Church of God Message 

Call Us:  8133745451

DOES GOD EXIST?


CHAPTER 11


PROOF # 3(f) PROPHECIES FULFILLED IN OUR TIMES


Not only have prophecies been fulfilled in the distant past, many end-time prophecies have already been fulfilled and/or are being fulfilled. Here are some of them: 

Gospel of the Kingdom Shall be Preached  

One of the most important prophecies given by Jesus Christ about the end time is stated in Matthew 24:3-4, 14 (NIV), “3 As Jesus was sitting on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to him privately. “Tell us,” they said, “when will this happen, and what will be the sign of your coming and of the end of the age?” 4 Jesus answered…14 And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come.”

After the original apostles passed away, no one ever preached the good news of the return of Jesus Christ to set up God’s Kingdom. In 1843-1845, William Miller of the Baptist Church predicted that Jesus Christ will return sometime between March 21, 1843 and March 21, 1844. When Jesus Christ did not return, then the date of April 18, 1844 was briefly set. When that date came and went, recalculations were done, and a date of October 10, 1844 was set for the return of Jesus Christ. That too turned out to be a great disappointment.

Even in recent times, people of other faiths have also predicted the end of the world, but all have proved to be false prophets.

However, Jesus prophesied that the gospel (meaning good news) of the establishment of the kingdom would be preached in the whole world before the end of the age. The establishment of God’s Kingdom, however, is preceded by catastrophic events. That too was predicted in the same prophecy by Jesus Christ in Matthew 24:3-14, 21-22:

“3 And as he sat upon the mount of Olives, the disciples came unto him privately, saying, Tell us, when shall these things be? and what shall be the sign of your coming, and of the end of the world? 4 And Jesus answered and said unto them, Take heed that no man deceive you. 5 For many shall come in my name, saying, I am Christ; and shall deceive many. 6 And you shall hear of wars and rumors of wars: see that you be not troubled: for all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet. 7 For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom: and there shall be famines, and pestilences, and earthquakes, in diverse places. 8 All these are the beginning of sorrows.

“9 Then shall they deliver you up to be afflicted and shall kill you: and you shall be hated of all nations for my name's sake. 10 And then shall many be offended, and shall betray one another, and shall hate one another. 11 And many false prophets shall rise and shall deceive many. 12 And because iniquity shall abound, the love of many shall wax cold. 13 But he that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved.

“14 And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations; and then shall the end come.”

“21 For then shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be. 22 And except those days should be shortened, there should no flesh be saved: but for the elect's sake those days shall be shortened.”  

Jesus prophesied that just before His return, world conditions would be such that the world would be on the brink of annihilation. He will then return and put an end to man’s madness. 

No one has ever preached that part of the warning message to the world because no one clearly understood Bible prophecy. However, Jesus prophesied that before His return and the end of the age, the gospel will be preached in the whole world as a testimony against the world. That prophecy has been fulfilled, and is being fulfilled as you read this book, and by my messages delivered every week on Saturdays at 9.00 AM, USA Eastern Standard Time, which anyone can hear in his own language by just tuning his ear to hear them.

That prophecy began to be fulfilled when in September – October of 1917, Herbert W. Armstrong’s wife Loma Armstrong had a dream in which angels appeared to her to let her know that God had a special work for Herbert Armstrong and her to perform. Herbert Armstrong thought nothing of the dream but was then knocked down financially as his businesses were wiped out during the Great Depression. He was also challenged to research into religion because his wife started keeping the Sabbath (from Friday sunset to Saturday sunset). What he discovered changed his life. His mind was opened to the understanding of prophecy, and he realized that he had been commissioned by God to preach the gospel of the kingdom of God to the whole world in fulfillment of Matthew 24:14. That preaching began in autumn of 1928 when he gave his first sermon to the Church of God. 

Since that time, Herbert Armstrong preached the gospel till his death on January 16, 1986. Since then the Church of God has been preaching the same gospel message. My weekly messages are part of the same preaching in fulfillment of the prophecy in Matthew 24:14.

Prophesied Elijah has Already Come and Gone 

God through Malachi the prophet prophesied in Malachi 4:5-6, “5 Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord: 6 And he shall turn the heart of the fathers to the children, and the heart of the children to their fathers, lest I come and smite the earth with a curse” [translated as ‘destruction’ in the Complete Jewish Bible].

This prophecy has already been fulfilled by Herbert W. Armstrong. But how do we prove that Herbert W. Armstrong was Elijah the prophet God sent?

