If you had walked into the Remnant Fellowship Church Sanctuary or joined us on the webcast this past Saturday, May 18th, you would have seen quite the sight in everyone’s ATTIRE. Everyone wore light colors – white, ecru, and khaki. Why? Was this some “fashion” statement like the Kentucky Derby (where HATS abound) or a Hollywood awards show (where the designers dress the stars in their finest creations)? No…this wasn’t any kind of fashion statement. This was a show of UNITY and PURITY before GOD. We wore those light colors to reflect the state of our HEARTS and our COMMITMENTS to having a pure Covenant relationship with the GOD of the Universe. We wore them as a sign of being wholeheartedly devoted to LOVING GOD and being focused upon His Church…His Kingdom. This was a show of support for His Ten Commandments, His ways, and His Truth. In short, it was an HONOR to display our dedication to GOD…and as the saying goes – to “wear our hearts on our sleeves.”
How we arrived and prepared was only the START of what this day was about. After an opening time of praise in song, we turned our minds and hearts to words of Truth, as delivered by Remnant Fellowship and Weigh Down founder Gwen Shamblin. This revelational message set the stage for the events to come. Here are some of those powerful words…
Words from Gwen…
“The world is desperate for a revelation from their Creator – a revelation is the penetration of God into history – into the life of man. From Mt. Sinai, the finger of God carved the stone tablets as the words to the Covenant—a binding agreement between Israel and God. At Mt Zion, God poured out His Spirit on the righteous men and launched THE Church – The Kingdom of God – and 3,000 were baptized on that day. This Kingdom defies logic, it defies conventional reason. A Kingdom based on… Communication from the Heavens…knowing that it is strategic – valuable – there is not enough money in the world to buy this opportunity of words from the Source of all things – the Omnipotent – and the infrastructure that man needs to live on. These words give us life and direction and purpose. Who wants to be purposeless, directionless? We need these words – this Spirit, this guidance. It is clear that those connected with God lead a different life – all men need God and The Ten Commandments, also called “the Covenant” – agreement, pledge, contract that man needed to remain in good standing with God. Without this Heavenly Covenant offered – there is no opportunity to even connect with the Heavens, without man’s correct response there is no relationship. As dramatic as the volcanic scene was on Mt. Sinai, the real point God was trying to get across was the Ten Commandments, words, because as you meditate deeper into these things – it is beyond a relationship – it is the revelation that man can live only because God has spoken to him. The words of the Covenant were written in stone—something not easily erased—it could not be changed by the hand of wicked men. You knew it was to be revered, cherished, because the people said they would fully obey. Now, how important were these words – God gave instructions for these words to be stored and protected in a golden Ark of the Covenant…”
What an amazing PICTURE this paints! “Pentecost” isn’t just some annual day that involves dressing up in white and going through the motions on a few “ceremonies” of dedication. As Gwen said, this is about “communication from the Heavens.” POWERFUL! But it didn’t stop there. Gwen moved forward in history to the time of Christ. Keep reading…
More Words from Gwen…
“When the Covenant was broken, The Golden Ark did disappear, and under the new Covenant through Christ the words would re-appear on the day of Pentecost. They would come down and be written in the mind—and stored in something even more golden—the pure hearts of righteous men…or women or children. Now “the glory,” God’s Spirit, would be in the soul, and now the Cherubim are near each soul, protecting the words in the focus of man. Now these words and the glory in the form of the Holy Spirit is in the heart and it goes before a righteous man, giving him authority, and leaves healing and miracles in its wake. The sacrificial life of Christ ushered a brand new rendezvous of God and mankind – God descending once again on the very same day – the very ultimate uniting of man to God – from the Heavens to the Earth – the presence of God, this cloud or Holy Spirit of God sitting not on the golden mercy seat but sitting on the hearts of golden men and women and children… the powerful Spirit given to those that love with all their heart. They love – that is the golden heart. See, it is not a mountain of fire – but we are baptized with fire and it is the powerful Spirit of God in us – to draw us near, and God guides us into all Truth that the world cannot see.”
“…the powerful Spirit given to those that love with all their heart.”
With explanations like these, this special day and what it means makes SO much more SENSE. GOD is reaching out to men, women, and children who WANT to OBEY and KEEP this Covenant relationship with Him. It is the privilege of ALL privileges…in all of Creation…to have this offer extended by GOD to us!
More Words from Gwen…
“Yes… the old is gone, archaic. The new has come – the old Covenant will never exist again – no matter if the world preaches once saved always saved, it is not going to happen. But God’s Conditions that have never changed – that is why the Old Testament and the Prophets are not what is obsolete – What is obsolete, what was Paul referring to? What is obsolete is getting away with half-hearted Christianity, half-hearted responses, unfaithful responses. What is obsolete is loving something on this Earth more than loving God. It is obsolete. You can no longer do it. You are under no contract. You have no Covenant. Jesus said He came to fulfill the Law and the Prophets to usher in a faithful response with no adultery of the heart – no sin – no loving food over God. You have no contract if that is where you are. No loving money over God, loving self, being lazy, selfish, self-centered. You must not push your way into the Church; you cannot buy God or His Holy Spirit. You cannot casually get this by just coming each week and sitting on a pew – you must sell it all to get this pearl of great value. It is your morning, it is your noon, your night, it is your everything. You receive God’s Spirit by hating your old life in the world of selfish desires and then living for God first, foremost, alone. God and man bound together in love sets off a chain reaction that has more potential than the atomic bomb, much less the walls of Jericho coming down. It is more powerful than you can think or imagine—God in you—it is formidable; it is defeating spiritual warfare and enemies; it is commanding; parting the waters of Spiritual Warfare. It is prevailing; it blesses the soul. It is influential as it transforms a human into a positive, joyful, full-of-love eternal being. It is power.”
AMEN! Having an understanding of the Covenant with THOSE words properly set up the remainder of our Assembly time – starting with our most experienced members…as the experienced MEN stood on Stage and recited the Lord’s TEN COMMANDMENTS. This was a powerful display of unity that set an example for all of us! Next, we moved to our youngest babies and continued through the Youth and up through our Graduates. Parents dedicated their precious babies (ages 2 and under) to the Lord. Our 13-year old Youth members were “confirmed” before the Saints, declaring that they are ready to move into the next phase of their young lives and be more accountable and responsible for their OWN personal relationships with GOD. Then we honored and recognized our high school and college graduates. These young Saints have reached important milestones in their lives, achieving a diploma or degree. And they too are committed to studying, working, and living for GOD. The day, the message, these ceremonies…ALL of them had such deep MEANING and SIGNIFICANCE for all of us. And when we dismissed, the fellowship and celebration of this PURITY with all of the Saints continued as we enjoyed a Meal together. We thank GOD for this opportunity. We praise GOD for the Pentecost and what it means! We are forever grateful for the words of Truth that explain GOD’S will to us. See some of the highlights for yourself…and JOIN US when we meet again!
