CHECK POINT

A Leadership and Intercessory Letter written to those who desire Integrity in the Inward Parts (Psalm 51:6)

Passion, Prayer and Pentecost

Written by Esther Dummer

Twenty-Eighth Edition: April 13, 2006

Passion

“The sufferings of Christ between the night of the Last Supper and his death”

“A powerful emotion, such as love, joy, hatred, or anger – an intense, driving, or overpowering feeling or emotion”

The atmosphere was electric with the spiritual tensions that filled the city. Sides had been drawn. Everyone had made a decision. Jesus was the object of much idle chatter while others engaged in angry dissertations of why He must die. Others huddled behind closed doors gripped with their love for this man called Jesus but tinted with fear that bound them like chains to the place of hiding.

The drama that surrounded the days that led up to Jesus arrest and ultimate crucifixion couldn’t have been filled with more intrigue, passion and emotion. Everyone connect to Jesus, on any level, were consumed with an odd mixture of passions that battled for the stage of time. Tempers flared, while hatred was given vent with great vengeance as the “plan came together” with the death of Jesus. Many were consumed with deep grief as everything seemed to be falling apart around the one they loved and believed in.

But no one really understood the story that was playing out behind the gates of hell where even the demons were gripped with passionate hatred and revenge for this Jesus. None could spit His name out with such zeal as those who once worshipped Him in Glory – “Jesus – the Son of the Living God!”

Mark 5 - “What have I to do with thee, Jesus, thou Son of the most high God? I adjure thee by God, that thou torment me not.”

And no one really understood the outpouring of love that was washing over the planet called earth as God’s love was being shed upon their hearts. This love was painful because it involved a sacrifice – a giving to those who were gripped with hatred for the Lamb.

John 3:16-17

16 For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.

17 For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved.

And no one could have begun to understand the emotions of Jesus - the passionate love for mankind that took Him to Calvary. They did not feel the agony of His death at the hands of an angry mob or the feelings of devotion to His Father to complete the plan.

Passion?

Oh, yes, Jesus knows about Passion.

He knows the Joy of the Cross!

He knows the power of Love for lost humanity!

He knows the passionate power of forgiveness!

Yes, there were those that were aware of their part, but did not have a clue how it was to impact humanity for eternity.

God’s plan was being fulfilled in love but humanity missed the fact that the Messiah, the Lamb of God, without blemish, was being prepared for the Passover Sacrifice and then sacrificed right in front of their eyes.

Most did not recognize this one who had been given as a gift of God from Heaven. Even those who followed him the closest missed the perfect plan that they were a part of. For many others, all they could do was battle Him – to the death!

The people on the streets, Mary, the mother of Jesus, John, the Centurions, the mockers, and the two thieves who were also crucified on either side of Him took a stand that day.

Passion has a way of leaving the Heart of God and Man and crying out.

It cried, “Father, if thou be willing, remove this cup from me: nevertheless not my will, but thine, be done.”

It cried, “Why sleep you? Get up and pray, lest ye enter into temptation!”

It cried, “Judas, do you betray the Son of man with a kiss?”

It cried, “Crucify Him!”

It cried, “Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do.”

It cried, “He saved others; let him save himself, if he be Christ, the chosen of God.”

It cried, “If thou be the king of the Jews, save thyself!”

It cried, “If thou be Christ, save thyself and us.”

It cried, “Lord, remember me when you come into thy kingdom.”

It cried, “To day shalt thou be with me in paradise!”

It cried, “Father, into thy hands I commend my spirit!”

It cried, “Certainly this was a righteous man.”

It was a stage like no other. Everyone took a place but little did they know the magnitude of what they were a part of.

Voices rang out into the heavens as the passion of God and man spilled over – mingled for eternity.

To this day, people have filmed the story of Jesus over and over, so many times more than any other story ever told. The focus on Jesus has been intense from the time He entered earth as a baby, up to now.

This is the man that people still cannot stop talking about, making movies about, presenting plays and writing songs about. Even the atheists spend all their life focused on Him! Some of the greatest witnesses of Jesus have been those who do not believe in Him because they constantly talk about Him.

The world is obsessed with Jesus Christ.

The “Passion of Christ” is truly a phrase that depicts the fire and fervor that has always surrounded the mention of Jesus’ name. People are not neutral concerning Him – never have been, never will be. His name provokes passionate action on everyone’s part.

His name brings everyone to a decision unlike any other – do you accept or reject Him as the Savior of the world, the Son of the Living God?

