The Forming and Birth of Christ in Us
The Forming and Birth of Christ in Us
She gave birth to a son, a male child, who "will rule all the nations with an iron scepter." And her child was snatched up to God and to his throne. (Revelation 12:5)
The twelfth chapter of the Book of Revelation describes a woman in travail. The woman is the Church. The child cannot be the Lord Jesus Himself, because He was not born from the Church. So the child may represent the Body of Christ---Christ born in the victorious believers.
Before she goes into labor, she gives birth; before the pains come upon her, she delivers a son. (Isaiah 66:7)
Before the Church travailed, the Son, the Lord Jesus Christ was born of Mary.
After the Church travailed, Christ was conceived and formed in the victorious believers.
Who has ever heard of such things? Who has ever seen things like this? Can a country be born in a day or a nation be brought forth in a moment? Yet no sooner is Zion in labor than she gives birth to her children. (Isaiah 66:8)
Christ, Head and Body, the Royal Priesthood, indeed will govern all the nations of the earth with an iron scepter.
All of this is taking place in Heaven, although the results are felt among us on the earth.
The Church is in Heaven. By "Church" I mean the Christians, not all the people who fill the Christian churches.
The Dragon also is in the heavenlies.
The Dragon "swept a third of the Christians out of Heaven and flung them to the earth." That is because while they professed Christ, they had never died to their self-will. As long as we are alive in our own will, instead of the will and Life of Jesus Christ, Satan has a handle on us.
Out of one of them came another horn, which started small but grew in power to the south and to the east and toward the Beautiful Land. It grew until it reached the host of the heavens, and it threw some of the starry host down to the earth and trampled on them. It set itself up to be as great as the commander of the army of the Lord; it took away the daily sacrifice from the Lord, and his sanctuary was thrown down. Because of rebellion, the Lord's people and the daily sacrifice were given over to it. It prospered in everything it did, and truth was thrown to the ground. (Daniel 8:9-12)
The Dragon watched the woman carefully, because he understood that Christ was being formed in her. Satan cares little about what church people can do, but he is terrified of Christ.
The Christian churches of today are busy with this and that. However, all that is significant in terms of the Kingdom of God is the fact that there are Christians who are bringing to maturity Christ in their personalities.
Until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ. (Ephesians 4:13)
Notice what took place as soon as the "male Son" was born:
She gave birth to a son, a male child, who "will rule all the nations with an iron scepter." And her child was snatched up to God and to his throne. (Revelation 12:5)
Some of the Christian people are in such a travail today. If they persist, they will notice that there comes a time when they are "prayed through." They can sense that something has been born in them.
What has taken place is that the male son who has been growing in them has taken his place in Christ at the right hand of God, on the highest throne of the universe.
And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus, (Ephesians 2:6)
How high is that?
Far above all rule and authority, power and dominion, and every name that is invoked, not only in the present age but also in the one to come. (Ephesians 1:21)
I am persuaded that there are many Christian believers who are in just such a travail, and are ready to bring forth the Body of Christ. As Jesus said, many who are last shall be first. I think this means many people who are serving Christ in the closing days of the Church Age will be placed on the highest thrones of the Kingdom of God.
Such people may be few in number. They have a passion to serve the Lord Jesus that is not true of all who profess faith in Christ. They sense in their spirit that great things are afoot in the Kingdom, and they want to be with Jesus while these are taking place.
The remaining Christian believers either are asleep in the lap of the world, or they are being led astray by the seductions of the False Prophet, who is promising them that any day now they will be anointed as apostles and prophets and perform mighty miracles. And indeed they may, in the coming days.
But the genuine members of the Royal Priesthood, the Body of Christ, are not taken in by these satanic promises of glory and wealth. Rather they are intent on learning to live by the Life of Christ, such that they think, speak, and act along with the Lord Jesus Christ.
The believers who brought forth in their personalities the Body of Christ will be "taken care of" by the Lord for a specified period of time.
Now that the Body of Christ has been established in Christ at the right hand of God in Heaven, war will break out in Heaven between Michael and his angels and the Satan and his angels.
Satan and his angels were torn down from Heaven and hurled to the earth. Why has this not happened before.
The reason is, there were not enough Christians with sufficient faith in the blood, bearing a testimony of righteousness, and setting aside their own life unto death, to give Michael the strength to be victorious.
