Dear friends,
I pray things are well with you. As I woke up this morning the Lord was speaking. He brought to mind Hebrews 4:12. I want to share with you this morning what the Lord was giving to me. Prayerfully consider these things.

For the word of God is living and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit, and of joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart. Hebrews 4:12

In 1 Kings 3:16-27 we see a spiritual picture of this verse in action. Two harlots came before the king for him to make a judgement. One had lain on her baby during the night and accidentally killed him. She took the other ladies’ baby and claimed it for her own. These were ladies of the night and a nursing baby was a means of birth control. They came before Solomon wanting a decision as to which woman the baby belonged. The king asked for a sword and then gave orders for the child to be cut in half with each woman getting half. The one lady would rather give the child up than for it to be killed while the woman who had stolen the baby would rather the baby die than be exposed. The sword revealed the thoughts and intents of the heart. The baby was given to the woman who was willing to give him up rather than see him die. The truth was revealed by the sword.

And there is no creature hidden from His sight, but all things are naked and open to the eyes of Him to whom we must give account. Hebrews 4:13

Therefore do not fear them. For there is nothing covered that will not be revealed, and hidden that will not be known. Matthew 10:26

This is what the Lord put on my heart: The hearts of men will be laid bare. Wickedness will be exposed. That which has been hidden will be revealed to all. The intents of the heart will be revealed. We will again see the days of Ananias and Sapphira as the fear of the Lord is restored. 1Kings 3:28 And all Israel heard of the judgement which the king had rendered; and they feared the king, for they saw that the wisdom of God was in him to administer justice. Godly justice brings the fear of the Lord. It is a time of purifying our hearts; it is a time of purifying our motives. Though I had a sense that the primary application was to leaders in America it certainly applies to the Christian community.

For the time has come for judgement to begin at the house of God; and if it begins with us first, what will be the end of those who do not obey the gospel of God? 1Peter 4:17

It begins first with us. This is not a message of gloom and doom. The heart must first be revealed before it can be healed. God desires to bring healing. His peace is everything set right. The revelation of His glory exposes that which is not glorious. Wickedness must first be exposed before it is destroyed. When the wicked spring up like grass, and when all the workers of iniquity flourish, it is that they may be destroyed forever. Psalms 92:7 It truly is a message of hope.

I have often looked at 2 Chronicles 7:14 as a formula for national revival, but as I was studying for a teaching the other day I saw it in a different light. I remembered how a great teacher, Alan Vincent, who had once been an atheistic scientist before getting saved, shared the fact that an element such as copper will always test copper whether it is a bar, a crystal, or a molecule. He went on to say that everything that is kingdom will apply at every level whether it be an individual, a family, a church, or a nation. We can apply that verse to ourselves individually. If Herb Dean who is called by My name will humble himself and pray and seek My face, and turn from His wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven and will forgive his sin and heal his land (soul). parentheses mine. Some may say that’s old covenant; that we are the righteousness of God in Christ Jesus. I say, yes, and amen. I am not wicked; I’ve been given a new heart, but there are still areas of my life where I struggle with my flesh or am I the only one? There are times I’ve had selfish motives, times when I have rejoiced at the fall of my enemies, times when I envied the success of others. Yes, it is true there is wickedness in my flesh and sometimes carnality in my thinking. This must be brought into the captivity of Christ. Humility, prayer, seeking, confession, and turning are as relevant now as in the old covenant and praise God we have the Spirit inside us and His enabling grace to do it. Can we expect the heathen to change if we are unwilling or unable ourselves. I had not intended to get into all that, but just to say we are entering a season of the revealing of hearts.

As I said earlier, weigh these things prayerfully. God is moving. It is a time of transition and God is desirous to move each of us to new levels of glory. I appreciate all of you and am always thankful for your encouragement. If I can be of any assistance to you send me a note.
In His love,
Herb Dean

Dear friends,

I pray that you are well. I have not written in a while, but we are well. We have seen God wonderfully answer some of our prayers that we had persistently prayed for a long time. I am thankful I have a Father who hears and answers our prayer at the appropriate time. Though these are difficult times for many in the body of Christ I believe we are on the threshold of a great spiritual breakthrough. He is calling us to Himself, calling us to prayer, and when He calls us to pray, we know He will answer. I hope you will be encouraged by this message today.

