RAPTURE SIMPLIFIED

We shall look at the Jewish wedding traditions in trying to understand rapture

There are three important ceremonies in a Jewish wedding namely

1.Wedding contract (betrothal) 

2 . presentation (groom takes bride)

3.Wedding feast(reception) 

A)The young man (bridegroom)prepares a marriage contract and takes it to the young woman's home(bride) and presents it to the brides father. He states his willingness to provide for the bride and terms of the marriage. He must state the bride price in the contract and it must be high for it to be accepted.In Jewish culture there is nothing called courtship.

Jesus has already done that. He came to the home of his bride (Earth) and presented his marriage contract (new covenant) He has already paid the bride price with his own life

1 Corinthians 6:20,

For you were bought at a price ,therefore glorify God in your body and your spirit which are God's

Acts 20:28
Therefore take heed to yourselves and to all the flock, among which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to shepherd the church of God which He purchased with His own blood

B)The cup

If the bride price is agreeable to the brides father, the young man pour wine into a cup  and gives the bride. If the woman drinks from the cup it signifies acceptance. At this point betrothal (ketubah)takes place. In the Jewish culture betrothal is legally binding.

This is why angel Gabriel told Joseph go and take Mary your'wife'....

From this moment the bride is now set apart, consecrated and sanctified exclusively for the bridegroom

Jesus has already done this,  he poured wine into a cup and gave it to the disciples, the disciples took it thereby accepting betrothal

Matthew 26:27

Then he took the cup and gave thanks and gave it to them saying"drink from it,all of you .....

C)Gifts to the bride

The bridegroom then presents special gifts to the bride as a show of appreciation. The gifts also help the bride to remember the groom during the long betrothal period. 

Jesus gave us the gifts of the holy spirit to help us remember him in our betrothal period. 

John 14:26,

This things I have spoken to you while being present with you, But the helper the holy spirit whom the father will send in my name ,He will teach you all things and bring your REMEMBRANCE all things that I said to you

(D). The bridegroom leaves the bride at her fathers place and goes to prepare a wedding chamber for her.The chamber must be prepared in the grooms father's house or property.

It is important to note that this bridal chamber called huppar in Hebrew must be prepared according to the instruction and specification of the grooms father.

The grooms father keeps on inspecting the chamber until he is satisfied. The chamber must be very beautiful. The groom cannot go to collect the bride until his father approves. If you meet the groom on the streets and ask him"when is your wedding, is answer can only be"only my father knows

Jesus went back to his Father to prepare a chamber for his bride, its being prepared as per the Fathers instruction and its only the Father who knows the wedding date

Mark 13:32-33

But of that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels in heaven, nor the son but only the father

John 14:3,

and if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again to receive you to myself........

 (E) . A waiting bride is supposed to be holy, consecrated and set apart. She prepares for marriage and eagerly waits for the return of the groom to take her home. She does not talk walk or dress like every other girl. When she goes outside the house she veils her face,this is a physical sign to put off suitors.

She keeps are lamp on and keeps extra oil because she does not know when the groom will come for her.Israel has a rocky terrain and if the groom comes at night (which was the norm)she will need her lamp.She keeps are belongings ready and packed.She doesn't know when the bridegroom will come.

Jesus expects her bride to be holy, consecrated and set apart.He expects her to keep the oil (anointing)and the lamp (God's word) always ready.

I hope now you understand the parable of the ten virgins.

Separation of the bride of Christ is what Jesus expects, and the modern church cannot meet this standard. The bride must talk holy,dress holy and reason and think holy and be holy inside and outside.The bride of Christ cannot copy the world,she is busy waiting for her groom who can show up anytime

 1 Peter 2:9,

But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a HOLY nation, His own SPECIAL people......

2 Corinthians 6:17,

therefore come out from among them,and be SEPARATE says the Lord, do not touch what is unclean and I will receive you

2 Corinthians 7:1,

Therefore, having these promises beloved ,let us CLEANSE ourselves from all FILTHINESS OF FLESH AND SPIRIT, perfecting HOLINESS in the FEAR OF GOD

Psalm 4:3,

But know that the LORD has set APART for Himself him who is godly....