Whatever we bind on the earth is bound in Heaven. When we are not pressing the battle with sufficient intensity, wickedness is not bound in Heaven. The righteous in Heaven are not loosed so they can prevail.
The removing of Satan and his angels from their position in the heavenlies caused rejoicing in the heavens. The heavenly citizens perceived that salvation, the power and Kingdom of God, and the authority of the Messiah had prevailed over the lords of darkness.
Notice that after matters had been settled in the heavens, Satan expressed his rage in the earth. He made war against Christians on the earth "who keep God's commands and hold fast their testimony about Jesus."
The Christian preaching and teaching has deteriorated to the point that it is being maintained that these must be Jews because they keep God's commands. Christians do not keep God's commands, it is maintained.
The truth is, every true Christian keeps God's commands; not the commands of the Law of Moses, but the commands of Christ as we follow Him each day.
The reason God created the earth and mankind has to do with the original rebellion of the angels. God is building a kingdom in which there will be rulers who will compel the doing of God's will in the earth. God is selecting such rulers from the ranks of mankind and training them, beginning with the Lord Jesus, in stern obedience.
Son though he was, he learned obedience from what he suffered and, once made perfect, he became the source of eternal salvation for all who obey him. (Hebrews 5:8,9)
Stern obedience to God is the primary principle in the Kingdom of God. That is why it is so ridiculous to maintain that Christians do not keep God's commands.
We are placed at the right hand of God in Christ when we first receive Christ. After that we must deny ourselves, take up our cross of deferred gratification, and follow Jesus in strict obedience.
If we do not do this, we are in rebellion against Christ and God. I daresay that not one in a hundred Christian churchgoers in America has obeyed Christ concerning what it means to be a disciple.
For I am afraid that when I come I may not find you as I want you to be, and you may not find me as you want me to be. I fear that there may be discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, slander, gossip, arrogance and disorder. I am afraid that when I come again my God will humble me before you, and I will be grieved over many who have sinned earlier and have not repented of the impurity, sexual sin and debauchery in which they have indulged. (I Corinthians 12:20,21)
The above was true among the Christian people of Corinth. The same is true of the Christian people of America, in so many instances.
This is why Antichrist can reach into Heaven and tear down from their place at God's right hand a third of the Christian people.
Today the Lord Jesus is warning us that fierce judgment is about to be poured out on the United States because of abortion and sexual sins. Many are mocking this prophetic word, but it indeed shall come to pass.
Because of fleshly teaching and traditions, numerous, maybe the majority, of Christian church members will not be able to stand when the Divine judgment comes, and will not bear a helpful witness to weaker Christians and the unsaved.
Therefore Christ is telling us to press into Christ as we never have before. If we are not living as a disciple, taking up our cross and following Jesus, then God is not bound by His word to protect us.
Many Christians in the Middle East are experiencing terrible atrocities at the hands of the servants of Allah. We Americans are not more precious in God's sight than is true of the Iraqui Christians.
How would we feel if the heads of our little boys and girls were to be cut off if we did not swear allegiance to Allah. We are not prepared for this kind of decision.
America is turning away from Christ and the Bible and, to a great extent, practicing the sins of the flesh. We are going to pay bitterly for this.
Notice how Paul warns us, who believe we are ready to appear with Christ in the Day of the Lord:
When Christ, who is your life, appears, then you also will appear with him in glory. Put to death, therefore, whatever belongs to your earthly nature: sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires and greed, which is idolatry. (Colossians 3:4,5)
The above is a description of the way of life of so many Christians in America. Paul is telling us we better put these behavior to death if we expect to appear with Christ. Remember, Paul is writing to Christians whom he had just said are in Christ at the right hand of God.
By no means will Divine grace and mercy excuse us so we can continue in our sinful ways and appear with Christ, installing the Kingdom of God, the will of God, on the earth.
Instead, before Christ appears, we will be seduced by Satan until we lose our crown, our place in Christ at the right hand of God. I believe it will be in our day that the heavens will be shaken and all that is not found in Christ will be removed from God's Presence.
We may think it cannot happen to us. But when we see an Iraqui father holding in his arms the headless body of his ten year old daughter, we may begin to understand that the world is not the Disneyland we imagine it is.
We are told that the children are being decapitated because they will not deny Christ.
I have been told that other nations regard Americans as dissolute and morally soft. I can agree with this assessment. So I am encouraging the members of our congregation to abandon their worldly ways and press into Jesus night and day with all their determination.
May God grant that many will heed my advice.