I had an amazing experience with the Lord this morning that I am not sure if I can describe very well, but I will do my best to share it. (Note: I started writing up this vision the same day I had it, but it was such a big job to write up that I did not finish until Sunday night.)
Background
The vision was in response to a sin/repentance that happened the day before (on Thursday, March 5). I won't go into detail on my sin, except to say that it is something that used to be a stronghold in my life that the Lord had given me victory over some time ago. I haven't fallen in for a very long time. It is something that a lot of people would say is "not such a bad sin" comparatively--but any intentional sin is bad and it separates us from the Lord until we deal with it.
The sin started as a temptation. At first I was amazed that it even seemed tempting, and I expected it would be easy to resist. But the more the temptation continued, the more appealing the idea of doing it became. I prayed and asked the Lord to help me resist this, but my prayer was only half-hearted, and part of me was coming into agreement with the enemy. At some point I had this mental transition that I knew was wrong. I began planning in my mind how I was going to carry out this sin as I was still technically "resisting" it.
Well, I ended up giving into it, even though I knew it was wrong for me to do. The first 3 minutes of this sin were fun, but then I had this change of heart and found it disgusting. I stopped immediately and asked myself, "Why on earth am I doing this?"
Then I became aware of the Lord and of the fact that what I had done did not please Him at all. I knew I had to make a choice--do I run back to Him and repent and take whatever correction/punishment He gives me? Or, do I run away from Him in an attempt separate myself from Him for a bit because I'd displeased Him?
I know this sounds "weird," but I had this sense that how I responded to God from my place of sin was even more crucial than when I decided whether or not to sin. My memory was suddenly flooded with fragments of many of the words the Lord has recently spoken through me. They were about how we should run to Him in our failure instead of running away from Him. I decided that was what I needed to do--I knew that He would receive/forgive me if I came right back to Him at that instant. I also knew that if I did not run back to Him right then, it would probably take me days to sort it out and get right with Him. I figured that He would probably discipline me for the sin when I came back to Him, whether it was now or later. But I decided that it would be worth it to endure whatever punishment He handed out right away, so that I could get back to being right with Him again.
Part of me was afraid. Even though I knew He would forgive me, I also had a lingering "fear" in the back of my mind that maybe He might reject me and push me away. After all, I am an ordained minister and I am supposed a bit further along the maturity path than the people I am called to lead and minister to. That is why it seemed "worse" for me to fall into this sin than for someone else to do it, and a part of me expected God to reject me or push me away because of that.
"That is the voice of the enemy." The Lord said. He did not speak in an audible voice, but with that still small voice that sounds so much like our own thoughts. Then, still in that same voice, He asked me a question.
"Teresa, has the blood of Jesus lost it's power?"
"No, Lord." I knew the blood of Jesus had power to forgive sin. But I was in the process of coming back and repenting and I hadn't completed that yet, so I was not sure if I was covered and forgiven at that moment.
"Then is it strong enough to cover you in your sin right now?"
"Yes, Lord." I spoke what I knew in my head was the right answer, but my heart was not 100% sure it really believed that. I was aware that God the Father was giving me His attention, and I was afraid of His attention because I still felt dirty and soiled.
"Then let it prevail for you, and do not allow this sin to separate you from Me one second longer."
"Lord, don't You want to punish me for sinning before You restore me?
"Teresa, do you need a punishment to deter you from doing it again?"
No, I did not. I felt repulsed by what I'd done and I did not like the feeling of being dirty and separated from the Father. I knew it was wrong, and I fully intended not to allow myself to do that again.
I did not answer the Lord out loud, but He heard my thoughts and He responded to them. "The blood of My Son has covered this sin, and He has already borne the punishment for it. You have already repented in your heart and determined not to do it again, so why should I punish you for it? What I want to do is to restore you to relationship with Myself so that this sin does not cause a separation between us."
I was suddenly mindful of the fact that I was supposed to be part of a ministry team at a healing and prophetic service the next night. I thought to myself that I'd somehow disqualified myself from being anointed for the service.
"Why do you think that?" the Lord asked. "If there is no punishment for this sin, then there is no disqualification for it either. The blood of My Son has taken care of it--and His blood is a pretty amazing thing, isn't it?"
It was.
