Logo Copyright © 2007 NCCG - All Rights Reserved
Return to Main Page

RESOURCES

Disclaimer

Introduction

Symphony of Truth

In a Nutshell

Topical Guide

5-144000

5 Commissions

10 Commandments

333 NCCG Number

144,000, The

A

Action Stations

Agency, Free

Alcohol

Angels

Anointing

Apostles

Apostolic Interviews

Apostolic Epistles

Archive, Complete

Articles & Sermons

Atheism

Atonement

B

Banners

Baptism, Water

Baptism, Fire

Becoming a Christian

Bible Codes

Bible Courses

Bible & Creed

C

Calendar of Festivals

Celibacy

Charismata & Tongues

Chavurat Bekorot

Christian Paganism

Chrism, Confirmation

Christmas

Church, Fellowship

Contact us

Constitution

Copyright

Covenants & Vows

Critics

Culture

Cults

D

Deliverance

Demons

Desperation

Diaries

Discipleship

Dreams

E

Ephraimite Page, The

Essene Christianity

Existentialism

F

Faith

Family, The

Feminism

FAQ

Festivals of Yahweh

Festivals Calendar

Freedom

G

Gay Christians

Gnosticism

Godhead, The

H

Heaven

Heresy

Healing

Health

Hebrew Roots

Hell

Hinduism

History

Holiness

Holy Echad Marriage

Holy Order, The

Home Education

Homosexuality

Human Nature

Humour

Hymnody

I

Intro to NCCG.ORG

Islam

J

Jewish Page, The

Judaism, Messianic

Judaism, Talmudic

K

KJV-Only Cult

L

Links

Love

M

Marriage & Romance

Membership

Miracles

Messianic Judaism

Mormonism

Music

Mysticism

N

NCCG Life

NCCG Origins

NCCG Organisation

NCCG, Spirit of

NCCG Theology

NDE's

Nefilim

New Age & Occult

NCMHL

NCMM

New Covenant Torah

Norwegian Website

O

Occult Book, The

Occult Page, The

Olive Branch

Orphanages

P

Paganism, Christian

Pentecost

Poetry

Politics

Prayer

Pre-existence

Priesthood

Prophecy

Q

Questions

R

Rapture

Reincarnation

Resurrection

Revelation

RDP Page

S

Sabbath

Salvation

Satanic Ritual Abuse

Satanism

Science

Sermons & Articles

Sermons Misc

Sermonettes

Sex

Smoking

Sonship

Stewardship

Suffering

Swedish Website

T

Talmudic Judaism

Testimonies

Tithing

Tongues & Charismata

Torah

Trinity

True Church, The

TV

U

UFO's

United Order, The

V

Visions

W

Wicca & the Occult

Women

World News

Y

Yah'shua (Jesus)

Yahweh

Z

Zion


Month 7:15, Week 2:7 (Shibi'i/Sukkot), Year:Day 5939:193 AM
2Exodus 2/40, 4th Sh'mittah - Year 49/50,
USA Judgment - Day #T-12, Global Judgment - Day #T-99
Gregorian Calendar Monday 28 September 2015
Sukkot I 2015
Fruit of the Bride
and the Red Dragon Cast Down

    Introduction

    Chag sameach Sukkot mishpachah and shabbat shalom! Welcome to the first day of the seven day-long Feast of Tabernacles [1].

    The Blood Red Moon Seen

    I know most of you were up at around 4 a.m. before dawn and the start of the sabbath to witness the blood red moon which was clearly visible from Sweden. As you all know, I do not personally attribute this to any prophetic sign and certainly not to the one in Joel 2:31 (see Red Blood Moons: Beware of False Prophecies!) so I have not paid any attention to any of the hype and pop-'prophets' or got caught up in all the hysteria. If the blood red moon, which is not uncommon, witnesses of anything it is of the beauty of the Creator and the Creation. So I will say no more of that this morning other than to remark that some of you look bleary-eyed from having had your sleep interrupted and hope you will remain awake for the duration of my address!

    A 'UFO' Experience - the Dragon Falling from Heaven?

