No. 65 - SEASONS OF THE CHURCH, PART V: A CRY GOES OUT By: John J. Blanchard Saturday, April 09, 2005 Today is the day we are going to discuss the last of the five sermons “Seasons of the Church.” This is Seasons of the Church, Part V entitled “A Cry Goes Out”. The end time is a time like no other in the history of the Church, indeed the history of the world. What we have come to learn in the last few years and what we have studied in particular in this series of sermons starting with “Powers of Observation” is really nothing short of astounding! It has been a gift from God, for we can now discern true signs and wonders. We have learned how truth is fallen in the streets temporarily. We have learned what the abomination of desolation in the holy place is. We have identified what has happened to the body of Christ and how it has been divided and torn here in these last days. We now know what it means also to be in the night without a light, without the moon shining, groping around in the dark looking for the truth and the light of God. We have learned that it is our behavior (our speech as a Church speaking for Jesus Christ) that has harmed His name in the last days. We have been corrected by Jesus Christ and God the Father for quite some time now. That correction has gone on for more years really than it had to. It is time to end the correction by ending our behavior and learning what to do, for a new day will soon dawn. We all want to be basking in the light of the sun when Jesus Christ returns. PROPHETIC PRAYERS We need to pray for understanding, and we need to ask God to intervene in our lives. I would like to start by turning to some of the prayers that are prophetic prayers in the Bible. They are prayers prophesying the situation we are in today, as well as prayers in the lives of other people who have been part of the body of Christ even though they were prophets. That means during the Old Testament, of course. Let us turn back to Psalms chapter 30. We will read this entire Psalm. It is not a very long one. This is a prayer of David. Psalm 30, verse 1: “I will extol You, O Lord, for You have lifted me up, and have not let my foes rejoice over me. O Lord my God, I cried out to You, and You healed me. O Lord, You brought my soul up from the grave; You have kept me alive, that I should not go down to the pit. Sing praise to the Lord, you saints of His, and give thanks at the remembrance of His holy name.” Does that ever pertain to what we have learned in the last few sermons! Verse 5: “For His anger is but for a moment, His favor is for life; weeping may endure for a night, but joy comes in the morning.” We have learned that the night is almost over, brethren, and the morning is about to dawn. Continue reading Psalm 30:6-12. David says You have ended my mourning. You have taken my sackcloth off as I have understood and sought you. You rewarded me with truth and knowledge. I am now rejoicing and dancing. A garment of sackcloth is a mourning garment. In Old Testament times they would wear that for funerals to show that they were mourning and very sad. It has deep significance for us today because God is looking for those who sigh and cry for the Church and who are mourning the Church’s fall. He looks for those who realize if they do not change, they are staring death in the face, too! That would be more than physical death if we are not careful. Now let’s turn to Job chapter 13. This is a prayer that Job prayed when he was very despondent and very down and depressed. We are breaking into his thoughts here. You could read all of Job 13 on your own, but let’s start in verse 20. “‘Only two things do not do to me, then I will not hide myself from You…’” Job is talking to God and he says please do not do two things to me. Do not “‘…withdraw Your hand far from me, and let not the dread of You make me afraid.’” Continue reading Job 13:22-28. Job is very despondent, and he is begging God not to remove Himself from him and not to overcorrect him. He is just a physical being with sins. He said use Your correction to show me my sins so I can fix them, but do not destroy me. I am just a physical man. This is something the Church should be praying today. We can continue with this prayer of Job in chapter 14. Read Job 14:1-4. Of course, no one but God, we understand. Job understood this, too, as we will see as we go on. We are all unclean things, and the Church has become extremely unclean. We need to be willing to ask God to look at our sins and look at our transgressions and clean them up before He has to utterly destroy us. Continue reading Job 14:5-9. Job says you can cut a tree down and at least it has hope, because at the scent of waters the roots may revive. That tree can come back to life. Read verses 10-14. Job answers his own question. He says a man does dry up, die and wither away. He is asleep waiting to be resurrected. He knew that there was a change coming for him, as we should know that everyone who dies in the faith with the Holy Spirit awaits a change at the resurrection! It is a wonderful truth to understand. We have things to do while we are yet alive to praise God and to learn and grow in the character we need so we can perform service for God in this life. Even more so, in the life to come after the resurrection. Continue reading in Job 14:15-19. He was discouraged yet somehow hopeful. He was not fully understanding, just like the Church today does not fully understand that we are Christ’s mountains. We are the stones He is using to build the kingdom of God. He must wash away the rough edges. He uses the sea and all of its violence (the world and Satan’s system sometimes) to wear away the rock. It is to show us our transgressions and our sins so that we can repent and be cleaned up and become a clean thing. THE DRY TREE BEGINS TO BUD It takes a rough treatment of the Church sometimes (of God’s people) to wake them up to their sins to be willing to change. This is the story of Job really as we would see if we were to read the entire book. Obviously we do not have time for that right now, but we can find that God is powerful enough to make an unclean thing clean. He does have the power to give life back to a dead tree. It must scent the water and put forth new roots to that water. It must draw that water into the dry tree and then new leaves can bud. New branches can then grow. There is tremendous significance to that for us in this time. Turn to Matthew 24, please. In Matthew 24:32 where it is speaking of our season of the Church, Christ said: “‘Now learn this parable from the fig tree: When its branch has already become tender and puts forth leaves, you know that summer is near.’” When it puts forth buds, summer is near. Verse 33: “‘So you also, when you see all these things, know that it is near at the doors! Assuredly, I say to you, this generation will by no means pass away till all these things take place. Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will by no means pass away.’” We know when we see the things we have been talking about in the last few weeks that it is near at the doors. It is at the doors! The kingdom of God is nearly here because the tree is once again starting to bud! The tree has been drying up, withering and dying for quite some time. Now God is going to revive that tree, but we must allow the water to come into our roots. We must seek out the water. The question is will we do it? Will we allow God to help us or will we remain foolish? The choice that lies before us is wisdom or foolishness. We need to make a choice. Will we be wise or foolish? The sermon that we used as a prelude to the Seasons of the Church series was called “Powers of Observation”. In that sermon we extensively read Matthew 24 with clear vision. We want to go back there today and discuss more of Matthew 24 a little bit and review. Then we want to go on to more understanding, so that we can really be useful in God’s service for what time we have left in this dark period awaiting the dawn. Let’s do a quick review of Matthew 24. How Christ got into this subject with the apostles was at their request. They asked Him a question about the end of the age. Matthew 24, verse 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?’” WHAT THE SIGNS ARE NOT In the rest of this chapter Christ goes on and into the next chapter as well answering their question: what are the signs of the end of the age and Christ’s return? But at the very outset Jesus starts with admonishing them of what the signs are not. Continue reading Matthew 24:4-8. We looked into the beginnings of sorrows, and we realized it is the beginning of birth pangs. We learned the earth has been suffering this for quite some time. The Old Testament Church suffered birth pangs until the birth of Christ. The New Testament Church has been suffering birth pangs and will until the kingdom comes and Jesus Christ has returned. These wars, rumors of wars and earthquakes have gone on for a long time, nearly 6,000 years. They are not the signs of Christ’s return. Jesus clearly said do not let anyone deceive you in My name saying that these are the signs of My return. ONE PHYSICAL SIGN Drop down to verse 14. He gives one specific physical sign. Verse 14: “‘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 is the one true physical sign and wonder we will be able to see. We have lived to see it! We have observed the gospel of the kingdom going to the whole world as a witness. We have discussed that and how important it is for all mankind that this was done. Then come the signs that Jesus Christ said you must have spiritual vision to see, for the kingdom of God does not come by ocular evidence. Do you remember we said that and learned that? It does not come, according to Luke, by ocular evidence. That was the Gospel of Luke that told us that. SPIRITUAL ABOMINATION OF DESOLATION In verse 15 we see the start of spiritual signs. “‘Therefore when you see the “abomination of desolation,” spoken of by Daniel the prophet, standing in the holy place’ (whoever reads, let him understand)…” We have discussed what the holy place is. It is the body of Christ, the temple of Jesus Christ. The abomination of desolation takes place within that temple (within the Church of God) and the holy city of God, spiritual Jerusalem. We learned that and clearly established that already. We are just quickly reviewing here. Drop down to verse 21 of Matthew 24. “‘For then there will be great tribulation, 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.’” We find that the tribulation which is the abomination of desolation that has taken place on the earth has been a very harsh and a very difficult time for the Church. It has been a very difficult period. It has devoured God’s flesh. There would be no flesh saved alive of God’s Church (His body) unless that time is cut short! That is how devastating this abomination of desolation has been on the Church. FALSE SIGNS AND WONDERS Continue in Matthew 24:23. “‘Then if anyone says to you, “Look, here is the Christ!” or “There!” do not believe it. For false christs and false prophets will rise and show great signs and wonders to deceive, if possible, even the elect.’” We looked into that and saw that those signs and wonders are preaching that wars, rumors of wars, famines, earthquakes and pestilences are the sign of Christ’s return. Those are the false omens and false way markers, and they take our attention from the true spiritual signs that are very important for us to observe. The true signs allow us to understand where we are in time and what we need to do to get ready for Christ’s return. Christ said this all up to this point in Matthew 24. Drop down to verse 28: “‘For wherever the carcass is, there the eagles will be gathered together.’” The carcass is the body of Christ. It is His body, and it is being torn apart right now by birds. We understand those birds are Satan’s winged creatures (demons), and they are devouring the Church. They are like a form of a locust or a wild bird that is just pulling apart the body of Christ. We understand that where they are gathered right now is where the body is! The main war is a spiritual war over the minds, hearts and soul of the body of Christ! I do not like to say these things, brethren. I find them very difficult to talk about. This whole series has been very difficult, but it is something that must be said in order to help. We have to look at ourselves the way we really are if we are ever going to change. Like Job said, show me my sins and then let me work on them. Don’t destroy me! That is what we need to do. We need to use our correction that we have been going through so that we can change. A CRY GOES OUT A cry is now going out that the darkness is almost over. Jesus Christ is at the gates of the city. When He comes, it will be the dawning of a new age! We need the scriptures to explain this to us, and we need to understand with open ears and a positive mind set so that we can see with spiritual vision the things that God is trying to tell us. Let’s continue in Matthew 24:29. “‘Immediately after the tribulation of those days the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light; the stars will fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens will be shaken. Then the sign of the Son of Man will appear in heaven…’” God says before you see My Son return, the light is going to go out. The sun will be dark. The moon will have no light to reflect because Jesus Christ will have temporarily left the Church! “‘The powers of the heavens will be shaken.’” You cannot shake God the Father’s power. It is unshakeable and unmovable. Where Christ’s throne is today at the right hand of the Father, nothing shakes that power! What is shaken is Satan’s power in the heavens (the principalities above us). Our enemies (the wicked spirits in heavenly places) are what is shaken. Right along with it, the Church is being shaken because it has been left by Jesus Christ temporarily so that we can be chastised and thrashed by Satan, hoping that some of us will turn white. We will be refined because we fell for a little while. That is what Jesus Christ is doing. It is because He loves His brothers and sisters. The Father loves every son that He has and is willing to correct them for their own benefit. So it is Satan’s powers that are about ready to fall and, indeed, are falling right now. I would like to once again read verses 32-35 of Matthew 24. “‘Now learn this parable from the fig tree: When its branch has already become tender and puts forth leaves, you know that summer is near. So you also, when you see all these things, know that it is near at the doors! Assuredly, I say to you, this generation will by no means pass away till all these things take place. Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will by no means pass away.’” The generation that witnessed the gospel being preached, the abomination of desolation taking place, and this tribulation on the Church taking place is the generation that shall not all perish before Christ’s return! If Christ had not cut this time short for the elect’s sake, none of us would have made it physically or spiritually if we were not ready when we died. This is a very devastating and terrible time on the Church. Indeed, many people have died and gone to sleep since the Church has suffered the abomination of desolation. Some of them were very faithful. Some of them unfortunately had left the truth before their death. It is up to God. God will find a way, if there is any way, to preserve someone. He tells us directly in II Thessalonians 2 that he allowed a deception to come on the Church. I do believe if we fell asleep not having rejected knowingly, God will find a way, as He says in I Corinthians 3:15-16. He will save us out of our sin, but we would lose our reward. There are some people, brethren, who are purposely not letting this in. They are people who do not want to hear the truth and will not change. Hopefully they are very few in number. It is a serious situation. Like I say, I do not like making dire warnings, but we have to know where we are in the seasons of the Church. The tree of the Church is beginning to bud. We are in the summer. We are a bit out of season, but our season is not over. God has extended it for a little while through a delay. God accounted for this in His word, and He tells us He delays for a little while. Then He will come. But use that delay and the dark months that we are in during that delay to receive this correction and to change while we still have time. We still have time. WARNING TO THE CHURCH, NOT THE WORLD I would like to continue reading in Matthew 24:36. “‘But of that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, but My Father only. But as the days of Noah were, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be. For as in the days before the flood, they were eating and drinking marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noah entered the ark, and did not know until the flood came and took them all away, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be.’” Christ is talking to His Church. The apostles were asking for signs for the Church. In error, we point to the world and say the world is going the way of this Sodom and Gomorrah as you will see here, and they are turning away like in Noah’s generation. But this is a warning to the Church. We marry and are given in marriage. We are buying homes and fixing things up and buying cars. We are going about life as if nothing has happened to the Church. Many of us are not even realizing the condition we are in. God says if you persist in that, I can take you totally and utterly by surprise. Continue on and you will see that this is talking about the Church. Read Matthew 24:40-44. Jesus Christ is coming as a thief in the night, but He is not a thief. The Church is rightfully His. His house has been broken into, and individually the Church members have been broken into by another power. We have discussed that. Satan sits in the temple of God showing himself that he is God. He has broken into God’s house on an individual level and on the entire level of the body of Christ, the Church. He has torn it to shreds. During that period a darkness will settle over the Church, and during that darkness, Jesus Christ will return at an hour we do not expect. But on all physical levels, life will be going on the same! People will be buying, selling, going to weddings, having a good time and watching television and movie programs they should not be watching. They will be thinking everything is fine. We are waiting for physical signs to happen. We do not have to get ready as the bride of Christ right now. We are waiting for the abomination of desolation to take place, physical wars to take place, nuclear bombs to drop and stars to slam into the earth. I do not have to worry about anything until I see those things. Brethren, that is exactly what is going to get us shocked and surprised when Christ returns! That attitude is one that puts us in grave danger. Continue in Matthew 24:45. “‘Who then is a faithful and wise servant, whom his master made ruler over his household, to give them food in due season?’” We read in Ephesians 2 that the household of God is the Church, and the Church has masters to take care of it. Jesus Christ appointed them as shepherds to pasture the flock, take care of them and feed the flock in due season. These words mean so much more now. Continue reading Matthew 24:46-51. Brethren, have we not seen in the last 15 to 20 years servants of God (shepherds) beating up on one another and tearing each other’s reputations apart? They have been suing one another and having individual church groups sue one another. Have we not witnessed the body of Christ being torn apart by shepherds and servants (beaten by masters) beating one another and beating their fellow servants the sheep? If you went back to Ezekiel 34 as I asked you in the last sermon to read, have we not even seen sheep beating up other sheep? We have seen lambs pushing away the little lambs from the feed table and polluting the food. It has been a sad travesty in God’s Church. It has been a tragedy, but it does not have to go on. We will see as we go through this sermon that there is hope. THE SLEEPING CHURCH Let us continue in Matthew 25 with the wise and foolish virgins. Read Matthew 25:1-13. We do not know the day or the hour, brethren, but we know the season. The season is here, for the Church has fallen asleep. It is spiritually slumbering, and there is no time any longer to waste! We must get up from this slumber. We talked about that slumber and the battle over the Church in Isaiah 28 and 29 in the last sermon, in which the Church is speaking out of the dust. It is speaking false signs and wonders. It is scaring the brethren. It is scaring off the sheep. It is scattering the sheep in many directions. It is causing a blindness to settle over the Church. The Church is currently in a temporary state without wisdom because if you do not have the mind of Christ guiding the Church, you lose your wisdom. You lose your mind, and you are given over to another mind! This is what has happened as a chastisement for the Church because Jesus Christ cannot move the candlestick ahead any longer. There cannot be