It all comes down to the love of God’s Word. Those who stand in awe of everything He has said are the ones who are pleasing to Him. The cynical and the unbelieving have no place in God’s Great Plan! Faith is the assurance that everything God has said will come true – exactly as He has said it! And this is the meaning of Heb 11:1 "Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see. This is what the ancients were commended for." Without this type of faith it is impossible to please God. God doesn’t permit anyone to devise from their own minds what He will or will not do. And this is what the ancients were commended for – they believed God even though they never saw the end result. And this is confirmed in V13 "All these people were still living by faith when they died. They did not receive the things promised, they only saw them and welcomed them from a distance. And they admitted that they were aliens and strangers on the earth. People who say such things show they are looking for a country of their own."

God has set before us the choice of life or death – and counsels us to choose life – a life of faithful obedience. Those who make the right choice will have life – everlasting life. As the Book of Hebrews says, ‘All these people were still living by faith when they died.’ They considered themselves to be aliens and strangers on the earth – they were not a part of this world. They knew that God has planned something different for them, and like Abraham (V19) they reasoned that God was able to raise them from the dead. And in V39 "These were all commended for their faith, yet none of them received what was promised. God had planned something better for us so that only together with us would they be made perfect." This, of course, is referring to a resurrection from the dead.

Flesh and blood cannot inherit the Kingdom of God. You are not in the flesh but in the Spirit if the Spirit of God dwells in you (Rom 8:9). (You will also note that in the same verse it says if anyone doesn’t have the Spirit of Christ he is not Christ’s.) This gives you something to think about, doesn’t it? The term ‘aliens and strangers’ takes on a new dimension when considered in this light. We need to go back to V2 to pick up on some added meaning here: V2 "By faith we understand that the universe was formed at God’s command, so that what is seen was not made out of what is visible." On the face of it, this would seem to be a strange verse to insert into the faith chapter. Whatever it’s meaning it takes faith to understand it. God formed the universe, not by what we can see – but with what we can’t see! God is a Spirit, and He is invisible. God lives in what we would call a different dimension. He lives in a spirit world. There are vast multitudes of beings that live in this same dimension and they are invisible to our eyes.

Jesus Christ was born of flesh and blood, yet the Spirit of God conceived him. After His death He was able to pass from one dimension to the other. This was also true when He walked the earth as a man on at least one occasion (John 8:59). It’s also not unusual for demons to cross from one dimension to another in order to engage in their trickery. Some of the Apostles thought they were seeing a ‘ghost’ when Christ appeared to them after His death (Luke 24:36-37). So ghosts were not unknown to the Apostles. Even when they were behind locked doors, Jesus suddenly appeared before them passing through the locked door (John 20:26).

When Peter and the other Apostles were locked up in prison, the doors suddenly swung open and they walked to freedom. Not quite the same miracle as when Jesus walked through a locked door, but it was still very impressive and we get the message. Those who are conceived of the Holy Spirit have the Holy Spirit working for them – at God’s command. Later, when the jail was inspected, we find this report: Acts 5:22 "But on arriving at the jail, the officers did not find them there. So they went back and reported, "We found the jail securely locked, with the guards standing at the doors; but when we opened them, we found no-one inside." The same thing happened to Peter again later on in Acts 12:8-10. And in V11 "Then Peter came to himself and said, "Now I know without a doubt that the Lord sent His angel and rescued me from Herod’s clutches and from everything the Jewish people were anticipating."

So Herod was still working behind the scenes to mastermind the destruction of the Church. This is the evil spirit that works in the minds of unstable men, and Herod was a ruler of the heavenly realms. The evil spirits had thoroughly confused many of the Jewish leaders and led them to oppose those to whom God had given His Holy Spirit. And this is true even today. But we also have this statement in Acts 6:7 "So the Word of God spread. The number of disciples in Jerusalem increased rapidly, and a large number of priests became obedient to the Faith." Notice that the Faith requires obedience! Without obedience your faith is dead! We should also note that this large number of priests were instrumental in taking the Gospel of the obedience to the Faith into the world.

Once anyone opposes the Spirit of God and refuses obedience, and particularly if they begin to teach lies in God’s Name, then it’s a long, hard road back to recovery, and very few will ever find it. The very nature of God’s Spirit is to oppose His enemies. It’s impossible to have the Spirit of Christ and not have the mind of Christ. The one is compatible with the other. Those who have the mind of Christ have the same objectives as Christ. They know Christ came to destroy the devil’s work (1John 3:8). They know He came to destroy the rulers of the heavenly realms (1Cor 15:24-27), and they also know that the raging fire has been specifically prepared for the devil and his angels (Matt 25:41). They also know that the whole world is under the control of the devil (1John 5:19). The devil is specifically calling all the shots. He’s been hard at work corrupting and deceiving the whole world.

Jesus confirmed that the Father works just as He Himself does: Matt 5:17 "Jesus said to them, "My Father is always at His work to this very day, and I, too, am working." He goes on to give us additional information: V19 "Jesus gave them this answer: "I tell you the truth, the Son can do nothing by Himself; He can only do what He sees His Father doing, because whatever the Father does, the Son also does. For the Father loves the Son and shows Him all He does. Yes, to your amazement He will show Him even greater things than these. For just as the Father raises the dead and gives them life, even so the Son gives life to whom He is pleased to give it. Moreover, the Father judges no-one, but has entrusted all judgment to the Son, that they may honour the Son just as they honour the Father. He who does not honour the Son does not honour the Father, who sent Him." It should be noted that Jesus is not pleased to give life to His enemies. As the Workman at God’s side (or Craftsman – Pro 8:30), He knows that He must destroy the devil’s work, and that the devil has the whole world under his control. And this must be achieved before Christ hands the Kingdom to the Father (1Cor 15:24).

