(A Reflection of the Spiritual Condition
of Churches at the Imminent Return of Jesus Christ)
Jesus declares in Mat
24:37-39:
“But
as the days of Noe were, so shall also the coming of the Son of man be.
For as in the days that were before the
flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until
the day that Noe entered into the ark, and knew not until the flood came, and
took them all away; so shall also the coming of the Son of man be.”
Going back to the days of
Noah before the flood (i.e., prior to 4990 B.C., see the Biblical Calendar Page 10), we read in
Gen 6:4-5:
“There were giants in
the earth in those days; and also after that, when the sons of God came in unto
the daughters of men, and they bare children to them, the same became
mighty men which were of old, men of renown. And GOD saw
that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every
imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually.” {every…:
or, the whole imagination: the Hebrew word signifieth not only the imagination,
but also the purposes and desires} {continually: Heb. every day}
The Hebrew term
for “giants” comes from a root word that is sometimes translated “overthrow”,
“cast down” and “fall away”. The Hebrew term is used here and in only one other
passage (Num 13:33):
“And there we saw the giants, the
sons of Anak, which come of the giants: and we were in our own
sight as grasshoppers, and so we were in their sight.”
These
giants, the sons of Anak, were the enemies of God (Num 13:31-14:4) who sought
to overthrow and cast down the Israelites to cause them to fall away in faith
and distrust God during their wilderness sojourn (a portrait of the Great
Tribulation of Mat 24) and before entering Canaan (a typology of Heaven that
will be the destination of the people of God immediately after the Great
Tribulation of Mat 24:29-31). God gave victory to His people and they did come
into Canaan (Deut 9:1-3) and the same deliverance will happen to God’s people
at the end of time (Mark 13:27).
Getting back to our Genesis 6 passage, we
have now learned that “giants” spiritually depict the enemies of God and His
people who seek to overthrow and cast down God and His people to cause God’s
people to fall away in faith. The three Hebrew terms for the phrase “and also
after that when” are translated elsewhere so that they in combination could
mean “as a result of” or “because” so that the rest of the verse is telling us
how these “giants” originated—they came about as a result of God’s people
(“sons of God’) intermarrying the enemies of God (“daughters of men”) and their
offsprings becoming spiritual reprobates (“mighty men” and “men of renown”)
that were “giants” (who spiritually were enemies of God, overthrowers of God,
and who fell away from the faith of their Godly parent and their wickedness was
great and every imagination of their hearts was only evil continuously). God’s
people have always been forbidden by God to marry the unsaved (2Cor 6:14, Amos
3:3, Neh 13:23-30, Deut 22:10, Lev 10:10, 19:19) and although there was not a
written record of this injunction in the days of Noah, we can be sure that God
had spoken it to them through Noah and Enoch, who was before Noah’s days—God is
the same yesterday, today, and forever (Heb 13:8) and He changes not (Mal 3:6).
Next, we will consider the expression
“mighty men”. This term is used many times in the Bible and mostly in the
positive sense of being in a right relationship towards God. However, two
places where the term is used negatively are Jeremiah 51:57-58 and Hosea 10:13.
In the Jeremiah passage God is pronouncing judgment on
In the Hosea passage (Hos 10:13 and earlier
verses) God is upbraiding Israel saying they have ploughed wickedness, reaped
iniquity, and eaten the fruit of lies because they trusted in the multitude of
their “mighty men”. Hosea is a book that speaks to the time of the end and
Thus
we have two examples of “mighty men” opposing God and coming under His judgment
while being members of the congregations.
Finally, we will look at the phrase “men
of renown”. This expression in its original form is found only in one other
passage (Num 16:2). The passage reads:
“Now Korah, the son of Izhar, the son of
Kohath, the son of Levi, and Dathan and Abiram, the sons of Eliab, and On, the
son of Peleth, sons of Reuben, took men: And they rose up before Moses,
with certain of the children of Israel, two hundred and fifty princes of the
assembly, famous in the congregation, men of renown: And they gathered
themselves together against Moses and against Aaron, and said unto them, Ye
take too much upon you, seeing all the congregation are holy, every
one of them, and the LORD is among them: wherefore then lift ye up
yourselves above the congregation of the LORD?” {Ye take…: Heb. It is much
for you} Num 16:1-3.
