Sept-Oct 2006

  1. MESSENGERS IN THE LAST DAYS
  2. THE BIBLE ITS NATURE
  3. BIBLE QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS
  4. CORRUPT COMMUNICATIONS
  5. MAILBOX
  6. ANNOUNCEMENTS

MESSENGERS IN THE LAST DAYS

“For He shall give His angels [messengers] charge over you, to guard you in all your ways.” Psalm 91:11.

AMONG the “perilous times” of this “evil day,” and of the warning voices of the Holy Prophets and Apostles pointing out snares and subtle dangers on every hand and in the midst, too, of a realization of the actual existence of such evil besetments and perils—how precious to God’s people are the assurances of Divine protection and care and personal love!

Evidently the person referred to in our text as giving a charge, or message, is Jehovah, the Heavenly Father. The Prophet David is prophesying in respect to others in the future. They are primarily, we believe, the Lord Jesus Christ; and secondarily all those whom He accepted as members of His Body throughout the time that the High Calling was in operation during the Gospel Age—for the Church class, Head and body members. The words imply a special care that God exercised from Pentecost down to the Harvest over these brethren. All through the Scriptures they are referred to as those whom God specially loved and specially cared for. Our Lord Jesus is the Only Begotten, the Well-beloved Son, and all those who are with Him in the glorified condition are particularly loved even more so now. Jesus said to some of His faithful disciples, “The Father Himself loves you” (John 16: 27).

The charge given to the angels, we would understand, to have a very broad application. The Apostle Paul assures us that the angels of God were the ministering spirit angels sent forth to minister to the Bride and to the Great Company while they were still here on the earth, still here in the flesh, but who have now passed into glory to be with their Lord on the throne and the Great Multitude to be on a lower plane in the spirit realm before the throne (L.F. Rev. 7: 3, 4; G.C. 9-17).

But those same spirit angels, who ministered to the two spirit classes, are now assisting those of us who are in preparation for eventual installation in the earthly phase of the Kingdom. There are two groups who are working toward this end. The most prominent of the two are the Youthful Worthies who make up the last and fourth elect class and who will be associated with their counterparts, the Ancient Worthies, as princes in the earth assisting the non-elect world—the Restitutionists—to gain human salvation during the Millennium. They are referred to in the Bible as the “old men” and the “young men” of Joel 2: 28 (E. 17 “The Millennium” pp 37-42). So it is, that all of these, because they are believers in Christ, because at heart faithful, because fully consecrated to the Lord, are also the objects of His grace ministered to and served by these invisible messengers. Our Lord Jesus sets forth practically the same thought in His declaration, “Their angels do always behold the face [favor] of My Father.” The Master’s words seem to imply that at least one of these guardian angels will provide support for each member of the heavenly or earthly classes, while they are in preparation for their place in the Kingdom. Now that the Church and the Great Company are in the spirit realm the guardian angels have a ministering protection toward the earthly classes who are in preparation for the Millennial Kingdom.

Although the Father makes such use of Heavenly messengers, this by no means invalidates the thought that the Lord’s earthly brethren are frequently used of Him as ministers toward each other. Indeed, we may be assured that the invisible messengers are required, generally, to act through human instrumentalities. Of this we have illustrations in the Harvest work, supervised by our present Lord and His Heavenly hosts; yet in the main, carried on by members of the Church while they were yet in the flesh.

The Apostle Paul has stated that the Lord makes His ministers, or servants, a flaming fire, and intimates to us that any and every agency and power that Divine providence uses, is a part of that special care over His people (Heb. 1:7). In other words, every agency used of God—whether it be inanimate or a living person, or whatever—would be a messenger of God. Therefore, whatever instrument would not be to His praise and work out what He desires, He is able to restrain, as He tells us: “Surely the wrath of man shall praise you: the remainder of wrath shall you restrain” (Psalm 76:10). These various manifestations of progress that we see today, in the clouds of Trouble, have been progressing, and when they cease, the Restitution of the human race will commence (Matt. 24: 21-22; Acts 3: 19-21).

