The Victorious Church at the End of the Age

Session 3: Entering into Divine Power

I.Unprecedented Power is Coming:

The major premise of this series is that the Church will not be cowering in fear during the Great Tribulation (Re. 12:11) nor do we escape the difficulties of that important hour (Re. 13:8-10, 14:12). Instead the Church will walk in her authority and the Bride of Christ (Ps. 91:13; Mt. 7:10; Mk. 16:18; Lk. 10:17-19, 11:11-12) and will be doing signs and wonders as a testimony to the lost world of the reality and worth of Christ (Jo. 2:28; Jn. 14:12-14; Re. 11:5-6).

  1. Bible Prophecy Realized:

The scriptures give abundant testimony about the coming realities that the people of God will walk in, things that no time in history has ever seen. These many promises have not yet come to pass meaning that we can know that they are still future. Every word written in the scripture all of them must come to fruition because they are the words of God and it is impossible for God to lie.

“Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them. For truly I tell you, until heaven and earth disappear, not the smallest letter, not the least stroke of a pen, will by any means disappear from the Law until everything is accomplished (Mt. 5:17-18).”

  1. Endowed with Powerful Upgrades:

In the years that precede the return of Christ the Church should be expecting powerful upgrades. For those who take Bible prophecy seriously there is really only one conclusion that we can come away with; the Church should anticipate that we are going to be anointed with power in a way that we have not seen before in order to minister in an hour unlike any that has preceded it in order that we could accomplish things that have never been done before. In the below prophecy we see a focus on the unprecedented increase of the prophetic realm in the whole Church.

“And afterward, I will pour out my Spirit on all people. Your sons and daughters will prophesy, your old men will dream dreams, your young men will see visions…I will show wonders in the heavens and on the earth…The sun will be turned to darkness and the moon to blood before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord. And everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved (Jo. 2:28-32).”

  1. Even Greater Things:

We have to grapple with verses like John 14:12 with our current reality and try to honestly reconcile what is written with what has happened (or not happened) in Church history. In the case that statements like this one have not been fulfilled, which to be certain nothing like this has in any way been realized, then we need to think about what this means for the Church as we move forward. This verse deals with the increase of manifest power that will be seen in the daily lives of the whole Church.

“I tell you the truth, anyone who has faith in me will do what I have been doing. He will do even greater things than these, because I am going to the Father. And I will do whatever you ask in my name, so that the Son may bring glory to the Father. You may ask me for anything in my name, and I will do it (Jn. 14:12-14).”

  1. All believers have access to this power.
  2. Acts more powerful and more miraculous than the things Jesus did.
  3. Anointed intercession manifesting whatever we ask for.
  4. This power resting on the Church will bring the Fathergreat glory.

II.The Example of the Exodus:

The most referenced Old Testament event in scripture is the account of the Exodus where God extracted His people up out of the nation of Egypt (Ex. 12:17, 51, 16:32, 18:1, 20:2, 23:15, 29:46, 32:1, 4, 7, 8, 11, 32:23, 33:1, 34:18; Le. 11:45, 19:36, 22:33, 23:43, 25:38, 25:42, 25:55, 26:13, 45; Nu. 1:1, 9:1, 14:19, 15:41, 20:5, 16, 21:5, 22:5, 11, 23:22, 24:8, 26:4, 32:11 33:1, 33:38; Dt. 1:27, 4:20, 37, 45-46, 5:6, 6:12, 21, 7:8, 8:14, 9:7, 12, 26, 13:5, 10, 16:1, 3, 6, 20:1, 23:4, 24:9, 25:17, 26:8, 29:25; Js. 2:10, 5:4-5, 24:5-6, 17; Jg. 2:1, 12, 6:8, 13, 11:13, 16, 19:30; 1Sa. 8:8, 10:18, 12:6, 8, 15:2, 6; 2Sa. 7:6, 23; 1Ki. 6:1, 8:9, 16, 21, 51, 53, 9:9, 12:28; 2Ki. 17:7, 36, 21:15; 1Ch. 17:5, 21; 2Ch. 5:10, 6:5, 7:22; Ne. 9:18; Ps. 80:8, 81:10, 105:38, 114:1; Is. 11:16; Je. 2:6, 7:22, 25, 11:4, 7, 16:14, 23:7, 26:23, 31:32, 32:21, 34:13, 37:5; Ez. 20:6, 9-10; Da. 9:15; Ho. 2:15, 11:1, 12:9, 13, 13:4; Am. 2:10, 3:1, 9:7; Mi. 6:4, 7:15; Hg. 2:5; Mt. 2:15; Ac. 7:36, 40, He. 3:16, 8:9, 11:22, 27; Ju. 1:5). He did so through signs, wonders and many miracles and it serves as a powerful reminder of who God is and what He is capable of.

  1. Those Same Blessings Promised Again:

This amount of information is a massive indicator that the Lord wants us to pay attention to how He dealt with His people during that time frame. That is because God plans to do it again; to perform the same types of miracles again in the end times as He did during the Exodus.

