1
IT TOOK GOD 2000 YEARS TO DRESS THE BRIDE pt5
Pastor Charles Holmes
09-29-2013
60-1204E THE.PATMOS.VISION
240 ......
They taken Jesus up on the mountain... or He taken them up, and He was transfigured before them, transformed. His raiment shined like the sun in the middle of its strength, and there appeared unto Him Moses and Elijah. What form is the Son of man coming in now? And first, will appear, will be Moses and Elijah.
242 Now, notice, before Jesus returns to the earth... Now, this is a little ahead of time, but the Spirit of Elijah will return back to the earth and turn the hearts of the children back to the fathers. The Bible said so. Jesus saw him here, the apostles saw him here, the order of the coming of the Son of man glorified. He's to be glorified and coming back. The first thing, before they saw Him, was what? Elijah. Then what? Moses; Israel returning yonder, the law-keepers. And then the glorified Son of man. Hallelujah! Do you see the order of His coming? The Spirit of Elijah, or the witness of the last church age. See, coming in power to manifest Him.
243 Then a hundred and forty-four thousand Jews to gather on Mount Sinai, where Israel has become a nation itself; the oldest nation in the world, the oldest flag in the world; has their own nation, their own flag, their own army, their own money, and everything else. They are one of the members of the leagues of the nations because they are a nation. Jesus said they should never be cast away until all things was fulfilled.
The mysterious of how that bunch of Jews, persecuted everywhere, and turned out, and run out and throwed out, like the Church down through these ages of rejection, and yet Jesus said, "When you see the fig tree putting forth its buds, that nation returning back to be a nation again, the time is at hand, even at the door. Verily I say unto you, This generation shall not pass until all these things be fulfilled." This strain... This people shall not pass away. Hitler tried to kill them, Mussolini tried to kill them, Stalin tried to kill them, everybody else, but they will never be a blemished, or vanish from the earth, they will be a people and a nation standing yonder. Amen!
There will come Moses and Elijah. Oh! Hope you get it.
246 All right, "Sun shining in its strength," His countenances, transformed, transfigured. Now another thing, in Revelation 21:23, if you want to put it down. In the New Jerusalem, 21:23, He is the Lamb that's in the City, that's the Light thereof, shining; for they needed no light in the City, the sun shall not rise in it, because the Lamb which is in the midst of the City shall be the Light thereof. And the nations that's saved shall walk in the Light of the Lamb! Amen! He is the Lamb's Light. Oh, aren't you happy about that?
Not only that, but He's also, in the coming (John saw Him in the Lord's day), the Sun of righteousness. Let's go to Malachi. Malachi, the last prophet of the Old Testament. Malachi, the 4th chapter.
253 "The sun shining in his strength." Oh! The strength of the Son of God shining in our midst tonight. Standing in the middle of the seven golden candlesticks in His sevenfold personage here as a judge. As One who has suffered and died for us, and taken the Divine judgment upon Himself, and has tread the winepress, the fierceness of God. To the sinner He's a horrible cataract, to you loose soul upon the sea of life. And to the Church, a sweet Saviour, anchored in rest, and hearing the bubbling brook as you lay and rest perfectly satisfied in Christ. What a time! Shining upon us with His warm rays, "Fear not, I am He that was, which is, and shall come. I'm the Almighty, besides Me there's none. I'm both Alpha and Omega, and I'll give unto him that is athirst of the fountains of the water of Life freely." Oh, what a promise and what a love affair it is! And the Lamb in the middle of the City that don't need no light, and He's the Sun of righteousness with healing in His wings.
256 All right, the Sun of righteousness with healing in His wings. Now His countenances. He was a judge, or another thing to show that he was over into the Lord's day. You believe that? He went over into the Lord's day and saw the Lord as a judge; not as priest, not as king, but as a judge. He is the Judge. Don't you believe that? Bible says He's the Judge. And here He was all dressed as the Judge, showing what He had done; what He was: what He was to the sinner, what He was to the Christian. And here He stands now with the voice of many waters, and His countenances was like the sun shining in its strength.
257 Now the results, the 16th verse. "And... " No, I beg your pardon, it's 17th verse:
And when I saw him, I fell at his feet as dead...
My! The prophet couldn't stand no more, see such a vision. He just--He just sapped his strength, and he fell right down at His feet as dead. Now watch:
... And he laid his right hand upon me, saying unto me, Fear not; I am the first and the last:
Oh, my! Not a prophet, God! "I am the first and the last. I'm the first of the Revelation, the last of the Revelation. I'm He that was, I'm He that is, I'm He that will come." Let's see:
I am... I...
... And he laid his right hand upon me, saying unto me, Fear not; I am the first and the last:
I am he that liveth, and was dead; and, behold, I am alive for evermore, (Right now. And then he screamed out:) Amen; and have the keys of hell and... death.
