“Repent” Definition: Greek: metanoeó. Meaning: “to change one's mind or purpose”.
Usage in the Bible: I repent, change my mind, change the inner man (particularly with reference to acceptance of the will of God), repent. (source: Bible Hub)
This is a continuation of Part II which can be read in the link in the footnotes (Link #1)
The “PENT-house” Continued…
Read Luke 23:40-43
…“Oh everyone repents”, came the cheerful reply from a young man nearby. “We’ve all “repented” - We all live in the “Penthouse” now.”, He gestured upward: “It’s radical! When we give our hearts to Jesus, he takes us to the Penthouse”
“Where did you hear that?”, I asked; (I could feel my heart sinking)
“That’s what they teach us…” he again gestured upwards toward the pinnacles…the penthouses of the towers.
“Don’t you know that?”, he continued. “That’s what the word “repent” really means! - to REturn to the PENThouse!”
He was looking at me with genuine excitement and enthusiasm - as if to say “don’t you think that’s cool?”
Excerpt from “The Watchman, The City & The Towers - Part II (See Link #1)
~~~
I was still reeling over this conversation of before - and my heart ached for the young man with whom I had conversed - and the thousands of young people I knew he represented.
‘But what’s wrong with this conversation’ , You may be asking? Isn’t that what Jesus does? - Elevate us to a higher place?
In a way, yes…
But, I will answer this question the best way I can - through the scriptures themselves:
Luke 7:41-50
41 “A certain moneylender had two debtors. One owed five hundred denarii, and the other fifty.
42 When they could not pay, he cancelled the debt of both. Now which of them will love him more?”
43 Simon answered, “The one, I suppose, for whom he cancelled the larger debt.” And he said to him, “You have judged rightly.”
44 Then turning toward the woman he said to Simon, “Do you see this woman? I entered your house; you gave me no water for my feet, but she has wet my feet with her tears and wiped them with her hair.
45 You gave me no kiss, but from the time I came in she has not ceased to kiss my feet.
46 You did not anoint my head with oil, but she has anointed my feet with ointment.
47 Therefore I tell you, her sins, which are many, are forgiven—for she loved much. But he who is forgiven little, loves little.”
48 And he said to her, “Your sins are forgiven.”
Luke 7:1-10
4 And when they came to Jesus, they pleaded with him earnestly, saying, “He is worthy to have you do this for him,
5 for he loves our nation, and he is the one who built us our synagogue.”
6 And Jesus went with them. When he was not far from the house, the centurion sent friends, saying to him, “Lord, do not trouble yourself, for I am not worthy to have you come under my roof.
7 Therefore I did not presume to come to you. But say the word, and let my servant be healed.
What did the sinful women and the Roman Centurion both have in common?
They were both aware of their sin; convicted of their sin; and REPENTANT of their sin.
Compare this to the Pharisees whom Jesus is confronting in John ch. 9:39-41
39 Jesus said, “For judgment I came into this world, that those who do not see may see, and those who see may become blind.”
40 Some of the Pharisees near him heard these things, and said to him, “Are we also blind?”
41 Jesus said to them, “If you were blind, you would have no guilt; but now that you say, ‘We see,’ your guilt remains. (Read John 9)
From these towers, in this great city, no one was being taught about their sinful states - the sinful fallen state of humanity - the pending judgment of eternal death and hell: Indeed no one was being taught about sin and it’s terrible wages at all. From what I observed, the inhabitants of the city believed that Jesus came to rescue - not the bad - but the good; that humanity is not inherently bad (as the Bible teaches) but inherently good - and Jesus came to “enlighten” us of this, and restore us to our rightful place at the top - the penthouse.
I will not go into how dangerously close this comes to Gnosticism and New Age Mysticism…
But let the reader understand:
If there is no knowledge - no unveiling - of sin to the sinner - there can be no conviction…no godly sorrow - and without godly sorrow - there will be no repentance and no forgiveness from the Lord.(Romans 10:14-15; 2Corinthians 7:10)
And make no mistake: sin must be uncovered before the Lord. (We can do this now, because of the Sacrifice of his Son) If it is not uncovered…if we bury it and hide it, like any seed - good or bad - it will produce roots and establish itself. (See Genesis 3:6-10)
Therefore, this conviction is the PRIMARY and vital role of the Holy Spirit (John 16:6-11) - not to give us jerks, tingles, hysteria or some kind of euphoric experience…
7 “Nevertheless, I tell you the truth: it is to your advantage that I go away, for if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you. But if I go, I will send him to you.