I began to enjoy my restored relationship with the Lord, but a part of me held back a bit and felt tentative, like I did not deserve to be forgiven and not punished. I half-expecting God's displeasure to fall at any moment. I did not run away from Him, but I don't think I wholly embraced the fellowship that He was offering me either. We had several conversations that day, and one of them really stuck out in my mind.
"Teresa, I did not set you up to sin, and I truly hoped that you would resist this temptation to sin, because it would have led to a promotion for you. Now that promotion must be delayed for a season. But once you sinned, it became crucial for you to run back instantly and receive forgiveness, so that you can overcome the enemy's strategy of condemnation against you. So even in failing, there is a measure of victory because you choose to run instantly back to Me."
A part of me remained amazed at the Lord and how He met me and fellowshipped with me and loved on me so soon after I'd chosen to sin. He is an amazing God--even more amazing than I realized. He kept reminding me of how He'd restored Peter after he'd denied the Lord, and how Peter went on to do move in God's power and anointing and to do amazing signs and wonders for the Lord. Each time I pondered that, I also thought to myself, 'Yea, but Jesus met Peter in a special way to restore him...' Little did I know that God has a similar plan for me, where He planned to meet and restore me in an amazing vision.
The Vision
The vision that I am about to share was an amazing personal experience where God touched me deeply. But this vision wasn't just for me personally--it is also a type of prophetic message intended for the whole body of Christ. In other words, the things that God did for me in this vision were not intended just for me, but they are things that God wants to do for each of His children.
This vision was a single experience and it took about 3 hours from when God started it until it was complete. I am artificially breaking it into three parts to make it easier to read, but it was one continuous experience for me.
PART 1 - Your Sins Are Forgiven:
The Lord woke me up very early the next morning (about 3:00 AM) and sent me downstairs to the sofa. Then He asked me if I would trust Him and submit to Him and a few of His angels for a vision.
Of course, I said "yes" to moment He offered to take me into a vision.
[I should explain that from time to time, the Lord uses angels to work with me. There are two who have worked with me quite frequently, who have told me their name: Lub and Makarr. But they are not the only angels that God has used in my life. In fact, recently He has sent one to me two times who has not told me his name.]
I sat there for a little while, waiting for the Lord to initiate what ever it was He planned to do. While I was waiting, I started to wonder which angel God planned to send to me. Then I realized that the angels would know about my sin (of the day before) and I assumed they'd probably disapprove of me. I suddenly remembered a passage from Exodus 23:20-21, where God promised to send His angel to lead the children of Israel after they'd sinned, but warned them not to provoke than angel because he wouldn't understand or forgive their sins. I looked the passage up after the vision was over, and it said, "20 'Behold, I send an angel before you to keep you in the way and to bring you into the place which I have prepared. 21 Beware of him and obey his voice; do not provoke him, for he will not pardon your transgressions; for My name is in him."
As I pondered that verse, I started to feel the same "fear" of being around the angels that I'd originally felt about being around God the Father when I was dirty from my sin. I hoped God wasn't planning to send the angel from that passage. I had this mild alarm that the angel would end up striking me dead, or something. I immediately rebuked that thought, telling myself that God would not go out of His way to bring me into a vision just to kill me. All the same, the idea of facing an angel after having fallen into an old sin made me feel uncomfortable.
At that moment, God spoke to me in that still small voice. He reminded me that the Blood of Jesus is very powerful. Then He said that was what He wanted to underscore that to me in this vision. He asked me again if I was willing to submit to Him in this, and again I said, "Yes."
As soon as I answered, an angel came to me. It was Lub, who I know from earlier encounters. Lub's speciality is helping people draw into worship and into deeper intimacy with God. He was one who I felt safe and comfortable around--at least as comfortable as a person can feel with an unfallen being who carries the glory and holiness of God. I remember thinking to myself that I was glad God sent an intimacy angel instead of a judgment angel.
Lub recognized me. He nodded his head briefly in greeting, and smiled at me. He was carrying a little vial that looked like it was made of crystal, and it contained something red inside. Lub raised the vial so I could easily see it, then he said, "Teresa, I am going to anoint you with the blood of Jesus as a reminder that your sins are cleansed so you can be in right relationship with God. Then I am going to wash you with living water so that you stand clean and holy before Him. Then I will bring you to the Father for a brief encounter with Him. Are you willing to let me do this for you?"
