The Smooth Road to Destruction

 By Pastor Doug Batchelor
An Amazing Fact: The California highway department noticed that on long, smooth stretches of highway, drivers were falling asleep and running off the road. So as a safety measure, they started adding line bumps to awaken sleeping motorists if they began drifting out of their lane. Most states now have these “drunk bumps” to keep drivers awake and alive.
“Now go, write it before them in a table, and note it in a book, that it may be for the time to come for ever and ever: That this is a rebellious people, lying children, children that will not hear the law of the Lord: Which say to the seers, See not; and to the prophets, Prophesy not unto us right things, speak unto us smooth things, prophesy deceits” (Isaiah 30:8–10).

A Protestant missionary in the South Pacific, after working among the indigenous population for several years, decided to return to the United States for a nine-month furlough. During this time, he planned to visit several churches to raise funds for the island mission.
He also persuaded a local chief, a recent convert to the faith, to join him on the trip. The tall chief had an imposing presence — a muscular body accentuated by a broad, pearly white smile. The missionary knew that having this living trophy of his evangelistic efforts would greatly impress the church members in North America to give more generously.
When the two arrived stateside, the missionary took the chief from church to church. After showing slides of their mission station, he paraded the chief around in a colorful native costume. People were thrilled to hear about the chief’s conversion from paganism. But along the journey across America, to avoid the gawking of onlookers, the missionary dressed his friend in typical western garments and fed him American food. It was hard to find a pair of shoes wide enough for the burly chief’s rough feet.
After the nine-month whirlwind tour, the Western lifestyle had taken a toll on the Polynesian king. His feet softened from the shoes, and he lost definition and tone in his muscles from lack of exercise. Unaccustomed to the sweet, highly processed foods, the chief even began to lose his teeth and was plagued with frequent stomach ailments.
By the time he returned to his island home, many of his own villagers barely recognized him. “Soft living” had nearly killed him.
Baby Food
When whole wheat is milled into white flour, 83 percent of the nutrients are removed; mostly only starch remains. The fiber is also gone, along with most of the Vitamin E and 21 other nutrients. The flour that is left is so drained as a food that it must be fortified with chemically manufactured thiamin, riboflavin, niacin, and iron. In fact, refined bread is so depleted, 35 U.S. states require that white flour must be synthetically enriched to be sold.
In the same way that processed wheat and soft living can make us physically weak, spiritual food with refined fiber-less pabulum produces churches full of weak, infantile invalids. Physicians are constantly reminding us that we must have sufficient roughage and grist in our diets to be healthy. This also applies to our spiritual diet, yet many Christians have been gumming baby mush for so long they are offended by real food.

“For though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you again the first principles of the oracles of God; and you have come to need milk and not solid food. For everyone who partakes only of milk is unskilled in the word of righteousness, for he is a babe. But solid food belongs to those who are of full age, that is, those who by reason of use have their senses exercised to discern both good and evil” (Hebrews 5:12–14 NKJV).

Tasty Terms
Especially in North America, our brains and bodies have been gradually weakened by convenience stores, elevators, auto dial, and remote control. Why expend the energy to do anything when it can all be done for you electronically?
This love of comfort, ease, and generally smooth living has affected our terms, as well as our time. A TV network explains, “This program is not for sensitive viewers” — instead of the truth: “This program is bloody, gruesome, grisly, and violent.” In fact, marketing executives know that as soon as they announce a program is not for sensitive viewers, the average person will pay even closer attention. You’ve also heard, “The following program is for mature audiences.” Of course, they really should warn that the “following program contains perverted, lustful, crude material.” (Is being perverted really “mature”?)
We’ve all heard the warning: The church is in the world, but the world is not supposed to be in the church! (See John 17:16–18.) Yet sadly, the fact is that the trends of the world are having an obvious influence on our church. The same longing for easy living is infecting God’s people. In this age of fast food, everyone wants a sermonette. (A friend of mine once said, “Sermonettes are for christianettes.”) In fact, to secure popularity among the clamoring of comfort-loving members, many pastors are falling into the same pattern as politicians who travel from one district to another telling everybody what they think will please them.
What are some of the smooth, popular, yet poisonous doctrines that some pastors are telling their flocks these days?

• As long as you pray over your food, you can eat or drink anything without consequences.
• If you have enough faith, you’ll be prosperous and comfortable.
• Abortion is not really killing an unborn baby; it’s simply “pregnancy termination.”
• Practicing homosexuality is not really a sin; it’s simply an alternate lifestyle.
• It’s not necessary to honor the Sabbath commandment literally as long as you are resting in Jesus.
• Once you say the sinner’s prayer, you’re saved and you can’t be lost.
• The most prevalent and deadly lie: Jesus came to save us in our sins, rather than from them.

The church is striving so hard to be politically correct and sensitive to the world. The result is that we are becoming increasingly indifferent to God’s Word.
Deadly by Any Name
The devil wants to soothe our conviction to sleep, lest we should realize our peril and turn from our sins. He is afraid we will discover how lethal sin really is — “That sin through the commandment might become exceeding sinful” (Romans 7:13) — and that we’ll start looking for a Savior.
My grandfather smoked Lucky Strike cigarettes for years. He made a few feeble attempts to quit, but his health was fair so he was not too alarmed and, therefore, not very motivated. But one day, he was admitted into the hospital for a simple procedure and was appalled when he saw the man in the bed next to him smoking those same cigarettes through a hole in his throat — his voice box had been removed from smoking-related cancer. When my grandfather understood how exceedingly dangerous smoking is, he threw away his cigarettes and never smoked again.
If a doctor is afraid to upset you so that he says that you have a touch of poison ivy when you really have skin cancer, he is not your friend. Likewise, as Christians, we should honestly diagnose ourselves if we are going to receive the appropriate treatment.
“Faithful are the wounds of a friend; but the kisses of an enemy are deceitful” (Proverbs 27:6). Ministers and church members have a responsibility to faithfully and lovingly warn the world that there is a heaven to win and a hell to shun, that persisting to live a life of sin will end in irrevocable loss.

“So thou, O son of man, I have set thee a watchman unto the house of Israel; therefore thou shalt hear the word at my mouth, and warn them from me. When I say unto the wicked, O wicked man, thou shalt surely die; if thou dost not speak to warn the wicked from his way, that wicked man shall die in his iniquity; but his blood will I require at thine hand. Nevertheless, if thou warn the wicked of his way to turn from it; if he do not turn from his way, he shall die in his iniquity; but thou hast delivered thy soul” (Ezekiel 33:7–9).

As we near the end of the world, seeing the imminence of the second coming, it is no time to proclaim smooth things. Every gospel presentation should be saturated with a sense of power and urgency. “Cry aloud, spare not, lift up thy voice like a trumpet, and show my people their transgression, and the house of Jacob their sins” (Isaiah 58:1).
Jesus has told us that one of the signs of the end is that the church will be softly singing Satan’s lullaby, “Peace, relax, rest in your sins.”
“For when they say, ‘Peace and safety!’ then sudden destruction comes upon them, as labor pains upon a pregnant woman. And they shall not escape” (1 Thessalonians 5:3 NKJV). I used to believe this passage was speaking of the world, but perhaps Paul is warning us of conditions in the church!
The Truth Can Hurt
On many occasions, Jesus had to say some rough things for the purpose of saving souls. And on more than one occasion, droves of followers turned away from Him because of these challenging statements. “Many therefore of his disciples, when they had heard this, said, This is an hard saying; who can hear it? … From that time many of his disciples went back, and walked no more with him” (John 6:60, 66).
I cannot improve on this statement from the book Steps to Christ:

“Jesus did not suppress one word of truth, but He uttered it always in love. He exercised the greatest tact and thoughtful, kind attention in His intercourse with the people. He was never rude, never needlessly spoke a severe word, never gave needless pain to a sensitive soul. He did not censure human weakness. He spoke the truth, but always in love. He denounced hypocrisy, unbelief, and iniquity; but tears were in His voice as He uttered His scathing rebukes” (p. 12).

