The Feast of Tabernacles is a collection of teachings by Richard Mikelson.

 

These teachings explore spiritual depths of influential texts of scripture,  and of the human condition.

The Fear of the Lord

“The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge; Fools despise wisdom and instruction.” Proverbs 1:7

People who know the history of Jesus at Bethlehem and Nazareth, know about mighty signs and wonders, the miracles He demonstrated while on earth. Yet head knowledge about these manifestations and works of the sacrificed Lamb, does not really change our spirit, We are not changed until He sends His Spirit to quicken our spirit, to baptize us, releasing our inner being from the death of knowing only earthly good and evil.

As a triumphant Lion, Jesus ascended victorious over his enemies, with no malice, hatred, or selfishness. His victory included all manner of mental torments and hellish thoughts that plague the minds of men, drawing them to the graves they themselves create.

Jesus ascended up far above all previous heavens, now reigning above all other powers in order to fill all other realms, including the earth, with His victory. He has been sending His Spirit to chosen ones for two thousand years, so He might FIRST FILL A PEOPLE WITH HIMSELF. They believe in Him, and they, in due time, will deliver ALL people of every nation, of every generation. How positively true are these words of the apostle Paul:

“If Christ be not raised, your faith is vain; ye are yet [dead] in your sins…” I Corinthians 15:17

And the words of John:

“…for the Holy Ghost was not yet given; because that Jesus was not yet glorified…” John 7:39

The Holy Spirit comes from the throne of the risen, ascended, glorified, Son of God. Christ Jesus has BEEN coming, secretly pouring forth a glorious triumph over death that only He gained. That spirit baptized 120 in the upper room at the beginning of the Pentecostal church age. Then thechurch age were victorious and ever rejoicing over every lie of His enemy. They demonstrated that they were associated with His throne, with tongues of fire filled with the Holy Spirit in praise and thanksgiving for the majesty and honor which God was now giving.

Soon after this time, the early church in vast numbers of Christians were corrupted by “leaving their first love” to fall under false teachers who have continued to build within these latter day church realms. They are “thinking they are so rich”, having scriptural teachings all figured out according to natural earthly thinking, but Christ says they are really “wretched, miserable, and poor, blind and naked”, lacking spiritual understanding.

God’s main purpose for two thousand years has been to bring “many sons” — yet being a few — to the total expression of Jesus Christ’s triumphant ministry. Jesus Christ is known by them from the aspect of knowing His Spirit forming Christ within their inner being. They are taught by His Spirit in all matters to know Jesus as He is. They are enthroned with Him from within.

He endows chosen ones with a Spirit of sonship that raises them far beyond the realms of the candlestick church. Godly wisdom is recognized as the Father expressed by Christ within us so we understand what is happening to us. Overcoming sons have the messages that quicken people to His life, causing growth as He moves in them. He is coming from the unseen to rule over the earth with a rod of iron! The “seven Spirits of God” know the plan for each day for those being led and following Jesus. Instructions are given them by the Spirit of the Lord Jesus.

This requires a reverence, the “fear of the Lord” in the scriptural sense. The fear of the Lord is a godly thing, a wonderful thing, a lovely thing. Yet many precious Christians today are more influenced by the lukewarm teachings of Laodicea, the candle stick church of which He stands outside, knocking on the inner ear of those who can hear His SPIRITUAL voice.

Some have opened the doors of their hearts. He has come in to them, feeding them about a higher order without Babylon’s religious mindsets stuck on a vengeful fault-finding God ready to send people to hell forever and blow up the earth. Many Christians have had trouble seeing the difference between the candlestick church realms and the unseen kingdom of God’s city, the holy and sanctified place and people filled with the glory of God.

Head knowledge of certain versions of scripture have generated false concepts that have made the vision of many candlestick church Christians unclear. Religious smokescreens have been taught as accepted doctrine so many believers are not sure just where they are, or where they will end up. Preachers have made the doom and gloom of eternal hell out to be something we should be afraid of, claiming we cringe before Him like a dog that expects to be kicked.

