Deuteronomy 11:10-12

For the land which you go to possess is not like the land of Egypt from which you have come, where you sowed your seed and watered it by foot, as a vegetable garden; but the land which you cross over to possess is a land of hills and valleys, which drinks water from the rain of heaven, a land for which the Lord your God cares; the eyes of the Lord your God are always on it, from the beginning of the year to the very end of the year.

Divine Hydraulics is a phrase coined by George Otis Jr. and the Sentinel Group. It’s a phrase that has captured the imagination of my Father-in-law and others as they contend for transformation in their communities. These hydraulics have been put on display in dramatic ways in various places throughout history. One of the occasions the effect of these divine hydraulics was seen was in 1949 on the remote Hebrides Island’s off the west coast of Scotland. Concerned about the spiritual decline they were observing and looming oppressive cultural ideologies, a small group of saints began to press in to rediscover the ancient patterns that release the glory of heaven on earth in an unmistakably majestic way. These moves are marked by deep awareness of God’s holy presence, conviction of sin, leading to heartfelt repentance that leave lasting transformation in those communities sometimes for generations.

The idea of “divine hydraulics” is different from crusades and evangelism and other valuable approaches to outreach. These of course have their place and are very important. In situations where outreaches have been championed, seeds have been sown, yet the spiritual condition of the region remains headed toward lawlessness – this is the ideal climate for divine hydraulics. (Ps 119:126)

Fascinated by these types of moves of God, I have found myself on a journey to understand these ancient patterns or protocols that were revealed to these saints in their desire to see the kingdom of heaven manifest on earth as in heaven.

We’ve visited the Hebridean Islands, we have contended all night in prayer, we have also been part of Solemn assemblies like the Call and the Response USA, that the Lord appears to be using to “teach us how to pray” and help us walk together as we understand and recover these ancient truths.

This past weekend we were in Cleveland, OH for the most recent Response. I shoot video of the events helping document the team’s preparation behind the scenes. The team were staying in the Hilton Garden Hotel within walking distance of the Wolstein Center, the venue selected for the event. Due to some air conditioning issues we had been moved to a meeting room called the Armington room for prep. The team gathered the friday before the event to pray and cover final details. I was certainly caught up in the prayer time. In three days Cleveland was poised to be the scene of the republican national convention. Preparations to lockdown the city center were underway. It had been an interesting political cycle, with much concern regarding the candidates. On the news, racial unrest and violence against police officers was a constant theme, along with a brutal Islamic terrorist attack in Nice and staged political coup in Turkey. I was glad to pray. There was a focus and intensity of agreement to the prayer time that dispensed the fragrance of Jesus into the atmosphere.

As we continued to pray, I was reflecting on this journey in pursuit of “divine hydraulics”, I and many others had been on. Believing the Lord had “another arrow in his quiver” as my father-in-law says, were we wasting our time chasing a revival fantasy? or were we heading in the right direction …

The reason the Armington Room had this name was because it was the location of the Armington Crane a crane that was capable of lifting 15 tons. This historic crane which had loaded electrical power transformers was now preserved and it’s name plate embossed in gold. I was intrigued by our location and stirred by the agreement of the individuals I found myself praying with at that critical time. I asked the Lord if the 15 ton inscription had any significance & felt compelled to read Psalm 15. Psalm 15 is a psalm that speaks to the heart posture of those who are given access to the mountain of the Lord. It is worth remembering that the Psalms are the prayer book of the scriptures. The 5 books of the Psalms are our prayer response to a conversation initiated by the Father in the 5 books of the Hebrew law (or Torah). Eugene Peterson calls prayer “technology” and the psalms “tools”. Tools not so much for doing, but tools for becoming. Intentionally praying the Psalms, I have come to recently believe is the key to us becoming or maturing into the people of God. The psalms reveal the majesty of the voice of the Lord.

I started this blog quoting the verses from Deuteronomy, the fifth book of the law, where Moses is reminding the people that the land he is taking them into will be different from Egypt. It is a land of mountains and valleys a land where they must understand and remain aware of their need of his partnership – divine hydraulics. Trying to do things like Egypt in this land will not have positive outcomes. If they want this holy assistance they must understand they need to love Him & hold fast to him, by keeping his commandments “11v22 for if you carefully keep all these commandments which I command you to do – to love the Lord your God, to walk in all his ways, and to hold fast to Him – 23 then the Lord will drive out all these nations from before you …”.

