The Final Time

Ron Weinland

January 7, 2012

I’ll tell you, to me this is one of the most exciting sermons that I’ve ever had the opportunity of giving –except for certain ones of certain content like the Feast of 2005 having to do with a greater understanding of God Almighty who has eternally existed and being able to understand an error that we’ve had within the Church because of still coming out of some things having to do with the trinity, coming out of traditional Christianity.  Because by the time Mr. Armstrong came long there wasn’t much left concerning truth in the Church because of all that had take place with the printing press, the spread of different ideas beyond the Catholic church, and all the different things that were popping up all over the world.  It had a tremendous impact on God’s Church and so much was lost and in time things of the trinity were pulled into the Church.  And when Mr. Armstrong came long - we know the story - but anyway, to be continually given more truth and understanding it’s such an incredible blessing because you’re freer.  It’s a process of coming out of Egypt and the farther we’re able to do so and come more into the light, as God gives those examples – out of darkness into light – out of Egypt into His way of life – it just become more and more exciting.

This sermon here has special meaning to me because of things connected with Mr. Armstrong and things that God gave to him to help him to be excited and inspired by what God was doing as he was able to look at what God had done with the Church through him, through a period of time and certain dates that have tremendous meaning during that time.  And today we’re at one of those dates again, and it is so awesome!  You can’t put this together.  It’s there and God lets us have a glimpse of it from time to time, and the farther we go along the more He lets us see and the more we see what God does.

God is precise in all He does!  You look at the universe and it’s so inspiring to understand it wasn’t a matter of some stupid ‘big bang’.  God put everything out there in such order of things beyond human understanding, so man tries to put it all together with such feeble ideas that become laughable when you come to understand, see, the power and the might of Almighty God – truly.

So, today is truly a significant crossroad in the timing of prophetic events for the end-time, and we don’t have all the answers of what lies before us but God has been leading us and we continue to follow.  And that’s what faith is all about; it’s not having all the answers but being given an outline.

God has given us an incredible outline of events that are still yet to come - and I thought I’d mention after services last Sabbath that I was asked a great question concerning the five months spoken of in Revelation concerning the events of the description of the 5th Trumpet.  It’s a good question and it’s being asked a lot right now because it’s like – 5 months... wait a minute, we’re at 5 months!  Just wait!  God reveals everything in His time and it isn’t time yet for a specific sermon to be given on that.  Maybe it’ll come next Sabbath, I don’t know yet.  I have no idea what the sermon’s going to be!  I had no idea all the content of this sermon.  I had no idea God was going to reveal something that we have never understood concerning the seventy-weeks prophecy.  That’s always been looked at as something that’s already been fulfilled and accomplished and the reality is, oh no, there’s more to the story.  It’s very inspiring and dumbfounding, truly, awesome in every way.

And so in time here it’s a common question that people have and I believe I know where God is leading us and giving us understanding of this but that’ll come in time.

So, I did throw out some comments regarding what it said there concerning the 5th Trumpet, but the bottom line was that at this point in time I do not know.  I don’t have all the answers.  We do not know what it all means at this particular time, but God will show us as He’s shown us all along the way.

I think that all of you know about today being an important time in prophecy; and after the Sabbath today we will have entered the final period of ‘Half a Time’.  Awesomely important! Incredibly inspiring!  That is the time that remains before Jesus Christ returns.

The sermon today is entitled indeed; The Final Time.  Again, we don’t have all the answers, but as we are moving forward in faith...you go back and read some of those things in Hebrews and the faith chapters.  Awesomely inspiring what God’s people have gone through in time and things that they have experienced, and we’re doing the same thing.  The more we learn about God the more we come to see how awesomely powerful and exacting He is in all that He does – precise, orderly. Today we’re going to take a quick glimpse, if you will, into the precision of how God has been working with us and revealing end-time events.

We’re going to spend a little time in Joshua because Joshua is taking on more and more meaning.  I marvel that as we began the journey, a particular part of a journey, a final journey back in 2008 God had us focus on a ‘type’.  There are a lot of ‘types’ in the Bible as even we talked about recently concerning the Elijahs to come and so forth.  There are a lot of ‘types’ in the Bible that are used for fulfillment in time and one of those that we observed early on in 2008 had to do with the story of Gideon.  We talked about running down the hill together.  We talked about what we were going to do, how we were going to do it as God gave us a period of time that we were, in a sense, rushing into, and we were all together in it and we threw everything into it, in that respect.  And God blessed us with a lot of growth during that period of time to give us a little bit of a taste of things that would come in time, but even more importantly as we’re coming to see now, that God has called many to have opportunity to be trained, to be prepared, to have a head start because of what He is planning for the future after Christ returns.

A lot of you have no comprehension how awesome it’s going to be, the things that God has prepared for you in advance.  If I look back in time and think about where I have gone, where my wife and I have gone, the journey we have taken, and ever told at any point in time that this is what would happen in the future, I would think they were stark raving mad.  I know you have awesome things ahead of you in very powerful ways for the purpose that God has called you to.

Let’s look at another ‘type’ here today in the story of Joshua. Let’s take the time to go through this.  Joshua 6:1 – because this is the ‘type’ that we’re living now and we’ve been waiting for.  Now, the city of Jericho was securely shut up, in other words, they closed the doors, they weren’t letting anyone in and out of the gates, if you will, and God was showing Joshua something here by this.

It says, Jericho was securely shut up because of the children of Israel: they were encamped there.  There was tremendous fear there because of the stories that had happened before.  If you remember the stories there, forty years in the wilderness and yet the world knew about these people that were out there wandering around, millions of people out there in the wilderness.  They’d come out of Egypt; Egypt was basically destroyed, Pharaoh was destroyed, the entire army was destroyed by God.  And this story went throughout the land and it wasn’t forgotten in forty years - just as people here haven’t forgotten Pearl Harbour, WW II, things in Germany that people are still dealing with to this day because of history, because of people still alive that lived through those times.  And so those stories went around the region; and so when they came across the river, the Jordan River, and they saw it dry up in a time of flooding, it put tremendous fear in the people who were there because here now all these people were coming into that part of the world and they were filled with fear.

And so it says here, Jericho was shut up, none went out and none came in, because of the children of Israel who were there: And the Eternal said to Joshua, See, I have given Jericho into your hand, they knew that the people were living in fear, that there was fear in the region at that point in time, and the king thereof, and the mighty men of valour.  So again, this was being told to Joshua and therefore to all of Israel, that this was given to them.

And you shall compass/surround the city, all men of war, and go around, in other words, circle or march around, the city once. This you shall do six days. Well, that’s a ‘type’ of what we’ve been living – truly!  God is precise and organized in everything He does, and everything we are living through right now and the time of what we’re living through right now was planned a long time ago!  Long before this event took place – and so God inspired an event in time that was going to have a greater fulfillment and have great meaning later on.  That’s happened throughout history in the Bible.  That’s what’s so inspiring about so many things in the Bible!  So many ‘types’ of different things and a progressive revelation as you go forward through time and God just giving more and more and more...and this is an awesome event.  But God designed it so.  God planned it so.  That’s an awesome thing to understand.  Six days they’re to march around the city.  We’ve been living through, marching through, if you will, six periods of time, moving forward in God’s plan, looking forward to – PKG – Preparing for the Kingdom of God – looking forward to the return of Jesus Christ.  Everything we have done, everything we do is about the second coming of Jesus Christ – it truly is.  God’s work is everything about that, preparing; a work that’s being done and has been going on for a time now, but especially...especially in this last period of ‘Time, Times and a Half a Time’, or even in a period of 1260 days when my job began and that of my wife.

So He said, You shall do this for six days; and we have been going through six periods of time.  Six periods of time that God has given to us prophetically.

Verse 4 - And before, or in front of, the ark, seven priests shall bear seven trumpets of ram’s horns. It’s hard to express the awesomeness of what God plans!  Seven Seals, Seven Trumpets, Seven Last Plagues; in the midst of all that Seven Thunders.  Sevens...the importance of seven in everything that God gives over and over and over again.

So He says, you shall do this, the seven priests shall bear seven trumpets of ram’s horns. And on the seventh day, seventh day, you shall compass/march around the city seven times, now it’s divided into seven segments of time; and the priests shall blow the trumpets. And it shall come to pass that when they make a long blast with a ram's horn, and when you hear the sound of the trumpet, all the people shall shout with a great shout; and the wall of the city shall fall down flat and the people shall ascend up every man straight before him. In other words, to move or charge forward, as it is.

Verse 6 - And Joshua the son of Nun called the priests and said to them, Take up the ark of the covenant; that’s what we do, we hold up the way of God before us as we go forward fighting against the things that are in this world, rejecting the things that are in this world, striving to be, as much as humanly possible knowing our weaknesses, but as we look to God to hold up His way of life, to move forward, because we can’t move forward without Him.  He is to be with us the whole time through this journey.  That’s why we’re admonished from time to time to examine ourselves, to make sure we’re putting God first, that we’re repenting of sin.  That’s what this is about, to hold up the ark, to hold up God’s ways of life that He’s given to us, and the seven priests shall bear the seven trumpets of the ram’s horns in front of/before the ark of the Eternal. And so for six days they went through this process and nothing happened... nothing happened of what it was picturing to happen.

Verse 7 - And he said to the people, Pass on and circle the city, and let those who are armed move forward before the ark of the Eternal. And so again, we are admonished, we are encouraged from time to time to make sure, indeed, that we understand that we’re in a battle.  We’re told that this is a battle, that we’re to always be prepared for battle.  How often have we been told to be on guard, to be alert, to be ready?  Because it’s about warfare, it’s about battling, it’s about fighting – to be prepared at all times.

Verse 8 -  And it came to pass when Joshua spoke to the people, they did something physical that we’re doing on a spiritual plane, that God is fulfilling in this end-time in a very powerful way, something that He planned a long, long, long time ago.  God does everything so precise.  It’s not a small thing when different dates and different times are mentioned in the Bible, when God talks about a period of time that when the children of Israel went into Egypt to the very year they came out, God brought them out.  That was planned.  That was planned a long, long time ago.  Things are not a matter of coincidence when it comes to what God is moulding and fashioning.  It’s not a matter of chance and that as something happens God decides... “Now, how am I going to work with this here...?”  In the scheme of things, as far as an overall plan, it’s designed the way it is, by God, and He works with people, He inspires things to take place on earth, He inspires situations.  He allows people to make their own choices, but when He calls you He works with you to lead you to be in agreement with His choices, His will.  That becomes your life.  You desire with all your being to do everything according to God’s will.

