The New Temple

The New Temple

The Lord is in the process of building a new temple. As Peter says, a temple not built with hands. This temple is a holy temple comprised of holy vessels of the Lord. Yeshua has recently spoken three things to me. All three are from the Scripture.

And

I Kings 10:20  And twelve lions stood there on the one side and on the other upon six steps: there was not the like made in any kingdom

And

I Kings 10:21  And all king Solomon’s drinking vessels were of gold, and all the vessels of the house of the forest of Lebanon were of pure gold; none were of silver: it was nothing account- of in the days of Solomon.

In this temple will dwell the mediatorial authority of the Melchizedek priesthood and the reigning authority of the King of kings.

This temple will be comprised of holy living stones of pure gold: stones who have been tried, tested, and purified in the fire of Messiah. They will be devout people who have separated themselves from the world and are pleased to live wholly for Yahveh. Through these transparent living stones, our Father will show forth His glory. Yes, they will shine in the radiant splendor of holiness. They will be fully equipped with the fruits of righteousness and the gifts of the Spirit to minister in the glorious love of Yahveh.

The first Scripture tells us that Yeshua is building a throne of ivory overlaid with gold. This speaks of the beauty of a divine purity that the vessels that will bear the great King’s authority will know. The gold speaks of the highest authority available to man through Messiah. They will have experienced such a deep firing process which purged them of the lower elements of the world so that the Holy King can afford to grace them with such authority. They will have the highest authority in the body of Messiah. Further, they will have authority over high levels of principalities and powers, over nations, and over the elements of nature. As the Bible says They will be crowned with glory and honor. However, although they will sit in this high and lofty place, they will be men and women of deep humility and meekness. The Bible says that Yeshua’s throne is established in righteousness. Surely these devout people will give righteous judgement. Their judgement will be sure and will be attested to by Yahveh Himself with great signs and wonders.  So great will these signs be that the world itself will stand in fear of them.

The second Scripture tells us that descending from the throne were twelve lions, six lions on each side. I have been the subject of several visitations from the Lion of Judah. In each visitation I have been given to see His great power and holiness. I am always filled with the fear of the Lord when I am in His presence. Even so, these lions speak of a peculiar mantel that the future leadership will bear. It is the mantel of the seven Spirits of Yahveh. It speaks of the perfect government of the Lord in His Church.

Spirit of Yahveh: this is not the same as say the baptism of the Holy Spirit. It is indicative of entrance into the adult sonship. Comparatively few will therein enter as the price to be an adult son is very high. This sonship bears with it the creative word and the great working of miracles.  Spirit of wisdom: This is a high wisdom that comes from having the mind of Messiah. In fact, the understanding and knowledge that is associated with this mantel all are derived from having the mind and revelation of Messiah. None but those who enter this high and holy place of abiding called the adult sonship will experience the value of these graces. Those who bear it will experience frequent visitations for the purpose of building up the body of Messiah and bringing judgement upon the world. Spirit of counsel and might speak of the divine counsel coming from behind the veil. Counsel that is usually given through divine instruction and can by no means be obtained by matters of the flesh or natural thinking. With this counsel comes a divine might to fulfill the plans and purposes of the Lord. Finally, the fear of the Lord wraps this mantel in perfect harmony. The fear of the Lord rests upon them in such a manner that they walk in perfect obedience. When they speak the word of the Lord, their words will bear this same anointing causing their hearers to fear the Lord in holiness.

The third Scripture tells us that all the drinking vessels will be of gold. Those who will be vessels of honor in this great move will be vessels of gold through which Yeshua will pour out His greatest and highest wine. Vessels of silver may experience the anointing and be used by Yeshua. But only those who have experienced the purging fires deeply and thoroughly enough to make them vessels of gold will be used to deliver the best wine for the Church and the world.

My admonition based upon the revelation is to quickly prepare for the great coming presence of the Lord while there is still time. In this way you will not be left behind when He begins to demonstrate His glory through prepared vessels.

May Yahveh Bless You,

Nita (Lafond) Johnson

HOPE FOR A HOPELESS PEOPLE

BY
Nita (LaFond) Johnson

In our last newsletter we shared many things with you about India. Many of you responded with gifts of love contributing to the Lord’s vision for these needy people. As a result, we are very close to completing the projects we have taken under our wing. We are going to talk more about India in this letter to help you better understand why we are burdened for this ancient land. Further, we are going to include articles written by Dr. Wesley and Sundar Salverage so you can hear their heart for India.

My Trip To India

I felt a little apprehensive on my first flight to India. Images of the vision I had received nearly twenty years before played over in my mind. Also, all that I had seen in my research on India revolved in my thoughts. I had attempted through research and much prayer and fasting to prepare myself for what I might find when I finally arrived in this third world country. Every trip that I had made up to this point was to countries that were similar to America as far as technological advances were concerned. Therefore, I was within my comfort zone. But this time I was headed for a country that I knew would be far different and would not afford me the creature comforts with which I had grown up. Further, I knew that India, as a whole was antagonistic to the Gospel I was bringing. Consequently, I was unsure of what to expect.

