Manifest Sons of God

The concept of the Manifest Sons of God is taken from the Bible so why should there be such controversy about who the Manifest Sons of God are? Because the true sons and daughters of God have always been those led by His spirit, so there will always be opposition to that as well as counterfeits.

  • Joh 1:12 But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name: {power: or, the right, or, privilege}
  • Ro 8:14 For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God.
  • Ro 8:19 For the earnest expectation of the creature waiteth for the manifestation of the sons of God.
  • Php 2:15 That ye may be blameless and harmless, the sons of God, without rebuke, in the midst of a crooked and perverse nation, among whom ye shine as lights in the world; {harmless: or, sincere} {ye shine: or, shine ye}
  • 1Jo 3:1 ¶ Behold, what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be called the sons of God: therefore the world knoweth us not, because it knew him not.
  • 1Jo 3:2 Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth 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.

As we struggle with the idea of the manifest sons making their appearance among us as part of the remnant church, I realize that we said the same things about the man-child of Revelation. Many have spoke of a corporate Jesus as the reality of His many-membered body as a Second Coming. That wilderness experience that Jesus went through came after His baptism and included being tempted of the devil. It also parallels the time of the children of Israel in the Sinai, which is taught as an example for us. We are also being taught that the river is about to flow and the desert will blossom. That river comes in stages, up to our ankles, up to our knees, until we are completely immersed in it. That's the living spirit of Jesus. His Spirit leads His people. These people are the Sons of God.

The phrase manifest sons of God is taken from Romans the eighth chapter, 18 and 19 and the term is frequently used in prophetic restoration groups. The Greek word apokalupsis {ap-ok-al'-oop-sis} is used for manifestation, just like the apocalypse for the word revelation. Paul is writing of the future:

For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us. For the earnest expectation of the creature waits for the manifestations of the sons of God.
The word manifest is more active while manifestations is the object, but the same meaning is implied. The manifestation is actually Jesus revealed in us collectively in being led by the spirit and if that is so, we will be doing a "new thing" of love, for each other and love for what Jesus has commanded us to do. This is the love that is revealed in the open door that no man can shut.

As promised, much sifting and purging and "many trials and tribulations" must occur before we arrive at a perfect church. Don't be misled in thinking that we are already perfect, there is much work yet to do. Many of us or maybe all of us are in a wilderness stage right now. I am praying that this is over for me. This sifting and purging is necessary as we grow unto the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ. We are definitely in a growth period right now and there is much work ahead of us.

The Sons of God are scattered everywhere, in and out of the churches but there is a spiritual unity among us. As we await for the manifestation of the Sons of God, it will be a physical unity that will somehow be revealed to the world. We don't need to speculate in what form that might be, that day will take care of itself and those who understand will bear witness with one another. The remnant church is being called today for the wedding supper, to prepare the spotless Bride and to gather in the harvest of the latter rain to fulfill the promises that He has made to us prior to and during His return. We are the "temple made without hands." The building materials come from heaven, not earth. We are the stones of New Jerusalem and we shall shine as precious jewels.

Incline your ears to what the spirit is saying and now listen to what "we" are saying of what "we" have heard. If I speak for the spiritual, it is because I believe in an active participation in the life of Jesus' ministry here on earth and others in the same spirit believe too. Below are more good things. The Bride is not prepared yet. Our enemies spread lies. Just like a physical building, the foundation and framework must be true. This is the plan - get your loved ones out of Babylon so they can fill their lamps and be ready to meet the bridegroom!!!

We must surrender ourselves completely to the Lord Jesus Christ and not be conformed to the world order. We must be walking according to His plan for us. It is past time for a carnal church to put aside the petty quarrels and we must not be encumbered by this excess baggage. The veil of delusion is being removed, so sound the alarm amid all the confusion and division. It is also necessary for the Lord to use us to reach out to others in love. Love is the centrality of our message and it's driving force. The purity and innocence of the early church is: "look how they love each other." This is the standard.

Many Christians are still in the Stone Age. Because the temple restoration is simply what it is, other Christians cast stones at the workers. Haven't a clue. They may never understand what we are trying to do here. We love Him, we have the desire to obey Him. We walk in His spirit not because we have to but because we want to. Stone Age Christians may really be missing out of the restorative process merely from their malicious confrontations.

We must however, measure the temple of the Living God if we are to restore it. Many analogies are used in the Bible to describe the work, one of them is that we are to rebuild the walls. Many stones are used in the construction and as long as God has only the chosen remnant doing it, our kinsmen outside the walls of the temple will be jealous and cast stones. What will we do with these stones? God is not through with us and we are not through with the building, so we will cherish these stones, identify the weaknesses in the walls and strengthen the work that remains. If we pick up those stones and throw them back, we are just giving them more ammunition. So we pick them up in all humility through self-examination, polish the rough edges, shape them so they will fit and put them in the wall to quicken the work. We are out of the Stone Age and into the light. That light shines like a beacon with the words "God is Love."