Oh yes! I loved the plan he suggested.
I knew Lub could hear my thoughts and did not really need a verbal reply, but I nodded my head and said "yes."
Lub opened the crystal vial he was carrying, and said, "This is the blood of Jesus." Then he dipped his finger in it and drew a cross on my forehead with it. As he did that, several things happened to me. The first was that I felt it burning into my skin like acid or something, except that it was not painful. All the same I was a little frightened.
Lub said, "Don't be alarmed. The blood of Jesus is leaving a permanent mark on you, but it is a mark in the spirit and not a visible mark on your physical flesh. This mark declares to the spirit world that your sins have been forgiven through the blood of the lamb, and it breaks the power of the enemy's lies of condemnation over you."
As he spoke those words, I felt a warmth flow through my entire body. It felt really nice and I was extremely comforted.
Lub said, "What you are feeling is the unconditional love of God, which has been poured out on you."
As he said that, I had this intense desire to be close to God. Lub had said that he as going to take me to the Father, and I wanted to be with Him so badly at that moment.
"Patience, little one. I will take you to Him soon, but not quite yet. There is one more thing I need to do first." He put the crystal vial in the folds of his white robe and produced a tiny golden pitcher, no more than 4 or 5 inches tall. "This contains water from the river of life, and the Father wants me to pour it over you as a reminder that you have been given eternal life, and that nothing can ever separate you from the love of God."
Lub stood at my side. He raised that tiny container over my head and began to pour. I figured that there might be enough in there to get my hair and face wet, but no more than that.
When he began to pour, it was like I was standing under a waterfall, and the water kept showering over me. It covered my head and filled my nose and mouth and ears, and it sounded like a mighty rushing thunder. At first I marveled that so much water could come from such a tiny container...but soon another consideration demanded my attention. My nose and mouth were filled with water, and it was like I was drowning. I could not breathe. At first it was easy to hold my breath, but he just kept pouring and pouring until I began to think that I was going to drown. Had God brought me into this vision to kill me after all? Was I about to die?
Right then, I was aware of Someone standing in front of me, and that someone laid His hands on both of my shoulders. I am not sure how knew it, but I knew that this Someone standing in front of me was God the Father. I could sense His holiness, and I felt this surge of terror rise up inside of me, but it was quickly replaced by an amazing peace that I can not begin to explain. I still could not breathe and my lungs were about to explode. But the pain left completely when God touched my shoulders.
"Teresa," He asked, "What would happen to you if I was to kill you right now?"
I was unable to speak verbally because of the water filling my mouth. But I knew He could hear my thoughts just as clearly as if I'd spoken out loud.
"I guess I'd go to be with You for all eternity."
"Yes, dear one, and what would My posture be towards you?"
"I guess You'd receive me and embrace me." I answered.
"Like this?" He drew me into a hug, wrapping both of His arms around me. My fist thought was, "Oh my! He really is going to kill me!" But I could not feel afraid. I can't explain it, but even though I was in the process of suffocating, I never felt safer in my life than at that moment in His arms. I could feel His love flowing into me, and it was too wonderful for words. I decided that it wouldn't be so bad to trade my physical life for eternal life right now, since it meant being enveloped in His love like this.
"That is true," God said. "It would not be a bad deal for you at all. And there will be a time for you to leave this earth and come to live in My presence for all eternity, but this is not that time."
I felt a huge question mark in my spirit, but before I could ask Him about it, He said, "Open your mouth and breathe in My living water. It will not hurt you."
I did as He commanded, and immediately I was able to breathe that water just as easily as if it were air. It felt clean and refreshing, and it sent surge of energy running through me.
"This is My living water, Teresa. It flows out from My throne and it refreshes My people and gives them strength. It is going to fill you up until you cannot contain any more, and then it will burst out of your belly like a river."
He did not use more words at that moment, but He began to show me a lot of things. He just deposited them in my spirit, and I knew them as clearly as if He'd used verbal words to convey them. One of the things that I suddenly "knew" was that the feeling like I was drowning/dying was symbolic of dying to the flesh so we could embrace a new nature in Christ. It is difficult and scary at first, but as we become secure in God's great love for us, it becomes easier. I also realized that being under this waterfall of living water was symbolic of being baptized, of dying with Him and being resurrected with Him into eternal life.