“As in the days when you came out of Egypt,I will show them my wonders (Mi. 7:15).”

  1. The Goshen Principle:

There are going to be many expressions of God’s power released in, through and for His people. We often refer to this entire concept as the Goshen Principle or as God establishing cities of refuge or pockets of His mercy (Mi. 7:15; Ex. 8:22-23, 9:4-6, 26, 10:23, 11:7, 16:13-16; Je. 31:9; Re. 7:2-3, 9:4, Ez. 9:4-6). We will spend most of this session looking at the three primary areas of supernatural impact that we are anticipating in the end time drama related to this city of refuge concept.

  1. Protection from physical danger.
  2. Provision for our physical needs.
  3. Prophetic leading so we know what to do.
  4. Power for ministry.
  5. Preaching that impacts the hearts of those who hear.
  1. Power Will Touch Many Areas of Life:

When the Bible talks about power there are many different ways that can and will be expressed. In this session we will look at several examples of avenues that the Lord has used before as platforms to show His power and add divine strengthening to His people. Before we do that however we are going to take a look at some subjective prophesies that will help give us a picture of what things will look like for us when God visits His people with power in our modern day context.

III.Strengthened by Subjective Prophecy.

The Bible is our primary and authoritative source for prophecy and all truth and we throw out anything outside of the Bible that is in contradiction with what it says and teaches. But that doesn’t mean that it is our only source for prophecy and insights into what is coming; the Lord has long used His prophets to declare the word of the Lord in order to make people ready for what is soon coming. We call this subjective prophecy because while it can often be very helpful and accurate it does not carry the same measure of authoritative weight. Subjective prophecy is intended to further illuminate the things that the Bible teaches; it is God’s merciful way to continue the conversation that He began in the lines of scripture. True words will never contradict the scripture but will only compliment and add information that is in alignment with what is written. With that as a foundation we will now look at some subjective prophetic words that have been spoken over the prayer movement related to our subject today.

  1. Gardens of Renown:

IHOP-KC was given a beautiful word about how they (and other houses of prayer as well)would become safe places for young people to mature in their walk with Christ. That these ministries would become places where the needy could find refuge and healing; the term used was “gardens of renown.” The idea is that there would be greenhouses for the young believers to grow and mature and that the environment would be of such a caliber that the ones that grow in these places would be of a different order. That plants from these gardens would mature into strong leaders, singers and preachers that would be known all over the nation and beyond.

  1. No Disease Known to Man:

There have been numerous prophetic words given to IHOP about the Lord visiting the houses of prayer with powerful manifestations of healing. Perhaps the most powerful is the one given to Mike in the 80’s about “no disease known to man will stand before this people. Mike understood “this people” to be those that embody the heart standards that the Lord gave them. It is said that this anointing will reach heights even surpassing what we saw in the Healing Revival of the 1940s, even that what the Apostles did in Acts. The outpouring will be the fulfillment of Jesus’ prophecy about all who believe in Him doing greater works than He did while with us (Jn. 14:12).

  1. The Prayer Movement and the Great Trouble:

A very concerning word of prophecy that IHOP was given came in regard to the establishment of this Prayer Movement and the coming revival “before the cities lay desolate (blueprint prophecy).” This is of course exactly what Isaiah and others prophesied about with regard to the coming Day of the Lord (Is. 24:1-13). The promise however is for the rise of a great revival with corporate prayer at its center preceding the great trouble. We know this coming difficulty as the Great Tribulation. The timing of all this is important because it tips us off, should we need it, about the hour in which we are living.

  1. 500 Mile Radius:

As the center point of the prayer movement their leaders have also received multiple words about a special measure of grace that will rest on a 500-mile radius surrounding Kansas City. This prophetic word deals with a specific assignment designated for this region and a heightened measure of ministry impact that it will experience. The prophetic words about this 500-mile radius speak of the Midwest as a breadbasket both spiritually and naturally for the nation in the coming Great Trouble. In essence the prayer movement in that region will have a unique role in the end time drama (just as every region has a unique role in God’s plans) to provide leadership, food resources and administer the healing anointing.

  1. Stadium Christianity:

The term “Stadium Christianity” began to be used by Mike and his community of intercessors by the mid 90’s to describe a time when it would be very normal for night and day healing and worship meetings to take over the large professional sports team stadiums for periods of days or even weeks. They received many prophecies about these meeting starting spontaneously in response to the sudden breaking out of power and healing and the large demand from the masses to receive healing. An attested prophet who was with Mike in those days had over 100 visions of these stadium events and that the breaking forth of power wasn’t contained to a single city but that there would be sovereign moves of God’s power across the nation and beyond to where stadiums would be filled all over at the same time.

IV.Provision for Our Needs:

We want to recognize the amplified role that basic natural resources will play in the context of great famine, drought and persecution. Those who have access to such provision will be able to survive and even thrive in the coming great multifaceted storm and those who do not have such resources will suffer and find themselves in very difficult situations in the face of the Antichrist regime.