CHRIST’S PRESENCE A STUMBLING-STONE

The text seems to imply that God’s people at this time would be in a position of special trial, as a stumblingstone in our midst. The Scriptures allude to the fact that Jesus Christ was a special trial on the Jews at the time of His First Coming; it was at the close of the Jewish Age, when He presented Himself as their Messiah; but the manner of His presence was so foreign to their expectations—to come as a lowly obscure preacher of righteousness—when they were looking for a great deliverer, as a Moses or a Joshua, with a great army to free them from the Roman yoke. This brings to remembrance that which the Lord prophetically foretold concerning Himself, saying, “He shall be...for a stone of stumbling and for a rock of offense to both the houses of Israel” (Isa. 8:14). These two houses were the Jewish people in the Harvest of the Jewish Age and the Christian family in the present Harvest of the Gospel Age. This symbolic stone, as the Apostle points out, was stumbled over in the end of the Jewish Age (I Peter 2:8). The Scriptures set forth that Jesus was the only way to gain salvation: “I am the way, the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me” (John 14: 6; Acts 4: 11, 12). The Lord is now a “stone of stumbling” in the pathway of many in the present Gospel Harvest. These passages do not apply to the world. It was not the Gentile nations that stumbled over Jesus at His First Coming, but it was some of the true Israelites who were there stumbled. The text also implies the stumbling of some Christians of our day, during the time of our Lord’s Second Advent, because of the Lord’s coming in a way totally different from what has been imagined and similar to the wrong expectations of those in the Jewish Harvest. So we believe that there are many good Christian people today, who are stumbling over Christ’s Presence. They have thought, and some still believe, that Christ is going to come in a body of flesh and “every eye shall see Him”; but world conditions are so different from what they have imagined and expected and it is similar to what it was in the end of the Jewish Age, when the Jewish religious leaders stumbled at the time of the crucifixion.

Likewise, it has been in the end of this Christian Age in its Harvest. Many religious authors and preachers have, for many years, set forth the idea that when Christ returns in His Second Coming, He will whisk up the saints to safety in heavenly glory, and then in His wrath, He will destroy the earth and the wicked sinners left on the earth. Some are beginning to reject this erroneous projection because the Trouble is year after year, becoming more and more severe and the Christian world has not been delivered; but they are still on the earth experiencing this trouble. They have been sleeping under this cloud of error so long and have been unaware that the members of the Church are all gone and have received their deliverance. The problem is these brethren have had wrong, unscriptural ideas as to the manner of our Lord’s Second Coming and have been looking for Him to come in a physical human body, failing to note the instruction of the Scriptures, that He laid down the human body as the price of redemption for Adam and his race. His humanity was the ransom price. The Apostle John records Jesus’ own words on this point: “the bread that I will give is my flesh, which I will give for the life of the world” (John 6: 51). He can never take up that form of existence again for it would negate the redemption given on Calvary’s Cross. Therefore, since His resurrection on the third day, He is a Divine spirit being with a spirit body that is invisible to the physical human eye. Those who are expecting to see Jesus as He was, and not as He is, will be disappointed, if they have not already become disillusioned; for no one will ever see Him alive in His human body again. As Paul states: “though we have known Christ after the flesh, yet now henceforth know we him no more” (2 Cor. 5: 16; Heb. 2: 9).

How do you explain the text “Behold, He is coming with clouds, and every eye will see Him and they who pierced Him” (Rev. 1: 7). You will notice that this passage is from the book of Revelation which is a highly symbolic writing. We notice the verse stating that, when Jesus comes, “He is coming with clouds.” It is not literal clouds that are here referred to, but rather, the symbolic clouds of wrath and Trouble that are now manifest in the earth everywhere. The prophet Daniel and our Lord prophesied of this tribulation saying “For then shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world” (Matt. 24: 21; Dan. 12: 1). This great Time of Trouble is one of the signs that Jesus gave to indicate that He is now present in the earth together with His elect Bride working toward the destruction of Satan’s evil empire. Satan is not going down without a fight and that is why all the social unrest due to calamities, war, revolution, anarchy and famine etc.