    There was, however, an interesting incident after I watched the blood moon from the front of the house and took some not very good pictures of it as it was hazy. My wife remarked to me that she was looking at a UFO and that I should come and see it (we see hundreds from our house). But I was tired and cold and remarked, "UFOs are a dime a dozen" and planned to go to bed. But something within persuaded me to grab the camera tripod and go outside to the back of the house. I looked to where my wife and others had been observing it moving around all over the place and decided to take a photograph of it. It was the brighest object in the sky and as it wasn't twinkling I assumed it was a planet and decided I would take a picture or two of it out of curiosity (see above-right for a short exposure of the 'head'). When I got inside, ready to go to bed, and looked at it, my jaw dropped. Not only was it not a planet or a regular 'Sentinal' UFO (as I call them) but had a long, dark, irregular tail that was clearly visible on the long exposure picture I had taken, something I had not seen at the time and the likes of which I have never seen before in the hundreds of UFOs I have seen over the years. As I was looking at this, a Scripture came to mind most emphatically:

      "And there was war in heaven. Michael and his malakim (angels) fought against the dragon, and the dragon and his malakim (angels) fought back. But he was not strong enough, and they lost their place in heaven. The great dragon was hurled down - that ancient serpent called the devil, or Satan, who leads the whole world astray. He was hurled to the earth, and his malakim (angels) with him" (Rev.12:7-9, NIV).

      "[The Red Dragon's] tail swept a third of the stars (malakim/angels) out of the sky (heaven - the original rebellion - Is.14:12ff.; Ezek.28:11ff.) and flung them to the earth. The dragon stood in front of the woman (Messianic Israel) who was about to give birth, so that he might devour her child the moment it was born. She gave birth to a son, a male child (Messiah), who will rule all the nations with an iron scepter. And her child was snatched up to Elohim (God) and to his throne. The woman fled into the desert to a place prepared for her by Elohim (God), where she might be taken care of for 1,260 days" (Rev.12:4-6, NIV).

    Taken around 4.30 am, GMT+1, Värmland, Sweden
    (Copyright © 2015 C.C.Warren - All Rights Reserved)

    Cycles of Repeating Prophetic History

    These events in these very difficult passages have been interpreted variously to have occurred at different times. According to our understanding of prophetic cycles, similar or repeating events occur in different ages or aeons that find their culmination in a final event that is emphasised in the prophecy. As we believe the current tribulation is a dress-rehearsal of the final one, it would naturally follow that a similar tavnith (pattern) would be enacted. Now I don't know whether I witnessed Lucifer being cast out of heaven in order to permissively carry out Yahweh's current judgment or not but I rate the possibility as certainly very high. Never have I seen a 'UFO' with a tail like this, let alone a dark tail! So you can draw your own conclusions. But if my understanding is correct, then it is more than remotely possible that the Dragon will 'reach earth' in a very short period of time, possibly even by, or on, 10 October, depending on the 'rate of descent', however that is to be measured. The 'UFO' looked stationary to me though my wife and other family members say it had been moving earlier, though as more than one UFO was observed at the same time last night, this might not have been the one they saw. I just think it is more than a coincidence that I saw this:

    • 1. On the eve of Sukkot;
    • 2. At the time the Blood-Red Moon was visible and everyone's attention was focussed on that; and
    • 3. Days before the 10 October Judgment.

    Gathered for Sukkot

    So blood moons, UFO's and Lucifer possibly being cast down to the earth last night aside, let us get to the main reason we are assembled today! We are gathered for the final and greatest feast of the Israelite agricultural year, the third and last of the three annual pilgrim festivals [2]. It celebrated the harvest of grapes and olives and the end of the harvest season in general. It is also referred to as the Festival of Ingathering (Ex.23:16; 34:22), the Feast of Yahweh (Lev.23:39,41) or quite simply the "appointed feast" (Lam.2:6-7; Hos.12:9, NRSV) or even simply "the feast" (1 Ki.8:2,65; 12:32, NRSV).

    A Harvest Festival

    We are commanded to celebrate this feast after the autumn (fall) harvest (Dt.16:13; Lev.23:39) between the 15th and 22nd days of the 7th month (Lev.23:34; Num.29:12-38). It is a time of celebration that begins and ends with a sabbath. What are we celebrating? We are celebrating the work of harvest completed and particularly now, at this critical time, it ought to be a celebration also of the completion of our prepping for the dark days ahead. And in its most important sense, Sukkot is a celebration of the final harvest of souls when Yah'shua (Jesus) comes for His Bride.

