Following Jesus to His House

David W Palmer

When Jesus submitted himself to John’s baptism, he experienced an open heaven, the Holy Spirit coming as a dove, and the voice of his Father affirming him. Jesus then yielded himself fully to the Holy Spirit in a close, personal, intimate relationship of love and submission. What did the wonderful Spirit of Holiness then do?

(Mark 1:12–13 NKJV) Immediately the Spirit drove Him into the wilderness. {13} And He was there in the wilderness forty days, tempted by Satan, and was with the wild beasts; and the angels ministered to Him.

We see that the first priority of a Spirit who is absolutely holy was that he “drove” Jesus “into the wilderness”—a wild barren place. Matthew explains:

(Matthew 4:1–2 NKJV) Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. {2} And when He had fasted forty days and forty nights, afterward He was hungry.

Holiness compelled Jesus into a wilderness for forty days of fasting so he could be “tempted (or tested) by the devil.” God put Jesus there to be tested, scrutinized, and enticed by Satan. This is amazing. We don’t often think of holiness along these lines—especially that a holy God would lead us to Satan to test and entice us; but this is what he did with Jesus. As we follow Jesus through baptism and on into relationship with the Holy Spirit, this is where following him will take us too. So we would be wise to heed both Jesus’s preparation for this in the word, and his winning ways in the wilderness over the tempter:

(Matthew 4:3–4 NKJV) Now when the tempter came to Him, he said, “If You are the Son of God, command that these stones become bread.” {4} But He answered and said, “It is written, ‘Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God.’”

This is the first of three specific and very real temptations that Jesus overcame. This one reveals not only his strategy for acing the inevitable tests, but how to prepare for them. Jesus’s immediate response was “Man shall … live by … every word … of God.” Yes, this revealed Jesus’s heart, his wisdom, and his life’s priority in preparation for that day. Our Lord later revealed that from the overflow of the heart the mouth speaks; so this statement clearly reveals the overflow of Jesus’s own heart—his life’s priority and focus to that time (See: Mat. 12:34, Luke 6:45).

Not only was Jesus the living Word, but he also lived in and by the word. We would be wise to follow his example in this lifestyle. Why? Because the wilderness and tests are real and unavoidable. (The unavoidable tests are the affliction and persecution that arises for the word’s sake; not the affliction felt by “fools” because of their “transgressions” and “iniquities.” (See: Mark 4:17, Psalm 107:17 NKJV))

Next we see that Jesus repelled the enemy’s attack of enticement and temptation with nothing but the word—the right word, at the right time, as led and empowered by the Holy Spirit. If we get the “holy” part of our relationship with the Holy Spirit right, then we can fully see his power, magnificence, and glory too. When he quickens a word to us, and when we speak it from the overflow of a faith-filled heart through unfeigned lips, “Glory” ensues. The power is infinite. Satan and his tests, temptations, and trials are no match for the omnipotent power of our close friend—the Holy Spirit.

Before the wilderness warfare, where the word won over the wimp, Jesus was “filled” with the Holy Spirit:

(Luke 4:1 NKJV) Then Jesus, being filled with the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan and was led by the Spirit into the wilderness.

But after his total triumph over the testing trials by standing on the truth, Jesus returned “in” the “power” of the Spirit:

(Luke 4:14 NKJV) Then Jesus returned in the power of the Spirit to Galilee, and news of Him went out through all the surrounding region.

This was when the visible, outward action began for others to see: “news of him went out.”

The Seven Letters, Jesus's Mid-Term Reports, Part 2

The Other Side of Glory … More Glory

David W Palmer

(Numbers 14:10 NLT) But the whole community began to talk about stoning Joshua and Caleb. Then the glorious presence of the LORD appeared to all the Israelites at the Tabernacle.

More than 80% of the called, gifted, appointed prophets—who had received a true word and vision from God—reported it in fear and unbelief. Their faithless, fearful spirit took hold of God’s people, and they refused to follow the true prophetic ministries of Caleb and Joshua. Instead they turned against Moses and Aaron (their leaders/pastors) and spoke of stoning them and the true prophets.

We can learn a lot from this incident:

First, we see the godly, humble ministry of true leaders: 

(Numbers 14:5, 17–21 NKJV) Then Moses and Aaron fell on their faces before all the assembly of the congregation of the children of Israel…. “And now, I pray, let the power of my Lord be great, just as You have spoken, saying, {18} ‘The LORD is longsuffering and abundant in mercy, forgiving iniquity and transgression; but He by no means clears the guilty, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children to the third and fourth generation.’ {19} Pardon the iniquity of this people, I pray, according to the greatness of Your mercy, just as You have forgiven this people, from Egypt even until now.” {20} Then the LORD said: “I have pardoned, according to your word; {21} but truly, as I live, all the earth shall be filled with the glory of the Lord.”

