jan00



				Jan - Feb 2000
		Word of Prophecy NEWSLETTER

	CONGREGATION OF THE DEAD
	The Lord warns: "The man that wandereth out of the *way of understanding* shall remain in *the congregation of the dead." Proverbs 21:16. Understanding is perhaps the most elusive element in our society and even in the individual Christian -- i.e., the true understanding of God's ways, His plans for our lives, and our responsibility to Him. The quest for understanding requires great effort and moral courage as described by the scriptures: "Yea, if thou criest after knowledge, and liftest up thy voice for understanding; If thou seekest her as silver, and searchest for her as for hid treasures;* Then shalt thou understand the fear of the Lord, and find the knowledge of God. For the Lord giveth wisdom: out of his mouth cometh knowledge and understanding." Proverbs 2:3-6. Then God further admonishes: "Wisdom is the principal thing; therefore get wisdom: and *with all thy getting get understanding."* Proverbs 4:7. Much of the Bible is written in symbolism and parables; and, as Jesus explained, "Therefore speak I to them in parables: because they seeing see not; and hearing they hear not, *neither do they understand,"* Matthew 13:13, which fulfilled a prophecy in the Old Testament of Isaiah 6:10. Why do God's own people wander out of the way of understanding and remain in *the congregation of the dead?* Because as Isaiah the prophet also foretold, "Whom shall he teach knowledge? and whom shall he make *to understand doctrine?* Them that are weaned from the milk, and drawn from the breasts. For precept must be upon precept, precept upon precept; line upon line, line upon line; here a little, and there a little . . . But the word of the Lord was unto them precept upon precept, precept upon precept; line upon line, line upon line; here a little, and there a little; *that they might go, and fall backward, and be broken, and snared, and taken* [i.e., by the devil]." Isaiah 28:9-13. God's message of understanding must be taught by holy, Holy Ghost-filled teachers, verse upon verse, scripture upon scripture all through the Bible, or Christians will be broken and go backward into the captivity of the devil. Any Christian who refuses to be taught the understanding of God in this manner will go backward into the world and be snared by the devil. UNPROFITABLE SERVANTS Why do so many of God's people of today's church and sick society reject the understanding and light through God's true end-time prophetic message? Answer -- their faint hearts, not their lack of comprehension! They just don't want to accept the responsibility to live up to God's demands to live holy, and to share in the laborious task of getting the light to others! Unprofitable and unfaithful servants to the Lord abound in today's church everywhere, manifested by *spiritual vertigo, bankruptcy, and idolatry.* In the following parable Jesus describes an unprofitable servant: "Doth he [God] thank that servant because he did the things that were commanded him? I trow [tell you certainly] not. So likewise ye, *when ye shall*



