CHURCH: "The Future of the Church" Lambert Dolphin

The Future of the Church

---

Several years ago I had the privilege of hosting weekly visits by young Mormon Elders (missionaries) who were living in my area. From the start I told them I was not a candidate for conversion to the LDS Church but we could explore what we had in common. They came back week after week.

I suppose I would still be meeting with these men and their successors had not the local Bishop banned them from hanging out with me. The Bishop could not charge me with being anti-Mormon, most of our conversations were about Jesus Christ, an important historical figure to Mormons. They welcomed my views on the central importance of Jesus to evangelicals like me.

Several of my new Mormon friends had already been visiting churches in the area but they had all come away disappointed. In one case, two of my Mormon friends said they felt hurt as persons when the pastor of a church they were visiting asked them to leave. They had come to learn, not to proselytize, they wanted to learn what non-Mormon Christians believe.

 I told my LDS friends that dropping in to a random local church these days would likely prove to be a futile venture, hit and miss. I developed a great love for my Mormon friends; several of them still stay in touch by email or Facebook. I wish they would come back.

The Bible is very clear that Jesus Christ founded the church which is named after Him two millennia ago, (Matthew 13:16-19). Jesus told His disciples a few weeks later at the Last Supper that He and God the Father would soon send the Holy Spirit to them so they could all begin to call out of all the world, not just the Jews, but men, women, and children from every nation, every group, both sexes. The church would be governed by a New Covenant which was a radical new arrangement for living compared to the Law of Moses and the Old Covenant.

Seven Sabbaths plus one day after the resurrection of Jesus, God (the Father and the Son), sent the Holy Spirit to Jerusalem to unite the followers of Jesus Christ into a new, living, connected, organic ensemble. They were fully equipped to represent Jesus, not merely at one place at one time by one man, but now, universally, wherever followers of Jesus gathered. (Please read Chapter 2 of the Book of Acts (Acts 2), found in The New Testament just after the four gospels. Acts describes the founding and early years of the church.)

The New Testament presents us only with highlights of the early history of the church of Jesus Christ. Secular historians have filled libraries with records of how the church grew and diversified down through 2000 years. Since God likes variety and diversity, it is no surprise to find many different ways men have chosen to live out their faith in Jesus Christ down through the centuries in “local churches.” Since man is a fallen creature every local expression of the church is flawed. Many of the divisions one sees between Christians today are not God’s doing but ours.

Jesus had already warned His disciples that the spread of the kingdom of God on earth would be violently opposed by evil men and by fallen angels. (Matthew 13:1-40) The message of Jesus would attract a small number of people of all backgrounds who genuinely believed Jesus in their hearts and were ready to follow Him. A bigger group of responders would stop short of knowing Christ and obeying Him. With the passage of time the original message given by Jesus and His immediate disciples became more and more diluted and more distorted. Church splits have occurred needlessly in every generation. 

The teaching of the church has been dumbed-down and thoroughly diluted over and over again. The original apostles of Jesus, men of integrity Jesus commissioned to act in His name, wrote sound, authoritative documents (The New Testament), complete with guidelines so that the core teachings of Jesus would not be totally lost or easily ignored. The Apostles did warn that the church would grow weaker over time, with only a small remnant living in accord with Jesus and serving God as Jesus commanded.

As the centuries rolled by, the church as a whole has become weaker and more divided. Few individuals bothered to live exemplary lives modeled by Christ. Open animosity and persecution of Christians is now becoming global, all over again, and counterfeit forms of Christ’s teaching are everywhere.

The message of Jesus has nonetheless been spread around the earth again and again for 2000 years. It is a message predicting peace on earth, the end of all wars, and the healing of all mankind. Yet today, Christianity appears to be a miserable failure. The man Jesus is clearly the most hated man who ever lived. Some of His teachings are widely quoted today but in derogatory, ugly ways. God’s program is precisely on schedule!

The early Christians expected Jesus was leaving them for a short time only, days or weeks at most, He said He was going to prepare a place for them. (John 14:1-3). But the months and years went by with no sign of Him.

Christians were persecuted mercilessly from the final years of the First Century until the time of the Roman Emperor Constantine (c272-337 AD). (Persecution has continued in most of the world to this present day.) The early Christians were eager for the promised return of Jesus and they spoke often of their “Blessed Hope.”

"For the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men, teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly in the present age, looking for the blessed hope and glorious appearing of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ, who gave Himself for us, that He might redeem us from every lawless deed and purify for Himself His own special people, zealous for good works. Speak these things, exhort, and rebuke with all authority. Let no one despise you." (Titus 2:11-15)

One gauge of the time Jesus Christ will return to be united with His church is that a certain fixed number of Gentiles will have come to know Jesus as Lord. Romans 9-11 explains God’s permanent commitment to Israel. God would resume His active rule over Israel “when the full number of the Gentiles has come in” (to the church), Romans 11:25.

