LANNY SWAIM
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Kingdom Nuggets
Kingdom Nuggets
Introduction
By Lanny Swaim
All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: that the man of God may be perfect, throughly furnished unto all good works.
2 Timothy 3:16-17
Several years ago Jesus appeared to me in a night vision and told me that I am an apostle. So my question to Him the next morning was, “Okay Lord, what is an apostle?”
I knew about the apostles in the New Testament and that most of the New Testament was written by apostles. But I wasn’t sure about the function of a modern day apostle, due in part to the fact that apostles have been ignored and for the most part nonexistent in the modern Church.
Initially, the Lord led me to 1 Corinthians 3:10, where the apostle Paul referred to himself as a wise masterbuilder. The word masterbuilder was translated from the Greek word, architekton, where we get the English word architect.
So an apostle has the blueprint. He knows how the Church is to be built. However, we must understand that the Church is not a physical building. It is a group of people.
Over the past several years the Lord has given me a vison for networks of house churches connected into apostolic hubs, which I believe will be a new reformation of the Church. We will go into this concept in more detail in future Kingdom Nugget teachings.
More recently the Lord has revealed to me that apostles teach doctrine. In the first century church that doctrine was new information. While it had its origin in the Old Testament, it had never been taught in the context of the New Testament.
Modern day apostles don’t teach new doctrine, but we do clarify and build upon the initial doctrine found in scripture. Much that has been taught over the years was born out of manmade tradition rather than revealed truth, and modern day apostles have been commissioned by God to bring correction to at least some of the misunderstandings, misconceptions and misinterpretations of scripture.
These Kingdom Nugget teachings are based on revelation that I’ve received from God by the Holy Spirit, which I believe to be important to a complete understanding and implementation of scriptural truth.
However, none of them will be a complete study of the subjects addressed, and my hope is that they will inspire you to seek out a deeper understanding of what I teach, discovering revelation of your own. I think this should perhaps be the purpose of all Bible teaching.
Don’t believe it just because I say it’s true. But if you have a problem with it, don’t just dismiss it. Ask the Lord about it. We are all on a journey into the truth, just like we are all getting to know the Lord. We may say we know Him, but in reality we are getting to know Him.
Let’s give each other room to grow instead of dividing along doctrinal lines. What has been revealed to me I hope will be of help to you in your journey, and what has been revealed to you may be of help to others.
We are living in a season of time when reveled knowledge of scripture is being imparted in a much greater measure than ever before to those who can receive it.
Surely we were born for such a time as this!
In our next Kingdom Nugget teaching I’ll explain why the title, Kingdom Nuggets. I look forward to being with you then.
Kingdom Nuggets
Why Kingdom Nuggets?
By Lanny Swaim
Jesus went about all Galilee, teaching in their synagogues, and preaching the gospel of the kingdom…
Matthew 4:23
And the servant brought jewels [vessels] of silver, and jewels [vessels] of gold and raiment, and gave them to Rebekah: he gave also to her brother and to her mother precious things.
Genesis 24:53
In the verses before Genesis 24:53 we are told that Abraham had sent his servant to his kinsmen to find a wife for his son, Isaac.
Marriage in the Hebrew culture of the Bible was considered to be a covenant made not only between a man and woman but between their families. Often gifts were given to the bride and the bride’s family by the bridegroom, or as in the case of Isaac and Rebekah by Abraham’s servant, as a token confirming the covenant between the two families and the marriage covenant between the two people.
Often, gold was a part of the gifts given, perhaps in jewelry or even actual gold nuggets.
In recent years as I have traveled and ministered, I have witnessed many supernatural manifestations of God’s presence in meetings. One of the more common manifestations I have seen is gold dust that appears on people and on things. Usually it appears for a while and then disappears, so it’s not like you could sweep some up and take it home. Nevertheless it is usually seen by everyone so it is very real and tangible.
When I first began seeing this gold dust, I wondered why God would cause it to appear as He did. I have come to believe that it has to do with the Hebrew custom of the bridegroom giving gold to the bride before the wedding.
In numerous places the Bible refers to believers as the Bride of Christ. I believe this gold dust phenomenon is simply confirmation of that reality. But for some reason the Lord is emphasizing our marriage to Him at the present time and I believe it has to do with the time in which we live. We’ll take a much closer look at this truth in future Kingdom Nugget teachings.
And that’s why nuggets is a part of the title of these teachings. So why Kingdom Nuggets?
Matthew 4:23 that we began this teaching with makes it clear that Jesus preached the Gospel of the Kingdom.
