Therefore, we believe there are three heavens, the third heaven being the highest and most glorious of all the heavens of God's Spirit that relate to the earth. When Paul referred to one who was "caught up" to the third heaven, I believe it was Paul's spiritual man who had that experience, and that he was taken to the highest of the heavens to commune with God. What he heard while in that highest of the heavens was of such deep and profound truth that he could not share it with anyone. So he described what he heard there as "unspeakable words, which it is not lawful for a man to utter."
The manifestations and worship of God in the earth are also seen in groups of three. There were three realms in Israel's Old Testament worship, which was, 1) the outer court, 2) the Holy place, and 3) the Holiest of all, or the Holy of holies. So also were there three major feasts in Israel's Old Testament worship, which were, 1) Passover, 2) Pentecost, and 3) Tabernacles. And there may also be three heavens, which correspond to the two series of threes as described above. The Psalmist described the Lord as "him that rideth upon the heavens of heavens" (Ps. 68:33). The use of the words "heavens of heavens" would indicate a plurality of heavens, certainly more than two, and possibly three or more. And the prophet Nehemiah referred to "heaven, (and) the heaven of heavens" (Ne. 9:6), again suggesting several heavens. Also, the Bible refers to a realm of God and His glory that is above the heavens (Ps. 8:1, Eph. 4:10). We believe the first heaven is typical of the outer court and Passover. The second heaven is similar or is likened to the Holy place and the realm of Pentecost, while the highest of the heavens, or the third heaven, is similar to the Holiest of all and the realm of Tabernacles.
Some time ago, the Lord gave me a vision of a heavenly realm below, or surrounding, the three heavens of God's Spirit. That heavenly realm that was below the three heavens and possibly surrounding them, was a realm of darkness; I saw that it was the domain of evil. David described that lower heaven of darkness in relation to God, when he said, "darkness was under his feet" (2 Sam 22:10, Ps. 18:9). And the prophet Isaiah declared that God clothes "the heavens with blackness" (Is 50:3, see also Jer. 4:28). There is a spiritual reason or purpose for all that takes place in the world today. When we understand that there is a heaven of darkness below the heavens of God's Spirit, we will then see how and why spiritual darkness is affecting the people of the world as it is at this time. We will also be able to see and understand the value and purpose of our spiritual ministry to the Lord.
In that vision, I saw that many people were being influenced by evil from that lower heaven of darkness and evil. I saw that all except the truly blood-bought believers were influenced by that evil and darkness, and that young people and others not so strong and informed were especially motivated by all that darkness from the lower heavens. But then the Lord also made me to know that when we ascend in the Spirit to the heavens of God's Spirit, we are thereby breaking through that lower heaven of evil and darkness, to dispel it by the power of His Spirit. This is our new ministry to the Lord in the new order of the kingdom of God on earth! As we continue our new, kingdom ministry, all evil and darkness shall eventually be removed, to trouble the world no more. This is the secret to conquering all evil and all darkness! Preaching and ministering according to the old Pentecostal, church order will avail nothing in this battle against darkness and evil. But when we ascend in the Spirit to the heavenlies of God's Spirit, to commune with Him and minister to Him, we then begin to defeat all darkness and evil, putting every enemy of Christ under His feet.
We are entering into a ministry in the Spirit that will manifest the power and glory of the kingdom of God to all mankind. Make no mistake about it; we have a tremendous responsibility! We have a duty to perform in the great, kingdom work of defeating all darkness and evil. We are called to RULE AND REIGN with Christ! We are to RULE, as with a rod of iron, over all the enemies of Christ, including the nations and all darkness and evil (Rev. 2:27). We are called to take dominion over all darkness. We also are called to rule mankind as if we were shepherds tending a flock of sheep. We shall destroy the power and influence of darkness and evil in the earth by removing it from the lower heavens of spirit. We are also called of God to REIGN with grace and love over all the affairs of mankind in the earth, by ministering to the Lord in the Spirit and by the Spirit. This is not an easy task! But it is one we shall accomplish by being led by His Spirit. Think not that we are to lie at ease as if on a bed of roses! There is work to be done in the kingdom of God, but it is spiritual work. It is work that is nothing like the carnal, religious, church works of the flesh, which have now become works of iniquity!
