There is a special church in our future. This church was prophesied approximately 700 years before Christ’s birth. It is the church of the latter days on this earth. When it will be established in its fullness, I do not know. I have a strong sense it is in its developmental stages and may be further along than we know. The prophet Isaiah spoke of what will be driving the need for this church in Chapters 59 and 60 of his book. But this is not a Western, empirical church denomination or a church building. This is the true Ekklesia spoken of in the New Testament. It is a worldwide, church-wide administration of His Kingdom to a lost world.
Why will we need an end-time church that looks different than those we attend today? The world’s fallen state will demand nothing less than God’s best to rescue it. Isaiah does an excellent job of describing our current world. “But your iniquities have separated you from your God, and your sins have hidden His face from you” (Isaiah 59:2). He then goes on to explain that innocent blood is on our hands (abortion, euthanasia, homicide of all types) and that our “fingers” continue in iniquity—covering a multitude of sins that appear to be tactile—sexual abuse, child trafficking, theft, et al. Nobody is calling for justice, and nobody pleads for truth (vs 4). We can see the current justice system in the USA and other parts of the world in this verse. And the mainstream media calls out no truth while culture tries to teach that whatever we believe is truth.
In the 60th chapter, beginning in verse 2, Isaiah tells us that the darkness—sin/evil—will cover the earth like a flood. We are seeing evil spread now into all corners of this world because the current church is, and has been, reticent to stand. Evil is called good, and good is called evil. “So truth fails, and he who departs from evil makes himself prey” (Isaiah 59:15). What will push against this flood of evil? The church will arise in the light of Jesus, and the nations and leaders will come to this light (60:2 & 3). The end-time church will come into this situation as its own flood and will raise the standard of Jesus Christ for the world to see (59:19).
God continues to make provision for a savior during these end times. He sent Christ once to pay the price for our sins. The next time Christ returns to the earth, He will take His church back and end the evil. As the earth spirals into darkness precipitated by the evil of man, the end-time church will see people seeking a savior (Isaiah 60:4), seeking comfort and rescue before that second coming and judgment. Nations, their leaders, and their people will turn (Isaiah 60:3 & Luke 21:25). Will the church be ready? Will the church be accepting? What will the church look like? Are you ready to be a part of that new church? It will be different from the current Western/American empirical church. We are in a spiritual battle that will only intensify. When we boldly step into this battle and stand against evil, we can expect persecution (Isaiah 59:15; John 15:18: Luke 6:22)
The next two posts will do more to define what the church will look like and define our role as leaders and participants in this end-time church of revival and reformation.
Segments of this post were inspired by Derek Prince’s book, Shaping History Through Prayer and Fasting (1973/2023; Whitaker House). If you have not read this treatise, I highly recommend it as it was also the founding document of Intercessors for America (IFA).