The hard sayings of Jesus were never designed to simply wound or offend those hearing Him. He said them to save us and help us grow the fruits of the Spirit. “Now no chastening seems to be joyful for the present, but painful; nevertheless, afterward it yields the peaceable fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it” (Hebrews 12:11 NKJV).
False Prophets
Peter Marshall, in his vivid style, describes 20th century Christians with these words: “They are like deep-sea divers encased in suits designed for many fathoms deep, marching bravely forth to pull plugs out of bathtubs.”
Jesus warns us that there will be many false prophets in the last days preaching smooth things (Matthew 24:11). That’s why we must know how to distinguish the true from the counterfeit. But to take the high, straight, and rough road of biting honesty when everyone else is sliding down the smooth road buttered with platitudes of popularity requires a rare breed of courage.
In the first book of Kings, we find a story that dramatically illustrates how most people in this world are hungering to hear smooth things, while God still has faithful followers who want to tell the truth at any cost.
Ahab, the wicked king of Israel, wanted to recapture his town of Ramothgilead from the Syrians, but he needed help to take on the mighty army of Syria. So he asked King Jehoshaphat of Judah to join him in his campaign against their common enemy.
Jehoshaphat was willing to join forces with Ahab, but he believed that they should first seek God’s counsel. Ahab had forsaken the Lord years earlier to worship the pagan god Baal, so he called in his 400 hired false prophets to come before the two monarchs and prophesy. As the two kings sat on thrones, all the pompous pagan prophets said, with a loud dramatic display, “Go and fight the Syrians and you will be victorious!” It was a very impressive pep rally.
Yet Jehoshaphat was skeptical. Seeing these were all prophets of Baal and knowing how they always told the king what he wanted to hear, he requested to hear from a prophet of the Lord. Ahab was disturbed at this request but said that there was one prophet of God left, called Micaiah — but he added, “I hate him; for he doth not prophesy good concerning me, but evil” (1 Kings 22:8). Nevertheless, at Jehoshaphat’s urging, Ahab reluctantly sent a servant to fetch Micaiah.
The messenger sent to bring Micaiah told him, “Behold now, the words of the prophets declare good unto the king with one mouth: let thy word, I pray thee, be like the word of one of them, and speak that which is good. [Preach smooth things!] And Micaiah said, As the Lord liveth, what the Lord saith unto me, that will I speak.” Now there’s a novel thought — tell the truth regardless of the consequences. The prophet went to the kings and bravely told Ahab that if he went to fight the Syrians, he would surely die in the battle.
Now Ahab was faced with a tough decision. Should he believe 400 prophets of Baal who preached smooth things — or one lone prophet of the Lord with a rough message? Ahab made the wrong decision, even though he knew what was right. He persuaded Jehoshaphat to disregard the warnings of Micaiah and join him in a war promoted by Baal’s prophets. After all, how could one prophet be right over 400 others?
Still, just in case, Ahab thought he could outsmart the Lord by dressing in full armor and avoiding the front lines. But the wicked king learned too late that you can never escape the Word of God. In the battle, a stray arrow struck Ahab in the joints of his armor and he bled to death in his chariot. Ahab was killed by embracing the fatal flatteries of false prophets.
In the Age of Smooth Things
When the famous evangelist Billy Sunday would preach direct and powerful sermons against specific sins, such as the evils of alcohol, local leaders would often ask him to tone down his direct preaching. They would say, “Pastor Sunday, you are always rubbing the cat’s fur the wrong way.” But the famed evangelist would respond, “I am rubbing the cat’s fur the right way; the cat just needs to turn around.”
Jesus warns, “Woe to you when all men speak well of you, For so did their fathers to the false prophets” (Luke 6:26 NKJV). Jeremiah put it this way: “Do not believe them, Even though they speak smooth words to you” (Jeremiah 12:6 NKJV).
Paul goes on to tell us that this dilemma will be one of the characteristics of the church in the last days. Church members will be looking for ministers to tell them what pleases their carnal nature, for smooth, easy religion without a cross.
“Preach the word! Be ready in season and out of season. Convince, rebuke, exhort, with all longsuffering and teaching. For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine, but according to their own desires, because they have itching ears, they will heap up for themselves teachers, and they will turn their ears away from the truth, and be turned aside to fables” (2 Timothy 4:2–4 NKJV).
Many people in our church today want a form of religion without the power to overcome their sins. Many churches are accommodating them, providing bazaars, bingo, and soothing social programs — but avoiding a message of salvation from sin. Their sermons are like a saw with no teeth. The sharp sword of God’s Word is replaced with a rubber baby spoon!
Sadly, the people leave church feeling like they have been feasting on molasses. It is sweet to eat, but then everyone walks away sick. It’s all gooey, sloppy sermons for cotton candy Christians.
One Sunday, Abraham Lincoln was riding home from church in his carriage when his secretary asked him how he liked the sermon they just heard. “Not very much.” The secretary was surprised, because most people felt the preacher was very gifted. What was the problem? Lincoln answered, “He did not ask me to do anything great.”
The true word of God will always challenge us to press onward and upward to greater things. One great writer put it this way:

“Preachers should have no scruples to preach the truth as it is found in God’s word. Let the truth cut. I have been shown that why ministers have not more success is, they are afraid of hurting feelings, fearful of not being courteous, and they lower the standard of truth, and conceal if possible the peculiarity of our faith. I saw that God could not make such successful. The truth must be made pointed, and the necessity of a decision urged. And as false shepherds are crying, Peace, and are preaching smooth things, the servants of God must cry aloud, and spare not, and leave the result with God” (Spiritual Gifts, Vol. 2, pp. 284, 285).

Avoiding Disaster
“When thou sittest to eat with a ruler, consider diligently what is before thee: And put a knife to thy throat, if thou be a man given to appetite. Be not desirous of his dainties: for they are deceitful meat” (Proverbs 23:1–3).
So what can you do to resist the temptation of gobbling up Satan’s sweet but deceptive delicacies?
1. Measure all teachings by the Word of God. “To the law and to the testimony: if they speak not according to this word, it is because there is no light in them” (Isaiah 8:20).
2. Be willing to do His will, regardless of the consequences! “If any man will do his will, he shall know of the doctrine, whether it be of God” (John 7:17).
3. Never accept a teaching just because it is popular. “Thou shalt not follow a multitude to do evil” (Exodus 23:2).
4. Place yourself under a well-balanced diet of spiritual teaching and feed your own soul with God’s Word. “Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth” (2 Timothy 2:15).
Several years ago, a man living in China bought a microscope. At first he was thrilled with his new acquisition; he marveled looking at the wonders of flowers and feathers magnified hundreds of times. But one day he made the mistake of looking at his rice under the microscope and saw that it was crawling with tiny creatures. Rice was his favorite food. Very disturbed, the man smashed his microscope with a rock because it revealed his rice had bugs, but he didn’t want to give up his beloved staple.
We are all faced with a similar challenge today. We can either place ourselves under the scrutiny of God’s Word and allow Him to boil away the bugs — or we can turn the microscope of His law out of focus to blur our defects and listen to the fancy fables of false prophets.
God desires that we look deep to find out what we really want. “Examine yourselves, whether ye be in the faith; prove your own selves” (2 Corinthians 13:5). May our sincere response be, “Search me, O God, and know my heart: try me, and know my thoughts: And see if there be any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting” (Psalm 139:23, 24).

Tempted and Tried (sneak peek)

In our time pornography has become the destroying angel of male Eros. I don’t mean to suggest that pornography is only a male temptation (it is not), but pornography, because of the way a man has been designed toward arousal is, when available, a universal male temptation. It has come to the point now that whenever I meet with a couple in which there is a man who is an emotional shell of himself—dead to intimacy with his wife—and a marriage is fraying apart, I ask how long the pornography has been going on. In every case it’s there.

