I Had Come to the Edge of the Abyss and Shouted My Challenge into That Dark Portal
In Part 3 of this series, we looked at how Jesus learned to yield His will to His Father’s, even when His natural desire was to act immediately. Through the story of Lazarus, we saw how His Father gave Him a Key whenever He faced a difficult situation, and how He had to learn to trust, wait, and follow His Father’s instructions rather than act in His own strength. We also saw how the Keys help us face the locked doors in our own lives, especially when we experience loss and have to learn to let go and yield to Him.
But there is much more to the story of Lazarus than meets the eye. Those two days of waiting were not simply a delay before a miracle. They were days of preparation for something far greater. In Part 4, Jesus takes us deeper into what was happening behind the scenes, revealing how the raising of Lazarus was a warning shot into the enemy’s stronghold and a foreshadowing of the ultimate victory that would follow.
The “Jesus is Enough” Series – Part 4 –
- My loves, I am a faithful Gardener, and I know what you each need to bear fruit. That’s why I coax and water, trim and prune, and then sometimes I have to roughly chop and cut and expose you to the winds and the rain. If your desire is to bear the fruit that I would have you bear, that of love and yieldedness and the fruits of the Spirit, then I will‚ in My time, bring it forth in your life.
- If you can bear this kind of fruit through the gentle breezes and the soft watering, then so much the better. Yet I know that most of My plants will at some point in their lives need to feel My breakings removing their supports and their coverings, exposing them fully to the fury of the elements. I know that‚ although it is not joyous for the present, eventually the peaceable fruit of clinging tightly to the tree will minister to them so much happiness and usefulness that they will never want to leave.
- Yet even after those times‚ even a chastened and pruned vine will eventually begin to grow away from Me if the utmost care is not taken. Thus I begin the cycle again, the gentle breeze, the soft rain, and eventually another time of hard pruning and a time of storms. This is the cycle through which I wind your life around Mine, always bringing My faithful brides back to their First Love.
- I say this not to discourage you and cause you to think that you can never win and that you’ll always stray and pick up earthly attachments that will displease Me, but rather to illustrate to you your desperate need for Me in your life—even to help you stay as close to Me as you want to. You can desire closeness to Me and yieldedness to Me, and ultimate dedication to Me, but in your own self you will eventually fall short. You are dependent on Me even for your own love toward Me. Only I can truly make you love Me as much as you need to. Do you understand? This is the core of John 15, My “vine and branches” lesson: “Without Me, ye can do nothing” (John 15:5).
- This isn’t to say that you shouldn’t try for yieldedness and freedom from the props of worldliness and your own will—you should, and I require no less. I have said that you must take up your cross daily and follow Me (Luke 9:23)‚ and through faithfully doing this each day, through desiring Me and putting Me first, and letting the full application of My Word humble your pride and bring your will into alignment with Mine, you will be drawn very close to Me, and you will know that I am the heart of your life and that I am enough for you.
MB: Jesus speaking in prophecy: You must look to My Words for the strength to carry your cross every day. The “vine and branches” lessons I spoke of earlier was also a lesson I passed through during My days on earth. Clinging to the vine doesn’t come naturally. If you want to look at it in a natural way, all branches grow away from the main trunk. I had to learn obedience through the things that I suffered. My Father allowed these sufferings to teach Me utter dependence on Him.
The Words that I speak to you personally and through your spirit helpers are the Keys to successfully clinging to the vine. The Keys are the Words My Father spoke to Me when I was on earth. I could not have done what I did without them, and you cannot do what you need to do without them. They absolutely must be a part of your very existence, and I must continually impress on you this fact, because the enemy sees that you are very close to your objective. Every day you carry your cross a little further up the mountain, you are a little bit closer to the goal—the total collapse of Satan’s kingdom, as specifically spoken of in Daniel Chapter 2 and the MO Letter “40 Days and Nineveh Shall Be Destroyed (PDF).”
You are My disciple-brides, and your goal and objective in this life is to allow the full application of My Word to humble your pride (Audio) and bring your will into alignment with Mine. Your aim is to allow Me to have complete control of your life. The Words of David have prepared you for the road of elite discipleship. But it is only in the taking in of this Word on a daily basis that these Words will have their desired effect.
