Posted
by Michael Bunker
editor@lazarusunbound.com
“Thus saith the Lord GOD; An evil, an only evil, behold, is come.” (Ezekiel 7:5)
September 26, 2005 – The scriptures give us ample information about our own times, if we are willing to be diligent in seeking out the meanings of God's types and shadows in the Old Testament. When we see wicked, apostate, Israel (a type of the church) facing utter destruction we know that, if we are diligent students, we can glean information that will be applicable to our own times.
“Destruction cometh; and they shall seek peace, and there shall be none. Mischief shall come upon mischief, and rumour shall be upon rumour; then shall they seek a vision of the prophet; but the law shall perish from the priest, and counsel from the ancients” (Ezekiel 7:25-26).
Mischief shall come upon mischief. Rumor shall be upon rumor. An evil, an only evil, behold is come. The prophet prophesied that when the time of darkness begins to fall upon a professing people, that these things would begin to fall incrementally and repeatedly one after another. Evil will follow closely upon evil.
The imminent destruction of the Jews was at hand and the prophet Ezekiel was setting out the main judgments that would soon begin to befall them. Evil upon evil... mischief following mischief would come upon the people claiming to be the people of God. But, it seems that one supreme evil would signal the coming judgment and utter destruction of Israel. What was this supreme evil that would come upon Israel? What would signal that God had turned them over for destruction?
According the prophets, God would take away the prophet who had vision, the priest who knew the law, and the elders who gave wise counsel.
Israel would be bereft of right counsel and cut off from any supernatural vision, leaving them blind and fearful as evil upon evil will fall upon them.
We have previously shown through the multitudes of types and shadows in the Old Testament where the sieges and destructions of Israel, as well as the several invasions and captivities of the Jews – were types and shadows showing what would befall the Church during the Church age. In our study through the book of Isaiah, we have shown how these several invasions, sieges, and destructions have been paralleled perfectly by the apostasies that have systematically afflicted the professing Church. From our study in the Book of Isaiah, here are the several invasions and sieges of Israel that have prophetic significance for the Church in this age:
The Assyrian invasion; signified the early fall into apostasy through eastern mysticism, gnosticism and the Greek culture. This apostasy saw the advent of many of the heresies and blasphemies that would become the Papal Antichrist system (1 John 2:18, 1 Tim. 1:3-4, 1 Tim. 6:20-21, Jude 1:4).
The Babylonian invasion; signified the rise of the Roman Catholic Antichrist, called “Mystery Babylon” in the scriptures. The Church remained in Babylonian captivity until the time of the Protestant Reformation. During the Reformation, the Romish Antichrist received a deadly wound (by means of the Sword of the Word of God) which is only now being healed.
The Roman invasion; The destruction of Jerusalem and the Temple, and the ultimate punishment brought upon the Jews in their own land. This is the spiritual invasion we see around us today, hallmarked by the “Purpose Driven” deception, Romish futurism, Arminianism, and the Popish Charismatic movement.
Now, in the first part of this section on Supernatural Revelation, we showed the means God uses to deprive a people of the vision they need for spiritual survival and prosperity. Where the people are deprived of supernatural vision, they will embrace a natural view and definition of “faith” that only encompasses the type of faith and belief that devils may have. That definition of faith does not encompass “saving” faith, which is necessary for any man to be saved. The sign of this judgment falling upon the professing “church” is that they are left without true Gospel ministers to prophesy, without supernatural revelation to guide them and help them understand the law and the testimony, and without counsel from Godly elders to whom they should be able to go for advice on life and living. The “church”, then, left to themselves and doing that which is right in their own eyes, becomes ever more apostate and idolatrous in their zeal to feel close to God again. We must admit that the modernist false “church” is very zealous in their desire to seek God; even if those desires have the greed and wickedness of the human heart as their fountainhead. The purpose driven “church” must seek within themselves for purpose (or they must seek some system created by secular or pagan psychology), because God, as part of his judgment against their wicked minds, has turned them over to themselves to be little popes unto themselves. Each member, then, becomes a self-pope – determining his purpose within himself and seeking vision from within himself. The Purpose-Driven “christian” is driven to feel good about himself and his position; he is driven to feel comfortable with his position in God, regardless of what God in His Bible has to say about it. Unable to receive spiritual food or water from Christ, the PDC (Purpose-Driven “christian”) must turn to psychology and eastern/new age religion for answers to life and living. This is what has been prophesied, and this is what we see happening around us.
As Darkness Falls
And of the children of Issachar, which were men that had understanding of the times, to know what Israel ought to do; the heads of them were two hundred; and all their brethren were at their commandment (1 Chronicles 12:32).
In these verses, representatives from all of the tribes of Israel had come to David after the death of Saul, to make him King of Israel. For our purposes here, though, I would like to draw your attention to the representatives of the children of Issachar. The representatives of this tribe are said to “understand the times, to know what Israel ought to do”, and it says that “their brethren were at their commandment”. Some would say that these wise men were Astrologers who had knowledge of the times and seasons, while others would say that they were merely political wise men, who knew when a political action was likely to be successfully accomplished. I would say that these men were men who heard from God; who had a knowledge of God's Word and who received supernatural vision concerning what Israel ought to do. For this reason, all of their brethren in Israel heeded their words, and sought to follow their commandment, knowing that whatever they commanded God also commanded. It is said of these men, that they had “understanding of the times”, and it is this understanding that I wish to address with you.
