davidbowerkingwood

A Line in the Sand

During the age of Laodicea, the seventh and last church age, the Lord Jesus Christ is standing outside the church, waiting to see if He is invited in. Have you noticed how the name of Jesus polarizes, how it can elicit a strong response either pro or con? The Bible promises us that someday every knee will bow at the name of Jesus but this is not yet that day. In Philippians 2:9-11 a wonderful and exciting time is described:

“9 Therefore, God elevated him to the place of highest honor
and gave him the name above all other names,
10 that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow,
in heaven and on earth and under the earth,
11 and every tongue declare that Jesus Christ is Lord,
to the glory of God the Father”

My heart thrills at the very thought of such a future. I love to speculate on that time and imagine what it might be like; the verse does say every knee and every tongue. It pleases me to imagine all of God’s creatures joining in that outpouring of praise; after all God gave Balaam’s donkey the ability to speak in Numbers 22:28 it is written:

“28 Then the Lord gave the donkey the ability to speak. “What have I done to you that deserves your beating me three times?” it asked Balaam.”

I’m sure each of us can vividly recall the sound a donkey normally makes, and since the Lord can make a donkey speak why not all of the other animals too, is anything too hard for the Lord? Nevertheless it will be a glorious time and I suspect we’re all looking forward to it (and I hope that all creatures great and small will be able to join in our outpouring of praise, what fun!). That glorious celebration is yet future and this present world will have no part in it.

The Name of Jesus

Today the name of Jesus is an offense to many, a name that can cause fear and resentment; a name that is much too exclusive, a line in the sand. How dare you say there is only one name under heaven given among men whereby we must be saved.

We are even seeing the Bible accused of being a hate book because of what is written in its pages; it is much too intolerant and is becoming ever more “politically incorrect.” Some are suggesting the Bible is out of date and needs to be updated to reflect the preferences of today’s social standards. The Bible itself assures us it’s going to get worse before it gets better. The Lord Jesus Christ and the Bible are increasingly unwelcome in many churches today and even more so in society at large.

The Close of the Laodicean Age will End the Church Age

The Rapture will conclude the Laodicean Church age and bring the seven church ages to an end; the remarkable window of opportunity offered by this age of grace will once and for all be closed. I believe it likely that many Laodicean churches will be minimally impacted by the rapture of the true church and will easily transition into the one-world religion under the false prophet; after all, membership in the true church is through the ministry of God the Holy Spirit bringing the new birth to those who receive Christ as personal Savior, those who have been born again.

This will also end the era of the indwelling of the Holy Spirit uniting with the souls and spirits of those born again in an everlasting union that began at Pentecost. When the church age ends the ministry of God, the Holy Spirit will also change and return to the type of ministry found in the age of Israel, being with, but not in those chosen by God. The restraining ministry of the Holy Spirit will also be removed opening the world up to much greater levels of sin and rebellion against God.

The Coming Tribulation

The Tribulation is most emphatically not a part of the Church Age; the Bible makes it very clear the Tribulation is the last seven years promised to Israel by God! The church will be out of the picture long before the Tribulation even starts.

I have written extensively on this subject so I will not repeat it here. I will only say I believe there could be as many as 8 to 12 years between the Rapture of the Church and the signing of the covenant agreement which will start Israel’s last seven year clock.

This last seven years will, in turn, be brought to a close by the Second Advent of the Lord Jesus Christ followed by His Millennial Reign; two events in which the true church will participate.

A parting thought, you, as a born again believer in Jesus Christ, will have your full share in all of this; there are exciting times ahead for sure (I wonder if we’ll be able to talk to our horse; I would really like that)!  ¹⁴ The armies of heaven, dressed in the finest of pure white linen, followed him on white horses. Revelation 19:14