2003 – A YEAR OF DIVINE GRACE
by Bill Burns
Faith Tabernacle
P. O. Box 1148
Kremmling, Colorado 80459
http://ft111.com
January 5, 2003:
Isa 48:6 "You have heard; See all this. And will you not declare it? I have made you hear new things from this time, Even hidden things, and you did not know them.
Today is the fifth day of the first month of a new year The first month of the new year signifies a time of new beginnings; five is the number of grace. The sum total of the numbers in the year 2003 is five.
2003 will be a year of divine grace. It will be a year in which our God will impart a super abundance of His grace to those who have been faithful to serve Him with their love and loyalty. I am talking about an extraordinary measure of God’s grace (empowerment), which will enable His people to fulfill His purposes in this, the third year of the Third Day of Christ.
The number five speaks prophetically of destiny. I am, therefore, speaking of destiny that is empowered by divine grace. This word applies to individuals as well as to the corporate destiny of the Third Day Church.
Faith is the key factor. We will access this impartation of grace by believing the word of the Lord.
Romans 5:1-2 Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom also we have access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God.
This grace is not God’s mercy; it is His favor (empowerment), which will come when we exercise our faith in agreement with the written word and this prophetic word. The impartation of God’s favor in this time frame will enable His children to fulfill their destiny according to God’s purposes for each one and also for His corporate Church.
In 2 Corinthians chapter 12 the apostle Paul had been seeking God for deliverance from “a messenger of Satan.” The Lord spoke to Paul and said, “My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness.” So, the grace of God equates to God’s strength that is given to us by way of impartation. The Lord was identifying a spiritual condition by which we can be governed by the power of divine grace. The condition is that we do not try to do things in our own strength, but that we seek His grace.
In the process of the “restoration of all things” the Lord will restore His Church to great power according to the pattern established in the first-century Church.
Acts 4:33 And with great power the apostles gave witness to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus. And great grace was upon them all.
Great grace was upon them even as it will be on the Third Day Church in the year 2003. This great grace that I am talking about is revealed in Psalm 23. Psalm 23 is representative of the manner in which God’s divine grace will manifest in this coming year. Again, the sum total of Psalm 23 is five, and five is the number of God’s grace.
Psalm 23:1 “The Lord is my Shepherd; I shall not want.” The word “want” means “lack.” The idea presented in verse one is that we shall have no lack or need of anything that pertains to our divine destiny. The Lord will provide that which is necessary for us to accomplish His purposes for us. His provision will include both the spiritual gifts and material necessities that are required to complete the assignments that He gives us.
Psalm 23:2-3 He makes me to lie down in green pastures; He leads me beside the still waters. He restores my soul; He leads me in the paths of righteousness For His name's sake. These verses tell us that He will restore His people in His love, joy, and peace. This promise is also made to the Third Day Church in Hosea 6:2 After two days He will revive us; On the third day He will raise us up, That we may live in His sight. The Lord will also empower His people through the impartation of great grace, which will enable us to overcome besetting sins. He will lead us (by His Spirit) into a position of righteousness. He will reveal Satan’s traps to us so that we can avoid becoming a victim of Satan’s devices.
Psalm 23:4 Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil; For You are with me; Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me. Fear and fear of death is one of Satan’s primary weapons. As we appropriate the great grace we shall overcome the power of the spirit of fear. Fear of the last enemy will be defeated, and Satan will be overcome because we love not our lives to the death. (Revelation 12:11) The last enemy will be defeated and “swallowed up in victory.” The victorious shout heard among those in the Third Day Church will be “O, death, where is your sting? O, Hades, where is your victory?” (1Corinthians 15:55)
Psa 23:5 You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; You anoint my head with oil; My cup runs over. A spiritual table will be prepared for us. It will be a place of communion with the Lord where we will be fed the revelations of this day. The mysteries of God for these last days will be revealed to those who feed at the Master’s table. At this table the Lord will anoint His servants with the third-day anointing (prophet, priest, and king). Our enemies will be destroyed because of the anointing oil, which will be supplied in abundance.
Psa 23:6 Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me All the days of my life; And I will dwell in the house of the LORD Forever. God’s goodness (His favor) and mercy shall overtake us in the season that is before us. Many of God’s people need restoration. They need to experience a fresh impartation of God’s goodness and mercy. In a recent prophetic word the Holy Spirit referred to the house of the Lord as the “House of the Lamb.” This title denotes the mercy of God that rests upon His house because Jesus Christ became the Lamb of God that was sacrificed on the Cross. We will dwell in His house forever because Jesus became the Lamb of God. The lamb is a symbol of the mercy of God. Let us once again bring the irreparable past under the mercy of the blood of the Lamb. His mercy qualifies us to receive His goodness (great grace) by which we are empowered to live the overcoming life and fulfill our destiny according to His purposes.
