The King has Good Credit

I feel like I’ve seen every Derek Prince Youtube in existence. Maybe I have. I know I’ve seen some more than once. It’s helpful to hear them multiple times.

Today and yesterday, I heard him talk about the meaning of “salvation.” This is something that interests me, as I suppose it should. For a long time, I’ve had the idea that “salvation” means more than avoiding hell and going to heaven. Now I know Derek Prince believes the same thing.

It distresses me that the church is so weak. Jesus and his followers did all sorts of wonders, but after he left, things dried up. I don’t know exactly when the church fell into unbelief, but it looks like it may have been during the second or third century A.D.

Ever since the power left us, preachers have been telling us miracles have ceased. What they really mean is, “We are not competent to get miracles, so our answer to the problem is to pretend God has chosen not to provide them any more.” It’s very obvious that God’s supernatural power is still available, and that the cessation story is a lie, because even now, many people receive miracles and visions and so on, but stubborn preachers and their followers continue to deny that God will help us.

One of the weird characteristics of human beings is that we marry ourselves to absurd beliefs. We love telling people this or that can’t happen, even after they’ve seen it happen.

People tell us tongues are “gibberish.” They tell us we imagine our healings. The Jews think there have only been 7 gentile prophets in the history of the world, and they teach that the reason prophecy dried up for them is that in the absence of supernatural activity among idolaters, it wasn’t needed. Supernatural activity among idolaters is rampant today, but there hasn’t been a wave of new Jewish prophets.

When there is no prophecy, it’s not because God took it away because it wasn’t needed; it’s because we’re doing something wrong.

Prince says something which may sound familiar to people who have been conned by prosperity preachers. He says we limit God with our low expectations. Prosperity pimps say this because they want people to think God will give them great wealth in exchange for buying them ridiculous jet airplanes, so talk of limiting God tends to turn smart Christians off, but Prince is right. God wants to do a lot more for us than we think.

God tells the truth, and his word is full of wonderful promises. “There shall no evil befall thee, neither shall any plague come nigh thy dwelling.” “The Lord is your pastor, and you shall not lack.” “They that seek the Lord shall not lack ANY good thing.” “A thousand shall fall at thy side, and ten thousand at thy right hand, but it shall not come nigh thee.” Psalm 103 says God heals ALL our diseases. Not some. ALL.

Surely promises like these must be true. If we are not experiencing them, God can’t be the problem. He isn’t lying, and he is fully capable of doing what he says he’ll do. No one can stop him.

The New Testament talks about problems believers will have, but it doesn’t contradict God’s promises of help. Here is what I believe: if we have problems here on earth, they must fall into one of two categories: rejection (including persecution) and the baptism with fire.

Rejection is guaranteed. There is no possibility that the world will accept an effective Christian. If everyone you know thinks you’re cool, you’re a spiritual mess, like the boy-band-worthy kid preachers who go on Instagram wearing $7000 basketball shoes.

I don’t think God will require you to go through life being tortured and imprisoned, however. I believe heavy-duty persecution which doesn’t take place at the end of life results from our opening doors to the enemy. We don’t have any record of Jesus being beaten or imprisoned or otherwise abused until it came time for him to be killed, and his killing was something he, not the world, initiated. Paul had a lot of problems, including flogging and stoning, but Paul had problems with pride, and he made mistakes.

We have the idea that all of the apostles and prophets were perfect, but it’s not true. Moses failed to circumcise his son in a timely manner, and God himself tried to kill him. Elijah made the mistake of ridiculing the prophets of Baal, and afterward, God gave Jezebel, a true low-life and loser, power to chase him into the wilderness. I think Paul could have avoided a lot of problems by listening to the Holy Spirit.

John seems to have come out very well, as apostles go. He was exiled to Patmos, where he taught and probably had a wonderful time. He was called back by the emperor Domitian, to be boiled in oil. We are told that John went into the oil and came out unharmed, like Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego in Nebuchadnezzar’s furnace. If God wanted to spare John, he surely wants to spare us, too. We just need to let him.

It’s dangerous to assume that doing whatever a Biblical figure did is correct. They did a lot of dumb things. Jesus and, possibly, Enoch and John are the only exceptions I know of. I would not assume that I should suffer a lot here on earth just because some Biblical person did.

Rejection is unavoidable, but it’s not that painful if you’re a man about it. You shouldn’t cry because you feel ostracized by the lost. It’s childish to feel like you have to be invited to attend every party and join every club. The Bible says, “God sets him that is godly apart for himself.” You should accept it and be grateful instead of fighting God.

Outright persecution can be rough, but you can probably minimize it by obeying God. After all, the Bible says, “When a man’s ways please God, even his enemies will be at peace with him.” True, or not true?

The baptism with fire is not like rejection and persecution. You have a great deal of control over it. Many of the bad things that happen to you happen because you’re not listening to God as he tries to purify you. You hold onto people, possessions, activities, and attitudes he hates, and when you do, it’s as if you’re putting a banner outside your house that says, “Welcome, Satan. Give me Diseases and Kill my Children.”

