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The End of the Church Age...and After
Chapter 2. Times and Seasons This world has existed now for 13,000 years. As we shall clearly see in this study, we, by God's divine providence, have come very near to the end of the world's existence. Because we are so near the end, many truths of the Bible, which God had sealed, are now being revealed. This is particularly true of those things that are an integral part of the end-time revelation. We might recall that God prophesied in Daniel 12:9:
Thus,
we can expect that many passages of the Bible, which heretofore, have been
somewhat mysterious, can now be understood.
For example, in Acts 1:7, the
disciples ask Jesus if the time has come for Him to restore the kingdom to
Israel. We can speculate that they had the same notion that appeared to be
popular in that day amongst the Jews. That is, they expected that when the
Messiah would come, He would reign as a king in Jerusalem and free them
from Roman rule (John 6:15). We have been taught by the Bible
that the kingdom of God is a spiritual kingdom. It will be completed only
when all of the elect have become saved. We see this implied in Jesus'
answer to the disciples in Acts Chapter 1, verses 7 and 8:
Effectively, Jesus is telling the disciples that it
is not for them to know the details of God's program to evangelize the
world. Their task was to get busy proclaiming the Gospel to the world, and
of course, this includes all believers who followed them. We are to
witness to the whole world and proclaim the commands of the Gospel to
believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and so on.
However, as Jesus answered them, He
made a very mysterious statement. "It is not for you to know the times
or the seasons." Jesus, in this statement, is telling us that the
proclamation of God's salvation plan is in some mysterious way divided
into times and seasons. Again in I Thessalonians 5:1, we read of times and
seasons. I Thessalonians 5:1, 2 records:
What can this mean? We, of course, must find our answer in the Bible. One helpful clue we find that helps us to understand this statement is James 5:7:
The ultimate husbandman in view here is God Himself. In James 5:7, God is emphasizing that there is an early rain and a latter rain. In Deuteronomy 32:2, God explains that rain is a picture of the Gospel coming from heaven. There we read:
Thus, we can know, based on James
5:7, that there are at least two seasons that identify with the bringing
of the Gospel to the world.
His entire worldwide program of sending forth the Gospel. It is set forth in Joel 2:23 and further developed in other places in the Bible. Joel 2:23:
First,
the Hebrew word translated "moderately" is more accurately translated
"righteously." Secondly, the verb phrase "hath given" should be more
properly translated "gives." Thirdly, the final phrase "the latter rain in
the first month" is more accurately translated "after the first." Thus,
the verse should read this way:
Be glad then, ye children of Zion, and rejoice in the
LORD your God: for he gives you the former rain "righteously" and he
will cause to come down for you the rain, the former rain, and the
latter rain after the first. In
this verse we read about three rains. The first is described as former or
early. Following this first early rain there is additional rain that is
divided into early and latter rain. Both the second early rain and the
latter rain are rain that comes after the first early righteous rain.
Thus far, we have learned that there are three seasons, an early righteous rain of bringing the Gospel, an early rain after this first rain, and a latter rain after the first. The purpose of spiritual rain is to bring forth a spiritual harvest. This is indicated by Joel 2:24-26, which declares: Three Rains Bring Three Harvest Continuing to examine the Bible
for information that might relate to harvests being brought forth, we find
that God speaks of three harvests. We
These verses speak of a time of harvest when the firstfruits are brought to the priest and waved before the Lord. These firstfruits are distinguished from the firstfruits that would be brought in after 50 days at Pentecost by calling them by the Hebrew word reshith. Later, we will learn that the firstfruits that were brought in at Pentecost were called by the Hebrew word bikkur. The time this (reshith, firstfruits) harvest was to take place was when Israel first came into the land of Canaan. It was a harvest that they did not plant. It was produce that was already there when they came into the land of Canaan. In Joshua 4:19 we read that Israel crossed the Jordan River into the land of Canaan on the tenth day of the first month and kept the Passover Feast four days later, on the fourteenth day of the month (Joshua 5:10). It would have been at that time, therefore, that this first harvest took place. This harvest was also called "the first [reshith] of the firstfruits [bikkur]" (Exodus 23:19). That is, it was a harvest of firstfruits that anticipated the Pentecostal harvest of firstfruits (bikkur) that came 50 days later. Leviticus 23:15-17 speaks of this Pentecostal harvest:
These verses are speaking of Pentecost, which came 50 days after the Passover. Pentecost is also spoken as the feast of harvest, the firstfruits (bikkur) of thy labors (Exodus 23:16). Please note the Hebrew word firstfruits concerning
the Pentecostal harvest is a different word from the Hebrew word "firstfruits" used in Leviticus 23:10-11, which describes the earliest harvest that was identified with the Passover. God also speaks of a third harvest and it is called the feast of ingathering, which was at the end of the year (Exodus 23:16). This feast was also called the feast of tabernacles and was observed at the time of the final harvest. This harvest was never described as firstfruits. The Bible simply describes it as a feast of ingathering at the end of the year. These three harvests were so important that God declared in Deuteronomy 16:16:
The feast of unleavened bread began with the Passover when "the first [reshith] of the first fruits [bikkur]" were brought into "the house of the Lord thy God." We must remember that harvest
is a consequence of rain. We can see the beautiful parallel that exists
between the rain of Joel 2:23 and these three
harvests.