The Father seemed pleased with me, and He tussled my hair in a loving way. When He touched the top of my head to do that, some sort of anointing flowed out of Him and ran down my entire body. It felt more wonderful than I can describe. My spirit could not help responding to His great love for Me, and I found myself once again committing to serve and obey Him with all of my being. I felt this great love for Him well up inside of me. I remember thinking, "How could anyone get around Him like this and NOT end up loving Him with all of their heart and all of their mind all of their soul and all of their strength?" It was not a chore to obey the first and greatest commandment; it was a natural response to experiencing God's great love first hand.
There is a lot more to my time with the Father, but it is personal and not something to be shared publicly. But it was a wonderful experience with Him and I did not want it to end. But eventually the Father released me and Lub stopped pouring that pitcher of living water over my head, and I was alone on my sofa again.
The Lord spoke one more thing to me in that still small voice. He said, "Don't fret, little one. This vision is not over yet. I am sending two more angels to you. Submit to them as if you were submitting to Me, for they are only doing what I am doing."
PART 2 - You Have Been Given Authority Over The Devil:
Before I had time to respond, a second angel approached me. He was dressed in white with a gold breastplate, and a sword hung from his side in a gold scaffold. He radiated the light and the glory of God, and he carried himself like one who walks in great authority. I felt very intimidated as he came towards me, but when he got closer I saw that I knew him. He was Makarr--a judgment angel who God also uses to bring breakthrough in people's lives. He can be a very intimidating figure, but he also carries the love and warmth of the Lord. I know Makarr better than I know any other angel, and I like and trust him because the Lord has used him to bring a substantial breakthrough into my life.
At first I was glad to see Makarr. But then I remembered that he was a judgment angel and that he was probably aware of my recent sin. I wondered if the Lord had sent him with a punishment for it.
Makarr could hear my unspoken thoughts as clearly as if I'd spoken them out loud, and he responded to them. "Actually, Teresa, I am not here to punish you, but to set you free."
I wondered what he was going to set me free from. Was it whatever was inside of me that caused me to fall back into that sin that had not hindered me for a long time?
"More than that, little one. The Lord has sent me to set you free from the enemy strongholds in your life and thinking. Would you like me to do that for you."
"Of course I would!"
"Let me explain to you what I am going to do. First, I am going to anoint you with the blood of Jesus, because that is what breaks the power of the enemy over you. Then I am going to take my sword and sever the binds the enemy has over you. It will seem like I am stabbing you; but it is not you that I am going after, it is the enemy strongholds within you. It may hurt a little, but do not fear, for afterwards I will anoint you with living water to bind up any wounds and heal you. Are you willing to let me do this for you?"
I nodded my head yes, but I did not reply verbally. I trusted the Lord and I trusted Makarr, but his plan sound like it would be painful and I hoped I'd be able to get through it ok. Makarr produced a vial very similar to the one that Lub had held. Only instead of making a cross on my forehead, he dabbed a little towards on several spots of my body, including my forehead, my left ear, the back of my neck and my gut. Then he drew his sword.
I could not help it, I stiffened instinctively and braced myself for the impact.
"Teresa, take my hand." He held the sword in his right hand and he stretched his left hand towards me. I took his left hand and held it in both of mine, squeezing it tightly.
"Remember," he said, "it is not you that I am going after, it is the demons and strongholds who are hindering you. This is not intended to cause you pain, but to set you free."
I nodded. The first place that He applied the sword was to the back of my neck. I was really scared and squeezed his hand tightly. But it was not nearly as bad as I expected. It wasn't like being stabbed with a sword. It was more like a surgeon's skillful knife. It hurt a little, but not very bad. It felt like the sword was navigating around my spine and arteries instead of slicing through them. But then it seemed to jab into something inside of me that was not me.
"That is the accusations and condemnations of the enemy. Do you want to be free from them?"
I said yes.
It seemed like he was cutting around this thing, severing all of it's connections to me. Then he withdrew the sword, pulling the thing out. This was all done behind me, so I couldn't really see what was on the sword when it came out. I did not know if it was a demon or a stronghold, and I was afraid to ask.
