OPEN MY EYES
By Preston Eby
When you uncover a thing you don’t have to bring it from some other place, you only need to remove the cover, because what is under it is already present. This book reveals to our wondering spirits that Jesus Christ doesn’t have to come crashing down through the clouds from outer space in order to be revealed! He is covered up, His glory is concealed in this world by a fleshly, religious mind; His grace and mercy are concealed by a harsh, legalistic mindset that thunders right out of mount Sinai, and is full of death; His love is concealed by false church doctrines of divine vindictiveness, judgment, damnation and eternal torture for billions in hell fire; His righteousness is concealed by human good works, self effort, and outward laws and regulations; His truth and purpose are concealed by natural, carnal understanding; His power is concealed by soulish religious exercises, rituals, ceremonies, programs and promotions. To be carnally minded is death, but to be spiritually minded is life! The Lord is the Spirit! The Lord, the Spirit, dwells within us! To uncover the real Christ has nothing to do with Christ coming from heaven, or us going to heaven — He must be UNCOVERED WITHIN US! "But... it pleased God, who separated me from my mother’s womb (the old-order religious system), and called me by His grace, to reveal (unveil) His Son in me..." (Gal. 1:15-16).
The veil that hides Him is upon the mind. It is not something apart from us or away from us. The veil must be removed from where the Christ is concealed from us within ourselves, for we are the body of Christ, the fullness of Him that filleth all in all. The Lord is not hidden in some far-off heaven somewhere, He has already come within us, for Christ is in us, except we be reprobates — counterfeits (II Cor. 13:5). Those who are walking with the Lord in the light of this new Day know that it is not Jesus coming down from heaven that shall reveal Him, but the uncovering of the full reality within ourselves of Him who is our life. The veil has been upon our minds, when we saw Him we looked through all the trappings of religion, the traditions, creeds, doctrines, forms, and concepts of men who know Him only after the flesh. But when you know Christ after the flesh, as He was two thousand years ago, you can never see Him as He is.
Every believer should seek that God would open his eyes to see the glorious Christ of God as He is. The sad truth is that the hope of the Christians in the church systems today is to again see Christ as He was. They cannot conceive that they can see Him, that they can look upon His face, unless they see the form of the man who walked the shores of Galilee. Like Thomas the doubter, they stubbornly refuse to believe that it is the Lord unless they can see the nail prints in His hands, thrust their hand into His side, and gaze intently into His piercing blue eyes. Not having this Jesus of Nazareth to see and know, they focus on the baby in the manger. But if you return to that every December 25, and make Him a baby again, you will never know Him as He is. Christmas is an invention of the carnal Babylonian religious system! Furthermore, it is a commercial season, sponsored and kept alive by the heaviest retail advertising campaigns of the year. The so-called "Christmas spirit" is created each year, not to honor Christ, but to sell merchandise! That is not the path that leads to sonship. It is the path that leads to spiritual foolishness and spiritual stalemate and infancy.
When Jesus trod the pathways of earth He called twelve men to be His disciples. They followed Him, heard His wonderful teaching, saw the mighty signs and wonders, and enjoyed communion with Him as no other man or woman on earth. Yet Jesus said to these men, "No man knoweth the Son, but the Father; neither knoweth any man the Father, save the Son, and he to whomsoever the Son will reveal Him" (Mat. 11:27). Surely these men knew the Son! No, not at all! Not one of them knew the Son of God. "No man knoweth the Son, but the Father." These men knew Jesus, but they did not know the Son of God. Even in the days of His flesh He could only be known after the Spirit! To know Jesus after the flesh did not qualify as knowing Him at all. One could walk with Him, talk with Him, eat with Him, share His most intimate human experiences, and yet never know Him!
It was many years afterward that one of these disciples, John the beloved, was granted the revelation of Jesus Christ. Only then did John truly see Him as He is! Through the book of Revelation John has shared, in the limited measure any writing can convey reality, that revelation of Jesus Christ. What he really has communicated to us is the way, the manner, the process by which the revelation of Jesus Christ takes place. But it must become our very own personal experience just as it did to John. This revelation doesn’t come out of the manger, this revelation doesn’t come out from the shores of blue Galilee, this revelation doesn’t come from the resurrected One who appeared for forty days to His astonished disciples, this revelation doesn’t come from the pages of a book. A mere glimpse of this revelation came to Peter one day when Jesus asked, "Whom do men say that I, the Son of man, am?" And Peter replied out of an illumination that burst forth from his spirit, "Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God!" In that one brief moment the veil came off of Peter’s mind and he saw the man in front of him as He actually is. He glimpsed in that inspired moment the glory of His sonship in all that it means. It was A REVELATION OF JESUS CHRIST!
