The greatest sign of the return of the Lord is recorded in Matthew 24:14, “And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in the whole world for a witness to all the nations, and then the end shall come.”An acceleration of transformation is now going on in the church in order to prepare the way for this gospel to be preached and this prophecy fulfilled. The greatest force for truth is now being assembled for this purpose.
There are true, last-day prophets and apostles already living among us. Most are still immature, but they are here, they are maturing, and they will soon be released in power. Their commission will be foretold by the earth itself suffering spiritual contractions so that all who dwell on the earth will tremble. God is coming to shake things up.
The Revolution
This “gospel of the kingdom”is not the same as the gospel of salvation, commonly referred to as “the gospel” which has been the primary message of the Protestant and the evangelical churches for the past five hundred years. It is now time to understand the gospel of the kingdom, how it is distinguished from the gospel that has been preached, and how the message of the church is about to change so that it is preached throughout the whole world.
We also need to examine the way that the gospel of salvation has been perverted in recent times, changing it from Him coming to save His people from their sins, to Him coming to save His people from their troubles. This is why so few remain in the faith after their “conversion.” The only true salvation comes from the conviction of our sins and our profound and desperate need for the atonement of the cross of Jesus Christ. Anything other than this is a wrong foundation that cannot stand. He did not come to deliver us from troubles, but rather the opposite. When someone comes to Christ, he or she needs to immediately be prepared for troubles, as the whole fallen world will be against them.
Without question the Christian life is the most fulfilling, wonderful adventure that anyone can experience in this world, but it is also the most difficult life that can be lived on this earth. When people come to Christ, they need to be prepared for battle from the first day. If they are not prepared for this, they are very unlikely to remain in the faith, as the glaring statistics of those who “come to Christ” that are lost again to the world should boldly teach us.
When we are born, it is not the goal of our lives, but only the beginning. Likewise, to be born again is not the ultimate goal of the gospel; it is the beginning of the greatest quest and journey toward the full maturity of what we are called to be. It is now time for the church to go on to maturity, and this must begin with our message. It is the greatest message of hope, but also a call to battle.
To preach the gospel of the kingdom does not in any way negate or denigrate the gospel of salvation. In fact, it is the gospel of the kingdom that leads to true salvation, which is why the Lord Jesus Himself preached this gospel, as well as the first century apostles. Redemption, reconciliation, and restoration are all part of the gospel of the kingdom, and these are reasons for which the kingdom is coming. However, the gospel of the kingdom does include more than the salvation of believers—it is the message that the rightful King is coming to take over.
Those who are born again with the hope of salvation may be changed, but those who are born again in order to see the kingdom will be so changed that they are a “new creation”(see Galatians 6:15) which stands out in great contrast to those of the old creation. Just as the first century Christians stood out in stunning contrast to all who lived in their time, the radical faith that is about to be revealed through such radical Christians will cause the whole world to stand in shock and awe.
Recent studies have revealed that modern, evangelical Christians are really no different from non-Christians in basic moral and integrity issues such as honesty, cheating, and immorality. That is about to change. As the Lord warned in John 15, every branch that does not bear fruit will be cut off. If you receive anything from this bulletin, heed the following clear warning from Galatians 5:16-25:
But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not carry out the desire of the flesh.
For the flesh sets its desire against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; for these are in opposition to one another, so that you may not do the things that you please.
But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the Law. Now the deeds of the flesh are evident, which are: immorality, impurity, sensuality, idolatry, sorcery, enmities, strife, jealousy, outbursts of anger, dispute s, dissensions, factions,
envying, drunkenness, carousing, and things like these, of which I forewarn you just as I have forewarned you that those who practice such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God.
But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,
gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law. Now those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. If we live by the Spirit, let us also walk by the Spirit.
Again, we can know for sure that those who practice such things as are listed under the works of the flesh “shall not inherit the kingdom of God.”The scariest thing in the world should be if we are doing these things and getting away with them. As we are told in Hebrews 12, the Lord disciplines His children, and if we are without discipline, then we are not His.