God actually describes a resurrection when He commands His prophet to raise a whole army. In this scenario the Spirit of God goes to work reforming the whole skeletal remains with flesh and sinews. From the dry skeletal remains, the whole army is raised again to life – an army which was slain. Eze 37:1 "The hand of the LORD was upon me, and he brought me out by the Spirit of the LORD and set me in the middle of a valley; it was full of bones. He led me to and fro among them, and I saw a great many bones on the floor of the valley, bones that were very dry. He asked me, "Son of man, can these bones live?" I said, "O Sovereign LORD, you alone know." Then He said to me, "Prophesy to these bones and say to them, ‘Dry bones, hear the Word of the LORD! This is what the Sovereign LORD says to these bones: I will make breath enter you, and you will come to life. I will attach tendons to you and make flesh come upon you and cover you with skin; I will put breath in you, and you will come to life. Then you will know that I am the LORD." So we can see from this how the resurrections will be conducted. While the prophet was watching, the bones were assembled with flesh and tendons, and skin covered them. V7 "So I prophesied as I was commanded. And as I was prophesying, there was a noise, a rattling sound, and the bones came together, bone to bone. I looked, and tendons and flesh appeared on them and skin covered them, but there was no breath in them. Then He said to me, "Prophesy to the breath; prophesy, son of man, and say to it, ‘This is what the Sovereign LORD says: Come from the four winds, O breath, and breath into these slain, that they may live.’ So I prophesied as He commanded me, and breath entered them; they came to life and stood on their feet – a vast army." God has a very special reason for resurrecting this vast army, which was slain. V11 "Then He said to me: "Son of man, these bones are the whole House of Israel. They say, ‘Our bones are dried up and our hope is gone, we are cut off.’ Therefore prophesy and say to them: ‘This is what the Sovereign LORD says: O my people, I am going to open your graves and bring you back up from them. I will bring you back to the land of Israel. Then you my people will know that I am the LORD, when I open your graves and bring you up from them. I will put my Spirit in you and you will live, and I will settle you in your own land. Then you will know that I the LORD have spoken, and I have done it, declares the LORD.’" An interesting aside to all this is the fact that God continually uses the term ‘prophesy’ as a means to show what is certain and what occurred at the word of God’s servant. God backs up and vindicates what His servant has said.

Then in V15 we learn that Judah – the Jewish people – and those associated with him, will be joined together with Ephraim and those associated with him. V18 "When your countrymen ask you, ‘Won’t you tell us what you mean by this?’ say to them, This is what the Sovereign LORD says: I am going to take the stick of Joseph – which is in Ephraim’s hand – and of the Israelite Tribes associated with him, and join it to Judah’s stick, making them a single stick of wood, and they will become one in my hand.’"

We also learn that God plans to raise David from the dead, and he will be king over the House of Israel forever: V24 "My servant David will be king over them, and they will all have one shepherd. They will follow my Laws, and be careful to keep my Decrees. They will live in the land that I gave to my servant Jacob, the land where your fathers lived. They and their children and their children’s children will live there forever, and David my servant will be their prince forever. I will make a Covenant of peace with them; it will be an everlasting Covenant. I will establish them and increase their numbers, and I will put my Sanctuary among them forever". You will notice that this everlasting Covenant will require them to ‘follow my Laws’ and ‘be careful to keep my Decrees’! It is not a covenant of lawlessness! So it’s bad news for those who have plunged into the realm of insanity and insist that Jesus came to abolish God’s Laws. V27 "My dwelling-place will be with them; I will be their God, and they will be my people. Then the nations will know that I the LORD make Israel holy, when my Sanctuary is among them forever." This is the time when the Gentile nations will know whom God makes holy. It’s not the Gentiles who are made holy – but Israel! The Gentiles will have a long, hard slog to achieve the status of Israel. But if they keep God’s Commandments and observe His Holy Days (Zech 14:16-19), they will begin the healing process. But first they must come to the realization that they are not God’s Holy people Israel. The survivors of the Gentile nations will need to come to the realization that in raising their hands against God’s people Israel – they have raised their hands against God Himself!

To be sure, God will deliver His people into the hands of their enemies for punishment, but woe betide those by whom this offence comes. The greedy Gentiles will do it in order to seize what doesn’t belong to them (Hab 1:6). Up until September 11, 2001, the House of Israel lived in relative safety. They didn’t feel vulnerable, and so they didn’t much care that the Israelis were enduring a reign of terror. They pontificated about bringing peace to the region with endless talkfests. They reasoned that Islam, being a ‘peaceful religion’ would club together to honour their wishes for peace in the region. America reasoned that they have been so benevolent to so many different nations, that all would love them for their fairness, and see the benefits of regional peace. How wide of the mark they were! Those from whom America expected some form of honour, and from whom they expected some sort of respect, actually hate their guts! The U.S. is too silly to understand that these satanic hordes don’t want peace! One of the great ironies is that even the Afghanis don’t want peace, and America is trying to impose it on them. In reality, the Afghanis are worthless cannon fodder and nothing more. Even when they are not fighting other nations, they are fighting among themselves.

 

This Islamic Imam has the job of proving that Saddam is a direct descendant of Mohammed.	And the oak branches and the two acorns all point to Saddam.

Remember what happened to Nebuchadnezzar when his arrogance got too much to bear? God drove him out of his kingdom and transformed him into an animal (Dan 4:28-33). Saddam Hussein is making all the same mistakes. He’s spent a veritable fortune rebuilding the City of Babylon, as well as an enormous ziggurat-shaped palace overlooking it.

Satan doesn’t agree! He sneeringly said that a man would do anything to save his own life, and if God were to strike his flesh, the man would curse God to His face (Job 2:4). Satan can’t conceive of anyone giving up their lives to honour God as Jesus did. He certainly wouldn’t! And if God ever tries to arrest him and imprison him for a thousand years, He’ll have a real fight on His hands! No-one, not even God, will challenge him! Well, this is how Satan and his brood think. But this is the Day of the LORD, the Day of which God foretold millenniums before.

Ezekiel wrote of these very things: Eze 39:23 "And the [Gentile] nations will know that the people of Israel went into exile for their sin, because they were unfaithful to me. So I hid my face from them and handed them over to their enemies, and they all fell by the sword. I dealt with them according to their uncleanness and their offences, and I hid my face from them. Therefore this is what the Sovereign LORD says: I will now bring Jacob back from captivity and will have compassion on all the people of Israel, and I will be zealous for my Holy Name. They will forget their shame and all their unfaithfulness they showed towards me when they lived in safety in their own land with no-one to make them afraid." In the secular world we call people traitors who side with the enemy – and the Sovereign LORD is no different. For their offences and their unfaithfulness towards God, they will be handed over to their enemies – the ones they formerly loved so much. It will take them a while to forget their shame! In fact it will be many years before they return from captivity.

 

Three of these pictures show the enormous, super-imposing structure of this new ziggurat with a purple throne room.	Now here’s something of interest to Bible students! Notice the horns on the altar? Who does this guy think he’s kidding!