For centuries the Church has preached what I refer to as the Gospel of Personal Salvation. We have been more focused on an afterlife than on the here and now.
Interestingly, the Hebrew people were not very focused on an afterlife and the Jews still aren’t today. Their interaction with God is about life on the earth instead of life after death.
So there is a vast difference between the Gospel of Personal Salvation, which focuses on life after death, and the Gospel of the Kingdom that Jesus preached.
The Gospel of the Kingdom is not about going to Heaven someday, but is instead about bringing Heaven to Earth. This too we’ll look at in more detail in future Kingdom Nugget teachings.
Hence, the title Kingdom Nuggets.
My hope is that you will find these short teachings informative and enlightening, and that they will open up avenues of revelation to you that go far beyond what I am endeavoring to teach.
If that is in fact the case, I will consider my effort to have been a success.
So, keep seeking the Kingdom.
Kingdom Nuggets
Image & Likeness
By Lanny Swaim
And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them.
Genesis 1:26-27
And the LORD God said, Behold, the man is become as one of us, to know good and evil.
Genesis 3:22
In Genesis 1:26 God says, “Let us make man in our image, after our likeness." There is much debate as to the literal meaning of image and likeness in this verse. My intention is not to look into that debate in this teaching, but instead to share revelation I have been given on the subject.
The Hebrew word for image is tselem and can mean to be a representative of something. God created man to be His representative on Earth. In our Republican form of government in the United States, we elect representatives to represent the general population in congress. We also have ambassadors we send to other countries to represent the United States.
God created man to represent Him on Earth.
The Hebrew word for likeness is demuth, and has to do with character. To be made in God’s image has to do with representing Him on Earth while to be made in His likeness has to do with becoming like Him in character, having His nature.
In Genesis 1:27 we are told that God created man, both male and female in His own image. But there is no more mention of likeness.
As I was reading this one day, I suddenly realized that God created man in His image but He did not create man in His likeness, right after He said, “Let us make man in our image after our likeness.” So I asked Him, “What’s the deal?” You created man in your image but you didn’t create him in your likeness, right after you said, ‘Let us make man in our image after our likeness.’”
Immediately I realized, “Image can be created. Advertising agencies create image all the time. Hollywood is all about creating image. But likeness, or character, cannot be created. Character must be developed.”
This tells me that Adam was created sinless but not perfect. Perfection has to do with character, and since character cannot be created but must instead be developed, Adam was not created perfect. It actually took the fall of man, which necessitated the coming of Jesus as a man, to enable man to even begin to become like God in character.
God created Adam not only knowing he would disobey and fall, but knowing he had to disobey and fall, which is made clear in Genesis 3:22 where God says that man had become like God knowing good and evil.
It took man becoming like God in that respect (knowing good and evil) in order for Him to become like God in character.
Adam’s fall opened the door to sin and death, which has caused much suffering on planet Earth. But it is through suffering that we learn obedience and God’s character is developed in us. Even Jesus had to learn obedience through the things He suffered (see Hebrews 5:8).
We’ve blamed the serpent, we blamed Eve and we’ve even blamed Adam for the condition of mankind down through the centuries until the present time, but ultimately it was all part of God’s plan to have a people like Himself, which has been His intent since before the foundation of the world.
Kingdom Nuggets
The First and the Last Adam
By Lanny Swaim
And when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree to be desired to make one wise, she took of the fruit thereof, and did eat, and gave also unto her husband with her: and he did eat.
Genesis 3:6
And Adam was not deceived, but the woman being deceived was in the transgression.
1 Timothy 2:14
And so it is written, the first man Adam was made a living soul; the last Adam was made a quickening spirit.
1 Corinthians 15:45
The preceding verses of Genesis 3:6 tell the narrative of Eve being deceived by Satan, indicating that Adam was not with her as she was having this discourse with the devil. When this verse says her husband was with her, it seems to me this must be put in the context of the two of them being together in the garden, but not necessarily always side by side in each other’s presence.
So I think it is safe to say that Eve ate of the forbidden fruit, and then took some of it to Adam. Adam, realizing that Eve had already eaten of the fruit, then ate of it as well. I think 1 Timothy 2:14 is confirmation of this scenario; Eve being deceived by the devil but Adam willfully eating of the fruit, knowing the consequences.
Have you ever wondered what would have happened to Eve had Adam not eaten of the forbidden fruit?
Perhaps she would have been driven from the garden while Adam remained in the garden, causing a separation and possibly even a divorce of the first marriage.