You must feed rapaciously on My Word, always looking for those special nutrients that are elementary in supplying you with the spiritual stamina to carry that cross into the day before you—in the morning, not the night before. Say your prayers, then go to bed and sleep. Get up early and prepare for the day by having a good, hearty Word breakfast. Then do the same thing the next morning and every morning until My dawn breaks on the horizon and you see Lambda One coming to gather you to our Marriage. This is the way of the vine and the way to the summit’s peak.
I said that I would send another comforter to abide with you, to be in you. I Myself will not come until these days of the End are accomplished. But I promised that I would send My Word (Audio) and My Keys as My representatives. If you receive them, you are receiving Me. I shared this same reasoning with those I spoke to that long-ago day when I said: “He that hath seen Me hath seen the Father.” I was His Word manifested in flesh. You don’t have My flesh, but in many special ways you have something far better—My Word, and it is far better than My flesh. I said so Myself when it was said through King David of old: “For you have magnified Your Word above all Your name.”
I spoke through David that day, and although the era of faith (PDF) will end and the day will come to bring you home—and where I am, there you’ll be also—those Words David spake will always be paramount. So, if you learn to put them first, even above your own life in this time of great testing, I assure you that what you have given to Me in obedience to My Word will never be lost. You will take these lessons on with you into eternity
The Wand of Great Power
The Keys are not simply a magic wand—yes, I know I’ve said that at times you will just utter the Words “the Keys” and the miracle will happen. You’ve actually seen it happen when you called on the Keys and the lights came on. But the magic behind that Key miracle was in the buildup: the years of believing in and practicing using the Keys in day-to-day, humdrum routine living. I’ve said you are yet children because children expect to pick up the wand, say “abracadabra,” and see the miracle happen immediately, and are then disappointed when it doesn’t.
What I’m trying to point out here is that the really big, big miracles happen not because you have a magic wand in your hand and it’s going to do anything you tell it to do when you want it to. The way the true power of the Keys is manifested is by you listening to your guides behind the veil and you following the steps laid out in the Words of David. If you don’t truly study the art of the Keys by studying My Word, then all you’ll ever see is those little sparks.
It’s like having the spark plug in your hand while, with the other hand, you turn the ignition. You see the spark, and it proves the plug is a good one. But if you don’t screw that plug into its socket and turn on the fuel, then you will never hear the roar of power as the engine truly comes to life. Let Me take your mind back to the story of Lazarus.
The Cosmic Prison Break
If you remember, I was told to wait two days before heading off to Bethany. It was during those two days that I was being instructed by My Mentor, the Key Maker Himself. Those were My days of preparation for what was about to transpire, and not just at the tomb of Lazarus, but also what was soon to follow. My Father was directing Me. He wasn’t just talking to Me; He was instructing Me, telling Me what to say and what to do each step of the way. I was entering My last days. I’d learned all My lessons and passed all the tests My Father had set for Me up to that point. Now My mission on earth was drawing to a close, and I was about to ignite the fuse that set the last days in motion—literally.
And when I did, My enemies flew into a rage. I had come to the edge of the abyss and thrown down the gauntlet by shouting My challenge into that dark portal: “Lazarus, come forth!” I didn’t ask the jailer. I didn’t come with a pardon in My hand. I literally blasted Lazarus’ cell door wide open with the Word of God. What was already written was being enacted. I was following the script as an actor follows the script he’s memorized before going on stage.
What happened when I gave that mighty shout was the Keys coming to life. As I said, I was following the script, or in other words, My Father’s will, and as I did, the power came on. It was similar to what happened to Paul and Silas when trapped in their prison cell: “A violent earthquake shook the prison foundations, opened all the doors, and loosened everyone’s chains.” So just as it did in their case, all hell broke loose. An order from below was sent to take up the gauntlet.
“Then from that day forth they took counsel together for to put him to death. Jesus therefore walked no more openly among the Jews; but went thence unto a country near to the wilderness, into a city called Ephraim, and there continued with his disciples.” John 11:53-54
However, before the final showdown in Jerusalem, you should notice a very important point, which is very much related to your life: I retired to the edge of the wilderness (PDF). My purpose was to prepare Myself and My disciples in spirit for what lay ahead. I was about to enact a military stratagem that was unheard of in the annals of war. Yes, I was on My way to defeat Satan and his kingdom for eternity. A blow was about to be delivered that would end his hold over death and hell. I came not with an army nor with the force of some princely kingdom, but with love and obedience to My Father’s will. Remember always, it was My Father’s plan, not Mine. My part was to listen, yield, and obey. It was His call, not Mine. My call was but to follow.