Love them, pray for them, and take the battle into the heavenlies. God is not finished with Stone Age Christians either and they may have to go through this process for the destruction of the flesh. They have the power to cast stones, we have the power to cast out demons. They hurt and destroy, we heal and restore. As they lift up their spiritual swords so as to cut the flesh of our brothers and sisters, we lift up our swords to preach the truth. Ours is the better way. Ignore them, put up with the harassment and fiery darts with the shield of faith and get on with kingdom business. Use these stones not as an offense but as a blessing. Do not cry but laugh out loud. We must stay focused on what we have been commissioned to do and not give them the advantage of wasting our time.

Psalms 40:3, 4: And he has put a new song in my mouth, even praise unto our God: many shall see it, and fear, and shall trust in the LORD. Blessed is that man that makes the LORD his trust, and respects not the proud, nor such as turn aside to lies.

We are being powerfully ministered to in these days and many are being confirmed and encouraged as apostles and prophets of the Lord Jesus Christ. This is the foundation with Jesus as the chief cornerstone. Spirit led Christians are establishing a covenant with God. They are agreeing and being subject to each other. We are coming more into one accord against the falseness and schismatic divisions. We are welcoming each other in sweetness of love and the Lord is giving us a purer spirit. This gathering together is being done through us by the Lord Jesus Christ. It is not over, it has only started, there is much yet to be done to establish the manifest sons in calling the church to order in these last days and all of us called to it will be involved with this unity. What is really important is that the ones that are called strive to establish themselves in one accord, making it not as much what has identified us in the past but what comes out of it in the future. Each person interested in fulfilling God's plan for us should network. We need to spend our time in building each other up. There need be no agenda to do this, the Lord is guiding the manifest sons.

The problem in the Christian witness is that there is a false church and a true church. The true church is holy and the false church is not. We are able to recognize the true and false through spiritual means, this is your confirmation. Do not take this lightly. We that have been called to restoration are also called to this holiness and are willing to come to one accord in love. It will take time and hard work before restoration Christians can be of one accord, it will take many humble spirits willing to put aside the false assumptions that have divided us. The hateful schismatic doctrines that have separated us MUST be put aside for perfect love to have its way.

Amen. God has really put a fence around us and that is good. We have allowed God's word to speak for itself and have not been exposed to all the nonsense that identifies the false church. There are many hate-mongers in the church (on the fringe) who think that you are going to hell or you belong to Babylon unless you come to their way of thinking. This is just one instance of satan using half truths to cause division. To take either side of these many divisive questions must grieve Jesus terribly, it is not love, it is the division of self-righteous pride. The death of Jesus was to liberate us from legalism and usher in an age of grace.

We are not playing games, the unity of the manifest sons is not a club that anyone can join, or a local church that you can just walk down the aisle and become a member. Either the Lord is doing it all with us as the chosen remnant or He will call others. We should be able to recognize and confront heresy, division and schisms, expose and denounce them and cast them out of the Lord's body as if poison from satan running through our veins.

As to the unity, I have beheld a terrific anointing upon many that have confirmed our presence. Many of you have had harvest visions of one sort or the other that compels you to assert your revelations from the Lord and the spirit of prophecy. Paul teaches that apostles and prophets are of a higher order but none of the gifts are the head and it doesn't matter what part of the body we are a part of, we are in unison. Forget the pecking order. We will be walking shoulder to shoulder into the kingdom and not behind any one but Jesus, there will be millions of us to form an army like that which has never been before.

With the visions and revelations that many of us receive concerning what we must do in the last days, we may suspect but cannot believe that we are worthy of the office. Anyway, why me, Lord? It is hard for some us to have peace in our spirit concerning this calling until we have gone through the wilderness experiences and the terrible agony and trials necessary to be able to have the humility to reach out for the answers. When we can finally come to believe that it must be true, God will give us a fresh spiritual baptism and the peace we need for confirmation. This unity among us will bless us with the love and acceptance that will come with the confirmation that we are called to be among the manifest sons. Beware, however, of those that come among us in pride.

Fulfill the hope. God is moving very quickly. He is putting together a core group around the world that will reach out to all under God's order and bring down Babylon. This includes all of God's children who are willing to accept it, the rest will be cut off. This is a very big event on God's calendar. I have been waiting most of my life for this to happen so that I may "come out" and be a part of this end-time sifting and harvest. We as a group are called together to be a part of this very thing. Not just for ourselves, we are just the mustard seed that will grow. I believe this with all my heart and know that others bear witness to it just like I do. The confirmation of our presence together dwelling in unity is God bearing witness through us to the same truth that we have all believed. Ask of God.

