Sweetbird Music Blog

Follow After Love

noreply@blogger.com (Steve) — Wed, 23 Jul 2008 15:43:00 +0000

Chip Brogden sent out a beautiful note this morning to his "Inifinite Supply" distribution list. I thought I would share it with you. Here's what Chip wrote:

"And I will very gladly spend and be spent for you; though the more abundantly I love you, the less I am loved" (II Corinthians 12:15).

Paul gave us an example to follow. Don't just look at his calling and his gifting and his revelation. Look at his heart of love. He gave all - not just for the Lord, but for the Lord's people. And they were a most carnal, unappreciative bunch of people. Even so, the heart of a father is demonstrated. That is the reason he had authority. I tell you his authority was not in his title, his position, or his status as having founded the church. His authority was not in his calling, gift, or revelation. His authority was in the abundant love he showed.

Make no mistake: I am not there yet. I still struggle with how to be a good brother, much less a spiritual father with abundant love for everyone. I obviously have a long way to go, but now I see the missing ingredient and I am following after love. How about you?

****************

Following after love is what those in Christ do. For many Christians, it is the missing ingredient, as Chip noted. If we have not love in our hearts, we are nothing. (1 Corinthians 13:2)

God is love. (1 John 4:8). Love is the fullfilment of the law (Romans 13:10). The only thing that counts is faith expressing itself through love. (Galatians 5:6).

Scripture makes abundantly clear that love is the greatest. (1 Corinthians 13:13)

May you follow after love.

Agape,

Steve

Postscript: Here's a link to sign up to recieve Chip's "Infinite Supply." Click link and scroll down a bit.

http://www.watchman.net/join.html

The Spirit of Wisdom and Revelation

noreply@blogger.com (Steve) — Wed, 16 Jul 2008 12:14:00 +0000

I wanted to share some profound light with you this morning. The light is from the preface to Watchman Nee's book "The Spirit of Wisdom and Revelation." It goes right to the heart of walking in love. Here's the light:

"There is no way of knowing God and His eternal will except through revelation. Neither is there any means of knowing Christ other than by the revelation of the Holy Spirit. Revelation alone imparts to us spiritual realities."

So much of what is called Christianity today is bound up with people who have not had revelation of the Spirit who are doing things for God in the name of Jesus. These people may have good intentions with their works, but their activities fall outside of the Spiritual realm. They are activities driven by self - not Spirit. In short, they are outside of Christ, not in Christ.

Revelation alone imparts to us spiritual realities.

That is a powerful and true statement. Revelation is an act of seeing - not with our physical eyes, but with the eyes of our heart. When the eyes of our heart are opened and we become entangled with God through the Spirit, we become new creations. Christ becomes a Reality for us. The only Reality.

In Christ, there is Love. In Christ, there is Light. In Christ, there is Life - eternal Life. Great Life.

May the Lord give unto you a spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of Him.

Agape,

Steve

Chambers on the Church

noreply@blogger.com (Steve) — Tue, 15 Jul 2008 20:02:00 +0000

I was reading a collection of Oswald Chambers' works this morning and came across this gem that I wanted to share with readers. Mr. Chambers said:

There is only one thing as futile as the Roman Catholic Church and that is Protestantism. In Roman Catholicism the great dominating authority is Churchianity; the Church is vested with all authority. In Protestantism it is what the Book says that is the supreme authority, and a man gets rest when he decides for either. "I am going to give up all the turmoil and let my Church do my thinking for me." If you put your faith in a Church, it will solve your problems for you. Or you may stake your faith in Bibliolatry with the same result. "Ye search the scriptures, because ye think in them ye have eternal life; and these are they which bear witness of Me, and ye will not come to Me that ye may have life" (John 5:39-40 RV). Jesus Christ says neither the Church nor the Bible is the authority, but "I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life"; the Church and the Bible are secondary. The context of the Bible is Jesus Christ, and a personal relationship with Him interprets the Bible in a man's life. (Source: The Shadow of an Agony, 1173 R)

I don't think many folks are in tune with this message, but they should be. It's right on the money.

May Christ be enough for you.

Agape,

Steve

Foundations

noreply@blogger.com (Steve) — Mon, 30 Jun 2008 21:19:00 +0000

I came across a beautiful essay titled, "The Foundations of an Exemplary Christian Life," written by T. Austin-Sparks. It is evident that the Spirit was pouring greatly through Spark's while he was composing. Here's a passage that resonated strongly with my surrendered heart:

After all, the Lord does not accept our head knowledge of Christianity and all its aspects. The Lord does not accept all our informed mind about the church and the cross and what not. The Lord looks right into our hearts, and says, "How much have I got of you? How much are you still holding on to your own way and your own will, your own course and your own programme and your own interests? I do not ask how much you have got into your head, but how much have I got of your heart?"

May the Lord have our whole hearts.

Agape,

Steve

A Lovely Encounter

noreply@blogger.com (Steve) — Fri, 30 May 2008 17:13:00 +0000

I just had an interesting encounter with a person here at the office I have never seen before. I was taking some boxes out to my car when she came into the elevator and asked me point blank: "Do you work here? What do you do for a living?" I paused and then felt the Spirit moving in my heart. I looked at her and said: "Yes I work here. I love."

She look puzzled and said, "No, how do you make money in your job here?"

I said: "All I do is love. I take whatever the Lord provides me. Whatever He gives me is enough."

She said: "Ah, I see, you don't do things for money."

I said "No, I let love lead the way."

As we were getting off the elevator, she looked at me and said I had an interesting perspective on things. I smiled and said: "My perspective is very simple: "Love is Life."

As I was heading back into the office building, a car pulled up next to me. It was the woman I spoke to in the elevator. She looked at me and said:

"Thank you for sharing your perspective with me. It helped. It helped a lot!"

I smiled and said: "God bless you."

What a wonderful encounter! The Lord touched another heart today.

May the Lord touch your heart.

