Religious and secular voices from many quarters are proclaiming that the signs of the end of the world are all about us. They point to such evidence as the terrorist attacks of 9/11, North Korea exploding a nuclear device, Iran on the verge of joining the nuclear club, earthquakes, tsunamis, droughts, famines, and wars, just to name a few. Many newscasters, theologians, and preachers have warned that the dreaded third world war is just around the corner. Some say that the world is already involved in round one of that war. The evidence often cited is the widening rift between the fundamentalist factions within the Christian community and Islam. A minority on both sides of these opposing world views are actually fanning the flames of hatred by claiming that God seeks their human assistance to bring about the great tribulation and Armageddon. Does God really want or need their help in such matters? Do the so-called experts, religious or secular, really understand the mind and the will of God?
If we pause and think for a moment, we must conclude that mankind finds itself immersed in a hopelessly confused state, a time in which nobody seems to have the answers that could pull us out of this mess. There seem to be no logical solutions to this end-time morass of horrible news, conflicting ideological views, and fanatical religious beliefs. You know the situation has gotten out of hand when Hollywood, through television and the movies, and authors of fictional books allude to having the answers! Writers, producers, and directors have put out a torrent of info-tainment based on Biblical scripture. They have gone beyond the pale. Box offices and bookshelves bewilder us with imagined scenarios of a horrible end for mankind. The impression they leave us is that the answers are hidden in secret code in old paintings, intriguing scriptural references to those left behind, or ancient pagan carvings about collisions with the mysterious planet X.
A lot of money has been made attaching a good story line, special effects, or highly paid actors and actresses to something about which God cares deeply - the end of the age. It is the culmination of millions, if not billions, of years of His hard work. God does not need the aid of special effects or fanciful fiction to accomplish His awesome plans. Neither does He need the threats of fear religion, fire and brimstone preaching, and overly-fervent religious judgmentalism. God does not take kindly to the use of such tactics in His holy and righteous name.
God’s word, the Bible, is sufficient to accomplish all He has set out to do. John 1:1-3 states, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made.” That includes the next step in creation - peace on earth. He warns us in Revelation 22:18-19 not to go beyond His word in any way, shape, or form. “For I testify to everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this book: If anyone adds to these things, God will add to him the plagues that are written in this book; and if anyone takes away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God shall take away his part from the Book of Life, from the holy city, and from the things which are written in this book.”
Mankind as we know it has existed for almost six thousand years. The history of those six millennia has been written in the blood, sweat, and tears of the human race. Humanity has struggled determinedly to rise above his propensity for self-destruction. Every generation lauds its sons and daughters who persevered against all odds to show us the good of which the human heart and intellect are capable. Beautiful art, inspiring music, stunning architecture, and many marvelous inventions have been produced and amplified by each generation.
Each irrepressible wave of human beings has left behind a legacy of achievement for the next to build upon. Every invention has led to more and greater inventions coming with an ever-increasing rapidity that literally takes our breath away today. Paradoxically, it seems that many of the finest minds of each generation are given to creating ever-more lethal ways to wage war. The carnage that war can now inflict numbs the imagination! The costs by any measure are staggering. Financially, the world’s coffers are drained. Emotionally, the world’s hearts and minds are scarred and fraught with anxiety.
Over the six millennia, the dirt of the earth has buried billions of the victims of war. The aftermath of war has killed billions more by famine, pestilence, and disease. Each war seems to sow the bitter seeds which sprout into the next war. Every generation also produces sons and daughters of hate that know how to nourish those sprouts with the rhetoric of hate, racism, national superiority, and the fanatical ideologies based upon them. An endless stream of despots and tyrants has led the world’s nations through the crucible of war.
Have we learned anything? Yes, I think we have. World War I was so terrible that the stunned powers of the world proclaimed it “the war to end all wars”. The victors sought to humiliate, impoverish, and demilitarize the vanquished foes and thereby remove the threat of war. Their misguided efforts merely planted the bitter seeds which sprouted into World War II. World War II was three times as devastating as World War I. It was truly an all-out global conflict.
Mankind learns the lessons of history slowly, but he is not altogether stupid. After World War II, the victors treated the vanquished far differently. They treated them with dignity, and the seeds of hope and cooperation were planted. This lesson was learned in the nick of time, as the world had entered the nuclear age.
Mankind collectively gasped when it realized that all-out war now meant all-out extinction! No human being with a shred of compassion could push the button. Likewise, the common desire of mankind for self preservation and the pursuit of happiness has brought many former enemies to the peace table. There is now a worldwide sense of cooperation to prevent the unthinkable.
We citizens of the world should be proud and supportive of the fine men and women who serve us all through their tireless efforts at diplomacy. We also owe thanks to the men and women who serve on the dangerous peace-keeping missions around the world. We owe a debt of gratitude to the many in uniform, past and present, who have put themselves in harm’s way to stop the march of evil tyrants and despots. The remarkable efforts of diplomats, statesmen, soldiers, and relief workers around the globe have helped prevent the world from imploding. We need more than band-aids and temporary cease-fires. However, mankind is now realizing that no permanent solution lies within itself.
On one hand, most of us feel mankind has suffered enough already. Many people are uniting to accomplish tremendous good works. The year 2006 has been called the greatest year in the history of philanthropy. It is a year which saw a number of our world’s wealthiest people vow to make the world a better place for all. On the other hand, we know in our hearts that just as the great achievements of the past generations have so often been destroyed, so a small minority or one powerful madman bent on evil could bring it all crashing down on the rest of us! The voices of doom and gloom now come from every direction to remind us of what they say is our inevitable fate. Mankind needs the help of its Creator and will get it in an absolute, unequivocal, and truly awesome way.
The only opinion that really matters for those of us who find ourselves alive at the end of the age is God’s. Those of us who wish to make a positive difference must decide to believe what He says. Do not believe me, the pundits, or Hollywood. Believe God. The end of the age has actually brought us to the time that humanity has longed for. The promised Millennium of peace is at hand!
The only reliable source for revealing knowledge is God’s word, the Bible. If we tell ourselves at the outset that we will believe it if God said it, we will have a firm foundation of truth which will prove the doomsday crowd absolutely wrong. The first scripture we will look at is Isaiah 45:18. All references are the New King James Version unless otherwise noted. “For thus says the Lord, who created the heavens, who is God, who formed the earth and made it, who has established it, who did not create it in vain, who formed it to be INHABITED: ‘I am the Lord, and there is no other.’” This scripture alone tells us that God will not allow the earth to become an uninhabitable nuclear wasteland or to be annihilated by a collision with some mysterious planet X. Let’s just believe it and move on to prove our case.
Matthew 24:22 is the next thing we want to hear God say. “‘And unless those days were shortened, no flesh would be saved; but for the elect’s sake those days WILL BE shortened.’” This is a very comforting promise indeed. God knows we have been living under the threat of the mushroom cloud for over half a century now. He knows we have approached the precipice more than once. He promises we will not go over the brink.
Now let the Bible speak its logic to us. (Matthew 24:44) “‘Therefore you also be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect.’” (Matthew 25:13) “‘Watch therefore, for you know neither the day nor the hour in which the Son of Man is coming.’”
Let’s use common sense to ask ourselves a few pertinent questions. Billions of people around the world believe we are nearing the end of the world. They point to bad omens such as wars, famines, diseases, etc. They go on to say that these will continue to worsen until the world experiences huge pandemics, nuclear devastation, all mountains being laid flat by earthquakes, collisions with objects from outer space, and waters turning to blood, etc., while quoting Biblical scripture. Doesn’t anyone ask how Christ’s return could possibly take us by surprise after such events? Wouldn’t the few survivors, if anyone could survive, be expecting just such an event? Something just does not compute. The place planet earth was headed is not where it will end up. God’s word tells us how He will save us from Satan and ourselves. We need to get our thinking in sync with God’s.
There has been an absolutely huge misunderstanding of scripture because we have not let the Bible interpret itself. The most often-quoted scripture regarding signs to watch for at the end of the age is Matthew 24. In verse 3, Christ’s disciples ask Him a couple of very direct questions on what signs to watch for in connection with His second coming. We will pick up the story in Matthew 24:1. “Then Jesus went out and departed from the temple, and His disciples came up to show Him the buildings of the temple. And Jesus said to them, ‘Do you not see all these things? Assuredly, I say to you, not one stone shall be left here upon another, that shall not be thrown down.’”
His answer intrigued the disciples to the point that a little later they felt compelled to ask Christ their now-famous questions. Matthew 24:3 “Now as He sat on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to Him privately, saying, ‘Tell us, when will these things be? And what will be the sign of Your coming, and of the end of the age?’” These turned out to be two questions for which the prophetic fulfillment would be nearly two thousand years apart.
The prophetic fulfillment to the first question regarding the destruction of the physical temple buildings took place in 70 A.D. That is when Jerusalem was surrounded by the Roman army under Titus, was sacked, looted, and the temple buildings destroyed. Some of the disciples were actually still alive to witness this event with their own eyes.
None of them would live to see and experience the answer to their second question about the end of the age. Let’s listen very carefully to Christ’s prophetic answer which is of great interest to us who are alive at the end of the age. Matthew 24:4-5 “And Jesus answered and said to them: ‘Take heed that no one deceives you. For many will come in My name, saying, “I am the Christ,” and will deceive many.’”
The first part of Christ’s prophetic answer is to warn of many who would come in His name saying that He is the Christ (Christos in Greek), meaning the Messiah. Then Jesus clearly tells us what these deceivers of many will be saying in His name. Matthew 24:6-7 “‘And you will hear of wars and rumors of wars. See that you are not troubled; for all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet. For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. And there will be famines, pestilences, and earthquakes in various places.’”
Christ clearly tells us that it is a serious deception to point to wars, rumors of wars, famines, earthquakes, and the like as signs of His coming. We need to believe what He said. After all, the question was given to Him to answer. Christ knew what He was talking about. Thousands of each of these events have occurred since He gave that warning. For a moment we will go to the parallel accounts in Mark 13 and Luke 21.
Christ’s warning in Mark 13:7-8 is recounted as, “‘But when you hear of wars and rumors of wars, do not be troubled; for such things must happen, but the end is not yet. For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. And there will be earthquakes in various places, and there will be famines and troubles. These are the beginnings of sorrows.’”
Beginnings of sorrows is arche and odin in the Greek, which means the commencement or chief birth pangs. The labor pangs before the birth of what? Of course, the birth of a new age! That is the question Christ was answering. The disciples had asked, “And what will be the sign of Your coming, and of the end of the age?”
