ADVANCED TRAINING

Apostle Jacquelyn Fedor

WE ARE JUST VESSELS

IT'S CHRIST IN US










Everything that has happened to the church so far has been what we would call different moves of God. What has been happening lately however, is the restoration of God through His body. This will continue until He is of the full stature described in Ephesians 4:13.
Ephesians 4:13
13 till we all come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a perfect man, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ;
We begin to see and understand that the second coming of Jesus could be through His body. He will appear through us as Teacher, Pastor, Evangelist, Prophet, Apostle, as well as the revealer, one who opens the eyes of discernment to understand scripture.
In this full stature, He will come against the powers, principalities and rulers of darkness to their defeat. We must stop worrying about who we are in Christ and rather, in this end time, worry about who He is in us!
Colossians 1:27
27 To them God willed to make known what are the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles: which is Christ in you, the hope of glory.
Who is He in you? Who is He in me? We must see the Jesus in one another and separate from the world, so that He can come together through untainted and holy vessels. These are ones that walk in the gift of repentance. God was in one vessel as the Son of God in Jesus, now He is in many vessels as sons of God. He was the first born of many brethren, that will do greater works than He did.
John 14:12
12 "Most assuredly, I say to you, he who believes in Me, the works that I do he will do also; and greater works than these he will do, because I go to My Father.
It is through these vessels that He will build the House of Israel into the undivided household of God once again.
Galatians 3:29
29 And if you are Christ's, then you are Abraham's seed, and heirs according to the promise.
Hebrews 3:6
6 but Christ as a Son over His own house, whose house we are if we hold fast the confidence and the rejoicing of the hope firm to the end.
Through these vessels that allow Him to live through them, the earth will be renewed. These are ones that will separate from the systems of man and the religious church that supports these systems in answer to the warning at Revelation 18.
Revelation 18:4
4 And I heard another voice from heaven saying, "Come out of her, my people, lest you share in her sins, and lest you receive of her plagues.
These will receive and walk in truth as the seals are opened and truth is being revealed through those chosen to do so. This truth will eventually carry us out of time into eternity. These will be vessels that hear the prophetic voice of God through His prophets and are obedient to the delegated authority He places over them, His government. No Korah's or Absalom's among these ones as they realize it's not about man, it's about Christ!
Christ means anointed. As these faithful come together into one body, the anointing will also come together to break the yoke of all that oppresses God's people.

WE ARE JUST VESSELS

You see, it's Christ in us that is the hope. We are just vessels He lives through. No one person is any less or any more than the smallest child in importance to God. He is not a respecter of persons. Picture 10 glasses. Someone pours Coke in one glass, Lemonade in another, water, tea, iced coffee, Pepsi, orange juice, grape juice, apple juice and grapefruit juice in the last. Which glass is better? They are all still the same, are they not? What is in them is different, and so it is with the Body of Christ. He may be in a vessel that teaches school or drives a bus. Maybe He ministers as an apostle, or carpenter, or an electrician through them. Maybe He is a prophet or trash remover, possibly a mail man or pastor or evangelist. Are the vessels the important thing here? No! What makes a difference is the Christ within the vessel.
I've heard people that were called to be apostles say: "I don't know how to be an apostle", or "I don't know how to be a prophet."
I told them to cheer up, Christ is quite capable of being either one without their help. All any of us need to do is die to our desires and our agendas, and believe me, He knows how to be who He is! You can't put something in a vessel until it is emptied out, however. The less there is of us, the more there can be of Him. I could say it this way: the more there is of us, the more His life through us is diluted and tainted. The church wants to act and be so spiritual, but we are just people, He's the spiritual one.
If He is allowed to live freely through us, we will do spiritual things. It's like a boxer's glove. The glove may be the thing we see hitting the jaw of a person and knocking them down, but in actuality, it was the hand in the glove that caused the blow. When my son was a little boy, he came home from school very angry with me because he had lost a race. When I asked him how on earth I caused him to lose, he said it was because I didn't get him the shoes he'd asked for, and the winner's mother had gotten the correct kind. He was looking at the shoes, instead of who was in them! This may sound like a silly or childish comparison, but how much of the church looks at the vessel (the shoes), rather than the Christ in the vessel?
If we could see Jesus in one another we wouldn't be so critical of one another. People struggle for position, strive to be the best, walk over people, or if in a leadership position, hold back people from being all they can be. Why? Because they don't want to lose their position. Who are they really fighting and keeping in a box? Jesus must be allowed to come together as a body. Those chosen by God to be vessels He will govern through, must be able to take their place on the Spiritual Mountain (Zion). They must be in perfect unity in their specific position from the top to the bottom, so His head and neck can be put in place. Those called to the body must be able to stand in their rightful place for New Jerusalem, the city of refuge, His Bride, to fully come together.
Another way to look at it is: If Jesus wants to dwell in a Bride without spot or wrinkle, she must have no spot of sin, she must be perfected. She must also be in unity with no wrinkle of division. If she is chosen for the part of the body that He lives in to govern, she must be put in that position so He can function freely. On the other hand, if He wants to function as body ministry she must not try to be a part of the governing mountain. The Bride must come together and take her place. He will instruct her through the vessels He prophesies and gives direction through.
If we could only see the Jesus in the prophets, we would be obedient to His words through them. Who would not listen to God! If we could see Jesus in the revealer, who wouldn't want to receive the revelation He releases through them that will carry us into eternity? If we could see Jesus in the apostles, we would not try to strategize our own battle plans or lay the foundation of a new ministry without advice and covering from them.
If we could see Jesus in the Pastor, we would welcome their advice and seek the protection of the great Shepherd that is in them. And, if we could see Jesus in the evangelists, one would be there for them, to help bring the new sheep into a place where they can be properly cleaned up and prepared for the King. If we could see Rabboni in the teacher, we would surely let Him be the one to ground sound doctrine into His people.
And just as importantly, if we could see Jesus in the sheep (or the body), we would not let them sit in pews with no function or contribution to the household of God. There is something He wants to do through them. Jesus was not lazy! I wonder, as a carpenter, how many homes in Israel were blessed with furniture He built, or houses He repaired? Jesus was in one body as He walked the planet the first time. Now He walks through many bodies. In John 14:12, He says: Greater works will we do than those He did. This is because there are more of us for Him to flow through than there was in just the one vessel He occupied then. So we can see now how important it is to see the Jesus in one another and allow ourselves to be placed in the body or head, wherever He chooses.

