In This Issue ~ June 2007

• Featured Article - New Wine Is Ready!
  
• Prophetic Countdown - Knowing The Signs
• Decision One - Making a Difference
• Trips & Tips
• Make this ministry your ministry!

Featured Article - New Wine Is Ready!

New wine represents abundance and prosperity. It is sweet and plenteous, easy to obtain, low in price and consumed in large quantities. However, some of the new wine is destined for volatile and violent times ahead, as it goes through the process of fermentation and becomes, in time, better wine.

Jesus uses an illustration that is so adept to understand what is happening today in the church, the body of Christ. Let us look closely at what Jesus is saying in Matthew 9:15-17.

Matthew 9:15 -17 And Jesus said to them, "Can the friends of the bridegroom mourn as long as the bridegroom is with them? But the days will come when the bridegroom will be taken away from them, and then they will fast. 16 "No one puts a piece of un-shrunk cloth on an old garment; for the patch pulls away from the garment, and the tear is made worse. 17 "Nor do they put new wine into old wineskins, or else the wineskins break, the wine is spilled, and the wineskins are ruined. But they put new wine into new wineskins, and both are preserved."

Jesus gives us a wonderful understanding of what will happen if we do things the wrong way!

Both of these powerful examples are very straight and to the point! A new patch on an old garment, or new wine in an old wineskin, both are examples of how not to do it! The great revelation is found in verse 17, as it says, "they put new wine into new wineskins, and both are preserved!

What we call the "church" today is largely old wineskins! Even many of the "new" churches are old wineskins! They were built, and they continue to operate on old revelation and old government and old philosophies that have been established and in place for some time. It is "good wine," because it is "old wine." The problem is that we have much new wine, and we have been trying to pour it into the old wineskins. It has burst many of the old wineskins, and most of the new wine has been wasted or lost all together. The church is in disarray largely because we have not made this discovery sooner. How then does the church deal with this issue and where is our biblical model for this?

The full answer is larger than I can deal with here in this article, so let me just attempt to paint a simple picture, so we can see the collective and conceptualize the overall plan God has for us. I believe that Luke adds one line in his account that helps us considerably. Luke 5:39 "And no one, having drunk old wine, immediately desires new; for he says, 'The old is better.'" Indeed the old is better wine! It always will be, too! The process of time builds maturity and wisdom, and it usually, but not always, is greatly beneficial in improving the taste of the wine. Typically, and wisely, the old wine is brought out and served first, then the new wine later at the wedding! Jesus having been asked by his mother, turned the water into wine, and the protocol seemed to have been changed. It astounded those at the wedding as they said: "Every man at the beginning sets out the good wine, and when the guests have well drunk, then the inferior. You have kept the good wine until now!"

This is the mistake that many have made in trying to understand and control the flow of wines! We need to look again at what happened!

John 2:7- Jesus said to them, "Fill the water-pots with water." And they filled them up to the brim. 8 And He said to them, "Draw some out now, and take it to the master of the feast." And they took it. 9 When the master of the feast had tasted the water that was made wine, and did not know where it came from (but the servants who had drawn the water knew), the master of the feast called the bridegroom. 10 And he said to him, "Every man at the beginning sets out the good wine, and when the guests have well drunk, then the inferior. You have kept the good wine until now!" 11 This beginning of signs Jesus did in Cana of Galilee, and manifested His glory; and His disciples believed in Him.

The master of the feast did not know where the new wine came from. Many of our churches do not know where the new wine is coming from either! Like the master of the feast, they are clueless that it is miraculous and from God. Verse 10 says, "Every man at the beginning sets out the good wine." This wedding was no exception. The good wine was set out first! It was not bad wine, it was the best that they could do! Likewise the best that we can do can never compare to what God does! Our best is good but when Jesus gets involved, it is going to get even better! The deception and wrong things we do and have done that has brought confusion and division are not unlike what the master of the feast did. We draw conclusions before we understand what is really going on. His conclusion is in verse 10, "You have kept the good wine until now!" He just knew this new wine was great! The problem was his assumption! The protocol had not been broken, but there was a miraculous addition to the order of things.

The church today is changing. The church has been in transition for some time now, but how have we handled the transition? Not well, up to this point, but I think we are starting to slowly turn some corners that will make things better. In the next few years I believe that the house church will develop to accommodate much of the new wine that will be produced by a renewal of soul winning.

