Learning Israel's Identity, and Other Truths
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The subject now changes briefly for the first time to the book of Revelation. Here is a short segment that includes a reference to Mr. Armstrong coming to the pivotal understanding of the identity of the “lost sheep of the house of Israel.” After all, coming to this knowledge is essential to being able to warn these “lost sheep.” It is interesting to read when Mr. Armstrong also came to understand the identity—the location—of where God’s true Church was through the ages, and how it appeared in seven successive eras. Most would be surprised that he learned this in the very first year of his calling, but this knowledge paved the way in his understanding to his role in Philadelphia:
“Early in my studies—1926-27—God opened my eyes to the fact that, while Revelation 2 ALL and Revelation 3 ALL covered the conditions in the WHOLE CHURCH from its beginning to Christ’s coming, these two chapters also representedsuccessive ERAS, with a certain characteristic dominating each. WE are the Philadelphia era at the specific TIME when God is having to OPEN DOORS to nations where those doors have been CLOSED to Christ’s message.
“Another vital NEW TRUTH God revealed to me was our identification as the lost sheep of the House of Israel (Matt. 10:6)—as distinguished from the Jews (see booklet, United States and British Commonwealth in Prophecy). Another was the fact that ANGELS first inhabited this earth, prior to Adam. That the GOVERNMENT OF GOD was established on earth over them, and that they sinned (II Peter 2:4), rejected GOD’S GOVERNMENT, rebelled, and went their own way of DESTRUCTION AND DARKNESS, instead of God’s way of CONSTRUCTION and LIGHT.”
Returning to Ezekiel’s Book
The next segment, quite extensive, introduces and details Mr. Armstrong coming to learn about the extraordinary prophecies in the book of Ezekiel, and a sobering responsibility that he discovered. While this portion somewhat overlaps with what we have already studied, it is vital to get this straight in your mind in preparation for what Revelation 10 ALL will reveal. Mr. Armstrong recognized this and included it.
Read very carefully:
“In those early days I was especially interested in the book of Ezekiel. A special reason was that I saw Ezekiel was first given God’s message in PROPHECY, while he was a Jewish slave, by the River Chebar in the land of Babylon. Now this was close to 120 years after the House of ISRAEL had been taken captive to ASSYRIA.
“My astonishment was aroused when I saw that his message was to be taken to the HOUSE OF ISRAEL. Now Ezekiel was a slave among the HOUSE OF JUDAH—not Israel. By this time many of the ‘lost sheep of the House of Israel’ had migrated north and west from Assyria. They were, by Ezekiel’s time, in Britain and Western Europe.
“The book of Ezekiel starts off in the first chapter with a rather weird description of his vision of the GLORY OF GOD.
“The first message, or instruction from God, comes, beginning the second chapter. “And He said unto me, son of man, I send thee to the children of Israel, to a rebellious nation...[and they shall know] that there hath been a prophet among them” (Ezek. 2:3, 5—c/f Rev. 3:9).
“Now notice chapter three. In Ezek 2:8-10 of the second chapter, he had been given the message in a book—a roll, written on both sides—about which I will refer later. In chapter 3:1 God says, ‘…Eat THIS ROLL, and GO speak unto the House of Israel.’ Again in Ezekiel 3:4, ‘Son of man, GO, get thee unto the House of Israel, and speak with my words unto them.’
“NOWHERE in the Bible are JEWS called ‘the House of Israel.’ This term applies ONLY to the TEN-tribed Kingdom of Israel taken into Assyrian captivity more than a hundred years before Ezekiel and the Jews of the House of JUDAH were taken to Babylon.
“Nowhere in the book does Ezekiel record his journey from where he was in Babylon to those of the House of Israel who were then in Britain and Western Europe. Nowhere does he record his giving of the message to them. He merely RECEIVED the message. He merely RECORDED IT IN WRITING.
“There is no reason to think his message was ever delivered to the House of Israel in Ezekiel’s time. The message in fact is for today—and contained a WARNING of things to happen to Britain, America and the Western European nations NOW in OUR DAY.
“I saw clearly, back in those early days—and especially during World Wars I and II, that Ezekiel’s prophecy was a message to be taken by some MODERN TWENTIETH CENTURY servant of God—a ‘modern Ezekiel’ to America, Britain, Canada, Australia, New Zealand and South Africa.
“I dwelt in hundreds of broadcasts on this book of Ezekiel and its WARNING of things IMMINENTLY NOW to HAPPEN TO Britain, the United States and Western Europe.
“Of course I always did, from the very beginning of this WORK OF GOD, proclaim the good news of the COMING KINGDOM OF GOD.”
Why the Apostles Emphasized Christ
Before Mr. Armstrong continues, he offers a final inset about the gospel of the kingdom into his subject line. Recall that in this letter, quoted in Chapter Four, the first paragraph of this segment explains the reason behind the apostles giving extra attention to the role of Christ. It is important repetition to recall from Chapter Five that Mr. Armstrong discussed how no one of that time would have been willing to believe the gospel message from Jesus if the listener did not understand WHO and WHAT He was. The apostles were forced to establish that Jesus Christ was in fact the prophesied Messiah, and this opened the door for their listeners to consider what He taught. I repeat: This is central understanding—do not let it elude you, as it has so many others.
Read carefully again from his November 19, 1976 letter:
“The original apostles proclaimed the KINGDOM OF GOD, but they also put very special emphasis on something that specially applied only to their time, right then. They were personal EYE WITNESSES to the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus Christ. In THEIR day, the chief opposition and persecution came from those Jewish leaders who rejected Christ as the promised Messiah.
