christ: (2Pet 1:1) God’s true church is composed of the people who have obtained a like precious faith. And the Spirit is showing us how the Bible and God intend for true believers to have church. A very serious problem in what calls itself “christianity” today is the fact that none of the contemporary churches are having church the way the Bible says to have church. I don’t know of any other church personally that has even begun to taste of what is going on here in “My Father’s House.” And yet what we have here is what the Bible says ought to be going on in every real church. But even here we haven’t yet attained to the fullness of what Christ has in store for God’s true church. But we are on the way – we can at least see the purposes God has for His church and press towards them. Yet what they are doing in most of the so-called churches today is very different from the calling the Bible teaches ought to be in God’s church. And it is plain to see such “churches” and “christians” have not obtained a like precious faith with God’s true saints.

            God’s primary purpose for His church is that it should be the place where His saints are being “equipped by the apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors, and teachers for the work of the ministry so that they can edify each other in love to build up the body of Christ till we all come to the unity of the faith and to the knowledge of the Son of God, to a perfect man, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ; (Eph 4:13) where the so-called churches are not making a real effort to fulfill this purpose it is obvious they have not obtained a like precious faith with us.”

            We also see in God’s true church the believers are to be of the same mind. Now I plead with you, brethren, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that you all speak the same thing, and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be perfectly joined together in the same mind and in the same judgment. (1Cor 1:10) fulfill my joy by being like-minded, having the same love, being of one accord, of one mind. Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus, (Phil 2:2,5) Well, I’m not of the same mind as a Baptist. I’m not of the same mind with the Faith Movement. I’m not of the same mind with the Catholics. They do not have the mind of Christ. But we who are Spiritual “we have the mind of Christ.” (1Cor 2:16) So I have a very different mind from what the Catholics are doing; they are very heretical and they ought to be terribly ashamed of the way they ignore the Scriptures. Baptists have perverted the Scriptures, but Catholics have just out and out ignored them. And then you get into the Charismatic churches; for the most part today the Charismatic people want God to bless them in their worldly lives, and none of them have this sense that we are supposed to be hastening the coming of the Lord by perfecting the church so that she’s a glorious church without spot or wrinkle so that Jesus can present her to Himself. (Eph 5:27)

            We aren’t supposed to be trying to make this world a better place to live. “I pray for them. I do not pray for the world but for those whom You have given Me, for they are Yours.” (John 17:9) Rather we are working to make the believer a better person by perfecting him in Christ. This world is doomed to destruction. We are supposed to be calling the elect out of the world. “Be saved from this perverse generation.” (Acts 2:40) We are to be hastening the coming of the Lord. Therefore, since all these things will be dissolved, what manner of persons ought you to be in holy conduct and godliness, looking for and hastening the coming of the day of God, because of which the heavens will be dissolved, being on fire, and the elements will melt with fervent heat? (2Pet 3:11-12) But these false christians do not have this in their hearts. They do not have God’s Kingdom in their hearts. They’re all trying to get God to bless what they are doing down here, instead of forsaking all in pursuit of the Kingdom. By faith Abraham obeyed when he was called to go out to the place which he would receive as an inheritance. And he went out, not knowing where he was going. For he waited for the city which has foundations, whose builder and maker is God. These all died in faith, not having received the promises, but having seen them afar off were assured of them, embraced them and confessed that they were strangers and pilgrims on the earth. For those who say such things declare plainly that they seek a homeland. And truly if they had called to mind that country from which they had come out, they would have had opportunity to return. But now they desire a better, that is, a heavenly country. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God, for He has prepared a city for them. (Heb 11:8,10,13-16) For many walk, of whom I have told you often, and now tell you even weeping, that they are the enemies of the cross of Christ: whose end is destruction, whose god is their belly, and whose glory is in their shame-- who set their mind on earthly things. For our citizenship is in heaven, from which we also eagerly wait for the Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, (Phil 3:18-20)