Had this been the case, this raises questions as to how the history of mankind would have played out. Would God have made another wife for Adam while Eve eventually died childless in isolation outside the garden? Or would it have been the end of God’s plan for planet Earth at that time? We just don’t know.
What we do know is how the scenario did play out.
We can gather from Genesis 3:8 that Adam knew the voice of God, which indicates he had some sort of relationship with God. That being the case, he must have had at least some understanding of God’s character.
When Adam made the choice to eat of the forbidden fruit, he must have decided to become like Eve in her act of sin to keep from losing her. Knowing God as he did, I believe he must have known that if he became like Eve in her sin to keep from losing her, God would somehow become like him (Adam) in his sin to keep from losing him.
Adam’s selfless act, born out of his love for the woman God had taken out of him and then presented to him, opened the door for God to save them both.
For he [God] hath made him [Jesus] to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him [in Jesus/who the Bible calls the last Adam].
2 Corinthians 5:21
So Adam became like Eve in her sin to keep from losing her, believing that God would somehow become like him to keep from losing him, and her.
What an incredible love story. Is it any wonder that 1 Peter 4:8 informs us that love covers a multitude of sins?
The God who is love (see 1 John 4:8 &16) couldn’t bear to lose His man (male and female), just as Adam couldn’t bear to lose the woman God had given him to love.
What an awesome God we serve.
Kingdom Nuggets
Perfection
By Lanny Swaim
Fear not, Abram: I am thy shield, and thy exceeding great reward. And he [Abram] believed in the LORD; and he [the LORD] counted it to him [Abram] for righteousness.
Genesis 15:1, 6
And these all, having obtained a good report through faith, received not the promise: God having provided some better thing for us, that they without us should not be made perfect.
Hebrews 11:39-40
Abram (meaning father), whose name God later changed to Abraham (meaning father of many nations), saw God in a vision and was told by God that He (God Himself) was Abram’s shield and exceedingly great reward.
In other words, God was telling Abram that He would be his protection (shield) and He would be his very great reward.
A reasonable question to ask would be, “What is the very great reward God would become to Abram?” The greatest reward God can be to any believer is to indwell that person fully with His (God’s) character, which is unadulterated, genuine love.
So the promise God was making to Abram in this scripture verse is perfection. In the following verses we see that God promised Abram descendants, land and even the nations. But the ultimate promise God made to Abram was perfection.
This is revealed in Hebrews 11:39-40. The preceding verses in the eleventh chapter of Hebrews mention many great men and women of faith, including Abraham, who died without receiving the promise. Verse 39 tells us that they all received a good report because of their faith, as did Abraham in Genesis 15:6. But they died without receiving the promise, which verse 40 identifies as perfection.
Hebrews 11:40 is a prophetic scripture verse that in essence says there has to be a generation that reaches perfection in order for all who have gone before to be perfected. In God’s system of justice, there has to be a generation of believers who actually receive that promise while on the earth in physical bodies, in order for all who have gone before to receive it. There is a remnant of the Body of Christ today who is seeing the possibility of receiving the promise of perfection and have tasted of it. As a result, this remnant is moving toward it.
I was teaching this a few years ago to a small group in a meeting in Wilmington, NC. There were three Messianic Jews present that night; two women and a man. I had not seen them before, nor have I seen them since (I’m not sure they were actually people). As I was teaching, one of the women was staring at me with her mouth literally hanging open. I became a little uncomfortable and stopped teaching. I ask her if I was on the right track to which she replied, “We (Messianic Jews) have always taught that. But we don’t teach it to Christians because they won’t accept it.”
What an incredible way for God to confirm to me that the revelation I had received about perfection is the truth. And what a great encouragement for those of us who have seen and tasted of this reality to continue pressing toward it.
Kingdom Nuggets
Perfection Completed
By Lanny Swaim
Being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ.
Philippians 1:6
Instead of the word perform, the Amplified Bible says perfect and complete.
So God, having begun a good work in us, will continue to perfect and complete it until the Day of the Lord.
That day, the Day of the Lord or the Day of Jesus Christ, spoken of throughout the Bible, is the seventh day, or the seventh millennium since creation.
2 Peter 3:8 informs us that one day is with the Lord as a thousand years and a thousand years as one day. Peter begins this verse with, “Beloved, be not ignorant of this one thing…” So he puts great emphasis on a day equaling a thousand years and a thousand years equaling a day.
There is a parallel between the seven days of creation and the seven thousand years the Bible focuses on.
According to the Gregorian calendar, which I believe God has made provision for and used along with the Hebrew calendars, we have just entered that day or the Day of the Lord on the timeline of history. This millennium, the 21st century, is the Day of the Lord spoken of throughout scripture.