There is a kind of helplessness that a man engaged in pornography exhibits. He often speaks of it in terms of a “struggle” or an “addiction.” Now both of those terms are accurate, I believe, but they distance a person from his sin in a soul-decaying manner. Pornography is not just an addiction; it is occultism. The man who sits upstairs viewing pornography while his wife chauffeurs the kids to soccer practice is not some unusual “pervert”; he is (like his forefather Adam) seeking the mystery of the universe apart from Christ. That’s the reason the one picture, stored in his memory, of that naked woman will never be enough for him. He will never be able to be satisfied because he will never be able to get an image naked enough.

I say pornography is occultism because I believe the draw toward it is more than biological (though that is strong). The satanic powers understand the “the sexually immoral person sins against his own body” (1 Cor. 6:18). They understand that the pornographic act severs a one-flesh marriage union at the very point of intimate connectedness and instead joins Christ, spiritually, to an electronic prostitute (1 Cor. 6:16). They also know that those who unrepentantly practice such things “will not inherit the kingdom of God” (1 Cor. 6:9-10).
Pornography is, in one sense, no different from any other form of sexual temptation. But in another sense it is even more insidious. Pornography brings with it a kind of pseudo-repentance. Immediately after it is “over,” the participant feels a kind of revulsion and self-loathing. Whereas an adulterer or a fornicator can at least rationalize a kind of transcendent “love” behind his sin, even a conscience thoroughly seared over rarely wants to write love songs or poetry in celebration of his pornographic self-satisfaction.

Typically—at least in those who have some sort of Christian or moral identity—the pornographic act is followed by a resolve never to do it again, to leave it behind and find some sort of accountability. But what masquerades as a repentant conscience is in most cases little more than a sated appetite. When the appetite is “hungry” once again, the demonic powers will collaborate with the biological impulses to find a way to make it seem irresistible again. As the cycle of temptation grinds on, the illusion of repentance keeps the sin in hiding, so that actual repentance never happens until, as with Esau, the conscience is so seared that repentance is then impossible (Heb. 6:4-6, 12:16-17).

And this is, of course, exactly where the powers want any child of Adam—and especially any professing brother or sister of the Lord Jesus.

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_____ if you liked this excerpt, check out Tempted and Tried by RUSSELL D. MOORE_______

Watching

By Pastor Doug Batchelor
Many years ago, when telegraph service using Morse code was still common, a number of young men had gathered to apply for a job at the local telegraph office. While they were all waiting in a reception area to be interviewed and chatting with one another, the faint sound of the “dot, dot, dash, dash, dash, dot, dot” from a nearby telegraph machine drifted into the room. Suddenly, one of the men jumped to his feet and ran through the door into the adjoining office.
He came back a few moments later grinning. He announced, “I got the job.”
The others wondered, “How did you get the job before we even got a chance?”
He said, “You were so preoccupied with visiting that you weren’t paying attention to the code.” He explained, “I was listening to the message, and it said, ‘I am looking for somebody who is alert, and the first person who hears this message and comes into the office will get the job.’ ” He was paying attention!
I think this is a timely parable to the members of the Christian church, who seem to be deeply distracted from the message God is trying to send us today.
In Mark 13, where Jesus highlights the astounding signs of the second coming, four times He says, “Watch.” That is, pay attention. The Greek word for “watch” in this passage comes from the word greguru, and it means “to keep awake, to be watchful, to be vigilant.”
Interestingly, the Bible calls us to watch in several different ways. Let’s take a few moments for a Bible study that should help wake all of us up.

Spiritual Vigilance
The first way to watch is to simply remain spiritually awake.
Jesus said that many people will be sleeping when the bridegroom comes, rather than watching. “While the bridegroom tarried, they all slumbered and slept” (Matthew 25:5). The wedding party was to be watching for the bridegroom, but at that critical moment they all dozed off. Notice it says “they all”—100 percent, both the wise and the foolish—fell asleep.
Paul admonishes, “You are all sons of light and sons of the day. We are not of the night nor of darkness. Therefore let us not sleep, as others do, but let us watch and be sober” (1 Thessalonians 5:5, 6 NKJV). This kind of watching is more than just watching, as if you’re gazing listlessly at the television. It requires being attentive and alert and clear about the happenings around us.

Watch and Pray
Not only are we to be awake and watching, Jesus said we are to watch and pray.
Have you ever been in a hospital keeping vigil because someone you love was going through a critical surgery? You kept praying for your loved one and nervously watched the operating room doors because the doctor could have come out at any moment with pivotal news. Your heart was really in it because you were praying for an outcome that meant life or death.
That’s what it means to watch and pray. That’s what Christians need to be doing now. “The end of all things is at hand: be ye therefore sober, and watch unto prayer” (1 Peter 4:7).
In the book of Nehemiah, the king of Persia tells the prophet to rebuild the walls of Jerusalem. However, the Samaritans and Arabians did not want the walls of Jerusalem rebuilt, so they constantly tried to disrupt Nehemiah’s efforts, waiting to catch him off guard so they could sabotage his work.
“But it came to pass, that when Sanballat, and Tobiah, and the Arabians, and the Ammonites, and the Ashdodites, heard that the walls of Jerusalem were made up, and that the breaches began to be stopped, then they were very wroth” (Nehemiah 4:7). Nehemiah’s enemies were extremely angry at his progress. It’s the same way the devil feels when God’s church is being built up.
They also “conspired … together to come and to fight against Jerusalem, and to hinder it” (v. 8). Satan comes against us with great wrath to hinder God’s work. “Nevertheless we [Israel] made our prayer unto our God, and set a watch against them day and night, because of them” (v. 9).
In response, God’s people didn’t just pray. They didn’t just watch. They did both night and day.

Watching Yourself
In the garden of Gethsemane, Jesus was facing His greatest trial. There, at the very axis of the plan of salvation, He knew He was about to experience intense suffering and death on the cross. He made one simple request of His disciples while He left to pray: watch.
“Then He came to the disciples and found them sleeping, and said to Peter, ‘What! Could you not watch with Me one hour?’” (Matthew 26:40 NKJV). I suspect a lot of us watch like Peter. And the Lord says to us, Could you not watch with me one hour?
We are again at a critical point in history. Jesus is about to return to planet Earth. Probation is closing, and He’s asking us to watch. We don’t want Him to say, What? Could you not watch with me one hour?, but I would guess He just might say that today! So He warns, “Watch and pray” (Matthew 26:41).
Part of this watching is watching ourselves. “Examine yourselves as to whether you’re in the faith” (2 Corinthians 13:5 NKJV). You need to be watching yourself and your surroundings. You need to be asking yourself, Am I growing? Am I becoming more like Jesus? “Set a guard, O Lord, over my mouth; Keep watch over the door of my lips” (Psalm 141:3 NKJV).
Ask the Lord to watch your mind, your heart, your lips. We need to be guarding what we allow to come into our minds. This is one of the single most important things you can do in your own discipline as a Christian: guarding the avenues to your soul. You’re the combined essence of all those things that you take in. Some of those things have been Trojan horses. We think there’s no harm done, but once it gets into our minds, it becomes a disaster. “A prudent man foresees evil and hides himself, But the simple pass on and are punished” (Proverbs 22:3 NKJV).

