DIVINE ENCOUNTER (RENEWAL FELLOWSHIP)

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TOPIC: THE SIGNS OF THE LAST DAYS   TEXT: II TIM. 3:1

PART 4A, B,C

`THE LAST DAY'- THE AGE OF THE ACTIVITIES OF THE HOLY GHOST  

            "And it shall come to pass IN THE LAST DAYS... I will pour out of my Spirit upon all flesh..."Acts 2:17 . "And this is the Father's will which hath sent me, that of all which He hath given me I should lose nothing, but should raise it up again at THE LAST DAY" Jn.6:39. "...TODAY if ye hear His voice, harden not your hearts as in the provocation, in the day of temptation in the wilderness..." Heb.3:7-8.

            We have just been able to establish the fact that when the Scripture is talking of the "THE DAY OF SALVATION" 2Cor.6:2, we are dealing with a period of time that involves the work of reconciliation, right through the ages, when all things shall eventually be subdued unto Christ (ICor.15:22-28). The question one will be tempted to ask then is: is there any difference between the `last days' of Acts 2:17, the `last day' of Jn.6:39 and the `today' of Heb.3:7-8? Sure there is! Listen, while Acts 2:17 speaks of a plural day, Jn.6:39 and Heb.3:7-8 is speaking of a singular day. And I will want to state here also that, the `today: is found within the `last day'. Infact, the TODAY is the now factor of the LAST DAY. In other words, it is the faith we need to exercise in the activities of the last day for "Now faith is Heb.11:1. That is to say `faith is in its present tense and demands immediate action as we behold the activities and hear the voice of the Son of God through His messengers in the last day by the Spirit. The `last day' then being the activities of Jesus as the Spirit (Acts2:36, 2Cor.3:17, Jn l6:7-11), as we shall see soon. Before we proceed, let us clarify the point again, that when we are talking of `days' or `day', we are talking of activities that are going on, or should be going on at a particular time in relation to certain individuals that should have fulfillment. For example, when talking of the activities of the Church in Antioch where they were first called Christians, the prophecy that followed and when it was fulfilled, the word says " And IN THESE DAYS (when Pail and Barnahas were with the Church in Antioch) came prophets from Jerusalem unto Antioch. And there stood up one of them named Agabus and signified by the Spirit that there should be great dearth throughout all the world; which came to pass IN THE DAYS of Claudius Caesar" Acts 11:27 -28. The living Bible simply says "During this time.. Agabus stood up in one of the meetings to predict by the Spirit that a great famine was coming upon the land of Israel (This was fulfilled during the reign of Claudius" (41-54AD). So you see, `in the days of Claudius', means during the reign of Claudius. This becomes clear therefore when we talk of the `the days of Noah' `the days of the Son of man' `in the last days' etc. Now my dear brother in the Lord, look back again to that passage of Scripture. Do you see any difference between that Church and the Church of today? Here was a Church with the Holy Ghost present, directing the Church and preparing them for the famine that was going to sweep through the land ahead of time, causing the brethren in that assembly to send relief materials as they were able to the brethren in Judea (V.29). Record has it that famine swept through the empire between 49 - 50 AD, firstly through Greece and later Rome . Where then is the true Spirit of God in the fellowship of the brethren today to warn or even give clear directions as touching things to come in the meeting of the so called `Pentecostals' or `Kingdomites'? Have we not grown above moves like this, or even when the Spirit speaks we despise the voice of the Spirit? Have we not over spiritualized or on the other hand canalized away the word of God? Have we not out the fear of being deceived systematized and of course quenched the Spirit in our midst today? Please see I Thes.5:19-20. No wonder calamities could strike in our midst without even a wind of it. May God help the Church. Amen.  

