Feeds:
Posts
Comments

Archive for the ‘Time of the End’ Category

The Overshadowing

Posted in Time of the End, tagged , , , , , on December 1, 2022| Leave a Comment »

[Printable version]

Scripture reading: Revelation 6:12-17

The sixth mystery or seal is the overshadowing when God covers His people as never before. They will be totally covered so that nothing will harm them or even touch them.

We must understand when we read in Revelation 6:17, “For the great day of His wrath is come; and who shall be able to stand?” that this “wrath” must take place between the end of the tribulation and the millennial beginning. With the opening of the sixth seal and the wars and the destruction in the earth, man will need a hiding place. This is where the OVERSHADOWING comes in. The sixth seal is the place of the overshadowing. The SIXTH mystery is the overshadowing. God will overshadow His people during this terrible time on the earth.

In the TABERNACLE, the symbolism which depicts the overshadowing are the two cherubims standing on each end of the mercy seat with their wings touching each other and their faces toward each other. Whenever the priest pleased God in his offering, there appeared the Shekinah glory between the cherubims. This appearance showed the glory of God when God was pleased with Israel. If we consider the vastness of the overshadowing, we will understand that this period of time must be the time when the wars and the destruction are coming on the earth. As we have explained, from the beginning of the opening of the sixth seal, there is going to be great destruction and great war and earthquakes and upheavals.

The cherubims on the Mercy Seat, which depict the overshadowing, are made of pure gold, beaten. Gold signifies total Divine Nature. No humanity is in this overshadowing. No other piece of furniture in the Tabernacle was made only out of pure gold. The table of shewbread was wood, covered with gold. Wood typifies humanity and gold typifies divinity. The candlestick, made of pure gold, had a wick (humanity) in order to function. The altar of incense, which was wood, was covered over with gold. The covering over of these things with gold means that the NATURE OF GOD IS SHOWN. The wood, which is humanity, is hidden.

The lid of the ark is called the Mercy Seat and on this Mercy Seat there are the two cherubims made of pure gold. No humanity is in them. Humanity cannot cover humanity. Man cannot deliver man.

Jeremiah 17:5, “…Cursed be the man that trusteth in man, and maketh flesh his arm…”

Psalm 91:1, “He that dwelleth in the secret place of the most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty.” “The secret place” of the Almighty is the mercy seat.

Psalm 91:2-4, “I will say of the Lord, He is my refuge and my fortress: my God; in Him will I trust. Surely He shall deliver thee from the snare of the fowler, and from the noisome pestilence. He shall cover thee with His feathers, and under His wings shalt thou trust: His truth shall be thy shield and buckler.”

The cherubims with apparent feathered wings – this is what is meant by God’s “feathers.” “Feathers” is only symbolic language which speaks of the power to fly. He will cover us with the very means which are used to fly – the power to rise from the earth. “Surely He shall deliver thee from the snare of the fowler.”

Verses 5-6, “Thou shalt not be afraid for the terror by night; nor for the arrow that flieth by day; Nor for the pestilence that walketh in darkness; nor for the destruction that wasteth at noonday.”

Isaiah 26:20-21, “Come, my people, enter thou into thy chambers, and shut thy doors about thee: hide thyself as it were for a little moment, until the indignation be overpast. For, behold, the Lord cometh out of His place to punish the inhabitants of the earth for their iniquity: the earth also shall disclose her blood, and shall no more cover her slain.”

(Excerpt from The Book of Revelation, Volume 1, pages 133-135)

Thought for today: Let us find our overshadowing under the shadow of His wings, both today as well as when midnight approaches and the Bridegroom shall appear.

