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February 2005 Newsletter

ASKING FOR A GREATER ANOINTING: THE BLESSING OF JOSEPH

As we came into the New Year and prepared for the January Training School we were asking God for a corporate anointing, for a change to come over the apostolic company based at SHILOH and reaching into the nations. The January school was the time and environment in which we sought and believed God for this anointing: the blessing that was upon Joseph!

 

GOD WILL ADD

Joseph means “He will add”. God will add! Add to us Lord in every way; add to us Your grace and anointing to enable us to be raised up in Your purposes; to enable us to successfully preach the gospel and spread the message of sonship to the nations. Add to us new converts! Add to us new disciples! Add to us more workers for the harvest!

 

ENTERING FULLY INTO THE HOLY CITY

Gen. 49:22 “Joseph is a fruitful bough, a fruitful bough by a well; his branches run over the wall.”

In Genesis 49, the patriarch Jacob [remember, he has been called ‘Israel’ by God – an overcomer] is prophesying over his 12 sons. The meaning of all the names of the 12 is significant. Rev.21:12 says the names of the 12 tribes of the children of Israel are written on the 12 gates to the Holy City. Gates are the points of entry. It is a very enlightening study to follow through the names and their meanings in the order of Gen 49. Each gate represents a more mature experience and walk in the kingdom of God; coming more fully into Christ.

 

Joseph is the name of the eleventh gate – the last gate before Benjamin. Let us quickly review the previous ten gates that bring us to the gate of Joseph.

 

Gate 1 – Reuben, “behold a son, see a son”; the first gate points to Jesus. When we behold Jesus believing He is the Son of God, we are saved; we enter the city of God.

Gate 2 – Simeon, “a hearing”; Leah said “the Lord has heard” Gen. 28:33. The second gate speaks of receiving the Holy Spirit, who enables us to ‘hear’; we enter more fully into the city.

Gate 3 – Levi, “attached, joined”. The Lord joins us or places us in the body to minister [Levi was the ministering tribe].

Gate 4 – Judah, “praise”; a people who have come to faith in Jesus, have received the Holy Spirit and have been joined to the body to minister are a praising people.

Gate 5 – Zebulon, “a habitation”; God indwells the praises of His people – we experience His presence corporately.

Gate 6 – Issachar, “wages, reward”; the reward is to grow more mature, carrying God’s presence with us all the time.  

Gate 7 – Dan, “to judge, to rule”; a praising people who know God’s presence and walk in His anointing are able to ‘rule and reign in life through Christ Jesus’ Rom.5:17b.

Gate 8 – Gad, “a troop, to invade”; a people who are ruling and reigning begin to invade the territory the enemy has taken and win it back.

Gate 9 – Asher, “happy, blessed, contented”; Asher is the gate of reward, rest and a fresh anointing.

There are three gates yet and they are the most challenging but also the most rewarding.

Gate 10 – Napthali, “a wrestling”. There comes a time in every Christian’s life when we must overcome the flesh life decisively even as Jacob did when he wrestled with the man from heaven in Genesis 32:22-32. Jacob had a ‘saving experience’ twenty years before at Bethel. But on his return to the land he was changed forever to walk with God in the spirit, being able to fulfil his destiny in the call of God.

 

THE GATE OF JOSEPH

And now we have arrived at gate 11 – Joseph. It is the anointing and blessing upon Joseph that we have been asking God for.  The gate of Joseph, fruitfulness, must be entered into fully before the church can enter the final gate, the gate of Benjamin. Benjamin means “son of the right hand”. The church is destined to rule and reign with Christ Jesus and be seated with Him at the Father’s throne. This will take place after the last great harvest.

PLANTED BY A WELL

“Joseph is a fruitful bough”- Joseph is fruitful, because he is “by a well”, a well that never runs dry [compare with Ps.1:3, Jer.17:8].

SPREADING OUT

“His branches run over the wall”; nothing can inhibit or hem Joseph in; he will grow up and spread out.

TO ALL NATIONS

This is speaking of the apostolic church and the restoration of apostles today. Paul says that we have been received grace and apostleship from God through Christ leading to the obedience of faith among all nations (Rom.1:5). It is vital and necessary for the church to grow up into maturity to receive the Joseph anointing, bearing much fruit in the last days. Even as Joseph in the natural ministered to the nations out of his storehouses in Egypt, so the apostolic church that God is raising in these last days will firstly bring the church into its inheritance and then the church will minister to the nations out of the storehouse of His word: the “exceedingly great and precious promises” (2 Pet.1:4).

OPPOSED AND REJECTED

Gen.49:23 “the archers have bitterly grieved him, shot at him and hated him.” Joseph suffered much, caused by the jealousy and resentment of his brothers. This has been the lot of the apostles Christ is raising today – there has been much rejection and non-acceptance.