SO WHAT DO WE MEAN `AT THE LAST DAY  

            If there is a `last day' then ultimately there should have been a first or second day. Now, the scripture to understand what I am about to say is found in Math. 12:22-28 when Jesus in His days, healed a blind and dumb demoniac, the Pharisees said, He was casting out devils with the spirit of Beelzebub. In other words, they denied the power of the Holy Ghost that was operating in Jesus. In response Jesus said everyone of man’s sins and blasphemies will he forgiven but the blasphemy against the Snirit will not

be forgiven. And anyone who says a word against the Son of man will be forgiven; but let anyone speak against the Holy Spirit and he will not be forgiven either in this word or in the next"(Vs.31-32JB). The King James says "...in this world, neither in the world to come". Mark on recording the same account said "because they said He hath an unclean Spirit" (Mk.3:30). So it is clear what the sin is: it is the sin of unbelief in the power of the Holy Ghost. "IN THIS WORLD OR IN THE NEXT". Now what constitute these worlds and what is the difference? The first world - `in this world' speaks of the days of Jesus in the flesh, when He walked the shore of Galilee doing the cures and healing, proclaiming the message of the Kingdom in the power of the Holy Ghost; that men might be saved from their sins. Within that period of His earthly ministry is the first world. Whereas the `next world' or `the world to come' is talking of the age of the Holy Ghost right from the day of Pentecost and not some future date to come. When He said, he who blasphemes against the Holy Ghost cannot be forgiven, it is on the ground that, by means of the Holy Ghost one is drawn to God and so has his sins forgiven. For "...no man say that Jesus is the Lord, but by the Holy Ghost" ICor.12:13. So if you reject the Holy Ghost, then you cannot accept Christ and if you do not accept Christ, you cannot have your sins forgiven. Now, when Christ was speaking, the Holy Ghost was hidden within the human nature of Jesus, but after the cross, there was a release of this power to continue on with the work that He "began both to do and teach" (Acts. 1: 1). This is why on His promise to the disciples, He said "...when He (the Holy Ghost) is come, `the spirit will come and show the people of this world the truth about sin and God's justice and the judgment. The Spirit will show them that they are wrong about sin, because they didn't have faith in me (that they might he saved). They are wrong about God's justice because I am going to the Father, and you won't see me again. And they are wrong about judgement, because God has already judged the ruler of this world"' Jn.16:7-11 CEV. So as the Holy Ghost takes over from where Jesus ended up on the cross as the sacrificial lamb, that then is `the world to come' or `the next', that is the activities of the Holy Ghost. Now if you deny the Holy Ghost, it simply means you are resisting God's most direct appeal and excommunicating yourself from the range of God's saving grace. That is why the word says "When you find men who have been enlightened, who have experienced salvation and received the Holy Spirit, who have known the wholesome nourishment of the word of God and touched the spiritual resources of the eternal world (see Rom.8:22-23) and who then fall away, it proves impossible to make them repent as they did at first. For they are re-crucifying the Son of God in their own souls and by their conduct, exposing Him to shame and contempt" Heb.6:4-6 Philips. So you see, this age of the Holy Ghost is the last day in relation to the plans of God for the salvation of mankind. In other words, God is not intending to use another medium again to effect His work of salvation. He first spoke to the Jews, calling them to Himself as a people, they rebelled against God. He then manifested (appeared) as a man - Jesus (I Tim.3:16). For God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself (2Cor.5:19). They also rejected Him (Jn.1:10-11) and lastly, He is here now as the Holy Ghost - IN THE LAST DAY. It is this `Last day' of the activities of the Holy Ghost that He was speaking about to the disciples when He said "And IN THAT DAY ye shall ask me nothing.... whatsoever ye shall ask the Father in my name, He will give it you;..... AT THAT DAY ye shall ask in my name and I say not unto you, that I will pray the Father for you, for the Father Himself loveth you because you have loved me, and believed that I came out from God. I came forth from the Father, and am come into the world; again I leave the world, and go to the Father" Jn.16:23-28KJV. Now understand that it is because he left the world back to the Father who is Spirit (Jn.4.24) that is why the Holy Ghost has to come. So this is the day of the Holy Ghost, the last day - segment, period, season, order, in Gods plan of salvation if you will. The order the Lord has created by which you can accept the salvation plan of God is the sacrifice of Jesus while you still have your flesh or else be prepared to get through the lake of fire. For you came from God (Ps.90:1-2, Eccl.12:7) and you must go back to Him cleansed. So either way you must go back, for essentially you are a Spirit being but clothed with a flesh - body.