From a reading of this prophecy no one would be able to recognize who would fulfill the role of Elijah the prophet. Would he be a great psychologist or a great religious leader who would preach a convincing message of “putting father back as the head of the family” or a message about bringing families together or ‘Focus on the Family”? Many preachers and psychologists preach such messages. So, this prophecy cannot be understood by reading only the Old Testament. The key to understanding this prophecy is found in the New Testament.

Proof that Herbert W. Armstrong was the Prophesied Elijah God Sent

Malachi also wrote in 3:1-2: “1 Behold, I will send my messenger, and he shall prepare the way before me...” This means that one in the spirit and power of Elijah would come in the end time to prepare for the coming of the Messiah.

In the New Testament Jesus Christ unlocked the key to recognizing who the Elijah would be through his commission. Jesus’ disciples asked Him in Matthew 17:10-13: “10… Why then say the scribes that Elias [Elijah] must first come? 11 And Jesus answered and said unto them, Elias truly shall first come, and restore all things. 12 But I say unto you, That Elias is come already, and they knew him not, but have done unto him whatsoever they listed [wished]…13 Then the disciples understood that He spoke to them of John the Baptist.”  

Because this prophet was to come in the spirit and power of Elijah, he would fulfill the role that Elijah the prophet fulfilled in ancient Israel. In Elijah’s time Israel had departed from the true God and had started worshipping Baal and other pagan gods. In the entire nation only 7,000 were left who had not worshipped Baal. Elijah came and restored worship of the true God in ancient Israel.  

John the Baptist came and prepared the way for the first coming of Jesus Christ. But when Jesus discussed this prophecy with the disciples, John the Baptist had already come and been beheaded by Herod. He could not have restored anything after his death. This means that the prophecy Jesus gave was about an end-time Elijah who would come and prepare the way for the second coming of Jesus Christ by restoring all things, meaning the truths concerning the true God, all the true doctrines and the right way to worship God. Malachi 4:5-6 also prophesied that the Elijah would come just before the Day of the Lord. And the Day of the Lord is in the end time. It is the last one year of the three and a half year long Great Tribulation. That is yet in the future. 

The modern Elijah would fulfill a similar role. He would restore correct worship of the true God in spiritual Israel, which is God’s true Church. 

What are the “all things” Jesus referred to that one coming in the spirit and power of Elijah would restore? Just as the original Elijah restored worship of the true God in ancient Israel, and one in the spirit and power of Elijah before the first coming of Jesus Christ, meaning John the Baptist restored the worship of the true God in the correct way, another prophet in the spirit and power of Elijah would be sent before the second coming of Jesus Christ to restore the worship of the true God in the right way.

There was no New Testament Church when the original Elijah or John the Baptist came. So, they could restore the worship of the true God only based on the understanding provided by the prophets before them. But for the end-time Elijah, the restoration of all things would also additionally require restoring all the doctrines laid down by Jesus Christ and established by the apostles in the original Church, the knowledge of which had been lost over the centuries.

The Elijah to be sent in the end time is also twice mentioned by Jesus Christ as more than a prophet in Matthew 11:9 and Luke 7:26: “But what did you go out to see? A prophet? Yes, I say to you, and more than a prophet.”  

In Church rankings, only an apostle ranks higher than a prophet as mentioned in 1 Corinthians 12:28: “And God has appointed these in the church: first apostles, second prophets, third teachers, after that miracles, then gifts of healings, helps, administrations, varieties of tongues.” Mr. Armstrong thus was more than a prophet in Jesus’ words because he was an apostle as well. It was necessary for this Elijah to have the rank of an apostle as well because he would be required to restore and establish doctrine since only apostles could establish doctrine.

This end-time commission of an Elijah-like prophet was so important that in September- October 1917, Mr. Armstrong was appointed to fulfill this commission through a dream to his wife Mrs. Loma Armstrong which he described in Volume 1 of his autobiography, pages 203-205.

In the dream Mrs. Armstrong was with Mr. Armstrong and saw a solid mass of brilliant stars filling the sky and then vanishing. She realized these were angels. Then 3 angels appeared and one of them put his arm around both of them. The angel told them that Christ was really coming in a very short time.

Mr. Armstrong writes: “At that time, we had been going quite regularly to motion-picture theatres. She asked the angel if this were wrong. He replied Christ had important work for us to do, preparing for His coming – there would be no time for “movies.”

Thus, Mr. Armstrong was specifically commissioned to prepare for the second coming of Jesus Christ to earth. He restored all things as Jesus prophesied about the end-time Elijah who was also an apostle.

