Sep 9, '11 9:04 PM

 

By Regner Capener

 

Greetings to all of you, and Blessings!

The past six-plus weeks since I last posted a Coffee Break have been eventful to say the least. Della and I were gone to a prophetic conference in Canada for nearly three weeks. When we got back, Della was asked to lead the memorial service for her uncle who had just passed away.

No sooner had that taken place when the sewer pipe to our upstairs bathroom decided to let loose and pour sewage down through the wall and ceiling of the dining room below. Our insurance company was slow in getting someone to come out and clean things up and dry out all of the water-soaked areas so -- being a carpenter (having helped my father build six of his seven churches) and skilled in most of the building trades -- I dived into (ummm....that might be the wrong term) the project and started tearing out the upstairs bathroom. Having done that, I began taking apart the ceiling in the dining room to let it air out.

Wrong move! Ever taken a shower in the sewer? I don't recommend it. Everything rained down on me. I want you to know I didn't waste any time afterwards in getting into a real shower and getting all that gunk off me. It was funny, but not funny if you know what I mean.

When the water remediation folks showed up to start drying things out with their equipment, all the fans and dehumidifiers caused the breakers to kick in the electrical panel -- twice in a row. My main computer was on when the breakers kicked and then came back on.

Even though I have a RAID array for safety's sake, it still took out the boot sector to my hard drives, and I was offline for days. The folks at Dell sent a technician with a pair of new drives to replace the bad ones, but it still took days to rebuild the RAID arrays with all of my backup data and get my system restored. Good thing I had everything backed up or I'd have been a sunk duck!

 

The fun continues as we wait for the restoration process to be complete. It's a pretty good spiritual illustration. You think things are taken care of in your life and you're crusin' along with the Lord; and all of a sudden something breaks and a whole lot of sewage comes out that you were not prepared for. Think maybe the Lord just might be permitting all of this to happen so that real cleaning, repair and restoration can take place? Yup. I think so.

Well, I thought I'd be able to get back to my experiences in Heaven, but that's going to wait a little longer. There are some things that need some immediate attention and there is a priority in the realm of the Spirit to cover these things.I'll get back to my experiences in Heaven in due time -- and I may yet do one more piece on Israel.

 

During the past month or so, participating in a conference with Chuck Pierce, Paul Keith Davis, Joshua Mills and Charlie Robinson -- not to mention the conference in Lancaster, California with Paul Keith, Neville Johnson and Sadhu Sundhar Selvaraj -- we've seen a consistency and a continuity of the message of the Holy Spirit to the Bride of Christ today. No matter where you turn, the Word of the Lord is the same.

The Holy Spirit is after a people who are more in pursuit of the indwelling presence of the Lord in His fullness with the accompanying manifestation of the greater works that Jesus promised -- more in pursuit of Him than they are in pursuit of their pet doctrines.

That may seem like a strange thing to say so let me be clear. I'll make it personal so no one takes offense or thinks I'm pointing fingers. There are lots of things that I believe. There are many things I have experienced in a lifelong walk with the Lord. But -- and here's the catch -- there are many things that I know, not just because I've experienced certain things, not because I've studied and researched and done a lot of academic pursuit of knowledge, (and I do love Biblical history!) but because they have been revealed by the Holy Spirit in my inner man.

If that sounds self-serving, it isn't meant to be. Here's how the angel of the Lord put it to John:"He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches; To him that overcometh will I give to eat of the hidden manna, and will give him a white stone, and in the stone a new name written, which no man knoweth saving he that receiveth it."(Revelation 2:17)

"Hidden manna" is something that comes by revelation -- not by study and research and careful calculation. There's a huge difference between "doctrines" and revelation. I grew up in traditional Pentecostal circles with a lot of "doctrines" being taught -- and a lot of those doctrines were predicated in study, research, mathematical calculations or even some personal experiences -- but they didn't produce the kind of inner life that the Holy Spirit is looking for in us.

Once again, let me repeat: there are lots of things that I believe. But believing is a whole lot different from knowing! Again, let me build some fences around what I'm saying. Let me give you some examples.

I know that Jesus is coming soon. How do I know that? First, because He says so in His Word. Secondly, because I've had personal visitations from the Lord, along with angelic visitations to specifically confirm that fact. My knowing is based in a combination of the Word -- and if it isn't in the Word, you'd better really consider what you think you know -- and in that which has been revealed by the Holy Spirit.