As they pass through the Valley of Baca, they make it a spring; the rain also covers it with pools.

Psalms 84:6

How often I have read this psalm and on many occasions have sung parts of it, but the passage about the Valley of Baca never meant much. The Lord really spoke to me through it recently. I had never really thought about the Valley of Baca. As this passage of scripture was illumined to me I began meditating on it and looked up the Valley of Baca. Baca is actually a type of plant known for its ability to survive dry places. So what we see being described in Psalms 84 is the pilgrimage of life for those who have found the intimacy with God that the psalmist begins the psalm yearning for. It describes those who intimately know their God and are continually praising Him. In this pilgrimage of life heading toward the New Jerusalem we pass through dry places. Some of you may be in a wilderness or dry place in your lives right now.

A year or so ago, I was visiting a church in another city and I was complaining about how dry the area where I was living was. One of the elders who is very prophetic said that he was familiar with the area and that it was indeed a dry place and that the Lord was calling us to dig new wells. How do you dig a new well? As I pondered on that, I felt that it was pressing into God, seeking Him whole-heartedly, and developing an intimacy with Him. I believe that is true, but oftentimes the natural is a picture of the spiritual. To dig a well, you have to remove a lot of dirt to get to the water; sometimes you have to move or go through stone.

One morning in my quiet time, the Lord asked me, “Is it Middle Georgia that’s dry or is it you?” I thought about it and  came to the realization that it was both me and Middle Georgia that was dry, but it was not the fault of Middle Georgia that I was dry. Maybe it was dry because I was dry. I could give many reasons or probably better said excuses like hurts and disappointments in ministry, unfulfilled prophetic words, betrayals, and misunderstandings that  had made me less and less intimate with the Lord. My prayer life was not what it had been at one time. It was necessary to redig the well in my own life that I might begin to dig new wells in Middle Georgia.

I cannot say that it is my responsibility to bring revival to this area, but I do have a responsibility to be a conduit through which the Spirit of God flows. Jesus said, “He who believes in Me, as the scripture has said, out of his heart will flow rivers of living water.” John 7:38  It is obvious from what Jesus said that other scriptures make reference to this. There are many scriptures that talk about rivers and water. In Ezekiel 47 we see the small stream of water flowing from the threshold of the temple that became a huge body of life-giving water. Are we not the temple of the Holy Spirit from which this live-giving water flows? In the Psalms 46:4 it says “There is a river whose streams shall make glad the city of God.” Are we not tributaries of that river?

The kingdom of God came in power when the Spirit of God was poured out at Pentecost. The kingdom is in the Spirit. Jesus said the kingdom of God is in you. He told his disciples that when they entered a place to heal the sick and to say that the kingdom of God has come nigh. If we have become conduits of the Holy Spirit then the kingdom comes wherever we go. We must all pass through our Valley of Baca and we will either impact it for the kingdom or we will be impacted by it. If we are not flowing in the Spirit we will be drained dry and become like our surroundings, but if we are flowing in the Spirit we make springs in it. I have heard it said that water attracts water. We make it a spring, but look at the second part of the verse. The rain covers it with pools. The Spirit of God within us attracts the presence of God. God promises to make streams in the desert and pools in the wilderness and He chooses to pour Himself out through you.

You may be in a very dry place. God has put you there to make a difference. You may have to re-dig old wells or dig new ones. There may be a little dirt or a lot. There may be some stones that have to be removed, but there is an abundant source of water sufficient to turn your dry place into a well-watered garden. You may be the stream that your dry land is waiting for. We had close to a nine inch rainfall deficit since the first of the year and over the past three weeks we have had so much rain we made up the deficit. Last Wednesday at our prayer meeting a young man said, “The drought is over.”  I inquired as to whether he was talking about the natural or the spiritual and he said the spiritual. The next night the local meteorologist declared that the drought was over. I could not help, but believe that was a confirming word. If the Spirit of God who raised Jesus Christ from the dead dwells in you, He can change the environment through you. May God fill you with Himself today that all who encounter you may encounter life-giving water.