            Jesus says, “You can’t be My disciple unless you forsake all.” (Luke 14:33) Unless you forsake living for yourself down here and get into the work of Christ you cannot be saved. True Christians know that what’s going on down here is passing away and we’re going after a Kingdom that’s eternal. And so we should be putting our whole hearts into the work which is before us; that is to build up or edify the body of Christ and bring her into the place that she’s fulfilled the Scriptures so Jesus can come for her. “That He might sanctify and cleanse her with the washing of water by the Word, that He might present her to Himself a glorious church, not having spot or wrinkle or any such thing, but that she should be holy and without blemish.” (Eph 5:26-27) And it must be the visible church in this world that should be holy and without blemish in this world. Jesus is not waiting to cleanse the church in Heaven. He’s going to present it to Himself and take her to heaven already cleansed. So the work, before Jesus can come for us, is that we have to do our part to fulfill the Scriptures in becoming a glorious church without spot or wrinkle.

            Again the false church is concentrating on improving this world because their heart is in this world. The true church is concentrating on improving the believers, especially in their being conformed to Christ, because their heart is in Christ. If then you were raised with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ is, sitting at the right hand of God. Set your mind on things above, not on things on the earth. For you died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God. (Col 3:1-3) The true church will be rewarded because when they are conformed to Christ without spot or wrinkle, God will give them a new Heaven and a new Earth in which righteousness dwells. For they will be a people worthy of such a place. But the false church will be cast away because even the world which they have been trying to improve will be destroyed – so their works are vain. And because they’ve been trying to improve the world without improving themselves, without becoming conformed to Christ – they will not be found worthy of God’s new Heaven and earth. A further irony concerning this is that the true church by improving the character of the believers is actually improving the world because the only real way the world can be improved is by improving the hearts of the people. So the true church succeeds on both points and the false or carnal church fails at both.

            Another revelation is that God’s people are never called the church until the New Testament. The Old Testament uses the word congregation. In the Old Testament God’s people are a nation. The church is also a nation (1Pet 2:9) but it’s not like the Old Testament nation. It’s no longer a nation located in one geographical place in the earth. But it does have one King, one government, one Spirit, one hope. The true church is distinctly unified in everything except earthly geography. Their Heavenly geography is to be seated together in Heavenly places in Christ. (Eph 2:6) That is where their hearts are but their bodies are in the earth. And though the whole church does not dwell together in one place in the earth as a nation any more, yet believers must dwell together with local bodies such as the church at Corinth, the church at Thessalonica, the church at Ephesus etc. And though the various local bodies may be separated by geography – they are not separated in doctrine, faith, mind or Spirit. For this reason I have sent Timothy to you, who is my beloved and faithful son in the Lord, who will remind you of my ways in Christ, as I teach everywhere in every church. (1Cor 4:17) Only let your conduct be worthy of the gospel of Christ, so that whether I come and see you or am absent, I may hear of your affairs, that you stand fast in one spirit, with one mind striving together for the faith of the gospel, (Phil 1:27) There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called in one hope of your calling; one Lord, one faith, one baptism; one God and Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in you all. (Eph 4:4-6) Is Christ divided? (1Cor 1:13) Of course not. So His true church cannot be divided in Spirit or doctrine. Nor can true believers be physically separated or absent from at least a local part of Christ’s true church. For where Jesus is there His servant will be also. (John 12:26) And Jesus will always be found in the midst of the true brethren, the local church wherever it may be. (Matt 18:20)

            So everything that takes place concerning you being a fruitful branch in the Vine (John 15:1-8) means you have to be where Jesus is and Jesus is in the midst of His people and you have to be connected up to them as well as to Him. He’s not allowing you to be a lone wolf Christian operating on your own prerogative. He may send you some place apart from the church but He isn’t allowing you to just do it because of your preferences. The church is described as one church in various locations in the Bible. There’s the church in Galatia; it’s still a part of Jesus’ one church and He’s the Head of it. There’s the church in Thessalonica, there’s a church in Ephesus, there’s the churches in Asia, there’s the churches in Macedonia; these are areas where several churches are. But it is always a location and there is no doctrinal difference between the churches because Jesus is the Head of all; so there’s one faith, one Lord, one baptism; there is one doctrine that comes from Christ. How can we have what’s going on today and think it is of Jesus? It’s a mockery of the Lord. It’s insanity to have 47 churches in one suburb and claim they are all of Christ!

