FAITH WITHOUT THE RELIGION
“He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. (Revelation 2:29, BSB)
Faith without the religion is exemplifying the Spirit of our Lord through His unconditional love. It is about how we treat each other. Our faith being worked-out on the threshing floor of repentance is evident through works of kindness and compassion. It is loving on Jesus, mirroring His unfailing love in acts of kindness towards our fellowmen, the poor and needy of our societies. “Love does no wrong to its neighbour. Therefore love is the fulfillment of the law.” (Romans 13:10, BSB) Jesus had no time for the religion seen in the temple by the leaders in Jerusalem. The healing of the people was paramount in Jesus’ Ministry of Reconciliation. Yet, under the law healing was least considered over sacrifices, rituals and all things pertaining to temple matters. The leaders embraced the spirit of the letter of the Mosaic law but rejected the Spirit of the Law Giver.
Under the New Covenant of grace to reconcile first with the wounded hurting people is counted as works of righteousness. In doing so we are reconciling with the Father. I am urging that we give priority to the basic underpinning virtues of love, compassion, forgiveness and justice of the faith. We are shifting into the fullness of the end time’s releasing mantle that is currently stirring the spiritual atmosphere and changing the world. To reject the end-time oracle of this strategic healing anointing is to reject the Spirit of this prophetic momentous move. Essentially, it is to miss the opportunity for the end time refreshing flow and remain in religion.
Over the last ten years, whilst going through my spiritual journey of faith, I have seen the amazing ways in which the mantle has been releasing those the Spirit has brought my way. Some of these individuals have key end-time ministries and they needed to be released in order to pursue their call. The strength of evil working against them required the season’s higher mantle, released to our world by the Spirit of Prophecy. Like me they have experienced levels of loss and life changes for their call. As I have been given a strategic mantle I have been required to assist them in their spiritual journey in preparation for what is to come under God’s New Order. Out of our shared-experiences, strong kingdom relationships have been forged.
What is Religion?
This is my own understanding of what religion looks like in works. This will enable one to check themselves and to fall in line with what God requires of His people. From a business perspective I would say religion has its roots in a transactional model. It is a ‘closed’ organisational system tied to pride and is a strong spiritual bondage. You have to see its operation from a spiritual vantage point to appreciate the sincerity of those under religious captivity. It is an inward looking approach to organisational life and serves to bring about an order of control. This behavioural trait of organisational performance lacks the Spirit. This approach to church life has served its time of effectiveness and in this season of change, it is not working effectively. A transactional method is repetitive drudgery. An approach that manages people rather than the Spirit-led releasing of the human potential of organisations. This mundane method of norm and form, working out of custom accommodates the spirits that uphold religion. Inadvertently diversity, creativity and differentiations of abilities and purposes are stifled.
“For no one can lay a foundation other than the one already laid, which is Jesus Christ.” (1 Corinthians 3:11, BSB). The religious spirits are founding spirits lain in the foundations of the entitles of human life. They are witchcraft spirit, resistant to change, operating out of control, manipulation and forced power. “For rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft, and stubbornness is as iniquity and idolatry. Because thou hast rejected the word of the LORD, he hath also rejected thee from being king.” (1 Samuel 15:23, KJV). These are haughty, self important spirits with little measure of love and compassion. Religion is ritualistic with driven approaches, focussed on externalised works over the internalised works of righteousness. These rebellious hardcore spirits operate out of creating a climate of fear, achieving a sense of loyalty under resignation . There is no justification for such control and base elemental approaches except that these are carnal elements worked out of the flesh. These spirits are of the same ancient legalistic order that played out in early temple life when Jesus exposed the evil. These spirits work through once sincere leaders and have not gone away over time. Rather, they have become resident in church life.
Except the higher order of the prophetic Spirit chisel into the faulty foundational works, they go undetected. In this season, the searching Spirit of God is revealing the rot and decay established over centuries of church life. The world is rising to the challenges facing our humanity. Our sins in all walks of life has come home to haunt us. It is no less so in the Body of Christ. We have sinned and come short of the glory of God over the centuries. It is now imperative that on this critical spiritual watch, leaders in the Body of Christ step up to this opportunity.
The Unifying Spirit
Another level of prophetic insight of the strategic issues underlying denominations and organisational structures is required as the Lord inspect His Church. The problems churches are facing are foundational. In this season the cracks, fissures and deep gaping chasms must be addressed. They cannot be papered over, given a lick of paint or overlooked. It would be a presumptuous move of folly and negligence in corporate diligence to ignore the Spirit-call to collective organisational repentance. There is a great demand on leaders in this season to do right by the Spirit and transit to a new spiritual dimension under the leading of the mantle released for this time.
In 2015, whilst under a strong compelling urge to write, the Spirit revealed a New Order is coming . An ‘out of Egypt’ deliverance.would usher in what God intends for His end time Elect Church. As we approach the ‘Year of Release’, the 2022 season of a releasing outpouring of a #NewPentecost, we can expect another level of shaking and shifting in the global collective Church. The efforts of leaders to bring the global Church into a new level of spiritual integrity is by far wholly inadequate. Many church leaders are mistaken that human efforts to accommodate change to bring about this season’s refreshing can be achieved by their intuition or organisational efforts. It is initially commendable because the weight of responsibility to do the right thing is pressing. In truth, if the right actions are not taken now to follow the leading of the Spirit out of the old order, it is only a matter of time that we see a mass exodus as many break ranks. A new spiritual positioning will take place as clarity unfolds and we move into the Gregorian 2022 calendar, the Year of the Release of the Lord’s Favour.
It will be the 7-fold healing mantle, under the leading of the Spirit that will bring about the full, complete and perfect culminating work to the Body of Christ . This instrument of end time power will release souls out of spiritual captivity and drudgery. It is the Spirit of Prophecy, our Lord who will bring His end time Church to Rapture-readiness.
The Spirit of God is the unifier of His people. “as a plan for the fullness of time, to bring all things in heaven and on earth together in Christ.“ (Ephesians 1:10, BSB). The Lord will not leave it to undiscerning leaders to bring about the intended unison for this time. It would be just another level of surreptitious meetings and the blocking of God-chosen individuals across organisations and denominations. There would be no change in behaviour because it is a religious spirit that is behind denominationalism and organisationalism. It is not meant to be offensive because I am talking about the visceral levels of human interaction that is so easily relied upon.
GWENDOLYN SMITH. #NEWPENTECOST. 11th NOVEMBER 2021