Friday, September 17, 2010

The Judgment Has Begun

Joseph Herrin (09-17-2010)





























Christchurch, New Zealand - Fault Line

The Father continues to speak through the recent calamitous earthquake which occurred on the eve of Father’s Day in this island nation. The quake occurred on September 4, and the New Zealanders celebrated Father’s Day on September 5th. As you may well imagine, the Father’s Day celebrations of many took on a completely different aspect than anticipated.

I believe the occurrence of the quake at this time is intended by our heavenly Father to draw our attention to the following passage of Scripture.

Malachi 4:5-6
"Behold, I am going to send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and terrible day of Yahweh. And he will restore the hearts of the fathers to their children, and the hearts of the children to their fathers, lest I come and smite the earth with a curse."

The great and terrible day of Yahweh is fast approaching. Before it arrives, Yahweh will send forth a spirit of repentance upon His people to turn their hearts back to Him, THE FATHER.

I would like to share with you some keys to understanding the parable of the Christchurch earthquake. The earth is a parable of mankind, for man’s flesh was formed of the dust of the earth.

Genesis 2:7
Then Yahweh God formed man of dust from the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul.

This body that we live in is also pictured in Scripture as a house of clay whose foundation is dust.

Job 4:17-19
Can mankind be just before God?... He puts no trust even in His servants; And against His angels He charges error. How much more those who dwell in houses of clay, whose foundation is in the dust...?

The apostle Paul uses the metaphor of man’s body being a house, a tent, a dwelling place.

II Corinthians 5:1-2
For we know that if the earthly tent which is our house is torn down, we have a building from God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens. For indeed in this house we groan, longing to be clothed with our dwelling from heaven...

Understanding these types will greatly aid the saint in understanding the parable of the earthquake in Christchurch. Another significant detail of the quake is that it lasted forty seconds. The number forty is symbolic of trials and testing. It signifies a period of time in which Yahweh will test mankind to expose that which is in their hearts.

Deuteronomy 8:2-3
And you shall remember all the way which Yahweh your God has led you in the wilderness these forty years, that He might humble you, testing you, to know what was in your heart... And He humbled you and let you be hungry... that He might make you understand that man does not live by bread alone, but man lives by everything that proceeds out of the mouth of Yahweh.

The forty years in which Israel was tested was mirrored in the forty days in which Yahshua was led into the wilderness to be tested. Even as Yahweh tested the children of Israel with hunger, so too did He test His Son with hunger. Yahshua quoted the very passage from Deuteronomy above as an answer to Satan’s temptation to turn the stones into bread.

The purpose of the wilderness, a period of time marked by the number forty, is to expose what is in the heart. It was revealed that the people of God who followed Moses in the wilderness did not have the will of the Father uppermost in their hearts. They were more concerned with comfort and personal pleasure and satisfaction of the appetites of the flesh. They murmured and wept aloud as those who were suffering great affliction.

The Son of God was similarly tempted, and it was revealed that He had a different heart. He ever lived to do the pleasure of the Father. His meat was to do the Father’s will.

The Christchurch earthquake lasted forty seconds. Time is speeding up. The work of Yahweh is progressing at an abrupt pace. He will perform a quick work in the lives of His children in this hour. There is no time to delay. The Holy Spirit is proclaiming that there must be an attitude of urgency among those who desire to be counted among the overcomers and who would attain to the number of the firstborn.

Randy Simmons called me on the phone the second day we were back in Georgia. He told me that he had driven into Macon and was continually encountering signs that had the word “Urgent” on them. He was driving down the road and was approaching a very serious auto wreck. There were ambulances, police cars, emergency vehicles, fire trucks, etc.. One ambulance was coming directly toward him and had the word “URGENT” on the front of it. Randy turned off the road to avoid the accident scene and found himself driving toward an URGENT Care facility. He sensed the Spirit speaking to Him that we needed to have a sense of urgency about this hour.

A sister in Christ (Aletha Swanson), unaware of what Randy had shared with me, sent me the following word yesterday.

I wanted to share with you what the Lord has spoken to me concerning the time we are in by way of confirmation...


