WHAT WILL YOU DO WHEN THE END COMES?
Continued from previous page:
Verse 27 - Their houses are full of swindling gains and they
have become known, should we say, idolized, as great men and
women, prosperous as they grow rich, and right in front of our
eyes, they go to any length in crime.
Verse 27 - They will not make any move for justice, or
champion a cause or rally to a poor man's rights."
So God warns, "Shall I not punish them; shall I not make them
pay?" He is talking about the wicked, of course, but also to the
whole House of Jacob (the twelve tribes). Are we, as Christian
nations being punished? I certainly think so and if one looks at
the description from the prophet Ezekiel, it is frightening. In
Ezekiel 7 he also told us that God would turn His face from His
people. He prophesied that we Israelites would pollute God's
secret place, that robbers would enter into it, that the land
would be full of bloody crimes, the cities full of violence, that
the worst of the heathen would be brought to our shores, that
they would possess our houses, deplete our strength, defile our
holy places, that destruction would come, we would not find peace
and the law would perish. A pretty good description of today's
world, don't you think?
No wonder God sums it up by having Jeremiah write "a
horrible thing, an appalling thing has happened in the land." You
can't deny it. Of course, there is little doubt that it is the
governmental, economic and religious leaders who are the
ringleaders because God said, "Here are prophets that utter a
lying message, priests that clap their hands in applause." Still,
ringleaders must have followers and as God points out, "yet, this
people of mine are well content, they love to have it so." You
know, we can sit and quote Hosea 4:6 till the cows come home and
try to reason that God's words, "My people are destroyed for lack
of knowledge" are somehow an excuse for our predicament or we can
say that people today have been so moulded into this new reality,
they don't know the difference. But God says, you are being
destroyed because "you have rejected knowledge." Is it any wonder
then that God cries out, "What will you do when the end
comes?"....
Space also doesn't permit to describe the fate of the
godless rich, or, perhaps a better phrase is the "unscrupulous
rich." James 5:1-6 adequately describes their fate, particularly
verse 5 as it is translated by the Knox Version, "You have
feasted here on earth, you have comforted your hearts with
luxuries on this day that dooms you to slaughter."
No matter, they will have earned their fate. Still, what we
should concern ourselves with are the readers, friends, family
and others who have yet to reach out to Jesus Christ and make for
themselves a secure place in the Kingdom, which all the signs
point to an early arrival. Isn't it wonderful to visualize being
with departed ancestors, friends and patriarchs of yesteryear. It
will be such an exciting time.
Our blessed Lord Jesus sets out a step by step plan as to
how to reach and get the most out of the Kingdom in Revelation
3:14-22. As a matter of fact, He begins verse 14 by addressing
the Laodicean age, he clearly states that the prophecy is from
Himself, the ruler of God's Creation. He first sets the stage in
15-16 by declaring that those in this Laodicean age are neither
hot nor cold, that He will spue us out of His Mouth. In other
words, He will reject the lukewarm Christians, the ones that say,
"I am rich, I am well off, I lack nothing" but don't know they
are wretched, miserable, poor, blind and naked. Doesn't this
bring to mind long ago Israel, who God said boasted, "And thou
shall say in thine heart, My power and the might of mine hand
hath given me this wealth." (Deuteronomy 8)
Then Jesus proceeded to impart the secret of health,
happiness and well-being. It is this secret that we must impart
to those who have lost their way or have come under the influence
of the false prophets. His secret centers around three major
points:
1. Buy from Him gold tried in the fire so you may be rich.
2. And white raiment to cover up nakedness.
3. Anoint your eyes with eye salve so you may see.
It's interesting that of the seven churches or cities of
Revelation 2 and 3, they were all centered in the one province,
and that Laodicea was the wealthiest, also that Laodicea was
widely known for its banking establishments, its textile industry
and its medical school. So Jesus used the analogy of these three
characteristics of Laodicea.
Revelation 3:18 may sound like difficult advice to
understand but what Jesus is trying to tell each and every one of
us is to incorporate the Law into our lives: receive Salvation
through the Blood of Christ and through devout study gain the
spiritual awareness that will lift the blindness and make clear
our responsibilities. How do we know this; because the Scriptures
confirm it?