“DO NOT MISUNDERSTAND. The Jews as a whole did not reject Christ. Indeed, virtually all His followers—the 120 that were WITH HIM and the apostles (Acts 1:15) from which the church started—all were Jews (or proselytes). The church BEGAN as almost 100% JEWISH. The Apostle Paul always went first to the Jews, and most of his churches started out as Jewish. The persecution was not so much from the rank and file of Jewish people, as from their Jewish RULERS, who held political jobs under the Roman government—the Pharisees—and also the scribes and Sadducees.”
Get this summary perfectly straight in your mind. The original apostles stressed the “death, burial and resurrection of Jesus Christ” as something merely to receive—Mr. Armstrong’s words—“very special emphasis…only to their time, right then.” Mr. Armstrong explains that this is because the twelve were “eyewitnesses” to these things, something that God’s servants of later ages could not claim. In addition, once Christ’s role as the Messiah was clearly established by so many who saw and worked with Him, there would be no need for this same emphasis in later periods. The Bible became the record of this.
To summarize again: How incredible that the splinter and sliver leaders today have almost with one voice been unwittingly swayed by the apostates to not only unnecessarily spend time and focus on Jesus’ sacrifice and forgiveness, but to also cram this into the gospel where it does not belong, making it their gospel—and placing themselves and their unwitting followers into the crosshairs of the Galatians 1:6-9 CURSE!
Back to Ezekiel
The next-to-last segment that follows must be read as one long, single statement. Mr. Armstrong first references again the open doors before the Work of Philadelphia. Then he takes his readers back to Ezekiel, before walking them through a summary of the book of Revelation through chapter 9. It is important backdrop to chapter 10, so it cannot be broken or important setup is lost.
Now continue:
“But Christ said to His Philadelphia era Church, that because we have but little strength, He would OPEN THOSE DOORS TO US (Rev. 3:8).
“Now I want to take you back to Ezekiel and show you something I think VERY EXCITING and MOST IMPORTANT!
“God said to Ezekiel, ‘But thou, son of man, hear what I say unto thee…open thy mouth, and eat that I give thee. And when I looked, behold, an hand was sent unto me; and, lo, a roll of a book was therein; And he spread it before me; and it was written within and without: and there was written therein lamentations, and mourning, and woe’ (Ezek. 2:8-10).
“Continue: ‘Moreover he said unto me, Son of man, eat that thou findest; eat this roll, and GO speak unto the house of Israel’ (Ezek. 3:1).
“Now let us turn to the book of Revelation.
“Chapter one gives the opening salutation and the introduction, giving the real SUBJECT of which the book is concerned. It is in Revelation 1:10: ‘I was in the spirit on the Lord’s day, and heard behind me a great voice, as of a trumpet.’
“In the opening salutation we find that it is NOT the revelation of John at all, but the revelation of Jesus Christ. He is the Revelator—who does the REVEALING of what otherwise is non-understandable. The Apostle John was merely the WRITER, who recorded (1) the WORD OF GOD, (2) the testimony—direct words of—Jesus Christ, and (3) all the things that he SAW in VISION. In this vision, he was taken from the Isle of Patmos, where he actually was as he wrote, into THE DAY OF THE LORD—a special period of TIME here called the ‘LORD’S DAY.’
“The DAY OF THE LORD is the time when GOD supernaturally shall INTERVENE in this world’s affairs, the beginning of His TAKING OVER all its governments, societies, production, commerce. We have had 6,000 years of the DAY OF MAN. Now we shall soon have 1,000 years of the DAY OF GOD.
“Chapters 2 and 3 are messages direct from Jesus, in heaven, sent to the angels (which, some believe means to the chief human leaders of the SEVEN CHURCHES). Chapter 4 describes a vision of God’s Throne in heaven. Chapter 5 shows God on His Throne, with a BOOK in His right hand—again, a SCROLL, written on both sides, and rolled up and SEALED with SEVEN SEALS. No one in heaven or earth was able to open the seals, and REVEAL what was therein written. Then appeared one as a slain, resurrected Lamb, standing in front of the throne, and HE alone was worthy to open the seals and REVEAL the meaning of the book. He stepped forward and took the book from the right hand of God.
“The sixth chapter shows the opening of the first SIX of the seals. The seven seals cover the ENTIRE BOOK. The sixth seal, in time sequence, brings us down to the DAY OF THE LORD, with terrifying SIGNS in the sun, moon and stars.
“The seventh chapter begins with four angels poised to let go the blowing of the first four TRUMPETS of the seven TRUMPET PLAGUES, which are, and constitute (that is, all seven trumpet plagues) the seventh SEAL.
“Then another angel appears crying out to the four angels to HOLD UP the blowing of these trumpet plagues UNTIL the servants of God are sealed.
“So here is one example of where God deliberately held up world conditions, and His own intervention UNTIL something important to HIM was accomplished. In this case it was the sealing of the 144,000. And also the other great numberless MULTITUDE of all nations. They have all come through (this numberless multitude) the GREAT TRIBULATION, which was symbolized by the fifth seal.
“The seventh seal is not opened until the beginning of the 8th chapter. The first trumpet plague blew upon the EARTH, the second on the seas, the third plague was upon the rivers and lakes, and the fourth upon the sun, moon and stars.
“This left three more plagues, called WOES. The seventh trumpet—the last—will be the seven LAST PLAGUES, at the very TIME of Christ’s coming to earth to RULE all nations.
“The 9th chapter carries the events into the first and second WOES (or the fifth and sixth trumpet plagues).”
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