In
this historical event, Moses and Aaron are the God-appointed leaders of the
congregation (church in the wilderness—Acts 7:38). Moses represents the Law
(Word) of God (the Bible) as he wrote the first five books of the Bible and
received the Ten Commandments while Aaron being the high priest depicts Jesus
Christ our High Priest (Heb 3:1, 4:14). Moses and Aaron are being vehemently
opposed by Korah, Dathan, Abiram, On, and two hundred and fifty princes of the
church who were famous in the church and were “men of renown”. So the scene is
set—these men of renown are spiritually “giants” and “mighty men” within the
church wherein they have their membership and they are in opposition to God
(Num 16:11) and His Word, and Jesus Christ. They do not want to have the Bible
and Jesus Christ ruling over them and by their influence as famous leaders they
cause the whole church to fall away from the Bible and Christ:
“And
Korah gathered all the congregation against them (i.e., Moses and Aaron) unto
the door of the tabernacle of the congregation:” (Num 16:19).
Note
also that Korah, Dathan, Abiram, and On had genealogical roots (Levi and Reuben
were sons of Jacob, who was a son of Isaac, who was from Abraham) that tied
them back to Godly parents much as the men of renown in our Genesis 6 passage,
and they have fallen away just the same as those of Noah’s time and become over
throwers, and enemies of God and have cast down the Word of God (i.e., The
Abomination of Desolation standing in the Holy Place {Matt 24:15}—The Holy
Place depicts the external church {Acts 21:28} as opposed to the eternal church
which is the Holiest of Holy where Christ eternally resides as the mercy seat
or propitiation {Heb 9:2-5, Rom 3:24-25, Eph 5:23}) similar to what we read in
Daniel’s prophecy of the Great Tribulation:
“10 And it (Satan) waxed great, even to
the host of heaven; and it cast down some of the host and of the
stars (Christians) to the ground, and stamped upon them. {to the host: or,
against the host} 11 Yea, he (Satan)
magnified himself even to the prince (Christ) of the host, and by him (Christ)
the daily sacrifice was taken away, and the place of his (Christ)
sanctuary was cast down. {to: or, against} {by him: or, from
him} 12 And an host (Satan’s demons)
was given him against the daily sacrifice by reason of
transgression, and it (Satan) cast down the truth to the ground; and it
practised, and prospered.” Dan 8.
The
Holy Place (sanctuary) is where the daily services (sacrifices, burning of
incense, etc.) were performed by the various priests but the Holiest of Holy
beyond the second veil was entered into once per year on the Day of Atonement
by the high priest alone (Heb 9:1-7). Outside of the sanctuary is the temple’s
outer courts where the ordinary people would congregate for prayer, worship,
and bring their sacrifices. However, when the beginning of the Great
Tribulation arrived (signaled by the Abomination of Desolation being set up) at
the end of the 1290 days of Daniel 12:11, Satan is standing in the holy place
(sanctuary, the external congregations) (Matt 24:15), a place he ought not to
be (Mark 13:14), but where he had desired to be from the creation (Isa 14:13).
And what is Satan doing there by standing? To stand, spiritually, means that he
is on his feet at his appointed ministry (see Jesus’ commission to the Apostle
Paul to the start Paul’s ministry—Acts 26:16) of desecrating the Holy Place
spiritually: (i) by casting down the daily burnt sacrifices and sweet incense
off the golden altar (i.e., nullifying Christ’s atonement), (ii) by casting
down the candlestick of pure gold with its lamps burning every evening (the
external churches—Rev 1:11-12, 2:5 falling away-2Thes 2:3), (iii) by
overthrowing the pure table of gold with its golden vessels (i.e., the
believers—2Tim 2:20-21) upon which is the shewbread—the offered body of Christ
(Heb 9:2; 2Chr 13:11; 1Kgs 7:48), and (iv) by stamping upon all of them
practicing and prospering (i.e., flourishing, see Dan 8:10-12 above). This is the
beginning of God’s judgment starting with the desecrating of the churches by
Satan and then judgment transitions to the unsaved at the end of time as
depicted in the following passages:
“For
the time is come that judgment must begin at the house of God
(the external churches): and if it first begin at us, what shall
the end be of them that obey not the gospel of God?” 1Pet 4:17.
“Slay utterly old and
young, both maids, and little children, and women: but come not near any man
upon whom is the mark; and begin at my (God’s)
sanctuary. Then they began at the ancient men
which were before the house (of God).” {utterly: Heb. to
destruction} Eze 9:6
Satan’s
desecration continues for 2300 days (Dan 8:13-14):
“Then I heard one saint speaking, and another saint
said unto that certain saint which spake, How long shall be the
vision concerning the daily sacrifice, and the transgression
(abomination) of desolation, to give both the sanctuary (holy place) and the
host (Christians) to be trodden under foot? {that…: or, the numberer of
secrets, or, the wonderful numberer: Heb. Palmoni} {of…: or, making
desolate} 14 And he said unto me,
Unto two thousand and three hundred days; then shall the sanctuary be cleansed.