any more delay than we already have right now. We have been given a temporary reprieve, and we must use it wisely. The Church, brethren, cannot be both wise and foolish at the same time for very long. There is only so long God will tolerate such a situation. If you were to look up the word foolish you would find it is moros, like moron. It is moros in the Greek which means dull and stupid. It actually means heedless, without a mind. It means blockheaded and absurd. If you were to go to the word just ahead of that in your Strong’s Concordance, you would find morologia. You would see that is a compound of moros and lego, and means silly talk or buffoonery. God says without My mind you have become dull. You have become blockheaded, and you are saying silly things. You are saying silly things almost like a buffoon. The body of Christ is foolish. Whereas wise means thoughtful and sagacious, developing good character. Sagacious means wise, discernment, good judgment. This is what we need from the mind of Christ in order to develop holy righteous character. We need that wisdom. A CONTRADICTION You have a dichotomy in the Church right now. It is sort of a schizophrenia in a way where the Church is saying foolish things while trying to be good. It does not go together. We cannot preach the blood of Christ and His mercy and compassion, and death and compassion for everyone else including our brothers and sisters in different segments of the body of Christ. It should not be this way, but it is. We cannot preach the blood of Christ and His mercy love and compassion, and death and destruction at the same time. We cannot preach God’s signs and wonders and false signs and wonders at the same time. We cannot preach unity in the body of Christ while tearing it apart with division. We cannot preach to honor God while at the same time slandering His name. This cannot coexist, brethren. It cannot. This is craziness. I will show you some scriptural backup for this. We are not using opinion here; we are following the scriptures of God. Turn, if you would, back to Matthew 7:15. “‘Beware of false prophets…’” (you can translate that false teachers) “‘…who come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ravenous wolves. You will know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes from thorn bushes or figs from thistles? Even so, every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit. A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a bad tree bear good fruit. Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. Therefore by their fruits you will know them.’” A tree is known by what it produces. We understand now that a tree represents a teacher. A false prophet is bearing bad fruit. Division in the Church, lawsuits, slandering on the Internet and sermons that condemn brothers and sisters in the world to death, while at the same time proclaiming a self-righteous attitude and a place of safety for whatever particular group is involved is a dichotomy of the mind of Jesus Christ. This shows bad fruit. It is harming the brethren! It is harming the people that Jesus Christ entrusted to masters, as shepherds, to take care of and feed the flock. If you would now, turn to James 3. Read James 3:1-8. The Church had a beautiful forest at one time. As we have said, by words that divide and destroy and false doctrines, that forest has been burned down to a very small number! It is extremely sad. Continuing in verse 9: “With it…” (our tongue) “…we bless our God and Father, and with it we curse men, who have been made in the similitude of God. Out of the same mouth proceed blessing and cursing. My brethren, these things ought not to be so. Does a spring send forth fresh water and bitter from the same opening?” A minister, a shepherd or anyone who sets himself up as a teacher sets himself up as a spring of water (a spring of life, Jesus Christ). He takes the water from Jesus Christ and shares it with others. Can we bring forth good, clear, drinkable water and at the same time bitter horrible water? No, a spring cannot do that. It must have one or the other. Continuing in James 3:12. “Can a fig tree, my brethren, bear olives, or a grapevine bear figs? Thus no spring yields both salt water and fresh.” This is the true word of God. We have to understand that we must get rid of the foolish talk and the things that divide and hurt the body of Christ. We must stop beating one another and start to love one another the way we should. We need to become wise in how we use our tongue. We need to exhort God’s people the way we should. Let us drop down to verse 13. “Who is wise and understanding among you? Let him show by good conduct that his works are done in the meekness of wisdom. But if you have bitter envy and self-seeking in your hearts, do not boast and lie against the truth. This wisdom does not descend from above, but is earthly, sensual, demonic.” It is very clear here what has happened to the Church and where it comes from. Continue in James 3:16. “For where envy and self-seeking exist, confusion and every evil thing are there. But the wisdom that is from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, willing to yield, full of mercy and good fruits, without partiality and without hypocrisy. Now the fruit of righteousness is sown in peace by those who make peace.” We should all seek to be peacemakers at this time within the body of Christ. BECOME A BEACON There is one thing left to do while it is still dark, and I think you have already got the hint. While we still have time to get our lamps burning brightly, we better do it. While we still hold a candle for God, let’s trim that wick and get it burning brightly in our own lives and throughout the body of Christ (the Church). Trim our wicks while we can still get oil and while we can still press the oil out of the trees, as we spoken of earlier in the previous sermons. Then we can burn brightly for God as a witness like a city on a hill. How are we going to do this? We are going to sort out truth from error, brethren. Sort out fact from fiction. Grow in faith. Grow in love. Grow in the knowledge of God and use it. Remember how we read I Corinthians 13, the Love Chapter. We must become like that. Let’s go back to I Corinthians chapter 13. This is how we will be fruitful for God. Read I Corinthians 13:1-7. Verse 8: “Love never fails. But whether there are prophecies, they will fail…” (that means cut short) “…whether there are tongues, they will cease; whether there is knowledge, it will vanish away.” DARKNESS AND CORRECTION Continue reading I Corinthians 13:9-13. What a tragedy it would be if this dark month that we have entered (this time of darkness and correction), was not utilized by us the way it should be. It would truly be a waste. Correction of this magnitude that does not succeed would make it a waste. I guarantee you, in someone’s life in the Church it will not be a waste. It is up to us to decide if we want to be among those who use our time wisely. For a little bit of a discussion of this month and what has happened to the Church, let us turn to the Book of