The Calling and Preparing of the Bride

The Sound of Rain
A Testimony From the Beginning

Praise the Lord, O my soul.
 
O Lord my God, you are very great;
you are clothed with splendor and majesty. 
He wraps himself in light as with a garment;
he stretches out the heavens like a tent 
and lays the beams of his upper chambers on their waters.
He makes the clouds his chariot
and rides on the wings of the wind.  
He makes winds his messengers,
flames of fire his servants.
  
He set the earth on its foundations;
it can never be moved.  
You covered it with the deep as with a garment;
the waters stood above the mountains.  
But at your rebuke the waters fled,
at the sound of your thunder they took to flight; 
they flowed over the mountains,
they went down into the valleys,
to the place you assigned for them. 
You set a boundary they cannot cross;
never again will they cover the earth.
   
He makes springs pour water into the ravines;
it flows between the mountains.
They give water to all the beasts of the field;
the wild donkeys quench their thirst.  
The birds of the air nest by the waters;
they sing among the branches. 
He waters the mountains from his upper chambers;
the earth is satisfied by the fruit of his work.  
He makes grass grow for the cattle,
and plants for man to cultivate—
bringing forth food from the earth: 
wine that gladdens the heart of man,
oil to make his face shine,
and bread that sustains his heart.  
The trees of the Lord are well watered,
the cedars of Lebanon that he planted. 
There the birds make their nests;
the stork has its home in the pine trees. 
The high mountains belong to the wild goats;
the crags are a refuge for the coneys.
Ps 104:1-16

Come to the Rock and Drink: (bottom panel)
The Calling and Preparing of the Bride

He has been calling us since the beginning.

There is a river that has been flowing from the Father’s heart since creation began. In the very beginning, even before Adam and Eve were expelled from the garden, our Sovereign Lord prepared a way for us to return to Him. The river watering the garden flowed from Eden and separated into four headwaters. (Genesis 2:10) This is the way by which we are able to return to Him; this is the River of Life.

He calls us by name and leads us to streams of living water. And to ‘all who received him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God.’ (John 1:12) We enter His Presence where he gives us life everlasting and rest in Him.

“See, I will bring them from the land of the north and gather them from the ends of the earth. Among them will be the blind and the lame, expectant mothers and women in labor; a great throng will return. They will come with weeping, they will pray as I bring them back. I will lead them beside streams of water on a level path where they will not stumble, because I am Israel’s father, and Ephraim is my firstborn son.” Jeremiah 31:8-9

“For the Lamb at the center of the throne will be their shepherd; he will lead them to springs of living water. And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes.” Revelation 7:17

“It is done. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End. To him who is thirsty I will give to drink without cost from he spring of the water of life. He who overcomes will inherit all this, and I will be his God and he will be my son.” Revelation 21:7

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As we come to the rock, the water washes over us. We are being prepared as His Bride.

Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her to make her holy, cleansing her by the washing with water through the word, and to present her to himself as a radiant church, without stain or wrinkle or any other blemish, but holy and blameless. Ephesians 5:25-26

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Let The Atmosphere of Heaven Fill the Earth: (middle panel)
Incomparable Riches Released Into the Earth Through Christ.

We are gathering in His Presence (at the waters) to grow in the revelation of Christ Jesus. His Spirit flows over Christ and then over the us. We are being cleansed with the Word, entering into the transcending glory of Christ.

“Now if the ministry that brought death, which was engraved in letters on stone, came with glory, so that the Israelites could not look steadily at the face of Moses because of its glory, fading though it was, will not the ministry of the Spirit be even more glorious?  If the ministry that condemns men is glorious, how much more glorious is the ministry that brings righteousness! For what was glorious has no glory now in comparison with the surpassing glory. And if what was fading away came with glory, how much greater is the glory of that which lasts!  Therefore, since we have such a hope, we are very bold. We are not like Moses, who would put a veil over his face to keep the Israelites from gazing at it while the radiance was fading away.  But their minds were made dull, for to this day the same veil remains when the old covenant is read. It has not been removed, because only in Christ is it taken away.  Even to this day when Moses is read, a veil covers their hearts.  But whenever anyone turns to the Lord, the veil is taken away.  Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. And we, who with unveiled faces all reflect the Lord's glory, are being transformed into his likeness with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit.” 2 Corinthians 3:18

The Spirit is removing the veil from our eyes, as we see the ever-increasing glories in Christ Jesus. Incomparable riches are being released as these revelations and blessings pour out of Christ, through us and into the world.

We will see that we are already seated in heavenly places in Christ with God the Father.

“And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus, in order that in the coming ages he might show the incomparable riches of his grace, expressed in his kindness to us in Christ Jesus.”
Ephesians 2:6-7

We are already in the hand of Christ. He holds us, (the scroll, the testimony) in his hand.

