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As the Lord leads, I launch the New Year with a word of sober prophetic warning to the churches and individuals making them up that claim connection to Jesus Christ of the Bible (Ezekiel 33:1-9). The warning is rooted in the last book of the Bible declared to be His “Revelation” in which He participates in the delivery and oversees the composition of its prophetic content that pronounces the reader and obedient hearer “blessed” (Revelation 1:1-3, NKJV). The Lord’s participation includes His own recorded words in glorious appearance to His chosen vessel and prophet, the apostle John, who is to write down and deliver the prophecy to seven churches in Asia (Revelation 1:4-20).
Before going any further, let me give the first part of the Lord’s warning to all of the churches that have entered this third decade of the 21st century and at breakneck speed, approach the second millennia anniversary of His death, burial, resurrection and ascension: He has not changed (Hebrews 13:8)! What He said to the churches in Asia at the end of the 1st century A.D., He stands by and says to all that exist at this hour and until the end. Those who by deceitful corruption of the Bible insist otherwise are deluding themselves and deceiving you that believe them! The Lord’s prophecy to the seven churches in Asia was for them, all others of the time and all that would exist after them.
The latter statement is consistent with the commentary of many biblically conservative interpreters that understand the apostle John in obedience to the Lord’s command was to deliver the entire “Revelation” to the literal seven named churches of Asia (Revelation 1:9-11, 19).1 Again, very importantly in the process the Lord’s specific messages to each one of those seven churches was to also speak to their contemporary sister churches and those of similar circumstance in the future. Some believe each church of the seven represented a season of the long epoch of Church history on earth thus far. However, this conclusion is not borne out by actual history.
Absolutely consistent with actual history though, the Bible and Revelation’s use of the number seven to indicate completeness (Genesis 2:1-3; Joshua 6:1-5; Luke 8:1-2), each of the seven churches in their conduct represent the continuing state of churches existing then together and at all times after until they are no more at an end prophetically and repeatedly alluded to by the Lord in His messages to them. As the Lord has had me declare in many previous posts, the approaching global end of local churches as open, corporate displays of Christianity regardless of form or authenticity comes from the world’s persecutions and His judgment.2
The foregoing is the reason I break here with the popular teaching that churches are not mentioned from Revelation 4 onward because Christians have been removed from the earth by “the rapture.” Actually, “the churches” are again mentioned in Revelation 22:16. Individual believers as “His servants” and “saints” on earth and in Heaven are spoken of throughout the prophecy while “the angels (messengers) of the seven churches” are uniquely addressed (Revelation 1:1, 20, 5:8-10, NKJV). Indeed, among the many common characteristics of the Lord’s messages to the churches in Revelation 2-3 are His repeated words, “He who has an ear...” spoken to individuals within them!
I will return to individuals as the ultimate target audience of the Lord even as He initially speaks to them in local churches momentarily. First though, the Lord would have me briefly speak more to the common characteristics of His messages to the seven churches of Asia. In what should certainly be the most alarming common characteristic of the Lord’s messages to the seven churches is the reality that He walked among them. This is how He knew their works as another commonality and knows ours too! An additional common characteristic is the Lord held the messengers of these churches in His right hand which suggests not only honor and responsibility, but also control.3
The Lord commended the good, but voiced what He had against the messengers and the seven churches they led as still another commonality; calling the guilty to repentance to avoid temporal punishment and eternal loss. Yet, this did not seem to have long alarmed guilty leaders and congregants or deter them from brazen disobedience to His Word and committing all manner of evil to this hour!4 In spite of the Lord’s command for all to “hear what the Spirit says to the churches,” their history is replete with the corrupt conduct He condemned. The seven churches of Asia passed from the scene as have countless others since and all are shortly about to. Even so, a remnant of Christians from among the two churches Christ commended has stood and will stand to the end!
1 See for example, Revelation by George Ladd, Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., Grand Rapids, MI, 1972, p 36.
2 Read the August 23, 2015 post, Babylon Is Falling, under the category, Bible Prophecy and Praise For The Lord God Almighty!, posted September 13, 2015 under the
category, Glory To God as samples. So much for “thriving religious enterprises of human pride, achievement and enduring legacy” I wrote is all the rage during these
latter days in the introduction of my December 8, 2019 repost, Restoring Men, under the category, The Cause!