The Warning Shot into the Enemy’s Stronghold
What happened that day at the tomb of Lazarus was the prelude to the soon-coming Rapture. I shouted into Lazarus’ tomb and called him back from the grave. “I literally reached straight into the enemy’s maximum-security cell, untied a prisoner who had been dead for four days, and dragged him back across the border into life.” That shout was not only heard by the people who had gathered around Me at the gravesite, but it was also as the Seven Thunders in all their fury, booming into that tomb (symbolic of a dark portal).
It was like a crack of a million lightning bolts blasting forth from the very mouth of God Himself. It was Heaven’s war drum being given its first thump. The sound of that thunderous roar exploded as in an echo chamber. It raced down that dark tunnel and into the halls of Hell, booming off the stone-walled caverns and dens as a mighty warning gong announcing that Lazarus was to be released. But not only Lazarus—he was the first. This was the signal shot that announced My intent. I was on My way to the cross and would soon be paying them a visit. I held the Keys to all the dungeons and dark cells in that filthy hole, and I was warning them that I was soon to enter My own tomb to follow that shout right into the deep darkness Myself.
“I was put to death in the body but made alive in the Spirit. After being made alive, I went and made proclamation to the imprisoned spirits—to those who were disobedient long ago…” 1 Peter 3:18–19
Yes, I was put to death, but not by My enemy’s will. Through My obedience to and following of My Father’s will, the mighty river of destiny began moving inexorably toward the final day. My enemies had to choose, and the people around Me had to choose: get out of the way, try to stop up the river, or, through their own volition, join the river of God’s will, no matter how rough the waters ahead became. Caiaphas, the Sanhedrin, the palace guards, Pilate, the Roman soldiers, Judas, Peter, the people, and I were all actors in a cosmic play. Just as you are players (PDF) in the final act, you must choose whether you play your part as a villain, a hero, a bystander, or one who is to “roll away the stone.” All must choose their part in the play.
Before moving on, let Me take you back to 1 Peter 3:18–19 and show you a small gem tucked away in the following verse, verse 20: “Which sometime were disobedient, when once the long-suffering of God waited in the days of Noah, while the ark was a preparing, wherein few, that is, eight souls were saved by water.”
The world has returned to the days of Noah, having completed the cycle. Now, whether they know it or not, they wait for the preparing of the ark, which you know as the “Final Key.” As you have been told in the Words of David, the Key segments are now being drawn into their respective slots. As was foretold in Matthew 24:22, the prayers of My remnant bride are drawing, even against their will, the segments into the ark. Time is very short now, My loves. The very water that destroyed the world in the days of Noah is the water that lifted the ark to safety.
Only My Word has the strength and power to lift your ark above the flood of evil that is about to be unleashed upon the world. You must be patient. You must keep drawing upon those segments; they are like the ark’s planking and pitch. While you sit safe inside the ark, the storm gathers.
IQ: Fill yourself with good healthy doses of My Word and hearing from Me in prophecy. There’s nothing lethargic or laid back about My Word. (ML 3452:212)
The Blueprint
Jesus gave a loud warning shout on the earth at Bethany, surrendered His life to cross the threshold of death, and then delivered the ultimate victory decree to the locked-up prisoners (PDF) under the earth. Lazarus was just the first piece pulled out of the enemy’s hands—the on-ground proof of a total, cosmic prison break that was completed three days later at the resurrection.
There is a string of Scriptures that directly connects this “prison invasion” timeline. Peter was following this blueprint from the root in Old Testament prophecy all the way to the book of Revelation.
By cross-referencing Peter’s statements, three core groups of Scriptures snap into place to complete the spiritual picture.
1 Peter 4:6 You don’t even have to leave Peter’s letter to find the very next link in the chain. Just a few paragraphs down, Peter explicitly writes: “For this is the reason the gospel was preached even to those who are now dead, so that they might be judged according to human standards regarding the body, but live according to God regarding the spirit.”
