Where are we going? We are returning to the heights from which we have fallen, reattaching to the heart of our Beloved. Fitting that the Holy Spirit would choose John the Beloved and Revelator to write to the Church of Ephesus this message from God the Father, delivered to him by an Angel, “To the angel (divine messenger) of the church in Ephesus write: These are the words of the One who holds [firmly] the seven stars [which are the angels or messengers of the seven churches] in His right hand, the One who walks among the seven golden lampstands (the seven churches): ‘I know your deeds and your toil, and your patient endurance, and that you cannot tolerate those who are evil, and have tested and critically appraised those who call themselves apostles (special messengers, personally chosen representatives, of Christ), and [in fact] are not, and have found them to be liars and impostors; and [I know that] you [who believe] are enduring patiently and are bearing up for My name’s sake, and that you have not grown weary [of being faithful to the truth]. But I have this [charge] against you, that you have left your first love [you have lost the depth of love that you first had for Me]. So remember the heights from which you have fallen, and repent [change your inner self—your old way of thinking, your sinful behavior—seek God’s will] and do the works you did at first [when you first knew Me]; otherwise, I will visit you and remove your lampstand (the church, its impact) from its place—unless you repent. Yet you have this [to your credit], that you hate the works and corrupt teachings of the Nicolaitans [that mislead and delude the people], which I also hate. He who has an ear, let him hear and heed what the Spirit says to the churches. To him who overcomes [the world through believing that Jesus is the Son of God], I will grant [the privilege] to eat [the fruit] from the tree of life, which is in the Paradise of God.” Revelation 2:1-7 AMP
Ephesus is a Greek word that can be translated as “desirable” or “darling” and one that a Greek bridegroom would use for a girl he desired to marry (footnotes TPT). Symbolically, the Church continues to be called higher, wooed by the Holy Spirit to arise and meet with her Beloved Bridegroom King. I believe the global Church is moving from “knowing” to “experiencing” in this next season. Recently while studying scripture, asking the Lord for a plumbline for my own experiences, and inquiring about this next year, I heard in the Spirit “knowledge without experience is void of intimacy” (December 17, 2021). Experiencing what we know through encounter will set ablaze our hearts for this One who desires to marry us.
The call of the Bridegroom is beckoning each one of our hearts, “come up here”. When we repent – turn from facing idols and chasing foxes and all that hinders us from His fiery love we are restored to the highest heights that are reserved for devoted lovers of His presence. A place intended for all, but a climb few are willing to trek. Repent simply means turn and come back up to the penthouse, be restored to the higher way of thinking and living. In both realms, spirit or natural a penthouse or mountain top will provide the best views, the most privacy, and the least amount of noise or distraction. In the natural, penthouses are financially the most costly to own or rent. They are defined as an apartment or dwelling situated on the roof of a building, or top floor. Likewise, spiritually dwelling here is costly as well, as the Psalmist writes, “Who may ascend into the hill of the Lord? Or who may stand in His holy place? He who has clean hands and a pure heart, Who has not lifted up his soul to an idol, Nor sworn deceitfully. He shall receive blessing from the Lord, And righteousness from the God of his salvation. This is Jacob, the generation of those who seek Him, Who seek Your face. Selah” Psalms 24:3-6 NKJV.
A life of yieldedness is costly, though as I often encourage it is in the yielding that we yield.PRODUCE defined is to give birth or rise to: YIELD; to oversee the making of; to cause to have existence or to happen: BRING ABOUT; to give being, form, or shape to: MAKE; the amount produced: YIELD; agricultural products and especially fresh fruits and vegetables as distinguished from grain and other staple crops. You can only produce good and acceptable fruit from the seed of intimacy. The seed of intimacy is reserved for the devoted lovers, those who experience Who they know. Those who know the Beloved by experience are the betrothed, and some are already married sons and daughters who have been overshadowed by the Almighty – these chosen ones are the continual dwellers of His presence and the keepers of covenant.