Deuteronomy 11 is a powerful chapter given to a nation poised to enter the promised land. God is in essence saying if you want access to me and the divine hydraulics you must love me & hold fast to me. The words hold fast can be translated cleave. Here we sat preparing for the Response in Cleveland under the Armington Crane, letting God know that we were not looking to a political party or candidate for the answers we needed. But we were humbly cleaving to Him.

“Lord teach us to pray, just like John taught his disciples” Luke 11:1

Jesus’ disciples made this request in Luke Chapter 11, it probably goes without saying that Luke Chapter 11 comes after Luke Chapter 10? So what’s the big “Aha!”? We’ll in Luke 10 Jesus had sent out the 70 with authority to trample serpents and scorpions, they came back rejoicing that,”even the demons were subject” to them. They had been sent out with simple yet clear instructions that had them visiting communities and declaring “Peace!”, fellowshipping with the lost, healing the sick and declaring the “gospel of the Kingdom”. Effective stuff, had they arrived? Surely this is a picture of a healthy church!? Out of the four walls, doing the stuff in the streets? There is a lot that challenges me in Luke chapter 10, I’m not convinced I’m even there yet. Am I certain that the demons are subject to me? Not really. So with Luke 10 as a backdrop, I’m amazed that they were asking to learn how to pray in Chapter 11. Doesn’t learning how to pray come before casting out demons? Isn’t the ability to cast out demons evidence of maturity? Maybe this is why this statement from Jesus is also recorded. “I praise you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because you have hidden these things from the wise and learned, and revealed them to little children”(10v21).

“Lord, teach us to pray”, it’s this type of honest request that I am convinced the Lord wants us to make. There is no mask wearing here. We assume prayer is instinctive, it doesn’t need to be taught, surely everyone knows how to pray, it’s entry level stuff. But the disciples request in Luke 11:1  suggests they are not convinced that they can learn how to pray like Jesus or John without some help and training.

I never really paid much attention to this verse until recently. I guess when you are contending for clarity as a pastor you become more attentive to these sometimes overlooked details. So I don’t think I really knew that second part about the comparison to John teaching his disciples to pray was connected to this well known statement. What I think is important to understand about the comparison is John was a Nazirite(not a Nazarite). A nazirite, took a special vow of consecration, during times of crisis. They were prophets not priests and often arose at times when the priesthood had become corrupt and had failed to honor the Lord in their responsibilities. The emergence of a nazirite suggests that the state of the nation was on a slide and had almost reached the point of no return. Nazirite’s were like a final lifeline. It’s my belief that the first order of business of a nazirite beyond the long hair, no wine drinking & not touching dead things, was to teach the people to pray. Where the purpose of the priesthood had become cloudy due to corruption, the nazirite would remind the people of their first responsibility as a chosen people, to pray – ministering to the heart of God. In preparing the people to receive Jesus, John had been faithful in teaching his disciples to pray – and it was worth recognizing and worthy of being noted, in scripture.

There is a pattern in the book of 1 Samuel that Dean Briggs brings out in his book, “Ekklesia Rising”. He points out that Hannah, in her barrenness desperately cries out to the Lord of Hosts*. At the time a corrupt high priesthood, Eli & his sons, is on the verge of judgment. God answers Hannah’s prayer by giving her a son, Samuel – a nazirite. God speaks to the young Samuel that he is about “to do something that will make the ears of those who hear of it tingle”. This was probably the judgement of the house of Eli and the captivity of the Ark of the Covenant by the Philistines. Samuel later anoints David as King. It needs to be noted, David is the author of many of the Psalms, the prayer book of the Scriptures. This is important, and often overlooked, it is my recent understanding  that we only mature in the language of prayer, through meditating and living the Psalms. I believe it is important not to miss the role the language of the Psalms played in the ascendancy of the nation of Israel under King David. Eugene Peterson suggests, praying the psalms keeps our prayer from being dishonest and superficial. We might not be able to detect the dishonesty and superficiality, in ourselves, but God certainly can.