Watching Others
We need to watch our brothers and sisters. I’m not talking about being judgmental and trying to catch people in sin. I’m talking about a genuine caring for other people’s souls. “Brethren, if anyone among you wanders from the truth, and someone turns him back, let him know that he who turns a sinner from the error of his way will save a soul from death and cover a multitude of sins” (James 5:19, 20 NKJV).
We’ve got to watch each other! Some are spiritually drifting, and we need to care about that.
Children need watching. As they get older, they generally want to be watched less, but that’s usually when they need to be watched the most. “Brethren, if a man is overtaken in any trespass, you who are spiritual restore such a one in the spirit of gentleness, considering yourself lest you also be tempted” (Galatians 6:1 NKJV). By watching in love, we can claim a brother or sister in Christ who would have been lost otherwise!
A man in Africa worked in a diamond mine. He was leaving work one day but happened to be watching the conveyor belt as it was taking rocks to the crusher. These were the worthless rocks, to be pulverized and dumped into the landfill. He happened to notice a hand-sized rock and thought it didn’t look right. He grabbed it off the conveyor belt and took it to his supervisor. It ended up being the 10th largest diamond in the world—616 carats. This diamond in the rough was going to be thrown into a landfill but for an alert worker who was watching. They gave him a reward of $15,000.
How great will your reward be if you watch? Every day we meet some of God’s diamonds who are on their way to the landfill. They might look like common rocks on the outside, but many are really bearing a diamond within. If we’re not paying attention, they’ll pass us on the conveyor belt to oblivion. “‘They shall be Mine,’ says the Lord of hosts, ‘On the day that I make them My jewels. And I will spare them As a man spares his own son who serves him’ ” (Malachi 3:17 NKJV).
You are your brother’s keeper. Watch yourself and watch others. Plus, you need to be receptive to others watching over you! “Obey those who rule over you, and be submissive, for they watch out for your souls, as those who must give account” (Hebrews 13:17 NKJV).
As Americans, we love our independence. We don’t want anybody in our business. We have been so bombarded with this idea, however, that when you talk about Christians watching out for each other spiritually, it seems invasive and nosey. But we should care enough about one another that we watch out for each other spiritually.

Watching the Enemy
I had a friend in the hills who once owned an ornery goat. One time when he asked me to care for his livestock, he warned, “Don’t ever turn your back on that goat. As soon as you do, he’ll butt you so hard you will need to change your ZIP code!” Well, the little beast never did get me, but I saw him knock someone else off his feet. He would graze peacefully like he didn’t care you were there. But just as soon as you took your eyes off him, wham!
The devil is like that.
We need to watch the enemy. Peter says, “Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour” (1 Peter 5:8 NKJV).
Good pickpockets often work in teams. One of them will cause a distraction while the others pick the pockets. Long ago, when I was young and far from being a Christian, I worked with a friend to steal from grocery stores. He would go into a store and make a big ruckus. Of course, everybody turned to look, even the security guard. Then, while everyone was watching him, I would slip a steak under my shirt and head out the door. Soon my friend would calm down and walk out too. We never got caught.
Likewise, the devil is a master at diversionary tactics. He creates minor doctrinal distractions to get everybody looking away from the bigger moral problems. Let’s watch out for these tricks and do our best to keep Jesus and His Word as our focus.

Watching and Warning
What good is a blind, deaf, and mute watchdog? This is how Isaiah describes religious leaders who don’t warn people when the enemy is near. “His watchmen are blind: they are all ignorant, they are all dumb dogs, they cannot bark; sleeping, lying down, loving to slumber” (Isaiah 56:10).
When war was eminent, Israel would position watchmen strategically on the wall for maximum visibility of their surroundings. Approaching armies often kicked up a thick cloud of dust, which you could see from miles away. Sometimes, you could hear the ground rumble.
Should a watchman see the dust and hear the rumbling of an approaching enemy army, he would blow a trumpet to warn all the people in the surrounding farms to flee into the protection of the city walls. Everybody’s life was in the hands of the watchman; if he did not give warning of the enemy’s approach, they would overtake the unprepared still in their fields. Property and lives would be lost.
But did you know that failure to give a warning could be fatal for the watchmen as well?
“When he sees the sword coming upon the land, if he blows the trumpet and warns the people, then whoever hears the sound of the trumpet and does not take warning, if the sword comes and takes him away, his blood shall be on his own head. … But he who takes warning will save his life” (Ezekiel 33:3–5 NKJV). You are expected to act if you hear a warning.
“But if the watchman sees the sword coming and does not blow the trumpet, and the people are not warned, and the sword comes and takes any person from among them, he is taken away in his iniquity; but his blood I will require at the watchman’s hand.” (Ezekiel 33:6 NKJV). If the watchman failed to blow the trumpet, he was held responsible for any who died.
You and I are a type of watchman. God has given us life-and-death messages in His Word. We know the sword is coming. He says to you and me:

So you, son of man: I have made you a watchman for the house of Israel; therefore you shall hear a word from My mouth and warn them for Me. When I say to the wicked, “O wicked man, you shall surely die!” and you do not speak to warn the wicked from his way, that wicked man shall die in his iniquity; but his blood I will require at your hand. Nevertheless if you warn the wicked to turn from his way, and he does not turn from his way, he shall die in his iniquity; but you have delivered your soul (Ezekiel 33:7–9 NKJV).

Toward the end of his ministry, Paul wrote, “I am innocent of the blood of all men” (Acts 20:26 NKJV). Why did he say that? He added, “For I have not shunned to declare to you the whole counsel of God” (v. 27). He had faithfully blown the trumpet. He had given fair warning.
The Bible says, “Cry aloud, spare not; Lift up your voice like a trumpet; Tell My people their transgression, And the house of Jacob their sins” (Isaiah 58:1 NKJV). Are you blowing the trumpet? I’m not suggesting marching up and down the street being obnoxious for Jesus, but God does bring people within our sphere of influence every day. The Holy Spirit will impress us to say a word to this person or that person. But you have to be watching.
Not long ago, I called to have satellite Internet service installed in my cabin in the woods. This helped me stay in touch with the office when I was out of town. The satellite company sent up some installers from Sacramento, a four-and-a-half-hour trip one way! After these two fellows pulled up to my yard in their company truck, one of the first things they asked was, “You got any pot?”
I said, “Sorry guys. You’ve come to one of the few pieces of property out here where you’re not going to find any pot growing.” They were disappointed but went on with their work getting the satellite installed and working for me. As they were leaving, I felt impressed to say something.
“Let me show you a neat website,” I said. I showed them the Amazing Facts website.
They saw my picture and said, “Hey, that’s you! You’ve got TV programs.” We talked a little bit, they asked questions, and I gave them some books and sent them on their way.
What if I had ignored the impression of the Lord, thinking these guys were hopeless potheads? According to Scripture, their blood could be on my hands. (I knew they weren’t hopeless because I used to be just like them!)
Of course, I have also missed many opportunities—neglecting God’s prodding to speak up for Christ. If that happens to you, repent and ask God to help you be a faithful watchman. Don’t be frightened and don’t let it become inconvenient to rescue a soul. Just blow the trumpet!
I’m sure you have felt the impression before: “Say something for Me to this person.” So you blow your trumpet and … they didn’t read the book. They didn’t accept Christ. Well, that’s not your job. Your job is to blow the trumpet and pray for them. They still must choose as the Holy Spirit prods their hearts. Remember, the Bible doesn’t say that “before Jesus comes, the gospel will be preached in all the world and then everyone will believe.” It says only that the gospel “will be preached in all the world as a witness” (Matthew 24:14 NKJV). We just need to do our part.
God has called us to be watchmen on the walls and to warn the wicked to turn from their way. We also have such good news: turn and live! It’s a message of hope, and so many people want to hear it.

Watching the Signs
Last but not least, we should be watching the signs of the times.
“He answered and said to them, ‘When it is evening you say, “It will be fair weather, for the sky is red”; and in the morning, “It will be foul weather today, for the sky is red and threatening.” Hypocrites! You know how to discern the face of the sky, but you cannot discern the signs of the times’” (Matthew 16:2, 3 NKJV).
God wants us to be watching and waiting for Him. To be alert, to be praying, to be in a sense of expectancy and even joy. “Now when these things begin to happen, look up and lift up your heads, because your redemption draws near” (Luke 21:28 NKJV). But this watching of the signs should motivate us into action—to watch where we are and to watch where others are to make sure that as many as possible are in the kingdom when Jesus returns to this world.
Many of the things Jesus spoke about are coming to pass. Let us not repeat the mistakes of God’s people in the past, of sleeping at the critical moment. If the Lord commands us to be awake and to watch, we can be awake and watch. He wouldn’t ask us to do the impossible. But we do need the Holy Spirit, more now than ever, to wake us up. We need revival.
Be a faithful watchman for the Lord. Watch yourself. Watch out for your brothers and sisters. Watch what the enemy is doing. Watch what’s going on in the world. Watch for the blessed hope and appearing of our Lord. Amen.

