A Call to Move Forward

Welcome to another Thursday UNFILTERED blog post, the only blog that believes if you feed a man a fish, he’ll eat for a day. But if you feed a fish a man, the fish will spit him out so he can preach in Nineveh.

Thanks to so many of you, the Insurgence continues to grow and spread. Recently, I described it this way:

Much of the LEFT wants government to do the work of the kingdom, and they don’t want the King. Much of the RIGHT wants the King, but reduces the kingdom to the afterlife. The first-century Christians wanted the King and His kingdom, which is an alternative civilization in the midst of fallen society and corrupt governments. The kingdom is the SUBLIME within the MALIGN, and it cannot be separated from the King Himself.

At the beginning of this month, I published the article The Message That Sparked a Revolution which contained links to the conference message. One leader wrote me afterward saying,

“I get it. I get it now. I thought I got it, but I listened to the audio you shared two weeks ago from the conference that kicked off Insurgence – the message that launched the present revolution. Wow! Just wow. (And I’ve been teaching on the Gospel of the Kingdom for the last decade). I’m so fired up. I’ve been sharing that message with every group I lead and that I’m part of. Now I can see why you recommended going over this with a small group. And it really brings home the ekklesia. As a matter of fact, we are starting a kingdom cell tonight as you recommended just to go through the book, Insurgence. Thank you, brother. You have impacted my life yet again to be closer to King Jesus.”

Last month, I wrote a piece on the incredible power of spiritual blinders (filters). This person’s testimony is an example of what it looks like when a message breaks through a filter.

Only the Holy Spirit can do that, and I was delighted to hear this testimony.

In that regard, I often encounter a persistent issue among some of my readers, which I’ll illustrate using examples from the music world. One older, the others more contemporary.

Frequently, I hear from those who appear to be fixated on my very early works, seemingly unaware of my newer, more relevant publications.

For this reason, these individuals aren’t connected to the Insurgence, often not even knowing what it is.

Among the newer works, the most well-known books are 48 Laws of Spiritual Power (which was written for ANY Christian who wants to access more of God’s power in their life); Insurgence: Reclaiming the Gospel of the Kingdom (the signature work); ReGrace (especially needed today when vitriolic assaults over disagreements is running at high tide); Hang On, Let Go (for those having a difficult time in life); God’s Favorite Place on Earth (a unique look at what’s uppermost in God’s heart); Revise Us Again (a book that takes dead aim at the plagues of elitism, sectarianism, and divisiveness).

By the way, last I checked, all of these volumes are deeply discounted on Amazon (in the USA at least). As of this morning, Insurgence is 63% off the regular price.

Consider The Beatles as an illustration. Yea, I know, ancient group. (We’ll use Taylor Swift and Miley Cyrus soon, so calm down. And these are examples, NOT endorsements.)

Though The Beatles began recording before my birth, many of their songs remain iconic and recognizable, even to the typical 20-something (some of you), due to their enduring popularity and cultural impact.

The Beatles’ journey serves as my primary example, with two contemporary illustrations to follow.

The band evolved from early pop love songs like “I Want to Hold Your Hand” and “She Loves You” to more complex compositions like “Hey Jude,” “Get Back,” and “A Day in the Life.”

They progressed, and their music evolved with the times.

Similarly, some of my readers seem stuck in the past.

They only possess my early books on ecclesiology published in 2008, ignorant of the more timely and significant works I’ve produced since 2010 up until today.

When I encounter such readers, it’s akin to someone saying,

“Yeah, The Beatles, that’s that group that recorded ‘I Want to Hold Your Hand’ and ‘She Loves You.’ I have those albums.”

In other words, the person who makes this statement is obviously clueless about the band’s later, more sophisticated work.

Just as The Beatles never disowned their early material, I don’t disavow my 2008 books.

But they were for a different time. And they were NEVER written to Christians who enjoy church as we know it. They were ONLY written to and for those who left the institutional form of church, but still love Jesus and desire community.