I see the house church developing as they have in a number of foreign countries that have been met with opposition and oppression from government and other religious factions. They flourish in adversity. The traditional church cannot hold the new wine that will be found in the house church. These new wineskins will not look like the traditional church, but they will function in exactly the same way. We have seen the cell church develop, and it was a step in the right direction, but most were too controlled or too out-of-control to be effective.

Acts 2:46-47 So continuing daily with one accord in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house, they ate their food with gladness and simplicity of heart, praising God and having favor with all the people. And the Lord added to the church daily those who were being saved.

The cell church concept was a great first step. The house church is the next step, but it may not be the final step. There is a transition and a transformation for both the new and the old wines. As they discover the need for each other, then the purpose of each will be revealed and will complete the church and cause it to function correctly in the last days.

The house church is already taking forms that even now antiquate the term, "house church." For example, the Cowboy Church, Bikers for Jesus, Emmaus Walks, and a host of other Christian-based organizations are meeting in a house-to-house fashion, They are adding to the church daily those who are being saved. Each have had both good and bad experiences working with the traditional church. Each one is new wine, and if pored into the old wineskin too quickly, problems arise.

Conversely, the traditional church is good wine, and it is a stable force and an ordained institution. Those who think it will finally just die out and fade away will be sorely disappointed. The traditional church is the old wine. It is the best. It is to be served first, and it will always hold that honor. The interdependence that must develop between the house church and the traditional church is of great importance, and a rather delicate balance. As the traditional church enters the renewal, it will be placed in front of a mirror. It will be forced to examine the heart by which it functions. Religion will be burned up as the chaff that it is. A heart of pure gold, a heart after the father, will replace the controlling spirit and the ability it has had to hold the leadership in fear for all these years. True apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors and teachers will arise and be recognized within the church. A rebuilding of integrity and honor will bring back the witness of the church that the Word of God it is the power of God unto salvation.

As the traditional church embraces the responsibility of loving those who are within and without the confines of their walls and begins to assume the role of fathering and protecting all areas of the church both "in the temple and house to house," then it will have earned the right to be honored and stand in the rightful authority God intended. These house churches, in whatever configuration they exist, will need the covering and the hand of wisdom that only a healthy traditional church can provide.

The main problem that I see is that this will be an open season for wolves. The traditional church needs to quickly realize the vital role they must play in keeping the wolves from attacking the new wine. Song of Solomon 2:15 Catch us the foxes, The little foxes that spoil the vines, For our vines have tender grapes.

Truly they are full of new wine, and things are not as they seem, but the church needs to stand up and raise their voices!

Acts 2:13 Others mocking said, "They are full of new wine." 14 But Peter, standing up with the eleven, raised his voice and said to them, "Men of Judea and all who dwell in Jerusalem, let this be known to you, and heed my words. 15 "For these are not drunk, as you suppose, since it is only the third hour of the day. 16 "But this is what was spoken by the prophet Joel: 17 'And it shall come to pass in the last days, says God, That I will pour out of My Spirit on all flesh; Your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, Your young men shall see visions, Your old men shall dream dreams. 18 And on My menservants and on My maidservants I will pour out My Spirit in those days; And they shall prophesy. 19 I will show wonders in heaven above And signs in the earth beneath: Blood and fire and vapor of smoke. 20 The sun shall be turned into darkness, And the moon into blood, Before the coming of the great and awesome day of the LORD. 21 And it shall come to pass That whoever calls on the name of the LORD Shall be saved.'

We are not yet the perfect bride! 2 Peter 3:14 Therefore, beloved, looking forward to these things, be diligent to be found by Him in peace, without spot and blameless;

2 Peter 3:15 and consider that the longsuffering of our Lord is salvation;

The prophet Hosea is a type that I believe shadows what I am trying to say.

Hosea 2:19-23 "I will betroth you to Me forever; Yes, I will betroth you to Me In righteousness and justice, In loving-kindness and mercy; 20 I will betroth you to Me in faithfulness, And you shall know the LORD. 21 "It shall come to pass in that day That I will answer," says the LORD; "I will answer the heavens, And they shall answer the earth. 22 The earth shall answer with grain, with new wine, And with oil; They shall answer Jezreel. 23 Then I will sow her for Myself in the earth, And I will have mercy on her who had not obtained mercy; Then I will say to those who were not My people, 'You are My people!' And they shall say, 'You are my God!'"