            And this is an infallible proof which shows that the gospel has been perverted, even as Paul warned it would be. But I fear, lest somehow, as the serpent deceived Eve by his craftiness, so your minds may be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ. For if he who comes preaches another Jesus whom we have not preached, or if you receive a different spirit which you have not received, or a different gospel which you have not accepted-- you may well put up with it! (2Cor 11:3-4) I marvel that you are turning away so soon from Him who called you in the grace of Christ, to a different gospel, which is not another; but there are some who trouble you and want to pervert the gospel of Christ. But even if we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel to you than what we have preached to you, let him be accursed. (Gal 1:6-8) “For I know this, that after my departure savage wolves will come in among you, not sparing the flock. Also from among yourselves men will rise up, speaking perverse things, to draw away the disciples after themselves.” (Acts 20:29-30)

            Peter also warns us, “But there were also false prophets among the people, even as there will be false teachers among you, who will secretly bring in destructive heresies, even denying the Lord who bought them, and bring on themselves swift destruction. And many will follow their destructive ways, because of whom the way of truth will be blasphemed. By covetousness they will exploit you with deceptive words; for a long time their judgment has not been idle, and their destruction does not slumber.” (2Pet 2:1-3) And Jude, Beloved, while I was very diligent to write to you concerning our common salvation, I found it necessary to write to you exhorting you to contend earnestly for the faith which was once for all delivered to the saints. For certain men have crept in unnoticed, who long ago were marked out for this condemnation, ungodly men, who turn the grace of our God into lewdness and deny the only Lord God and our Lord Jesus Christ. (Jude 3-4) And those who preach or follow a false gospel are accursed. “Let him be accursed.” (Gal 1:8)

            To be accursed means to be separated from God. And what’s going on in Catholics is they don’t get closer to God by being a Catholic, they get farther from God by being a Catholic. That’s the curse on them. Same thing with Baptists, you don’t get closer to God, you get farther from God because the things that you are doing are opposed to God’s true Word and God has placed a curse on those who follow a false or perverted form of the gospel. Whoever transgresses and does not abide in the doctrine of Christ does not have God. He who abides in the doctrine of Christ has both the Father and the Son. If anyone comes to you and does not bring this doctrine, do not receive him into your house nor greet him; for he who greets him shares in his evil deeds. (2John 9-11) To the true Christian Jesus is made unto us wisdom – and that wisdom shows up in all we do; at home, in church, in business. But the false christians (curstians) are cursed with gross blindness and stupidity – so much so that even unbelievers often show themselves to be more intelligent and to have more wisdom in their everyday affairs than the “curstians.” Repay them, O LORD, according to the work of their hands. Give them a veiled heart; your curse be upon them! In Your anger, pursue and destroy them from under the heavens of the LORD. (Lam 3:64-66) “And in them the prophecy of Isaiah is fulfilled, which says: ‘Hearing you will hear and shall not understand, and seeing you will see and not perceive; For the hearts of this people have grown dull. Their ears are hard of hearing, and their eyes they have closed, lest they should see with their eyes and hear with their ears, lest they should understand with their hearts and turn, so that I should heal them.’” (Matt 13:14-15)

            The contemporary churches are not separated because of location. Often they are literally next door to one another in geographical location. But shamefully they are separated because they are not of the same mind, not of the same spirit, not of the same faith as God’s true church. Whereas in the scriptures, real Christians are commanded to be of the same mind. Now I plead with you, brethren, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that you all speak the same thing, and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be perfectly joined together in the same mind and in the same judgment. (1Cor 1:10) In these false churches there is no real effort at all to come into the unity of the faith (Eph 4:13) or to be of the same mind as real Christians. Such commands as these are being blatantly disobeyed. In fact what these dissensions demonstrate is that “curstians” want it their way. They want to believe what they want and to have church the way they want, with either a partial or even total disregard for what Christ commands. “If you love Me, keep My commandments.” (John 14:15) If anyone does not love the Lord Jesus Christ, let him be accursed. O Lord, come! (1Cor 16:22)

