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September 28, 2006
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Matt
Sorger: "ROSH HASHANAH AND TEN DAYS OF AWE--WHAT WE SOW NOW WILL DETERMINE
THE DIRECTION FOR THE COMING YEAR"
 SEPTEMBER
IS SPIRITUALLY SIGNIFICANT
This is an
important prophetic word recently given to Matt Sorger before Rosh
Hashanah regarding significant spiritual shifts that will be happening as we enter
this New Year. Please prayerfully read this article as God prepares us for this
next season.
Rosh Hashanah is one of the highest holy days on the Jewish calendar. I have
come to understand that God works in times and seasons, and never does anything
haphazardly. Over the last four years since God first launched us out into the
healing ministry, I've always noticed that each year, September would be a
significant month spiritually for us. It was in September of 2002, that our
ministry was birthed, and each September following, God has brought a
significant change and transition.
It was only this last year that I discovered that
September marks the first month of the original Jewish calendar with Rosh
Hashanah marking the first day of the New Year. I gained a revelation and
understanding that the Jewish Feasts and Holy Days mark important times and
seasons in the Spirit. God still works in line with His original calendar.
A TIME OF TRANSITION AND CHANGE--REALIGNMENTS
ARE HAPPENING
Coming into September 2006, the Lord began to more seriously speak to me about
the coming New Year. He showed me that it would indeed again be a time of
transition and change. Often times when the Lord brings change, there comes a
realignment of things and there is a cutting away that happens. This brings a
realignment of the Body, so that we are in the right place at the right time for
the purposes of the Kingdom.
I believe for many in the Body of Christ, they are
entering into a new season in their lives where God is calling them to leave the
old behind and step into the new. Things of the past that have hindered and
impeded our forward motion must be left behind if we are to move upward in God's
purpose and call. It truly is a time where God is stripping and removing
everything that would hinder our race in Him.
As we transition into the new, we must understand
what He is doing, and what things He is requiring of us to leave behind. This
transition will be different for each one of us depending on God's unique plan
and destiny for our lives. We must have an ear to hear Him in this season.
BE CAREFUL NOT TO CARBON COPY OLD PATTERNS
God is breaking out of the box. We must be very careful in this next season not
to pattern ourselves after models of the past, even good models. We must not
carbon copy ourselves after patterns of ministry that worked in the last season.
God is doing a new thing.
To move into the new wineskin, we must remain very
pliable and sensitive to what God is doing, and how He is moving. This will
require a keen sensitivity to His voice, and a boldness not to blend in and go
with the flow. It will require a heart of total obedience and death to self.
A QUICK SEASON OF SOWING AND REAPING
We are entering into a season of quick sowing and reaping. It says in
Genesis 26:12-14, "Then Isaac sowed in that land, and
reaped in the same year a hundredfold; and the Lord blessed him. The man began
to prosper, and continued prospering until he became very prosperous; for he had
possessions of flocks and possessions of herds and a great number of servants.
So the Philistines envied him." Isaac sowed into his land of
inheritance and reaped a hundredfold that very same year. It was a quick sowing
and reaping leading to great prosperity and blessing.
We are in a season now of quick sowing and reaping.
We will sow, and in the same year, see the harvest. There will be a quick turn
around of sowing and reaping, for good or for bad. What we plant will yield a
quick harvest. We must be very careful what we sow with our mouths, attitudes,
hidden thoughts, and intents of the heart. Nothing is hidden from God. In this
season, we must be very careful what we are sowing.
OVERCOMING ENVY AND JEALOUSY
As Isaac prospered, not everyone was happy with his blessing. He had to contend
with the envy and jealousy of the Philistines (Genesis
26:15-18). Let's stop here for a moment to learn an important
spiritual truth we must know for this next season:
As you begin to reap the harvest God has for you, not
everyone will rejoice with you. Envy and jealousy can take on a very "self-righteous" face, and even be hidden from the jealous person's own heart. When
they see another person being blessed and prospering, something inside of them
might say, "Well, who do they think they are?"
This is a good test to see if you have a pure heart or a heart of envy. When
someone else shares about the goodness and blessing of God, do you respond with
a negative attitude wondering who that person thinks they are? Or do you rejoice
in the blessing of God on that person's life? Your response reveals what is
truly in your heart. We may even feel a sense of "conviction" that our response
is holy and Godly, not realizing that the root is actually fleshly and demonic.
Jealousy can take on a lot of outward masks, but God sees the heart.
We must be prepared that not everyone will rejoice when
God's blessing is released. We must not let man's rejection discourage us from
possessing the full inheritance God has promised us. Rather than getting bitter
at their rejection, Isaac continued on digging the wells of his father Abraham,
even in the valley. Eventually those who rejected and pushed Isaac away, saw
that God was truly with him, and decided they would be better off as friends
than enemies (Genesis 26:28). When you keep
a pure heart, God's justice and truth prevail in the end.