I was unable to sleep on the flight. My friend Karalyn Schuchert was beside me but slept through much of the long and tedious journey. Since I was awake, I spent many hours praying and seeking Yahveh’s grace to fully embrace the culture I would soon be meeting.

I was met with a shock that is beyond words when we landed in Madras, India. The climate was miserably hot and sticky. Since they rarely have cool weather in middle and southern India the tropical climate offers a perfect environment for molds and mildews to abound, so I found it very difficult to breathe. It was late at night when we landed; yet even on this late flight our plane was full. We found ourselves inching along in a long customs line. I had heard horror stories of Christians being turned away at the border so I prayed until we were cleared to enter India an hour and a half after landing. Because of the ancient technology in India everything moves very slowly. Consequently, it took another hour for us to get our luggage.

Lost Humanity

Once we met our guide we felt a little relief, but we would not find a hotel that we could safely stay in and go to bed until just before daybreak. Driving through the streets of Madras, I was in shock. The traffic was pretty rough even at the early morning hour of our arrival. We passed through one city street of dilapidated buildings after another. I kept wondering why our driver was taking us through the ghetto to get to a decent hotel. It wasn’t until daylight when I opened the curtains and looked out over Madras that I realized that we probably saw the best part of Madras, not the worst as I had supposed.

Even though it was still relatively dark when we headed for our hotel, it was easy to see the huge number of people sleeping in the streets, hugging the broken down fences or laying next to sacred cows who were also sleeping. My heart grew sad and I wondered how I could ever minister into the lives of a people from a culture so different than my own.

The next time we went out it was to return to the airport to head on to Visag. It was at this time that my eyes were painfully opened, and I prayed to endure the shock of what I was seeing. Everywhere I looked there were masses of people. Traffic reminded me of some of the worst nightmares of New York traffic, yet so much worse. It seemed like one big mass of confusion. We saw such things as entire families on the back of one motor bike. Kara and I would pray continually for the protection of one family after another along the way.

In an attempt to get my mind off the confusion of the busy and untamed traffic with which we were wrestling. I would look around at the city that was passing before me. Tears of grief and pain would well up in my eyes as I saw one idol and/or temple after another. Both were hideous in their appearance. Some were small and some were large. Even idols would at times stand 20 feet or better in the air.  My heart felt like it was breaking anew every fifty feet as I saw the bondage and captivity of these precious people. I prayed and prayed seeking the Lord for the grace to bear what I was seeing.

We would frequently come to a standstill in traffic. I would take that opportunity to look into the eyes of others sharing our tiny road space. All I could see was emptiness, loneliness, and a sense of futility in their large dark eyes. It seemed as though everyone in India, both young and old was traveling somewhere, yet one couldn’ help but wonder if they knew where they were going. If their eyes told the whole of the story, I would have to say that most did not.

I would have to fight back anger with Ghandi who was responsible for establishing this despairing darkness up to the very borders of India. Then I would think, "hat have we the Church done to overturn this darkness?" Again I would dry my eyes and wipe away the pain.

The streets were filled with beggars. Strangely enough many of them were women and children. My heart ached for them, for we were told that these people came from generations of beggars. I was looking at a mass of aimless souls, people who were little more than cattle to the hierarchy of India’s society.  "Oh India", my heart could barely contain the reality of what I was seeing.  Perhaps some of the greatest wealth and the deepest poverty both spiritually and economically live within her borders. Yet, never the twain shall meet accept by the hand of Yahveh. I wondered how many gods a person could worship in hopes of finding peace and when does he finally quit searching because the peace never comes. I longed to reach out and tell every one I saw about the love and the peace that can be found in my Messiah. But, alas I could not because of the language barrier. I wondered at how Yeshua could dump millions of souls into an earthly container and grant the grace to bear the pain of their spiritual destitution. I wondered, because He was doing it in me every day that I was in India.

I saw beautiful young maidens alongside the many roads that we traveled~ moving past villages and through the major cities we visited. They would simply stand there as though waiting for someone. I finally asked who they were and why they were there. I was told that they were prostitutes, perhaps even second or third generation. They would learn this from the mother. Women are severely oppressed in India. Therefore, it seems for many, the only way to survive. As I would enter my room at night I would think about them and weep and pray. "Lord, give them hope, give them a chance, give them You." How my heart ached and still does for the lost people of India. Without Messiah, there is no hope for India. Through Him there is as much healing as India needs.

The Hardships of Christian Life

As our trip continued I would see and meet men, women and children who tried to make the best of a life steeped in despair. The burdens that Christians share in this country are so great that one wonders how even the great grace of Yahveh can carry them. Indeed for many the oppressions are so severe that they turn away from the One who died for their souls, and Who would through His Church supply their every need if only we knew how great a need they have. But the remnant remains faithful regardless of the severity of the cost.

We met people who have known great hunger because they are Christians. (Christians are in a class below even the untouchables therefore it can be extremely difficult to get employment.) We met people who had been stoned because of their faith. Others, who had undergone such persecution as being burned, still others who had been beaten or lost prestigious jobs because of their faith. Our Indian brothers and sisters have suffered a great deal for their witness.  Hindu Fundamentalists and militants are today bombing Churches, Christian leaders and organizations. Recently five large churches collapsed from these bombing raids. Still the bombing continues and is escalating. I personally know that each time I take a team to India we are going with the understanding that persecution, imprisonment and even martyrdom could await us. Yet, I go with eager desire to even suffer if need be with my Christian family in India.