Perhaps some have an erroneous idea of what it means to enter into the REST of God. Our high calling in God REQUIRES that we enter into HIS REST! This will bring us to the end of the old order church works of the past. Most Christians and some who claim to be in this walk, will run from meeting to meeting and from one religious work to another. They are doing what Watchman Nee once described in one of his books as, "running around for their own relief." To reign with Christ, we must cease all such outward, religious activity of the flesh, and enter into His rest. But while we rest from all outward, fleshly, religious activity, we must then begin to WORK IN THE SPIRIT. We shall do this by ascending the heavenlies with God, by ministering to Him and communing with Him, hearing and seeing in the Spirit His marvelous, kingdom works. In this way, we are doing what no one before us has ever done; we are destroying the works of darkness and evil at the source! We are actually binding the spirits of evil and darkness in the lower heavens, so those spirits also may be bound in the earth. When darkness and evil are bound both in heaven and in the earth with the keys of the kingdom that we possess, those spiritual powers are then locked up and destroyed, never to trouble anyone again (Mt. 16:18-19). And the gates of hell shall not prevail against us!
Some will only see this new Day, with its new and greater hope and promise, as another opportunity to continue the old, dead ways of the church order of the past, with its outmoded Pentecostal procedures and manifestations. But the elect of the Lord have ceased all such childish, religious games! Instead of following the old, dead religious routine of the past, the elect will stay in a repentant mode, seeking the Lord and worshiping Him in spirit and in truth. This is a crucial time of transition! The Lord is renewing the minds of His elect before their glorious and complete transformation! He is also moving His elect and chosen ones from the old church order of the past to the new order of the greater fullness of the kingdom of God on earth. While we are growing in the Spirit, being renewed in our minds by the present work of the Spirit within us unto our ultimate and complete change, others of a far different calling and purpose are also approaching their manifestation as they dwell among us and alongside us.
The Spirit of the Lord is making us aware that there are tares growing alongside and in the midst of the true wheat! The good seed is the seed of the kingdom, but the seed of the tares is the carnal, Adamic nature within. Both seeds were sown in the earth to grow and bring forth in the lives of men and women. The tares represent the manifestation of the false grain of the carnal nature, while the true wheat are the elect of the kingdom who are led by the Spirit. They are the sons of God who are making the transition from the old church order to the new and more vibrant kingdom order! Those who are likened to tares delight in manifesting the fleshly, carnal nature, and in giving the flesh what it wants. The tares look like wheat, talk like wheat, and sometimes even act like wheat! They are saved and may have received the holy Spirit at some time in the past, but they live and move and walk in the flesh, while they claim to be led by the Spirit. And the seed sown within them, which is an exhibition of the carnal nature, will bring them to more religious manifestations of the flesh.
When the disciples asked Jesus if the tares should be uprooted, He wisely advised them that the tares should grow alongside the true wheat and should not be pulled up, lest the wheat be uprooted also. Both must grow together until the harvest, according to Father's will and purpose (Mt. 13:24-30). Then, in the time of harvest, or in the days of the coming of the Son of man, which parallels the days of Noah and Lot, the two shall be separated to bring forth the completed man of the Spirit, which is the Christ man, or the company of the manifest sons of God (see Mt. 24:36-41, Ro. 8:18-23).
When the tares are judged by the Lord, they will be found lacking in the ability to do the will of God and enter the kingdom. The will of God is the constitution, or the basic law, of the kingdom of God. And the will of God for all who shall enter the fullness of the kingdom is for them to end their old order works of Pentecost and make the transition from the old church order to the new kingdom order. The tares will attempt to gain entrance into the greater fullness of the kingdom of God by reminding the Lord of their continued pentecostal performance under church order. But the Lord will then say to them, "I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity" (Mt. 7:21-23). And when the Lord of the harvest calls for the true wheat to be harvested, the tares will only display empty heads where there should be fruitful grain. Their minds were not renewed, nor were their lives changed, in preparation for their total and complete transformation. This shows that they lack the true wheat, or fruit, which is necessary for anyone to become fully manifest sons of God and enter the greater fullness of the kingdom of God.
