Shake Us to the Core

Numerous reputable prophets recently have prophesied regarding a shaking coming. Some relate it to recent elections, others attribute it to divine judgment, yet others as a divine response to the fervent intercession of a faithful remnant. Although there is accurate interpretation and application in all of these prophetic insights, the real question for all Christians is “Will we remain standing when the Lord comes to shake the foundations of the earth?” (Isaiah 24:18, 19).

Awakens the Sleeping

For us to stand in the midst of shaking, we must first understand God’s purposes in shaking His church and the world. One major purpose in divine shaking is to awaken a sleeping church. The church in America is largely asleep spiritually.

Ephesians 5:14 “Awake, you who sleep, arise from the dead, and Christ will give you light.”

Our souls are occupied with endless distractions and mesmerized with meaningless, fruitless activities, while our spirits fall deeper into a spiritual slumber of complacency and apathy. We are spiritually lukewarm. Nevertheless, the fervent intercession of a faithful remnant is bringing a divine shaking to the Church that is going to “rock our world”. The Books of Acts witnesses to the fact that the response of loving God to the unrelenting prayers of a committed core of believers is shaking.

Acts 4:31 “And when they had prayed, the place where they were assembled together was shaken; and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit, and they spoke the word of God with boldness.”

American Christians boast of having the best preachers, the best worship, the best facilities, but the truth is we are spiritually bankrupt. Like the Church in Sardis, we boast of being relevant, alive and on the “cutting edge”, but are dead.

Revelation 3:1-3 “I know your works, that you have a name that you are alive, but you are dead . . . strengthen the things which remain, that are ready to die . . . hold fast and repent.”

Exposes the Hidden

Shaking also exposes the hidden. When things are shaken up, things shake out. The Lord is bringing a shaking to His Church that we would wake up, acknowledge our anemic and sinful condition, and repent. God is answering our prayers for righteous government, by first judging the Church. For the time has come for judgment to begin in the house of God (I Peter 4:17). The American church at large has refused to judge itself. As a result, the Lord, in His mercy, is shaking and chastening the Church that we might repent and become partakers of His holiness (Hebrews 12:10).

I Corinthians 11:31, 32 “For if we would judge ourselves, we would not be judged. But when we are judged we are chastened by the Lord, that we may not be judged with the world.”

Recently, a prominent, internationally known church leader’s sin was shamefully exposed. Shaking exposes sin. This exposition of sin in church leadership by the Light is the first of many to come (John 1:7-9). The Lord is purging and purifying His church in preparation for a mighty outpouring of His Spirit. Repentance always precedes revival.

Ephesians 5:13 “But all things that are exposed are made manifest by the light, for whatever makes manifest is light.”

Holiness and the fear of the Lord must return to the Church if we are to be transformed corporately into spotless bride and individually as vessels of honor fit for the Master’s use. Only then can we become effective ambassadors for Christ sent to minister in the gifts and fruit of the Spirit to a lost and dying world.

Judges the Corrupt

Shaking is a form of judgment on sinful, corrupt mankind. Many feel that earthquakes and storms are only an Old Testament form of divine judgment, and that a loving God who has redeemed mankind through Christ would not judge the world this way.

Isaiah 24:18,19 “The foundations of the earth are shaken . . . Its transgression shall be heavy upon it, and it will fall, and not rise again.”

Isaiah 29:6 “You will be punished by the Lord of hosts with thunder and earthquake.”

Although blood-washed saints can enjoy the privilege of walking in the New Testament kingdom law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus, the world is still subject to the law of sin and death. Sin draws death and destruction, and when a city or nation’s sin exceeds the boundaries of divine grace, judgment comes.

A recent example of this is the devastation of New Orleans; a corrupt, immoral city overflowing with wickedness that drew the judgment of Hurricane Katrina. However, we must realize that not every natural disaster that occurs is an exemplification of the law of sin and death in operation.

God hates pride (Proverbs 6:16, 17). Grace is a foundation of His throne, yet He resists those who walk in a spirit of haughtiness, even His children (James 4:6). How much more then will God judge the pride of the godless by shaking the earth, the economy, and every trusted godless stronghold?