Verse 8 - And it came to pass when Joshua spoke to all the people that the seven priests bearing the seven trumpets of ram’s horns advanced forward in the presence of the Eternal and blew with the trumpets: and the ark of the covenant of the Eternal followed them. And the armed men advanced in front of the priests who blew with the trumpets, and the assembly followed after the ark, the priests going before and blowing with the trumpets. It’s a process by how God was leading them and working with them and things that we could go into but I want to get through this.

Verse 10 – And Joshua had commanded the people, saying, You shall not shout nor make any noise with your voice; neither shall any word proceed out of your mouth until the day I tell you to shout; then you shall shout. And so again here, a matter of obedience, doing things exactly the way God gives them in whatever we seek to do, being at one, being unified.  How often have we heard those things?  That’s what this is about, being in unity and oneness and doing it exactly the way God says to do it.  The ministry is trained and taught in that in a very powerful way, to be at one with what’s on the website, to not deviate one iota from it.  It’s important!  God wants us to be in unison, and oneness, and prepared to do whatever we’re given to do at any moment in time.

Verse 11 - So the ark of the Eternal circled the city, going around it once: and they returned into the camp, and lodged in the camp. And Joshua rose early in the morning, talking about the second day, and the priests took up the ark of the Eternal. And the seven priests bearing seven trumpets of ram’s horns before the ark of the Eternal moved forward and blew with the trumpets: and the armed men went ahead of them; but the assembly came after the ark of the Eternal, the priests moving forward and blowing with the trumpets. So on the second day they compassed the city once, and returned to the camp: and did so for six days. So just going through here and showing that they did this and then they did it in the second day, and God said they did it for six days just as He told them.

And it came to pass on the seventh day that they arose early about the dawning of the day, and circled the city after the same manner seven times: so they went through this process this time now for a longer period of time, continuing around it; on that day only they circled the city seven times. And it came to pass at the seventh time when the priests blew with the trumpets Joshua said to the people, Shout; for the Eternal has given you the city. So it’s an awesome story.

Now, this is a ‘type’ of what we’ve been experiencing during this period of ‘Time, Times, and...’ now in front of us ‘Half a Time’.  It’s somewhat like a parable in the sense that it is not exact.  A ‘type’ is not the exact thing, just as we read about concerning the Elijah to come.  We are learning more about what ‘types’ are. But this ‘type’ is a pattern of what God is doing at this end-time to bring down Babylon, to bring down Satan’s system – that’s what it’s about.  And so we don’t know fully what’s going to transpire or how it’s going to transpire or when it’s all going to transpire, but along the line we’ll come to see things in a deeper way, in a more inspiring way, and be moved mightily by the power of God.  Truly!

Verse 17 - And the city shall be set apart for destruction, even it and all who are therein, to the Eternal: in other words, set apart to the Eternal for God’s purpose, to His purpose of what He is doing.  Well, at that time what He was doing, He was giving the children of Israel the physical Promised Land and at that time there was a process of how He was accomplishing that, and a part of that was to, first of all, set the pace, if you will, or give a ‘type’ by the destruction of Jericho – in ‘type’, in ‘manner’ of that which is greater fulfillment is the destruction of the whole system of Babylon and what God is doing to this world to bring the whole thing down in order to bring in a greater Promised Land.  That was a ‘type’ of something far greater to happen later on that God was going to give when His government would come to this earth, not just in a physical form, because we look back and we understand it doesn’t work.

That which is physical doesn’t work.  Israel didn’t work.  Judah didn’t work.  Because of human nature, the Worldwide Church of God didn’t work when it was all said and done by the end of it because of human beings.  It takes God to govern; it takes God’s government directly to govern mankind.  Man can’t rule himself – not even in the Church without God’s special blessings, favour, and help through time.

And so it says it is set apart for destruction; only Rahab the harlot shall live, she and all who are with her in the house, because she hid the messengers whom we sent. And you, by all means are to keep yourselves from what is set apart for destruction. There’s a good lesson in this.  I wanted to read this as we went along, the point being, God is saying, “Don’t take anything of it with you, it’s set apart for destruction.” Only certain things were to be taken out – Rahab and those who were in her house.  Everything else was to be destroyed.

That’s what God is showing in this world.  Everything is wrong!  There is nothing of this system that is to remain; it is all corrupt from the top to the bottom - man’s way, man’s governments, man’s economy, everything about mankind.  So everything is going to change, everything is going to be made after a pattern that is true and right, having to do with God and God’s laws and God’s ways.

So again here, being told here don’t take anything with you that is set apart for destruction unless you set apart yourselves for destruction if you take what is set apart for destruction and make the camp of Israel accursed and trouble it. So God’s not going to allow that in the Millennium, thankfully.

And so again here, what an awesome thing that we went through the story of Gideon.  I lived through that; it had great meaning to me.  I loved the ‘type’!  It was inspiring to us to the time for what it meant to us on a spiritual plane.  I love this ‘type’ because the more we go into this, the farther we go into it, just like for the children of Israel, by the time they came up to the seventh day the anticipation, the wondering how all this was going to transpire, what God was going to do, exactly how He was going to  do it.  They didn’t have all the answers.  They didn’t know everything, but they did it regardless!  They did it exactly the way God said and God brought it all down just as God’s going to do with this world and the entire system that’s there – Babylon – finally.  And so Jericho indeed was a ‘type’ of what God is bringing down concerning what’s written in Revelation about Babylon.

And so again, we don’t have all the answers but we move forward in faith just as they did.  Incredible lessons!  So it’s inspiring!  It’s an inspiring story because it’s for us. God preserved it; God made it for us to be inspired by.

For some time now I knew we would have a sermon on this day that would be tied into the story of Joshua and how we’re now entering the final ‘Half a Time’.  It’s a story, that once God gives it to you, can’t escape you, especially concerning the Trumpets that must sound and the things that must yet happen in time.  But I did not know what form or content that would finally comprise this particular sermon was going to be, and when the course of the sermon began to emerge some of the things that began to come together had to do with what Johnny Harrell said when he gave a split sermon down in Florida.  Because he went back to an experience that he and his wife Myrtle had as they were sitting there in Atlanta on December 17, 1994.  It was an incredible time in what took place because it was a prophetic time.  It was a prophetic time; it did not happen by accident that it took place on that exact day.

God knew the hearts and minds of those involved and He worked with conditions and situations in people’s lives and finally then allowed certain things to occur on that day.  Because that sermon wasn’t planned on that day, was it...?  That wasn’t the sermon that he’d planned to give, but because of certain conditions and circumstances he gave that particular sermon.

I think of the demonic world, how they think that they have free reign to do whatever they desire to do - well, they know they don’t have full reign, but they work in that manner - and yet there are things that God allows them to do at various times to fulfill His will.  And oftentimes it has to do with what we go through so that we can be matured and grow spiritually, something that Satan does not comprehend, the demon world does not grasp and comprehend, how faith works, how God’s spirit works living and dwelling within us.  And so he’s a pawn in one respect, on a spiritual plane.  He doesn’t see himself that way, but he’s a part of God’s plan of God creating a Family, and it’s something that God allowed through time, it’s something that God sacrificed to give; because it’s been a sacrifice because of all the damage and destruction of things that have taken place.

And so when Johnny and Myrtle were there in Atlanta, December 17, 1994, the 1st Seal of the book of Revelation opened and we didn’t even know it.  We didn’t know it was happening.  We didn’t know until later on what had taken place. God showed us later on.  We have learned a great deal by looking back and then God showing us this is what was fulfilled, this is what happened.  A little bit like the disciples.  They had no idea, though they didn’t even have the impregnation of God’s spirit at that point, but they had no idea the things that were taking place until the Day of Pentecost, and then all of a sudden everything began to fit into place.  And then the experiences they had, things began to fit into place.  I could give example after example in the book of Acts, of things that took place, and they learned from those examples by looking back, by learning something that God was showing them.

So, after some point here, I don’t know if it was that night or when it was, but we were talking about the significance of timing and what had taken place on that particular day that he’d mentioned there, and specifically the timing here and how it would be on the same day that we would actually be... I was just marvelling at, just talking out loud and saying what an incredible thing to think that we’re going to be in Las Vegas in an International Ministerial Meeting, preparing for the final things that are going to take place in the final stage of events.  And this is the last great meeting we’re going to have the opportunity of having in helping to prepare the ministry for what lies ahead; and thinking how that it was on that very day that things began to be destroyed in 1994, and now God is bringing us back together on the same day as far as the date except it was now 2011, to rectify things, to help make things right, to bring things back to a point in time.

So just marvelling at time knowing how God works with various things of that nature and realizing that we are preparing for a greater role of the ‘Elijah to come’ that God is going to fulfill in the Church.

And then I mentioned the interesting significance of what Johnny had mentioned about the sermon later being called ‘The Christmas Eve Sermon’ by Joe Tkach, Jr.  I had never heard that until that day, but later on came to see when I looked it up that yes, indeed, his son began to refer to that particular term for whatever reason.  A lot of it had to do with because it was given in Big Sandy the following Sabbath on the 24th, and that was the sermon that was to be sent out to all the areas of the world.  And so as we were talking I then mentioned how incredible all this timing would be if it was indeed January the 7th that ‘The Christmas Eve Sermon’ was to have been played in all the churches worldwide...and it was.  It was January the 7th.

Now that may not mean a whole lot to you, but for those of us who lived through that time and are moved and motivated by these things that come to pass, they’re more than coincidence.  Johnny was so excited that night – called us up because he’d looked it up and found out, yes, it was – because I couldn’t remember.  Went back and looked it up and found out, yes, that’s when it was sent out so that it would be everywhere around the world – amazing – so that everyone around the world could hear it.  It took two weeks, then, to get all that mailed out, all that sent out, to mass produce it so that everybody could hear it at the same time on the same day.  Incredible what took place!