And, I might add, Daniel’s prophecies in the Old Testament, can only be understood using the Hebrew calendars and the Gregorian calendar, confirming that God uses both, even though the Gregorian calendar is more recent than the Hebrew calendars. God knew that eventually time on planet Earth would be counted utilizing the Gregorian calendar, actually dividing time between BC and AD by the coming of Jesus as the Son of Man.
So with all that in mind, God has been perfecting His people, the Church, since the birth of the Church on the Day of Pentecost following Jesus’ resurrection. That perfecting will be completed in this day (millennium), the seventh day since creation, which is the Sabbath that all the Sabbaths of the law and the Sabbath of creation point the way to.
As we have crossed the threshold of this day (millennium), God has been dealing with a remnant of believers rather severely, preparing and positioning them for that which lies ahead. This remnant, as a result of God’s dealing with them, has been given a glimpse of and tasted of the perfection that awaits not only God’s people (not only the Church), but all of creation.
If you are a part of this remnant, you know what I am talking about. If not, you probably have no clue, but that’s okay. This remnant are the trailblazers and the announcers of what is coming, preparing the way for many more to follow.
So if you are born again or born from above, which is a spiritual birth different from your physical birth when you came out of the womb of your mother, you will eventually see what the remnant is seeing. And I might add, all of this remnant are not seeing exactly the same thing at this time. Some are just beginning to see the Kingdom of God/Heaven, which by the way, is the purpose of being born again (see John 3:3), while others are seeing it much clearer.
All believers are on a journey toward perfection/completion, and we will all eventually arrive at our destination. Many have and probably many more will go by way of the grave and wait for the generation of believers who will be perfected while on the earth in physical bodies, enabling all who have gone before to be perfected (see Hebrews 11:39-40).
Perhaps there are those of this remnant who will simply put on immortality and continue on until the perfection of the Church is completed, or in other words, they won’t die physically.
If so, I hope I am one of those. But if not, I will do my part to pave the way for that generation, and then patiently wait, after I leave this earth, for their manifestation.
Either way, I can assure you, we were born for such a time as this.
Kingdom Nuggets
The First and the Last Adam (2)
By Lanny Swaim
For he [God] hath made him [Jesus] to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him [Jesus].
2 Corinthians 5:21
Being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ.
Philippians 1:6
Instead of the word perform, the Amplified Bible says perfect and complete.
And so it is written, the first man Adam was made a living soul; the last Adam was made a quickening spirit.
1 Corinthians 15:45
Adam in Hebrew means man. When God speaks of man or mankind in the Bible, he is referring to male and female.
Interestingly, God didn’t initially differentiate between them, even though He made them with differences. It was Adam who first called his wife woman (see Genesis 2:23), meaning the female version of man in Hebrew. Then later Adam named her Eve, which was actually a prophetic name meaning she would become the mother of all mankind (see Genesis 3:20).
So while Adam is specifically the first man God made, he is representative of all who came after him for the next four thousand years, until the last Adam was born in a stable in Bethlehem. The last Adam (Jesus) is representative of all who came after Him.
So in a sense, God only made two men, the first Adam and the last Adam. Before Jesus went to the cross, all mankind was in essence the first Adam. After Jesus became sin for all mankind, including those who were a part of the first Adam (see 1 Peter 3:19), everything changed.
The only way to salvation is the cross of Christ. There is no other way and no other name under Heaven that enables salvation (see Acts 4:12). But to equate salvation with going to Heaven is to greatly limit the meaning of the word.
Salvation is the process by which we become like God in character.
Jesus became sin for us, so God sees us as sinless. But just as Adam was created sinless but not perfect (complete), we too must go through the process of being perfected or completed, being made the righteousness of God or becoming like God in character (righteous as He is righteous).
This process is just that; a process. Being made righteous or being perfected (completed) has to do with character, and character cannot be created or bestowed. Character has to be developed.
And it is not something that can be achieved by behavioral change. It requires a changing of the heart, and only God can change your heart. So it is not about doing, it is about being. You cannot become perfected by changing your behavior.
It was by the first Adam that sin and death became the natural course of mankind. And it is only by the last Adam that we can even begin to become the righteousness of God.
It is not something we strive to attain. Rather, it is something we submit to, and it often requires unpleasant circumstances to build the character of God in us.
I wish there was an easier way but some things just are as they are, and this is one of those things. Salvation/perfection/completion/becoming like God in character is a process that often takes us down a road we would rather not travel, but as we travel that road on our journey into becoming the last Adam, we realize more and more that our destination is worth whatever it cost us along the way.