Christ, the First Harvest Coming from the Early Righteous Rain First there will be the early rain called the righteous rain in Joel 2:23. This first early righteous rain must be identified with the Gospel as God ministered it in national Israel, beginning with Abraham and ending with Christ being announced as the Lamb of God. The harvest that resulted from this first early righteous rain was the Lord Jesus Himself. When John the Baptist announced, "Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world" (John 1:29), he was announcing that the Passover Lamb had come. The first of the firstfruits had arrived.
But every man in his own order: Christ the firstfruits; afterward they that are Christ's at his coming. He was typified by the
reshith firstfruits of the Old Testament. He is also the
firstfruits that we read about in Romans 8:23:
Thus,
the Passover was identified with this first early righteous rain because
Christ is our Passover. He, therefore, is the first of the
firstfruits. This second harvest, in which the
firstfruits identified with the Pentecost were brought in, is pointing to
the entire New Testament church age. It began with the Pentecost in A.D.
33 when about 3,000 individuals became saved in one afternoon. It was a
product of the early rain that came after the first early righteous rain
that had brought Christ as the Passover Lamb. This Pentecostal rain of the
Gospel in the entire world continued for more than 1900 years. It produced
churches and congregations all over the world as external evidence of the
existence of the kingdom of God. All of those who became saved as these
churches preached the Gospel were the firstfruits. In fact, the believers
are called firstfruits in James 1:18, where God declares:
Of his own will begat he us with the word of truth, that we should be a kind of firstfruits of his creatures.
James 1:18 speaks of the believers as a kind of firstfruits. There were two kinds of firstfruits, the first of the firstfruits and the Pentecostal firstfruits. The church age was not the first (reshith) of the firstfruits (bikkur). The churches were the Pentecostal firstfruits (bikkur). In Revelation 14, God speaks of
the 144,000, which we will learn later in our study identify with all
those who became saved during the church age. There, too, in verse 4, they
are called the firstfruits. Revelation 14:4:
We thus have seen two distinct seasons of the Gospel.
These two seasons were in view when Jesus told the disciples in Acts Chapter 1, verse 7: The Season of the Latter Rain But there is
still another season that must be considered. It identifies with the term
"latter rain." The early Pentecostal rain, which identifies with
the
Pentecostal firstfruits that come into the kingdom of Christ during the church age, is followed by the latter rain.
This latter rain
identifies beautifully with the harvest of ingathering, which is brought
in at the end of the year. In Exodus 23:14-16, we
read
These verses speak of the feast of ingathering in the end of the
year. The phrase "first fruits" is never used in connection with this
feast or harvest of ingathering because this feast celebrates the final
completion of the harvest. It, therefore, must identify with the final
gathering in of the believers. The final gathering in or harvesting of the
believers must identify with the latter rain. Later, we will learn that
this latter rain identifies with the great multitude, which no man can
number, that becomes saved during the Great Tribulation period (Revelation
7:9-14).
Thus, we have learned that there are three seasons that God has in view of Acts 1:7 .
As we view the
three rains set forth in Joel 2:23, we discover a very interesting and
significant truth. Between each of the seasons of rain there is a brief
time of intense spiritual famine. It is not a famine of the failure of the
true Word of God being preached, it is a famine of hearing the Word
of God The Famine of Elijah's Day This spiritual famine of hearing the Word of God was typified by a physical famine in Elijah's day. We read in I Kings 17:1:
This famine occurred in Israel when the wicked man Ahab, who was married to the exceedingly wicked Jezebel, was reigning over Israel. According to James 5:17 and 18, we learn that this famine continued for three years and six months. There we read:
According to Deuteronomy 11:13-17, the withholding of rain so that there is spiritual famine is a result of great wickedness. We read there:
In the situation that existed in Elijah's day, the famine of rain ended after Elijah called down fire from heaven, which consumed the bullock on the altar and the altar itself. Following this event and the killing of the 450 prophets of Baal, the famine came to an end as a great rain began to fall. This dramatic event occurred on Mount Carmel when Elijah challenged the 450 prophets of Baal to call down fire from heaven. Fire from heaven is a picture of God bringing judgment. The 450 prophets of Baal, who were emissaries of Satan, could not bring judgment, only God can do that. The bullock was a picture of Christ who came under the judgment of God for our sins. This event was actually a
representation of what would happen when Christ went to the cross. Christ,
represented by the bullock and the altar, came under the wrath of God
because He had been laden with all the sins of those He came to save. The
450 prophets of Baal were killed by Elijah (I Kings 18:40), typifying the
fact that Satan was vanquished by the death and resurrection of Christ. It
was at the cross that judgment came on Satan. The three and a half years
of famine, which preceded this dramatic event on Mount Carmel, typifies
the three and a half years during which Jesus preached. Later, we will
examine this Mount Carmel event in greater detail.