Deuteronomy 14:2,

for you are a HOLY people to the LORD your God ,and the Lord has chosen you to be a people for Himself, a SPECIAL TREASURE above all the people on the face of earth

God is Holy and without holiness no one will see Him.The gifts of God are irrevocable ,so don't let that cheat you my brother and sister. You will still receive visions, you will teach powerfully ,you will preach powerfully in a miniskirt and people will receive Christ but remember that just a gift and it can operate in you anytime. Take time and pray for yourself as a bride of Christ

At the end of the separation period, the bridegroom goes to fetch his bride, according to the Jewish culture it called"stealing away the bride",because no notice is given. He has to abduct her secretly and it is done mostly at night just around mid night.

The bridegroom comes with his groomsmen and they abduct the bride and the bride must also leave with her bride maids who were preparing her for this night festivity. The bride must be veiled.

Since a notice is not given to the brides family ,the arrival of the bridegroom is preceded by a big shout or blowing of a shofar (horn trumpet).The groom does not go to the compound the bride must come out and meet the groom.

When the groom takes the bride to his fathers house they go straight to the honeymoon chamber for marriage consummation. They must stay there for seven days.Afterwards they come out and the bride comes out without veil and everybody gets to see her.

 After this the groom must take the bride to his own home.Note that the honeymoon happens in the groom's fathers house,in the special chamber specifically made for honeymoon.

Jesus will come for his bride in the same manner. It's called Rapture.

Jesus will descent from heaven with a shout 

1 thessalonians 4:16,

For the Lord Himself will descent from heaven with a shout, with the voice of an archangel and with the trumpet of God.........

1 Corinthians 15:52,

In a moment ,in the twinkling of an eye ,at the last trumpet .For the trumpet will sound ,and the dead will be raised incorruptible and we shall be changed.....

Matthew 24:42,

Watch therefore for you do not know the hour of the Lords coming,

Vs44,Therefore you also be ready ,for the son of man is coming at an hour you do not expect

The bride must be escorted  by the maids who were preparing her and in this case THE HOLYGHOST goes up with the church. There will no longer be the holyspirit on earth, he must leave with the bride. 

The groom will come with his groomsmen. Jesus will appear with heaven host. 

Jesus will meet his bride in the air and and take her to His fathers house for honeymoon. What a joy, I pray that we shall make it

The season will take seven years.

As the joy of honeymoon and festivities is going on in heaven,there will be a terrible time going on earth, called the TRIBULATION, the Antichrist and the false prophet will be ruling.

After the honeymoon the  the groom will take his bride home,this time the people of the earth shall see the bride,she will no longer veiled. It is called the SECOND COMING OF JESUS .He will establish the millennium rule of Christ together with his bride

Daniel 2:44

Isaiah 9:6-7

Daniel 7:18

Revelation 2:26

Revelation 3:21

Revelation 20:4-6

1 Corinthians 6:2-3

Repent for the kingdom of God is at hand.Shalom

Glorious Mwameso (Mrs).

BITTERNESS

--------------------------------
Bitterness is a spirit that disturbs many believers besides being a sin. Bitterness is a mixture of
1. Disappointment,
2. Anger, and
3. Fear.

Remember, anger graduates to bitterness if you don't deal with it accordingly.
By forgiving and letting go In fact, *Ephesians 4:26* states that,
_"In your anger do not sin." "Do not let the sun go down while you are still angry."_
As believers, we must bear in mind that anger has a timeline; your anger shouldn't exceed 12 hours. Furthermore, bitterness makes you bitter instead of better and eventually leads to unforgiveness.

What most of us are unaware of is that bitterness blocks the breakthrough to our destiny.