Hosea. Hosea chapter 5, verse 4: “‘They do not direct their deeds toward turning to their God, for the spirit of harlotry is in their midst, and they do not know the Lord. The pride of Israel testifies to his face; therefore Israel and Ephraim stumble in their iniquity; Judah also stumbles with them.’” This, of course, happened in the Old Testament, but this is a prophecy for our time today. Continuing on we will see. Hosea 5, verse 6: “‘With their flocks and herds they shall go to seek the Lord, but they will not find Him; He has withdrawn Himself from them. They have dealt treacherously with the Lord, for they have begotten pagan children. Now a New Moon shall devour them and their heritage.’” That means a new dark month that devours the people of God. That is the month we are in, brethren. We are in a dark month where the sun has withdrawn itself, and the moon no longer has light to reflect. But this month will do its job. God will make sure. Continuing in verse 8: “‘Blow the ram’s horn in Gibeah, the trumpet in Ramah! Cry aloud at Beth Aven, “Look behind you, O Benjamin!” Ephraim shall be desolate in the day of rebuke; among the tribes of Israel I make known what is sure. The princes of Judah are like those who remove a landmark…’” What we have accidentally done is we have picked up and moved a landmark (a way marker along the way). We have moved back, essentially, when Christ would return because we were not ready! The fulfillment of the holy day has been delayed because the Church was not ready. Continue reading Hosea 5:11-15. Here Christ is saying as we repeat the sins of the ancient past, He will turn away from us and let the tools of His correction (that is Satan) be allowed to destroy the Church and correct us. He will go to His place and allow that to happen until we turn to seek Him once again. Continue in Hosea 6:1. “Come, and let us return to the Lord; for He has torn, but He will heal us; He has stricken, but He will bind us up. After two days He will revive us; on the third day He will raise us up, that we may live in His sight. Let us know, let us pursue the knowledge of the Lord. His going forth is established as the morning…” (speaking of the institution of the Millennium at that point). God says He will allow us to be torn apart, but He will heal those who will turn to Him. SATAN’S MOUNTAIN Brethren, at this time Satan’s mountain is getting shaken and is coming crashing down. It has landed, in essence, on the Church, but this is going to turn out to be the end for Satan and his government. It will be the beginning of a new era that will dawn. This dark month has been a hard time for the Church, but it has also been a trap for Satan. Remember we had discussed Mount Seir and the fall of Mount Seir in a previous sermon. Turn back to Ezekiel 35, and we will briefly review. Mount Seir pictures Satan’s mountain. Read Ezekiel 35:1-9. We can see here that Satan’s mountain, Mount Seir, is going to fall. It is going to fall by bloodshed. It is Jesus Christ’s shed blood and that blood being accepted by people. When they are converted by the shed blood of God and cleaned up, Satan’s power is diminished. His mountains are falling, and he is growing weaker and weaker as that happens. His cities will be laid desolate, and his kingdom in the heavens (his principalities) will have no more messengers going back and forth to influence the world. That will be over with. Mankind will be free! Let’s continue the discussion of this event by turning back to Jeremiah. Read Jeremiah chapter 51:24-26. Satan’s mountain is a destroying mountain that has been over the earth and is his kingdom. It is the same mountain that he took Jesus Christ up to the top of in the temptation of Matthew 4. That mountain and the rocks on the shoulders of that mountain are going to come crashing down! This is called the fall of Babylon here. It is called the fall of Mount Seir in Ezekiel. We can confirm this by going back to Jeremiah 51:1. Read Jeremiah 51:1-5. God has temporarily turned His back on us and stepped out of the Church, but He is just on the other side of a spiritual door, as we talked about. He has not forsaken His people. There will be victory, just like ancient Israel eventually was able to go back after the fall in Babylon and rebuild a temple. God says this will not be a permanent defeat for the second ekklesia either. It is what the whole Bible was written for and what all the prophets came for. It is for this new government of God that will be established over the earth. Continue reading in Jeremiah 51:6. “Flee from the midst of Babylon, and every one save his life! Do not be cut off in her iniquity, for this is the time of the Lord’s vengeance; He shall recompense her. Babylon was a golden cup in the Lord’s hand, that made all the earth drunk. The nations drank her wine; therefore the nations are deranged. Babylon has suddenly fallen and been destroyed. Wail for her! Take balm for her pain; perhaps she may be healed.” God says He intends to heal the brethren that have fallen into this situation where Babylon has actually stepped back into the Church. God intends to heal all who will let Him. But we have to know where we are in the seasons of the Church. Babylon has been shaken down. Babylon is weakening in three stages as we talked about. Once Satan was right at God’s very throne in heaven. Then he was cast down to the earth and surrounded the earth with his principalities and his powers. Then at the very last resort, like Custer’s Last Stand, he took God’s Church at the end. But it is his doom! All we have to do to help is to clean up to get ready as the bride of Christ so Jesus Christ can come, and we will hasten his final doom. If you would now, turn to Isaiah chapter 14 where we will see more about this system of Babylon that falls. This is the spiritual system. Do not mistake it for the physical manifestations of Babylon that have existed on the earth for thousands of years. This is the real Babylon, the spiritual Babylon. Isaiah 14, verse 3: “It shall come to pass in the day the Lord gives you rest from your sorrow…” (in the day just before the Millennium comes) “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…” Drop down to verse 12. 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!’” This is the true power behind the throne. This is the evil power we have all been battling with. Verse 13: “‘For you have said in your heart: “I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God; I will also sit on the mount of the congregation on the farthest sides of the north; I will ascend above the heights of the clouds, I will be like the Most High.” 