In the small book, “Psalms the Prayer Book of the Bible”, Dietrich Bonhoeffer opens the first chapter with this paragraph.

Chapter 1 “Lord, Teach Us to Pray!”

So spoke the disciples to Jesus. In making this request, they confessed that they were not able to pray on their own, that they had to learn to pray. The phrase “learning to pray” sounds strange to us. If the heart does not overflow and begin to pray by itself, we say, it will never “learn” to pray. But it is a dangerous error, surely very widespread among Christians, to think that the heart can pray by itself. For then we confuse wishes, hopes, sighs, laments, rejoicings – all of which the heart can do by itself – with prayer. And we confuse earth and heaven, man and God. Prayer does not mean simply to pour out one’s heart. It means rather to find the way to God and to speak with him, whether the heart is full or empty. No man can do that by himself. For that he needs Jesus Christ.

 

Dietrich Bonhoeffer, “Psalms the Prayer Book of the Bible”, Augsburg, 1970

I have often heard the frustration, from Pastors, that in many of the prayer meetings they are asked to attend the prayer times become an opportunity for others to “Pray Preach”. The “prayers” are horizontal not vertical. I’m not certain those who resolve to stick it out in the interests of contending for “unity” ever see the fog lift.

I grew up in Scotland and while studying Divinity at the University of Aberdeen, I became friends with a group of young ministers (in training) from the Islands of Lewis & Harris. My first year there we would pray every night in the dorm rooms. They would share stories of a time on the Island of Lewis where, the spirit of the Lord visited the Island at a moment in history where it appeared all was lost. But a handful of saints pressed in, learning how to pray in such a way that the Island was shaken by the holiness of God and deep conviction & repentance filled the Island. The stories were remarkable. Here, 50 years after , the grandkids of these saints had been marked by this move and there was a longing in their hearts for this benchmark to be re-realized by their generation. How did these Islanders pray? I believe the psalms were a big part of it.

For the past year I have had the privilege of serving with The Response. A call to pray for a nation at a crossroads. These events are Solemn Assemblies in the spirit of Joel 2. The more I participate in them the more I believe the Lord is using them to teach me/us how to pray, ekklesia type intercession. I believe Jesus wants to teach us how to pray in order to move us from Joel2 – solemn assemblies to become the Psalm 110 – contending ekklesia on the earth. Could part of the reason these events often don’t have a high attendance be, that the average Christian in America has tasted the victory of Luke 10 and may be under the assumption that we already know how to pray? After all it takes some honesty to be vulnerable enough to ask “to be taught how to pray”, especially if you’re a pastor. If we are indeed at Luke 10, I believe we are headed in the right direction.

Until the Light of Glory shines on the nations like he did on the Island’s of Lewis & Harris, Lord teach me how to pray.

(* )Briggs is careful to draw our attention to the name of God used by Hannah in her intercession, “Lord Sabaoth”. Hannah’s desperate intercession is the first mention of this name in scripture. Lord Sabaoth means “The Lord of the Angel Armies”. It would appear this is the appropriate name to address the Lord with in the face of unbridled human corruption. Incidentally the second mention of the name Lord Sabaoth is by David on the battlefield against Goliath. He opposes the philistine giant in the name of Jehovah Sabaoth.

“Briggs’ pattern;

1. Fervent Intercession brings forth
2. Naziritic consecration which produces
3. a clearly prophetic voice by which
4. anointed destinies are produced
5. giants are challenged and overcome and
6. the king is made known”

(*) Dean Briggs, “Ekklesia Rising, The Authority of Christ in Communities of Contending Prayer”, Champion Press, 2014

“The wisdom that comes from above is … willing to yield … “. James 3:17

I believe four of the most sobering words in scripture are, “God gave them over”. It’s found in the Old Testament(Psalm 81:12) and the New(Rom 1:24, 26). God’s preference is for us to trust him & take him at his word, but we are created with a free moral will and are capable of choosing to obey his word, or not. The scriptures are full of accounts of men continually resisting the will of God. The account of Israel wanting to be like the other nations and asking for a King is one example (1 Sam 8:6).

