THE DEMONSTRATION OF THE GOODNESS OF GOD

Kriston Couchey

Before the founding of creation the Ever Living One had the full knowledge of the fall of man and the depths of bondage and depravity to which he would sink. Yet, this was not an obstacle to Him. At no time had He rejected or turned away from mankind. It was not God that hid from Adam in the Garden, it was Adam who hid from the light of God’s presence. Scripture declares it was we who were “…formerly alienated and hostile in mind, engaged in evil deeds…”

It is we who became enemies in our minds toward Him as we became bound by sin and the carnal nature. We alienated ourselves from his boundless love and light as man turned to darkness to hide. The shadows of sin, sickness and death were cast upon creation as mankind opened the door for spirits of wickedness to reign over the creation that God created for His pleasure. Yet God never turned away from or rejected mankind. Before the foundation of the world He made provision through the slain lamb for man’s redemption from sin and reconciliation to Himself.

Because of man’s sin, the boundless Love and Light of God had become a source of fear to men rather than a refuge. Like the Israelites at the fiery mountain where God descended to meet with them, mankind ran in fear because their hearts and minds were darkened. Men no longer understood and perceived the true heart of God toward them. Man began to create gods from his own imagination in his own image. These gods demanded blood to appease offense and required offerings to accept and bless men. Religion had begun. Yet God never had ANY desire for sacrifice or offerings from men to appease for wrongdoing or to gain acceptance.

King David writes in Psalm 40 5-6 You had no desire for offerings of beasts or fruits of the earth; ears you made for me: for burned offerings and sin offerings you made no request.

Sacrifices and offerings God never needed or wanted, nor does He require them. David saw past the ritual and regulation that could never substitute for a heart of humility before God.

He writes in Psalm 51: 16-17  You do not delight in sacrifice, or I would bring it; you do not take pleasure in burnt offerings. My sacrifice, O God, is a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart you, God, will not despise.

If God did not want or need sacrifice to forgive sin or accept men, then what was the purpose of the cross?

THE TRUE PURPOSE OF THE CROSS

And although you were formerly alienated and hostile in mind, engaged in evil deeds, yet He has now reconciled you in His fleshly body through death, in order to present you before Him holy and blameless and beyond reproach-

The purpose of God in sending Christ to the cross was not to change His heart toward men from one of unforgiveness and offense to acceptance though blood sacrifice. God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, not counting or holding our sins against us.

The cross was for the sake of revealing the heart of love God always had toward us. His body was broken for YOU to bring you healing and deliverance from death. His blood was shed for YOU to cleanse and set you apart for Him. The cross was the place where God in Christ defeated and overcame sin, sickness, death, the devil, and all his works. He redeemed us with the precious blood of Jesus from the empty way of life we once lived.

For you know that it was not with perishable things such as silver or gold that you were redeemed from the empty way of life handed down to you from your ancestors, but with the precious blood of Christ, a lamb without blemish or defect.

Through the cross we have died with Him, and by His resurrection life we now we are alive in Him by His Spirit. The old has passed and the new has come. You no longer live, but Christ now lives in you. The death of Christ was not a demand for blood that God had to appease Himself, it was the demonstration of His Love, Mercy, and Goodness that men may be released from the power of darkness into His Glorious light.

In Him

Kriston Couchey

THE FIRST WORD

Kriston Couchey

THE EVER LIVING ONE – BOUNDLESS LOVE AND LIGHT

How can mere words describe the glory and transcendence of the Ever Living One? He has no boundaries and there is nothing and no one else that exists apart from Him. He is I AM. There is no space outside of Him, no universe that contains Him. We who are limited by time and space have no words to adequately express the nature and substance of the One that founded creation with its boundaries of time and space within the depths of His own being. For time and space and all that exists are the garden of delights He has made within Himself that He may taste the fruit of communion with the living multitudes that eternally emanate from the birthing chamber of His heart. He is Pure boundless Love, Pure boundless Light.     

To use terms that describe the Ever Living One as being  “Him” and as having a “heart” fall short of the truth; as if one with closed eyes senses that night has turned to day because absolute darkness has been replaced with a dark red glow seen upon the inside of shut eye lids.  So it is with our perceptions of this Ever Living One.