{days: Heb. evening morning} {cleansed: Heb. justified}”
And again we see Satan’s working even
further:
“For such are false
apostles, deceitful workers, transforming themselves into the apostles of
Christ. And no marvel; for Satan himself is transformed into an angel of
light. Therefore it is no great thing if his ministers also be transformed
as the ministers of righteousness; whose end shall be according to
their works.” 2Cor 11:13-15.
And once more, Satan employs pastors:
“Many pastors have destroyed my
vineyard, they have trodden my portion under foot, they have made my
pleasant portion a desolate wilderness.” {pleasant…: Heb. portion of desire}
Jer 12:10
To attest to our correct understanding of the above
matters we read Gabriel’s interpretation of the vision given to Daniel later on
in chapter 8:
“15 And it came to pass, when I, even
I Daniel, had seen the vision, and sought for the meaning, then, behold, there
stood before me as the appearance of a man. 16
And I heard a man’s voice between the banks of Ulai, which
called, and said, Gabriel, make this man to understand the vision.
17 So he came near where I stood: and
when he came, I was afraid, and fell upon my face: but he said unto me,
Understand, O son of man: for at the time of the end shall be
the vision…. 23 And in the latter
time of their (Satanic forces) kingdom, when the transgressors are come
to the full, a king of fierce countenance (Satan), and understanding dark
sentences (parable—the Bible), shall stand up. {are…: Heb. are
accomplished} 24 And his power shall
be mighty, but not by his own power: and he shall destroy wonderfully (by signs
and wonders), and shall prosper, and practise, and shall destroy the mighty and
the holy people. {holy…: Heb. people of the holy ones} 25 And through his policy (understanding) also
he shall cause craft (deceit) to prosper in his hand; and he shall magnify himself
in his heart, and by peace (physical, social, economic, and political
prosperity) shall destroy many: he shall also stand up against the
Prince (Christ) of princes (the eternal church); but he shall be broken without
hand. {peace: or, prosperity} 26
And the vision of the evening and the morning which was told is
true: wherefore shut thou up the vision; for it shall be for many days.”
So, we know we have correctly understood
God’s teachings thus far.
Now,
after standing and desecrating the Holy Place and his Gentile cohorts trampling
the temple under foot, Satan (as the “man of sin”, referred to a man because he
is typified by King Nebucchadnezzar of Babylon{Isa 14:4-20}) takes his seat
(having first achieved the falling away of the external churches as shown
above) in the temple (i.e., Holy Place and outer court, Luke 1:9, Matt 27:3-5,
external churches):
“Let
no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except
there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son
of perdition; Who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God,
or that is worshipped; so that he as God sitteth in the temple of God,
shewing himself that he is God.” 2 Thes 2:3-4.
Satan
is able to reign (sitting in the temple equivalent to reigning, see Psalm 99:1
where God is sitting between the Cherubims in the temple and reigning. See also
Psalm 47:8) finally because the Holy Spirit has been removed out of the midst
of the external churches:
“And
now ye know what (the Holy Spirit) withholdeth (restraineth) that he (Satan)
might be revealed in his time (season). {withholdeth: or, holdeth} For the mystery of iniquity doth already
work: only he (the Holy Spirit) who now letteth (withholdeth) will let,
until he (the holy Spirit) be taken out of the way (midst). And then shall that Wicked (Satan) be revealed, whom the Lord shall
consume with the spirit of his mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of
his coming: Even him, whose (Christ’s) coming is after (against) the
working of Satan with all power and signs and lying wonders,” 2Thess 2:6-9.
This
should not be alarming that Satan should be seated and worshiped in every
external church (congregation) worldwide during the great tribulation just
before the end of the world because his iniquity was already at work in the
churches when Paul was writing the above passage to the
Satan
also already was seated in a couple of churches before the Bible was complete
in the days of the Apostle John:
“And
unto the angel (messenger) of the church in Smyrna write; These things
saith the first and the last, which was dead, and is alive; I know thy works, and
tribulation, and poverty, (but thou art rich) and I know the blasphemy
of them which say they are Jews, and are not, but are the synagogue (congregation)
of Satan.” Rev 2:8-9.
And
again:
“And
to the angel (messenger) of the church in Pergamos write; These things
saith he which hath the sharp sword with two edges; I know thy works, and where
thou dwellest, even where Satan’s seat is: and thou
holdest fast my name, and hast not denied my faith, even in those days wherein
Antipas was my faithful martyr, who was slain among you, where Satan
dwelleth.” Rev 2:12-13.
