May 1998
Home Up January 1998 February 1998 March 1998 Aprin 1998 May 1998 june 1998 July 1998 November 1998 December 1998

 

                                 THE KINGDOM OF GOD AND THE WORK OF THE SPIRIT

 

                                                                                                    May 1998

 

The present work of the Spirit in the earth is a many-faceted, universal work to fulfill our Father's plans and purposes for His kingdom. In all He is doing now, the Lord is bringing His righteous kingdom to the earth. Our sovereign King and Lord of all is also beginning to reveal the new order of His kingdom to those who are repenting of the previous works of the church age. He is beginning to do this wonderful, kingdom work by moving in the lives of His elect and chosen ones. When we ascend in the Spirit to worship the Lord in the Holiest of all, or in the heavenlies of His Spirit, we will hear the pure word of the Lord being trumpeted throughout that holy realm of His heavenly sanctuary. Just one brief moment spent in the heavenly realm of the presence of God and all His holy angels will be sufficient to enable us to hear and see what our Father is doing now, both in the earth and among His elect.

 

After journeying through the wilderness of this worldly order of man's corruption, by the leading of the Spirit, we are finding the way into the greater fullness of the kingdom of God. We now realize that the kingdom of God is a present reality in the earth, not only in our earth but also in the earth all around us. The fullness of time came and the kingdom of God has now come to the earth. Our pathway to the kingdom has been a long and difficult journey. Throughout our hard wilderness journey, with its tests, trials, and difficulties, we sought the Lord regularly and kept Him before our vision continually. The Psalmist David described his walk with God, and ours as well. As a King of Israel, David is a type of Christ, the King, and of all the other kings in the kingdom of God. He also prophetically expressed something of the life and experiences of Jesus Christ as He suffered through this realm that we call "life."

 

David sang this Psalm about his Lord: "I will bless the Lord, who hath given me counsel: my reigns also instruct me in the night seasons. I have set the Lord always before me: because he is at my right hand, I shall not be moved. Therefore my heart is glad, and my glory rejoiceth: my flesh also shall rest in hope. For thou wilt not leave my soul in hell; neither wilt thou suffer thine Holy One to see corruption. Thou wilt shew me the path of life: in thy presence is fulness of joy; at thy right hand there are pleasures for evermore." (Ps. 16:7-11)

 

It should be clear to all who have understanding of the word of truth that this Psalm of David is a song describing something of the life of Jesus as he walked this earth. He is the "Holy One" of this Psalm. David understood the path of the Son of God, for he also walked it out in the experiences of this life. Because he spoke prophetically in this Psalm, David also prophesied of the experiences of Jesus, who was to be the true King. Being the Son of God and His Christ, Jesus knew He was appointed of the Father to suffer the cruel death of the cross. Although Jesus was the Son of God and the Christ of God, He lived and walked on this earth as a man, just as we are. Therefore, the message of this Psalm not only describes the path of the first Son of God, but of all other sons as well.

 

David sought counsel of the Lord, and acknowledged that the Lord gave him that counsel. His reigns, or the holy Spirit within him, instructed David in the night seasons. He determined to put the Lord always before him in daily vision and experience. He acknowledged that God was at his right hand, thus signifying that he was seated in Christ in heavenly places. This understanding gave him strength for the walk, making him constant and immovable in God's purposes, and bringing joy to his heart. It caused his "glory," or the splendor of the Spirit within him, to rejoice so that his mind found rest in the hope of his transformation. David truly found that spiritual place of refuge, safety, and security in God. Because he communed with God in the Spirit, and saw the Lord always before him and at his right hand, David was assured of a transformed and resurrected body like unto Christ's. And what was written and declared of David is also true of Jesus, the first Son, and of all other sons as well.

 

We also know that our Father will not leave our souls in this "hell," nor will He suffer His holy ones, which we are becoming, to see corruption take over these bodies. Our Father is showing us the path of Life, and is making us aware that we are on that path. During those brief times when we are in His presence, we may experience the fullness of joy that always exists in that heavenly realm. And when we ascend in the Spirit and take our seat in Christ at Father's right hand, we see there are pleasures there that give us true joy and that wonderful "shalom" peace that is beyond understanding. All these kingdom blessings and benefits shall abide and continue forevermore until they have touched and transformed all mankind.