Significantly, we will learn later in our study that during the
time Jesus preached, hardly anyone became saved. There was a grievous
spiritual famine of hearing the Word of God. Later, we will learn that the
period of time from the announcement of Jesus as the Lamb of God until He
was crucified was three years and six months. Thus, it was a spiritual
famine that was parallel to the physical famine of Elijah's day.
We have learned that the early righteous rain continued until Jesus was announced as the Passover Lamb. We also learned that a few weeks after the cross, the spiritual famine dramatically ended as the spiritual rain began to fall, as is indicated by about 3,000 individuals becoming saved at Pentecost. Indeed,
the prophecy of Deuteronomy 11 was fulfilled. The
spiritual apostasy that existed at the time of Jesus resulted in a period
of an intense famine of hearing the Word of God. This was followed by the
early rain season that identifies with the church age. This early rain
Pentecostal church age season would continue for over 1900 years, until
the beginning of the Great Tribulation.
The Famine Beginning with the Great
Tribulation
The
beginning of the Great Tribulation signaled another time of spiritual
famine. This time of spiritual famine is also identified with a time of
three and a half years. But whereas the physical famine of Elijah's day
and the spiritual famine of Jesus' day was a literal three and a half
years, the spiritual famine that began at the beginning of the Great
Tribulation was symbolically three and a half years. We might remember
that this time continues for 42 months as indicated by the language of
Revelation 11:2:
In Revelation 11:9 and 11, it is spoken of as three and a half days:
Later, we will learn that three and a half days may be understood as three and half years because the Bible, in a number of places, used a day for a year. In all likelihood, it is the literal period 2300 evening mornings spoken of in Daniel Chapter 8. This time of spiritual famine is followed by the latter rain which completes the Great Tribulation time. The latter rain ends when all the believers are raptured to be safe and secure with Christ in heaven. In Acts 1:7, Jesus speaks of
times and seasons in connection with His Gospel program. We are now
beginning to understand these times and seasons.
1. Season of righteous early rain–The Old Testament period beginning with Abraham and ending with the announcement of Jesus as the Lamb of God. 2. Time of spiritual famine - three and a half years during Jesus' ministry. 3. Season of early rain -
Church age which continues more than 1950 years beginning with the
resurrection in A.D. 33 and ending at the beginning of the Great
Tribulation.
4. Time of spiritual
famine–The first part (half hour) of the Great Tribulation (three and a
half days or 42 months); 2300
days We
will examine these truths as we continue our study. We will discover that
the Bible approaches the question of God's three-season salvation program
from the vantage point of a vineyard that God planted.
One Vineyard - Two Caretakers The principle that God has divided His program of evangelizing the world into seasons and times is demonstrated and taught in many ways in the Bible. In this study, we will become acquainted with a number of them. Presently, we will examine God's use of the figure of a vineyard in illustrating the division of God's Gospel program into seasons. We find numerous references in the Bible to a vineyard. However, two parables that feature a vineyard stand out. One is in Matthew 21 and the other is in Isaiah 5. We will examine these two parables and look at their similarities and their differences. We will learn that the vineyard described in Matthew 21 is speaking about the kingdom of God as it was externally represented by the nation of Israel. They were God's special people but that relationship ended
when they crucified the Lord Jesus. Likewise, we will
learn that Isaiah 5 is using the same vineyard as that of Matthew 21. But
in Isaiah 5, it is speaking about the kingdom of God as it was represented
by the local congregations throughout the church age. The church age
became in evidence very dramatically on the day of Pentecost when about
3,000 were saved (Acts 2).
It is clearly seen that a vineyard represents
people by verses such as the following.
Not only do these verses identify the vineyard with people, but it is representing a special people who are to be identified with Christ Himself.
In fact, we will learn that Matthew 21 and Isaiah 5 are speaking of the same vineyard, but they are speaking of its existence at two different periods of time. Both vineyards are established and owned by Christ.
Both have caretakers or husbandmen who are given responsibility to bring forth a harvest. They must answer to the owner of the vineyard.