I think of when you call something a ‘Christmas Eve Sermon’ – I think of that which depicts Satan more than anything else, that particular day, and what follows Christmas eve and Christmas and so forth and points to his particular day and then I think of the sermons that we had on two consecutive Sabbaths, speaking of ‘The End of Tyranny’, because it’s about Satan and what Satan has done.  That’s what he gave to mankind.  It’s about the way he operates, the way he functions that God is going to destroy and get rid of, and now today.  To me these things are awesome.

So here we are on January the 7th once again on the Roman calendar and the timing of these events is important and God is working out parts of that plan in conjunction with the calendar of this world.  I’m going to mention some things later where Mr. Armstrong was given inspiration because God worked it out with the Roman calendar in conjunction with this world, indeed, but also with the Hebrew calendar in His time, helping us to understand that God is working with that which we go by, which we live by in this age, in this world, having to do with the Roman calendar, those things that began to happen even after the children of Judah were taken out of captivity and brought back to Judah and they began a different kind of system of keeping time.

So, God is now showing us in a more revealing way how He is exact and precise in working out His plan of salvation for His Family.  And so I thought today here, just to show some of this exactness, if you will, some of this precision, as a reminder I wanted to do a quick review here of some things having to do with timing and numbers and so forth.

Last Sabbath we spoke of the 50th Truth.  Now because I have lived through these things and lived maybe in a unique way because of how God has worked and given these things to the Church I think of the 50th Truth as - and we spoke of this - as being a Jubilee because it’s the revelation of the exact time for Christ’s coming.  Jubilee and what God is bringing to mankind, the ultimate Jubilee, and it has to do with the return of Jesus Christ and when He’s coming back.  So God gave us this understanding.

Then we focused on the awesomeness of seven more truths that God has given during this final period of ‘Time, Times, and a Half a Time’, because it was in the midst of this period that He’s given this.  Seven, again, is the number that God has used to show His completeness, as in the seven day week.  The Sabbath is on the seventh day; the seven thousand year plan as far as salvation for mankind.  The 7 Seals, the 7 Trumpets, and on and on it goes showing that God’s in it, that it’s a matter of His design, it’s a matter of that which is complete.

And I think of how God established 7 X 7 Truths for His Church and then gave us the truth of the Jubilee that followed.  Awesome!  Coincidence?  No such thing.

Then seven more truths that were given to reveal the power of that Jubilee.  You think about the last seven truths, because they have very much to do with those things as we go forward in time, the power of what God is bringing to this earth.

Then in the midst of this God gave us courage and encouragement by revealing twice as many truths during the time of the reestablishment of His Church after the apostasy than what was given during Philadelphia.  Again, the inspiration of a ‘type’ - Elijah and Elisha.  See, those things are what gives you strength and encouragement. God told Joshua to be courageous, to be of great courage in essence.  God gives us things in order to be encouraged, to see the things He works out so that we can keep moving forward with boldness.  Without those things we wouldn’t be able to do it.  I wouldn’t have been able to do the things that I’ve done unless God gave the encouragement at different times, and this is a part of that encouragement; over and over and over again.

That’s why when I read to you in a moment some things from Mr. Armstrong, he was encouraged by what he saw God doing in the work and how things worked out.  Likewise, because of where we are and because God has chosen to work with us in a different manner - because if you go back in time, God Himself came and spoke to individuals, sat down and ate with Abraham.  Awesome!  Sent angelic beings to be messengers – because they didn’t have this book (the Bible) yet and they didn’t have the things that we’re given to this day.

And God has given us through time a maturity; He has brought His people to a time of maturity.  That’s why I marvel at the time of Mr. Armstrong, because what was done during that time was a powerful work of faith because of what is written in this book and the truth that God revealed to him, not because Jesus Christ manifested Himself and spoke to him, not because an angel was sent, or any other such thing, but because of inspiration and because of maturing the Church to that point in time, to be able to work with mankind because of what He was revealing and because of the timing.  It’s an awesome thing!

But in the midst of that you have to receive encouragement.  Gideon needed some encouragement!  What he did wasn’t a simple thing. You know, sometimes we read stories and we don’t understand how trying it can be on the human mind to do certain things.  We read stories about Noah, and I can tell you that we have no true powerful grasp of what it was like to be Noah.  Okay?  You think, “Oh hey, he just built that thing and the animals came and everything worked out great!”  But when you live it it’s a different story!  What you’re living is unique to you.  What Gideon lived was unique to him; and so when he asked God for the fleece - I don’t remember which came first - but at one point it was let the ground be wet all around but let the fleece be dry.  Well, that worked out good, but when you start thinking about things you think, “Wait a minute, maybe there’s something...” especially if you have anything with science and other things, think “...maybe there’s a reason scientifically that this happened.  So God, one more time please, let’s have the fleece be wet and the ground be dry.”  So God gave it.

And that wasn’t all. He had to be given other encouragement at different times.  He had to sneak down into an enemy’s camp with one of his close aids and hear about a dream, and he was inspired by it and he was given courage again!  Why was he given courage again?  Because it was waning.  We all need it, we’re human beings.  There are things that God gives to us at the right time to stir us up, as He stirs up His spirit within us, because the battle is so great to live by faith.  You can’t do it without God’s help; you have to have God’s help.  It’s not something we can do on our own, and so He gives us these things over and over.

And so when I read things that Mr. Armstrong gives like this I know what he wrote, I know why he wrote it, I know the strength it gave to him because that’s what has given me strength to continue to push forward, otherwise I couldn’t have done it.  I know that.  I know that with all my being.  So, God works with us, knows what we need when we need it – truly – to prepare us for everything that’s ahead.

And so I think of what God gave us in the precise manner of timing by which the man of sin died.  What an incredible event!  To start learning something here about judgment and God’s involvement; and God used that to teach us something, again, about numbers, about how He works with certain things, that it’s done by Him.  Forty (40) being a matter of judgment – seeing the things that have happened through time as a matter of judgment having to do with forty.  Forty years... the different things that God has given through time as a matter of judgment.  Seven (7), the seven day week, especially seven being complete.  And for that man to have died to the hour on that same day that he gave the sermon in Atlanta is no small thing.  Came to understand.

God revealed some things then in 2 Thessalonians 2 that we couldn’t begin to understand before.  ‘To sit’ in a certain place – what does this mean?  You picture there’s somebody sitting and you come to understand the word means ‘government’ – that a man was placed in the government of God’s own Church who would betray Jesus Christ like the original Judas did to betray Christ.  And someone would do it in a far worse way because now it’s on a spiritual plane having to do with the Body of Christ, that which is spiritual, The Church of God...and would be the man of sin, the son of perdition in such an incredible way to be fulfilled.

And yet in the midst of that story something inspiring and beautiful and exciting because it was all in the context of the coming of Jesus Christ, of when He would come.  Awesome!  In the midst of such tragedy that which is so positive, is something that had to happen.

And then the end of Satan’s reign revealed just prior to the revelation of the time when the 50th Truth started its countdown, if you will.  I think of Trumpets of 2008 and the 1335 days, but preceding that, again, this was the 280 days (40 weeks) from Christmas 2007 to Trumpets 2008. There are so many dates and times that come out so exact in all this that I think of something that an evangelist said, that I’ll not mention his name, down in Australia, when he made a comment as he was talking about how that I gave him encouragement, and he said basically, “You’re not smart enough to figure out all these things or to put them all together!”  And the reality is you can’t!  They’re there!  And you can’t create them, you can’t make them – they’re there!  God gave them!  And after today it becomes even more dumbfounding to me, of more encouragement to move forward with whatever is needed for whatever purpose God’s giving us that which we need.

And so not counting that particular day of Trumpets, which I feel is so apropos, but up to that day of Trumpets, because it’s up to the day.  Trumpets is about the heralding of a King, the King of kings.  Everything that has to do with the Trumpets is about His coming – not on that day – but the heralding of His coming to this earth.  The 280 days following December 14, 2008... sometimes people hear dates thrown out at them but see, all these resonate powerfully – but sometimes just to be reminded – two witnesses and the 1st Trumpet beginning the 1260 days that led up to Trumpets 2009, if you count from that point in time.  Again here, talking about 280 days, and at that point in time God revealing the definition of a ‘time’ in Daniel.

Then there was a period of 980 days leading up to the return of Jesus Christ, again, which constituted the same time period of ‘Time, Times, and a Half a Time’.  But anyway, I think of even the timing in Revelation which is another period of time of a specific period of 3½ years after the apostasy and the time that God gave until He re-established the Church on Pentecost of 1998.  But again, all these things some can say, “Oh, those are just dates you’re throwing out there and it doesn’t mean a whole lot.”  It does to me, and that’s the whole point.  God gives us encouragement.

I want to read to you now segments from a Personal of Mr. Armstrong going back to 1972.  It’s out of the ‘Tomorrows World’ magazine and he’s going through and talking about certain things to do with timing:

"Personal" of Herbert W. Armstrong from Tomorrows World, February 1972.

by Herbert W. Armstrong

The 19-Year Time Cycles

-- What HAPPENED January 7 --

What My Commission IS!

So, Mr. Armstrong was very focused on what God had given to him, the work that was to be done and to see that certain things were to be accomplished that had to do with a scripture that he knew well, that was about himself – Matthew 24:14 – he lived by that, he knew that was his, for him indeed.  And I’ve had some people write to me in times past, “Oh, 19-year time cycles – he didn’t have it right, it’s not that, it’s this...” and they don’t get it, they don’t understand indeed what God was giving to him.  But anyway, this is what he had to say:

SIGNIFICANT THINGS DID happen on January 7th! In this Personal I want to tell you what happened -- but also to make PLAIN and CLEAR:

1. What our Commission IS, and what it is NOT!

2. What are the criteria for determining through whom God is carrying out that Commission which is HIS WORK on earth today.

Thousands know that I, personally, have been called and chosen for a very definite commission in God's service. But I have definitely NOT been called to be a PROPHET -- except as that word, Biblically used, does sometimes refer to a minister or speaker -- one who proclaims the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

In other places he goes on to explain, with inspired speaking in other words, because that’s how the word is used in the New Testament.  A word that I tried to use exclusively when I wrote the first book; I gave that definition on the back of that book because, candidly, I was resisting, and so I wrote that.  It’s kind of like some of the resistance even within the Church a little bit at that time; it’s like, “Why do you have to tell anyone you’re a prophet?”  Because all the prophets of God were known as prophets of God.  They told others what their job was, what their function was; if they didn’t already know it they made it known.  Over and over again when you read some of the epistles of different individuals and they give the authority by which they speak, that they are ‘whatever’ sent by God, an apostle, or whatever it is.  Over and over again things that God has given.  It’s a job.  He says:

Emphatically I am NOT a prophet, in the sense of one to whom God speaks specially and directly, revealing personally a future event to happen or new truth, or new and special instruction direct from God -- separate from, and apart from what is contained in the Bible.