Read Full Post »

Prepared for an Hour, and a Day, and a Month, and a Year

Posted in Time of the End, tagged , , , , on November 7, 2022| Leave a Comment »

[Printable version]

Scripture reading: Revelation 9:13-15

This picture in Revelation 9 brings us back to the Tabernacle of Moses. The golden Altar of Incense is situated before the veil in the Holy Place, and the High Priest burns the incense on this altar before he goes into the Holy of Holies on the Day of Atonement. This is the fifth station in the Tabernacle. The sixth angel would then be the angel of the Mercy Seat. When he blows his trumpet to call you from the fifth to the sixth, he is, in effect, saying the offering of your soul is accepted, and it is time to come into the veil and under the shadow of the Almighty for hiding and safety. The Scripture clearly states in Matthew 24:21 [concerning this time that is before us], that unless God protects us no flesh would be saved. The most modern example of this protection from God that I know of is the case of the sisters in Switzerland. The story is told, that when the radiation was released in the Chernobyl nuclear accident, all the sheep, cattle, and crops were contaminated, except theirs. They prayed and believed God, and the radiation did not affect them or their farm. (It is indeed peculiar, that the word “Chernobyl” in Russian means “wormwood” (Ref. Revelation 8:11)).

Revelation 9:14 is saying that God has a special hour of a special day, of a special month, of a special year. This means that God has one special day and a special hour when He is going to let go His restraining hand that binds the angels of death and destruction and let them loose in the earth.

I asked the Lord concerning this thing about the “Euphrates.” “Why Euphrates?” The answer He gave to me is that it is a key. Whenever you see God mention things like that, it is a key, and once you get the key, it is going to open a lot of understanding into many things. It is like the key word “Jerusalem,” meaning the many people of God who are temples of God making up a city of God; and like the key word “Babylon,” which means the many rebellious ones who are against God, and who join together to make up a land of rebellion against God.

The Lord said to me, “Open up the Bible map in the back of your Bible and look at the river Euphrates.” I began to write down the names of the different countries that are in and around the area through which the river Euphrates flows, and I found the list to be very interesting. It included all these hard-core Islamic nations: Iraq, Iran, Armenia in Russia, Syria, Turkey. It came to me that Islam and the spirits of violence which rule Islam have been bound, but they are going to be released and will bring destruction to the world.

Recently, they found a whole shipload of atomic weapons going to one of these Arab countries and arrested it. Now, that was the one they found. What about the many they did not? The Arab nations are arming themselves with atomic weapons. They hate Christianity and want to destroy the Christian world. They believe that Islam will rule the world someday.

So God says that these four spirits, which were bound in the river Euphrates, would be loosed at a specific time, and this time is now upon us. Be not terrified or afraid. God is going to pour out His Spirit upon us in a mighty way such as the earth has never seen anything like it before.

(Excerpt from The Omega Message, April 1997, pg. 21-22)

Thought for today: We thank God for His Word that gives us power to overcome every fear of things to come.

Read Full Post »

When Zion Comes Marching Home

Posted in Time of the End, tagged , , , , on November 4, 2022| Leave a Comment »

[Printable version]

Scripture reading: Daniel 7:21-22

We are in the seventh day, going into midnight, because night comes before morning. The word says that “the evening and the morning” is the day, so evening and then night comes before the light of the morning.

God wants to lift His right hand. Brother Tommy Hicks saw a vision of the Body of Christ lying down, covered by many preying animals. Then there was a shaking and all the animals fled. As the Body settled down, they all returned, but when the right hand of the Body lifted itself, and then the left hand towards heaven, they fled for good. God is going to lift His right hand (Psalm 98:1). God is depending on His right hand to defeat the enemy at the appropriate time, when the “fullness of times” (Ephesians 1:10) is come.

Daniel 7:21-22, “I beheld, and the same horn made war with the saints, and prevailed against them; until the Ancient of Days came, and judgment was given to the saints of the Most High; AND THE TIME CAME THAT THE SAINTS POSSESSED THE KINGDOM.” 

I must exhort you, brethren, to never cease to thank the Lord for making you a part of this mighty company, and for rescuing you out of the darkness of this sinful world and leading you into Christ. Amen.

The one great desire of our hearts is to see the devil defeated and the people of God liberated.  This little song comes to mind:

I want to see Israel marching.
I want to hear the trumpet call.
I want to climb Zion’s mountain.
I want to see Great Babylon fall.
I want to see Jesus reigning,
On King David’s royal throne.
Oh, won’t it be a glorious sight to see,
When Zion comes marching home.