Makarr stopped to explain it to me. He said, "This was a stronghold of condemnation that the enemy planted in you a long time ago. It had such power over you as to make you believe that the blood of Jesus could cover other people's sins, but not your own. It is what made you feel so afraid to run back to God the instant you stopped sinning, thinking that God would not want you to repent and run back to Him. Fortunately, you overcame it and made the right choice. But now the Lord is breaking the power of that condemnation over you so that you will not be susceptible to its lies in the future."
I felt some type of release and freedom in the spirit as he pulled it out, and I knew that God was doing something important in me. But at the same time, I realized that He was not done, and I figured that Makarr was going to stick his sword in each of the places where He'd placed the blood of Jesus on me. I was not wrong.
It was surprisingly less painful than I expected it to be, but it also took a long time. I felt a bit weaker each time that Makarr would stick his sword into one of those spots. At first he explained what some of them were. For instance, the anointing on my ear was to break the power of the lies of the enemy that he frequently used on me with success. After a while I felt too weak to care precisely what Makarr was doing and I just hoped it would be over soon. I was still standing before him and clinging to his hand, but he was holding me up with his left hand while applying the sword with his right one.
I am not sure precisely how many he did, but at one point he said, "Ok, we are done. Now it is time for me to pour living water over each of these wounds to bind them up and strengthen you."
He placed the sword in his left hand, which I was still holding onto. I could feel the hilt under his fingers. Then with his right hand, be began to pour small amounts of water into each of the places where he had stuck his sword in me. It did not hurt at all; it felt really good. In fact, each time that He poured the water on me, I felt myself getting stronger.
"Here is what is happening," Makarr said. "The Lord is pouring His life and His presence into each place where the enemy previously had a stronghold. He is filling each of those empty places left from where the strongholds used to be with Himself."
I felt stronger and more alive as Makarr poured the water over me, and by the time he was done, I felt ready to jump into battle and fight a thousand enemies. Then he did something that really surprised me. As I let go of his left hand, he placed the sword that he was holding into my hand. It was so heavy that I almost dropped it, and the point of the blade hit the ground. He steadied my hand with his and helped me raise the sword off of the ground.
"The Lord is placing His sword in your hand, and He is giving you an increased measure of authority over the enemy."
Wow! I was speechless. I wasn't sure what to say or how to react, but this was really amazing to me.
I did not have very long to remain speechless, because I heard a voice behind me calling name. I turned towards the source of that voice and I found myself facing Jesus.
The very first thing I did was to kneel before Him. Jesus chose to appear to me looking very similar to how he was described in Revelation chapter 1. He was dressed in white and radiating the light and glory of God. His hair also was also white--at least I think it was white, but He was emitting so much light that I cannot be sure. His face was like the sun shining in all its brilliance, and it was hard to look directly at Him. I was keenly aware of His holiness, and also of His position as a conquering King. But at the same time, I was also very aware of His great love for me, and that made it impossible to feel afraid of Him.
My first response to Him was to begin to recommit my life to Him to serve Him. I found myself repenting of the times when I did not give Him lordship in my life and sincerely desiring to do better at that from this time forward. The only problem was that I could not find the right words to express my heart to Him. I prayed silently and asked the Holy Spirit to help me express this to the Lord. I wondered if it was ok to pray to the Holy Spirit while you are in a vision where Jesus is standing in front of you, but I did it anyhow. I guess it must have been ok with God, because Makarr began to give me a "repeat-after-me" type of prayer the perfectly expressed what was on my heart.
After I finished the prayer, I worshipped Jesus for a bit. My worship was awkward and clumsy compared to Heaven's worship, but it was heart felt, and Jesus received it. I was kneeling before Him and the sword that Makarr gave me was still in my right hand. But I wasn't aware of it until the Lord called my attention to it. I was gripping the hilt with my right hand, but the blade was resting on the ground in front of me. I tried to lift the tip of the blade off of the ground, but it was too heavy for me.
Then Jesus walked up to me, bent over me and touched my right hand with His. Suddenly I was strengthened and I was able to lift the sword.
"Teresa," He said, "I have given you this sword and I have given you authority over the devil. I do not expect you to wield it from your own strength, but from Mine. Then He rose me up to my feet and began to guide my hand through some sword fighting types of gestures. "I will teach you to war in My power and authority, and the enemy will not be able to overcome you just as he cannot overcome Me."