In other words not something different, it’s already there, the truths have been given, they’re there, man doesn’t see them, they’re given by God by inspiration.  He goes on to say:

And I never have claimed to be.

THERE IS NO SUCH HUMAN PROPHET LIVING TODAY!

The Church has not had those things around.  The early Church was focused on prophets but limited in some of the things they did.  God primarily worked through the apostles, and as far as any prophets it was still something that was...if you heard it you’d think how it’s used in the world, it’s kind of ... ugh...it’s kind of a bad tasting thing.  It’s like “We don’t have that in God’s Church, it doesn’t exist,” but what we didn’t embrace was that God said He was going to send some at the end, and so because of that today the Church that was scattered, if you will, has a difficult time with such declaration.  And I understand that.  I had a difficult time with it.  I had a difficult time saying it.  I had a difficult time writing about it.  I resisted it, I kind of candidly argued with God a little bit in prayer because I didn’t want to do it because I knew what was coming.  I knew what would happen.  The ridicule, the mockery, all the stuff that goes with it, and I wasn’t real excited about getting into that.  That was just a small taste of what was coming.

He went on to say:

The Bible is the written Word of God -- and, for our time now, it is COMPLETE! Never have I believed or claimed that God reveals to me new truths not contained in the Bible -- in addition to, or apart from the Bible.

.....(article continues)

As of the present I, and a majority of our historians in Ambassador College, and researchers in the School of Theology, feel that it is utterly unsafe to try to SET DATES in regard to future prophesied events, especially the return of the living Christ in supreme Power and Glory to rule all nations of the earth.

Now the reason he’s writing this and addressing this is because of a booklet that was out there with the title ‘1975 in Prophecy’; and because of that then he is addressing some of these things and making a statement here.  And because that’s so deeply engrained in the Church that was scattered...to set a date, to have a date that’s set – it’s like it’s taboo!  It’s like “You can’t do that.  No one can do that!”  And that’s true – no human can do it.

But we are only human, and it is natural that we should have been curious to know, as far as possible, how much time we had to GET THE JOB DONE. (More about that later.)

That, however, in fact, is not our MAIN PURPOSE, OR COMMISSION -- which is to proclaim Christ's Announcement of the advance good NEWS of the coming Kingdom of God to rule all nations -- and the message commonly called salvation -- the fact we may be born again through Jesus Christ -- born into that Kingdom.

Our Commission is to GET THAT JOB DONE!

We have been GETTING IT DONE!

The question which Christ, the Head of God's Work, has NOT revealed in the Bible is, HOW THOROUGHLY He intends it to be done!

I find this fascinating!  When you’ve lived through it...  I came in the Church, baptized in 1969, received these things, read these things, have lived through these things and am in awe of how God has continued to work things out and what He gave at this particular time.  And so he went on to say:

The prophecy of the proclaiming of this Message IN OUR TIME, is in Matthew 24:14. Jesus said: "And this Gospel of the Kingdom shall be preached (and published -- Mark 13:10 [same word]) in all the world for a witness unto all nations; and then shall the end (of this age) come."

Awesome what we’ve lived through.  He never went on to the next verse.  He never continued on with what is stated in the next verse because it wasn’t for his time - the abomination of desolation.  Let’s read it.  We have lived through it.  It was beyond his time, it was after his time, he was not to see it, he was not to experience it, it wasn’t a part of the work that God gave him to do.  That’s why he was so powerfully focused, by inspiration of God, by God’s spirit, on this particular verse:

Matthew 24:14 - And the gospel of the Kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations; and then shall the end come.  I heard that in sermon after sermon after sermon from him.  I read it in ‘Personal’ after ‘Personal’ and later on in ‘Pastor General’s Report’s’ and so forth, because he knew that was his job.  He had no doubt about it.

Verse 15 – never went to this - When you therefore shall see the abomination of desolation spoken of by Daniel the prophet stand in the holy place... the abomination of desolation.  And sadly, in the scattered Body there are people who think that this has something to do with a ‘type’ of what happened with Antiochus Epiphanies when he brought in a swine and offered it upon the altar...and that’s what this is about, as far as the holy place, an abomination before God, the swine that was an abomination to be offered up.  God had specific animals that were to be offered up and this was like the ultimate disgusting thing that could happen on the altar.  And so there are people today who feel that some things have to be redone or rebuilt in order for this to be fulfilled, that something has to happen similarly where something is an abomination of desolation that happens; not understanding the abomination of desolation is about God’s Church, of something that would be set up in God’s Church, that would be established in God’s Church and be an abomination before God – the apostasy.  Incredible what we’ve lived through!

And so verse 15 wasn’t for him, but all of verse 14 wasn’t fully completed either.  Amazing! Because in part it’s gone on, in part it quit, part was a ‘type’.  There are things that God does that until something is fully accomplished, because it speaks of a specific time here; and then shall the end come.  Well, the next verse shows that when the end was coming...but the end isn’t here.  The end – we’re still waiting for the end.  I’m still waiting for the end.  This next 140 days in some ways can’t go fast enough for me because I am so desirous to get past all this.  I am weary of the battle.  I feel worn out.  I feel the stress of the world that’s out here that’s so stirred up.  You do too!  It’s intensified, that’s why we’ve had some of the sermons we’ve had about tyranny and about the oppression and how that as they fight to hold onto what they have that power surges through the earth even more so, and we reap the end result of a lot of that which isn’t good on our part, it’s not fun to experience such things.  But there’s still more to come.  We’re living through the end-time but it isn’t finished.  The end of this age hasn’t happened yet and there’s still more to be accomplished even concerning a witness.  See?

What Mr. Armstrong did was unique to his time concerning a work that God was doing in a very powerful way, and certain things were accomplished but not finished.  Let’s go on to see what else he has to say:

Let me say now, that in early July last year (1971), I could not have said that had as yet been done.

...in other words, the gospel had gone into all the world...

But, in the literal Scriptural meaning of that commission, as of January 7, 1972, IT HAD BEEN ACCOMPLISHED! Six months before we had not yet gotten the Message into Japan, nor into the Scandinavian countries. Now we have!

And so literally, as far as going into all the world, he is addressing this as far as ‘The Plain Truth’ and the broadcasts, or the telecast, or whatever that’s going into the world to be able to reach out there.  He went on to say later on...(and we have this letter on the website):

BUT -- the unanswered question is -- HOW INTENSIVELY DOES God intend ALL these countries to be reached?

He was still pondering that because he had seen that something had been completed, but there was more work to be done, so what is to be done and what is God doing.  There’s always that desire we’ve always had.  Daniel wanted to know. Everyone has always wanted to know!  Then he went on to say:

That is the question He has not answered -- IN THE BIBLE. (Unless by one implication of which I will cover later.) But, by what HAPPENED on that very day, January 7th, and since, it appears He has now given us the answer -- He intends the nations to be reached MORE INTENSIVELY than as of now!

Because they had plans of greater things taking place and seeing that Jesus Christ wasn’t returning at this point in time, that it wasn’t time for those things to take place, that there was yet more work to be done.  But as far as fulfilling this verse, he says, in the sense of the gospel going into all the world, he said it’s gone, it’s happened, it’s taken place.  And the reason I talk about a witness is because there is still that which we are witnessing that God is doing, that I may mention in some other sermon later on here, but there’s that which continues on to be fulfilled in a growing way, if you will.

Let me pick it up farther on down in the letter.  He brings in a subject here about some of the things taking place.  He brings in a subject here about some of the things taking place:

.....

If I were looking for God's one true Church, I would assuredly LOOK FOR ONE THAT HAD CONFESSED AND CORRECTED ITS ERRORS! FOR ALL HAVE HAD THEM -- even the early churches (Rev. 2:4, 14, 20)

So he talks about Revelation 2:4, 14, 20 when God addresses some of the things in the Churches.  He says:

Any criterion assumes God's TRUE Work through humans is absolutely perfect, unable to be wrong or make mistakes or hold to any error, is a false measuring stick and will mislead you.

You may ask, do I, then, feel that we in this Work are full of errors, misleading the people? MOST EMPHATICALLY NO! We have not had to correct error many times. But each time we have corrected an error, we have had one fewer error left.

And so he’s talking about a unique process that he experienced, because even in 1972 he began to address something in a new book that was coming out - ‘The Incredible Human Potential’ I believe was the name of it.  And in that some ministers, some people began to think that he was teaching the immortality of the soul – I believe that’s how it was stated there at that point in time of some people and what they believed – just because of some of the things that God was showing to him about a spirit that dwells in man and how God’s spirit works in us and so forth.  And anyway, I’ve mentioned those things in times past.  But again, God continued to reveal more things to him.  Later on in 1974 we came to Pentecost, when we used to keep it on a Monday, God showed us, no, it’s on a Sunday.  So continually coming out of the past, coming out of things that still were a part of traditional Christianity or the things the Catholic church had done, coming out of the Sardis era, and God just continued to reveal more and more and more.  Pentecost was basically the last big thing in the sense of what God gave to the Church as far as a very powerful truth, and so he’s addressing some of these kinds of things and basically showing that whenever God’s Church is brought to the point where we have error we correct it.

We came to a point in 2005 where we realized that that which was still with us concerning Jesus Christ eternally existing wasn’t true.  God blessed us to address that in the Church, to show that no, He didn’t have a beginning until He was born of Mary.  That was his beginning.  He goes on to say:

......

So, confessing such an error is one of the SUREST proofs to identify the people through whom the living Christ IS WORKING -- and whom HE is USING!

If you are looking for a leader who claims that he is PERFECT, and you think you have found him, and he is human, HE IS A FALSE LEADER.

That includes me; that’s just a reality of life.  We make mistakes.  That’s why sometimes because of the word ‘prophet’ people expect absolute perfection, they expect there not to be anything but.  I will say, however, that I believe with all my being that things in the book are going to be shown as very powerfully true.  But however, in things that are stated time to time, things we might believe at a moment in time, wherever we are we had to make corrections, just like in the thing of one point in time where I believed our job began earlier because of the thing about Trumpets instead of Pentecost.