We (this generation) are the people who will see very shortly the glory of God in the earth. It will not be very nice at the beginning. We must go through the darkness (much suffering) before we come to the light of the morning.

“And it shall come to pass in the last days, saith God, I will pour out of my Spirit upon all flesh: and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams” (Acts 2:17).

This verse gives us much rejoicing, [of the glory that comes] in the falling of the Holy Spirit upon the believers, and the mighty works which follow; nevertheless, upon closer scrutiny we see that there will also be much suffering and travail.

(Excerpt from The Omega Message, April 1997, pg. 18-19)

Thought for today: Is it a desire of your heart to see the devil defeated and the people of God liberated? If yes, you can be assured that your heart has touched the heart of God.

Read Full Post »

My Vision of the Lord Jesus Christ – Part 2

Posted in Time of the End, tagged , , , , , , on July 21, 2022| Leave a Comment »

[Printable version]

Scripture reading: Revelation 11:3

Let us look at Brother Hicks’s vision from our previous devotional in more detail. The Scriptures declares that when a vision is repeated three times, it is a sure sign that it will surely come to pass. I believe this is the case with this vision of Brother Tommy Hicks.

  1. The vision begins with what I believe to be a past condition of the Body of Christ: lying in the dust, covered with the debris and myriads of demons. The body began to quiver and convulse, which is the first sign of awakening. This vision was given in July of 1961, and I believe that the body commenced its convulsions from somewhere around 1948.

You will note that there was first a trembling before the convulsions. The trembling began way back at Azusa Street in Los Angeles, somewhere around 1907. But in 1948, God anointed many ministries, and each one was given the opportunity of preaching the message of the Kingdom or whatever else was chosen. We saw men like William Branham, who is the first man I heard preach a word against the denominational system and make a clear call to humanity to turn from the Babylonish denominations to Christ as head of the Church. It was necessary for a man like Branham to make mistakes, or else men would worship him; therefore, we will not think about the mistakes or faults of these men, but let us think of the ministry which God brought to the Body.

Wigglesworth, Finney, Howe (The builder of Zion City, Chicago), Tommy Hicks, Jack Coe, A. A. Allen, Oral Roberts, Miller (Argentina), McPherson, Seymour—I could fill this page with names. These were genuine miracle workers who God used to bring not only the Church but the world to a new consciousness of His power.

  1. The right arm being lifted up—I am convinced that some of the people of God are His right arm in the earth. The right arm of the Body of Christ is being lifted up in our time, and I believe we will soon see it reaching up into the heavens. The thundering from heaven is the blowing of the Fifth Trumpet (or message), which calls humanity to total surrender to Christ, and the giving up of every other head which rivals the headship of Christ in our lives. This precedes the raising of the left hand, which speaks of the awakening of the people of God who did not catch the first vision, but will recognize the moving of God among one segment of the Body and will repent of their laxity.
  2. The pouring out of the Spirit of God upon this generation is imminent. There is absolutely no doubt that the revival of all revivals is about to break upon us. This great pouring out of the Spirit will bring to pass the rest of the prophecy of Joel, which Peter said commenced with Pentecost. It did not end with Pentecost, but it will end with TABERNACLES. “BEHOLD, GOD HAS TABERNACLED HIMSELF WITHIN MAN” (literal translation of Revelation 21:3).
  3. The pouring out of the liquid light upon the people of the Body is certified by the Word of God in Revelation 11:3, “And I will give power unto my two witnesses, and they shall prophesy a thousand two hundred and three score days, clothed in sackcloth.”

The two witnesses are the Spirit and the Word being manifested in human beings—the power of the living Christ Himself with the Firstfruits Company. These will move and walk in the Christ ministry for three and a half years. Even as Jesus Christ ministered in His flesh and blood body for three and a half years, so will the Church. What follows then in the vision is only a description of the Man Child ministry being caught up into the heavenlies, yet ministering here on earth, pushing back the forces of Satan.

