[Anatomy of a Nation in Decline] 08 – Reference Point: God is Sovereign, Part 4

8/3/2019 [Anatomy of a Nation in Decline] 08 Reference Point: God is Sovereign, Part 4

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2012SCOTT WEBSTER MINISTRIES. Page 1 of 5

P r o p h e t i c B r i e f

Anatomy of a Nation in Decline - Part 8

Reference Point God is Sovereign #4

Evidence that the economic meltdown continues to impact life in the U.S. iseverywhere. The school district for Cobb County, located on the northwestside of Atlanta where I live, is facing a $72 million deficit for the next fiscalyear. Foreclosures are still battering the real estate market causing a furtherdecline in property tax revenue, while at the same time costs are rising:health insurance, salary increases and rising pension payments. CobbCounty is the 2nd largest school district in the state (26th in the nation) with114 schools, more than 100,000 students and nearly 6,000 teachers - they

are looking at being at least 10% underfunded in the next fiscal year andthey have to make cuts. The onset of economic chaos is a sign of theSovereignty of God. God is completely in control, and since long beforethere was a nation called the United States or a Cobb County in metroAtlanta, He has been managing the earth towards a set of outcomes thathave always existed in His mind.

As believers living in 2011 we have to know this Sovereign God, and wemust see how His purposes are coming to pass in the daily life of our towns,cities and the nations of the earth. Harrisburg, the capital of Pennsylvania,recently declared bankruptcy. Elsewhere the City of Long Beach cancelledits annual float in the Rose Bowl parade, an event it had participated inevery year for nearly nine decades. But with a $43 million gap in its $400

million budget the float was one of the things to get cut. It just doesntrank high on a priority list during times like this, Mayor Bob Foster said.I dont relish the decision, but I dont think people are going to argue thatwe should keep a float when we are cutting libraries. And Occupy protesters threaten to show up 40,000 strong along the parade route to blanket the area with their message that not everything is coming uproses.

The economic crisis hasnt caught God by surprise and in fact it is not areason to panic even though we see the impact of it on nearly every level.God is at work in the earth and in addition to judging the carnal economicorder that contradicts His Kingdom. He is also exposing the false apostolicorder while at the same time he is releasing true apostolic ministry, which

has arisen and flourished in the last few decades. When the global economyis melting down and merchants and kings are crying out, the church is beingrenovated and comprehensively built by the anointing or dimension ofChrist that is apostolic.

Rejoice Saints, Apostles and Prophets!

Revelation 18:20 Rejoice over her, O heaven! Rejoice, saints andapostles and prophets!

In a time of crisis, there is functional apostolic leadership that is reforming

New Video Series

We are living in an unmatched time

in the earth; a time when crisis is

erupting through natural disasters,

pol i t ical destabi l izat ion, and

economic meltdown.

Politicians and religious leaders areall weighing in on these events, but

they dont seem to have the

answers to a world in intense

distress, and are rightly wondering:

What in the World

is Going On?

In this series of Prophetic Briefs,

Scott Webster addresses questions

that are on peoples minds, andbrings prophetic perspective to the

events happening in the earth

today, so that we can stand

effectively in a day when so many

things are falling apart.

View the full six episodes in the

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On atscottwebsterministries.org.

ISSUE 501 JANUARY 4TH 2012

Insight and Analysis for the 21st Century
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and building the church. The mention of apostles (plural) indicates that a

primary feature of life at the end of time is an apostolic company livingpowerfully in the earth. Functional means the apostolic dimension is ableto be imparted from the apostle (individual person called and gifted byGod) to the wider church (corporate body which needs divine resource).These apostles are not intent on creating a large following or buildingpersonal profile after all, that would make them just like Babylon whichis falling all around them. Their God ordained mission and their deep heartdesire is to reform the church and build people who are strong andestablished.

The Apostolic Strengthens the People

Acts 14:21 They preached the good news in that city and won a largenumber of disciples. Then they returned to Lystra, Iconium and Antioch, 22strengthening (sterizo) the disciples and encouragingthem to remain true to the faith. "We must go through many hardshipsto enter the kingdom of God," they said.

1 Thessalonians 3:2 We sent Timothy, who is our brother and God's fellow worker in spreading the gospel of Christ, to strengthen(sterizo) and encourage you in your faith, 3 so that no one would beunsettled by these trials. You know quite well that we were destinedfor them.

