An Open Heaven

"After these things I looked, and behold, a door standing open in heaven..." Revelation 4:1

There are several references in scripture that point to an "open heaven." One being Genesis 28, where the Bible records Jacob's dream of a ladder being set up from earth to heaven, and the angels ascending and descending upon it. The KEY point of an open heaven being, "Surely the Lord is in this place." (Genesis 28:16) An open heaven is recognized because God is there. His works, His love, and His presence are being manifested in a tangible way.

The supernatural of God is released under an open heaven. The heavenly invades the earthly and subjugates the natural to the pattern of heaven. Under an open heaven miracles are easy. Healing, deliverance, signs and wonders, and provision, under heaven's terms, are effortlessly met. Heaven isn't limited. An "open heaven" annihilates the word "impossible."

An open heaven can be in one locality and not another. Jacob recognized the Lord was in that place, as opposed to not being recognized in another. An open heaven isn't the debate of God's omnipresence, that He is everywhere at once. An open heaven is a demonstration of His manifested presence invading a person, a church, a city, and a region.

An Open Heaven Experience

In July 1995, while at a summer campmeeting in St. Louis, Missouri, the heavens opened in the place we were meeting. I witnessed through my natural eyes the Glory of the Lord sweep into the auditorium. A huge cloud billowed into the arena, rolling and tumbling across the floor and then onto the platform where the speaker was standing. I did not know at the time that others did not witness what I seeing. As the cloud encompassed the people on the lower levels, they began to jump out of their seats and run around the platform that was set up on the floor of the arena. Heaven had come to meet earth; it was a holy pandemonium. I left the building extremely intoxicated on the heavenly visitation. As a result, the following Sunday the same anointing was released in our church where I was pastor. We carried the impartation back to the place of our service.

Another Biblical example of a region with an open heaven is found in Saul's attempt to capture David. In an almost humorous story, 1 Samuel 19:20-24, Saul sends three groups of messengers to take David captive. As they approach the city, a group of prophets are prophesying with Samuel standing as leader over them, the messengers come under an "open heaven" and begin to prophesy themselves. Frustrated, Saul makes the journey to do the work himself, ending up on the ground, prophesying all day and all night.

What happened? He came into the place where God had opened the heavens and a manifestation of His presence took place.

Modern Day Examples

The Azusa Street outpouring in Los Angeles a century ago, brought people from around the world to capture a "taste of heaven" and take it back to their places of residence and impart it there. During the "Toronto Blessing" people came from all over the world to experience the open heaven that had manifested in that city. Other example's would be the Lakeland Revival, at Carpenter's Home Church, as well as the Pensacola Revival, that took place in the state Florida in the '90's.

Not only can an open heaven reside over a geographical location, but I also believe certain individuals can carry a special authority from God to open the heavens in localities that were previously closed. These individuals, like Charles Finney, were in an office of ability and influence that heaven had granted a special exsousia {ex-oo-see'-ah}. "The power of rule or government; the power of Him whose will and commands must be submitted to by others and obeyed." (Reference www.blueletterbible.org)

In Charles Finney's autobiography he speaks of people crossing the county line where he was conducting revival services and they would immediately fall under conviction, weeping for repentance. They had crossed the border into the "Throne Zone!" Another time it was recorded as he took a tour of a factory, workers "fell out under the power of God." He is one who carried with him an "open heaven" wherever he went.

Men told Smith Wigglesworth, while traveling in a train car, that his mere presence brought them under conviction. He in turn led them in a prayer of repentance for salvation. Just another example of a man carrying about a mantle for an "open heaven."

I believe there are many individuals living today that carry that anointing. At the same time, I believe many are being raised up in this hour that will embrace that anointing, until the kingdoms of the earth become the kingdoms of our God. I know of ministers who have been into regions where the heavens were brass, where others experienced only minimal results. Yet, when they go to the same region with heaven's authority and power, the profuse favor of God comes upon them, granting audiences with kings, presidents, Prime ministers, and heads of state. The region becomes an open heaven because they are carrying heaven's mantle.

For Every Positive...

Of course, there is a usually negative, and with this there is no exception. The negative in this case most often comes from those that do not understand the principle. Their personal inexperience is the basis for how they interpret, and view the principles of scripture relevant for them today, Biblical examples or not. Nor do they accept the personal experiences of others that validate a scriptural example or principle. They are caught up in the "Thomas syndrome" (nothing personal against Thomas, my middle name is Thomas) "I won't believe it, until I see it." To which we reply, "O ye of little faith."