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…”’” (the son of perdition, Satan the devil) “‘“…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?”’” God will force that prison house open and free the world! First He needs His government (the Church) to finish getting ready so He can replace this horrible mountain. He wants to replace this horrible system of Babylon and all the evil it represents and all the suffering it has caused throughout the last 6,000 years. Let’s cross reference these scriptures now with Revelation. Turn back to Revelation. You have probably already thought about this. There is a discussion in chapter 17 about Babylon, the mystery of harlots (the abominations of the earth). That is Satan’s power where he has used many physical nations to do it, but he is the power behind the throne. His city, this spiritual Babylon is his city. Read Revelation 18:1-4. God is telling the Church in this dark month that it is time now. We have set the trap for Satan, and he fell for it. He knew his only hope was to try to take God’s government at the end of the age. God’s city temporarily became his city. God allowed it to be called Babylon. It was torn apart. It does not have God’s mind within it. For just a little while God has turned His back on us! COME OUT God says please recognize what you can do now to help Me by coming out of her, My people. Let Me clean you up so that we can replace this horrible system. Put aside all preconceived notions about Babylon. Yes, Satan has used Egypt. Yes, he used Rome. Yes, he used false religions. Yes, he has used pagan religions and deities around the earth to this very day, but the power behind the throne is his real spiritual Babylon (the principalities that have carved up this earth up. There are a lot of demons in possession of them, and they have entered the Church at the very end. But it will be Satan’s undoing. His principalities are crashing down. Christ uttered words about these falling rocks, and He warned us that this would happen when He was being crucified. Turn, if you would, back to Luke 23. As Christ was being led away to be crucified He said these things. Luke 23, verse 26: “Now as they led Him away, they laid hold of a certain man, Simon a Cyrenian, who was coming from the country, and on him they laid the cross that he might bear it after Jesus. And a great multitude of the people followed Him, and women who also mourned and lamented Him.” These are the women who were believers. These are the women who had followed His preaching while He was on the earth. Verse 28: “But Jesus, turning to them, said ‘Daughters of Jerusalem, do not weep for Me, but weep for yourselves and for your children. For indeed the days are coming in which they will say, “Blessed are the barren, wombs that never bore, and breasts which never nursed!” Then they will begin to “say to the mountains, ‘Fall on us!’ and to the hills, ‘Cover us!’ For if they do these things in the green wood, what will be done in the dry?”’” Jesus Christ is the green tree full of sap and full of vigor and energy. His tree (the Church) which should have had this energy within it has gone dry. That is what this is talking about here. He says when that happens it will come to a point where Christ returns and the Church says, “Oh, I wish I had never been called! I wish I had never been begotten! I wish I had never been pregnant with the Holy Spirit because I have blown it!” The warning is going out right now, brethren. We do not have to let this happen. We do not have to accidentally find ourselves hiding in Satan’s rocks and his mountains as they come crashing down. Do not fall for the trick of a physical place of safety. Do not think you are going to hide in any physical rocks from the devastation at the end. The devastation is all about you! It is spiritual. Please keep that in mind. We are speaking of spiritual things here because the spiritual body of Christ, the spiritual temple, is what we are a part of. It is not a physical building and a physical temple. Turn, if you would now, back to Hosea chapter 10. This is a scripture Jesus Christ was actually quoting from when he uttered those words. Hosea 10, verse 1: “Israel empties his vine; he brings forth fruit for himself. According to the multitude of his fruit he has increased the altars…” Each person who became part of the Church became an altar to God. “…according to the bounty of his land they have embellished his sacred pillars.” Verse 2: “Their heart is divided; now they are held guilty.” Because we let Satan’s doctrines which are his false signs and wonders into the Church. “He will break down their altars; he will ruin their sacred pillars.” Verse 3: “For now they say, ‘We have no king, because we did not fear the Lord. And as for a king, what would he do for us?’ They have spoken words, swearing falsely in making a covenant. Thus judgment springs up like hemlock in the furrows of the field.” God’s fertile field has been given over to the wrong type of plants. Continuing in Hosea 10:5. “The inhabitants of Samaria fear because of the calf of Beth Aven. For its people mourn for it…” Beth Aven means the house of wickedness. “…and its priests shriek for it because its glory has departed from it. The idol also shall be carried to Assyria as a present for King Jareb. Ephraim shall receive shame, and Israel shall be ashamed of his own counsel.” As what happened in ancient Israel whose writings are for our admonition today, we have gone on to make the same mistakes, only of a spiritual nature. All we must do is recognize it. We are being held guilty and accountable right now. God is asking us to wake up. Continue in verse 7: “As for Samaria, her king is cut off like a twig on the water. Also the high places of Aven, the sin of Israel, shall be destroyed. The thorn and thistle shall grow on their altars; they shall say to the mountains, ‘Cover us!’ and to the hills, ‘Fall on us!’” When you see God’s altars (His Church) bearing forth thorns and thistles and when you look at the Church and see it is full of unrepentant sin, this is evidence of the spiritual things that have happened to the Church. You can see divorce. You can see people watching all manner of horrible things on television, the Internet and at the movies. People are slandering God’s name and harming one another as the body of Christ. They are tearing one another apart. This is all evidence of the spiritual things that have happened to God’s Church. They come from another source other than God. God would never have done this to His body. He just allows it so the body will repent. Drop down to verse 12 and you will see what Christ tells us here. Verse 12 of Hosea 10: “Sow for yourselves righteousness; reap mercy; break up your fallow ground, for it is time to seek the Lord, till He comes and rains righteousness on you. You have plowed wickedness; you have reaped iniquity. You have eaten the fruit of lies, because you trusted in your own way, in the multitude of your mighty men. Therefore tumult shall arise among your people, and all your fortresses shall be plundered as Shalman plundered Beth Arbel in the day of battle a mother dashed in pieces upon her children.” This is what has happened to the Church. Verse 15: “Thus it shall be done to you, O Bethel, because of your great wickedness. At dawn the king of Israel shall be cut off utterly.” Just when the dawn could have come, the greatest darkness has settled over the Church! But do not be deceived. The dawn will come. Jesus Christ will come. The sun shall shine again, and Jesus Christ will return. Will we be standing in the sun light and basking in the sun light? That is the question we need to ask ourselves at this time. Go, if you would now, back to Jeremiah 24. As we have seen now, it is the body of Christ (the stones of God’s temple) that have been thrown down, but God intends to fix these things. It is in His power. Do not sell God short! He will bring a clean thing out of the unclean. Jeremiah 24, verse 1: “The Lord showed me, and there were two baskets of figs set before the temple of the Lord, after Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon had carried away captive Jeconiah the son of Jehoiakim…” This is now speaking of a spiritual time when the king of Babylon has taken the Church. Verse 2: “One basket had very good figs, like the figs that are first ripe; and the other basket had very bad figs which could not be eaten, they were so bad. Then the Lord said to me, ‘What do you see, Jeremiah?’ And I said, ‘Figs, the good figs, very good; and the bad, very bad, which cannot be eaten, they are so bad.’ Again the word of the Lord came to me, saying, ‘Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel: “Like these good figs, so will I acknowledge those who are carried away captive from Judah, whom I have sent out of this place for their own good, into the land of the Chaldeans.”’” God allowed this chastisement for our benefit because He loves us. Continuing in verse 6: “‘For I will set My eyes on them for good, and I will bring them back to this land; I will build them and not pull them down, and I will plant them and not pluck them up. Then I will give them a heart to know Me, that I am the Lord; and they shall be My people, and I will be their God, for they shall return to Me with their whole heart. “And as the bad figs which cannot be eaten, they are so bad” surely thus says the Lord “so will I give up Zedekiah the king of Judah, his princes, the residue of Jerusalem who remain in this land, and those who dwell in the land of Egypt.”’” Back then He gave up King Zedekiah and the people, but today He says I will have to punish them severely if they will not turn. Verse 9: “‘I will deliver them to trouble into all the kingdoms of the earth, for their harm, to be a reproach and a byword, a taunt and a curse, in all places where I shall drive them. And I will send the sword, the famine, and the pestilence among them, till they are consumed from the land that I gave to them and their fathers.’” We studied the sword. It is the word of God that cuts to the quick. It can divide between the soul and the bodies of men. It can discern the hearts. That sword has been after the Church to convict us now for quite a while. Many of us have gone captive back to pagan ways. Come out of her. Many of us have turned on the body of Christ destroying it. Stop it! While we still have time the sword (God’s word) is telling us to cut it out for if we do not we will be utterly destroyed. We must turn and repent before Christ’s return. If you had the Holy Spirit you must get this done very quickly. Turn back to Amos chapter 8:1. “Thus the Lord God showed me: Behold, a basket of summer fruit. And He said, ‘Amos, what do you see?’ So I said, ‘A basket of summer fruit.’ Then the Lord said to me: ‘The end has come upon My people Israel; I will not pass by them anymore.’” We are speaking of spiritual Israel here. Verse 3: “‘“And the songs of the temple shall be wailing in that day,” says the Lord God…’” We should all be wailing, crying and mourning for God’s temple. “‘Many dead bodies everywhere, they shall be thrown out in silence.’ Hear this, you who swallow up the needy, and make the poor of the land fail…” For those who have caused this to happen it is time to repent because there is a judgment day coming. We have to fix this. We are part of the body of Christ. This was not playtime. This was a serious thing that we had been entrusted to do. We were to feed the flock and to take care of one another. Now let us tie this together with the fact that we are in the summer and there is summer fruit. Some of it can be very good if we turn and repent, and some of it is just awful. Let us go back to the other link verse about these falling figs and the falling rocks. Revelation chapter 6:12. “I looked when He opened the sixth seal, and behold, there was a great earthquake; and the sun became black as sackcloth of hair, and the moon became like blood. And the stars of heaven fell to the earth, as a fig tree drops its late figs when it is shaken by a mighty wind.” That mighty wind is the Holy Spirit of God, brethren. Verse 14: “Then the sky receded as a scroll when it is rolled up, and every mountain and island was moved out of its place.” Satan’s mountains have been moved. Verse 15: “And the kings of the earth, the great men, the rich men, the commanders, the mighty men, every slave and ever free man, hid themselves in the caves and in the rocks of the mountains…” The earth and the people who have been under Satan’s government have been hidden by Satan. As Jesus Christ predicted, now God’s people would be saying fall on us and hide us you mountains that are falling and you rocks that are being rolled down. Continuing in Revelation 6:16. “…and said to the mountains and rocks, ‘Fall on us and hide us from the face of Him who sits on the throne and from the wrath of the Lamb! For the great day of His wrath has come, and who is able to stand?’” We are in the day of the wrath on the Church, brethren. We cannot stand if we continue to hide in Satan’s rocks. We have to stop being physical with our vision. Obtain from Jesus Christ the eye salve to have spiritual powers of observation, for these things are occurring right now. The day of judgment is here! When Jesus Christ comes and pronounces final judgment, are we going to be basking in the sun light or not? It is God’s Holy Spirit that is sorting the Church out by shaking the trees and the mountains. We must no longer seek to hide in a physical place of safety but hide in the truth of God. Be released from the captivity and bondage of Satan once again and be back into Christ’s freedom. We need to do something while we can! SPIRITUAL WARFARE There was a phrase that won a recent election in the United States in which one man said, “You know it is the economy, stupid!” and he won the election on that. Today Christ is saying it is spiritual warfare. Don’t be stupid! Don’t look at physical things when the enemy is spiritual and the devastation is spiritual. Do not fear guns, bombs, and bullets. Turn to Matthew chapter 10. Guns, bombs, and bullets cannot hurt the spiritual body of Christ, brethren. Unrepentant sin and false doctrines are things that can hurt the body of Christ. Christ says this in Matthew 10:27. “‘Whatever I tell you in the dark, speak in the light; and what you hear in the ear, preach on the housetops. And do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. But rather fear Him who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell.’” Do not fear physical destruction. It is spiritual destruction that we must fear. We are learning it in the dark. Let