But the lowered state of humanity into vanity should not be compared to what He has offered in Christ Jesus, and what has been kept in store for us all. God does love us!

“I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us.” Romans 8:18 NIV

As we know Him by the Spirit, we can appreciate how that He loved us before the foundation of the world. We can know that He chose us, picked us out to be found in Christ. His Old Testament people Israel were chosen, called as His namesake to “fear” God. Moses wrote of God:

O that there were such an heart in them, that they would fear Me, and keep all My commandments always, that it might be well with them, and with their children for ever!” Deuteronomy 5:29

“And the Lord commanded us to do all these statutes, to fear the Lord our God, for our good always, that He might preserve us alive, as it is at this day.” Deuteronomy 6:24

God wanted His people to have “fear” of Him, but the word fear would be better interpreted “reverence” as of an obedient son toward a loving father. What is this relationship like with the living God? Reverence desires to be continual with God as a Father who loves and guides His people. Reverence is an AWESOME AWARENESS, a full, consuming knowledge of His great POWER and ABILITY. We can know this by His Spirit! His great HOLY PURPOSES are in our lives, and He is the altogether RIGHTEOUS JUDGE of all our days.

The proper fear of God is to be REVERENT for God’s provision as our Father. It is profound respect mingled with awe, affection, and veneration. It is reverential trust of His righteousness mixed with a proper hatred of evil. Now in our inner man this condition exults with joy that, at least in a measure, we have come to KNOW HIM AS HE REALLY IS!

“The fear of the Lord is clean, enduring forever.” Psalms 19:9

“The fear of the Lord is to hate evil.” Proverbs 8:13

“The fear of the Lord is strong confidence.” Proverbs 14:26

“The fear of the Lord is a fountain of life, to depart from the snares of death.” Proverbs 14:27

“The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge.” Proverbs 1:7

“The fear of the Lord tends to life.” Proverbs 19:23

“The fear of the Lord is the instruction of wisdom.” Proverbs 15:33

“The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom.” Psalms 111:10

How plain it is that God does not grant true instruction to the person void of reverence (fear) for God. Reverence leads to true humility, the humility that places God’s will, God’s purposes, and God’s instruction above all else. The writer to the Hebrews admonishes:

“Wherefore we receiving a kingdom which cannot be moved, let us have grace, whereby we may serve God acceptably with reverence and godly fear. For our God is a consuming fire.” Hebrews 12:28-29 KJV

“Therefore, since we receive a kingdom which cannot be shaken, let us show gratitude, by which we may offer to God an acceptable service with reverence and awe; for our God is a consuming fire.” Hebrews 12:28-29 NASB

The glorious Kingdom of God was established two thousand years ago by Jesus Christ. He has been adding to it by the power of the Holy Spirit working in devout and humble souls who reverently seek His face. Earthly church membership is not necessarily required! The full measure of power, wisdom, grace, and truth of our exalted heavenly Father will not consent to abide within the arrogant or the scornful. Neither will He be found in the midst of careless, irreverent, profane or hypocritical earthly minded men.

Jesus grants us a strong and fervent desire to truly KNOW GOD and, by His Spirit, have part in His righteous government even today. We Christians must still remove “the shoes from off our feet” (walking in the natural understanding of the Word of God ) so we can follow after the understanding given by His voice. Those who stand upon Zion’s holy hill share the glory of the exalted Lamb of God. They are the first to receive a FULL measure of grace whereby they do serve God ACCEPTABLY with REVERENCE and GODLY “AWE.”

