The coming days, an opportunity for the Church to carry out the Lord’s final instructions

Our Passover has passed. The Feast of First Fruits has been celebrated. We have now entered the days when 2000 thousand years ago the resurrected Lord Jesus was with His disciples for 40 days. For the next 10 days, the disciples waited in Jerusalem for the promise of the Father. Then at the Feast of Pentecost, the disciples were filled with the power of the Holy Spirit to be Christ’s witnesses to the world.  What was Jesus doing during those 40 days? It might give us a clue as to what He wants the Church to be doing in the coming days between Passover and Pentecost on May 29, 2020, and beyond.

It would be important to read and digest all of the scriptures dealing with what Jesus was doing during the 40 days He spent on earth before His ascension. But, for the sake of brevity let’s focus on the reason or purpose of these encounters.

Before Jesus’ death, He spoke to His disciples about things that were going to happen before the end of this current age. These “signs of the times” are certainly in our world today. But note that the Lord concludes with the statement that the gospel of the kingdom will be preached in all the world as a witness to all the nation, and then the end will come. Jesus leaves us with the key to His return, the preaching of the Gospel.

[Mat 24:1-14 NKJV] 1 Then Jesus went out and departed from the temple, and His disciples came up to show Him the buildings of the temple. 2 And Jesus said to them, "Do you not see all these things? Assuredly, I say to you, not one stone shall be left here upon another, that shall not be thrown down." 3 Now as He sat on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to Him privately, saying, "Tell us, when will these things be? And what will be the sign of Your coming, and of the end of the age?" 4 And Jesus answered and said to them: "Take heed that no one deceives you. 5 "For many will come in My name, saying, 'I am the Christ,' and will deceive many. 6 "And you will hear of wars and rumors of wars. See that you are not troubled; for all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet. 7 "For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. And there will be famines, pestilences, and earthquakes in various places. 8 "All these are the beginning of sorrows. 9 "Then they will deliver you up to tribulation and kill you, and you will be hated by all nations for My name's sake. 10 "And then many will be offended, will betray one another, and will hate one another. 11 "Then many false prophets will rise up and deceive many. 12 "And because lawlessness will abound, the love of many will grow cold. 13 "But he who endures to the end shall be saved. 14 "And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in all the world as a witness to all the nations, and then the end will come.

Paul gives us the same message in Romans 11 when he tells us that the final restoration of Israel is contingent upon the “Fulness of the gentiles has come in”, the preaching of the gospel to the nations is completed.

[Rom 11:25-27 NKJV] 25 For I do not desire, brethren, that you should be ignorant of this mystery, lest you should be wise in your own opinion, that blindness in part has happened to Israel until the fullness of the Gentiles has come in. 26 And so all Israel will be saved, as it is written: "The Deliverer will come out of Zion, And He will turn away ungodliness from Jacob; 27 For this is My covenant with them, When I take away their sins."

Now, after the resurrection, Jesus gives His disciples the great commission. Again, the emphasis is on the preaching of the gospel and the making of disciples of all the nations.

[Mat 28:16-20 NKJV] 16 Then the eleven disciples went away into Galilee, to the mountain which Jesus had appointed for them. 17 When they saw Him, they worshiped Him; but some doubted. 18 And Jesus came and spoke to them, saying, "All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. 19 "Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 "teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age." Amen. 

What Jesus was doing during those 40 days He spent with His disciples was preparing them for the assignment that lay before them. As the Father had sent Jesus, Jesus was sending them.

[Jhn 20:19-21 NKJV] 19 Then, the same day at evening, being the first day of the week, when the doors were shut where the disciples were assembled, for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood in the midst, and said to them, "Peace be with you." 20 When He had said this, He showed them His hands and His side. Then the disciples were glad when they saw the Lord. 21 So Jesus said to them again, "Peace to you! As the Father has sent Me, I also send you."

After Jesus commissioned His disciples, He then empowered them to carry out the commission just before His ascension into heaven. This empowering, this being immersed in or baptized in, the Holy Spirit came on the day of Pentecost. On that very day, the Church age began with the preaching of the gospel to all people and nations.

[Luk 24:44-49 NKJV] 44 Then He said to them, "These are the words which I spoke to you while I was still with you, that all things must be fulfilled which were written in the Law of Moses and the Prophets and the Psalms concerning Me." 45 And He opened their understanding, that they might comprehend the Scriptures. 46 Then He said to them, "Thus it is written, and thus it was necessary for the Christ to suffer and to rise from the dead the third day, 47 "and that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in His name to all nations, beginning at Jerusalem. 48 "And you are witnesses of these things. 49 "Behold, I send the Promise of My Father upon you; but tarry in the city of Jerusalem until you are endued with power from on high." 