We thought that Jesus Christ was to return at Trumpets, and God used that as a thing just like Pentecost to show no, it’s not about Trumpets, it’s about the firstfruits and the 144,000 who are going to come with Christ.  That’s when He’s coming back.  And so we had to make a correction in course and there were things that were wrong that the Church was told about.  And that wasn’t a pleasant thing for the Church.  If God hadn’t let us give that sermon before Trumpets of that year there would have been a lot of people who wouldn’t be with us any longer.  God had mercy on us in a very powerful way.  Because it’s a tool when you’re in error like that and something is corrected, that Satan can use in a very powerful way to stir up things, and he did, and we had to learn some lessons back then.  And because of that it actually made us stronger, it made people stronger because they learned something about their own nature and how the mind works, of something that they didn’t see before.

And so he went on to say here, dealing with some of these things:

There is ONLY the ONE Leader who is perfect today -- and He is the LIVING CHRIST! We follow HIM -- and we trust YOU, with us, will do the same.

Then he went on to say:

Now I want to tell you the TRUTH about the two 19-year time cycles, ending January 7, 1972, with a frank, straightforward explanation of where we were mistaken -- and WHERE WE WERE RIGHT!

In a Co-Worker letter dated May 22nd, 1953, I wrote the following:

So again, you have to think of the timeline here because 1972 – that means 1953 was an important time, January the 7th.  That’s what he’s getting ready to talk about.  So in the co-worker letter dated May 22nd, 1953 he’s going back in time and he says, “I wrote the following: ....”  I’m not going to read it all but it says in one area here:

......

"It took just ONE COMPLETE CYCLE of 19 years for this Work to grow from nothing until it carried the very Gospel of Jesus all over the North American continent in mighty power!

So he said, we’ve been through a 19-year cycle and this is what God has done through that time period.

That 19-year time cycle ended, and the second 19-year cycle began, during the first week of the present year, 1953!

"The very start of the second 19-year cycle marked the beginning of proclaiming this Gospel to ALL EUROPE AND THE BRITISH ISLES! It must still go to Asia, Africa, South America, and Australia."

Because he knew his commission, the gospel has to go into all the world before the end could come, before end-time events could begin, before the man of sin could arise, before the apostasy could take place.  He goes on to say:

But MORE ASTOUNDING than I had noticed, or written then:

We started on the air on the little station in Eugene, Oregon, the first Sunday in January, 1934. That first Sunday was January 7. For some time I talked of starting also on the air in Europe during the FIRST WEEK of 1953 -- 19 years later -- not the first Sunday, but the first Wednesday.

What I did not realize, then, is, that one year from today -- or two, or 19 years from today will NOT be the same DAY OF THE WEEK as today!

Let me add here, THAT I DID NOT HAVE ANYTHING TO DO WITH setting the DAY on which we started in Europe. I had negotiated to purchase time on that station two or three months earlier -- late autumn, 1952. I sent over a transcribed or taped program, but for some reason the contents did not completely conform to technical station requirements. I re-recorded the program and sent over a second transcription.

Reminds me of sometimes how things just don’t go so well with technology.

Because of language barriers, I had not understood their technical requirements. Again it was rejected.

The third time the program was okayed, as were all programs thereafter for years. The station put it on at the first open date thereafter -- which happened (?) to be, the first WEDNESDAY in January, 1953.

But, incredible as it may sound, when later I checked with calendars, that Wednesday was January 7, 1953! 19 years to the exact SAME DAY OF THE YEAR. I checked with the Hebrew calendar. January 7, 1934 was Sunday, Tebeth 20th. Also January 7th, 1953, was Wednesday, Tebeth 20, by the Hebrew calendar!

Now, this gave him the encouragement he needed even more so; a double whammy, if you will, of encouragement.  When you live it, when it has everything to do with every bit of your focus in your life and God gives you something like this, it means a lot, and it meant a lot to him.  You can see it in how he’s writing and inspiration it gave to him, the encouragement it gave to him.

So the door opened in Europe, NOT only the FIRST WEEK in 1953, but on the exact SAME DATE –

And if you note some of his writing, it’s capital letters so you see the inspiration and the encouragement with which he is writing.

....19 years TO THE VERY DAY!

Incredible!  Exciting! And I think of today and how it has been 40 years – 40 years since January 7, 1972 until today.  Forty years, and what does forty have to do with anything?  Wondering how much more is to be accomplished, the judgment of God about the end-time and things that have to come to pass and things that have to be fulfilled in a timing of how God’s going to do it and when He’s going to do it.  It’s not a small thing. Powerful!  Powerful - powerful - powerful!  He went on to say:

.....

BUT, we checked the early Church. It STARTED on its mission from the day of Pentecost, 31 A.D. (Acts 2)....

So he’s going on talking about different cycles of time.

The Apostle Paul said a DOOR was opened for him to get the Message into EUROPE (II Cor. 2:12-13 and Acts 16:8-13). This was in 50 A.D. -- after 19 years. And there is reason to believe that the "Sabbath" mentioned in Acts 16:13 was the ANNUAL Sabbath called the Day of Pentecost -- or 19 years to the day from the time the Gospel was first preached by the Church!

So again here, this meant a lot to Mr. Armstrong because he understood that from the Day of Pentecost in 31 AD, it was 19 years later in the same day that the gospel began to be preached in Europe.  And so this was very inspiring to him to see how God was working with him, that there were cycles involved there, different dates but the same kind of cycle that God was using.  And they’re different dates because God is working to a different end right now that has everything to do with, in essence, Pentecost, that ends with Pentecost.  Awesome – awesome – awesome!

He went on to say:

It WAS, to the very DAY, precisely 19 years from the start of this Work until the door was opened to proclaim the Message to EUROPE! That is not surmise, conjecture, or "probably" -- that is FACT! IT HAPPENED!

The early Church was given 19 years for the first phase of its ministry, when the door was opened to carry the Gospel to EUROPE! The same, TO THE PRECISE DAY, was true in our case! And that is FACT!

Yes, this seemed SIGNIFICANT!

It SEEMED we would have a second 19 years to get the Message "in all the world, as a witness to all nations."

So he’s going back and looking at 1953 and saying this is what it looked like, that there’s going to be this ability to do this then, to get the message into all the world to fulfill the commission.

I admit we were somewhat excited by this realization of FACT. We are HUMAN! Our hearts are IN God's Work to which He has called us. This was, to some extent, an emotional revelation.

You can tell this by his writing!

Would YOU have the same normal human reaction, had you been in our place? I think all but dour, prejudiced, hostile critics, who would like to see God's Work destroyed, would have reacted as we did!

......

Our human interest, and enthusiasm about facts and indications pointing to the probable amount of time we had left is of MOST MINOR consequence compared to the BIG point of the Commission -- WHICH WE HAVE BEEN GETTING DONE!

Now let me continue.

It has never been our intention to SET DATES! Time after time, I have said –

He went on to say, concerning his son, because his son was a part of the work at that time...

...Garner Ted Armstrong has said -- our literature has stated -- "WE DO NOT SET DATES!"

Yet, in our human zeal and enthusiasm for getting this greatest mission on earth done, we have a few times come close to it or appeared to -- and that we deeply regret.

If we were not human enough to be virtually carried away with what appeared inevitable -- in the light of fact and probability -- we surely would not have been imbued with the energy, vitality, sense of urgency and enthusiasm to GET the job done!

So again, going through a part of history of what happened in the Church at that time and what he was living through and what inspired him, what moved him: by seeing things that God had done and seeing a precision of things that God had given to the Church in the New Testament and in his time as well.

Going on it says:

...... [this is quite a way farther in the article]

By 1952, when my elder son, Richard David, and Herman Hoeh spent a summer in Britain, France, and Germany, their glowing reports of German progress in a post-war COMEBACK even strengthened our private view of POSSIBILITIES.

But, after the astounding fact of discovering our first broadcast into Europe and Britain had been 19 years -- TO THE VERY DAY by both Hebrew and Roman calendars -- we gained further insight into the probable time it would require to reach all nations. And we knew this HAD TO BE accomplished before World War III would break out. It seemed, then, it would require another 19 years at least.

So they were already focused in 1953, in that period of time even going back here, of looking forward, that it’s going to require that amount of time to get things done.

Then we DID begin to mention the possibility of God's Work extending another 19 years -- or at least until January 7, 1972. In fact, we were so overwhelmingly impressed -- perhaps more than we should have been -- by the FACT of what happened after 19 years, we did, a few times, go further than we should with it -- though basically, we continued, time and again, to say "we do not set dates." But some statements gave the IMPRESSION that we did set the date, January 7, 1972. It is difficult to control sincere, dedicated enthusiastic ZEAL; and we were human!

That’s why from that period of time up until 1975 the thoughts – 3½ years – see?  Because this 19 year process was so deeply entrenched in them, they were so moved by things that they’d seen as a ‘type’ being fulfilled.  He went on to say a little bit farther....

....

As I have said, Moses made mistakes, Abraham made mistakes, David made mistakes, Elijah made mistakes, Peter made mistakes, and so have ALL MEN God has ever called and used.

Every one of us!  We all make mistakes, there is no one perfect, no one has perfection, he says...except one...

Making a mistake is NOT any evidence at all that a man is NOT being used of God.

That’s why He’s bringing 144,000 – they won’t make mistakes.

Making a mistake is NOT any evidence at all that a man is NOT being used of God. But these men CORRECTED their mistakes! AND SO HAVE WE! And I am correcting a few in this very "Personal"!

The BIG POINT is -- WE HAVE BEEN GETTING THE JOB DONE -- and no one else on earth has!

One point remains. The question, HOW THOROUGHLY does God intend His Work to reach the nations?

It DID take a second 19 years to get the message into all nations -- but, as of January 7th, 1972, we had reached many of them ONLY SUPERFICIALLY -- not intensively!

And so God was showing him that yes, that’s been accomplished.  He has done that – “I have done that through you,” that’s what He was showing them, “but there is more to be done” and it’s incredible how much the work continued to grow through time, especially into the early 80’s and the power of the telecast, the power of the broadcast, the number of ‘The Plain Truth’ magazines that were going out month by month – 8 million – into the world.  Awesome what took place, it truly was, what God’s Church experienced back at that particular time.  He went on to say here:

I know of no place in the Bible where, in specific plain words, this question is answered.