Now, watch!

I believe that we only have a few years before Jesus comes. I don't believe He will come this year, or next, or even the next year after that. Why? Because that isn't what the message of the Holy Spirit is in the body of Christ today. That doesn't mean I'm right -- and no one would rejoice any more than me if I were wrong -- but here's why I take that position. Consider what John wrote as he closed out the Revelation.

"And the Spirit and the bride say, Come. And let him that heareth say, Come. And let him that is athirst come. And whosoever will, let him take the water of life freely."(Revelation 22:17)

The Bride of Christ is not saying, "Come, Lord Jesus."The Holy Spirit is not saying, "Come, Lord Jesus."What the Spirit and the Bride are saying is this: "Get the spots and wrinkles out of your garments, people! Make yourself ready to receive Him."

Consider these two scriptures: (1) (Ephesians 5:25-27) "Husbands, love your wives, even as Christ also loved the church, and gave himself for it; That he might sanctify and cleanse it with the washing of water by the word, That he might present it to himself a glorious church, not having spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing; but that it should be holy and without blemish." (2) Revelation 19:7-8) "Let us be glad and rejoice, and give honour to him: for the marriage of the Lamb is come, and his wife hath made herself ready. And to her was granted that she should be arrayed in fine linen, clean and white: for the fine linen is the righteousness of saints."

If there is any message being trumpeted by the true prophets in the body of Christ today, this is it: Invite the Spirit of Judgment and Burning into your life to cleanse every last vestige of religion, every last vestige of flesh, every last vestige of sin or error of any kind! Make yourself ready so that Jesus truly receives the inheritance He paid for with His blood!

In Paul's instruction in the letter to Ephesus, he precedes his statement about the Lord giving Himself with a command to husbands to love their wives in the same way that Jesus gave Himself for His Bride. While Paul is speaking to husbands and wives, he does make it clear that Jesus gave Himself totally, completely and without reservation in order to redeem for Himself that people He designed for Himself before time began.

For Jesus to truly receive His inheritance in His people, they likewise must give themselves totally and unreservedly to Him -- no matter the cost -- so that His Glory can be seen in them, so that His presence will be seen, and so that all that He is will be demonstrated and manifested in the earth.

Sorry to have spent so much time on this topic. There's a whole lot more here to talk about -- and maybe in the future I can do a specific Coffee Break on the coming of the Lord -- but that's not what this discussion is all about today. What I'm getting at is that -- because of the above Scriptures -- I believe there are some things absolutely necessary to be accomplished in the Bride of Christ before Jesus can come. Understand?

What I believe is a bit different from what I know. I don't know the day or the hour that Jesus will come, and I refuse to speculate on it or guess at it. There is an alert that takes place in the realm of the Spirit for those who are prepared and there's no guesswork to that alert.

There are times and seasons in God, and we certainly know the season of Jesus' return. And it is important for us to know the times and the seasons. That said, my objective is to allow the Holy Spirit to do whatever it takes in me so that when the Lord Jesus Christ does return, He can receive in me everything He paid for. Am I clear?

One more clarification on this topic so there is no misunderstanding. I was awakened a couple of years ago early one morning with the audible voice of the angel of the Lord speaking. I sat up straight in bed when I heard it.He said to me, "You have no idea how soon the return of the Lord Jesus Christ really is!"Now there's an attention getter!

There is an alert that has gone forth in the earth today, but that alert is somewhat akin to the parable that Jesus gave in Matthew 25.The virgins (representing those who had their garments clean and spotless) were first made aware that the Bridegroom was on His way. That's the alert that has gone forth. The Bridegroom has delayed His coming so that He will have a Bride who is ready for Him. In Jesus' parable, there was a second alert, "Behold the Bridegroom cometh; go ye out to meet Him."That alert has not taken place yet. Those who have ears to hear what the Holy Spirit is saying will hear that alert! What the Holy Spirit is saying is, "Bride, get yourself ready."He has not yet said, "Come, Lord Jesus."OK?

Good! Let's move on.

Some of you may wonder why I've taken this path in our discussions today. Folks, because of what God is doing in the earth today and because of what He is saying to the body of Christ, it is imperative that I share the following with you.

It has been clear for some time now that there is a clear dividing taking place among Christians -- a separating, if you will -- that is making many believers uncomfortable. After all, we well remember Paul's declaration in Ephesians 4 (verse 3) in which he instructs us to "keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace."But Paul didn't leave it there. Watch what he writes a few verses later.

