The Restoration Shift

From the time of the garden fall, the world has been undergoing a process of restoration. As the condition of man digressed, God chose a people, with whom He made a covenant, who would know Him and His ways, whose lives would advance the momentum of this process.

What was originally established in the garden, in a setting in which God walked together in relationship with man, in cooperatively overseeing the maintenance of His creation, were conditions involving the mix of the spiritual with the power to create and the economy to build and bring increase. The spiritual, power and economics.

Over the course of time, seasons have unfolded. Within these seasons have been set-times, set aside by God alone, for shifts or advances in this process of restoration. Shifts in spiritual advancements. Shifts in seats of power. Shifts in the economic frameworks that enhance and build a society. All toward the goal of restoration.

Yet over the centuries, even these three key elements have become perverted within circles of the household of faith. The spiritual was never an institution or separated from society. It was always a move of God based on a relationship, and the communication required in following what the Lord was doing, together with His people.

The design for power was always through those assigned by God. Daniel pointed this out to Nebuchadnezzar: the leadership in the kingdom of men being ultimately from God, who gives it to whomever He wills. The design began with the community dynamic to serve a creative purpose in advancing the relational interactions of the culture operating under God. The result would be as a light and witness to those around them.

Likewise, economies are the management of the resources, the design of which is to benefit the members of the community or society. Once again, what became corrupted and defiled is now advancing toward the last stages in this process of restoration, to God’s original design.

In short, shifts have marked the process, periodically resetting and advancing the paradigm: the original paradigm that aligned the spiritual, that of power and of economies. We have entered such a time of reset. A time of turmoil, triggered by a world intent on making their way apart from God. While the blind response of the world, as well as for the socially-acceptable lukewarm to the fruit of this intent, has generally been rampant fear, the response for God’s people is as it has been intended over the centuries: the humbling required to enhance a spiritual awareness driven by the fear of the Lord.

The Fear of the Lord and the Reset
I recently learned of the first Christian I’ve known being infected with the Corona virus. It also happened to be a person, who in the past, I have worked with. As an accomplished combat-seasoned veteran, I have a second sense about people I have worked alongside. It simply involves the question of whether they would be someone I would want to take with me into combat. Those you take into combat with you are ones whose character and expertise you have to trust, because your life and the life of your people might depend on their response in tough, life and death type of situations. Without casting aspersion, despite superficial appearances to the contrary, my experience with this person was such that I definitely would not want such a one alongside me in a combat situation.

Paul similarly made evaluations and decisions concerning those he worked with. In the case of John Mark, he later recanted, indicating John Mark had changed and proven himself. Nevertheless, there is a fine-line between casting aspersion and making people-evaluations based on actions and behavior you have experienced with a person. So, in learning about this person being stricken and then surviving the virus, although I had not seen or heard from them in some time, I found my mind wondering about whether I had been right, in the long term, concerning the underlying character I had once discerned, which had once prompted me to conclude that — I would not want to be with that person in a tough combat situation. Then while praying for this person and for a full recovery, the fear of the Lord hit me.

We’re each subject to blind-spots. It’s how we maintain our response to the Lord that matters. And that is an extremely subtle and humbling heart-matter. Paul wisely observed that it was no longer he who lived, but Messiah who lived within him. That’s a daily matter of this ongoing process of consecration for the tasks that increasingly are being extended beyond our pay-grades — which indeed is the delicate place the Lord wants us in, together with the fine-line spiritual balance we need to maintain. That delicate spiritual maintenance and balance can only happen with the fear of the Lord operating.

Wisely discerning such subtle issues has become critical to navigating the spiritual atmosphere of the season we have entered. Such discernment entails a two-edged sword, as we discern those we would take into combat with us, more aptly, those we would trust with our lives in Nebuchanezzar’s court. The other side of the two-edged sword involves the depth to which we maintain the condition of our own hearts in being equipped in preparing the spiritual atmosphere of the courts of Babylon.

The slice of humble pie required for such assignments will eliminate the performers, those who play games and wear masks — and those whose response to the world around them is within the boundaries of the socially-acceptable, politically-correct. The dividing asunder is the continual dependence on the Holy Spirit, as well as being actively engaged with the ones God has assigned as the trusted spiritual companions with shared mantles. It is no longer business as usual. Nothing can be expected to be quite the same. Embracing the assignments and the strategies for the opportunities for the reset is going to require that dimension of “something more.” For those with the mantles of Joseph and Daniel in the spiritual atmosphere of pagan infrastructures, it will be even more.