Let us consider that part of the verse that says “every eye shall see Him.” If we think of these words in a logical, reasonable way, we must acknowledge, that the word “see” has more meanings than to behold with the physical eye. Webster’s second definition for the word “see” is as follows: “To deduce mentally after reflection or from information; to understand.” It is this meaning that we believe is meant by the phrase “every eye shall see Him.” The world of mankind in the earthly phase of the Millennial Kingdom will come to recognize our Lord Jesus Christ as the righteous ruler of that 1,000 year day, not by viewing Him with their physical eyes, for He is now a spirit and invisible to the physical eye, but with their eyes of understanding. Jeremiah writing of this time says: “After those days, says the LORD: I will put My law in their minds, and write it on their hearts; and I will be their God, and they shall be My people. No more shall every man teach his neighbor, and every man his brother, saying, ‘Know the LORD,’ for they all shall know Me from the least of them to the greatest of them, says the LORD” (Jer. 31: 33, 34).

Let us return to the subject of our guardian angels. The question arises, why should not the angels have charge over all good people, so that they would not stumble? Is not this the promise? We answer that the promise is made to all who are of the consecrated classes. But in order to remain faithful within their calling, they must all stand various testings and trials. Are they willing to surmount these difficulties and to remain in the way? Some will be in a condition to receive the trials and develop and progress in their Christian course despite obstacles, while others will do it only partially, and still others will lose heart and let go of the plow and turn back into the world altogether; receiving the Father’s displeasure (Luke 9: 62). There are many who leave off the serving of the Lord and the Truth because they do not approve of the message or the messengers that God uses to dispense the Truth as now due.

PARALLELISM BETWEEN JEWISH AND GOSPEL AGES

In the Jewish Age the Lord used some human instruments to declare the coming Kingdom whom the scribes, the doctors of the Law and the chief priests could not accept at all. If He wanted to use agents, or channels, or messengers, to teach the people, why did He not choose the learned scribes or the generally accepted Pharisees of that day? Why did the Lord use as His messengers men who had been fishermen, taxgatherers— persons whom the learned would think entirely unfit as instructors, or teachers? We recall that in the end of the Jewish Age, it was written of two of them that the people perceived that they were “unschooled, ordinary men” (Acts 4: 13). How could it be that God would pass by some of the most learned of that day? The Scriptures state: “You have hidden these things from the wise and prudent, and have revealed them to babes. Even so, Father: for so it seemed good in Your sight” (Matt. 11: 25, 26).

Therefore, in this Harvest, the Lord has used channels, agencies, messengers and instructors which are not acceptable to many whom were approached. While these were making up their minds to believe, slow in this because overcharged with unbiblical views and cares of this life, those of the very elect class have all been chosen and the class is complete. These say, “Lord, Lord, open unto us.” But the Lord declares that He cannot recognize them as of His very elect people (Matt. 25: 11, 12). They have not shown the spirit of teachableness, gentleness, patience and love, necessary to provide them a place in the elect. So it has been only the fully faithful Christians who have been selected. Those not chosen will be of another class, earthly in nature.

To those of us who remain, we counsel not to despair, for God has ample places to use our services in the earthly phase of the Kingdom, encouraging and instructing the Restitutionists in their journey up the “highway of holiness” toward perfection and everlasting life (Isa. 35: 8). Jesus said these words concerning the availability of stations in which to serve in the Kingdom: “Let not your heart be troubled; you believe in God, believe also in me. In My Father’s house are many mansions; if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you” (John 14: 1, 2; Acts 3: 19-21). What a wonderful privilege it will be to serve in the Millennial Age helping the world to learn of Christ and to assist them in overcoming the sin, error, selfishness and worldliness that has afflicted them in this life. Let us thank our Heavenly Father for His wonderful Divine Plan of the Ages whereby all families of the earth shall ultimately be blessed (Gen. 22: 17, 18).