We are not yet perfected. The way that God is doing things seems something less than logical, but it is nevertheless the way God has chosen to go about it. We each have an important role to play, and the only common thread is that we do all we do in love, because He first loved us! Furthermore, He still loves us, and that is the plumb line by which we must build the church, both in the synagogue and house-to-house. He said, John 14:15-17 "If you love Me, keep My commandments. 16 "And I will pray the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may abide with you forever; 17 "the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees Him nor knows Him; but you know Him, for He dwells with you and will be in you.

If we listen we will hear the voice of the Holy Spirit calling us to love one another and be in unity. The new wine is ready. What shall we do with it?

Fred Hughes

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Prophetic Countdown - Knowing the Signs!

Knowing the signs of our times is a very important skill we need to develop. The scriptures are where we must look to discover what signs there are and where they are directing us. The day of Penticost had come, and they were praying in the upper room when a mighty rushing wind started to blow. There was a mighty transformation that happened, and it was a sign and a wonder. In Acts 2:15-24 we read: 15 "For these are not drunk, as you suppose, since it is only the third hour of the day. 16 "But this is what was spoken by the prophet Joel: 17 'And it shall come to pass in the last days, says God, That I will pour out of My Spirit on all flesh; Your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, Your young men shall see visions, Your old men shall dream dreams. 18 And on My menservants and on My maidservants I will pour out My Spirit in those days; And they shall prophesy. 19 I will show wonders in heaven above And signs in the earth beneath: Blood and fire and vapor of smoke. 20 The sun shall be turned into darkness, And the moon into blood, Before the coming of the great and awesome day of the LORD. 21 And it shall come to pass That whoever calls on the name of the LORD Shall be saved.' 22 "Men of Israel, hear these words: Jesus of Nazareth, a Man attested by God to you by miracles, wonders, and signs which God did through Him in your midst, as you yourselves also know; 23 "Him, being delivered by the determined purpose and foreknowledge of God, you have taken by lawless hands, have crucified, and put to death; 24 "whom God raised up, having loosed the pains of death, because it was not possible that He should be held by it.

My friends, with this same power God equips all who believe to be raised up, so that death has no power over us and cannot hold us. The same Spirit that raised Christ from the dead dwells in us. Rom 8:11 But if the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, He who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through His Spirit who dwells in you. You see, we join Him in His death as we die to sin, and the Holy Spirit causes us to become a new man. 2 Cor 5:17 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new. 18 Now all things are of God, who has reconciled us to Himself through Jesus Christ, and has given us the ministry of reconciliation,
19 that is, that God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, not imputing their trespasses to them, and has committed to us the word of reconciliation. 20 Now then, we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God were pleading through us: we implore you on Christ's behalf, be reconciled to God. 21 For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.

We therefore are reconciled to Him and are resurrected with Him, and He has given us the ministry of reconciliation! Rom 1:16 For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes, for the Jew first and also for the Greek.

We are empowered by the Holy Spirit, equipped by the Word of God, and anointed for the ministry of reconciling men to God.

1 Peter1:5 who are kept by the power of God through faith for salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.

You are a sign! Isaiah 8:18 Here am I and the children whom the LORD has given me! We are for signs and wonders in Israel from the LORD of hosts, who dwells in Mount Zion.

Mat 12:38-41 Then some of the scribes and Pharisees answered, saying, "Teacher, we want to see a sign from You." 39 But He answered and said to them, "An evil and adulterous generation seeks after a sign, and no sign will be given to it except the sign of the prophet Jonah. 40 "For as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of the great fish, so will the Son of Man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth. 41 "The men of Nineveh will rise up in the judgment with this generation and condemn it, because they repented at the preaching of Jonah; and indeed a greater than Jonah is here.

The scriptures show us many signs! They all point the way to Jesus. He is the author and finisher of our faith.

Luke 2:12 "And this will be the sign to you: You will find a babe wrapped in swaddling cloths, lying in a manger."

John 2:18-19 So the Jews answered and said to Him, "What sign do You show to us, since You do these things?" 19 Jesus answered and said to them, "Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up."