      "Hallelujah! For Yahweh-Elohim Almighty reigns. Let us rejoice and be glad and give Him glory! For the wedding of the Lamb has come, and His bride has made herself ready" (Rev.19:6-7, NIV).

    Those Who Do Not Have Cause to Celebrate at Sukkot

    Now a farmer who failed to gather his harvest in, for whatever reason, would have little cause to celebrate. Why? Because it would mean that his family would starve over the winter. So this is a time of thankfulness that Yahweh has provided through the diligence of our labour and emunah (faith).

    The Impact of the Sh'mittah and Yovel at Sukkot

    Now admittedly this year is a little different (because it is the Sh'mittah or Sabbatical year which began last spring) as will the next year (because it is the Yovel or Jubilee Year which begins as the Sh'mittah ends and the next year begins). Yahweh promised to His faithful and obedient qodeshim (saints, set-apart ones) that before a regular Sh'mittah started that He would provide a double bumper crop and on the Sh'mittah before the Yovel an even bigger triple bumper crop. So most especially at this time of the year - at Sukkot - when no harvesting would have been done - prayers of thankfulness would have been raised for provision for the six or seven months of that Sh'mittah.

    The Reward and Testimony of the Faithful

    Just as a farmer would have little cause for rejoicing at Sukkot had he not harvested, so he would have even less cause for celebration knowing he had not got in a double crop the previous spring in preparation for the Sh'mittah. In His great mercy, Yahweh had caused the time of woes in this Judgment to occur during the Sh'mittah and Yovel periods as a reward and a testimony to those who have been obedient and made the necessary sacrifices to prepare. So the celebration is as much to do with celebrating an agricultural event as it has to do with being rewarded for faithfulness and obedience. For those who have been this faithful and obedient, this is a time in which they are commanded to rest and rejoice (Lev.23:39-40). And in a way, the Sh'mittah is also a 'rest' year for the qodeshim (saints, set-apart ones) too since they are not required to till or tend the ground. They would not be 'resting' the entire Sh'mittah, obviously, because they would have their livestock to take care of too and numerous other matters. But for this Sukkot week we are commanded to rest, and even during a non-Sh'mittah or non-Yovel year they would at least be able to forget their fields which had been harvested.

    The Threefold Distribution of the Tithe

    In addition to resting, the people were commanded to rejoice (Lev.23:39-40) and to eat and drink using the festival tithe of their crops (cp. Dt.14:22-26). Most non-messianics are unaware, because they have been taught a false doctrine concerning the tithe, that the tenth was not to be used just for the ministers and the ministry. Only one-third of the tenth was ever for the ministry - of the remaining two-thirds, one-third was to be used to take care of the poor and the remaining one-third was to be diligently saved - that is to say, set-apart or made qadosh (holy) - and used exclusively for use at the festivals: for the purchase of food, travel and accommodation, as required. When ministers and churches demand the full 10 percent tithe for themselves, they are robbing Yahweh, robbing the poor and disobeying the mitzvah (commandment) to organise or attend the festivals.

    Food or Money?

    It should also be pointed out that the tithe in those days was of food because this was an almost entirely agricultural society. Provision was made in the Torah to convert this into money and the food would be sold and the money used to, for example, enable travel and the purchase of acccomodation, the latter for the male family representatives who had to travel up to Jerusalem. Today we do not live in an agricultural society, at least not in the first world, making a plain tithing of food impractical. Hence tithing is mostly in money since most people aren't farmers, herders or fishermen and don't get paid in vegetables, meat or fish.

    The Making of Shelters

    Finally, the celebrants at Sukkot were commanded to construct temporary shelters or sukkot, which we traditionally translate as either 'tabernacles' or 'booths' in English, in which to eat and sleep during the feast (Neh.8:14-17), reminding them of Yahweh's protection during the first wilderness wanderings (Lev.23:42-43). Today we both remember that Sinai wandering and the second and last great Exodus, which began last year and is unfolding before our very eyes as we stand at this important juncture in time in which we leave one aeon and enter the last one before the Second Coming of our Messiah.

    The 71 Bulls

    Finally, under the Old Covenant, there were, of course, the prescribed animal and other sacrifices, including a unique one of a descending number of bulls each day, beginning with 13 the first day and concluding with 7 the final day, making a total of 71 bulls (Num.29:13-38) [3].