At the present time in history all of the world and much of the Church identifies more with the first Adam than with the last Adam, but glory to God, there is a remnant that is experiencing to some degree and tasting of the perfection that awaits us all.
I encourage you to submit to the process, trusting God completely with your life each step of the way and with the outcome. However, even submitting to the process is something only God can enable you to do.
You see, it is not in any way, shape or form about us. It is all about Him and what He has accomplished for us, which is equal to what He is accomplishing in and through us.
Kingdom Nuggets
The Gospel of the Kingdom
By Lanny Swaim
Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.
John 3:3 (emphasis added)
Now after that John was put in prison, Jesus came into Galilee, preaching the gospel of the kingdom of God, and saying, The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand: repent ye, and believe the gospel.
Mark 1:14-15 (emphasis added)
It is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment: so Christ was once offered to bear the sins of many; and unto them that look for him shall he appear the second time without sin unto salvation.
Hebrews 9:27-28
Jesus didn’t preach what I refer to as the Gospel of Personal Salvation. Jesus preached the Gospel of the Kingdom.
The Church throughout most of its history, has focused on getting people born again (born from above) to enable them to go to Heaven when they die, but this is not what Jesus preached. John 3:3 explicitly states that we must be born again to see the Kingdom. Going to Heaven is not mentioned in this verse.
Because the Church has misunderstood the Gospel, we have also misunderstood the meaning of salvation. Salvation has nothing to do with going to Heaven. Salvation is about becoming like God in character.
A misunderstanding of times and seasons has also caused confusion concerning salvation. Much has been put off somewhere in the future and considered to be events on the timeline of history rather than referring to the process of salvation (becoming like God), causing a gross misunderstanding of salvation.
According to Hebrews 9:27-28 we died with Jesus when He was crucified and then we began the process of being saved (becoming like God), which enables us to see the Kingdom. The judgment spoken of here and the Lord’s appearing a second time is referring to the process He puts us through to make us into His likeness.
Because of the cross God sees us as sinless, but it is the process of salvation that makes us like God in character.
As we become like God in character, we will, as His representatives on Earth, begin to reveal and implement the Kingdom of God into society and even entire nations.
Jesus taught us to pray that His Kingdom would come in earth as in Heaven (see Matthew 6:10/Luke 11:2). This is the purpose of the Gospel of the Kingdom; a convergence of Heaven and Earth. It is not about getting people to Heaven one day, but is instead about bringing Heaven to Earth.
Kingdom Nuggets
The Ekklesia
By Lanny Swaim
I say unto thee, That thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church; and the gates of hell [death] shall not prevail against it. And I will give unto thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.
Matthew 16:18-19 (emphasis added)
The word Church in this passage is the Greek word Ekklesia. Church is a very poor translation of Ekklesia, and when the Bible refers to the Church/Ekklesia, it is not referring to a physical building but instead to a people. Ekklesia is not a religious or spiritual word. It is a political word, and literally means called out ones to be a governing or legislative body.
Interestingly, history records that Jesus spent His teen years with His uncle, Joseph of Arimathea, whose tomb Jesus’ body was laid in after the crucifixion. His uncle was a Jew but worked for the Roman government. The Greek word, ekklesia, was used to describe the Roman government, and they sent out apostles from Rome to establish Roman society in the various regions that Rome conquered. What we call the five-fold ministry was actually used by Rome in the establishment of the Roman Empire, in a natural sense. Jesus learned all this while traveling with His uncle, and then applied the terminology to the Church, as did Paul in Ephesians 4:11. While traveling with his uncle throughout the Roman Empire, Jesus actually went as far as England.
The lost and last chapter of the Book of Acts, which recently has been rediscovered and published, records that Paul also traveled to England, finding a Jewish population there, and the commentary included with the publication indicates that Joseph of Arimathea lived there.
The definition of Ekklesia entails much more than believers assembling together for worship and ministry to one another. It implies that we are to be reigning with Christ, governing regions and even nations.
What a clever trick of the devil to put this off somewhere in the future, convincing the Ekklesia that we are to simply occupy until… No, we are to be reigning right now! We don’t have to wait until Jesus comes and sets this up. He is setting it up right now. The government is and always has been upon His shoulder (see Isaiah 9:6). The more He becomes fully formed in a people, which is the process of maturity or sanctification/salvation, the more we will take our rightful position as the Ekklesia, reigning over the earth systems until the nations of the world become the Kingdom of God, not just in individuals but politically (see Revelation 11:15).