Already
in the first century A.D., Satan had infiltrated some of the early churches and
had orchestrated the death of Antipas, a faithful saint. He has been waging
relentless war against the external churches for almost two thousand years
fighting (i) from within the leadership of the churches (Acts 20:27-31, 2Cor
11:13-15), (ii) from within the collective membership of the congregations (Eph
6:10-18, 2Thes 2:8-10, 1Tim 5:15, Rev 2:9-10,13, 3:9), (iii) against the
individual member of the congregation (2Cor 12:7, Eph 4:27-28, 1Thes 2:18, 1Tim
3:6-7, 2Tim 2:26, 1Pet 5:8) and, (iv) from outside of the churches (2Tim 3:1-9,
Matt 13:37-39, Rev 12:14-15, John 16:33). Can there be any remaining doubt that
Satan is presently in control of the churches today after subverting the
churches for so long? Consider the current escalating evidence for the falling
away of the churches from God to Satan:
1. Churches are ordaining women as bishops and preachers
contrary to 1Cor 14:34-35 and 1Tim 2:11-15.
2. Homosexuals accepted in the churches and ordained as
bishops contrary to Rom 1:26-28. Very similar conditions to the days of Lot in
3. Divorces, remarriages, and “shacking up” are prominent
in the churches contrary to Rom 7:2-3, 1Cor 7:10-11, Heb 13:4 and Mat
19:6—“Wherefore they are no more twain, but one flesh. What therefore God hath joined together, let not man
put asunder.”
4. False Christs and false prophets have surfaced
featuring miracles of healing, speaking in tongues, slain in the spirit (i.e.,
falling backwards), and visions and these are the hallmarks of denominations
throughout the world as prophesied as an evidence of the Great Tribulation and
the end of time (Matt 24:24, Mark 13:22, 2Thes 2:9, Dan 8:25).
5. The music of the churches are no longer the
traditional “psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs” (Eph 5:19,
6. The message of the churches is no longer the gospel of
the Lord Jesus Christ (Rom 1:16) which
is the whole counsel of God (i.e., the entire Bible, Acts 20:27, 2Tim 3:16-17)
but instead preaching today is centered on political and social freedom, world
peace, economic prosperity, human rights, and good health (topics alien to the
Bible—physical healings in the Bible are always a picture of the spiritual healing
of the soul and the peace that is portrayed by the Bible is (i) the peace with
God that comes from having been delivered from the wrath of God, John 3:36, Eph
2:3,14-17; and (ii) the peace of God that comes from living in accord with
God’s word, Phi 4:7, Col 3:15). These materialistic messages attract massive
followings as these things appeal to the fleshly cravings of man (Eph 2:3, Ecc
6:7, 1John 2:16).
7. The doctrine of salvation by God’s predestining and
electing grace from the foundation of the world (Eph 1:5, 11, 2:8-9, Rom
8:29-30, 9:10-20, 1Pet 1:2, 2Thes 2:13, Rev 13:8, 17:8, 21:27) is replaced in
churches by a freewill offer (“accept Jesus in your heart today”) where man has
the responsibility to accept or reject God’s salvation, Jesus Christ supposedly
having paid for the sins of all humanity and so the church membership is deemed
as a saved one, all members having accepted Jesus by evidence of their
membership and continuous attendance which is a lie and one of the doctrines of
the devil (1Tim 4:1-2, Isa 28:14-18) to keep his subjects in darkness (2Cor
4:3-4) while appeasing their fleshy religious desires (Jam 1:26) causing them
to go in the way of Cain (Jude 1:11, Gen 4:3-5).
8. The traditional King James Bible that God used to
serve the English speaking churches for nearly four hundred years as a stable
foundation (Jer 6:16, Deut 19:14, Prov 23:10) has been replaced in churches by
so-called “modern-day translations” that have distorted the meanings of
passages from the original languages and that preclude the serious Bible
student from going back from the English to the Greek or Hebrew by way of
utilizing the Strong’s numbering system.
9. Some denominations have added certain books to the
Bible (e.g., the Apocrypha books) and where such books are not bounded within
the Bible, they still hold certain writings of their founding fathers or
mothers received by so-called visions as higher revelation or at least
equivalent to the Bible which are clear violations of God’s final edict in
closing out His Bible in Revelation 22:18-20 (i.e., the very last verses of
scripture).
10.