The Remnant and Unity
While Paul wrote those under his charge about a time of the “glorious church,” the model for entering times of awakening has been one in which God has used a remnant, those outside the mainstream of the community of faith, to navigate the times of reset. The shift underway in this hour is an integral part of the process of restoration. So it will be with the roles played by today’s genuinely-prepared Josephs and Daniels.

The significance of the role of the Josephs and Daniels can be summed up in one word: leadership. Leadership under God. Leadership aligned with God. Courageous leadership. Such leadership represents what is required to navigate the process of restoration that will include the full mix of the spiritual, power and economic. We need a grasp, far beyond pop-Christian culture’s image of the money-laundering role of business types feeding the coffers of the more “successful” and generally-accepted ministry practitioners. This is not about an evangelistic marketing strategy. It is about restoration of the original design in the garden. It is operating on a far more significant “grand-strategy” level.

During the late nineties, after becoming a voice for the coming wealth transfer, the Lord spoke what was a startling word to me at the time: that the wealth transfer was not about money. It would indeed involve money and resources, but the focus of the wealth transfer would entail a shift of power.

The Josephs and Daniels will be a remnant. A strategically placed and well-prepared remnant of leaders in their own right. While there has been a groundswell of those promoting those attempting to come to the plate, the reality is that the Josephs and Daniels of this day, like Joseph and Daniel of old, bear significant spiritual and prophetic gifts and mantles, together with their professional expertise and leadership abilities that will serve primarily within pagan and even occult power structures globally. As such, the Josephs and Daniels will be the triggers for the emerging, very necessary unity that was the prophetic expectation Paul foresaw at the end of this process.

Timing Issues and Jumping to Premature Conclusions
So, responding to the season will demand an understanding of the timing issues. This grasp of timing issues necessitates a mature, not to speak of humble grasp of the process, the full picture of the prophecies describing restoration — and the avoidance of jumping to premature conclusions. The litmus test will always go back to Israel and the restoration of Israel, who as a people will wield the core mantle in this restoration. A test which requires a grasp of current conditions in Israel in light of prophecy.

The tendency for too many, in our rapidly-changing world, has been to see the aligning taking place and then with great zeal and expectation, to fill in the blanks, to complete the uncompleted, with precepts that tend to overlook the full picture. Ezekiel 37, for example speaks of a time of peace in Israel, when there will come an attack from the land of the north, in which the Lord will sovereignly intervene.

Such a time of peace for Israel is hardly a reflection of this hour. That doesn’t mean that things cannot begin happening quickly. Yet in light of the realities of the response of nations to this current plague, there are clearly tangible steps that need to be considered when emerging into what will be the local to global restoration merely from the lifting of the lockdown restrictions tied to the Corona virus.

Facing the Season and Taking Responsibility
Jesus’ testing in the wilderness reveals parallels to the preparation for what is being faced by the remnant in today’s time of transition. The result reflected Him spiritually mastering the hurdles required to take responsibility to embrace the authority for His significant mantle. There were three temptations, each tied to key dimensions for the employment of righteous power in a corrupt world and the foundation needed to bring change: provision, power and purpose.

When the evil one challenged Jesus with “command these stones be made bread,” the issue involved the authority over provision. When the challenge was “throw yourself down for He has given His angels charge over you,” it was the foundation needed to employ righteous power. Finally, when shown all the glory of the kingdoms of this world and being offered “all these things I will give to you,” the matter addressed the purpose of restoring the Kingdom.

Facing the season and taking responsibility is not passive. Forerunners are ones who take the initiative. The wilderness testing that became so foundational to His earthly ministry was described as beginning with “Jesus being led by the Holy Spirit into the wilderness.” Similarly, Jesus was strong on the interim spiritual maintenance required. Scripture notes that he spent entire nights in prayer with the Father. He took the initiative, responsibility and paid the cost.

Resetting Mindsets to Penetrate the Gates of Hell
Such preparation requires an undivided mind. Which raises one of the hardest questions of the gospels: “When the Son of Man returns, will he really find faith on the earth (Luke 18:8)?” Jesus is not coming for a lukewarm church. He will be returning for one that, not unlike the role of the modern-day Joseph and Daniels as forerunners, will be penetrating the gates of hell. And it will be one that will be doing so, from within the infrastructures of the world’s seats of power.