THE ANOINTING

Let us look at the diagram of the spiritual mountain and city.
If the people on the gates of the courtyard that are to be calling in the sheep out of the world decide they want to be revealers, there will be no anointing on their lives to reveal the truth as God opens the contents of the seals. And if the revealer was to minister at the gates, things much too difficult and deep for new sheep to understand would be taught, and they would probably return to the world.
The church has done a disservice to God's people in that they criticize the prophets, for instance, for not going door to door looking for the lost, when it just isn't what God does in them. A prophet can preach till he is blue in the face and not lead as many to the kingdom as an evangelist can by saying "good evening"! It's the anointing, or the approval of God, on and in the vessel that is doing the job that Christ wants done through them. Yet the prophet is criticized because the church says all people should save the lost.
This is partially a true statement. We should all, if the opportunity arises and God draws someone to us, lead people to the Lord. This includes office holders and body members. But what I am trying to say is, there is a craving to save the lost in those called to be evangelists. Just like there's an undying love for people and a desire to protect them in the pastor. An apostle may really feel the need to start a work in a remote area where people are showing interest in truth and his mind is preoccupied with making the desires of Christ within happen. Or the same Jesus that warned the Pharisees and Sadducees 2000 years ago to stop teaching things that just tickled the ears of the sheep warns through the prophetic today.
God is still telling us His desires for the church and assuring us of His love for the obedient and contrite of heart and He does this also through that part of His body we know as prophetic. As I said, anyone in a pinch, so to speak, can do anything, but nevertheless, the anointing to do specific things is on us all. We must find out what it is that we are to do, the prophets can help us in this, the apostles can provide a place to learn, the teachers can ground us in sound doctrine and the pastor can guard us as we learn. The revealer releases the truth that must be taught to the above to prepare us. We need everyone to do their part!
But the encouragement to those that do not know their place as yet and feel left out is, remember we must first be nobodies so He can be somebody. We must also be careful about criticizing God's people for not being or doing what we think they should, as we may be at odds with the Christ in them! So above all, we have to see the Jesus in one another. If we do, it will make it a lot easier to be respectful of God's people and to love them as the chosen of God and it will help us put the needs of others above ourselves as well.
Another thing, if we can learn to rely on the Jesus in others, we will avoid the natural tendencies to look at people as idols, make heroes of them, and put our trust in humanity, bringing the curse of Jeremiah 17:5 on ourselves. If we will first allow God to place them where He wants them in the body, then we can look at the office and know that it is Jesus fulfilling that office and just love the person for their obedience to Him. But our trust will truly be in Christ. Love man and God, but trust only God.

DEFINITION OF A VESSEL

What does the Strongs Concordance say about the word vessel? The number is 3627 in the Hebrew. Its definition is:
3627
Something prepared, any apparatus (as an implement), utensil, dress, weapon, armor, bag, instrument, jewel that is made of (one from another), pot, stuff, whatsoever.
This word comes from the number 3615, meaning:
3615
to end, to cease, be finished, perish, to complete, prepare, consume, be end of, expire, finish, bring to pass, wholly reap, make clean.
In Greek the meaning is interesting. It means: a vessel, implement, apparatus (literally or figuratively), specially a wife as contributing to the usefulness of her husband, goods, stuff.
I don't see anything here that suggests we are one greater than the other, do you? In fact, let's look at 2 Corinthians 4:7-11.
2 Corinthians 4:7-11
7 But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellence of the power may be of God and not of us.
8 We are hard pressed on every side, yet not crushed; we are perplexed, but not in despair;
9 persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed--
10 always carrying about in the body the dying of the Lord Jesus, that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our body.
11 For we who live are always delivered to death for Jesus' sake, that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our mortal flesh.
It's Christ in us that is important, and we must help each other to let Him manifest to His fullest through us. He chooses whom He pleases: see Acts 9:15.
Acts 9:15
15 But the Lord said to him, "Go, for he is a chosen vessel of Mine to bear My name before Gentiles, kings, and the children of Israel.
Those He calls must allow themselves to be purified for the Master's use in His household. What kind of vessel are we? II Timothy tells us there are vessels of honor and vessels of dishonor. I pray we will be the vessels of honor.
2 Timothy 2:19-21
19 Nevertheless the solid foundation of God stands, having this seal: "The Lord knows those who are His," and, "Let everyone who names the name of Christ depart from iniquity."
20 But in a great house there are not only vessels of gold and silver, but also of wood and clay, some for honor and some for dishonor.
21 Therefore if anyone cleanses himself from the latter, he will be a vessel for honor, sanctified and useful for the Master, prepared for every good work.

IN CLOSING

If we don't see that it is Christ in us that is the hope of glory, then we will be pleased when we do well and pride will pat our heads. If we do bad, rejection will crush our spirits and hearts. If it's really Christ in us, and we are but vessels, then we can honestly say: "If I don't take the glory, then I don't take the blame. I'm just a vessel!"