3 Messengers clearly refer to the men called by Christ to shepherd and feed His sheep with His messages (John 21:15-17; Acts 20:26-28; 1 Peter 5:1-4). Therefore, no
pastor/teacher is to understand himself as the sovereign head over a local church and free to teach whatever is right in his own eyes. The Lord Jesus is and remains
forever, Lord, under whom a pastor and any elders serve and are held accountable by Him. The Lord has mercifully chosen for His purposes and our testing to be
longsuffering in the main during this mortal Church era (Luke 13:6-9; 2 Peter 3:9). It is because of this that guilty pastors doing what is right in their own eyes as if
there is no King or Chief Shepherd (Judges 17:6; Acts 20:29-30) have enjoyed extended stays and on their account such resulting ungodly confusion exists among
the churches (2 Peter 2:18-19). But there is a King and Christ is He! Without repentance, His eventual judgment is assured (Matthew 18:6-9) as He made clear to the
guilty messengers and churches of Asia. See my February 9, 2014 post, Is There No King Among Us?, under the category, Call To Repent.
4 As a contemporary example, since the 1960s many male pastors have followed the lead of Thyatira’s messenger to “allow” the rise of guilty women as Jezebels to
teach and take authority over His "servants" in His house in defiance of plain apostolic doctrine (1 Timothy 2:11-14; Revelation 2:20, NKJV). Read my May 27 and
June 3, 2018 two-part post, Feminism’s Entry Into The Churches, under the categories Call To Repent and God’s Creatures. At this hour too, United Methodists are
splitting over the issue of whether same sex relationships biblically condemned are to be tolerated among its members and leaders.
Hollywood loves turning loose out of place in time gigantic dinosaurs and other beasts into the cities and suburbs of the modern world to wreak havoc and destruction as terrified humanity runs for their lives to escape. And while God Almighty in no way compares to any beast of the earth past, present or of fallen man’s imagination, humanity in the 21st century world is just as unprepared for His unveiling in judgment as those of fiction are to the sudden appearance of out of place and time giant beasts. Nevertheless, Bible prophecy is very clear this world hostile to and in rebellion against God is near to experiencing His completely unexpected display of severe warning judgments and wrath!
Sadly, among those that are not prepared for God Almighty to again show His superior power in the earth are many that profess to be Christians. Ignoring the most significant sign God has given yet of what is coming, many still want to put the Day of the Lord off for possible thousands of years away or hide behind “that day and hour no one knows” which refers to specificity, not general times or why would the Lord command us to watch for signs He Himself gave (Mark 13:28-37, NKJV)? It is righteous to avoid confusion from way out speculation about the end times. But it seems many avoid the issue because it interferes with their carefully laid plans and preoccupation with this world!1
Can you speak thunder? The Lord Jesus can and whomever He enables among His servants (Revelation 10:1-4)! During the week leading up to Passover and His crucifixion, “certain Greeks” among the Jewish throngs sought to have an audience with the Lord. Though He did not meet with them, He plainly took their desire for an audience to be prophetically significant as it concerned His glory, fruit of His crucifixion and perpetual requirements to be His disciple as He spoke to Andrew and Philip who were attempting to arrange the meeting (John 12:20-26, NKJV). Squaring up with His crucifixion again, the Lord then speaks of it as His disturbing, but unavoidable approaching reality and concludes it was for that experience He had come to the moment (John 12:27).
Honoring His Father who had assigned Him the cross, the Lord Jesus exclaimed, ‘“Father, glorify Your name.’” Immediately the Father replied, ‘“I have both glorified it and will glorify it again,’” (John 12:28, NKJV). The people standing by heard the Father and “said it had thundered;” some thought the thunder was an angel speaking to him. Jesus said the voice (and very importantly, the words) of His Father was not for His sake, but the people present (John 12:29-30, NKJV). And why? The Lord says, ‘“Now is the judgment of this world; now the ruler of this world will be cast out. And I, if I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all peoples to Myself,’” (John 12:31-32, NKJV).
The Father would be glorified a second time in the earth by the atoning death of His Son, Jesus Christ, for the sins of the world (John 1:29-34). While delivering all (Jew and Gentile) that look to His sacrifice for salvation through faith, it also certifies the judgment of the rejecting remainder (John 3:14-21). Also, finally, in the aftermath of Christ’s triumphant sacrifice Satan, the ruler of this world, will be deposed and eternally banished (Colossians 2:13-15; 1 John 5:19; Revelation 20:7-10). Now, if all of this from Christ’s sacrifice constitutes a second time the Father is glorified, then, when was the first time? Wasn’t it His mighty deliverance of Israel from slavery in Egypt?2
God Almighty came down from Heaven to deliver Israel from bondage to Egypt about the midpoint of the 15th century B.C. (Exodus 3-14). With the rod of Moses the Lord strong and mighty suddenly visited and brought plagues upon Egypt representing the modern world of its time because Pharaoh, their ruler, would not let God’s people He came to deliver go. By the time the Lord was finished Egypt was destroyed; Pharaoh who claimed to be a god and all of the rest of Egypt’s gods (demons) were humiliated in defeat (Exodus 7:3-5, 10:7, 14:1-9, 21-30). The fame of the Lord went throughout the earth from that day and remains among all mankind that have heard of what He did to Egypt on behalf of Israel; to deliver them from bondage with mighty signs and wonders in judgment.