 

The Kingdom of God Described in Prophecy

Throughout the scriptures, it is clear that our Father has purposed to give man dominion (Ps. 115:16). It is not merely natural or physical dominion common to this present world, but dominion based on the righteousness of Christ and the glory and honor of His kingdom. To rule and reign with Christ in His kingdom, we needed to be cleansed of all of old Adam's iniquities, and raised by the Spirit to sit with Christ in the heavenly places of His Spirit. By the many appearings of Christ within us, all this is being fulfilled in our lives. The processings and disciplines of the Lord were difficult at times and hard to understand. But we are coming through them, to be the overcomers our Father purposed us to be. At times the Lord spoke to us individually, or gave us a prophetic word as we found fellowship with others of like mind. In meetings we had twenty-five to thirty years ago, the Lord often spoke to us in choruses. Many of the songs and choruses we sang were prophetic, for they foretold of the coming of the kingdom of God to the earth.

 

One chorus we sang many years ago had this wonderful message of truth:   I see a new heaven; I see a new earth.

            God's glory is filling the whole universe.

            Gone are the old things; all things are now new.

            God is now bringing His kingdom in view.

 

Such truth as this can only be understood by seeing and hearing in the Spirit. The carnal mind would never agree to this truth, for spiritual truth such as this can only be understood by the Spirit. To others this chorus would be a meaningless little ditty. But to those of us who are entering into its fulfillment, this prophetic truth is as a light in the midst of the darkness of the world. Only with the eyes of the Spirit can we see a new heaven and a new earth wherein dwelleth righteousness. By His Spirit alone can we see that God's glory is filling the whole universe, that old things are being made new, and that His kingdom is coming into view. As our minds are enlightened by the glorious Light of Christ and all darkness removed, we are then able to see the wonderful future God has planned for those who love Him.

 

The ultimate hope and promise of the kingdom of God coming to the earth, bringing all the glory, honor, and life of Christ to the whole universe, are spiritual truths that give us a vision of God's plan for all mankind. This ultimate purpose of the kingdom is not yet fully realized or fulfilled, but the vision of it must come before the reality of it can be fulfilled. The wise man said, "where there is no vision, the people perish" (Pro. 29:18). Therefore, we needed the vision of the kingdom of God coming to the earth, bringing forth that new earth, to keep us from perishing in the overwhelming darkness of this world. 

 

The prophetic truth of Father's inspired and revealed word kept us on the path of that revealed truth. The vision of it kept us walking toward the ultimate prize of the glory of the kingdom of God on earth. Before the kingdom of God could ever come to earth, its truth must first have been planted within our innermost being as a seed in our earth that would eventually sprout forth to be completely fulfilled. Prophetic truth gives us a vision of God's plan for the future, causing us to live in hope of the fulfillment of that revealed truth. But when the reality of that prophetic truth comes forth to be fulfilled in the earth, we must then make the transition from the realm of hope and expectancy, to the more glorious realm of living and walking out the fulfillment of that former, prophetic hope. This is where we are now! Father is leading His elect from the realm of hope and promise to the realm of reality and the fulfillment of His purposes for the kingdom of God on earth.

That kingdom seed, which was planted within us as a hope or a promise, has now become a tree of reality to be fully manifest in the earth. As that kingdom tree grows in the earth within us, it shall become the greatest of all trees, or the tree of life, to spread its branches out to all nations. That kingdom tree of life shall bear twelve manner of fruit, yielding its abundant harvest every month, supplying His life-giving fruit to all mankind. And the leaves of that tree are for the healing of the nations (Rev. 22:2). That kingdom seed within us seemed to grow ever so slowly, causing us to be barren for a time. But that life within us shall become the healing Life of the nations and the fruit of the kingdom, which shall restore all mankind, giving honor and praise to our glorious Savior, Head, Lord, and King.

 

The blessings and benefits of the kingdom of God are coming to the earth to create a new earth, even as the new heavens are coming forth. But the throne of the kingdom of God shall remain in the heavenlies, or in the realm of the Spirit. One of the prophetic psalms of David gives this word of truth: "The Lord is in his holy temple, the Lord's throne is in heaven" (Ps. 11:4). The heaven of God's Spirit is the source of all power and authority! It is the realm of the greatest power in the universe! Therefore, the throne of God must remain in the heavenlies of Spirit to accomplish God's purposes for His kingdom on earth. Man rules from his thrones in this world, but God reigns from His more powerful and exalted, spiritual throne in the heavenlies. It has always been that way, and it shall remain that way until every enemy is put under His feet and God is truly Lord of all.

 

Isaiah's Prophecy of the Kingdom Age, or the Day of the Lord

In our March 1998 booklet, we wrote of Micah's prophecy of the kingdom of God being established in the top of the mountains, or in the realm of Spirit, above all the kingdoms and governments of man. Isaiah gave a similar prophecy of that which is now taking place. He said, "And it shall come to pass in the last days, that the mountain of the Lord's house shall be established in the top of the mountains, and shall be exalted above the hills; and all nations shall flow into it." (Is. 2:2) The "last days" simply means a future day or time; it is a reference to this present time. A mountain in scripture generally refers to a government, or a realm of rule and dominion, whether of man or of God. For example, the world systems known as Babylon are called, "a destroying mountain, which destroyest all the earth" (Jer. 51:25). But the mountain of the Lord is mount Zion. It is the throne of the peaceful and righteous government of Christ (Mic. 4:7), which shall change the whole earth by the almighty power of the Spirit of God (see Is. 11:9 & 65:17-25). That mountain, government, dominion, or kingdom of God has been established in the Spirit, above all the hills, mountains, governments, or kingdoms of man.

