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I felt an urgent need to reprint this article by brother Josef Urban at this time, especially with the revival conference coming up soon
Greetings in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ;
To the remnant of God in the United States;
It is with utmost brokenness and urgency that I write to you this day. I do not particularly desire to write such a thing, but I believe this truth needs to be known. To some of you this is nothing new, just a re-statement of what you already know. To others, this may be eye opening or revolutionary to your current beliefs and views. Still yet to others, this may be offensive. Please permit me to lay my case and consider what Im saying with openness, discernment, prayer and sensitivity to what the Spirit is saying.
I recently had a dream. In this dream, I decided to go back and visit the church that I used to go to when I gave my life to the Lord. This is a Pentecostal church that believes in the gifts of the Spirit and has some fiery preaching, but its dead and apostate and totally neglects the essential doctrines of scriptural holiness, without which no one will see the Lord, and stewardship (not laying up treasures upon earth and bewaring of covetousness), among other things. The people are living in sin and compromise, and the pastors are too. It is by the mercy of God that He led me to the truth and led me out, and praise be to His name for it! But, sadly, as with almost every other church in this nation, there are many people still there who are Hallelujah-ing their way straight to Hell.
In this dream, I decided to go back to this church. I now had lots of ministry and preaching experience, and an anointing from the Holy Ghost, and for some reason, I thought they would welcome me back and be happy to see me and at least hear what I had to say. I had the notion that I was going to preach the service and that the pastor was having me as a guest speaker or visiting evangelist. So I went on Sunday morning, and soon discovered that there was no way now that he was going to let me preach. I was planning on preaching on holiness and he wasnt having any part of it. So now I wasnt preaching, but my heart was still burdened for all the people.
Seeing I had no further business in the sanctuary, and that the service had not yet started, I walked out of the sanctuary and into the fellowship hall where all the people were sitting before service. They were all sitting at big round tables and talking with one another when I walked in, laughing, talking, and fellowshipping with one another. I soon noticed that they had just finished partaking of communion and still had the remnants of bread and empty glasses of wine on their tables. Immediately, I felt compelled to at least try to reach them with the truth.
So in the middle of the fellowship hall, in the midst of probably about 100 or more people from my old church, with a few new faces, I started preaching in a very calm manner. I remember exactly what I preached on: holiness. I even remember the scriptures I preached on. I quoted and clearly expounded on Hebrews 10:26-27, Hebrews 12:14, 1 John 3:5-9, and some others in the most simple and straightforward manner, exhorting the people before me to examine themselves in light of the Word and see that they werent truly saved because they were living in sin and compromise. With utmost sincerity, and in a calm yet urgent tone of voice, I desperately pleaded with them to not be deceived. I told them they have believed a lie and were living in false assurance, quoting and expounding upon clear scripture to prove it and urging them to repent.
Soon, a heavy weight of conviction came down. Every face was affected, some had conviction written all over their faces so to speak, and others couldnt bear to look at me and had their heads down in shame. I thought they were going to start screaming in agony of soul, or falling out of their seats, or wailing at the top of their lungs. The Holy Spirit was obviously bearing witness to my words in a tremendous way and prevailing in power within their hearts, and I thought a genuine revival was going to break out within seconds.
Seeing the conviction so heavy and the peoples hearts right at the breaking point, and having proved to them with clear scripture that they did not truly know Christ because they were living in willful and unrepentant sin, I was almost sure the whole place would soon be on their knees or faces crying out to God for mercy, like I said. The weight of conviction was so thick you could tangibly feel it. I continued preaching, and now drove the point straight home. I called out the fact that they had just taken communion and were completely unworthy and that this was sin on top of sin not only are they living in sin, but they have the audacity to eat the Lords body and drink His blood in such a state as if they were holy. I told them this was the gravest of sins and they were eating and drinking damnation to themselves and provoking the wrath of God. The conviction was very heavy and this sent it off the charts. I was sure that a revival was breaking out now as the whole place seemed to freeze with the sense of great guilt and personal awareness of sin.