In his love,

Herb Dean

Dear friends,

Grace and peace be multiplied to you. Having already entered the second half of an election year, things have really begun to heat up. As I listened to a little of the morning news and much of it being political rhetoric, I had this thought, “God is not a republican or a democrat.” There would be those who would say He favors republicans and others would say He favors the democrats. Those who care what He thinks might be tempted to ask Him whose side He is on. That brought a few scripture verses to mind that I thought might be appropriate for this season.

“Whoever is on the Lord’s side___come to me! Exodus 32:26b

These were Moses’ words after he had come down from the mountain and broken the tablets of the law in anger. Only the Levites gathered to him. He sent them forth with swords to slay those were caught in sin. 3000 men were slain. The day the law came and was broken 3000 died by the sword. The day the Spirit came in power at Pentecost 3000 were saved. The letter kills but the Spirit gives life. The kingdom came in power just as Jesus had told His disciples.

And it came to pass, when Joshua was by Jericho, that he lifted his eyes and looked, and behold, a Man stood opposite him with his sword drawn in His hand. And Joshua went to Him and said to Him, “Are you for us or for our adversaries?” So He said, “No, but as Commander of the army of the Lord I have now come.” And Joshua fell on his face to the earth and worshiped, and said to Him, “What does my Lord say to His servant?” Joshua 5:13,14

As one brother put it, the Lord didn’t come to take sides, He came to take over. If we are asking the Lord whose side He’s on then we are asking the wrong question. We should ask ourselves “Are we on the Lord’s side?”

Jesus answered, “My kingdom is not of this world. If my kingdom were of this world, My servants would fight, so that I should not be delivered to the Jews; but now My kingdom is not from here.” John 18:36

We serve a government that is not from this world. The kingdom we serve is in the Spirit. So what do we know about the kingdom.

Flesh and blood cannot inherit it. 1Cor. 15:50

Those who practice the works of the flesh cannot inherit it. Galatians 5:19-21

It is not in word, but in power. 1Cor. 4:20

It is not eating or drinking, but righteousness, peace, and joy in the Holy Spirit. Romans 14:17

The Kingdom of God is simply the domain, the rule, reign, dominion, of the King. The Kingdom of God is here and Jesus is the king.

We are citizens of a spiritual kingdom. Does that mean we should not have anything to do with earthly government? No, in 1 Peter 2, Peter gave some instruction as to how we are to live here, though we are sojourners and pilgrims. Should we neglect the privileges of citizenship because we are subject to the King of Kings? No, exercise those privileges and heed especially the exhortation of Paul. Therefore I exhort first of all that supplications, prayers, intercessions and giving of thanks be made for all men, for kings and all who are in authority, that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and reverence. For this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior, 1 Timothy 2: 1-3

If we are citizens of the kingdom we will be exemplary citizens here.

Can a political party solve a nation’s ills? Absolutely not, our nation is kind of like Humpty Dumpty and Obama and his party, nor McCain and his party can put it together again, but the King can. As we look at soaring oil prices, inflation, deflating home values, war, and division; what must we do? Two passages come to mind:

Seek ye first the kingdom of God and His righteousness and all these things shall be added unto you. Matthew 6:33

The things in the context of this verse is our physical needs. If we put the rule of the king first in every area of life, then your need will be met in that area. In every area of life that the King reigns there is the provision of the King.

He who is faithful in what is least is faithful also in much; and he who is unjust in what is least is unjust also in much. Therefore if you have not been faithful in the unrighteous mammon who will commit to your trust the true spiritual riches? No servant can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or else he will be loyal to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon. Luke 16: 10-13.