Initially, God expressed his upset at the people’s rejection of him and their 10th round of complaining against him. He therefore said he wanted to annihilate them all. But thankfully, Moses interceded on their behalf. After which, God said he pardoned them according to Moses’s word. But the consequences of their fearful unbelief and rejection of God’s love and provision still existed; they had to wander in the wilderness for 40 years until that whole generation died off. In truth, they were getting exactly what they had said:

(Numbers 14:1–3 NKJV) So all the congregation lifted up their voices and cried, and the people wept that night. {2} And all the children of Israel complained against Moses and Aaron, and the whole congregation said to them, “If only we had died in the land of Egypt! Or if only we had died in this wilderness! {3} Why has the LORD brought us to this land to fall by the sword, that our wives and children should become victims? Would it not be better for us to return to Egypt?”

The rebellious generation said they would be better off dying than entering God’s promised land. They got exactly what they said.

Moses pleaded with God to pardon them; he got exactly what he said. 

Caleb and Joshua said:

(Numbers 13:30 NKJV) Then Caleb quieted the people before Moses, and said, “Let us go up at once and take possession, for we are well able to overcome it.”

(Numbers 14:6–9 NKJV) But Joshua the son of Nun and Caleb the son of Jephunneh, who were among those who had spied out the land, tore their clothes; {7} and they spoke to all the congregation of the children of Israel, saying: “The land we passed through to spy out is an exceedingly good land. {8} If the LORD delights in us, then He will bring us into this land and give it to us, ‘a land which flows with milk and honey.’ {9} Only do not rebel against the LORD, nor fear the people of the land, for they are our bread; their protection has departed from them, and the LORD is with us. Do not fear them.”

Joshua and Caleb spoke for God; they said it was a good land and that they would be able to take it … now! It didn’t happen for them right there and then, but God was pleased with their faith; they got exactly what they said … even though the unbelief and fear of their generation delayed God’s promise to them for 40 years:

(Numbers 14:30 NKJV)

The Seven Letters, Jesus's Mid-Term Reports, Part 1

A Bad Report and Its Effects

David W Palmer

(Numbers 14:1–3 NLT) Then the whole community began weeping aloud, and they cried all night. {2} Their voices rose in a great chorus of protest against Moses and Aaron. “If only we had died in Egypt, or even here in the wilderness!” they complained. {3} “Why is the LORD taking us to this country only to have us die in battle? Our wives and our little ones will be carried off as plunder! Wouldn’t it be better for us to return to Egypt?”

Following the evil report of the more than 80% of the prophets, we see a litany of devastating and negative consequences:

This outrageous display of fear-driven, unbelieving demonic prophesying was an irresponsible dereliction of spiritual duty, and it was a complete rejection of God, his love, and his blessing. This was tantamount to the unforgivable sin:

(Hebrews 6:4–6 NKJV) For it is impossible for those who were once enlightened, and have tasted the heavenly gift, and have become partakers of the Holy Spirit, {5} and have tasted the good word of God and the powers of the age to come, {6} if they fall away, to renew them again to repentance, since they crucify again for themselves the Son of God, and put Him to an open shame.

As a result of the fearful, unbelieving report spread by the 10 faithless prophets, a whole generation completely lost their inheritance in God:

(Hebrews 3:16–19 NLT) And who was it who rebelled against God, even though they heard his voice? Wasn’t it the people Moses led out of Egypt? {17} And who made God angry for forty years? Wasn’t it the people who sinned, whose corpses lay in the wilderness? {18} And to whom was God speaking when he took an oath that they would never enter his rest? Wasn’t it the people who disobeyed him? {19} So we see that because of their unbelief they were not able to enter his rest.

Who were the 10 people who provoked this travesty with their preaching? They were the more than 80% of the gifted, recognized, honored leaders of the tribes of Israel. They were acknowledged by their people, recognized and empowered by Moses. And they were privileged by God to see the future he had for them. With God’s gift, the people’s empowering, and with having been shown by God the destiny of his people, they were then given a legitimate platform from which to report what God had shown them. In other words, they were genuine prophetic ministers and preachers. 

The twelve spies represent the true prophetic gifts of today—called, gifted, recognized, honored, and released into their ministries. God gave them all the privilege of seeing the future, and knowing his intention for his people. However, less than 20% of them actually returned from their vision of the future and proclaimed it in the spirit that God intended—fearless love and faith.