_Before you allow bitterness to control you, here's what you need to keep in mind._
• Bitterness is sin
• When you deliberately fail to talk to someone you have no part in God's kingdom
• Bitterness is unforgiveness fermented
• The more you hold on to past hurts, the more you become "drunk" on your pain
• The devil uses anger to attack many
• God can't draw near a bitter person
• To overcome bitterness, you must: forgive, stop dwelling there, and stop retelling
• Bitterness blocks your physical and spiritual life; you'll stagnate physically and spiritually. It's no wonder many are worsening spiritually and physically
• When you're bitter, you can't have breakthrough even in prayer
• Bitterness creates space for the enemy
• Bitterness is satan's altar in your life-an altar is a point of contact. Therefore, when you're about to rise financially, the enemy stands against you
• This sin entangles easily similar to sins like lies and gossip
• When you allow bitterness to take root in your life, you won't succeed at any time because you're limited
• Bitterness is what's "eating" many up
• Bitterness holds you back
• It's like an acid that destroys its container; whatever you try fails
• A bitter person holds grudges

The Results of Bitterness
--------------------------------------------
1. No peace
2. Discouragement
3. It causes anger
4. Its causes hatred
5. It makes you spiritually cold
6. You want to see others suffer
7. You engage in ungodly things
8. Bitterness damages friendships; families
9. It hinders your relationship with God
10. It opens the door to the enemy so he can afflict you
11. It can cause physical and mental illness
12. It makes you go against God's Word
13. You fall short of God's glory
14. Before God you're unholy when you're bitter; before men, you lack peace.

Have you allowed bitterness to dominate your life? Learn to forgive. Live holy! Heb 12:14-15 a bitter person is unholy and defile others.

RESISTING SATAN IN PRAYER

Often,several people have asked me how they can be able to pray more.Many say they DO want to pray and they wish they could pray more but they find that they keep spending not more than 10 minutes,or 5 minutes in prayer,and sometimes they cant even pray at all!
I understand that the desire to pray is real,its not that these people are pretending that they wish they could pray more,THEY DO.

But if we have a sincere desire of wanting to spend more time with God,why then do we find ourselves failing? Why do we find that even spending 10 minutes in prayer is a huge mountain to conquer and we find ourselves powerless to even complete 10 minutes of prayer?
As a Christian it is really important that we spend a meaningful amount of time in prayer. Our master Himself spent much time in prayer, fasting 40 days and nights, and often spending the whole night praying, and often rising up very early while it was still dark to pray (Matthew 14:23,Luke 6:12,Mark 1:35).
Jesus came here to be our example,He came to show us the way.

A servant is no greater than the master (John 13:16),therefore if the master prayed so much,the servant too is expected to spend much time in prayer.
Often,the reason we find ourselves still struggling with sin is because we do not spend time in prayer.
From personal experience,I have learnt that the more time you are spending with God,the harder it becomes for you to sin.You can make mistakes sometimes and you repent,but you do not sin deliberately,neither do you continue living in sin.

It becomes harder for you to sin,However when you are living a prayerless life,living a holy life becomes very difficult, and sin seems easier to commit.
As we spend time in God’s presence,He imparts Himself in us,and the more time we are spending with Him in prayer and reading the bible,the more of God we will receive,till our whole lives and every single decision we make are shaped by God and His view.
The opposite is also true;if we are spending very little or no time in prayer and reading the bible,the desires of the flesh will seem so powerful and irresistible.It will seem as though you are under some obligation to gossip,it will seem as though ungodly entertainment is so appealing,in our minds,there will always be an excuse to sin,thinking we will repent later, and sinning again.Sin becomes so hard to overcome.

But despite all the benefits prayer gives to our spiritual journey,many still find it very difficult to do.
The first thing you need to do is to make time,no matter what your schedule is.
If you want to wait for when you are free,satan will ensure you are never free.Something will always come up to keep you busy so that you don’t pray.
Don’t wait till you are done with everything you have to do.Rather, let everything else wait,pray first.
I personally believe you can never be too busy to pray.You just have to make the time,it’s sacrifice.
In order to draw near to God,you must first resist the devil.
“Submit yourselves therefore to God.Resist the devil and he will flee from you.Draw near to God and He will draw near to you…..”James 4:7-8
If you wait for satan to let you go,that’s when you will pray,you will never pray.