What are true spiritual riches? Wisdom, peace, understanding, love, and joy to name a few. Could it just be that the reason these guys go to Washington and then act like there is something funny in the water up there is because they have wrong priorities? Just a thought. Many have not been faithful with what they have been given. It is time to seek His reign; his righteousness. Righteousness exalts a nation.

Yes, why don’t we ask ourselves, “Are we on the Lord’s side?” The great thing about being on the Lord’s side is that you always win. Love never fails. And the other great thing about being on the Lord’s side is that when you are on His side, He’s also on yours.

If it had not been the Lord Who was on our side, let Israel now say–“If it had not been the Lord Who was on our side, when men rose up against us, then they would have swallowed us alive, when their wrath was kindled against us; then the waters would have overwhelmed us, the stream would have gone over our soul; then the swollen waters would have gone over our soul.” Our soul has escaped as a bird from the snare of the fowlers; the snare is broken and we have escaped. Our help is in the name of the Lord, who made heaven and earth. Psalms 124

Lord, we choose to be on your side.

Blessings,

Herb Dean

Dear friends,

My hope is that you are walking in the blessing of the Lord. Many are facing difficult situations and the help of man is futile. I believe we are in a season of God calling His people to prayer. That is a great encouragement to me because the precursor to outpourings of the Spirit in the past was almost always prayer. In the middle of the 19th century church attendance was dropping, slavery had become a volatile issue, the economy was bad, and the country was becoming increasingly divided. In September, 1857, six men gathered in New York City to pray. A few days later the bank of Philadelphia failed. A couple of weeks later the stock market crashed. Within 6 months there were 10,000 people praying in that prayer meeting at the noon hour. Similar meetings sprung up in other parts of the country. The revivals that were birthed as a result helped prepare the United States for one of its most tragic periods in history. I am not saying that there is some sort of tragedy looming ahead and that is why we must pray. There could be, but we must pray because we are compelled; we are drawn to deeper levels of intimacy with the Father. We must pray, for our nation has turned from Him, who in His sovereignty birthed this great nation. Again today I would like to share a few thoughts on prayer. We serve a God whose ear is not deaf, nor are His arms short.

Elijah was a man with a nature like ours, and he prayed earnestly that it would not rain; and it did not rain on the land for 3 years and six months. And he prayed again, and the heaven gave rain, and the earth produced its fruit. James 5:17,18

Let’s first look at Elijah.

1. Elijah was an ordinary man. James is making a point that Elijah was just like us. He was saying Elijah was not an angel; he was not a god. We see him the day after his great victory on Mt. Carmel thoroughly depressed and wallowing in self-pity. He was an ordinary man with an extraordinary God. James wants us

to know that even as Elijah prayed and affected the climate, our prayers can affect great change.

2. Elijah prayed. He prayed expecting results. We must pray with expectation. If we pray and don’t expect that God will answer; He probably won’t. Sometimes in His mercy He moves, but the principle in the kingdom that moves God is faith. Then Elijah said to Ahab, “Go up, eat and drink; for there is the sound of abundance of rain.” 1 Kings 19:41 He said this before he began praying.

3. Elijah persisted. He went up to the top of Mt. Carmel to pray. He put his head between his knees on the ground, which I don’t know , but have been told is the Hebrew birthing position and that this is a picture of birthing things in intercession. That would go right along with the acrostic:

PUSH

Pray

Until

Something

Happens

He sent his servant to check for rain clouds. When he returned the first time saying he saw nothing, he sent him back seven more times and the seventh time, which would have been eight in all, the servant said that he saw a cloud the size of a man’s hand. Eight is the number of new beginnings. He did not quit until he knew the answer was on its way.

James was using Elijah as an illustration of what he had said in the portion of the verse listed in the heading. Prayer makes a difference. The Amplified Bible says it like this: The earnest (heartfelt, continued) prayer of a righteous man makes tremendous power available [dynamic in its working].