...concerning how intensively it’s to go out or how much more it’s to go out.

The one possible answer is in Matthew 24:14, the very prophecy defining our COMMISSION for this latter day. There we are to preach and publish this Gospel OF THE KINGDOM in all the world FOR A WITNESS unto all nations. The answer may be tied up in the words "for a witness." One commentary, on this phrase, has: "AS A WITNESS: God never sends judgment without previous warning." In Amos 3:7 may be found a corollary: "Surely the Lord Eternal will do nothing, but He revealeth His secret unto His servants the prophets." (Amos 3:2)

What an awesome thing to know what he wrote back then and where we are now, to understand what he was writing about back then and where we are now, because it’s all about the end-time and what God was going to give to the world, what He was going to give to the Church.  And so again, he quoted Amos 3:2 there.

The inference is that God's servants warn the people, as Jonah did Nineveh, of God's judgment to come.

I want to read some more here.  I know it’s difficult sometimes when I’m reading like this and people listening... but I want to read some more here of what he had to say in this particular ‘Personal’ here, one more part of a page.  He says:

In view of WHAT DID HAPPEN, on January 7th, it seems God has revealed no uncertain language, BY THE VERY THINGS THAT HAPPENED on that day, that we must now reach all nations MORE INTENSIVELY!

1. On that very day, the MOST POWERFUL DOOR so far opened to us, swung wide open. We had hoped for it, but not really expected it. We had no idea WHEN the answer would come. On that day the purchase of advertising space in the ENTIRE UNITED STATES edition of "Reader's Digest" opened before us. Total circulation, 17,750,000 copies -- with a readership of 50 to 70 MILLION people -- by far the largest of any magazine. That is from 1/4 to more than l/3 of ALL the people in the U.S. The first two-page ad will appear in one half of that circulation in the April number, and in the other half of the circulation in the May number! For years we have purchased advertising space in overseas editions. Now the entire U.S. is opened to us!

Again, he was encouraged, because he said this is God showing us that we have much more to do, a far greater reach that God is going to give us that’s going to go well beyond here.

1. On that day we received from our bankers the signed, sealed and delivered financing for 80% of the superb new auditorium, NOW ACTUALLY UNDER CONSTRUCTION on the Pasadena campus. Since, besides being the college auditorium, for us it will also serve to honor GOD at the present Headquarters in Pasadena, it seems God assures us of a few more years at least to go...

You know, all the Church, always looking for the end of the age, always looking for a time when Europe was going to arise.  In the 50’s when the Common Market was coming together he sent ‘The Plain Truth’ there because the focus has always been the end is coming, not knowing when it is because God hadn’t given it.  Always a desire to know, as well.

He went on finally toward the end here.  He said:

.....

So where are we, now, in the Work?

ALL SYSTEMS ARE "GO!"

Paraphrasing a popular thing at that time – NASA.  He says:

Welcome aboard! Glad you're GOING WITH us! You know, I'm reminded of the time

Jesus was criticized, persecuted, misrepresented by His enemies. He asked His disciples, "Will ye also go away?"

"Then Simon Peter answered him, Lord, to whom shall we go?

Awesome!  To me it’s inspiring God gave us that to use at the Feast to show us you continually move forward, you continue to follow God.  It’s an awesome thing!  He said:

...THOU hast the words of Eternal Life!"

Anyway, he went on to say here in finishing:

....

And we in His Work, today, have those SAME WORDS OF ETERNAL LIFE!

Yes, ALL SYSTEMS ARE "GO!"

With renewed energy, greater than ever before, WE PLUNGE ON TO FINISH THE WORK WE HAVE BEEN GIVEN TO DO!

It wasn’t the end of it but there was more to be done and he was very moved and motivated by these things that he saw, by what he saw God doing with the Church, what was taking place.

And so again, I marvel – 40 years to the day and here we are today – 40 years from that time he was contemplating those things, how much more is to be done before the end comes? How much more is to take place?  It’s awesome.

Daniel 9 – So as this final period that we’re entering leads right up to the return of Jesus Christ, and as I was asking God for help to know what to focus upon in this sermon – because I didn’t know!  I knew that I was to speak on the ‘type’ that God had given us.  It was quite apparent because we have talked about it before, because it was something that was absolute for our time, having to do with.

Let me ask you: How many of you read the new post?  Good, I’m glad everyone got... How many of you have been crunching calculators?  Ah... I had no idea what God was going to give here.  I had no idea where He was leading us in this.  And so just going back here, when I was focusing on this sermon, as with so many sermons, they’re like Red Sea moments because you don’t know what God is going to give and what He’s going to open up and the way before us.  So, had a candid prayer before God because I didn’t know what was to be given save for the example of Joshua and the marching around Jericho the seven days and the seven times on the last day – seeing that ‘type’ and where we are now and recognizing the great meaning of this particular day and what starts tomorrow, January 8th, the final 140 days of ‘a Half a Time’ and all the significance of what that means.

And so in asking help, immediately as a whole came to my mind ‘Daniel and the return of Jesus Christ and to read about the 70 weeks prophecy’.  I don’t go there!  You don’t just go to different parts of the Bible at different times, but it was very evident that this was where I was to go, and so I started reading.

Daniel 9:2 - In the first year of his reign, speaking of Darius, I Daniel understood by books the number of the years, whereof the word of the Eternal came to Jeremiah the prophet, so he says, “I’m understanding something here, of words that came to Jeremiah, of something having to do with our captivity and where we’ve been brought captive,” and their great desire to go back to Judah, because they’ve been taken captive into Babylon. And so again here, a change in the time for the kingdoms and the wars that took place and so forth and now Darius reigning over the Medo-Persian Empire.  And he said it came to me at this particular point in time, the number of the years that we were to be here, of something that was already given.  Because they didn’t know how long they were going to be there, but now they were at the end of it and so God gave them what was going to take place now, it’s coming to an end, and so he said: that He would accomplish seventy years in the desolations of Jerusalem. To leave it desolate, to not have anyone there working with it, to build it, to rebuild the walls as later on began to happen as they began to go back at different periods of time.  Awesome stories, ‘types’ again of something we have lived through in God’s Church and things that had great meaning to us back then, ‘types’ of things that we began to do after the apostasy and things that meant so much to us, of rebuilding the walls and rebuilding, if you will, Jerusalem.  I think of some sermons earlier on that were given on those subjects, of things mentioned in ‘Time is Running Out’.

Interesting word here, ‘desolations’.  It’s a Hebrew word that comes from the meaning of ‘dry or drought’ and means ‘a condition of desolation and waste’.  I think of what happened to the Church, how long... how long...how long the desolation did God intend for it to be?  Well, it’s in the seventy-weeks prophecy – that’s how long for us as well – already written in the book of Daniel.  And I think of the scattered Church and what’s out there and what happened to the Church that was scattered.  Now, God has blessed us in drawing out a remnant and helping us to do a work in an awesome way to finish, but again here, there is so much that is out there that is yet destroyed or in desolation, if you will, not destroyed because God has the power to awaken out of spiritual sleep.

Verse 3 - And I set my face unto the Eternal God, to seek by prayer and supplications, with fasting, sackcloth, and ashes: And I prayed unto the Eternal my God, and made my confession, and said, O LORD, the great and mighty God, keeping the covenant and mercy with them who love Him, and to them who keep His commandments; you see, we had to do that after the apostasy, after the desolation happened.  Daniel was brought to this, others were brought to this, to pour out their heart before God, to say, “This is the condition we’re in, have mercy on us, but we know in order to have mercy that we have to repent of our sins.”  Everyone that is awakened, everyone that can be awakened, has to do this very same thing to get back to what is right before God as far as obeying God, obeying the things that God has given through the means that God has given it to His Church, and to repent, to acknowledge their sin.  Because as has been pointed out from the very beginning of all this: Every one of us who were a part of that is guilty of the apostasy, of what took place.  We all fell asleep and that is a sin before God.  We all had to be separated from God’s Church.

You know, to be put out of God’s Church is a hard thing.  I’ve had to put many people through time, more than what I wanted (that’s why I say many), too many, because I don’t like doing it, when people have to be put out of God’s Church for a time, separated from the Body because of sins that God won’t allow in the Body.  Because if it’s allowed in the Body, if certain lifestyles are allowed in the Body they spread in the Body.  If division of doctrine is allowed in the Body you know what happens?  After a time an entire Church area is gone!  We have lived through that!  I have experienced those things!  I’ve seen them in God’s Church over and over again.  And so when it comes to those things individuals are separated.

And so when it came to the apostasy and God, as it talks about, vomited us out of His mouth, that’s not a pretty thing to be said about His Church.  And yet people are so filled with pride they cannot acknowledge in the Body that was scattered, that they are guilty or that they were vomited out because they’re still Philadelphian living in Laodicea and only the Laodiceans are those lackadaisical lukewarm people who are going to be vomited out of God’s mouth.  No, they have to come to understand they were all guilty and they were all separated from the Body of Christ until repentance.  And God is the one that brings us to repentance, just like when He calls you into the Church, so it is so when He awakens you out of a spiritual sleep.  We’ve lived through this.

We have lived through drought, dryness; that’s what led to the apostasy, a little watering down here and a little watering down there, a little more watering down, a little more lethargy here, a little more...  I’ve talked to a lot of people here recently about how that here in the United States today we are living lethargy just like was in the Church...and what’s coming is a great fall because of that.  Complacency!  We see it in the ordering of books!  Just a continual decline.  Europe is going up.  Europe is putting out far less advertising - far more over there are concerned.  There are Europeans concerned about some things taking place, but over here...oh, we’re back in our recliner watching a football game or any way to escape reality, whatever it is to escape reality.  Everything’s going to get better.  The unemployment, it’s getting so much better!  And people want to believe these things; and people wanted to believe certain things in the Church, or to let down and not to have to address certain realities or have to face certain battles, and yet they were frustrating, there were things going on but we all became too weak!