After the Lord Jesus ascended into the heavens, He remained hidden behind the cloud that had received Him on the mount of Olives. When He came back in mighty spirit-power on the day of Pentecost to indwell His people on earth, He still, for the most part, has remained hidden behind the veil of the carnal mind, behind the selfhood of our natural life, and behind the traditions and forms of religion. But on Patmos, to John, there comes THE REVELATION to unveil Him! From this we understand that all that pertains to this writing of John is to reveal, to uncover Jesus Christ. All that has been hidden or obscured to our thinking, consciousness, understanding or experience of Him is to be plainly grasped and made a glorious and eternal reality. As the scenes depicted in the book are experienced truly and spiritually within our lives, Jesus Christ emerges within our reality demonstrating in and through us the fullness of His nature, character, love, wisdom, power and abilities. Understood as the revelation of Jesus Christ in and through His body, immediately the book is changed from a prophecy of apocalyptic end-time events, to a progressive unfolding of the very life, victory and triumph of Christ in His elect and unto creation! With the increasing light of the Holy Spirit of Truth shining upon its pages, we are entering into more and more of its hidden truths, howbeit, we have much yet to learn of the full and complete vision. But be assured that in very truth every scene within the book, of the woes, thunders, trumpets, earthquakes, conflicts, vials, beasts, etc., in all their sundry manifestations, serve but one purpose, and contribute but to one end, namely, to bring forth THE REVELATION OF JESUS CHRIST IN ALL THE SONS OF GOD.
As this revelation comes to its magnificent conclusion in this great Day of the Lord, HE shall stand revealed, uncovered, seen, touched, experienced, expressed and manifested unto the unbounded heavens! "We don’t know what we shall become in the future. We only know that, if reality were to break through, we should reflect His likeness, for we should see Him as He really is!" (I Jn. 3:2). Reality shall break through! And we shall be like Him! "Wherefore, gird up the loins of your mind, be sober, and hope to the end for the grace that is to be brought unto you at the revelation of Jesus Christ" (I Pet. 1:13). Paul writes of "waiting for the coming (revelation) of our Lord Jesus Christ: who shall confirm you unto the end, blameless in the day of our Lord Jesus Christ" (I Cor. 1:7-9). There is a grace that is brought to us by the revelation of our Lord, it is a grace which will climax all the processings and travail, bringing us into the ultimate realm of His glory — the fullness of His abundant life. God is faithful! He is confirming unto the end all those blessed ones who have received the call to separation unto Him, to follow the Lamb whithersoever He goeth, to be conformed to His image, to put on His mind, to be sons who reign with Him in His kingdom. He has confirmed you, precious called one, unto full redemption of the purchased possession — complete salvation in spirit, soul and body — the unveiling of HIS LIFE!
BETTER ALONE WITH CHRIST THAN A KING WITHOUT HIM
By Elwin Roach
"When Jesus therefore perceived that they would come and take Him by force, to make Him a king, He departed again into a mountain...ALONE" (John 6:15). Rather than Jesus seeking a ministry (a kingdom), He sought His Father, and not in the crowds of meetings, but in a mountain A-L-O-N-E.
Jesus was never in a rush to preach. If anything He was a reluctant preacher. He never sought His own, and rather than setting Himself up as a leader, He took up the role of a servant, making Himself of no reputation (Phil 2:7). Contrary to what would seem to be the best thing to do, He always did the will of His Father. Even when people were seemingly in dire need of healing, He only acted when He heard His Father speak, saw Him first do it, or it was something He had been taught: "I can of Mine own self do nothing: as I hear, I judge..." (John 5:30). "...and I speak ...those things which I have heard of Him" (John 8:26). "I speak that which I have seen with my Father..." (John 8:38). "I do nothing of Myself; but as My Father hath taught Me..." (John 8:28).
Moreover, when Jesus was alone in the mountain He was never truly alone; for He that had sent Him was always with Him. He said, "the Father hath not left Me alone..." and the reason He was never alone was because He always did that which pleased His Father. He pleased Him when He was doing nothing, and He pleased Him when He was busy teaching; for everything He did was the will of His Father.