These things will come to us in this coming year because it is the third year of the Third Day Church. The first two years of the Third Day Church were days of preparation. The first two years were given for understanding of the season we are in. These years were given to impart the vision of the Third Day. It is now time to move into the fullness of this day, and it will take God’s divine grace to enable us to do so.
Joseph is a type of those who will be released into their destiny in this coming year. Joseph is a product of Jacob who represents the Third Day Church. We serve the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob (the third generation). Therefore, Joseph represents the prophetic release of the Jacob Generation into destiny in this year. Joseph, the offspring of Jacob, also represents the release of the gifts of the Spirit in their fullness. He had a prophetic gift that would release him into his divine purpose, but was held in bondage (prison) until it was time for his gift to make a place for him in ministry. Even though Joseph was being held in constraint, the Lord was with him.
Gen 39:20 Then Joseph's master took him and put him into the prison, a place where the king's prisoners were confined. And he was there in the prison.
Gen 39:21 But the LORD was with Joseph and showed him mercy, and He gave him favor in the sight of the keeper of the prison.
Many of God’s people have been held in confinement as the Master has been teaching them and preparing them for the time of release into their divine destiny. This year will be the time of release for many who have been in a time of preparation.
Joseph’s gift allowed him to interpret two third-day dreams (see Genesis 40). But, his gift was not remembered for two years when the time of his release took place.
Gen 41:1 Then it came to pass, at the end of two full years, that Pharaoh had a dream; and behold, he stood by the river.
His gift made a place for his divine purpose when he interpreted Pharaoh’s dream and gave him counsel regarding the dream.
Genesis 41:37-40 So the advice was good in the eyes of Pharaoh and in the eyes of all his servants. And Pharaoh said to his servants, "Can we find such a one as this, a man in whom is the Spirit of God?" Then Pharaoh said to Joseph, "Inasmuch as God has shown you all this, there is no one as discerning and wise as you. You shall be over my house, and all my people shall be ruled according to your word; only in regard to the throne will I be greater than you."
In like manner many of those who serve the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob will become the Joseph’s of this day. God will make a place for their gift to be of benefit to His kingdom.
2003 will be a year in which the kings of the earth will come forth as the joint heirs of Jesus Christ to rule and reign with Him in heavenly places. These joint heirs of Christ will assault the thrones of the rulers of darkness and pull down Satan’s power over geographical areas. This vision was posted on The Trumpet and can be found at http://ft111.com/thrones.htm. These kings will use the power (keys) given them to prophesy judgment over Satan’s strongholds as identified specifically in the Seven Thunders http://ft111.com/What'suparchive.htm.
2003 will be a year when God visits His five-fold ministers (Ephesians 4:11) with great grace. The dynamics of the working of His favor will be two-fold. First, it will produce great power. Those in the five-fold ministry who have remained faithful to God’s purposes will receive this great grace. Secondly, the Lord will bring a new group of young ministers into His service. These are those who He has held under the authority of true spiritual fathers. These young eagles (ministers) will begin to spread their wings and take flight in this coming year. They will preach the word out of the well of revelation with great power.
The Lord recently spoke to me and said, “My Church is now being released to go through the door that I have opened for them, but you must first shut the door of your own desires (works of the flesh) before you can enter through My door and into the fullness of this day.”
We find ourselves in the fullness of times in this the Day of restoration of all things. It is imperative that we seize the moment and rise up in a strong faith and appropriate God’s great grace. In this new year we must press forward into the destiny of the Third Day.
The impartation of God’s great grace will literally transform us and deliver us from the bondages that we have not been able to break free from. The following is a confirming word from Marsha Burns:
November 27, 2002: Transformation! I speak transformation to your spirit, for if you will yield yourself to Me completely, I will completely transform you. There are areas in your life that need to undergo change in order to be brought into the realm of the Spirit. There are places of bondage where you need to go through a metamorphosis so that you can be free. Now is the time where you can be led up on the Mount of Transfiguration, and through your submission and obedience, I will bring about a great conversion. You will be changed by My power and presence, and you will never be the same again. Come to this high place.
Let us gird up the loins of our most holy faith and arise into the greatness of God’s great grace in this the third year of the Third Day Church.