  1. It is noteworthy that at one point, some of the brethren turned back from this anointing, because they had lost their positions of pastors, apostles, prophets, evangelists, shepherds and teachers; because the Body of Christ had risen up in maturity and was doing everything and more than these ministries did before.
  2. THE FINAL STAGE OF THIS VISION SAW THE RESURRECTION OF THE SAINTS, AND THEIR BEING CAUGHT UP TO THE THRONE OF GOD. IT IS TRUE THAT WE SHALL BE EXALTED TO THE HIGHEST HEAVENS, AND THAT WE SHALL REIGN AND RULE WITH HIM ON EARTH.

(Excerpt from The Omega Message, August 1989)

Thought for today: Behold, God has tabernacled himself within man.

Read Full Post »

My Vision of the Lord Jesus Christ – Part 1

Posted in Time of the End, tagged , , , on July 20, 2022| Leave a Comment »

[Printable version]

Scripture reading: Matthew 25:6

By Tommy Hicks

On the morning of July 25, 1961, at 2:30 a.m., I received a vision from the Lord that has entirely revolutionized my whole life and ministry. It seemed as though I had hardly gone to sleep when this vision came before me—not once, but three times. Oh, wonder of wonders, when on July 27 this vision appeared again. In each instance, the details were identical.

Suddenly in the vision, I was standing with the full view of the whole world before me. From out of the heavens came great thundering and lightning. Accompanied with this phenomenon came a voice, a great voice—for it was the voice of God.

My face was turned to the north. With a great flash of lightning covering the entire earth, I looked down and beheld a massive form that appeared like a huge giant. Its feet reached to the North Pole, and its head to the South Pole. The arms spread from sea to sea. Again with another great flash, I saw that this giant was alive, but struggling for life. I said, “Oh, Lord, what does this mean?”

The giant was covered with debris and fettered. The giant started to quiver and struggle convulsively. At each convulsion, thousands of strange little creatures would withdraw from him, and when he was quiet they would return. I was definitely made to know what these creatures were. They were instruments that bound the Body of Christ through the ages.

Suddenly, the hand of the giant came up, and with that came a loud voice like a roar of thunder from heaven. Then his left hand was raised, and both his hands extended into the very heavens, and then he began to rise slowly and cleanse the debris from his body. While one foot was in the sea, the other was on the earth.

Presently, the sky was filled with dark clouds, which turned to silver, from which came liquid drops of light and power on the form of the giant. The giant dissolved, and in his place I saw millions of people. A voice so clear and vibrant said plainly, “I will restore to you the years that the locust hath eaten, the cankerworm, and the caterpillar, and the palmerworm, my great army which I sent among you.”

From the clouds came great drops like liquid light. The majestic heavenly substance made everyone it touched lose his identity, and their identification was Jesus. I SAW NO BARRIERS, NO DENOMINATIONS, NO SECTS; BUT THE TRANSCENDANT GLORY OF HEAVEN THAT RESTED UPON THESE PEOPLE COMPELLED THEM TO LIFT THEIR HANDS IN PRAISE AND ADORATION.

I watched to see who this company was worshipping. At that point, I saw a great white figure come out of the clouds, pointing His finger to one and then another. It seemed that He was giving directions, for as He would point, they would go—some to the east and some to the west. I could see them go in all directions.  They marched through deserts, forests, and jungles. I saw these people pass through the fire unburned, cross rivers as though there was no water there, cross oceans with ease, escape persecution as though a hand transported them from their surroundings.

In spite of wild beasts roaring, being attacked by men with swords and weapons of war, nothing seemed to hinder them. They moved over mountains, and down through valleys. They moved like the hart skipping upon the hills. Their faces shone with the countenance of victors—they were conquerors.

I hesitate to tell this part of the vision because it was with great trembling that I received this portion of the revelation. Again, there was the pouring out from His hand what I call “liquid power.” As soon as it would touch the person, that person would have his hand bathed and dripping with the same heavenly substance. Upon receiving this anointing, they would walk into hospitals, through the streets, into the institutions, and on and on—marching throughout the length and breadth of the land. I could hear them saying, “According to my word, be thou made whole.” As the liquid power flowed from their hands, each one they touched was instantly healed and made whole.