8 And when he comes, he will convict the world concerning sin and righteousness and judgment:
9 concerning sin, because they do not believe in me;
10 concerning righteousness, because I go to the Father, and you will see me no longer;
11 concerning judgment, because the ruler of this world is judged.” (John 16:7-11)
What is Jesus saying here?
vs. 9
That to refuse to believe or accept that I have sinned - and the price that Christ paid for my sin - is the ONLY real sin:
vs. 10
But to fully trust that Christ, the Firstborn from the dead, has opened the Way to Heaven, through His Sacrifice for my sin - even though I do not see Him (Faith) is the ONLY Way to Righteousness.
Scriptures:
Romans 4:3
Hebrews 11:6
John 20:29
John 6:29
However, if we refuse this offer of salvation from sin and eternal Punishment…if we refuse the scarlet thread of Redemption that the Lord has thrown to us, we will stand condemned, just as the “prince of this world” does. (see vs.11)
There is no middle ground: We either stand on the side of the Lord (Salvation) or on the side of the devil (judgment)
This is the difference between Heaven and Hell!
Go back to the Roman Centurion’s words in Luke ch. 7: “I am not worthy to come under your roof”… “but say the word and my servant will be healed…”
Those who knew this man assumed that he was worthy because he loved their nation and had built a synagogue: They are missing the mark - but this penitent Roman official is not: Letting go of any futile attempt to save himself, he grasps ahold with both hands, of the scarlet chord of Redemption and casts his whole life onto the mercy of Jesus Christ:
And in doing this, he is granted what the entire nation of Israel have been missing - the Righteousness that comes through faith.
“Not even in all of Israel I have I found such Faith” (vs.9)
For more on how faith and repentance go together see:
Matthew 15:21-28
Mark 5:25-34
Luke 18:9-14; 23:40-43
Joshua 2:8-21
“Lord have mercy on me, a sinner…”
But have I truly sinned? After all I haven’t cheated or stolen, or murdered anyone…and I haven’t told a lie (at least not recently). I think I’m a pretty good person really:
Let’s compare this version of “good” to God’s perfect standard as laid forth in by Jesus in Matthew ch. 5:
21“You have heard that it was said to those of old, ‘You shall not murder; and whoever murders will be liable to judgment (Exodus 20:13).’
22 But I say to you that everyone who is angry with his brother will be liable to judgment; whoever insults his brother will be liable to the council; and whoever says, ‘You fool!’ will be liable to the hell of fire.
27 “You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall not commit adultery.’ (Exodus 20:14)
28 But I say to you that everyone who looks at a woman with lustful intent has already committed adultery with her in his heart.
(Read Matthew ch. 5:17-30)
What is Jesus telling us here?
…That the Lord will not judge us by outward appearances and actions; The Lord will judge us by the hidden things of the heart:
And because our hearts are by nature deceitfully wicked (Jeremiah 17:9)…truly our sins, without exception are many. (Luke 7:47)
Truly “all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” (Romans 3:23)
When we truly and honestly realize who we are…
…Only then can the Lord Jesus Christ truly step in!
~~~
And yet, from the towers of this great city, I would hear things like this:
“This pastor hurt me so bad…So, SO BAD! But the Lord came to me…and held me…and said “please FORGIVE me…”
This came from the mouth of a young, somewhat emotional “youth pastor” on one of the many media mountain platforms. I was shocked at his words.
Forgive Him…? Jesus Christ..? The Son of God..? The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the whole world..? Who “committed no sin, neither was deceit found in his mouth. When he was reviled, he did not revile in return; when he suffered, he did not threaten.”? (1Peter2:22-23) He hasn’t sinned…We have!
Do I need to explain why claiming the Lord would ask such a thing is blasphemous?…is wrong?
If he had truly been hearing from the Lord, what he heard would have been entirely different; something like this: “Son you need to repent and forgive your brother; Forgive, for I have forgiven you of a much greater debt.” (See again Matthew 18:21-35 & Colossians 3:13)
For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son, that whoever believes in him should not PERISH, but have everlasting life. (John 3:16)
Without the Sacrifice of Jesus Christ we will ALL without exception PERISH.
I knew that within this city - under the worldly influence of these great towers: mountains of self Actualization - the people, just like Israel, were all missing the mark - badly.
So the Lord will judge this “city” and its “towers”…
How?…
And it was at this point, that I was suddenly taken back to a previous vision entitled “The Beautiful Remnant of America” 👇
{Within and around this area, a redoubt (a defensive fortification) had been built, and I could see…local churches…families, who had retreated within it. I saw the banners they had been fighting under: freedom of religion; the right to bear arms; the right to private/homeschool education; and much more. It was as if the Remnant Church had taken a final stand under these banners and behind this redoubt, against an advancing enemy that seemed to become more and more powerful as it approached. They had been fighting valiantly for these things - but now I saw from behind the redoubt, as this dark tsunami of evil approached, they left this defensive fortification and began to strap themselves down to what looked like huge pillars, which were firmly rooted into the Foundation Stone of the Nation}
~~~~~
I saw again the sword of judgement held over the heavens of America: I again saw this dark tsunami wave of evil approaching - encircling the nation from every side. And I knew that the city I had seen (symbolic of so much of the Church in America) would not be able to stand against it - I knew that the city and the towers would fall.