us be able to preach it in the light, brethren. Let us now be a lamp for all the world to see. Let us start with our brethren. We have heard many times that Jesus Christ is on the other side of a spiritual door, knocking very loudly at this point in time saying open up this door you who are poor, blind, wretched and miserable and who do not know it. Let Me help you! Let Me open your eyes! I have the food that you need! I have the armor you must have! I have the drink you need. I have the clean garments you need. The armor is what we know as described in Ephesians 6. Let us go to Ephesians 6 and read that. This is what we need from Jesus Christ right now so we can get up, and be strong, and do great things here in the latter days for whatever time we have left to be useful to God. Read Ephesians 6:10-20. That is what we need to do! We need the armor of God so we can speak boldly what needs to be spoken, so that we have the strength to stand up against these wicked spirits in high places. Turn, if you would now, to Luke chapter 12. What we need to be doing now, brethren, is trimming our wicks, loving one another, forgiving one another, healing divisions, feeding the hungry who need God’s word, and feeding the brethren who are in physical need as well. We need to get the clean clothes from God so that we are not naked and share it with others so they are not naked. Share the truth so that eventually we can hear the words, “well done good and faithful servant.” Turn to Luke chapter 12, and we are going to read many scriptures. We are going to let those scriptures talk to us. Read Luke 12:35-42. Every Church era has had its season as we have studied. We are in our season. We need the food to get the strength from God. Read Luke 12:43-48. Brethren, study these scriptures. Understand them. Continue reading in Luke 12:49. “‘I came to send fire on the earth, and how I wish it were already kindled!’” That is the fire the two witnesses had been using. They used it for 1,260 days and we need it back! Luke 12, verse 50: “‘But I have a baptism to be baptized with, and how distressed I am till it is accomplished! Do you suppose that I came to give peace on earth? I tell you, not at all, but rather division. For from now on five in one house will be divided: three against two, and two against three. Father will be divided against son and son against father, mother against daughter and daughter against mother…’” And so on because, brethren, this is going to tell the tale of who is willing to stand up for the truth even when it hurts. We have to be willing to stand up for the truth and discern the time as He continues in verse 54. Verse 54: “Then He also said to the multitudes, ‘Whenever you see a cloud rising out of the west, immediately you say, “A shower is coming”; and so it is. And when you see the south wind blow, you say, “There will be hot weather”; and there is. Hypocrites! You can discern the face of the sky and of the earth, but how is it you do not discern this time?’” How is it that so much can go by in the Church, brethren, and we cannot even discern the time? We have to discern the season and the time we are in and do something about it while we still have the time to do so. Continue reading in Luke 13:1-9. God has to pause before He completely cuts down His tree, and He is seeing if a little fertilizer and a little more help is going to help it revive. As we read in Matthew 24, He promises it will! The question is who among us is going to allow the word to come back in? Whoever allows this is going to send out the water and let it come back into the tree to bud and bear fruit once again. It really is a matter of our free will. We have to work with God as He allows us to do so. It is so important, brethren, right now, that I could go on and on; but it is time for us to just stop being physical in our pursuits and in our thinking. We need to start being spiritual. The time is still there to seek the light and get out of the darkness. God is opening His light back up to us. He is crying out to us. He is knocking on the door loudly. He wants us to be part of that city on a hill, a bright city. He wants us to be a fruitful olive plant. He wants us to be part of His good government. He wants us to be a vine and a fig tree to help the world right into the Millennium. THE BODY OF CHRIST WILL CLEAN ITSELF UP In the very first sermon in this series on the seasons of the Church we talked about the two witnesses and the two olive plants, but we did not read the chapter just ahead of that. Go back to Zechariah chapter 3. We read Zechariah chapter 4 about the olive trees and the two witnesses, but before that God talks to His people. He says this, beginning in verse 6: “Then the Angel of the Lord admonished Joshua…” (which means Jesus, by the way, and I believe this is portraying the body of Christ in the last days) “…saying, ‘Thus says the Lord of hosts: “If you will walk in My ways, and if you will keep My command, then you shall also judge My house, and likewise have charge of My courts; I will give you places to walk among these who stand here.”’” The body of Christ had Jesus Christ in it. That is how He became part of the body. We became very filthy in the last days. God wants His body to be cleaned up once again. Continuing in verse 8: “‘Hear, O Joshua, the high priest, you and your companions who sit before you, for they are a wondrous sign; for behold, I am bringing forth My Servant the BRANCH.’” The High Priest works in His Church, and He is telling His body the BRANCH is going to come. Jesus Christ is going to come back, and you will be a reunited body with Jesus Christ. It will be an awesome thing when the saints arise. Continuing in Zechariah 3:9. “‘For behold, the stone that I have laid before Joshua: upon the stone are seven eyes. Behold, I will engrave its inscription.’ says the Lord of hosts, ‘And I will remove the iniquity of the land in one day.’” The seven eyes are the seven spirits and the seven churches (the body of Christ). We saw that in Revelation chapter 1. Continuing in verse 10: “‘In that day,’ says the Lord of hosts, ‘Everyone will invite his neighbor under his vine and under his fig tree.’” Then comes the discussion in chapter 4 of the two witnesses. We have an opportunity as part of the body of Christ if we stay firmly affixed to the vine. Then we can become a vine that is fruitful for others. We can be a part of the fig tree of Christ’s government that will replace Satan’s tree, the dead tree. We will replace His mountains with Jesus Christ’s mountain that will fill the whole earth with His kingdom. The time is now ripe for the body of Christ to clean itself up and to get ready for the bright dawn ahead, so that we can partake of the inheritance God designed us for. It is what He called us to be a part of and for the work we can do. It is up to us to fulfill our obligations so that He can give us the jobs that we were designed to do forever. We have a free will, brethren. We need to use it. Trim our wicks. Get the foolishness out of our lives, for a wonderful future lies just ahead! Be there!