            Again to disobey Christ’s Word opposes the very idea of what Christianity is about which is to submit yourself to Christ and to do all things in the way Christ instructs. And He put all things under His feet, and gave Him to be Head over all things to the church, (Eph 1:22) And through His apostles Jesus has told us how to have church. And He Himself gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers, for the equipping of the saints for the work of ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ, till we all come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a perfect man, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ; that we should no longer be children, tossed to and fro and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, in the cunning craftiness of deceitful plotting, but, speaking the truth in love, may grow up in all things into Him who is the Head-- Christ-- from whom the whole body, joined and knit together by what every joint supplies, according to the effective working by which every part does its share, causes growth of the body for the edifying of itself in love. (Eph 4:11-16)

            And He’s told us what we are supposed to be doing, what our goals are suppose to be. That you may have a walk worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing Him, being fruitful in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God; Him we preach, warning every man and teaching every man in all wisdom, that we may present every man perfect in Christ Jesus. (Col 1:10,28) So if I’m going to have church I must have it with people who agree with the way God says to have church and with brethren who are of a like precious faith with the faith that God has given to the true believers. And that faith is that every believer is to participate in the building up of the brethren till all are perfected in Christ.

            Another example, “To you first, God, having raised up His Servant Jesus, sent Him to bless you, in turning away every one of you from your iniquities.” (Acts 3:26) Here is the blessed gospel: Jesus will turn the believers away from iniquity. And being turned away from iniquity is absolutely necessary to perfect them. But what does the accursed Baptist gospel say? “God will forgive your iniquities but you’re a sinner and you’re always going to be a sinner.” My gospel, Jesus’ gospel, Paul’s gospel; John’s gospel, says that believers STOP sinning because Christ is turning us away from sin. “Whoever abides in Him does not sin. Whoever sins has neither seen Him nor known Him.” (1John 3:6) That doesn’t agree with the heretical Baptist gospel. But my gospel, Paul’s gospel, the gospel in the church of Galatia, the gospel in the church of Thessalonica, the gospel in the church of Corinth all agree with that. Now how can I be in Jesus’ church if I’m in a church that is disagreeing with Jesus’ true gospel? These Baptist-type churches are not His churches. Any church that we can show from the Scriptures disagrees with Jesus’ gospel, is a different church from Jesus’ church; Jesus isn’t the Head. If Jesus were the Head they would hear Him, obey Him, repent and believe in His way.

            Now Ephesians tells us we are going to see a glorious church before the coming of the Lord; a church without spot or wrinkle. That He might present her to Himself a glorious church, not having spot or wrinkle or any such thing, but that she should be holy and without blemish. (Eph 5:27) It is God’s way that the first shall be last and the last first. “The glory of this latter temple shall be greater than the former,’ says the LORD of hosts. ‘And in this place I will give peace,’ says the LORD of hosts.’” (Hag 2:9) So the glory of the latter house will be greater than the former means the church Jesus comes for will be even more glorious than what we see described to us in the book of Acts and the Epistles. In the New Testament, we can see what the church used to be. But the end time church is going to be even better than that.

            Yet when we see all the polluted worldly false churches of today the question is, “God, how will you do this?”  And He must do it. And one of the things He will do is gather the true Christians together in true churches where they have like precious faith and where all the elect will believe the true gospel. And what He’s not going to do – is He is not going to cause all the different denominations to overlook their differences and come together since that is not true unity and that is actually the spirit of political compromise, the spirit of the world and the same spirit as God judged at the tower of Babel. The unifying of the false church is a new tower of Babel, it is not Christianity. It is man unifying with men for political strength; not saints gathering to Christ in the Spirit and becoming one in heart and mind with Christ and each other.