Luke 21:8-9 tells us, “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. 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.’” How appropriate for this very point in history! So many voices seek to terrify us with bizarre end-time scenarios composed of a mixture of wars, rumors of wars, famines, pestilences, earthquakes, and many other troubles and commotions, while they say the time has drawn near. Be wary of any who preach these false signs in God’s name.
What is the end of the world anyway, and why is it important not to be deceived about its signs? The end of the age, as Jesus Christ defines it in His own words, is far different than you might expect. Matthew 24:3 is correctly translated “end of the age” in the New King James Version. The King James Version has it rendered “end of the world”. The term comes from the Greek word aion which means “an age”. Therefore, Christ’s return marks the end of one age (or as we might say today, an eon or era) and the beginning of the next.
The next age will be a millennium of unprecedented peace and prosperity. Isaiah 2:4 speaks of this time. “He shall judge between the nations, and rebuke many people; they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruning hooks; nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war anymore.” It’s appropriate to ask how. How would it be possible for the world to learn to get along if the nations had been obliterated by nuclear war and the other cataclysmic events that so many preach in Christ’s name as the signs of His coming?
The misunderstanding of scripture runs deep. Satan has done a masterful job on all of mankind as a deceiver who has even had the audacity to twist God’s very own words. A case in point is a misunderstanding of what God means by “tribulation.” Religious scholars and preachers terrify us with descriptions of the great tribulation and Armageddon by dumping all the false signs into a pot, stirring it up, and feeding it to us as doctrine. We are told they speak in Christ’s name, but we have already heard what Christ had to say about them. Do not be troubled by their words.
We will now quote from the Times and Seasons Digest No. 9, “What Do You Mean Tribulation?” pages 2-3.
The word tribulation is used 26 times in the Bible, four times in the Old Testament and 22 times in the New Testament. In the Old Testament tribulation comes from the Hebrew word tsar or tsarah. Tsar means a narrow, tight place, usually figuratively; also a pebble or stone as pressed hard by an opponent as if crowding. In the New Testament the word for tribulation is thlipsis which comes from the word thlibo meaning pressure, literally or figuratively to crowd. These two words come from the word tribos which means to rub as if along a rut or worn track… The first thing to notice is that they do not mean utter death and destruction. Many associate tribulation with the almost total annihilation of mankind in an end-time cataclysm… Since tribulation by definition is not synonymous with death and destruction, we must find out what it is. The first thing we will notice in God’s word is that the tribulation had already started nearly two thousand years ago. The Apostle John records in Revelation 1:9. “I, John, both your brother and companion in the tribulation [thlipsis] and kingdom and patience of Jesus Christ, was on the island that is called Patmos for the word of God and for the testimony of Jesus Christ.” Therefore John and his brethren and companions were feeling the pressure of the tribulation two thousand years ago! As a matter of fact in verses 1-3 John records that the Book of Revelation was being given to him by Christ to help him and his brethren and companions to understand the things they were about to experience in their day. “The Revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave Him to show His servants--things which must shortly take place. And He sent and signified it by His angel to His servant John, who bore witness to the word of God, and to the testimony of Jesus Christ, to all things that he saw. Blessed is he who reads and those who hear the words of this prophecy, and keep those things which are written in it; for the time is near.” So the tribulation had started in John’s day and continues to this very day!… Christ directly warned His disciples of the tribulation in John 16:33. “‘These things I have spoken to you, that in Me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world.’” As he wrote Revelation, John knew he was in the tribulation because his Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, told him he would experience it. The word Christ used for world here is kosmos which means the orderly arrangement literally, figuratively or morally of the world. The base or root of this word is komizo which means the way the world is tended or cared for. Satan and his current world order are the source of tribulation… Satan, the god of this world, holds it captive under the influences of his evil spiritual government. Christ told His disciples that He had overcome this evil arrangement. He also warned them that as Satan had come after Him and caused Him tribulation, Satan would also pressure them with tribulation as well.
Up until this point in time, very few people have experienced tribulation as God defines it. The vast majority of people who have lived have not received the Holy Spirit, been led into the truth, and held accountable to bear spiritual fruit. All of mankind has lived through the hell of war, famine, disease, earthquakes, etc. All who have gone on before have experienced the sting of death. As discussed in the Times and Seasons Digest No. 5 “God’s Harvests”, hidden within the billions of people who have lived and died have been the firstfruits, people like Peter, James, John, Paul, Stephen, and Timothy. They have actually experienced the real tribulation, holding fast to the truth and growing in godly character while under pressure and temptation from Satan.
The firstfruits had remarkable roles to play down through history which will directly impact those of us who are alive at the end of the age. They are the 144,000 firstfruits mentioned in Revelation 14:1-5 and 7:1-8, but we will learn more about them later. Now let’s look at the references to what the Bible calls great tribulation.
There are only three references to “great tribulation”: Matthew 24:21 prophesied intense trials on God’s Church at the end of the age. Revelation 2:22 speaks of severe persecution of the early Church by the Roman Empire. The last reference is Revelation 7:14. It is important to remember that for one to be in the tribulation they must be going through the process of conversion. This is made clear in Revelation 7:14, which refers to a period of great tribulation at the end of the age. Revelation 7:9-10 and 13-17 are as follows: “After these things I looked, and behold, a great multitude which no one could number, of all nations, tribes, peoples, tongues, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, clothed with white robes, with palm branches in their hands, and crying out with a loud voice, saying, ‘Salvation belongs to our God who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb!’”
Verses 13-17: “Then one of the elders answered, saying to me, ‘Who are these arrayed in white robes, and where did they come from?’ And I said to him, ‘Sir, you know.’ So he said to me, ‘These are the ones who come out of the great tribulation, and washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb. Therefore they are before the throne of God, and serve Him day and night in His temple. And He who sits on the throne will dwell among them. They shall neither hunger anymore nor thirst anymore; the sun shall not strike them, nor any heat; for the Lamb who is in the midst of the throne will shepherd them and lead them to living fountains of waters. And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes.’” This is obviously a scene of mass conversion around the world! This could not take place if the earth had been obliterated. This is the great harvest covered in Digest No. 5.
To be converted, a person must be alive and capable of entering a relationship with our Savior Jesus Christ. This can only happen if the earth has avoided utter destruction. The great tribulation actually results in a great victory for God and for all mankind! This is a battle for the hearts and souls of mankind in which Satan is soundly defeated. The invisible power of Satan’s evil spiritual government will be broken as one human being after another is called, converted, and cleaned up by the blood of Christ.
This great tribulation is something Satan greatly fears; we should not. II Timothy 1:7 “For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind.” We are on the verge of entering the most fantastic time in human history!
By applying God’s definition of tribulation, we can summarize the end-time great tribulation in this way: Tribulation is outside pressure on human beings who are in the process of true conversion. Human beings are a type of living stones made of the dust of the earth, which God seeks to mold like clay along the straight and narrow path of righteousness. In direct opposition, Satan seeks to pressure those same living stones off that path by influencing them towards sin. The time of tribulation is first entered into by a small group of the converted called the firstfruits, the bride of Christ, and the 144,000.
A massive conversion of the world at the end of the age forms what is called a great tribulation because of the sheer numbers involved. Armed with the godly explanation of the tribulation, we can move forward to why it is so important to get this correct.
The primary reason to understand what happens at the end of the age is this: We must realize God is never wrong, never lies, never makes mistakes, never loses. This gives us hope. Comprehending this puts us in the right frame of mind to trust God to fulfill His promises to mankind. We have already read that God has promised the conversion of the world at the end of the age, to be followed by a wonderful Millennium. This is part of the truth of God’s plan that He has worked on for so very long. Once we accept the truth of God’s plan and the inevitability of His ultimate success, we are much less likely to find ourselves at cross purposes with Him.
For instance, if we are among those currently teaching or influencing others with misinformation, we still have time to stop and change course. It is immensely pleasing for God to see someone admit errors and correct them. God is patient with us, always giving us time to learn and repent. However, His plan, like any good plan, has phases and intermediate goals which are time-sensitive. The Millennium will begin on time. The pressure brought to bear will soon be intense, and God wants so much for all of us to be on the winning side, fulfilling another beautiful promise of His. John 3:16-17 “‘For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved.’”
At first it is a bit hard to grasp just how wonderful God is and how much He loves us and His creation. The apostles struggled with this at first as well. Take note of Luke 9:51-56. “Now it came to pass, when the time had come for Him to be received up, that He steadfastly set His face to go to Jerusalem, and sent messengers before His face. And as they went, they entered a village of the Samaritans, to prepare for Him. But they did not receive Him, because his face was set for the journey to Jerusalem. And when His disciples James and John saw this, they said, ‘Lord, do You want us to command fire to come down from heaven and consume them, just as Elijah did?’ But He turned and rebuked them, and said, ‘You do not know what manner of spirit you are of. For the Son of Man did not come to destroy men’s lives but to save them.’ And they went to another village.”
If it was possible for the apostles to misunderstand Christ’s purpose, we can surely make the same mistake. But woe to those who insist on saying that a deceived and confused world deserves nuclear devastation and the other horrible disasters that they feel must come to pass at the hand of God. God understands that most people want to do what is right. However, by the circumstances they find themselves born into, coupled with Satan’s strong deceptions, temptations, and influence, they are just too overwhelmed at this time.
A third essential reason to know the right outcome is that we can prepare to have our hopes and dreams fulfilled. When people feel a sense of hopelessness and despair, they often stop preparing for the future. I have had young people ask me, “Why should I further my education? What’s the use, since the world is about to get destroyed anyway?” This type of thinking can actually affect many areas of our lives. The same reasoning can be used for not preparing for retirement, not taking care of our health, not getting married, and so on.
Times and Seasons Digest No. 11 used God’s word to explain what it will mean to have one age end and another begin. The title of that digest was “Mountains Shall Rise and Mountains Shall Fall”. It is a change of spiritual governance that God is talking about, not the collapse of physical mountains. The elimination of Satan’s power to tempt and to influence will truly be the dawning of a new age. It will be a secure age of peace and plenty.