James describes in James 5:10 the mark of a true prophet of God: “10 My brethren, take the prophets, who spoke in the name of the Lord, as an example of suffering and patience.”

The mark of a true prophet of God is suffering and patience. Mr. Armstrong endured a great deal of suffering patiently to establish the Philadelphian era of God’s Church, as described in his two-volume autobiography, available free of charge from the Philadelphia Church of God at its web site www.pcog.org.

Mr. Armstrong mentioned several times that he spent 28 years in grinding poverty. In his autobiography he described how many times there was no food in the house with little children, housing was always a problem, much of the time he usually had only one threadbare suit to wear and the family was clothed with mended used clothing, how he had to battle ministers and wolves in sheep’s clothing who had entered the Church and tried to destroy it in its infancy.

He had to struggle to start Ambassador College to train young men for the ministry. After that effort was successful and God’s Church started growing, Satan was implanting tares in the Church regularly. These infiltrators led rebellions in the early 1970s and late 1970s when leading evangelists and ministers caused splits and led away thousands of members from the Church. At one time they induced the state of California to put the Church in receivership, impound all its assets and take over the Church. But Mr. Armstrong’s explanation through advertisements in the Wall Street Journal of what the Attorney General of California was doing was illegal led to the lawsuit being withdrawn and the receivership proceedings ended. This was another attempt by Satan that could have destroyed the Church.

God built the modern era of His Church through the blood, sweat and total selfless sacrifice of Herbert W. Armstrong. Surely no man with his own intelligence and strength could have overcome all the obstacles that Mr. Armstrong overcame. These are proofs that God Himself was leading His end-time work through Mr. Armstrong. His lifelong suffering for the sake of God’s work proves that he was a true prophet of God.

Prophecies Fulfilled by Herbert W. Armstrong’s Life

Further proof that Herbert W. Armstrong was the one sent by God in the spirit and power of Elijah the prophet and an apostle is provided by the fulfillment of many prophecies in his life that the end-time Elijah and apostle was to fulfill.

1)  Elijah the Prophet

We have already seen that Mr. Armstrong fulfilled the prophecy of Malachi the prophet as one in the spirit and power of Elijah the prophet coming before the dreadful day of the Lord which is the last one year of the three and a half years of the Great Tribulation. He also fulfilled Jesus Christ’s prophecy that he would restore all the doctrines and truths to God’s true Church before His return to earth. He restored 18 major doctrines or truths to God’s Church. You can read all about them in the booklet “Fundamental Beliefs of the United Church of God,” available free at www.ucg.org.

2)  Preaching the Gospel as a Witness unto All Nations

As already mentioned, he fulfilled the prophecy in Matthew 24:14 that ‘this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations; and then shall the end come.’ All of Christianity preaches about Jesus Christ’s sacrifice for forgiveness of sins of mankind, but no one knew that the gospel was mainly about the literal Kingdom of God. Herbert Armstrong first of all restored the knowledge that the gospel is about the reestablishment of the Kingdom of God on earth, and not only the forgiveness of sins through the sacrifice of Jesus Christ, and started preaching it. It went global beginning in 1953 when it began to be preached in Europe and then the rest of the world after having been preached only in the North American continent.

3)  Prophecy that One Man Would Start and End an Era of the Church

God founded the modern era of His Church through Mr. Armstrong. God’s Church since its founding in 31 A.D. was prophesied to go through 7 eras mentioned in the Book of Revelation, chapters 2 and 3 in the Bible. These eras are Ephesus, Smyrna, Pergamos, Thyatira, Sardis, Philadelphia and Laodicea. The modern era which we identify as the Philadelphian era began with the preaching of Mr. Armstrong around the fall of 1928 and ended with his death on January 16, 1986. Then began the Laodicean era of God’s Church! This is indicated by certain prophecies. 

Zechariah 4:9 states: “The hands of Zerubbabel have laid the foundation of this house, his hands shall also finish it.” 

Mr. Armstrong told all the Church members that he fulfilled this Zerubbabel office. His entire ministry is testimony to the fact that Mr. Armstrong built the house, which is a symbol for an era of the Church, by restoring all things. Mr. Gerald Flurry, pastor general of the Philadelphia Church of God explains this prophecy in his booklet Malachi’s Message (available free of charge at www.pcog.org) on p. 59:  

“When the Bible refers directly to Christ doing the building, it is usually stated as “not made with hands” (2 Corinthians 5:1), or something is accomplished “without hands” (Daniel 2:45), or “a greater and more perfect tabernacle, not made with hands” (Hebrews 9:11).