Ezekiel speaks further of the final outcome: V28 "Then they will know that I am the LORD their God, for though I sent them into exile among the nations, I will gather them to their own land, not leaving any behind. I will no longer hide my face from them, for I will pour out my Spirit on the house of Israel, declares the Sovereign LORD." Has the House of Israel seen God’s face lately? Has God poured out His Spirit on the whole House of Israel? The answer is no to both questions. There are many major events that will occur before this. Of particular note is that they must be sent into captivity long before this. And one of their major offences leading up to their captivity is offering aid and comfort to God’s enemies!

Ezekiel again makes it clear that God will dwell among men forever. This was during Ezekiel’s vision of the New Temple (yet to be built). Eze 43:5 "Then the Spirit lifted me up and brought me into the inner court, and the glory of the LORD filled the Temple. While the man was standing beside me, I heard someone speaking to me from inside the Temple. He said, "Son of man, this is the place of my Throne and the place for the soles of my feet. This is where I will live among the Israelites forever."

God intends to live on earth among men (Rev 21:3). Faithful men and women will be raised from the dead by God and will live again. And while they will live their lives as human beings, they will also have the ability to pass through walls – just like Christ. They will be both human and spirit. This is why Jesus delighted in mankind, and this is why even the angels desire to look into these things: 1Pet 1:10 "Concerning this salvation, the prophets, who spoke of the grace that was to come to you…." V12 "It was revealed to them that they were not serving themselves but you, when they spoke of the things that have now been told you by those who have preached the Gospel to you by the Holy Spirit sent from heaven. Even the angels long to look into these things."

And while human beings were made somewhere midway between the animals and the angels, their potential is to be above the angels. Those who reach their potential are to be godlike as members of the family of God. It was God’s intention to reveal things that are beyond human understanding and beyond the realm of known science. Paul even said that the invisible things of God are clearly understood by the things that are made: Rom 1:20 "For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities – His eternal power and divine nature – have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that men are without excuse." There are many facets to this statement, but one thing is very clear: God’s eternal Power has created everything that has been made – and continues to be made. Plants, animals, and even human beings are being made today by God’s eternal Power. Elihu, the righteous one of Job’s four friends, mentioned that if God withdrew His Spirit men would die: Job 34:14 "If it were His intention and He withdrew His Spirit and His breath, all mankind would perish together and man would return to the dust." This is not suggesting that all men have God’s Holy Spirit, but that God’s Holy Spirit holds the whole creation, including the universe, together. The invisible qualities of God can be clearly seen and understood provided His eternal Power is acknowledged. At the latter end of mankind’s experience on earth, they have discovered that the atom is not a passive particle, but a powerhouse of activity with enormous energy reserves. By splitting the atom with great force, this massive power can be used in the detonation of frightening weapons of destruction.

It’s worth making a brief digression here to include something else that Elihu said: Job 33:13 "Why do you complain to Him that He answers none of man’s words? For God does speak – now one way, now another – though man may not perceive it. In a dream, in a vision of the night, when deep sleep falls on men as they slumber in their beds, He may speak in their ears and terrify them with warnings, to turn man from wrongdoing and keep him from pride, to preserve his soul from the pit (grave), his life from perishing by the sword. Or a man may be chastened on a bed of pain with constant distress in his bones, so that his very being finds food repulsive and his soul loathes the choicest meal. His flesh wastes away to nothing, and his bones, once hidden, now stick out. His soul draws near the pit (grave), and his life to the messengers of death. Yet if there is an angel on his side as a mediator, one out of a thousand, to tell a man what is right for him, to be gracious and say, ‘Spare him from going down to the pit (grave), I have found ransom for him’ – then his flesh is renewed like a child’s; it is restored as in the days of his youth. He prays to God and finds favour with Him, He sees God’s face and shouts for joy; he is restored by God to His righteous state. Then he comes to men and says, ‘I have sinned, and perverted what was right, but I did not get what I deserved. He redeemed my soul from going down to the pit (grave), and I shall live to enjoy the light."

It’s a funny thing that Satan’s agents inferred that a certain man was a cripple because of sin, yet they went berserk when Christ later said ‘Son, your sins are forgiven’ – and of course, his sins were forgiven – he was healed! David also had the Wisdom to see this link: Ps 103:2 "Praise the LORD, O my soul, and forget not all His benefits. He forgives all my sins and heals all my diseases; He redeems my life from the pit (grave) and crowns me with love and compassion. He satisfies my desires with good things, so that my youth is restored like the eagle’s."

God can not only withdraw His Spirit and cause all mankind to perish together, but He can also heal all diseases. If the Mighty Angel at His side mediates, and asks that a man be spared, the same Holy Spirit will heal. Healing is not necessarily an instant miracle, and Jesus served as our example in this. He still had gaping wounds when He showed Himself to the Apostles and pointed to the hole of the spear wound in His side. Poor Thomas was a little embarrassed and responded: John 20:28 "Thomas said to Him, "My Lord and my God!" Then Jesus told him, "Because you have seen me, you have believed; blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed."

Of course, these self-proclaimed rulers imagine that their job is to practice lording it over others. They imagine that God will be pleased that they are able to force others to stand in awe of them. God is not pleased! God wants His family to stand in awe of Him! He does not want His people lording it over others like the Gentiles. And Christ plainly said this: Matt 20:25 "Jesus called them together and said, "You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them. Not so with you. Instead, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever wants to be first must be your slave – just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life as a ransom for many." If any man really wants to be great or first in the eyes of others, then let him be the first to offer his life for the ransom of many – just like Christ! Then they will achieve greatness in God’s eyes! In the meantime, they should consider their status as that of a slave! It’s beyond belief that any servant of God would attempt to circumvent what Christ so plainly said, or even entertain thoughts of grandeur in their own minds.