When earth transitions into this marvelous age, what you see around you today will most likely go straight into the Millennium--your home, your home town, the great cities mankind has built, the bridges, the roads, the forests, and the farms! From the moment the seventh millennium begins, however, things will be very different. Everything will begin to improve! Not only will mankind “not learn war anymore”, but every facet of life will improve. No longer will Satan’s influence pull humanity down. That influence will be replaced with ones that pull us up! Just think, generosity will replace greed. Peace will replace war. Freedom will replace repression. Food will become healthier as mankind raises it naturally the way God intended. Farmers will learn stewardship of the land. Diseases will diminish drastically. Even the nature of wild animals will be changed because Satan’s evil influence will be gone! Trillions of dollars wasted on armaments and war will be channeled to productive pursuits.
Read these beautiful scriptures and realize that we can dare to hope and dream. We can dare to make our own plans for the future. Life, indeed, will be good, fulfilling, and rewarding. Isaiah 11:6-10 “‘The wolf also shall dwell with the lamb, the leopard shall lie down with the young goat, the calf and the young lion and the fatling together; and a little child shall lead them. The cow and the bear shall graze; their young ones shall lie down together; and the lion shall eat straw like the ox. The nursing child shall play by the cobra’s hole, and the weaned child shall put his hand in the viper’s den. They shall not hurt nor destroy in all My holy mountain, for the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the Lord as the waters cover the sea. And in that day there shall be a Root of Jesse, who shall stand as a banner to the people; for the Gentiles shall seek Him, and His resting place shall be glorious.’” What a fantastic difference from what we see about us today! The fulfillment of God’s plan truly makes our hopes and dreams possible.
The situation humanity currently finds itself in is completely hopeless without God’s intervention. God the Father absolutely will not tolerate sin. Romans 6:23 “For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.” Romans 3:23 states “for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” All of us have sinned and therefore deserve to die and remain dead forever without hope. However, the gift of God is eternal life, and John 3:16 says, “‘For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.’” There was only one way to give that gift to man, and that was to have humanity produce one perfect life. Only God who had become man in the flesh had the strength of character to overcome both human weakness and Satan’s influence. God intervened to give us a Savior. God is intervening to save and preserve this earth for the Millennium and beyond.
Why did it take four thousand years for God to send mankind the way to obtain this gift of eternal life? Since Christ came, why have so few even understood to seek this gift, let alone obtain it? What about those who lived before Christ’s first coming? If the world were to end in a huge cataclysm now, billions more would die without ever having had a chance at salvation and eternal life. After all, if eternal life is just for the fortunate few, is it really a fair and just hope? Is God so weak that He cannot save the vast majority of mankind from the wages due them? Can’t God spare the physical creation from annihilation? After all, Genesis tells us of the creation, “And God saw that it was good.” By the end of this book you will see why this has taken so long. You will also see that the answers lie within the pages of the Bible.
God thinks big! He is not satisfied that Christ beat Satan. He wants the vast majority of humanity, past and present, to beat Satan and his system. God wants to thoroughly humiliate and defeat the forces of evil with an overwhelming victory. God’s plan will utilize a number of resurrections, with Jesus Christ being the first one, then the firstfruits, then the rest of the dead at the end of the Millennium (Revelation 20). Every human being will have had an opportunity to turn away from evil and gain eternal life. It has taken a long time to put everything in place step by step, so mankind will be able to freely choose good over evil. To make a wise choice mankind had to experience the pain, sorrow, and anguish of living under an evil spiritual government. The only way we could ever truly appreciate a government based on love is to know what it is like to live under one based on selfishness and hate. Those of us alive at the end of the age are in need of enough information from God to make decisions that will allow us to live on into the next age. Prior to the seventh millennium, God is now opening up much knowledge to help us make those choices.
Satan introduced sin into the universe and thus became guilty of breaking God’s laws. Through his conniving influence, he brought guilt on one-third of God’s angels. That was not enough for Satan. He has always coveted the Father and Jesus Christ’s positions. We cannot fathom the outsized ego Satan has. No one knows how long ago Lucifer fell from his position at God’s throne, but from that time onward, evil became part of Satan’s character. He became God’s adversary. When God took away his position, He changed his name from Lucifer, which meant “lightbringer,” to Satan, meaning “adversary”.
God does not do things by accident or without purpose. God created angels to expand His family and share eternal life with. In order to have beings with which to have meaningful relationships, God had to allow them free will. Companionship and loving affection mean nothing unless free will is present. When Satan used his free will to create evil and be in opposition to God, he set in motion a chain of events which takes us right up to this present time. God knew exactly what to do. He created man! He created man to share a fantastic future with Him. At the end of this age lies the open door to that marvelous future!
Man’s destiny was to start out as a lower form of life than angels - creatures without inherent eternal life but with the same marvelous gift of free will. Mankind, starting with Adam, would be groomed to eventually become an even higher life form than angels! Mankind was destined to replace Satan and his demons, but with added benefit to himself and to God. Whereas angels do not have the ability to reproduce and grow in number, mankind can. God’s kingdom and family would continue to grow forever! God started with one man called Adam, and one woman Eve, but He wants the growth to never cease.
Satan’s objective is to deprive God of ever growing His kingdom and to deprive Him of children, while at the same time he wants to maintain what is left of his former power and glory. Satan and his demons have been relegated to ruling over the one speck of the universe that is left to their control, the earth. Man’s impossible mission is to free himself from Satan’s captivity and fulfill his destiny. Somehow man would have to come up with a perfect liberator (a perfect leader to replace Satan), then other lesser leaders to replace Satan’s demons. Left to his own devices, this was a mission mankind could never hope to accomplish - truly a mission impossible! But with God, all things are possible.
As we conclude this section, let’s read some scriptures to verify what we have just learned. Hebrews 2:5-15 “For He has not put the world to come, of which we speak, in subjection to angels. But one testified in a certain place, saying: ‘What is man that You are mindful of him, or the son of man that You take care of him? You have made him a little lower than the angels; You have crowned him with glory and honor, and set him over the works of Your hands. You have put all things in subjection under his feet.’ For in that He put all in subjection under him, He left nothing that is not put under him. But now we do not yet see all things put under him. But we see Jesus, who was made a little lower than the angels, for the suffering of death crowned with glory and honor, that He, by the grace of God, might taste death for everyone. For it was fitting for Him, for whom are all things and by whom are all things, in bringing many sons to glory, to make the captain of their salvation perfect through sufferings. For both He who sanctifies and those who are being sanctified are all of one, for which reason He is not ashamed to call them brethren. Saying: ‘I will declare Your name to My brethren; in the midst of the assembly I will sing praise to You.’ And again: ‘I will put My trust in Him.’ And again: ‘Here am I and the children whom God has given Me.’ Inasmuch then as the children have partaken of flesh and blood, He Himself likewise shared in the same, that through death He might destroy him who had the power of death, that is, the devil, and release those who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject to bondage.”
I Corinthians 15:20-26 and 45-49 “But now Christ is risen from the dead, and has become the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep. For since by man came death, by Man also came the resurrection of the dead. For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ all shall be made alive [The same ‘all’ who have died]. But each one in his own order: Christ the firstfruits, afterward those who are Christ’s at His coming. Then comes the end, when He delivers the kingdom to God the Father, when He puts an end to all rule and all authority and power. For He must reign till He has put all enemies under His feet. The last enemy that will be destroyed is death.”
Verse 45: “And so it is written, ‘The first man Adam became a living being.’ The last Adam became a life-giving spirit. However, the spiritual is not first, but the natural, and afterward the spiritual. The first man was of the earth, made of dust; the second Man is the Lord from heaven. As was the man of dust, so also are those who are made of dust; and as is the heavenly Man, so also are those who are heavenly. And as we have borne the image of the man of dust, we shall also bear the image of the heavenly Man.”
God’s promises are not only amazing, they will be kept so that everyone who has ever lived will have an opportunity for eternal life through resurrections each in their own order. God is very fair and just.
Satan has suffered a number of falls from power and position, each diminishing his dominion. God created him to be one of His chief angels, perhaps even number one in power, glory, and beauty! He was given a position as a covering cherub at God’s very throne. His name was then Lucifer which means “lightbringer,” carrying out God’s directives and relaying His commands and instructions. He was responsible for handling and relaying God’s truth, wisdom, and knowledge, which together form the light of the truth. When Lucifer let evil become part of his character, he became God’s adversary. Since God gives names based upon character traits, He changed his name to Satan, meaning adversary and arch enemy (in Greek Apollyon or Destroyer). God also had no choice but to banish him from his position at His throne. Misery loves company, so Satan went about the heavens infecting other angels with his bad attitudes. He wanted sin to sprout and grow in as many other angels as possible, so that they would take sides with him. Satan became a peddler of lies and deceit. In the case of man, he was also a merchant of death.
The mind of Satan is more cunning and diabolical than anything we can fully comprehend. Basically, it works in this way: He tempts his victims into sin utilizing a combination of lies, deceit, entrapment, and their own personal weaknesses. Once sin has been committed, Satan runs to God with accusations based upon what happened. This is why Satan is also called the accuser in Revelation 12:10. He knows that for a true accusation, God must punish using righteous judgment. In the case of angels, they are banished from heaven and fall under Satan’s jurisdiction. In the case of hapless human beings, the wages of sin is death (Romans 6:23). Humans are at such a disadvantage: At least angels can see their adversary!
Satan has lost his position in heaven, but he still retains a couple of titles. One is chief prince over the demon angels, and another is god of this world (II Corinthians 4:4). As commander of the demons, he rules as king over an empire composed of one-third of the angels that God created. These positions give him power and authority to influence man as a false god for a maximum period of six thousand years, from Adam until the Millennium. This is set in stone, so to speak - unless Satan can defeat God. He never gives up because he only has to beat God once. Beating God only one time would prove God fallible.
Satan’s first fall was from his position at the throne of God. We read about this in Ezekiel 28:11-17. In those verses, note that Satan is called the king of Tyre because he really was the spiritual, invisible king over the city-state of Tyre. It helps to keep in mind that Satan is the unseen king over all the world’s cities, nations, and empires down through history. Tyre existed as its own city-state about three thousand years ago, yet in these verses we will now read that this “king of Tyre” is said to have been present at the Garden of Eden, three thousand years before that. No physical human being could possibly have existed at both times. Satan, being spirit, certainly can.
