The Red Handled Ax
The Red-Handled Ax
By Ron Wood
In May this year, while worshiping in a small Morningstar church in Wilmington, North Carolina, I heard the Lord say, "I’m laying the ax to the orphan spirit that has invaded my church…" (To read more, see my previous posts in the Teachings section at http://www.touchedbygrace.org/, "The Orphan Spirit," parts 1-4).
Last month, my wife and I returned to live in Bentonville in the lovely hills of northwest Arkansas in order to be closer to our children and grandchildren. Five years previously, we had lived there and had pastored a church there and had hosted many prophetic conferences.
Upon returning to the area, I was surprised by a strong word that came over me: "The ax is already laid to the root of the trees…." I knew the reference for this word. It was spoken by John the Baptist as he prepared the way for the first appearance of the Son of God. (Matthew 3:10) John called for people to repent, saying the kingdom of heaven was at hand. To the religious leaders of his day, he loudly warned them that the ax had hit their religious roots. Their tree was dead, but they didn’t know it.
The issue was fruit, or the lack thereof. The prophet said the right response to the approach of heaven’s kingdom in the Person of Jesus was to repent and then to believe the good news of this kingdom. John said there had to be evidence of repentance, in this case, being baptized in water by the preacher. What a humbling, public, messy test!
What does repent mean? It means to change your mind, to turn and go in another direction. Who needed to repent…sinners? No… John was addressing the most religious people on earth, observant Jews. They tithed, they went to Temple, they obeyed the Law of Moses, they memorized scriptures, they kept the codes of conduct invented by the rabbis, and they generally thought they were better than anyone else, all those filthy Gentiles. They were the chosen "children of Abraham!" We might say, "I'm Baptist!" "I'm Spirit-filled!" It doesn't matter what label we wear but it does matter if it produces pride or prejudice.
For three weeks I meditated on this word-picture God had burned into my heart. As I drove around the cities, I felt the fierceness of the Lord and rehearsed this strong yet strange word. I saw former pastor friends, visited several churches, surveyed the situation, and conferred with my prophetic allies, the intercessors*.
(*I discovered that many of these dear soldiers of Christ were weary or wounded. Many had shed tears to the point of pain trying to advance the church against fierce foes, only to have pastors abandon them or betray them. Many modern pastors think their preaching alone does the work, failing to appreciate the depth of the warfare or the necessity of a team effort to take a city for Christ, which is actually an apostolic task.)
Here’s what I saw as I surveyed northwest Arkansas: enormous wealth being accumulated, bustling busy business people, grand schemes and dreams by a few numerically growing churches (transfers, not conversions), lonely fatherless teenagers and multiplied numbers of lost young adults, prosperous people building homes like tomorrow was guaranteed and failure was not an option.
Beyond the natural, I saw a region void of power from heaven and impotent against deception, idols, and evil spirits. I saw church leaders defending homosexuality and perverting God’s right ways. I saw higher education adrift in a moral vacuum. I saw new-age nonsense and ideological myths replacing historical reality or biblical truth. In society and in the marketplace, the culture of the kingdom was practically invisible while the culture of materialism was proud and prominent. In the churches, I saw that the tradition of man was still prevalent while anointed prophets of change or pioneering apostles of transformation had no place and were not being welcomed. The "one man show" kept the saints passive on the pews. The ministry of Jesus wasn’t being reproduced. The deck chairs on the Titanic were being artfully rearranged.
I started looking for an ax.
I told my son, Scott, about the word I felt burning in me, that the Lord was saying to northwest Arkansas that the ax was being laid to the roots. He is an elder in his church and has a wonderful call of God on his life to be an apostle and I valued his opinion. We discussed what this word might mean.
I knew God was addressing mind-sets and uncovering lying spirits that wanted to keep God’s people impotent, caged in religious boxes rather than enjoying life in the Spirit. One thing that especially disturbed me as I returned was that a dear pastor friend who had been growing his church in the city for two decades had just resigned. Did politics trump spiritual fatherhood? Or did he fail to listen and wouldn’t let a team come alongside to help him? Too often, church transitions turn into chaotic situations, a shameful disgrace.
