NORTHERN STYLE NEWSWATCH No. 48 CREDO
` His watchmen are blind . . . they are all ignorant '
Our title comes from the Book of Isaiah, and as such speaks of Israel's leaders who could not see or understand what was being said by God's prophet. In the secular world intellectual blindness in people usually comes through an immediate acceptance of the comments of others concerning events that have occurred - more often than not confirming their own prejudices and pre-conceived opinions. This acceptance then becomes `set in stone' and part of the folklore of the community - a simple example is the accepted knowledge that `all politicians are the same'! Such comments enter our subconsciousness and colours our attitude towards those who are clearly not all the same. This common folklore is then often extended `. . . . (they) are all the same and corrupt' and is confirmed by the media in their sensational reports on corruption in high places.

Unfortunately such `intellectual blindness' has entered the Body of Christ as people blindly accept the `teachings' of others without seeking confirmation of all teaching through a study of the Scriptures. It could be agreed that such `blindness' is inconsequential, provided that it does not contradict the fundamental doctrine of Scripture. Unfortunately, blindness is just that . . . the inability to see . . . which in the natural sense leads the affected person to withdraw into their own world. Within Christian circles this has led many to a withdrawal into sects and denominational groups - a withdrawal into their own comfortable world of religion. To break through such blindness there are now appearing ministries proclaiming 'One New Man in Christ', seeking through this to break through denominational prejudices and traditions. This has the inherrent danger of an `immediate acceptance' of such ministries who, in their enthusiasism to see the fulness of Scripture in their time, could unintentionally gloss over or ignore doctrinal differences which need to be repented of and cut free from in order to become what all true believers already are, One New Man in Christ, so that we may be His witnesses `to the uttermost parts of the world'.

We would briefly return to the secular world in order to give substance to what we have said - that blindness, caused by acceptance which is coloured by our prejudices, stops us from being able to look beyond the sensational immediacy of the event to what will emerge from the event. To use our often-used remark, `it is no good looking at the flower for the full bloom is already dying and we should be looking for the seed which is formed within that bloom'. For such a secular `flower' we need go back no further in history than the crisis that blew up over an earlier Prince of Wales (who was later King Edward the 8th) in his determination to marry a divorced commoner, the much-reviled Mrs Simpson. The press and `spin-doctors' of that age majored on the fact of the impossibility of the future head of the Church of England marrying a twice-divorced woman who would, if such a marriage took place, become Queen. The politicians and spin-doctors sought to destroy such a possibility through exposing the foolish and degenerate nature of the social class in which this liason was formed. The outcome of the `constitutional crisis' was the abdication of the King - which was the desired outcome of the `Establishment'. The people saw a `wicked woman who stole our King', but the Establishment saw a wayward King who had no regard for its tradition and who actively sought its destruction through courting the ideology of the age, that of Facisim, aided and abetted by some politicians (one of whom is lauded today as a champion of Parliamentary democracy) who were alarmed by the growing democratic power of the people. However, such events are part of a nearly-forgotten history, apart from the occasional excursion into them by film-makers who then perpetrate the `blindness of the people' who saw only a wicked woman `who stole our King'. It could be said that this is all now part of history and has no bearing on today's modern State, and so we will move into the more immediate time.

Many can remember the calm pipe-smoking Prime Minister Harold Wilson of the 1960's and the quiet certainty among the people that at last they would enjoy the full fruits of a democratic Government, but few will remember the financial crisis which led to the shelving of the promises made by the Labour Party which had led to their success at the election. It took only a short step by the `spin doctors' of the day to convince the electorate of the unelectability of a `slippery politician' - and indeed in the minds of those who remember those times this has been a lasting impression. But what was not known by the people - for prejudice had blinded them to anything other than manipulated opinions - was that there was a systematic policy by certain members of the Establishment who had no sympathy with democratic government of the people. This led to a historically-confirmed meeting in 1968 between certain powerful `Media Barons', Financial Magnates, and certain members of the aristocracy who sought to overthrow the elected Government and form a Government of National Unity under one Head.