 

The prophet Jeremiah spoke of the mountains of man's governments and kingdoms. He foretold of a time when Israel and Judah "shall ask the way to Zion with their faces thitherward, saying, Come, and let us join ourselves to the Lord in a perpetual covenant that shall not be forgotten. My people hath been lost sheep: their shepherds have caused them to go astray, they have turned them away on the mountains: they have gone from mountain to hill, they have forgotten their resting place" (Jer. 50:4-6, see also Ez. 44:10-13).

 

This prophecy may have been fulfilled literally and naturally in Israel's history. But it has a greater spiritual fulfillment at this time. God's people in the church system of today are those lost sheep. Their shepherds, pastors and denominational leaders have caused them to go astray. Those leaders have led most Christians to join themselves to the mountains, hills, or governments of the Babylonish world systems of man. Such joining of God's people to the corrupt, worldly systems of man will always bring forth the wrath of God (Is. 8:9-13). The lost sheep of Christendom today became involved in Babylon's three-fold realm of the systems of this world (Rev. 16:19), which are (1) political-governmental, (2) economic, and (3) religious. And in so doing, "they have forgotten their resting place" in God.

 

But God foreknew this wayward condition of His people in these "last days." Before the Lord's people ever turned away from Him, God had a plan in place for their deliverance and restoration. He said His people would come to Him weeping, or in repentance, to seek the Lord their God and to join themselves "to the Lord in a perpetual covenant that shall not be forgotten." And this prophetic word of truth shall be completely fulfilled in God's way and in His time. God's anointed word of truth assures us of the salvation of all mankind. So also does His anointed, prophetic word assure us that every wayward Christian shall come to the mountain of the Lord's house to be joined to the Lord in a perpetual covenant that shall never be forgotten. And when the Lord has finished His work of judgment and purging among His people, they will all trust explicitly in mount Zion, the only true mountain, the mountain of the house of the Lord. Eventually, all other mountains, governments and kingdoms of man shall cease to exist. Then, the kingdom of God shall be the only mountain or government in all the universe, and it\He shall prevail over all.

 

The mountain of the Lord's house, or the government of His righteous kingdom, is being established in the top of the mountains, or in the Spirit, above all other major governments of man. His mountain, or His government, also shall be exalted above all the hills, or lesser governments of man, causing all nations to flow into it. "And many people shall go and say, Come ye, and let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, to the house of the God of Jacob; and he will teach us of his ways, and we will walk in his paths: for out of Zion shall go forth the law, and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem" (Is. 2:3). The Spirit of the Lord will lead many people of many nations to turn to the Lord, seek Him, and become a part of His kingdom and His house. By the Spirit, the Lord shall teach them His ways, cause them to walk in His paths, to learn His new law of love and His pure word of truth.

 

The Revolutionary Ways of the New, Kingdom Order

As we have written in our August 1997 booklet, the Lord is changing the order of ministry in this new Day. Instead of missionaries going to the nations to preach the Gospel and lead the people to the Lord, God will put it in the hearts of many unsaved people to seek Him and go to His house. By the Spirit, a stirring will take place within many unsaved people, causing those people from many nations to become a part of the kingdom of God. No apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors, teachers, preachers, or missionaries will be needed to go and minister to those many unsaved peoples and nations. Instead, God will put it in the hearts of every one of them to believe His word and then to love and serve Him. Without the ministry of any human being, the Spirit will draw each person among those many nations to the Lord to seek Him for His abundant salvation. God will lead those multitudes, by His Spirit, causing them to come to the house of the Lord by the sovereign will and purpose of God. And, of course, the true house of the Lord is a spiritual building of God; it is a spiritual house eternal in the heavens not made with the hands of man.

 

When we minister to the Lord, in the Spirit and by the Spirit, we are thus loosing those many peoples and nations from the spiritual bondages that bind them. We are releasing them in the Spirit to love the Lord and worship Him in Spirit and in truth. All this shall be fulfilled in God's way and in His time. The prophet foretold of the spiritual growth of those multitudes and nations who would come to the Lord during this wonderful kingdom Day. He said the Lord "will teach us (them) of his ways, and we (they) will walk in his paths: for out of Zion shall go forth the law, and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem." Before the multitudes of the nations could ever learn the pure word of the Lord from Zion, we first needed to learn that pure Word ourselves. Having learned that pure Word, we then needed to learn His ways and walk in His paths, by the leading of His Spirit.