Isaiah 42, 49, and 61
Centuries before Jesus was born, the Holy Spirit gave the prophet Isaiah the exact military checklist for what the Messiah would do to the underworld.
Isaiah 42:7: Prophesies that the Messiah will come “…to open eyes that are blind, to free captives from prison and to release from the dungeon those who sit in darkness.”
Isaiah 49:9: Commands Him “…to say to the captives, ‘Come out,’ and to those in darkness, ‘Be free!’”
Isaiah 61:1: The famous passage Jesus read in the synagogue: “…He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim freedom for the captives and release from darkness for the prisoners.”
When Jesus cried out to Lazarus to “come out,” and when He later descended into the lower regions, He was systematically executing Isaiah’s orders. Death was the ultimate dungeon, and Jesus was the long-awaited King breaking the prison doors (PDF) open from the inside.
The Legal Warrant
The Apostle Paul provides the strategic aftermath of what happened when Jesus entered that realm:
Colossians 2:15: Says that through the cross, Jesus “disarmed the powers and authorities” and “made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them by it.”
Ephesians 4:8–9: Explains that before Christ ascended to the highest heaven, “He also descended to the lower, earthly regions,” and when He returned, “He led captivity captive.”
This is the same cosmic courtroom victory Peter describes when he notes that after this descent, Jesus ascended to heaven with “angels, authorities and powers in submission to Him” (1 Peter 3:22).
Isaiah writes the legal warrant for the jailbreak. Jesus fires the warning shot at Lazarus’ tomb and surrenders His life. 1 Peter 3 and 4 record Him entering the prison, sealing the doom of the fallen watchers, and heralding life to the dead. Ephesians and Colossians record Him leading the captives out in a grand victory parade, leaving the demonic powers completely disarmed and stripped of their authority. (End)
Prophecy Jesus Speaking: So, My brides, that narrative may have seemed like an interesting walk in the park, but on the contrary, it was rather an example of what God can do with someone who is yielded and obedient (PDF) to His will.
Do you remember that image on the front page of the Maria Letter … of a girl being led by My hand as she walked on stepping stones set in midair? Well, that is a good depiction of what I’m trying to get across to you. The Keys can, and will at times, do those cool little “lights on” miracles, but the really big ones, like walking in midair or raising someone from the dead, are rarely spontaneous.
In other words, it all depends on how much Word you have been imbibing. The more you read, the more like Me (Audio) you become. In truth, you become the Living Word. If I had rushed off to Bethany in My own strength, there would not have been a mighty miracle at the tomb that day. No, Lazarus was not asleep; he was truly dead. He’d been in the grave for four days when I arrived at the site of his burial … and, as Martha stated, “Lord, by this time he stinketh.”
Anyone who had doubted the miracles I’d performed up to this point could not deny what happened that day.
As I shared in My testimony, My Father was infilling Me with His Words, and I, in turn, spoke those Words of faith all the way to the gravesite. And once there, I whispered those famous words: “Father, I thank thee that thou hast heard me. And I knew that thou hearest me always.” Faith is knowing (Audio), absolutely knowing, without a shadow of a doubt, and that kind of faith can only come through communion with Me.
Quote: “Remember, faith is not hoping‚ or wishing‚ or desiring. Faith is knowing—being convinced and confident that I will do what I have promised. So if you become a little too self-confident in some situation, or are led more by your own desires than by My will‚ and say that you have the faith for something, or have the faith that I will do this or that or the other—without knowing—then you may be setting yourself up for a fall.” (Greater Faith – Part 1 (PDF))
As I implied earlier, if I’d rushed off under My own steam the day I heard of Lazarus’ sickness, I would have fallen right into the trap of self-confidence.
Slow it down, talk with Me, ask Me if it is indeed My will to go, and if it is My will, then ask Me what I want you to do once you are there. It’s difficult, but don’t assume anything. So, if I say wait, then wait; if I say go on the morrow, then do so. If you want to put Me on the spot by saying, “Please come through for Me, Jesus,” I’m fine with that, but make sure it’s My will for you to put Me on the spot. Remember, it’s not your program we are pushing here; it’s Mine.
It Is Needful That I Be Taken Away
You know that in the days before April 4, My Words of David suffered many things. They were the days of the testing of the Children of David. It was a great test: the Reboot. I had to know who was going to take My hand and step out by faith onto those midair stepping stones. It was again time for revolution, not reformation. I had no intention of reforming the old. The old forest was intentionally burned to the ground in order for new growth to rise from the ashes. At the all-important crossroads, the Children lost their way. It wasn’t the fault of My Word; it was in the application of it.