Of course, we don’t accomplish this by coercion or force, but instead by changing hearts and by being involved in all areas of society and government as we are placed and led by the Spirit to do so.
There is a remnant of the Ekklesia today who is coming into an understanding of this reality, and taking our rightful place in the building of the Lord’s Ekklesia, bringing about a convergence of Heaven and Earth.
Surely, absolutely, and without a doubt we were born for such a time as this!
Kingdom Nuggets
A New Reformation
By Lanny Swaim
While there were numerous reform movements during the history of the Catholic Church, Martin Luther is credited with starting the Protestant Reformation in 1517 when he nailed his Ninety-five Theses to the church house door in Wittenberg, Germany.
Three years later he was given an opportunity to recant and refused at the risk of his life. One thing that helped to spread the Reformation was the printing press, a fairly new invention at that time.
The printing press made it possible for new translations of the Bible to be made available to the general public as well as other religious writings, which, while causing division due to doctrinal differences also opened the door to new moves of God.
Numerous revival movements (too numerous to mention here) propelled the Church forward, restoring much that had been lost during the reign of the Catholic Church and even during the early Protestant Reformation.
With the Welsh Revivals of 1859 and 1904 and the Azusa Street Revival in Los Angeles in 1906, the baptism with the Holy Spirit was rediscovered on a wide scale. Then the Charismatic Movement of the mid-twentieth century introduced the baptism with the Spirit to many more Christians, crossing most if not all denominational boundaries.
Today there is a remnant of believers who are discovering seemingly new revelation and hidden mysteries in scripture that often goes against widely accepted doctrine, indicating the birth pangs of a new reformation. With new technology and social media, plus a major publishing industry, the spread of this information can be instant. We’ve come a long way since the invention of the printing press in fifteenth century Europe.
God is using this new technology to not only lead the Ekklesia (Church) into all truth, but also to connect the remnant believers who are trailblazers of the new reformation.
Simultaneously, while these seemingly hidden mysteries are being revealed, believers are beginning to see and become very dissatisfied with the way “church” is being done, realizing that for the most part, the present church system is manmade and in great error.
As a result, many are discovering they just cannot do “church” that way anymore, and are coming out of the present “church” system.
Some don’t know where to go while others are beginning to come together in small groups, primarily meeting in homes, as did the first century church.
In concert with all this, the Lord is beginning to establish a true five-fold ministry, as He is reshaping and reforming His Ekklesia.
What the Ekklesia is becoming is yet to be seen, but Ephesians tells us that eventually it will be glorious and without spot, wrinkle or any such thing, holy and without blemish (see Ephesians 5:27).
Though a series of prophetic events and the Lord Jesus appearing to me in two night visions four years apart, I have been given an apostolic vision for networks of house churches connected into and overseen by some sort of apostolic hubs. I believe this is a vision whose time has come, and I am currently seeking the Lord as to how it is to be implemented.
This will be a new reformation of the Ekklesia, taking us far beyond the changes of the Protestant Reformation five-hundred years ago. This New Reformation will sustain the next and greatest of all spiritual awakenings that is on the horizon at the present time, and pave the way for a complete convergence of Heaven and Earth.
Surely we were born for such a time as this!
Kingdom Nuggets
For Such a Time as This
By Lanny Swaim
Who knoweth whether thou art come to the kingdom for such a time as this?
Esther 4:14
Many of my readers are around my age, being born in the mid-twentieth century. And more than a few of us were greatly influenced by and a part of the Jesus People Movement among young people, which appeared to begin on the west coast of the United States and spread across the country, and the Charismatic Renewal/Movement that crossed most if not all denominational boundaries.
But whenever you were born and whatever your age, if you are not just called but chosen by God (see Matthew 22:14), you were placed on the planet with a specific purpose and destiny, and your life has been orchestrated by God with your steps ordered by Him, guiding you like a rudder steers a ship.
The concept of free will is taught by most Christians but I often tell people, “I have no concept of free will.” I did not choose the life I am living. I have been driven into it every step of the way, since the day I was born and possibly even before I was born.
Matthew’s account of the Gospel tells us that Jesus was led of the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted of the devil (see Matthew 4:1). This was in preparation for His ministry. But Mark’s account tells us that Jesus was driven into the wilderness (see Mark 1:12).
So which is it? Led or driven?
Perhaps it is both.
I think that like Jesus, those of us who are chosen are often led by being driven into our destiny, each step along the way.