Certain
denominations have elevated Mary, the biological mother of Jesus Christ, to the
status of the mediator with God in stark contradiction to the Bible’s teaching
that Jesus Christ is the only mediator between God and Man (1Tim 2:15, Heb 8:6,
9:15, 12:24).
11.
Churches appoint
bishops, elders, and deacons based on their social, economic, political, and
scholastic accomplishments and not by God’s specific standards as established
in the Bible (Tit 1:5-9, 1Tim 3:1-15).
12.
Churches have
omitted, by their preaching and practice, the more important aspects of the
God’s law—judgment, mercy, and faith, (Matt 23:23), and the love of God (Luke
11:42) and are focusing on the less important aspects such as tithing because
their pastors are professional hirelings with self-serving materialistic
ambitions (Mic 3:11, Isa 1:23, 56:10-11, 2Pet 2:14-15) who are tares that have
been sowed over time by Satan (Matt 13:38-39) to destroy the churches (Jer 2:8,
6:13, 8:10, 10:11, 12:10, 23:1-2, 2Pet 2:1-3, Eze 22:27, Tit 1:11). Even when
they mention the love of God it is always in the sense that God loves every
person but hates the sin. This false teaching contradicts the Bible as God is
not casting sins into hell, He is casting people (Rev 20:15—“And whosoever was
not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire”) who
names were not written in the Lamb’s book of life from the foundation of the
world (Rev 13:8, 17:8). The true teaching of the Bible is that God hates
sinners (Ps 5:5, 11:5, Rom 9:13, Mal 1:3) and shows His great love exclusively
to those spiritually dead sinners whom He predestinated in Christ before the
foundation of the world (Eph 1:4), as we read:
“But
God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us, even when
we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are
saved;)” {by…: or, by whose grace} Eph 2:4-5.
This
God-glorifying doctrine is not taught in most churches today.
Now
let us get back to Numbers 16 and look at some of the doctrines and actions of
these men of renown while they held memberships in the church in the wilderness
(Acts 7:38) and we will see how they so greatly mirror their counterparts in
the local churches of today that are spiritually in the wilderness of this
world portrayed as the woman “Mystery Babylon” (Rev 17:3-5).
To
begin, we will look at our main historical characters and the spiritual roles they
portray. We have already set forth that Moses and Aaron are types of the Law
(Word) of God and Jesus Christ, respectively. Korah, being the leader of the
rebellion depicts Satan himself (he is the man that sinned in verse 22 and
typifies the “man of sin” Satan in 2Thes 2:3). Dathan, Abiram, and On are next
to him in leadership and represent Satan’s host of demonic angels, and the two
hundred and fifty princes “men of renown” picture the pastors, bishops, elders,
and deacons of the churches today, and the congregation (fourteen thousand and
seven hundred, Num 16:49) that died in the plague illustrate the unsaved
ordinary members within the local churches. So already, we can see the portrait
of Satan inciting rebellion against the Law of God and Jesus Christ within the
churches by sowing tares (Matt 13:38-39) amongst their leadership (Satan
working from the outside of the churches) and then the leadership draw away
(Acts 20:30) the unsaved congregation after them (Satan working from within the
collective membership of the churches and also against the individual members).
Having
established the background, now we can move on in our examination of this
historical account (also a parable, Psalm 78:1-8). As Korah and his rebellion
are rising up against Moses and Aaron into their very faces (verses 2 and 3)
they were usurping the Law (Word) of God and Jesus Christ and making themselves
(the external church) above the Law of God, thereby God is no longer the pillar
and ground of truth (1Tim 3:15) but the churches have assumed this role by
their own appointment.
Next,
Korah and his rebellion affirms their false doctrine of saved membership in
verse 3:
“..seeing
all the congregation are holy, every one of them,
and the LORD is among (in the midst of) them…”
This
doctrine of saved membership in the local churches is contrary to the Bible, as
only those in the eternal church are saved. Furthermore, Jesus Christ The Lord
is only in the midst of His people, not the unsaved (Matt 18:20) and as we have
seen that during the current Great Tribulation, the Holy Spirit has been taken
out of the midst of the congregations although they do not realize it.
As
a result of the rebellion straight to his face, Moses falls to the ground on
his face (verse 4), thereby portraying the casting down of the truth (Law) of
God to the ground (Dan 8:12) even as the churches of today have down by their
rebellion against the Bible.
The
actions of Korah are summed up by Jude:
“8 ¶
Likewise also these filthy dreamers defile the flesh, despise
dominion, and speak evil of dignities… 10
But these speak evil of those things which they know not: but what they
know naturally, as brute beasts, in those things they corrupt themselves. 11.