 

It is the work of the Spirit of God to deliver us of the many impurities and errors of the doctrines of man that we brought with us out of religious Babylon. Then He will teach us His pure Word of truth and life. That is the purpose for the "us" and the "we" in the above verse.  When we are thoroughly cleansed of the many errors of man's Babylonish religion, are taught the pure, undefiled truth of God, and have learned His ways to walk in His paths, we may change the "us" to "them," and the "we" to "they." Furthermore, the "law" that shall go forth out of Zion is not the old legalistic law of Moses, but the higher law of the Spirit of Life in Christ Jesus (Ro. 8:2). And the word of the Lord that shall proceed from the new Jerusalem will be the anointed, living truth of our God.

 

Not one among us yet has all truth. If we did have all the truth that He is, we would not be in this body of sin and death. The original Greek word translated risen is "egeiro," and means to awaken from sleep; it includes the idea of collecting one's faculties. By walking through this life with God, being led by His Spirit, we are collecting and repossessing all the faculties that were lost in Adam's transgression. Also, the original Greek word for resurrection is "anastasis." Along with a standing up again and resurrection from death, this word includes the recovery of spiritual truth. We are regaining the spiritual and moral faculties Adam lost in Eden! We also are recovering all spiritual truth lost in Adam's transgression, and in many "fallings away" since. When we have collected all the lost faculties and recovered all spiritual truth, we shall be fully transformed - changed into His image and likeness - to be all that He is!  What a restoration!  What a transformation!

 

Are we willing to experience all the changes necessary to receive all truth? Are we willing to die out to self to be changed by the trans-forming power of the truth of God? Far too many Christians are set in their ways. They think they know some truth, but are unwilling to learn anything more of the precious truth of God. They are only expressing the inherent unbelief of their carnal minds. At times we may read writings from those who try to tell us that a certain revealed truth of God is not the truth. Usually, they are mistaken! They are still in this body of sin and death and therefore have no right to tell us what is not the truth. Only by the Spirit of revelation from God can anyone share truth that is meaningful and life-imparting. All the elect of the Father are open and prepared to receive ALL the truth that HE IS. They are on the path to His fullness, and are being changed into His image and likeness, to become those manifest sons of God!

 

The prophet continues, by saying, "And he shall judge among the nations, and shall rebuke many people: and they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruninghooks: nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more" (Is. 2:4). According to the meaning of the original Hebrew words, when the Lord judges and rebukes nations and peoples, He is revealing their faults and then correcting them. And when the multitudes of the many nations are corrected by the Spirit of God, they shall turn all their weapons of warfare into useful tools for the good of mankind, whether for agricultural purposes or other beneficial uses. Then, not one nation of the world shall ever use a weapon of destruction against another nation, nor will any nation ever learn or practice war again. During this great Day, true "Shalom" peace shall eventually exist and reign in this world, when God has judged and rebuked the nations. May the vision of the kingdom of God coming to the earth sustain us during the prevailing darkness so evident at the evening time of this new, kingdom Day.

 

In the next few verses, Isaiah tells of Israel's spiritual decline and their many iniquities. But in spite of Israel's rebellion against God, they are still His covenant people through whom all other nations shall be saved (Ge. 22:18, Ps. 105:7-10, Ro. 4:13, 16-18 & Ga. 3:8,14,16). To bring His people to repentance, the Lord initiated "the day of the Lord," which is a period of the judgments of the Lord to correct His people. Then the prophet said, "Enter into the rock, and hide thee in the dust, for fear of the Lord, and for the glory of his majesty. The lofty looks of man shall be humbled, and the haughtiness of men shall be bowed down, and the Lord alone shall be exalted in that day. For the day of the Lord shall be upon every one that is proud and lofty, and upon every one that is lifted up; and he shall be brought low" (Is. 2:10-12). The day of the Lord also shall be "upon all the high mountains, and upon all the hills that are lifted up" (vs. 14). Every government of man, whether large (a mountain) or small (a hill), shall be removed by the judgments of the Lord during "the day of the Lord."

 

Father's purpose for the age of the kingdom of God on earth is to bring judgment on the works and institutions of man, and establish His righteousness in all the earth. According to the prophetic word, this is the same purpose for "the day of the Lord." Isaiah's prophecy clearly states "For the day of the Lord shall be upon every one that is proud and lofty, and upon every one that is lifted up; and he shall be brought low." God's purpose for the day of the Lord is not to judge and correct His elect and chosen ones, for we have already been judged and corrected. We were judged before the great judgment of this Day, that we might not be judged with the rest of the world (1 Co. 11:31-32). The day of the Lord is not a day of judgment unto correction for us. It is a period of judgment for the uncorrected people of the rest of the world. This was confirmed by the prophet Joel, who said the Lord would cleanse those "that I have not cleansed" on the day of the Lord (Joel 3:21). Ezekiel said the day of the Lord "shall be the time of the heathen" (Ez. 30:3). The Smith-Goodspeed Bible gives that phrase as "the time of doom for the nations." Obadiah said "For the day of the Lord is near upon all the heathen" (vs. 15).