	*have done all those things which are commanded you, say, We are unprofitable servants: we have done that which was our duty to do."* Luke 17:9-10. So you can see, with Holy Ghost *understanding, that a Christian has to go far beyond the call of duty to be a profitable servant -- that is, the Holy Ghost must direct you and me to do far more for the Lord than merely be a church member -- we must strive to be in the Kingdom of God! Luke 16:16; Luke 13:24. An unprofitable and undependable servant of the Lord will be a member of the largest congregation -- the congregation of the (spiritually) dead!* PROPHETIC REVELATION God has always since Enoch, the seventh from Adam, and Noah, used prophetic revelation to enlighten His people and to give them understanding of His future dealings with men and nations. Jude 14-16; also verses 17-19. Elisha the prophet understood God's ways and could see God's army of angelic deliverance about him and his servant but the servant couldn't see them. The prophet prayed and God opened the eyes of the young man so he could see. II Kings 6:16-17! Ananias laid hands on the apostle-to-be, Paul, and scales fell off his eyes and he could see. Acts 9:17-18. Oh, how the Holy Ghost needs to move upon so many unfaithful and unprofitable saints of God to take the scales from their eyes so they can see and understand the prophetic message God is sending to them in His compassion. Wherefore the Holy Ghost pleads, "Awake thou that sleepest, and *arise from the dead [spiritually], and Christ shall give thee light."* Ephesians 5:14. Prophetic revelation from the Holy Ghost through a holy man of God is certainly not easily understood. The apostle prayed, "Consider what I say; and the Lord give thee understanding in all things." II Timothy 2:7. It is a tragedy for a Christian to wander out of the way of understanding just because the quest is difficult, and then remain in *the congregation of the dead.* Even the great Apostle Peter wrote this evaluation of the Apostle Paul's prophetic revelations: "Even as our beloved brother Paul also according to the wisdom given unto him hath written unto you; As also in all his epistles, *speaking in them of these things;* in which are some things *hard to be understood,* which they *that are unlearned and unstable wrest, as they do also the other scriptures, unto their own destruction."* II Peter 3:15-16. Beloved, here's a warning from the Holy Ghost: For you to be in the way of understanding, you must have a godly teacher, not a novice, filled with the Holy Ghost, and knowledgeable in all the Word of God! As the Apostle Paul warned the young man of God, his protege, Timothy: "But thou hast fully known my doctrine, manner of life, purpose, faith, longsuffering, charity, patience, Persecutions, afflictions . . . yea, and all that will live godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecutions. But evil men and seducers [seducing teachers] shall wax worse and worse, deceiving, and being deceived. But *continue thou* in the things which thou hast learned and hast been assured of, *knowing of whom thou hast learned them."* II Timothy 3:10-14. Prophetic revelation from the Holy Ghost does not come easily. The price to be paid by a true man of God is high in concentration, consecration, conscience, and conquest. I am writing from experience. I pray often as the Psalmist and Prophet David: "Teach me thy way, O Lord, I will walk in thy truth: unite my heart to fear thy name . . . Shew me a token for good; that they which hate me may see it, and be ashamed: because thou, Lord, hast holpen me, and comforted me." Psalm 86:11, 17. Where is the *understanding of God* and His ways found? The Holy Ghost speaks about this great quest: "But where shall wisdom be found? and where is the place of understanding? Man knoweth not the price thereof; neither is it found in the land of the living. The depth saith, It is not in me: and the sea saith, It is not with me. It cannot be gotten for gold, neither shall silver be weighed for the price thereof . . . Whence then cometh wisdom? and where is the place of understanding? Seeing it is hid from the eyes of all living . . . Unto man he [God] said,