Agape,

Steve

Religion vs. Spirit

noreply@blogger.com (Steve) — Fri, 30 May 2008 14:25:00 +0000

Throughout my travels, I often hear people speaking about those who have seen God through revelation and are now walking in love as being "religious." I shudder when I hear this. There is nothing religious about walking in love. Those who walk in love are in Christ. It's a Spiritual existence. There is no religion inside Christ. There is only love, for God is love (1 John 4:8) and God is spirit (John 4:24). We worship God in spirit - not in religion. In fact, we must worship Him in spirit (John 4:24).

Now, this is not to say that there is no religion on this planet. In fact, there is far too much of it! Chip Brogden at The School of Christ has a nice description of the difference between religion and the Spirit. Here's how Chip puts it:

Religion is based on what I have accomplished and what I am doing, while spirituality is based on what Christ has accomplished and what He is doing.

Religious hearts haven't been crucified with Christ via the Cross. Spiritual hearts have been crucified with Christ. That's the key difference!

As Paul told the Galatians:

I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me.
(Galatians 2:20)

Paul (formerly Saul of Tarsus) was one of the most religious men on the planet before he saw Christ. Listen to what Paul says about his religious past:

If anyone else thinks he has reasons to put confidence in the flesh, I have more: circumcised on the eighth day, of the people of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of Hebrews; in regard to the law, a Pharisee; as for zeal, persecuting the church; as for legalistic righteousness, faultless. But whatever was to my profit I now consider loss for the sake of Christ. What is more, I consider everything a loss compared to the surpassing greatness of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them rubbish, that I may gain Christ and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ--the righteousness that comes from God and is by faith. I want to know Christ and the power of his resurrection and the fellowship of sharing in his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, and so, somehow, to attain to the resurrection from the dead. (Philippians 3:4-11)

Paul's religion became "rubbish" when he saw Christ. Hallelujah!!! That is precisely what happens when you see God and become entangled with Christ through the Spirit. Religion and religious things fall away. They aren't important. You don't need them. All you need is Christ. His love reigns supreme. He is enough!

May you see God and may His love reign supreme in your surrendered heart.

Agape,

Steve

The Cause of Misery

noreply@blogger.com (Steve) — Tue, 27 May 2008 22:19:00 +0000

A good friend of mine recommended some books by Dr. Stephen Crosby. I haven't read anything by Crosby before, but I have to say I'm enjoying what I'm reading. I came across this little gem from his book "Silent Killers of Faith:"

"Religion without love has been responsible for most of the world's misery."

I think this is right on the money. You think about all the darkness that has been generated by religious authorities and fundamentalist followers in the name of God and you see one thing in common: there is no love in their heart.

May you have nothing but the Lord's never-failing love in your heart.

Agape,

Steve

The Riches of an Open Heaven

noreply@blogger.com (Steve) — Tue, 27 May 2008 13:13:00 +0000

The Lord gave me a vision for an ambient guitar project I've been thinking about doing for a while now. The vision came on Sunday morning at 2:30 am. The project would be called "Open Heaven" and the music would be set around the theme of discovering and living in an open heaven.

I've written several blogs about an open heaven, so I won't go into the concept in any great detail here. Suffice it to say that in an open heaven, there is nothing standing in the way of the connection between our heart and God's heart. It's a Spirit-to-spirit connection. In an open heaven, we become One with God.

This morning, as I was doing my daily mediation, I came across a passage by T. Austin-Sparks that resonated with the vision the Lord gave me over the weekend. Here's what Sparks' said:

The nearer the earth and its temporal life Christendom has got, the more and greater have such things as ritual had a place. Ritual, Rites, Vestments, Ceremony, Formality, and such like externals have always been the marks of low and poor spiritual conditions, and the measure of importance given to them is always an index to spiritual measure. On the other hand, a deep, strong, pure spiritual state has always been marked by simplicity and an absence of the above. History proves this beyond a doubt, and tides of the Spirit are outstanding evidence of it. The days of the Church's greatest spiritual power and impact were days when ecclesiastical forms, architecture and ritual were nil, and the Lord Himself was everything.

There are a lot of Christians who believe that Christianity is all about formal things - rituals, rites, vestments, ceremonies, formalities. But as Sparks notes, when these things become the focus of people, spiritual conditions decline rapidly. During such times, Love vanishes. And we know one thing: When there is no Love, there is nothing (1 Corinthians 13:2).

Spiritual power is at its maximum when the Lord Himself becomes the sole focus. And this is precisely what living in an open heaven is all about - it's about the Lord. It's about being entangled with His Spirit and walking in Love. It's not something we do. It is something He does through us. When we become entangled with the Lord and live in an open heaven. the Spirit guides our hearts minute to minute, day to day, week to week, month to month and year to year.

In an open heaven, we are reduced to Love (1 John 4:8).

May you live in an open heaven.

Agape,

Steve

Heavenly Vision

noreply@blogger.com (Steve) — Fri, 23 May 2008 14:16:00 +0000

"...the prophet is a fool, the spiritual man is mad..."
(Hosea 9:7).

Chip Brogden at The School of Christ sent out a little message to his daily 'Infinite Supply" readers on prophets that I would like to share with you today. His piece dovetails nicely with the blogs I have posted over the past week.

Here's what Chip sent out:

If a prophet is anything, he is extra-terrestrial - above the Earth. He walks the Earth with others, but he is not of the Earth. He is from beyond; he is from above. If we trace his history we will find that he may or may not have had a normal childhood. He may or may not have come through extraordinary experiences. But at some point in his life, either as a child, or as a young adult, or as an old man, something from another realm broke through the thin membrane between Heaven and Earth and took hold of him. It may have been a burning bush, or a Voice crying out to him from beyond the veil, or a Heavenly Vision which brought him briefly into contact with something and Someone that he could not completely fathom.

However it happened, for one moment at least, the clouds parted and the veil was rent, and he saw something that is unseeable; he heard something that is unhearable; Heaven itself was opened up to him, and he saw into another world. The thing he saw and heard now burdens him like a mantle that has been draped over his shoulders. He feels its weight, for it is with him day and night, whether he is eating or drinking, working or resting. It is the impression that everything around him is a lie, and what he has seen and heard is the Truth, and this Truth is not static, but it is living, growing, and increasing within him from the day it comes to him in the form of a seed.