“The hands of Zerubbabel have laid the foundation of this house; his hands shall also finish it …” (Zechariah 4:9). This verse is clearly talking about a “hands-on” operation.

“It twice mentions hands, designating a starting and finishing of a project. The Anchor Bible Commentary says “hands” is literal and expresses participation in temple building. That is, it was built through a human being with “hands,” not built “without hands”—as Christ does it without the use of a human instrument.

“Mr. Armstrong wrote a letter to the Church on March 19, 1981. Here is an excerpt from that letter: “Zerubbabel built the second temple to which Jesus came the first time. John the Baptist prepared the way before the FIRST coming. But WHO was to build the SPIRITUAL temple to which Christ shall soon come the second time? Who was to prepare the way before His Second Coming?

“Remember, God does things in DUAL stages. As Zerubbabel built the first temple of MATERIAL stone, wood and other materials, he was a forerunner or type of one through whom Christ would raise up or build the SPIRITUAL TEMPLE—His Church of our time, prior to the Day of the Lord and Christ’s Second Coming. As John the Baptist prepared the way in the PHYSICAL wilderness of the Jordan River for the first coming of the HUMAN Jesus (both man and God), then coming to His MATERIAL temple, and to His PHYSICAL people Judah, ANNOUNCING the Kingdom of God to be set up more than 1,900 years later, SO God would use a human messenger in the SPIRITUAL wilderness of 20th-century religious confusion, to be a voice CRYING OUT the gospel of the KINGDOM OF GOD, about the SPIRITUAL CHRIST, coming in SUPREME POWER AND GLORY to His SPIRITUAL TEMPLE, to actually ESTABLISH that spiritual KINGDOM OF GOD.

“Brethren, HAS THAT BEEN DONE BY THIS CHURCH?

“Did God raise up a one-man LEADERSHIP to be used by Him in building this spiritual TEMPLE and in proclaiming after 1,900 years the true GOSPEL OF THE KINGDOM OF GOD IN ALL THE WORLD—to even go to kings and heads of nations (Revelation 10:11)—in bringing the Church back to the FAITH ONCE DELIVERED (Jude 3)?

“HAS THIS HAPPENED, IN YOUR DAYS, AND HAS GOD BROUGHT YOU INTO THIS PROPHETIC FULFILLMENT AS A PART OF IT?

“HAS ANYONE ELSE DONE IT?”  

“Did Mr. Armstrong think one man would and did fulfill this prophecy? Absolutely! He speaks of “one,” “a human messenger,” “a voice,” “a one-man leadership”—and then ends by asking, “HAS ANYONE ELSE DONE IT?”

“Mr. Armstrong continued: “God has never removed a man called to a specific leadership or assignment or commission until his mission is COMPLETED.” Did Mr. Armstrong complete his mission? Did he finish “this house,” “restore all things” and “turn the hearts of the fathers”? He most certainly did!

“The hands of Zerubbabel have laid the foundation of THIS HOUSE; his hands shall also FINISH it; and you shall know that the LORD of hosts has sent me unto you” (Zechariah 4:9). “House” is a very common word in the Bible. In the Englishman’s Hebrew and Chaldee Concordance, where “house” is used, the scriptures cover 13 PAGES. The word “temple” in the same book covers only ONE FOURTH OF A PAGE. “Temple” is not used here—and “temple” is not nearly as common in the Bible as the word “house.”

“The word “house” can mean an “inner part”—or only a part of something greater. It’s a name given to human bodies as being frail and transitory (Job 4:19). The word is used as “tent” (Genesis 27:15; 33:17). It is used as the “house of the spider” (Job 8:14). It’s applied to wealth, property and all that belongs to a family. All uses of this word are very temporary (like a Church era). The word temple is used in a more permanent way or to indicate a very long period of time. For example, the word “temple” often applies to ALL SEVEN CHURCH ERAS. It also applies to ETERNAL LIFE.

“The subject is “this house” and IS IN THE CONTEXT OF THE SEVEN CHURCH ERAS (Zechariah 3:7-8; 4:2, 10; Revelation 1:20). If we put all the scriptures together, it could just as well be called “this era.” And Zerubbabel did finish it. Mr. Armstrong not only laid the foundation, as we often say today—HE BUILT THE WHOLE HOUSE. When he died, the PHILADELPHIA ERA WAS COMPLETED. He restored all things (Matthew 17:10-11). No more foundational doctrines need to be added to the house. ALL WE NEED TO DO IS WALK IN Mr. Armstrong’s FOOTSTEPS…Primarily, we just need to maintain the “house” and do God’s Work.”