            And when Jesus has His true church, He will destroy the false churches. That’s what He did to the Jews. He virtually destroyed them as a nation when they were opposing His true church. “And the ten horns which you saw on the beast, these will hate the harlot, (false church) make her desolate and naked, eat her flesh and burn her with fire. For God has put it into their hearts to fulfill His purpose, to be of one mind, and to give their kingdom to the beast, until the Words of God are fulfilled.” (Rev 17:16-17) It is absolutely certain that Christ will fulfill every word of what He has said He will do.

            And Christ will have a glorious church. And that glorious church won’t be 37 different opinions on “christianity” in the same town. That kind of “christianity” makes God look stupid, makes it look like there isn’t one Spirit, makes it look like everybody can have it their own way and that God Himself is permitting the confusion about which way is the right way. God will have a church that glorifies Him. And His glory will be on His church and the people are going to know that it is God’s church because of His glory that is on His church. And every true local church in God’s universal church will be one church in mind and Spirit with every other true church that is of God. There can’t be any doctrinal differences if their doctrine all comes from the same source, through the same Spirit, under the same Lord and God sent authorities. And the true church must be under the authority of Christ and the apostles that Christ sends.

            So if Paul came to Thessalonica and he found that there was a division and there were now two different churches in Thessalonica because of a doctrinal difference or something of that sort, what do you think Paul would do about it? He would bring them together and he would rebuke and expose whichever of them was wrong and he would cause them to come back into the same doctrine and unity. He would not permit such “variety” because all such things are founded in falsehood and selfish preferences. But avoid foolish disputes, genealogies, contentions, and strivings about the law; for they are unprofitable and useless. Reject a divisive man after the first and second admonition, knowing that such a person is warped and sinning, being self-condemned. (Titus 3:9-11) And such things are the opposite of what would be going on in real Christians. Because when we truly come to Jesus we give up our selfish preferences and start doing what Christ says. And the primary work that must be taking place in Christ’s true church is the edifying of the brethren until they come to the stature of the fullness of Jesus. From whom the whole body, joined and knit together by what every joint supplies, according to the effective working by which every part does its share, causes growth of the body for the (building up or the) edifying of itself in love. (Eph 4:16)  till we all come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a perfect man, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ; (vs 13) And again this has to be taking place in the visible church which churches are the glory of Christ in the earth. (2Cor 8:23) And for Jesus to be glorified His church has to enter into that fullness so the world can see all the riches of the glories of Christ.

            For it pleased the Father that in Him all the fullness should dwell. (Col 1:19) Fullness means a complete supply to fill every need. In Ephesians it’s described as He put all things under His feet, and gave Him to be head over all things to the church, which is His body, the fullness of Him who fills all in all. (Eph 1:22-23)  So the church is to be the fullness of Christ. And in the fullness of Christ the church will be glorifying God to the uttermost. Every supernatural gift will be operating. Every need of any true believer who is coming in faith will be abundantly met. Everything will be demonstrating that Jesus is Lord in the church and the Kingdom of God is in the midst of the brethren and the devil is bound. “But if I cast out demons by the Spirit of God, surely the Kingdom of God has come upon you.” (Matt 12:28)

            “Him we preach, warning every man and teaching every man in all wisdom, that we may present every man perfect in Christ Jesus” (Col 1:28) So the goal is to get you to be the perfect fullness of what a man can be as a Christian. The fullness of what you can become through Christ in you, which is described as, “For in Him dwells all the fullness of the Godhead bodily; and you are complete in Him.” (Col 2:9-10) So when you get into the fullness of Christ you will be complete. To be complete means to be perfect; to have everything and anything you need in you, and you need nothing else. God has everything and you’ve got everything you need because you have the fullness of the Godhead in you. You need a healing? It’s there. You need wisdom? It’s there. You need power to help someone else? It’s there because the fullness is there. And that’s the goal, to get every believer into the fullness of Christ.

            Now, the church is the corporate body of Christ and you can see how awesome an individual who is complete in Christ will be. What will the church be like when all the believers are complete in Christ? The one who is feeble among them in that day shall be like David, and the house of Dav