Beware of false prophets

Less than 20% Listen-Worthy Prophets

David W Palmer

(Numbers 13:30–31 NKJV) Then Caleb quieted the people before Moses, and said, “Let us go up at once and take possession, for we are well able to overcome it.” {31} But the men who had gone up with him said, “We are not able to go up against the people, for they are stronger than we.”

The Bible narrative of the twelve spies sent to spy out God’s Promised Land has a prophetic application today.

First, we see that all twelve were legitimate tribal leaders, chosen by God and authentically appointed by Moses:

(Numbers 13:1–3 NKJV) And the LORD spoke to Moses, saying, {2} “Send men to spy out the land of Canaan, which I am giving to the children of Israel; from each tribe of their fathers you shall send a man, every one a leader among them.” {3} So Moses sent them from the Wilderness of Paran according to the command of the LORD, all of them men who were heads of the children of Israel.

Next, we note that their mission was to spy out the Promised Land—to see God’s future plan for his people:

(Numbers 13:17–18 NKJV) Then Moses sent them to spy out the land of Canaan, and said to them, “Go up this way into the South, and go up to the mountains, {18} and see what the land is like.”

Twelve legitimate leaders, all appointed by Moses in conjunction with God, were sent on a prophetic mission. These men were not false leaders, illegitimate or self-appointed prophets; they were the very best on offer. God gave them the absolute privilege of seeing his future as he showed it to them.

After their privileged spying out of (seeing) God’s future for his people, their final responsibility was to report an accurate account of what they had seen. In other words, they represent gifted and graced prophets to whom God reveals his future intentions today. God certainly did his part; he showed them their future inheritance, and he promised them the land— “which I am giving to the children of Israel.” Their final responsibility was to report as true and faithful witnesses what they had seen of God’s intention. This tested their integrity and faithfulness of heart to report not only what they had seen, but also to communicate it in God’s spirit of love and faith. Their attempt at this is seen in the following passage:

(Numbers 13:26–29 NKJV) Now they departed and came back to Moses and Aaron and all the congregation of the children of Israel in the Wilderness of Paran, at Kadesh; they brought back word to them and to all the congregation, and showed them the fruit of the land. {27} Then they told him, and said: “We went to the land where you sent us. It truly flows with milk and honey, and this is its fruit. {28} Nevertheless the people who dwell in the land are strong; the cities are fortified and very large; moreover we saw the descendants of Anak there. {29} The Amalekites dwell in the land of the South; the Hittites, the Jebusites, and the Amorites dwell in the mountains; and the Canaanites dwell by the sea and along the banks of the Jordan.”

God’s prophets, to whom he gave a 40-day prophetic encounter of the future, gave their report. They described accurately what they had witnessed—a good, fruitful land of abundance. They also described the current [illegal] occupiers and pseudo guardians of the land. This was true. But sadly, like so many we will encounter today, they didn’t give it purely as God showed them; they mixed in their own fears and ideas. They polluted what God wanted said. 

In a twist, we see the ratio of prophets who truly prophesy what God wants said and those who mix fleshly impurities:

(Numbers 13:30 NKJV) Then Caleb quieted the people before Moses, and said, “Let us go up at once and take possession, for we are well able to overcome it.”

(Numbers 13:31–33 NKJV)

David W Palmer

(2 Thessalonians 2:7 TLB) As for the work this man of rebellion and hell will do when he comes, it is already going on, but he himself will not come until the one who is holding him back steps out of the way.

This has been an obscure passage at times, but the phrase, “Man of rebellion,” speaks of the work of the Antichrist—or the spirit of antichrist. John confirms that it is already hear and at work in the world around us:

(1 John 4:3 NLT) But if someone claims to be a prophet and does not acknowledge the truth about Jesus, that person is not from God. Such a person has the spirit of the Antichrist, which you heard is coming into the world and indeed is already here.

Once we acknowledge that there is a spirit of antichrist at work in the world right now—the spirit that works in the lives of men and women of the world, making them take their stand against the Lord Jesus Christ—then we look at who is “holding him back.” Certainly, someone needs to hold him back. For Father’s dream and Jesus’s mission is that the gospel reach every ethnic group; and this vision must be fulfilled before the full rule of antichrist on earth. So we need to see him held back for now and discover what, if any, is our responsibility in this.

According to our opening passage, the “man of rebellion” will not come until the one holding him back “steps out of the way.” Who is the “one” this refers to, and what does this last phrase mean? To understand, let’s look at this passage in a broader context:

(2 Thessalonians 2:1–7 NLT) Now, dear brothers and sisters, let us clarify some things about the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and how we will be gathered to meet him. {2} Don’t be so easily shaken or alarmed by those who say that the day of the Lord has already begun. Don’t believe them, even if they claim to have had a spiritual vision, a revelation, or a letter supposedly from us. {3} Don’t be fooled by what they say. For that day will not come until there is a great rebellion against God and the man of lawlessness is revealed—the one who brings destruction. {4} He will exalt himself and defy everything that people call god and every object of worship. He will even sit in the temple of God, claiming that he himself is God. {5} Don’t you remember that I told you about all this when I was with you? {6} And you know what is holding him back, for he can be revealed only when his time comes. {7} For this lawlessness is already at work secretly, and it will remain secret until the one who is holding it back steps out of the way.