The true elect of the Lord pay strict attention to spiritual things! They do only what their heavenly Father tells them to do, nothing more and nothing less! They are remaining in their spiritual cocoons, or booths, fulfilling the principles of the feast of tabernacles (Lev. 23:34, 39-42), where they are worshiping the Lord and ministering to Him, as our Father called us to do (Eze. 44:15-16). Others cannot stand to remain in their booths very long. They must have the religious excitement and enthusiasm of meetings and the fellowship of man, which only leads to confusion. As it is first the natural, then the spiritual (1 Co. 15:46), so the experience of the natural, which has taken place first, illustrates the greater truth of the spiritual. Our transformation is patterned after the metamorphosis of the caterpillar. Not until its change is full and complete does the beautiful butterfly leave its cocoon to emerge as a full-grown, adult butterfly. Its time of life as a lowly caterpillar will only end when it has been changed into a beautiful butterfly. While it remains in its cocoon, the caterpillar goes through all the changes necessary for it to come forth in the likeness of a butterfly.
The caterpillar will pass from the larva stage to the pupa stage, and finally to the adult butterfly stage, while in the quiet confinement of its chrysalis, or cocoon. So also shall all the true elect remain quietly in their cocoons or booths until their transformation is complete. We shall remain shut up unto the Lord in our spiritual cocoons or booths, or in the place of isolation from religious ministry and association where our Father has put us, until our change has fully taken place. And nothing or no one shall ever deceive the true elect into leaving their spiritual booths before the appointed time! As the caterpillar passes through at least two changes while it is encased within its cocoon, so also do we pass through many necessary changes while we are shut in with God in our cocoons, or in the secret place of the Most High, where we commune with Him in quiet confidence and with His living faith.
Furthermore, all the elements, such as food and sustenance, which are necessary to bring about its change, from a larva to a pupa, and from a pupa to an adult butterfly, are shut up in its cocoon with the caterpillar. Everything the caterpillar needs to bring about its change is shut up with it in its cocoon. So also are all the elements necessary for our change shut up with us in our spiritual booths, especially the Christ within. Christ and His fullness is all we shall ever need to be changed into His glorious image and likeness! By Him, we shall continually ascend to heavenly realms in God, communing with God in the Spirit, receiving from Him all that is necessary to bring about our total change, while we remain in our spiritual booths. We certainly do not need man's word, and the resulting confusion that man's word and man's fellowship will bring. We need Christ, and Him only! When we do come forth from our spiritual cocoons, or booths, we shall be gloriously changed into the image and likeness of Christ. No longer shall we bear the sin-cursed and death-bound image and likeness of old Adam, for we shall be just like Christ.
Our Father called us out of the church system and out of the fellowships of man, that He might be our only true Source of sustenance. While we were in the noisy realm of man, and in the bondage of man's fellowships, we were "under tutors and governors until the time appointed of the Father. But when the fulness of the time was come," our Father called us out into the glorious freedom and liberty of the sons of God, "that we might receive the adoption of sons" (see Ga. 4:1-5). The word "adoption," as used here, means sonship in respect to God as our Father.
By leaving the church system and the fellowships of man, we joined the ranks of those who were "called" of the Father to enter the sonship walk. But being "called" to the sonship walk does not mean we are in that walk! We then must be "chosen" of our Father and found "faithful" by our obedience to His will to enter into the high calling of sonship to God (Rev. 17:14). We can only remain faithful to God in this high calling by staying in our "booths" where our Father put us. And it is certain that we cannot maintain our high calling of sonship to God by going back to the old, dead church realm of meetings and fellowships. Having been brought out of that former darkness into the greater light of sonship, we certainly will not want to return to the old ways, as a dog might return to its vomit. And having been brought into the greater freedom and victory of sonship to God, we would not want to go back again into that former bondage.
Sonship is not a truth that needs to be published and broadcast on a wide scale to the multitudes. It is certainly a blessing to see new people come into the sonship walk and calling when Father has called them, then chosen them, and finally found them faithful. True sonship is a holy walk with God! It is a high calling in God that can only be given to any person by their heavenly Father. Only God can call a person into this walk and then choose them to become sons of God, after they are found faithful. No one can ever choose this high calling unto sonship by their own will, ambition, or desire!