In both vineyards the caretakers fail their responsibility. Then in Matthew Chapter 21, verses 34 and 35, we read that God declares
Isaiah 5:2 declares: . . . and he looked that it should bring forth grapes, and it brought forth wild grapes. But
there is a dramatic difference in the reactions of the owner of the
vineyard (God Himself) to the failures of the caretakers of the vineyard.
In Matthew 21, the vineyard is not harmed or damaged by God. It is simply
given to another group of husbandmen.
Matthew 21:41 records:
On the other hand, the vineyard of Isaiah 5 is utterly and ruthlessly destroyed by its owner, God Himself. Isaiah 5:5 and 6 declare:
This is the language of total and complete destruction. It means that God is forever finished with this vineyard. But why did God deal so ruthlessly with this vineyard? Why did God destroy the vineyard of Isaiah 5 and not the vineyard of Matthew 21? We must remember that the purpose of the vineyard is to produce fruit. The vineyard of Isaiah 5, instead of producing good fruit, produced wild grapes. The Hebrew word translated in this passage as wild grapes is a word that is translated elsewhere as "stink" (Isaiah 34:3, Joel 2:20). Therefore, the vineyard produced a stench, something altogether evil. It, therefore, was completely destroyed by its owner. On the other hand, in Matthew 21, God made no comment concerning a failed fruit production. He refers only to the treatment the husbandmen gave to the owner of the vineyard. We read in Matthew 21:37-39:
Because of their terrible conduct in finally killing the owner's son, the vineyard is taken from then and given to other husbandmen. Spiritually, we can see that these husbandmen who killed the owner's son can refer only to the nation of Israel who wanted Jesus to be crucified. Even though they were used of God, they as a nation did not want the Gospel. Remember John 1:11 declares:
The Jews to whom Jesus was speaking in Matthew 21 understood very clearly that Jesus was speaking about them. Matthew 21:45 states:
The Fruits of the Vineyard But why did God not destroy the vineyard of Matthew 21. The answer should be clear. The vineyard that was the nation of Israel, which represented the kingdom of God during the Old Testament, did produce the good fruits that God intended it to produce. Those fruits were Christ Himself and the Gospel that flows from Him. It was necessary that the Jews kill the owner of the vineyard. Had Jesus Christ not been killed, there would be no salvation, no Gospel, no Savior, and therefore, no fruits from the vineyard.
The fruit of the vineyard was Christ Himself together with the Gospel. By bringing forth its intended harvest of Christ and the Gospel, the vineyard had served its purpose. Therefore, once Christ was killed, the vineyard, which represented the kingdom of God, was transferred from the Jewish nation to the New Testament church during the church age. The temple, the synagogues, the Old Testament ceremonial laws, the high priest, and the other priests all ceased to function in any sense as representatives of the kingdom of God. At that time, the kingdom of God was transferred from national Israel to the churches and congregations during the church age with their pastors, elders, deacons, and the New Testament ceremonial laws of water baptism and the Lord's Supper. The New Testament churches were appointed to be the caretakers of the kingdom of God. They also were given the mandate to bring the Gospel to the whole world. Thus, the vineyard of Isaiah 5 is the very same vineyard as that of Matthew 21. The difference is that the caretakers of the vineyard had shifted dramatically from the nation of Israel with its temple and the synagogues to the New Testament church. Unfortunately, the new caretakers of the vineyard already from their beginning began to bring forth some fruit that was not good fruit but instead, that which was a stink in God's nostrils. Even though the church age was still in its infancy, God warned the church in Ephesus that He would remove their candlestick if they did not return to their first love (Revelation 2:5). And the church in Sardis had already become a dead church with only a few believers within it (Revelation 3:5).
We may safely equate the stinking fruit of the church age with the high places of Old Testament Israel. We will learn in this study that the high places of the Old Testament were the worship of heathen gods alongside the worship of Jehovah God, and also, we will learn that the holding and teaching of false doctrines, doctrines that are not faithful to the Bible, are the spiritual high places of the church age. These high places or false teachings were evident in churches throughout the church age, but their numbers have been accelerated in our day as we will discover in this study.
These high places, which are teachings from the mind of men rather from God, are not good fruit from the vineyard. They, to use the language of Isaiah 5, are a stench. It is indeed remarkable that for more than 1950 years, God put up with this stinking fruit. It is a testimony to the patience and mercy of God that He allowed this situation to exist for so long a period of time. However, there is an end to
God's patience. Isaiah 5, verses 5 and 6, describe the end of the
vineyard. God Himself destroys it. As we are learning and will continue to
learn in this study, God uses Satan to assist in the destruction of all
the churches that are in existence at the end of the church age.