The concept of an open heaven is an important one. Spiritual men, women and children live in an open heaven. Following revelation, they see God and become new creations. Their hearts become entangled with Christ through the Spirit. There is nothing blocking or interfering with that connection - no man-made church, no priest, no pastor, no minister. We can try to dress this process up with religious things, as many people have tried to do over the centuries, but it adds no value. God has spoken clearly through the Prophets. His message is as clear as day:

"I have no religion. I Am Love."

God is love.
(1 John 4:8)

God's love is not divided into 40,000 denominations, as modern day Christianity is today. His love cannot be broken down into little pieces. It is the most powerful force in the universe. It is Eternal. It is the Beginning and the End - the Alpha and the Omega. God's love never fails. It is perfect. It casts out all fear.

When a heart becomes entangled with God though the Spirit, that heart begins to radiate God's love (what the ancient Greek's called "Agape"). God's love is superior to any love in the universe. It cannot be extinguished. Try to kill the body that is entangled with the Spirit and radiates God's love, as the Pharisees did with Jesus, and it comes right back to life. The testimony of Jesus, as recorded in the New Testament, is the spirit of prophecy (Revelation 19:10).

The main problem throughout history is that many people cannot hear the voice of the Prophet. Living in a closed heaven, and entangled with religious things, they simply don't have the faculty to hear. They don't hear because they haven't seen. It doesn't matter how many times you go to church, how many small group sessions you do each week, how many things you do for God, if you haven't seen and cannot hear, you cannot imitate God and walk in love. (Ephesians 5:1-2)

All of the Prophets saw and heard. They all were entangled with God through the Spirit. They all walked in love. They worshipped God. That said, the Prophets were despised and hated by religious hearts. Religious hearts are an enemy of the Spirit, as I discussed in yesterday's blog. But all of the prophets were blessed by God and have their place in His kingdom. As the Lord said:

"Blessed are you when they revile and persecute you, and say all kinds of evil against you falsely for My sake. Rejoice and be exceedingly glad, for great is your reward in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you." (Matthew 5:11-12)

May you see God and hear His voice.

Agape,

Steve

A Religious Heart is an Enemy of the Spirit

noreply@blogger.com (Steve) — Thu, 22 May 2008 17:46:00 +0000

"Truly, truly I say to you, before Abraham was, I Am."
(John 8:58)

Jesus was telling the Pharisees the truth about who He was in John, Chapter 8, but the religious leaders weren't having any of it. From what they could see, they were listening to a man who was in his early thirties. After the Lord finished speaking, we are told the Pharisees promptly picked up stones and began throwing them at Him.

Nice guys, those Pharisees! They will defend the God of their religion to the death, but when it comes to embracing the Spirit - the source of eternal Life itself - they will have nothing to do with it. And therein lies the problem with a religious heart. It is an enemy of Christ. A religious heart will try to kill whatever heart the Spirit is residing in. A religious heart says: "The Spirit inside your heart must be extinguished."

There is only one problem with the modus operandi of a religious heart: The Spirit cannot be extinguished.

Jesus is proof of this. No sooner did the Pharisees think they had done away with Jesus for good, He reappeared! The disciples saw the Lord after the crucifixion. Mary was the first to see Jesus. But the Lord didn't stop with the disciples. He had much work to do, just as the prophets before Jesus had prophesied. There was a whole world outside of Israel to conquer. The Jews would now be left behind, left to tend to their religion and their religious hearts.

To show you how magnificent the Lord is, consider the fact that He choose a former Pharisee - a man with a religious heart of stone - to lead the charge out of Israel into the land of the Gentiles. Saul of Tarsus, a self-proclaimed "Hebrews of Hebrews, from the tribe of Benjamin" (Philippians 3:5) was on his way to capture followers of Christ when Jesus appeared and spoke to his heart. Instantly, Saul's heart was transformed by the Spirit. A former enemy of Christ, Saul became filled with the Spirit, changed his name to Paul (a new creation!), and became a mighty conduit for the Spirit. Some two-thirds of the New Testament is comprised of letters written by the Spirit through Paul.

There is nothing quite so beautiful as a religious heart transformed into a Spirit-filled heart. Ahhhhhhhh...

Entangled with the Spirit, Paul did God's will. He could now hear the voice of the Spirit. The Spirit poured through Paul's heart. Like many other Spirit-filled hearts before him, Paul's body was eventually extinguished prematurely by hearts that were disconnected from Christ. But nevertheless, he lives on. God sees to that. Eternal life and Spirit-filled hearts go hand in hand.

There is nothing a religious heart can do to stand in the Lord's way. That is the mighty power of the Christ and the Cross.

The Cross signifies God's will. By going to the Cross, Jesus was doing the will of God. We carry our crosses daily to show that God's will is our will - that we are completely entangled with the Spirit. The Cross is central to following the Spirit. Without the Cross, it is impossible to enter through the narrow gate and walk the path that leads to eternal life. As the Lord said:

"And he who does not take his cross and follow after Me is not worthy of Me. He who has found his life will lose it, and he who has lost his life for My sake will find it."
(Matthew 10:38-39)

Jesus told us clearly that the Spirit inside our hearts would be attacked by religious hearts. He gave us confident words to stand our ground. The Lord said:

"Blessed are you when they revile and persecute you, and say all kinds of evil against you falsely for My sake. Rejoice and be exceedingly glad, for great is your reward in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you."
(Matthew 5:11-12)

Jesus always told the truth. As the Lord said:

"God is Spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth."
(John 4:24)

May your heart be entangled with the Spirit and may God's will be your will.

Agape,

Steve

Why The Jews Rejected Jesus - A Retort

noreply@blogger.com (Steve) — Tue, 20 May 2008 13:45:00 +0000

"They knew not... the voices of the prophets which are read every sabbath."
(Acts 13:27)

"For the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy."
(Revelation 19:10)

Some years ago, not long after my revelation of Christ, I purchased a book titled "Why The Jews Rejected Jesus: The Turning Point in Western History," by David Klinghoffer. I recall reading the book and being intrigued with Mr. Klinghoffer's perspective of the subject. He listed many reasons why the Jews rejected Jesus. He also spent some time discrediting a few prominent former Jewish religious leaders who saw Jesus as the Christ (e.g., Saul of Tarsus). The rejection of Jesus by the Jews, argued Klinghoffer, was a turning point in western history.