Looking back over my life, I can see how everything I have experienced, good and bad, successes and failures, have played a part in shaping me into who I am and in getting me to where I am. I am in awe of but not fully understanding how even my failures and mistakes have somehow been a part of God’s plan to mold me into His likeness and place me in the center of His will as I walk out my part in building the Kingdom of God.
A major key that has kept me on track has been remaining teachable, realizing that we are on a journey into truth with none of us having completely arrived yet.
It seems to me that the Lord is dealing with His Church in the same way as He deals with individuals, steering us toward becoming the glorious Church He will present to Himself as a perfected Bride.
He is bringing us into an intimate relationship with Him that goes beyond anything we even knew existed a short time ago. And as we get to know Him better and better, He is implementing doctrinal changes in our understanding of scripture, and of His plan and purpose for mankind and planet Earth.
While at the present time He is primarily dealing with a remnant of the Church world at large, we of that remnant must realize that we are trailblazers and the firstfruits of many more to come.
While there are those who don’t accept us and perhaps even come against us because of the way in which God is dealing with us, we must humbly continue walking the path we are on, realizing that eventually they too will follow.
We have been chosen/driven to be who we are and where we are, blessed beyond measure to be at the forefront of the Kingdom coming in/on Earth as in Heaven.
And yes, surely we were born for such a time as this.
Kingdom Nuggets
The Remnant Bride of Christ
By Lanny Swaim
And it shall come to pass, that whosoever shall call on the name of the LORD shall be delivered: for in mount Zion and in Jerusalem shall be deliverance, as the LORD hath said, and in the remnant whom the LORD shall call.
Joel 2:32 (emphasis added)
Let us be glad and rejoice, and give honor unto him: for the marriage of the Lamb is come, and his wife hath made herself ready.
Revelation 19:7
A remnant is defined as a small, remaining part or quantity of something, often used in scripture to describe a group of people much smaller than the whole group, who remain loyal and dedicated to the Lord and to His plan more intensely than the whole group.
Today there is a remnant of the Body of Christ who have been dealt with rather severely by the Lord, as He is emptying them of self and preparing them to reign with Him as Heaven converges with Earth, bringing about the fulfillment of Revelation 11:15.
The kingdoms [nations] of this world are become the kingdoms [Kingdom] of our Lord [Jesus], and of his Christ [the Body of Christ]; and he [we] shall reign for ever and ever.
The Bride of Christ, at the present time, is not the entire Body of Christ. The Bride of Christ is a remnant of the Body of Christ that is being prepared to become the Lord’s wife.
This is why more and more believers are finding it impossible to remain in the present church system, which is full of manmade tradition. They are coming out of that system in search of the perfected Church that Jesus will present to Himself (see Ephesians 5:27).
In essence, the Bride of Christ is currently being taken out of the Body of Christ, in order to complete the Body of Christ, just as Eve was taken out of Adam in order to complete him.
This Remnant Bride is the firstfruits of many more to come; trailblazers paving the way for the entire Body of Christ to become the Bride of Christ.
Those of us chosen for this task are being fine-tuned for our assignment. The preparation for our mission has not been easy by any means, and yet, it is leading us into a life much more exciting than anything we could have imagined just a short time ago.
We are truly blessed to be a part of this Remnant Bride of Christ, as the experience is producing in us an intimacy with Him beyond anything we have known in the past.
We are definitely living in the most exciting time in history so far, and in the most exciting time in our lives as we walk into our destiny.
Surely we were born for such a time as this.
Kingdom Nuggets
The Expressive Bride of Christ
By Lanny Swaim
How is it then, brethren? When ye come together, every one of you hath a psalm, hath a doctrine, hath a tongue, hath a revelation, hath an interpretation. Let all things be done unto edifying.
1 Corinthians 14:26
So hast thou also them that hold the doctrine of the Nicolaitans, which thing I hate.
Revelation 2:15 (see also Revelation 2:6)
Nico in Greek means to conquer, and laitans has to do with the laity. Hence, the word Nicolaitans.
The clergy/laity system, which had obviously crept into the Church as early as the first century, became the foundation of the Catholic Church in the fourth century.
Nowhere does the Bible teach or condone such a system, which is a control system, and Jesus even said He hated it.
While the Protestant Reformation righted some of the wrongs of the Catholic Church, it left intact the clergy/laity system, and it remains until today, not only in denominational churches but also in independent churches; even in many house churches.
This system keeps believers submissive to church leadership, usually a so called pastor or governing board of some kind. As a result, believers become workers in the church setting instead of ministers, which is in contradiction to what 1 Corinthians 14:26 says we should be.