Who Will Sing the Song? The 144000 of Revelation 14

An Amazing Fact
During the Gulf War, a small team of U.S. Navy SEALS created a diversion so convincing that it completely fooled the Iraqi army. About a dozen SEALS stormed the beaches of Kuwait and created such havoc that Iraqi generals believed the U.S.-led attack was coming from the sea. Iraq sent the majority of their army to repel this fake attack—only to find they had been duped as the main U.S. force came through the Saudi Arabian desert! Within hours the war was over, and it all started with less than 20 soldiers!

Each branch of the U.S. armed services has one or more elite teams of commandos that fight using covert guerrilla warfare tactics during special combat situations. To serve in one of these select units, a soldier must be highly disciplined and pass through incredibly difficult physical and mental training. Only those who demonstrate unflinching self control and perfect obedience qualify. These Special Forces commandos are given dangerous and complex missions; they rapidly attack enemy troops and raid behind enemy lines to clear the way for the main attacking force. Even a small team of these commandos, because of their intense training, can achieve great victories—defeating entire columns in short time.

God’s Special Forces
The 12 Apostles were a type of Special Forces during the time of Jesus’ first coming. After three-and-a-half years of intensive personal training with Jesus, the Lord was able to use them to achieve great victories. They penetrated Satan’s dominion to spearhead a great revival and expansion of the Christian faith. But the book of Revelation tells us of another Special Forces unit, a vast “army” of 144,000. They have a special relationship with the Lamb, and they are sealed with a special name. They also sing a special song. Why are the 144,000 so important? It’s because they are commissioned with the greatest missions in the last days: to prepare the world for Jesus’ return. Yet many are bewildered by obvious questions; who exactly is this holy army and who will fill its ranks before the end?
Though it may not be critical to one’s salvation to understand all the specific details of this prophetic subject, the study of God’s Word is always accompanied with great blessings. I should add that when we study these themes, we venture onto holy ground. Though I share this topic with great confidence, I also realize and respect that others may have a different understanding. So I would encourage you to pause now and pray for understanding as we begin this adventure in mining for truth.

Where to Begin?
To really understand the identity of the 144,000, we must first consider them from the two primary pillars of truth in Scripture that describe this grand assembly. The first passage is found in Revelation 7:1–4:“After these things I saw four angels standing at the four corners of the earth, holding the four winds of the earth, that the wind should not blow on the earth, on the sea, or on any tree. Then I saw another angel asending from the east, having the seal of the living God. And he cried with a loud voice to the four angels to whom it was granted to harm the earth and the sea, saying, ‘Do not harm the earth, the sea, or the trees till we have sealed the servants of our God on their foreheads.’ And I heard the number of those who were sealed. One hundred and forty-four thousand of all the tribes of the children of Israel were sealed” (NKJV). The Scripture then explains that this distinctive sealed body is comprised of exactly 12,000 from each of the 12 tribes of Israel, which are; Judah, Reuben, Gad, Asher, Naphtali, Manasseh, Simeon, Levi, Issachar, Zebulun, Joseph and Benjamin. It should be carefully noted here that this listing of tribes is unique, because it is the only time in Scripture that the catalog of tribes appears in this particular order (but more on that later).
The second main passage comes in Revelation 14:1–5: “Then I looked, and behold, a Lamb standing on Mount Zion, and with Him one hundred and forty-four thousand, having His Father's name written on their foreheads. And I heard a voice from heaven, like the voice of many waters, and like the voice of loud thunder. And I heard the sound of harpists playing their harps. They sang as it were a new song before the throne, before the four living creatures, and the elders; and no one could learn that song except the hundred and forty-four thousand who were redeemed from the earth. These are the ones who were not defiled with women, for they are virgins. These are the ones who follow the Lamb wherever He goes. These were redeemed from among men, being firstfruits to God and to the Lamb. And in their mouth was found no deceit, for they are without fault before the throne of God.”

The Samaritans & Ten Lost Tribes
Perhaps our first concern should be to determine whether or not this 144,000 are actually 12,000 literal Israelites from their 12 respective tribes. Even though this belief is common in many Christian circles, after a closer look it becomes obvious that this is simply impossible. Even a casual look at the Old Testament reveals this important clue. Because the 10 northern tribes gave themselves completely over to idolatry, God allowed the Assyrians to carry them away in 722 BC. “In the ninth year of Hoshea, the king of Assyria took Samaria and carried Israel away to Assyria, and placed them in Halah and by the Habor, the River of Gozan, and in the cities of the Medes” (2 Kings 17:6). When the tribes of Judah and Benjamin were later carried off to Babylon, after spending 70 years in captivity, thousands returned. But with the 10 tribes, history never records any mass exodus from Assyria back to Israel. Instead, the King of Assyria transplanted an assortment of people from pagan nations in the land of Israel in the region of Samaria.
“And the king of Assyria brought men from Babylon, and from Cuthah, and from Ava, and from Hamath, and from Sepharvaim, and placed them in the cities of Samaria instead of the children of Israel: and they possessed Samaria, and dwelt in the cities thereof” (2 Kings 17:24).
The King of Assyria did send one Hebrew priest back from Assyria to teach these transplanted pagans about the God of Israel, but not from the exiled 10 tribes (2 Kings 17:27). They eventually became known as the infamous Samaritans. As is evident even in the New Testament, the Jews detested this group. Why? They were no longer pure Israelites in blood or religion. History also records that long before the time of Jesus, the 10 exiled tribes intermarried with the Assyrians, therefore losing their distinct identity. Today, a genealogist would be hard pressed to find even one vaguely pure descendant from the tribe of Gad, Asher, Naphtali, Manasseh, or Simeon—much less 12,000! In fact, because these tribes were so thoroughly scattered around the world and assimilated by their host nations, it is very possible even you have traces of Abraham in your bloodline!
“And they shall know that I am the LORD, when I shall scatter them among the nations, and disperse them in the countries” (Ezekiel 12:15).

Who Is a True Israelite?
On the surface, it still might be easy enough for one to believe that the 144,000 are from the 12 tribes listed in Revelation 7. But a closer reading quickly reveals that from the time of Jesus, most of the prophecies speaking of Israel are focused on the children of faith—or spiritual Israel regardless of whether they were Jew or Gentile by blood. Here is a small sample of the many texts that establish this truth. “For he is not a Jew who is one outwardly, nor is circumcision that which is outward in the flesh; but he is a Jew who is one inwardly; and circumcision is that of the heart, in the Spirit” (Romans 2:28,29). “And if you are Christ’s, then you are Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise” (Galatians 3:29). The Lord told the ancient Israelites, “And you shall be to Me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation” (Exodus 19:6). Notice in the New Testament, Peter applies that title to spiritual Israel or the church: “But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, His own special people” (1 Peter 2:9).James gives one of the most convincing Scriptures that proves that the Apostles viewed the tribes in a spiritual sense. “James, a servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ, to the 12 tribes which are scattered abroad, greetings” (James 1:1). The content of James’ letter is clearly addressed to Christians, and yet he plainly refers to them as spiritual Jews from 12 spiritual tribes.