~~~~~
{As I watched, this Remnant began to let go of the ‘former things’, abandon these banners of rights and privileges they had been under, and strap themselves and their families down - cleaving themselves to something much more powerful - and permanent: the Word of God and the foundations of the Christian faith. I saw that there were numerous pillars like this all over the Bible Belt…the Heartland of America.}
Excerpt from The Beautiful Remnant of America
~~~~~
I realized for the first time, that many of this remnant had used to belong to the city: But now they had separated themselves. (Revelation 18:1-2) They had come out from the city, away from the towers, to take their stand upon the Lord’s true foundation and tie themselves to the Word of God. Because this city (symbolic of not all, but a large portion of the Church in America), was under God’s judgment; This city (for the good of those dwelling within) was going to fall!
“What will happen Lord? Will anyone get hurt?”
I felt the Lord say: “At first, only people’s pride.”
This is the incredible mercy of God: The great monuments of pride will fall; I knew that in doing this - in causing everything we had become so much reliant upon and placed so much value on to fail, it would enable those once blind, to see - and open one vital window of repentance for the Church - and then for the nation.
~~~~~
{Then I saw in the Spirit, a humble, broken face…a face that was SET LIKE FLINT upon the Lord…just as in the year 1620, a remnant of faithful believers waded through the fires of oppression in “Old England”, to find sanctuary on the shores of what is now New England. Through these same fires of oppression, in the place of the greatest pressure, I believe God will remove the veil, and through His Church, America’s True Face will once more be seen (2Corinthians 3:18). This is both the Face - and the Foundation of this nation…and the Lord will return us there!
This face was not “broken” as if defeated or destroyed…but as a horse is broken to be fully used by its trainer, so the Church of America will be “broken” by the Lord. (Psalm 32:8-10)} Excerpt from Link #4 (02/28/21)
~~~~~
Part 2
[Before reading Part 2, I strongly recommend that you first read Link #2 The Beautiful Remnant of America in the footnotes. This will help to lay the foundation for this next chapter and give the reader understanding and insight: Because it is not my desire to shock or put fear in anyone, unless it is the fear of the Lord.]
A flashback to a movie…
This is probably one of the most bizarre visions I have yet seen:
Sometimes the Lord will use original or even strange analogies to get a message across to me: This time, it involved a movie called “Space Camp” that I had watched several times in my younger years; mainly because of my fascination with the solar system and space exploration. Little did I realize how the Lord would use this fascination - and this movie, to paint a powerful picture for me:
The process that a shuttle goes through, between its launch and its entry into orbit, will become the journey of the Bride of Christ, between her separation from this world, her refinement process and finally, her union with the Lord.
The Movie…
NASA is testing the main engines of the shuttle Atlantis; and the young students from the summer space camp are sitting inside the orbiter, enjoying the “experience”
[Just as we, the Church are presently enjoying the freedom of the Spirit, and are able to exercise and operate in the giftings with relative safety.]
In order to test the main engines without the entire shuttle being thrust up into space, something called a thermal curtain or thermal shield is implemented, to prevent the solid rocket boosters on either side of the engines from heating to the point of ignition. In this way, the engines can be tested safely without the shuttle leaving the ground.
However, in the movie all does not go to plan: Panic ensues as the force which keeps the shuttle grounded - the vital thermal curtain - suddenly begins to fail on one of the boosters, causing it to rapidly heat up. With the lives of everyone on board at stake, NASA is left with no choice but to ignite both boosters and launch the space shuttle, complete with everyone on board, into orbit.
“I will for a season, remove my hand of favor - of protection from this Land - and You My Church will not be unaffected. That which you have become reliant upon - which has for so long kept you sheltered and safe, is (like the thermal shield) about to fail:
But I will be a shield for all who take refuge in Me (Psalm 18:30) For all who put their lives under the blood of my Son, I will lift you up and lead you through.”(See Exodus 12)
The Count Down…
At T-minus 1 minute:
I remembered again a previous vision called The Beautiful Remnant of America: The “count down” to a time of tribulation and testing…Of something about to fail;
And a remnant of Gods people who had taken a final stand upon America’s true foundation stone - and tied themselves down to the pillars of the Word of God: See Link #2 The beautiful Remnant of America; And I realized that yet again, this next vision was exactly the same event; but described using a different illustration.