Nowadays new converts to Christ are few and far between in North America and in Europe, though many from third-world countries are still being converted.

There are many, many indicators in 2012 that we are rapidly reaching the end of the age of the church. The next major action by God in world history will very likely be the removal of the entire church, suddenly, instantly. This event has come to be called “the Rapture of the Church.”

The Rapture will not be the “end of the world” nor the time when all the dead are resurrected, judged, and assigned to rewards in heaven or punishment in hell. Jesus announced that there would be two resurrections spread out over time, separating the righteous from the unrighteous (see John 5). Jesus Himself is the appointed judge of all, making the court-like events of clearing and rewarding the innocent, and punishing the sinners of the world—small and great—take place with perfect fairness and balance.

The Rapture is one of those points in history where events in earth time are interrupted by an event from outside our time frame. Those persons who are true followers of Christ will be raised from the dead and cloaked with flawless new bodies. 

We who are alive at that time will leave earth’s time frame with them and thenceforth work alongside Jesus in a new and intimate, close relationship with Him. It is described in the Bible as a heavenly wedding. In the Old Testament, Israel is symbolized as already married (she is the “wife of God”), but the church is a virgin called out of this world to be the virgin Bride of Christ.

The Rapture of the Church will take place in a split second of earth time:

“Behold, I tell you a mystery: We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed—in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed. For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality. So when this corruptible has put on incorruption, and this mortal has put on immortality, then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written: “Death is swallowed up in victory. O Death, where is your sting? O Hades, where is your victory?” The sting of death is sin, and the strength of sin is the law. But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. Therefore, my beloved brethren, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that your labor is not in vain in the Lord.” (1 Corinthians 15:52-58)

Since the number of true followers of Jesus is a small fraction of those who merely profess, many church parking lots will look about the same the Sunday after the Rapture. (My friend Ted Wise and I celebrated Christmas in Mumbai (Bombay) India some years ago. We saw no signs anywhere that most of our friends back home were caught up in celebrating the birthday of Jesus.)

The 2000-year window of history, when the true church is preeminent as the God’s work in the world, extends from the Pentecost of Acts Chapter Two up to the sudden departure of the church at the Rapture. During this time interval, world population has grown from about 300 million persons to the present 7+ billion.

In the last 2000 years, it is estimated that 100 billion people have been born on our planet. (http://www.un.org/popin/popis/journals/poptoday/today0295.html). [Updated interesting view from the PRB Population Resource Bureau here.]

Many people have said they were Christians but were not (God knows). Many more inconspicuous but real Christians are part of the true church. Likewise millions of children who died before an “age of accountability (God knows).

For purposes of discussion, I have assumed that 10% of those born in the last 2000 years came to know the Lord Jesus in the personal, intimate way during their lifetime according to the standards Jesus stated (see Matthew 7:13-29). For purposes of discussion, let’s say the church of Jesus Christ will number perhaps 10 billion persons at the Rapture!

Several years ago I contemplated writing a book on heaven. I gave up the project when I realized how little the Bible says about life-after-life for us who are the followers of Jesus Christ. We know enough to get ready. I am disappointed that so few Christians are interested in the incredible changes that lie just ahead for the whole world, and especially for the followers of Jesus. Since World War II, our country has enjoyed great economic prosperity. But our preoccupation has shifted from closeness to God to what we have imagined was success in economic terms, plus our own pell-mell quests for worldly happiness and pleasure.

 Solomon, by far the wisest man in the ancient world told his people 3000 years ago (Ecclesiastes 6) that God gives the power to enjoy life, only to those who He chooses. In the New Testament, James the brother of Jesus explained that the pursuit of wealth and success in this present world was a futile quest, generating frustrations, envy, resentment, and finally murders and wars. (James 4).

For those Christians who are alive when Christ returns for His Bride, we will be aware of three sudden interruptions happening that are all part of the Rapture:

"For this we say to you by the word of the Lord, that we who are alive and remain until the coming of the Lord will by no means precede those who are asleep. For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of an archangel, and with the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first. Then we who are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And thus we shall always be with the Lord. Therefore comfort one another with these words." (1 Thessalonians 4:15-18)

The shout of command from Jesus will first raise all the "dead in Christ." These are all believers who enjoyed a relationship with Jesus from Pentecost till now. Next, there is only one Archangel mentioned in the Bible and that is Michael who has charge of Israel. The voice of the Archangel signifies that Israel will move back to center stage of history at this time. 

Third, a trumpet call will summon all of us who are alive to be transformed and given new resurrection bodies along with our newly-risen predecessors.

The whole ensemble, Christ's entire church, (perhaps as many as 10 billion of us), will be caught up, probably to live in the City of New Jerusalem. (See the last two chapters of the Bible, Revelation 21-22.)

