Psalm 110 The LORD says to my Lord: “Sit at My right hand Until ”2 The LORD will stretch out Your strong scepter from Zion, saying, “Rule in the midst of Your enemies.”3 Your people will volunteer freely on the day of Your power; In holy splendor, from the womb of the dawn, Your youth are to You as the dew.

David prophesied in Psalm 110 that the Lord says to my Lord “Sit at my right hand until I make your enemies your footstool for your feet.” Now this is truly significant who is the Lord,? And who is my Lord? As it is also been repeated by the Lord Jesus, himself in the gospel, The Lord is God, the Father Yahweh, my Lord is clearly the son of God our Lord Jesus Christ. David called Jesus, my Lord, and the Lord the Father.

I make Your enemies a footstool for Your feet

This is commonly used as one of the proof evidence that Jesus is of the deity, he’s God. The second person of the Triune God. Now what I want to bring up is the theme of the conversation is a spiritual warfare, which is much neglected by the contemporary evangelical and reformed world.

The entire context is the spiritual war between God and the satanic forces. God, the Father spoke to God the Son ” Sit on my right hand, until I make your enemies your footstool it. The word “make” is a warfare word in the context of enemies. What does that mean? That means God is going to crash the forces of darkness, satanic forces enemies of Christ to the point of becoming a footstool for Jesus. It is a metaphorical language, this size Jesus will crush Satan and the forces of darkness completely. When is that happening? It began at the time Jesus rose from the dead, and went back to heaven, and seated on his throne on the right hand side of the father. Now, the process of “until” means it’s ongoing process. Basically God the father is saying “sit here my son on the throne on my right hand side until I crush enemies.”

That is the language used for spiritual warfare. That is the language that the evangelical world has been eerily silent. That’s the kind of language that charismatic Pentecostal prime them selves in, this is an unfortunate scene because it all we talk about is the gospel centered message, the grace of God, and forgetting the huge emphasis of the spiritual warfare is defined by God, the father, that he’s engaging in now, as we speak until all the enemies of Christ will be crushed. the kingdom will never be complete until the enemies of Christ are crushed the kingdom would not become complete just by us preaching the love of God per se.

Jesus on the cross is not just manifesting his profound love, but also for his profound defeating the devil and death.

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The implications of the spiritual warfare, crushing the enemy of Christ, has huge impact upon the church ecclesiology and eschatology and systematic theology. The definition of spiritual warfare in the words of God the Father to God the Son, “ Sit on my right hand until I make your enemies your footstool” should fire up the church to make that happen. We should immediately put on notice in prayers, worship evangelism to crush the enemies of Christ, which is really the enemies of the church.

We should balance out the reformed theology of gospel, send a messages which is far more appealing to the world of modernity today. Because modernity hates war in any language of confrontation aggression war is not welcomed. However, the Bible says we are now in the spiritual warfare against forces of darkness, principal principalities of darkness, not against flesh and blood, we must combine the gospel centered message on the grace of God in Christ with  the God warrior redeemer in Christ Jesus.

The LORD will stretch out Your strong scepter from Zion, saying, “Rule in the midst of Your enemies

 Christ will rule in the midst of his enemies. Who is Zion? Zion is the church. God will stretch  out Christ strong scepter from the church so that Christ will rule in the midst of his enemies and our enemies. The ruling does not only happen when Christ returns, but it’s an ongoing ruling mow in the midst of spiritual warfare facing our enemies. Who are our enemies? The forces of darkness and principalities of darkness, ruling and raging against the people of God in our society. The forces that devour churches the most today is the issue of sexuality for example that has caused many mainline denomination churches to split up, to the extent even supposedly very strong word based Presbyterian church into PCA and PC USA. And the list goes on :The United Methodist, the Episcopalian, the Reformed churches just to name a few. Our country has never faced such a wrecking ball in our society with our president pushing for transgenderism homosexuality, abortion and the lot. The accountability at the end of the day will be enormous.

The forces that caused Christians to be disheartened, to be sucked into the cultural forces of being catechized by them, like being strong committed Christians it’s out of fashion. Accusing Christianity is standing on the wrong side of history etcetera. Truly the Bible says the devil prowls around like a roaring lion waiting to devour someone.

1 Peter 5 ⁸ Be alert and of sober mind. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour.

But God has promised to crush his enemies and still continue to have Christ rule in the midst of his enemies. We may not see a lot of ruling in our society looking at our news, but you also see a new movement of outpouring the Spirit of God is happening in Asbury, Kentucky and spreading across the country. We are believing a tremendous move of the Spirit of God will move across our nation the next five years and more to come. Amen.

2 Samuel 7: 1-5; 11–17

March 3, 2023

When David was finally moved into in his beautiful gorgeous cedar house, and God has given him rest from all his enemies, the king, said to Nathan, the prophet, “See, now I dwell in the house of cedar, but the Ark of Covenant lives in a tent.”

