Prophetic Pictures Found on a Country Walk
Gall on a rose bush: The gall is formed when a gall wasp lays its eggs in the rose stem. The eggs hatch into larvae which then release chemicals which mimic the plant growth hormones of the rose bush. The presence of these chemicals causes the rose bush tissue to grow abnormally forming the gall in which the larvae grow, feed , pupate and eventually emerge as new adult gall wasps. If the gall is cut off the rose bush, the rose bush continues its normal growth without any permanent damage.
The interpretation is that this a picture of the church, or perhaps individuals within the church, who have allowed the enemy to invade their lives and cause abnormal or irrelevant growth or attitudes. Cutting out these attitudes which are ungodly will restore the Christian or the Church to normal growth, without any permanent damage.
Lichen on a stick. Lichens grow on tree bark and a beautiful additions to any woodland. They are a symbiosis os a Green alga and a fungus. Many different Lichens exist according to the species of alga and fungus. Lichens can colonise bare rock and new growth on trees, but are very susceptible to pollution and die back in polluted areas. The interpretation is that if a Christian or a Church allows the pollution of the world to enter their life, this will cause them to stop growing in faith and they will start to die back.
Attacks on the Church from the Enemy and from have always been part of the Christian experience. When Jesus spoke to John in Revelation, the churches were being persecuted by the Roman authorities but were also being polluted from within by false teaching, immorality and corruption. These attacks on the church have continued throughout AD history and persist to this day, whether they be through persecution (it’s estimated that approximately 170,000 Christians die for their faith each year) or through corruption and immortality as seen in parts of the Western churches. We need to be aware of these two different modes of attack and free ourselves from pollution of our minds, and cut out any traces of spiritual attack from the enemy, as well as praying for those under persecution.
Ephesians 6 explains how we need to be on our guard against enemy attack “Put on the full armour of God that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes, for our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world, and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. Therefore put on the full armour of God…” Eph 6:11-13.
Chris Woodhouse