Scott told me, "Dad, you’ve got the ax head, but you need a handle to swing it."
He was right. I had not way to grip it, swing it, or make it have an effect. I had the revelation, but no delivery system. I had no pulpit to preach from, no platform to stand on, and wasn’t even "full-time in the ministry." I had moved here to be a father and a grandfather, not to start a new ministry or to pastor a church. But I was disturbed.
Then God opened my eyes a little further and took me to Deuteronomy chapter twenty, the section on the Laws of Warfare for laying siege to a city. If ever there was a stronghold of stinking thinking, carnal ambition, greed, and vain religious tradition, it was here, deeply embedded in the thinking of the people of the land that I love.
Liberation would require a siege of the city. Heaven’s kingdom is definitely drawing near. Conflict is inevitable. Whose government is in charge? Who is Lord of northwest Arkansas? We must repent. Victory requires warring with God against His enemies.
The Laws of Warfare are plainly given in the Bible. These Old Testament precepts apply in principle to the New Testament era as we confront the enemies of our souls. Let me give you some Biblical perspective for this siege against spiritual Babylon….
"When you go out to battle against your enemies and see horses and chariots and people more numerous than you, do not be afraid of them; for the Lord your God, who brought you up from the land of Egypt, is with you…. For the Lord your God is the one who goes with you, to fight for you against your enemies, to save you." (Deuteronomy 20:1, 4 NASB)
One of the most common descriptions of God found in the Bible is "Lord of Hosts." It literally means "Lord of Armies." When Joshua prepared to cross the Jordan to possess the Promised Land, he encountered the Captain of the Lord’s Host, a theophany, an Old Testament appearance of Christ. When Elisha was surrounded by the king’s chariots and in danger, he prayed for his servant’s eyes to be opened so he could see God’s support troops… numerous angels arrayed for battle on the hilltops surrounding the prophet.
When Moses transcribed Yahweh’s commands (Israel’s God is Yahweh… not Allah) for how Israel was to successfully wage war, several important factors were listed (see Deut. 20):
The Priest was to come speak to the people and encourage them with the knowledge that God was with them. This was so the people knew the battle had God’s blessing. Warfare was not done indiscriminately. Innocent blood was not to defile the land. (vs. 2-4)
The officers were to speak to the people and weed out from among their ranks any person who might flee in the heat of battle. This included those who had built a new house but not yet dedicated it; those who had planted a new vineyard but not yet eaten its fruit; and any men engaged but not yet married. (vs. 5-7)
They also told them that if they were afraid or fainthearted then they were to leave and go home before the fighting started lest they discourage any of the others. Fear is contagious. Then they appointed commanders over the troops at the head of the army. (vs. 8-9)
When they approached a city to wage war, they were first to offer it terms of peace. If they surrendered, then the citizens became subject to them and their lives were spared. If they chose to fight, then they were to besiege the city, slay all the men, spare the women, children, and animals, and take the spoils as plunder, leaving nothing. (vs. 10-14)
Neighboring cities, which had already entered into agreements with Israel, were not to be attacked, but distant cities that were outposts of idolatry and iniquity were to be taken. However, even in this there was a restriction. War could be fought only over the areas that the Lord had designated as the inheritance granted to Israel by God. (vs. 15-18)
Then I saw a key word for my present situation: An ax was not to be used in a siege of a city against any tree that was bearing fruit! The fruit was to be eaten and its tree preserved. Only the trees that were not fruit trees were to be cut down, destroyed, or used as weapons in the siege of a city. (vs. 19-20)
Listen, if you’re bearing fruit, you have nothing to fear! But if you, or your church, or your religious system, or your family is barren, void of power, chasing selfish dreams at the expense of your children, then watch out! God’s blade is sharp and quick! (Heb 4:12)
I walked through Wal-Mart last week- this is their headquarters, so there’s always one nearby. Out of the corner of my eye, I spotted an ax. I hadn’t even been shopping for one, but there it was. I walked over and picked it up. It was heavy. It felt dangerous. The new big, black ax head had a gleaming sharp, silvery edge for a blade. But the handle was what caught my eye… it was colored blood red!