On the way, all Christians will pass a reviewing stand for God's evaluation of our works (known as the "Judgment Seat of Christ"). This will be an evaluation of how we have used our time and resources since we came to know the Lord Jesus. It is not a judgment for sin; all our sins were paid for in full by Jesus.

The rapture of the church is likened in the Bible to the calling of a virgin bride (the true church) to join the Bridegroom, Jesus. (The false church is, on the other hand, like "the great harlot" depicted in Revelation 17.) The imagery of the Bride is one of consummated love between Jesus and His church. The true church will then be safe from the terrible time of world-wide judgments, lasting seven years. These "end-time" judgments will commence immediately down here on earth (2 Thessalonians 2), right after the Rapture, beginning with a season of false peace led by a counterfeit Jewish Messiah.

Most of us by now are aware of the widespread hypocrisy in the church these days, and the reality that Christ's Bride-to-be has often gone whoring after other gods. This means that preparing ourselves for the Rapture now, while we can, deserves our immediate attention if we are really the followers of the Lord Jesus. 

Getting ready for the Rapture is all about repentance.

 Our nation is falling apart around us and much of the blame is due to the failure of the church to be the holy people we are called to be.

Most of us have grown up with incorrect ideas about “heaven.” It is best to think of this life as boot camp, training time. We won’t qualify for the best assignments in the next life if we have not passed the tests of this present life: 

“If for this life only we have hope in Christ, we are of all men the most pitiable.” (1 Corinthians 15:19) More simply, Jesus just wants us to know Him and not just know about Him, so that when we see Him one day, it will be a fabulous, heavenly home-coming after being gone for a while—we will not be strangers, and our love for Jesus and His powerful love for us will be more than Spiritual—it will be real and palpable.

“You therefore, my son, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus. And the things that you have heard from me among many witnesses, commit these to faithful men who will be able to teach others also.

You therefore must endure hardship as a good soldier of Jesus Christ. No one engaged in warfare entangles himself with the affairs of this life, that he may please him who enlisted him as a soldier.

And also if anyone competes in athletics, he is not crowned unless he competes according to the rules. The hard-working farmer must be first to partake of the crops. Consider what I say, and may the Lord give you understanding in all things.” (2Timothy 2:1-7)

CHURCH: "I Will Build My Church" Dave Hunt

NOV 23, 2007

"I Will Build My Church"

By Dave Hunt


Christ was born "King of the Jews" (Mt 2:2), was called "King of Israel" and "King of the Jews" (Mt 27:11; Mk 15:2, etc.) and acknowledged both titles (Jn 1:49-50; 12:12-15). He did not renounce His claim to David's throne even though His own people (as the prophets had foretold) "despised, rejected" (Is 53:3) and crucified Him (Ps 22:12-18; Is 53:5; 8-10; Zec 12:10). All four gospels declare that "King of the Jews" was the accusation placed on the cross (Mt 27:37; Mk 15:26; Lk 23:38; Jn 19:19). Here is Mark's account of Israel rejecting her king and demanding His crucifixion:

But Pilate answered them, saying, Will ye that I release unto you the King
of the Jews?...

But the chief priests moved the people, that he should rather
release Barabbas unto them.

And Pilate answered and said again unto them, What will ye then that I shall do unto him whom ye call the King of the Jews?

And they cried out again, Crucify him. (Mk 15:9-13)

The Hebrew prophets had foretold that Christ would rise from the dead and that He would come again to establish a kingdom that would never end (1 Kgs 2:45; 9:5; Is 9:7; 53:10-12; Jer 17:25; Dn 2:34-35; 44-45; 7:14, etc.). Christ has fulfilled only the first part, rising from the dead and ascending to the Father's right hand. If the remainder of those prophecies is to be fulfilled (and they must be, or God has lied) there must be a future restoration of the Kingdom to Israel as the disciples believed (Acts 1:6), as Peter affirmed (Acts 3:19-26) and as Christ acknowledged (Acts 1:6-7). Israel's future repentance, redemption and restoration are foretold often (Ezk 39; Zec 12, 13, 14; Acts 5:31, etc.). Paul prayed for Israel's salvation (Rom 10:1) and declared that "all Israel shall be saved" (Rom 11:26).

If the Muslims and other nations in the world would understand these prophecies concerning Israel's right to her land and honor them and the God who gave them, there would be peace in the Middle East and throughout the world. Instead, they will persist in their desire to destroy Israel, resulting in Christ's intervention from heaven to rescue Israel at Armageddon and to destroy Antichrist, his followers and kingdom. Most Israelis themselves do not believe that God gave them their land and are trading it for a fool's "peace" with an enemy which has sworn to exterminate them.