There are no volunteers in this walk unto sonship! All who are walking this walk with God are conscripts or draftees! They were compulsorily enrolled into this company of saints! Their Father called them into sonship, and they obediently surrendered to His will and purpose. All who walk with God in this sonship calling do so humbly, reverently, and with Godly fear. And all who walk this walk unto sonship ful-filled are patiently enduring the sufferings of Christ, according to the will of God. They know that their sufferings are bringing them to son-ship fulfilled. Because they are going through the sufferings of Christ, they hesitate to share these truths of sonship fulfilled with anyone else. If others are to walk this walk unto sonship, they shall be called and chosen of the Father, and then found faithful, as we were.
As the caterpillar has all it needs in its cocoon, so we have all we need for our spiritual growth unto the fullness of Christ and for our change and manifestation as sons of God. It is all available to us IN CHRIST! He Who is within us is full and complete! By Him we have free and open access to all the fullness of Christ, including all the fullness that exists in the heavenly realm of Spirit. "For in him dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily. And ye are complete in Him, which is the head of all principality and power" (Col. 2:9-10). When we have the Christ within us, Who is the fullness of God and the Sustainer and Keeper of all things, what more do we need from man?
The Day of Christ's Appearing Like the Days of Noah and Lot
In Luke's account of the story of the "two men," and "two women," which is the two natures or the two people within us all, we find some interesting additions to the whole story. For example, Luke likens the appearing of the Son of man, "in his day," to the coming forth of the lightning that shineth from one part of the heavens to the other part. When lightning strikes or shines, it strikes indiscriminately and sometimes without warning. As "the wind bloweth where it listeth, and thou hearest the sound thereof, but canst not tell whence it cometh, and whither it goeth: so is every one that is born of the Spirit" (Jo. 3:8). The blowing or the movement of the four winds of the earth are comparable to the movings of the holy Spirit and to the person who is born of the Spirit. So also are the appearings of Christ "as the lightning. (It/He) lighteneth out of the one part of heaven, (and) shineth unto the other part under heaven; so shall also the Son of man be in his day" (Lu. 17:24). The holy Spirit of God moves somewhat like the literal four winds of the earth, which blows from various directions. So also are the appearings of Christ just like the lightning when it strikes. As the lightning lights part of the sky when it strikes, so the appearings of Christ also lights part of the heavens, the earth, and the lives of those who faithfully receive Him when He appears.
Christ appears with the swiftness of lightning, and also with the great power and brightness of lightning. As lightning flashes in various parts of the heavens, so Christ appears to many people and for many pur-poses. To map or detail the many lightning strikes in the literal heavens may be difficult, if not impossible. Neither is there any way to map and detail the many appearings of Christ to His people in the spiritual heavens. And it is certain that His future appearings cannot be predicted or described so that all may prepare themselves to meet him, when He appears. Christ comes or appears to His elect unseen and unannounced! He does a secret, silent work in their lives, for His glory, which is unseen and unknown by the multitudes. As the light-ning strikes the earth, leaving signs of its power evident at times, so the benefits of the appearings of Christ as lightning within His elect are sure, steadfast, and lasting. Some of us have been radically changed forever by the lightning-like appearings of Christ! By His appearings in us, the old, dead doctrines of the past have been removed from us. In place of those doctrines, God has given us new kingdom truths that are much greater in power, in scope, and in authority.
Luke also tells us that the coming or the appearing of the Son of man "in his day," shall be as it was in the days of Noah, and in the days of Lot. There was nothing special or significant about the days of Noah, or the days of Lot. The people of that era "did eat, they drank, they married wives, they were given in marriage, until the day that Noe entered into the ark, and the flood came, and destroyed them all. Likewise also as it was in the days of Lot; they did eat, they drank, they bought, they sold, they planted, they builded; But the same day that Lot went out of Sodom it rained fire and brimstone from heaven, and destroyed them all. Even thus shall it be in the day when the Son of man is revealed" (Lu. 17:26-30).