The spark must first be restored, and then we will experience the flames of first love – after “doing the works we did when we first knew Him”. November 16, 2021 in a prophetic dream the Lord showed me a new apostolic marriage movement marked by creative miracles, fire, and glory. The dream began with myself wrapped in a single white sheet and walking over to a sleeping mat also with a white fitted and single sheet and pillow with case that was in the middle of the “family room”. I knew this is where I was going to sleep for one or more nights until this brief assignment was over. I asked the owner of the home who is also a respected and well-known Apostle in our current day if I could ask her a question. We then left her vacation home and she took me to a church that didn’t necessarily resemble a church from the exterior and we entered from the outside from a lower level which was the foundation of the Church. People in attendance, (made up of many couples and some singles too) started to dance in a train line and made their way over to where I was sitting on the opposite side in the front of the church. After I was in the back in a slightly separate room with an open doorway to the sanctuary with several others waiting to go out and fully be part of this train movement (trains in the prophetic are symbolic of the apostolic). While we were waiting I was praying for couples and seeing creative miracles, things non-existent with the human eye become visible in the natural as I decreed and “drew in the air” with my left hand. The living substance that was released from my left hand was glowing, fiery, living, and sparkly. Left-handed in this instance represents the creative miracles as the right hemisphere of one’s brain coordinates the left side of the body, and performs tasks that have to do with creativity and the arts. Fire and glory were also being released for this new end-time movement. The Lord is bringing us back to our foundations to purify us for the sanctified global Church rising. “You are built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets with Christ Jesus Himself the chief Cornerstone.” Ephesians 2:20 AMPC.
It is not a coincidence that marriage and family will lead the end-time revival movement with fire and glory. Why wouldn’t marriage lead when that is what Christ is returning for? Furthermore, Christ is returning for a pure and spotless Bride, one who has cleansed herself from the stains and sin of this world, therefore fire is necessary for continual purification at the foundation and also denotes passionate lovers who carry plenty of oil who burn brightly for their Bridegroom King. As the Deliverer-Prophet Moses boldly asked, “show me your glory” while atop the mountain, so is glory symbolic of intimate face-to-face encounter and a commitment to go only where the Lord would lead (Exodus 33). These presence people will be marked by fire around them and glory in their midst. “For I,’ says the Lord, ‘will be a wall of fire all around her, and I will be the glory in her midst.’ ” Zechariah 2:5 NKJV. Before this movement can fully launch I believe the Lord is restoring the spark individually within hearts; between themselves and the Lord and secondly within marital relationships. Healing not yet imagined will transpire between men and women and will be so freeing that the true hearts “longing for the Beloved” will be tangibly and authentically expressed through purity in unity within marriage and with God.
Near the end of this dream, I offered to pray for a woman sitting on the floor who happened to be wearing brown boots. She kept insisting “tomorrow”, though I knew in the dream it had to be then. The invitation for this radical impartation and transformation was a “now moment”, tomorrow would be too late. And sadly, she declined. Tomorrow may not come for some, and it is a critical hour to stay in step and heed the Spirit’s call. Respond and call back to the sound of His wooing voice. The brown boots represent walking in humility, but unfortunately, they were not utilized. It is humility to allow the Spirit to lift you, we must not wait to be strong enough “get up on our own”. The Lord desires to strengthen you, for it is not by works but by grace you have been saved. “Call to Me and I will answer you, and tell you [and even show you] great and mighty things, [things which have been confined and hidden], which you do not know and understand and cannot distinguish.” Jeremiah 33:3.
“Then suddenly, after I wrote down these messages, I saw a portal open into the heavenly realm, and the same trumpet-voice I heard speaking with me at the beginning said, “Ascend into this realm! I want to reveal to you what must happen after this.” Revelation 4:1 TPT
Can you hear the voice of your Bridegroom King calling? ‘My Darling, My desired one – the one I long to marry and who My soul loves – come now and change your mind, you have fallen from the heights and forgotten the depths of my unfailing love. Come up here my fair one, great and mighty things I have yet to show you. Unity with Me allows you to experience My love where you are wholly complete, secure, and transformed. You’ve been conditioning for the climb, will you come now and be with Me’?
“The one I love calls to me: Arise, my dearest. Hurry, my darling. Come away with me! I have come as you have asked to draw you to my heart and lead you out. For now is the time, my beautiful one.” Song of Songs 2:10 TPT
Written by Amy Sutherland
This is an updated edition of a post originally published on ablazeglobalproductions
Featured Image by Pexels from Pixabay
