July 7: AT THAT TIME... (part 5)
At that time Michael shall stand up, The great prince who stands watch over the sons of your people; And there shall be a time of trouble, Such as never was since there was a nation, Even to that time. And at that time your people shall be delivered, Every one who is found written in the book. Daniel 12:1
The subject of the heavenly registry, the book*, is woven into Scriptural accounts for our benefit. Daniel and Revelation together communicate encouragement to those who oppose the end-time, worldwide power that sets up its false system of worship. The loving eyes who watch over the sons of [Daniel’s] people are the same eyes that see every act of love springing from the heart of faith. He hears every word that expresses God’s true character in the world. In addition to the list of the saved in the Lamb’s book of life, He has a book of remembrance (Malachi 3:16) where meticulously recorded are heart-change acts enabled by the Holy Spirit: every temptation resisted, every suffering and sorrow endured for the sake of Christ, every word of encouragement to others seeking to overcome evil, every deed of righteousness, every tear shed in longing for God’s light to shine upon others . . .
King David met with great resistance while seeking to live for the LORD; he wrote: You number my wanderings; Put my tears into Your bottle; are they not in Your book? (Psalm 56:8) Every one who walks in the cleansing power of the Spirit of God will be found written in the book.
There comes a time when mercy is no longer available to the guilty inhabitants of this world. Jesus described it in saying, “Night is coming when no one can work.” (John 9:4) The final test of earth will have proven each one to be either loyal to the Savior and His divine precepts, or loyal to human “Babylonian” institutions which regard man’s traditions above the commands of God. When the Intercessor shall stand up from the mercy seat in the heavenly sanctuary, man will be without the intercession of our Great High Priest. But the faithful who are still alive will have received the seal of the living God (Revelation 7:2). They are prepared to weather the final tribulation of the seven last plagues (15:1), God’s wrath poured out upon the unrepentant. At that time, every case has been decided, for life or for death. The pronouncement that the unjust will remain unjust and the righteous will remain righteous (Revelation 22:11) precedes Christ’s coming.
That time will come when the King of the Universe knows that even if His mercy extended another year or month or day or hour, no one would be moved from the stance they have taken. After the Lord Jesus appointed the seventy others (Luke 10:1) to join with His disciples as forerunners into the cities, they returned with joy, saying, “Lord, even the demons are subject to us in Your name” (v.17). The authority that Jesus bestows on His servants is real, but He takes care to remind them, and us, that our rejoicing must be in the utter humility that accompanies abiding daily with Him, welcoming daily the presence of the Holy Spirit, for herein is found the seal of the living God. Beloved, God’s Spirit will never contradict His Word!
“Behold, I give you authority . . . Nevertheless, do not rejoice in this, that the spirits are subject to you, but rather rejoice because your names are written in heaven.” Luke 10:19a, 20
*Mentions of the book: Exodus 32:32-33; Psalm 69:28; Isaiah 4:3; Philippians 4:3; Revelation 3:5; 13:8; 17:8; 20:12,15; 21:27; 22:19