No Longer
Under the Care of an Earthly
Organization Since the end of the church age, God has not assigned the care of
the vineyard to a corporate external representative of the kingdom of God
or any earthly organization. There is a major shift in God's divine
economy from the use of institutions like Old Testament Israel and the
churches and congregations of the New Testament. True, the kingdom of God
continues to flourish but it is no longer under the care or responsibility
of an earthly organization. This is indeed a major change in God's method
of evangelization. After destroying the vineyard of Isaiah 5, God does not
plant another vineyard. God no longer uses an organized body of believers
under the supervision of God-ordained priests, pastors, elders, or
deacons. During the season of the latter rain that follows the destruction
of the vineyard described in Isaiah 5, the task of sending the Gospel into
the world is assigned to individual believers. God, utilizing individual
believers, is finishing the task of evangelizing the world.
For the first 9500 years of the history of the world, God did not utilize any divine institution like Israel or the local congregations to represent the
kingdom of God in the world. The largest institution that existed was the family. But then for about 3500 years, God used an earthly institution to corporately represent the kingdom of God. From the time Israel came out of Egypt in 1447 B.C. until Pentecost of A.D. 33, it was the nation of Israel. Then at Pentecost in A.D. 33, God shifted the representation of the kingdom of God to another God-ordained institution, that is, the local churches and congregations that have existed throughout the church age. During the time of God's use of the nation of Israel, God developed a legal entity with priests and a temple and synagogues. During the time of the church age, God developed a divine God-ordained entity which was the local church. It, too, by God's commands, had church overseers, such as elders and deacons and pastors and teachers. However, with the end of the church
age, the vineyard was totally destroyed. Never again would God use an
earthly institution to externally represent the kingdom of God. During the
final season, when the final harvest of believers will be brought in, God
uses only individual believers.
Assembling Together of
Ourselves The
principle that God now uses only individual believers agrees with the
statement of Hebrews 10:25, where God commands that as Judgment Day
approaches, we are not to neglect the assembling of ourselves together.
The word "ourselves" surprises us. During the church age, we would expect
to see the word "church" or "congregation" rather than the word
"ourselves." However, during the latter rain, God does not use an earthly
organization as He used national Israel in the Old Testament and as He
used the local congregations throughout the church age. He uses individual
believers.
It is true that believers can come
together in an organization such as Family Radio to facilitate the sending
forth of the Gospel into the world. But Family Radio has no membership. It
has no spiritual rule over those who support it. It has no Biblical
standing as a God-ordained organization. We know that God works in the
believers to will and to do of His good pleasure, so we know that only God
can raise up an organization like Family Radio. We must give God all the
glory for whatever successes it may have as it sends the Gospel into all
the world. It is simply a convenient vehicle by which individual believers
can be used of God to accomplish the task of evangelizing the world during
the season of the latter rain. By bringing together the resources of a
number of believers, radio stations and other means or vehicles of
communication can be owned and operated to assist with the task of
evangelization. This can be done on a scale that would be impossible for a
single believer.
The truth that during the latter rain season the Gospel mandate is strictly carried out by individual believers therefore agrees with the statement of Hebrews 10:25, where God commands that as the Day of Judgment approaches, we are not to neglect the assembling of ourselves together. However, during the latter rain
season, God does not use an earthly organization such as national Israel,
which He used during the Old Testament time, nor the local churches, which
He used throughout the church age. The vineyard that God had planted that
externally represented the kingdom of God, which was first under the care
of national Israel and then under the care of the churches, has ceased to
exist.
More than One
SeasonIt should be noted that in Matthew 21:41 the Bible records:
The fact that the word "seasons" is plural tells us that God is anticipating more than one season that would come after the vineyard was taken from the nation of Israel. We have already learned that the first season that would follow was the church age season during which the harvest of the Pentecostal firstfruits was brought in. After that season was finished, the true believers, who are typified by the two witnesses of Revelation 11, are driven out or they leave because they are commanded to come out of the churches. To use the language of Revelation 11, they are killed. The two witnesses of Revelation 11:11 have been killed. From the language of John 16:2, we can understand that to be killed is equivalent to being driven out of the churches. John 16:2 records:
However,
there is one more season. It is the season of the latter rain during which
the final harvest is brought in. This final season that brings forth fruit
is typified by the two witnesses who stand on their feet as the Holy
Spirit comes upon them. Revelation 11:11 records:
This language parallels that which we find in Ezekiel, when Ezekiel was commanded to take God's Word to Israel. Ezekiel 2, verses 1, 2, and 4:
It is parallel language to that which documents God's command to Saul of Tarsus who became the Apostle Paul. We read in Acts 26:16:
Thus,
we can be sure that when the two witnesses are commanded to stand on their
feet as the Spirit enters into them, it refers to the true believers who
have been driven out of the churches. However, they continue to be used by
God to bring the Gospel. Revelation 11:11 also indicates great fear came upon them that beheld them. This must be speaking of those who became saved. They are the ones who truly fear God because they have become saved. They are the ones who see that the two witnesses are bringing the Gospel. Thus, we know that these two witnesses represent the true believers who are driven out of the churches or in obedience to God's command, come out of the churches. As individuals without membership in an earthly spiritual organization like ancient Israel or a local congregation, without titles such as priest, pastor, elder, or deacon, they send out the Gospel into the world during the final season of the latter rain. Of course, each one who becomes saved during the latter rain season also becomes an ambassador of Christ and assists in sending forth the Gospel during the latter rain season.