After reading Kinghoffer's book. my heart told me something was seriously amiss with what he was saying in his book. I couldn't put my finger on what was wrong, so I let it go. That was about three years ago.

Today, having spent a great deal more time with the Lord along the narrow path, I now realize what was bothering me. Kinghoffer, like many of his fellow Jews, has never seen Christ. The lack of seeing, in fact, has been THE key issue with the Jews since Adam and Eve.

Yes, it is true the Jews rejected Jesus. But the reasons Kinghoffer gives are way off base. The truth is the Jews have a long and illustrious history of rejecting prophets, including Jesus. The reason they rejected Jesus and the prophets is because they hadn't seen and could not hear God's voice. Seeing and hearing are critical. If you haven't seen and can't hear the voice of the prophet, you will reject them. Often times, the rejection is violent (e.g, Sawing Isaiah in half, nailing Jesus to a cross.)

Here's a little passage written by T. Austin-Sparks that hits the nail on the head:

Israel, as a nation, not believing and being born again, was doubly deaf by a judgment. This is the first thing that Isaiah says and 'voices' in relation to the Son of God. We have heard, read and said much about Isaiah 6, the Throne and the Lord upon it; the Train and the Temple; the Seraphim and their thrice Holy chant. Also the cry of woe from the Prophet, and his call and response to God's appeal. But we have learned little of the terrible issue of his commission. We know that Isaiah was read in the synagogues of Israel, for at Nazareth the ruler of the synagogue handed that Prophet to Jesus to read publicly. The Ethiopian eunuch of Acts 8 had been to Jerusalem and probably secured from the Temple or synagogue a copy of Isaiah's prophecies and was reading it in his chariot. He confessed his blindness as to its meaning, and confessing in humility, his blindness was removed. "He went on his way rejoicing," while Israel - who had the same scrolls - went on their way to perdition. It is not what we have, but what we know that we have, and whether what we have changes our lives, that matters.

The Holy Spirit, who inspired the Prophets (1 Peter 1:11), made the Apostles and believers understand that it was as the Spirit of Christ in them (the Prophets) that they wrote of Him. Thus they saw Jesus by the Holy Spirit where those who had not the Spirit were blind.

Saul of Tarsus saw Christ. The disciples saw Christ after Jesus was crucified. Stephen saw Christ. Among all of the disciples, we know that Mary and John had powerful revelations of Christ. Mary was the first to see Christ Jesus after His crucifixion. John's powerful revelation of Christ is the last book of the Bible.

What is important to note is that after their revelations - that is, after they saw Christ - Saul of Tarsus, Stephen, John, Mary, and the other disciples could hear the voices of the prophets. They could hear! After seeing the Lord, they could hear the voice! It is no coincidence that Isaiah is quoted frequently in the New Testament. Isaiah's prophetic ministry was a microcosm of the entire Bible. Isaiah had seen Christ.

All the prophets have one thing in common - they all have seen Christ through revelation.

Although I didn't realize it at the time, it was the lack of seeing that was what was nagging at me while I was reading Klinghoffer's book. Klinghoffer, like many of his Jewish descendants, hadn't seen. That explains everything.

What is the consequence of not seeing. For the Jews, it has been God moving on. The Jews rejected Jesus, and God has moved on. In effect, The Lord has rejected the Jews. Now, we can say that this is a harsh statement, but the fact of the matter is that God told the Jews through the prophets that this was going to happen if they did not have a change of heart. Go back and read the prophets in the Old Testament. You will see that time and time again, God was reaching out to the Jews trying to get them to change their hearts. Listen to the Spirit through the prophet Ezekiel:

"I will give them an undivided heart and put a new spirit in them; I will remove from them their heart of stone and give them a heart of flesh." (Ezekiel 11:19)

Now, you may ask, why does God require a change of heart? The reason is simple: Seeing God requires a pure heart.

"Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God." (Matthew 5:8)

Pure hearts see God. Seeing God allows one to hear the voice of the prophets. Seeing through revelation is the event that entangles hearts with the Spirit. Listen to the Spirit through Paul at Ephesus:

"Therefore I also, after I heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for all the saints, do not cease to give thanks for you, making mention of you in my prayers: that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give to you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of Him, the eyes of your understanding being enlightened; that you may know what is the hope of His calling, what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints, and what is the exceeding greatness of His power toward us who believe, according to the working of His mighty power which He worked in Christ when He raised Him from the dead and seated Him at His right hand in the heavenly places, far above all principality and power and might and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this age but also in that which is to come." (Ephesians 1:15-21)

What a powerful prayer! To pray that God reveals Himself to you so that you can hear Him and be enlightened. This is perhaps the most powerful prayer in the Bible.

What happens after you see God? You become a new creation. Your religion falls away. Love becomes the driving force in your life. Paul's letters, which comprised some two-thirds of the New Testament, are all about letting go of religion (in his case, Judaism), and embracing love. I could write an entire book on this one topic alone. Klinghoffer blasts Saul of Tarsus in his book, but fails to see the remarkable transformation of his heart after seeing Christ.

If I wanted to write a book refuting Kinghoffer's thesis in "Why the Jews Rejected Jesus," I would start out with a simple and powerful truth: "The Jews rejected Jesus, and all of the other prophets, because their hearts were not pure and they had not seen God and could not hear His voice."

Ironically, many Christians today have the same problem. They haven't seen Christ and therefore they can't hear His voice. This explains the lack of love we observe throughout Christianity today.

And I would make one other point about Klinghoffer's book. The subtitle is true, but it is incomplete. The Jews rejection of Jesus was not just a turning point in Western history, it was a pivitol moment in the history of the mankind. Through the crucifixion of Jesus, man witnessed an eternal truth in the Kingdom of God, and that truth is:

You can try to kill God's heart of true love, but it is futile. His love never fails and cannot be extinguished. It is the most powerful life-giving and sustaining force in the universe.

The resurrection of Jesus is proof of this eternal truth.

May God give to you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of Him, the eyes of your understanding being enlightened.