This is such a significant statement that just reflects David’s hard for the greatness of God. He has a tender heart for God, and he loves God. That’s what we want to be, and that inspires me! When he sat down his beautiful, gorgeous palace, he looked outside and saw the arc of God‘s covenant dwelling in a tent outside, and he feels bad. He feels the urging of his heart’s desire. That pleased God so much that God promised David through prophet Nathan, to tell his servant, David that He will give him rest from all his enemies. Moreover, the Lord will raise a new king up from his offspring, from his body.

God said, “I would establish his kingdom. He shall be the house for my name, and I would establish the throne of his kingdom forever. I will be to him a father, and he shall be to me a son. And his throne shall be establish forever.”

This is a lent time written by Tim Keller. When David desired to build a house for the Lord, the word of the Lord came to Nathan, telling David that instead of allowing him to build a temple, the Lord, will establish the house of David, culminating in one who sit on the throne forever. Obviously God is not simply promising that he will ensure the continuation of David, as a sort of memorial to him – the common belief of many religions that we live on in our descendants. He’s promising to raise up his own Son, from a descendant of David, one who would bear our stripes and our iniquity.[1]

How like God this is! We offer God some grandiose plan of how we planned on him, to honor him. And he counters with a completely counterintuitive plan, one in which he is glorified by becoming both king and substitute. [2] This is really something enormously powerful plan God has for bigger than our little finite mines feeble mind can even ever to handle. Imagine David was thinking beauty in physical palace, God turned around calling Nathan to bless David with a descendent sits on the throne, forever and ever. But that son is actually the Son of God himself incarnate into this world, Jesus Christ. It is amazing how God enlarged a request to a phenomenon unmatched that is ultimately far bigger than our wildest dream.

Pray and pray, prayer so that they are far more than we would dare to ask. Imagine like Tim Keller said this is truly incredible. I’ll just pray and pray and pray to the limit of our vision and faith, and then be prepared for God to do something even better.[3]

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[1] Tim Keller, Lent Devotional 3/3/23, https://gospelinlife.com/lent-devotional/?mc_cid=a1a56d4a76&mc_eid=3a8d3b536a

[2] Ibid

[3] Ibid

In what’s happening in Asbury revival started two weeks ago and across the nation now, the joy in the celebration in the hope of restoration and revival is palpable in the air. It has spread from Asberry to Lee University to a lot of other campuses, including Yale University, and coming to New York City now in NYU, I believe.

Asbury Revival Report

Asbury revival? David Ro, Director of Mission in Gordon Conwell College., as well as involved in Mission in China for last 10 years, shared important aspects of this aspire revival as follows. #1. It’s not the Pentecostal or charismatic type. Where it gets very emotional and to the point of people crying or weeping or wailing. #2. It is neither of the Reformed doctrine type with gospel centered theology. What it is, is just the Gen. Z population rising up to grab hold of God in their hunger to find God in their authentic relationship with God. America’s Gen. Z population has been the most distant from God. And this time round? This revival is about them, and started by them. And spreading around the country for all demographics. This is very exciting. And I’m full praying for it and believing for the outpouring of the Spirit of God continue to spread across the United States and all over the world. What happened in Asbury is the outpouring of the Holy Spirit, is not.  manufactured emotionalism. There is no celebrity preacher., is no. pride and arrogance of any sort. It is a movement of the Holy Spirit. In the hearts of young people of the Gen Z population, and they have come in with such humility in their hearts I’ve heard . Much repentance happened. Many were restored and healed emotionally. And a lot of wounds were healed and a lot of cleansing and forgiveness have happened. This is not exactly like the physical healing that we have seen so much in the Bible and during the Pentecostal rallies, healing rallies. But it is more of the emotional and mental and spiritual. And some of them come to Christ as a result, too.

Outpouring of the Holy Spirit and that is a revival

Dr. Martin Lloyd Jones, gives a spectacular series of preaching in revival, and here I will attach you here next line what are the main things like?

Lloyd Jones said a major element in a revival is the person and the doctrine of the Holy Spirit. Jesus said “I will send you a helper, a comforter (John 14:16), after I have left this world, and that is the Holy Spirit.” Jesus promised in numerous places just before his death on the cross, and the resurrection from death, about the Holy Spirit. He’s told us that the Holy Spirit will renew all things and will glorify him and the Father, and will bring to all things of remembrance of what Jesus has taught us.

John 16: ⁴ He will glorify me, for he will take what is mine and declare it to you. ¹⁵ All that the Father has is mine; therefore I said that he will take what is mine and declare it to you.

The Holy Spirit was poured out on the day of Pentecost and resulted in 3000 men and women repented and believe in Christ as the Son of God and Savior, the promised Messiah of the world. Now that’s  the outpouring of the Holy Spirit and that it’s a revival.

Acts 2: 2 When the day of Pentecost arrived, they were all together in one place. ² And suddenly there came from heaven a sound like a mighty rushing wind, and it filled the entire house where they were sitting. ³ And divided tongues as of fire appeared to them and rested on each one of them. ⁴ And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit gave them utterance.

