THEIR DELUSIONS. Isa. 66:4 The Lord said that he would chose their delusions. The reason being, they would not listen when He called to them. They turned a deaf ear. They did evil in His sight. Paul called it STRONG delusion and the acceptance of a lie, causing them to be damned. 2 Thes. 2:10-12 It is not an act of kindness to mislead a people into thinking and believing that what they are seeking after is the will of God and that He will accomplish their desires for them. There is only one hope for all people in the world of today and that is the Lord Jesus Christ. When the Lord has accomplished His purpose in Zion, He will appear in His glory. Ps. 102:16 We are living in thrilling and exciting days. He will finish His work in His church. He will have a Bride and she is ZION.

HEAR THE WORD OF THE LORD. Isa. 66:5 The only ones who can in reality, hear the Word of the Lord are they who have a great reverence for the Word. While the ears may hear and the eyes may read and understand the words, the true meaning is understood by the heart, in the Spirit. Prov. 13:13 Two ways of hearing the Word. Proper hearing is rewarded greatly. Faith is grasped by hearing and what is heard must be the Word.

HATED AND CAST OUT. Isa. 66:5 Rejection is not an easy thing for the human spirit to bear. We look and strive for acceptance by our fellow man, especially those who are of like faith. Persecution is inevitable, especially for the true church in these last days. Jesus was rejected by the very nation He came to benefit and bless. There is no hurt deeper than the rejection of those who are called brethren. Cast out because of faith in His name. His name is so vital to the manifestation of the power and glory of the Lord in His church. Col. 3:17 All things in word or deed are to be done in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. Even so, there are and will be those who are estranged, because of their acceptance and appreciation of the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. Satan hates that beautiful name. The Father loves it. He gave it to Him. Acts 2:36 God made that same Jesus both Lord and Christ.

LET THE LORD BE GLORIFIED. Like the Apostle Paul, zealots who feel that their opposition is ordained of God. Self appointed watchmen who in word or deed think that they are justified in their doings. May the Lord be as gracious to them as He was to Paul, who acted in ignorance. After his conversion he became the strongest of proponents and suffered persecution in many ways and to great degrees. Every example in the scriptures points to persecution and even the antichrist coming from within the body of believers, consider Judas. We are about to consider just that kind of a subject but first; He shall appear to the joy and rejoicing of His chosen people. He will reveal Himself to the church of this generation as He has to none in the past. Eph. 1:23 The body of Christ is that which contains His completeness, His fullness. She is filled, she is saturated, she is inundated with the copiousness of who and what He, Himself is. Eph. 3:19 She has been perfected and has become the very temple of God in whom He dwells in absolute and complete measure. All that God is, is literally crammed in to her. Eph. 4:13 HERE IT IS. Perfect in unity of doctrine, in knowledge and understanding of who and what He is. Measuring up to Christ. Standing as tall as He. In His image. Bearing His exact likeness. Coming to the completion of our destiny. Col. 2:10 Complete in Him. There is an ultimate status that will be reached by His Bride. She will pay a price because of Her consecration and will be persecuted. BUT, OH THE GLORY! HALLELUJAH! HE WILL ACCOMPLISH HIS PURPOSES IN HIS CHURCH.

UNBELIEVABLE, BUT TRUE. Isa.66:8 What needs to be known of the purposes and plans of the Lord are found in the Word of the Lord. 1 Cor.2:9 The preparation of the Lord far exceeds that which has been seen or heard or even thought of, for that matter. The ability of the Lord knows no limitation or boundary. Nothing is impossible with Him. Amos 3:7 Before the Sovereign Lord executes His plans, He first makes them known to His prophets. The blueprint of what He will do in these last days is recorded in the Word. May the Spirit of the Lord rest upon us as we search the scriptures to understand this most awesome act of God. Eph. 5:32 The mystery, of which we are about to enter into is most sacred. It staggers the imagination. There is no more holy and blessed event in all of the Word than that of this wedding and the consequences of that marriage.

SHALL A NATION BE BORN AT ONCE? Obviously the answer is, YES. A nation will be born at one time and in a moment. The question is, what nation? The word nation that is used here would prohibit that nation from being Israel. In the Bible the word nation is used in reference to the heathen. It is the Hebrew word, gowy, meaning a foreign nation, the Gentiles or the heathen. Mt. 12:18 Jesus came to show justice to the Gentiles. Lk. 2:32 Jesus was a light to enlighten the Gentiles. Acts 9:15 Paul was chosen of the Lord to minister to the Gentiles, and so on. Eph. 2:14 The Jew and Gentile meet together as one. Both having been born of the Spirit and made to be that new man in Christ. The Bride of Christ is neither Jew nor Gentile, but is that new creation, created in the likeness of the Lord Jesus. Gen. 18:14 As the Lord said to Sarah, Is ANYTHING too hard for the Lord? Even today?

JERUSALEM WHICH IS ABOVE. Gal. 4:26 The heavenly, the eternal city of the living God. Presented as being a mother, the mother of all those having been born of the Spirit. v. 27 She is shown as being barren, childless. There are other such examples in the scriptures. But the Lord undertook and the barren became exceedingly fruitful. Rev. 21:2 John saw the New Jerusalem. The true HOLY CITY, the only city that can lay claim to that title and position in the Lord. She is wondrously dressed in the most beautiful bridal gown ever made, for she is clothed with the completeness of the glory of the Almighty. She is absolutely gorgious, without and within. This beautiful woman, perfected, Spirit filled, holy, pure, bearing the image of Christ. Will be the Bride of the Lord Jesus. As the message to the first Adam and Eve, was to be fruitful and multiply. So to the second Adam, Christ, and His church is the same message. The woman who births the nation in Isaiah sixty-six is the Bride of Christ. The nation is the product of a heavenly, eternal marriage consummated on earth.