How Many Tribes?
I do not want to be tedious—but to really understand this subject, a short lesson on the Old Testament tribes might be necessary for clarity. In reality, did you know there were actually 13 tribes—that’s right! You see, the 12 original tribes all came from the 12 sons of Jacob, whom the Lord had later renamed Israel. When Joseph’s older brothers sold him into slavery, it was the beginning of a long and painful separation from his family. After reuniting with his father, Jacob promised to compensate for Joseph’s years of separation by adopting two sons, Manasseh and Ephraim, as his own to be numbered with his sons in place of Joseph. “And now your two sons, Ephraim and Manasseh, who were born to you in the land of Egypt before I came to you in Egypt, are mine; as Reuben and Simeon, they shall be mine” (Genesis 48:5). Let’s do the math. When Joseph’s two sons were counted as tribes in the place of their father, you now have 13 tribes, technically. One reason that you still continue to hear of only 12 tribes through the Bible is because after the Levites were chosen to be the priests for all Israel, they were excluded from receiving any specific territory as inheritance. Instead, they were to defuse among all the tribes as teachers and priests. “Only the tribe of Levi you shall not number, nor take a census of them among the children of Israel” (Numbers 1:49).
As a connected point of interest, we can also ask how many were seated at the Last Supper. The answer is 13—the 12 Apostles, and Jesus sat among them as their high priest. During the Passover, 13 tribes presented themselves: the “regular” 12 tribes and then the Levites serving as the priests.
Also, if it were important to the Lord to only use the 12 different literal tribes in equal numbers to comprise the 144,000, wouldn’t we expect Jesus to choose His Apostles in a similar fashion? But it does not appear to have mattered to Jesus that his apostles were from the 12 different tribes of Israel, for most of His apostles were from the tribe of Judah. The exceptions are Matthew-Levi, who was probably from the tribe Levi, and Paul, who was from the tribe of Benjamin (Romans 11:1).
Additionally, the 12 tribes in the Old Testament were very unequal in population size. Judah was very large, while Benjamin was very small. Indeed, God divided the Promised Land amongst the tribe according to the proportion of their population needs. Yet with the 144,000, it’s exactly 12,000 per tribe across the board. This is another strong clue that it is not speaking of the literal tribes of Israel.

What’s in a Name?
So why did God go to the trouble of specifically naming the 12 tribes when listing the 144,000? This is one of the first and most compelling clues that there must be some hidden spiritual meaning to the tribes listed in Revelation 7. Remember, this is the only time the sons of Jacob are arranged in this order—and even more specifically, the way in which they are ordered says something too. First, Joseph and Levi are included, while Ephraim and Dan are left out. Why? Well perhaps it is because the names are symbolic in meaning and prophecies state: “Dan shall be a serpent by the way, A viper by the path” (Genesis 49:17). It may also be because the name Dan means “judge,” and the 144,000 are a special group who are sealed and vindi- cated at this point. As far as Ephraim, the Bible declares, “Ephraim is joined to idols, Let him alone” (Hosea 4:17). And curiously, Ruben, the firstborn, is listed as second, while Judah, the fourth offspring, is listed as the first!
So the order of these names makes no sense unless we allow the names to speak for themselves; then, perhaps, we will see God is trying to communicate a special message to us through these names.
When Jews named their babies, the names nearly always had some definite meaning that depicted some characteristic of the child or event connected with their birth. Notice how the wives of Jacob, Rachael, and Leah proclaimed a statement defining the meaning of the son’s names as they were born. In Genesis 29:32-35, we read, “So Leah conceived and bore a son, and she called his name Reuben; for she said, ‘The LORD has surely looked on my affliction. Now therefore, my husband will love me.’ Then she conceived again and bore a son, and said, ‘Because the LORD has heard that I am unloved, He has therefore given me this son also.’ And she called his name Simeon. She conceived again and bore a son, and said, ‘Now this time my husband will become attached to me, because I have borne him three sons.’ Therefore his name was called Levi. And she conceived again and bore a son, and said, ‘Now I will praise the LORD.’ Therefore she called his name Judah.” As you continue reading the narrative of each of the births of Jacob’s sons, Rachel and Leah made similar prophetic statements for all 12 of the sons regarding the meanings of their names.
Here are the names of the tribes listed for the 144,000, in the order in which Revelation 7 lists them, and their corresponding Hebrew meanings as found in Scripture:

1.	Judah means	“I will praise the Lord”
2.	Ruben means	“He has looked on me”
3.	Gad means	“Given good fortune”
4.	Asher means	“Happy am I”
5.	Naphtali means	“My wrestling”
6.	Manasseh means	“Making me to forget”
7.	Simeon means	“God hears me”
8.	Levi means	“Joined to me”
9.	Issachar means	“Purchased Me”
10.	Zebulun means	“Dwelling”
11.	Joseph means	“Will add to me”
12.	Benjamin means	“Son of His right hand”

Now here is the amazing part. Notice what happens when you line up these meanings of the names according to the way they appear as listed in Revelation. It forms a very remarkable statement declaring how God saves the church as His bride!
“I will praise the Lord for he has looked on me and granted good fortune. I am happy because my wrestling, God is making me to forget. God hears me and is joined to me. He has purchased me a dwelling and will add to me, the Son of His right hand.” (As in Scripture, the words in italics are supplied for flow of thought.)
These names presented in this order describe a brief story summarizing the church’s struggle, redemption, victory, and ultimate marriage to the Lamb. It seems evident that this is a special message of encouragement for those who are in the Church, believers in Christ, and not necessarily just Jews.

Exactly How Many?
Now we can address the next big question: Is the figure 144,000 a literal number? Perhaps I should answer that question with another question: Are the other numbers in Revelation literal or just spiritual?
For instance, will there be 12 gates and 12 foundations? Are there really 12 different kinds of fruit on the tree of life? Yes, of course! There are many prophetic time periods given in Revelation, but the numbers are not just nebulas numerical symbols—they are precise measures of time. The numbers would be useless for reckoning if they were merely symbolic. All of our understandings about the dimensions of the New Jerusalem are based on the assumption that these numbers have real literal value.
However, please keep in mind that though the number of the 144,000 might be exact, most people in the world might never know who they are or take a census. When Jesus walked the earth in Israel, it was no problem to count 12 literal apostles following the Messiah in the Holy Land. But the 144,000 in the last days are spiritual Jews—scattered across the circle of the earth leading in a magnificent revival. But they will not each be wearing a marathon running number.
Now you might be thinking, “How can you say that the names are symbolic and the number is literal?” Simple, Jesus did. It doesn’t seem to matter to the Lord what tribes the 12 Apostles sprang from, but it did matter that there were 12 of them. Also remember that while most of the numbers in Revelation depict a real value, all the proper names in Revelation are symbols (e.g., The Lamb, The Dragon, the Lion, Balaam, Jezebel, etc.).

The Number 12
In fact, the secret key to unlocking the mystery behind the 144,000 might be in the number itself. You mathematicians are going to love this section! Twelve is a perfect number for building, because it is one of the most versatile numbers. It can be evenly divided by 1, 2, 3, 4, 6, and of course 12.