Let’s now join some dots; to do this, we look at the opening verse of this passage and the verse that mentions the “one who is holding back.” It says that antichrist cannot rise until this one is not in his way:

(2 Thessalonians 2:1, 7 NKJV) Now, brethren, concerning the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our gathering together to Him ... {7} For the mystery of lawlessness is already at work; only He who now restrains will do so until He is taken out of the way.

In verse one, we see that Paul begins by talking about us— “We will be gathered to meet him.” This refers to Jesus’s born again, spirit filled church—who is gathered together to him [in the rapture]. So, in context, this is the “one” who is “taken out of the way.” In other words, the pure, spotless bride for whom Jesus is returning is the one exerting a force that is holding back the full manifestation of evil—the spirit of antichrist, personified in The Antichrist—in the lead up to Jesus’s glorious return. That’s you and me who love Jesus and who are led by his Spirit. Using his word in the authority of his name, by the anointing and leading of the Holy Spirit, we have the power to resist, hinder, and render inoperative the antichrist spirit and his evil.

Today, I encourage you to be active in this. You have Jesus’s righteousness, his authoritative word, his armor, his weapon, his mind, and his Spirit. You have what you need to do your part in this.

Jesus’s Glory Now in the New Era

David W Palmer

(John 1:14, 16 NKJV) And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth. ... {16} And of His fullness we have all received, and grace for grace.

Jesus has always said, “I will never leave you nor forsake you,” “I am with you always, even to the end of the age” (Heb. 13:5, Mat. 28:20 NKJV). Ever since we were born again, Jesus is always with us and in us by his Spirit. However, at times he appears to his disciples personally and tangibly. Although this wasn’t an every day happening, it is quite scriptural for Jesus to appear to his New Testament followers:

(Luke 24:36, 39 NKJV) … Jesus Himself stood in the midst of them, and said to them, “Peace to you.” ... {39} “Behold My hands and My feet, that it is I Myself. Handle Me and see, for a spirit does not have flesh and bones as you see I have.” (See also: John 20:10–30, 21:4–14, Acts 1:4–8)

The resurrected Lord Jesus Christ stood with his disciples in person. They could feel him and hear him talking to them. He also ate in their presence, and the food went into his body like any human being. Jesus was crucified in the flesh, died, and was buried; but he rose again—in his physical body—which is now glorified and can operate in both the physical and spiritual realm as he chooses. We note that he suddenly stood in the room, without entering through the door, but when he ate fish, it didn’t fall through as though he was a spirit:

(Luke 24:36, 41–43 NKJV) Now as they said these things, Jesus Himself stood in the midst of them ... {41} But while they still did not believe for joy, and marveled, He said to them, “Have you any food here?” {42} So they gave Him a piece of a broiled fish and some honeycomb. {43} And He took it and ate in their presence. 

Jesus appeared to his disciples and followers at other times after his resurrection, so it is quite scriptural for this to happen—although it hasn’t occurred very often for most of us, if ever. (See for example: John 20:19, Acts 9:5, 22:17–18). Yet, we shouldn’t be surprised that it has happened for others or even to ourselves.

More regularly, we may see Jesus in a vision or dream and have him talk to us; but even this is not usually a daily occurrence. However, Jesus promises the following to any of us, and it is available daily—but only to those who fulfill its conditions:

(Revelation 3:20 NKJV) “Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and dine with him, and he with Me.”

(John 14:21 NKJV) “He who has My commandments and keeps them, it is he who loves Me. And he who loves Me will be loved by My Father, and I will love him and manifest Myself to him.”

Jesus gave these special promises to all of his born again family, but only those who obey them become the privileged people who enjoy his closeness, companionship, family friendship, and conversational communion—intimacy with him. He feeds them spiritually as they honestly and lovingly open themselves to the truth and application of his word. They also obey what he says, and allow him to lead them as both Lord and Shepherd.

This experience is always available to those who love him, draw near to him, who love and obey him. This is always available in the spirit realm and can readily be experienced by those who receive it by faith.

The apostle John, who walked with Jesus in the flesh for three years, and who saw him in person on the Isle of Patmos—where he received the book of Revelation—spoke of him in this way:

(1 John 1:1–4 NLT)