The Ever Living One sees the confines of time and space from beginning to end as if one would gaze upon a painting; viewing one edge of the canvas to the other simultaneously. We could use the term “before creation” to describe His precreation existence, but to speak of “before creation” and even use the term “precreation” implies His existence and activities are subject to creation’s time and space limitations; when in reality He is the creator and master of time and space.  I will use the term “outside of time” as is necessary when referring to the eternal activities of The Ever Living One; and yet this term will also fall short as creation is  “contained ” within the One whose activities appear to take place “outside” of it.

THE FIRST WORD OF CREATION

Creation was fully known in the thoughts of the Ever Living One apart from its formation. The equations of His creative thoughts were motivated by the passion of His heart to commune with those of like nature and substance. It was the creative power of His voice that caused the frequencies of matter to be formed in the womb of His eternal existence. The four pillars of creation within His being originate from the passion of His heart, the thoughts of His mind, the resonant power of His voice and the fertile ground of His womb where creation is formed within Him.

As His thoughts surveyed creation He knew that deception would darken His creation and those formed in His image would hide in the shadow of deception that would inhabit time and space. Knowing full well that what was formed of Him in His image could not be unmade, He made provision before or “outside” of the foundation of creation. He would bring light to all the places of darkness shadowing creation; especially the shadow of death.

And so He spoke the first word of creation. And the word proceeded forth from Him and became flesh. And the Word He spoke contained and was the fullness of the Ever Living One with boundless Love and Light. That Love and Light appeared at the junction of two ages in a shadowed world of His creation.  That Word was the Son and the sum of the Ever Living One; and the Son expressed that first word suspended upon a tree between two thieves. As He spoke that word all of creation quaked as the frequencies of the eternal voice declared “IT IS FINISHED!” And so that first word declared to creation that the removal of darkness was complete, accomplished, fulfilled; as the lamb was slain before the foundation of creation.

The light had come into the middle of created time and space and had planted a seed that would grow to envelope all of creation in the fullness of time; yet outside creation all was complete, accomplished, fulfilled, and finished. All was complete “before” creation had even begun.  

THE WORD A SEED

Outside of creation darkness was once for all defeated, yet all creation groaned to see the completion of that which was already finished outside of creation. The First Word became the seed whose origin was from outside of creation, in this seed the fullness of the Love and Light of the Ever Living One was complete, accomplished, finished.

Before and outside of creation the thoughts of the Ever Living One turned to another junction of ages. The completion finished from outside creation was now revealed in time and space as many sons containing the boundless Love and Light of the Ever Living One shone Love and Light into the darkness and the shadows of deception. Love and Light completely filled creation and there was nowhere for darkness and shadow to hide. The sons of the Ever Living One brought completion upon the earth as it existed outside of creation. 

And outside of creation the first Word spoke “Let there Be…” And creation began…

In Him

Kriston Couchey

CHANGING THE GUARD

Leaving The Pew To Stand On The Mountain

God is your Leader, not man...

FACING PERSECUTION

Kriston Couchey

“Are you able to take of the cup which I am about to take?” They said to him, “We are able.” He said to them, “Truly, you will take of my cup…” 

THE KINGDOM BY FORCE
I am convinced that we have crossed a threshold into the age where the kingdom of God is being fully established on earth even as it is in heaven. The Spirit of God has been speaking that in this particular time we must be prepared to face persecution beyond what we in the western world have known before. This persecution is not increasing because the enemy is getting stronger, but because the Kingdom of God is coming forth more forcefully.

The advancement and establishing of the Kingdom of God poses a threat to the systems and seats of power from which principalities exert their will in the lives of men and women. The proclamation of the gospel of the kingdom judges the enemy and his works; dismantling strongholds and dethroning spiritual forces. When the powerbases of these demonic forces become threatened, the enemy uses these systems and seats of power he controls to bring suffering and persecution in an attempt to stop the threat. It is a spiritual battle we are engaging in. Because of this, all of God’s children are and will be affected by persecution to some degree.