    The Reading of Torah at Sukkot During the Sh'mittah Year

    And every seventh year, during the Sh'mittah or Sabbatical Year, the entire Torah was to be read over the course of the days of Sukkot (Dt.31:10-11). For those who do not know the Torah (Law, Teaching) well, or not at all, this is the perfect opportunity to become acquainted with, or knowledgable in, it. So one of the purposes of Sukkot during a Sh'mittah year is to ensure that all the people know the Law. So if you don't know it, you are commanded by Yahweh to do something about that during the next seven days! For it is written:

      "At the end of every seven years, in the year for canceling debts (Sh'mittah), during Sukkot (the Feast of Tabernacles), when all Israel comes to appear before Yahweh your Elohim (God) at the place He will choose (Jerusalem), you shall read this Torah (Law) before them in their hearing. Assemble the people -- men, women and children, and the aliens living in your towns -- so they can listen and learn to fear Yahweh your Elohim (God) and follow carefully all the devarim (words) of this Torah (Law). Their children, who do not know this Torah (Law), must hear it and learn to fear Yahweh your Elohim (God) as long as you live in the land you are crossing the Jordan to possess" (Deut.31:10-13, NIV).

    Becoming Diligent Scripture Students

    Today, of course, we live New Covenant Torah which means we must also know the Torah of our Messiah, Yah'shua (Jesus)! Now that we have readily available Scriptures, which the ancients did not before the advent of the printing press, we can do our own studying too, and indeed are admonished to do so. Becoming familiar with the written Davar (Word) therefore becomes of primary importance, both so that we can know the lifestyle that is pleasing to Yahweh and also that we may know what sin is, that we might repent of it and not sever our relationship with Yahweh through carelessness or wonton lawlessness and disobedience. In this matter the Bereans of old have set us an excellent example.

    What the Rabbis Added to Sukkot

    Many embellishments were added to this festival in the post-exilic period after Judah returned from Babylon to the Holy Land, her cohenim (priests) very much corrupted by the leavening of the pagan society in which they had lived for 70 years. These included the lighting of giant menorahs in the Courtyard, the seven-armed candlesticks reserved for use in the Sanctuary only, thus destroying the sacred tavnith or pattern revealed by Yahweh to His servant Moses. These giant structures were lit all night. There was also dancing to flutes by torchlight followed by dawn processions ending with libations of water and wine at the bronze altar, prayers for rain and resurrection of the dead, the cohenim (priests) marching around the altar and the people carrying fruit and waving palm branches.

    Sukkot and Hanukkah During the Maccabee Times

    Many of these priestly traditions have carried over into Messianic Judaism and though they are very spectacular and beautiful, they are nowhere commanded by Yahweh and are presumptuous to say the least. When the Cohen Gadol (High Priest) Alexander Jannaeus, around 100 BC, refused to offer the libations, troops were called in to quell the ensuing riot that left 6,000 people dead [4]. Over the centuries Sukkot came to be tied to Jewish hopes of a Davidic messiah and national independence, Judas Maccabee using the modified feast as a model for his rededication of the Jerusalem altar in 164 BC (1 Macc.4:54-59), an observance which later evolved into the Pharisee festival of Hanukkah (2 Macc.1:1-36) which is not a part of Torah and was never commanded by Yahweh. Originally a late Sukkot, because of the Greek oppression, it evolved into something quite different and semi-pagan.

    Sukkot in the New Testament

    Only the Gospel of John mentions Sukkot (Jn.7:2) and theologians have speculated that Yah'shua (Jesus) referring to Himself as "living water" may in some way connect to the later dawn water libation practice in post-exilic Sukkot. Certainly it would have been characteristic of Yah'shua's (Jesus') teaching methods to use illustrations from the environment and even non-kosher practices, as Paul was later to do in pagan Athens (Ac.17:22ff.).

    What We Want Out of Sukkot

    As Messianic Evangelicals, we keep Sukkot simple and do not include post-exilic practices because we are searching for pure, uncorrupted spiritual patterns, for that is what is the most important to us. We want to understand the practical application of Sukkot - and indeed of all the moedim (appointments) of Yahweh) - in this B'rit Chadashah or New Covenant. Our goal is communion, worship and revelation for the here-and-now so that by the time Sukkot has ended we have not simply performed a ceremony or ritual or merely had some fellowshipping time but have met Yah'shua (Jesus) through the Ruach haShibi'i in a new and living way and have received whatever it is by way of endowment that Yahweh would impart to us at this time, according to our readiness to receive it and to share it in evangelism and discipling.