60-1210 THE.PHILADELPHIAN.CHURCH.AGE
260 And over in the New Jerusalem, how that the kings of the earth even bring their glory into the City there. Oh, it's wonderful! Let... if you want to take that. See, just like shine like stars, crowns. And Daniel 12:3 gives a great, big description of it, if you'd like to write it down. Maybe we'd have time just for a few minutes, get it. Let's get Daniel, what he says here, in 12th chapter of Daniel. All right. Let's start at the first, the 12th chapter:
And at that time shall Michael... (See? Oh, you know who that is!)... shall... stand up, the great prince which standeth for the children of thy people: and there shall be a time of trouble, (What is it? Right after this. Tribulation!)... such as never was since there was a nation even till that same time: and at that time thy people shall be delivered, every one that is found written in the book.
And many of them that sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, and some to everlasting life (the crown), and some to shame and everlasting contemptment.
And they that be wise shall shine as the brightness of the firmament; and they that turn many to righteousness shall... as the stars for ever and ever.
Oh, brother, there's your "Crown," that glorious crown of Eternal Life! A crown of Eternal Life.
262 12th verse, right quick before we... And I think we are going here after that then.
Him that overcometh will I make a pillar in the temple of my God,...
"Pillar." A pillar, or a "foundation." Foundation in the temple of the House, or the House of God. "The temple of my God," or, "the 'House' of my God." It's a pillar, the foundation. These are those that took the Word which they heard (in verse 8), and went back to the foundation.
266 Now let's get Ephesians 2:19, over at the church of Ephesus. You know, you have to go back to Ephesus, that was the beginning. Is the right? All right, let's go back to Ephesus where Paul was, the church that he established. And let's see now where we're at. All right, the church of Ephesus. Let's go back now and see what this foundation is back there, and see what Paul said about the foundation back in that first church age there. Now he's talking to the Ephesians:
Now therefore ye are no more strangers or foreigners, but fellowcitizens with the saints, and of the household of God;
And are built upon the foundation of the... (Lutheran, or of--or of the Baptist... Now, wait, I got mixed up, didn't I? Uh-oh.)
But are built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ himself being the chief corner stone;
267 Everything went in at the Door, Jesus! "And he that overcometh will I make him a pillar." In other words, part of the foundation. "What will I give him? I'll put in him the Doctrine of the apostles and prophets from the beginning, and give him the Revelation." What'd the prophets say about Him? He's Counsellor, Prince of Peace, Mighty God, everlasting Father. That's what they said, the prophets, the apostles. "And he that can overcome all this synagogues of Satan, keep hisself free and look straight to the Gate, I'll make him a pillar, I'll put him back in the foundation of My Word in the House of My God." Oh, my! "I'll put him right there in that pillar, in the foundation where you stay right in the Word." Amen. I like that, brother, It's good. I may act funny, I... but I feel good. All right.
268 ... make him a... He that overcome... make him a pillar in the temple of my God, and he shall go no more out:...
What is that? If he's a pillar, he ain't going out no more. He's the Bride! That's right.
As Ephesus age had, like Paul taught them in Acts... Now, wait a minute. If you're going to be a pillar... I had another Scripture down here I wanted to get to you before we get to the Bride. Now, if he's going to be a pillar, you're going back to Ephesus, you're going back to the age that Paul was in. And Paul, the angel of Ephesus, which was the beginning of the church, the foundation, he taught them, "If they were baptized any other way besides the Name of 'Jesus Christ,' had to be baptized over." That's right, Acts 9, or 5:19, or 19:5, rather. In Galatians 1:8, he said, "If an angel taught anything else, let him be accursed."
269 They were also the Bride that was in the temple.
61-0209 JEHOVAH.JIREH
E-73 But after Abraham (the true, righteous one of God), when he'd had the revival, after the battle was over, Melchisedec met him; and Abraham gave Him a tenth of the spoils. And what did Melchisedec serve him? Wine and bread, the communion, after the battle was over. Jesus said, "I'll not eat it any more with you, until I eat this anew with you in My Father's Kingdom." When the battle's over, servant of God, someday Melchisedec, the great King of peace, the great King of heaven, without father, without mother, without beginning of Life or ending of Life--without beginning of days or ending of Life, He will meet us after the battle's over, and serve us communion.
Oh, seed of Abraham, bless your heart. Aren't you happy that you can be a seed of Abraham, a servant of God battling against the things of the world? Oh, how it makes your heart feel to see the very church that you love falling out into the world; and you reach for it, and pull for it, like that, and try to shake it and show it. It'll drift right straight back out in the same thing. See? But remember,
When the battle's over, we shall wear the crown!
We shall wear the crown, yes, we shall wear the crown!
And when the battle's over, we shall wear the crown
In the New Jerusalem.
Wear the crown, wear the crown,
Wear a bright and shining crown.
And when the battle's over, we shall wear the crown
In the New Jerusalem.