I have not seen such humility as I saw among these people. I told the members of the team that I didn’t know if I could ever teach on humility again after seeing this grace lived out among these people. Having little food, they would gladly give us what they had to see to it that we did not go hungry. I felt embarrassed several times as I watched my Indian brothers and sisters live for my Messiah. Further, I saw such a hunger for the Word of our Lord. They would endure great difficulties and hardships to hear as much as they could hear. My heart would often be so moved and deeply touched by the people of India that I would wonder if I had ever truly known Messiah before. I was being challenged and changed in ways that nothing but India could have done. I met Christian leaders that truly understood the admonition, "Endure the hardships of the ministry", and "Be a good soldier of the cross". I met them, listened to them and watched them, and I was challenged in my own faith.  

I saw orphans. These children are not necessarily orphans because their parents died. Usually they are made orphans because of the extreme poverty of their parents. When they realized they could not feed the little mouth that was sitting at their table they would put them in the streets in hopes that someone else would find them and care for them.  The children were beautiful and gentle yet they had no earthly belongings, not even a mother’s arms they could call their own. I would look into their big black eyes and wonder how I could answer the call that was on my life and still adopt each one. In those orphans that were being raised by these pastors, one thing was distinctly missing, that was the look of hopelessness and despair that was so prevalent among the unsaved of India. The contrary was true. I saw hope and joy. Dr. Wesley’s ministry was caring for about 22 orphans when we left India. Now they are caring for 40 orphans. These devout men have nothing of their own yet they reach out to others in need. I think most pastors in America would blush to see the way these Indian pastors live and give compared to our high standard of living and low standard of giving typified by so many ministers here.

If you are a new reader, you may like to know that we are attempting to help Dr. Wesley see his vision fulfilled. The property he has desired to purchase to build an orphanage, a Bible School, a Church, a home and training center for prostitutes who are being delivered from the old way of hopelessness, a prayer tower, and a home for the pastor who is caring for the orphans has been procured. We are now raising the funds to allow him to build the needed facilities. As for Sadhu Sundar, he is working on an expensive project that will allow him to eventually broadcast the Gospel through all, or most of Asia, this includes India. He is starting from scratch, buying each piece of equipment as the funds come in. The Lord is giving him great favor as he seeks to increasingly expand his programs to eventually cover this area now so covered in darkness.

Both of the ministries we are currently attempting to help are established ministries and are working hard to reach out and into the hopelessness of India with the good news of the Gospel, but they need our help. We still need many thousands of dollars to reach our goal for each ministry. After we reach it we will need to continue to support their work, for one thing is sure the need will never end until Yeshua returns.

Further, we are going to return to India in January 2001 for three conferences. The World for Jesus Ministries will be sponsoring all or part of two of these conferences. This past February we held a conference, which was attended by 10,000. We fed them both temporal and spiritual food. This conference cost us close to $12,000.00. This year we are planning a conference for fifty thousand including 3000 or more pastors in Visag. The cost will far exceed the budget for the last conference. In the second of our upcoming conferences we will again be ministering to 10,000 people. However, several other ministers from around the world will be co-sponsoring that conference with us so it will only cost us $5000.00 American dollars.

In the last conference 3000 souls left Hinduism and came to Messiah and are now being discipled by cooperating Indian pastors. We hope to see the same percentage of converts in the next conference of fifty thousand. That would mean over 15,000 souls being brought into the hope of salvation.

Many people have written to us telling us how much they appreciate the fact that we don’t ask for money. If I were looking to cushion my own standard of living, I would not present these opportunities to you.  However, we are not asking for ourselves. We are asking for those who have no ability to ask and yet have needs that are far greater than we Americans could realize. Please help us to help India. You can if the Lord leads give into all three projects or any one of the three. Every dime you send for one of these projects will be deposited into that project. We will not even take administrative costs out of your gift. We trust that you will be sensitive to the Holy Spirit and continue to support us as well so we can continue to send your special gifts wholly to the needs of the mission fields of the world. If you desire to give to Sadhu Sundar, mark (India -S) on your check. If you want to give to Dr. Wesley, mark (India-W) on your check. If you desire to give toward the conferences, mark (Conf.- India) on your check. The Lord has already spoken to me that He will add special blessings to those who will give to India.

We need not only your financial support for these mission endeavors but also your prayer support. Ask the Lord to give you a burden for India and pray for those who are laboring in the field in this land of darkness. Also, pray for the team that we are taking to India. India needs our tears to prepare the land for the rich harvest that is soon coming within her borders. She also needs our tears to sustain the present workers in the grace of Yahveh to continue the hard and tedious labor in this needy field. Her orphans and her prostitutes, her untouchables and her blind priests who serve many demon gods who take them straight to hell, all those who are in the many and varied casts but have no hope for eternity, All need our prayers day and night. Will you send hope to India, my friends?