John 6:30-35 Therefore they said to Him, "What sign will You perform then, that we may see it and believe You? What work will You do? 31 "Our fathers ate the manna in the desert; as it is written, 'He gave them bread from heaven to eat.'" 32 Then Jesus said to them, "Most assuredly, I say to you, Moses did not give you the bread from heaven, but My Father gives you the true bread from heaven. 33 "For the bread of God is He who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world." 34 Then they said to Him, "Lord, give us this bread always." 35 And Jesus said to them, "I am the bread of life. He who comes to Me shall never hunger, and he who believes in Me shall never thirst.

With all the resources today, you would think that men could see the truth. Even in the last days men will say: 2 Pet 3:3-4 knowing this first: that scoffers will come in the last days, walking according to their own lusts, 4 and saying, "Where is the promise of His coming? For since the fathers fell asleep, all things continue as they were from the beginning of creation."
The signs are abundant. Even the scoffers are a sign that He is the soon-coming King! Our ministry is to build the kingdom. We pray, "thy kingdom come!" So many are not ready for His kingdom to come. If you are born again, you are ready!

Luke 21:7-13 So they asked Him, saying, "Teacher, but when will these things be? And what sign will there be when these things are about to take place?" 8 And He said: "Take heed that you not be deceived. For many will come in My name, saying, 'I am He,' and, 'The time has drawn near.' Therefore do not go after them. 9 "But when you hear of wars and commotions, do not be terrified; for these things must come to pass first, but the end will not come immediately." 10 Then He said to them, "Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. 11 "And there will be great earthquakes in various places, and famines and pestilences; and there will be fearful sights and great signs from heaven. 12 "But before all these things, they will lay their hands on you and persecute you, delivering you up to the synagogues and prisons. You will be brought before kings and rulers for My name's sake. 13 "But it will turn out for you as an occasion for testimony.

Luke 21:29-31 Then He spoke to them a parable: "Look at the fig tree, and all the trees. 30 "When they are already budding, you see and know for yourselves that summer is now near. 31 "So you also, when you see these things happening, know that the kingdom of God is near.

I am so glad we can know what the signs are saying. The next time you are driving in your car and see a road sign, let that remind you to just praise God and tell Him you are thankful that you can read the signs! Amen!

Fred Hughes

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Decision One - Making a Difference!

We are so thankful for our prayer partners and our supporters. Without your ongoing support this ministry would have little, or no success at all. We so often take for granted those who love us the most. I urge you to pray and support your own family, as they need you in these days we live in. I thank you and bless you for also praying and supporting this ministry and your local church. The kingdom of God will advance only if the righeous avail. Vision is always dependant on provision, and provision is always supplied by God through His people. Thank you for your prayers and finiancial support. Because of what you do, we are able to minister to people here and abroad. You are making a difference!

I want to remind each of you that this is your ministry. When we link up in unity and love, we become a mighty force of kingdom power. Glory to God! We are making a big difference!

You still have an opportunity to sow a seed into the water wells for Uganda ($7,000.00 ea). We are believing God for the printing of one million, "Are You Born Again," tracks for Central and South America. The tracks only cost about $0.06 (six cents), but that is times one million! The tracks and the training materials have already been translated into Spanish, and the project is ready as soon as we put the funding together. We are praying that we can start in Bogota in the fall of this year. This soul-winning program will bring thousands of people to the saving knowledge of the Lord. Please help us with these urgent needs with a gift of any size. Every gift will glorify God and help someone to miss hell and make heaven, or have clean water to give their children a drink. We are making a difference! We are advancing the kingdom. We are more than conquerors! Amen!

Blessings

Fred & Irene Hughes

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Trips & Tips

We are going to be in the USA for the next several months speaking in churches and teaching in small group sessions. If you are a pastor, please ask the Lord about having us come to share at your church. If you enjoy our website, share it with your pastor and friends. We love to hear from you. Please write us and give us a testimony or a suggestion, a prayer request, or a praise report. We are very interested in your suggestions about the website and whether our newsletters are serving you? What could we do to make them better and more useful to you? Do you use the links page or the news weather and sports page? Is the voting guide helpful? All of these things we wonder about, so it really helps when you give us some feedback.

Travel Tip: Have you checked on your passport lately? Do you have a passport? There are increasingly good reasons to have an up-to-date passport these days. Some new rules can affect your travel plans concerning the passport expiration date. We were recently reminded about one of the rules for passports. If you are going to Europe and some other places, your passport must be good for 6 (six) months past your scheduled return date. The rule is 3 (three) months even to go to South or Central America. Check out your passport and make sure you have enough time well before you plan to travel. Blessings!

Fred & Irene Hughes

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