Ezekiel 28:11-17 “Moreover the word of the Lord came to me, saying, ‘Son of man, take up a lamentation for the king of Tyre, and say to him, “Thus says the Lord God: ‘You were the seal of perfection, full of wisdom and perfect in beauty. You were in Eden, the garden of God; every precious stone was your covering: the sardius, topaz, and diamond, beryl, onyx, and jasper, sapphire, turquoise, and emerald with gold. The workmanship of your timbrels and pipes was prepared for you on the day you were created. You were the anointed cherub who covers [over God’s throne]; I established you; you were on the holy mountain of God [at the top of God’s kingdom, since mountains represent kingdoms - see Digest No. 11 “Mountains Shall Rise and Mountains Shall Fall”]; you walked back and forth in the midst of fiery stones. You were perfect in your ways from the day you were created, till iniquity was found in you. By the abundance of your trading [influence peddling] you became filled with violence within, and you sinned; therefore I cast you as a profane thing out of the mountain of God; and I destroyed you [his position], O covering cherub, from the midst of the fiery stones. Your heart was lifted up because of your beauty; you corrupted your wisdom for the sake of your splendor; I cast you to the ground, laid you before kings, that they might gaze at you.’”’”
This was a great blow to Satan’s huge ego. More information, in addition to Satan’s reaction, is recorded in Isaiah chapter 14. Similar to Ezekiel 28, here Satan is called the king of Babylon. Satan was the real influential power in Babylon. However, Babylon also happens to be the name of his spiritual realm’s capital city. We will talk more about this invisible city later. Isaiah 14:3-4, 12-17. “It shall come to pass in the day the Lord gives you rest from your sorrow, and from your fear and the hard bondage in which you were made to serve, that you will take up this proverb against the king of Babylon, and say: ‘How the oppressor has ceased, the golden city ceased!’” Verse 12: “‘How you are fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning! How you are cut down to the ground, you who weakened the nations! For you have said in your heart: “I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God [the other angels, since stars symbolize angels]; I will also sit on the mount of the congregation [God’s people] on the farthest sides of the north; I will ascend above the heights of the clouds [trying to extend his authority beyond the earth again], I will be like the Most High [at least equal to God].” Yet you shall be brought down to Sheol, to the lowest depths of the Pit. Those who see you will gaze at you, and consider you, saying: “Is this the man [angels are sometimes referred to as men or sons of God, see Daniel 9:21 and Job 1:6] who made the earth tremble, who shook kingdoms, who made the world as a wilderness and destroyed its cities, who did not open the house of his prisoners?”’” For six thousand years Satan’s perverted influence has held this world captive. People tremble in fear because of his ability to inspire hatred and cruelty in the hearts and minds of so many.
Since Christ overcame Satan, he no longer even has access to heaven but is confined to earth along with his demons. We will pick up on this in Revelation 12:7-12. “And war broke out in heaven: Michael and his angels fought with the dragon; and the dragon and his angels fought, but they did not prevail, nor was a place found for them in heaven any longer, so the great dragon was cast out, that serpent of old, called the Devil and Satan, who deceives the whole world; he was cast to the earth, and his angels were cast out with him. Then I heard a loud voice saying in heaven, ‘Now salvation, and strength, and the kingdom of our God, and the power of His Christ have come, for the accuser of our brethren, who accused them before our God day and night, has been cast down. And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony, and they did not love their lives to the death. Therefore rejoice, O heavens, and you who dwell in them! Woe to the inhabitants of the earth and the sea! For the devil has come down to you, having great wrath, because he knows that he has a short time.’”
In other words, woe to the people of the earth and God’s people who would have to contend with this tyrant. Satan still has jurisdiction over the earth and hates mankind, which God has destined to replace him and his evil government. He hates God and humanity worse than ever since he is now blocked from doing any more damage in heaven, and mankind’s destiny looms ever nearer. This woe is almost over. Mankind will even sit in judgment over the angels. We see that in I Corinthians 6:2-3. “Do you not know that the saints will judge the world? And if the world will be judged by you, are you unworthy to judge the smallest matters? Do you not know that we shall judge angels? How much more, things that pertain to this life?”
Satan’s anger and hatred are so great, he is pulling out all the stops to try to defeat God through mankind. So the war continues on earth with mankind awaiting liberation. It is a myth to believe God is at war with the human race. God is at war with the evil powers that hold man captive and use their influence to push mankind toward annihilation.
Since Christ’s resurrection, the war to liberate the world has continued to be fought through Christ’s Church. Largely hidden from the world, a small congregation of people was being used by Jesus Christ to do battle with Satan’s forces. He formed this small Church into a body that He continued to use as His own in the war against evil. Ephesians 5:30 says of His Church: “For we are members of His body, of His flesh and of His bones.”
Ephesians 6:10-17 explains that this body is outfitted as a soldier to fight Satan’s realm. “Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might. Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places. Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand. Stand therefore, having girded your waist with truth, having put on the breastplate of righteousness, and having shod your feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace; above all, taking the shield of faith with which you will be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked one. And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God…” This is spiritual warfare and the only way to fight a spiritual enemy.
For six thousand years, two types of warfare have existed on earth, physical warfare and spiritual warfare. Physical warfare deals with the effects of Satan’s influence. Spiritual warfare, on the other hand, deals with the source of that influence.
The bane of man’s existence for the last six thousand years is that no matter how many tyrants are vanquished, no matter how many despots eliminated, and no matter how many wars of liberation are won, the fight has never truly been over. Another tyrant, another despot, another violent ideology always rears its ugly head. This is because Satan’s demonic realm is always behind the scenes, peddling its influence to anyone who will listen. Having endured this unrelenting pressure, a weary human race has come to stare annihilation in the face. For sixty years we have been tinkering with the power to destroy the earth with Satan goading us to use it.
While the human race has violently contended with war, famine, pestilence, and natural disasters, God has been battling the source of the evil. The pages of the Bible tell us God will win, but puny man has not been able to envision how great a victory God intends. We have been far too small in our thinking. Our Great God is not just building a single city, but a giant kingdom to extend throughout the universe! The first living stone to enter that kingdom was Jesus Christ, the first stone Satan could not defeat through trial, tribulation, and temptation. He was just the first of much fruit the earth will bear for God the Father.
The earth must finish bearing enough fruit to replace Satan’s entire demonic government. This has taken a long time. God has been a very patient spiritual farmer as James 5:7-8 tells us. “Therefore be patient, brethren, until the coming of the Lord. See how the farmer waits for the precious fruit of the earth, waiting patiently for it until it receives the early and latter rain. You also be patient. Establish your hearts, for the coming of the Lord is at hand.”
The former rain was the truth of God brought by the Old Testament prophets. The latter rain was brought to form the New Testament. The rains continue to bear fruit in the last days as knowledge recorded in both the Old and New Testament is revealed. (Request Times and Seasons Digests No. 5 and 6).
The harvest of the firstfruits is almost ready, at which time Christ will return and liberate the earth. Romans 8:19-23 makes it very clear that the world unknowingly awaits the resurrection of the firstfruits in order to gain freedom from spiritual tyranny. “For the earnest expectation of the creation eagerly waits for the revealing of the sons of God. For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of Him who subjected it in hope; because the creation itself also will be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God. For we know that the whole creation groans and labors with birth pangs together until now. Not only that, but we also who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, eagerly waiting for the adoption, the redemption of our body.”
There is no point in arguing about religion, for the resurrection will make clear who the sons of God were. Paul, the author of the Book of Romans, obviously knew that he and the other apostles were among the registered number of firstfruits. What is important is that the firstfruits will help bring liberty to all mankind. That is what the Bible says. Only Christ can bring salvation by His shed blood. However, by continuing to fight the good fight through the saints who form the body that He has been using for the last two thousand years, God will gain a great physical victory for all mankind. Satan’s entire government will be replaced, preserving the earth for a beautiful Millennium. We should rejoice that God’s plans include the vast majority of mankind and not just a privileged few.
The firstfruits have been soldiers for Christ engaged in spiritual warfare since His first coming. This war has been fought in obscurity by a valiant few. Since the time of the apostles, the true Church has rarely been visible while hidden in the wilderness. After the death of the apostle John, the Church has been difficult to find in the pages of history. Polycarp followed in John’s footsteps defending the seventh-day Sabbath and the truth. This fact is one that we can pick up early in the history of the Church. But the faint trail of Sabbath-keeping Christians winds it way through six successive Church eras beginning with the Ephesian era (begun at the time of the apostles) until the Philadelphian era of the twentieth century. It is not until the twentieth century that the Church re-emerges to accomplish an epic milestone in its battle against evil. This milestone was the preaching of the gospel of the kingdom of God to the world as a witness. This took nearly 2,000 years. Just before the first Pentecost after Christ’s resurrection, Christ commissioned His disciples to accomplish this task in Acts 1:1-8 as recorded by Luke.
“The former account I made, O Theophilus, of all that Jesus began both to do and teach, until the day in which He was taken up, after He through the Holy Spirit had given commandments to the apostles whom He had chosen, to whom He also presented Himself alive after His suffering by many infallible proofs, being seen by them during forty days and speaking of the things pertaining to the kingdom of God. And being assembled together with them, He commanded them not to depart from Jerusalem, but to wait for the Promise of the Father, ‘which,’ He said, ‘you have heard from me; for John truly baptized with water, but you shall be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now.’ Therefore, when they had come together, they asked Him, saying, ‘Lord, will You at this time restore the kingdom to Israel?’ And He said to them, ‘It is not for you to know times or seasons which the Father has put in His own authority. But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.’”
The preaching of the gospel of this kingdom of God is one of the two very important commissions given to the Church. The other is to prepare the firstfruits to be the bride of Christ, as mentioned in Ephesians 5 and Revelation 19. Both of these commissions must be completed before Christ can return and usher in the Millennium, halting Satan’s plan to destroy the human race. A large part of Christ’s ministry was to train His disciples in how to go about these two endeavors. Let’s read Luke 10:1, 8-9 and 17-20.
“After these things the Lord appointed seventy others also, and sent them two by two before His face into every city and place where He Himself was about to go.” Verses 8-9: “‘Whatever city you enter, and they receive you, eat such things as are set before you, and heal the sick there, and say to them, “The kingdom of God has come near to you.”’” Verses 17-20: “Then the seventy returned with joy, saying, ‘Lord, even the demons are subject to us in Your name.’ And He said to them, ‘I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven. Behold, I give you the authority to trample on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy, and nothing shall by any means hurt you. Nevertheless do not rejoice in this, that the spirits are subject to you, but rather rejoice because your names are written in heaven.’”