So, now, Israel is back in her land after nearly 1,900 years of dispersion throughout the earth by divine decree as foretold by the prophets beginning with Moses (Deuteronomy 28:15-68, 31:14-29; Hosea 3, 5:8-15). Many are returning to the land as God’s preparation for both His final punishment and deliverance of the Jewish people. Indeed, as foretold by the Lord through His prophets, as Judah returned from exile and rebuilt the Temple and Jerusalem beginning in the 6th century B.C., so, those presently in the land are doing the same, but in reverse order. Opposition exponentially greater (involving global hostilities) to what was faced by Jews building the second Temple faces those that would build a third (Ezra 1, 3-4:24). Yet, they have to and will--the Temple is part of their identification with God.3
In the days leading up to and during building the Temple according to the Lord’s specifications (Ezekiel 40-43:12), He will begin to finish bringing glory to Himself again in the cause of delivering Israel this time in the sight of this whole 21st century earth. After sealing His chosen Jewish remnant (Revelation 7:1-8), God will suddenly display His unmistakable wonders in mighty warning judgments (Revelation 8-9). After this will come Satan’s last stand before Christ returns, God’s final exam, Israel’s travail and “great tribulation” that spreads to the whole world (Mark 13:14-23; Revelation 11:1-14, 12:1-14:13, NKJV). Then, following as foretold, God will unleash His full wrath inaugurating the Day of the Lord that also features the Second Coming of Christ to lead the charge.
This unique Day of the Lord delivers remnant Jews and Christians, judges this world and overcomes all kingdoms including Satan’s (Isaiah 13:6-13; Zechariah 12:1-9, 14:1-7, 12-15; Mark 13:24-27; 2 Thessalonians 1:3-10; Revelation 11:15-19, 16, 19:11-20:3). Just as He brought Israel out of Egypt, God Almighty will triumphantly bring all of the chosen, surviving remnant of His people back to the land in that Day from all over the earth to see Him in glory. They will turn to Christ as foretold (Isaiah 10:20-23, 11:11-16; Jeremiah 30:1-9, 31:1-9; Ezekiel 39:21-29; Hosea 6:1-3; Zechariah 12:10-13:1; Romans 11:1-29).4 This present world will never be the same again. The risen, living Christ continues His cry among American churches, "Who is on the Lord's side?"
1 Faithful and true disciples of Jesus Christ live in this world to please Him and do His will which is the heart of every aspiring strong man and great woman of God in
His image (Mark 8:31-38; Luke 9:57-62; 1 John 2:15-17). Learn more in my book, The Strong Man Of God: Back To Basics available in print or digital download for-
mats at major internet booksellers such as Amazon, Barnes & Noble, ChristianBooks.com and Apple (digital only). You can also get the Hard or Soft Cover print ver-
sions of the book in the Strong Man Store.
2 Read the July 30-Sept 3, 2017 six-part series and especially part five, Restoring Men In The Two Minute Drill, under the category, Bible Prophecy as additional back-
ground information for this post.
3 This is another reason putting end time events off for even hundreds of years from now is not sound. Truly, the Jews mournfully commemorate the exact day both the
first and second Temples were respectively destroyed (which amazingly are the same--only God!) by the Babylonians in 586 B.C. and the Romans in 70 A.D. on an
occasion called Tisha B’Av--The Fast Of The Fifth Month (see The Feasts of the Lord, Kevin Howard and Marvin Rosenthal, Thomas Nelson Inc., Nashville 1997,
151-157). The devout not only grieve the loss and lack of a Temple, but most assuredly will not let the 2,000 year anniversary of the second Temple’s destruction
looming ahead this century pass without notice as many make preparation for a third to be built (Ezra 5-6; https://www.templeinstitute.org/main.htm). This should not
surprise faithful Christians since as He did with the second Temple, the Lord stirs up the hearts of the people nearing 100 years back in the land also this century
(Haggai 1:1-2:9)! Thus too, as it was with Pharaoh who God demanded to let His people go forth to worship Him, so, with Satan through his human vessels among
the Gentile nations and finally, the one who becomes Antichrist, God will demand through Jewish leaders what He similarly spoke to me writing in a former post: “Let
My people worship Me in the house I have commanded them to build Me,” (see footnote 2).
4 See the June 12, 2016 post, The Day Of Israel’s Comfort, under the category, Bible Prophecy.
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