But then, to my absolute amazement, the people did not start weeping and wailing for their transgressions and terrible delusions. To the contrary, they immediately hardened their hearts after being so obviously convinced and convicted. One of them suddenly burst out into some kind of sick and twisted laughter. Then they all began laughing. They mocked me and laughed at me. I loved these people and thought they were my friends, but now they were laughing and mocking at me, and everything I had to say. Not only did they reject the truth and want nothing to do with it, but they mocked me as a fool for trying to bring it to them.
That was it. That was the dream. When I woke up, suddenly it hit me like a ton of bricks: It is not that these people dont know the truth and need someone to tell them so they can be aware and repent, but the fact is, they dont want to know the truth. Even though they dont know the truth, they still dont want to because they love their lies, false assurances, and false doctrines that justify their compromised lifestyles and are deceived by their own lies and self-justifications on top of the delusion that God handed them over to. They are in love with mammon and are playing the harlot with the things of this world, lovers of pleasure more than lovers of God.
The dream is self-explanatory. But please permit me to speak my heart. The churches in America for the most part are totally apostate. I have realized that there is no hope for them as a whole. A few souls from their midst may be plucked from the fire here and there, but as a whole, the system is apostate and the people in it are handed over to strong delusion. It will not be revived. It is fallen from the truth and its eyes have been blinded to it. Revival cant happen to apostate people who are handed over to strong delusion. Backsliders: yes! Apostates: no! Their consciences are seared as with a hot iron.
Many are saying, Judgment is coming! Judgment will soon come! but I say, Are you blind? The judgment of God upon America is not yet to come - it is already here! While physical judgment may tarry yet a little longer, the fact is that spiritual judgment, which is the most terrible and damnable form of judgment there is, is already here in full force.
Physical judgment is an act of mercy because, depending on the scope and devastation of it, will either wake some people up to repent, or it will destroy them all before they store up more wrath against the day of Judgment when the punishment will be greater eternally. But spiritual judgment doesnt prevent greater eternal wrath; instead, it only increases it! Spiritual judgment doesnt wake anybody up it only sends strong delusion to keep them all asleep while the weight of Gods wrath accumulates from above until the weight of it becomes so great that it bursts forth with the fury and ferocity of a fire that burns so hot that it can never be quenched!
O dear remnant of God, get your eyes off the physical, and put them on the spiritual, for the things which are seen are temporal; but the things which are not seen are eternal. I believe we in America are in the midst of the most terrible and greatest spiritual judgment that the world has ever known this side of the Cross. We are in the midst of the great falling away (Gr. apostasia, apostasy) that was spoken of by the Apostle Paul (2 Thessalonians 2:3). These are the last days of which many explicit warnings were given by Christ and His Apostles against being deceived. And the great masses have ignored the sure word of prophecy.
because they received not the love of the truth, that they might be saved. And for this cause God shall send them strong delusion, that they should believe a lie: That they all might be damned who believed not the truth, but had pleasure in unrighteousness (2 Thessalonians 2:10-12). The great masses do not love the truth; they hate it! For this reason, God Himself has sent them strong delusion. They now believe a lie and will be damned because of it. Do you realize what this is saying? God shall send them strong delusion. God sent it! You cannot preach the truth and wake people up if God is the one who has sent the delusion to put them to sleep. If it is against His sovereign will for them to be brought to the truth, then no matter what you do or how hard you preach, they wont be brought to the truth! It doesn't lead them to repentance, instead, it only seals their fate.
For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears (2 Timothy 4:3). Just as in my dream, I thought maybe the pastor was the one preventing them from hearing the truth, but I soon realized afterwards that they themselves do not love the truth, and they are the ones who have heaped that pastor/preacher unto themselves to tickle their own itching ears. They do not endure sound doctrine; they rather speak against it! They laugh and mock the true Gospel. For the time will come, said the Apostle Paul. That time is now here! We are living in the midst of it! They do not want to hear the truth. Just as they said to Isaiah the prophet:
They tell the seers, Stop seeing visions! They tell the prophets, Dont tell us what is right. Tell us nice things. Tell us lies. Forget all this gloom. Get off your narrow path. Stop telling us about your Holy One of Israel (Isaiah 30:10-11 NLT). They do not want to hear of holiness, righteousness and justice. They do not want to hear of a narrow path that only few find. They do not want to hear the truth that cuts and pierces to the heart. And the result is that God has sent strong delusion, closed their eyes and their hearts, and has given them a spirit of slumber. They have not known nor understood: for he hath shut their eyes, that they cannot see; and their hearts, that they cannot understand (Isaiah 44:18). And in them is fulfilled the prophecy of Isaiah, which saith, By hearing ye shall hear, and shall not understand; and seeing ye shall see, and shall not perceive: For this people's heart is waxed gross, and their ears are dull of hearing, and their eyes they have closed; lest at any time they should see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and should understand with their heart, and should be converted, and I should heal them (Matthew 13:14-15, Acts 28:27). According as it is written, God hath given them the spirit of slumber, eyes that they should not see, and ears that they should not hear; unto this day (Romans 11:8).