After that, Jesus did some personal stuff with me that I am not going to share publicly in this write-up. Part of it had to do with the "title" that He'd given me along ago when He'd commissioned me...bond servant, and what He expected of me. My personal time with Jesus was wonderful and amazing and I always love to be in His presence. But it was even more special in this vision because my recent sin and forgiveness made me keenly aware of how much He had done for me, and I felt extremely grateful to Him for it.
PART 3 - You Carry The Anointing Of God:
As soon as my time with Jesus was over, another angel came to me. This angel had worked with me once before, but I did not know his name or much about him.
"Let me explain what we are going to do. I am going to anoint you with the blood of Jesus, to release His power and anointing into your life. Then I will bring you to the Holy Spirit so you can spend some time with Him. Will you submit to me and to this plan?"
Most definitely. That plan sounded great to me. I nodded and said, "To tell you the truth, I sort of noticed God's pattern and fully expected that part of your plan would include me spending time with the Holy Spirit."
"Yes, we know." The angel smiled. "We never intended to trick you in any manner, and the Holy Spirit had already given you revelation of what the next part of this vision would be."
As soon as the angel said those words, I realized in my spirit how true they were. I guess I hadn't really noticed a pattern so much as the Holy Spirit had communicated His plan to my spirit. I could not help but smiling because I love it when He does that.
"The Lord wants me to address something with you before we start. It has to do with your fear that you would be disqualified from moving in His anointing when you serve on the ministry team tonight. Your thinking was that because your sin was so recently committed and so recently forgiven, you were somehow disqualified from flowing in God's anointing. But that is a lie of the devil, meant to cheapen the power of the blood of the lamb. The truth is that once there has been genuine repentance and a determination to do things God's way, the blood of Jesus leaves you as pure as you were before the sin. There is no stain left over on you that reduces your calling or diminishes your anointing. To believe otherwise would be to lessen the power of the blood of the Lamb. It would also call God a liar because He says that your sins are forgiven. Do you understand what I am saying to you?"
"Yes." What the angel made sense, and I realized that I needed to repent because I'd belittled the blood of Jesus without meaning to.
"Very good." The angel said. "I will give you a chance to do that now if you'd like to."
I began to pray silently. I repented for not believing that God really meant it when He said that my sins were forgiven. I repented for assuming that the blood of Jesus did not have power to restore God's anointing on my life, and to make me completely and totally accepted in the beloved.
When I finished praying, the angel nodded at me and smiled. "Very good, now let us continue."
He produced that same crystal vial that Lub and Makarr had used, and I knew it contained the blood of Jesus. He said, "The blood of Jesus does not just forgive your sins and give you authority over the devil; it also releases the power and anointing in your life to do the works that the Father is doing."
Then he took blood from the vial and placed it on the palms of my hands, and they immediately began to grow warm and tingle. "What you are feeling is the anointing of God upon you to minister healing to others."
That sure sounded good to me and I was really happy about that. I assumed that the angel was done, but he was not. Next he anointed my ears to hear God more clearly. After that he anointed my lips, so that I might speak His words with clarity and accurately. Finally he bent down and anointed my feet for evangelism.
Each of the areas that the angel anointed got warm and began to tingle. Then the angel said, "The manifestation" (e.g.,. the heat and tingling) "is for your sake so that you know the anointing is real and not just symbolic. That is the way the Lord usually confirms an anointing or impartation to you."
He was right, the Lord usually gives me heat or tingling or both when He puts His anointing on me. God was doing what He usually does so that I would know it was really real. I remember feeling amazed by that and thinking once again about how wonderful He is.
"I am glad that you think I am wonderful, Teresa."
The voice came from behind me. I turned my head to face the voice, and saw a bright iridescent cloud. It was translucent, but it emitted a very bright light and it shimmered and gleaned all of the colors of the rainbow an once.
"Is that You, Holy Spirit?"
"Yes it is. Come to Me, dear one."
I did not hesitate. I turned and ran into the iridescent cloud. It was so bright that I could not see anything, but I could feel strong arms wrapping around me and I knew that the Holy Spirit was giving me a hug. His embrace felt so good, and I just stood there in His arms for a long time, feeling loved.
He did not rush me, but when I was ready, then He said, "You have a lot of questions for Me, don't you, dear one?"
Yes, I did. I had been feeling shaky in my relationship with Him lately, and I wanted Him to look at the things I'd been hearing and experiencing lately to assure that all of them really were from Him.