    A Long Preparation

    In many ways, we have been preparing for this festival for the last 85 days since the original countdown for the Judgment of the United States began on 26 June. That's almost three months, twice as long as the preparations we made for the spring Dedication. And whilst the countdown ends five days after the end of Sukkot and Shemini Atseret, for us the spiritual focus and goal has always been this festival. We have passed through the Day of Atonements or the Day of Judgment at Yom haKippurim fasting and now we have come to celebrate. I believe that the national judgment time was purposefully set by Yahweh to come after the conclusion of the Feast of Tabernacles because He wants His people fully prepared both physically and spiritually for tribulation. The physical preparations should be done and, who knows, it may not be possible for many or most to do much of anything in that area after 10 October - we shall have to wait and see.

    The World's Troubles Mount Steadily

    With Russians, Chinese and Iranian troops pouring into Syria to engage ISIS, and NATO under the leadership of Obama threatening to ignite a Third World War; and witht Obama, the Pope and the United Nations making concordats and strongly hinting at a globalists take-over and the start of a one world religion, anything could happen. We are not, however, gathered over the next 7-8 days in order to fret about what is going on in the world but to turn our eyes fully on Yah'shua (Jesus) and to let the Ruler of the Universe deal with all that is going on inside. This is a gathering time for Yahweh's people, we are here to celebrate and rejoice in our Bridegroom-to-come and to rejoice in His presence in the Ruach (Spirit) here and now.

    Who is the Bride?

    Today we can ask no more important question, who is the Bride? Today will one day be an allegorical wedding in Heaven. But who will have qualified to become that glorious Bride? What will her hallmark be, as it were? How will she be identified? I believe we can answer that question in a single word and it is not, as so many Christians suppose, because she is saved. Of course, no unsaved soul can ever be a part of that Bride. Our salvation is determined by the spring festivals, not the autumn (fall), of which Sukkot is the apex. You will find the answer on the blue altar which has been arranged slightly differently this year. Yes, the distinguishing mark of the Bride, who by default must be saved - one trusting in the blood of the Messiah - is her FRUITS.

    David Dickson - the Thoughts of a Dying Man

    A celebrated non-Confirmist Scottish preacher from Glasgow, David Dickson (1583-1663), was lying on his deathbed. He was asked what his final thoughts were as he prepared to meet his Maker. His answer was this:

      "I am gathering up all my good works, and all my bad words, tying them into one bundle, and thowing them all alike down at the foot of the cross, and I am resting alone in the finished work of Yah'shua (Jesus)."

    The Necessity of the Cross for Salvation

    Our profession of genuine emunah (faith) is what gets us into heaven. The One in whom we are trusting, and specifically, the One who died on the cross and shed His blood for us, is what gets us into heaven. We all know here that there has to be a genuine spiritual regeneration and that all spiritual regeneration so-called that does not rely on the blood shed for us at Calvary is counterfeit, psychic 'regeneration' that has no eternal dimension. Those who abandon the cross, for instance, who once trusted in it, have no tiqveh (hope) whatsoever.

    Backsliders and 'Once Saved, Always Saved'

    Equally, someone who has been regenerated and who backslides into habitual sin and makes no attempt to put this right through making teshuvah (repentance) is playing worse than Russian roulette because every chamber of that metaphorical pistol has a bullet in it. A man who having accepted the cross and then deliberately spurns it cannot expect to be saved. We know the lie of once saved, always saved, which is as absurd as a guest, having been invited to your home, proceeds to smask the place up, abuse and attack its occupants, and then expects to be welcomed back next time even when he continues to have the disposition to harm his hosts. 'Once welcomed, always welcomed' would be equally absurd without a proper repentance and works to demonstrate that he is again trustworthy.

    Character is the Main Fruit

    The Scriptures are clear in telling us that our character should give weight to our profession of religion. Our character reveals what kind of spiritual fruits there are in our life. Sukkot is the harvest festival and fruit is the centre-piece of the Marriage Feast. Fruit is what you bring to the feast that you may be filled. We are the fruit, if we bring it forth in sufficient abundance, and Yah'shua (Jesus) calls us forth so that He may enjoy us, and in reciprocation, we may in turn enjoy Him.