I have stated all of this to say this: revival will not and cannot happen within the apostate church system. I know we have many pillow prophets and Disneyland seers who prophesy over and over again, A great move of God is coming to America! There is reformation coming to the churches! There will be great revival! Signs and wonders will happen in every church! Were seeing the beginning of it happening right now! and so on. Enough of that nonsensical and unscriptural ear-tickling garbage! The only revival the apostate church in America is going to get is a counterfeit revival with counterfeit signs and wonders! Go see your gold dust, angel feathers, and diamonds that fall from the ceiling! Go yield yourselves to your animal demons! Go writhe like snakes! Go get hands laid on you and knocked over by that preacher whos addicted to Internet pornography! This is your revival, apostate Babylon! And yet you all remain in sin, wickedness, and compromise such as never before. The earth itself is groaning in pain under the weight of your transgressions.
Babylon (America and its apostate religious system) has corrupted the whole earth with the wine of her fornication and has become the habitation of devils! Physical judgment would indeed be an act of mercy. The spiritual judgment is already here and its fallen onto the apostate system and most of those who are in it, and like I said, this is the most severe and worst kind of judgment there is!
And now a word to the remnant:
Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you. And will be a Father unto you, and ye shall be my sons and daughters, saith the Lord Almighty (2 Corinthians 6:17-18). Come out of her, my people, that ye be not partakers of her sins, and that ye receive not of her plagues (Revelation 18:4). Separate yourselves from the system. Stop wasting your time trying to convince those who God has sent strong delusion to and go to those who will listen! There is coming a time when we must wipe the dust from our feet and go to those who are dying in their sins and willing to hear what we have to say.
Dont get sucked into Satans slick counterfeits. Separate yourself from the workers of Satan who seek to deceive you. And no marvel; for Satan himself is transformed into an angel of light. Therefore it is no great thing if his ministers also be transformed as the ministers of righteousness; whose end shall be according to their works (2 Corinthians 11:14-15). Come out from among the deceived and separate yourself unto the Lord in holiness and righteousness, walking according to the commands of Jesus and working out your own salvation with fear and trembling. Its time to walk solemn and serious before your God in holy fear and sanctification of heart and life.
And before all the out of church crowd gives a hearty amen to what Im saying and thinks they have everything right, let me state that its not enough just to separate yourself and point out all the faults of the apostate system. You must also stand up and do what is right in the love of Christ. You want to bash the false gospel, so whens the last time you preached the true Gospel? You want to condemn others for not helping the poor as Jesus commanded, so whens the last time you showed the love of Christ to the poor? You want to bash others for being pew sitters and not doing anything, so whens the last time you demonstrated with your actions to the lost world around you what you claim to believe? Whens the last time you reached out to the lost in your community and sought to lead them into the knowledge of the truth?
To all of those who are spending all their time trying to reach their dead churches with the true Gospel, I hope to stir you up by putting you in remembrance of Judgment Day. You will have to give an account to God of why you have wasted all your time casting pearls before the swine of Babylon when there were masses around the world who were in need and crying out with a Macedonian call to Come help us, waiting for someone to take the truth to them. The ones invited to the marriage feast wont come, so now its time to go into the highways and hedges and compel them to come in that the Lords house may be filled (Luke 14). Those that think they are healthy have no need of a doctor, but only those who are sick. Jesus didn't come to call the righteous, but sinners, to repentance. Can we not learn from His pattern?