Knowing that Israel would reject and crucify Him, Christ said He would build a new entity, the church. The word "church" or "churches" (ekklesia in Greek, meaning "called out"), occurs about 114 times in the New Testament. No Hebrew word in the Old Testament is translated "church" in the KJV. Pertaining to Israel, the major comparable words in Hebrew are edah, mowed and qahal, translated as "assembly" or "congregation." While Acts 7:38 refers to "the church [congregation of Israel] in the wilderness," the Bible makes a clear distinction between Israel and the New Testament church. The latter consists of both Jews and Gentiles and did not exist before Christ's death and resurrection. He continues to build that church even now. It was established by Him and specifically for Him: "I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it" (Mt 16:18).

Here we have an obvious claim by Christ that He is God. Israel had been chosen by God. Who, then, but God himself, could establish another congregation of believers in addition to and distinct from Israel? Christ's statement regarding the church is similar to what He said to the Jews who "believed on him," and it has the same awesome implications: "If ye continue in my word, then are ye my disciples indeed; and ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free" (Jn 8:31-32).

The Jews must have been stunned. How could this one dare to use such terms as "my word" and "my disciples" and claim to set His followers free? Was it not God's word they were to follow, and were they not Moses' disciples? Was He claiming to be greater than Moses—even equal to God? Whatever it meant to be His disciple, He was obviously starting something new.

Nevertheless, no one imagined that this miracle-worker intended to dispense with Israel and replace her with some other entity. That heresy would come from Roman Catholicism; and many of the Reformers would be unable to extricate themselves from it, in spite of their clear understanding of salvation by grace through faith. The belief that the church replaces Israel remains today among Roman Catholics, among those of Reformed theology such as Presbyterians and Lutherans, and among many charismatics as well.

In its infancy, the church was composed only of Jewish believers. They had difficulty believing that Gentiles, too, could be saved through Christ and be in the church, even though the Old Testament prophets had laid that foundation (Ps 72:11,17; Is 11:10; 42:1-6; 49:6; Mal 1:11, etc.). And even when they understood the "mystery" revealed by Paul "that the Gentiles should be fellowheirs, and of the same body, and partakers of his promise in Christ by the gospel" (Eph 3:3-6), some of them tried to subject the Gentiles to the Jewish law. In effect, they were erroneously making the church an extension of Israel (Acts 15:1).

Gentiles are "aliens from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers from the covenants of promise" (Eph 2:12). When a Gentile is saved and is added by Christ as a "living stone" to the church under construction (1 Pt 2:5), he doesn't come under the Jewish laws and customs of the old covenant. And when a Jew is saved and added to the church, he is set free from the Jewish law (the "law of sin and death") and its penalties (Rom 8:1). Both the Gentile and the Jew who enter the church through faith in Christ are thereafter under a higher law, "the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus" (Rom 8:2). Indeed, Christ has become their life, living out through them this new standard of holy conduct—something that was unknown in Israel even to her greatest prophets (1 Pt 1:10-12).

No one can establish himself in that sacred temple; he must be placed there by Christ alone. The living stones which He is building together to form the eternal temple do not fall in and out of the structure. We are in Christ and eternally secure.

The church is Christ's body, nourished by Him. Believers are spoken of as branches in the true vine, depicting a continual flow of life and nourishment from Him to them. Christ is the head of the body, which is therefore directed by Him and not by a priesthood or hierarchy of men in some earthly headquarters. The headquarters of the church is in heaven. Yet today's denominations (like the cults) all have their earthly headquarters and their traditions. They have become organizations instead of being content with being part of the organism, His body.

In the church "There is neither Jew nor Greek [Gentile]...[but all are] one in Christ" (Gal 3:28). Gentiles do not become Jewish, but Jew and Gentile have become "one new man" (Eph 2:15). Through the cross, Christ "abolished" the "ordinances" which had separated Jew and Gentile. Therefore, we can confidently affirm that Gentiles are not to adopt those "ordinances." Would one of Christ's own adopt something which God has abolished?

Paul's epistle to the Galatians was written to correct the error of salvation partly through Christ and partly through works. A works salvation is the error of every cult, and Roman Catholicism has developed her system of religious ritual and works to the ultimate. In all of his epistles Paul comes back to the theme that salvation is all of grace and nothing of works. Herein is a major difference between Israel and the church: for the former, eternal life came through keeping the Law; for the latter, eternal life comes by faith.

The old covenant offered life to the righteous who kept the Law: "this do and thou shalt live" (Dt 8:1; Lk 10:28). But no one could keep the Law, for all have sinned (Rom 3:23). Under the new covenant (available from Adam onward), "to him that worketh not, but believeth on him that justifieth the ungodly, his faith is counted for righteousness" (Rom 4:5). Human pride insists upon becoming righteous on its own—an impossible task. Paul mourned the fact that his people Israel, though they had "a zeal after God," yet "they being ignorant of God's righteousness, and going about to establish their own righteousness, have not submitted themselves unto the rightousness of God" (Rom 10:3) through the new covenant. So it is with all the cults. Roman Catholicism, for example, attempts (through the sacraments, suffering and works) to make its members righteous enough for heaven. It is the error of the Pharisee who proclaimed his righteousness to God and was not heard, whereas the publican, who acknowledged his unworthiness, was justified (Lk 18:10-14).