At the extreme left side of the pendulum, there are those who know nothing, yet reserve the right to hurl abuse at things they cannot understand. They see God’s Truth as a threat to their intellect. Their sole purpose in life is to poison the minds of those who are just emerging from error: 2Pet 2:18-19 "For they mouth empty, boastful words and, by appealing to the lustful desires of sinful human nature, they entice people who are just escaping from those who live in error. They promise them freedom, while they themselves are slaves of depravity – for a man is a slave to whatever has mastered him." Christ identified such people with these words: Matt 23:11 "The greatest among you will be your servant. For whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and whoever humbles himself will be exalted. Woe to you, teachers of the Law (Scribes, those who loved to teach from their numerous additions to the Law of God) and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You shut the Kingdom of Heaven in men’s faces. You yourselves do not enter, nor will you let those enter who are trying to. Woe to you, teachers of the Law (Scribes) and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You travel over land and sea to win a single convert, and when he becomes one, you make him twice as much the son of hell as you are." There are plenty of self-righteous sons of hell today! And they are real hypocrites! What makes them so much worse is they refuse obedience to God, and reserve all their hatred and venom against those who don’t agree with them. And what did Christ say leading up to His scathing abuse of them? V1 "Then Jesus said to the crowds and to His disciples: "The teachers of the Law (Scribes) and Pharisees sit in Moses’ seat. So you must obey them and do everything they tell you. But do not do what they do, for they do not practise what they preach. They tie up heavy loads and put them on men’s shoulders, but they themselves are not willing to lift a finger to move them. Everything they do is done for men to see."

Those who teach the Law – those appointed to sit in Moses’ seat must be obeyed in matters of Law – God’s Law, the Law He gave to His servant Moses (Mal 4:4). This includes not only the crowds, but Christ’s disciples as well. Christ was not surprised that such hypocrisy existed. He was aware that if you pin a badge on someone it’s likely to go to their head, and this was the way it was. Those who held the custodianship of the Temple loved to heap burdens on others that they themselves could not bear. Nevertheless, Christ told His disciples that the teachers of the Law must be obeyed in matters of Law. Contrary to what many believe, God’s Law is not burdensome, but a blessing. And those who have been appointed to administer the Law must be like Barnabus, a Levite whose name means ‘Son of Encouragement’ (Acts 4:36). His name was really Joseph, but the Apostles called Barnabus to reflect his Godly qualities. Barnabas was, you will recall, the one whom the Apostles sent off to bring Saul (later called Paul) back from Tarsus, and encouraged him in the right way to conduct himself. Prior to this, when Barnabas first brought Paul to Jerusalem to meet the Apostles (Acts 9:27), and afterwards when Paul began to teach around Jerusalem, he stirred up nothing but trouble, and soon the enemy wanted to kill him. V30 "When the brothers learned of this, they took him (Paul) down to Caesarea and sent him off to Tarsus. Then the Church throughout Judea, Galilee and Samaria enjoyed a time of peace. It was strengthened and encouraged by the Holy Spirit, it grew in numbers, living in fear of the Lord."

The time came for Paul to get started on the job that God had called him to, and so Barnabas set out to find him. Already men had gone out from Jerusalem and told of the persecution and death of Stephen to Jews in Phoenicia, Cyprus and Antioch, and the good news of the Lord Jesus – the Promised Messiah (Acts 11:19-21). V22 "News of this reached the ears of the Church at Jerusalem, and they sent Barnabas to Antioch. When he arrived and saw the evidence of the grace of God, he was glad and encouraged them all to remain true to the Lord with all their hearts. He was a good man, full of the Holy Spirit and faith, and a great number of people were brought to the Lord. Then Barnabas went to Tarsus to look for Saul, and when he found him, he brought him to Antioch. So for a whole year Barnabas and Saul met with the Church and taught great numbers of people." Clearly, there are right ways and wrong ways of doing things. Paul, incidentally, was the main instigator of the martyrdom of Stephen. So when he went into Antioch with Barnabas, he was aware that he had plenty to be humble about. If it had not been for Barnabas, Paul might have met with a lot of trouble in Antioch from those still suspicious of him.

But it was Simon Peter who was the appointed leader of the Apostles, contrary to what some may tell you. Jesus Christ Himself appointed him to this position. Peter too, was a good and humble man, and this led to Christ calling him ‘Cephas’ meaning ‘little rock’ at their very first meeting (John 1:42). And later in Matt 16:18 "And I tell you that you are Peter (Peter means rock), and on this rock I will build my Church, and the gates of Hades will not overcome it. I will give you the keys of the Kingdom of Heaven; whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven. Then He warned His disciples not to tell anyone that He was the Christ." Christ reiterated to Peter to feed His sheep – three times (John 21:15-19). This is what a good shepherd is supposed to do.

We later find that those who were living in Jerusalem had all things in common ownership (Acts 4:32). We also find this was true of the Levite community of the Essenes (means ‘breastplate’) who lived not far from Jerusalem. It’s not so much the common ownership that existed in Jerusalem, but the common purpose of their beliefs. It was a powerful bond of brotherhood where all believers were of one heart and one mind.

So there are a lot of things that the Church has not understood in this present era. And speaking of present eras, they concocted some strange ideas concerning the seven Churches in Asia, as detailed in the Book of Revelation. For reasons known only to themselves, they spanned these seven Churches over a period of 2,000 years. Yet it’s very clear that the seven Churches detailed in the Book of Revelation exist side by side as they did anciently. But if God had in mind to give details of seven Churches, why did He mention the Churches in Asia Minor that then existed? And since He was quite specific about the names of these Churches, why should we assume that God hadn’t correctly identified them. He named them specifically and gave their location (Rev 1:4, 11). The problem is they no longer exist in these locations. So did God get it wrong?

When you entered into the contract or Covenant with God you agreed to these conditions, whether or not you fully understood the contract. You agreed to live by faith and to fear God more than anything any man can do to you. And this is a part of your contract as members of the household of God: Rev 13:9 "He who has an ear, let him hear. If anyone is to go into captivity, into captivity he will go. If anyone is to be killed by the sword, with the sword he will be killed. This calls for patient endurance and faithfulness on the part of the saints." So the contract says ‘on the part of the saints’ you must have patient endurance and faithfulness. Perhaps you may have chosen not to enter into the contract if you had known all the details. As members of the Church of God you are potentially members of God’s household. You may not have actually signed the contract with blood, but in fact you did! You signed it with the Blood of Christ, and ratified it by symbolically going down to the pit – the watery grave of baptism. By doing this, you acknowledged your forfeiture of life – your willingness to give your life for the Faith. To their shame, many won’t acknowledge this, but the enemies of God do! They happily give their lives as suicide bombers to enhance the reputation of their master Satan as a murderer. God wants you to do the exact opposite – to go as sheep to the slaughter – just as Christ did! For this very act, Christ was greatly rewarded – and so will you be if you faithfully submit as Christ did. You’ll recall what was said in Isa 53:10 "Yet it was the LORD’S Will to crush Him and cause Him to suffer, and though the LORD makes His life a guilt offering, He will see His offspring and prolong His days, and the Will of the LORD will prosper in His hand." Christ’s offspring are supposed to be like Him! You surely know that you are not above the Master, just as the Master Himself knows that He is not above the Father’s Will. The Will of the Father and Son are the same. This is referenced in the instructions to the Churches in Rev 2:26 "To him that overcomes and does my Will to the end, I will give him authority over the nations – ‘He will rule them with an iron scepter; he will dash them to pieces like pottery’ – just as I have received authority from my Father. I will also give him the Morning Star. He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the Churches."