	Behold, the fear of the Lord, that is wisdom; and *to depart from evil is understanding."* Job 28:12-28. In the words of Isaiah, a great prophet of God centuries ago, here is God's manner in giving to me understannest them that are sent unto thee . . . If thou hadst known, even thou, at least in this thy day, the things which belong unto thy peace! but now they are hid from thine eyes. For the days shall come upon thee, that thine enemies shall cast a trench about thee, and compass thee round, and keep thee in on every side, And shall lay thee even with the ground, and thy children within thee; and they shall not *leave in thee one stone upon another; because thou knewest not the time of thy visitation." Luke 13:34-able servants. They will be in the outer darkness of the glorious light of that kingdom which will rule this world for one thousand years. Matthew 8:11-12. God tries His saints daily and most of them are weighed in the balances and are found wanting. If we suffer with him, we shall also reign with him.* II Timothy 2:12. Also, "We must through much tribulation enter into the kingdom of God." Acts 14:22. In this year, as I write this prophetic message by the Holy Ghost's anointing, our generation has made its final and fatal turn -- *we are heading down the homestretch -- down a rough, darkened, narrow road leading into the kingdom age.* What will God's people encounter in the darkness and Gathering Storm into which we are entering? Beloved, here is where the message of a true prophet of God is so vital to God's saints -- so immeasurably different from a pastor, or evangelist! Listen to this with soberness and understanding of the Spirit: *The passageway into the kingdom age,* Christ's millennium reign of 1,000 years, *is like going into and through a long and extremely dark tunnel.* You may ask for understanding, "What is in the frightening darkness of the long tunnel which leads into the grandeur and light of the Kingdom of Christ?" Answer: A vicious monster -- a terrible beast with seven slashing heads! Revelation 13:1. This beast, representing the revived Roman Empire and its god-emperor, the Antichrist, will lurk in the spiritual darkness behind a political and religious facade until God's saints are overcome, and the Holy Bible destroyed. Daniel 7:21-22; Revelation 13:7-8. He will then be unveiled. II Thessalonians 2:7-8. Tens of thousands of Christians are heading into the long, dark tunnel; i.e., the first 3 1/2 years of Great Tribulation, without a light, guidepost, or beacon. Why? Because they won't accept the light and understanding of God's true prophetic message which foretells of these perils and terror which all God's saints will encounter in the Gathering Storm, and how to overcome them. The prophetic message of this ministry is God's true light to shine on our pathway through the arising terrifying darkness. Psalms 119:105. Also, "We have also *a more sure word of prophecy; whereunto ye do well that ye take heed, as unto a light that shineth in a dark place,* until the day dawn, and the day star arise in your hearts." II Peter 1:19. My beloved, you cannot afford to let a fabled, easy rapture belief get you on such a spiritual "high" that you foolishly reject these warnings of the Holy Ghost. Would you be foolish enough to go into a dark cavern or tunnel with all the inherent dangers without a bright light to shine on a safe path, or with which to frighten a wild beast away which lurks in the mysterious darkness? How infinitely more foolish to reject the light of this message from the Holy Scriptures which are "a light to our path, and a lamp to our feet." The light of God's Word terrifies the devil and all our adversaries, and will give us guidance as we enter the approaching tunnel of spiritual darkness. This prophetic message is giving light and understanding among God's true elect so that they will not remain among *the congregation of the dead.* Every concept and revelation of this prophetic message and ministry fully harmonize with all the prophetic scriptures of the Bible -- therefore, there is no



	excuse for those who hear to depart out of the way of understanding. Proverbs 21:16. THE END IS NEAR There is much preaching across the land about the nearness of the return of Christ and the end of the age. Well beloved, the Gathering Storm is much closer than either of those great prophesied events. A mighty prophet, Jesus of Nazareth, wept over the blind, rebellious church and City of Jerusalem some nineteen centuries ago and prophesied: "O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, which killest the prophets, and stonest them that are sent unto thee . . . If thou hadst known, even thou, at least in this thy day, the things which belong unto thy peace! but *now they are hid from thine eyes.* For the days shall come upon thee, that thine enemies shall cast a trench about thee, and compass thee round, and keep thee in on every side, *And shall lay thee even with the ground, and thy children within thee;* and they shall not leave in thee one stone upon another; *because thou knewest not the time of thy visitation."* Luke 13:34-35; 19:41-44! The church of old was blind to the prophetic message God sent them and they went into darkness to face a monster -- the same one we will face -- the old brutal Roman Empire with its god-emperor. This church of old didn't listen to God's prophet -- they drifted blindly into a dark tunnel of spiritual darkness, until, thirty-seven years after the doomsday prophecy of that prophet, they were rudely awakened out of their stupor. They had wandered out of the way of understanding (through the prophetic message sent from God) and had remained in *the congregation of the dead* for thirty-seven years. Suddenly one day, a powerful Roman Army, legions of fierce, battle-tested warriors under General Titus began to surround Jerusalem, with orders from the Roman Emperor to destroy the city and its inhabitants. Huge battering rams were drawn against the gates and they began to pound relentlessly for weeks on end. The older citizens recalled the prophecies of Jesus Christ, their rejected prophet with God's message of peace and reconciliation. The younger people began to ask their elders, "What does all this mean?" I can hear the elders who had witnessed the trial and crucifixion of Jesus -- they who remembered His foreboding prophecy, begin to relate with trembling voice, "Son, thirty-seven years ago, a man who claimed to be "That Prophet" sent from God (Deuteronomy 18:18-19) prophesied in tears over this city and foretold of a time in which Jerusalem would be compassed by armies, laid even with the ground, and its citizens brutally massacred, because we did not accept Him and His message. This indeed appears to be that prophetic fulfillment." In a few weeks of continuous pounding on the walls and gates by battering rams, the starving city of Jerusalem was broken down, its temple and houses burned, while mothers and fathers were slain, their babies dashed to pieces by the terrifying hordes of Roman soldiers. There were Christians in that city as the approaching, terrifying monster with its talons engulfed it -- what did they do? Answer: Jesus Christ had given that church signs to which the approaching storm of disaster could be recognized! God's true elect accepted Jesus Christ and the prophetic message which He delivered -- they remembered! At this point you must *understand that* some of the signs of this end-time generation also applied to that generation -- signs of the destruction of God's temple and the City of Jerusalem as: "And ye shall be hated of all men for my name's sake (severe persecution, a sign). *But there shall not an hair of your head perish.* In your patience possess ye your souls. And when ye shall see Jerusalem compassed with armies, then know that the desolation [i.e., destruction of Jerusalem] thereof is nigh. Then let them which are in Judea *flee to the mountains;* and let them which are in the midst of it *depart out;* and let not them that are in the countries enter thereinto. For these be the days of vengeance . . . *But woe unto them that are with child, and to them that give suck,* in those days! for there shall be great distress in the land, and wrath upon this people. And they shall fall by the edge of the sword, and shall be led away captive into all nations." Luke 21:17-24. The wise people of God understood the prophetic revelations of God's prophet and read the signs correctly -- they departed from Jerusalem quickly, and stealthily, during the night, as the Roman army began putting a ring of steel around Jerusalem -- and they