So, Mr. Armstrong did lay the foundation of this house, the Philadelphia era of God’s Church, and also finished it. The Philadelphia era ended when he passed away on January 16, 1986. But he had completed building the ‘house.’ His task was to ‘restore all things’ to God’s Church, meaning the doctrines and other truths about God’s way of life Jesus Christ taught to the original apostles. No more doctrines would need to be added. There were many controversies raised by tares or infiltrators in the Church about doctrines along the way. But when Mr. Armstrong died all doctrines had been settled so that the Church now knows that we have all the truths concerning doctrines for God’s Church. The house has been completed. And since all doctrines have been restored, there is no need for another apostle to be sent in the end time to restore what has already been completely restored, and none is prophesied to come.

4)  Mr. Armstrong’s Coming and Passing Away Were Prophesied

There are two prophecies that pointed to Mr. Armstrong’s death, one in the Old Testament and one in the New Testament. 

The first prophecy is Zechariah 4:9, which has already been explained. It states, “The hands of Zerubbabel have laid the foundation of this house; his hands shall also finish it; and you shall know that the Lord of hosts has sent me unto you.” When the task of finishing the house or restoring all the doctrines to the Church had been completed, Mr. Armstrong died.

Another prophecy that Mr. Armstrong’s death fulfilled is 2 Thessalonians 2:1-12 (NKJV): 

“1 Now, brethren, concerning the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our gathering together to Him, we ask you, 2 not to be soon shaken in mind or troubled, either by spirit or by word or by letter, as if from us, as though the day of Christ had come. 3 Let no one deceive you by any means; for that Day will not come unless the falling away comes first, and the man of sin is revealed, the son of perdition, 4 who opposes and exalts himself above all that is called God or that is worshiped, so that he sits as God in the temple of God, showing himself that he is God. 5 Do you not remember that when I was still with you I told you these things? 6 And now you know what is restraining, that he may be revealed in his own time. 7 For the mystery of lawlessness [or iniquity] is already at work; only He who now restrains will do so until He is taken out of the way. 8 And then the lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord will consume with the breath of His mouth and destroy with the brightness of His coming. 9 The coming of the lawless one is according to the working of Satan, with all power, signs, and lying wonders, 10 and with all unrighteous deception among those who perish, because they did not receive the love of the truth, that they might be saved. 11 And for this reason God will send them strong delusion, that they should believe the lie, 12 that they all may be condemned who did not believe the truth but had pleasure in unrighteousness.”

Here is how this prophecy was also about Mr. Armstrong’s death.

In these verses Paul was explaining to the Thessalonians to not give up their normal lives and just wait for the return of Jesus Christ. He explained that Jesus Christ will not return to earth until there will be a falling away from the faith, meaning God’s Church, for only God’s Church has the true faith. In addition, Jesus Christ will not return until the ‘man of sin’ who causes the falling away is revealed.

As most prophecies in the Bible are dual, this prophecy is also dual. Usually duality means that there has been a former fulfillment of prophecy in ancient times, and there will be another greater fulfillment in the time of the end. But there is also another duality that characterizes many prophecies. There is one fulfillment of such prophecies for physical Israel (America and Britain) in the world at large, and another fulfillment in God’s Church. This prophecy in 2 Thessalonians is one such prophecy with a fulfillment in the world and the Church.

The “man of sin to be revealed” mentioned here sits in the temple. Temple in prophecy means God’s Church, as well as the physical temple at Jerusalem. This means that ‘the man of sin’ in the end time will be in God’s Church, as well as another one in the world whom Jesus Christ will destroy at His coming. Revelation 19:20 describes this ‘man of sin’ in the world as the false prophet, whom Jesus Christ will destroy by having him thrown alive in the lake of fire.

This prophecy shows that “the man of sin” in the Church will actually cause the ‘falling away’ from the Church. And the ‘man of sin’ had to be revealed in the end-time. We have already seen the dramatic fulfillment of this prophecy in the Church. If Mr. Armstrong knew the beliefs Joseph W. Tkach Sr. held in secret, he would have never appointed him as pastor general to head the Church after his death. But the “mystery of iniquity” that was working with Joseph Tkach Sr., meaning those helping him, was so well hidden that most Church members and Mr. Armstrong had no clue about it. If he knew, he would not have appointed Joseph Tkach Sr. as pastor general and his successor in the Church.