ZION TRAVAILED. Isa. 66:8 It is Zion who travailed to give birth to her children. It is very apparent that Zion is not born here, at this time, she was already in existence and mature enough to bare children. Her offspring are the nation born in a day and not she, herself. BY TYPE AND SHADOW. 1 Cor. 10:11 By ensample, by pattern, by example the Lord prepares us to come to a comprehension of His wonderful works. Consider miraculous births contained in the scriptures. Gen. 17:17 Isaac {who is a type of Christ}, born to Abraham at the age of one hundred and Sarah, at the age of ninety. The Lord of the impossible made possible the impossible by fulfilling His promise through bodies well beyond the age of child bearing. Gen. 25:21 Isaac and Rebekah were barren until Isaac sought the Lord for Rebekah. The beginnings of two nations were born. Lest the point be belabored too much. Consider the birth of Jesus. Lk. 1:30-31. A virgin to give birth? Impossible but true. The Lord in accomplishing that which is His will has set aside that which is ordinary and will manifest His power and ability to do the unusual.

THE MARRIAGE OF THE LAMB IS COME. Rev. 19:7 Therefore, be glad, rejoice and give honor unto Him. The bride is prepared and clothed in her beautiful wedding garments. Hosea 2:19-20 A marriage proposal. I will be engaged to you in righteousness, justice, love and compassion. In faithfulness, not a light proposal but one that will lead her to know the Lord.

Ps. 45:10-11 A call to the Bride for total consecration, forsaking her people and her fathers house. Because of her full commitment she is an object of beauty and desire to her husband. This is perfect, absolute, pure love between Christ and His church. v. 13-14 She is the daughter of the King. She is filled with the glory of the Lord until she is totally glorious within. The perfection of purity. The summary of holiness and righteousness. The light of the glory of the Lord is not only upon her but resident within her. Oh! What a beauty is she. Her garments are embroidered with pure gold, the eternal righteousness of the Lord. v.15 In the place of the fathers will be the children of the glorious and majestic wedding. The fathers, the progenitors have traditionally been in the forefront, in leadership. There will be a change, The offspring of this marriage will produce the leadership for the new order, the eternal, everlasting, the New Heavens and the New Earth, they are to be made princes in all the earth. Jer. 3:14 God was married to Israel, the result of that marriage was the birth of the Son of God, Jesus, through the virgin Mary. Jesus will marry His church, what will be the result of that marriage?

DELIVERED OF A MAN-CHILD. Isa. 66:7 A painless birth, a son born of Zion. All seem to agree that these are prophetic verses but of whom is the prophet speaking? v. 8 Would imply that there would be more than one with the usage of the term children.

Ex. 1:16 Moses was a proper child. One born to do the will of the Lord. The King of Egypt fearing the children of Israel commanded the male children to be killed. But the Lord delivered Moses by placing him if Pharaohs house.

Mt. 2:16 The birth of the Lord Jesus was the introduction of another child that was to used mightily of the Lord. Once again we see an attempt to stop the one who would be a savior. Herod exercised a vain attempt to thwart the plan of God by causing the children from two years old and under to be slain.

Rev. 12:2 The Bride of Christ in travail ready to birth a man-child. The importance of this child can be measured by the opposition facing him from the moment of his birth. Rev. 12:4 The dragon, that old serpent, the devil standing before the woman with the motive of an immediate act of the destruction of the child. Rev. 12:5 A man-child, or a male, born. This is not Mary and Jesus. The reason being that the Revelation was for the future and not the past. Rev. 1:3, 22:10, the time is at hand, showing not the past but the present. Rev. 1:1 must shortly come to pass, future. Rev. 1:19, 4:1 things which must be hereafter, future. All of which would eliminate Mary and Jesus from being the persons referred to here. Rev. 12:5 The man-child is to rule the nations, the redeemed. To rule { Strongs, Heb. puimaino, to tend as a shepherd.} The rod, or scepter, displaying authority, born to rule. The iron, signifying, final absolute victory. Rev.19:15 Jesus to rule and be victorious. Rev. 2:27 The overcomer of the church used to defeat the enemy. The man-child is likewise a partner in the final and absolute defeat of all that is ungodly and satanic. Rev. 12:5 The man-child is literally, caught up, snatched up immediately, at the moment of his birth. His place is in the exalted, high and holy place known as the throne of God. The man-child is not of this world nor for this world. He is the product of a most holy union between Christ and His Bride. 2 Cor. 11:2 The Bride a pure, chaste virgin. How complete is the work of sanctification wrought by the Lord on behalf of His people. Total, entire forgiveness for the redeemed of the Lord. We are indeed new creatures, a new creation in the Lord Jesus. He gave Himself for His Bride. Eph. 5:27 Because none other could make us presentable, He, in order to have a Bride of His own likeness, paid the supreme price to obtain and marry her. The man-child is their offspring.***end***

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