Empire and Remnant

The sin cycle begins with forgetfulness. An important aspect of the sin cycle is the pride/empire cycle.

The normal human response to crisis and disaster is to trust in political power for a solution. This half works, which produces human confidence and pride. Pride pushes for the accumulation of political power, which eventually leads to Empire. Because empires are motivated by pride, they always overstretch and eventually collapse.

The pride/empire cycle makes history seem circular, because empires seem to come and go with monotonous regularity.

God has a different view of history. He sees the collapse of empire as an opportunity for a prepared remnant to fill the gap with a different model of government that does not rely on political power and coercion. Jesus called that new government the kingdom of God.

If the church is true to its Lord, the rise of empire will lead to persecution. Perseverance through persecution will refine and prepare the remnant.

This calls for patient endurance and faithfulness on the part of God’s people (Rev 13:10).

Persecution will produce a prepared remnant if they persevere to the end (Rev 6:9-11). The prepared church drops out of the empire cycle down to the narrow path to the Kingdom of God. The Holy Spirit will work through his prepared remnant to establish his kingdom on earth.

The kingdom of the world has become
the kingdom of our Lord and of his Messiah,
and he will reign for ever and ever (Rev 11:15).

Since Jesus victory on the cross, there have been several opportunities for this to happen. The greatest was the collapse of the Roman Empire.

Unfortunately, each time an opportunity has arisen, a remnant that understood the times and was prepared did not exist. Instead, the church had become so entwined with empire that it has been swept away with it when it collapsed.

God's plan is to use the opportunities presented by the collapse of Empire to establish his Kingdom on earth, but he can only do that if he has a remnant that is ready for the task.

This explains why the book of Revelation always seems to be on the verge of fulfilment. It perfectly described the rise and fall of empires.

It also explains why Revelation has not yet been fulfilled perfectly. The opportunity has arisen several times, but the remnant has never been prepared, but like the five foolish maidens, runs out of oil when the going gets tough. So history always clicked back into another turn of the pride/empire cycle.

We are coming into a season where pride and political power are peaking again. The current empire is already overstretched. If the remnant is ready, we could escape the cycle and see the massive advance of the Kingdom of God that the scriptures promise. Our time could be the time of fulfilment, as it was many times before, when the empire of the day collapsed.

The prophetic voice in the church is stronger now than it has ever been. If the prophets fulfil their calling and teach people how to prepare, this could be the time when we escape from the cycle. Unfortunately, most prophets are so dazzled by empire that they do not understand the times, let alone how to prepare. So another remnant might miss the boat, and another opportunity will disappear into the circle of pride and empire.

This current season could still be the one where it happens. Although the power mongers are waiting in the wings, the current empire has not yet reached its peak. There is still time for the remnant to prepare. So wake up prophets and sound a clear trumpet call!

Remnants

There are two types of remnant. In Elijah’s time, a remnant of 7000 people had not bowed their knee to Baal, but they were an impotent remnant. They were not able to assist Elijah in his battle with Jezebel, and they did not change the destiny of their nation.

A different type of remnant joined with David at Addulum. This was a much smaller remnant, but some of them understood the times and they all trained and prepared. They supported David and changed the direction of their nation.

The Holy Spirit is looking for a Ready Remnant that understands the times and is prepared for what lies ahead.

Shaking Christchurch (5) - Remnant

God sometimes uses traumatic events to shake people loose, so he can draw them back to him, but he does not do this just for fun. He will only send judgement, if he has a remnant faithful to him, who are equipped to serve those who are shaken and get them back on to the right way. If the remnant is not prepared to demonstrate the love of God during the crisis, it is wasted and evil benefits. A crisis can open people’s hearts, but if no one is there to pour oil on their wounds, the scars will harden their hearts to the gospel.

An earthquake cannot preach the gospel. Only people can testify to Jesus to what Jesus has done. An earthquake cannot convict people of their need for a saviour. Only the Holy Spirit can do that.

This was true in Paul’s day. The Philippians jailor became a Christian after the earthquake that opened the gates of his jail.

The jailer called for lights, rushed in and fell trembling before Paul and Silas. He then brought them out and asked, "Sirs, what must I do to be saved?" (Acts 16:29-30).

This was not a spontaneous response to the earthquake. What made the difference was seeing the faith and joy of two men who had been “stripped and beaten” “severely flogged” with “their feet fastened in stocks”.

About midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the other prisoners were listening to them (Acts 16:25).

The jailor became a Christian, because he had seen two wounded and bound men praising and worshipping God in the middle of the night. The jailor was a hard, tough man. His heart was blown open, because he saw the Holy Spirit working in the lives of Paul and Silas during their time of crisis.

If his earthquake had struck on any other night of the year, the jailor would not have become a Christian. He would have cursed and beaten the prisoners and carried on with life. The living faith of Paul and Silas made the difference.

Carrying this forward to the earthquake in Christchurch, most people just felt an earthquake, and it did not preach the gospel. They have seen Church leaders calling on the government to rebuild their collapsed church buildings, but only a few have seen the faith and love of the Christian remnant.

My view is that God has had to put his plans for shaking New Zealand on hold. He has had no choice, because his remnant is not prepared. Without a ready remnant, any judgment would be wasted and become pointless evil. God is not in the business of supporting evil, so an earthquake was not on God’s plan for Christchurch.

I believe the Lord is saying,

Do not be distracted by the earthquake.

Do not be impressed by the earthquake.
Compared to the power of my Holy Spirit,
the power of the earthquake is nothing.

Do not let the earthquake set your agenda.
My plans and my purpose for Christchurch have not changed.
My people be shaped by my word and my Spirit>
Commit yourself to obeying my will
and fulfilling my purposes
and you will see a great harvest.

Christians who assume that the earthquake will make their commission easy will be disappointed. Jesus sent his disciples out in power pairs to heal the sick and proclaim the gospel of the Kingdom of God. Paul and Barnabas were beaten and bound in prison, because they heeded this call, but that is what will bring in the harvest.