REMAINING IN STRENGTH

v.24 “but his bow remained in strength and the arms of his hands were made strong [supple] by the hands of the Mighty God of Jacob (From there the Shepherd, the Stone of Israel)”. This is an awesome verse – God said to Paul “My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness” 2 Cor.12:8. Joseph (v26) was called to be separate from his brothers [this is repeated in Deut.33:16b]. The Lord is calling all of us to be separate, to come out of the organised, institutional church and cleave unto Him alone. When we first set out on this ministry seven years ago the Lord gave us an important instruction: He said ‘you will be sent, safe and supplied’; He told me ‘to drink deeply at the well of Siloam’ [Jn.9:7 Siloam “translated ‘sent’”]. He was establishing us in the apostolic – to be separated by the call unto His purpose: to raise up His last days church according to His word.

INHERITING THE BLESSINGS

v.25 “By the God of your father who will help you and by the Almighty who will bless you”. GOD will help us; El Shadday (God Almighty) will bless His people.

“blessings of heaven above”; Paul lists some of those blessings in Ephesians 3:3-14;

“blessings of the deep” – springs that never run dry, drawing water from the deep;

“blessings of the breast” speaking of nurture, young ones being cared for, being brought up in the house;

“blessings of the womb” speaking of fruitfulness – many sons raised up.

CROWNED WITH BLESSINGS

v.26 “The blessings of your father have excelled the blessings of my ancestors”: is Jacob saying that he is able to pass on even greater blessings than Abraham and Isaac?

“up to the uttermost bound of the everlasting hills” there are no limits; we are entering the realm of the Eternal;

“they shall be on the head of Joseph” LORD, we are asking You for the blessing of Joseph to be upon us,

“on the crown of the head of him who was separate from his brothers.” We are called out to be separate, a holy people. The Lord has kept us during the years of foundation and preparation but now the mighty God of Jacob is bring to pass the apostolic restoration of the church to fulfil His purposes. Now is the time to fill the storehouses! Now is the time to be planted by the well because there is coming a time when multitudes of thirsty people will come seeking for the Lord!

PRAYER 24/7

For over 3 years now, Thursdays have been set apart for prayer with fasting, from 6am to 6pm. Even when we travel on team, team members keep the fast and in conferences where we are ministering often the whole conference will join us and keep the fast at least for the lunch meal.

 

Over recent years I have heard apostle John Alley speak of the Moravians and recently in the Morning Star Journal [ed. Rick Joyner] there was an article on this remarkable group of Christians who are recorded in history as being the most missionary-minded group of Christians ever, other than the apostle Paul of the Bible. One of the keys to their success was a 24 hour, 7 day a week prayer meeting that ran for 114 years. Also we have heard of visions to establish 24 hour worship centres and understand this may have happened in some places. We realise that some believers are already involved in prayer rosters over 24 hour periods, but this initiative is to engender more prayer and specifically among those who have become one in Christ through the apostolic revelation.

 

During the recent training school, we put forth a proposal to pray on a roster to cover 24 hours from midnight to midnight on Thursdays, with at least one person praying for the hour somewhere, but encouraging local brethren in Toowoomba to come to SHILOH Centre for the hours between 6am – 6pm. We have already covered the day of Thursday.

 

Now we are asking brethren everywhere to begin to take up other days. I have written to brethren in Africa and Pakistan, asking them to consider covering a day with their related ministry group. I am also putting this initiative to ministry leaders in Australia.

 

It is very possible to have prayer 24hours, 7 days a week, continuing until the LORD comes, being entered into by brethren worldwide who relate in apostolic companies. In time, the hourly spots will have more than one person praying but let us start with one and cover the whole week. Already prayer groups who regularly meet on that day for prayer are covering two of the hours on Thursday.

Please email or write to us if you are willing to commit and

become part of this awesome prayer initiative.

 

MYNMAR TRIP ITINERARY for apostle Paul Galligan, Janet Barton & Elizabeth Esselink

3^rd – 17^th Feb.

4^th Feb. afternoon to 6^th Feb – teaching in Dr Thein Htay’s training school

7^th – 8^th  seminar in Blind School Hall, hosted by Ps. Lian Thang

9^th – 11^th  teaching in ‘Reaching the World Bible College’ hosted by Rev. Dr. Ca Hngak

12^th – graduation of students ‘Reaching the World Bible College’

13^th - 16^th  various ministries

  

INDIA TRIP ITINERARY for Ps. Jean & Bruce Manning

!5^th Feb. to 15^th March.

18^th Feb. Day seminar at Nepalese fellowship in Delhi with Tabitha and Pastor Bharat Tamang 

David Rasaily is joining the team as a Timothy-in-training

19^th Feb Fly to Bagdogra    Evening meeting; Silas Lama joins us.

20^th  travel to Mandelabary; 21^st-24^th Seminar with pastors and leaders.

25^th  Morning with Silas and his team.  Return to Bagdogra for evening meeting

26^th Day seminar at Margaret Tea Gardens Darjeeling with Solomon Malangmai

27^th  Preach at Pentecostal church, Siliguri (am) 

3-5pm  seminar at Salbari for lay men, church leaders and church planters

28^th Return to Delhi

28^th-4^th March  at Great Commission Training Centre, Gurgaon with India Campus Crusade for Christ  friends.  I have invited Pastor Dayal and his wife to join us there from Kanpur. David is Indian, Silas is Nepalese, and Solomon is from Manipur. Benjamin (from Bhutan) will also be involved in the Mandelabary sessions. The potential to reach many nations is great through these good men of God.