Israel: “We want a King!”
God: “A King’s 2nd best, here is why …”
Israel: “We still want a King”
God: “They are not rejecting you Samuel(His prophet delivering the message), they are rejecting me, give them a King”.

It happens on an individual level too. God reasons with us, “This is the better way, walk in it”, men say, “Why is that the only way?”or “Nah, what do you know? Do you even exist? I’d prefer to walk my own way.” First, God, because he is a loving Father reasons, “That’s not a wise way, ultimately it will destroy you”, but over time and persistent refusal to acknowledge the wisdom of God’s way, he comes to a point where scripture says, “He gives them over.” This is not the end of his dealings with these individuals, and it is not a flippant or callous decision either. It comes with enormous risk & sadness, and there is no guarantee that those who stubbornly persist down their ‘self-enlightened’ path will ever return. But the hope remains in the heart of God that those who are given over will, “after burning themselves on the proverbial stove” come to their senses, see the foolishness of their path, and return to what he from an eternal perspective calls the paths of righteousness.

Jesus told a story about a Father and his son illustrating this process. In sharing the story he wants us to catch a glimpse of God’s Father heart. In the story the Father’s youngest son paid him the ultimate disrespect. Insisting on his inheritance before his Father’s death. Reluctantly and not in agreement with his sons decision he releases his son, with his full share of the inheritance. It’s astonishing that the inheritance is given considering the sons attitude, many might consider this the Father’s approval or blessing, but I don’t think he agreed with his sons decision at all. He just loved his son, and in spite of his son’s great dishonor, he gave him everything he asked for. He gave him over. The story continues that the son squanders it all and ends up in a pig trough eating from the pig slop. It is not until he is eating pig slop with the pigs that he comes to his senses and says the servants in my Father’s house are treated better than this. Upon this revelation he determines to head home. The story also reveals this, upon catching a glimpse of his returning son a far off his father immediately drops everything and begins running towards him. I understand that the nature of the dishonor done by this son to his father, gave the towns people the right to stone the son if they encountered him. The Father was running not only to embrace his son, but to protect him from the towns people. The son’s welcome home party is a greeting reserved for royalty. Along with being fully reinstated with the privileges of sonship the Father demonstrates the ultimate value he has for his son by killing the fatted calf. The fatted calf was a covenant offering reserved for a visiting king. This is a powerful story of one who is given over coming to his senses and returning. Not all who are given over choose to come to their senses, and experience such a happy ending. Some would rather die amongst the pigs.

In James 3 there is a contrast between the wisdom from below and above. It gives this interesting insight that “the wisdom from above is … willing to yield …”. This is not an act of weakness by the one who yields neither is it an acknowledgment of error. It takes great strength & understanding to know when to yield and be willing to say, ‘I don’t agree with you and I don’t want you to walk down this extremely risky, potentially fatal path but, I realize I can no longer say anything to stop you, I’m giving you what you insist upon.” The wisdom that comes from above yields because it rests in the sobering reality, that “we don’t break God’s laws, God’s laws break us”. To learn the inflexibility of nature’s laws most prefer to run into them a few times. It sounds dumb, it’s actually insanity, but it is a reality. The tragedy is the risk is so high the first run in can be fatal & others can be lost as collateral too. Not to mention the heartache of family members & friends. After the statement that the wisdom from above is ‘willing to yield’, James 3 says, it’s also ‘full of mercy’. This is a reminder of the character of the Father’s heart, He’s full of mercy to returning repentant children. So if you ever rejected the counsel of God and inevitably find yourself eating pig slop with the pigs and you happen upon a truly sober moment, remember the servants in your Father’s house are treated better than this & your Father is full of mercy.

It is only ever with great sadness of heart that “God gives anyone over.” May God have mercy.

Acts 2:42

And they continued stedfastly in the apostles teaching and fellowship, in the breaking of bread and the prayers (ASV).