Many people today believe that week we should be filled with the Holy Spirit, however, they don’t believe in the outpouring of the Holy Spirit, like in the book of Acts two. They argue that the outpouring of the Holy Spirit is once in a lifetime event that occurred on Pentecost, and it would never repeat again. But if you read an Acts 4, when the apostles, pray together the place was shaken by the Holy Spirit.

Acts 4: ²⁹ And now, Lord, look upon their threats and grant to your servants to continue to speak your word with all boldness, ³⁰ while you stretch out your hand to heal, and signs and wonders are performed through the name of your holy servant Jesus.” ³¹ And when they had prayed, the place in which they were gathered together was shaken, and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and continued to speak the word of God with boldness.

The baptism of the Holy Spirit is a second experience to the believers’ baptism in water as strongly defended by Martin Lloyd Jones. He has argued that speaking in tongues is not necessarily the automatic expression of being baptized in the Holy Spirit, though we do see very frequently accompanied the baptism in the Holy Spirit in the book of Acts. However, he’s of the opinion that, there are occasions, I agree, that there were no speaking tongues after the baptism of the Holy Spirit. However, that does not remove the doctrine of the baptism of the Holy Spirit. I agree with him that baptism in the Holy Spirit does not always result to speak in tongues, however, baptism of the Holy Spirit is a second experience I would rather argue as the empowerment for courage, strength, revelation to do the work of God just like Acts 4, the place where they met was shaken by the Holy Spirit.

You can call the steps and the Holy Spirit. Acts 10 Cornelius’s household was filled with the Holy Spirit and was baptized in the Holy Spirit.

Acts 10:44–46. ⁴⁴ While Peter was still saying these things, the Holy Spirit fell on all who heard the word. ⁴⁵ And the believers from among the circumcised who had come with Peter were amazed, because the gift of the Holy Spirit was poured out even on the Gentiles. ⁴⁶ For they were hearing them speaking in tongues and extolling God. Then Peter declared,

There are many occasions baptism in the Holy Spirit happened. In Acts 19, Peter ask them have they received the Holy Spirit? These guys were disciples, and the fact that Peter asked a question this question have you received the Holy Spirit to a bunch of believers in Christ, makes you think, Peter is looking for a second experience of baptism of the Holy Spirit.

Acts 19:3–7 ³ And he said, “Into what then were you baptized?” They said, “Into John’s baptism.” ⁴ And Paul said, “John baptized with the baptism of repentance, telling the people to believe in the one who was to come after him, that is, Jesus.” ⁵ On hearing this, they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. ⁶ And when Paul had laid his hands on them, the Holy Spirit came on them, and they began speaking in tongues and prophesying. ⁷ There were about twelve men in all.

Now granted, I know there are big names, theologians, preachers, and pastors who don’t speak in tongues. They actually. In my opinion., on. Baptized in the Holy Spirit without necessarily speaking tongues, clearly have the baptism of the Holy Spirit to have the insight and anointing  to effectively spread the word of the gospel of grace in Christ Jesus. They don’t necessarily have to speak in tongues, therefore, it all flows in right now.

Be filled with the Holy Spirit or the Outpouring of the Holy Spirit

Martin Lloyd Jones says it correctly those folks say the outpouring of the Holy Spirit only happened once in the day of Pentecost, and that’s why churches have stopped praying for revival. And there’s why hardly any revivals to the last hundred years because people stopped praying for it, asking for it in England and conceivably America too. However, of course you have seen the Holy Spirit poured out in Africa, and other places for the last hundred years.

And he said something if you call that work of the Spirit of God, as just gibberish human emotional experience you’re really come in pretty darn close to blasphemy against the Holy Spirit. I agree.

Quenching the Spirit of God

Now that’s also another thing. It’s called quenching the Spirit of God. That is less severe than blasphemy against the Spirit of God, which is an unforgivable sin. Actually, the question of the quenching of the Spirit happens when you call the baptism of the Holy Spirit, as nothing.  The outpouring of the Spirit  happened just once, and  that in a sense you just stopped the hunger and thirst of men and women to cry out for the baptism the Holy Spirit, essentially the outpouring, the Spirit of God, which translated into revival.

Look at those videos in YouTube Asbury, revival, thousands I mean, thousands of college students flocking to gather in the hours 24 hours daily running about 15 days in a row now spreading across the nation to Memphis to Alabama, etc. enter New York to Yale, etc., that is the empowerment of the Spirit of God. The manifestation of the power of the spirit of God is part of the story, the narrative of baptism of the Holy Spirit.

Regardless, it’s time for us to move on to cry out for the outpouring of the Spirit of God for a revival in our city ,in our town ,in our state, in our country, in our colleges everywhere. It’s time to cry out to believe.  God is really just started!  Somebody and a lot of people must’ve been praying real hard is in Asbury University in the first revival is broken up in the 21st-century in America.

Return all people of God ,to the altar of God and cry out to our Lord of harvest to bring in the harvest, to reap the harvest, to set the captives, free, to heal the brokenhearted, Amen.