You may be surprised to know that God intends to raise up seven shepherds – righteous men – who will replace the seven goofs that presently rule over the flock with their lies and deceit. These will arrive in present-day Turkey – Asia Minor, the land of the original seven Churches. Micah 5:5 "When the Assyrian invades our land and marches through our fortresses, He will raise up seven shepherds, even eight leaders of men. They will rule the land of Assyria with the sword, the land of Nimrod with drawn sword. He (Christ – V4) will deliver us from the Assyrian when he invades our land and marches into our borders." These will be raised up just as Christ was raised up from the dead – literally! One of these will be Elisha who will be the prime leader, making eight in all, and the other seven will be shepherds over God’s flock of seven Churches. These will be literally raised from the dead and transported to the Glory and clothed and fed with the Manna of heaven – until their time comes to rule over the nations with a rod of iron. It will be just as Christ said in Rev 2:26. These are the ones who overcame to the end and chose death rather than tyranny and disobedience to God. These seven shepherds – leaders of men – will lead as Christ led, by willingly giving up their lives as an example to all, and will then be qualified to rule the land of Assyria with a rod of iron.

So when the Churches of God learn who the enemy is, and begin to think like God, and receive the Morning Star (the Spirit of Christ – the Counsellor), and earnestly seek to enter the Kingdom of God – then they will achieve rulership! Not over God’s people, but the hordes around the Euphrates River. Remember how Jesus said, "You shut the Kingdom of Heaven in men’s faces. You yourselves do not enter, nor will you let those enter who are trying to"? (Matt 23:13). This has become the modus operandi of those who hate God’s Truth. Those who have an overwhelming desire to serve God will support His Kingdom in every way, will enter into it! And together, they will take it by force – force against the enemies of God – against those who have no rights to it! These are the early fruit of the crop, but others will follow after they receive the Morning Star (Counsellor). Better late than never! Those who follow will truly have Godly, righteous shepherds, and they will rule the Land of Nimrod with drawn sword! Those who have the Morning Star will be like the Morning Star Christ, and they will wield a two-edged sword (Rev 1:16). The Morning Star is like the Sun shining in all its brilliance (same verse).

Interestingly, in the days of the former seven Churches in Asia Minor, the Celtic Levites had already preceded them into the area. God had already prepared the way for them, and He will again. Again the Levites will prepare the way for Christ’s offspring and will rescue them in fulfillment of the commission given to John the Baptist (Luke 1:74).

God has appointed just one man to bond the Churches together into the common Faith. That man will receive the mantle and a double-portion of God’s Holy Spirit when he sees Elijah depart. This Elisha will know what to expect, and plainly said so – twice! This is the account: 2Kings 2:11 "As they were walking along and talking together, suddenly a chariot of fire and horses of fire appeared and separated the two of them, and Elijah went up to heaven in a whirlwind. Elisha saw this and cried out, "My father! My father! The chariots and horsemen of Israel!" Elisha considered Elijah to be a father – a father of the faithful, just as Abraham was. But he also knew that the chariot or space vehicle was from a heavenly source and he called it the ‘chariots and horsemen of Israel!’ There were no human-operated aircraft in those days. Elijah was picked up in one of these vehicles, but Elisha referred to chariots and horsemen in the plural. Later, when it was perceived that a great battle was to take place, Elisha opened the eyes of his companion to see many vehicles (referred to again as chariots of fire) flying over the nearby hills. 2Kings 6:16 "Don’t be afraid," the prophet answered. "Those who are with us are more than those who are with them." And Elisha prayed, "O LORD, open his eyes so that he may see." Then the LORD opened the servant’s eyes, and he looked and saw the hills full of horses and chariots of fire all round Elisha." These were invisible to the naked eye until the servant of God requested of God to make them visible.

To his credit, Herbert Armstrong maintained a closed door to the Church, and anyone who wanted to enter had to knock. He made it impossible for anyone to shoe-horn their way in without being properly vetted. This abruptly changed after his death, but while he was still alive, this format continued. The purpose of it was to keep out the wolves. And this is what a good shepherd does! Why bring wolves in among the flock? And when this all changed after his death, the wolves came and had a field day. They tore down the whole structure of the Church of God and rendered it unrecognizable as the Church that Christ built. Lawlessness and disobedience to God became the norm, and any who wanted to continue in obedience, soon found themselves isolated. Some drifted away and became lost, while others sought out groups of like-interest. The Church that Christ built became fragmented with many offshoots springing up everywhere. Many members were bewildered. They couldn’t understand why God would allow all this to happen. They failed to understand that a great falling-away had to occur before the ‘man of sin’ is revealed. And since judgment begins in the Church first (‘with us’ is how the faithful shepherd Peter described it – 1Pet 4:17), it’s obvious that there had to be a shake-out of the sheep and the goats. Judgment itself is a whole lot broader than just the Church, but it was destined to start at the Church. This has now been done, and the Church has been decimated.

Only a tiny fragment of the Church remains faithful and obedient to God. Presently they are scattered all over the place with no shepherd to guide them. At the most perilous time in all history, they have been left vulnerable, but they are not alone. God Himself has reserved them for His purpose. Paul made mention of them and knew this to be so: Rom 11:1 "I ask then, ‘Did God reject His people?’ By no means! I am an Israelite myself, a descendant of Abraham, from the Tribe of Benjamin. God did not reject His people whom He foreknew. Don’t you know what the Scripture says in the passage about Elijah – how he appealed to God against Israel: "Lord, they have killed the prophets and torn down the altars; I am the only one left, and they are trying to kill me"? And what was God’s answer to him? "I have reserved for myself seven thousand who have not bowed the knee to Baal." SO TOO, AT THE PRESENT TIME there is a remnant chosen by grace. And if by grace, then it is no longer by works; if it were, grace would no longer be grace. What then? What Israel sought so earnestly it did not obtain, but the elect did. The others were hardened, as it is written: "God gave them a spirit of stupor, eyes so that they could not see and ears so that they could not hear, to this very day." And David says: "May their table become a snare and a trap, a stumbling block and a retribution for them. May their eyes be darkened so they cannot see, and their backs bent forever."