Then I saw in the right hand of him who sat on the throne a scroll with writing on both sides and sealed with seven seals. Revelation 5:1

Then those who feared the Lord talked with each other, and the Lord listened and heard. A scroll of remembrance was written in his presence concerning those who feared the Lord and honored his name. “They will be mine,” says the Lord Almighty, “in the day when I make up my treasured possession. I will spare them, just as in compassion a man spares his son who serves him. And you will again see the distinction between the righteous and the wicked, between those who serve God and those who do not. Malachi 3: 16-18

We are sealed and marked; the scroll is sealed/marked

“’This is the covenant I will make with the house of Israel after that time,” declares the Lord. “I will put my law in their minds and write it on their hearts. I will be their God, and they will be my people.” Jeremiah 31:33

Having believed, you were marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit, who is a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance until the redemption of those who are God’s possession-to the praise of his glory. Ephesians 1:13

We are sealed by Christ through the blood and marked by our testimony .

“They overcame him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony.” Revelation 12:11

The seal on the scroll is perfectly complete. After all, Christ has already said, “it is finished.” Christ is revealing this truth to us. He is opening our eyes so we can see what already is.

And I saw a mighty angel proclaiming in a loud voice, “Who is worthy to break the seals and open the scroll?” But no one in heaven or on earth or under the earth could open the scroll or even look inside it. I wept and wept because no one was found who was worthy to open the scroll or look inside. Then one of the elders said to me, “Do not weep! See, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, has triumphed. He is able to open the scroll and its seven seals.” Revelation 5:1-5

Only by Christ can our eyes open to what already is. He has torn the curtain that conceals the holy of holies, giving us access to the Father and showing us who we really are in Him.

Therefore, brothers, since we have confidence to enter the Most Holy Place by the blood of Jesus, by a new and living way opened for us through the curtain, that is, his body, and since we have a great priest over the house of God, let us draw near to God with a sincere heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled to cleanse us from a guilty conscience and having our bodies washed with pure water. Hebrews 10:19-22

Let this be the generation that seeks your face, O God of Jacob.

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Let the Glory of Heaven Be Released: (top panel)
The Song of the Conquerer Released Through Worship in Spirit and in Truth.

We are contending individually and corporately to enter into the throne room. We are gathering at the water, focusing our spirits on the Lord, and allowing His water to flow through us. By the leading of the Spirit, we pass through the veil and behold the glory of God as we worship in spirit and in truth.

“Yet a time is coming and has now come when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks. God is spirit, and his worshipers must worship in spirit and in truth.” John 4:23

As our eyes are opened and we are lifted up, we will visually see His Manifest Presence, and fall down in worship.

Then the man brought me to the gate facing east, and I saw the glory of the God of Israel coming from the east. His voice was like the roar of rushing waters, and the land was radiant with his glory. The vision I saw was like the vision I had seen when he came to destroy the city and like the visions I had seen by the Kebar River, and I fell facedown. The glory of the LORD entered the temple through the gate facing east. Then the Spirit lifted me up and brought me into the inner court, and the glory of the LORD filled the temple. Ezekiel 43:1-5

We will see our Heavenly King seated on the throne and our spirits will overflow with worship. Out of the overflow of our hearts, we will sing.

Then I saw a Lamb, looking as if it had been slain, standing in the center of the throne, encircled by the four living creatures and the elders. He had seven horns and seven eyes, which are the seven spirits of God sent out into all the earth. He came and took the scroll from the right hand of him who sat on the throne. And when he had taken it, the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders fell down before the Lamb. Each one had a harp and they were holding golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of the saints. And they sang a new song:
“You are worthy to take the scroll and to open its seals,
because you were slain, and with your blood you purchased men for God from every tribe and language and people and nation. 
You have made them to be a kingdom and priests
to serve our God, and they will reign on the earth.”  
Then I looked and heard the voice of many angels, numbering thousands upon thousands, and ten thousand times ten thousand. They encircled the throne and the living creatures and the elders. In a loud voice they sang:
 “Worthy is the Lamb, who was slain, to receive power and wealth and wisdom and strength and honor and glory and praise!”
Then I heard every creature in heaven and on earth and under the earth and on the sea, and all that is in them singing:
“To him who sits on the throne
and the the Lamb be praise
and honor and glory and power, for ever and ever!
The four living creatures said, ‘Amen,’ and the elders fell down and worshiped. Revelation 5: 6-14

The Lord is waiting for these true worshipers to sound from inside his tabernacle.

“I was given a reed like a measuring rod and was told, “Go and measure the temple of God and the alter, and count the worshipers there. But exclude the outer court; do not measure it, because it has been given to the Gentiles.” Revelation 11:1-2

He is waiting for us to come through the outer courts into the holy of holies.

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