An Amazing Fact
The reason there are 12 inches in the standard foot measurement is because the foot used to be based on the length of the English king’s physical foot, and that measurement constantly changed through various kings. This is also why a 12-inch measuring stick was called a “ruler.” The number 12 in the Bible almost always represents leadership of the church. There were 12 patriarchs from Shem to Jacob. In addition, 12 spies led the way to the Promised Land, and there are 12 judges from Joshua to Samuel. In Scripture, the number 12 is also often associated with God’s church, which is typically symbolized by a woman.
There is also an interesting story in the Gospels concerning the number 12. In just one hour, Jesus healed two females with miracles associated with the number 12. First, He healed a woman who had been bleeding 12 years. From that event, He went directly to resurrect a 12-year-old girl. The first woman represented the Old Testament church with a continual flow of sacrificial blood. The young girl symbolized the New Testament church that came to life after a resurrection. They both touched Jesus that day and were made whole (Mark 5:25-42).
In Revelation 12:1, we read, “Now a great sign appeared in heaven: a woman clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet, and on her head a garland of twelve stars.” God’s church pictured here has 12 stars above the head; these stars are a symbol of the inspired leadership of the church (1 Corinthians 11:10).
Another interesting clue related to the 144,000 is found in 1 Chronicles 27:1-15. Here we read that David’s army was comprised of 12 sets of 24,000, totaling 288,000. That’s two teams of 144,000.
First Chronicles 25 tells of a literal group of “24 times 12” Levities that were to lead in praise music of the temple—that’s two times 144, which equals 288. And of course, you have two times 12, or 24 elders on thrones around the throne of God in Revelation 4:4. This represents the 12 patriarchs in the Old Testament and 12 apostles in the New Testament!
In Matthew 19:28, Jesus says to the Apostles, “You who have followed Me will also sit on twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel.” He then makes a promise to those who will come out of the last age of the church known as Laodicea, which means “judging the people.” “To him who overcomes I will grant to sit with Me on My throne, as I also overcame and sat down with My Father on His throne” (Revelation 3:21). This is because the 144,000 live during the last age of the church and share the experiences of the apostles.
In heaven, it seems that at times there will be an expanding square formation around God’s throne. First, the Lord Himself sits on His throne. Outside His throne sit the four creatures, then the 24 elders in a square around them (six to each side), and then finally the 144,000 in a perfect square (36,000 to each side). The great multitudes of saved are the last group that surrounds the 144,000. The perfect and symmetrical math of this assembly is far beyond the fisherman who wrote Revelation.
As a final point of interest for our math majors, did you also know that in addition to the 144,000 being calculated as 12 times 12,000, it can also be achieved this way: 12 x 12 x 103 (or 10 cubed). In this way, you have God's kingdom number (12), God's number of completeness or wholeness (10, as in commandments), and God's number (3 as in Godhead). I think this might be another fascinating example of God’s perfect design.

Precious Stones
Another reason for the number 12 is found in the breastplate worn by the High Priest bearing the 12 different precious stones. This reminds us that God’s church is made up of many different personalities all near to the heart of our High Priest. The Bible reveals the diverse temperaments that make up the 12 patriarchs and apostles. God chooses leaders of every type, that He might use them to reach all kinds. Exodus 39:14 says, “There were twelve stones according to the names of the sons of Israel: according to their names, engraved like a signet, each one with its own name according to the twelve tribes.” These stones also appear identical to the foundation stones of the New Jerusalem, as described in Revelation 21:12,14: “Also she had a great and high wall with twelve gates, and twelve angels at the gates, and names written on them, which are the names of the twelve tribes of the children of Israel: Now the wall of the city had twelve foundations, and on them were the names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb.”
For these reasons and others, I believe the number 144,000 is a precise figure. Just as there were 12 literal tribes in the Old Testament and exactly 12 apostles in the New Testament, and as the walls are truly 144 cubits thick, and as there will be exactly 144 different kinds of fruit on the tree of life each year (12 different fruits each month), there will be 12 times 12,000 apostles in the last days.
So let’s assemble the clues we have uncovered. In Scripture, the numbers 12 and 144,000 are associated with Judges, David’s army, praising priests, and precious stones. In the same way, the 144,000 are an army of judges and priests that Jesus values as precious stones.

Only 144,000 Saved?
But then the natural thought is, “If this number is not just a symbol, will the 144,000 be the only ones saved in the last days—and if only 144,000 will be saved, what are my chances?” Lets do some simple figuring. If there are 6 billion people in the world when Jesus comes (roughly today’s global population), that would mean that 1 in 41,666 would be saved. It is still much better than the odds offered by most state lotteries, but it still offers a pretty slim hope of salvation! But praise God! Though the 144,000 might be an exact number, the Bible does not teach they are to be the only ones saved in the last days. If we read on in Revelation 7:9, immediately after the listing of the tribes and the 144,000, the prophet sees “a great multitude which no one could number, of all nations, tribes, peoples, and tongues, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, clothed with white robes, with palm branches in their hands.”
Then in verse 13, one of the 24 elders asks John, “Who are these arrayed in white robes, and where did they come from?” In verse 14, he answers his own question: “These are they which came out of great tribulation, and have washed their robes, and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.”
Now the Bible speaks of two great tribulations in prophecy. One was during the Papal persecution of the Dark Ages when millions of Christians were slain. But the pri- mary “great tribulation” must refer to the time just before Christ’s second coming as referred to in Daniel 12:1, 2. “And there shall be a time of trouble, Such as never was since there was a nation, Even to that time. And at that time your people shall be delivered, Every one who is found written in the book. And many of those who sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, Some to everlasting life, Some to shame and everlasting contempt.”
Evidently, this great multitude who come out of great tribulation are converted under the preaching and influence of the 144,000. Shortly after Pentecost, the 12 apostles reached a great multitude, then there followed a great persecution (Acts 8:1). Shortly after the Holy Spirit is poured out on the 144,000, a great multitude will be converted and then comes the great tribulation.

The Seal of God & the Father’s Name
One of the most important and prominent characteristics of the 144,000 is the special seal and name they bear in their foreheads (Revelation 7: 1-4; 14:1). Shortly after this special seal is secured, the great tribulation and seven last plagues blast onto an unrepentant world. Typically in Revelation, when we think of someone being marked or sealed, it conveys a very negative connotation. In reality, all the saved and lost in Revelation bear some form of mark or seal in their foreheads or hands. Ezekiel 9 records a vision where only the saved are marked. The criteria that allow them to receive this saving mark is that they are grieved by sin and long for purity. “And the LORD said unto him, Go through the midst of the city, through the midst of Jerusalem, and set a mark upon the foreheads of the men that sigh and that cry for all the abominations that be done in the midst thereof” (Ezekiel 9:4). Then, only those who have this mysterious mark are spared the awful plague of slaughter that follows.
So what is this seal found on the foreheads of the 144,000? Principally, it must be the Holy Spirit “in whom also after that ye believed, ye were sealed with that holy Spirit of promise” (Ephesians 1:13). “And grieve not the holy Spirit of God, whereby ye are sealed unto the day of redemption” (Ephesians 4:30). Obviously, whoever has the “good” mark has the Spirit of God. But beyond the Holy Spirit, there is something more distinctive about this unique seal. We also see that the seal of God involves the law of God. As Isaiah 8:16 records, “Bind up the testimony, seal the law among my disciples.” This also should not surprise us, because three times in Revelation, the saved are identified as a people who keep the commandments of God (Revelation 12:17; 14:12; 22:14).
That’s also why Moses urged God’s people to have God’s law in their hands and their foreheads three different times. “And it shall be for a sign unto thee upon thine hand, and for a memorial between thine eyes (forehead), that the Lord's law may be in thy mouth” (Exodus 13:9; Deuteronomy 6:8; 11:18).
But this seal or sign with the Father’s name goes even deeper.

It’s About Time
All government seals contain three common elements: the name, title, and territory of the ruler. For example, Daniel 1:1 reads, “Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon.” You have the name, the official title, and his area of dominion. Within the 10 Commandments, only one has all the characteristics of a seal—the fourth. There we read, “For in six days the LORD made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them” (Exodus 20:11). Here in the Sabbath commandment, we have God’s name (the Lord or Jehovah), His title or office (the Creator) and His territory (the heavens and the earth, the sea and all that is in them). The Sabbath Commandment is the only one that is repeatedly referred to as a seal or sign of God’s creative, redeeming power. For instance, Exodus 31:16,17 says, “Wherefore the children of Israel shall keep the sabbath, to observe the sabbath throughout their generations, for a perpetual covenant. It is a sign between me and the children of Israel for ever: for in six days the LORD made heaven and earth, and on the seventh day he rested, and was refreshed.”
Furthermore, “I gave them my sabbaths, to be a sign between me and them, that they might know that I am the LORD that sanctify them” (Ezekiel 20:12). “And hallow my sabbaths; and they shall be a sign between me and you, that ye may know that I am the LORD your God” (Ezekiel 20:20). Keep in mind, the Bible never calls it the Sabbath of the Jews. He calls the Sabbath “My Holy Day” (Isaiah 58:13) and “the sabbath of the LORD thy God (Exodus 20:10). We all know that every real love relationship needs a regular investment of quality time. Throughout history, the devil has tried to erode the relationship of God’s people with their Creator by leading them to neglect or ignore His holy Sabbath. Every Sabbath, the 144,000 demonstrate that God has His seal and name in their minds, because they recognize all their time belongs to God. Jesus said, “Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest” (Matthew 11:28). Keeping the Sabbath demonstrates that they are resting from their own works and are trusting in Jesus.