My recent work is far more relevant to the “interesting” times in which we are living. They are also far better and more important.

Even my upcoming book, The Untold Story of the New Testament Church: Revised and Expanded, is NOT a book about ecclesiology.

Therefore, it doesn’t promote any form of church. Yep, you heard that right. It doesn’t advocate organic church or “house church” or institutional church or any other church structure.

(Though I predict some people are going to misuse and misrepresent it that way.)

The book is a high-powered guide to really understand the New Testament. Period. (Again, the old version is VERY flawed and incomplete. I view it like I do my high school papers. So if you’re new to my work, wait for the new edition to come out. It’s more than a revision/expansion, it’s really a brand-new book.)

That said, ANY Christian in any denomination, movement, or church structure will benefit from the new book – from Anglicans to Pentecostals to Reformed to people who meet in homes without a clergy – to Church of Christ to CMA to Baptists.

Two more examples, more current:

* Taylor Swift began her career in country music, gradually incorporated more pop elements into her sound, fully embraced mainstream pop, and later explored alternative and indie folk styles while continuing to evolve her musical repertoire.

* Miley Cyrus began her career with pop and country-pop, transitioned through various genres including hip-hop-influenced pop and psychedelic pop, and later incorporated more rock elements into her music while continuing to blend multiple styles.

Hey, don’t send me a flaming email about any of these artists. My point has nothing to do with them or their work. (I don’t listen to Swift or Cyrus, and it’s been a long time since I heard a Beatles tune.)

The point is that artists move on. And so does the Lord and His servants.

So for those fixated on my 2008 books, I’ve authored over 10 volumes since, some of them bestsellers.

Again, all of these newer works are superior, more significant, and more pertinent to our challenging yet intriguing times.

Repeat: While I still hold to everything I wrote in my books from 2008, the cutting-edge message for today is found in the more recent works.

So whoever is seeing this, I implore you to break free from this stagnation.

God is calling us all to move on.

I’m convinced the primary thing on His heart today is the Insurgence.

In fact, Insurgence: Reclaiming the Gospel of the Kingdom is the precursor to the upcoming revised and expanded edition of The Untold Story.

Since the new version of The Untold Story doesn’t debut until spring of 2025 (according to my publisher), you’ve got time to catch up.

Insurgence is in print, audio, and digital. (And as I stated earlier, it’s deeply discounted on Amazon in the USA right now.)

I used to presume that everyone on this email list has the book and read it, but presumptions are almost always wrong.

So I invite you to join the rest of us as the Insurgence grows.

Btw, after I wrote this article and it was sitting in the queue, someone wrote an email that essentially said, “Your past writing criticizes certain church practices, yet in your last article you advise pastors to invite guest speakers. This seems contradictory.” (Condensed paraphrase)

That email came to us on Monday, and it confirmed the timing of this article.

Here are some of the points made in the response. They add additional clarity to the issue.

* In my old books from 2008, I pointed out that the early church’s understanding of shepherd was different from today’s expression, but in those books I made plain that God uses pastors today, He uses institutional churches, and I applaud many pastors I know as noble Christians.

* In my catalog of over 20 books, I decry sectarianism and elitism. The idea that because someone may disagree with another Christian’s ecclesiology means they should be shunned, banned, or not received in Christ is sinful. That is elitism and sectarianism.

* Since 2008, when my public ministry launched, I’ve worked with all of God’s people who are hungry and thirsty for more of Christ, no matter what type of church they belong to or are part of. I also work with pastors as well as non pastors. To do otherwise is sectarian and elitist. My main message is the gospel of the kingdom and the centrality of Jesus Christ. It’s not and never has been a certain church structure.

Note that I explore the perils of sectarianism and elitism as well as how to disagree without breaking fellowship or unity in my books Revise Us Again and ReGrace.

Until next Thursday.

Your brother,

fv