"RAISED UP AT THE LAST DAY"  

            "And it shall come to pass IN THE LAST DAYS... I will pour out of my Spirit upon all flesh..."   Acts 2:17 . "And this is the Father's will which hath sent me, that of all which He hath given me I should lose nothing, but should raise it up again at the last day" Jn.6:39.

Already we do know from previous studies that the `Last days' which is the plural form deals with the days    of the preaching of the Gospels of Christ side by side with Judaism. It was within this period that the Holy Ghost came down on the day of Pentecost. While the `Last day,' singular, speaks of the day of the activities of the Holy Ghost just as we can see that "in the days of Claudius Caesar" (Acts 11:28 ) means when Claudius Caesar was reigning. Now we found that the `day' we are dealing with is the `Last" because that is the period at which God's work of redemption is going on through the Holy Ghost. This is because He visited man for the same purpose as Yahweh, (then He was termed the God of the Jews). Then as Jesus Christ - God in the flesh - (that was Jesus of Nazareth) and finally, He resolved to come to man as the Holy Ghost. Now there should be no confusion as to who the Holy Ghost is. The Holy Ghost is God. For with regards to the birth of Jesus, we are told in the Scriptures that "...that which is conceived in her (Mary) is of the Holy Ghost" "The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee, and the power of the Highest shall overshadow thee; therefore also, that Holy thing which shall be born of thee shall be called the Son of God" Lk.1:35. From this account we can see that Jesus was born of the Holy Ghost, meaning the Holy Ghost is His Father and He is called the Son of God. With His resurrection, ascension back into glory, He has been made both Lord and Christ (Acts 2:36 ) and "the Lord is that Spirit" (2Cor.3:17) that came on the day of Pentecost. To do what? To carry on the work of redemption in and through the vessels of His disciples just as God was IN CHRIST reconciling the world unto Himself (2Cor.5:19). Even so He is now in His people, (the Ambassadors) pleading be ye reconciled to God (2Cor.5:20). This aspect of God's working through the Holy Ghost in His people is the final day He has chosen to effect the work of redemption. No other method, no other formula, no other day, hence it is called the "Last day".  

SO WHAT CAN WE SAY IS THE LAST DAY?  

            Like we have earlier on mentioned, the day is the day of the activities of the work of redemption in Christ Jesus. So it can rightly be termed 'the day of the Lord'. This was clearly explained to Martha by Jesus when she thought that her brother Lazarus will be raised on a future day called the last day. "...Jesus said unto her, thy brother shall rise again. Martha saith unto Him, I know that he shall rise again in the resurrection at the last day. Jesus said unto her I am the resurrection and the life he that believeth in me, (mind you, He is now Spirit) though he were dead, vet shall he live" Jn.11:23-25. What was Jesus telling Martha here? The day you were told should come and that you have been expecting is here standing before you. I AM THE RESURRECTION - day and THE LIFE - that quickens the dead in that day which is my day. Hallelujah! So you see, the 'Last day' is the period of the revelation of the life of a person -- our Lord, the Christ, to and in a people. Let me clarify this point further. The word says "For since by man came death, by man came also the resurrection of the dead" (ICor.15:21). Now notice something here. It says by man (Adam) came death (past tense) by man (Jesus Christ) came (past tense also) the resurrection of the dead. So it is not shall come, but rather like He told Martha, 'the resurrection of the dead' which is Christ Himself came to her. In other words, man was the carrier of the death factor even as man is the carrier of the life factor. Therefore, "it is the Spirit (man - Christ) that quickeneth, (gives life) the flesh (Adamic life) profiteth nothing (kills)" Jn.6:63a. Again we read "For as IN ADAM all die (i.e. all mankind died to the life of God) even so IN CHRIST shall all (a process beginning from His days in the flesh), be made alive (brought back to God's life) " 1 Cor.15:22.  

BUT HOW DID THIS DEATH PROCESS COME INTO BEING?  