Healing the sick, casting out demons, and preaching the gospel of the kingdom are signs that point to the true Church of God. The fulfillment of Christ’s commission to preach the gospel to the kingdom to the whole world as a witness is a key sign at the end of the age. The apostles could not possibly do that in their day, nor could it be done in the Middle Ages. This was not accomplished until the twentieth century when modern communication technologies became available. Christ actually said to watch for this to occur, as it would be a sign that the end of the age had arrived. Matthew 24:3 “Now as He sat on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to Him privately, saying, ‘Tell us, when will these things be? And what will be the sign of Your coming, and of the end of the age?’” He warned them not to be deceived by many who would point to wars, rumors of wars, famine, pestilence, and earthquakes as signs of His coming. Then He gave a very specific sign in verse 14 of Matthew 24. “‘And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in all the world as a witness to all the nations, and then the end will come.’” This could not be done until the advent of television, radio, mass printing, and modern means of travel.
The word “preached” in Matthew 24:14 is very interesting. It comes from the Greek word kerusso, which means “to herald (as a public crier) especially divine truth (the gospel):- preach, proclaim, publish.” This is exactly what occurred from about 1950 until 1986 when a very effective public crier became known throughout the world. A successful advertising man of Quaker background came into contact with the small Church of God, learned about the Sabbath, and became converted. His name was Herbert W. Armstrong.
Mr. Armstrong was a very successful man in the advertising business and a gifted communicator. After several years of intensive study of the Bible, he became a man of great faith. God answered his prayers for the sick with many miraculous healings. God paved the way for him to cry out to the world in a loud clear voice, the gospel of the kingdom of God. He fulfilled every aspect of the term kerusso! He published the gospel in his flagship magazine The Plain Truth, which in its heyday had the second largest circulation of any magazine on earth! Eight and a half million copies per month were produced. His voice was heard around the world on his program The World Tomorrow. Eventually television became the medium of choice through which he continued to preach the gospel to tens of millions each week!
He also met many world leaders as an ambassador for peace. Through him and those who supported him, a very powerful worldwide work was accomplished, yet very few people understood that he was part of the true Church of God. This was indeed the tail end of the 1,260 day prophetic period of the Church hidden in the wilderness. (Write or e-mail for more information on prophetic time periods.)
Little did these leaders know that God through His Church had changed the course of history. Mr. Armstrong had an idea this was so and wrote such in an article in his personal column in the June-July 1981 issue of The Plain Truth. The article was entitled “Blood, Sweat and Tears”. I quote from that article:
This is a “blood, sweat, and tears” talk with our readers with apologies to the late Sir Winston Churchill. At Britain’s darkest hour of World War II, Prime Minister Churchill’s “blood, sweat, and tears” speech saved the nation.It struck through to the hearts of the British people. It moved their emotions. Like an electric shock it gave them hope. It stirred their determination, aroused a willingness to suffer any sacrifice or privation, that their country might survive.
Today, as surely as Britain faced the question of survival then, all humanity faces the question of SURVIVAL now - the survival of the human race!
We don’t like to think about it. We shrink from facing up to the existing facts. I know that well! But there is a story to be told about that, and I propose to tell it now.
Forty-seven years ago a tiny handful of financially poor but sober people did face up to it. They volunteered to join me in a “blood, sweat, and tears” sacrifice to do something about it. As time went on, others caught the vision, volunteered to join with them. Now, in humanity’s darkest hour - with most of humanity lethargically refusing to face up to it - our deliverance is near. Glorious victory is in sight; humanity will be saved alive. The peaceful, happy, prosperous, joyful WORLD TOMORROW is soon to dawn.
After his death in 1986, not even his disillusioned followers understood what God had accomplished. And it was God who accomplished it, because no man can be any more than a humble servant to the Great Sovereign God. It was God who placed the open door before Mr. Armstrong as He had prophesied He would in Revelation 3:7-8.
“‘And to the angel of the church in Philadelphia write [Philadelphia was the second to the last of the seven successive Church eras - request more information on this subject if you desire], “These things says He who is holy, He who is true, ‘He who has the key of David, He who opens and no one shuts, and shuts and no one opens’: I know your works. See, I have set before you an open door, and no one can shut it; for you have a little strength, have kept My word, and have not denied My name.”’” The word “strength” in Greek is dunamis, which means “miraculous power”. The same word is translated as “power” to preach the gospel to the world in Acts 1:8.
This is a message to those who would be in God’s Church very near to the end of the age, as evidenced by verse 11. “‘Behold, I am coming quickly! Hold fast what you have, that no one may take your crown.’” This open door can be none other than the opportunity and the spiritual and physical wherewithal to get the gospel of the kingdom preached to the whole world as a witness. Then the end shall come.
The final era of God’s Church would be the much-maligned Laodicean era with all its inherent problems. Let me interject right here without getting too far ahead of the story that being a good Laodicean comes with as fine a reward as any God offers. Revelation 3:21-22 gives the hopeful message that “‘To him who overcomes I will grant to sit with Me on My throne, as I also overcame and sat down with My Father on His throne. He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.’”
One can be spiritually deaf, or one can have a keen sense of spiritual hearing. The seeds of Laodicea’s problems existed within the era that just preceded it, as we can see by reading a scripture we skipped over between God’s promise of an open door and God’s warning to hold fast. That scripture is Revelation 3:9. “‘Indeed I will make those of the synagogue of Satan, who say they are Jews and are not [spiritual Jews, see Romans 2:29], but lie, indeed I will make them come and worship before your feet, and to know that I have loved you.’” This will occur at the resurrection soon to take place.
In order to understand what has occurred so far in the Laodicean era and to appreciate how close we are to Christ’s second coming, we need to look at something God has done in the Philadelphia era. We will now pinpoint what God did to avert the total destruction of the earth.
Matthew 24:15-16 tells us that immediately after the gospel of the kingdom had gone to the world as a witness, the end-time sequence of events would start with the abomination of desolation. “‘Therefore when you see the “abomination of desolation,” spoken of by Daniel the prophet, standing in the holy place’ (whoever reads, let him understand), ‘then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains.’”
There have been three abominations of desolation in Jewish history already. They were in 586 B.C. with the destruction of Solomon’s temple by Babylon, in 167 B.C. when Antiochus Epiphanes polluted and sacked the temple that had been rebuilt by Zerubbabel, and the last one was in 70 A.D. when Titus of Rome sacked Jerusalem. He killed many people, desecrated and destroyed the temple. By and large, the survivors had fled to the surrounding mountains. Obviously something like this is prophesied to happen one more time after the gospel of the kingdom has been preached to the whole world as a witness. But this time it would take special wisdom to understand. The reason wisdom is required is because the last abomination of desolation was destined to occur in a spiritual temple, not visible to the naked eye!
Certain events in the history of ancient Israel hold the key for understanding the present situation in God’s Church. These events were the first fulfillments of prophetic milestones which God designed to be a type of later spiritual fulfillments. These former fulfillments were physical and therefore were experienced, witnessed, and recorded by those who lived through them. Like any good historical record they allow generations that follow to study them, analyze them, and learn from them.
A well-written historical narrative in the hands of someone with wisdom can be very useful. A wise person can compare history with the current situation and avoid repeating the errors of the past. They can also read the historical records with the intent of imagining what would be the result if certain courses of action were followed. So it is with God’s historical record. In fact, God’s word is able to be used in ways that no normal historical record could ever be used. Within God’s word are prophecies with definite and absolute former and latter fulfillments. Physical events recorded in God’s word give us a window through which to observe spiritual events that would be beyond comprehension to mortal man, if there was nothing physical with which to compare the spiritual. The meaning of many events in modern Church history would be unfathomable without something to compare to in the past. Before we continue to examine how relevant this concept is to our current situation at the end of the age, let’s look at two well-known examples that illustrate this point.
Most theologians will readily admit that ancient Israel passing through the Red Sea was a former type, or prophetic fulfillment, of what would later become baptism after Christ’s death. In fact, in I Corinthians 10:1-2 the Bible plainly says so. The other well-known example is the blood of the lamb killed at the first Passover, the night that ancient Israel was set free from Egypt. That blood was the prophetic physical fulfillment of Jesus Christ’s shed blood for the remission of sins. There are hundreds, perhaps thousands, of other first physical fulfillments which picture a later spiritual fulfillment. We will now look at a few with powerful impact on the events which God knew would occur at the end of the age. The first we will look at is a comparison of Solomon’s physical temple and the spiritual temple that God would build later.
In I Chronicles 28:19 King David gave the plans to his son, Solomon, for building a temple for God to dwell in. According to verses 11 and 12, David received these plans from God through His Holy Spirit. Solomon’s temple was perhaps the most beautiful and expensive building the world has ever seen! Huge quantities of gold, silver, precious stones, and beautiful wood were used. The huge stones were all quarried off-site and fit perfectly together when brought together.
When the temple was completed, Solomon offered a beautiful and lengthy prayer of dedication. I will quote portions of this prayer and how it was answered by God in II Chronicles chapters 6 and 7. Both chapters should be read when you have time. Let’s start in II Chronicles 6:17-20.
“‘And now, O Lord God of Israel, let Your word come true, which You have spoken to Your servant David. But will God indeed dwell with men on the earth? Behold, heaven and the heaven of heavens cannot contain You. How much less this temple which I have built! Yet regard the prayer of your servant and his supplication, O Lord my God, and listen to the cry and the prayer which Your servant is praying before You: that Your eyes may be open toward this temple day and night, toward the place where You said You would put Your name, that You may hear the prayer which Your servant makes toward this place.’” Chapter 7:1-2 details God’s response to this prayer.
“When Solomon had finished praying, fire came down from heaven and consumed the burnt offering and the sacrifices; and the glory of the Lord filled the temple. And the priests could not enter the house of the Lord, because the glory of the Lord had filled the Lord’s house.” God now had a physical home on earth in a temple in Jerusalem on Mt. Zion with the people He had chosen to be His own.
In chapter 7 God explained to Solomon that He wanted to dwell in this house forever, but there were certain conditions laid out in verses 14-16. God says, “‘if My people who are called by My name will humble themselves, and pray and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin and heal their land. Now My eyes will be open and My ears attentive to prayer made in this place. For now I have chosen and sanctified this house, that My name may be there forever; and My eyes and My heart will be there perpetually.’” God had a plan for people to be able to pray to Him in His temple where He dwelt, and He would answer their prayers from there.
Continuing now in verses 19-21. “‘But if you turn away and forsake My statutes and My commandments which I have set before you, and go and serve other gods, and worship them, then I will uproot them from My land which I have given them; and this house which I have sanctified for My name I will cast out of My sight, and will make it a proverb and a byword among all peoples. And as for this house, which is exalted, everyone who passes by it will be astonished and say, “Why has the Lord done thus to this land and this house?”’” God gives a stern warning here that the people must obey and that certain conditions must apply for God to continue to dwell in His house. They did not dare to defile God’s house, His temple.