Agape,

Steve

Beware Flowing Robes

noreply@blogger.com (Steve) — Tue, 13 May 2008 16:06:00 +0000

Since my revelation of Christ, I have found it increasingly difficult to look at religious leaders adorned in their robes, hats and other religious clothing. There is something greatly unsettling about these images. I was discussing this topic with Christine recently, and she reminded me of some Scripture in the Gospel of Mark that addressed this issue head on. In Mark, Chapter 12, we read:

"As he taught, Jesus said, "Watch out for the teachers of the law. They like to walk around in flowing robes and be greeted in the marketplaces, and have the most important seats in the synagogues and the places of honor at banquets. They devour widows' houses and for a show make lengthy prayers. Such men will be punished most severely." (Mark 12:38-40)

Isn't that striking? Here we have, as clear as day, Jesus telling us that we should watch out for those religious leaders that walk around in flowing robes. And yet, we have religious leader after religious leader donning the flowing robes and going out into the world pretending to preach the Gospel.

Something is definitely wrong with this behavior. Jesus, in fact, told us so. The Lord said:

Such men will be punished most severely.
(Mark 12:40)

If you are finding yourself turned off by the appearance of religious leaders, you can take some solace in knowing that the Lord will be dealing with these impure and evil hearts in due time.

May your heart be pure and may you see Christ as all in all.

Agape,

Steve

Love conquers all

noreply@blogger.com (Steve) — Tue, 13 May 2008 13:52:00 +0000

I was catching up on some reading this morning and came across this quote:

"Whenever you are confronted with an opponent, conquer him with love."
- Mahatma Gandhi

Sounds like Christ to me.

May you conquer all your opponents with love.

Agape,

Steve

Light from Above

noreply@blogger.com (Steve) — Sat, 10 May 2008 13:09:00 +0000

It's the morning after a Sweetbird performance. Last night, Christine and I performed as a duo, like old times, at the Huntington Street Cafe in Shelton, CT. The weather was awful for a Friday in mid May - cold, windy and rainy. Not a good night to be out and about, especially with gas prices hovering around $4.00 a gallon.

As we got up on stage to begin playing, there was hardly a soul in the house. Most of the chairs were empty. There were five people in a cafe that comfortably seats 40 people. Any performer or group would have looked out in the audience and noticed that they were playing to chairs, not people. The thought of playing to chairs had occurred to me earlier in the day as I drove through the pouring rain to work and saw a sign at the Gulf gas station that read "$3.93 a gallon."

The awful weather and several inauspicious events that had occurred earlier during the week prompted me to ask the Lord what was really going on this evening. Sadly, I was wavering a bit in my faith, and badly needed some light from the Lord. Nothing seemed to be going Sweetbird's way. Our percussion player was in a bad car accident the week before and couldn't play. The band was in limbo. Hamstrung, as it were.

As we set up to play at the Huntington Street Cafe amid the rows of empty tables, I remained hopeful that He would shine some light on the purpose of the evening.

We played a few songs and started to get warmed up. As we continued playing, I noticed there were a few people connecting strongly to the music. Some of them were singing the words along with Christine. They knew the songs. I watched their lips move in synch with the music.

Entanglement! How lovely!

As the evening progressed, we performed "Seek Me" and "Trust in Me," from Sweetbird's "Shine." The Lord was blasting through us. I sensed the power of His mighty presence. I sensed love and joy - Spiritual fruit.

As we continued to perform, a few more people showed up. As I gazed into the audience, it was obvious that they were there to listen to the music. Suddenly, the cafe was alive! The Lord was moving in our hearts, and in the process, connecting with other hearts.

The music poured out of us. Christine and I played for 2 hours straight without a break, something we rarely do.

As we finished playing, I began packing up our gear. As I was putting my guitar away, I heard a voice. It was the Lord. He stopped me dead in my tracks. I closed my eyes and bowed my head to listen:

"BELIEVE IN ME."

Yes, Lord. I said silently.

"BELIEVE!!!"

Yes, Lord, I said again.

And then, in a flash, I received some light from above. A revelation occurred. At that moment, I knew something very important about the meaning of Sweetbird and His music:

Sweetbird's goal, as it were, isn't to attract the largest number of people. It's not about "the draw," to use the language of a typical music promoter. It's about connecting with hearts through His love - even if it is just one heart. One heart connecting with Christ is priceless and far more valuable than 100,000 people sitting in a stadium listening but not connecting.

You see, Sweetbird is all about Him, it is not about us. We are there only to serve Him and His purpose. The Lord is building His church and He is using Sweetbird to help build His church. That is the truth, pure and simple.

Following my revelation, there was peace - a sure sign that the Lord was moving in my surrendered heart. I gave thanks for the light and praised Him for His never failing love.

May His never-failing love connect with you and fill your heart.

Agape,

Steve

Nothing Without Love

noreply@blogger.com (Steve) — Tue, 06 May 2008 19:47:00 +0000

If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have a faith that can move mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. (1 Corinthians 13:2)

Have you ever felt like nothing? You are not alone. Hundreds of millions of people experience this sensation. It is natural to see yourself as nothing in the grand scheme of time and space in the universe.

What is the source of this feeling of nothingness, you ask? Quite simply, it's associated with a lack of love. Without love, as the Spirit said through Paul to the Corinthians, we are nothing.

Love is the key ingredient to Life. Without love, there is no Light and there is no Life.

How great is love? Well, look at all the things we could possess and still be nothing:

We can have the gift of prophecy. What a great gift that is!

We can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge. Many people are in strong pursuit of knowledge and solving mysteries. Indeed, this is largely the domain of science.

We can have great faith - enough to move mountains. Evangelists don't appear to be short on faith, from what I can tell.

There are some great things - mighty things indeed! We can have them all, but if we have not love in our hearts, we are nothing.

Nothing without love.

What is missing from the world today? What is missing from the churches, schools, companies?

In a word, love.

The truth is, from God's perspective, there is a lot of nothing going on in the world today. To be sure, people are doing lots of things. There's plenty of activity in the world. But it lacks love. And without love, it is nothing.

When love is present, God is there.

God is love.
(1 John 4:8)

When love is present, there is Light. When love is present, there is Life. Take away love, and you have nothing.