I saw people transported in the Spirit from nation to nation. I saw them going to Siberia, to Africa, to Canada, and to the ends of the earth. I saw them literally lifted up and placed by the Spirit in the respective countries.

Then I heard a voice that was low and beautiful, “My little children, I have given unto you My treasures. You are Mine. I have loved you with an everlasting love. Now My power shall be in you. The gifts that I have given unto you shall be made manifest to a lost and dying world. I am going to restore to you all.”

These people arose in the power of this great commission. I saw them cross oceans, go through fire, face persecutions, and be lifted by the Spirit and transported to many places. They were being placed where God wanted them. They were being put in places where God was going to visit His people. They were prepared and already equipped.

I realized that this whole panorama was the demonstration of the Kingdom of God through those who follow Him. I continued to see a stream of people marching—blind eyes opened, deaf ears unstopped—literally millions receiving of the power of this great manifestation. It seemed so “fluid” in its operation. There was no exaltation of a man. These simple words were constantly repeated, “ACCORDING TO MY WORD, BE THOU MADE WHOLE.”

As I watched, it seemed as though days formed into weeks, until months and years seemed to slip away—and in the midst of those who received the fullness of God’s visitation, there were also those who withdrew. I could see the anguish of their faces. The price was too steep—retaining of identification meant too much to them. They refused to march and eventually slumped away. The price was more than they could bear. THEY EVENTUALLY SLIPPED OUT INTO THE DARKNESS OF THE NIGHT.

To speak of the following instances leaves me weak with the glory and the power of the tremendous finale.

The days, months, and years seemed to slip by as I beheld this celestial scene. Nevertheless, it all happened in a short time—possibly just a few seconds—who can tell? No tongue could adequately tell the glory and splendor of the formation of this angelic host. In a moment, just a twinkling of an eye, the graves of the saints had become as a plowed field and gave up their dead, and saints from all ages (from the mountains, the deserts, and from every imaginable place) rose in power and majesty to be absorbed into the great giant.

No debris covered this great being now—it was clothed in heaven’s majesty, with glorious shining garments so brilliant that it would make a million diamonds look dull.

I heard again, as it were, a great thunder. From the heavens above poured forth the vial of wrath. It seemed that the wrath and justice of God was wrung out: drops of unspeakable anguish and suffering. The Christ-rejecting peoples of the earth had their cup filled.

Once again, my attention was drawn to this glorious body as I heard again the voice, even as thunder crying, “BEHOLD THE BRIDEGROOM COMETH. GO YE OUT TO MEET HIM, for He is the Lord of Glory. Lift up your heads, O ye gates; and be ye lift up, ye everlasting doors; and the king of Glory shall come in.” Then as though The Great Maestro of heaven had given the sign, a mighty volume of harmonies; heaven’s harmonies pealed forth like music borne on the wings of a heavenly dove. The music was clear, vibrant, rich, and resonant. It was heaven’s music—the song of souls set free. They were singing a new song, and what I thought to be added accompaniment, now became clearer, stronger. It was the voice of the Bride: many voices, but one voice singing the Song of Moses and the Lamb.

As I listened, I suddenly became weak, and yet, even the weakness was my strength, for I had been in the presence of the Lord of Lords and King of Kings. I was filled with an unspeakable urge of the Spirit to go tell all nations and press the battle to the front line trenches of a lost and dying world.

Folks, the Kingdom is here. The very power and Spirit of the Kingdom of God so possessed me. I knew it was the revelation of the King in all His kingly authority. I could see that the Lord was showing me that the Kingdom of God was coming into view. This was the revelation of the Kingdom of God coming to man.

The very spirit and power of that Kingdom so gripped me, I felt like one caught away to the third heaven. Daniel saw the everlasting Kingdom. No power in the world will be able to destroy this Kingdom. Once again, I saw the body now being lifted into the heavens. At this point, I awoke. The vision repeated in the same manner three times again. Each time, it was perfect in detail. From that moment to this, these words have rung through my soul: “HE’S COMING SOON! HE’S COMING!”

(Excerpt from The Omega Message, August 1989)

Thought for today: HE IS COMING SOON!

Read Full Post »

« Newer Posts - Older Posts »