Many have been looking for negative signs similar to those given in the days of Noah and Lot to identify the present time of the appearings of Christ. But no outward signs are to be given, whether negative or positive. What we do see here is that the people of the world will all be doing what they have always been doing when Christ appears. They will be eating, drinking, marrying, buying, selling, planting and building, when Christ appears. Is there anything significant, unusual, or wrong about doing any of those things? Nothing at all! When the Son of man appears, the elect, other Christians, and the rest of the people of the world will all be doing what they have been doing from Noah's day and Lot's day, throughout all human history, to this present time. There will be no distinguishing, external signs announcing the appearing of Christ! Everyone everywhere will be doing what mankind has been doing since the beginning of time.
There are, however, two very significant events that took place, one in Noah's day and the other in Lot's day. In Noah's day, people continued to do the things that normal people do. Nothing unusual was taking place in that day, nor should we look for anything unusual to take place in this Day of the appearings of Christ. All things continued in the world in which Noah lived, until the day that Noah entered into the ark. As soon as Noah entered the ark, everything changed! When Noah entered the ark, the world of the former creation ended and a new world was then in the making. The old, former world of mankind in Noah's day continued as it had, with no significant changes, until the day that Noah entered into the ark.
On the very day that Noah entered the ark, everything in the world changed. Then, the old worldly order of man was completely wiped out and removed from the face of the earth. By Noah simply entering into the ark, in obedience to the word of the Lord, many changes took place in the world, and also in the Lord's purposes for His people. "Even thus shall it be in the day when the Son of man is revealed." No significant changes will take place in the world before Christ appears! But when He appears, everything will change, first in the realm of the Spirit, then within us, and finally in the world all around us. The elect have been and will be changed by the appearings of Christ! By His appearing within us, the Lord has also established the new order of the kingdom of God in the earth.
At God's command, Noah built an ark! And then, at the appointed time, Noah entered into that ark! God was about to eliminate some sinners from the face of the earth, and establish a new order in the earth for mankind. Noah was God's choice as the man of righteousness through whom a new world order would be established. By the obedience of Noah, the Lord fulfilled His purpose in the earth and a new order came forth. "Even thus shall it be (today) when the Son of man is revealed." By the appearings of Christ at this time, the elect who received Him have been changed and renewed to become the forerunners of the kingdom of God on earth. The new order of the kingdom of God on earth is being established within them. And those elect and chosen ones are also becoming the new highway into the kingdom of God for many others to follow.
The writer to the Hebrews wrote this of Noah: "By faith Noah, being warned of God of things not seen as yet, moved with fear, prepared an ark to the saving of his house; by the which he condemned the world, and became heir of the righteousness which is by faith" (He. 11:7). The warning God gave Noah must have been a very stern and effective warning, for Noah obeyed immediately. He did not yet see that which God had spoken to him about, including the need to build an ark for the salvation of his house, but he obeyed anyway!
Our faith in God and in His word must be so strong that we will obey Him even though we have not yet seen His word fulfilled. Only the word of God - only His voice, when it is heard - will create faith within us to enable us to obey Him. The elect of the Lord have been so processed and trained of their Father they need nothing more than His pure word to bring forth the obedience He requires of them. By his faith in God, and being warned of Him, Noah was moved with Godly fear to prepare an ark for the salvation of his family. For one hundred years Noah faithfully labored to build that massive ship, which was to hold his family and two of every kind of creature on earth. He built that ark on dry land, without any sign of an approaching flood all during that time. By simply acting on the pure word of God - by doing what God told him to do - Noah condemned the world, and became heir of the righteousness which is by faith. All during that long century of ship-building, Noah was condemning or judging (including the punishment of) the world for their sins and disobedience of the word of the Lord.
Noah's obedience condemned the world, and made him an heir of the righteousness which is by faith. "Even thus shall it be (today) when the Son of man is revealed." The ark of Noah's day is a type of Christ, Who is our true Ark of safety. As Noah entered the ark, in obedience to the word of the Lord, even so have the Lord's elect entered into the greater Ark, which is Christ in His greater fullness (see 1 Pe. 3:20-21). When the Lord called us out of the church system, He called us out unto Himself. Our Father did not call us out of the church system only to allow us to join ourselves to another man, or to another group, or to another fellowship, or to another system. But our Father called us out that we might be joined to the Lord and to Him only! And when we obeyed the Lord and faithfully left the church system and all of its doctrines and works of the flesh, we were, by our obedience, beginning the formation of another Ark, even the greater Ark of the fullness of Christ!