God has given many of us the Elijah and Enoch spirit with strong personalities that are assertive and confrontational, we are compelled to get our points across strongly as we believe that the Lord has taught them to us. We are able to embrace controversy as a friend because the dialogue can lead us to agreement thereby attaining peace. These are good things but they must be brought under spiritual control. The Lord has given many an outspoken spirit which is misunderstood and repulsive to some and looked up to as courageous by others. It is easy for us to be confrontational and others are not used to it. Right now they are timid - "shall a trumpet be blown in the city and the people be not afraid?"

The Elijah ministry of reconciliation has to start somewhere and those who will not listen will be left behind. God is doing the work through us so we still have much work to do or others will be called to do it. God has called us to specific tasks and we need prophets for direction and ministry. The prophets and apostles are a great blessing. Ours is yet to be a great group and the enemy is beating us down from all sides. We need a lot of encouragement. Let us get whatever divides us out into the open and dealt with under the spirit of prophecy so we can quickly be of one accord and on to bigger things. Do not shrink from controversy and do not be afraid of being wrong. Many of us have already started this. As well as being issue oriented, we should be able to build each other up, share, praise and prophesy.

God has given the manifest sons the power and authority to bring down the strongholds of satan. The Lord has given us the wisdom to denounce Babylon and bring her down. Understanding has been given us to heal the church and teach unity. We have been given the power to bestow a double portion on those willing to accept it. We are nothing in the flesh but glory in these things. Hear me now true prophets of God. Quickly seek the Lord while He may be found and confirm or deny these words. The enemy is watching us from an exalted perch and there will be a great onslaught. The Lord is sifting us like the mighty men of Gideon - the separation has begun. The Lord is not finished with us and there is much work for Him yet to do in all of us.

Now we are getting somewhere. We are called to the unity of the manifest sons through His Spirit for specific purposes. Only we as individuals can identify them but God should have already let you know what they are. If not, seek Him and find out. I have already identified my callings to you. Those of you that have born with me from the beginning know that I believe that the church is not in one accord and they need a good example. In this sense the manifest sons will make their appearance one step at a time.

If we are given special graces and to do what we can to reconcile this present generation, this may be the calling of the manifest sons. It seems that we should take this calling to an audience that has been prepared for it and not worry about where we have been rejected. Once the cornerstone is laid, the rest of the building will follow. Does that sound right to you? We are the foundation of which the chief cornerstone is Jesus. There are those that are waiting for a physical temple to be built in Jerusalem but we are in every way the true architects of restoration, we are building a temple made without hands. We hold the plumb line whether we know it or not, all it takes is love.

We may not always be right and should have the humility and courage to admit it. None of us have the corner on the truth but we do speak the truth of Jesus and as time goes by, we will come to one accord on the truth. Jesus is calling His bride and the Sons of God hear His voice. Now lift that voice up for others to hear. Enough time has been wasted already.

Let God be true, but EVERY man a liar; as it is written, That you might be justified in thy sayings, and might overcome when you are judged." Romans 3:4.
Judgment begins at the house of God. Now all liars are to be cast into the lake of fire; according to the revelation of John, we should not be afraid. Unless we are puffed up and consumed with that Leviathan pride that thinks that we have the whole truth within us, the blood of Jesus is here to protect us from the fire. The spirit of truth within us will overcome the lying spirit that is part of our nature. Also love will cover our sins. Paul was quoting David in his Psalms who said
I will walk before the Lord and the land of the living, I believed, therefore have I spoken, I was greatly afflicted. I said in my haste, ALL men are liars. What shall I render unto the Lord for all his benefits toward me? I will take the cup of salvation and call upon the name of the Lord. Psalms 116.

What of the rest of the world? We are called to them to bring about the river of revival and the sickle in harvest. Now the part I need to emphasize with you once more is that we must humble ourselves to get rid of the spiritual pride resulting from our calling from God, denominational bias and prejudices. If you cannot humble yourself, you will never see the truth of these things. No-one wants to know how right you are and will see right through you when you try to justify your own errors and divert them into something else according to your own truth. It is so obvious that you leave yourself wide open to ridicule. Even a new person in the faith has enough wisdom to see through self-righteousness; it has been the greatest stumbling block in getting people saved.

To summarize, we are called to unity and through love and humility, God gives us a special grace to understand and heal division. The river of love will be over our heads, so keep your eyes open. Our battle is not against flesh and blood. We are truly called to do specific things and our gifts are varied. Jesus has prayed that we might all speak as one. We are to be holy and blameless without spot or wrinkle. We as individuals may not be right with everything but if we put our heads together in love, we can be. Once the spirit led ones are revealed, there will be a revival not seen since the beginning of the Christian era. Jesus will come differently than He did the first time and we must also react differently. The gospel has not changed but the times have. I hope that you will pray for me and that the manifest sons will be revealed to the world soon.

[This essay is a result of dialogue with others between October and December, 1999 and of the latter rain list's manifest sons discussion.]



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