One had to belong to Israel (with some exceptions) to be saved; but one must be saved (with no exceptions) in order to belong to the church. The church is not a vehicle of salvation. Making that claim is a major error of most cults such as Mormonism and Roman Catholicism. Each claims salvation comes through their church. In fact, salvation is for those outside the church and only then can one become a part of it.

Salvation has always been and still is the same for both Jew and Gentile; but God's plans are different for Israel than for the church. Jews (like Gentiles) who believe in Christ prior to His Second Coming (when He makes Himself known to Israel and all Israel is saved) are in the church. Jews who only come to faith in Christ when He appears to rescue them in the midst of Armageddon will continue into the millennial kingdom on earth and Christ will reign over them from the throne of David. Many Gentiles will be saved at that time also, but "all Israel shall be saved" (Rom 11:26).

The Galatian problem remains (in varying degrees) within some so-called Hebrew-Christian or Messianic congregations today. There is often a tendency to imagine that a return to Jewish customs (even by Gentiles) makes for greater sanctity. Extrabiblical traditions are honored, for example in the Seder ceremony at Passover, as though inspired of God. Scripture alone must be our guide, to the exclusion of manmade traditions, which Christ condemned (Mt 15:1-9; Mk 7:9-13), as did the apostles (Gal 1:13-14; Col 2:8; 1 Pt 1:18). Traditions developed over the centuries have led to great error within both Catholicism and Protestantism.

We must ever remember that Christ intended the church to be something new and separate from Israel. It would neither partake of nor interfere with God's promises to His earthly people, promises which will be fulfilled in their time. The church would be separate, too, from Israel's religious ordinances. Here, again, the cults have gone astray.

Mormonism, for example, pretends to have both an Aaronic and Melchisedec priesthood. Roman Catholicism claims to have a sacrificial priesthood that offers Christ continually as a sacrifice upon its altars. On the contrary, in the church every believer is a priest (1 Pt 2:9) and the sacrifices offered are "praise to God continually, that is, the fruit of our lips giving thanks to his name" and "to do good" (Heb 13:15-16).

In fact, there are no longer any propitiatory sacrifices offered for the forgiveness of sins because the church was made possible by the one sacrifice of Christ upon the cross. That sacrifice is never to be repeated because it paid the full penalty demanded by God's justice and made it possible for God to "be just, and the justifier of him which believeth in Jesus" (Rom 3:26). Consequently, "there is no more offering for sin" (Heb 10:18).

Israel broke the covenant God made with her. She demonstrated that "by the deeds of the law there shall no flesh be justified in his sight: for by the law is the knowledge of sin" (Rom 3:20). Her sacrificial system could not take away sin, but looked forward to the unique "Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world" (Jn 1:29). The establishment of a "new covenant" with Israel (Jer 31:31) is foretold. Animal sacrifices had opened the way for the Jewish high priest into the earthly sanctuary which was patterned after the heavenly reality (Heb 9:1-10). When Christ died on the cross, "the veil of the temple was rent in twain from the top to the bottom" (Mk 15:38), ending the animal sacrifices. Now we have a "great high priest, that is passed into the heavens, Jesus the Son of God" (Heb 4:14), who, "by his own blood...obtained eternal redemption for us" (Heb 9:12,24).

Israel was given a land on earth (Gn 12:1; 13:15; 15:18-21; 17:7-8; 26:3-4;28:13-14; Lv 20:24, 25:23, etc.), her destiny is tied to it, and she will never cease to exist there (Jer 31:35-40). Numerous prophecies promise her restoration to her land, with the Messiah, upon His return, ruling her from the throne of David (2 Sm 7:10-16; 1 Kgs 9:5; Is 9:6-7; Ezk 34:23-24;37:24-25; Lk 1:31-33, etc.). The promise is clear that God will pour out His Spirit upon His chosen people, after which they will never pollute His holy name again and He will never again hide His holy face from Israel (Ezk 39:7, 22, 27-29; Zec 13, 14).

Israel must endure forever (Jer 31:35-38) or the prophecies of the Bible and Christ's promises to her could not be fulfilled. Christ referred to the cities of Israel in existence at His Second Coming (Mt 10:23), proof enough that the church has not replaced her. As further proof (though not needed), Christ promised His disciples that they would rule over Israel with Him in His millennial kingdom (Mt 19:28; Lk 22:30).