God has chosen the seven thousand to set the highest example for the House of Israel, and this is why Paul began his dialogue by confirming that God had not rejected His people Israel and said, "By no means!" But since God has given the House of Israel – and the Church for that matter – a spirit of stupor that has blinded them to reality, they have never understood the Scriptures. Paul knew that Elijah would come because the Scripture plainly says so (Mal 4:5). You’ll recall how Elijah was taken up in a flying machine (for want of a better word), and was transported to another place. At his departure, he promised his successor that if he saw him go, then he would receive a double-portion of the Spirit that was in Elijah. This happened and Elijah’s mantle fell to Elisha. Elisha became both shepherd and prophet over the ‘lost sheep of Israel’.

Bowing the knee to Baal will soon take on greater dimensions when it becomes the test for all Israel. God has spelt it out very plainly. These are spoken of again and again in the Book of Revelation, in fact, the whole Book is written for their instruction. What they failed to understand in the Scriptures that Christ used (the Old Testament) has been magnified in the Book of Revelation. And there are some things that need to be overcome. The first of these is to forget about trying to save your life. If you do, then you will lose it – forever! God has made this clear: Rev 20:4 "I saw thrones on which were seated those who had been given authority to judge. And I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded because of their Testimony [of] Jesus and because of the Word of God. They had not worshiped the beast or his image, and had not received his mark on their foreheads or their hands. They came to life and reigned with Christ for a thousand years."

The problem is, this beast is going to be given enormous power to do almost anything he pleases. Satan plans to give him his power, throne and great authority (Rev 13:2). V6 "He opened his mouth to blaspheme God and His dwelling-place and those who live in heaven. He was given power to make war with the saints and to conquer them. And he was given authority over every tribe, people, language and nation. All inhabitants of the earth will worship the beast – all whose names have not been written from the creation of the world in the Book of Life belonging to the Lamb that was slain (margin rendering used). He who has an ear, let him hear. If anyone is to go into captivity, into captivity he will go. If anyone is to be killed with the sword, with the sword he will be killed. This calls for patient endurance and faithfulness on the part of the saints." It should come as no surprise that this beast, who takes on all the characteristics of Satan the devil, blasphemes God and His dwelling-place. This is a short time after Satan wages war on God and the Glory – the dwelling-place of God, and is decisively beaten and hurled to the earth along with all his angels (Rev 12:7). This is the final straw, and Christ takes up the power and authority of the Kingdom of God (V10). This is when Satan’s entry into heaven is forbidden forever and he’s marooned on earth. V12 "Therefore rejoice, you heavens and you that dwell in them! But woe to the earth and the sea, because the devil has gone down to you! He is filled with fury, because he knows his time is short." The inhabitants of the earth will then witness the horrific carnage of Satan’s fury. But his first priority will be to destroy the ‘woman’ who gave birth to the man child. This refers to the House of David from which Christ was born. The House of David is described in Zech 12:10-14 "And I will pour out on the HOUSE OF DAVID and the inhabitants of Jerusalem a Spirit of grace and supplication. They will look to me, the One they have pierced, and they will mourn for Him as one grieves for a firstborn son. On that day the weeping in Jerusalem will be great, like the weeping of Hadad Rimmon in the plain of Megiddo. The land will mourn, each clan by itself, with their wives by themselves: the clan of the HOUSE OF DAVID and their wives, the clan of the House of Nathan and their wives, the clan of the HOUSE OF LEVI and their wives, the clan of Shimei and their wives, and all the rest of the clans and their wives." The House of David was established when Samuel the Levite prophet anointed David king over Israel. Ever since, the House of David and the House of Levi have shared a common link. When David’s grandson Rehoboam became a tyrant, ten Tribes split into a separate nation, but the House of Levi remained with Judah and continued their duties in the Holy City for centuries.

When the Kingdom of God has been established, and all of Judah has been called to duty, the authority and power of the House of Levi must decline while that of the House of David increases. This was the way it was in the days of John the Baptist, and this is the way it will be in the Millennium. The throne of David will be established, but the crown will be set aside until the One comes to whom it rightfully belongs. God didn’t call an ambitious power-broker to lead the Levites to do what they must do, but instead he called a dutiful warrior and a war strategist who knows the meaning of righteousness and justice. In short, the man God called is imbued with the qualities of God’s Mighty Warrior Son Jesus through the Spirit of Christ. This is the Spirit that enables the Testimony of Jesus to be understood, which is the Spirit of Prophecy (Rev 19:10). And if you don’t have the Spirit of Christ then you don’t belong to Him (Rom 8:9). This is about to become very evident. And in V14 "Because those who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God." Those who are not led by the Spirit of God are not sons of God – including Satan – regardless of their former status. Those who turn away and quench the Holy Spirit can only look forward to the raging fire prepared for the devil and his angels.

You will notice as you read through Revelation chapter 12 that the ‘woman’ is taken out of Satan’s reach (V14). Satan has no power over them and they are transported away for a period of 3½ years. It’s during this period that all hell breaks loose for the whole House of Jacob.

China is presently playing the waiting game. The rulers of the heavenly realms who control this great mass of people know that Satan’s first choice for conquest are the Moslems, and these have heavily infiltrated their borders to the west. At a later time, when the dust settles in global upheavals, they plan to challenge the beast himself (Dan 11:44).