[Act 1:4-9 NASB] 4 Gathering them together, He commanded them not to leave Jerusalem, but to wait for what the Father had promised, "Which," He said, "you heard of from Me; 5 for John baptized with water, but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now." 6 So when they had come together, they were asking Him, saying, "Lord, is it at this time You are restoring the kingdom to Israel?" 7 He said to them, "It is not for you to know times or epochs which the Father has fixed by His own authority; 8 but you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be My witnesses both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and even to the remotest part of the earth." 9 And after He had said these things, He was lifted up while they were looking on, and a cloud received Him out of their sight.

[Act 2:1-4, 16-21 NASB] 1 When the day of Pentecost had come, they were all together in one place. 2 And suddenly there came from heaven a noise like a violent rushing wind, and it filled the whole house where they were sitting. 3 And there appeared to them tongues as of fire distributing themselves, and they rested on each one of them. 4 And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit was giving them utterance. ...

Peter tells us that this was what was prophesied by the prophet Joel.

[Act 2:16-21 NKJV] 16 "But this is what was spoken by the prophet Joel: 17 'And it shall come to pass in the last days, says God, That I will pour out of My Spirit on all flesh; Your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, Your young men shall see visions, Your old men shall dream dreams. 18 And on My menservants and on My maidservants I will pour out My Spirit in those days; And they shall prophesy.

This initiated the days of the wheat harvest, the gathering of souls, both Jew and gentile into the Kingdom; the gathering of souls into the Kingdom of God through believing in Jesus as the Messiah. But the harvest time has an ending. As Paul taught us, there will be a day when the “fullness of the gentiles has come in”. But we need to remember that at the end of the wheat harvest is what is called the days of gleaning. A time when the workers were sent out to gather in remaining wheat that was in the corners and far reaches of the fields. Remember this from the book of Ruth. Joel gives us a possible hint that near the end of the church age (the wheat harvest), possibly as a part of the gleaning of the fields, this anointing of the Church with power might intensify or be pouring our as the “latter rain”. The latter rain was the early spring rain. The rain of Pentecost.

[Joe 2:23 NKJV] 23 Be glad then, you children of Zion, And rejoice in the LORD your God; For He has given you the former rain faithfully, And He will cause the rain to come down for you--The former rain, And the latter rain in the first month.

[Zec 10:1 NKJV] 1 Ask the LORD for rain In the time of the latter rain. The LORD will make flashing clouds; He will give them showers of rain, Grass in the field for everyone.

Paul in Acts 2:19-21 also hints that there would be a latter rain outpouring in the days just before the coming of the great and awesome final day of the Lord; the days preceding His second coming.

[Act 2:19-21 NKJV] 19 I will show wonders in heaven above And signs in the earth beneath: Blood and fire and vapor of smoke. 20 The sun shall be turned into darkness, And the moon into blood, Before the coming of the great and awesome day of the LORD. 21 And it shall come to pass That whoever calls on the name of the LORD Shall be saved.'

Could it be possible that the Lord is right now, in our day, preparing the Church for this latter-day outpouring of His Holy Spirit on Pentecost? Is the Lord right now, during these days before our Pentecost reminding us of our commission to take the gospel to the world, to disciple the nations, and to go out into the highways and byways (the corners of the wheat fields) to gather in the lost.

[Luk 14:16-24 NKJV] 16 Then He said to him, "A certain man gave a great supper and invited many, 17 "and sent his servant at supper time to say to those who were invited, 'Come, for all things are now ready.' 18 "But they all with one accord began to make excuses. The first said to him, 'I have bought a piece of ground, and I must go and see it. I ask you to have me excused.' 19 "And another said, 'I have bought five yoke of oxen, and I am going to test them. I ask you to have me excused.' 20 "Still another said, 'I have married a wife, and therefore I cannot come.' 21 "So that servant came and reported these things to his master. Then the master of the house, being angry, said to his servant, 'Go out quickly into the streets and lanes of the city, and bring in here the poor and the maimed and the lame and the blind.' 22 "And the servant said, 'Master, it is done as you commanded, and still there is room.' 23 "Then the master said to the servant, 'Go out into the highways and hedges, and compel them to come in, that my house may be filled. 24 'For I say to you that none of those men who were invited shall taste my supper.' "

[Mat 22:2-14 NKJV] 2 "The kingdom of heaven is like a certain king who arranged a marriage for his son, 3 "and sent out his servants to call those who were invited to the wedding; and they were not willing to come. 4 "Again, he sent out other servants, saying, 'Tell those who are invited, "See, I have prepared my dinner; my oxen and fatted cattle are killed, and all things are ready. Come to the wedding." ' 5 "But they made light of it and went their ways, one to his own farm, another to his business. 6 "And the rest seized his servants, treated them spitefully, and killed them. 7 "But when the king heard about it, he was furious. And he sent out his armies, destroyed those murderers, and burned up their city. 8 "Then he said to his servants, 'The wedding is ready, but those who were invited were not worthy. 9 'Therefore go into the highways, and as many as you find, invite to the wedding.' 10 "So those servants went out into the highways and gathered together all whom they found, both bad and good. And the wedding hall was filled with guests. 11 "But when the king came in to see the guests, he saw a man there who did not have on a wedding garment. 12 "So he said to him, 'Friend, how did you come in here without a wedding garment?' And he was speechless. 13 "Then the king said to the servants, 'Bind him hand and foot, take him away, and cast him into outer darkness; there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.' 14 "For many are called, but few are chosen."