James 5:16b

How does that apply to you? Do you believe your prayer will avail much? Some would say, “I’m not righteous.” Are you born again? If you are, then you are righteous not by virtue of what you have done but by receiving by faith what Christ has done for you. If you are saved you have become the righteousness of God in Christ Jesus. By virtue of your position in Him you are righteous and you can pray your earnest, heartfelt,

Spirit-inspired prayers, and expect results. Expect your prayers to be dynamic in their working. As I said earlier our Father’s ears are not dull. He’s not hard of hearing and His arms are not short. Our God is mighty to save. May we see again a mighty outpouring of His Spirit in this land. Be blessed.

In His love,

Herb Dean

Dear friends,

Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. It has been some time since I have written. I don’t want to write unless it is something that God has laid on my heart to write. I know if that is the case it will minister to someone, and oftentimes me, as I began to meditate on what I feel the Lord is saying. I hope these words will be an encouragement to you today. It is truly a season when it is increasingly important to hear the Father.May the Lord fine tune our hearing as we seek His face.

Aaron shall burn on it sweet incense every morning; when he tends the lamps, he shall burn incense on it. And when Aaron lights the lamps at twilight, he shall burn incense on it, a perpetual incense before the Lord throughout your generations. Exodus 30:7,8

The “it” in this verse is the altar of incense which was positioned before the veil of Tabernacle that separated the Holy Place from the Most Holy Place or Holy of Holies where the ark of the Testimony was kept. The Ark represented the presence and glory of God. Every morning Aaron would tend the lamps to make sure that they kept burning. Lamps or light are types of revelation. We see in the days of Eli that the lamp of God was about to go out when the Lord spoke to Samuel as a boy. (1 Samuel 7) In the first verse of that chapter it says that the word of the Lord was rare in those days and that there was no widespread revelation. When Aaron was tending the lamps he was also to burn incense on the incense altar in the morning and the evening. The incense was to burn perpetually before the Lord.

So what is the relevance of this for us today. First, we must consider what incense is a type of. I believe I can safely say that incense represents prayer. Look at Revelation 5:8. Now when He had taken the scroll, the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders fell down before the Lamb, each having a harp, and golden bowls of incense, which are the prayers of the saints. Just as the smoke and fragrance of the incense burning wafted over the veil to where the ark was, so are the prayers of believers today. They come up before His throne as a sweet smelling aroma before God. Let’s look at a couple of other points and see how they relate to us today.

The incense was to be burned every morning and every evening. Some would say it is legalistic to say we need to pray every morning and every night. I am not saying you have to do that, but what better way is there to start the day than praying to the Lord and what better way to end the day than prayer. One Christian leader said,” I have so much to do today, I need to pray twice as long.” The fact is, the incense was burning perpetually so it is much more akin to the word of Paul in Thessalonians 5:17. Pray without ceasing.

If Jesus only did what He saw the Father doing and spoke what He heard the Father speaking then He must have been continually in tune to the Father. I believe it was Smith Wigglesworth who said, “I never pray more that 20 minutes, but I never go more than 20 minutes without praying.

There are a number of scriptures that do mention day and night, or morning and evening prayer and I want to look at a few of those, but I don’t think it’s about praying specific times as much as it is making prayer a continuous action.

I have set watchmen on your walls, O Jerusalem; they shall never hold their peace day or night. You who make mention of the Lord, do not keep silent, and give Him no rest till He establishes and till He makes Jerusalem a praise in the earth. Isaiah 62:6,7 I believe the role of a watchman is being an intercessor.

Other scriptures: Nehemiah 1:6; Psalms 55:17; Psalms 88:1: Luke 2:37: 1 Thessalonians 3:10: 2 Timothy 1:3.

There is one more passage I want to look at and that is Jesus’ words in Luke 18. I felt as I was writing this that there are some people who have become discouraged and have withdrawn from battle. If ever there was a time for us to push through in prayer, I believe it is now. I believe that we are beginning to see the kingdom advancing and there are walls which have separated God’s people and kept them from reaching the help they need. The battering ram is prayer and the walls are being struck repeatedly. There is not much damage evident, but the molecules of these walls are vibrating with each repeated blow and they will come down if we do not stop. We don’t want to be like King Joash who struck the ground only three times (2 Kings 13) when he could have kept striking the ground and insured complete victory.