 

Obviously the kingdom age and the day of the Lord are overlapping periods in God's purposes. But there also have been other days of the Lord in history. For example, the scriptures suggest there was a day of the Lord after Jesus' crucifixion. The prophet Zechariah referred to a day of the Lord when God would "gather all nations against Jerusalem to battle" (Zech. 14:1-2). This may refer to the destruction of Jerusalem in 70 AD. There also was another "day of the Lord" during the thousand-year period known as "the Middle Ages," or "the Dark Ages." As we pointed out in our June 1997 booklet, it is highly likely that the most severe aspects of the "day of the Lord" have already taken place during the Dark Ages, which happened from about the 5th to the 15th century AD. During the Dark Ages, Christianity was united under the authority and control of the Roman Catholic Church. The Catholic Church attempted to control all religious thought, and the lives of the people as well, through its ceremonies and rituals. That millennium of trouble and darkness was undoubtedly one of the worst periods in the history of the world, if not the worst. Therefore, all the negative prophecies regarding the Lord's day do not apply to this present day of the Lord. Much of it has already been fulfilled in other periods known as "the day of the Lord" in history.

 

Another important truth about the day of the Lord, which applies to this present time, is that the day of the Lord is the Lord's day. It is that day or period of time when the Lord takes over the affairs of men and nations and does His work to fulfill His purposes in the earth. It is the time when the Lord "executeth his word" (Joel 2:11). It is that specific time when God shall judge all mankind and correct them, to bring them into harmony with His will and purpose.  Isaiah also prophesied, "Howl ye; for the day of the Lord is at hand; it shall come as a destruction FROM THE ALMIGHTY" (Is. 13:6, see also Joel 1:15). Contrary to popular religious belief all destruction and other negative things do not always come from the devil.

 

Those who understand deeper truth will also know that God is the first cause of all things, including evil. As the Lord of all, He forms the light, creates darkness, makes peace, and creates evil. He is the LORD who does all these things (see Is. 45:7). God Himself clearly takes the responsibility for all that takes place on His Day, or on the day of the Lord. He must bring judgment on man's systems and ways to free the world of man's corrupt order, and prepare mankind to walk in the righteous ways of the Lord. God must do all this to replace the old order with the new order of the kingdom of God on earth. A few verses later, the prophet declared, "Behold, the day of the Lord cometh, cruel both with wrath and fierce anger, to lay the land desolate: and he shall destroy the sinners out of it" (Is. 13:9).

 

Many prophecies of "the day of the Lord" were fulfilled in previous days of the Lord. But it should be noted WHO is doing the destroying work here. It is the Lord! He is the One Who shall destroy, not the sinners as such, but old Adam in us, which is the man of sin, and all sin that originated with that carnal, natural man. This is the Lord's Day! It is the time when "the indignation of the Lord is upon the nations" (Is. 34:2), and "the day of vengeance of our God" (Is. 61:2). It is the Almighty who brings this destruction! It also is the Lord who shall "destroy the sinners," or the man of sin, from the land or the earth of the lives of His people. And it is God who has shut up the heavens of His Spirit, that there be no spiritual rain upon our land. He also is the one who sends the spiritual locusts of darkness to devour our land, as well as the many pestilences among His people (2 Chron. 7:13-14).

 

Another purpose for the day of the Lord, which will take place con-currently with God's purposes for the kingdom age, is to reveal God as King and Lord to the world. According to the prophet Ezekiel, when the Lord judges the nations on the day of the Lord, "they shall know that I am the Lord" (Ez. 30:8). The Lord's day is a day of spiritual light, revelation and new understanding for the elect of God. But it also is a day of spiritual darkness much like the darkness of this present time (Amos 5:18-20). The day of the Lord also is a time when "the mighty men shall cry there bitterly" (Zeph. 1:14-15). When the mighty men of this carnal, worldly order repent and cry bitterly, the spirit of this world shall be removed from them, bringing them into harmony with the righteousness, justice, peace, and love of God.