Let all Christians remember our great commission. We have been given the authority to be the Lord’s ambassadors, to represent or re-present Him on this earth. We are being charged to go out into the highways and byways and compel the lost to come into His marvelous Kingdom through what Jesus did for us when He died and rose again to atone for our sins and give us the possibility of eternal life with Him. And we all need to ask the Lord to pour down His great power to accomplish this commission by asking once again for an anointing of the Holy Spirit’s power.

I suspect that these will not be easy times. There is much evil being manifested in our world today. There is a great spiritual war going on in the heavens and on the earth. Deception and spiritual blindness are rampant in our world today, even in the institutional churches. As never before we need to trust the Lord and His great plan for the future. We need to focus on the glory that is about to be revealed to us and through us.

[Rom 8:18 Amp] [But what of that?] For I consider that the sufferings of this present time (this present life) are not worth being compared with the glory that is about to be revealed to us and in us and ^[g]for us and ^[h]conferred on us!

We need to focus on the promises Jesus has given us, and on things which are above, not on things on the earth.

[Col 3:1-4 NKJV] 1 If then you were raised with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ is, sitting at the right hand of God. 2 Set your mind on things above, not on things on the earth. 3 For you died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God. 4 When Christ who is our life appears, then you also will appear with Him in glory.

Paul encourages us with these words.

[2Co 4:1-4 NKJV] 1 Therefore, since we have this ministry, as we have received mercy, we do not lose heart. 2 But we have renounced the hidden things of shame, not walking in craftiness nor handling the word of God deceitfully, but by manifestation of the truth commending ourselves to every man's conscience in the sight of God. 3 But even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing, 4 whose minds the god of this age has blinded, who do not believe, lest the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine on them.

[2Co 4:15-18 NKJV] 15 For all things are for your sakes, that grace, having spread through the many, may cause thanksgiving to abound to the glory of God. 16 Therefore we do not lose heart. Even though our outward man is perishing, yet the inward man is being renewed day by day. 17 For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, is working for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory, 18 while we do not look at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen. For the things which are seen are temporary, but the things which are not seen are eternal.

Trust God, trust His Plan, for the battle is the Lord’s!

[1Sa 17:45-47 NKJV] 45 Then David said to the Philistine, "You come to me with a sword, with a spear, and with a javelin. But I come to you in the name of the LORD of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied. 46 "This day the LORD will deliver you into my hand, and I will strike you and take your head from you. And this day I will give the carcasses of the camp of the Philistines to the birds of the air and the wild beasts of the earth, that all the earth may know that there is a God in Israel. 47 "Then all this assembly shall know that the LORD does not save with sword and spear; for the battle is the LORD's, and He will give you into our hands."

Each one of us has a part to plan in this great end-time drama. Some will be the front-line evangelists, some the intercessors, some the teachers, prophets, some the helpers, administrators, and backup troops.

[Eph 4:11-16 NKJV] 11 And He Himself gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers, 12 for the equipping of the saints for the work of ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ, 13 till we all come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a perfect man, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ; 14 that we should no longer be children, tossed to and fro and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, in the cunning craftiness of deceitful plotting, 15 but, speaking the truth in love, may grow up in all things into Him who is the head--Christ-- 16 from whom the whole body, joined and knit together by what every joint supplies, according to the effective working by which every part does its share, causes growth of the body for the edifying of itself in love.

I believe that we have been called for “such a time as this”. We are the Esthers (Hadassahs) of our day.

[Est 4:14-16 NKJV] 14 "For if you remain completely silent at this time, relief and deliverance will arise for the Jews from another place, but you and your father's house will perish. Yet who knows whether you have come to the kingdom for such a time as this?" 15 Then Esther told them to reply to Mordecai: 16 "Go, gather all the Jews who are present in Shushan, and fast for me; neither eat nor drink for three days, night or day. My maids and I will fast likewise. And so I will go to the king, which is against the law; and if I perish, I perish!"

The Lord’s spiritual army just like a worldly army needs all hands on deck. Seek your part. Seek your personal commission/assignment and the authority and power to execute your part well. In the end, we win because He has already won!!!!