We see this dynamic throughout scripture, and clearly in the life of Jesus. His preaching and demonstrating the kingdom threatened the system of power in Israel and led to his death on a cross. I have experienced this in the church, and know what it is like to be persecuted by brothers and sisters in the Lord.

PERSECUTION BY BROTHERS
Years ago as worship leader in an institutional church, I was given a specific word to share with the congregation that greatly upset an individual who wielded an inordinate amount of power over church decisions. I was pressured by this women and her husband to recant, but the Spirit of God would not allow me to recant. It was then I had a night vision in which the Spirit of God revealed to me a spirit of antichrist controlling the church that He was having me confront. Because I was threatening its power base through the prophetic word it was attacking me through the woman and her husband.

Things began to get tumultuous as my refusal to recant upset them so much they used their influence over the elders to force me give answer to the elder board. Before I was to meet with the elders the Spirit of God spoke to me and said, “Son, I want you address the elders with the truth that this couple is controlling and usurping the spiritual authority in this church.” I followed Father’s instructions and shared this with the elders. I was immediately dismissed as the worship leader and over the next months there was a power struggle on the board. One day at work in the midst of this turmoil I was feeling down about everything and suddenly I was filled with joy; joy so great I wanted to literally jump for joy. Shocked at this I asked Father what was happening. Immediately this verse came to my mind:

Blessed are you when people hate you, when they exclude you and insult you and reject your name as evil, because of the Son of Man. Rejoice in that day and leap for joy, because great is your reward in heaven. For that is how their ancestors treated the prophets.

I continued to worship with saints of this congregation while great changes took place as to how spiritual authority was exercised in the church. As a result of the changes I was eventually restored as worship leader. The pastor later confessed to me after all the trouble, “You were right Kris.”

YOU WILL HAVE TROUBLE
These things I have spoken to you, so that in Me you may have peace. In the world you have tribulation, but take courage; I have overcome the world.

It is the testimony of Jesus and the apostles that doing the will of God and following Him comes with persecution. I testify to you that God is speaking to His people right now that we must be prepared to face persecution of every kind in the coming days. For many today, the persecution they face is people simply opposing and reviling their doctrines and practices. The enemy tries to take us captive by causing us to take offense by this opposition. We are called to respond in love to the persecutors, but remain resolved concerning the truth.

It is important to know that we are not wrestling with flesh and blood, but principalities and the powers they wield. These are powers that men and women look to for safety and security apart from Christ and His kingdom. The Spirit has shown me that the powerbases by which principalities rule over and take men captive fall into any of four categories as follows:

POLITICAL POWER – Power that influences the formation and administration of institutions by various interest groups and their agendas. This is achieved through legitimate or illegitimate authority and leadership within the institution.

RELIGIOUS POWER– Theologies, practices, regulations, ideologies, doctrines or worldviews that unite, motivate, and empower people.

ECONOMIC POWER - Money and/or its representative physical resources or possessions and the power and influence it wields.

MILITARY POWER (WORKS OF THE FLESH) – Exerting influence over others through intimidation, dominance, control, coercion, and extortion, military might, threats, and bullying, etc.

I have found that many of the messages I am given for the body of Christ confront or expose principalities and the powers they use to oppress and keep people captive. I have also seen that these threatened bases of power can be the very means by which persecution comes.

It is important to see beyond the people who are being used as pawns and recognize the authority we have been given to overcome all the power of the enemy. The enemy can only wield power, but the sons of the kingdom walk in authority. Christ in me is greater than any offense or attack the enemy may bring against me.

Jesus is our greatest example of the uncompromising determination to do God’s will in the face of the persecution of the devil. He is also an example of our attitude toward those who are used to persecute. But more than that, we are one with Him and have all we need is inside of us to face and overcome it with joy.

Jesus said of the people used to kill Him, “Father forgive them for the do not know that they are doing”. Then He went on to defeat the evil one by this same instrument used to kill Him. It was love that ultimately won the day and it is love that causes us to execute the victory Christ has won over all the power of the enemy and set captives free.

In His Love
Kriston Couchey

LEADERSHIP OF THE SPIRIT AND KINGDOM AUTHORITY

Overcoming Principalities and Powers