The Gospel of the Kingdom
The gospel of the kingdom is not just the gospel of our atonement, but it is the good news of the kingdom of God and the declaration that the King is coming to establish it here on the earth, beginning with us. To be saved with a vision of our salvation is good, but it is man-centered. To be saved by a vision of the kingdom is an enlistment into the army of the coming King. This is not a matter of “majoring on minors;” each has very different consequences and different fruit. When the gospel of salvation is preached, we are compelled to “accept the Lord” and often it is done as if we are doing Him a favor. When the gospel of the kingdom is preached so that His kingdom is seen, we will bow the knee begging His acceptance.
As the Lord instructed His people to pray for nearly 2,000 years, His kingdom is going to come, and His will is going to be done right here on the earth just as it is in heaven (see Matthew 6:9-13). This prayer of so many millions for so many years, the prayer that the King Himself gave us to pray, is going to be answered. He wants to start with us. That He came to be our Savior is something we will marvel at for eternity; however, He did not just come to be our Savior, but our King. There is a difference.
The coming of His kingdom is the greatest hope that has ever been preached on the earth. There is no hope found in any other religion or any philosophy of utopia that is as great as what we have been given to proclaim. As the troubles of the end of this age increase, the light of the hope of His kingdom will shine brighter and brighter. Now is the time to fill our lamps with this oil.
The earth will be restored to its former paradise so that there is no more war, sickness, dying, hunger, or even pain. The lion will lie down with the lamb, children will be able to play with cobras, and no one will hurt anyone else. This is the greatest message of hope that the world has ever heard. The gospel is not just “good news,” but it is the greatest news, the greatest message OF A FUTURE that the world has ever heard. Our message must change from proclaiming that the end is coming to proclaiming that the beginning is coming.
He Comes to His Temple First
This is a sure promise, and the time is near for its fulfillment. The kingdom of God is surely coming to this earth, and soon. However, it can come to us today! We can live in the kingdom now, and those who begin to proclaim it will do this as true citizens of this kingdom. As we read in Revelation 3:20, the Lord has been standing at the door of His church, patiently knocking to see who would open to Him, but the time is near when He will suddenly burst into His temple and take over. His church is then going to be His body who does His will, speaks His words, and does the works that He did.
We may think this is what we have been doing, following His leading in everything, but in truth few have followed Him in much at all. Many wonderful things have been done in His name which the Lord has blessed, but He will bless many things that He will not inhabit. There have also been many terrible, even diabolical things done in His name. Soon we will know the difference between what was truly born in the heart of God, and that which was born in the hearts of men. He is going to cleanse His temple, destroy the idols that have been set up there, and drive out the money-changers. He is then going to rebuild it so His church is in fact His church—His body of which He alone is the Head.
Great changes have been happening deep in the heart of the church for years. These are about to accelerate, resulting in such a great transformation that it will be viewed as the greatest move of God in His people since the Day of Pentecost when He first poured out His Spirit on the church. Like the Day of Pentecost in the book of Acts, it will begin with a remnant that has been very close to Him, but it will quickly get the attention of the rest of His people in every nation. These will also begin repenting of their ways that have in fact caused them to reject Him and live contrary to His will. Just as John had to preach repentance before Jesus came the first time, a great repentance is going to precede His second coming.
The sword of the Lord will sweep over the whole earth and remove from among His people all who are not bowing before Him. He will remove the arrogant and the stumbling blocks. When we see this deep repentance even touching the most highly visible and influential leaders of the church, we can begin to expect a radical transformation of the church so that true, New Testament church life as the Lord intended can be re-established on the earth. Then the church will not be known so much for its organization, facilities, or even its message, but it will be known as the place where the living God dwells. His people will be continually in awe of Him, and the rest will be in awe of His people.
Another sign that His kingdom is near will be the mountains being brought low, and the valleys and low places being raised up. Many of the things that have been high and lofty in the church will be brought down, and things that have been kept in low esteem will be exalted. The message of the cross and the crucified life will be the first to be lifted up. The messages that have promoted presumption, self-seeking, and selfishness will be brought low. The messengers who promote them will likewise follow them.
Through the coming repentance, a great and profound maturity will come to the church. It will be such a radical change that Christians will claim that they have begun to see the kingdom of God and even the King for the first time. To a large degree this will simply be the result of getting our eyes off of ourselves and turning to Him. Instead of the church being so focused on building itself, it will begin to focus on preparing the way for His kingdom. This reorientation from self-focus to that which is greater will, in fact, do more to build the church than all of our self-focus was ever able to do.