As more and more believers were called to leave the church system, to join us in this Ark or body of Christ, the true Ark of the Lord increased. And it shall continue to increase both in quantity and quality of believers until it is full and complete. At the appointed time, when the Ark of Christ is complete, the door shall be shut. Then, the saints who make up that Ark, or the body of Christ, shall be "sealed." Both the quantity and the quality of those saints shall be complete. Nothing will be lacking in their lives! Their obedience is acceptable to their Father! They have done all His will, as He revealed it to them, so they are "sealed" unto the fullness of their redemption. Not only is each person in that "Ark" sealed, but the whole company, the entire Christ-body, or the whole "Ark," is also sealed (see Rev. 7:3-4).
Jesus Christ, the firstborn Son of God, was the first to be so "sealed" of the Father (Jo. 27). As He was "sealed" of the Father, even so every true follower of Christ, or every son of God, shall also be "sealed" of the Father. To be "sealed," from the original word and according to Strong's concordance, means to stamp with a private mark for security or preservation, to keep secret. That "seal" is given as a mark of privacy or genuineness. The original word is taken from another, meaning, to protect from misuse or misappropriation.
This tells us that all who shall remain within the Ark of Christ unto its/His completion shall be "sealed" of the Father. To remain in Christ, or in the Ark that He is, means that we remain obedient to His revealed word. Our Father has called us to stay in our booths, or cocoons, until we are changed into His image and likeness. As we remain in our booths, we are thereby fulfilling a major principle of the feast of tabernacles. Israel of old was commanded of God to stay in their booths for seven days (see Lev. 23:34, 39-42). Even so shall we remain in our spiritual "booths" until the fullness of time, which the number "seven" implies. It is a simple word given to all those who have ears to hear. Those who do not have hearing ears, and who have not heard His word, will not remain in their cocoons, or booths. The tares will do what their carnal mind tells them to do. But we must do all our Father's perfect, revealed will!
Noah had no choice in the matter! The will and purpose of God was his sole occupation! He certainly could not have jumped out of the ark at any time, with nothing but water all around him, when he may have tired of the confinement, the noise, and the stench from all the animals. But he had to remain in the place where God put him! And seeing the flood waters rising all around him, I imagine Noah was glad to be protected and preserved in the privacy and confinement of that ark, along with his family and all the animals. Even so shall we remain in our spiritual "booths," protected from the contrary elements outside of us here in the isolation and aloneness of our dwellings with our Father, until He changes us into His full image and likeness.
As we remain in our spiritual "booths," we shall be "sealed" of the Father unto our full salvation. This means that we are "IN CHRIST," in the full sense of the word, and that we shall remain here until He has changed us. By sealing us, our Father is marking us with His private mark or stamp for security and preservation. He is also keeping us in that secret place with Him, protecting us from being misused or misappropriated by the carnal preachers and the church system. He has thus marked us out and set us apart unto Himself as genuine sons of God, lest we be carried away with the false messages and false appeals of the tares. Of this sealing, Paul wrote, to say, "Now he which stablisheth us with you IN CHRIST, and hath anointed us, is God; Who hath also sealed us, and given us the earnest of the Spirit in our hearts" (2 Co. 1:21-22).
To remain IN CHRIST, is to remain in the Ark of His presence. And to remain in our "booths" in His presence in the Holiest of all, is to remain IN CHRIST, who is our Ark of salvation! When our Father seals us, He also gives us "the earnest of the Spirit." The meaning of the word, "earnest," is a pledge; it is considered part of the purchase-money or property given in advance as security for the rest of our inheritance. It is our down-payment and guarantee that we shall receive the fullness of Christ, including the fullness of His Life, when we are changed into His image and likeness. We have received only a small portion of our full inheritance in Christ. We have only received the down-payment, or the earnest-portion, of our full spiritual inheritance in Christ. If we will remain in our spiritual "booths," IN CHRIST, just as Noah remained in that literal ark, we shall receive our full inheritance, which is our new bodies of resurrection life.