As the Bride of Christ is maturing and becoming more intimate with the Lord, she is also becoming much more expressive. We are continually getting some new revelation or word from the Lord; new insights that we can hardly wait to share with other believers.
As we assemble together corporately, we are no longer satisfied to sit in a pew week after week and be spoon fed by the same person or persons standing at a podium. We too have things to contribute to the meeting, which enables a much broader platform to learn from one another, which sparks more revelation in each of us as we hear from the Lord individually.
We have a deep seated need to express what we are learning of and from the Lord, creating an atmosphere where we can all minister to and learn from one another.
While there is a time and place for an anointed teacher/pastor/apostle/prophet/evangelist to stand at a podium and teach/prophesy, this should not be the way we do church on a regular basis. Our regular meetings should be conducted according to 1 Corinthians 14:26, enabling us to continue navigating the path to becoming the expressive Bride of Christ.
Kingdom Nuggets
The Beautiful Bride of Christ
By Lanny Swaim
Husbands, love your wives, even as Christ also loved the church, and gave himself for it; that he might sanctify and cleanse it with the washing of water by the word, that he might present it to himself a glorious church, not having spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing; but that it should be holy and without blemish.
Ephesians 5:25-27
I am God… Declaring the end from the beginning…
Isaiah 16:9-10
When God speaks it must come to pass. We see this in the creation narrative and in other places throughout the Bible. In order to declare a thing, God must already see it as accomplished, so there is a sense in which, from an eternal perspective, everything that is going to happen has already happened.
The longer I walk with the Lord and the better I get to know Him, the more I too see from the eternal perspective rather than from the time/space perspective, even though I still physically live in a time/space world.
Seeing from the eternal perspective has given me a different understanding of prophetic scripture. I have come to realize that many things we have put off somewhere in the future are actually continual.
When we are told in the letter to the Ephesian Church that Jesus will present the Church to Himself a glorious, perfected Church, it appears this is in the context of a future event. But I have come to see it more as a continual event; or perhaps process would be a better word. We are continually being perfected, while from God’s eternal perspective, we have already been perfected.
In other words, our position is that we have already been perfected, while our experience is that we are being perfected, enabling us on the timeline of history to eventually be perfected.
The idea of a glorious Church, without spot, wrinkle or any such thing, holy and without blemish, is to see the Church as beautiful. I can’t imagine that Christ, the Bridegroom, would not have a beautiful Bride. Can you?
I am reminded of the story of Esther (see Esther, chapter 2). We are told she was naturally fair and beautiful, but that before she could be presented to King Ahasuerus with the possibility of becoming Queen Esther, she had to go through a beautification process that lasted for twelve months. This is a picture, a type and shadow, of how we, the Church, while already seen by God as beautiful, must go through a process of beautification.
In essence, we are on a journey to where we already are, which is the eternal perspective I have spoken of in this teaching.
Seeing ourselves as already complete, while navigating the process of completion, enables us to experience great rest and peace in our souls. We no longer strive to become who we think we should be, but instead rest in the knowledge that the God who declares the end from the beginning will accomplish His will and purpose in us, as we become the beautiful Bride of Christ that eternally speaking, we already are.
Kingdom Nuggets
The Sons of God
By Lanny Swaim
For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God.
Romans 8:14
For the earnest expectation of the creature [creation] waiteth for the manifestation of the sons of God.
Romans 8:19
God has no daughters, only sons.
Now, before all you ladies get upset with me, you must realize this is not about gender. The Sons of God are the same people as the Bride of Christ, and both groups include men and women.
In the Hebrew culture of the Bible, a son was a mature child, ready to operate in all the authority of his father’s name and receive all his father’s inheritance.
So a Son of God is a mature child of God, experienced at being led by the Spirit of God.
These Sons of God are of great value to the Kingdom of God. Their maturity enables them to take their rightful place in the Lord’s Ekklesia (Greek for Church, meaning a governing or legislative body) and exercise their authority as believers.
Only a mature believer can be trusted with the power and authority necessary to change the world and bring a convergence of Heaven and Earth. Is it any wonder that all of creation is waiting for, even crying out for these Sons of God to be revealed on the world stage?
While there is much resistance to these Sons of God, it is their destiny to manifest in such a way as to literally take over the nations of the world, not by force or coercion but instead by changing hearts, one person at a time.
This is by definition the Gospel of the Kingdom and it is the sole purpose of evangelism.
Ultimately, these Sons of God will change the nations, bringing many into the Kingdom of God, discipling entire nations, bringing about a convergence of Heaven and Earth, fulfilling Revelation 11:15.
Surely we were born for such a time as this!