Then He spake a parable to them, that men ought always to pray and not lose heart. Luke 18:1. The parable was about the unjust judge and the widow. If an unjust judge will grant this widow vengeance; what about our Father who loves us so much. Jesus said, “And shall God not avenge His own elect who cry out day and night to Him, though He bears long with them?” Luke 18:7

Do not be discouraged, God hears the prayers of His saints; don’t give up!

May the Lord bless and encourage you this day.

In His service,

Herb Dean

Dear friends,

I hope you are well. This morning there were some things weighing heavy on me and I felt myself becoming discouraged. While taking a shower this morning I was meditating on both the good and the bad, when I began to think about the enemy being under our feet. The part of the verse above came to mind and I found myself encouraged by the word. My mind was flooded with scriptures where the enemy was put on his belly. I felt like this might encourage someone today so I am putting together some of the thoughts the Lord gave me. Be blessed today.

And the God of peace will soon crush Satan underneath your feet. Romans 16:20

So the Lord God said to the serpent: “Because you have done this, you are cursed more than all cattle, and more than every beast of the field; on your belly you shall go, and you shall eat dust all the days of your life. And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your seed and her Seed; He shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise His heel.” Genesis 3:14-15

From the curse in the garden the position of our enemies has been upon their belly, underneath our feet. When we were saved we were seated in Him in heavenly places far above all principality and power and might and dominion. Positionally we are above and not beneath. We war from a position of victory. For some of these references I will give just a brief explanation of what happened in order to save time.

1. In Joshua Chapter 10 Joshua went to war against the five Amorite kings. the Israelites trapped them in a cave until after the battle was over. After the battle was over Joshua commanded his captains to put their feet on the necks of those kings. In verse 25 Joshua said, “Do not be afraid, nor be dismayed; be strong and of good courage, for thus the Lord will do to all your enemies against whom you fight.” Then he killed them.

2. In 1 Samuel Chapter 5 the Philistines had captured the ark of God and they had placed it in the temple of Dagon. When they went in the next morning Dagon had fallen on his face before the ark of the Lord. They put him back in place and the next day Dagon was again fallen on its face before the ark of the Lord, but this time the head and hands of Dagon were broken off on the threshold so that only the torso remained. Upon thy belly shalt thy go!

3. In 1Samuel 17 David fought Goliath and when the stone struck Goliath’s forehead he fell on his face to the earth and David then stood over him, took Goliath’s sword and cut off his head.

4. Psalms 18:39-40 “For You have armed me with strength for the battle; You have subdued under me those who rose up against me. You have also given me the necks of my enemies so that I destroyed those who hated me.”

5. Malachi 4: 2,3 “But to you who fear my name the Sun of Righteousness shall arise with healing in His wings; and you shall go out and grow fat like stall-fed calves. You shall trample the wicked, for they shall ashes under the soles of your feet on the day I do this, says the Lord of Hosts.”

6. Luke 10:19 “Behold I give you authority to trample on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy, and nothing shall by any means hurt you.”

7. Romans 16: 20 ” and the God of peace will soon crush Satan underneath your feet.”

The assigned position of the enemy is on His belly and our position is for our feet to be upon the necks of our enemies. These enemies are not flesh and blood (though it may seem so sometimes), but principalities and powers, spiritual wickedness in high places. Jesus spoiled them at Calvary crushing the head of Satan. Do they still have power? Yes, but it is the power of agreement. When we agree with their lies we give them authority. We must align ourselves with what God has said. Submit yourselves therefore to God; resist the devil and He will flee. James 4:7. I was greatly encouraged by meditating on these truths and I hope you will be as well. The God of peace will soon crush Satan underneath our feet. Be exceedingly blessed.