"Are you afraid that when you die and go to Heaven, you are going to discover that Who you thought I am and Who I really am are two very different persons? And are you afraid that all of this time when you through you were going out of your way to obey and please Me, that you will discover that those things did not please Me at all?"
I did not have to answer Him, but He'd hit the fear on the head. I wanted to know Him like He really was and I really wanted to please Him.
"Dear one, that concern is because the enemy has been trying to play tricks on your mind. He does that to get you to question the very foundation of your beliefs. Let Me tell you what to do when that happens: go back to the basic foundations of the Bible and hold on to those as absolute truths. The enemy wants to shake away all of your foundations so that you have no truth to hold on to. Do not let Him do that. Cling to My written word, the bible, for I have indeed revealed Myself in it."
He paused, then continued. "Look at My character and My nature as they are revealed in My word. Then you can know that I am faithful and true. I am not One Who would allow you to fall into deception as you sincerely sought Me, approaching Me in accord with the guidelines that I have laid down in My word. Trust that I would be faithful and I will correct your misconceptions and bring you into My reality. If you can't do that at any given moment, then just cling to the basics in My word and they will never lead you astray."
"In short," I said, "I should do everything Your word says to do to please You, then trust that You will reveal Yourself to me and correct any important misconceptions I have about You?"
"Yes, Teresa, that is correct. But there is one thing you must know. You, as a fallen human being, cannot fully comprehend Who I am. You will have some misconceptions that will remain with you until I bring you to the other side of eternity. You will find that at times I will intentionally manifest Myself to you according to your misconceptions, because that is the only way that you will be able to perceive Me."
"I don't understand."
"Ok, let Me give you an example. You tend to think of Me as three separate People because you are not capable of comprehending the true nature of the Trinity. So I meet you in that way, and you know Me as the Father, and as Jesus and as the Holy Spirit. You have distinct relations with Me as each of these three. But the truth is that I am not really three separate People any more than I am just one. I am something that you cannot comprehend at this time in your life, so I reveal Myself to you as something that you can comprehend and relate to. There will come a time when you are able to understand what the Trinity is and to truly know Me as I am. But for now, I meet you as three separate personalities. My goal is not for you to have perfect understanding of every aspect of Who I am. My goal is that you come to know Me and to be in relationship with Me. I will straighten out your misconceptions about Myself at precisely the right time. All the same, My written word already reveals certain things about My character will never change--such as My love, My mercy, My grace, My faithfulness. Just get to know My character, and all will be well with you when you stand before Me face-to-face on the other side of eternity."
The Holy Spirit talked to me about many other things, but they are very
personal for me, and not something to be shared in this write-up.
[However, since this write-up also serves as my personal journal of
this vision, I am going to list them briefly (and cryptically) so that
I can remember what He talked about with me.
After we talked about those things, He ended with this: "The most important thing that I want to do for you in this vision is to confirm to you that when you have Me, you have all anointing that you will ever need, and it will always be available to you. Every time that I lead you to do something that the Father is doing, I will anoint and empower you for it. The enemy will do whatever he can to try and convince you that you have somehow disqualified yourself from moving with Me in My power and anointing. But that is never the case, because the blood of Jesus prevails for you, and it releases you to move with your God in His power and anointing."
Follow Up
I want to follow up on a couple of things. One is what happened the rest of the day I had the vision and the other is a bit of Scripture precedent to interpret and back up what God did in the vision.
AFTER THE VISION:
First, I should mention that for the next three days--Friday to Sunday, the Lord's presence has been on me so strongly that I am finding it hard to do the usual mundane things I usually do to relax, such as watching television or playing computer games. I find myself drawn to the Lord much more than to these things, and they just had no interest for me at the moment. I have been spending my free time by writing up this account of the vision, and by being in the Lord's presence. At the moment, being with God feels so much more desirable than any other activity. I guess you could say that this vision has restored my hunger and passion for the Lord to a very high level. I don't know how long it will last, but so far it has sustained for three days. The Lord gave me this vision in the week hours of Friday morning and now it is Sunday night.
Also, I should mention that the Lord was faithful to anoint me when I served on the ministry team Friday night. The meeting started with over an hour of worship, and I got so lost in the Lord that I was not sure I would be able to function. You know how it is when the Lord's presence is on you so heavily... But when it came time to minister, the Lord anointed me strongly in both the prophetic and healing, just like He said He would. God is always faithful to keep His word.