You must resist him.When he makes you too busy to pray,resist him and prioritise prayer,while everything else waits.Investing you time in prayer is the most important investment you could make,it’s eternal.
After you have made time,you find that still,satan attacks you with laziness.
As soon as you start praying,you feel like stopping and going to do other things instead.
Satan knows that as long as you are on your knees,his grip on you will be lost,so he discourages you through laziness.
I have been there too.i have had times when prayer seemed so hard to do that the only thing I could do was keep telling God,”Please God help me to pray….God help me to pray” and I couldn’t pray for as long as I normally would.
I thought since I had been telling God to help me to pray,am just suddenly going to feel like praying and all the laziness would just vanish,but God spoke to me.
God told me,”you must resist the devil.Even when you feel like stopping to pray,stay on your knees and keep praying,even when it feels so hard to do,still do it,even when you don’t feel like praying,get on your knees and start praying. satan will only flee from you if you resist him”
That was what the Lord told me.

And so despite me feeling like not praying,I got on my knees and started praying,even when satan was attacking me to make me feel like stopping after praying for a short time,I stayed on my knees and kept praying,asking for God’s help and praying.
After I had resisted satan in that manner,I overcame his laziness and was able to spend quality time in God’s presence reading my bible and praying.
If you feel lazy to pray for long,I assure you this works and will help you get closer to God.Just resist the devil and keep praying and reading the bible regardless of how your body feels,before you know it you will be spending hours in the presence of God.

I remember how I learnt to pray and read the bible for long.
It seemed like a very difficult task,but Jesus too would pray for long, and I can tell you that it is really beneficial because it is time well spent.
When I just came to the Lord,I was determined to spend much time in prayer, and I would force myself to keep praying with hands lifted up to the Lord,at first even just twenty minutes would be difficult but as I persevered it became my normal prayer routine to spend not less than thirty minutes seeking God,till I was praying an hour,till I was praying an 1 hour 30 minutes,till I would sometimes spend 5 hours praying without noticing it has been that long!
If you train your body to pray no matter what,and to read the bible no matter what,it will become normal to you.But you must know that satan will not flee till you resist him!
If satan fails to keep get you off your knees,he will still try to make you waste that time through distractions.
He knows the power of prayer which is done in truth and spirit and he knows if he lets you do that kind of prayer,he will lose you so he wants to spoil it by all means.
Because he couldn’t prevent you from staying on your knees,he will attack you with distractions in your mind,so that you pray for one hour with your lips,while your mind is busy thinking about other things!
Sometimes you wont even realize it,you will think you have been spending time with God,and yet you only availed your body,your mind was busy with many other things and that kid of prayer isn’t acceptable to God.

“These people come near me with their mouth and honor me with their lips but their hearts are far from Me”Isaiah 29:13
Prayer must come from the heart,each word spoken to God must be meant.
If we say a billion words with our lips,while our heart is elsewhere,a person who says five words coming from their heart is much better to God.
It isn’t about the abundance of words,what God wants is prayer coming from the heart,not long meaningless prayers.
But as you get closer to God you begin to have so much to tell Him,But all prayer must come from the heart.
So you must again resist all distractions from satan. Don't let him make you waste your prayer time.Let prayer be done in truth and Spirit.

If you submit yourself to God by availing yourself in prayer and resist satan by making time for prayer,by staying on your knees even when you don’t feel like,and by praying from your heart,resisting all form of distraction,your prayer life will never be the same.
The bible says you must draw near to God first and then He will draw near to you.
God has already told us how we can get close to Him;we must submit to God,resist the devil,then draw near to God and it is guaranteed He will also draw near to us.
Seek the Lord while He can still be found and call on Him while He is still near.

Rachael Chisulo

Characteristics of the Delilah spirit

1. Delilah is highly skilled in taming people through seduction (which may be accomplished with flattery, praise, friendship or sexual advances). Even the strongest of Christians can be beguiled by her, if they do not stay alert in the Spirit. Delilah especially is after people of prominence and uniqueness; people in the spot light, anointed ministers of God, gifted men and women, and those who are in effective relationships or marriages. Her assignment is to drain the power and blessing of God from your life. When this is accomplished, just as she did with Samson.

2. Like Jezebel, she will fool those around her by being at the church, at every Bible study and every all prayer meetings. She will be punctual and completely involved in many if not all spiritual activities, as this is her way to get close to the spiritual leaders. She wants his head on her lap.

3. Delilah’s love money. She is the modern day gold-digger but only far wiser and refined than the average money seeker. With one need or another, she will financially drain her victim.

4. She is immoral. She is filled with ungodly and perverse sensual desires and arts. She preys upon anyone who can best be used to weaken the Body of Christ, whether they are married or not.