SANTA BARBARA DREAM


About 35 years ago (I was in my late 20s) while living in Santa Barbara, CA I had an extremely vivid dream that Santa Barbara was totally surrounded by fire and I instantly knew in my spirit that what I was seeing was happening during the time of the tribulation. At that time, I still believed in the pre-trib rapture and did not understand why the Lord was showing ME this scene since I did not believe I would be there during that time. It made no sense to me and I put the dream away in my mind and forgot about it.


Then last May (2009) there were terrible fires in the hills above Santa Barbara which threatened to burn down the entire city (those were the words of the newscasters) just as I had dreamed. I was watching a news report on TV in my home here in Sacramento when they showed a film clip of the fire. It was the SAME SCENE EXACTLY that I had seen in my dream 30 years ago. It was as though they had taken the scene from my dream and put it on the 5:00 news. I sat there in shock not knowing what it meant. I have pondered this dream and that scene for over a year wondering exactly what it meant and why the Lord was giving it to me.


Then on June 28th, 2010 the Lord clearly spoke the words to me "LIFE AS YOU KNOW IT IS ABOUT TO END." These words were accompanied with a strong sense of urgency and grief that something BIG and BAD was about to happen in the world. I did NOT have any sense of fear with this word, just a sense of being warned and that I needed to prepare physically and spiritually for a huge crisis...


Over time the Lord has confirmed to me WHY He gave me that dream about the Santa Barbara fire. The dream of the Santa Barbara fire was a warning, a sign, a time-marker, like an alarm clock going off as to the TIME of the tribulation. The huge fire I saw took place IN the time of the tribulation. That exact fire that I saw happened last May. I now know with certainty WHAT TIME IT IS. The alarm clock has rung!


The Lord has been confirming to me through many others the urgency I am sensing is from Him and that I am indeed hearing is from Him. We are standing at the very door and He is confirming through many voices to PREPARE. The time is short and the need to surrender all and to live for the Lord Jesus Christ is greater now than it has ever been. He has been directing me to prepare for a major emergency and time of great hardship. PREPARE is the one word ringing in my spirit..
Aletha

Truly, the Spirit is saying that the time is short. Indeed time has been shortened. What the Father performed in 40 years with Israel, and 40 days with Yahshua, He will accomplish in 40 seconds in the last days remnant. I do not speak this in a literal sense, but in a figurative sense. Those things the Father is speaking to His sons and daughters must be performed quickly. There is no time to waste. He will likewise use the same methods of testing His sons and daughters in this hour.

He will make them know hunger.

I mentioned yesterday that the ten days between Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur, a time we are now in, are known as “the days of awe.” During this period of time the Jews enter into a time of self-examination and repentance. The Scriptures declare that Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement, is to be a day for Yahweh’s people to afflict their souls. This is traditionally done through fasting. Yom Kippur begins this evening (Friday September, 17th) at sundown and runs for 24 hours.

(Note: Bob Schlenker has informed me that the Karaite Jews have Yom Kippur starting on the 19th at Sundown, and running through the 20th at Sundown. You can find this information at the following website: http://www.karaite-korner.org/holiday_dates.shtml)

The Spirit is indeed leading some to fast from food at this season. Randy Simmons, not knowing anything about the feast days, or the Biblical mandate to afflict the soul, was praying a couple days ago asking the Father what He would have him to do. Randy heard only one thing. FAST!

Randy does not enjoy afflicting his soul with fasting anymore than I do. Yet he believed the Father was calling him to three days of fasting, ending on the Day of Atonement, without even knowing about the Jewish calendar. He asked the Father to affirm His will in this matter by speaking to him through the Bible. Randy was led to the following words in the Scriptures.

Proclaim a fast!

At the same time, the Father has been directing me to afflict my soul. He has been revealing to me areas of my life where I have been seeking to satisfy my flesh, directing me to come into conformity to the image of Christ. Christ testified that He did nothing of His own initiative. He would not even turn stones into bread when He had not eaten in forty days. I have not come to the same place of ruling over the flesh where I would not do anything of my own initiative. Oftentimes I have reasoned that it is okay to eat something my flesh desires, or to engage in some leisure activity that my soul is attracted to. I have not yet been perfected, or come to the fulness of the stature that belongs to Christ.