The church cannot fulfill the prophecies to Israel, never having belonged to a specific land nor having been cast out of it or returned to it. Rather, the church comes "out of every kindred, and tongue, and people, and nation" (Rv 5:9). The hope of the church is to be raptured to heaven (Jn 14:3; 1 Thes 4:16-17, etc.), where we stand before "the judgment seat of Christ" (Rom 14:10; 2 Cor 5:10) and then are married to our Lord (Rv 19:7-9) and are eternally with Him wherever He is (Jn 14:3; 1 Thes 4:17).

That being the case, in love with our Bridegroom and longing to see Him face to face, let us hold the things of earth lightly and live for eternity. Let us please Him alone, not following men or organizations, by faith allowing our Head to nourish, sustain and direct us and to live His life through us to His glory.

CHURCH: "A City on Seven Hills" by Dave Hunt

A City on Seven Hills
By Dave Hunt

“…I saw a woman sit upon a scarlet coloured beast, full of names of blasphemy, having seven heads….

And the woman was arrayed in purple and scarlet colour, and decked with gold and precious stones and pearls, having a golden cup in her hand full of abominations and filthiness of her fornication….

And the woman which thou sawest is that great city, which reigneth over the kings of the earth.

And here is the mind which hath wisdom. The seven heads are seven mountains [or hills], on which the woman sitteth.” – Revelation 17:3,4,18,9

A woman rides the beast that represents Antichrist and the revived Roman Empire he will rule. She is a city built on seven hills that reigns over the kings of the earth! John equates the readers’ acceptance of this revelation with “wisdom.” That insight demands our careful and prayerful attention.

Many prophecy teachers insist that the woman is the United States. No, the US is a country. It might justifiably be referred to as Sodom, considering the honor now given to homosexuals, but it is not “Mystery Babylon.” She is declared to be a city.

Nor is the woman ancient Babylon now being rebuilt in Iraq, for it is not built on seven hills. Some other cities are, but only Rome meets all the criteria, including being known as Babylon. Even Catholic apologist Karl Keating confirms that Rome was known as Babylon and cites 1 Peter 5:13.1 The Catholic Encyclopedia states, “It is within the city of Rome, called the city of seven hills, that the entire area of Vatican State proper is now confined.” 2

The woman is called a “whore” (v 1), with whom earthly kings “have committed fornication” (v 2). Against only two cities could such a charge be made: Jerusalem and Rome. Jerusalem was indicted for spiritual fornication by numerous prophets (Isa 1:21, etc.), but does not meet the other criteria. Vatican City claims to have been the worldwide headquarters of Christianity since its beginning. Her pope claims to be the Vicar of Christ, and his Church the true Church and bride of Christ.

Christ said His kingdom was not of this world, otherwise His servants would fight. The popes have fought with armies and navies in the name of Christ to build a worldwide empire. Vatican II states that even today the Roman Catholic Church ceaselessly seeks to bring under its control all mankind and all their goods.3 And in furtherance of these goals it has engaged, exactly as John foresaw, in fornication (unholy alliances) with the kings of the earth.

She is clothed in “purple and scarlet” (v 4), the colors of the Catholic clergy. The Catholic Encyclopedia states,

Cappa Magna – A cloak with a long train and a hooded shoulder cape…[it] was purple wool for bishops; for cardinals, it was scarlet watered silk….

Cassock – The close-fitting, ankle-length robe worn by the Catholic clergy as their official garb….The color for bishops and other prelates is purple, for cardinals scarlet…. (Emphasis added)4

Her incredible wealth next caught John’s eye. She was “decked with gold and precious stones and pearls….” (v 4) Even Christ’s blood-stained cross has been turned to gold, reflecting her riches. The Catholic Encyclopedia says, “The pectoral cross [suspended by a chain around the neck of abbots, bishops, archbishops, cardinals and the pope] should be made of gold and…decorated with gems….” 5

She had “a golden cup [chalice] in her hand full of abominations and filthiness of her fornication” (v 4). The Catholic Encyclopedia calls the gold chalice “the most important of the sacred vessels….”6 That Church is known for its many thousands of gold chalices around the world. A recent newspaper article reported,

The fabulous treasure of Lourdes [France], whose existence was kept secret by the Catholic Church for 120 years, has been unveiled….Rumours have been circulating for decades about a priceless collection of gold chalices, diamond-studded crucifixes, silver and precious stones….

After an indiscreet remark by their press spokesman this week, church authorities agreed to reveal part of the collection… [some] floor-to-ceiling cases were opened to reveal 59 solid gold chalices alongside rings, crucifixes, statues and heavy gold brooches, many encrusted with precious stones.

Almost hidden by the other treasures is the “Crown” of Notre Dame de Lourdes, made by a Paris goldsmith in 1876 and studded with diamonds.

Church authorities say they cannot put a value on the collection. “I have no idea,” says Father Pierre-Marie Charriez. …”It is of inestimable value.”

Across the road is a building housing hundreds of [antique] ecclesiastical garments, robes, mitres and sashes–many in heavy gold thread….