But now read verses 7-8 again: “7 For the mystery of lawlessness [or iniquity] is already at work; only he who now restrains will do so until he is taken out of the way. 8 And then the lawless one will be revealed…”

Verse 7 says “only he who now restrains will do so until he is taken out of the way.” This means that the “mystery of iniquity” (or the Synagogue of Satan – Revelation 3:9) that was at work in the Church during Mr. Armstrong’s time was actually restrained by Mr. Armstrong. He had to put down 2-3 major rebellions in the Church and would not allow these tares or infiltrators to change any doctrines. He restrained their influence. Then verse 7 says that “he [meaning Mr. Armstrong] who now restrains will do so until he is taken out of the way.” Mr. Armstrong was taken out of the way by death. Then the “mystery of iniquity” perpetrated by the Synagogue of Satan within God’s Church under Joseph Tkach Sr’s stewardship began to work openly. Thus the ‘man of sin’ in the Church was revealed.

5) A Prophet Gives or Interprets Prophecy

Prophet by definition means one who utters divinely inspired revelations, or one who foretells future events. This means that a prophet is used by God to either give new prophecies, foretelling future events, or is given special understanding of prophecy.

But God warned in Revelation 22:18, “18 For I testify to everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this book: If anyone adds to these things, God will add to him the plagues that are written in this book; 19 and if anyone takes away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God shall take away his part from the Book of Life, from the holy city, and from the things which are written in this book.” 

This means that all prophecy has already been recorded in the Bible. No new prophecies would be given. This means that a prophet in the end-time would be given special understanding of prophecies already given, and would not proclaim new prophecies. 

Many self-proclaimed prophets and prophecy buffs try to interpret prophecy, but there are certain statements made about prophecy in the Bible that shed light on who understands it. When the Book of Revelation was being revealed to John the Apostle by an angel, and John fell down to worship the angel, here is what the angel told him in Revelation 19:10, “And I fell at his feet to worship him. And he said unto me, see you do it not: I am your fellow-servant, and of your brethren that have the testimony of Jesus: worship God: for the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy.”

This means that only those who have the testimony of Jesus Christ that they are His, or His representatives, have an understanding of prophecy. 

Daniel the prophet was given major prophecies about the major ruling empires that will hold sway from his time till our time. However, he was informed by the angel revealing prophecies to him in Daniel 12:8-10, “8 Although I heard, I did not understand. Then I said, “My lord, what shall be the end of these things?” 9 And he said, “Go your way, Daniel, for the words are closed up and sealed till the time of the end. 10 Many shall be purified, made white, and refined, but the wicked shall do wickedly; and none of the wicked shall understand, but the wise shall understand.”

This means that understanding of most of the prophecies given in the Bible was closed [sealed] till the end time, but that understanding would be given in the end-time to the one who had the testimony of Jesus that he is His representative.

Before Herbert W. Armstrong started preaching, nobody understood the meaning of various symbolic beasts with multiple horns and mysterious women mentioned in prophecies in the books of Daniel and Revelation. The meaning of these prophecies was first revealed to Herbert W. Armstrong. All of Christianity in the USA recognizes that the greatest contribution that Herbert Armstrong made was to provide an understanding of prophecy. 

Even the timing of the understanding of prophecy was prophesied in Revelation 17:9-10 (NKJV), “9 “Here is the mind which has wisdom: The seven heads are seven mountains on which the woman sits. 10 There are also seven kings. Five have fallen, one is, and the other has not yet come. And when he comes, he must continue a short time.” 

The seven heads here represent the seven resurrections of the Holy Roman Empire, and a woman in prophecy is a Church. In this case the Church is the Roman Catholic Church. When understanding of these prophecies were revealed to Herbert W. Armstrong around 1935, the five resurrections of the Holy Roman Empire had already passed, the five that have fallen. At that time the sixth resurrection, that of the Hitler-Mussolini Axis had just come into existence, the ‘one is.’ The seventh is still to come, the ‘other has not yet come.’ 

Understanding of prophecy in the end-time was not revealed to an ordinary Jew. God sent a Jew, Herbert W. Armstrong, as a prophet in the spirit and power of Elijah as prophesied in Malachi 4:5-6 to reveal all the prophecies.

No man in his life and death can fulfill so many Bible prophecies and not be the man these prophecies mention. It is simply impossible for a man to fulfill all these prophecies by mere coincidence. Therefore, we can be certain that Mr. Armstrong was the prophesied Elijah and apostle to come who came and restored all truths to God’s Church in the form of major doctrines, prepared the way for Jesus Christ’s second coming, and gave an understanding of prophecy to the world.   