The Spirit has been impressing upon me to STOP. He would have me to come to an absolute end of doing anything of my own initiative. He would have me to walk as Christ who was so perfect that He did not even speak a word unless the Father commanded Him to speak.

The Father spoke to me through an experience in my life a couple days ago. The brakes on my bike were not gripping very well. I had adjusted them before, but they still did not grip. I stopped in at a bike store and bought a new set of high quality brake pads. I paid more for them than I wanted to, but was assured that they are premium brakes.

This is a parable of my life. I do not always stop some activity as soon as the Father would have me to do so. Perhaps I will linger too long at the dinner table, eating more than I should. I may take a break from the daily tasks the Father gives me to do, and not return to the labor when I ought to do so. At times the Father will convict me of the need to do something, and I will put it off, continuing with what I want to do for a season.

The Spirit is saying “STOP!” He is exposing hidden faults in my life, and in the lives of others. I am sensing an urgency in the Spirit regarding these things. He is exposing subterranean areas of my life where faults exist. These faults if not quickly corrected will lead to a collapse of that which has been built upon it. A great shaking is coming, and the Father would spare us the great loss that we might incur.




















Christchurch Repertory Theater

In the Christchurch earthquake the facades of many building crumbled. There is particular symbolism in the image above. In the Greek society of Christ’s day, those actors who played a part in a theater production were called “hypocrites.” The word hypocrite literally meant, “a play actor.”

Christ confronted the Jewish religious leaders of their day, calling them hypocrites, “play actors.” They were simply playing a role before the people. They outwardly appeared righteous, and lovers of God, but inwardly they were unrighteous and lovers of self. Yahweh in this hour is sending forth His Spirit to perform a deep probing work. He is exposing the inner condition of people’s lives. He desires TRUTH in the inner parts.

Psalms 51:6-7
Behold, You desire truth in the inward parts, and in the hidden part You will make me to know wisdom. Purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean; Wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow.

Right now, the Father is exposing those things which are deficient in the lives of His sons and daughters that they might quickly agree with Him and take the steps He directs them to take in order to correct these hidden faults. This is a brief moment of grace. Soon He will examine His sons and daughters and make a division among them. This will be a dividing similar to that which occurred when Gideon’s army was separated into three groups. There were the 22,000 fearful, the 9,700 unprepared, and the 300 who were alert and ready.

The numbers will be similarly precipitous in this last hour. Those who will walk as overcomers and be chosen for exploits in the Father’s name will be the smallest remnant. Indeed, they will seem too few to accomplish the will of the Father, but He will greatly help them.

People of God, I fear lest having run the race this far I should falter before I arrive at the finish line. The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak. Our Father requires a complete harmony between our outward testimony and our inner life. He would have us to be perfect as He is perfect. He is performing a fiery examination in the lives of His saints at this time. I encourage you to permit Him to shine His piercing light into all areas of your life that He might reveal all that is not yet perfected.

Isaiah 26:9
At night my soul longs for You, indeed, my spirit within me seeks You diligently; For when the earth experiences Your judgments the inhabitants of the world learn righteousness.

Yahweh is coming to the earth of our flesh with His judgments. This is not a judgment unto death, but unto life. Not a soul was lost in the earthquake in Christchurch. Hidden faults were exposed, buildings crumbled that were built deficiently. Those who had built on an unstable foundation were greatly shaken.

In the aftermath, hidden fault lines have now been exposed. That which was not sound in homes and buildings is being torn down to be built again from the foundation up. Those buildings that stood, but suffered some damage are being repaired. In the same way, the Father would have us to observe the condition of our lives. Depart from that which is unsound. Move away from the unstable foundations of this world system. Build upon the Rock. Do not permit anything to remain that can be shaken. If you do, there will be great loss.