            We are told "the Lord God planted a garden - and took the man, (He had formed) and put him into the Garden of Eden... And the Lord God commanded the man saying, of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat; But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it. FOR IN THE DAY that thou eatest thereof, thou shalt surely die" (Gen.2:7-8, 15:17 ). Now in Chapter 3, 1-6 they ate of the tree and so they died to the life of God. So you can see that the day spoken of here cannot be a 24 hour period but a whole period of time that has a beginning when the sin factor resulting in death was introduced into the program of God as a result of the effect of the tree of knowledge of good and evil. Now the product of this knowledge is lack of love for God and the things of God which is Spiritual, instead your love is for the things that appeal to your five sense which is human wisdom (Gen.3:6). So the word says `stop loving this evil world and all that it offers you, for when you love these things you show that you do not really love God. For all these worldly things, these evil desires - the craze for sex, the ambition to buy everything that appeals to you, and the pride that comes from wealth and importance - these are not from God. They are from this evil world itself (the knowledge of good and evil). And this world (the characteristic features so named above) is fading way: and these evil forbidden things will go with it, but whoever keeps doing the will of God (- abiding in the teachings of Christ) will live forever" l Jn.2:16­17TLB. It simply means that as long as you are pursuing the earthly things at the expense of the things of the Spirit, which is the source of all things, you are still partaking of that tree, therefore you are dying. In fact the Interlinear Translation puts it this way "...AS IN ADAM ALL ARE DYING..." (1 Cor.15:22a). And this is true, for the dying process continues as long as you continue to give your attention to the things of the flesh in the first day of the first man - Adam I Cor.15:45a.  

THE LAST DAY - THE DAY OF THE LAST ADAM  

            "...The first Adam was made a living soul: the last Adam - Christ - (Adam being a genetic name for mankind - Gei7.5:1) was made a quickening Spirit" 1Cor.15:45 "Quickening Spirit" means `life giving" Spirit. Therefore the activities of the last Adam - Christ - is to do, undo the work of the first man - Adam. In other words, He is to give life to those who are dying in Adam in the last day, as you believe in Him. This is the meaning of "And this is the Father's will which sent me, that of all which He hath given me I should lose nothing, but SHOULD RAISE IT UP AGAIN AT THE LAST DAY" Jn.6:39. To be raised - resurrection here has nothing to do with people coming out of the cemetery (please request for our study outline on "Our Resurrection Hope is not rapture"). This is the same word used in James 5:14,15 which says that the Elders of the church should pray over a sick man with anointing oil; and the prayer of faith shall save the sick, and the Lord shall raise him up". This simply means that life is imparted as a result of the prayer of the saints. Now in Jn.6:39, it says " I ...should raise it up." Why "it" and not "him" as in James? Because these men are dead in sins and trespasses in Adam, but have to have the life of God imparted unto them in the last day. And so we read "And you hath He quickened, who were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ (by grace ye are saved) And hath RAISED US UP together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus" Eph.2:l, 5-6. In other words, in our union with Christ as we believe into His death and resurrection, we are given back our life in God. Jesus even explained the process by which we are raised up "...Verily, I say unto you, except ye eat of the flesh of the Son of man, and drink His blood, ye have no life in you. Whoso eateth my flesh and drinketh my blood hath eternal life: and I will RAISE HIM UP AT THE LAST DAY" ...He that eateth my flesh, (the word Jn.1:14, 6:63) and drinketh my blood (His life - in the flesh Lev.17:10-I1) the Spirit released by the word) dwelleth in me and I in Him. As the living Father hath sent me, and I live by the Father: so He that eateth me, ever shall live (roused to life) by me" Jn.6:53-54, 56-57. The simple fact is, it was by knowledge that we died in Adam so also, shall we be made alive by the right knowledge in Christ (Col.3:10) in this last day of the Spirit of Christ.

THE LAST DAY, IS THE DAY OF REST  

            "And it shall come to pass IN THE LAST DAYS...... I will pour out of my Spirit upon all flesh...." Acts 2:17 . "And this is the Father's will which hath sent me, that of all which he hath given me I should lose nothing, but should RAISE IT UP AGAIN AT THE LAST DAY" Jn.6:39.

