The Final Generation

'There is a final revelation we dare not overlook.

It was the Holy Spirit who overshadowed Mary. The result:  - Jesus - a new distinct Being - the God-man.

In the final hour, there will be earth-people who, when demanded to testify for their faith, will open their mouths to speak. But they will not speak themselves, for being so fully possessed of the Spirit, it will be the Holy Spirit which will speak. (Mark 13:11)

Mar 13:11  But when they shall lead you, and deliver you up, take no thought beforehand what ye shall speak, neither do ye premeditate: but whatsoever shall be given you in that hour, that speak ye: for it is not ye that speak, but the Holy Ghost.

 Then when all things are made new, the Revelation indicates that "the Tabernacle of God", even Jesus, (John 1:14, Gr.) will dwell with man, and "God Himself shall be with them, and be their God." (Rev. 22:3)

Again Two as revealed in the Old Testament. But the same revelation in the same context declares the Holy Spirit speaking as one voice with "the bride." (Rev. 22:17)

Is not this the same experience as recorded in Mark 13:11, which describes earth's final witnesses? Then could it not be suggested that "the bride" of Christ becomes in consort with the Lamb, the "third" in the picture as a result of the Incarnation, and the wonder of the Plan of Redemption? Even as the "how" of the Incarnation remains a mystery to angels as well as to man, so also "how" this ultimate plan of God will be accomplished remains mysterious. We only read, and wonder, and in faith say as did Abraham - "Amen." (Gen 15:6)

Gen 15:6  And he believed in the LORD; and he counted it to him for righteousness.

The word translated, "believed" in Gen. 15:6 is the Hebrew word, amin. In the Greek it is amen (verily in John 3:3). In English, we say - Amen (So be it).

Some idea of "the mystery, which was kept secret since the world began" but is made manifest in the revelation of the Gospel of Jesus Christ can be perceived when one recognizes that "human beings were a new and distinct order." (R&H, Feb. 11, 1902) Man made "in the image of God" was "designed to be a counterpart of God." (R&H, June 18, 1895)

The significance of what this "counterpart" design of God is to be can be perceived in part by a comparison of Scripture. When Christ returns the second time, there will be two groups of the redeemed:  

1)  The "corruptible" - those who have died. These put on " incorruption."  

2 )   The "mortal" - those who are alive on the earth - put on " immortality."

Here is a significant word use in the Greek. The word translated, "immortality", here in I Cor. 15:53-54 is athanasia, and is used in only one other place in the New Testament also in Paul's writings. This other use in I Timothy 6:16 is in reference to God - "Who only hath immortality."

Truly Christ became one flesh with us that we might become one spirit with Him.

In a special sense in the revelation which God gave to Him to show to His servants (Rev. 1:1), this applies to the group which that revelation designates as "the remnant of her seed,"  "the bride" of Christ - the 144,000.

This experience can only be ours in this final generation as we permit the mind of Jesus to be our mind. That mind calls for a complete emptying of self, the ekenosen of Philippians 2:7, which in the KJV reads He "made Himself of no reputation." The Greek reads - "But Himself, He emptied."  End.'

('Another Comforter -- A study on the Holy Spirit' -- by W. H. Grotheer)

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This FINAL generation.  And the skeptics begin their chatter. How can we be the final generation? Hasn't every generation believed the same? You have to ask yourself another question- WILL THERE BE A FINAL GENERATION? Do you truly believe in the Bible, the Word of God given to us by the Holy Spirit? If you answered yes to the last question then you HAVE to believe there WILL BE A FINAL GENERATION.

Those who believe there will be a final generation also know this-

Mat 24:37  But as the days of Noe were, so shall also the coming of the Son of man be.

Mat 24:38  For as in the days that were before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noe entered into the ark,

Mat 24:39  And knew not until the flood came, and took them all away; so shall also the coming of the Son of man be.

Eating-check. Drinking-check. Marrying-check. Giving in marriage-check.  In other words the majority of the world's people will be living their lives as if nothing else matters. The world will be in tatters about them but they will forage on with a 'normal' semblance of life. The mark of the beast will be enacted, and ALL but the very elect will follow this beast, receiving his mark. And then the plagues will begin to fall and STILL people will be carrying on as if their lives are all that matter, living their lives as if nothing else matters, nothing has changed, living life as usual not letting anything get in the way of the normalcy craved by people.  And it's true isn't it? People crave the familiar.  People do not want change. Is it possible that by refusing to live for Christ and be His, truly be His in the final generation, that some will be instead choosing a life of normalcy over the abnormal?  They will be choosing to keep their minds all caught up in the day to day life rather than recognize the times they are living it. 