In His love,

Herb Dean

Dear friends,

Greetings to you in the name of our Lord. Today I would like to share a few thoughts on spiritual warfare. These thoughts will be different from most you’ve heard. I pray that this will be an encouragement to you and that you will prayerfully consider these words.

Having disarmed principalities and powers, He made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them in it. Col. 2:15

The event described above was the greatest single act of spiritual warfare and apart from this all attempts to overcome the enemy are vain. The event ,of course, was the crucifixion of Jesus Christ. How was it that this act spoiled the principalities and powers and crushed the very head of satan? I’ll attempt to answer that question, but first let me share what my idea of spiritual warfare was. I would pray loud, energetic prayers rebuking this spirit and that demon, pulling down this principality and power and that principality and power. It was often invigorating, but there was very little change. I also got beat up a few times. Over the years the Lord began to show me that there were spheres of authority and that the only way to displace principalities and powers was corporate repentance. It is repentance that prepares the way of the kingdom.

For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that He might destroy the works of the devil. 1 John 3:8b

The Bible clearly states that the purpose of Jesus was to destroy the works of the devil. The word destroy in the Greek is the word “luo” which means to loose what is bound. Jesus came to release us from the bondage of sin, the bondage of sin in which the enemy had us bound. What was His message?

From that day Jesus began to preach and say, ” Repent for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.” Matt. 4:17

Jesus preached and demonstrated the kingdom of God (the rule, reign, and dominion of God). As He demonstrated kingdom authority people were healed and delivered from the oppression of the devil. Many expected Him to establish His earthly kingdom and there would be peace and prosperity, but Jesus clearly stated that the kingdom didn’t come with signs to be observed and that His kingdom was not of this world. The kingdom was in the Spirit and He (the Holy Spirit) could not come to be in them and upon them unless Jesus went away. They couldn’t understand why He must go away. His talking about His dying fell on deaf ears or in the case of Peter was adversely reacted to. He had taught and modeled the way we were to live and now His time was at hand. There had to be a deathblow to sin and satan. The justice of God had to be satisfied. This could only be accomplished by the perfect Lamb of God.

For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him. 2 Cor. 5:21

Jesus became sin for us that the body of sin might be destroyed, that we should no longer be enslaved to sin. Luo (loosed)
Satan the epitome of pride, selfishness, anger, and hatred had his works made a spectacle of in the ultimate act of selflessness, humility, compassion, and love.

But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Much more then having now been justified by His blood, we shall be saved from wrath through Him. For if when we were enemies we were reconciled to God through the death of His Son, much more, having been reconciled, we shall be saved by His life. Romans 5:8-10

It was love that put Jesus on the cross. For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten son that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life. John 3:16

Agape, The God kind of love, the selfless, humble, compassionate love overcomes the selfish hateful antithesis of love. Love is the greatest weapon of spiritual warfare.

There was another great factor in this greatest act of spiritual warfare and that was obedience. The father of rebellion and lies had his works made a public spectacle by the ultimate act of obedience.

He (Jesus) humbled Himself and became obedient to the point of death, even the death of the cross. Phil. 2:9

I was reading in Proverbs 28 one day and the Lord quickened some things in my spirit. In verse 2 it says, Because of the transgression of a land, many are its princes. The thought hit me that in the spiritual the sins of the people gives principalities legal right to invade. It is the repentance of the people and the acknowledgement of what Jesus has done that displaces these powers. Then in verse 4 He showed me something else. Those who forsake the law praise the wicked. I know we are not under law, but look at the principle. Those who disobey the word of the Lord are bringing praise to satan’s hordes. The second part of the verse says, But such as keep the law contend with them. Those who walk in obedience to the word of the Lord do battle with the enemy. Obedience is spiritual warfare.

Are there times when we bind and loose or take authority over enemies? Yes. Within the sphere of authority we have been given we should be casting out demons and pulling down strongholds in obedience to Him. We never see in scripture Jesus or Paul rebuking principalities and powers, but we do see them declaring the kingdom (the rule, reign, and dominion of God), casting out demons, healing the sick, raising the dead and so must we. When a demon is cast out, a sick person healed, or a lost person saved the kingdom has come in your midst.