There are those things that God would have His children to know, and it is for this reason that He has given us a whole book of Prophecy (for the whole Bible is prophecy, either fulfilled or yet to be fulfilled). There are some times that are fixed and that are knowable, and God has given us the resources in His Bible to study and understand these times, just as Daniel understood by books (Dan. 9:2) “the number of the years, whereof the word of the LORD came to Jeremiah the prophet, that he would accomplish seventy years in the desolations of Jerusalem.” There are other times which are hidden from us, about which we are not to search or look into, because God has hidden these things from us for our own good and for His divine purposes. About these hidden times that God has put in His own power, the Apostle says, “It is not for you to know the time or the seasons, which the Father hath put in his own power” (Acts 1:7).
It is necessary that spiritual Israel know the difference between prophetic “night” and “day” (John 9:4), so that they know when it is time to work and when it is time to flee from destruction (Matthew 24:16). And we should note that both the wicked and the righteous are said to look into the times and seasons that God has appointed. In the New Testament we learn that there were very many people who looked for the soon advent of the Messiah. Jerusalem was full of those who expected the Messiah to come. The Pharisees expected Messiah at any time, and hoped that He would bring in a carnal Kingdom and that He would elevate them to positions of greater power and authority. Many others, including the Samaritans expected that Messiah would come very soon (John 4:25, 7:41). The pop-prophecy being taught in that day led most of the people into great error concerning the method, means, and purpose of the coming of Christ. And so it is today...
Many people are engaged in prophetic study, seeking out wisdom concerning times and seasons. The pop-prophecy preaching pimps of modernist religion have concocted an entire prophetic scenario (which we call Jesuit Futurism) which has no basis at all in fact or scripture. Others are dragged off into new and dangerous prophetic scenarios (like Jesuit Preterism) that rob the people of the prophetic warnings that are specifically directed at them. Israel (professing “christianity) is carried about with multitudes of strange and new doctrines concerning the advent of Christ. “Nevertheless, when the Son of Man cometh, shall he find faith on the earth?” (Luke 18:8b). It is saving “faith” that will be in short supply when the Lord cometh; so we can know that the night of apostasy is on us based on what we have already studied in this chapter on Supernatural Revelation. Ironically enough, it is by studying the very people who seem to be the most obsessed with the coming of Christ, that we can better understand the times and “what Israel ought to do”. The Pop-prophecy movement teaches that many (primarily fat, worldly, ignorant, comfortable, spiritually retarded psuedo-christians) will be taken suddenly in the “rapture”, leaving everyone else behind to suffer through the “Great Tribulation”. The Bible teaches that, during the “night”, during a time of great apostasy from the true and historic faith, when it is likened unto the times of Noah and the times of Lot, that:
“Whosoever shall seek to save his life shall lose it; and whosoever shall lose his life shall preserve it. I tell you, in that night there shall be two men in one bed; the one shall be taken, and the other shall be left. Two women shall be grinding together; the one shall be taken, and the other left. Two men shall be in the field; the one shall be taken, and the other left” (Luke 17:33-36).
These scriptures speak not at all of a rapture, but of the wicked being taken (losing his life) while the righteous are left behind and protected. It is here where we can understand the parable of the tares being taken out of God's field first:
“Gather ye together first the tares, and bind them in bundles to burn them: but gather the wheat into my barn” (Matt. 13:30b).
The most immediate fulfilling of this prophetic scenario occurred only a few years later through the prophesied Roman invasion and siege of Jerusalem. The Christians were warned by Jesus to flee when they saw Jerusalem compassed with enemies (Luke 21:20-21). This was fulfilled when the Christians fled Judah for Pella nearly a year before the siege and were safely away during the final destruction of Jerusalem and the Temple in 70 a.d. These prophetic shadows are now being fulfilled before those with the spiritual eyes to see. The prophetic hallmark of these times is not the physical destruction of physical Jerusalem, but the spiritual destruction of false “christianity” through great apostasy. Before our eyes we see one taken off into apostasy and spiritual blindness, while another is left with the ability to see and hear spiritually so that he may receive supernatural revelation. Two women (women are spiritual symbols of Churches) are both grinding (working) when one is taken into false doctrine and purpose-driven apostasy, while the other is given spiritual light to remain on the narrow road.
We can tell, then, by watching the apostasy and spiritual darkness of our time, and know that the night has fallen. The prophets and ministers within organized, so-called “christianity” are “blind: they are all ignorant, they are all dumb dogs, they cannot bark; sleeping, lying down, loving to slumber” (Isa. 56:10). Isaiah goes on to say:
“Yea, they are greedy dogs which can never have enough, and they are shepherds that cannot understand: they all look to their own way, every one for his gain, from his quarter” (Isa 56:11).
How many millions of dollars have been extorted through the apostate purpose-driven Church Growth Movement? These greedy dogs can never have enough. Like hell, they are never full.
God's people are being pulled out of the “assembly of mockers” so that they can be saved from the destruction coming upon the apostate “church”. Those who seek light, who desire supernatural revelation, and who are the called and elect of God, are being brought “outside the camp” where Christ ever speaks to His people. Remember that David was a type of the Messiah. The wise men of the tribes of Israel (and among them the prophets of Issachar) went outside the camp where they would have David to be their King. These wise children of Issachar understood the times, and understood what Israel was to do.
The night is come, and the professing institution called the “church” is now bereft of true Gospel ministers, who rightly see the times and who point the people of God to the law and to the testimony.
In the next part, we will study the prophetic “nights” and “days” of God, that we might be wise in these wicked days.
I am your servant in Christ Jesus,
Michael Bunker