 

Isaiah's message continues by describing that which shall take place on a day of the Lord. Some of this prophecy may take place on this present day of the Lord, or during this kingdom Day. "And the loftiness of man shall be bowed down, and the haughtiness of men shall be made low: and the Lord alone shall be exalted in that day. And the idols he shall utterly abolish. And they shall go into the holes of the rocks, and into the caves of the earth, for fear of the Lord, and for the glory of his majesty, when he ariseth to shake terribly the earth" (Is. 2:17-19). How wonderful it will be on this earth when the loftiness and haughtiness of men are made low, and the Lord alone is exalted! Then, man's carnality shall be removed, freeing us of the prevailing lust and greed of this world. Then all the idols of man's religions will cease to exist, and the Lord alone will be exalted and worshiped as the King of kings and the Lord of lords in His kingdom.

 

When Father's purposes for this day of the Lord are fulfilled, there will not be one unrepentant person on the face of the earth. All who were once lofty and haughty of mind and attitude shall then bow humbly before the Lord, seeking Him and worshiping Him in spirit and in truth. When they do, they shall take on the attitudes and principles of the kingdom of God, which are love, peace, harmony, gentleness, and the righteousness of Christ. Man's inhumanity to man will then be a thing of the past. Bigotry, hatred, intolerance, strife, lust, greed, and all the other ills of mankind shall cease to exist. When the mighty men of this worldly order cry bitterly, all greed and lust for money, position, power and prestige will be removed from them, bringing them into harmony with God's purposes for His kingdom, to do His will and His will alone on earth. Then, there will be no rich or poor, for all shall share alike of the abundance of the kingdom of God, which the new earth shall generously and plentifully provide.

 

With the vision of the new earth as it shall be in the kingdom of God in our spirits and minds, which we see only dimly, we can only imagine what this earth will be like when the Lord has restored all things. All enmity and strife shall be removed. Mankind shall freely eat of the tree of life. The curse and the sorrow the curse brings will be removed. Thorns, thistles, and other troublesome weeds shall no longer infest the ground. Mankind shall no longer eat bread by the sweat of his face. Nor shall every person return to the dust of the earth. Some will not need the covering of the coats of animal skins, but will be arrayed in garments of His holy Light (see Ge. 3:15-21). Because they are eating of the tree of Life, there will no longer be an old man who has not filled his days. And the person dying at a hundred years of age will only be considered a child (Is. 65:20).

 

All sorrow, wars, trouble, travail, sickness, and death shall cease to exist. The eyes of the blind will be opened, and the ears of the deaf shall be unstopped, literally and spiritually. The Spirit of the Lord will draw all mankind to Himself, giving them eyes to see and ears to hear, that they might know Him as their Savior, Lord, and King. The lame shall leap as an hart, and the tongue of the dumb shall sing. Waters shall break forth in the wilderness, and streams in the desert, both literally and spiritually. Because God gives waters in the wilderness and rivers in the desert, the beasts of the field, and the dragons and the owls shall honor Him. The wolf and the lamb shall feed together, and the lion shall eat straw like the ox. The heavens will no longer be as brass. Before anyone shall call on Him, the Lord will answer them. And while they are yet speaking, He will respond to their plea. Furthermore, "they shall not hurt nor destroy in all my holy mountain, saith the Lord" (Is. 65:25).

 

What a wonderful Day this shall be when God's judgments and His purpose for this day of the Lord, are all fulfilled. Every just and righteous person desires the righteous judgments of the Lord. They see the ultimate glory of this new Day and understand something of our Father's purposes for the kingdom of God on earth. We have all waited for the Lord, that He would bring forth His righteous judgments in the earth. It has been the urgent cry of our hearts for many years that the people of the world would cease from sin and learn His righteous ways. And this burden, this cry of our hearts, is now being fulfilled as the Lord comes forth to judge the world in righteousness, and teach mankind His righteous ways. The anointed prophet of the Lord spoke for all of us, when he said, "Yea, in the way of thy judgments, O Lord, have we waited for thee; the desire of our soul is to thy name, and to the remembrance of thee. With my soul have I desired thee in the night; yea, with my spirit within me will I seek thee early: for when thy judgments are in the earth, the inhabitants of the world will learn righteousness" (Is. 26:8-9).

 

Current Events and This Present "Day of the Lord"

Severe rain storms, wind storms, droughts, and other strange weather attributed to the "El-Nino" effect, have troubled the world this last year. Here in the United States, we have had heavy rains in areas such as Southern California where the saturated soil gave way, taking with it many homes. On both our oceans the waters of the seas have moved the shoreline further inland, washing away the soil beneath some homes and destroying them. Violent, killer tornadoes touched down in Florida, Minnesota, and more recently, in Mississippi, Alabama and Georgia, taking many lives and homes, and everything else in its path. At a Pennsylvania camp ground a fire in one cabin erupted, taking the lives of some Christian young people. And at a school in Jonesboro, Arkansas, two young boys killed other students and one of their teachers. This left both the community and the nation deeply troubled and disturbed by such a strange and bizaare event.

