Interpreting Prophecy

Lesson 8 w/answersThe Body of Christ

This week will look at the Church (Christendom) and the body of believers who make up the Church – also called the Body of Christ, and their role in Christ’s second coming.

Bible

It is important to understand that in end time events the Church is a body distinct from the Old Testament Saints and the Nation of Israel as well as from the Tribulation Saints. All three groups are treated differently prior to the rapture, during the tribulation period, and when Christ returns.

Let's get started with the following:

  1. Read Matthew 16:18 – who is building the Church?
    1. ANSWER: “I will build” refers only to Christ – he and only he is the builder of the Church. Therefore the “church” did not exist before Christ’s ministry began, which tells us that the Old Testament Saints are not included in the body referred to as “the Church” – instead the Old Testament Saints are a part of God’s Chosen People, the Nation of Israel – a subject we dealt with in our last lesson.
  2. The term “Church” can mean two different things. There is “The Church”, meaning organized Christianity – Christendom, and there is that group of people who have accepted Christ as their Savior – those “born again” called “The Body of Christ”. Each is treated differently in end time prophecy and it will be important for us to keep the two distinctly separate in our study. Read Matthew Chapter 13. There are seven parables about “The Church” – organized Christianity contained in this chapter. Can you list the seven – and list what the key point is of each one beside it? (Remember, these are about the organized church.) For example, what does the mustard seed represent, or the pearl of greatest price?
    1. ANSWER 1: The Seven are:
      1. The farmer sowing seed in a variety of soil conditions. Speaks to the spreading of the gospel, some accept and bear fruit, others accept but never grow, and some reject.
      2. Seed being sown in good soil by “The Son of Man” – church planting and growing and Satan planting tares (weeds) in the church. Weeds not removed til judgement – a common theme – evil will remain inside the church until end of tribulation period and judgement occurs.
      3. Mustard Seed – usually interpreted as a tiny seed growing into a the huge church. However,….. can also be interpreted that the church, like the mustard seed, grew into something not intended – is infested with birds – seen as symbolizing evil in the Bible – particularly true if we consider this one with the next parable. Shows us that the church “organization” will continue to become a huge and ugly organization where birds will nest.
      4. Leaven in dough – spread of evil influence/sin throughout the church
      5. Treasure buried in field and next one Pearl of greatest price can be easily mis-interpreted. I believe both parables are to indicate the great price Christ paid for the church.
      6. Pearl of Greatest Price. In both cases they were hidden treasure that he found and then paid the price so that they belonged to him. Some may also interpret this as our great gift of salvation – but we didn’t find it Christ found us, and we didn’t pay anything – grace was free gift – because Christ paid the price.
      7. Net which catches enormous amount of fish – some good some bad. Again the church body/organization has a lot of “religious looking” people in it – we are easily fooled – all fish look like fish – but Christ the fisherman knows the good from the bad and at judgement will separate the two. When we (the true body of Christ) are raptured to heaven only the bad part of the church will be left during the tribulation period, thus the task of salvation and spreading the gospel will be left to the 144,000 witnesses.
    2. ANSWER 2: In summary the “church” is made up of believers and unbelievers who have responded or not to the Gospel message. Some of the believers are active and fruit bearing and continue to sow seed – spread the gospel and others are not. The tares among us look like us and will be difficult if not impossible for us to detect. But Christ knows his church and will bring us, the body of Christ, out from the polluted and apostate church to an eternity with him while the evil and sinful are sent to destruction – in the meantime we should be on guard for false teaching and apostasy which will be spread by the “tares” so that it looks like the church’s teaching.
  3. If the Church (also known as the Bride of Christ) started on the Day of Pentecost, as recorded in Acts Chapter 2, (10days after Christ’s ascension into heaven) and this same church returns with him at his second coming as His Wife, then, are the Old Testament Saints, and those saved after the Rapture, included in the Church?
    1. ANSWER: No – see answer to first question. In addition, we – the body of Christ – are also referred to as His Bride. A careful reading of Revelation, Chapter 19 will reveal that when Christ returns at the end of the Tribulation Period he brings with him his “wife”. The Church is complete at that point – the martyred saints and those saved during the tribulation period are treated differently in end time prophecy, and in the Millennial Reign, than the Church, or the Old Testament Saints.
  4. As we near the 2nd Coming a great apostasy, a falling away, teaching a lie for the truth, will occur within the Church. Read the following: 1 Timothy 4:1-3, 2 Timothy 4:3-4, 2 Peter 2:1, and 2 Peter 3:3-4. List some of the false teaching, lies, and confusion that will be taught in the Church – note if any of these are being taught today.
    • ANSWERS:
    1. 1 Timothy 4:1-3: Deceiving spirits within the church and teachings by hypocrites forbidding marriage and abstaining from certain foods.
    2. 2 Timothy 4:3-4: Members inside the church gathering or calling to their membership teachers who teach what they want to hear, rather than Bible based doctrine. Focus of teachings will be based on myths, and creative teachings aimed at giving them what they want to hear.
    3. 2 Peter 2:1: False prophets are among us within the church. They are secretly introducing destructive heresies, such as denying Christ, and teachers will make up stories
    4. 2 Peter 3:3-4: Scoffers will be in the church questioning the true believers, saying “where is Christ?” Implying that so much time has past and He’s not here that He’ll never be here.
    5. In summary the church will take on a form of religion but denying the very Christ they are supposed to be following and worshipping. It’s interesting to note that during the tribulation period the “church” is not persecuted by the Anti-Christ – the 144,000 Jewish witnesses and their followers will be the true gospel messengers, they will be persecuted – but the Anti-Christ doesn’t seem too concerned about “the church”….he’ll be the head of it!
    6. Types of heresies, false teachings etc, that are currently occurring inside the organized church today include:
      1. It’s ok to be gay
      2. Ordination of gay pastors
      3. Conducting gay marriages
      4. Calling God a woman (God is neither man nor woman – the Bible tells us God is Spirit and must be worshipped in spirit and in truth)
      5. “Inter-Faith Cooperation” is becoming a church by word – Christian church arm in arm with Muslims for example or with followers of Buddhists, Tibetan monks, etc.
      6. Ecumenical United Church – all Christians in a single “church” organization – this is to be achieved by eliminating all things not politically correct. For example the ecumenical movement wants to remove all references to gender in hymns, etc.
      7. The Bible is not the ONLY word of God. Writings by other “prophets” and world thinkers are also equal sources of God’s wisdom.
      8. Christ is NOT the ONLY way to be saved…..unreasonable for us to think so.
      9. Mary may not have been a virgin, but that’s ok, Christ was still her first son.
      10. Joseph got a divorce soon as Christ was born and other such nonsense.
      11. Abortions are ok – hidden under the guise of “Freedom of Choice”
      12. Some churches today teach “law” and “works” not grace. For example, tithe is mandatory, you must be baptized to be saved, and you must speak in tongues or salvation experience wasn’t genuine.
      13. Compromise, and making the gospel “soft” enough to appeal to the world, being “politically correct” and “willing to accept the views of others”, compromising the creation story so that either the Big Bang theory or Evolution can also be accepted – “creation story in Genesis not literal” is a doctrinal position today in many “Protestant” churches.
      14. Too much emphasis on Angels
      15. Protecting the environment (worshipping the creation, not the creator), and concern about diet are becoming “church” issues.
    7. In its final form the Church will be a one-world church – a worldwide church, and is described in Revelation chapter 17. Read Daniel 11:36-38. Do you think Daniel is writing about the Anti-Christ and the Anti-Christ becoming the eventual head of this worldwide church?
      1. ANSWER: No question – this is exactly about him and the events that will take place then – a fascinating look into the future.
    8. Read Daniel 11:39-45. What happens to this church and its leader?
      1. ANSWER: In the end his kingdom turns against him, he is totally defeated as is his “church”.