	escaped their wrath. God's saints endured persecution from the Roman Monster, but were delivered from his wrath because they had the light and understanding of God's last prophetic message to the early church. WILL YOU LISTEN? I feel like the weeping and persecuted Prophet Jeremiah at times as he expressed his desire to resign his vital ministry to a church headed into a storm of unprecedented fury and destruction, while I observe, as Jeremiah, the apathy, unfaithfulness, and blindness of God's saints: "I am in derision daily, every one mocketh me . . . *I cried violence and spoil;* because the word of the Lord was made a reproach unto me, and a derision, daily. *Then I said, I will not make mention of him, nor speak any more in his name. But his word was in mine heart as a burning fire shut up in my bones,* and I was weary with forbearing, and *I could not stay."* Jeremiah 20:7-9. Well, beloved, my retirement is at death -- so is yours! "Fear none of those things which thou shalt suffer: behold, the devil shall cast some of you into prison, that ye may be tried; and ye shall have tribulation ten days; *be thou faithful unto death,* and I will give thee a crown of life." Revelation 2:10. My beloved, are you listening? The Holy Ghost is mightily striving to give you *understanding* in God's dealings with the church and nations in the immediate prophetic future. I pray for you in the words of the beloved apostle: I "cease not to give thanks for you, making mention of you in my prayers, That the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give unto you *the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of him: The eyes of your understanding being enlightened;* that ye may know what is the hope of his calling, and what the riches of the glory of his inheritance in the saints." Ephesians 1:16-18. To get this prophetic revelation to God's elect -- a message of light and *understanding,* is a staggering responsibility. I need help, lots of help from God's people, Now! Many of God's well-meaning saints are going to be judged "unprofitable servants," wander out of the way of understanding, and remain among *the congregation of the dead* -- why? Answer: *For being God's silent majority!* This is not like any other ministry in America -- and, I am not like other radio or TV preachers. This is not a racket -- we are not money-grabbers -- we don't have gimmicks, and you folks that know me, the message I preach, and this ministry, *understand* that. When you know that I am a true prophet of God and preach God's true prophetic message, either by knowledge or by revelation of the Holy Ghost, then this ministry and its support *becomes your responsibility!* You can do much as an individual -- or family group. Many pastors and their churches could work as a unit and send a good monthly offering to help us publish literature, preach on radio broadcasts, cassettes, and in person. God is going to severely judge His people who wilfully rebel and selfishly refuse to help get God's last message of holiness, repentance, the fear of God, and warnings of His judgments to a generation and church headed into a storm of unprecedented trouble. "And what will ye do in the day of visitation, and in the desolation which shall come from far? to whom will ye flee for help? and where will ye leave your glory?" Isaiah 10:3. We preach, teach and live a holy life. This ministry projects the image of the Real Jesus, His life-style and godliness. This ministry also projects the compassion of Christ to His elect everywhere. Please rally to this desperate need of the end time church, our sick society, and our confused young people -- we are reaching them with God's message that can bring them into the Kingdom of Jesus Christ. Jesus said, "The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak." Matthew 26:41. Listen to the Holy Ghost and you will become a profitable servant in this great work of the kingdom. Begin now being careful, faithful,