            I am sure we are beginning to see more clearly what we are dealing with here as touching the issue of the `Last days' and the `Last day'. Now looking at Jn.6:39, there is something that is very striking in relation to the last day and that is the word AGAIN. To talk of `again' means a process of restoration of that which has been destroyed or damaged, fallen down. The Geek word is anistemi, which means to stand up. So what happened to man that he has to be `raised again'? The truth is, man fell in Adam. He did not only fall, he died in Adam. The record says "Adam sinned, and that sin brought death into the world. Now everyone has sinned and so everyone must die. (So Adam brought death to all of us I Cor.15:22a). Therefore ... death ruled like a king because Adam had sinned... Yet death still had power over all who lived from the time of Adam to the time of Moses..." Rom.5:1.2, 17, 14. CEV. Looking at the above, it is clear that Adam and death are one, because death is found in Adam , OK ? They are one! But how did this come to be? It was as a result of the disobedience of Adam by the eating of `the tree of the knowledge of good and evil' Gen.2:16-17: 3:1-7. "For as by one man's disobedience many were made sinners..." (Rom.5:19a). "For IN THE DAY that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die" Gen.2:17 KJV. So we can see from the above that what men call death is not death, for Adam lived 970 years (Gen.5:5) even after eating of this tree. But the truth was that he was dead, because he was separated from the life of God. The death factor which is the power of sin was now working in his veins and this death factor which is the principle of sin was passed on to all humanity. And we are told in verse 14 of Rom.5 that this power of death reigned in all mankind till the time of Moses. That means death ought to stop, in fact it stopped with Moses. How? Because "...The sting of death is sin; and the strength of sin is the law" (1 Cor.15:56). Again "...it was sin that used this command (the Law of Moses) as a way of making me have all kinds of desires. But without the law, sin is dead. Before I knew about the law, I was ALIVE. But as soon as I heard that command, sin came to life, and I DIED... the law came so that the full power of sin could be seen" Rom.7:8-10, 20 CEV. Here again, we can see that `death' in the language of God is to walk under a wrong spirit different from that of God. Death can best be described as walking in the consciousness of Adam, in the darkness of our soul at any point in time. In other words, as you die to the life of God in your thinking, you are alive to the realm of sin and vice versa. So you see, in `the day' of the first man - Adam, King Sin reigned supreme. But the word says "Adam disobeyed God and caused many others to be sinners, BUT JESUS OBEYED HIM and WILL MAKE MANY PEOPLE ACCEPTABLE TO GOD ... sin ruled by means of death (in the whole period of the first day of the first man -- Adam). But God's kindness now RULES, and God has accepted us because of Jesus Christ OUR LORD. This means that we have eternal life" Rom.5:21CEV. So "The Ten Commandments were given so that all could see the extent of their failure to obey God's Laws..." (Rom.5:20a). Even so, though "...the law was given by Moses (still carrying on with the death of Adam's day), GRACE AND TRUTH CAME BY JESUS CHRIST" Jn.1:17. "Thus it is written, the first man Adam (in the first day) became a living being - an individual personality: the LAST ADAM (Christ) (in the second day or last day) became a life - giving Spirit - restoring the dead to life" 1Cor.15:45 AMP. So this restoration process from the realm of the dead - carnality, (- even as "...sin exercises its power (upon the soul) through (the abuse of) the law" 1Cor.15:56a) is what Jesus meant when He said "And this is the Father's will which hath sent me, that of all which He hath given me I should lose nothing, but should RAISE IT (those dead in sins and trespasses Eph.2:1 in Adam) UP AGAIN AT THE LAST DAY" Jn.6:39.  

HOW IS THIS RESURRECTION TAKING PLACE ?  