History shows that God kept His word. Solomon’s temple was abominated, desolated, and destroyed in 586 B.C. by Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, when God did indeed fulfill His promise. He left His house. Ezekiel chapter 8 details how the people had defiled the temple so horribly that God needed to act. In Ezekiel chapter 10, God explains that first He had to withdraw His presence from the temple before Babylon would be able to abominate and desolate the temple.
God has not dwelt in a physical building since that time, even though He allowed the people to rebuild the temple seventy years later under the direction of Zerubbabel. The Book of Haggai mentions this effort. Haggai 1:14 states, “So the Lord stirred up the spirit of Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel, governor of Judah, and the spirit of Joshua the son of Jehozadak, the high priest, and the spirit of all the remnant of the people; and they came and worked on the house of the Lord of hosts, their God…”
Though this temple was far less glorious than the first (Haggai 2:2-3), it did serve as a center of religious worship until it was again abominated, desolated, and destroyed in 70 A.D. by Titus of Rome. Today all we see is the decaying remnant now called the Wailing Wall. Ironically, both temples were destroyed on the same day of the Jewish calendar. This did not mark the end of God’s attempts to have a temple home in which to dwell with men!
Chapter 2 of Haggai contains a prophecy of a far more glorious temple God would be working on from that time forward. This temple would be far superior to Solomon’s, with great implication for us today and understanding why the world will not be destroyed. Reading a few verses from Haggai 2 will give us a glimpse into what God was doing.
Haggai 2:5-9 “‘“According to the word that I covenanted with you when you came out of Egypt, so My Spirit remains among you; do not fear!” For thus says the Lord of hosts: “Once more (it is a little while) I will shake heaven and earth [like at Mt. Sinai], the sea and dry land; and I will shake all nations, and they shall come to the Desire of All Nations [Christ], and I will fill this temple with glory,” says the Lord of hosts. “The silver is Mine, and the gold is Mine,” says the Lord of hosts. “The glory of this latter temple shall be greater than the former,” says the Lord of hosts. “And in this place I will give peace,” says the Lord of hosts.’”
This never happened with the physical temple that Zerubbabel built. It is nearly ready to occur now with a spiritual building that Zerubbabel had a small part in helping to build. A spiritual dwelling place for God began to take shape from that time forward in the Old Testament. A foundation was laid by the prophets and the apostles and finished in the New Testament Church just before the end of the age. Through this mighty project that God has been working on for all of this time, utter destruction will be averted, and we will have the peace that God promises in the Millennium!
We will now leap ahead to the New Testament and read how God is building this new temple. Our first stop is Ephesians 2:19-22. “Now, therefore, you are no longer strangers and foreigners, but fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God, having been built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ Himself being the chief cornerstone, in whom the whole building, being fitted together, grows into a holy temple in the Lord, in whom you also are being built together for a dwelling place of God in the Spirit.”
This is a temple built of human beings, within which is dwelling the Holy Spirit in those called expressly for this purpose! Like ancient Israel, these people have had a special covenant with God. This covenant has requirements which must be met by both parties involved, God and the individual people. Hebrews 3:1-6 makes this absolutely plain.
“Therefore, holy brethren, partakers of the heavenly calling, consider the Apostle and High Priest of our confession, Christ Jesus, who was faithful to Him who appointed Him, as Moses also was faithful in all His house. For this One has been counted worthy of more glory than Moses, inasmuch as He who built the house has more honor than the house. For every house is built by someone, but He who built all things is God. And Moses indeed was faithful in all His house as a servant, for a testimony of those things which would be spoken afterward, but Christ as a Son over His own house, whose house we are if we hold fast the confidence and the rejoicing of the hope firm to the end.”
Jesus Christ’s home for the last two thousand years is within the people God called, those chosen and fitted together to form a building for Him to dwell in. As long as they hold fast until the end of their life or the return of Jesus Christ, they have a part in that temple!
The third and final scripture we will read concerning this temple home for Christ is I Corinthians 3:5-17. “Who then is Paul, and who is Apollos, but ministers through whom you believed, as the Lord gave to each one? I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the increase. So then neither he who plants is anything, nor he who waters, but God who gives the increase. Now he who plants and he who waters are one, and each one will receive his own reward according to his own labor. For we are God’s fellow workers; you are God’s field, you are God’s building. According to the grace of God which was given to me, as a wise master builder I have laid the foundation, and another builds on it. But let each one take heed how he builds on it. For no other foundation can anyone lay than that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ. Now if anyone builds on this foundation with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, straw, each one’s work will become clear; for the Day will declare it, because it will be revealed by fire; and the fire will test each one’s work, of what sort it is. If anyone’s work which he has built on it endures, he will receive a reward. If anyone’s work is burned, he will suffer loss; but he himself will be saved, yet so as through fire. Do you not know that you are the temple of God and that the Spirit of God dwells in you? If anyone defiles [destroys] the temple of God, God will destroy him. For the temple of God is holy, which temple you are.”
Once a person has made a covenant with God at baptism and received a bit of the Holy Spirit, they are responsible to help God build their personal temple. By the process of overcoming and developing godly character, they become gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, or straw. Remember what God said through Haggai in 2:8-9: “‘The silver is Mine, and the gold is Mine,’ says the Lord of hosts. ‘The glory of this latter temple shall be greater than the former,’ says the Lord of hosts. ‘And in this place I will give peace,’ says the Lord of hosts.”
God reserves the right to build His permanent temple with stones of gold and silver. These stones are living people who have given their lives to God and developed godly character by allowing Jesus Christ, through His Holy Spirit, to work with them. This temple will include those human beings who form the main seat of the spiritual government that Christ intends to bring when He returns. One would expect that just as gold and silver are rarer and more precious on earth than wood or hay, so it is in the Church of God. God adds more information concerning this in II Timothy 2:19-22.
“Nevertheless the solid foundation of God stands, having this seal: ‘The Lord knows those who are His,’ and, ‘Let everyone who names the name of Christ depart from iniquity.’ But in a great house there are not only vessels of gold and silver, but also of wood and clay, some for honor and some for dishonor. Therefore if anyone cleanses himself from the latter, he will be a vessel for honor, sanctified and useful for the Master, prepared for every good work. Flee also youthful lusts, but pursue righteousness, faith, love, peace with those who call on the Lord out of a pure heart.”
This quality of character developed over a lifetime of service to God is very important. Since the fall of Solomon’s temple which was built to be home on earth for God, it has taken over 2,500 years to accumulate enough gold and silver for God to build His spiritual home on earth - the spiritual seat of government within the spiritual city of Jerusalem. Now we are ready to dig deeper into the prophecies concerning the end of the age. It is this spiritual city which will replace Satan’s invisible capital city called Babylon!
Jesus Christ repeatedly says in scripture that He will take both the world and His Church by surprise at the end of the age. In Matthew 24:44 where Christ is finishing His answer to the disciples about the sign of His coming, He says this: “‘Therefore you also be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect.’”
Nearly everyone is expecting Christ to come after huge earthquakes, nuclear war, worldwide famines, and pestilences. Millions watch the Middle East for a new sandstone temple to get built for yet another abomination of desolation to take place. All are wasting their time! Spiritual vision and wisdom from above are required this time around. Christ will take us by surprise because His return follows the abomination of desolation in the spiritual temple at the end of the age.
God promises to do nothing unless He reveals it to His servants first. Amos 3:7 says, “Surely the Lord God does nothing, unless He reveals His secret to His servants the prophets.” The prophets have recorded in advance what will take place at the end of the age. Comprehension of this prophecy is reserved until the time it needs to be understood. He reveals the testimony of His prophecy through His Holy Spirit which guides His servants, His people, into the truth. God reveals in Malachi 3:1 a messenger will be commissioned to prepare the way for the sudden return of Jesus Christ to this temple. “‘Behold, I send My messenger, and he will prepare the way before Me. And the Lord, whom you seek, will suddenly come to His temple, even the Messenger of the covenant, in whom you delight. Behold, He is coming,’ says the Lord of hosts.”
Malachi 4:5-6 explains this messenger will come in the spirit and power of Elijah. The successful completion of this man’s work would prevent the utter destruction of the earth. “‘Remember the Law of Moses, My servant, which I commanded him in Horeb [Mt. Sinai] for all Israel, with the statutes and judgments. Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord. And he will turn the hearts of the fathers [should be singular - ab in Hebrew, God the Father] to the children, and the hearts of the children to their fathers [again, it should be singular - ab], lest I come and strike the earth with a curse.’”
This word “curse” is cherem in Hebrew meaning to be shut in a net, literally or figuratively, usually a doomed object, extermination or utter destruction. Therefore, if God were not to send someone in the spirit and power of Elijah, the earth would be doomed to utter destruction in Satan’s net. God promised to send this person as a messenger to do several very important tasks.
As mentioned in Malachi 3:1, the word for “messenger” in the Hebrew is the word malak, which means to dispatch as a messenger of God, either as an angel, a prophet, or a teacher, and connotes being used as an ambassador. His message would prepare the way for Christ to suddenly come to His temple. This type of Elijah would cause the Law of Moses to be remembered. This would result in God turning His heart toward His children, the same God who gave the law to Moses at Sinai. The man assigned this job is the one who would also powerfully preach “the gospel of the kingdom in all the world as a witness” just before the end of the age. This powerful preacher would remind people that God’s law says we must keep the seventh day Sabbath, as well as God’s high Sabbaths (His holy days). He would teach people that God’s holy days picture God’s plan and must be kept forever as outlined in Leviticus 23.
Many people were convicted by the message to repent, be baptized, and receive a bit of God’s Spirit. Enough people were convicted for God to have sufficient gold and silver to finish the temple Christ would return to. As God’s servant and by God’s strength and inspiration Mr. Armstrong accomplished these things as a public crier and publisher of the gospel of the kingdom of God. This work that he did of calling these people to be part of the temple would avert utter destruction. God wanted to see repentance among the people that would be a sufficient number to meet His requirement for His temple. This would be a representative repentance among the people. He did not ever require the whole nation to repent prior to Christ’s second coming. That would happen after Christ’s second coming with the calling of the innumerable multitude. However, there had to be enough people to repent in order to “save the day”, so to speak.