I would recommend to you a writing that was forwarded to me. I am not vouching for all the writings of this author, for I have not tested them. This is the first article I have read from him, and it is excellent and I am able to highly recommend it to those who wish to discern this work of the Father at this hour. You can find it at the following link. It is the article titled “It Has Begun.”

http://www.firstloveministry.com/index.html

Heart4God Website: http://www.heart4god.ws  

Parables Blog: www.parablesblog.blogspot.com

Mailing Address:
Joseph Herrin
P.O. Box 804
Montezuma, GA 31063

8 comments:

  1. Again,my spirit bares witness with this article.
    My children and I sense time speeding up (and we homeschool!)
    The other day I had much to accomplish and felt I had no time, so I asked the LORD to give me more time and lo HE did! Yeah, time is short. Time to get right with YESHUA.
    Peace,
    Deirdre

    ReplyDelete
  2. Amen. The spirit bears witness. Thanks for bringing this forward.

    Given what signs I've been seeing, their nature (OBVIOUS) and timing, this really is a key season. Yom Kippur is, by Karaite reckoning, September 19-20, sundown to sundown, Jerusalem time. Seek the Lord personally about specifics as to timing for you, of course. For those of you who work or have other obligations, some advance planning may be called for to free up your time and your families time from distractions. I'm convinced this is that urgent and that important.

    This holy day has a focus on a corporate accounting in addition to what is on the individual and personal basis, which reminds me to be mindful of intercession as the Lord might call other corporate entities to mind.

    Bob

    ReplyDelete
  3. Comment #1
    I visited New Zealand in 2001 for my Jubilee year (50th birthday). While there I noticed a marked difference in the way the Australians and the New Zealanders treated their poor and indigenous (native) people groups. There were other very subtle differences between the two countries, with NZ being more Christ-like. I even consulted a friend who was living in NZ at the time. She had not noticed any of this. Perhaps it was the Holy Spirit’s doing, as He late gave me some assignments to carry out.
    During a home stay at a sheep farm in Aotearoa /Maori language for NZ (North of Christ Church) I had “forgotten “ to bring along a Thank YOU gift for the host family. Another couple who also stayed there brought a bottle of wine… All I had was the book, “The Prayer of Jabez”. I fought with the Lord, saying, these people will not understand this gift (since they apparently were not Christians). But there was no way out for me. Holy Spirit had me put an awesome (as only He could write) prayer of blessing over the household, using the Prayer of Jabez as the basis. So we know that their territory was about to be expanded!
    Then while in a Missions Class I draw NZ from the hat, as the country I was responsible for studying and leading the group in prayer for. The two line prayer turned into 15-20 minutes of heartfelt concern for the country and its needs.
    Imagine my delight when I purchase the Christian CD “Days of Elijah” which was recorded in Aotearoa/ NZ! On this CD Robin Mark (?) first prays “We give you all the glory, Lord. We thank you for your presence. Thank you that your name has been lifted up in this place. We do take time to pray for this project. Instead of saying that no good thing can come out of Nazareth, Lord, 145 nations declare that there is revival and restoration in this part of the world.”
    Later a woman announced ”The Bible talks about Praise coming from the ends of the earth,, and that is exactly where we are, NZ. , Aotearoa. And so tonight it is our honor to fulfill the words of Isaiah 24:16 that states, “From the ends of the earth we hear singing!” Glory to the righteous One! Is there any one here tonight that is ready to give glory to righteous King Jesus! “ (Uproar of cheers from the crowd
    So, it is no mystery that to me that no one was killed in New Zealand’s recent earthquake. The Lord knows the end from the beginning and has had His hand on that place. No wonder He had me pray for and bless the people of NZ, in preparation for revival and later for protection. God is so good and so faithful, if we only follow His lead.
    Carol In Lexington,KY

    ReplyDelete
  4. Brother Joseph:

    I too have sensed that time is speeding up. In fact, I was just commenting to someone at church the other day that time seems to be going faster. I believe that the Lord is going to do a quick work of bringing all things to fulfillment.

    One of the intercessors in our church frequently reminds us that God is a God who moves "suddenly," when those who aren't prepared don't expect it.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Wo, this comment really spoke to me.