A word that describes apostolic building issterizo and it means to turn one

resolutely in a certain direction, to render them constant, to secure andstabilize the mind. The word describes the process by which a thingbecomes structurally correct so that it can take pressure and not break. Theimplication is of a pillar that can bear a load and not warp or fracture.Being made into a strong pillar is a process of development, and it is adirect result of existing within a strong apostolic community and receivingimpartation from apostolic grace.

The word is used repeatedly to describe the efforts of Paul and theapostolic company as they ministered to the people. They built (sterizo) thepeople in Syria and Cilicia (Acts 15:41), Galatia and Phrygia (Acts 18:23),

1 Thessalonians 3:2 (NIV)

We sent Timothy, who isour brother and God's f e l l o w w o r k e r i n spreading the gospel of

Christ, to strengthen(sterizo) and encourage you in your faith, 3 sothat no one would beunsett led by thesetrials. You know quitewell that we weredestined for them.


In many cases the birthingof an apostolic order wascouched within systems oftraditional church values,high levels of ignorance andsome degree of humanambition and pride. In otherwords Babylonian valueshad already infiltrated thementalities of the churchand began to corrupt it

from the start of thep r e s e n t a p o s t o l i c reformation. Conversely,o t h e r s ha ve ha d anauthentic journey towardsdiscovering true apostolicleadership and functionality,and they have been activelyreforming and building thechurch into a more accurateexpression of the Kingdom.

The two (true and falseapos t l e s ) have growntogether like wheat andtares for the last severaldecades, and this season of

global economic crisis is atime of assessment andrejection of the false (Rev18, Mt 13:41-43).


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and in Derbe, Lystra, Iconium and Antioch (Acts 14:20-21). Pauls desire to go to Rome was so that the peoplewould be established (sterizo) (Romans 1:11 & 16:25). Their vast geographic spread was not intended to impresspeople by the number of nations invaded or quantity of churches planted, because once again that is Babylonian.Their quest for the nations was to breach the carnal definitions imposed by men regarding nation, culture andethnicity and build from amongst every people a glorious body of Christ that looked like Him.

True apostolic building produces people who can withstand crisis. The impartation empowered those in the earlychurch to go through many hardships to enter the Kingdom of God (Acts 14:21). The heart of the apostolic is toensure that the people are strong, especially as the return of the Lord draws near: May he strengthen (sterizo)your hearts so that you will be blameless and holy in the presence of our God and Father when our Lord Jesuscomes with all his holy ones (1 Thessalonians 3:13). There is a so that, or a reason behind apostolicimpartation: to present powerful, pure saints who can stand blameless before the Lord when He comes. Becausebelievers are aware of what is happening, they are required to walk through the crisis, and they are equipped to doso because they have received apostolic impartation and are not unsettled by these trials, for we know quite wellwe were destined for them (1 Thessalonians 3:3). They understand the purpose of the crisis God is judgingBabylon and there must be a powerful church standing victoriously upon the earth as God moves against thesystems of the earth.

A Conversation with Pastors

I have written about how crisis is occurring here in Atlanta and also in Harrisburg, PA and Long Beach, CA. Wehave churches in all those locations, and I thought it would be interesting and helpful to see how the impartationof apostolic grace is empowering these leaders and their churches in this day of crisis. What follows is aconversation with two men who lead churches in our apostolic network: Raleigh Wingfield leads Zion Assemblyin Harrisburg, PA and David Copp leads City at the Cross in Long Beach, CA.

Scott: Welcome to SWM and the Prophetic Briefs guys! Lets get right into it. Describe how you came intorelationship with the apostolic network that we all labor within.

Raleigh: I have a background in a Pentecostal denomination, and I left that

denomination in 1985 to plant a new church that is now called Zion Assemblyin Harrisburg. God called us out of the old structures so it was like beginning a

journey, in a sense it felt like a place of independence and isolation but that wasa necessary first step. The first few years were spent planting and establishingin peoples minds that we were no longer dependent on the former structures.When you are in a system you seek to conform to it without even realizing youare doing it, so for us it was kind of like a young adult leaving home andlearning how to live on their own.

After going on for a few years we recognized that we wanted to be connected tothe wider body of Christ, and I felt strongly that we needed to have correct

relationship but I had no idea where to find it. I told the congregation that we had to look for this and believe for itand that we would know it when we found it. I read Pauls letters about his relationships with the churches and Itold the church it would be something like that.