Many of those who know the truth are spending all their time and labor trying to reach the deceived crowds inside the steeple-house buildings. The question is not, "Is this the good thing to do?" The question is, "Is this the perfect thing to do?" If you are not bearing fruit with all your labor trying to reach those "at ease in Zion" who are "laying upon their comfortable couches and beds of ivory", why do you continue to waste time? Take the truth to those who will listen! You'll pass through the fire on the Day of Judgment and make it out, but your fruitless works will be burned up. Why not go out and gather for yourself the eternal fruit of lost souls who are hurting and recognize their need so you can present them at the feet of the Son of God on that Day that He may receive the reward of His suffering?
Am I saying to stop preaching the truth to the apostates? God forbid! To the contrary, Cry aloud, spare not, lift up thy voice like a trumpet, and show my people their transgression, and the house of Jacob their sins (Isaiah 58:1). If anything, stoke the fire and increase the heat! Be a watchman, blow the trumpet in Zion, sound the alarm on the holy mountain, and dont hold back! Draw the line of separation and make up your mind to stand for truth no matter the cost; no matter the opinions of men; no matter the sacrifice youll have to go through. And Elijah came unto all the people, and said, How long halt ye between two opinions? if the LORD be God, follow him: but if Baal, then follow him. And the people answered him not a word (1 Kings 18:21). If you know whats right, then do it and stop cowarding out! Make up your mind!
There is still hope for revival among the remnant. I do not believe there will be a sweeping and massive great awakening in America, but I do believe that there may very well still be outpourings of the blessed Spirit of God in various isolated places depending on the desperation of the remnant in this hour. Right now though, I do not see any such desperation that is calculated to bring about such an outpouring. All I see, for the most part with very few exceptions, is apathy and complacency.
I want to sound out a flat out rebuke to those who know the truth and dont live it with all their heart. The hour is late and the situation is urgent! For those who know the truth of these things and yet are not desperate, do not sigh and cry for the transgressions of the land around you, and refuse to pray in fervency, you need to be rebuked. Have you no heart for the lost? Have you no love for the souls of men? Because iniquity shall abound, the love of many shall wax cold. Have you become desensitized to all the wickedness and delusion around you and now have a cold heart toward the masses of souls headed on the broad path to destruction? Have you become the slothful and unprofitable servant? Has even the remnant been duped into a lukewarm complacency? My God, let it never be!
WAKE UP!!!
Wipe the sleep from your eyes, dust off your swords, and mount up! The greatest battle of all time is at hand! Be awake and alert and have your lamp burning! Beat your plowshares into swords, and your pruning hooks into spears: let the weak say, I am strong (Joel 3:10).
I fear that the greatest spiritual massacre of all time is happening right now. Whats happening with the souls of men right now, souls who are on a grease-slide to Hell, is so horrific that it makes the Holocaust look like a picnic. Were talking about the priceless, eternal souls of men hundreds and hundreds of millions of them! How many are being cast into Hell by the day?
Its time to get desperate! Its time to agonize in prayer! Its time to declare an extended fast and seek the face of God like theres no tomorrow! We can have an outpouring of the Spirit if we will only pay the price and meet the conditions. Will you do it? Or will you continue to halt between two decisions and be complacent? The decision is yours, but just be aware that you will have to give an account of your decision to God on Judgment Day. Those in the book of Ezekiel who refused to sigh and cry for the transgression around them were slaughtered (see Ezekiel chapter 9). What will happen to you if you do the same in light of the extremity of the times we are now living in? Do you think God and His standards have changed? If His standards havent changed then youd better sigh and cry before its too late.
I want to ask you: Do you want revival or not? Dont halt between two decisions. If you want revival, then get desperate and pray with a fervency and holy violence until you get it. If you dont want revival, then forget about all the words of the ear-tickling prophets because it wont happen at all if you dont seek the Lord with all your heart. Its not going to just fall onto your lap as you sit by, laugh, eat, have a merry old time and twiddle your thumbs. Theres one way that revival comes: holy desperation that works itself out in desperate prayer. We need intercessory prayer, persevering prayer, fervent prayer, agonizing prayer, and violent prayer! Unless we have it, revival will never come in any form, not even among a small remnant.