"And He gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers for the perfecting (katartismos: the complete furnishing) of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ: till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect (teleios: complete) man, unto the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ. (Christos: the Anointed One, and His anointing)"

HELLO?????

Unto a perfect man? Unto the measure (metron: the rule or standard of judgment; the determined extent, the measured portion) of the stature (helikia: maturity) of the fullness of Christ? Us? Now, before we get to Heaven?

That's it, folks! NOW, not in "the sweet bye and bye."

One of the difficulties in the body of Christ is a wide spread of doctrines that push many things way off in the future, or "when we all get to Heaven" as if Heaven is our objective. Heaven is not our objective! Heaven is only home-base for the future.

By the same token, there are many things -- interpretations of prophecies, for example -- that get shoved into the 1000-year reign of Christ on the earth (the Millennium, if you please).The problem is these interpretations is that they fail to give the Lord Jesus Christ His due in us. Sometimes I wonder if people really understand what Jesus did for us, and if they understand what it cost Him.

Let's see if I can put this another way.

Every Christian believer knows that Jesus died on the Cross for him or her, and that their salvation from Hell rests in that fact. But does every believer understand that what Jesus paid for on the Cross goes way beyond "fire insurance"?

Fire insurance -- deliverance from the penalties of sin and an eternal damnation in Hell -- is only a fraction of what Jesus paid for. Let me digress for just a second.

If you go to Costco or Sam's Club or Wal-Mart or Safeway (or whatever) and you decide to purchase something, do you not expect to get what you pay for? Do you expect, for example, to plop down the cash or a check (or a debit card) for food or household goods, and then walk out of the store and leave them behind? If you paid for them, don't you deserve to get what you paid for? Aren't you legally entitled to get what you paid for?

Now, let's apply this principle to the price that Jesus paid. Let me take you to a transliteration of Isaiah 53:3-5 that I did from the Hebrew text:

(3) He is disdained and scorned, and considered as having ceased to exist by men: a man of anguish and pain, and has known grief by seeing and experiencing it; and we hid as it were our faces from Him; He was disdained and scorned, and we maliciously fabricated, invented and treated His suffering and death as void.

 

(4) Surely He has suffered and accepted as His own our maladies, our anxieties, our calamities, our disease and sicknesses, and carried our anguish, pain and grief: yet we fabricated and maliciously invented His being stricken violently, beaten, punished, wounded and slaughtered as if by God -- choosing to believe that God browbeat, demeaned and looked down upon Him.

 

(5) But He was broken and profaned for our rebellion, our revolt, our apostasy and our [religious] quarrel against God; He was crushed, oppressed and smitten, and (emotionally) broken into pieces for our perversity, our evil, our mischief, sins and faults; the breaking and ridiculing of our peace, our welfare, our prosperity, our health and our safety was upon Him; and with His bloodied and blue wounds we are cured, mended, repaired and made thoroughly whole.

 

THERE!!That's what Jesus did, and that's what it cost Him! Understand?

Now! Consider Paul's prayer and admonition.

" I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened, so that you will know what is the hope of His calling, what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints, and what is the surpassing greatness of His power toward us who believe. These are in accordance with the working of the strength of His might which He brought about in Christ, when He raised Him from the dead and seated Him at His right hand in the heavenly places."(Ephesians 1:18-20 NASB)

Lastly, do you understand the word, "Salvation"?Do you know that this word was never intended to be just about "fire insurance"?This word is a translation of the Greek, sozo, (to protect, to deliver, to rescue, to defend, to save, to heal, to preserve, to cause to prosper, to make [completely] whole).It is the equivalent of the Hebrew, yasha (and its derivative, ye shu ah), with the same identical meanings.

Having said all of that, what do you believe? Now then, what do you KNOW? If Jesus paid for your salvation, has He received it yet? He paid for your defense from the Enemy. Do you KNOW that He is your defense? He paid for your healing. Do you KNOW that you are healed? He paid for your deliverance from poverty. Have you received, or do you walk in the totality of abundance that He paid for?

If Jesus paid for all of this with such a high price, has He received in you what He paid for?

What do you believe? What do you KNOW? It isn't your faith by which you receive all of this: it's Jesus' faith!

See you again soon.

I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me. (Galatians 2:20)

 

Blessings on you!