Woe unto them! for they have gone in the way of Cain, and ran greedily after
the error of Balaam for reward, and perished in the gainsaying (striving,
contradicting) of Core (Korah).”
Continuing in verses 12 to 14, we see
Dathan and Abiram defying Moses’ call and then they accuse him of trying to
kill them thereby not only have they defied dignity by not coming to Moses when
he summons them but they have spoken evil of dignity as Jude affirms. From
their statements they would have preferred to remain in
“..Sirs,
what must I do to be saved? And they said, Believe on the Lord Jesus
Christ, and thou shalt be saved…” Acts 12:30-31.
“..if
thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in
thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.” Rom
10:9
“For
God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever
believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” Joh 3:16.
However,
these same churches never reveal (knowingly or not) that believing is a work of
God and not of man (which is indicative of the deceit of Satan who uses parts
of the Bible and not the whole such as in his temptation of Jesus for forty
days in the wilderness {picture of the forty years, a day for a year, Num
14:34, the church, including Korah, Dathan, and Abiram, in Moses’ days were in
the wilderness being tested} where he quoted scripture but with the wrong
interpretation and Jesus had to quote back to him the rest of scripture to
reveal the whole truth, see Luke 4:1-13), as we read:
“Jesus answered and said unto them, this
is the work of God, that ye believe on him (Jesus Christ) whom he hath sent.” Joh 6:29.
“But as many as received him (Jesus
Christ), to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them
that believe on his name: {power: or, the right, or, privilege} Which
were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will
of man, but of God.” Joh 1:11-13.
To receive Jesus must be a gift of God
from heaven, no man can accept or take Him of his own volition:
“John answered and said, A man can receive nothing, except it be given him from heaven. {receive: or, take unto himself}”
Joh 3:27
“For by grace are ye saved through
faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not
of works, lest any man should boast.” Eph 2:8-9.
“And he (Jesus) said, Therefore said I
unto you, that no man can come unto me, except it were given unto him of my Father.” Joh 6:65.
Other verses used falsely by these
churches to teach universal salvation are:
“And he is the propitiation for our sins: and not for
ours (Jews) only, but also for the sins of the whole world (Gentile
world)”. 1Joh 2:2
“And said unto the woman, Now we believe, not because
of thy saying: for we have heard him ourselves, and know that this is
indeed the Christ, the Saviour of the world.” (that includes this Samaritan
woman, a Gentile) Joh 4:42
“And we have seen and do testify that the Father sent
the Son to be the Saviour of the world.” 1Jo 4:14
“For therefore we both labour and suffer reproach,
because we trust in the living God, who is the Saviour of all men, specially of
those that believe.” 1Ti 4:10
But
such churches are willingly ignorant of the fact that Jesus came to save His
people from all parts and nations of the world, not just Jews in Palestine, and
so he was not only the propitiation (satisfaction) for the sins of the Jews he
came to save but also for the Gentiles (non-Jews, also translated “Greeks” from
the original language) he came to save wherever these Jews and Gentiles
(Greeks) are found in all the world and at whatever period of time they are
living. Verses illustrating these precious truths are:
Joh 10:16 “And
other sheep I (Jesus) have, which are not of this fold: them also I must bring,
and they shall hear my voice; and there shall be one fold, and one
shepherd.”
Acts 10:34-35 “Then Peter opened his mouth, and
said, Of a truth I perceive that God is no respecter of persons: But in every
nation he that feareth him, and worketh righteousness, is accepted with
him.”
Ac 14:1 “And it came to pass in Iconium, that they
went both together into the synagogue of the Jews, and so spake, that a great multitude
both of the Jews and also of the Greeks believed.”
1Co 1:23-24
“But we preach Christ crucified, unto the Jews a stumblingblock, and
unto the Greeks foolishness; But unto them which are called, both Jews and
Greeks, Christ the power of God, and the wisdom of God.”