Thus, we have learned that God planted a vineyard and placed it under the care of Old Testament Israel. Their era ended when the harvest that consisted of the Lord Jesus Christ Himself together with the Gospel was produced. Following this, God took the vineyard, the external corporate representation of the kingdom of God, away from national Israel. The era of the temple in Jerusalem, the synagogues, the ceremonial law activities of the Old Testament, and so on, came to an end. God then transferred the vineyard, the corporate external representation of the kingdom of God, to another body. That body was the New Testament churches that expanded into all the world. Finally, because of the stench, the evil, the high places, the wrong doctrines that were a constant weakness throughout the church age, God destroyed His vineyard. That is, He brought judgment upon all the local churches in the world. We will learn more about this sad fact as we continue this study. However, it was not part of God's divine economy to replace the institution of the church with another visible external institution as a representative of the kingdom of God. Once the vineyard God had planted was completely destroyed, we do not read anywhere in the Bible that God would plant another vineyard. Instead, He completes the evangelization of the world utilizing individual believers without the help of a God-ordained external body. This, we are learning, is God's methodology for completing His work of bringing in the full number of the elect. God speaks of this final harvest of believers as the season of the latter rain. Significantly, the opening verses of Revelation
20 also relate to the subject of the latter rain. We shall now examine
these verses. The opening verses of
Revelation 20 intrigued and fascinated believers throughout the time of
the church age. Now that we are very near the end of time, God is opening
up the understanding of true believers so that we can know what God is
teaching in these verses.
When we look carefully at the first seven verses of Revelation 20, we find that God makes reference to the church age as the time when Satan is bound. And God makes reference to the latter rain by calling it a little season. The terms "church age" and "latter rain" are not found in these verses, however, when we carefully examine them, we will find that these terms are definitely in view. In these verses, we find that the phrase a "thousand years" is used
three times with the information that
it is a period of time that has a fulfillment or comes to an end. On the
other hand, the term a "thousand years" is used twice with no indication
that it has an end. Let us study these verses to see why this is so, and
at the same time, we will discover references to the church age and the
latter rain hidden within these verses.
Revelation 20, verses 1, 2, and 3,
declare:
Immediately, we must ask, when was Satan cast into, or when will Satan be cast into, a bottomless pit so that he could not deceive the nations for a thousand years? We know that the Greek word
abussos, which is translated "bottomless pit" in Revelation 20 and
as "deep" in Luke 8:31 and Romans 10:7, is a reference to hell. Romans
10:7 declares:
In this verse, the word "deep" (Greek abussos), is equated with Christ's death. We know that Christ's death means He suffered the penalty of eternal damnation (hell) on behalf of those He came to save. Therefore, we know that Satan was cast into hell. But is there other information in the Bible that refers to a past or future time when Satan would be cast into hell? Let us search the Bible. In fact, there are no references that can be found in the Bible concerning a future time when Satan will be cast into hell and following that, he will be loosed from hell. But there are two passages that clearly show that before the Bible was completed, Satan had been cast into hell. The first of these is found in II Peter 2:4, where God declares:
This verse is in the past tense, as are II Peter 2, verses 5 and 6, which speak of God's historic judgments that came by the flood of Noah's day and the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah in Abraham's day. The second verse is Jude 1:6 wherein God reports:
This judgment is also in the past tense. It, too, is in the setting of two historic judgments. The first is recorded in Jude verse 5 and speaks of God's judgment on Israel when they died in the wilderness and did not enter into the land of Canaan. The second is Jude verse 7, which again records the historic judgment that came on Sodom and Gomorrah. These verses of II Peter 2 and Jude are records of judgments that were already accomplished at the time Peter and Jude were writing these passages. Even as the judgments on Sodom and Gomorrah and on the world in Noah's day were history at the time this was being written, so, too, it appears that the judgment on the angels was history at the time this was being written. Therefore, we suspect that somehow, the judgment on the angels must have occurred when Jesus went to the cross. But how can that be? Don't we read in I Peter 5:8 that the devil goes about as a roaring lion? And doesn't Ephesians 6 speak of our adversary, the devil? The answer to these questions can be known if we understand what hell is. We learn this by searching the Bible. Ephesians 4:8-9:
The phrase "lower parts of the earth," like the phrase "heart of the earth" in Matthew 12:40, surely refers to being under the wrath of God. Thus, Ephesians 4:8-9 can mean only that Christ went into hell (He experienced the wrath of God), to deliver the elect who were in hell (were under the wrath of God). The new heavens and the new earth will be a wonderful place where no one can be under the wrath of God. Therefore, we can understand that the first three verses of Revelation
20 are teaching that at the time of the cross, Satan was put under the wrath of God (in the bottomless pit, which is a synonym for hell). This was also the time that he was cast out of heaven. During the Old Testament era, he had access into heaven, as we read in the first chapter of Job. But Revelation 12 records his expulsion from heaven. There we read that he was defeated by the blood of the Lamb. Revelation 12, verses 9 and 11, tell us:
Returning to
Revelation 20:1-3, we read that Satan was cast into the bottomless pit
(hell) so that he could no longer deceive the
nations.