Remember this: Hope will sustain you, faith will make you an overcomer, but love will make you more than a conqueror.

And now abide faith, hope, and love, these three; but the greatest of these is love. 1 Cor. 13:13

Yet in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us. Romans 8:37

Be blessed today my friends.

In His love,

Herb Dean

Dear friends,

I pray you are being blessed of the Lord. We are entering some difficult times. The dollar’s value is dropping causing prices to rise. Gas is racing toward four dollars a gallon. The threat of terrorism looms like a dark cloud, as we near an election that seems to be increasingly pivotal in the future of our nation. We could look at circumstances and become depressed. Take heart; God is not in heaven worrying or wringing His hands. He has not abdicated His throne. The glad tidings of the kingdom is that our God reigns and where He reigns there is righteousness, peace, and joy in the Holy Spirit. The psalmist says that when the foundations be destroyed the Lord is still in His holy temple. It is a time when we need to press into Him, wait upon Him, and hear His voice. Yes, it is a time of crisis, but to those who know His voice it is a time of great opportunity. Today, I would like to share a few thoughts about intimacy with God.

Several years ago, I was preaching from Luke 6 and as I was preaching I saw there were several groups of people represented there. The Lord put in my spirit that there are levels of intimacy. As I pondered this idea I thought of some passages in the old testament. In Exodus the people would see Moses go out to the Tent of Meeting. They would see the cloud come down and they would worship from afar, but Joshua would go with him. When Moses left the tent Joshua remained. Is it any wonder that God chose him to replace Moses when Moses died. So many choose to worship from afar, but hearing is a matter of proximity. God does not usually speak in a shout, but a still small voice. He wants us to draw near. James says if we draw near to God, He’ll draw near to us. I believe that within Israel we see a shadow of the levels of intimacy.

Israel (Those who have become sons of Abraham by faith in the finished work of the Lord Jesus Christ).
Within Israel there was Judah and within Judah there was Jerusalem, the Holy city and within Jerusalem there was Mount Zion. On Mount Zion there was built David’s tabernacle and in David’s tabernacle there was no veil. The Ark of the Covenant which represented the presence and glory of God, could be accessed by those who were not high priests. It pointed to the tearing of the veil of the temple when Jesus died. It may very well have been that David wrote Psalms 91 in the shadow of the Ark of the Covenant. “He that dwelleth in the secret place of the most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty.” Psalms 91:1

Now how does this relate to what the Lord showed in Luke 6?

First there was the crowd. Within that crowd there were some believers. They believed Jesus was the Messiah. Among those believers were some who had committed their lives to follow Christ and walk in obedience to His word. They were disciples. Within that group of disciples there were the twelve whom Jesus had chosen, eleven who were apostles. Within that group of apostles there were three that got very close to Jesus. These three, Peter, James, and John went with Him when He healed Jairus’ daughter. They were with Him on the Mount of Transfiguration. They went deeper into the garden the night of His arrest. Even within that group there was the one who on the night of the Last Supper had his head on Jesus’ chest. John called himself the disciple whom Jesus loved. It wasn’t that Jesus didn’t love the others; it was the fact that John knew he was loved and was so secure in that love that he could lay his head on Jesus’ chest. He was so close he could hear the very heartbeat of Jesus.

Friends, we are living in a time when we must hear the heartbeat of our Father. Hearing is a matter of proximity and I believe God speaks softly so we will have to get closer to hear. We must hear the voice of the Father. If we are hearing Him, crisis becomes opportunity, but before it comes as opportunity, it comes as a summons, our Father’s desire for us to draw near to Him. Oh, that we might all be able to say with John, “I am the disciple whom Jesus loved”, or with David, “He that dwelleth in the secret place of the most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty.” The Father is calling to us, “Come.”

Friends, I pray the Lord will prosper you even as He prospered Isaac and provoked his enemies to jealousy, that you might live a life for which the only explanation is God. Be blessed.

In His love,

Herb Dean