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I was praying and actively looking for these relationships, and a friend ofmine in the city invited me to a meeting where Anderson Williams wasministering (note: Anderson is one of the apostolic leaders of our network).Andy was teaching about the apostolic and how genuine apostles relate toand build within churches and how God designed relationships take you beyond your own strength and resources. Ill never forget it Scott heasked all the pastors who had gathered if you have been in ministry for awhile, you are genuinely called by God but you know there is more; yetdespite your diligent efforts you recognize limitations to your effectiveness the answer to your question is the apostolic.

That was it I knew he was talking to me because that is exactly where Iwas; I talked with Andy and he invited me to visit a meeting of networkleaders and as I met more of the guys and I knew I was home. When I metDr. Woodroffe and spoke to him for a few minutes I could see the quality inhim and its almost like I could see into his inner man how he thought, the motivation of his heart and the graceand ability that God had given him its like I knew him even though we had just met and I knew then I wasjoined by God.

Scott: That is great Raleigh. What a great journey its been for you and your church over the last 15 years. What

about you David, same question how did God lead you to be in relationship in our network?

David: I took over an existing church which was nearly 50 years old. It had

been birthed during a powerful move of the Spirit which strongly emphasizedthe ministries of apostles and prophets so I deeply believed in those gifts givenby God. However, we were frustrated by the inability of the network we were apart of to actually implement the things that had been taught and we no longerfelt that group was home, so my dad led us out of that network in 1997. Oneyear later he enacted a three year process of transition to place me in the role ofSenior Pastor. That began in 1998 and was finalized in the 2000.

Around that time we had a guest speaker who was always talking about a grouphe was affiliated with, and he introduced my dad to Dr. Woodroffe. I think that

meeting was in Florida and my dad couldnt wait to get home to bring a report he called and said this is it, the ones we have been looking for; what we have been hearing about and believingfor all our lives. So of course I had to find out about these guys!

I flew to one of their seminars in Kansas City and met Dr. Woodroffe. I have to say here that I had come out ofsome dysfunctional relationships and battled things in my mind. I dont think it would be saying it too strongly tosay I had some real questions and even fears regarding spiritual authority because I had seen it used so incorrectlynot only in my own experience but I have a lot of pastor friends and I had seen quite a few of them make somemissteps and later regret it.

I really laid low at the seminar and just took it all in. At some point I introduced myself to Dr. Woodroffe and ofcourse he knew of me through my dad. We had a conversation that on one hand was not terribly extensive, butsomehow it was very powerful. I could feel things begin to break and be rearranged inside of me and I realizedthis guy really is an apostle. That began my journey into relationship and connecting.

Scott: thats interesting; you both recognized pretty quickly the importance of the relationship. I know it has takenothers a bit longer to consider and really look into the network.

David: Well the relationship has certainly grown and changed shape. At first it was primarily doctrinal. I sawpowerful teaching about what God was doing in the earth and I wanted that teaching and understanding in mychurch. However, later I realized that I didnt really have an open heart that allowed for depth of relationship. Iwanted the teaching and spiritual resource in my church but I didnt realize the transfer, or impartation, was notprimarily receiving and agreeing with the teaching but a heart relationship with one God had designed for me.


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Scott: Both of you talk about the fact that you were on a journey and were actively looking for relationship withthe apostolic. Im thinking about verses like Psalm 84 where it declares that the man whose heart is set on journeyis blessed because God will give him strength and He will appear before God in Zion in other words he willcome into the fullness of his destiny. There are so many obstacles, both internal (fear, pride, ignorance, etc.) andexternal that try to stop us. Like your statement David about guys who hooked up wrongly and regretted it. Italked to one guy who did exactly that when he described his hopes that turned to despair he said I looked forRachel but I got Leah instead.

To journey our heart must remain hungry, open and we have to walk byfaith. A closed heart might be the first step towards ruin because then Godis no longer leading us. He insists on authentic heart connection with His people. So this commitment to continually journey is essential likeAbraham who refused to build a house, we are saying that no level ofsuccess (or failure) will keep us tied to yesterday, or to a previous move ofGod. That is true even when that move of God delivered life to us. Our journey is not moving from one spiritual camp in the body of Christ toanother, it is a trek towards the destination of Christ-likeness.

Think about how much each of us have changed, Raleigh and David, sincewe came into relationship with the apostolic. The journey was not just to

bring us into this apostolic network, but to bring us into fullness ofmaturity. Migration is one of the key principles of the Kingdom of God!

- More of this conversation will appear in the next Prophetic Brief -


Releasing The New Prophetic Dimension Activating The Capacity To Build Obeying The Command To Finish

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[Anatomy of a Nation in Decline] 08 – Reference Point: God is Sovereign, Part 4

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