            For the fall of man from the realm of delightfulness (called Eden ) to take place, three factors were involved namely, sound, sight and taste. We are told "the serpent... said (sound) unto the woman (V.1) ...And when the woman saw (sight) that the tree was good for food, ...she ... did eat (taste)..." (V.6) Gen.3:1-6. The serpent spoke (voice) communicated to the mind of the woman, then she saw by realisation (a discovery of the efficacy of the tree that has been there with them all along was dawn in her consciousness). She was moved to action (faith) by that understanding to partake of the fruit, (the life of the tree) and the resultant effect was a departure from the life of God and a descent into the soul realm. Now the fact of the matter is, it is a knowledge that made them (man) to become active in the soul realm (five senses) instead of the Spirit which is supposed to rule the soul. This is clearly summarized by the letter of Paul to the Corinthian Church when he said "...I am anxious for you with deep concern of God Himself - anxious that your love should be for Christ alone just as a pure maiden reserves her love for one man only, for the one who will be her husband. But (now) I am fearful lest that even as the serpent beguiled Eve by his cunning, so your MINDS may be corrupted and seduced from whole hearted and sincere and pure DEVOTION TO CHRIST 2Cor.11:2-3 AMP. So the deception, which is the greatest weapon of the serpent, the devil, is to cause lack of devotion to Christ, by creating for you things that can easily cause distractions, and with that you die to the life of God.

            So for resurrection to take place, there has to be a reverse of the same process, employing the same factors of sound, sight and taste in the LAST DAY of the last Adam - Christ. Now tear the words of Jesus "...He that heareth my word (voice of the Son of God Jn.5:25) and believeth on Him that sent me, hath everlasting life, and stall not come into condemnation, but is PASSED FROM DEATH UNTO LIFE" Jn.5:24 "... everyone which seeth the Son, and believeth on Him, may have everlasting life and I will RAISE HIM UP AT THE LAST DAY" (Jn.6:40) "...I say unto you, except ye eat the flesh (word) Jn.1:14) of the Son of man; and drink His blood (His life) ye have no life (Zoe - life of God) in you". Whoso EATETH my flesh and drinketh my blood, hath eternal life: and I will raise him up (quicken him, give him life) at the last DAY""(Jn.6:53-54). Can you see the three factors here? The Voice of Christ is the message of the tour (Heb.1:1-2) being delivered by His messengers as quickened by the indwelling Spirit. (Matt.10:19-20: Jn.14:10). To see Christ is to have our eyes of understanding enlightened with the Spirit of wisdom (Eph.1:17-18) to know who the Son of God is. It is to discover the reality of the Christ within us, for God has given us the Spirit of His Son (Gal.4:6). To eat of Him is to have faith in the living word proceeding from His throne as we are quickened by the Spirit in the inner man. This is when our faith no longer depend on external resources, or that which we can produce, but as the supply of life even in the Spirit is ministered to us by the Living word. With this we will cease from our human imaginations and the craftiness of the hearts of men-laboring as men which is the vanities of man's struggles Ec1.3:10-11. But the word of faith speaks thus "...He that is entered into his REST, he also hath ceased from his own works, as God did from His. Let us labor therefore to enter into that rest (that is trusting in what God says) lest any man fall (like Adam and the Children of Israel) after the same example of unbelief. For unto us was the Gospel preached, as well as unto them, but the word preached did not profit them, not being mixed with faith in them that heard it. For we which have believed do enter into rest ... they to whom it was first preached entered not because of unbelief ...therefore ... Today if ye will tear His voice (the message being preached) harden not your hearts. For if Jesus (Joshua) has given them (Israelites) rest, then would he not afterward have spoken of another day - (Last day). There remaineth therefore a rest to the people of God" Heb.4:10, 11, 2-9. The day spoken of is Christ Himself, who is our rest. Matt. 11:28-29. So this last day is the day of faith in the Son of God which Abraham saw by faith and was glad in (Jn.8:56, Heb, 11:13 ). Those who live by faith are in the last day, they are in union with Christ. This is the realm of Spiritual walk in the Lord's day (Rev. 1:10, Rom.8:9). So we are the children of the day - (1Thes.5:5). That is we have been given a new life by the day - Christ, begotten of Him. Therefore "...Blessed - happy to be envied - are the dead (dead in Christ) from now on who die in the Lord (those who have entered into their rest by faith). Yes, blessed - happy, to be envied indeed - says the Spirit (in) that they may rest from their labors, for their works (deeds) do follow (attend, accompany) them! Rev. 14:13 AMP.