Isaiah 2:17-19 “The loftiness of man shall be bowed down and the haughtiness of men shall be brought low; The Lord alone will be exalted in that day, but the idols He shall utterly abolish . . . when He arises to shake the earth mightily.”

Haggai 2:21, 22 “I will shake the heaven and earth. I will overthrow the throne of kingdoms; I will destroy the strength of the Gentile kingdoms.”

The Lord is shaking the earth, to tumble every idol we have placed our trust in and to destroy every kingdom that does not exalt the Lord as God.

Preserves the Righteous

Despite the shaking that is coming to the earth, the righteous will find shelter in the Lord. Those who are seeking first His kingdom and His righteousness will have all things added to them in the midst of shaking. For example, one minister reported that his home and property incurred virtually no damage, while all the surrounding homes were ruined by Hurricane Katrina.

Joel 3:16 “The Lord will roar from Zion, and utter His voice from Jerusalem; the heavens and earth will shake; but the Lord will be a shelter for His people, and the strength of the children of Israel.”

During the Great Depression of the late 1920’s and 1930’s, when multitudes were suffering under the weight of economic collapse, Aimee Semple McPherson, female founder of the Foursquare Pentecostal denomination, raised enough to money to build Angeles Temple. Still standing today and renamed “The Dream Center”, Angeles Temple, became a haven for unsaved and hurting people for decades to come. In the midst of shaking, Aimee Semple McPherson stood on the rock of God’s word and exercised kingdom principles to become a light to the spiritually lost and a source of strength and hope for the hurting.

Hebrews 12:25-28 “Do not refuse Him who speaks . . . whose voice then shook the earth . . . the removal of those things that are being shaken . . . that the things which cannot be shaken may remain. Since we are receiving a kingdom which cannot be shaken, let us have grace, by which we may serve God acceptably with reverence and godly fear.”

Will we stand when the shaking comes and be “light” to a dark world, or crumble with the rest of the world when the Lord arises to shake the earth? The truth is that most Christians are not seeking first the kingdom of God (Matthew 6:33). We don’t honor God with our time or money, as idolatry and covetousness have replaced devotion and giving to the Lord. Over 90% of all American Christians neither pay tithes nor give offerings, and many spend most of their time watching television, playing video games or surfing the internet instead of seeking God. When shaking comes to America, unfortunately most Christians will be shaken with the world and fail to be witnesses for Christ when it counts most.

Saves the Repentant

The Lord’s ultimate goal in shaking the nations is to save the nations. The Lord desires that none should perish, but that all come to repentance (II Peter 3:9).

Haggai 2:6,7 “For thus says the Lord of hosts; “Once more I will shake heaven and earth, the sea and dry land; and I will shake all nations, and they will come to the Desire of All Nations, and I will fill this temple with glory, says the Lord.”

In the New Testament, when Paul and Silas fervently prayed to the Lord in prison, the Lord shook the prison and released them from their bonds that they might be free.

Acts 16:25, 26 “But at midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the prisoners were listening to them. Suddenly there was a great earthquake, so that the foundations of the prison were shaken.”

Yet delivering Paul and Silas was not God’s only purpose in shaking the prison. The Lord shook the prison to bring the jailer and his household to the saving knowledge of Jesus Christ. The jailer, seeing that the prisoners were freed, feared they had all escaped, and drew his sword to commit suicide. However, Paul stopped him, indicating that they were all present. (Acts 16:27-34).

Acts 16:30-34 “And he brought them out and said, ‘Sirs, what must I do to be saved?’ So they said, ‘Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and you will be saved, you and your household.’ . . . And immediately he and all his family were baptized. . . and he rejoiced, having believed in God with all his household.”

Lord, shake the church and the world. Shake the church from our slumber and grant us repentance to our acknowledgement of our corrupt condition. As we seek first your kingdom, preserve us during the shaking that we might be your ambassadors of salvation and peace to a wicked and perverse generation. Let us bring the light of salvation to the lost in the midst of shaking to your glory. Shake us to the core!