Throughout the years I have had heard two statements repeated over and over:

I don't see why you have to go to a meeting somewhere else to meet God.

God is sovereign, if He wants to visit us, He will.

In all of these cases, without exception, those who voiced these comments were not living under an open heaven, (very negative) and complained about those who pursued it. Sad, but true.

Please Stand Here

All through scripture, God spoke to those he wanted to use, to go to a specific place, and in that place, God would meet them.

Now the Lord had said to Abram: "Get out of your country, From your family and from your father's house, To a land that I will show you. Genesis 12:1 (emphasis mine)

Then He said, "Take now your son, your only son Isaac, whom you love, and go to the land of Moriah, and offer him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains of which I shall tell you." Genesis 22:2 (emphasis mine)

Then the Lord said to Moses, "Come up to Me on the mountain and be there; and I will give you tablets of stone, and the law and commandments which I have written, that you may teach them." So Moses arose with his assistant Joshua, and Moses went up to the mountain of God. Exodus 24:12-14 (emphasis mine)

God also designated specific cities as a place of refuge. A selected place of safety and protection for individuals that had committed accidental crimes (See Numbers Ch. 35). If those people left the confines of the city limits, their life was in their own hands.

You shall appoint three cities on this side of the Jordan, and three cities you shall appoint in the land of Canaan, which will be cities of refuge. Numbers 35:14

Discerning What The Spirit Is Saying

Rather than belaboring the point endlessly, let's summarize and conclude. A frequent word I keep hearing from the prophets, is the word "portal." When God wants to emphasize something to the body of Christ, you will begin to hear a consistent recurring word, or theme, from many ministry voices to make clear to us, "this is a rhema word by the Spirit." In computer "lingo", a portal is "a site that the owner positions as an entrance to other sites on the Internet." In the noun form it can mean a grand and imposing entrance (often extended metaphorically.) Definitions courtesy of www.onelook.com.

To put this in perspective; the Owner of the "open heavens" desires to place a "portal" of His presence over our gathering places, our homes, and even over our individual lives. An indication of this is revealed in Isaiah chapter four. He wants us to have access to all of the other "sites" that come with an open heaven, salvation, healing, health, and provision.

And the Lord will grant you plenty of goods, in the fruit of your body, in the increase of your livestock, and in the produce of your ground, in the land of which the Lord swore to your fathers to give you. The Lord will open to you His good treasure, the heavens, to give the rain to your land in its season, and to bless all the work of your hand. You shall lend to many nations, but you shall not borrow. And the Lord will make you the head and not the tail; you shall be above only, and not be beneath, if you heed the commandments of the Lord your God, which I command you today, and are careful to observe them. Deuteronomy 28:11-13 (emphasis mine)

The Example Of Wise Men

The book of Luke records the journey of eastern astronomers that had observed an unusual "star" in the heavens and therefore followed it until they found the young child, Jesus. Whether, or not, they had received an angelic visitation and invitation as did the shepherds is unknown. However, both shepherds and wise men had to travel to where Jesus was.

The Greek language offers two different descriptive words for Jesus at the time of their respected visits. For the shepherds, it offers the word, brephos {bref'-os}, describing a babe, or infant.

And they came with haste and found Mary and Joseph, and the Babe lying in a manger. Luke 2:16 (emphasis mine)

For what we've come to know as the "wise men", it offers to them the word, paidion {pahee-dee'-on} which usually describes a young child, or a little boy, or girl.

And when they had come into the house, they saw the young Child with Mary His mother, and fell down and worshiped Him. Matthew 2:11 (emphasis mine) Note He was no longer found in a manger.

Many scholars believe that Jesus was about two years old at the time of the arrival of the wise men. Citing that Herod had all the male children born two years of age and younger put to death. (Matthew 2:16) In light of that, it was a long and expensive journey to meet the King of Kings. It cost them a great deal personally to go to the place of an "open heaven", the gifts they brought not withstanding. However, what the received in return was priceless.

Thy Kingdom Come, Thy Will Be Done...

As we speak, I believe these "portals" for the heavens to open, are forming around us today. I believe that over certain geographical locations, as well as over certain individual ministries, we are about to experience an outpouring of heavenly manifestations. I believe a visitation of "Kingdom proportion" is coming on a new generation of God chasers, that will begin where all others have left off.

The question is, "Will you be a candidate to pursue this holy convocation, or, will you be content to wait and see?

And He said to him, "Most assuredly, I say to you, hereafter you shall see heaven open, and the angels of God ascending and descending upon the Son of Man." John 1:51 NKJV