THE FEAST OF TRUMPETS--BEGINNING A NEW YEAR
SPIRITUALLY
Leviticus 23:23-32
shares about the Feast of Trumpets and the Day of Atonement. There is both
historical and prophetic significance in each feast. The first three feasts deal
with the first coming of Christ, while the last three look forward to His Second
Coming. Each feast will be fulfilled historically through the life of Christ.
The Feasts still hold great significance for us today.
Jesus said in Matthew 5:17, "Think not that I have come
to destroy the Law, or the prophets. I have not come to destroy, but to
fulfill." Colossians 2:16-17, also indicates that these feasts are a
"shadow of things to come." Things that have
been concealed in the Old Testament, have now been revealed through the life of
Christ.
September 23, 2006, marked the beginning of Rosh Hashanah, beginning the
spiritual New Year. This day begins the period known as the Ten Days of Awe, and
ends in Yom Kippur and the Day of Atonement. Rash Hashanah is also known as the
Feast of Trumpets. According to the World Book Encyclopedia, during this
festival the Jewish people pray for God's forgiveness, for a good new year, and
for long life. According to Jewish tradition, this day is the beginning of God's
annual judgment of humanity.
During this spiritual season, the eyes of God are searching our hearts. It is
a time to:
1. Humble ourselves before God and let Him search and judge
our hearts. We must
have a contrite attitude and repent of all sin.
2. Pray God's blessing over the New Year.
3. Pray God's blessing for a long and healthy life in Christ.
The World Book Encyclopedia also indicates that Jewish services on Rash Hashanah
emphasize judgment, penitence, and forgiveness. A shofar is blown to call the
people to a place of repentance from sin, and to be awakened to a holy service
to God.
A MOVEMENT OF HOLINESS AND POWER
During this season, there is a call going out to holiness and power!
As we transition into the new season, we will see two very important streams
running parallel to each other in the Church. There will be a stream of very
deep holiness, along with a stream of extraordinary power.
The days of mixture are over--where people have operated in the anointing in
public and lived in sin in private. God is calling us to a higher standard and
to a place of spiritual maturity. God is bringing the Church into a place of
true sonship. For this to happen, we must experience His holy, loving
discipline, so we can mature into the place of holiness and power that He is
calling us into.
God is dealing with all mixture in the heart of the Church, corporately and
individually. There is a greater glory coming, and in order to hold its weight,
we must have a firm, strong foundation. For example, when you are building the
foundation of a house, it must be strong in order to handle the weight. As the
cement is mixed, there can be no sand or stone mixed in with it, or it will
become weak and brittle. When the weight of the house is placed on top of it, it
will crack and break. As the power of God increases on the Church, we must have
an even more solid foundation.
In this season of Awakening, we will see two parallel
streams--Holiness and Power. God is taking all the mixture out, so we can handle
the pure power of the Holy Spirit. We don't always know what is in our
hearts. If there is something that must be purged, God will purge it. This is a
time and a season where we need to humble ourselves, and let God search and
cleanse our hearts.
WHAT WE
SOW NOW WILL DETERMINE THE DIRECTION FOR THE COMING YEAR
The position we take before God will determine the direction of the rest of the
year. What we sow now will release a harvest for the coming year. Rosh Hashanah
is known as the "Head of the Year." Jewish tradition says that this day marks
the anniversary of the creation of the world, and is the day when God takes
stock of creation. Just as the head directs the body, so God's judgments on Rosh
Hashanah direct the events of the coming year.
I shared earlier, that it is very important what we sow during this season. The
seeds we sow will come into quick harvest. Since Rosh Hashanah begins a season
of God's judgment, we must be very careful not to sow seeds of judgment into the
lives of others. When I talk about God's judgment, some will jump on that and
say, "Yeah! Man is so sinful, God is just going to destroy the world!"
When I say judgment, I don't mean God's
destruction. God's judgment is always redemptive, and His discipline is always in
love and with encouragement. Correction that comes without encouragement is not
from God's heart. His discipline always encourages us to rise higher; it never
discourages us nor knocks us down. That is usually the work of a critical,
judgmental spirit.
In Matthew 7:1-2, Jesus exhorts His
disciples "Judge not, that you be not judged. For with
what judgment you judge, you will be judged; and with the measure you use, it
will be measured back to you."
We must be sure to keep a humble heart and not sow critical, fault-finding
judgment into the lives of others. That kind of judgment will release a harvest
you don't want in your life. The measure you sow will equal the measure that
comes back to you.
God will allow this reaping to expose what is in our own hearts. Many times we
don't even know everything that is within us, nor what is driving us to feel the
things we feel. Usually false judgment starts with an offense. That offense may
not even be grounded in absolute truth. It may result just from a difference of
opinion or style. We think our way is better and become critical of others. This
is actually a self-righteous spirit and does not communicate the pure heart of
God.