There have been millions of martyrs since the beginning of time – people who died for what they believed - but no death so notable, documented, dissected and preached from the pulpits of the word of the lovers and haters of Jesus.

He is inescapable!

Oh, yes, there have been a multitude of messianic-type men, teachers and prophets, but which of them, even though many claimed to be God or Messiah, ever had the publicity that Jesus Christ has had, with the world trying its best to prove Him wrong or right? There is no other battlefield such as this!

Anyone today who gets in the proximity of Jesus on any level, in any way, will make a decision. It will be one that will invade their human mind, emotions and spirits.

Apathy has a voice, as does fear.

Complacency, though idle speaks a message.

It’s Easter – Resurrection Sunday! Many will gather all over the world to celebrate that Jesus lives. Some without even understanding why they are inexplicably drawn to acknowledge this day, will get up and go to church on Sunday. They will nod in Jesus direction, letting Him know they are still aware of Him. Voices will once again be raised to the heavens. God will hear.

The earth will resound with the passionate voices of everyone once again – like clockwork!

Some will curse His name. Others will praise Him! Some will yawn in His face, which is a response, while others will mock Him, as it was done in the days of old. Some will give Him a nod of appreciation while others will raise their voices in shouts of gratitude.

For believers, The Passion of our Lord and Savior should provoke us to greater love and worship for Him.

He is our Redeemer! He is our Healer! He is our Deliverer!

Can we not raise our voices in rejoicing for the Victory of the Cross, the Power in His Blood and the Authority in His name, Jesus? Everyone’s talking about Jesus, so why don’t we? Let’s bring our passion and love for Jesus to a new level – one that goes outside the church, outside of our worship and into the city streets, to proclaim the Name of Jesus!

Prayer and Repentance

The Church has her story as well, from long ago to now. Those of us who have accepted Jesus still have daily decisions to make in regards to how we will live our lives.

1 Cor 6:20

For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God's.

We live in a time when the church is statistically no better than the world. We do have some tough decision to make as to how we are going to live our lives, in light of the cross of Jesus Christ and His claims upon us.

Jesus comes in with great love but Holy confrontation for what is wrong in God’s House. When He entered the temple He was direct and to the point in dealing with the religion of the people and it greatly angered many of them. They did not like the challenge to change, so they fought back by trying to discredit the move Jesus made into His Father’s House. Ultimately they called for His death!

Matt 21:12a-13

And Jesus went into the temple of God, and cast out all them …And said unto them, It is written, My house shall be called the house of prayer; but ye have made it a den of thieves.

Jesus spoke this truth so long ago but He could come into our modern churches and decree the same thing.

What He really did was call the church to her knees.

Should Jesus not call the church – your church – to her knees?

Is there anything different He is doing today in this current church age, current revival? Jesus calls the sins of the church, the prayerlessness of the church, the compromise of the church, the worldliness of the church for what it is – sin.

The truth is - the religious church does not bend her knees easily. She has grown used to standing up, proud and in control.

Humility and Repentance is a door that opens for God to have His way!

Why do we keep on singing when Jesus is calling us to repentance?
Why do we keep on building when Jesus is calling us to repentance?

Why don’t we stop everything and quit doing and moving until we have recognized of our intense need of Jesus Christ?

Why don’t we stop the merry-go-round until we can get up changed?

Ps 17:15

As for me, I will behold thy face in righteousness: I shall be satisfied, when I awake, with thy likeness.

I am going to insert here a portion of an intercessory prayer I wrote some time ago as the Holy Spirit led me. It is as current today as it was then. Let is bring forth a cry before the Throne of God.

“Forgive us Lord!”

Written by Esther Dummer

September 24, 2004

Forgive us Lord, for locking prayer up into a side room, for being a prayerless church and people.

Forgive us Lord, for not keeping our doors shut to worldliness and compromise, for losing ground to the world’s values and allowing our foundation of Holiness to erode.

Forgive us Lord, for being “seeker-friendly” and “performance-oriented, for working so hard to be accepted, for desiring men’s admiration and esteem.
Forgive us Lord, for the years of self-sufficiency, for trusting in riches instead of your Name, pouring all of our time, energy and money into building a great ministry name for ourselves.

Forgive us Lord for Pride of Place and Position.

Forgive us Lord, for the years of schisms, division, leading to the loss of many hungry souls.

Forgive us Lord, for the years of manipulation and control, placing weighty rules of men’s doctrines upon the people of God, burdening them down to serve us rather than God.

Forgive us Lord, for our apathy and slumbering while the world’s masses have died in their sin.