We have sinned and have committed iniquity, and have done wickedly, and have rebelled... I think about us in the Church, because you see, we had the impregnation of God’s spirit, we have done far more wickedly than the Jewish people ever did on that plane, because they didn’t have the impregnation of God’s spirit when they rebelled against God and began to pollute and profane the Sabbath and therefore God took them into captivity.  What happened in the Church of God in the time of the apostasy was far, far worse on a spiritual plane – a great awakening when that time comes, because God has to grant the awakening.

We have sinned, and committed iniquity, we’ve done wickedly, and have rebelled, even by departing from Your precepts and Your judgments: Neither have we listened to Your servants the prophets, who spoke in Your name to our kings and princes, our fathers and to all the people of the land. History that’s been repeated over and over and over again, it’s just gotten worse and worse and worse through time, that’s the witness.

What we have been living in the last three ‘times’ is so incredibly typical of what’s taken place, that as a witness is very typical to what has taken place in the last 6,000 years because the farther you go along, the more religions that come on the scene, the worse the spirit of man is.  It hasn’t always been that way in the same degree, in that respect.  Yes, there have been horrible times through history and so forth, but if you look at what God did with Judah and through Israel in the beginning and working with people at different times and the mind of human beings, this period of time we’re in right now is one of the worst.  It truly is!  And people say, “Oh, it’s supposed to be as bad as Sodom and Gomorrah.”  Pshew... we passed that up a long time ago, but people are so asleep they can’t understand that in the world.

Verse 7 - O LORD, righteousness belongs unto You, but unto us confusion of faces, as at this day; to the men of Judah, and to the inhabitants of Jerusalem, and unto all Israel, who are near, and who are far off, through all the countries where You have driven them, because of their trespass that they have trespassed against You. I think of the Church that was scattered all over the world. O LORD, to us belongs confusion of face, Babylon, that’s what the word means, confusion of face to our kings, to our princes, and to our fathers, because we have sinned against You. To the LORD our God belong mercies and forgivenesses, we come to those things.  When things happen like that, especially as what happened in the apostasy, you rely, you depend upon those things.  You thank God for the fact that you can be forgiven.  You thank God for the fact that you can repent and have forgiveness of sins.

Says... though we have rebelled against Him; Neither have we obeyed the voice of the Eternal our God, to walk in His laws, which He set before us by His servants the prophets. Yes, all Israel has transgressed Your law, the whole Church did!  That’s why I try to tell everyone out there – don’t ever think that if you were there you wouldn’t have done the exact same thing, because you would have! Don’t ever think it can’t happen to you!  If you’d lived in those conditions at that time you would have experienced exactly the same thing!  God’s word would have been true; everyone would be spewed out of His mouth.  That’s why God tells us to be alert, to be on guard, to be watchful, to never let down our guard spiritually.

Yes, all Israel has transgressed Your law, even by departing, that they might not obey Your voice; therefore the curse is poured upon us, and the oath that is written in the law of Moses the servant of God, because we have sinned against Him. And He has confirmed His words which He spoke against us, God did as well: 2 Thessalonians 2, Revelation concerning Laodicea.  God confirmed His word that’s true.  We lived it!  And He has confirmed His words which He spoke against us and against our judges who judged us, by bringing upon us great evil: by allowing us to go through it, to do because we didn’t do what we should have.  ...for under the whole heaven there has not been done that which has been done upon Jerusalem. Until we came to what we did in Laodicea, a ‘type’.

Verse 13 – And it is written in the law of Moses, all this evil has come upon us: yet we have not made our prayer before the Eternal our God, that we might turn from our iniquities, and understand Your truth. That’s true to this day save for those that God has awakened, save those whom God has called at this time.  The rest of the Church, the Body that was scattered – there’s no desire to know anything that is the truth because they believe that’s what they have.  They believe that everything they have is what is the truth and they’re with that which is God’s.

Therefore has the Eternal kept watch upon the evil, and brought it upon us: for the Eternal our God is righteous in all His works which He does: for we did not obey His voice. And now, O LORD our God, who has brought Your people forth out of the land of Egypt with a mighty hand, brought us out of Egypt.  That’s what God does, He calls us out of spiritual Egypt, and has received renown unto this day; we have sinned and we have done wickedly.  O LORD, according to all Your righteousness, I beseech  You, let Your anger and Your fury be turned away from your city Jerusalem, Your holy mountain: because for our sins, and for the iniquities of our fathers, Jerusalem and Your people have been a reproach; and that’s what’s happened to the Church in this age, a scorn, a taunt, and a mocking.  600 organizations out here; people mock and make fun of those things!  They look at what happened to the Church that was scattered.  Amazing what’s taken place in the world and how people think.

Verse 17 - Now therefore, O our God, hear the prayer of Your servant, and his supplications, and cause Your face to shine upon Your sanctuary that is desolate, for the Eternal’s sake.  And so that’s why we have such great yearning and such great desire for seeing others awakened and the ability to come back, the ability to be a part with us once again, to share in that which has to do with the song of ‘walking to God’s House side by side’ but in unity and oneness, in harmony.

O my God, incline Your ear, and hear; open Your eyes, and behold our desolations, and the city which is called by Your name: for we do not present our supplications before You for our righteousness’s, but for Your great mercies.  That’s one thing for people to understand – it’s not because of how well we do things, on the contrary, that’s why we repent before God, because we see our failings, we see how weak we are, we see our need for God, we see what we are like as human beings, and the more you really see that and see what you are as far as human nature is concerned...because we’re motivated by selfishness, we are.  We’re so steeped in it!  I loathe it in myself...and in the world!  But this is what we are in this human form, but this is where we learn our lessons.  We have to experience this in order to judge rightly when God gives us the opportunity to make right choices and right decisions.  And so it’s for God’s great mercies, that God is a merciful God, a patient God.

O LORD, hear; O LORD, forgive; O LORD, hear and do; and do not hold back, for Your own sake, O My God: for Your city and for Your people are called by Your name. So that’s the motivation, because being a part of God’s Church we want to be a right light, a right example.  We don’t want to be selfish, we want to conquer and overcome the things of selfishness, and on and on it goes, and that has to do with the whole process of repentance throughout our life.  There are points in time where that repentance becomes more intense as it was here with Daniel.  It was far more intense after the apostasy.

Verse 20 - And while I was speaking, and praying, and confessing my sin and the sin of my people Israel, and presenting my supplication before the Eternal my God for the holy mountain of my God; Yes, while I was speaking in prayer, even the ‘man’ Gabriel, the angel, messenger; whom I had seen in the vision at the beginning, being caused to fly swiftly, touched me about the time of the evening oblation. – sacrifice, offering - And he informed me, and talked with me, and said, O Daniel, I have now come forth to give you skill and understanding. That which God has to give to all of us to grasp, to comprehend, to understand things.  And God gives us that at different times; times of needing encouragement.  Daniel needed encouragement.  Daniel needed a charge at this time, in that respect, to be stirred up, to be motivated, to be focused, and God gave him some things to write and so forth, things which he later wanted to know more about – but it gave him a vision of things to come having to do with the Messiah, the Messiah’s coming.  “These are things concerning the Messiah and they were being given to you Daniel now to write.”  But when he was done God told him, “Shut up the book Daniel, it’s just not for your time, but it’s coming.”  And so he was shown favour and he received that and received encouragement from that favour and inspiration from that that God gave to him.

And so he said, At the beginning of your supplication the commandment went forth, and I have come to show you; for you art greatly beloved: therefore understand the matter and consider the vision. That’s something for all of us to grasp and understand: when God opens your mind, when God calls you to share in His life, there is an incredible love that He pours out upon you.  Before that He doesn’t pour out of His love upon you.  Because you’re brought to a point of repentance, you’re brought to a point of being able to have the gift of a sacrifice in your life in your stead to where you can be forgiven so He can be with you and dwell in you and give you of His mind and give you of His spirit and give you of His love to where you begin to experience things about God’s love.

We were talking earlier before services to an individual about their first experience here in the congregation and we all experience these things.  We experience a bond from the very beginning that is a matter of God’s spirit that you can’t... it’s not a matter of words, it’s just something you know as soon as you talk to somebody, it’s like you’ve known them for a long time and yet you’ve just met them and you’re a Family and there is that bond that goes beyond that which is normal and physical.  And we carry it with us; it’s something that God just gives to us.  And so understand the desire that God has for you when He has called you, the opportunities that He’s placed before you; you really cannot grasp the magnitude of what God has planned for you.

We cannot grasp the magnitude of what it means to be in His Family.  I cannot grasp, though I believe it, what it’s going to be like to be up in the atmosphere one day looking down - what a change to be able to be in one spot and then another, to make Star Trek look like tiddlywinks.  I can’t grasp those things, I really can’t.  To grasp that you can work 24 hours a day, go around the world working; while people sleep you can be somewhere else working.  24 hours?!  No need for rest?  Awesome!  I believe it but I can’t grasp that yet, and you cannot grasp what’s just a few months down the road, of what God has called you for in His Church.  It’s awesome!  But it has to do with His love, it has to do with because He’s chosen to love you now, He’s chosen to mould and fashion you now, and then the choice is in your hands as to how you respond to that.  It’s always been that way.

Verse 24 - Seventy weeks; now, notice what He says here.  He said in the beginning, “I came to understand what was given to Jeremiah,” spoken, “that had to do with seventy years of the desolations of Jerusalem before they could begin to go back.” And so he was encouraged they were going to be able to go back and he was beseeching God to forgive them all, to have mercy upon them for why they were in captivity in the first place.  And then God told him something else, that it had everything to do with a desire that’s been with God’s people, a message that’s been out there for so long that God has given to prophet after prophet after prophet in the Old Testament – the Messiah, the one who’s going to reign, the one who’s going to rule God’s Kingdom on earth.  And greater knowledge through time went on of that which was going to be in a Messiah.  They didn’t fully grasp and understand those things but there was that which they received that they understood was awesome indeed and they looked forward to it, a time being freed from tyranny and oppression.

That’s why people were so excited when Christ first came.  They thought it was going to happen then; they would no longer have to be under the Roman government, the tyranny that was there.  They thought that God was going to take control at that time to rule the earth through the Messiah. And so God gave greater encouragement to Daniel, not only the seventy years to understand but now he speaks of another seventy.