God’s ax isn’t meant for destruction but for clearing the way for construction. The handle that swings the ax head is red to represent the blood of our precious Savior who paid the price for people to be liberated and come into their inheritance as sons and daughters of Almighty God. Therefore, no hand should swing the ax in anger.
Instead, the Father Himself swings the ax. He alone can cut the roots with both justice and mercy. He can remove what He did not plant and build what He had intended. He is the wise Gardener who prunes the vine (John 15). He is the patient Owner of the vineyard who sends his servants and finally his Son to receive the fruit, but being still robbed and dishonored, He finally exacts great vengeance on the wicked stewards. (Matt 21:33-43)
The kingdom was taken from them. When the kingdom is not present, there is no covenant love. There is no deliverance. No healings occur. There are no prophecies and prophets are kept in the closet. The fullness of Jesus is partitioned off. The fruit dries up.
When John the Baptist spoke of God’s ax, he said "It is already laid at the roots," not, "It is going to be laid." Nor did he say, "I’ll swing the ax!" as though his prophetic decrees could initiate the process. No, he just spoke the word. Real prophets don’t rejoice over judgment, they intercede. But neither can they afford to be kinder than God. Our righteous God is insisting on fruit. He is demanding an accounting for His investment.
John simply but boldly announced God’s word-- that judgment was already underway.
Stubbornness, rebellion, lawlessness, legalism, pride, criticism, doubt, and dullness of hearing had become so embedded in the religious system that the fruit of the kingdom was gone. People had stopped hearing a fresh word from the Lord. They even had the Word Made Flesh walking in front of them daily and didn’t see Him. The Temple system was over and the era of The Body of Christ was beginning. The priests were being replaced by apostles and prophets. The Sacrifice was about to be finished. The Law was being fulfilled and Holy Spirit was about to arrive. Nothing would remain the same.
I am carrying my red-handled ax on my shoulder as I visit the churches.
The Red-Handled Ax © 2006 by Ron Wood. Online at http://www.touchedbygrace.org/
We are Touched by Grace to Touch the World! Write us at ron@touchedbygrace.org
By Ron Wood
In May this year, while worshiping in a small Morningstar church in Wilmington, North Carolina, I heard the Lord say, "I’m laying the ax to the orphan spirit that has invaded my church…" (To read more, see my previous posts in the Teachings section at http://www.touchedbygrace.org/, "The Orphan Spirit," parts 1-4).
Last month, my wife and I returned to live in Bentonville in the lovely hills of northwest Arkansas in order to be closer to our children and grandchildren. Five years previously, we had lived there and had pastored a church there and had hosted many prophetic conferences.
Upon returning to the area, I was surprised by a strong word that came over me: "The ax is already laid to the root of the trees…." I knew the reference for this word. It was spoken by John the Baptist as he prepared the way for the first appearance of the Son of God. (Matthew 3:10) John called for people to repent, saying the kingdom of heaven was at hand. To the religious leaders of his day, he loudly warned them that the ax had hit their religious roots. Their tree was dead, but they didn’t know it.
The issue was fruit, or the lack thereof. The prophet said the right response to the approach of heaven’s kingdom in the Person of Jesus was to repent and then to believe the good news of this kingdom. John said there had to be evidence of repentance, in this case, being baptized in water by the preacher. What a humbling, public, messy test!
What does repent mean? It means to change your mind, to turn and go in another direction. Who needed to repent…sinners? No… John was addressing the most religious people on earth, observant Jews. They tithed, they went to Temple, they obeyed the Law of Moses, they memorized scriptures, they kept the codes of conduct invented by the rabbis, and they generally thought they were better than anyone else, all those filthy Gentiles. They were the chosen "children of Abraham!" We might say, "I'm Baptist!" "I'm Spirit-filled!" It doesn't matter what label we wear but it does matter if it produces pride or prejudice.
For three weeks I meditated on this word-picture God had burned into my heart. As I drove around the cities, I felt the fierceness of the Lord and rehearsed this strong yet strange word. I saw former pastor friends, visited several churches, surveyed the situation, and conferred with my prophetic allies, the intercessors*.