Patterns are everywhere, patterns matter to God. Patterns can be subtle, especially God’s patterns. Dick Rueben, forerunner to the Pensacola Awakening, has said, “when the pattern is right the glory will fall”. In this verse from Acts we see a pattern the early church continued stedfastly in. Those words “continued stedfastly” are the subtle words of covenant obligation. A Covenant is not a lightweight agreement, it carries with it a great obligation to those who enter in. The fruit of that obligation would produce a continuing steadfastness in remembering the terms of the Covenant. These four things listed in Acts 2:42 were very important, each was an essential “ingredient” to a long anticipated pattern delivered & entrusted to them by the Son of God – the Apostle of heaven himself, Jesus. With whom they had entered an eternal Covenant.

When Jesus sat down with his disciples to eat “the Last Supper”  he told them, “with desire I have desired to eat this meal with you!”, that double emphasis on desire means it was really very special to him. I have to admit it’s a whole lot more desire for this meal than I probably have ever had for it. Have you ever really wanted to do something and whoever you are with was just not into it? or didn’t quite get why it mattered to you so much? & worse – what if they didn’t care, or they even tried to talk you out of caring so much about it. I remember taking a friend to church once and wondering what he thought of the communion part of the service. “Vampire Cannibal’s (Blood/Flesh)?”, wouldn’t it be OK just to leave that bit out? Why was this meal such a big deal to Jesus? Such a big deal that his disciples “continued stedfastly” in remembering it after he was gone. Should it be a bigger deal to me?

I love my roots. I grew up in the Salvation Army, a movement birthed by General William & Catherine Booth. The impact of the Salvation Army’s ministry on the world has transcended England in their time and continues to have a global impact to this day. Having said this communion was not part of the Salvation Army’s “stedfast worship” pattern at all. This adjustment was made because they were ministering to men from the streets struggling with addictions to alcohol. Addictions that were destroying the men and their families. The wine of communion could have easily been a stumbling block for these new converts. Non-alcoholic grape juice was not an alternative at that time. Avoiding communion in this type of ministry situation sounds reasonable to me & who can argue with the sustained fruit of the Salvation Army over the years? So coming from this tradition, it has been curious to find myself drawn to understand better the mysterious significance set before us in the pattern of the Lord’s Table.

If we are going to begin to understand the weight of this meal we have to first look at two key patterns. The pattern of the Blood Covenant and the pattern of the Holy Place & the Priesthood.

Jim Garlow & Rob Price outline in their book THE BLOOD COVENANT, the elements of the Covenant Ceremony:

Representatives,
Terms,
Blood Sacrifice,
Walk of Death,
The Mark on the Body,
Oaths & Vows,
Covenant Meals,
Memorials, and
Powerful Exchanges which included;
a. Robes,
b. Belts & Weapons,
c. Names,
d. the Oldest Male Child.

If we were to take time to analyze the 6 major covenants in the Scriptures we would find each follows this pattern to varying degrees. In the New Covenant, the ultimate fulfillment of these progressive Covenants, we find Jesus on his way to the cross sitting down with his disciples to eat a Covenant Meal.

The dominant idea in this Blood Covenant exchange was union (a sacred partnership). The strength of one covenant representative would compliment the strength of the other, or a weaker tribe may enter into a Covenant with a stronger tribe and receive the blessings of all the strength and protection of the stronger covenant party. From the disciples perspective, who probably had a clearer understanding of Covenant than we do, Jesus’ statement, “This is the New Covenant in my blood” would have been unprecedented. The Covenant Representative was about to become the Covenant Sacrifice. As Jesus’ Covenant partners the disciples would each have complete access to all the heavenly strength Jesus brought to the agreement. A strength that was about to be put on glorious display with his sacrificial death, resurrection from the dead & ascension to the right hand of the Father.