Seventy weeks are determined upon Your people and upon Your holy city, now these are prophetic things; to finish the transgression, and to make an end of sins, and to make reconciliation for iniquity, and to bring in everlasting righteousness, and to seal up the vision and prophecy - to seal up the vision?  To seal up the prophecy? ...and to anoint the most Holy. He knew what it was about.  It goes on in other verses here talking about the Messiah, talking about the Christ.  So, a most incredible verse here.

Then it continues on into other verses speaking of, again, the Messiah and prophecies having to do with His first coming.

But notice this verse again because it’s about our time. Seventy weeks are determined upon your people and upon the holy City, it’s about the holy City, it’s about the Church, it’s about that which God has been doing for a long, long time, to finish... interesting word here because it means ‘to hold back’, ‘to keep back or keep away’ the transgression, speaking of, again, recognizing it’s talking about sin, the rebellion because the transgression that He’s relating this to is what happened with Judah and what’s going to happen later on having to do with sin which is a matter of rebellion that God addresses over and over again because that’s what transgression is, it’s about rebellion against God, about the word of God.  So it’s about sin as from the man of sin, even, the rebellion that was moved by Satan’s direct influence and power.

...and to make an end of sins, literally in the Hebrew this means ‘to consume or to do away by a sealing’; and the thrust is to accomplish a sealing that nullifies sin.  That’s an awesome thing!  It shows a process here of something that was going to happen up to and in through the end-time and it has to do with the return of Jesus Christ and it has to do with things that were going to take place in the Church and rebellion.  There was never a rebellion like this.  What was written about the apostasy is profound indeed, and things that Daniel is talking about here parallel the accounts of things we have experienced in God’s Church because it has to do with... well, let’s go on to show here... and to make reconciliation for iniquity, in other words, a process that all human beings have to go through, in other words, accomplished through our Passover, it’s about Jesus Christ because that’s how you make reconciliation for iniquities, for sin; and to bring in, the word means ‘to come, brought to pass, to lead in, attain, entered to come to pass, to bring in, to bring to pass’ everlasting righteousness:

What an awesome thing, a work that God has been doing if you want to look back over 6,000 years, a work that God has been doing to bring everyone to a point in time where they’re no longer going to have iniquity in their life, they’re going to be brought to everlasting righteousness, the ability to conquer sin, the ability to finish something, the ability to complete something.  And so this is brought in as a part of what God has been doing through time ...and to seal up the vision and prophecy, and to anoint the most Holy. So again here, this thing about ‘sealing up the vision’ has to do with just like God set a seal upon something, to accomplish, to finish something.  And so it’s talking about several things here and it has something that has to do with the Church, with the holy City, and to make an end of sins, to bring about everlasting righteousness, to finish a work.  And we are at the tail-end of finishing a work.  Those who are going to be a part of the first resurrection, we are the tail-end; we are the last of what God has been doing and preparing to come through all this.

...and to seal up the vision and the prophecy; What prophecy?  The prophecy that He’s giving here, the prophecy even as he goes on to talk about... What does He complete it with?  ...the prophecy of Daniel?  1335, 1290, 1260 days when it’s all complete, it’s all finished.

...and to anoint the most Holy. Well that one shouldn’t escape anyone by any measure.  When does He take His job?  When does He take His position?  When does He take His place?  Well, it’s about His return, it’s about His coming.

So today God leaves us with one more confirmation, again, of His exacting power and precise timing of working out His plan.  And you will come to understand the verses even more so as time goes on, because sometimes by going through something once, by thinking about it, it doesn’t hit us fully.  But I want to give a caution before we go on here.  This is an awesome thing that God has given to us, an awesome thing that’s inspiring and moving and motivating to me that adds to all the other timing that God has given, of things that you can’t know, can’t figure out, can’t work out, can’t make them, can’t create them, they’re just there, exact times.

But when we talk about numbers I want to give a caution because sometimes... I have known of different ones in God’s Church through time who go into numbers too much. It can be a great trap.  Numerology is not a good thing.  It’s like the protestant world; it’s like what they understand of the Bible, it’s twisted and distorted; and so are things about numbers and so forth.  So I give a great caution to let God reveal things to you in His time, in His way, and not to delve into these things because it’s not a healthy thing.  Okay?  Please understand, when God gives something it’s good.  Everything else out there is twisted, distorted and so often simply out there as a trap.

In times past we in the ministry were told to prepare sermons like the protestant world prepares them.  We were told to prepare them a year in advance.  We were told to prepare certain kinds of sermons.  It wasn’t a matter of God’s inspiration, it was a matter of doing things after a manner of how they’re taught in theology, schools of theology.  It was the exact same thing that was beginning to come into the Church.  When we went into a refresher program these things are the things that began to be taught.

But a lot of ministers were practicing these things before, when they’d go to commentaries.  Why would anyone in God’s Church ever go to a commentary to try to understand something that God is saying?  Why would you do that?  And yet I have experienced this, that the ministry in God’s Church did that in a great way.  You think, “How dumb can something be done?”  To go to a protestant world, ministers of theology, supposedly, in this world, to try to receive understanding of what the Bible is saying.  That’s absolutely insane!  You go to the Bible and you let God lead you, guide you, direct you, and teach you.  You go to what has already been given through the Church.  That’s where you go to receive truth.  You don’t go to other places and try to find it because they would find they gave all kind of strange things then about different ideas.

And they did the same thing with Judaism.  Why would you go to rabbi’s?  Why would you go to writings of rabbi’s when God condemned them, when Jesus Christ condemned them in His day!  Did they get better in 2,000 years?  No, they got worse!  They went more into matters of paganism even, they truly did through time, and yet people went to Judaism to try to understand things of the Bible, because surely the Jews know, it’s in Hebrew.  Surely they understand, because I don’t know Hebrew and they know Hebrew so they must know, don’t they?!  No, they don’t.  They don’t know diddly about the plan of God, in that respect, as far as what God is working out.

The same thing is true here.  Do not delve into these things!  They are a dangerous quagmire.  Okay?  We have been given things that God has given us about forty, about seven, about multiples of those things like 280, to understand things about ‘Time and Times,’ how He works, things about twelve that are a matter of perfection, twelve...12,000 X 12 = 144,000 – absolute perfection in the Family of God for His government.  Twelve’s are used, the temple that’s being built, it gives a physical analogy of those things, a description of those things to understand the importance that God has used for perfection.  We understand those things that God has given by which He functions, by which He uses for part of His design and a part of His work.  And so seven with completeness - we grasp those things; they’re inspiring to us when we see them.

Well seventy, again, people have understood for so long having to do with prophecies about Christ, having to do with Christ’s coming, has been something that has been understood for a long, long time, even in a protestant world, in many respects, because there are certain things that did take place in time that had to do with the multiples of seventy concerning the Messiah and concerning things that He fulfilled even in the midst of the week and when He was cut off and all the other things that have been even written by the Church in times past about Jesus Christ’s first coming. But never, never, never did we ever dream, did I ever contemplate that it had anything to do with the end-time and His second coming, but it does.  This verse does.

From the time of the apostasy to the return of Jesus Christ there is a seventy-weeks prophecy of which we just read about here in Daniel 9.  In this case it reveals the timing of Jesus, as in the word Joshua (Yeshua) as the Messiah and that which is (significant to understand ‘types’ that are given out there) of Jesus Christ coming as the Messiah and that which is signified by 70 x 7.  That is an identifying period of time that is about the Messiah: 70 x 7.  What is that?  490 Well, how in the world does that fit in?

But this is also coupled with the rebellion, because the verse is about rebellion, the verse is about the Church and something that took place within God’s Church.  This is coupled with the rebellion that took place in the apostasy; it’s coupled with the identifying period of time that marks rebellion, apostasy.  I was dumbfounded when this was given, candidly, because I wasn’t looking for it, it was just there as much as what was there about going to the book of Daniel.  And this identification has to do with Satan and his rebellion.

We’re learning more and more that things about rebellion, the perdition, the son of perdition – Satan fulfilled them all first – the son of God, angelic realm, the creation of God, they’re referred to as His sons. The things that took place, the great rebellion that took place, things that have to do... there is a certain number that is very much attached to things that he does.  A specific number that sometimes people have a feeling toward that is ominous, people won’t go to that floor; some architects won’t even build that floor.  A number that’s used a great deal in Masonry – ought to tell you a lot – even within the Catholic church a number that has significance.  That number is thirteen.  It is absolute.  As much as twelve is about perfection.  Thirteen is absolute in its significance.

And there are some who understand even by scripture, even by things of history in the Bible. And so it’s written that thirteen is the number for apostasy.  It is a number for rebellion.  Literally it’s understood even in the world; but I give that caution because there are things out there that are twisted and distorted within it and with a lot of other numbers.

Do not go there please because I have known too many who have in times past in God’s Church and demons have taken control.  It’s a place you do not want to tread; you want to listen to what God gives.

But this is important.

A number that’s feared by many, a number used extensively with secret meaning in Masonry.  A number considered as unlucky; a number considered as foreboding and so forth, etcetera, etcetera. Again, it’s a number that’s literally used to depict rebellion and apostasy as much as seven is a number for completeness and twelve is perfection, forty is for judgment, and now we understand that thirteen is about rebellion and apostasy.

We’re going to end today by looking at one last thing concerning the seventy-weeks prophecy of Daniel.

From the great rebellion, the apostasy in the Church, December 17, 1994 to the time Jesus Christ returns; that’s what this verse in Daniel is all about, a beginning and an end - because the rebellion of Judah is not what it was about.  It was a rebellion that took place within the Church that has only happened once in all of history...and this discusses when it ends.  It is the time span of when the 1st Seal of Revelation was opened up to the day that Jesus Christ returns, up to the very time of the Messiah.  It is a prophecy about Him; 70 X 7.

6,370 days exactly: 70 x 7 x 13.  The one who’s going to defeat him, Jesus Christ [70 x 7] x 13 (for rebellion and apostasy) = 6,370. Awesome! Coincidence(?) - Like Mr. Armstrong asked about January 7th and how things worked out.  Coincidence that from December 17, 1994 to May 27, 2012 you have an exact time period?  70 x 7 x 13.  It isn’t coincidence brethren!  It’s awesome - it’s powerful - it’s mighty!  It shows the return of Jesus Christ and what He is taking over and what He is putting down and putting it into and sealing.  It comes to an end.  The Messiah puts an end to it all and ushers in the Kingdom of God.  To me, it’s awesome!

~~~end