Other Prophecies Being Fulfilled Right Now 

1) Messages During Time of Delay no Longer

Not only have prophecies been fulfilled in the past, many other prophecies are being fulfilled right now in the present. Revelation 10:1-4 states, “And I saw still another mighty angel coming down from heaven…and he had a little book open in his hand…and cried with a loud voice, as when a lion roars. And when he cried out, seven thunders uttered their voices. Now when the seven thunders uttered their voices, I was about to write; but I heard a voice from heaven saying to me, “Seal up the things which the seven thunders uttered, and do not write them.”

Like other prophecies, this prophecy was also sealed till the time of the end. But in the end time all these prophecies have been understood by God’s true Church. 

Since the book of Revelation is mainly about the very end-time and the Day of the Lord, which is the last one year of the Great Tribulation, this prophecy is for the end times as well. Since the Great Tribulation is a time of trouble for physical Israel (primarily America and British Commonwealth nations and the Jews) as well as spiritual Israel (which is God’s true Church), the prophecies in the book of Revelation would have to deal with both of them. John wrote the prophecies concerning physical nations of Israel and the world as the messages contained in the seven seals. But John was told not to write the message the seven thunders uttered. These messages could pertain only to spiritual Israel, the true Church of God. John did not write these messages because they were to be sealed till the time of the end. But these messages to God’s Church would then be revealed in the time of the end.   

The warnings in Revelation for physical Israel, were issued because they would be committing gross sins by violating God’s laws. Similarly, the warning to God’s Church would be issued because members would fall away from the truth. This prophecy thus is about members of God’s Church being led astray by Satan’s agents who had infiltrated the Church. The seven thunders uttering their voice was a prophecy to warn the members of God’s Church to repent, get back on track, and put their hearts and souls into doing God’s work. Mr. Gerald Flurry, pastor general of the Philadelphia Church of God understood this prophecy first and wrote a book titled “Malachi’s Message” directed at members of the Church as a warning. That is the little book prophesied in Revelation 10:2. Mr. Flurry has been delivering that thundering message to God’s Church since December 1989. He continues to do that job even today. Thus this prophecy since the death of Mr. Armstrong has already been fulfilled.

2) Prophecy to prophesy again already fulfilled

Now notice the next part of the message that the mighty angel delivered to John in Revelation 10:5-6, “And the angel whom I saw standing on the sea and on the land lifted up his hand to heaven and swore by Him who lives forever and ever, who created heaven and the things that are in it, the earth and the things that are in it, the sea and the things that are in it, that there should be delay no longer.”

The mighty angel said that after the message of the seven thunders was revealed and preached, there should be delay no longer. This means that after the warning to members of God’s Church to get back on track has been delivered, there is no delay any longer in the fulfillment of the first end time event, which is the world war between the German led global alliance against the USA/Britain/Israel alliance, pictured by the first four seals of Revelation 6 in which one fourth of mankind or more than 1.85 billion people will die. The mighty angel swore that by God. So there is indeed no delay any longer. We are without doubt in the very end of the end time.

Then just after giving the message to John that ‘there should be delay no longer’, the angel further told through John what the next events would be. He said, “8 And the voice which I heard from heaven spake unto me again, and said, Go and take the little book which is open in the hand of the angel which stands upon the sea and upon the earth. 9 And I went unto the angel, and said unto him, Give me the little book. And he said unto me, Take it, and eat it up; and it shall make thy belly bitter, but it shall be in thy mouth sweet as honey. 10 And I took the little book out of the angel's hand, and ate it up; and it was in my mouth sweet as honey: and as soon as I had eaten it, my belly was bitter. 11 And he said unto me, Thou must prophesy again before many peoples, and nations, and tongues [meaning in many languages], and kings.”

John was not the one to deliver those messages in verse 11 on prophecy about many peoples, nations and kings in all languages of the world. They were to be delivered near the very end of the end time. So John did not deliver that message. 

But after the ‘little book’ was written by Mr. Flurry, and he had delivered its message and about 20 years had passed since the passing away of Mr. Armstrong on January 16, 1986, other very end of the end time messages about prophecy were to be delivered again by someone as stated in verse 11, “11 And he said unto me, Thou must prophesy again before many peoples, and nations, and tongues [meaning in many languages], and kings.”

These messages about prophecies concerning many peoples, nations and kings were to be delivered again, but now in many languages. Church of God has carried out its commission in about 5-7 languages of the world. But that is not many languages. These languages excluded the most populous nations of China, India, Japan, Russia and the Arabs. 

Therefore, this prophecy is about another person than Mr. Flurry delivering these messages on prophecy in many languages. But before delivering those messages, this person must eat up the ‘little book’ and digest it, meaning must understand it thoroughly. 