  1. Supernatural Food Provided During the Exodus:

The Lord miraculously provided both bread and meat for the people to eat. To further understand the magnitude of this miracle we need to note that they were in a dessert and it is impossible for enough quail to just happen to wander into the camp to feed the whole nation. The bread that appeared on the ground reappeared 6 days a week for 40 years. In my opinion this is the most striking miracle in the entire Bible.

“The Lord said to Moses, “I have heard the grumbling of the Israelites. Tell them, ‘At twilight you will eat meat, and in the morning you will be filled with bread. Then you will know that I am the Lord your God.’” That evening quail came and covered the camp, and in the morning there was a layer of dew around the camp...Moses said to them, “It is the bread the Lord has given you to eat (Ex. 16:11-15).”

  1. Miraculous Provision of Food:

While we are giving focus to the events of the Exodus there are several other scriptural examples where the Lord supernaturally provided food for specific people or groups.

“That evening quail came and covered the camp, and in the morning there was a layer of dew around the camp. When the dew was gone, thin flakes like frost on the ground…Moses said to them, “It is the bread the LORD has given you to eat. This is what the LORD has commanded: ‘Each one is to gather as much as he needs. Take an omerfor each person you have in your tent (Ex. 16:13-16).”

  1. Elijah fed by ravens (1Ki. 17:4-6).
  2. Feeding of the 5000 (Mt. 14:19-21).
  3. Feeding of the 4000 (Mt. 15:29-38).
  1. Provision of Finances:

At the start of the journey God moved on the hearts of Israel’s captors to give them all sorts of money and clothing. In a single moment the entire nation of people went from being slaves with few possessions and no real money to speak of and they became rich and well dressed.

“The Israelites did as Moses instructed and asked the Egyptians for articles of silver and gold and for clothing. The Lord had made the Egyptians favorably disposed toward the people, and they gave them what they asked for; so they plundered the Egyptians (Ex. 12:35-36).”

  1. Coin in fish’s mouth (Mt. 17:27).
  2. Cyrus building the Temple (Er. 1:1-4).
  3. The Lord declaring He owns the gold and the silver is mine (Hg. 2:8).
  4. Widow’s oil not running out (2Ki. 4:2-7).
  1. Supernatural Provision of Water:

Moses was used to supernaturally supply water from out of nowhere for an entire nation of millions of people and livestock to have all they needed to drink

“The whole Israelite community set out from the Desert of Sin…but there was no water…But the people were thirsty…and they grumbled against Moses…Then Moses cried out to the Lord…The Lord answered Moses, “…take in your hand the staff with which you struck the Nile, and go…Strike the rock, and water will come out of it for the people to drink.” So Moses did this in the sight of the elders of Israel (Ex. 17:1-6).”

  1. The second time that Moses water from the rock (Nu. 20:9-11).
  2. Elijah praying for rain to end the drought (1Ki. 18:41-45).
  3. Turning water into wine (Jn. 2:7-10).
  1. Their Clothing Didn’t Wear Out:

During the 40 years that Israel walked around in the dessert their clothes didn’t wear out. This is absolutely amazing; the wilderness was a harsh environment and even the most well made garments wear out with consistent use. This was not the case however for an entire nation of people’s clothing and shoes.

“Yet the Lord says, “During the forty years that I led you through the wilderness, your clothes did not wear out, nor did the sandals on your feet (Dt. 29:5).”

“For forty years you sustained them in the wilderness; they lacked nothing, their clothes did not wear out nor did their feet become swollen (Ne. 9:21).”

V.Protection from Danger:

We refer to the anticipated end time protection of the saints as being cities of refuge or as there being pockets of God’s mercy where supernatural protection rests on a place in order to preserve and protect the saints from harm (Mi. 7:15; Ex. 8:22-23, 9:4-6, 26, 10:23, 11:7, 16:13-16; Je. 31:9; Re. 7:2-3, 9:4, Ez. 9:4-6). The protection we are talking about here is in itself multifaceted as there will be many dangers the people of God will face in that evil day.

  1. Protection from Divine Judgments:

God is more than able to protect the godly while at the same time release divine judgments on the wicked (2Pe. 2:9). He has done this before and this will be a significant part of the way He interacts with His end time Church.

“And the next day the Lord did it: All the livestock of the Egyptians died, but not one animal belonging to the Israelites died (Ex. 9:6).”

“The only place it did not hail was the land of Goshen, where the Israelites were (Ex. 9:26).”

  1. Protection from Demons:

Scripture often refers to demons as snakes and scorpions; and we are told that we will be given power to trample over them (Ps. 91:13). In Revelation chapter 9 we see demons that resemble snakes and scorpions coming out of the Abyss (Hell) and in the passage below Jesus tells His disciples that He has given them authority over such demonic messengers and so they need to walk in that authority.

“I have given you authority to trample on snakes and scorpions and to overcome all the power of the enemy; nothing will harm you (Lk. 10:19).”

  1. Protection from Poison:

Scripture promises that there will be those who will be protected even from poison in it’s various forms. We saw this promise in action when Paul was bitten by a viper on the Island of Malta (Ac. 28:1-6).