Even so, this great repentance will result in a great pruning of the church. Many will not be willing to make these changes. The recent split of many denominations around basic issues is but a small foretaste of what is coming. Those who are more devoted to institutions or organizations than to the Lord will have a hard time, and many will not make it. Even so, those who do must press on.
In a relatively short period of time, the church will become more brilliant and powerful than it has ever been. The branches that are cut off from it will wither and die very fast. Do not die with them. Our allegiance must be to the Lord and His kingdom, which is bigger than any denomination or movement. When denominations turn from the Lord and His Word, it is time to turn from them.
From Control to Authority
There have been many messages that have come proposing to be the gospel of the kingdom, but as Robin McMillan observed, most of these messages have somehow been about how to control people. Indeed, a control spirit has not only entered into many of these teachings, but has sat in the seat of authority in much of the church since the first century. There is still a great deal of confusion in the church on the issues of authority, but that will soon change as a true authority is raised up.
Obeying the Lord and His delegated authority is important. The Lord Himself explained that if we call Him “Lord,” but do not do what He says, we are building on a foundation that will surely collapse (see Luke 6:46-49). Therefore, obedience to Him as the King is crucial for being a true messenger of His kingdom. However, the way in which the Lord preached the gospel of the kingdom actually said very little about authority and obedience, but rather He demonstrated their power over the conditions on earth.
For example, when the Lord saw a cripple it was as if He said (I am paraphrasing), “You know, there are no cripples in heaven, so watch what happens when the kingdom of heaven touches this cripple on the earth.” Then the cripple would be made whole. When He saw a multitude hungry with no food, it was as if He said, “You know, there is no lack in heaven, so watch what happens when heaven touches these few loaves and fishes...” The condition of heaven would touch the circumstances on earth and prevail over them. In this way, the authority of the kingdom of heaven was demonstrated to be greater than any authority or condition on the earth. He told His disciples to go and live the same way so that they could preach the same message.
It is noteworthy that when the Lord turned the water into wine or multiplied the fish and loaves, He always made too much! Of course, He did this purposely to demonstrate the abundance of His kingdom. He did come to give abundant life! He promises those who are faithful to bring the whole tithe into His storehouse that He will pour out a blessing which they cannot contain (see Malachi 3:8-12). Likewise, the apostle Paul affirms the same in II Corinthians 9:6-8:
Now this I say, he who sows sparingly shall also reap sparingly; and he who sows bountifully shall also reap bountifully.
Let each one do just as he has purposed in his heart; not grudgingly or under compulsion; for God loves a cheerful giver.
And God is able to make all grace abound to you, that always having all sufficiency in everything, you may have an abundance for every good deed.
Life in the kingdom is one of abundance, having “all grace” abounding to us, “all sufficiency in everything,” and “an abundance for every good deed.” However, this is not just for our consumption, but for service. It is also in Spirit and power, which is why the apostle Paul wrote:
And my message and my preaching were not in persuasive words of wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power,
that your faith should not rest on the wisdom of men, but on the power of God (I Corinthians 2:4-5).
For the kingdom of God does not consist in words, but in power (I Corinthians 4:20).
The message of the kingdom is about the King. The office of king is obviously about authority, but the authority of the kingdom of God is not just about beating people into submission. In John 18:36 the Lord said, “My kingdom is not of this world.”His kingdom is from above, and in many profound ways, not like the kingdoms of this world. Most of the doctrines concerning the kingdom and even those which have been declared to be the gospel of the kingdom, are very hard to distinguish from the kingdoms of this world, and have very little evidence or demonstration of being from the realm of heaven. What is coming will be different.
The foundational purpose of the coming gospel of the kingdom will not be about getting people to line up and obey. It will be about healing them, feeding them, and transforming their minds by such demonstrations of the goodness of God that people begin to love Him, His truth, His righteousness, and His justice.
Seeing Is the Beginning
In John 4:48 the Lord said, “Unless you people see signs and wonders, you simply will not believe.” This is often taken as a rebuke, but when you read it in its context, it is simply the statement of a fact. When the Lord said this, the royal official who was seeking the healing of his son did believe, which is why he came to Jesus. The Lord went about “to do and to teach,” because people needed to see in order to believe. When the gospel of the kingdom goes forth, people will be given ample opportunity to believe.
