This is about a strong sense I've had the last few days that, frankly, I don't recall ever having before. Here's what I'm feeling. I'll try to use as few words as possible.
All over the world, the Lord is sweeping people into the Kingdom in huge numbers and at a very rapid rate. He is very much enjoying Himself.
That's pretty much it, except that I also keep getting the sense of a Midnight Madness Sale, the kind that a large store would have the night before Christmas Eve. The kind where people are lined up waiting to get in, then pushing their way in, finally rushing through the store and down the aisles, grabbing things right and left and filling their baskets as fast as they can. A deep sense of haste and excitement and hurry hurry hurry fills the whole place.
When I initially had the Midnight Madness Sale feeling about what God's up to, it was God Himself doing the shopping, pushing His basket rapidly through the store and down the aisles, grabbing everything He could from every rack, table, and shelf. And yes, there was a lot of hurry, hurry, hurry and a lot of excitement as He grabbed souls for the Kingdom. He was working so fast that it was almost as though He was sweeping them into His basket because it was faster than using His hands. It was God shopping for people, not people shopping for God.
I don't know whether this massive and rapid sweeping of souls into the Kingdom is something different and special for this time, but I think it is. It feels unprecedented; that may not be the case, but that's how it feels. And I want to say again that God is enjoying Himself very much. I can feel it. This is a good and exciting time for our Lord. And maybe that's where the Midnight Madness Sale comes in.
My thought is that this is at least one layer of the meaning of Matthew 11:12. I'll quote this from the Amplified Bible:
God rocks. And He likes it.
All over the world, the Lord is sweeping people into the Kingdom in huge numbers and at a very rapid rate. He is very much enjoying Himself.
That's pretty much it, except that I also keep getting the sense of a Midnight Madness Sale, the kind that a large store would have the night before Christmas Eve. The kind where people are lined up waiting to get in, then pushing their way in, finally rushing through the store and down the aisles, grabbing things right and left and filling their baskets as fast as they can. A deep sense of haste and excitement and hurry hurry hurry fills the whole place.
When I initially had the Midnight Madness Sale feeling about what God's up to, it was God Himself doing the shopping, pushing His basket rapidly through the store and down the aisles, grabbing everything He could from every rack, table, and shelf. And yes, there was a lot of hurry, hurry, hurry and a lot of excitement as He grabbed souls for the Kingdom. He was working so fast that it was almost as though He was sweeping them into His basket because it was faster than using His hands. It was God shopping for people, not people shopping for God.
I don't know whether this massive and rapid sweeping of souls into the Kingdom is something different and special for this time, but I think it is. It feels unprecedented; that may not be the case, but that's how it feels. And I want to say again that God is enjoying Himself very much. I can feel it. This is a good and exciting time for our Lord. And maybe that's where the Midnight Madness Sale comes in.
My thought is that this is at least one layer of the meaning of Matthew 11:12. I'll quote this from the Amplified Bible:
And from the days of John the Baptist until the present time, the kingdom of heaven has endured violent assault, and violent men seize it by force [as a precious prize--a share in the heavenly kingdom is sought with most ardent zeal and intense exertion].According to Strong's Concordance,
- In the phrase "the kingdom of heaven has endured violent assault", the Greek word translated "violent" (biazō, pronounced bee-ad'-zo) means "to force, that is, (reflexively) to crowd oneself (into), or (passively) to be seized".
- In the phrase "violent men seize it by force", the Greek word translated "violent" (biastēs, pronounced bee-as-tace') means a forcer, that is, (figuratively) energetic.
- Also in the phrase "violent men seize it by force", the Greek word translated "seize it by force" (harpazō, pronounced har-pad'-zo) means to seize, catch (away, up), pluck, pull, take (by force).
God rocks. And He likes it.
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