Apprehended by Grace: Taking A Stand!
Even when we were dead in trespasses, made us alive together with
Christ (by grace you have been saved) Ephesians 2:5
I have been
apprehended by grace over the past two years. In this, I am taking
a stand in Christ, in me, the hope of glory. Up until now, I have felt somewhat
disconcerted or out of balance. I simply felt myself wavering and wandering at times. In
being apprehended by grace and the revelation of Christ Jesus, some of the things I thought were so true simply are not. Taking
a stand in grace brings with it accusations from other Christians in many ways.
But in the end, I must be true to what God is speaking to for Rivers of Eden
and through me in the coming days.
I have been
apprehended by the revelation of grace. I am simply and solidly saying this loud and clear.
Why? It forms the foundation of Rivers of Eden – who we are and what we
believe. Since our move to SoCal, I have felt somewhat lost and dismayed,
looking around and trying to find my bearings again in life. As I sat in His presence my peace was and is
restored through Christ and Christ alone. The fullness of a grace message shall be coming forth from us from
now on. That will put to rest some ‘sacred cows’ that have been put forth as
truth in the Body of Christ but they are not – they are simply man’s wanderings
in many ways. I do not profess to have all the answers but this grace
journey we are on, will show itself to be real and true. It truly is a new day.
So here goes with our
convictions and beliefs for 2013. I will be posting them daily over the next 5 days and will stand firm in them
in grace and glory, to walk forward with renewed strength and momentum.
Today January 4, 2013
and from now on, Rivers of Eden will be preaching, prophesying, teaching and
walking in the clarity of grace, as it is being revealed to us, in Christ. That
means some things have got to GO and GO they shall. No longer will I, in Christ, look for
anything that implies or dictates to me in any way that I need more than
Christ. That means any and all prayer movements, prophetic conferences, iconic
prophetic leaders and so much more that seek to tell me:
- I need to cry out to God for revival with tears and declarations,
forever begging God to come, or fall down, or make His presence known.
Christ is in me, the hope of Glory and in the finished work of the cross,
there is no need to hype anything up to keep God’s people clinging to DO
more of BE more for Christ. Grace has brought Christians into the reality
of the finished work of the cross. I am a Christian and in me is the
reality of Christ Jesus. I am the revival and the breakthrough that is
needed. I need not wait for the next conference or the next book or some
prophetic leaders’ affirmation. I do not deny that God is raising up
apostles and prophets now and in the coming days but those who will raise
up will be apprehended by grace and the clarity of the Gospel of Jesus
Christ.
- There is no need to mix Old Covenant and New Covenant. We can
glean and learn from the Old Testament but any teaching that denies the
finished work of the cross is not for me as a Christian saved by God’s
grace. That means that I am not of the order of John the Baptist, a
forerunner, after Elijah, walking as David, crying out as Jeremiah and so
much more. Again I would like to say, that I glean and learn from the Old
Testament but my focus is on Christ and some of the Old Testament simply
does not apply to me as a New Testament believer with its laws and rules
so why bring them into play in any way?
- I need no anointing imparted to me through the laying on of hands
in order to BE more or DO more or BECOME more. The days are long gone to rush to the altar at
every conference. I no longer need to listen to every live streaming event to glean something new or seemingly fresh. I am complete in Christ and in His perfection while
at the same time, He is revealing Himself to me day by day and perfecting my character and my life in Him. Perfected and
being perfected in the revelation of who He is in me, through me and to
me. I relish people praying for me and respect those whom God calls to
lead BUT I am in Christ. I also believe in Godly leaders and authority so
what I am saying does not negate the need to walk in humility and grace,
always learning and always growing in Christ.
- I do not any longer follow or ascribe to the whole premise of the
24/7 prayer movement, the fire on the altar, a line drawn in the sand or
any such thing that requires me to DO in order to GET from God. Prayer is
conversation with God based upon our rest in grace, as the revelation of
Christ Jesus is real in me and through me. I do not need to yell, declare,
breakout, breakthrough, break in, call forth in order to procure favor
from God as if He sits in heaven dishing out only what He sees as worth
His time upon those who cry or sing the loudest or pray the longest . In grace, I believe that
there comes a rest where I am in Christ and wherever I am and wherever I
go, prayer is a constant unfolding relationship with God that allows me to
know Him day by day by day.
There is so much more
coming over the next 5 days and then we are off on this journey. I will be
pulling most of the teachings off from our web site that come into a contradiction
with the message of grace. I was part of the prophetic for years and I still
believe in prophets, the prophetic and prophesying but not the current
prophetic teachings, words, dreams, or revelation that often mix Old Covenant and New Covenant beliefs. I
passionately followed the prayer movement teachings for years but can no longer
believe in it. I chased conferences and will no longer do that unless the
speaker is grace based in the finished revelation of the cross of Jesus Christ
and His shed blood.
More more more is
coming. I thank those of you who have stood by us for many years and I say
good-bye to those who undoubtedly will be offended for what I am about to bring
forth in the coming days.
It is time to see the
reality of the Gospel of Jesus Christ sweep through the earth and the nations
so that the world may truly see Christ Jesus and come to know Him. It is time.
Love in Christ
Debra Westbrook