Some believe they have to be preaching for the anointing that abides in them to be present. But I can tell you today, Jesus did not have to feed the thousands, heal the sick, or raise the dead for the anointing of His Father to be present. It was always present. From the solitude of the mountain to the feeding of thousands, He had with Him the anointing of His Father.
We have heard so often that we as Christians should step out in faith, and God will meet the needs. I doubt that Jesus ever stepped out in what many call faith, expecting the needs to be met; for He was not a presumptuous Son, but a Son of obedience.
Sadly, we see certain ones rising in their own carnal might and their flesh glistening with the oil of pride. They claim the name of Jesus as their authority; but He is far from them. He will not endorse their bricklaying efforts of building their own kingdoms. Rather than repenting from such revolts and turning to the Kingdom of God, which is at hand, they continue to draw attention to their own personalities and religious abilities. In their hour of glory it is assumed that without them the job won’t get done. I fear they have never known the Lord they claim to serve.
People steeped in such self-styled ministries remind me of an admonition our Lord gave to those of similar motivation:
"Not every one that saith unto Me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the Kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of My Father which is in heaven. Many will say to Me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Thy name? and in Thy name have cast out devils? and in Thy name done many wonderful works? And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from Me, ye that work iniquity" (Mat 7:21-23).
The Lord does not need, nor want, men’s enterprises in His Kingdom. Furthermore, if the stones would cry out in high praise and worship to Jesus, due to men not doing so, I doubt that He would be at a loss if every ministry we know, good and bad alike, suddenly dried and withered away. I for one, know beyond a shadow of doubt, if The Pathfinder ceased to be this very moment — Jesus would not be held back or hindered for a second. His Kingdom will continue on with or without me. It is not that He needs me to minister His word, He wants me to do it, at least for today. For reasons known by Him alone, He chose this unlikely vessel to share a small fraction of the abounding riches He holds in store. Not only that, the only way I will continue sowing these few seeds is if I continue to please Him — and that is my heart’s desire, to please Him. His pleasure is my pleasure. The fact is, if He is not pleased with me, it matters not what I am doing or not doing, there will be no pleasure in my heart either. Only when He rises up with joy in me can I know joy.
Therefore, my friend, let us be sure to know — IT IS FAR BETTER TO BE ALONE WITH CHRIST THAN TO BE A KING WITHOUT HIM. When this is the heartbeat of our souls, we will hear Him say — WELL DONE MY GOOD AND FAITHFUL SON IN WHOM I AM WELL PLEASED!
Excerpt from WELL DONE MY GOOD AND FAITHFUL SON
BEHOLDING HIS BEAUTY
by Ray Prinzing
"One thing have I desired of the Lord, that will I seek after; that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to behold the beauty of the Lord, and to enquire in His temple." (Psalm 27:4)
Well spoken are the words of the Psalmist, "Turn my eyes away from looking upon unreality." Moffatt adds another facet, "turn mine eyes from cravings vain." Vanity, unreality, cravings vain - surely this describes the things of this world, and satisfaction is not be be found in their realm.
The writer to the Hebrews, speaking of God's purposed position for man, how that everything is to be put in subjection under him, stated, "But now we see not yet all things put under him. BUT WE SEE JESUS... (Hebrews 2:8-9). IN HIM we behold all the triumph that is ultimately to be ours, when we are complete in Him. Note these words, "we see," they do not signify natural sight, viewing visible things, but rather that INNER VISION, as we perceive that He is indeed Lord of all.
It is in harmony with this spiritual eyesight that we have at least part of the fulfillment of what Jesus said, "Yet a little while, and the world seeth Me no more; BUT YE SEE ME," (John 14:19). We see Him, not after the flesh, but by the spirit, and the more we behold Him, the greater the change wrought within. For, "with open face beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord, are changed into the same image from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord." (2 Corinthians 3:18).
There are changes being made even now, as we SEE HIM, with each revelation used to further the transformation process, but that process shall have a climax - for "now are we the children of God, and it does not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when He shall appear, we shall be like Him; FOR WE SHALL SEE HIM AS HE IS." (1 John 3:2).
Behold the beauty of the Lord, to know Him as He is,
This is the challenge to my heart, till I am fully His.