DISCERNMENT VS. ACCUSATION--KNOWING THE
DIFFERENCE
It is important to understand the difference between discernment and accusation.
Spiritually immature people don't know how to distinguish the two. They begin to
operate in a spirit of accusation thinking they are operating with the heart of
God, when they are actually coming into agreement with the wrong voice--the
voice of the enemy. The enemy's voice can sound very self-righteous and
indignant. If we are not spiritually mature enough to check our inward
attitudes, we can easily come into agreement with this voice and become a
"crusader" for judgment and accusation, thinking we are helping people by
pointing out everything we think is wrong.
This can be a dangerous place when we step
into agreement with the accuser of the brethren, and begin to sow division
rather than love, encouragement, and restoration in people's lives. God has
called us to be agents of healing and love, not division. Be very careful that
your discernment doesn't cross the line into accusation. Those are seeds you do
not want to be sowing.
When we are operating in true discernment from the Holy Spirit, our hearts will
overflow with love for that individual and we will respond like Jesus. Jesus
laid His life down for others. If we ever discern something negative in
someone's life, that does not give us the right to bring the correction we think
is needed, unless we are in such a relationship and place of authority in that
person's life that we are able to speak with love and encouragement.
We must
learn that there are levels in the army of God. Privates don't correct generals.
Generals correct generals. There is a divine order in God's Kingdom. The main
purpose for discernment is prayer. If we lay down our lives for others in loving
prayer, then God's hand will move beautifully in their hearts bringing the
change that is needed, and we don't even have to say a word. It is actually a
form of spiritual pride to think we are God's agent of correction. Our job is to
pray with a right spirit, and then speak only if we have earned that place in a
person's life through a loving relationship, trust, and humility.
Proverbs 27:6 says
"Faithful are the wounds of a friend." The key word here is
"friend." These
wounds are easily healed because they are full of heartfelt love.
Jesus never threw stones or spoke hurtful words. He rebuked the religious people
from time to time, but never cast stones at those caught in a sin. He would
confront sin when needed, but at the same time would offer perfect, eternal love
with a heart of mercy and restoration. We must hate sin, but always remember to
love the sinner. We must also be careful not to judge someone just because they
have a different style or way of doing things. Style is not a sin issue. Man
judges by the external, but God always looks at the heart. We must be careful to
look with God's eyes and not our own.
A GOOD TIME TO TAKE STOCK
If you have ever been the victim of false accusation or judgment, it is a good
time to take stock of your own heart and ask yourself, "Have I ever sowed this
into someone else's life? Have I ever had a critical, fault-finding attitude
towards someone else?" Maybe you have, maybe you haven't. But it is good to
check. Sometimes we have such a sense of conviction with our judgments, that we
are sure we have God's heart. Not always. We can be sincere, but sincerely wrong
about another individual. We are all susceptible to this deception if not
careful.
As we move into the next season God has for us, the position to take is that of
humility, searching, and judging our own hearts, so that we ourselves are not
judged. It is also a time to pray for God's blessing and favor on the New Year.
TEN DAYS OF AWE
Following Rash Hashanah is the Ten Days of Awe leading into The Day of Atonement
on October 2, 2006.
The Day of Atonement is the day that the High Priest would go into the Holy of Holies,
and apply the blood of the sacrifice to the mercy seat to atone for the sins of
the people from the previous year. There was no barrier between the High Priest
and the fully manifested glory of God.
I believe that as we humble ourselves before God, and embrace the sacrifice of
the cross in a new way in our lives, we will experience a depth of intimacy and
communion with God deeper than we have ever known before. There will be no
barrier between us and the glory as we embrace the work of the cross. Humility
opens the way for us to go deeper into a pure communion with God.
It will be out of this place that we reap the amazing Harvest that is awaiting
us. Not only a harvest of God's mercy and love in our own lives, but a harvest
of global proportions as we see the heart of humanity turn towards God in this
last hour.
Get ready to move in His extraordinary power based in a life of
holiness, humility, and extraordinary love. The best is yet to come!
By Matt Sorger
Matt Sorger Ministries
www.mattsorger.com
~~~~~~~~~~
Matt Sorger's Upcoming Itinerary:
September 28-30, 2006
East Coast Awakening
Voice of Praise Worship Center
Bluewell, WV
Contact: Lou Comunale 631-696-4950 or
info@mattsorger.com
October 21-November 2, 2006
India Miracle Festival & Pastors Conference
MSM Global Harvest Missions Trip
Multi-Cities in India
Contact: MSM Office, 631-696-4950 or
info@mattsorger.com
November 8-12, 2006
Augusta Awakening
With Signs, Wonders, and Miracles
Augusta, GA
Contact: 706-373-1735 or
gracewoodumc@gmail.com or
www.gracewoodumc.org
"The daily prophetic words that are sent to our 133,000+ subscribers are made possible by the purchase of products like those featured in this email. You may purchase them directly from this email, or visit our online store at www.elijahshopper.com."
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