5. Day after day, she will keep relentlessly pursuing and pressuring her victim to leave his/her marriage partner. She may seduce the Christian to become sexually involved with her. Or she may work to induce the spiritual target to run away with her or commit any other sin with her. This she will persuade softly – even over a period of many months or years - until the target listens to her voice. Enduring such longterm pressure should be totally unnecessary, as Christians should discern this spirit quickly and respond to it appropriately, rather than enduring its pressure over a long period of time.

6. Delilah is knows the tricks, navigations, avenues, points and steps in getting a person’s attention. She is a chameleon who purposely takes on the likes and dislikes of her target. Most deceptively, she will also appear to love God and to be deeply concerned with the salvation of souls, if her target is truly evangelistic in heart. Whatever it takes to convince her intended victim that she is his/her soul-mate or soul-sister

7. Delilah will try to get close to people in your life in order to demolish you. She will do this by gaining your friends’ and family members’ confidences through politeness and kindness. Then as time goes by, your loved ones might begin to open up about you and your relationship to her.

BE WARNED!!!

Characteristics of Jezebel

1. The Jezebel spirit attacks church members with fear - causing members of Christ's Body to become immobilized and unable to function as they should. The Jezebel spirit also attacks ministers and spiritual leaders with fear.

2. The person with the Jezebel spirit will often attack leaders discrediting them and disrespecting the anointing of God upon their lives. This can ruin the leader's influence and ability to serve God effectively. First the Jezebel spirit kills the anointing of God upon the person - and then it destroys the person.

3. Those operating under the Jezebel spirit are self-willed. Only their will is done - not God's. It is always about achieving THEIR agenda.

4. The person with the Jezebel spirit is a master chameleon. He or she is very good at giving the appearance of repentance and righteousness - even using convincing tears!

5. Jezebels need to be praised, elevated and noticed. They seek to be the center of attention.

6. Jezebels exert a possessive “love” that is destructive and controlling, cutting out all other relationships in their victim’s life -and isolating their prey (who is often a spiritual leader).

7. They are loyal - until you disagree with them. Then they are vengeful and NEVER forgive.

8. They do all you ask of them, so long as it goes along with their own plans.

9. Jezebels plant seeds of discord in others that lead to conflict in the homes, friendships, and fellowships of God’s people.

10. They select easily manipulated “Ahab-like” people to be their “minions” - carrying out their plans.

11. They use, manipulate, and control others to accomplish their purposes; but they ultimately work alone.

12. Jezebels do not listen to anyone else. They do not respect anyone in leadership. This may not be visible at the beginning – as they work to secure their own position prior to letting this rebellion show.

13. Jezebels are very religious. They will often attend every prayer meeting, sing every song, and will appear as the most committed and sincere Christian. This puts people off of their guard. Christians can often sense that something is “off” about the Jezebel infiltrator, but they will disregard their spiritual antennae signals, because the “Christian” act put on by the Jezebel is so convincing.

14. Jezebels seek position in order to better control, discredit, and destroy the Body of Christ into which they have infiltrated.

15. Jezebels are not committed to anyone.

16. Jezebels seek affirmation and significance.

17. Jezebels illegitimately claim authority (“I'm anointed - show me your authority and anointing!”)

18. Correction brings full-blown rebellion from the Jezebel.

*THE PERILS OF PRAYERLESSNESS

.*
(1) *Prayerlessness is:* a sin (1Samuel 12:23). 

(2) *Prayerlessness is:* the fastest and surest way to become a sinner.

(3) *Prayerlessness is* an outright/direct rebellion against God.

(4) *Prayerlessness is* the fastest way to cooperate with the devil.

(5) *Prayerlessness is* telling God to stop what He has started.

(6) *Prayerlessness is* continuing in the flesh what began in the spirit.

(7) *Prayerlessness is* asking God to do His worst. (Ezekiel 22:30,31)

(8) *Prayerlessness is* taking over from God (John 15:14)

(9) *Prayerlessness is* a symptom of backsliding

(10) *Prayerlessness* withdraw the presence of God.

