(1st article in the God's End Time Army Series)
In this article I’ll be discussing God’s end time army and what it takes to be a part of it.
I’ll answer:
1. Who is God’s end time army?
2. What is their conviction? Why every Christian won’t qualify.
3. What is their mission?
4. What skills will they use to carry out their mission?
Who Is God’s End Time Army?
They are the 144,000 mentioned in Revelation 7. It says:
“Do not harm the land or the sea or the trees until we put a seal on the foreheads of the SERVANTS OF OUR GOD.”
Then I heard the number of those who were sealed: 144,000 from all the tribes of Israel.
From the tribe of Judah 12,000 were sealed,
from the tribe of Reuben 12,000,
from the tribe of Gad 12,000,
from the tribe of Asher 12,000,
from the tribe of Naphtali 12,000,
from the tribe of Manasseh 12,000,
from the tribe of Simeon 12,000,
from the tribe of Levi 12,000,
from the tribe of Issachar 12,000,
from the tribe of Zebulun 12,000,
from the tribe of Joseph 12,000,
from the tribe of Benjamin 12,000.
Revelation 7:3-8
Some will say that these are ETHNIC JEWS— but that can’t be.
Here are 2 reasons why:
1. The bloodlines of the 12 tribes of Israel have long been lost. When the 10 northern tribes of Israel were captured and taken to Assyria in 721 B.C., they never returned to Israel intact. Those that later returned were intermarried and became known as Samaritans. While some bloodlines from Judah, Simeon and Benjamin can be accounted for, they would not be enough to fulfill this prophecy.
2. Some say that God raises up 144,000 Jews from the past. That can’t be true because in Hebrews 9:27 it say that “it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment.” I do not believe God brings BACK men to do his bidding.
So who are the 144,000?
Spiritual Israel
The 144,000 are made up of Spiritual Israel. They are potentially YOU and ME!
1. As I discussed in my article, Does the Bible Teach a 7 Year Tribulation Period, after the death of Christ, “the house of Israel was left desolate” (Matthew 23:38). God had transitioned into His NEW COVENANT.
The Apostle Paul would explain this in several of his epistles. Here are just a few examples:
For he is not a Jew, which is one outwardly; neither is that circumcision, which is outward in the flesh: BUT HE IS A JEW, WHICH IS ONE INWARDLY; and circumcision is that of the heart, in the spirit, and not in the letter; whose praise is not of men, but of God.
Romans 2:28-29
There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor female: FOR YE ARE ALL ONE IN CHRIST JESUS. And if ye be Christ's, then are ye Abraham's seed, and heirs according to the promise.
Galatians 3:28-29
Where there is neither Greek nor Jew, circumcision nor uncircumcision, Barbarian, Scythian, bond nor free: BUT CHRIST IS ALL, AND IN ALL.
Colossians 3:11
Not as though the word of God hath taken none effect. FOR THEY ARE NOT ALL ISRAEL, WHICH ARE OF ISRAEL.
Romans 9:6
You see, the Bible teaches that once Christ died, ALL THOSE OF FAITH transitioned over to the new covenant. God does not separate out the Jew and the Gentile anymore— we are all ONE.
Therefore, the Israel being discussed in Revelation 7, is SPIRITUAL ISRAEL. It’s the combined CHURCH.
What is the End Time Army’s Conviction? Why Every Christian Won’t Qualify.
1. They are DONE with sin.
Therefore, since Christ suffered in his body, arm yourselves also with the same attitude, because whoever suffers in the body is DONE WITH SIN. As a result, they do not live the rest of their earthly lives for evil human desires, but rather for the will of God.
1 Peter 4:1-2
Are YOU done with sin? To be a part of God end time army, you must be. Revelation 14 says:
They FOLLOW THE LAMB wherever he goes. They were purchased from among mankind and offered as FIRSTFRUITS to God and the Lamb. No lie was found in their mouths; they are BLAMELESS.
Revelation 14:4-5
• They follow the Lamb wherever He goes. They have the MIND of Christ (1 Corinthians 2:16).
• As firstfruits they are born of the Lamb. They have received the new nature available to those who put their faith in Him (James 1:18).
• They are blameless because they are covered by the blood of the Lamb (2 Corinthians 5:21).
To be done with sin, read my article, How To Deal With Sin.
2. They refuse to be a part of an abominable religion.
These are they which were not defiled with women; for they are virgins.