Would you like another walk in the park? There is a fascinating timeline chart in Luke 9:22–26. It has been hidden from all eyes until now. I’m going to open this long-stored treasure by defining the meaning and concept of each of the numbers, beginning with nine.
Strong’s Hebrews 9: Meaning and Concept Denotes property that has strayed from its owner—anything mislaid, missing, or otherwise detached from rightful possession. Scripture treats such loss not as a mere accident but as a moral test of covenant fidelity, revealing whether Israel will mirror the character of the LORD, who seeks and restores what is lost.
Prophecy Continues: When kept in context, numbers can be very revealing. The number nine, for example, is the preface to this short dissertation; it sets the tone for the main act, adding meaning and conceptual thought to the verses we are about to read.
Anybody who knows their Bible knows this story. However, what I’m going to do is peel back the layer everyone knows and take you on a prophetic journey, one that is finding its fulfillment in your life right now. Luke 9:22–26 is about loss: “not as a mere accident but as a moral test of covenant fidelity.” What that line is telling us is that the loss was arranged as a test in order to reveal something hidden—fidelity. The connection between this short but very powerful dissertation and your life is loss—not accidental loss, but intentional loss. In other words, it was arranged to happen in the manner it did.
There was also a time of testing and a replacement of that which was lost. In My Luke 9 dissertation, the one everyone knows, I am taken away. I said in John 16 that it was needful for Me to be taken away—that the Holy Ghost be given. But there is a very important space there, a “testing ground.” My disciples’ fidelity was placed in the crucible and set on the fire during that space between the Word being taken from them and the replacement. In your lives, the Reboot was the intentional taking away, which the older Warrior Band members passed through, and the April 4 experience, being a type of taking away, was a test for all, but steered more toward the younger Warrior Band members. The loss was arranged as a test in order to reveal something hidden—fidelity.
Let’s read Luke 9:22–26 and then take a look at the meaning and concept behind 22 and 26. Now remember, as we read the text, that we are on the second layer—a layer that is not looking at Me, the man, but at Me, the Word “suffering many things.” The second layer reveals a story within a story. I guess you could say it is a type of blueprint that goes far beyond My immediate dissertation to those disciples gathered around Me then, extending to the disciples who are gathered around Me now, listening to this prophecy.
Luke 9:22–26:
The Son of man must suffer many things, and be rejected of the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be slain, and be raised the third day. :23 And he said to them all, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow me. :24 For whosoever will save his life shall lose it: but whosoever will lose his life for my sake, the same shall save it. :25 For what is a man advantaged, if he gain the whole world, and lose himself, or be cast away? :26 For whosoever shall be ashamed of me and of my words, of him shall the Son of man be ashamed, when he shall come in his own glory, and in his Father’s, and of the holy angels.
Verse 22 speaks of the Word—Me, the Son of man—suffering many things leading up to 2022. Then, from verses 23 to 26, we see the days of strengthening in preparation for the second testing—April 4. Did you know that the portal is now ready to go up? The portal is a type of ark to all those of understanding. It is the Words of David being brought back to life, the Flame of Revolution bursting into flame. In a few days, the ark doors will be opened, and those who will, will enter, while those who continue to mock will remain outside.
Strong’s Hebrew #22
Meaning: “El (God) is my father.” A Hebrew masculine proper name; Abiel was Saul’s grandfather. The name is derived from Hebrew words for “father” and “God.”
Strong’s Greek #26
Meaning: “Love, charity.” This is the famous word used throughout the New Testament to describe divine love—unconditional, sacrificial, and enduring.
So you see, our time of strengthening was given between 22 and 26. It was a time given in preparation for the inevitable test, the loss that was coming. He has to test our fidelity, our agape love from His Word, just as His love was tested for His Father’s Word. So He came, and the day came when He was taken away. That was the loss (Audio) we felt. Only He knows if we passed or failed, if our love from Him remains even if He took back His promise. This is the way God tests the Brides of Christ’s fidelity. (End) Go to Part 5 Back to Part 3 Back to Part 2 Back to Part 1
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