And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love. (1 Corinthians 13:13)

May you have love in your heart, always...

Agape,

Steve

A Word on Flesh and Blood

noreply@blogger.com (Steve) — Wed, 30 Apr 2008 16:43:00 +0000

Every time I go to the grocery store, I am struck by the content near the check out counters. All the magazines seem to be focused on one thing - flesh. I experience the same thing when I flip through the channels on television. There is a tremendous focus on flesh. Hollywood is all about the flesh. So, sadly, is the music business. Wherever I look and wherever I go, people seem to be consumed with flesh.

Since my revelation, I have become increasingly disinterested in flesh. Over the past five years, the Spirit has led me to understand that all the focus people put on flesh is completely misguided and misplaced. Let me share some Scripture with you that supports what I am saying:

I declare to you, brothers, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God. ( 1 Corinthians 15:50)

For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. (Ephesians 6:12)

It is extremely clear from Scripture that flesh and blood should not be the focus at all. As Paul told the Corinthians, Christ is not interested in flesh and blood. Flesh and blood have no place in the kingdom of God.

People seem to love to gawk at beautiful flesh. The Lord is very different. He sees right through the flesh and focuses like a laser on the condition of the heart. The heart is central to the Lord, not flesh and blood.

For as the Lord said:

"First clean the inside of the cup and dish, and then the outside also will be clean." (Matthew 23:26)

The "inside of the cup and dish" is a metaphor for our hearts. Purify your heart first, said Jesus, and then the outside will also be clean.

Why purify our hearts? Because pure hearts see God.

"Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God."
(Matthew 5:8)

Seeing God through revelation is the gateway to Christ. Becoming One with Christ and walking in love requires a pure heart.

Another important thing to understand is that contrary to what many people think, our struggle is not against flesh and blood - that is, it is not about "keeping up with the Joneses" - but rather against the spiritual forces of darkness that are very real but that are not detectable with human eyes.

When you sit back and think about it, you realize that many people waste a tremendous amount of time, energy and resources focusing on flesh and blood. People are consumed with flesh, when instead they should be led by the Spirit and walking in love. As the Spirit said through Paul:

For those who live according to the flesh, set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit, the things of the Spirit. For to be carnally minded is death, but to be spiritually minded is life and peace. Because the carnal mind is enmity against God; for it is not subject to the law of God, nor indeed can be. So then, those who are in the flesh cannot please God. (Romans 8:5-8)

Those who are in the flesh cannot please God.

That's the bottom line.

One could make a strong argument that the misplaced and misguided focus on flesh is one of the principal factors behind all the darkness and problems we see in the world today. The Spiritual realm - the realm that connects our hearts with Christ - has been tossed aside and ignored. This is problematic, to say the least.

How much darkness are you battling right now? Chances are the amount of darkness in your life is closely related to how intensely focused on flesh you are today.

May your eyes be focused on the Lord and His Spiritual fruit and not flesh and blood.

Agape,

Steve

Rivers of Living Water

noreply@blogger.com (Steve) — Sat, 19 Apr 2008 13:51:00 +0000

I've been meditating on the concept of "Rivers of Living Water." During my revelation of Christ back in 2002, the Lord said:

"I can make the rivers flow."

For years, I had no idea what this seemingly simple sentence meant. I knew it was powerful. It became a part of the chorus of the song "I Am Love" - the incredible song the Lord gave me during my revelation that appeared on Sweetbird's first record "Free Spirit Reflection." Every time Sweetbird performed "I Am Love," I would marvel at that particular line. For years I have prayed for the Lord to give me the light to understand what it meant.

Recently, after years of praying, the Lord answered my prayer. I learned the meaning of "I can make the rivers flow." The rivers refer to the Holy Spirit. He is the source of the Spirit. He makes the Spirit flow. He makes the rivers flow. How beautiful and powerful!

This topic is discussed at length in a wonderful book by T. Austin-Sparks titled, "Rivers of Living Water." As I was reading this morning, I came across this passage, which I found illuminating. In his book, TAS says:

"Our flesh wants to get. I suppose the deepest-rooted thing in human nature, the very thing that brought about the Fall and all its lamentable consequences, is acquisitiveness or possessiveness. It does not matter who the person is: whether on the positive side--the aggressive, determined type; or on the negative side-- the very, very meek nobody, with the 'inferiority complex,' as it is called, which is only another way of looking at this possessiveness. Oh, the self-pity which is born of this wanting to have! Self-pity is a reaction; it is only, after all, another way of trying to draw to ourselves.Yes, possessiveness is there; it is universal--it is in us all. It is the deepest thing in our being.

But God, who has all, is just the opposite; His whole disposition is to give, to let go. We want to have the Lord, to have His blessing, to have the Holy Spirit, to have power--to have Divine things. What for? We might repudiate the suggestions that we wanted them for ourselves: but who knows the human heart? only God. And that is why so often, in giving us what He wants to give us, He first of all takes us through an awful time before He does give. He deals with that personal possessiveness until we come to the pace where we say, 'Lord, if you do not want me to have it, I don't want it." That is a good place to be! It is not that we become sulky or recalcitrant; far from it. It is simply this: 'Lord--only if You want it, only if You want it. Not for me--for You.' And then the Lord responds. "To this person will I look, even to those that are poor and of a contrite spirit." The Holy Spirit gives all that He has come to give by way of the Cross."

****************

The message here is clear: We get all that we need through the Spirit by way of the Cross. The Cross is central to our love walk. It is the place where all we desire to possess - all those things we think we need and want for ourselves, is crucified - it is destroyed. We let go of all things and let God.

Let go and Let God. That is The Way!

We let go, having great faith and trust that whatever the Lord gives us today, tomorrow, and at all points in the future, is what He wants us to have. All we should desire is more of Him and less of us. More of Christ through the Cross. This is the path to Love, Light and Life.

May the Lord empty us fully through the Cross and fill our hearts with His never-failing love and Spiritual fruit.

Agape,
Steve

Faith and Love

noreply@blogger.com (Steve) — Wed, 16 Apr 2008 18:22:00 +0000

"... and if I have a faith that can move mountains, but have not love, I am nothing." (1 Corinthians 13:2)

I know a great many people that call themselves "Christians" who have great faith, but have not love in their hearts. I know other people that don't refer to themselves as Christian that have love in their heart, but lack faith in the Lord.