THE_ LAST DAY, IS THE DAY OF ILLUMINATION, DOMINION & GLORY  

            "And it shall come to pass IN THE LAST DAYS.... I will pour out of my Spirit upon all flesh...." Acts 2:17 . " This know also, that IN THE LAST DAYS perilous times shall come" 2Tim.3: I .

            And this is the Father's will which hath sent me that of all which He hath given me 1 should lose nothing, but should RAISE IT UP AGAIN AT THE LAST DAY" Jn.6:39. Looking at the above passages in Acts and 2 Timothy, we find a contrast. While one is talking of the outpouring of the Holy Spirit upon mankind, the other is talking of the dangerous trend that will prevail. At what time interval will these things happen? We shall see soon. Meanwhile we still need to look at the third passage quoted in John on "the last day" to further give evidence on the workings and activities of the Holy Ghost at the LAST DAY. Already we have seen that "the last day" is the day of rest. When those who so believe should cease from their human imaginations and efforts and totally rely on the Holy Ghost by faith. In John Chapter seven, we read of the exciting appearance and declaration of Jesus at the end of the days of the celebration of the "feast of Tabernacles". There we are told "IN THE LAST DAY that great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried saying if any man thirst let him come unto me, and drink. He that believeth on me, as the Scripture hath said, out of his belly, shall flow rivers of living water (But this spake he of the spirit, which they that believe on Him should receive, for the Holy Ghost was not yet given because that Jesus was not yet glorified" vs.37-39. Can you notice anything from this passage? Firstly, here we are told that Christ was not yet glorified because the Holy Ghost was not yet given. What is the meaning of that? It shows that the coming of the Holy Ghost is the glorification of Jesus, because that was the power that was locked up within Him while He walked the earth. And the release of the Spirit is the power with which the earth is being renewed of the corruption from the influence of Adam. The word says: Thou sendest forth the Spirit, they (mankind) are created (back into the image of God - Gen. 1:26-27, Col. 3:10); and thou renewest the face of the earth" Ps. 104:30. In other words, by the coming of the Holy Ghost, God is now having a people to (Tabernacle) dwell in by the Spirit "...In whom ye (believers) also are built together for an habitation of God through the Spirit, therefore "...Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and He will dwell with them, and they shall be His people, and God Himself shall be with them and be their God" Eph.2:22, Rev.21:3. Of course, the realization of this is the true meaning of the feast of tabernacles and it is not tied to a specific age, but as one in his walk becomes totally yielded unto God. Our experience of growth into God starts with the feast of Passover, which is our initial belief, and the acceptance of the sacrifice of Christ for us. "...For even Christ our Passover is sacrificed for us" ICor.5:7. While the feast of Pentecost has to do with the baptism of the Holy Ghost. "And when the day of the Pentecost was fully come..." Acts 2:1+. So these three major feasts in Israel are not rneant for us to celebrate physically, rather they speak of our walk - experiences in the Lord as the work of redemption goes on. See Lev.23:34-42.

            But what is the main message here? That God is to dwell in man in the last day which is the feast of tabernacles. In verse 38, we are told that for those who believe "...out of their belly shall flow rivers of living water". What is this living water? It is the life of God (see John 4:14 ; Gen.2:10-14; Isa.55:1-3) that has no end. In Prov.18:4 we read "The words of a man's mouth are as deep waters and the well spring of wisdom as a flowing brook". So in the real sense of it; it speaks of the enlightenment of the hearts of men (that were once darkened by reason of Adam's fall) by the Holy Ghost. This is why we read "call to remembrance the former days in which, after ye were illuminated, ...for it is impossible for those who were once enlightened and have tasted of the heavenly gift, and were made partakers of the Holy Ghost ... if they shall fall away, to renew them. again unto repentance..." Heb.10:32, 6:4-6. Now, this illumination is the working of Christ by the Spirit in the "Last day" even as He declared "... 1 am the light of the world: he that followeth me shall not walk (Live his life) in darkness (Adam :s consciousness) but shall have the light of life" Jn.8:12. Now with what the Holy Ghost is doing, distributing the life of Christ

into men, the true believers of Christ are also lights even as He is, for the word says "Ye (the disciples) are the light of the world..." Matt.5A4. Do not forget that `Light' is also a symbol of life, contentment and joy, whereas `Darkness' stands for death, unhappiness and misery. All of this is achieved by baptism of the Holy Ghost. See Acts 5:32 , 19:2. The word says "there is one body (the Church) and one Spirit, even as ye are called in one tope of your calling, one Lord, one faith, one baptism. For by one spirit are we all baptized into one body.." Eph.4:4-5, 1 Cor. 12:12.  