I began that work of delivering the messages about prophecy to the entire world on December 2, 2006 every Saturday morning at 9.00 a.m. USA Eastern Standard Time which is broadcast to every human being on earth in the language he or she understands. Being a lay member in God’s Church, I had no training in the ministry in God’s Church. Therefore, I had to train myself in understanding all prophecy. I literally read almost every book, booklet, magazine written by Mr. Flurry of the Philadelphia Church of God, the United Church of God, The Restored Church of God and the Living Church of God. I literally had eaten up and digested the ‘little book’ and more before I began to deliver my messages, in fulfillment of Revelation 10:8-10.

God’s Church does not have the resources to preach the messages to all the world in all languages. Most nations would not even allow the message to be preached. But Satan leads the global alliance led by Germany. They are impatient to get the third world war started because ultimately it means control of the world’s nations and their wealth for them. Initially to fulfill this prophecy, Satan and the demons chose to broadcast my messages to every human being in his or her own language. I simply read the messages in English and Satan rebroadcast them.

I completed delivering all the messages once on July 14, 2007 in fulfillment of the commission in Revelation 10:11. Then Satan and the demons stopped delivering my messages because their purpose in fulfilling that prophecy was served. After that God’s angels have been delivering my messages on a weekly basis. God says now there is no delay any longer in the fulfillment of the end time events. Satan, the demons, the Germans and their allies are now free to begin the third world war, pictured by the first four seals of Revelation 6, without any further delay. So we really are living in the very end of the end time. And the prophecy to prophesy again to the world in all languages of the world has already been dramatically fulfilled in a way no one could have ever imagined. 

3) Seventh Resurrection of the Holy Roman Empire 

As already mentioned, the Roman Empire was to be resurrected 10 times, the initial three resurrections being plucked up by the roots by the little horn in Daniel 7, which we have identified as the Pope of the Roman Church. The last seven resurrections would take place with the blessings of the Pope. The Roman Empire would then be called the Holy Roman Empire.

Six resurrections are already past. The seventh resurrection is a union of ten rulers ruling over ten territories or nations in Europe. We already see such a union in Europe, called the European Union. Thus, we see the seventh resurrection of the Holy Roman Empire already taking shape. But the final shape will take place only with the involvement of the false Church.

God prophesied the rise of the great false Church that would persecute the true saints, meaning members of God’s true Church. This is prophesied in Revelation 17:6, “6 And I saw the woman drunken with the blood of the saints, and with the blood of the martyrs of Jesus.” 

Revelation 13:11 is also a prophecy about this spiritual leader that adds another characteristic of his leadership: “11 And I beheld another beast coming up out of the earth; and he had two horns like a lamb [acting like Jesus Christ], and he spoke as a dragon” [or Satan]. A horn is a symbol for a king in prophecy. This religious leader wears two crowns. Only one religious leader on earth does that. The pope is the head of the Roman Church and also is the head of a state, the Vatican State, which sends and receives ambassadors like any state.  

The rise of this great false Church was also prophesied through Daniel the prophet. Its leader is the little horn of Daniel 7:21, 25, “21 I beheld, and the same horn made war with the saints, and prevailed against them…24 And the ten horns out of this kingdom are ten kings that shall arise: and another shall rise after them; and he shall be diverse from the first, and he shall subdue three kings. 25 And he shall speak great words against the Most High and shall wear out the saints of the most High, and think to change times and laws: and they shall be given into his hand until a time and times and the dividing of time.”

The Book of Revelation was given around 94 A.D. and Daniel’s prophecy in Daniel 7 was given around 550 BCE. This Church was still barely forming in 94 A.D. No one could have predicted the greatness the false Church of Rome would achieve in the future. But God foretold its rise and what it would do very accurately. It has persecuted to death all those opposed to its religion. This Church demands Sunday worship. But God’s true Church worships on the Sabbath day. That’s why the Roman Church has murdered hundreds of thousands or perhaps millions of true Church of God members over the past centuries. Thus, prophecies concerning the false Roman Church are still being fulfilled today, and it will be have a part in the seventh resurrection of the Holy Roman Empire. 

The numerous prophecies fulfilled in the past, many prophecies given thousands of years ago still being fulfilled, and prophecies for our time having already been fulfilled or still being fulfilled before our eyes should convince any rational human being that the God of the Bible has provided ample evidence that He is the true Almighty God; and the only God. There is no other god. The holy books of all other religions have failed this test miserably and are the writings of men, or inspired by the devil himself to lead humanity astray and hide God’s true potential for humanity.


Back to Contents




Copyright © Church of God Message. All rights reserved.