I haven’t written on this blog all this year; there has been much going on in life, but nothing clear enough to write. What I share here is an unusual prayer vision that happened a couple of days ago that I feel is relevant for the church.

We had been hosting a gathering of Christian prayer leaders from around the country, in our house of prayer, for a couple of days. It was during a time of extended sung worship one evening that I felt the Holy Spirit download a vivid and moving image into my mind. 

I saw Jesus, but this was no Jesus meek and mild; he looked like Hercules, with a bare top, rippling muscles and a big beard. He was pulling something, straining to pull something behind him. It looked like a rope, then I suddenly realised it was his robe, his royal robe. It was off his shoulders and Jesus was pulling the collar of his robe. Along the train of his robe were people – tiny people, people following Jesus – standing and sitting on this robe as he pulled. It seemed to be an image that represented the church as they were following the Lord. I think these represent people who loved God and were sincere in discipleship.

As I watched this vision, Jesus seemed to be pulling his robe through a gap in a wall or hedge. This gap became very small and narrow, and as Jesus continued pulling, people on this robe started falling off, tumbling off and scattering onto the grass and path. Many people fell off due to the sudden squeeze of this tight gap. Those who stayed on were either those who had wrapped themselves around in this robe or who had held on with their fingers for dear life. No one avoided this restricted gap; all either fell off or felt an intense squeeze as they were pulled through. The other side of this wall or hedge was a place of peace, calm, and the beauty of enjoying Jesus’ presence as he stopped pulling and stood amongst his people. 

This was such a bizarre prayer vision that I sat in the middle of the worship time and pondered what it could mean. The single impression I had was that the wall hedge signified offence – being offended at God. The temptation to be offended at the Lord for various reasons seemed the reason people fell off his robe. 

I think this vision speaks into tests of our faith, in particular how we stay in a place of trusting God. As I continued musing on this theme, I have thought about why we might become offended at God. From scripture there are many reasons. We can be offended by delay, when God doesn’t answer our prayers in the timing we like. Jesus said ‘when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on the earth?’ (Luke 18v8). We can be offended by his word, when following his commands goes against the grain of our preferences. The prophet Isaiah’s contemporaries wanted pleasing prophetic words; they told him to: ‘stop confronting us with the Holy One of Israel!’ (Isaiah 30v11). We can be offended by disappointment, where our lives or spiritual journeys haven’t turned out the way we would have liked. God spoke to his people saying ‘Why do you complain, Jacob? Why do you say, Israel,“My way is hidden from the Lord; my cause is disregarded by my God”? (Isaiah 40v27).

We can be offended by God’s judgments, if we become scandalised by who he raises up and casts down, in local contexts and global issues. The prophet Habakkuk was appalled at how God was using wicked nations to come against Israel: ‘Why then do you tolerate the treacherous? Why are you silent while the wicked swallow up those more righteous than themselves?’ (Habakkuk 1v13). We can be offended by the challenge of the gospel, for the cross is an uncompromising message, which chafes against our soul-ish tendencies. In John’s gospel, Jesus was teaching about deep spiritual truths, and it caused a stir: ‘Aware that his disciples were grumbling about this, Jesus said to them, “Does this offend you? Then what if you see the Son of Man ascend to where he was before!’ (John 6v61-62).

We can be offended by suffering, and feel hard done by in God’s ways of working his purposes in our lives. Job was worn out by his suffering and loudly voiced his complaints to God: “I loathe my very life; therefore I will give free rein to my complaint and speak out in the bitterness of my soul. I say to God: Do not declare me guilty, but tell me what charges you have against me.’ (Job 10v1-2). We can be offended by the way God moves by the Holy Spirit; if the revival we long for looks very different from what we had hoped. John the Baptist, the forthright forerunner of Jesus had later doubts about the Messiah: ‘he sent his disciples  to ask him, “Are you the one who is to come, or should we expect someone else?” (John 11v2-3). You may think of other reasons for becoming offended at the Lord.

The takeaway from this vision for me were three things.

Firstly, in the coming years of life and discipleship, all of God’s people will be tested in some way by the wall of offence. Becoming offended by God doesn’t necessarily mean we lose faith, just that we tumble in a way that brings damage or disruption to our closeness and journey of following him. Even those who navigate this test will be squeezed and feel the pressure of this temptation. 

Secondly, the only was of surviving and passing this test from this vision was to be enfolded by or be holding onto Jesus’ robe. This speaks to me of either a stance of our worship and trust, or of our persistent pursuit of Jesus and being close to him. Becoming wrapped in his cloak through intimate, trusting, worshipful lifestyle will help us through the coming years of being tested. Also becoming tenacious in holding on to our faith in God’s goodness despite all contrary evidence, through focused discipleship and obeying his word, will help us survive the squeeze of misunderstanding the Lord, his heart and intentions.

Thirdly, Jesus was trying to pull us through this wall of offence. His deep desire seemed to be to bring as many through a testing time as possible, although he wouldn’t stop pulling despite the squeeze. It is as though the Lord was willing us to pass this testing time, but would use it to prune and refine his church.

It reminded me of two profound bible verses from Isaiah the prophet. In Isaiah 59v17 it says of God that ”he wrapped himself in zeal as in a cloak’. In Isaiah 63v1 it describes the Lord as ‘robed in splendor, striding forward in the greatness of his strength’. These are both references to God exercising his work of salvation, judgment and cosmic redemptive purposes in the earth. I think this vision speaks of a future more intense time, possibly the increasing of global shaking and testing for the body of Christ, alongside seeing signs of his glory through revival and spiritual harvest. These will be days when our trust in God and depth of our faith will be tested.

I felt Jesus say at the end of this vision to me and to the church: do you really know and love me? Will you follow me wherever I go? Please ponder and pray over this vision and what it might say to your own life of faith and collectively to the church’s journey of discipleship in coming days.

God bless, William