Reverting again to Revelation chapter 12, we find that after 3½ years, Satan will direct his power against what he considers to be the worst trouble-makers on the planet. He’ll sent a flood (of people) against the people of God in the desert place – the stronghold of God. This is the account: V14 "The woman was given the two wings of a great eagle, so that she might fly to the place prepared for her in the desert, where she would be taken care of for a time, times and half a time, out of the serpent’s reach. Then from his mouth the serpent spewed water like a river, to overtake the woman and sweep her away like a torrent. But the earth helped the woman by opening its mouth and swallowing the river that the dragon spewed out of his mouth." The significance of this is that in the Book of Jude, the writer mentions a similar incident that occurred back in the days of Moses. In this case it was the Levite Korah that inspired the rebellion (Jude 1:11), and he did it with his eyes wide open. Korah was one of those wannabe’s who want to lord it over all others, so God planned a special death for him! Num 16:29 "If these men die a natural death and experience only what usually happens to men, then the LORD has not sent me. But if the LORD brings something totally new, and the earth opens its mouth and swallows them, with everything that belongs to them, and they go down alive into the grave (pit), then you will know that these men have treated the LORD with contempt." And this is exactly what happened: V31 "As soon as he finished saying this, the ground under them split apart and the earth opened its mouth and swallowed them, with their households and all Korah’s men and all their possessions." You can draw your own conclusions over why Jude mentioned Korah and his rebellion at such a crucial time as Jude was then describing. But the message is very clear that God will do something almost unheard of – the earth will open and swallow Satan’s hordes when they try to assault God’s stronghold. So Satan can know in advance that his plot will fail, but this won’t stop his mad rampage anyway.

It’s after all this, that Satan will direct his fury against the offspring of the woman. Rev 12:17 "Then the dragon was outraged at the woman and went to make war with the rest of her offspring – those who obey God’s Commandments and hold to the Testimony of Jesus."

You may not be aware that there are two major persecutions of the saints. Satan knows they will be fair game and his war against them will succeed and he will defeat them. It’s the woman herself that is the big worry for him. This woman will have unusual powers and devastating weaponry, and will be airborne and able to strike at will. Satan’s forces will see nothing until they are hit. This woman won’t abide by his teachings of ‘political correctness’ and will have no regard for ‘collateral damage’. This woman will strike down man, woman, and child and all their animals, dwellings, cities and strongholds. The woman is not deceived by Satan, and doesn’t listen to his lying, siren song (Rev 18:22). Satan can play his violin and harp as much as he wants to, but his target audience will not be the woman, even though the whole world seems to be listening.

Iraq was formerly the nation of Babylon. This was the land where Nebuchadnezzar and his offspring ruled. The capital of this nation of Babylon was the city of Babylon. Nebuchadnezzar built it for his own glory. And just as God predicted, Iraq/Babylon would become prominent in the last days. The present ruler, Saddam Hussein, has rebuilt the ancient city of Babylon, in preparation for it becoming the capital of the earth, and the world trade center. From this city, all trade will be conducted, and no trade will be permitted without their approval. At the time when the Apostle John received the Book of Revelation, he described a cryptic comment he heard: Rev 6:6 "Then I heard a voice among the four living creatures, saying, "A quart of wheat for a day’s wages, and three quarts of barley for a day’s wages, and do not damage the oil or the wine!" This not only describes slave conditions, but also signals a warning not to damage the oil or the wine. We certainly know what is meant by the wine – because we are plainly told. This is the teaching that emanated from Babylon. At the time of the demise of this great city of Babylon, all the nations will have drunk the maddening wine of her adulteries: Rev 18:2 "With a loud voice he shouted, "Fallen! Fallen is Babylon the Great! She has become a home for demons and a haunt for every evil spirit, a haunt for every unclean and detestable bird. For all the nations have drunk the maddening wine of her adulteries. The kings of the earth committed adultery with her, and the merchants of the earth grew rich from her excessive luxuries."

Anciently, when Ephraim rebelled against God’s City of Jerusalem, they drew away ten Tribes of Israel, and became known as the northern ten Tribes in history. Today, Ephraim again rules over ten Tribes, just as his father Joseph ruled over all his brothers. The U.S. (Ephraim) has become a mighty nation because the scattered remnant of the European nations of Israel, have migrated there – from every Tribe – and have bonded together to become one nation. Today, this whole nation is equally divided into two factions: the Republicans and the Democrats. This is almost unique on this earth for a nation to have only two political parties. It’s not surprising then, that Christ refers to ten virgins; five of whom are wise and five foolish. And of course, when God refers to virgins, He is referring to the Tribes of Israel! God not only names the 12 Tribes of Israel (Rev 7:4-8), but also says of them: Rev 14:4 "These are those who did not defile themselves with women, for they kept themselves pure." Those who do defile themselves with women are those who listen to the Great Harlot and her harlot daughters, who are now sweeping across the world.

God is intensely interested in the thinking patterns of the only people He ever chose of all the families of the earth (Amos 3:1-2). And while some Christians may believe that politics has nothing to do with religion, the fact is, it has everything to do with it. Religion will be the central platform of the coming Kingdom of God. Those who inherit the Kingdom of God will serve the Almighty God just as the High Priest, the Mighty Christ, does today. In that day, there will be Kings and Priests of the Almighty God, and they will serve Him according to God’s rules.

It’s hard to imagine how Almighty God could have provided more evidence of His intentions in the light of the mass of evidence in the world today. Everyday, prophecy is being fulfilled with alarming intensity. Alarming because those facing the greatest danger are oblivious to it all. The point is that the saints are going to be defeated, and either killed or taken into captivity. Daniel made this very clear! But he also makes it clear that the saints will eventually receive the Kingdom and possess it forever, but this will be after the four beasts arise: Dan 7:17 "The four great beasts are four kingdoms that will rise from earth. But the saints of the Most High will receive the Kingdom and possess it forever – yes, for ever and ever." V21 "As I watched, this horn was waging war against the saints and defeating them, until the Ancient of Days came and pronounced judgment in the favour of the saints of the Most High, and the time came when they possessed the Kingdom." And contrary to what you have been taught, this is not speaking of those ‘nasty Laodiceans, etc’, which so many like to teach – it’s speaking of the saints of the Most High – who will later, when the time comes, possess the Kingdom. And just for emphasis, Daniel wrote further of one of these beasts in this manner: V25 "He will speak against the Most High and oppress the saints and try to change set times and laws. The saints will be handed over to him, for a time, times and half a time (one year, two years, and half a year). But the court will sit, and his power will be taken away and completely destroyed forever. Then the sovereignty, power and greatness of the kingdoms under the whole heaven will be handed over to the saints, the people of the Most High. His Kingdom will be an everlasting Kingdom, and all rulers will worship Him and obey Him."