The coup never happened, but the idea was revived again in 1970 and again in 1975 - this time the alarm amongst the elite was caused by the political direction of the Heath Government. The people saw only the fight between the Unions and a Tory Government, but the `elite' saw the looming threat of Europe and moved to counter this threat. We need not dwell too long on the indomitable Mrs Thatcher and the constitutional crisis that sprang up during her `reign', but the fact that she was `deposed' is well known! The people, blinded as they were, saw only the danger of the disintegration of the old Labour Party which was raised up, as they thought, to represent their aspirations! It was a time of the emerging Social Democratic Party which threatened not only the Labour Party but also the Liberals and the Tories. Once again the Establishment seized the moment in 1981 and 1982 to meet in secret to discuss the formation of a National Unity party under one Head - always the objective of the ruling elite who work constantly against representatives of Parliamentary Democracy. It took the Falklands War to disolve this potential coup, but it did not stop Mrs Thatcher's eventual political demise!

Do not doubt for one moment that the same Establishment `forces' are still actively destabilising the present Government, who they see as intent upon `selling national sovereignty' to an emerging European Super State over which they would have no influence. A de facto National Unity Party is all but formed through the determined self-destruction of the Opposition Parties, and all that remains is the crowning of the one Head to be announced. Whoever that will be will bring about the destruction of the Nation State as we know it today. The people, blinded as they are by their needs, see only pensions, health, education, idylic holidays, and, for the `poorer relations', the continuation of their State Benefits. So much for the secular world and so we turn our thoughts back to the `One New Man in Christ' which is, as we have already said, being presented as a new `ministry'. Over the years we have constantly referred to a Probation Period that began in 1967, to the point where we expect eyes and ears to `glaze over' - such is the danger of repetition! But as we near the end of this Probation Period there is the urgent need to be constantly reminded of the implications arising from such an event in order that we may see more clearly what the Lord has intended for this One New Man in Christ. To that end we need once again to look at the last fourty-year Probation Period recorded in Scripture, a period in time which was primarily for the nation of Israel and not for the Church - as is usually taught, and accepted by those who hear such teaching, centered as it is upon the Baptism in the Holy Spirit, even by those who understand the purpose of God for the nation of Israel. By blindly accepting such teaching they are unintentionally perpetrating a form of Replacement Theology and thereby entering into a form of the blindness that we have mentioned earlier, thus making it difficult for them to understand the times we have entered.

The time of the Acts of the Apostles, within its correct contextual setting, can be seen as the fulfillment of the Lord's promise to send the Holy Spirit to lead them into all truth - as recorded in John 14 - and the continuation of His command to `Therefore go and make disciples . . .'. Its outworking is recorded in Mark 12: `Then the disciples went out and preached everywhere and the Lord worked with them and confirmed His Word by signs that accompanied it'. The setting for Acts is, as we have said, within a fourty-year Probation Period in answer to the prayer of Jesus on the cross, as recorded in Luke 23, `Father, forgive them . . .'. His prayer of intercession opened up this period, and in doing so delayed the judgement that Jesus spoke of in Matthew 23: `O Jerusalem, Jerusalem . . . your house is left to you desolate'. As you read through `Acts' you will see that the central place is still Jerusalem . . the Law is still observed . . the disciples are constantly in and around the Temple . . Paul goes to the synagogue . . he keeps the Feasts . . he takes vows and keeps the Law - as can be seen recorded in Acts 21. At that point Gentiles clearly take second place to the Jews, as Paul implies in his defense when speaking to King Agrippa in Acts 26.

