The Climax of the Conflict of the Ages...

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I suppose many Christians realize our discipleship is a battle against the forces of spiritual darkness, although this may not be preached as much as it should. Satan goes about as a roaring lion, deceiving as many believers as he can.

However, what may not be realized is that this warfare will be concluded with total victory going to the Lord Jesus and His saints. How often you will hear Christians say, "As long as we are in the world we have to sin." Added to this is the thought that once we "get to Heaven" we won't sin anymore. There is no scriptural basis for either idea.

What I would like to present in this brief essay is that total victory finally will be achieved. There is coming a new world of righteousness. God carefully is laying the groundwork for the removal of Satan and all who choose his ways—spirits and humans. We of today are drawing close to the climax of this struggle. It will terminate with a world without sin or rebellion against God whatever.

Would you enjoy a world in which everyone does the will of Christ at all times and in every circumstance? This is what the present travail relentlessly is bringing us to.

But in keeping with his promise we are looking forward to a new heaven and a new earth, where righteousness dwells. II Peter 3:12)

(January 16, 2011). Think carefully about the following passages:

The God of peace will soon crush Satan under your feet. The grace of our Lord Jesus be with you. (Romans 16:20) "Seventy sevens" are decreed for your people and your holy city to finish[ transgression, to put an end to sin, to atone for wickedness, to bring in everlasting righteousness, to seal up vision and prophecy and to anoint the Most Holy Place. (Daniel 9:24)

"To put an end to sin." "Everlasting righteousness." Think of it!

But the court will sit, and his power will be taken away and completely destroyed forever. Then the sovereignty, power and greatness of all the kingdoms under heaven will be handed over to the holy people of the Most High. His kingdom will be an everlasting kingdom, and all rulers will worship and obey him. (Daniel 7:26,27)

Consider these three passages. What are they telling us? They are saying that Satan and all his works are to be done away. Who are to inherit all things? "The holy people of the Most High," that is, the saints.

Do you know the primary consideration if the saints are to inherit "the sovereignty, power and greatness of all the kingdoms under heaven"? It is that the saints are one with Christ as Christ is one with the Father. Just as the living Father sent me and I live because of the Father, so the one who feeds on me will live because of me. (John 6:57)

The passage above, John 6:57, may be the most important verse in the entire Bible, as pertaining to the life of the believer. Do you remember that the Lord said He can do nothing apart from the Father? This is to be true concerning you and me. We must do nothing apart from Christ. This means that every thought we think, every word we speak, and every action we perform, must be of Christ.

This may appear impossible to some of our readers. It assuredly is not. I do not say it is accomplished in a moment. But it is the will of God today that we pray continually that our thoughts, words, and actions are part of Christ. Is it possible for Him who stretched out the heaven to achieve this unity with Christ for you and me? Isn't this what the Apostle was telling us when he said that it was not he who was living but Christ who was living in him?

If we are to inherit "the sovereignty, power and greatness of all the kingdoms under heaven," then it must be true of us that we have "died in the Lord" and now it is Christ who is living in us. I think that Christians often have quoted Paul when he speaks of being crucified with Christ, but it has been more of an ideal. Today it is becoming a reality in those who are seeking Christ continually and fervently.

At the time that the world is worshiping Antichrist and his image (perhaps the spirit of the world that says man can choose his own way apart from Christ, with money being the image that is worshiped), what does the Spirit advise?

Then I heard a voice from heaven say, Write this: Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord from now on." "Yes," says the Spirit, "they will rest from their labour, for their deeds will follow them." (Revelation 14:13) Today we see the forces of evil filling the world. They are very active in America as well as in other countries. They are too strong for us. The outlook may seem hopeless to people who love Christ.

What is the answer, and the only answer, to this abominable world spirit? The answer is people who have chosen to turn their life over to Christ so that their being and behaviour are in perfect union with Christ.

Human beings do not have the power to overcome the evil of today. Only the Lord Jesus Christ has the authority and power of the Father to put an end to sin and rebellion. The wisdom and energy of man will not stop the spread of the influence of Satan in the countries of the world.

What are we to do? First, look to the blood of the Lamb to keep us free from the guilt of sin in the sight of God. Second, bear a true testimony of God's Person and will, as Christ helps us line up our life with the Scripture. There is a good deal of preaching today, but much of it is not giving a true testimony of God's Person and will. Finally, and of supreme importance, we must love not our life to the death. This is difficult for us. To think of surrendering our life to another person goes to the core of our individuality. But Jesus Christ created us; and if He wants us to live by His Life, then this is what we must do.

I would imagine that the traditional Christian Gospel is preached successfully in numerous places, and people are placing their faith (at least nominally) in Christ. However the kind of Christian religion most of us are used to will not survive, much less overcome, the evil that is filling the world today.

To place our faith in the blood atonement is absolutely necessary if we are to please God. God will meet man only at the cross where Christ gave His life.

The baptism with the Spirit of God is absolutely necessary if we are to be able to overcome sin. We must put our sinful compulsions to death through the Spirit.

However, neither of these two steps of faith will suffice to enable us to work with Christ in destroying all sin and rebellion from the creation. We absolutely must turn over our thinking, speaking, and acting to the Lord Jesus. Until we do this, we still are using our own wisdom, our own talents, our own ambitions, our own strength, to serve Christ.

We believe in the authority of the blood atonement and we have been filled with the Spirit of God. But the power of darkness will be so great that we will be defeated in one way or another.

Jesus said the time is coming when no man can work. We must be quite close to that time. But Christ can work during the hour of darkness. No door can be shut against Him. Therefore we have to die to our own efforts and ways so that His unlimited authority and power can be expressed in us.

We always must be living through Christ in front of the Throne of God, casting down our crown, our self-will, at all times. Then we are elders who can govern the creation. First we are tested, and tested again.

Finally we take our place with Christ and work only as He works. In this case we never will "die"; but when we do die physically we will find that we still are "alive" in the spirit world, the true, eternal world, with all our faculties unimpaired, except those that are part of our dead body.

The Apostle Paul said that the ministries of the Spirit would continue until we all come to the unity of the faith and the knowledge of the Son of God, to full maturity as measured against Christ. It is obvious that few Christians during their lifetime attain to this lofty goal.

This fact tells us that ministry will continue after we die. However, it is a mistake to put off serving Christ fervently in the hope of gaining spiritual maturity when we die. The Bible is clear enough in the parable of the talents that if we have not used our God-given gifts in the work of the Kingdom, when we die our talent will be removed and we will be driven into the land of darkness.

So the current understanding is that if we do not serve the Lord diligently while alive on the earth, it does not really matter because when we die our sin and rebellion will not be mentioned and we will be a servant of Christ. This belief is rendered invalid by the parable of the talents.

Physical death is not our redeemer, it is our enemy. The sting of death is sin and the power of sin is the Law. Only those who through Christ have overcome sin can look forward to entering joyously into the Presence of the Lord, continuing to serve Him just as they did during their lifetime on the earth.

The seventy-two returned with joy and said, Lord, even the demons submit to us in your name. He replied, I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven. I have given you authority to trample on snakes and scorpions and to overcome all the power of the enemy; nothing will harm you.(Luke 10:17-19).

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