    One of the intercessors in our church frequently reminds us that God is a God who moves "suddenly," when those who aren't prepared don't expect it.

    Father GOD, please clarify this in Your church! amen.

    And thinking if the LORD is One to move 'suddenly' and HE has given you a vision, dream, or Word on something, then it would behoove us to pay real close attention to whats going on around us and YES!! to be prepared!! (repenting, gettings ones spiritual house in order and doing whatever the spirit tells you).
    Peace,
    Deirdre

    ReplyDelete
  6. Mr. Herrin,
    Per our last conversation: yet more confirmation of what the LORD gave me.

    http://www.todaysthv.com/news/local/story.aspx?storyid=117915&catid=2

    HE said, 'there is a fault line where there is no fault line' and showed me a map of this area.
    GOD help us.
    Peace,
    Deirdre

    ReplyDelete
  7. Brother Joseph,

    "Ask and ye shall receive."

    So I asked to be directed and I have been receiving that direction. Not directly, mind you, but in the form of forced changes. And, like you, I am now in "full stop."

    I wanted to follow Christ and I prayed on how to do that and support my wife and family. He has shown me that my business partner has been taking advantage of me and He made sure that leave my job.

    OK. That's fine.

    What's next Lord? How do I do this?

    Crickets!

    LORD!, what should I be doing to support my family and live for you?

    Nada!

    Should I be raising capital?
    Should I sell the house?
    Should I join the Peace Corps?
    Should I enter the Ministry?
    Should I call Brother Joseph and get information on what kind of Voyager van to buy (with Explorer tires and a Pioneer radio)?

    More crickets.

    Should I just stop and wait?

    YES!!!!

    It is the only thing that get's any response at all from the small voice that I talk at more than I listen to.

    For the past 25 days I have been doing little more than waiting on the Lord. I feel that we will be given many answers soon. Evil is going to make itself known to all but the evil will be seen as "good" to many.

    Joseph, as you may recall I have not agreed with your positions in the past. I am still not sure if I am complete agreement. But know this, I completely respect your views and use them to challenge and fortify my own.

    In the final analysis, we all will stand before Him on our own terms and will face the same standards. I cannot substitute your views for mine if I have not come to them from my own spiritual work.

    I am doing that work now. I have sold my worldly possessions in my heart if not in actual practice yet, it takes time to sell a house nowadays.

    I am listening. Waiting. Praying. Asking. What do I do now??

    Still, crickets.

    This is very hard for me. I am used to being focused and directed in my life. I have never have been "out of work." There has always something to keep me busy and optimistic.

    But wait a darn second! I have been "focused and directed" on HIM for the past 25 days. I have been reading a praying more in the past four weeks than I have in the past for months. And still, He tells me through that small voice, Stop. Wait. Listen.

    It seems to me what He is giving us is that it is His turn to the work. It is His time to bring in the harvest.

    I, for one, am going to let that small voice be the only thing I listen to from now on. If it says stop. I stop. If it says run, I will run.

    I am yours with love and respect,

    Dennis

    ReplyDelete
  8. There is a saying that cracks me up every time,
    "Give me patience Lord, give it to me now!"
    Like Dennis, I have been an orderly (focused and directed) person and like to do things right and do it once. I have been a perfectist (this is not a comment at Dennis). The best thing the Lord has done to "put the fire to it" in this area of my life , is to give me only the minimum info for any circumstance and over the years there have been the tears of frustation, the tempting of the enemy to panic and retch back the "steering wheel" and finally now the He has developed these into the hunger of "doing only as Im told." For me, He has even told me if I dont get an answer then status quo. Don't change anything or at least back track to the last set of directions I recieved.
    Yahwah isn't always safe, but He is good. Meaning if I have something He doesn't want me to have, then Lord I beg you "put the fire to it!"
    Simon in Tassie

    ReplyDelete

In an effort to promote integrity and civility, no anonymous comments will be posted. All signed comments are moderated, and will be posted at the site owner's discretion. If you have a personal message, or questions for Joseph Herrin, please e-mail me at joseph.b.herrin@gmail.com