Recently, I noted that as I have lived in my calling to be a prophet, two phrases have come to me which, I believe, are from the Lord. The first of those is, "Shepherd Mafia."
The second, which came more recently and as far as I know, I've never announced is "as a testimony against them.
The phrase came one day as I was walking and meditating and asking why the Lord has me standing apart from the institutional church in in such an adversarial way--something I am willing to do but take no pleasure in.
And, the word came to me and has come back again and again, "as a testimony against them."
As I have said, I know many church leaders personally and love them and like many of them and we agree on much of what we profess to believe. My objection is to the way they live out their professed faith and life principles.
"As a testimony against them" means that how they live in response to me, reveals, with unusual clarity, the fruit their lives produce.
For example the Word is specific and very clear about how a follower of Jesus should respond, "if your brother sins against you."
None of what Jesus commanded has been done by church leaders. In fact, if church leaders had had their way, I would have been defrocked when Conference minutes were approved, even though most people would have been unaware of what that action would have meant to the Conference or to me. Could anything be more institutional or less of Jesus?
As Jesus said, in an only slightly different context, "by their fruit you will know them."
It's what they do that is our problem and the Lord seems to be using what they do in regard to me to provide one clear testimony of that.
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