Forgive us Lord, for the years of hypocrisy in preaching, teaching and speaking things in your name that we did not put in to practice.

Forgive us Lord for the lost destiny of our sons and daughters who were born to rule and reign in the Kingdom.

Forgive us Lord, for not discipling our children and youth, leaving them with no foundation to stand upon when tested.

Forgive us Lord, for not passing the heritage of the old-time Pentecost down to our children.

Forgive us Lord, for emptying our altars of the signs of the Holy Spirit’s work, His power and the manifestations of God’s Glory.

Forgive us Lord for trying to rein in the Holy Spirit in our church services, bringing death while we try to keep our order.

Forgive us Lord, for filling in the vacancy made by the Holy Spirit’s absence with the “other things.”
Forgive us Lord, for putting out the Fire of Passionate worship in exchange for years of cold, passionless service and worship.

Forgive us Lord, for the lack of hunger for Your Word and the moving of your Spirit.

Forgive us Lord, for saying every time Holy Spirit moves, “This isn’t God!”

“Until we tell ourselves the truth about “us” we will not repent and pray the right prayers – prayers of humility and repentance.”

There were a lot of issues in people’s hearts that brought them to the place of calling for the execution of Jesus and we can readily see how horrible what they did was. But, do we see the church world of today as capable of crucifixion if anyone messes with “our church?”

The truth is – Jesus wants His church back – from you and me.

We didn’t die for it – He did.

It is not our church – it is His!

We did not save the people – He did!

He has every right to walk into any church, in any time in history and challenge its condition.
He has every right to turn our tables over and call for a prayer meeting.

The question is – will we bend our knees in humility to Him or will we cry, “Away with Him?”

Churches and Christians all over the world are making this decision. We have to do more than attend pageants, hold special services, have plays and sing special songs at Easter. We have to make decisions as a church as to whether we will give Jesus the liberty to deal with us and make us “A House of Prayer.”

Rom 8:34b

…It is Christ that died, yea rather, that is risen again, who is even at the right hand of God, who also makes intercession for us.

Think of it!

Jesus - this Resurrection Sunday – and the coming days, making intercession for the churches around the world, and in your city!

That’s you and me, folks!

If the King of Glory is bending His heart, then why don’t we? From the cross to the grave to heaven – His life was and is one of total involvement with mankind. He stepped into people’s lives and performed miracles of intervention in their sickness, brokenness, lameness and blindness.

This Great Intercessor is still stepping between you and that which would afflict you, cripple you or blind you.

Think of what His prayer might be for you, for your church. Oh, how we need revival! Think of what His instructions to you might be if He were to walk into your church as He did the Temple long ago.

Pentecost

“Pentecost is not an event – It is a Power Source!”

I cannot think of anything more honoring of Jesus than for Churches all over America and around the nations of the world to turn the church houses into “A House of Prayer” this Resurrection Sunday and cry out to God in repentance for the pride that has caused us to move on without God, and then to cry out for a fresh outpouring of the Holy Ghost!

I also cannot think of anything more impactive on our lives, our children, our cities, society and our nations than to have the church all over the world on its face in humility and then in hunger for a genuine move of God by His Holy Spirit.

God would surely move in a mighty wave of Holy Ghost fire on us once again!

Jesus had died, been buried, resurrected and had spoken with His disciples not long before He left the world.

Acts 1:8

But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth.

The Feast of Pentecost was approaching. What timing God has!

Now, we are fast approaching two seasons worth celebrating in which the Church should greatly rejoice –

The Resurrection of Jesus, Sunday, April 16^th

And

The 100 years celebration of the Pentecostal outpouring at Azusa Street in California,

April 25^th – 29th.

Millions from all over the world will gather there and in churches elsewhere to seek God for another wave of His glorious Spirit to consume them. I for one, and others like me who are not content to stay as we are, not matter how far we think we have come, plan on being in a place (a posture of the heart) that God can so move on our lives that we will never be the same again.

If there is ever a truth, it is this – churches need resurrection! They need a mighty infusion of the same Spirit that raised Christ from the dead to indwell them as the Temple of God, corporately.

We seek to make this the best Resurrection Sunday and Pentecost ever!

I make a bold invitation to you as well.

We need this more than we need our programs - so who ever you are and wherever you are – hear the call of the season! It is the hour of our visitation!

Passion – celebrate in joy!

Prayer – repent in humility!

Pentecost – hunger in earnest!

Acts 2:17 - And it shall come to pass in the last days, saith God; I will pour out of my Spirit upon all flesh…