An Elijah-type work had to be done before Christ’s first coming and before His second coming, as He told His disciples in Matthew 17:10-13. “And His disciples asked Him, saying, ‘Why then do the scribes say that Elijah must come first?’ Jesus answered and said to them, ‘Indeed, Elijah is coming first and will restore all things. But I say to you that Elijah has come already, and they did not know him but did to him whatever they wished. Likewise the Son of Man is also about to suffer at their hands.’ Then the disciples understood that He spoke to them of John the Baptist.”
We can see that John the Baptist came in the spirit and power of Elijah at Christ’s first coming, yet the people of the time did not recognize Him as such. Likewise, before Christ’s second coming a man in the same office would restore all things, which in the Greek is apokathistemi meaning to reconstitute to health a home or organization. Though unrecognized by the world for having done this, Mr. Armstrong absolutely did do it. He certainly did reconstitute the health of the organization that was the body of Christ. He did this by causing it to remember the Law of Moses.
Interestingly, just as Christ’s disciples came to understand the truth of John the Baptist as Elijah, so did some of Mr. Armstrong’s co-workers. On May 3, 1982, Mr. Armstrong was presented a piece of Steuben crystal bearing the inscription in Hebrew “Elijah’s Cup” by his council of elders. Many world leaders, however, knew him as ambassador for world peace, fulfilling that part of the definition of the messenger in Malachi 3:1.
No living human being knows the true significance of their life, let alone the impact it may have on those who follow them. This is very true of the servants God has used down through the ages. Even the most notable servants like Abraham, Moses, and the apostles of Christ did not really understand the full impact of their lives on humanity, but they did have some sense as to what God was accomplishing in their life’s work.
After a lifetime of service to God and His people, Mr. Armstrong could look back and see that God had done something extraordinary through him. He wrote a fascinating letter to the brethren and co-workers on March 19, 1981. Quoting a couple of paragraphs on page 3, he wrote: “Now consider the prophecy of Malachi 3:1-5. In verse 1, God will send a human messenger to prepare the way before Christ, coming as the Messenger of the New COVENANT. Now what coming of Christ is this prophecy talking about? Read verses 2 to 5. Jesus did none of those things at His first coming - but WILL DO THEM AT HIS SOON SECOND COMING! So the prophecy is, actually, foretelling primarily a messenger to prepare the way for His SOON SECOND COMING!
“Yet Mark 1 and other New Testament scriptures identify John the Baptist as fulfilling that prophecy.
“But REMEMBER GOD’S PURPOSE WORKS IN A PROCESS of DUALITY! John the Baptist was a TYPE or forerunner, of one to prepare the way for His Second Coming. Jesus is to come to His TEMPLE (Mal. 3:1). He came to a material temple of stone, wood, gold, and materials A.D. 27-31. To what Temple will he come IN OUR TIME, SOON NOW?”
Skipping down a few paragraphs: “To WHAT temple will Christ come very soon now? Are the Jews going to demolish the Moslem temple, Dome of the Rock, which stands on that site now, and build a new super-glorious new temple? NO! Turn to Ephesians 2:19-22. The Church at Ephesus was composed of former gentiles. They are no longer foreign gentiles, but fellow citizens with the saints - a spiritual NATION. They are also a FAMILY - of the “household” of GOD - the GOD FAMILY. As a BUILDING they are built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ being chief cornerstone. As a BUILDING, they are fitly framed together (in UNIFIED ORGANIZATION) growing into a HOLY TEMPLE.”
On page 5 of the letter Mr. Armstrong names a council of elders to advise and take over the reigns in the case of his death or incapacity. He was 89 years old at the time. His main reason was to protect the flock. I now quote a few paragraphs from page 6, the last page of the letter.
“God could take my breath in the next breath - or He has the power to keep me on the job as His instrument for as long as He deems necessary.
“I have NEVER SAID I expect to live until Christ comes.
“But, just in case of my disability for any reason, to prevent Satan from causing division, I feel God has inspired me to delegate power to the Advisory Council, during any such complete disability, to take full charge of the Work and all its assets and activities.
“The CHURCH must not be scattered. It must not become scattered, because there is no COMPETENT, CHRIST-CHOSEN SPIRITUAL SHEPHERD, TO BECOME MEAT FOR BEASTS (human) OF THE FIELD! (See Ezekiel 34:5). This is a safeguard for YOUR protection.
“This letter is already overlong, but I felt important.”
It was Mr. Armstrong’s duty to do his best to care for the flock, even after his death. Remember that I Corinthians 3:9 called God’s Church His field. Some places in scripture call it His vineyard.
Human beasts of that field did scatter the flock and temporarily destroyed the household of God, the temple of God, at the end of the age! Satan, of course, was behind the devastation, but God will have the victory. No one can beat God! The devastation has only served to further refine godly character in those who love the truth.
The knowledge of the temple of God being spiritual is the key to understanding the prophecies to be fulfilled at the end of the age. Now it can be understood how after the gospel of this kingdom is preached to all the world as a witness, the end-time sequence of events can proceed unnoticed without wisdom from above. That is exactly what Christ meant in Matthew 24:14-15. The abomination of desolation spoken of by Daniel would take wisdom to understand this time around. Without that wisdom and without that spiritual vision, Christ will take even His own Church by surprise at His second coming! It is time to pray for that wisdom.
In the following chapter (Matthew 25:1-13) the Church is compared to ten virgins (possibly representing people called to the truth out of the lost Ten Tribes of Israel) who are all asleep just before Christ’s return. They all sleep because they do not understand what has happened. For the most part, they support preaching the false signs of death and destruction, not realizing the great things that God has already accomplished through His Church. God has already set the world on a course to be liberated by Him and His soon-coming saints. These saints will help Him govern the earth. The earth will not be utterly destroyed by Satan, His adversary, because the Elijah has come and effectively done his job.
The wise have continued to build godly, loving character. This entire group of brethren alive at the end of the age forms the Laodicean Church era. Christ describes them in Revelation 3:17 as those who “…do not know that you are wretched, miserable, poor, blind, and naked.” This poor group of people has been blind-sided by events, torn apart by the beasts of the field among them, and left weak and powerless by God after He vomited this Church era out of His mouth (according to Revelation 3:16). Much unrepented sin within individual members of the body of Christ, coupled with doctrinal heresy, had defiled the temple of God. Just as in the former fulfillment in the Old Testament, God had to separate Himself from His temple.
All is not lost, however, because Christ stands knocking just outside a spiritual door to the mind and heart of anyone caught in this position. Revelation 3:19-22 holds out this hope. “‘As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten. Therefore be zealous and repent. Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and dine with him, and he with Me. To him who overcomes I will grant to sit with Me on My throne, as I also overcame and sat down with My Father on His throne. He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.’” This is not a shabby reward for those who are not too proud to say I have been poor, blind, wretched, and spiritually naked and I need your help, God, to get cleaned up.
Only God knows how many are needed to be cleaned up by removing every spot and blemish to make the bride of Christ and His temple finally ready for His Son’s return. God the Father has a backup plan if an insufficient number are willing to fulfill their calling. In Matthew 22:1-14 He speaks of going to the highways and the byways of the earth in haste to make a short work upon the earth. The admonition in Revelation 3:11 is not an idle threat by God. Remember, He said, “‘Behold, I am coming quickly! Hold fast what you have, that no one may take your crown.’”
BEATING BACK THE ABOMINATION OF DESOLATION
Since the death of Mr. Armstrong in 1986, the Church has taken a real beating. God was not taken by surprise by events but has actually been fully prepared for a long time for what has happened. The Church has been shattered, scattered, and beaten down, but God promises that the gates of hell will not prevail, as He said in Matthew 16:18. However, the gates of hell do come very close to defeating the Church! The following scriptures detail what occurs during the abomination of desolation of God’s temple at the end of the age.
When Christ vacated the temple in 586 B.C., the vacuum allowed the king of Babylon to move in and destroy it. Once again at the end of the age the real king of Babylon (Satan) makes his move to destroy the spiritual temple of God. This is possible after Christ vomits the Church out of His mouth. However, Satan’s move will ultimately destroy his position and his influence over mankind, because he will have overstepped his bounds. II Thessalonians 2:1-7 is much easier to understand now with this comprehension of the spiritual temple for those with ears to hear.
“Now, brethren, concerning the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our gathering together to Him, we ask you, not to be soon shaken in mind or troubled, either by spirit or by word or by letter, as if from us, as though the day of Christ had come.” [Some were apparently already concerned that Christ had come two thousand years ago.] “Let no one deceive you by any means; for that Day will not come unless the falling away comes first, and the man of sin is revealed, the son of perdition, who opposes and exalts himself above all that is called God or that is worshiped, so that he sits as God in the temple of God, showing himself that he is God. Do you not remember that when I was still with you I told you these things? And now you know what is restraining, that he may be revealed in his own time. For the mystery of lawlessness is already at work; only He who now restrains will do so until He is taken out of the way.” The son of perdition (which means son of destruction) who sits in the temple feels as if he has succeeded in beating God.
With the understanding that the temple of God is now the spiritually begotten body of Christ in which Christ dwells, we now know who the son of perdition is. It is none other than Apollyon, Satan, the destroyer! He cannot resist moving in when Jesus Christ vomits the Church out of His mouth. This has left the Church temporarily helpless. However, Christ has not forsaken His Church; rather He is just on the other side of a spiritual door. With no restraint, Satan has run amuck within the Church through his “beasts of the field”. The Philadelphian era of the Church was warned that the “synagogue of Satan” was among them.
II Thessalonians 2:9 begins with, “The coming of the lawless one…” This term is used in verse 8 which should be more correctly rendered “that wicked” as it says in the King James Version, signifying the whole group of beasts in the field and not a single individual.
Continuing in verses 9-11 it states, “…is according to the working of Satan, with all power, signs, and lying wonders, and with all unrighteous deception among those who perish, because they did not receive the love of the truth, that they might be saved. And for this reason God will send them strong delusion, that they should believe the lie.” The lie is the false signs and lying wonders.
The prophet Daniel fills in more important details about this abomination of desolation in Daniel 11:31. “‘And forces shall be mustered by him, and they shall defile the sanctuary fortress; then they shall take away the daily sacrifices, and place there the abomination of desolation.’” They did this by denying the Sabbath and God’s holy day plan, replacing them with pagan practices and doctrines. The abomination of desolation set in when the Church took on Satan’s lies. The Church began to teach that we do not need to remember the Law of Moses. Sunday worship replaced the Sabbath, and pagan holidays replaced God’s holy days. As the Church continued to break apart and be scattered, the love of many grew cold. Love for our fellow man was replaced by the lie that the vast majority of humanity would be killed at the hand of God. Gone was the idea of laying down one’s life like Christ did, being replaced by the selfish desire for a place of safety for the privileged few. Satan’s selfishness had replaced God’s love.