    An Illustration from the Song of Solomon

    We have a clue as to the proper relationship the Bride is so supposed to have with the Bridegroom in the Song of Solomon which many interpret as an allegory of the union between Messiah and His Bride. Our clue is in the form of a question asked by some impartial onlookers to Solomon's Shunamite wife:

      "How is your beloved better than others, most beautiful of women? How is your beloved better than others, that you charge us so?" (Song 5:9, NIV).

    How is the Bride Wonderful?

    Unbelievers will want to know why Yah'shua (Jesus) the Bridegroom is more special to us than anyone else upon whom we make the object of our greatest love. Genuine seekers after the emet (truth) will only ask such a question of one who is the "most beautiful of women". It is the fact that she is attractive that prompt them to ask about the Bridegroom. It is the fact that one who professes the Name of Messiah possesses something utterly wonderful that they do not have, and are attracted to, and want, that will persuade them to seek after the Bridegroom themselves. And what is it that is so wonderful that excites their interest? Is it because the Bride is a good theologian? Is it because the Bride dresses well? Is it because she is lucky? Is it because she attends a church or assembly every week? Is it because she possesses a fine leatherbound Bible? Is it because she tells a good yard or because she is witty? Is it because she has good logical sense? Such things may attract the carnal but it is not what attracts the Heavenly Bridegroom.

    What the Onlookers are Attracted By

    What is it that attracts these onlookers so powerfully? The impartial onlookers want to know what it is the king sees in her. What woman does not want to be married to a godly king?! For the beauty that the Heavenly King sees in a soul that He desires is not outward form - not mere profession of faith, not dissertation of the emet (truth) - but CHARACTER. And that character is formed by the Bride's object of trusting and the Presence that is unmistakably in her. Her character is her fruits.

    Qualifications for Sukkot

    We are all of us called to be witnesses, which I spoke to you about recently, but what is the greatest witnessing tool a true believer possesses? It is his or her character. That is our primary witness. That something has changed in us from what we were before we were saved, and that that something is good and desirable. If the honest, seeking unbeliever could discourse on it he would, but he cannot, because its source is unknown. He only knows that he seem something immensely beautiful and attractive, that he lacks it and that he wants it. He sees Messiah-in-the Bride and that is the magnet that leads him to want to know about the Bridegroom. That is the only witness that has any substance. And it is that substance that qualifies a regenerated believer to attend the final Sukkot, the Marriage Feast of the Lamb.

    Nobility of the Soul

    There is nobility in the soul that is regenerated, and the unsaved folk know it, and are fascinated by it. The evil folk hate it and persecute those who have it because they are jealous of it and refuse, because of their pride, to obtain it through the only way they can, which is self-surrender and repentance. Many are the devious ways that sinful men and women react to this nobility. Excuses will be made. Devious ways, which have no possibility of success, will be employed to get it. For there is only one way to obtain this divine character and it is always through surrender.

    Consistency and Genuineness

    The world will not care about the testimony of your mouth if your daily life's conduct does not match up to your profession of emunah (faith). They will only care to listen if your life is marked by a passion for emet (truth) and honesty; they will only care to listen if your spirit is lovely, pure and of good report. And even though many will persecute you for these things, they will still value them and desire them. The battle for them - the overcoming they must do - is to be done with the crooked ways they have hitherto employed to get them, crooked wys that repeatedly fail and which they yet continue to employ because they refuse to come to the Master through the narrow gate and along the strait path (Mt.7:13-14). All of these virtues combine to give consistency and by that I mean the person thus endowed with godly character will always be the same to everyone he or she meets. He is not one thing to one person, and another thing to another person. He does not put on airs and graces. He does not have multiple persona. He is who he really is, all the time, without guile, without pretense.

    The Consistent Scoundrel

    Now it is obviously true that a person can be a consistent scoundrel, but they do at least possess the virtue, if we can call it that, of being who they really are without any sort of acting. There is more hope for one who is consistenty and openly a sinner than one who is pretending to be one thing with one person and pretending to be something else with someone else. However, consistent evil must also be repented of. The consistent sinner should take no pride in his wickedness. But at least you can deal with him directly and he will not go and change masks in order to appeal to one group of people while waging war on another.