Look, rather than the gold of Laodicea, Jesus is telling us
to buy gold from Him that is tried in the fire, He is not talking
about gold, as we know it, mixed with alloy, but He is referring
to His Gold, there is no impurity in that. He is talking about
His Law; what does the Bible say, "The Law of the Lord is
perfect." And Jesus said, "If you love me obey my commandments."
And of course, Job, in speaking of the commandments in Chapter
23:10-12 said "When he has tried me I shall come forth as gold."
It's faith in His Word we must aspire to, even though we
will have trials. By the way, the Apostle Peter refers to the
other type of gold in 1 Peter 1:7 "That the trial of your faith,
being more precious than of gold that perisheth, though it be
tried with fire, ...." So, what about the riches Christ promises?
Well, for those who also put on the white raiment and the eye
salve as well, blessings seem to flow unendingly.
Jesus counsels us to seek White Raiment, that's the ultimate
cover, our ticket to the Kingdom. Revelation 7:13-14 makes clear
the value of Christ's counsel, "And one of the elders answered,
saying unto me, [referring to John] What are these which are
arrayed in white robes? And whence came they? And I said unto
him, Sir, thou knowest. And he said to me, These are they which
came out of great tribulation, and have washed their robes, and
made them white in the blood of the Lamb." So, receiving Christ
into our lives is being clothed with this white raiment, and
being clothed, we shall not be naked, as Paul said in 2
Corinthians 5:3, our sins will be forgiven.
Turning to the eye salve, let me refer to John 9:6, "When he
had thus spoken, he spat on the ground, and made clay of the
spittle, and he anointed the eyes of the blind man with the
clay." So, the anointing with the eye salve is no ordinary eye
salve as produced in Laodicea, which was a fitting illustration
of Laodicea's spiritual blindness. By contrast, the eye salve of
Revelation 3:18 contains the very essence of Christ, for without
His presence it is impossible to achieve spiritual awareness and
break away from the miserable, blind state wherein we live.
Still, remember, that after applying the mud to the blind
man's eyes, the man was sent to the pool of Siloam. Likewise,
after someone receives Christ, he or she is directed, as Paul
said, to "Study to show yourselves approved." A person who does
not study will very likely continue to be blind to the truth, as
are the majority of Christians today. Receiving Christ may be
their ticket to the Kingdom but the blessing of the eye salve
very likely dictates their place in the Kingdom.
Christ's entire package, His great secret, is ours if we
really want to possess it.
Space is eluding me but I really want to touch on the
remaining three verses. Now, for those who follow Christ's
directive, He intends to help. In verse 19 he says, "As many as I
love, I rebuke and chasten, be zealous therefore, and repent."
So, it will not be all clear sailing and our faith will be
strengthened through difficult times as well. He made the same
statement in the beautiful chapter 15 of the Gospel of John,
where in verse 2, He uttered, "every branch that beareth fruit,
he purgeth it, that it may bring forth more fruit." I've been
purged often, how about you?
Then in verse 20, Jesus pledges His support. He said,
"Behold, I stand at the door and knock: if any man hear my voice,
and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him,
and he with me." "Sup" simply meaning a "very close relationship,
being treated as part of the family.
And in verse 21, He makes this breathtaking promise:
"To him that overcometh will I grant to sit with me in my throne,
even as I also overcame, and am set down with my Father in his
throne." What more can be said, Jesus is offering to share His
place of authority with overcomers.
So, if any reader is still without Christ in their life or
if readers have friends, family and associates that are dodging a
relationship and going through life in a miserable, blind and
naked state, should the battle cry be, "What will YOU do when the
end comes?"
......
From the November 2010 "Thy Kingdom Come" - a publication of The
Association of the Covenant People, Burnaby, B.C. Canada.
Note:
Prophecy is often, mainly, DUAL. God had Jeremiah (and the rest
of the prophets) write it down, for the days He said would come
again when He would deliver Israel and Judah from captivity and
from their sins (Jeremiah 30). Notice the context - the Messiah
comes - David is resurrected to be king over Israel and Judah.
I have expounded the prophets of the Bible on this Website.
It will soon all be in one large book, obtainable from various
sources such as Amazon.com
You'll be able to take it with you, read it whereever you are.
You will be able to give it to people you know who would like it
or be willing to read it.
The book "The Biblical Prophets for Today" should be obtainable
in January 2011.
Keith Hunt
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