Even so, as the Lord said in John 3:12, “If I told you earthly things and you do not believe, how shall you believe if I tell you heavenly things?”As Todd Bentley recently told me, he was beginning to understand that we must be born again to see the kingdom, and we must see it in order to preach it, but the ultimate goal is to “inherit the kingdom.” This is something that great saints have pondered throughout the church age, but we can expect it to soon become a preoccupation with believers because a great revelation of the kingdom is coming.
However, we are after more than a revelation of the kingdom. We must be born again to see the kingdom, but not everyone who is born again sees it. In fact, until now very few seem to have seen more than a passing glance. When we begin to see the kingdom, the change it will generate will be at least as great as being born again. Once we see the kingdom, it becomes impossible to be overly concerned about the temporary things of this world. To see the kingdom is a call to live in the power of the age to come.
When we begin to see the kingdom and see its power demonstrated, we will not be able to contain our hope, but will have to proclaim it. Even so, our goal is more than just preaching the gospel of the kingdom. Our goal is to live in it now, demonstrating it.
The Church and the Kingdom
The end of this age will be the greatest time of trouble that the world has ever known because man will learn that he simply cannot rule over the earth without being in proper relation to God. Then, through His church, which is composed of men, He is going to establish His authority over the earth and He is going to “restore all things.” This means that mankind and the entire earth will be restored from all of the consequences of the Fall and the earth will be the paradise that He originally designed it to be. God’s original plan for man and the earth have not been thwarted, but He will certainly finish that which He began. About this we can be sure.
Because of the transgression, the atonement, redemption, reconciliation, and restoration had to be added to the plan of God. It does not negate the fact that the Lord knew from the beginning that it would have to be added, as “His works were finished from the foundation of the world” (Hebrews 4:3). Even so, His intention all along has been to dwell with men upon the earth. This is our ultimate goal—to be His dwelling place and to have that intimate, personal relationship with Him restored.
The gospel of the kingdom is not just about heaven and eternal life—it is about heaven coming to the earth. This is the prayer that He gave us to pray in the beginning, that His kingdom would come and His will would be done, right here on earth as it is in heaven (see Matthew 6:9-13). We can be sure the prayer that the Son of God Himself gave us to pray for nearly two thousand years will be answered, and the time is near.
The Great Decision and the Great Division
Since the first century, the church has found a way to divide over almost any doctrine or procedure. That will change in the near future and ultimately a great unity will come, but first a great division is coming. The whole church will have to choose between following a control spirit or the Holy Spirit—the headship of men or the Headship of the Lord. Those denominations, movements, or churches which choose to go the way of building and following human political alliances in place of the Headship of Christ will quickly see huge numbers of churches and people departing. If they do not quickly repent of their error, they will fade away completely.
Paul wrote in Galatians 1:10: “If I were still trying to please men, I would not be a bond-servant of Christ.” The fear of man is the most basic enemy of true spiritual authority. Those who are controlled by the fear of men, seeking the approval of men more than God, will be removed from leadership in the church. The Lord Jesus is going to be the Head of His church, and He will rule through bond-servants who live to do His will.
As stated, many things have divided the church in the past, but in the future the main division will be between those who follow the Lord, and those who follow after men, or human, earthly ambitions. This is the main division coming upon the earth, and the judgment will begin with His own household. The issue is over who is going to rule His house, and then over who is going to rule the earth. The Lord will ultimately rule over all, but the end of the age is about choosing who we will serve.
As the Scriptures make clear, a great shaking is coming upon the world, and everything that can be shaken will be removed (see Hebrews 12). We are told in I Peter 4:17: “For it is time for judgment to begin with the household of God; and if it begins with us first, what will be the outcome for those who do not obey the gospel of God?”The key phrase in this verse is “obey the gospel,” which is more than just giving an intellectual assent to it, but it is conforming our lives to the truth of the gospel by acknowledging Jesus as the Lord by obeying Him.
The Lord cannot judge the world if His own people are doing the very things that He is coming to judge the world for. He is going to shake out of His kingdom those who have been conformed to this world and have not submitted to having their minds renewed and transformed. The flesh or carnal nature of man is about to be consumed like grass.