“The Church itself is poor,” insists Father Charriez. “The Vatican itself is poor.” 7 (Emphasis added) [And the treasure described here is only part of that which is kept in one location, the small town of Lourdes, France!]

She has practiced evil to gather her wealth, for the “golden cup” is filled with “abominations and filthiness.” Much of the wealth of the Roman Catholic Church was acquired by confiscating property of the Inquisitions’ pitiful victims. Even the dead were exhumed to face trial and property was taken from their heirs by the Church. That practice, one historian writes, offered “unlimited opportunities for loot.”8

Most of Rome’s wealth has been acquired through the sale of salvation. Untold billions of dollars have been paid to her by those who thought they were purchasing heaven on the installment plan for themselves or loved ones. The practice continues to this day-blatantly where Catholicism is in control, less obviously here in the United States where (for example) one pays the Church to have a Mass card placed on the altar in the name of the deceased during Mass to reduce time in purgatory. The wealthy often leave a fortune for masses to be said for their salvation after their death.

In addition to such perversions of the gospel, there are the further abominations (fully documented in police and court records) of corrupt banking practices, laundering of drug money, trading in counterfeit securities and dealings with the Mafia, which the Vatican and her representatives around the world have long employed. Former Business Week correspondent in Rome, Nino LoBello, who because of its incredible wealth calls Rome “the tycoon on the Tiber,” says the Vatican is so closely allied with the Mafia in Italy that “many people…believe that Sicily…is nothing more than a Vatican holding.” 9

John’s attention is next drawn to the inscription on the woman’s forehead: “THE MOTHER OF HARLOTS AND ABOMINATIONS OF THE EARTH” (v 5). Sadly enough, the Roman Catholic Church fits that description as precisely as she fits the others. Much of the cause is due to the unbiblical doctrine of priestly celibacy.

The great Apostle Paul was a celibate and recommended that life to others who wanted to devote themselves fully to serving Christ. He did not, however, make it a condition for church leadership as the Catholic Church has done, thereby imposing an unnatural burden upon her clergy that very few could bear. On the contrary, he wrote that a bishop should be “the husband of one wife” (1 Tim 3:2) and set the same requirement for elders (Titus 1:5-6).

The doctrine of celibacy has been broken repeatedly by millions of priests and nuns, bishops, archbishops, cardinals and many popes such as Sergius III, John X, John XII, Benedict V, Innocent VIII, Urban VIII, Innocent X, et al. Celibacy has made sinners of the clergy and harlots out of those with whom they secretly cohabit. The Catholic Church has paid about $1 billion in out-of-court settlements in the last few years for sexual sins of its clergy in the USA alone. Rome is indeed “the mother of harlots”!

History is replete with sayings that mocked Romanism’s false claim to celibacy: “The holiest hermit has his whore” and “Rome has more prostitutes than any other city because she has the most celibates” are examples. Pope Pius II called Rome “the only city run by bastards,” the sons and grandsons of popes and cardinals.

Even Catholic historians admit that among the popes were some of the most degenerate and unconscionable ogres in all history. More than one pope was slain by a husband who found him in bed with his wife. To call such a man “His Holiness, Vicar of Christ” makes a mockery of holiness and of Christ. Yet the name of each of these mass murderers, fornicators, robbers, warmongers–some guilty of the massacre of thousands-is emblazoned in honor on the Church’s official list of Peter’s alleged successors, the popes.

John next notices that the woman is drunk-and not with alcohol but with “the blood of the saints, and with the blood of the martyrs of Jesus…”(v 6). One thinks immediately of the Inquisitions (Roman, Medieval and Spanish) which for centuries held Europe in their terrible grip. Canon Llorente, who was the Secretary to the Inquisition in Madrid from 1790-92 and had access to the archives of all the tribunals, estimated that in Spain alone the number of condemned exceeded 3 million, with about 300,000 burned at the stake.10 A Catholic historian writes,

When Napoleon conquered Spain in 1808, a Polish officer in his army, Colonel Lemanouski, reported that the Dominicans blockaded themselves in their monastery in Madrid. When Lemanouski’s troops forced an entry, the inquisitors denied the existence of any torture chambers.

The soldiers searched the monastery and discovered them under the floors. The chambers were full of prisoners, all naked, many insane. The French troops, used to cruelty and blood, could not stomach the sight. They emptied the torture-chambers, laid gunpowder to the monastery and blew the place up.11

The remnants of some of the chambers of horror remain in Europe and may be visited today. They stand as memorials to the zealous outworking of Roman Catholic dogmas which remain in force, and to a Church which claims to be infallible and to this day justifies such barbarism. They are also memorials to the astonishing accuracy of John’s vision in Revelation 17. Do not forget, that Church has not yet officially admitted that these practices were evil, nor apologized to the world or to any of the victims or their descendants. Nor could John Paul II fully apologize today because “the doctrines responsible for those terrible things still underpin his position.” 12

“Christian” Rome has slaughtered many times the number of both Christians and Jews that pagan Rome did. Beside those victims of the Inquisitions, there were Huguenots, Albigenses, Waldenses and other Christians, massacred, tortured and burned at the stake by the hundreds of thousands simply because they refused to align themselves with the Roman Catholic Church. Listen to the leading nineteenth-century Catholic professor of church history:

The view of the Church had been…[that] every departure from the teaching of the Church…must be punished with death, and the most cruel of deaths, by fire….