 

This brief summary of strange events in our country by no means covers all that took place recently. But what we have listed here gives sufficient evidence to show that we are in another "day of the Lord." And I believe it is our Father's purpose to enlighten us regarding the "Day" we are in. Then we may know where we are in time concerning our Father's eternal, kingdom purposes for this world. When this "day of the Lord" is finished, there will not be one unrepentant person any where. By these "acts of God" and other bizarre events, multitudes are being prepared to love and serve the Lord. May the Spirit of wisdom and revelation from God help us understand that every severe storm, every violent wind, and every strange, unexplainable and troubling event that takes place in the world today is but the mighty wind of the Spirit, sent of God to blow away the wickedness of man and the chaff of man's carnal works (Job 21:17-18, Ps. 1:4-6, Da. 2:35).

 

Isaiah was an anointed prophet of restoration. He said, "Woe to the multitude of many people, which make a noise like the noise of the seas; and to the rushing of nations, that make a rushing like the rushing of mighty waters!" (Is. 17:12.) The multitudes of those many nations are making a noise like the noise of the rushing, mighty seas. They have no peace or rest. The wicked among those many nations are like the troubled sea, when it cannot rest. The rushing, troubled waters of their carnal minds are continually casting up mire and dirt (Is. 57:20). The heathen are raging and the people are imagining a vain thing. The kings of the earth set themselves and take counsel together, against the Lord and against His anointed ones (Ps. 2:1-2).

 

In spite of the violent and evil behavior of the wicked, which has reached its climax at this evening time of gross darkness, God has already declared what He will do about it. He said, "The nations shall rush like the rushing of many waters: but God shall rebuke them, and they (the man of sin and evil) shall flee far off, and shall be chased as the chaff of the mountains before the wind, and like a rolling thing before the whirlwind. And behold  at eveningtide (or at dusk, which is where we are now) trouble; and before the morning he (old Adam, the man of sin and evil) is not. This is the portion of them that spoil us, and the lot of them that rob us" (Is. 17:13-14).

 

The Hebrew word translated "rush," or "rushing," means to hurry to make things desolate in the earth. It also may include the wonderful truth that the wicked are rushing along to their own desolation and destruction. They are not going anywhere; they are not going to do anything; they are rushing to their own destruction and desolation. It is also interesting to see that the word "waters" in verse 13, includes the juices of the human body. Purely by the carnal mind and the juices and the energy of the human body, mankind is rushing headlong to his own destruction, yet thinking "he" is destroying the Christ (Ps. 2:1-3). But God shall rebuke them! And being rebuked by God, their attempt shall be fruitless and vain. The phrase, "they shall flee far off," means that the sin and evil of man shall vanish away to remoteness; it shall simply be no more.

 

The old carnal nature of mankind shall be chased with hostile intent, to be eliminated as chaff before the wind of the Spirit. The word "chaff" is used to indicate the useless portion of our being (our carnal mind and body). It is that which has been separated from the more valuable part of the rest of us, which is our spirits and souls, just as chaff is separated from the valuable kernel of wheat in the farmer's threshing process. The sinful, carnal nature, which we all inherited from the first Adam, has spoiled and robbed us. But the portion, allotment, or destiny of that sinful, carnal nature within all of us is to be destroyed, to trouble the world no more.

 

God is beginning now to do something about the all-pervading sin and evil of man, especially here in our own country where we believe God's program for the restoration of all things is to commence. Our Father's plan of full redemption and restoration began at evening time, with the judgment of all those except the elect. All this "trouble" came forth at evening time as God began to rebuke Adam's sin and evil manifest by men and nations. The darkness of man's sin and unbelief was at its worst at evening time. The judgment unto correction of the darkness of man's carnality shall continue until the dawn of the new morning. Then all sin and evil shall be removed from mankind, beginning with the elect. When the new morning of this "Day" dawns, the "trouble," or corrective judgments, of this day of the Lord will end. Then we shall see the glory of the Lord as we have never seen Him/it before. And the pattern or example for this has already been demonstrated in Israel's history (Ex. 16:6-7).

 

These strange events, or "acts of God," should cause us to turn our spiritual ears to the heavens where we may hear the omnipotent Voice of our God. He is declaring, "the kingdom of God is come!" As it was with Isaiah, so also should it be with us. Isaiah rose to new heights in God to hear the message of the Spirit, which was, "Holy, holy, holy, is the Lord of hosts: the whole earth is full of His glory." When we hear the good news of His kingdom by ascending into the heavenly realm of Spirit, we will then declare what we have heard. The heavens shall also declare the glory of His kingdom (Ps. 19:1-3). When we embrace the principles of the kingdom and manifest them, wonderful changes then take place in the realm of the Spirit. Those changes will affect all others who also ascend in the Spirit. Our attitudes and deeds will greatly affect not only ourselves, but others who may be unseen and unknown to us, by the Spirit. For example, if we forgive someone, we are forgiven ourselves (Mt. 6:14). And that spirit of forgiveness will affect many others also, by that same Spirit.