When the flood ended and Noah and his family came out of the ark, God's purposes for a new age continued in the earth. Like Noah, we too shall come forth out of the Ark of Christ, to manifest the blessings and benefits of the kingdom of God to all the world. Then Noah built an altar and worshiped the Lord. The Lord smelled a sweet savor, and said in his heart, "I will not again curse the ground for man's sake; for the imagination of man's heart is evil from his youth; neither will I again smite any more every thing living, as I have done." Think of that! The Lord Himself decreed that He would never again smite or destroy every thing living in the earth! God will not again destroy all mankind! If there are any Biblical prophecies predicting the destruction of mankind, those prophecies must be interpreted with this Word of promise in view! In spite of man's carnal predictions, God will not again destroy all mankind; but He will destroy the sinful, carnal, Adamic nature, which is the other man that is within us all.
Then God said, "While the earth remaineth, seedtime and harvest, and cold and heat, and summer and winter, and day and night shall not cease" (see Ge. 8:21-22). This also is God's word! Some would try to tell us that we will soon run out of the earth's resources, but they do not know what they are talking about. Our God and our Father has decreed that the normal, earthly functions shall continue as long as the earth remains. And I believe the eternal and infallible Word of my Father! The will of God shall indeed be done in all the earth, for His glory. The Lord then told Noah that he and his family were to be fruitful and replenish the earth.
"Likewise also as it was in the days of Lot"
The days of Lot also are likened to the time of the appearing of the Son of man. In Lot's day, as in Noah's day, the people were eating, drinking, marrying, buying, selling, planting and building. There is nothing unusual or wrong about this; these are just the normal, usual things that people the world over will do. "But the same day that Lot went out of Sodom it rained fire and brimstone from heaven, and destroyed them all. Even thus shall it be in the day when the Son of man is revealed" (Lu. 17:29-30). While events in the world are trans-piring as usual, with nothing uncommon or unique taking place to attract attention, the Son of man will be revealed.
In Lot's day, the angels of the Lord came to his house and warned him of the destruction to come upon Sodom for its sins. But when Lot hesitated to leave Sodom, the angels mercifully but forcefully took him and his wife and two daughters and "brought him forth, and set him without the city" (Ge. 19:15-16). When they were safely out of the city, the angels told Lot and his family that they were to escape for their lives, and were not to look behind them to the city they just left. They were to leave the plain and escape to the mountains, lest they be consumed. But Lot's wife did look back toward Sodom, the city of sin and darkness that God told them to leave. And when Lot's wife looked back toward Sodom, in disobedience to the word of the Lord, she immediately turned into a pillar of salt. The term, "looked back," means to regard with pleasure, favor or care. Thus, Lot's wife regarded wicked Sodom with pleasure, favor and care. The word "pillar," means a statue, while salt is typical of that which has become desolate and useless (De. 29:23, Ez. 47:11). What a strong judgment for one who disobeyed the word of the Lord!
There may also be those in this day who are "looking back" to the church system and the leadership of man, thinking of bringing those carnal principles into the sonship realm. Some today seem to want to return to the thing from which the Lord once delivered them. Others may be "looking back" to the old church order of the past, lusting after its lost glory, possibly thinking they might bring about its restoration. They regard the old thing with pleasure, favor or care, as Lot's wife did when she "looked back" at Sodom. But the old church order, with its dead routine of meetings, conferences, and the fellowships of man, are things of the past. That old church order is done with, and is being replaced by the new, kingdom order! The Lord will not return to that old method of administering His kingdom in the earth. A new order is now coming forth, thus making the old obsolete. And all who would look back to that which God has replaced and abandoned, as Lot's wife looked back toward Sodom after having been delivered by the Lord, can only expect His merciful, corrective judgments.
And "the same day that Lot went out of Sodom it rained fire and brimstone from heaven, and destroyed them all." The change came when Lot left Sodom. "Even thus shall it be (today) when the Son of man is revealed." So also are many changes taking place, first in the Spirit and then literally in the earth, when we do the will of God. As the angels of the Lord came to Lot to warn him of the destruction of Sodom, so is the Lord appearing to His elect today, changing our spiritual walk, resulting in changes in the world around us. By being separated from the world and the religious systems of man, coming out from among them in obedience to the word of the Lord, and remaining in our spiritual booths, we are initiating changes in the world, just as Lot did when he left the city of Sodom. Only with the eye of the Spirit can we see the results and benefits of our new, kingdom walk in God and its effects on the world!