	profitable, and dependable to God. Your spiritual strength to face the perils of the near future, and the physical survival of you and your family could very well depend on what you do about this vital matter -- and, God's Spirit tells me for your sakes that it does! Write me today and begin to help us get this prophetic message and warnings of the Holy Ghost to the church, our nation, and the nations around us to lead them into *understanding* in the things of God, and keep them from remaining in *the congregation of the dead.* AMEN! The End.

	HOW TO LIVE VICTORIOUSLY

	*There are four steps to victorious living, and there are no shortcuts.* Being a real Christian results from no bargain counter offer -- no cheap experience. It costs everything of self; all the fleshly lusts and appetites must be overcome and conquered. *A newborn babe in Christ must be directed into a path of complete victory over the world, the flesh, sin, and the devil, or, he will go back into the world from whence he came and be lost.* Romans 8:12-13. The path of victorious living lies in individual consecration, concentration, conquest and conscience. *Consecration* is dedicating the individual's life to this motto, "I will do each day, in every moment, the best I can by the light I have; I will ever seek more light from God's Word and live in harmony with that truth." I John 1:7. *Concentration* makes the individual life simpler and deeper. In morals, it is a shortcut to simplicity. It leads to right for the right's sake, without thought of policy or of earthly reward. It cuts away the shams and pretenses of modern living, and limits life to its truest essentials. Concentration on making one's life victorious over all the works of the flesh and devil unifies the strands and threads of each day's thoughts. Concentration dignifies a humble life -- it makes a great life sublime. Phil. 4:8. *Conquest* is the overcoming of an evil habit, the rising superior to the appetites of the flesh and being the victor. When you are worn and weak with the struggle, when it seems that the flesh and the devil will win all, that truth and honest effort God does not reward, then is the time when you must rise and tower above these imps of despair in your sublime faith that right and truth must prevail. *You must master yourself to master the world about you! This is conquest; this is what counts.* Even a log can go with the current, but it takes a real man to fight valiantly against an opposing tide that would sweep his ship into the sea off its course. *This is conquest.* When the opportunity to win fame, wealth, success or attainment of your heart's desire, by sacrifice of honor or principle comes to you, and it does not affect you long enough to even seem like a temptation, you have been the victor. *This too is conquest.* This is a vital part of the road to living victoriously. I John 2:14; 5:2-5. *Conscience* is a delicate spiritual barometer and must be kept sensitive to God's spirit. It is sensitized to right and wrong by the blood of Jesus. Hebrews 9:14. However, *the conscience can be perverted or deadened by the wrongdoing and subsequent deafness of its owner.* When the individual can stay alone with his conscience and get its approval, without using force or questionable logic, he is on the path of living victoriously. To keep the conscience from being seared (I Tim. 4:2), one must live day by day, the best he can by all the light of God's Word he has received. You are then on God's royal path to victorious living. II Peter 1:4-10; Psalms 37:23.

	Remember: "Lest Satan should get an advantage of us: for we are not ignorant of his devices." II Cor. 2:11
	Word of Prophecy Newsletter Published by: Word of Prophecy Fellowship P O Box 10200, Jacksonville, FL 32247 Editor Bro. Ray Pringle, a prophet of God and an ordained minister of the Calvary Chapel Church of God, Inc. Associate Editor ... June Carpenter Copyrighted - All rights reserved