1Co 12:13 “For
by one Spirit are we all baptized into one body, whether we be
Jews or Gentiles, whether we be bond or free; and have been all
made to drink into one Spirit.” {Gentiles: Gr. Greeks}
Re 5:9 “And
they sung a new song, saying, Thou art worthy to take the book, and to open the
seals thereof: for thou wast slain, and hast redeemed us to God by thy blood
out of every kindred, and tongue, and people, and nation;”
Re 14:6 “And I
saw another angel fly in the midst of heaven, having the everlasting gospel to
preach unto them that dwell on the earth, and to every nation, and kindred,
and tongue, and people,”
Isa 49:6 And he
said, It is a light thing that thou shouldest be my servant to raise up the
tribes of Jacob, and to restore the preserved of
Isa 49:22 Thus
saith the Lord GOD, Behold, I will lift up mine hand to the Gentiles,
and set up my standard to the people: and they shall bring thy sons in their
arms, and thy daughters shall be carried upon their shoulders. {arms:
Heb. bosom}
What a precious verse is this last one. Are you spiritually bringing
your sons in your bosom and carrying your daughters upon your shoulders to the
Lord Jesus Christ as some of the Jews did physically in Matthew 19:13? There we
read:
“Then were there brought unto him little
children, that he should put his hands on them, and pray: and the
disciples rebuked them.”
We do this by declaring the whole counsel of God (Acts 20:26-28: “Wherefore I take you to record this day, that I am
pure from the blood of all men. For I have not shunned to declare unto
you all the counsel of God. Take heed therefore unto yourselves, and to all the
flock, over the which the Holy Ghost hath made you overseers, to feed the
Mt 23:15 “Woe
unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye compass sea and land to
make one proselyte, and when he is made, ye make him twofold more the child of
hell than yourselves.”
This is because they selectively chose from the Bible
here a little and there a little and not the whole counsel and so God’s
judgment is upon them and their children for so doing:
Isa 28:13 “But
the word of the LORD was unto them precept upon precept, precept upon precept;
line upon line, line upon line; here a little, and there a little; that
they might go, and fall backward, and be broken, and snared, and taken.”
See the literal fulfillment of Isa 28:13 in the
Pharisees who selectively chose parts of the Bible:
“Judas then, having received
a band of men and officers from the chief priests and Pharisees,
cometh thither with lanterns and torches and weapons. Jesus therefore, knowing
all things that should come upon him, went forth, and said unto them, Whom seek
ye? They answered him, Jesus of Nazareth. Jesus saith unto them, I am he.
And Judas also, which betrayed him, stood with them. As soon then as he had
said unto them, I am he, they went backward, and fell to the ground.”
Joh 18:3-6.
Do you see how beautifully this ties in
with the churches today that practice being slain in the spirit by falling
backwards (mentioned above as point #4 in the evidence the church has fallen
away)? They have like the Pharisees taken bits and pieces of the Bible and
wrestle (twist to their own purposes) with them and so the judgment of God is
upon these congregations (2Pet 3:16) and they shall be snared and taken.
There are so many other verses (e.g., Isa 11:10, Isa
42:1, Isa 42:6, Isa 60:3,5, Mal 1:11) exemplifying these sacred truths of Jesus
being the savior of His people who originate from all nations scattered
throughout the world that if they were to be listed we would have to almost
quote a good portion of the Bible, especially the old testament, wherein these
truths have been veiled to a lot of churches today (2Cor 3:14).
Now let us look at another fallacy of these men of
renown in Numbers 16. Moses stated God had allowed those Levites among them the
privilege of doing the service of the tabernacle but they were not satisfied as
they also wanted the priesthood (verses 8-11) that God had given exclusively to
Aaron’s family (verse 40) as he was a great picture of God’s chosen High Priest
Jesus Christ (1Pet 2:4, Rom 14:9, Heb 2:17), especially when he stood making
atonement between the dead and the living (verses 47-48). This was Satan’s
ambition to be like Jesus Christ and serve not only as a priest but also as the
high priest having his own synagogue (2Cor 11:14-15, Rev 2:9). This is just
what is occurring in the churches of today, as pastors are professional
appointments based on scholastic backgrounds and they are no longer as a result
of a Godly calling as was that of Aaron.
Next, in verses 16, 17 and 18 the men of renown and
Aaron are permitted to put their censers burning with incense before the Lord
and stood in the door of the sanctuary of the tabernacle. This situation is the
start of the desolation of the sanctuary by Satan as he seems to have gotten
his way temporarily. However, this was not yet the time for the full-scale
abomination of desolation of the churches as it is in our time, so God in
verses 25-34 brought an abrupt end to this assault by opening up the pit of the
earth and swallowing up Korah, Dathan, and Abiram and their families and their
goods (a portrait of the casting of Satan into the bottomless pit temporarily
until his loosing for a little season, Rev 20:1-3). The two hundred and fifty
men of renown also were consumed by fire from the Lord (verse 35) a picture of
the lake of fire (Rev 20:15). Thus God temporarily stayed Satan’s attempt to
control His church in the wilderness of Moses’ day. But the churches of today
will not suffer the same fate of deliverance, as they are the very beginning of
the final judgment of God (1Pet 4:17).