Both the initiation and carrying out of this…must be ascribed to the Popes alone…who compelled bishops and priests to condemn heretics to torture, confiscation of their goods, imprisonment, and death, and to enforce the execution of this sentence on the civil authorities, under pain of excommunication. (Emphasis added)13

Pope Martin V commanded the King of Poland in 1429 to exterminate the Hussites (sympathizers with the martyred Jan Hus). This excerpt from the Pope’s letter to the King explains why popes hated independent Christians and wanted them destroyed:

Know that the interests of the Holy See, and those of your crown, make it a duty to exterminate the Hussites. Remember that these impious persons dare proclaim principles of equality; they maintain that all Christians are brethren, and that God has not given to privileged men the right of ruling the nations; they hold that Christ came on earth to abolish slavery; they call the people to liberty, that is to the annihilation of kings and priests….

[T]urn your forces against Bohemia; burn, massacre, make deserts everywhere, for nothing could be more agreeable to God, or more useful to the cause of kings, than the extermination of the Hussites. (Emphasis added)14

Note this excerpt from Pope Nicholas I’s (858-67) instructions to the King of Bulgaria, a new convert to what he thought was “Christianity,” to force Rome’s religion upon his subjects:

I glorify you for having maintained your authority by putting to death those wandering sheep who refuse to enter the fold; and…congratulate you upon having opened the kingdom of heaven to the people submitted to your rule.

A king need not fear to command massacres, when these will retain his subjects in obedience, or cause them to submit to the faith of Christ; and God will reward him in this world, and in eternal life, for these murders.15

Why should Rome apologize for or even admit this holocaust? No one calls her to account today. Protestants have forgotten and evangelical leaders join Rome to evangelize together. They don’t want to hear any “negative” reminders of the millions tortured and slain by the Church to which they now pay homage, or the fact that Rome has a false gospel of sacramental works.

The Nazi holocaust was thoroughly known to Pius XII in spite of his complete silence throughout the war on the slaughter of Jews.16 Had the Pope protested, as representatives of Jewish organizations and the Allied Powers begged him to do, he would have condemned his own Church. The facts are inescapable:

In 1936, Bishop Berning of Osnabruch had talked with the Fuhrer for over an hour. Hitler assured his lordship there was no fundamental difference between National Socialism and the Catholic Church. Had not the church, he argued, looked on Jews as parasites…?

“I am only doing,” he boasted, “what the Church has done for fifteen hundred years, only more effectively.” Being a Catholic himself, he told Berning, he “admired and wanted to promote Christianity [Catholicism].” 17

Finally, the angel reveals to John that the woman “is that great city, which reigneth over the kings of the earth” (v 18). Is there such a city? Yes, and again only one: Vatican City. One eighteenth-century historian counted 95 popes who claimed to have divine power to depose kings and emperors. Historian Walter James wrote that Pope Innocent III (1198-1216) “held all Europe in his net.” 18 Gregory IX (1227-41) thundered that the pope was Lord and Master of everyone and everything. Popes crowned and deposed kings and emperors, exacting obedience by threatening excommunication. Pope Nicholas I boasted, “Fear, then, our wrath and the thunders of our vengeance; for Jesus Christ has appointed us [the popes]…absolute judges of all men; and kings…are submitted to our authority.” 19 In commanding one king to destroy another, Nicholas wrote,

We order you, in the name of religion, to invade his states, burn his cities, and massacre his people…. 20

Eminent Catholic historian Ignaz von Dollinger writes, “Pope Clement IV, in 1265, after selling millions of South Italians to Charles of Anjou for a yearly tribute of eight hundred ounces of gold, declared that he would be excommunicated if the first payment was deferred….”21 Catholic Professor Carrerio boasted that the popes had “put down from their thrones great kings and yet mightier emperors, and set others in their place, to whom the greatest kingdoms have long paid tribute, as they do to no other, and who dispense such riches…that no king or emperor has ever had….22

The qualifying data which John gives us under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit for identifying this woman/city, is specific, conclusive and irrefutable. There is no city upon earth, past or present, which meets all of these criteria except Catholic Rome and Vatican City. Pray for the 980 million Catholics who are deceived into trusting their Church instead of Christ for salvation. May Christ’s love move you to bring the gospel to them!