SCRIPTURE PRECEDENT:
The main message of this vision is about the power of what the Blood of Jesus does for us. First, it has power to forgive our sins and to totally cleanse us from all unrighteousness, to put us back into instant right relationship with God. There is no need for sin to separate you from Him for even 1 second after you have repented and turned back to Him. The Blood of Jesus brings instant restoration.
Second, when Jesus died on the cross and rose form the dead, He defeated the power of sin and death, and He broke the devil's power and hold over us. In short, the blood of Jesus gives us authority over the devil. This plays out in two ways. First, it breaks the demonic strongholds in our lives that hold us captive and bring us into bondage. He sets us free from the power of sin, and He breaks the power of condemnation off of us. Second, Jesus has given us the authority that He earned on Calvary to use in order to accomplish His purposes. That means that not only can we be free from the devil's bondages in our own lives, but we can use His power and authority to set others free as well.
There is a passage of Scripture that really sums up those first two points. It is found in Colossians 2:13-15. The passage is so powerful that I want to give it to you in three different translations:
13 You were dead because of your sins and because your sinful nature was not yet cut away. Then God made you alive with Christ, for He forgave all our sins. 14 He canceled the record of the charges against us and took it away by nailing it to the cross. 15 In this way, He disarmed the spiritual rulers and authorities. He shamed them publicly by His victory over them on the cross. [NLT]13When you were dead in your sins and in the uncircumcision of your sinful nature, God made you alive with Christ. He forgave us all our sins, 14having canceled the written code, with its regulations, that was against us and that stood opposed to us; He took it away, nailing it to the cross. 15And having disarmed the powers and authorities, He made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them by the cross. [NIV]
When you were spiritually dead because of your sins and because you were not free from the power of your sinful self, God made you alive with Christ, and He forgave all our sins. 14 He canceled the debt, which listed all the rules we failed to follow. He took away that record with its rules and nailed it to the cross.15 God stripped the spiritual rulers and powers of their authority. With the cross, he won the victory and showed the world that they were powerless. [NCV]
In addition to that, I want to throw in three more short passages to support that: Romans 8:1-2, Luke 10:19 and Acts 26:17b-18.
Romans 8:1-2 [NKJV] 1 There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus, who do not walk according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit. 2 For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has made me free from the law of sin and death.Luke 10:19 [NKJV] Behold, I give you the authority to trample on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy, and nothing shall by any means hurt you.
Acts 26:17b-18 [NIV] Jesus is speaking: "...I am sending you to them 18to open their eyes and turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan to God, so that they may receive forgiveness of sins and a place among those who are sanctified by faith in Me."
The third point of the message of the vision is: The blood of Jesus not only sets us free from the power of sin and gives us authority over the devil; it also anoints us with God's own power and authority to accomplish His purposes.
Here are a few verses to support that:
Revelation 1:6 [NIV] To Him who loves us and has freed us from our sins by His blood, and has made us to be a kingdom and priests to serve His God and Father--to Him be glory and power for ever and ever! Amen.John 14:12-14 [NIV] 12I tell you the truth, anyone who has faith in Me will do what I have been doing. He will do even greater things than these, because I am going to the Father. 13And I will do whatever you ask in My name, so that the Son may bring glory to the Father. 14You may ask Me for anything in My name, and I will do it.
Acts 1:8 [NIV] 8But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth."
Mark 16:17-18 [NIV] 17And these signs will accompany those who believe: In My name they will drive out demons; they will speak in new tongues; 18they will pick up snakes with their hands; and when they drink deadly poison, it will not hurt them at all; they will place their hands on sick people, and they will get well."
CLOSING REMARKS:
The message of this vision is very basic: the blood of Jesus cleanses us and puts us in right relationship with God. It also breaks the power of the devil over our lives, and Jesus has given us His authority over the devil. In addition, the blood of Jesus makes it possible for us to be filled with His Spirit so we can move in His power and anointing to do the works that Jesus did.
The thing that made this vision so powerful to me was not the message itself, but how He personalized it to make it more real in my own life. And this is what He wants to do in each of our lives. He wants to make the power of the blood of Jesus real to each of us so that we can live in the full measure of our inheritance in Christ.
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