 

As we have already stated, the "day of the Lord" is the Lord's day. It is that specific period when the Lord does His work in the earth to establish His righteousness in mankind, beginning with His elect. It is the day when He sets up His kingdom in the hearts of others and in all the earth. Most of the events listed on page fourteen may be considered "acts of God," but other events are not so simple to understand and explain. According to scripture, it is God who withholds the precious rain of His Spirit (2 Chr. 7:13). We may also conclude that it is God's responsibility for the general spiritual decline in the churches and among most of God's people today. When any spiritual decline such as this takes place, it usually affects the moral state of our society. Therefore, we also may rightly conclude that the deteriorating spiritual and moral state of our nation and people is God's responsibility. God alone is responsible for all that takes place ON HIS DAY. The word of the Lord to Solomon at the dedication of his temple clearly declares that God is doing all this to bring His people to repentance.

 

The Lord Himself told Solomon that He may also "send the locusts to devour the land" (2 Chr. 7:13). In the Old Testament and under that old economy, locusts were pesky insects that swarmed over the earth, literally and naturally. But according to the prophetic word and in harmony with the spirit of the times, locusts are spiritual forces of darkness that come out of the "bottomless pit," along with the smoke from that pit (see Rev. 9:2-3). They represent spiritual powers of darkness that God has sent among us. Yes, according to His holy word of truth, God sent those spiritual locusts of darkness! We should understand and accept as TRUTH the fact that God has sent these locusts of darkness among us. We will then understand with spiritual clarity what caused two boys, eleven and thirteen years of age, to take guns and shoot some of their fellow students at a school in Jonesboro, Arkansas. That locusts of spiritual darkness are troubling the people of our nation, both young and old, is truth for today! And God sent those "locusts" to us to bring His people to repentance.

 

God's anointed word plainly tells us that He "created the waster (a person of ruin) to destroy," just as He created "the smith that bloweth the coals in the fire" (Is. 54:16). Are there such "wasters," or people of ruin, among us today? Indeed, there are!  And where did they come from?  God Himself sent them!  Spiritual "locusts" of darkness are influencing those "wasters," causing them to do the things they are doing in our world today. In his anointed letter to the Romans, Paul wrote of Pharaoh. He said Pharaoh was raised by God to do what he did to God's people, Israel. God's purpose in raising Pharaoh and hardening his heart was to show His mighty power in him, and that the Name of the Lord would be declared in all the earth.

 

Most people in our nation today and in many other parts of the world have heard the story of Israel's deliverance out of Egyptian bondage. The prophetic word of the Lord has thus been fulfilled regarding Pharaoh's hardened heart, which is, "that my name might be declared throughout all the earth" (Ro. 9:17). Whenever the story of Israel's deliverance out of Egyptian bondage under Pharaoh is told, whether in a Sunday School class of children or in a message to adults, the Name of the Lord is being declared and honored. God will see to it, just as He will see to the fulfillment of all His holy word of truth!

 

Paul also wrote, "Therefore hath He mercy on whom He will have mercy, and whom He will He hardeneth" (Ro. 9:17-18). Just as there are "vessels of mercy, which He had afore prepared unto glory," so also are there "vessels of wrath fitted to destruction" (vs. 22-23). Vessels of wrath with hardened hearts, fitted by God for the destruction of the world's carnal, corrupt systems, are certainly among us today. They are all sent of God to bring His people to repentance and fulfill His eternal purposes concerning His magnificent, kingdom plan of full redemption and restoration.

 

The Lord is giving us a new vision of the kingdom of God and of His ultimate purposes for that kingdom. Those kingdom purposes are being fulfilled in the earth today by all the events of this awesome Day, which is the Lord's day. When we really understand the kingdom of God as it is manifest in the world today, we will thank and praise Him for every storm, every flood, every disaster, and for all the strange, earth-shaking events that are taking place in the world all around us. Just as there are vessels of wrath fitted for the destruction of the world's carnal and corrupt systems of man's creation, so also are there vessels of mercy. Those vessels of mercy are the sons of God. They are called and chosen of the Father, and are walking toward the ultimate goal in God. And Father's ultimate goal for them is to bring the blessings and benefits of the kingdom of God to all the earth, and set this troubled, groaning creation free.

                                                              Paul and Emily Mueller

                                            P O BOX 25055, PORTLAND, OR 97298-0055

Return to: Home Page    Kingdom Resources