    Mixing Godliness With Perversion

    You cannot sing the songs of Zion today and tomorrow sing the songs of lusty perversion. You cannot be honest today and dishonest tomorrow. You cannot put on the yoke of Messiah one day and then become the slave of Satan on another. There is nothing attractive in such a bride who does such things and indeed the king will have no pleasure in her. Moreover, her witness for righteousness will be worse than useless. She will rightly be marked as a hypocrite and wholly untrustworthy. She may well be saved as she struggles to work out her salvation, but she has not yet come up to Sukkot. She has yet to learn the lessons of Chag haMatzah, of getting the major leaven of sin out of her life. She has not yet come up to the Marriage Feast of the Lamb.

    The Detestible Bride

    To make your life whole and consistent is to simultaneously make that life powerful and victorious. And when the Ruach haQodesh (Holy Spirit) enables you to do this, then your testimony will have a powerful effect upon those with whom you live, whether at home or in society. There is nothing quite as detestable as a bride who is inconsistent, when she finds equally satisfying fellowhip amongst believers as with those who are enemies of the cross. What is the Roman Pontiff doing making friends with evil men such as Obama who is a vicious enemy of the cross? What is he doing pandering to the communistic United Nations agenda that wants a one world dictatorship? He has two faces, he is inconsistent, assuming he even knows our Messiah. We do not need such a witness of the Messiah for he is not one.

    The Lunatic

    There was once a poor creature in a lunatic assylum who believed he was a great person. "I am Napoleon Bonaparte! Give me some candy!" he cried pompously. What a ridiculous contrast. The real Napoleon would not have asked for candy but would have demanded something far grander, like a neighbouring principality, not a bag of mere sweets. A proud assertion - that he was the French dictator - was accompanied by a poor request - to be given some candy. Only a lunatic would have said such a thing.

    Of Inconsitent Believers

    Yet is this not precisely what inconsistent believers do? We know of people who say, by their actions, if not in words (for then they would expose themselves and their folly): "I am a Christian, but I will take advantage of you when I can; and I am of the royal blood lineage of Heaven, but...but...I like worldliness, and sensual pleasure, and carnal joviality as much as any worldly man!" and proceeds to offer excuses. And yet this is what professing believers, who do not possess the character and consistency that is demanded of Sukkot, who dare to claim a place at the King's right side as His allegorical wife! Can you think of anything more absurd? Yet this is the fruit of the 'once saved, always saved' doctrine. This is what thsoe believers who reject holiness and obedience demand! Such a demand would be so ludicrous were it not immensely sad, quite apart from being revolting and contemptible. If your life is not one whole, if you are not consistent, then the world will soon know what to do with your 'testimony' and will see you as either a fool or a wicked person, or both.

    The Qualifying Fruit of Holiness

    Consistency in holiness is the fruit that qualifies a soul to come up to the Marriage Feast of the Lamb. There must be no inconsistency in his life, no habitual sinning. There must be an end to such ugliness for such will not be owned by the Master in the most intimate of relationships.

    The Goal for the Rest of Sukkot

    I pray, over the next week, that we shall look earnestly into this matter for we cannot continue as the Remnant until we have inconsistency, dishonesty and pretense far away from us. The Remant can also fall and cease being the Remnant so do not rest your laurels or pride yourself as special, élite or immune from falling! There are already those who believe they are the Remnant, who are not, and who persist in living out an illusion. That illusion will be rudely and painfully exposed during the coming tribulation. Then there are those who discern they are not yet the Remnant but who have given up. It is never to late to repent, at least as far as the condition and character of your soul is concerned. They may get a thrashing for not having done all they ought to have done on time but they will at least save their souls and have obtained the character that is the object of our innermost and sincerest desire at this season.

    Conclusion

    So may Yahweh bless you as we focus opn this theme over the next week - what it is to be consistent in holiness. Amen.

    Continued in Part 2

    Endnotes

    [1] Eight days if you don't regard Shemini Atseret as a separate festival
    [2] Exodus 23:14-19; 34:22-24; Leviticus 23:33-36,39-43; Numbers 29:12-38; Deuteronomy 16:16-17; 31:9-13
    [3] See, Sukkot and the 13 Bulls: Mystery of the Tabernacles Sacrifices
    [4] Josephus, Antiquities of the Jews, 13.372-73

    back to list of contents

    Return to Main NCCG.ORG Index Page

    This page was created on 28 September 2015
    Last updated on 28 September 2015

    Copyright © 1987-2015 NCAY™ - All Rights Reserved