Father's House Blog

                    On Saturday morning I flew into Heathrow after ten days away in Toronto, ministering at the Toronto Airport Christian Fellowship. We had a really fruitful time there, speaking to various groups in the church for the part of the trip, and then – after a day off at the Niagara Falls – a great timespeaking at the ‘I Need More’ conference, along with John and Carol Arnott, and Patricia King. TACF(the Toronto Airport Christian Fellowship) has been at the epicentre of the Father Heart renewal for 15 years now. Its leaders John and Carol Arnott have in many ways been the primary carriers of the message of the Father’s love to the nations. Many Father focused ministries have been radically affected by their courageous ministry, including those of my late friend Jack Frost (Shiloh Place), Barry Adams (The Father’s Love Letter) and indeed the Father’s HouseTrust. I have always publicly stated that I believe the best description of theToronto move is the one that John Arnott gave it - ‘The Father’s Blessing’. Indeed, TACF became a well for those seeking renewal in the Father’s love. Here Abba, Father released what John Wesley called ‘the loving Spirit of adoption’, healing many people of their father and mother wounds, and bringing hundreds ofthousands of people out of slavery into sonship. Thank God for TACF!

                There is no doubt that this focus on the Father Heart of God is still central to TACF and its international vision. Through the church and indeed CTF (Catch the Fire), the river of renewal is still flowing and many people worldwide are coming into a newfound intimacy with Abba, Father, and in the process getting rooted and grounded in God’s marvellous love (Ephesians 3.17). This is the foundation of TACF in many ways, and it is through and through a work of the Holy Spirit for which I – among countless others – give thanks to the Lord.

                At the same time, there is a sense of something new brewing at TACF that we would do well to note. There are signs of a new emphasis growing, an emphasis on holiness. Now I personally feel that holiness was a part of the first move of the Spirit in the 90s. I was radically impacted by the holiness of God in Toronto at the Catch the Fire conference in 1996. At the same time, while the leaders stressed purity it was intimacy that became the main emphasis for the people who visited Toronto. The result of this was that some people who had their hearts renewed in love became complacent in their personal lifestyle. An attitude that said, ‘Daddy will still love me, even if I sin’, crept in. The result has been some tragic compromises and lapses.

                I believe something new is going on today, that PURITY is being added to INTIMACY. In fact, I am actually sensing that a second move of the Holy Spirit is about to begin, in which the FEAR of the Lord will become more commonplace,and in which repentance with godly sorrow will become a key feature, especially as the Gospel of the Cross is proclaimed with passion and urgency. In the process, I sense Abba, Father restoring and completing the foundations of what he began in 1994.

                Before I left for TACF two weeks ago, I had a vision of a sword, like Aragorn’s sword in The Lord of the Rings, falling from heaven and piercing a stony floor that was the foundation for a large building. As the sword tip hit the ground, tiny cracks spread in a hundred different directions from that point, sending rivulets of fire through the fissures. As soon as that had happened, the cracks were sealed up, the floor became perfect, and the sword returned very quickly to heaven.

                I sensed two things about this sword: first, that it was the sword of the Lord, the Word of God. It was a sword of direct, sudden, prophetic and Bible-based declaration. The second thing I sensed was that this sword was designed to heal the foundations – to fill in the cracks and to bring completion to something only partially realised.

                At precisely the same moment as I received this vision, I also distinctly remembered a verse in 2 Timothy about foundations. It comes in a passage dedicated to preaching God’s Truth without compromise. Paul uses the metaphor of a house when he talks about God’s Truth in this section of his letter. He speaks about the solid foundations of God’s House of Truth. In spite of people diluting and even altering God’s Truth, Paul says that God's solid foundation stands firm, sealed with this inscription: "The Lord knows those who are his," and,"Everyone who confesses the name of the Lord must turn away from wickedness."  2 Timothy 2.19

                These are powerfully striking words today. Paul says that the foundation stones of the Lord’s House of Truth are inscribed with two royal seals. The first one has to do with INTIMACY – ‘the Lord knows (in the rich, relational sense) those who are his’. The second has to do with PURITY – ‘everyone who confesses the name of the Lord must turn away from wickedness’.

                I believe that the first move of God in 1994 was one in which Abba, Father restored INTIMACY to his children. But intimacy without purity leads to sin, even as purity without intimacy leads to striving. So now the Holy Spirit is restoring and completing the foundations by engraving the word PURITY on our hearts. Put another way, I believe that IT’S TIME FOR THE SECOND SEAL!

                As the Father engraves this second seal on the foundations of his house, I sense there will be a marriage of the love of the Lord with the fear of the Lord, of intimacy with purity, and of romance with repentance. Abba Father has graciously begun with a move of intimacy, because he knows that the tendency of the flesh is to turn the law of love into the love of law. Put another way, he knows that holiness on its own ends up in a legalistic performance orientation. So he began with the revelation of his awesome affection because he knew that this is the true ground for holiness. Fear has never been a great motivator,but love is the best motivator of all!

                I sense that it’s time for the second seal. The first time round (in 1994), the Father came with the fire of his love and burned the seal of INTIMACY into the foundation stones of our hearts. The second time round, I believe that he is coming with the fire of his holiness, to burn the seal of PURITY into the foundation stones of our hearts.

                There is a lot more I could say, but I will end with a memory. The last time I spoke at an international conference at TACF was at the Father Loves You Conference in November 2003. During that trip I went out to see the Niagara Falls. When I arrived, I saw on the left side ofthe road the majestic raw power of the Falls being observed by wonder-struckvisitors. But on the other side I saw something very strange – a small, stagnant pond, with a number of people stood looking rather sleepily into it. I remember asking myself the question, ‘Why on earth would anyone want to look at a large puddle when they could see the mighty Falls just a few feet away?’ And I distinctly felt the Father say, ‘that’s what many in the church are like.They prefer to see me as safe rather than dangerous, stagnant rather than unstoppable, controllable rather than uncontainable, and miniscule rather than mighty’.

                C.S. Lewis said of Lucy’s relationship with Aslan, “whether it was more like playing with a thunderstorm or playing with a kitten Lucy could never make up her mind.”

                I sense we are about to see more of the thunderstorm and hear more of the mighty roar of the Falls!

May 18th 2009