Jesus asked Peter: who he considered Him to be. Peter replied that Jesus was the Messiah, the Son of the Living God. Jesus went on to comment that Peter’s perception could only have come to him by revelation and that such revelation would be the foundation on which His followers would advance their efforts. Against such, the gates of hell would not prevail — and from it would come the keys of the Kingdom and the authority required for the restoration (Matt 16:15-18). God has always led His people by revelation. Our mandate and the process of restoration entails penetrating the gates and establishing dominion within the infrastructures ruled by hell.

Isaiah the prophet wisely admonished the people to draw near to God and enter their chambers to hide themselves “for a moment” until judgment passed (Is 26:20). Then in Isaiah 59 came the turning and instruction to “arise, shine for your Light has come and the glory of the Lord will rest upon you.” The context was a time when darkness would cover the earth and deep darkness the peoples — a time when despite what is happening to those within the world that the Lord’s Light would be evident on His remnant. The Lord arising over the remnant would spiritually be as a magnet. Nations and kings would be drawn to the brightness of this arising upon the remnant.

The Awakening and Embracing of the Shift
Recognizing the season and those serving as forerunners is going to require an awakening. Jesus came to Simon the Pharisee’s house (Luke 7:36), but Simon not only failed to recognize Him, but treated Him not only with less than the hospitality normally extended a guest in ones’ home, but contemptuously. This is the challenge today for those representing the true Jesus — those who will be extending righteous provision, power and purpose — of not being recognized from those from within the household of faith, of being rejected by far too many of those they are paying a high cost in making preparation for.

Jesus noted that when the Son of Man returns, that the times would be as it was in the days of Noah (Matthew 24:37). Jesus was addressing the blindness of mindsets and the self-absorbed priorities of the lukewarm, making them oblivious to the realities. In a way that only God can do, there will come a time of an awakening of the double-minded to the realities and to the roles of the Josephs and Daniels in their preparatory role for the shift. The challenge for the remnant will be one of seasoned maturity and sacrifice — one bearing on the critical issue of who you want alongside you in combat — of not loving your lives to the death: of embracing the reality of the season and the accompanying responsibility, despite what is being deemed as acceptable and popular at the time.

As the shift gains momentum, today’s Josephs and Daniels will be those found in the courts of Egypt and Babylon — in both friendly and hostile pagan and occult settings. Game-changers sent by the Spirit into the heart of darkness to provide safe places and to establish Kingdom authority for the restoration. These are the forerunners, the remnant, who as it was said of Joseph were separate from their brethren. The forerunners whose presence and purpose will set the stage for the brethren from the household of faith interred in these safe-places. The forerunners whose mandates will be the catalysts to position and reset the spiritual conditions that will trigger the process of restoration.
“He changes times and seasons; he removes kings and sets up kings; he gives wisdom to the wise and knowledge to those who have understanding; he reveals deep and hidden things; he knows what is in the darkness, and light dwells with him.” Daniel 2:21-22

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Morris Ruddick has been a forerunner and voice for the higher dimensions of spiritual game-changers and intercessors since the mid-90s. As founder of Global Initiatives Foundation and designer of the God’s Economy Entrepreneurial Equippers Program and the Jewish Business Secrets YouTube series, Mr. Ruddick equips economic community builders with strategy where God’s light is dim in diverse regions around the globe.

He is author of “The Joseph-Daniel Calling;” “Gods Economy, Israel and the Nations;” “The Heart of a King;” “Something More;” “Righteous Power in a Corrupt World;” “Leadership by Anointing;” and “Mantle of Fire,” which address the mobilization of business and governmental leaders with destinies to impact their communities. They are available in print and e-versions from www.Amazon.com, www.apple.com/ibooks and www.BarnesandNoble.com.

Global Initiatives Foundation (www.strategic-initiatives.org) is a tax-exempt 501 (c) 3 non-profit whose efforts are enabled by the generosity of a remnant of faithful friends and contributors whose vision aligns with God’s heart to mobilize economic community builders imparting influence and the blessings of God. Checks on US banks should be made out to Global Initiatives and mailed to PO Box 370291, Denver CO 80237 or by credit card at http://strategicintercession.org/support/

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Reproduction is prohibited unless permission is given by a SIGN advisor. Since early 1996, the Strategic Intercession Global Network (SIGN) has mobilized prophetic intercessors and leaders committed to targeting strategic-level issues impacting the Body on a global basis. For previous posts or more information on SIGN, check: http://www.strategicintercession.org

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