“A NEW YEAR” by Roger Roth Sr.
A new year is upon us. This is the time that many tend to make resolutions to adjust some aspect of their life. God is continually making opportunity for us, to give us, “the desires of our heart.” Notice the word says the desires of our heart, not necessarily the desires of our soul. The earth each day makes a complete revolution into another day. Each day we have the opportunity of adjusting our life. Each day can be a new day. The earth turns toward the light of the sun and away from that light at night but the next day always brings the dawning of the light once more. This is often how the light of God’s Son appears out of my night to further illuminate my life.
Then once a year the earth makes a complete revolution around the sun. Night and day, night and day for 365 and 1/4 rotations until it has received the fullness of Sun’s light from every side. This natural occurrence of course is not lost on those who have even a cursory knowledge of the bible. The Scripture speaks of the Day of the Lord and the Year of the Lord. As the days advance, they go through seasons. Each year a complete journey through the various seasons is accomplished and this continues until in the multitude of years an entire age is completed. Is there anything for us to be learned through this process?
We are in the transition from one biblical age to another. When you read in the bible of the previous transitions of ages you notice several interesting things:
- Most people are unaware of what is happening even though in the Spirit a huge shift was occurring or had occurred. Take for example when a former age ended, and God brought forth Abraham. It was a huge transformation, but few understood it or were even aware of what He was doing.
- As one age ends the remnant awakens to the knowledge of the passing age and the possibility of the coming age. Do all God’s people awaken at the same time? No, but a remnant (the seed of God planted in the earth to bring forth His will) do awaken.
You are this seed. Jesus said the “seed is the Word of God!” (Luke 8:11). He also said, that “the good seed are the children of the Kingdom” (Mat. 13:38). So what is it? Is the good seed the Word of God or the Children of the Kingdom? Well it is the Word of God that has been sown in you so that you can bring forth the Kingdom by the seed you carry. Seed is not the harvest, but it is the potential for harvest. Seed must be planted to bring forth much fruit. “Unto you it has been given to know the mystery of the kingdom of heaven but unto them it is not given” (Mat. 13:11). What is the context of this passage?
Jesus was in a boat with His disciples and the multitude was on shore. He speaks to the people, not as evil lost people going to hell but rather to bring enlightenment as to the Kingdom. The disciples and Jesus’ followers both heard the message but only the disciples understood the message. They were seed the multitude was not. To you (those in the boat with Jesus) it has been given to know the mysteries but to them it has not been given.) They have eyes to see but they see not and ears to hear but they hear not. This is like much of Christianity. They cannot get past the worldly needs and issues of life to progress further, but this is not a condemnation but rather Jesus is telling the disciples how the Kingdom will come. They will become the seed that is sown into the world to bring forth the Kingdom. Will the multitudes on the shore come? Yes, in their time but they will not be the seed sown to bring forth the Kingdom. They may have heard and responded to the gospel of salvation, but they never understood the gospel of the Kingdom.
This past year we have seen the miraculous in a spectacular array of manifestation. This past year the Lord has made significant adjustment to His chosen so that you, who have eyes to see, may partake in Kingdom purpose. Mysteries in great measure have been unleashed to many of you in such an abundance that the prophets of old would long to hear, were they here. Others of us are awakening, in various degrees, to possibility and purpose. This has been a year that has brought forth the great awareness of trust and a manifestation of wholeness. Did our flesh at times say, “Ouch?” Yes, but wholeness cannot come without a willingness to allow the Lord to adjust our lives; To cleave to one another; To submit our weakness and need to the Body. While others wring their hands as to how many of the lost, they can save, you are about planting yourselves in your world and sowing the influence of God in those around you to change their lives and create an atmosphere of life and love that will bring forth the manifestation of the Kingdom.
The pain and sometimes horror of life felt by many is real. We have all felt it at some point in our lives, perhaps we still have tinges of the same. Trust allows us to change. Some confuse great gifting with true godly relationship. As 1 Corinthians chapter 13 instructs us, we can have great gifting and spiritual manifestation without ever really knowing God. You however have a great outpouring of gifting and manifestation, you have these in love a love that is being perfected. Progressive love can only come through relationship and I applaud you for putting others above yourselves by seeking true, full and rich relationship with one another. In this you will bring forth the Kingdom in the portion of the world He has given us.
Relationship expressed in a desire to be part of the Body, to manifest Him together is the real mark of maturity. Trust allows us to put down pride and the fear of people finding out we may not be as spiritual and mighty as we’d like them to believe or perhaps that we just plain struggle with the flesh. In a strange way it is this position of trust and relationship that reveals how spiritual we really are when circumstances seem to tell us we are not.
Next Sunday we begin the seventh year of the re-creation. It is the rest of God. This is not only about continuing to be at peace with your life and the circumstances you find yourself in but also in discovering the “rest” of God. The remainder of those things that are only found in discovering the mysteries of the Kingdom. As we break free from religious myths about the workings of salvation and the manifestation of Jesus, He has and is preparing us through the transition from the age of wilderness to the age of the Kingdom. It is the age of the fulfillment of the promises of God.
You have eyes to see and ears to hear. Because you have not closed yourself off from one another He has not closed Himself off from you but rather is expressing Himself through you (the Body) in great measure. What an amazing God we serve! How magnificent are all His ways! As Jesus said, fear not little flock for it is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the Kingdom. No fear, no striving, no self-reformation, no self-condemnation to you who have decided to walk after the Spirit.
As we turn toward Him, we turn toward each other and then we turn toward the world and dispense the seeds of the Kingdom in every conversation, by every action, through every manifestation of compassion on those who come into our lives. Is our purpose to get them into our church? No, our purpose is to show them the Kingdom. God is, has and will continue to add to us such as should become part of us for His purpose as we continue to extend our hand of help and concern according to the plan established by the Council. We thank Him for the recent additions to the Body. Multitudes are wounded, Multitudes are confused. Multitudes are spiritually impoverished. Multitudes are without hope. Multitudes turn toward fleshly fulfillment as a means of easing the tortures of life. They live in ignorance of the Kingdom. We are to be their priests. To minister to God on their behalf.
We are also kings but as Scripture states, a king needs a kingdom. You are being given a great measure of rule according to His purpose and your preparation to walk as the Body. Kings exert rule. If they are kings of territories, as you are, then under the headship of the great King Jesus, you are given dominion to rule the territory He has given you. You are mighty, you are magnificent, and you shall become the glory of God and the face of Jesus to those who cannot see Him in any other way.
This past year was a magnificent year and we are so thankful for it for it has been filled with wonder and laid the necessary foundation for the coming year. If you are going to make a resolution for this coming year, let us resolve to think about how we think. Let us resolve to examine our thought process and to bring our thoughts in line with what He thinks. This is the process of awakening. Let us see ourselves in increasing measure as He sees us and not, we have been taught to see ourselves through the condemnation of religion and the ignorant musings of those in the world. And let us look on our brothers and sisters throughout the earth. Not only in Christendom but in every religion or those of no religion. Jesus has paid the price in full for them. May we help awaken them to the peace and joy we have discovered in the Lord!
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Roger Roth Sr. is a ministry son of Dr. Mark Hanby. Together with his wife Karen, they are the set ministry of a local church in Northeastern Wisconsin, and oversee the Bloodline Network Newsletter. They consider it an honor to work with Dr. Hanby for many years, helping to oversee the ministry of Papa Mark’s extended family—”The Father’s Heart.”
Any questions or comments please contact them at rogerandkaren@live.com
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