We learn to communicate without boasting about what God is doing. With affectionate, deep respect we privately enter prayer and communion with Him before whom holy and powerful angels cover their faces. God is our Father, the architect and creator of the entire creation. He designed this way of sonship to be in direct contrast to the spirit of the world. The spirit of the world is untrue, leading to the bondages of death. Paul wrote further:

"For you have not received a spirit of slavery leading to fear again, but you have received a spirit of adoption as sons by which we cry out, Abba, Father!" Romans 8:15 NASB

The natural fear in men comes from slavery to bondage to the realms of darkness. Yet, fear is the tool most often used by religious leaders to keep people in submission to their form of worship. Fear of excommunication can keep people from properly seeing the truth of the kingdom.

God delivers sons and daughters from the spirit of fear which has its throne in the candlestick church that torments truth seekers from “going too far.” The prince of darkness has its source of understanding, yet Jesus’s perfect love casts out ALL our fear. The spirit of fear has torment of mind, tormenting religious people about many things, even into thinking the worst about the God in whom we trust.

We have boldly put our reverent trust in God and will not fear ANYTHING that man or devil may bring to us. I say the Lord is our helper, so we will not give lodge to negative fears!

"'I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee. The Lord is my helper, and I will not fear what man shall do unto me." Hebrews 13:5-6

When Jesus was faced with the reality of his own upcoming crucifixion, the scripture tells us that:

“He offered up prayers and supplications with strong crying and tears unto him that was able to save Him from death, and was heard in that He feared.” Hebrews 5:7

The truth of this verse of scripture is most remarkable! Jesus FEARED! HE WAS HEARD BECAUSE HE FEARED! How can it be said that He was heard when, in fact, He died? Yes, He died, but the wonderful fact is that He did not remain dead! He was heard, for God’s plan all along was to raise Him from the dead. Why was He raised from the dead? Because HE FEARED (was reverent toward God’s plan). God has plans for us also.

He reverenced God’s will as more important than fearing the loss of His own life. Jesus proved God’s love for Him. Jesus loved God, He knew God, and because He reverenced God, HE WAS HEARD! He was raised from among the dead to be exalted unto the full life and glory of the Father. It was not fear of the cross, nor the fear of what man could do unto him, that gripped Him, but that He feared (was reverent about) fulfilling GOD’s will. Only He knows well, by experience, this principle to teach us, as He did when saying:

“Fear not them which kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul: but rather fear Him which is able to destroy both soul and body in Gehenna.” Matthew 10:28

FEAR HIM. Fear Him who is able to create conditions within the inner man, conditions in the mind, conditions in the external world that will reduce the proud man to ashes as one in ready need of a Savior. He has done the same to us, bringing us to ashes time and again. Hear the wise man:

“The fear of the Lord is a fountain of Life, to depart from the snares of death.” Proverbs 14:27

There are those who tell us we are not to fear God. Yet it was said of our Redeemer, our only example, that He was delivered from the jaws of death because He DID fear! Howbeit it was the the RIGHT KIND of fear. And Solomon, after he had run the whole gamut of divine thought, finally arrived at the end of his thoughts with this:

“Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: fear God and keep His commandments: for this is the whole duty of man.” Ecclesiastes 12:13

And why?

“For God shall bring every work into judgment with every secret thing, whether it be good or whether it be evil.” Ecclesiastes 12:14

“Fear God and keep His commandments: for this is the whole duty of man.” Meaning the fear of God IS THE WHOLE PURPOSE OF MAN. A man who truly fears God IS A WHOLE MAN — God's full intent for man, as God originally purposed him to be when He said:

“Let us make man in our image, after our likeness.” Genesis 1:26

The only such “whole man” who completely kept all his commandments on earth was JESUS the CHRIST. And now He has opened up the same way for us, a way we may enter by reverence into a relationship with God as Father how raises the dead to life, to BECOME WHOLE MEN — bearing the image of the risen one by receiving His Spirit.

Jesus faced death — as do we - yet He was saved from death in that He had the right kind of fear. Noah was faced with the prospects of death with which all the others of his day were faced, but, moved with reverence, prepared an ark that SAVED him and his household. It is, then, the knowing of God’s awesomeness that brings men unto the purposes of GOD to save us from death. He is instructing us how to be delivered from selfish living in the soul’s vanity, to living after the spiritual quickening given us by Christ within.