Interestingly, one would think that the congregation
would turn to God after seeing that He has shown (revealed Satan) the falsehood
of the rebellion openly. No, all the congregation (portraying all the churches
in the world) was still stiffnecked and accused Moses and Aaron of killing the
people of the Lord (verse 41). They obviously had been so deceived by Korah and
his men of renown that even after God’s dramatic intervention, they were still
adamant in their position thinking that somehow Moses and Aaron were false and
Korah and his company were the real people of God. This is parallel to the
circumstances in the churches today when God is revealing Satan openly through
His the Bible (2Thess 2:3) and the true believers are beginning to understand
the relentless assault that Satan had been waging against the churches through
the ages until now during which time Satan’s working was still a mystery
(unrevealed—2Thess 2:7) and their spiritual eyes were closed to these things
while Christ tarried and His return was not imminent (Luk 24:16, Mat 13:25, Mat
25:5). Now the true believers begin declaring that Satan is seated and reigning
in the churches and what do the local churches do? They refuse to hear it, they
are stiffnecked (Act 7:51), they make the true
believers out falsely to be deceivers (2Co 6:8 “By honour and dishonour, by
evil report and good report: as deceivers, and yet true;”), and they
refer to their leaders as holy men of God, even as did the church of Korah in
the wilderness, but the holiness of these men is only external as Christ showed
in the Pharisees (religious leaders) of His time (Matt 23:27-28). Satan has so
deceived these churches that the only recourse God has is to begin His judgment
at the churches (house of God—1Pet 4:17), which is what He did in verses 44-49.
Can you see how closely the churches of today have followed the gainsaying of
Korah (Jude 1:11) that will lead them into eternal judgment (Jude 1:14-15).
Also, it is important to note that God told the
congregation to depart from amongst Korah and his men of renown before His
final judgment (verses 23-26) came. However, the congregation would not do so
until they were forced to in order to temporarily spare their lives (verse 34).
They physically departed but their hearts were still with Korah as shown in
verse 41, very much like some in the churches today who are foreshadowed by
Lot’s wife just before Jesus returns (Luke 17:30-33, Gen 19:24-27), they are on
the fence but to their own destruction. This is the situation with the churches
today, God has told His people to depart the churches before His final judgment
arrives and very few are obeying. Verses illustrating this injunction for God’s
people to depart are:
“And I heard another voice from heaven,
saying, Come out of her (i.e., Spiritual Babylon—the churches), my people, that
ye be not partakers of her sins, and that ye receive not of her plagues. For
her sins have reached unto heaven, and God hath remembered her iniquities.” Rev 18:4-5.
“My people, go ye out of the midst of her (i.e., Spiritual Babylon—the churches), and deliver
ye every man his soul from the fierce anger of the LORD.” Jer 51:45.
“When ye therefore shall see the abomination of
desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, stand in the holy place, (whoso
readeth, let him understand:) Then let them which be in
“But when ye shall see the abomination of desolation,
spoken of by Daniel the prophet, standing where it ought not, (let him that
readeth understand,) then let them that be in
“And when ye shall see
For those who will say I am utilizing passages that
deal specifically with old testament
“Neither let us tempt
Christ, as some of them also tempted, and were destroyed of serpents. Neither
murmur ye, as some of them also murmured (i.e., the congregation of Korah) and
were destroyed of the destroyer. Now all these things happened unto them for
ensamples: and they are written for our (the
“But with many of them God was not well pleased: for
they were overthrown in the wilderness (e.g., Korah). Now these things were our
examples (the
“And turning the cities of
The true children of God do not learn as the Pharisees
(“here a little, and there a little,” Isa 28:13, thus omitting portions of
God’s word) but they are taught by the Holy Spirit in this manner:
“Now we have received, not
the spirit of the world, but the spirit which is of God; that we might know the
things that are freely given to us of God. Which things also we speak, not in
the words which man’s wisdom teacheth, but which the Holy Ghost teacheth; comparing
spiritual things with spiritual.” 1Cor 2: 12-13.
And, the Holy Spirit uses the whole Bible in His
teachings:
“All scripture is given by inspiration of
God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction,
for instruction in righteousness:” 2Tim 3:16.
Clearly, the church in the old testament is used as a
type of the new testament churches spiritually, and the latter will suffer the
same fate at the return of Jesus Christ because of the men of renown that were
around in Noah’s days before the flood (as prophesied by Christ in Matthew
24:37-38), and in the church in the wilderness in Moses’ day, and are still
around in the churches of today.
The end.
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