The Second Pattern that is helpful to observe when understanding the weight of this meal is the Pattern of the Priesthood & the Temple, particularly the Holy Place in the Temple. When it comes to his royal priesthood and the pattern of temples and tabernacles Jesus is very intentional. He guards these patterns jealously would be a better way to say this. Within the Holy Place, a location where only the priesthood were permitted to minister to the Lord were three items that relate to the passage in Acts 2:42. The Altar of Incense, the Lampstand and the Table of Shewbread. Within the New Covenant this responsibility would be handed over to his disciples as his royal priesthood in an unprecedented or “New” way.  Jesus was revealing the next step in the fulfillment of his pattern on earth. A step so revolutionary it would make the existing temple & priesthood obsolete. What the established Priestly order should have received as a wonderful transition they instead resisted as a threat. Even Jesus’ disciples were struggling to keep up with the way he was fulfilling prophecy before their eyes. The New Covenant Pattern is a Royal Priesthood of all believers where every believer is not only a Priest, but the heart of every Priest is also a living fully mobilized Temple of the Holy Spirit. The responsibility to minister from the Holy Place has not stopped it has transitioned to a more glorious & perfect operation from within the believers heart by the believer in the power of the Holy Spirit. The New Covenant parallel of the Lampstand becomes the Apostles Teaching, The Incense becomes the Prayers of the Saints and the Shewbread becomes the Breaking of Bread. Through the lens of Covenant is it any wonder why Jesus disciples after being asked to “remember” this meal gave themselves wholeheartedly & stedfastly to this pattern, as often as they met.

Bread in Hebrew is the word Lechem. Bethlehem is the House of Bread. Jesus the Living Bread came to the House of Bread for the Salvation of Humanity. Jesus was very clear that only true communion with him was the pathway to salvation. The Hebrew word for Battle is identical to the word Bread only the vowel’s differ – Lacham. The vowel’s are inserted only for the benefit of our English transliteration. I believe there is a very profound provision of strength in the bread of presence for those who believe.

King David when he was fleeing for his life from King Saul met Ahimelech the priest at Nob. David asks for food for his men who have left in haste from Saul. Ahimelech tells him there is only Holy Bread which he could only allow them to eat on the minimum basis that they were consecrated. According to Levitical Law only the priests were permitted to eat this bread (Matt 12:4). David assured Ahimelech that his men were consecrated & on this basis they were given the Shewbread to eat. David then asks if Ahimelech had any weapons and is told that the sword of Goliath, the slain Philistine champion, was in the tabernacle. He gave it to David who said, “there is none like it in all the land.” David and his men then left and hid from Saul amongst their enemies in Philistia. I personally believe during this exile David & his men were protecting Israel from invading enemies.

What can we take away from this in our New Covenant context?

David and his mighty men eating the Bread of Presence is a remarkable anomaly in the old testament that foreshadows this new covenant meal.  It sustained them in their journey as they prepared for the battles that lay ahead. In addition the exchange of weapons, they brought nothing to the exchange, infact they had left their own weapons in their haste to flee King Saul. But here Ahimelech gives them the weapon of their fallen enemy, ‘the finest in the land’. Could it be that the Lord wanted David to remember, “It was in my strength you conquered the giant Goliath, do not be afraid, I am with you now, continue in my strength and you will prevail“. I believe there is also a similar weapon exchange in the New Covenant. At the Table the Lord has prepared for us, we are invited to lay our carnal weapons of rebellion at his feet in exchange for his mighty weapons – “there is none like (them) in all the land”. His weapons of consecration, fasting & prevailing prayer are highly effective & capable of pulling down every lofty thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God. (2 Cor 10:4)

I believe there is great significance in the practice of breaking break together. It is more than just believers having a meal together. But when we intentionally remember the Lord’s Table as Jesus set out as a pattern, we are demonstrating great honor to Jesus. As we remember the whole-hearted way Jesus gave himself to this New Covenant at the cross, there is a contact with his presence, forgiveness, acceptance, peace, healing, strength & protection; that brings the deepest restoration to the soul. In this hour, we, as Jesus disciples also need to remember & continue stedfastly in breaking the bread of battle together. It would not be wise to forsake something Jesus desired with such desire to leave with us as a pattern.

(Incidentally the word remember is also a Covenant word and it means more than just don’t forget what we did today. In the context of Covenant it means remember by continuing to do this. It would have been received with great honor by the disciples as part of their ongoing covenant obligation to their friend & Lord)

Sources:

Garlow & Price, THE BLOOD COVENANT, Beacon Hill Press

Kenyon, THE BLOOD COVENANT, Kenyon Gospel Publishing Society

Trumbull, THE BLOOD COVENANT, Imprint Books

Reuben, PATTERN FOR REVIVAL FIRE SERIES, MP3
http://www.dickreuben.org/the-pattern-for-revival-series.html