We may not fully realize how important it is for us to obey the word of the Lord and do all His holy will. Just to obey some simple word from God has eternal and boundless meaning and significance that we may not yet fully appreciate. God shall fulfill all His holy will in all the earth, as it has been done in the heavens. And He will do it by the appearings of Christ within us, by speaking to us, helping us to know what His will is. When we hear His word and faithfully do all His will without reservation, changes will take place, not only in our personal lives, but also in the world all around us. An entirely new dispensation of the purposes of God took place when Noah entered the ark, and again when Lot left Sodom. So also are we beginning a new spiritual order in the earth, which is the new order of the kingdom of God on earth, by our faithful, obedient and loving service to our Father. As the will of God is the constitution, or the basic law, of the kingdom of God, so our obedience to His will shall bring the new order of the kingdom to the earth and to the hearts of mankind, causing changes in people, in the world, and eventually in all the universe.
When we consent to do all the holy will of our Father without reservation, and then do it with faith in Him and His word, we are thereby beginning a new relationship with our elder Brother, the Lord Jesus Christ. It is the kind of relationship with Him and in Him that we have never known before. Once when He was with some of His friends, one of them told Jesus that His mother, and brothers and sisters were outside asking for Him. But Jesus replied, "Who are My mother and My brothers? And looking around Him, He said, See! Here are My mother and My brothers, For whoever does the things God wills is My brother, and sister, and mother" (Mk. 3:32-35, Amplified). To do the will of our Father, as we are led by the Spirit, will bring us into a greater walk of sonship with respect to our Father. Christ Jesus then becomes our Brother in a way that we have not known Him before. We are thus identified with Him and in Him in a new and living way to begin the restoration of all things.
In this new relationship with our Father and His first-born Son, we realize that all that takes place is the will of God. Nothing is ever done outside of God's will, whether in the earth or in the heavens, because Christ reigns. To believe that the will of God is not being done any-where is to deny His power and authority, and that He reigns. But when we accept the truth that His will is being done in the earth now, and that it will continue to be done in the future, we will then praise and thank Him for all that is taking place. Every negative and positive thing that happens is the will of God. Every bit of it has a part to fulfill in Father's plan of the restoration of all things.
With this spiritual understanding, we may then "thank [God] in everything - no matter what the circumstances may be, be thankful and give thanks; for this is the will of God for you [who are] IN CHRIST JESUS [the Revealer and Mediator of that will]" (1 Thess. 5:18, Amplified). Christ is the Revealer and Mediator of the will of our Father! He reveals the will of the Father to us by appearing within us, speaking to our hearts, that we might know God's will and receive the mind of Christ to understand it all. Christ also serves as the Mediator of the Father's will. That word "mediator" refers to one who stands between two parties to harmonize or reconcile them. The work of the mediator is generally to accomplish, settle, or correlate something by intervention or interposition. Christ thus stands between us and our Father to harmonize and reconcile us to Him, making it possible for us to do all the will of God. Through Christ and by His intervention, the will of God through us is fully accomplished. How wonderful to know Him as "the Revealer and Mediator of that will," which is the will of our Father.
Our God is changing this worldly order, replacing it with the new order of the kingdom of God on earth as we fully do the will of our Father. As "the Revealer and Mediator of that will," Christ will see to it that we shall do all His holy will in the perfect harmony and order of the mind of Christ. Then, and not necessarily in this order, we shall be transformed, many lives will be changed, and multitudes will come to Christ; the creation shall be set free, wars and violence shall end, peace shall reign everywhere, there shall be no hurting or destruction by anyone anywhere in all the holy mountain of the Lord, and the knowledge of the glory of the Lord shall cover the earth as the waters cover the sea.
Of this we may be absolutely certain: every step we take in obedience to our Father will result in changes in us and in the world all around us. Our spiritual progress is purposed of God to bring the blessings and benefits of the kingdom of God to all the earth to change the world. This is our Father's plan and purpose for our lives! We will faithfully do all His will, knowing the wonderful outcome of it all, for our Father has given us a vision of the consummation of all things. And what a glorious vision it is!
Paul and Emily Mueller
P O BOX 25055, PORTLAND OR 97298-0055