THE FELLOWSHIP OF HIS SUFFERINGS
By John Gavazzoni
As we are being prepared to rule and reign with Him, we are often reminded by scripture that we shall reign with Him if we suffer WITH Him (II Tim. 2:12), that is, in the Spirit of Christ, we suffer in the way that He suffered, willingly and obediently, permitting the attack knowing that it is the way to the throne. How quick we are to call upon the God of power and authority to come and deliver us from our hardships. We do not pause to consider that there is a season of whatever duration where Christ in us will, with majestic sovereignty, yield to the hardship awaiting in faith the precise moment of the Father's choosing to deliver us. This is the kingdom in action. It's action does not begin with deliverance, it is in force even before the deliverance. This dimension of our walk with God plays itself out not only in the very obvious high-profile times of testing but also in the everyday relationships with those around us and particularly those closest to us. We are often the object of the anger that issues forth from the hurt of those with whom we rub elbows everyday as they give vent to their frustration that God has left them with unfilled hearts. We are always dealing with one another out of a need to have our needs met and we either passively or aggressively take out our resentments toward God on one another.
Recently, as I became aware once again of this syndrome, I suddenly understood the marvelous opportunity in all of those instances of human interplay, to not refuse the violence directed at me but to patiently endure it with Christ and bear, with Him, the sin that is a result of alienation from His love. You know, dear saint, that you are called upon to bear the sins of others in union with Him and that this is the kingdom of God in action. In each of the moments that seem to be the antithesis of kingdom ruling we are actually being prepared to enter the next level of ruling with Him.
"And from the days of John the Baptist until now the kingdom of heaven suffers violence .....". From its annunciation to its manifestation, it is the nature of the kingdom and the nature of those who make up that kingdom to permit assault. The verse goes on to say, "....and violent men take it by force." We, with violence in our hearts, take matters into our own hands because it seems obvious to us that things are out of control and we must act to save the situation. And though we do it in the guise of prayer and affirmations of kingdom authority we are actually seizing the kingdom by force for our purposes and to make God do our bidding. Those who would be co-deliverers with Christ will know both how to yield and how to attack. We must yield to the Father as it pleases Him to bruise us and when we are perfected by the things that we suffer we will be able to go to the attack mode in our perfected priesthood and exercise the kind of authority and power against which the gates of hell shall not prevail and to declare deliverance to the captives of sin and Hades.
The sister passage in Lk 16:16 tells us that "everyone is forcing his way into it" (the kingdom). God's way into His kingdom is by rebirth and that by grace, but in the same sense that Jesus spoke of the thief and robber who enters the sheepfold, not through the door as the true shepherd does, but by climbing up some other way (interesting choice of words by the Lord, "climbing up," self exertion and assertion for it's own purposes of theft). So there is a sense in which, paradoxically, though one can only truly enter the kingdom by being born from above there are those who enter the kingdom in its present appearance by their own force and for their own thieving gain.
Historically, in the Church's expression of the kingdom, we have the classic example of Emperor Constantine forcing his way into the kingdom, in spite of what some may claim, to seize it for His own purposes and to mix it with heathen religion so as to give himself a firmer base of rule by attempting to unite two forces; the spiritual power of the early church and the superstitious needs of pagan subjects of the Roman Empire. In so forcing himself into the kingdom, to the degree that he was successful, the organism ceased really to be the kingdom and became the spiritual hybrid that still exists today in Christianity. The high priest who asserted the necessity of crucifying Christ did so in order to save the Jewish nation and did so with prophecy on his lips (Jn. 11:50-51). Judas forced his way into the kingdom for his own purposes by arranging for our Lord's capture (doing the work of the kingdom at each step) and in all, the kingdom of God ruled and does rule today even as it permitted and permits such acts of perfidy.
May the Lord bless us with the fellowship of His sufferings being made conformable unto His death.
Excerpts from SEIZING THE KINGDOM
The Black Youth for Social Innovation (BYSI) program, is helping to address a disparity in mentorship opportunities available to Black youth. The program is made up of 10 students, along with their mentors and it continues to grow.
The program's Midpoint Symposium, was held at the Timms Centre for the Arts, on July 22 and brought together mentors, mentees, educators and community leaders, to showcase their collaborative efforts. Young leaders who are making significant change in Edmonton were recognized at the event.
Linda Hoang presents her weekly update on where to go, what to see & do, where to eat, etc., etc. in her latest Lindork's Lists
Community Leagues in Edmonton are opposed to the reapplication of a Camrose Casino to relocate to the Summerside area. The initial application was rejected by Alberta Gaming, Liquor and Cannabis (AGLC) in 2022. The Edmonton Federation of Community Leagues (EFCL) has raised concerns about the impact on gaming revenues for its community leagues.
