Churches of the Twenty-First Century
The End of the Church Age
Speaking the generation of ago, evangelist Vance Havner said, “we are suffering today from a species of Christianity as dry as dust as cold as ice, as pale as a corpse, and is dead as King Tut. We are suffering not from a lack of correct heads but of consumed hearts.”
“And Jesus went out, and departed from the temple: and his disciples came to him for to show him the buildings of the temple. And Jesus said unto them, See ye, not all these things? verily I say unto you; There shall not be left here one stone upon another, that shall not be thrown down. And as he sat upon the mount of Olives, the disciples came unto him privately, saying, tell us, when shall these things be? and what shall be the sign of thy coming, and of the end of the world?” Matthew 24:1-3
Jesus had just told his disciples that the beautiful Temple they had left was going to be destroyed, and they wanted to know when will this happen? Also as Jews, they wanted the sign to prove the message was from God. They asked: “What is sign the sign of your coming? And also: “What is the sign of the end of the world?”
Matthew twenty-four and Luke twenty-one answer two of these questions and I covered this information in my book “Look Up; Redemption in this Generation.” The Book of the Revelation answers the other.
“I John, who also am your brother, and companion in tribulation, and in the kingdom and patience of Jesus Christ, was in the isle that is called Patmos, for the word of God, and for the testimony of Jesus Christ. I was in the Spirit on the Lord’s day, and heard behind me a great voice, as of a trumpet, Saying, I am Alpha and Omega, the first and the last: and, what thou seest, write in a book, and send it unto the seven churches which are in Asia; unto Ephesus, and unto Smyrna, and unto Pergamos, and unto Thyatira, and unto Sardis, and unto Philadelphia, and unto Laodicea.” Revelation 1:9-11
John is given a look into the future and shown the conclusion of all things concerning the creation of God in a series of sevens. There are fifty-four sevens in Revelation. Seven is the number of completion.
“I am he that liveth, and was dead; and, behold, I am alive for evermore, Amen; and have the keys of hell and of death. Write the things which thou hast seen, and the things which are, and the things which shall be hereafter;” Revelation 1:18-19
John is to write what he has seen in his past, concerning the Jesus he now sees in his Heavenly Glory. He is to write what is happening as he is exiled on
Jesus’ messages are to his churches concerning the Church Age that we are currently living in awaiting Jesus return. Lastly, John is to write about the future, revealing God’s reclaiming His world, the eternal judgment of sin, Jesus’ reign as King of Kings, and the new things God has in store for believers in the eternal heaven.
John first addressed the seven churches in Asia and delivered God's blessing and warning to each of them. These churches were individual Christian assemblies. But they also represented the types of churches that would always exist in the world until Jesus returns. In the next seven weeks I will present the churches in the twenty-first century with the same attributes, God's commendations and His admonitions still apply.
This information will be part of my new book ":Look-Out: The World Without Christians"coming in late 2018.