Already I can imagine people asking- 'Well what do you expect from those living in the last days? To hole themselves up as hermits, to become recluses, to shelter themselves from REAL life? To not marry, to not give in marriage, to not eat and not drink?  How ludicrous is that last bit. We must eat and drink to live so what exactly is expected of those living in the final generation? What was expected of those in Noah's day?

Those who were God's, those eight people saved, were working for God. Yes, they were eating and drinking and they were even married. What separated them from those who weren't God's?  They were living in God's will, doing God's will.  They were listening to God. They were PREPARING for the final days before the flood was to come. They were NOT caught up in the normalcy of life, they lived normally in the sense of having to eat, drink, and marry, but they were very actively PREPARING for what God told them was to come.

So this leads us to ask the following question-  'What do we do in our final general to prepare for what God has told us is to come?'

We recognize that the world isn't going to a standstill with everyone waiting with bated breath for the Savior to return. We recognize that the majority of people will be living their lives as if the Savior were NOT returning.

Those who are Christ's in the final generation will be prepared. They will see all that is going on around them and they we know that all the signs are pointing to the Savior's return. They will know that their redemption is drawing nigh. They will be going through a lot of spiritual turmoil. There will be a lot of wrestling with the Spirit. There will be a war being fought as Satan staging his last thrust for souls goes all out leaving not a single temptation unturned. In every manner we are susceptible to we will be tempted to turn from Christ and towards Satan, a false angel of light, a pretender, a liar. You might be tempted in the ways I am, and I may not be tempted in the way you are, and Satan knows how to tailor make all the temptations for us. You can believe, because it is TRUTH, that Satan is and will be fighting like crazy to get those who are God's away from God the shorter and shorter his time grows. 

All of us who are living in the final general will go through a fire unlike any other at any other time, save our Savior- Jesus Christ. He and He alone faced the wrath of Satan's temptations beyond what anyone else ever has.

Satan knows He's lost and He wants as many human beings as possible to be lost with him. Every human being he snatches away from Christ eases his insidious longing to hurt God just a tad bit more. He won't be satisfied until he has seduced all but the very elect, and he won't seduce the very elect but that will not be for lack of desperately trying.  The very elect are the Holy Spirit's. The Holy Spirit will be living in the very elect because the very elect have chosen to believe Jesus Christ came in the flesh and died for them, and rose to glory for them, and is returning for them and they will live with Him forever more.

The Holy Spirit a representative sent to us by Jesus Christ.  The Holy Spirit, God on earth empowering those who will be the very elect. Just as the Holy Spirit empowered the apostles in the very beginning of the ministry of Christ's, He will empower us at the end.  And truly the only way this is done is if we are emptied of our own will.

Paul had to be divested of his own desire before he could receive the power of God.  Had Paul stuck to his own desire he would have picked himself up off the ground, been led to some place safe and then carried on persecuting the followers of Jesus Christ.  We led to a place of choice, when revealed the glory of God, Paul set aside his own desire and waited to know God's.

We aren't going to be blinded by God and then told what to do by others sent to us by God. We aren't going to be touched as any of the apostles were when they were called by Jesus Christ our Lord to follow Him.  We will be called and when we are called we have to make the choice to obey God rather than man, rather than self. Will we obey God rather than man? Rather than self?  It's easy to assume we won't let any other person tell us how to live, how to believe, but all too often we are snared by obeying ourselves, not God.  When we realize that we are at war with ourselves, with our flesh nature, we have to realize as well that the war is REAL and there is a CHOICE to be made, a constant choice to be made for Christ.

Do we believe this--

1Co_10:13  There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it.

Do we believe what we just read?  That every temptation has a way of escape? And that escape of the temptation is being able to BEAR being tempted without consenting to the temptation with our minds. We have to FIGHT temptation! We have to WAR with temptation! We have to constantly TRUST that there will be a way out, an escape through Jesus Christ our Savior! The Holy Spirit will live with us and through HIM we will escape. We must EVER fight the good fight, race the good race all the way to the end, never giving into to despair, never!

All by the Holy Spirit may we live here and now, through His power, through Him and not of ourselves. May we be prepared for the return of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. May the Heavenly Father guide us to this end, to be HIS always!

In their love!