From these verses we learn that the prime method that Satan uses to assault Christ is to try to stop the growth of the kingdom of God. The devil is a liar and the father of lies. Mankind is fair game for his wiles as God declares in Romans 3:4, "let God be true, but every man a liar." But something wonderful happened seven weeks after Christ went to the cross. On the day of Pentecost, Peter preached one sermon and about 3,000 individuals became saved. In one day, 3,000 came out from under the tyranny and deception of Satan. Satan had been bound so that he could no longer deceive the nations. And ever since then, throughout the church age, all over the world, people have been coming into the kingdom of God.
Thus, we can be sure that the binding of Satan had to have happened at the time of the cross. No wonder then that we see the parallel between, on the one hand, the language of II Peter 2:4 and Jude 6, and on the other hand, the language of Revelation 20:1-3. However, that means that the thousand years must be understood metaphorically rather than literally. In this study, we will learn that Satan was loosed at the beginning of the Great Tribulation, and that was almost 2,000 years after the cross. Thus, in this context, the term "thousand years" must be understood spiritually as the "completeness of time." The completeness of time for the church age began with the binding of Satan at the time of the cross and continued for over 1950 years. Satan Is Loosed The
"completeness of time" period ended with Satan being loosed. The loosing
of Satan coincided with the beginning of the Great Tribulation. True,
while Satan was bound he was able to intimidate, threaten, and kill
believers. Throughout this period he had been able to go about as a
roaring lion. But he could not stop the forward advance of the kingdom of
God. Even though he killed Christians, he was not the winner. Revelation
20:4 declares:
Those who were martyred simply changed residency. As disembodied souls, they reigned with Christ a thousand years. Please note the language carefully, "I saw the souls of them that were beheaded." It does not say, "I saw the souls who had been beheaded." It says I saw the souls of them that were beheaded. This is parallel language to a statement like, "I saw the hand of the man who had been killed." I saw only the hand of the man who was killed. Likewise, when Christians leave their bodies, in their soul existence, they go to live and reign with Christ in heaven. II Corinthians 5:8 declares:
Thus, in Revelation 20, God is telling us of a vision in which John saw the believers reigning with Christ after they had been killed. We have learned that the term "a thousand years" in this context signifies the completeness of time. Earlier we noted that three times in Revelation 20 the thousand years have a beginning and an end. Therefore, the phrase a "thousand years" must identify with the period that began with the binding of Satan when Christ went to the cross and ended with the loosing of Satan at the beginning of the Great Tribulation. Thus, it must encompass the same period of time as that of the New Testament church age. However, the vision of the souls of the disembodied martyrs shows them reigning a thousand years with no ending or completion in view. That can be readily understood if we keep in mind that true believers were given eternal life at the time they became saved. Thus, they begin to reign with Christ at the moment they are saved (Ephesians 2:5), and they will continue to reign with Him forevermore. In their case, the thousand years cannot have an end because it goes on eternally. The Rest of the DeadThat brings us to verse 5 of Revelation 20, where we read:
Who are the rest of the dead who lived not again until the thousand years are finished? Since the end of the thousand years identifies with the loosing of Satan, which identifies with the beginning of the Great Tribulation, we can know that these dead come to life at the end of the church age, after the beginning of the Great Tribulation. The term "lived not again" implies that they had previously lived. Could this refer to the unsaved who had previously lived on earth and who will be resurrected to stand for judgment on the last day? The problem with that conclusion, first of all, is that it does not fit very well into the context (the rest of these verses speak of those who are saved). In fact, we now understand that the unsaved who have died will never again come to life. They are dead forever more. Secondly, ordinarily, when the Bible speaks of life or living it is speaking of eternal life or salvation. Indeed, verse 5 of Revelation 20 reminds us of the truth we read in I Corinthians 15, verse 22, where God declares:
In Adam, each and every human being had become dead in his sins. Spiritually, before we are saved, we are dead. But in Christ there is a time when the elect of God become spiritually alive. They become alive again because before Adam sinned, they were alive. When Adam sinned, they became dead. Since we all came from Adam, in a sense, we were in the loins of Adam when he was on earth. Returning of Revelation 20, verse 5, we now can understand that after Satan has been loosed, that is, after the thousand years are finished, the rest of those who had died in Adam and were to be made alive in Christ would become alive again. That is, they would become saved during the time of the Great Tribulation. Now we can understand why Revelation 20:3 states:
Outside of the churches, a great multitude is being saved. But within the churches, Satan is reigning because he has been loosed to be used of God to deceive those within the churches. Thus, the little season must coincide with the season of the latter rain. It is the season when the great multitude which no man can number is being saved (Revelation 1:9-14). This is why Revelation 20, verse 5, speaks of the first resurrection, and then in verse 6, God describes the characteristics of those who have become saved. The first resurrection is experienced at the moment of salvation when we receive our brand new eternal soul. This implies a second resurrection for the believers, and that will be on the last day for the believers, when we receive our eternal resurrected spiritual bodies at the moment of the rapture. Thus, we have learned that Revelation 20:1-7 can be clearly understood when we realize that God is speaking of the church age as the time when Satan had been bound. Furthermore, He is speaking of the season of the latter rain as a little season during which Satan has been loosed and the rest of those who are to become saved (the great multitude which no man can number), do become saved. Before we leave Revelation 20, we must ask the question: How can it be that at the time of the cross, Satan was bound and cast into hell, and then later on, he is set free? And as we will learn later in this study, he is set free to rule in the churches. In fact, we read in Revelation 9:1-3:
In this passage, the star who came from heaven to open the bottomless pit can only be Christ. We read in Revelation 1:18:
Furthermore, in Revelation 13, Satan is typified by a dragon with seven heads and ten horns, and we read in verse 3:
We know, of course, that after the guilty have been judged and sentence is passed, nothing can change that sentence. By Christ's victory over death, as Jesus suffered death for the elect, Satan was given a death blow. He was sentenced to the lake of fire. This is because he was judged and effectively sentenced to hell (death) forevermore by Christ's victory over death at the time of the cross. Therefore, we read in Revelation 20:10-12 of this sequence of events:
The beast and the false prophets are pictures of Satan as he rules in the churches during the Great Tribulation.
Now we are able to have a clearer understanding of these verses. It can be shown that the earlier verses of Revelation 6 are detailing the sending forth of the Gospel during the church age. The rider on the white horse going forth to conquer can only be a picture of Christ sending forth the Gospel during the church age. The rider on the red horse who wishes to take peace from the earth can only refer to Satan as he goes about as a roaring lion. By persecution and physical killing, he tries to frustrate God's Gospel plan. The rider on the black horse is
a warning to the churches that if they do not remain faithful, God will
begin to take the Gospel away from them. This parallels the language of
Leviticus 26:23-26, where we read:
It parallels the language of Isaiah 3:1:
The rider on the pale horse is a final warning to the churches that judgment will come upon them. It parallels the language of Leviticus 26:27-30, where we read:
Thus, these first four riders are declaring God's intentions for and His warnings to the churches and congregations during the church age. They can be summarized as follows.
Revelation 6:9 then declares: And when he had opened the fifth seal, I saw under
the altar the souls of them that were slain for the word of God, and for
the testimony which they held:
The slain in these verses must refer to the believers throughout the church age in the sense of Romans 8:36, where we read:
This identifies with Satan going about as a roaring lion seeking whom he may devour (I Peter 5:8), and with the language of Matthew 10:28, where God declares:
The
desire of the souls of Revelation 6:10 is that God's perfect justice will
be done. They are under the altar. This is a figure of speech that we can
understand to mean they have been covered by the blood of Jesus.
Therefore, justice has already been accomplished on their behalf because
the Lord Jesus Christ is their Savior.
But what about the unsaved who
continue in rebellion against Christ? Justice will not be done until they
are destroyed on the last day. But the last day cannot come until God's
plan of evangelizing the world has been completed. There is still a little
season which we have learned is the season of the latter rain when
believers will be killed. They will be killed in the same sense as
believers throughout the church age were killed. Only when the little season, the
season of the latter rain, has ended will God bring forth His perfect
justice. At that time, God will bring the final Day of Judgment, the final
153 days spoken of in Revelation 9.Thus, we have learned that the words
"little season" are used as a synonym for the final harvest season, which
is also called the latter rain. In both Revelation 6 and Revelation 20,
God speaks of this little season. And now, as we continue our study, we look
again at the early rain season of the Old Testament, which brought forth
the harvest of Christ and the Gospel.
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