JUDGMENT, A WORK OF SEPARATION BY THE SPIRIT.  

            When Jesus said "...for judgment I am come into this world, that they which see not might see (enlightened) and they which see might be made blind" (Jn.9:39-41) "...I have come into the world to give sight to those who are Spiritually blind and to stow those who think they see that they are blind" TLB, the judgment is nothing more than the separation that is taking place as the spirit enlightens His own. In other words, when you think that you know so much, the Holy Ghost by passes you. That is why we must press on with yieldedness because whether they be dreams, visions or revelations; nothing amounts to the fullness that God intends for us. Just like the Pharisees, you can stagnate spiritually when you think you have known so much. Hence in the light of what Christ was doing they were blind. May it not be so with you, especially, as you try to rely so much on either past or occasional visitation by the Lord. There is more to know and experience in Him. So wakeup! Now tear me. The effect of the Separation is good deeds. "And this is the condemnation, that light (enlightenment) is come into the world and men loved darkness ratter than light, because their deeds were evil, for everyone that doeth evil hated the light, neither cometh to the light, lest his deeds, should be reproved". But he that doeth truth cometh to the light, that his deeds may be made manifest, that they are wrought in God" Jn.3:19-21 see Jn.7:7. So you see, if we claim to be enlightened, in the light, then our activities should be able to . stow the difference in our daily living from that of the world even as our Master was, otherwise we are really hypocrites. Hear this. "Night (of ignorance in Adam and evil works) is ....over, and day (light) will soon appear. We must stop behaving as people do (is this not our problem people of God?) in the dark and be ready to live in the light. So behave properly as people do in the day. Don't go to wild parties, get drunk, or be vulgar or indecent. Don't quarrel or be jealous" Rom.12:13-14 CEV. Did you tear that? And why must it be so? Because we are the children of the day (IThes.5:5) period. Now tear the words of the Spirit,if ye be children of God "you were darkness once, but now you are light in the Lord; be like children of light, for THE EFFECTS OF THE LIGHT ARE SEEN IN COMPLETE GOODNESS AND RIGHT LIVING AND TRUTH. Try to discover what the Lord wants of you; having nothing to do with the futile works of darkness but exposing them by contrast, (i.e. by the way you lire). The things which are done in secret are things people are ashamed even to speak of, but anything exposed by the light will be illuminated, and anything illuminated turns into light - so be very careful about the sort of lives you lead, like intelligent and not like senseless people. This may be a wicked age, but your lives should redeem it. And do not be thoughtless but recognise what is the will of the Lord. Do not drug yourselves with wine, this is simply dissipation; be filled with the Spirit" Eph.5:9-18 JB.  

BUT HOW DO WE COME INTO THIS LIVING?  

            "..You will do well to pay close attention to everything they (Prophet of old see (r/so 1sa.44:2( Rev.19:10) have written, for like lights shining into dark corners, their words help us to understand many things that otherwise would be dark and difficult. But when you consider the truth of the Prophets' words then the light will shine in your hearts ... for ... it was the Holy Spirit within these godly men who gave them true messages of God" 2Pet.1:19-21 TLB. Do you believe that? That is tow we come into the full realization of the feast of tabernacles by the word, Mind you, "The Morning Star" (Lk,1:78, Rev.2:28) in Eastern literature is a Symbol of Dominion and Power and also that of RESURRECTION AND TRIUMPHANT GLORY. And this is what Christ is bringing forth to us in this `Last day= as we behold Him 2Cor.3: l 8.

To be continued OGAGA O. DAVID

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