(11) *Prayerlessness* limit the manifestation of the sons of God on earth (Matthew 18:18; 17:21)

(12) *Prayerlessness is* conspiring to reduce the kingdom of God on earth (Matthew 9:37,38).

(13) *A Prayerless* Christian will replace prayer with; Church attendance, giving to the poor, visitations, observance of rules and regulations, dos and don'ts.

(14) *The quickest* way for a Christian to die is through Prayerlessness.

(15) *Talkativeness is* a symptom of Prayerlessness.

(16) *Offerings* tithing, giving to the poor, visitations, helping the poor; are all good Christian virtue but is not a substitute for Prayer.

(17) *A Prayerless* Christian is not a holy Christian ( Luke 22:40)

(18) *To be Prayerless is* to become sinful ( Matthew 26:41 Mark 14:38) 

(19) *To be Prayerless is* to become unworthy ( Luke 21:36) 

(20) *To be Prayerless is* to be unprepared for the rapture ( Mark 13:33)

(21) *Praying unscriptural prayers is* Prayerlessness ( 1John 5:14)

(22) *Praying* without faith is Prayerlessness ( James 1:6-8)

(23) *Praying without concentration is* Prayerlessness (Matthew 15:8)

(24) *Praying* selfish prayers is Prayerlessness (James 4:3)

(25) *Prayer in sin is* Prayerlessness (Psalm 66:18)

(26) *Failure to improve* in your prayer life for years is Prayerlessness (Matthew 26:40-41)

(27) *The word of God is* dull in the ears of a Prayerless Christian (Hebrews 4:2)

_*NOTE:*_ Each day without prayer is a minus in your life. *THEREFORE* " *Pray without ceasing* "
_*BRETHREN THIS YEAR LET OUR PRAYER LIFE IMPROVE, PLEASE BE SERIOUS WITH PRAYER AND GOD WILL BLESS YOU. THANKS*

YOU ARE EITHER A PART OF THE FALSE CHURCH OR THE TRUE CHURCH; THERE IS NO MIDDLE GROUND

If what is in Christ is not in you as one who profess born again, you are part of the false Church. If the Holy Ghost is not in you, you are part of the false Church. So many prophets and prophetess operate a false spirit. That is why they operate like witch doctors. Their Holy Spirit does not destroy the power of sin. It only destroys the power of Satan. That is clearly Satan at work not GOD at work.
Friend, If the Holiness we find in Christ is not in your preacher, you all are part of the false Church.
If you do not feel anything about sin as a Christian, especially sexual sins and other deep sins, you are not part of the body of Christ. If you are comfortable with preachers who sale prophecies, prayer and other deliverance materials like Oil, salt, holy water, incense etc. in the guise of seed sowing – you are not part of the true Church.
If you are comfortable with preachers who tell people to bring sand from their villages, sand from the graves of dead parents or speak to the dead, you are not part of the true Church.
If you hate preachers who preach righteousness and urge us to live a Christian life with eternity in view, calling them names and seeing them as extremist etc., you are not part of the body of Christ.
If you call conviction condemnation or see one who rebukes you for your sins as “judging, you” it’s a sign that you are part of the synagogue of Satan. If you are moving from sin to sin, or one form of spiritual problem to another, or one terrible act of wickedness or the other, it’s a sign that you are yet to be integrated into the true Church. What flows in Christ is not flowing in you yet. And since there is no middle ground, you belong to the false Church. Point blank!

#COPIED

DELILAH

Delilah means pining with desire. So, She pins you down with desire! Her whole being, presence, speech, look and action exude “seduction”. She makes her victims suffer mentally and physically with desire for her. She is the epitome of a Seductress.

This spirit of Delilah is assigned to destroy all men and women of prominence, people with a purpose in life, any pastor or leader who is in ministry.

The devil sends women to churches that have this spirit to terminate the church and cause the church leader to commit emotional and physical adultery, thereby losing the blessing and anointing of God. Her role is through the door of relationships or marriages.

She uses relationships to discover her victim’s strengths, so that she can destroy them, draining out their spiritual power and ultimately removing them from God Work.

Sadly this spirit can be in someone and this person won’t realize that they are being used by a spirit of Delilah to destroy others.

Please remember that even though we refer to Delilah as “her”, this spirit is genderless.

BE WARNED!!!