God life is found in the inner secrets of knowing God by the Spirit. Facing Him, we overcome the lukewarm conditions of the thinking within candlestick churches. The Spirit of Christ Jesus is holy, given us to bestow an ENDOWMENT described as:

"A shoot [Branch] will spring from the stock of Jesse, a new shoot will grow from his roots. On him will rest the [1] spirit of Yahweh, [2] the spirit of wisdom and [3] insight, [4] the spirit of counsel and [5]power, [6] the spirit of knowledge and [7] fear of Yahweh: his inspiration will lie in fearing Yahweh. His judgment will not be by appearances, his verdict not given on hearsay. He will judge the weak with integrity and give fair sentence for the humblest in the land. He will strike the country with the rod of his mouth and with the breath of his lips bring death to the wicked. Uprightness will be the belt around his waist, and constancy the belt about his hips.

The wolf will live with the lamb, the panther lie down with the kid, calf, lion and fat-stock beast together, with a little boy to lead them. The cow and the bear will graze, their young will lie down together. The lion will eat hay like the ox. The infant will play over the den of the adder; the baby will put his hand into the viper's lair. No hurt, no harm will be done on all my holy mountain, for the country will be full of knowledge of Yahweh as the waters cover the sea. That day, the root of Jesse, standing as a signal for the peoples, will be sought out by the nations and its home will be glorious." Isaiah 11:1-10 NJB

Zechariah 3rd chapter gives us another picture, that of Joshua the high priest, representative of the full portion promised the saints made to be a kingdom. These priests are operating in God’s lasting order:

"‘Remove the filthy garments from him.’ Again he said to him, ‘See, I have taken your iniquity away from you and will clothe you with festal robes.’ Then I said, ‘Let them put a clean turban on his head.’ So they put a clean turban on his head and clothed him with garments, while the angel of the LORD was standing by. And the angel of the LORD admonished Joshua, saying,

"Thus says the LORD of hosts, 'If you will walk in My ways and if you will perform My service, then you will also govern My house and also have charge of My courts, and I will grant you free access among these who are standing here. Now listen, Joshua the high priest, you and your friends who are sitting in front of you-- indeed they are men who are a symbol, for behold, I am going to bring in My servant the Branch. For behold, the stone that I have set before Joshua; on one stone are seven eyes. Behold, I will engrave an inscription on it,'” Zechariah 3: 4-9 NASB

"And I perceived, in the center of the throne and of the four animals, and in the center of the elders, a Lambkin standing, as though slain, having seven horns, and seven eyes which are the seven spirits of God, commissioned for the entire earth." Revelation 5:6 concordant

The SEVEN EYES are the understanding of God’s plan as revealed by the seven Spirits God sends by Christ Jesus, it grants complete understanding and brings us to the only place of complete stability. Christ life is engraved upon the hearts of the Lord’s host, the Lord’s chosen through many generations. If we have the passion, the unction to be true in this momentous day, then we find a secure, unshaken truth OF THE LORD and stay there. Don’t let anything or anybody move you with deceiving lies. Set your face like a flint toward His face and do not be moved!

Set your affections on things above, on things that are available at the right hand of God. For God is writing upon the hearts of His beloved to cloth us with a new mind, with a white turban of clean upright thoughts within our head, directly given from the Lambkin of God. It is commissioned to remove every beastly way that roars within the hearts of ungodly men prone to yield to fearful, greedy, selfish characteristics. These are like “the wolf, bear, lion, and the hissing adder” UNTIL His completeness conquers and takes full control of our earth, showing the true likeness of God’s Son.

Therefore we hold a true testimony like Joshua and Caleb of old that were of a different spirit. The WHOLE SPIRIT! The Seven fold Spirit of God is being sent from Jesus Christ, commissioned for the ENTIRE EARTH!

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