Sunday, October 21, 2012

Expect Great Growth!...by Bobby Conner


Bobby Conner...But First, Christlike Leaders Must Emerge
The appearance of "church" as we know it is about to change radically! True apostolic and prophetic leadership is about to emerge the leadership of Christ the King in and through His Body. The Lord is about to raise up leaders characterized by His heart, the heart of a genuine servant!
This is great news! The Spirit of God is now releasing His divinely appointed and anointed leaders. Who are these emerging leaders? Are they special people with amazing charisma, outstanding gifts and a powerful anointing? Not necessarily! The enemy wants us to believe that God only uses "special people," but nothing could be farther from Biblical truth (see 1 Corinthians 1:26).
        Beloved brothers and sisters, these coming leaders are "whosoever will" – a phrase that Jesus used often to indicate our choice in the matter (see Matthew 7:24; 10:32-33; 16:25; 20:26-27; Mark 3:35; 8:34-35 KJV). In other words, each one of us could be and should be one of these emerging, appointed and anointed leaders!
Leaders With Christlike Character
        We must remember that the Lord is looking for a people whose hearts are right with Him so that He can fully support all that they are doing (see 2 Chronicles 16:9). For this reason, the Spirit of Truth is raising up leaders with integrity and character who will teach us the vast difference between what is pure and what is profane (see Ezekiel 44:23).
        Consequently, it is crucial that we walk in uprightness if we are to ascend the hill of the Lord (see Psalm 24:3-6). As we embrace accountability, we can be trusted with more true spiritual authority. Christ Jesus instructed us: If we are faithful over little, we shall become rulers over much more (see Matthew 25:21). On the other hand, if we fail to handle small things correctly, even the small things are in danger of being removed.A true leader must be found faithful and upright in both attitude and action.
Eye-Opening Encounters
       Imagine ministering with the heart of our Beloved Savior and Lord! How will our heart become like our Master's, the meek and lowly Lamb of God? This transformation must and will be supernatural.
       In fact, we are on the verge of awesome, life- changing encounters with the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit recently spoke these words loudly in my heart: "Expect an eye-opening experience!"
       In Ephesians 1:17-18, Paul the apostle prays for us to have the eyes of our hearts flooded with divine, revelatory light. At this time, the Spirit of Truth is opening the eyes of all who are truly desperate to walk in intimacy with Christ. What will our eyes see? Christ Himself! The King of Glory! And as we see Him, we'll become like Him and manifest His servant's heart.
Explosive Growth and Challenges
       This new intimacy with the Lord will also result in an explosion of signs and wonders and a great harvest of souls(see John 2:23 and John 6:1-2). Along with this great ingathering of new Believers, however, will also come great problems, similar to what the early Church experienced in Acts 6:1-7. 
      As "fishers of men," we are about to understand that, just as fish dragged in by nets are not already cleaned and prepared, this great harvest of souls will not come into the Kingdom cleansed from the world but with many needs and wounds, addictions and strongholds.
Necessary Preparations!
       The Church must be equipped to handle this overwhelming growth and to minister to waves of people from many diverse backgrounds and levels of society. Now is the time to begin making the necessary preparations for what is ahead. As a wise person once said, "To fail to plan is to plan to fail!" We must be prepared to minister to this great harvest in the power and anointing of the Holy Spirit, not in our own strength, our own ideas or our own will. This supernatural harvest requires supernatural, dunamis power and agape, Christlike love. Only Heaven on earth will suffice!
       It is imperative that we receive from God the insights and information we need to launch to the next level. We need His wisdom, not our own. We require His direction, not our selfish ambitions and "good ideas." And we must walk in His glorious power and anointing, not our fancy programs and titles. God is preparing leadership to receive HIS heart for the people!
True Apostles and Prophets
        Thankfully, in response to this explosive growth and increasing need, God will raise up strong apostolic leadership. But first, it is imperative that we seek a much deeper understanding and clearer revelation of the office of the prophet and apostle. The Spirit of God is releasing this spirit of revelation now to understand and embrace these offices and to discover that these "titles" are more than just labels. The apostle and prophet are divine functions of the Spirit working through anointed, appointed and chosen individuals.
Where Honor is Due
        Just attaching or wearing labels will continue to foster confusion and frustrate the emerging ministries of the apostle and the prophet. Beloved Believers, we should feel a deep concern for how loosely these terms have been bantered about in churches. It has been correctly stated that we devalue our spiritual currency by using these terms so loosely.
         It is extremely important that the Body of Christ honor and embrace the five-fold ministries (see Ephesians 4:11-16). To be sure, God has some true apostolic ministries operating in the Church today, largely in countries where the Gospel has had an explosive impact. Apostolic leadership is necessary in regions of rapid numerical growth. Yet too often today in the American Church, we see apostolic ministry proclaimed where there is little fruit to show for it. But, thankfully, that is about to change!
Get Ready...In a Posture of Humility
        Without question, we stand at the threshold of massive transition, and our response will determine whether the transition will be smooth or chaotic. We do not have to be rocked by the turbulence of change; rather, if we correctly position ourselves in a posture of genuine humility, motivated to build the Kingdom of God and not our own ministries, we will see an outstanding move of the Spirit of God...and supernatural growth!
       Just as in 2 Kings 7:1-20, we have underestimated the provisions of God for our generation. Now is the time to walk in the revealed light. We need not stumble in the darkness of religious ramblings but walk in Kingdom aims and divine purposes (see Ephesians 5:14-18). We will all be surprised by what God has in store for this end-time generation!
        These are unusual days of destiny and we must arise to the challenge. God is looking for ordinary saints whose hearts are passionately burning to establish the King in His Kingdom. If we seek intimacy with our King and pray that the eyes of our heart be opened, He will establish our character and use us as anointed leaders in the great harvest ahead!

Bobby Conner
Eagles View Ministries

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