Edmonton charities currently wait an average of 23 months to host an event and earn an average of $41,500. In comparison Camrose charities currently wait an average of 41 months to host an event and earn an average of $6,100. I think these comparisons suggest its safe to surmise that it all about the $$$$.#
On Thursday, Arts, Culture and Status of Women Minister Tanya Fir on behalf of the Alberta Government announced that the former Royal Alberta Museum (Ram) would be demoloished. The old building was built in 1965 and closed in 2015.
The estimated cost of demolishing the old building would be $22 million - $48 million and the cost of “deferred maintenance on the structure is estimated to be $75 million.” Officials said Alberta Infrastructure currently “absorbs over $700,000 in operating and maintenance costs annually” for the vacant building. The old museum will be demolished while Government House and the Carriage House will remain standing at the site. The Alberta government has posted a survey on its website that Albertans can fill out to provide their thoughts on what the new green space should look like. People have until Aug. 30 to fill out the survey.
The cost to repurpose the building for another use would have been at least $150 million, including the deferred maintenance cost.
Woodvale is an active community, and you can keep up to activities by checking the Woodvale Community League Newsletter.
This year marks the 48th anniversary of Edmonton's Heritage Days Festival, which is the world's largest three-day multiculturalism celebration. Due to the renovations at Hawrelak Park, this year's festival has for the second time been relocated to the Edmonton Exhibition Lands and Borden Parks. There will be 69 pavilions participating at the festival — an increase from the 64 that participated in 2023. Attendees to this year's festival can expect a variety of upgrades to beat the heat, new pavilions and transit options.
The Canadian Federation of Independent Business (CFIB) and the Stony Plain Road Business Association (SPRBA) are calling on the mayor and city council to provide financial assistance to businesses that have been impacted by projects that are disruptive to their operations. The two groups say 25 businesses have been forced to close due to ongoing construction.
In a double whammy, in addition to the losses incurred due to construction, the same businesses have faced the 8.9% average property tax increase approved by City Council and said to be needed to pay for additional services Edmontonians rely on every day. What a slap in the face!
NOW
By Lloyd Ellefson
The fulfillment of the spiritual realities in Christ as revealed in the scriptures, has to come to us today - in the NOW - not yesterday, nor tomorrow! NOW is the day of salvation! It's not tomorrow; for yesterday's tomorrow is today. When tomorrow comes, it's today; it's NOW! Yesterday is past; tomorrow is not here. We live in the NOW. We are living in whatever sense of being we have NOW. It has to change NOW by the enlightenment of Christ - not tomorrow. Christ comes to us as the mind of the Spirit. He is a teacher; He is an anointing that teaches us things that the natural man cannot see, for man cannot see beyond the veil.
Jesus does not come tomorrow; He comes today. If we expect Him in the days, months or years to come, this time will never come, for He can only come to us today, in the now. As long as people predict that Jesus will come physically in the sky some day, it will always be a future event; it will never come, because that is not the way He comes. He comes IN THE NOW. The rapture, tribulation and millenium are not coming in the sense in which they are generally understood and preached. No rapture, tribulation, nor millenium will come tomorrow. They come in Christ and are fulfilled in Him because HE is the fulfillment of the law and the prophets. Christ is the sum of all things!
Though man would like to extol his accomplishments or offices, it is not good for him to do this. He gives himself credit for his achievements. He may think he has become a little better by receiving the Holy Spirit, or by becoming a preacher, etc. This culminates in labelling himself as pastor, teacher, evangelist, etc. If he is legalistic, he will proclaim his do's and don'ts, his virtues, his constant prayer life, and his readiness for Jesus to come and rapture him away. However this is not good. Eventually our inner integrity will deny it, because every man in his inner being knows (and he has to know), that he has failed God and will do so again. He also needs a hope for the future.
Jesus Christ is NOW! This undoes the whole system of rationalization. When we receive and retain the things of Christ in our own nature, they remain in mortality. If the realities in the Bible only come into our realm of reason, they do not come into life; they do not produce life, nor do they last. Christians will not live that way; they live by the Christ who is their life! He is their life NOW, because He is the same yesterday, today, and forever. If we receive Him as our life, the change to become like Him begins by the fact of Him being here NOW.