It is very important we realize and understand that faith without love and love without faith both fall short of the mark. Put simply, we must have faith and express that faith through love if we are to walk in love.

Expressing faith through love is what Christianity is all about. It is the essence of Christianity. It is the only thing that counts. (Galatians 5:6)

May the Lord increase your faith and love.

Agape,
Steve

The Result of Faith

noreply@blogger.com (Steve) — Wed, 16 Apr 2008 18:12:00 +0000

Since I have been blogging on faith, I thought I would post something T. Austin-Sparks wrote on the subject from his essay "The Most Difficult Thing in the World." It is wonderful and I hope it brings much light to you:

The Result of Faith

(a) Rest
So, just finally, a little word on the result of faith. First of all, of course, it is rest. We are not now thinking of some future rest, some future land, whatever our hymn writers have to say about it. You read again this fourth chapter of the letter to the Hebrews, and you see "We who have believed do enter into that rest". Some of us have already entered in, says the Apostle. God defines a day - it is not the future - and some of us do enter in. This rest is not a time period, it is a state, and the Apostle says here so clearly that entering into rest is simply a matter of entering into a settled faith in God. You know quite well that however doctrinal and technical this may seem, it is very true. We can prove it almost any day of our lives. When we get to the place where we put ourselves and what we would like on one side and accept the Lord's will - not just resignedly saying Well, if that is what the Lord wants, I capitulate; if I could have it otherwise, I would, but this is evidently what the Lord wants: but if with all our heart we accept it and enter into this with the Lord to co-operate with Him, when we come there, rest enters into our souls, our souls come to rest, on all sorts of things, small and great.

(b) Power with God
Then victory comes because faith is power. If the Word of God is strong and clear about one thing, it is about this. Oh, faith is power. First of all, it is power with God. What is more powerful with God than to be well-pleasing to Him, and that is why I read about Enoch. "By faith Enoch was translated that he should not see death; and he was not found because God translated him: for he hath had witness borne to him that before his translation he had been well-pleasing unto God". That is all centred in, and made to rest upon, faith. "Without faith it is impossible to be well-pleasing unto him". Surely that is our ambition above all - to be well-pleasing unto Him. How? - to believe Him, to trust Him, to repose faith in Him, to be well-pleasing unto Him. It is power with God. We can consider that along the other line, that our weakness with the Lord is always found in our reservation, our question, our doubt, our uncertainty. That is our weakness with God, and the Lord waits.

(c) Power over Satan
It is victory over the Devil because, if there is one thing that is the playground of the Devil, it is unbelief, and if there is one thing that the Devil is always seeking to promote and maintain, it is unfaith. The hallmark of the Devil's work from the Garden to the end is unbelief, doubt of God, to question about God and God's ways - and God's motives. That is where the Devil is coming all the time - with an 'if'. If this and if that. If God were what He says He is, then this would not be. You know the thousands of 'ifs' and 'buts' of the Devil. The only power of victory over the Devil is faith in God. We can use the language of victory and power over Satan and it counts for nothing. We must have a new position of power over the enemy. The key is faith; it may be faith in the Blood, or in the Name, or in the Lord, but it is faith.

(d) Power over the World
It is power over the world. "This is the victory that hath overcome the world, even our faith" (1 John 5:4). The world in this sense is that whole system and order and atmosphere and attitude of things which must have the seen, and the present. What is the mark of the world? It must see, it must have now. Anything that is unseen and not present is utterly outside of the mentality of the world, and we know how much of the world there is in our nature and the battle is there. Faith overcomes that world that is in our own natures and around us. "The things which are seen are temporal: but the things which are not seen are eternal" (2 Cor. 4:18). Faith has to do with those things.

May the Lord increase our faith.

Agape,
Steve

On Having Faith

noreply@blogger.com (Steve) — Wed, 16 Apr 2008 17:38:00 +0000

Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.
(Hebrews 11:1)

I've been meditating a great deal lately on the importance of faith in our love walk. We know from the Scriptures that faith is critical to walking in the Lord's love. We know that the Lord will not be able to work miracles in our surrendered lives if we lack faith in Him. Put simply, faith and miracles go hand in hand.

Now, you may ask, how does one have faith in the Lord? I believe there are four things that are critical to faith:

1. Put God first

2. Believe Christ Jesus is who He says He is - He is Lord of Lords - He is the Alpha and Omega - the beginning and the end. Through Him all things are possible

3. Trust God with all of your heart, mind and soul

4. Be content with what the Lord provides. Accept graciously whatever the Lord provides you on a daily basis. Consider whatever He gives you each day as good enough

These four things are not easy to do - especially for those who are just beginning their love walk with the Lord. But they are absolutely essential to walking in love and having His miracles bless your surrendered life.

There are no problems that the Lord cannot solve in His time. There are no miracles He cannot perform. All that is required is that we have great faith in Him and express that faith through love.

The only thing that counts is faith expressing itself through love. (Galatians 5:6)

And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love. (1 Corinthians 13:13)

May you learn to have great faith in the Lord and may you always express that faith through love.

Agape,
Steve

No Faith - No Miracles

noreply@blogger.com (Steve) — Wed, 16 Apr 2008 15:34:00 +0000

And he did not do many miracles there because of their lack of faith.
(Matthew 13:58)

Without faith in the Lord, there are no miracles. Faith and miracles go hand in hand.

May you have great faith in the Lord and always express that faith through love.

Agape,
Steve

Have Faith

noreply@blogger.com (Steve) — Fri, 11 Apr 2008 14:51:00 +0000

"Without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that He exists and that He rewards those who earnestly seek Him." (Hebrews 11:6)

We can easily say we have faith in the Lord, when the truth, as reflected by the darkness that still exists in our hearts, says that we really do not have much faith at all.

Talk is cheap.

The Lord will constantly test our faith in Him through trials with darkness. It is our faith in Him as we wrestle with the darkness that pulls us through and into the light.