If you keep using tobacco after you get saved, and you get COPD, cancer, strokes, or heart attacks, it’s the baptism with fire. You invited it. If you continue fornicating, and you end up diseased, burdened with kids you don’t want, or shackled to a family court judge, you invited it. If you hold onto yoga, astrology, meditation, channeling, Halloween celebrations, or other forms of idolatry, and you have bad mental health, you invited it. If you’re a feminist, and you’re determined to prove women are supposed to be just as prominent in the church as men, expect problems. You’re trying to tell God how to do things, just like Eve and Lilith.

You need to get cursed objects out of your house. You need to forgive. You need to stop gossiping. You need to repent of worry. You should be baptized with the Holy Spirit, and you should pray in tongues every day. Women should stop fighting and submit to their husbands. Men should pour themselves out for their families and submit to the Holy Spirit. Children should honor their parents. You should seek God’s help in ridding yourself of the demons you’ve been petting and feeding for decades. If you don’t repent instead of just begging God for things, expect to have a much harder life than you should.

Jesus is the pattern for all of us. When, prior to the cross, did he have a major problem? His loved ones had problems, but they weren’t Jesus, so their problems were not his. As far as we know, he, personally, never had a physical illness. He never had mental problems. He was never harmed by anyone. He was never controlled by anyone. He never lacked food, clothing, or shelter. He never lost a battle.

A thousand fell at his side, and ten thousand at his right hand, but it didn’t come near him; only with his eyes did he behold and see the reward of the wicked.

Prince talked about the earthly salvation the Hebrews experienced in the desert. They were surrounded by rocks and sand, in a place where there were no streams. The nights were cold and the days were very hot and dry. Still, look how things went for them. They walked into this area through the Red Sea, but no water got on their shoes. They always had abundant food and water. Their possessions never wore out. Everyone who followed Moses left Egypt in perfect health. They didn’t have a single enemy in the wilderness. They never fought a battle.

It sure looks like God is willing to do a lot for us here on earth.

It appears that we can do a great deal to end our problems by confessing and repenting. When you throw out your old disco albums, for example, you’re not just improving the cultural climate of your house; you’re evicting demons that hurt you and your family.

The natural human tendency is to try to improve life by accumulating things and people. I find I get results from getting rid of things and cutting people off.

Lately, I’ve been praying for God to cut my ties to Eastern Kentucky. I used to be proud I came from that place. I was out of my mind. The culture there is childish. People celebrate juvenile emotionalism. They love violence, ignorance, and drunkenness. They’re stingy as can be. They love verbal cruelty. They have an intense and irrational hatred of black people. They’re very proud, which is amazing, considering they are among the nation’s leaders in areas like toothlessness, financial failure, dependency on welfare, and illiteracy. The hills of Eastern Kentucky are a ghetto.

I loved Kentucky when I was a kid. I thought it was heaven. I loved going to Kentucky, living with my grandparents, and spending time with my mother’s family. It’s a big deal for me to ask God to cut my ties, but I am happy to do it, because he has opened my eyes. Eastern Kentucky is not going to be saved. The people there love immaturity more than God.

Your culture may be just as poisonous. Are you willing to abandon it for God? Maybe you should go ahead and start rejecting, instead of waiting to be rejected.

I hope to move to Appalachia soon, but I think God wants me to go to Tennessee, not Kentucky. Kentucky is not an option. I abandoned the idea of returning many years ago.

I continue practicing prophecy. The Bible tells us to covet prophecy, and God would not tell us to covet it if he didn’t intend to give it to us. He clearly wants us to have it, just as the army wants soldiers to have radios. I can’t refuse him. Imagine how much trouble a soldier would get into for dropping his radio in a ditch. It’s not my decision to make.

I keep hearing remarkable things when I try to prophesy. I hear about promotion and blessings that are coming to me. Startling things. Not easy to accept. The blessings are tremendous, I know I don’t deserve them, and like almost everyone on earth, I am used to living under curses, so it’s hard to think of myself as someone who is surrounded by good. In view of Prince’s sermon and the promises of scripture, however, the things I hear line up with God’s way of doing things. It looks like extraordinary salvation has come to me.

I don’t doubt God, but I do wonder about myself. I have a vivid imagination, and I am capable of making things up and thinking God said them. I won’t publish all the things God seems to have said yet. I hope I’ll eventually be secure enough to know what I hear is right.

A year or two back, God told me this: “There are no limits.” I wonder if he was referring to what I’m discussing now.

When God says he will bring me promotion, I don’t think he’s talking about fame. I certainly hope not. I don’t think he means he’s going to have me speak in front of big congregations or work in a church. The Bible says he gives us the desires of our hearts, and these are things I desire to avoid, pretty intensely. I think he just means he’ll make me effective with regard to the people I’m supposed to reach. That’s all I want. If I had to run a church or fly around speaking at conferences, I’d feel like I had been sent to prison.

I’d like to have a pleasant, quiet life and reach a few people for God. I’d prefer that to the wealth of Croesus.