God intends to rescue the saints. To do this, He plans to develop a mighty force that will accomplish this. This will herald the start of God’s Kingdom as a tiny mustard seed that will grow to fill the whole earth. Remember how Christ said that if you had the faith of a tiny mustard seed you could move mountains? (Matt 17:20). Well, mountains will be moved by this ‘tiny mustard seed’. So if you have been sitting around trying to move mountains with your ‘great faith’, then give up for the present, you are on the wrong track. Christ was speaking of something entirely different. But let me make the point that if your faith is destructive to sound reasoning, as the loonie-left side of politics seems to believe habitually, then you can’t please God. Most of the lunacy we are presently witnessing only emerged in the last few decades. I guess you would have to agree that George Orwell’s Animal Farm is not too wide of the mark.

The first martyr after the Christian era began was Stephen. God left us this perfect example of what martyrdom is. When Stephen was approached by an unruly mob, he didn’t plead for his life. Instead he cut loose on them, and grossly insulted them all. He spared nothing as he accused them of evil. He went to his death believing that God would raise him from the dead. He was well-aware that these evil creatures confronting him were the very ones that had killed righteous Abel nearly 4,000 years before, because Jesus plainly said so: Matt 23:33 "You snakes! You brood of vipers! How will you escape being condemned to hell? Therefore I am sending you wise men and teachers. Some of them you will kill and crucify; others you will flog in your synagogues and pursue from town to town. And so upon you will come all the righteous blood that has been shed on earth, from the blood of righteous Abel to the blood of Zechariah son of Barakiah, whom you murdered between the Temple and the Altar. I tell you the truth, all this will come upon this generation." Of course, this generation is referring to the spirit world who were around in the time of Abel, and for whom a raging fire is to be prepared – the hell referred to by Christ. It was demon-possessed Cain who actually struck the blow against righteous Abel, but it was the beast within him that actually provoked the murder. It’s the thinking pattern of people that enables and invites the snakes and vipers to manipulate them. And many people are completely unaware that their thought processes are being hijacked by evil insurgents of the spirit world. They usually see logic in the madness of their thinking.

As the ruler of the earth, Satan has very great power – but only over his own people. He has very great authority – but only over his own people. He’s expressly forbidden to curse God’s people but then Satan doesn’t always follow the rules. This just happens to be the message we get from the account of Balaam, the one who was approached to curse God’s people Israel – and the one who is also mentioned in Rev 2:14 "Nevertheless, I have a few things against you. You have people there who hold to the teachings of Balaam, who taught Balak to entice the Israelites to sin by eating food sacrificed to idols and committing sexual immorality." Balaam plainly told Balak that he had no power to curse God’s people, but offered the solution of infiltrating lewd and promiscuous women into the Israelite community, and to persuade them to worship idols. In the mysterious world of idol worship, people can lose their minds, and the incentive was to bed these harlots. Some men will do anything for sex, and Satan uses it as a powerful weapon.

And what an indictment for the Churches that they should be becoming acclimatized to sacrificing to idols or images. Some of the people there are being conditioned to entice the Israelites to sin by engaging in idolatry – the worshipping of an image. And isn’t this the specific thing that will determine life from death? Hasn’t God said this: Rev 14:9 "A third angel followed them and said in a loud voice: "If anyone worships the beast and his image and receives his mark on the forehead or the hand, he, too, will drink of the wine of God’s fury which has been poured full strength into the cup of His wrath. He will be tormented with burning sulphur in the presence of the holy angels and of the Lamb. And the smoke of their torment rises for ever and ever. There is no rest day or night for those who worship the beast or his image, or for anyone who receives the mark of his name. This calls for patient endurance on the part of the saints who obey God’s Commandments and remain faithful to Jesus."

As I’ve said many times before, Jesus Christ delivered this message to John on the Isle of Patmos, and gave him clear instructions to pass it on to the seven churches (Rev 1:11, 22:16) – the very Churches that then existed in Asia Minor (Turkey today), and it was a message for a period nearly 2,000 years into the future. The revelation contained a message for each of the Churches giving them instructions and advising them of their deficiencies. He told them all to hold fast until He comes (the message was to all the Churches (plural), all seven of them. As the detail of the prophecies throughout the rest of the Book of Revelation is studied, it becomes obvious why they needed to hold fast. It speaks of things that would try the patience of the saints (those who keep the Commandments of God and have the faith of Jesus).

So the whole Book of Revelation is about prophecy – about a future time. All the Apostles prophesied of future events, and what to expect. Peter spoke of the sure Word of prophecy and warned to pay attention to it (2Pet 1:19-21). These same prophets to whom Peter referred, also give warnings of a future time. Take note of what Isaiah said: Isa 8:20 "To the Law and the Testimony, if they do not speak according to this Word, they have no light of dawn (the same term used by Peter). "Distressed and hungry, they will roam through the land; when they are famished, they will become enraged and, looking upward, will curse their king and their God. They will look towards the earth and see only distress and gloom, and they will be thrust into utter darkness." If you are unsure that this refers to the time of the dawning of the Sun of Righteousness (Mal 4:2-3) and the Bright Morning Star (Rev 22:16), then Isaiah gives some further information immediately before this: V12 "The LORD Almighty is the One you are to regard as holy, He is the One you are to fear, He is the One you are to dread, and He will be a sanctuary; but for both Houses of Israel He will be a stone that causes them to stumble and a Rock that makes them fall. And for the people of Jerusalem He will be a trap and a snare. Many of them will stumble; they will fall and be broken, they will be snared and captured." Then the Rock begins to speak of the Law and the Testimony: V16 "Bind up the Testimony and seal up the Law among my disciples. I will wait for the LORD, who is hiding His face from the House of Jacob. I will put my trust in Him. Here am I, and the children the LORD has given me. We are signs and symbols in Israel from the LORD Almighty, who dwells in Mount Zion."

It should be clear to all that the vast majority of Christianity don’t keep God’s Laws, and neither do they have the Testimony of Jesus. We all now know that the Testimony of Jesus is the Spirit of Prophecy, don’t we? (Rev 19:10). And God’s prophecy is vastly different from that of mainstream Christianity! Even the Churches of God don’t have the Spirit of Prophecy! It will take the Power of God – His Holy Spirit – the promised Counsellor – to seal Christ’s disciples with the Law and the Testimony of Jesus. And at the appropriate time this will happen – to the seven thousand whom God will seal.