(*I discovered that many of these dear soldiers of Christ were weary or wounded. Many had shed tears to the point of pain trying to advance the church against fierce foes, only to have pastors abandon them or betray them. Many modern pastors think their preaching alone does the work, failing to appreciate the depth of the warfare or the necessity of a team effort to take a city for Christ, which is actually an apostolic task.)
Here’s what I saw as I surveyed northwest Arkansas: enormous wealth being accumulated, bustling busy business people, grand schemes and dreams by a few numerically growing churches (transfers, not conversions), lonely fatherless teenagers and multiplied numbers of lost young adults, prosperous people building homes like tomorrow was guaranteed and failure was not an option.
Beyond the natural, I saw a region void of power from heaven and impotent against deception, idols, and evil spirits. I saw church leaders defending homosexuality and perverting God’s right ways. I saw higher education adrift in a moral vacuum. I saw new-age nonsense and ideological myths replacing historical reality or biblical truth. In society and in the marketplace, the culture of the kingdom was practically invisible while the culture of materialism was proud and prominent. In the churches, I saw that the tradition of man was still prevalent while anointed prophets of change or pioneering apostles of transformation had no place and were not being welcomed. The "one man show" kept the saints passive on the pews. The ministry of Jesus wasn’t being reproduced. The deck chairs on the Titanic were being artfully rearranged.
I started looking for an ax.
I told my son, Scott, about the word I felt burning in me, that the Lord was saying to northwest Arkansas that the ax was being laid to the roots. He is an elder in his church and has a wonderful call of God on his life to be an apostle and I valued his opinion. We discussed what this word might mean.
I knew God was addressing mind-sets and uncovering lying spirits that wanted to keep God’s people impotent, caged in religious boxes rather than enjoying life in the Spirit. One thing that especially disturbed me as I returned was that a dear pastor friend who had been growing his church in the city for two decades had just resigned. Did politics trump spiritual fatherhood? Or did he fail to listen and wouldn’t let a team come alongside to help him? Too often, church transitions turn into chaotic situations, a shameful disgrace.
Scott told me, "Dad, you’ve got the ax head, but you need a handle to swing it."
He was right. I had not way to grip it, swing it, or make it have an effect. I had the revelation, but no delivery system. I had no pulpit to preach from, no platform to stand on, and wasn’t even "full-time in the ministry." I had moved here to be a father and a grandfather, not to start a new ministry or to pastor a church. But I was disturbed.
Then God opened my eyes a little further and took me to Deuteronomy chapter twenty, the section on the Laws of Warfare for laying siege to a city. If ever there was a stronghold of stinking thinking, carnal ambition, greed, and vain religious tradition, it was here, deeply embedded in the thinking of the people of the land that I love.
Liberation would require a siege of the city. Heaven’s kingdom is definitely drawing near. Conflict is inevitable. Whose government is in charge? Who is Lord of northwest Arkansas? We must repent. Victory requires warring with God against His enemies.
The Laws of Warfare are plainly given in the Bible. These Old Testament precepts apply in principle to the New Testament era as we confront the enemies of our souls. Let me give you some Biblical perspective for this siege against spiritual Babylon….
"When you go out to battle against your enemies and see horses and chariots and people more numerous than you, do not be afraid of them; for the Lord your God, who brought you up from the land of Egypt, is with you…. For the Lord your God is the one who goes with you, to fight for you against your enemies, to save you." (Deuteronomy 20:1, 4 NASB)
One of the most common descriptions of God found in the Bible is "Lord of Hosts." It literally means "Lord of Armies." When Joshua prepared to cross the Jordan to possess the Promised Land, he encountered the Captain of the Lord’s Host, a theophany, an Old Testament appearance of Christ. When Elisha was surrounded by the king’s chariots and in danger, he prayed for his servant’s eyes to be opened so he could see God’s support troops… numerous angels arrayed for battle on the hilltops surrounding the prophet.