Forget the Laodicean prophets of America who repeatedly prophesy only good things. Revival! Reformation! A new wave of blessing! A fresh outpouring! they say. But I say unless you, the remnant of God in this nation, who walks in holiness and righteousness in the fear of God, who keeps Christs commandments, who have been chosen by the Lamb, who seek the face of God, who know the season of the hour; unless you start desperately fasting and praying in travail of soul and agony of mind before God there is no new wave of true revival coming.
"Didn't I tell you?" the king of Israel said to Jehoshaphat. "He does it every time. He never prophesies anything but bad news for me." Then Micaiah continued, "Listen to what the LORD says! I saw the LORD sitting on his throne with all the armies of heaven on his right and on his left. And the LORD said, 'Who can entice King Ahab of Israel to go into battle against Ramoth-gilead so that he can be killed there?' There were many suggestions, until finally a spirit approached the LORD and said, 'I can do it!' "'How will you do this?' the LORD asked. "And the spirit replied, 'I will go out and inspire all Ahab's prophets to speak lies.' "'You will succeed,' said the LORD. 'Go ahead and do it.' "So you see, the LORD has put a lying spirit in the mouths of your prophets. For the LORD has determined disaster for you" (2 Chronicles 18:17-22).
Remnant of God in America: NOW is the time! You've been waiting for the word to go on an all-out thrust of desperate praying and preaching, well the time is RIGHT NOW!!! Let us put aside our petty differences, unite together under the bloodstained banner of Jesus Christ, and call a solemn assembly to weep between the porch and the altar until God visits us with His grace and mercy! The hour is so very late! The sun is about to set and the night is soon coming where no man may work.
Blow the trumpet in Zion, sanctify a fast, call a solemn assembly: Gather the people, sanctify the congregation, assemble the elders, gather the children, and those that suck the breasts: let the bridegroom go forth of his chamber, and the bride out of her closet. Let the priests, the ministers of the LORD, weep between the porch and the altar, and let them say, Spare thy people, O LORD, and give not thine heritage to reproach, that the heathen should rule over them: wherefore should they say among the people, Where is their God? Then will the LORD be jealous for his land, and pity his people (Joel 2:16-18).
The King will soon return. Judgment will be executed. Wrath and vengeance will be wrought on all the inhabitants of the earth. Are there no intercessors?
Yea, truth faileth; and he that departeth from evil maketh himself a prey: and the LORD saw it, and it displeased him that there was no judgment. And he saw that there was no man, and wondered that there was no intercessor: therefore his arm brought salvation unto him; and his righteousness, it sustained him. For he put on righteousness as a breastplate, and a helmet of salvation upon his head; and he put on the garments of vengeance for clothing, and was clad with zeal as a cloak. According to their deeds, accordingly he will repay, fury to his adversaries, recompense to his enemies; to the islands he will repay recompense. So shall they fear the name of the LORD from the west, and his glory from the rising of the sun. When the enemy shall come in like a flood, the Spirit of the LORD shall lift up a standard against him. And the Redeemer shall come to Zion, and unto them that turn from transgression in Jacob, saith the LORD
(Isaiah 59:15-20).
The remnant of God must unite to fast and pray in holy desperation until the Lord sends the blessing. Then they must take it out into their communities to the poor, to the outcasts, to the highway men, to the down-and-outs, and to the foolish things of the world with fervency, boldness and urgency. If not, then all hope is lost. And the hour is so late that theres no time to wait to make up your mind. Decide now! Then GO DO!!! Its not time to fuss over unessential doctrines and names. Those days are about over. Its time to unite together on our common cause the holiness of God and the glory of His name and FIGHT, not by might, nor by power, but by the Spirit of the Lord of hosts!!!
The LORD will demonstrate his holy power before the eyes of all the nations. The ends of the earth will see the salvation of our God. Go now, leave your bonds and slavery. Put Babylon behind you, with everything it represents, for it is unclean to you. You are the LORD'S holy people. Purify yourselves, you who carry home the vessels of the LORD (Isaiah 52:10-11 NLT).
Sincerely in the name of the glorious Lamb of God,
-Josef Urban
Please pass this urgent message on.
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|  2007/8/15 9:50 | |
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