Continue in Daniel 11:32-36. “‘Those who do wickedly against the covenant he shall corrupt with flattery; but the people who know their God shall be strong, and carry out great exploits. And those of the people who understand shall instruct many; yet for many days they shall fall by sword and flame, by captivity and plundering. Now when they fall, they shall be aided with a little help; but many shall join with them by intrigue. And some of those of understanding shall fall, to refine them, purify them, and make them white, until the time of the end; because it is still for the appointed time. Then the king shall do according to his own will: he shall exalt and magnify himself above every god, shall speak blasphemies against the God of gods, and shall prosper till the wrath has been accomplished; for what has been determined shall be done.’”
God is actually going to use this very difficult time to finally purify enough gold and silver to finish His temple. The result of Satan’s attack on the Church and the slandering of God’s name is that this truth of God has been replaced with lies. These lies make it very difficult for those who love the truth, but also make those apparent to God who want to hold fast to those crowns. He sees who wants to do His will and who wants to overcome. Events made it clear who would be willing to give up their calling.
Now we compare Daniel 8:9-12. Keep in mind that, as the Bible scholar Scofield noted, two ends seem to be in view here. Quoting Scofield’s notes: “(1) historically, the end of the third, or Grecian empire of Alexander [when Antiochus Epiphanes arose] (2) prophetically, the end of the times of the Gentiles Luke 21:24, Revelation 16:14...Daniel’s final time of the end (Daniel 12:4)”
God has shown those who are alive today that the physical fulfillment in 167 B.C. was to precede the spiritual destruction of the sanctuary and temple in the last days. You will see as we read that many aspects of the abomination of desolation could not be accomplished by a mortal man, and therefore needed a second and later fulfillment. We will see this in Daniel 8:9-12. “And out of one of them came a little horn which grew exceedingly great toward the south, toward the east, and toward the Glorious Land. And it grew up to the host of heaven [waged war with God’s angels]; and it cast down some of the host and some of the stars to the ground, and trampled them. He even exalted himself as high as the Prince of the host; and by him the daily sacrifices were taken away [made war with Christ and took captive the saints of God who were to be living sacrifices], and the place of His sanctuary was cast down [that is, the temple of God was destroyed]. Because of transgression, an army was given over to the horn to oppose the daily sacrifices; and he cast truth down to the ground. He did all this and prospered.”
The truth of God is the real victim when Satan actually sits over the temple of God showing himself to be God. He gets people to deny God’s truth and preach false signs and lying wonders instead. He also got the body of Christ to tear itself apart under the influence of these beasts of the field. No human being could accomplish such abomination without Satan’s power behind them, as revealed in II Thessalonians 2:9, and Daniel 7:21 and 25 confirm this.
Daniel says in verses 21-22: “‘I was watching [in vision]; and the same horn was making war against the saints, and prevailing against them, until the Ancient of Days came, and a judgment was made in favor of the saints of the Most High, and the time came for the saints to possess the kingdom.’” Verse 25: “‘He shall speak pompous words against the Most High, shall persecute the saints of the Most High, and shall intend to change times and law. Then the saints shall be given into his hand for a time and times and half a time.’” Antiochus Epiphanes is not still alive. Satan is the one who wants to extend his power and authority beyond the time limits set by God.
Daniel 12:6-7 also mentions this dark period in Church history. “And one said to the man clothed in linen, who was above the waters of the river, ‘How long shall the fulfillment of these wonders be?’ Then I heard the man clothed in linen, who was above the waters of the river, when he held up his right hand and his left hand to heaven, and swore by Him who lives forever, that it shall be for a time, times, and half a time; and when the power of the holy people has been completely shattered [“scattered” in the King James Version], all these things shall be finished.”
God’s true Church has been shattered and scattered at the end of the age, but it is not over until it is over, as they say. Armed with the knowledge of what has occurred and the understanding of what the abomination of desolation is and who the son of perdition is, the Church is now getting a second wind. It will briefly get to its feet before the remarkable resurrection and the return of Jesus Christ. A truly remarkable thing is now taking place just before the return of Christ and the resurrection which will cut time short. This will leave Satan with his plans of utter destruction never to be fulfilled!
Now let’s go back and read Daniel 12:1-3 to hear the prophecy of hope written 2,500 years ago. “‘At that time, Michael shall stand up, the great prince who stands watch over the sons of your people; and there shall be a time of trouble, such as never was since there was a nation [this has been no ordinary calamity or war, but rather a unique desolation], even to that time. And at that time your people shall be delivered, every one who is found written in the book. And many of those who sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life, some to shame and everlasting contempt. Those who are wise shall shine like the brightness of the firmament, and those who turn many [back] to righteousness like the stars forever and ever.’”
Those in the Church with ears to hear and eyes to see will comprehend the truth just before Christ returns and the resurrection. Some shamefully (from both past and present) will have thrown it all away. We shall now cross-reference this place in time, of which we are now approaching the conclusion, with the Book of Revelation. We shall see how God will win.
Revelation 13:6-10 states, “Then he opened his mouth in blasphemy against God, to blaspheme His name, His tabernacle, and those who dwell in heaven. It was granted to him to make war with the saints and to overcome them. And authority was given him over every tribe, tongue, and nation. All who dwell on the earth will worship him, whose names have not been written in the Book of Life of the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world. If anyone has an ear, let him hear. He who leads into captivity [back into false religion] shall go into captivity; he who kills with the sword [kills with the misuse of God’s word by false signs, lying wonders, and false doctrine] must be killed with the sword [by the word of God]. Here is the patience and the faith of the saints.”
Revelation 13:11-14 explains that at the end of the age, the Church takes on the image of Satan’s beasts, speaking like the dragon causing “fire to come down from heaven” (verse 13). Fire is the word pur in Greek which actually means lightning. In Luke 10:18 Christ tells His disciples, “‘I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven.’” There are some unwittingly receiving guidance from Satan’s demons (his angels) from the heavens. By signs and lying wonders thus received, God’s own people on the earth are deceived. Some beasts of the field are even claiming to be prophets! This has been a test allowed by God to see who really loves the truth; to see who will continue to remember God’s laws, and keep the Sabbath and holy days; to see who is really willing to lay down their lives for their fellow man. II Thessalonians 2:11-12 speaks of this time of testing. “And for this reason God will send them strong delusion, that they should believe the lie, that they all may be condemned who did not believe the truth but had pleasure in unrighteousness.” Verse 15 goes on to give guidance on how to endure. “Therefore, brethren, stand fast and hold the traditions which you were taught, whether by word or our epistle.” “Traditions” comes from the Greek word paradosis, meaning the transmission of a precept, especially Jewish traditionary law. That means the Sabbath, holy days, etc.
Let us continue to cross-reference this time in Church history. Read Revelation 13:14: “And he deceives those who dwell on the earth [a good margin reference will explain that ‘those’ in the original means God’s own people] by those signs which he was granted to do in the sight of the beast…”
Matthew 24:21-22 tells us that if this tribulation on the end-time Church was not cut short, none of the elect would be saved alive, which would also give Satan enough time to move mankind toward the utter destruction of the mushroom cloud. Not to worry, all is now in place to avert disaster! “‘For then there will be great tribulation [on God’s Church], such as has not been since the beginning of the world until this time, no, nor ever shall be. And unless those days were shortened, no flesh would be saved; but for the elect’s sake those days will be shortened.’” The elect is the body of Christ which Ephesians 5:30 says of the Church, “For we are members of His body, of His flesh and of His bones.”
Back in Matthew 24:28 we are told of this body, “‘For wherever the carcass is [the fallen body of Christ], there the eagles will be gathered together.’” Some versions say vultures. But what is being pictured here is a fight between God’s angels and Satan’s demons over the body of Christ (the Church).
Revelation 11:7-12 talks of the two witnesses getting back on their feet when God’s remnant Church once again receives the breath of life. (Request more information on the fascinating subject of the two witnesses.)
When the truth went down, as we read in Daniel, the spiritual life and breath in the form of the living word of God went out of the Church. That is why these walking dead did not need to be buried. But when the breath of life comes back into the Church and the wise preach the truth, the resurrection will be just around the corner!
We can go on and on with more spiritual observations to share with the reader. Just let us know if you want more information. Our addresses are at the end of this book. We close with two scriptures to show how the battle is now being fought, and how God and His Church will win at the return of Christ and the resurrection of the saints.
Isaiah 31:4-5 “For thus the Lord has spoken to me: ‘As a lion roars, and a young lion over his prey (When a multitude of shepherds is summoned against him, he will not be afraid of their voice nor be disturbed by their noise), so the Lord of hosts will come down to fight for Mount Zion and for its hill. Like birds flying about, so will the Lord of hosts defend Jerusalem. Defending, He will also deliver it; passing over, He will preserve it.’”
God is not afraid by what has happened, and He will deliver His spiritual temple and spiritual Jerusalem. By doing so, He will deliver this earth from the curse of utter destruction. He put the plan in motion to defeat all of His enemies. Just ahead of us is the return of Christ, the resurrection, and the liberation of planet earth into the kingdom of God. The tears of the innumerable multitude will be wiped away, and the peaceful Millennium will be theirs to enjoy.
We close now with Isaiah 60:1-5 so the effect of the resurrection can be understood by all. “Arise, shine; for your light has come! And the glory of the Lord is risen upon you. For behold, the darkness shall cover the earth, and deep darkness the people; but the Lord will arise over you, and His glory will be seen upon you. The Gentiles shall come to your light, and kings to the brightness of your rising. ‘Lift up your eyes all around, and see; they all gather together, they come to you; your sons shall come from afar, and your daughters shall be nursed at your side. Then you shall see and become radiant, and your heart shall swell with joy; because the abundance of the sea shall be turned to you…’”
The King James Version has it better rendered “because the abundance of the sea shall be converted unto thee.” This is speaking of the fantastic resurrection of the saints of Jesus Christ. They will shine like Him. They will be with Jesus Christ to bring the liberating government (the spiritual temple of God). It will replace Satan’s diabolical tyrannical government that has tormented mankind for six thousand years. The world will not end with the mushroom cloud, but with the glorious kingdom of God. You can start preparing yourself for it now.
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All scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
The source for the Hebrew and Greek words in this book and their meanings is The New Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible, by James Strong, Copyright © 1995 by Thomas Nelson, Inc.
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