When Moses transcribed Yahweh’s commands (Israel’s God is Yahweh… not Allah) for how Israel was to successfully wage war, several important factors were listed (see Deut. 20):
The Priest was to come speak to the people and encourage them with the knowledge that God was with them. This was so the people knew the battle had God’s blessing. Warfare was not done indiscriminately. Innocent blood was not to defile the land. (vs. 2-4)
The officers were to speak to the people and weed out from among their ranks any person who might flee in the heat of battle. This included those who had built a new house but not yet dedicated it; those who had planted a new vineyard but not yet eaten its fruit; and any men engaged but not yet married. (vs. 5-7)
They also told them that if they were afraid or fainthearted then they were to leave and go home before the fighting started lest they discourage any of the others. Fear is contagious. Then they appointed commanders over the troops at the head of the army. (vs. 8-9)
When they approached a city to wage war, they were first to offer it terms of peace. If they surrendered, then the citizens became subject to them and their lives were spared. If they chose to fight, then they were to besiege the city, slay all the men, spare the women, children, and animals, and take the spoils as plunder, leaving nothing. (vs. 10-14)
Neighboring cities, which had already entered into agreements with Israel, were not to be attacked, but distant cities that were outposts of idolatry and iniquity were to be taken. However, even in this there was a restriction. War could be fought only over the areas that the Lord had designated as the inheritance granted to Israel by God. (vs. 15-18)
Then I saw a key word for my present situation: An ax was not to be used in a siege of a city against any tree that was bearing fruit! The fruit was to be eaten and its tree preserved. Only the trees that were not fruit trees were to be cut down, destroyed, or used as weapons in the siege of a city. (vs. 19-20)
Listen, if you’re bearing fruit, you have nothing to fear! But if you, or your church, or your religious system, or your family is barren, void of power, chasing selfish dreams at the expense of your children, then watch out! God’s blade is sharp and quick! (Heb 4:12)
I walked through Wal-Mart last week- this is their headquarters, so there’s always one nearby. Out of the corner of my eye, I spotted an ax. I hadn’t even been shopping for one, but there it was. I walked over and picked it up. It was heavy. It felt dangerous. The new big, black ax head had a gleaming sharp, silvery edge for a blade. But the handle was what caught my eye… it was colored blood red!
God’s ax isn’t meant for destruction but for clearing the way for construction. The handle that swings the ax head is red to represent the blood of our precious Savior who paid the price for people to be liberated and come into their inheritance as sons and daughters of Almighty God. Therefore, no hand should swing the ax in anger.
Instead, the Father Himself swings the ax. He alone can cut the roots with both justice and mercy. He can remove what He did not plant and build what He had intended. He is the wise Gardener who prunes the vine (John 15). He is the patient Owner of the vineyard who sends his servants and finally his Son to receive the fruit, but being still robbed and dishonored, He finally exacts great vengeance on the wicked stewards. (Matt 21:33-43)
The kingdom was taken from them. When the kingdom is not present, there is no covenant love. There is no deliverance. No healings occur. There are no prophecies and prophets are kept in the closet. The fullness of Jesus is partitioned off. The fruit dries up.
When John the Baptist spoke of God’s ax, he said "It is already laid at the roots," not, "It is going to be laid." Nor did he say, "I’ll swing the ax!" as though his prophetic decrees could initiate the process. No, he just spoke the word. Real prophets don’t rejoice over judgment, they intercede. But neither can they afford to be kinder than God. Our righteous God is insisting on fruit. He is demanding an accounting for His investment.
John simply but boldly announced God’s word-- that judgment was already underway.
Stubbornness, rebellion, lawlessness, legalism, pride, criticism, doubt, and dullness of hearing had become so embedded in the religious system that the fruit of the kingdom was gone. People had stopped hearing a fresh word from the Lord. They even had the Word Made Flesh walking in front of them daily and didn’t see Him. The Temple system was over and the era of The Body of Christ was beginning. The priests were being replaced by apostles and prophets. The Sacrifice was about to be finished. The Law was being fulfilled and Holy Spirit was about to arrive. Nothing would remain the same.
I am carrying my red-handled ax on my shoulder as I visit the churches.
The Red-Handled Ax © 2006 by Ron Wood. Online at http://www.touchedbygrace.org/
We are Touched by Grace to Touch the World! Write us at ron@touchedbygrace.org
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