Revelation 14:4
Concerning the WHORE of Babylon (the Roman Catholic Church) the Bible says:
Come out of her, my people, so that you will not share in her sins, so that you will not receive any of her plagues.
Revelation 18:4
God’s end time army will not defile itself with an abominable religion (see my article, Misdirection).
Do you refuse to be a part of a church that’s sold out to Rome? Many don’t. There was a time when being a PROTESTANT meant something. It meant that you “protested” the seat of Rome.
That’s what the reformers did: Martin Luther, Thomas Cranmer, John Knox, John Calvin, Roger Williams, John Wesley and Cotton Mather. They PROTESTED the Mystery Religion of Rome.
But today our churches are infiltrated by agents of Rome: Billy Graham (33º Freemason), Rick Joyner (Knight of Malta), Rick Warren (Jesuit Coadjutor), Hal Lindsey and Tim LaHaye (Illuminati Agents), to name a few.
Protestants no longer protest. Instead, they support the Pope’s ecumenical movement. They do not FEAR God.
The Ecumenical Movement - Pope Benedict and Protestant Religious Leaders
No soldier in God’s end time army would ever aid and abet the enemy of God in this manner. However, many of our churches do today. Are you a part of them?
What is the End Time Army’s Mission?
Their mission is laid out in Revelation 14:6-7:
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, Saying with a loud voice, FEAR GOD, and GIVE GLORY TO HIM; for the hour of his judgment is come: and WORSHIP HIM that made heaven, and earth, and the sea, and the fountains of waters.
Revelation 14:6-7
The angel flying in the midst of heaven tells us the mission of God’s end time army. It is to tell the world that they should:
• Fear God.
• Give Glory to God.
• Worship God.
Over the next 3 articles I will discuss the significance of these 3 messages. God's end time army will have AUTHORITY to speak this message because they are living it themselves.
What Skills Will the End Time Army Use To Carry Out Their Mission?
God has given every man a portion of grace. For the church, the diversities of these giftings are described in 1 Corinthians 12:
Now concerning spiritual gifts, brethren, I do not want you to be unaware.
Now there are varieties of GIFTS, but the same Spirit.
And there are varieties of MINISTRIES, and the same Lord.
There are varieties of EFFECTS, but the same God who works all things in all persons.
But to each one is given the MANIFESTATION of the Spirit for the common good.
1 Corinthians 12:1, 4-7 (NASB)
There are 4 Categories of Spiritual “Things”
There are:
1. Gifts
2. Ministries
3. Effects
4. Manifestations
We can see how they are divided in the chart below.
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| Click on Chart to Make It Larger |
To gain an understanding of how these gifts operate in the church, read my article, Spiritual Gifts and the Emergent Church.
My point is to make you aware that a number of these same “gifts” were a part of the ORIGINAL TRIBES OF ISRAEL.
Then with the establishment of SPIRITUAL ISRAEL, God added a few more gifts and assigned them to God’s end time army (the 144,000) outlined in Revelation 7.
This is how they were assigned:
By reading my article, How To Find Your Specific Purpose in Your Life, you can identify your GIFT and know what TRIBE God has assigned you to!
For example my gift is teaching. Therefore God has assigned me to the tribe of Naphtali. Of course you can have more than one gift. You’ll find that your gifts will allow you to move between tribes, supporting and building up the house of God (1 Peter 2:5)
Now you try it. Find your gift, then find your assigned tribe.
For a more in-depth study on this go to Ginger Guin Shamblin’s study on the 12 Tribes of Israel.
Conclusion
As we move into the Great Tribulation, God is building an army. He will use His TRIBES AND GIFTS to advance His Kingdom.
You see, God cares about people. He doesn’t want anyone to perish (2 Peter 3:9). Because God knows the ultimate consequences of rebellion, His message will be: fear me, glorify me and worship me.
God will dramatize this message through the lives of His saints. Some will die, others will be taken captive (Revelation 13:10). Still others will do God’s exploits to the end (Revelation 11:6).
In the end, Jesus will come again and rapture His saints to Himself. As the 144,000 stand before the Father with Jesus, the Father will write his name on their foreheads. What name will He write? I think it will be ABBA— Father (Revelation 14:1).
Dear reader, are you ready? Have you washed your robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb?
And I said unto him, Sir, thou knowest. And he said to me, These are they which came out of great tribulation, and have WASHED THEIR ROBES, and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.
Revelation 7:14
To help make you ready, in my next article I’ll discuss, Do You Fear God? Fearing God is the first step in being a part of God’s End Time Army.