~~~~~
{“I saw a sword in the heavens over America: I asked the Lord: “Why is this here?”
And I felt Him say: “Because of PRIDE”
It was as if, a day of reckoning was approaching…and the only way to escape this Sword of Judgement was to humble ourselves beneath it - 2Chronicles 7:14.}
Excerpt from “The beautiful Remnant of America”
~~~~~
The Lord will “launch” His Church, from the launching pad where she has stood, so securely and majestically for so long - blissfully unaware that she is, like the space shuttle, not supposed to be attached to “this world” or the things of it.
At T-minus 10 seconds…
~~~~~
{I looked at the remnant…the families who were tied to the Word of God: Robes were now being placed upon them: Heavy, weighty robes that covered them completely, like a cloaking device: Upon them was written the word “HUMILITY”
“You MUST cloak yourself in My HUMILITY, if you choose to hide yourself in Me. You must bow low…becoming nameless and faceless.”}
Excerpt from The Beautiful Remnant of America ~~~~~
Ignition - The Launch
I cannot describe what this looked like in my own words; but as always, the Lord directed me to the Scriptures…because the Scriptures do it best!
In the year that King Uzziah died I saw the Lord sitting upon a throne, high and lifted up; and the train of his robe filled the temple.
Above him stood the seraphim. Each had six wings: with two he covered his face, and with two he covered his feet, and with two he flew.
And one called to another and said:
“Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts;
the whole earth is full of his glory!”
And the foundations of the thresholds shook at the voice of him who called, and the house was filled with smoke. Isaiah 6:1-4
Suddenly we were caught up into the Presence…the Holiness of the Lord, and like Isaiah, we became aware - vividly aware - of how far short we had fallen! (Read Isaiah ch 6:1-7)
And I said: “Woe is me! For I am lost; for I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips; for my eyes have seen the King, the Lord of hosts!” (vs. 5)
Now suddenly all strivings…all “ministries”…all our works fell away and we found ourselves exposed, undone and standing before an audience of ONE! Suddenly there was no one…nothing: Except the Lord!
[The Seraphim that Isaiah saw, give both instruction and warning: With their six wings they demonstrate before fallen humanity, who the Lord really is - and how far we have fallen.]
And like the Roman centurion of before, we were left with no choice but to let go of ‘self’ and grasp with both hands, the scarlet cord of Redemption that the Lord once again was holding out to us.
Then one of the seraphim flew to me, having in his hand a burning coal that he had taken with tongs from the altar.
And he touched my mouth and said: “Behold, this has touched your lips; your guilt is taken away, and your sin atoned for.”(vs.6-7) This is the power of the Cross! In this one moment when the burning coal touched Isaiah’s lips, he was suddenly seeing its fulfillment.
It was a decision that each and every one of us had to make before the Lord: And whenever anyone did, I would see white fire descend upon the heart of that individual. The white flame is the hottest flame by which organic matter burns: He is refining His Church…because He loves us! It was Mercy - such great Mercy!
~~~~~
{The first explosion blew the man-made foundations out from the nation. And it was as if a wall came down and a great wave of evil began to sweep across the Heartland. Many within the Church broke away from the pillars and started to run. But many more didn’t. They pressed themselves and their families in harder and harder into the pillars they were tied to…to the Foundation of the Bible…and to the Cross: until all across the Bible Belt - and the nation - the Remnant Church began to look like olives in a press} (Excerpt from The Beautiful Remnant of America)
~~~~~
I saw even at the eleventh hour…in the very final seconds…people were still running out of “the city” and grasping the cord of Redemption (even as the shuttle was lifting off): throwing themselves upon the mercy of the Lord!
~~~~~
{I saw more and more Americans were compelled to abandon their earthly lives and scramble to “higher ground”. Some came more quickly and willingly than others…and for many, I feared that it would be too late!
But then I saw those who had already begun the ascent to safety, turn around and reach down to help those still bewildered and scrambling:
“Look! See! The true heart…the true Face of the United States of America!” I was weeping! In the midst of great shakings, people forgot about themselves - their own lives, and began to lay them down for others. I saw many families climbing together - many fathers reach down to haul up those who were struggling below….}
Excerpt from Link #3 “The Watchman has No Name” - Again, describing the SAME event, but from a different perspective.
~~~~~
To be continued…
A. h. W.
Footnotes
Links
#2 https://undergod714.blogspot.com/2023/05/the-unity-of-baptism-i-saw-many-in.html?m=1&mibextid=Zxz2cZ
#3https://undergod714.blogspot.com/2022/03/part-i.html?m=1&mibextid=Zxz2cZ
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