May you have great faith - GREAT FAITH! - in the Lord and may you love, trust and believe Him with all your heart, all your soul, and all your mind.

"The only thing that counts is faith expressing itself through love."
(Galatians 5:6)

Agape,

Steve

Believing in God's Love

noreply@blogger.com (Steve) — Thu, 03 Apr 2008 15:48:00 +0000

I have been reading some of Paramahansa Yogananda's books over the past several months. Yogananda has written (he would say more correctly, "received") several deeply spiritual books on Christ, having seen the Lord in revelation on several different occasions.

Recently, I came across a passage from Yogananda's autobiography "Autobiography of a Yogi," that highlighted the importance of the link between believing in the Lord, health, and healing. In his book, Yogananda's guru tells him:

"Medicines have limitations; the divine creative life force has none. Believe that: you shall be well and strong."

The "divine creative life force" is God. The key word in this message is "believe." I have found that many people - including those that call themselves Christians - say they believe in God, but in reality, they have little faith or trust in the Lord. This is problematic. Disease, stress, anger, worry, and many other maladies are all byproducts of having little faith and trust in the Lord and His never-failing love.

The three words, believe, faith and trust go hand in hand. The last Sweetbird CD ("Shine") had much to say about the importance of believing, having faith, and trusting the Lord. Here are a few examples:

On the title track, Christine sings: "Believe and Shine."
On "Trust in Me," Christine sings: "Trust in Me, put Me first."
On "Live to Love," Christine sings: "It's all about faith, it's all about trust."

These are simple phrases, to be sure, but their importance cannot be overemphasized. If you have little or no faith you cannot walk in love. If you have little or no trust in the Lord, you cannot walk in love. If you have little or no faith or trust in the Lord, you don't believe in His love.

May you believe with all your heart, mind and soul in His never-failing love.

Agape,
Steve

An Act of God

noreply@blogger.com (Steve) — Wed, 02 Apr 2008 16:53:00 +0000

It's been over 5 years since my revelation of Christ, and believe it or not, I'm still struggling to understand the profound nature of what happened to me on December 7, 2002 at 3:45 am. I've written about my experience on several occasions over the past year. Anybody that has read my blogs can easily see my struggle to understand the truth.

Today, the truth came into clearer focus as I was reading an essay by T. Austin-Sparks written back in 1953. Sparks had a revelation of Christ when he was in his mid-20s. Not surprisingly, it transformed his life. In his essay, "Keeping Christ in View," Sparks says:

When all has been said, the fundamental fact has to be borne in mind that the real seeing of Jesus is a Divine fiat, an act of God: the granting of a "spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of him."

I have to admit I was momentarily stunned when I read that passage. Seeing Christ is an act of God. An act of God! I immediately thought of Paul telling the Galatians:

"God... was pleased to reveal His son in me." (Galatians 1:16)

Why is God pleased to reveal His son in certain people? This is still a mystery to me. I am certainly not going to argue with God about what he did with me on December 7, 2002. I trust that He knows exactly what He is doing.

I do know one thing: since my revelation, my life has been turned upside down and inside out. Steve Waite is history. He doesn't exist any longer. I am a new creation. The hardest part of this new new life has been dealing with my family and people that knew me before my revelation. They see my flesh, which looks pretty much the same, but they don't recognize my new heart. As a result, they don't really know who I am. I think this scares some of them. Many people are frightened by things they don't understand. All I can tell them is that I'm in the process of being reduced to love through a close, personal relationship with Christ.

God revealed His son to me on December 7, 2002. It was an act of God. I didn't ask God to do this to me. I was merely on a quest to know what true love is. He said "I Am Love." Since that day, my heart has been irreversibly and fundamentally transformed forever. I am eternally grateful for the knowledge the Lord has bestowed upon me. I couldn't ask for a more precious gift.

May God reveal His son to you and may you know the love of Christ which surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.

Agape,

Steve

I AM!

noreply@blogger.com (Steve) — Sun, 30 Mar 2008 17:46:00 +0000

My life long dream - to find and know true love - ended at 3:45 am on December 7, 2002, when the Lord awoke me and said:

"I AM."

Those two words, "I Am," melted my heart on that chilly morning (see "I Am Love" in the June 2007 archives for more on my revelation). The light I received was blinding. It took me a long time to fully comprehend what had happened that morning.

A few months after my revelation - now living and breathing as a "new creation" - I was soaking up Scripture like a sponge and came across a passage in 1 John that confirmed the truth of my revelation:

God is love. (1 John 4:8)

God is love! Yes! Everything I saw on December 7, 2002 - as if in the blink of an eye - made complete sense. I was searching for God my whole life and didn't even realize it. Religion had separated me from true love at an early age. But several decades later, I found my way home. At the darkest moment in my life, God reached out, through Christ and His spirit, and revealed Himself to me. I knew true love at last! Hallelujah!

I still marvel at the revelation. Each day I travel along the narrow path I see a little more light. It's wonderful.

Not long ago, as I was walking further along the narrow path, I came upon a passage of Scripture from the Gospel of John that spoke to my surrendered heart in a glorious way. In Chapter 8, Jesus is speaking to the religious leaders of Israel. The Lord was explaining the eternal nature of Christ to them, but they weren't having any of His truth. They were questioning how a man so young - "you are not yet 50 years old" - could know Abraham. It was at this point when the Lord spoke an eternal truth. He said:

"Most assuredly, I say to you, before Abraham was, I AM."
(John 8:58)

Upon hearing this eternal truth, the religious leaders picked up stones and began throwing them at Jesus. (John 8:59)

The irony is rich. Jesus, unfathomably deep in the Spirit, reveals the truth about the nature of Christ and the religious leaders pick up stones, throw a fit, and attempt to extinguish Him. We should not be surprised at their behavior. Religious hearts will always try to kill God's never-failing love. They believe God has vested all power to them (they are, after all, self-proclaimed "Men of God"). But the truth is, all power is vested with and in Christ. He is the Alpha and the Omega. This title will never be bestowed upon a religious man. Never!

"... before Abraham was, I AM."

His never-failing love was around long before man existed and will be around long after man is gone.

May you see the Lord as the Alpha and the Omega - the beginning and the end.

Agape,

Steve