So Who Are They?
At the time of Jesus’ first coming, He chose 12 men to reach Israel. “These twelve Jesus sent out and commanded them, saying: ‘Do not go into the way of the Gentiles, and do not enter a city of the Samaritans. But go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel’” (Matthew 10:5, 6). With the out- pouring of the former rain, the 12 apostles reached thousands during the Pentecost revival. At first they were all Jews. “And there were dwelling at Jerusalem Jews, devout men, out of every nation under heaven” (Acts 2:5). And at the time of Jesus’ second coming, from the outpouring of the latter rain (the Holy Spirit), 12 times 12,000 will reach a great multitude around the world. The great multitude is converted under the influence and preaching of the 144,000!
In Joel 2:28, 29, we read “And it shall come to pass afterward That I will pour out My Spirit on all flesh; Your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, Your old men shall dream dreams, Your young men shall see visions. And also on My menservants and on My maidservants I will pour out My Spirit in those days.”
Please keep in mind that the 144,000 are not the only ones that Jesus is using to preach in the last days—just as the 12 apostles were only part of the 120 in the upper room that led out in the Pentecost revival (Acts 1:15). Not only did Jesus send out the 12 to preach in Israel, but another time He sent out a team of 70 to preach (Luke 10:1). The 144,000 are the spiritual leaders in this revival and not the only ones preaching.
For further clarification, lets look at some of the many parallels between the 12 Apostles and the 144,000:

12 Apostles
Literal Jews
Time of first coming
Number is complete and they are sealed with the Spirit (Acts 1-2)
Work with former rain of Holy Spirit (Acts 2:17)
Firstfruits of Jesus first coming (James 1:18)
Thousands of Jews converted (Acts 2:5)
Have Jesus Name (Acts 3:16)
No Guile (John 1:47)
Follow Jesus (John 1:37)
Lead thousands in loudly proclaiming
Jesus King with palms (Mat 21:1-9)
Work before a great persecution in Jerusalem (Acts 8:1)
The 12 Sing a song with Jesus (Mat 26:30)
Rested on the Sabbath (Luke 23:56; Acts 17:2)
Not defiled with leaven of Pharisees (Mark 7:1-15)
Will sit on twelve thrones Judging (Mat 19:28)

144,000 Apostles
Spiritual Israel (Gal 3:29)
Time of second coming (Rev 7)
Number is complete then sealed (Rev 7; Eph 4:30)
Work with latter rain of Holy Spirit (Joel 2:28)
Firstfruits of second coming (Rev 14:4)
Great multitude converted (Rev 7:9)
Have Fathers name (Rev 14:1)
No guile (Rev 14:5)
Follow the Lamb (Rev 14:4)
Lead great multitude in loudly proclaiming Jesus King
with palms (Rev 7:9,10)
Work before a great persecution in the world (Dan 12:1)
The 144,000 sing a song with The Lamb (Rev 14:3)
Have the Sabbath seal of God and Father’s name (Rev 7:1; 14:1)
Not defiled with doctrines of Babylon (Rev 14:4)
Will sit with Jesus on 144,000 thrones
judging (Rev 20:4)

The most important factor is the Bible’s emphasis on the holy condition of this group. It is a reminder to all that Jesus is calling each one of us to be holy. “These are the ones who were not defiled with women, for they are virgins. These are the ones who follow the Lamb wherever He goes” (Revelation 14:4).
If we would follow the Lamb wherever He goes to heaven, we must first follow Him all the way here now. And then we can sing together the song of Moses and the Lamb.

Conclusion
Just before the Lord poured out the Holy Spirit in Acts 2, something interesting happens in Acts 1. The assembled disciples watch Jesus ascend and listen as the angels promise Jesus’ return (verse 11). Then they pray and put aside their differences in the upper room (verse 13). One of the 12 apostles, Judas, was dead and he needed to be replaced to restore the number 12 (verse 26). Then as soon as the number is complete, the Holy Spirit is poured out. Jesus blessed, trained, and filled with the Spirit 12 people to lead His disciples in reaching the house of Israel for His first coming. He will bless and choose 12 times 12,000 to lead His church in reaching the world for His second coming. Then there will be a great multitude converted as a result of their preaching.

DOUG BATCHELOR

The Discipline of Trial

To live such a life, to exert such an influence, costs at every step effort, self-sacrifice, discipline. It is because they do not understand this that many are so easily discouraged in the Christian life. Many who sincerely consecrate their lives to God’s service are surprised and disappointed to find themselves, as never before, confronted by obstacles and beset by trials and perplexities. They pray for Christlikeness of character, for a fitness for the Lord’s work, and they are placed in circumstances that seem to call forth all the evil of their nature. Faults are revealed of which they did not even suspect the existence. Like Israel of old they question, “If God is leading us, why do all these things come upon us?”

It is because God is leading them that these things come upon them. Trials and obstacles are the Lord’s chosen methods of discipline and His appointed conditions of success. He who reads the hearts of men knows their characters better than they themselves know them. He sees that some have powers and susceptibilities which, rightly directed, might be used in the advancement of His work. In His providence He brings these persons into different positions and varied circumstances that they may discover in their character the defects which have been concealed from their own knowledge. He gives them opportunity to correct these defects and to fit themselves for His service. Often He permits the fires of affliction to assail them that they may be purified.

The fact that we are called upon to endure trial shows that the Lord Jesus sees in us something precious which He desires to develop. If He saw in us nothing whereby He might glorify His name, He would not spend time in refining us. He does not cast worthless stones into His furnace. It is valuable ore that He refines. The blacksmith puts the iron and steel into the fire that he may know what manner of metal they are. The Lord allows His chosen ones to be placed in the furnace of affliction to prove what temper they are of and whether they can be fashioned for His work.

The potter takes the clay and molds it according to his will. He kneads it and works it. He tears it apart and presses it together. He wets it and then dries it. He lets it lie for a while without touching it. When it is perfectly pliable, he continues the work of making of it a vessel. He forms it into shape and on the wheel trims and polishes it. He dries it in the sun and bakes it in the oven. Thus it becomes a vessel fit for use. So the great Master Worker desires to mold and fashion us. And as the clay is in the hands of the potter, so are we to be in His hands. We are not to try to do the work of the potter. Our part is to yield ourselves to be molded by the Master Worker.

“Beloved, think it not strange concerning the fiery trial which is to try you, as though some strange thing happened unto you: but rejoice, inasmuch as ye are partakers of Christ’s sufferings; that, when His glory shall be revealed, ye may be glad also with exceeding joy.” 1 Peter 4:12, 13.

In the full light of day, and in hearing of the music of other voices, the caged bird will not sing the song that his master seeks to teach him. He learns a snatch of this, a trill of that, but never a separate and entire melody. But the master covers the cage, and places it where the bird will listen to the one song he is to sing. In the dark, he tries and tries again to sing that song until it is learned, and he breaks forth in perfect melody. Then the bird is brought forth, and ever after he can sing that song in the light. Thus God deals with His children. He has a song to teach us, and when we have learned it amid the shadows of affliction we can sing it ever afterward.

Help in daily living (Ellen G. White)

Best Series of Books

Conflict of the Ages Series

Read Your Bible Foremost 

In Order From Left to Right:

1.  Patriarchs and Prophets: Genesis to the end of king David's reign
2.  Prophets and Kings: King Solomon's reign to the last prophetic book of the old testament
3.  The Desire of Ages: Covering the life and ministry of Jesus
4.  The Acts of the Apostles: describing the 12 apostles and the early Christian church 
5.  The Great Controversy: About the church history viewed in terms of the conflict between Christ and Satan.