As the apostles make clear in the Scripture we read previously, those who “practice”the works of the flesh “shall not inherit the kingdom of God” (Galatians 5:21). Many have been duped by a cheap salvation which in reality excludes the cross that we must each take up daily, implying if they just believe that God exists, and that Jesus went to the cross they will be saved. This is an ultimate deception, and has left many thinking they are safe who are in fact still in eternal jeopardy. Those who truly believe the gospel also obey it.
This does not mean those who slip and do the works of the flesh are condemned, but those who “practice”them will not inherit the kingdom. If we are Christ’s and His Spirit is leading us, we will war against the deeds of the flesh until the flesh is not only subdued, but dead.
Whoever controls us is our true lord. If our carnal nature still controls us, then it is still our lord in place of Christ. If the fear of man controls us more than the fear of God, then we are still ruled from below and not above. The shaking that is coming will reveal that which is hidden, and the true state of us all.
However, the gospel remains “good news.” There is still time to repent and turn back to the Lord if we have become lukewarm, a backslider, or have ceased fighting the good fight of faith against our own fallen nature. As we are told in I Corinthians 11:31-32, “But if we judged ourselves rightly, we should not be judged. But when we are judged, we are disciplined by the Lord in order that we may not be condemned along with the world.”
Many of the great gatherings of Christians to repent and humble themselves before the Lord in such places as Washington D.C. have been heard, and the Lord has given us more time. However, He will not indefinitely refrain from judgment. To humble ourselves and pray is good, but true repentance is to turn from the sin. These are encouraging signs that there has been a lot of true repentance and turning away from sin in the church, but the battle is far from over.
The Nature of Judgment
The judgments that are coming are not the result of God reaching out to smite the earth as much as it is Him removing the hand of mercy that has stayed “natural processes.” The Lord created His universe to live in harmony, and there are spiritual and natural harmonics which, if they are upset, set off everything from earthquakes to storms to diseases. If it had not been for God’s hand of mercy, holding back “the winds of the earth,” earthquakes and storms would be off the scale and super viruses would have already devastated the earth. The judgments that will come in the last days of this age are simply the result of God removing the restraints so that the earth and its natural systems will begin to do what they would have done a long time ago had they not been restrained (see Revelation 7).
The “judgments of God” are really our own doing. They are simply fallen men reaping what they have sown. Just as the judgments that came upon biblical Israel by her neighbors being released to plunder her were simply the removing of the hand of the Lord from restraining these nations, so it will be in what is to come. God desires to show mercy far more than judgment, and He has always restrained the judgments until there was no longer any choice because of the hardness of men’s hearts. So as long as the judgments have not come they can still be stayed, and even when they come they can still be lessened if we repent.
Stand Upon What Stands
We have a kingdom that cannot be shaken. The citizens of that kingdom are going to become increasingly obvious as they will in time be the only ones standing. Not only will they be standing— they will be prevailing and prospering. As the Lord Jesus’ own prophecies concerning these times make very clear, we are coming to the greatest times of trouble the world has ever known. However, the good news is, if we have built our lives on the kingdom which cannot be shaken, we will not only survive what is coming, but we will prevail and prosper. This is actually the time when the church is going to cross over and begin to possess its Promised Land.
The present world systems are going to be shaking, and this will increase. As a sign of this, increasing natural disasters such as earthquakes and storms will continually break records until they exceed all previous scales and frequency. All who continue to think they can run the world, or even their own lives without God, are about to learn that this is impossible. Those who are “obeying the gospel” will know increasing light and prosperity at the same time the world around them is collapsing. We must not be ashamed of this, but it too is a part of the judgment. However, our prosperity is not so we can live luxuriously, but so we can help the desperate and prepare the way for the coming kingdom.
In Joshua 3:16, we are told that the waters of the Jordan “which were flowing down from above stood and rose up in one heap, a great distance away at Adam.”This could have been translated that the waters of the Jordan “were rolled back all the way to Adam.” It was no accident that this little town was named “Adam,” just as there are no accidents at all in Scripture. This was a prophecy that when God’s people begin to cross their Jordan, we will begin possessing all of the promises of God that we are called to inherit, and then death will be rolled back all the way to Adam!
This means that all of the death which was the consequence of the Fall will be reversed. This is the good news and the reality of it will actually be much better than we have even been able to conceive. Now is the time—today is the day of salvation! Today we can live in a kingdom that will never shake and will surely prevail. Today let your choice be for the Tree of Life—and you will live forever.