It is useful for us to consider for a moment the Jewish traditional marriage custom: First the bride’s father would agree with the groom’s Father that the marriage should take place, this agreement would constitute betrothal. A period of courting would begin where eventually the groom leaves the Bride, returns to his father’s land and begins building a home for his new bride – many times in “his father’s house”, or at least attached to it. When the house was complete he would return, often times unannounced, to marry his bride and take her to be where he is and to the new home. While the groom was off doing the building the bride and her wedding party would prepare herself for the wedding, and set the party to watch and wait for the coming of the groom. They would have to keep plenty of oil in their lamps because if the groom came at night – which was often the case given that he would travel all day to get there – then the party would go out to meet him, the bride would be brought out all adorned in fine linen and jewels and the wedding would commence. Soon as the ceremony was over a great feast or banquet would be hosted by the father of the groom and a long period, often a week or more, would be set aside for the wedding feast where only friends and family of the bride and groom would be invited.

This perfectly matches our relationship to Christ as the groom with the Church as His bride. There are many parallels that can be observed, e.g., the groom goes off to “preparing a place” in his father’s land, watching for the rapture and call of the church, the virgins with and without oil in their lamps (oil symbolizing the indwelling presence of the Holy Spirit) the ceremony, the white linen robes, party/banquet, new home, in the father’s place, etc etc.

Let's try to always keep in mind the true nature of the Church and its relationship to Christ as his bride, and let us resist the "infidelity" that is being preached by the word today in an attempt to redefine this relationship.

Yours in Christ

Wes