All this is as expected if the whole period of time covered by Acts was a Probation Period for Israel. The historical period of `Acts' is from AD 29 (that is, the death, resurrection and ascension of Jesus and the Feast of Pentecost) and closing in AD 69, with Paul writing to Timothy from prison in Rome and culminating in the destruction of Jerusalem and the Temple by the armies of Rome in AD 70. `Acts' is a record of, `the work of the witnesses whom God had already chosen . . . by us who ate and drank with Him after He rose from the dead', all of this under the direction of the Holy Spirit. It was the final offer in that Dispensation to Israel for its national restoration following its repentance and acceptance of its Messiah, Jesus. The period so covered could therefore not refer to the Church for the `Church Age' opened up a new Dispensation. To use a human analogy: The Church was conceived on that Day of Pentecost but was held in the `Womb of God's Purpose' until its birth once the Probation Period for Israel was completed. This came when the Leaders of Israel finally rejected Paul's message, and his subsequent pronouncement in speaking the words of the prophet Isaiah in Acts 28:

"Go to this people and say,
`You will be ever hearing but never understanding,
you will be ever seeing but never perceiving . . . .
They have closed their eyes . . .' "
In the `Old Testament Dispensation' the offer of the Kingdom was made by the Father, the LORD God, through His prophets - and it was rejected. During the time of the `Gospels' the offer was made again in and by the Son - and was again rejected. Now, in `Acts', the final offer in that Dispensation was made in and by the Holy Spirit through `witnesses already chosen'. Israel's leaders, in rejecting the offer, closed that Probation Period and that particular Dispensational Age and opened up the way for the Church Age to be `birthed', leaving Israel as a nation awaiting the final offer which will come during the Great Tribulation.

`Acts' is seen to be in two parts: The first 12 chapters reveal the disciples witnessing in `Jerusalem, Judea and Samaria', whilst the remaining 16 chapters show their work of witnessing `to the uttermost parts of the earth'. The first part of Acts covered the witnessing of the 12 Apostles to the Jews and the Gentile proselytes, and their message was that `Jesus is the Messiah . . the Son of God . . the Christ. The second half of Acts records the witnessing of Paul, a chosen vessel, to Jews and Gentiles . . to the sons of Israel and before Gentile kings . . in the uttermost parts of the earth. Paul's message was different for he preached Jesus and the Resurrection Life - not Jesus as the Messiah but Jesus raised from the dead and the Head of all who would respond to His message of salvation! There is here a progression, an unfolding of doctrine for the proclamation of the Kingdom of God is made now by witnesses taken out of `all the Gentile witnesses upon whom My Name is called' and Jewish individuals who would respond to the message.

Within the Scriptural context the `Gospels' record what Jesus began to teach, and in the opening period of Acts what He continued to teach after His resurrection: `He appeared to them over a period of fourty days and spoke about the Kingdom of God'. After His ascension He sent the promised Holy Spirit who would guide them into all truth, and during the whole period of `Acts' the Apostles continued to be taught by the Holy Spirit those things which they could not learn in earlier times because the Holy Spirit had not yet come to lead them into all truth. Even so, the fulness of `all truth' could not be revealed until the proclamation of the Kingdom of God being established by Jesus the Messiah had been rejected by the Leaders of Israel, thus closing the Probation Period of the Acts of the Apostles when `blindness in part has happened to Israel'. And so Paul was freed at last to begin to write down the final revelation from Jesus of the Church which is His Body, the One New Man in Christ for all who believe in Him. Thus the Church, `conceived' by the Holy Spirit those fourty years earlier was now `birthed' and so brought in the `Church Age' - the Dispensation of Grace.

As we have set out in a previous Credo, Paul's Epistles in chronological order began with his `Letter to the Thessalonians' and ended with his `Letter to Timothy', but Canonically they appear in the same order in every translation of the Bible even though other `Books' are changed in their position from time to time. The three foundational doctrines of the Church are to be found in Romans, Ephesians and Thessalonians: Believers are baptized by the Holy Spirit into Christ Jesus . . are raised and seated with Him in heavenly places to be His Body . . and so will be with Him for ever. It was during Paul's first imprisonment in Rome in AD 62 that he - no doubt unable to contain the joy of knowing what was in store for all true believers - `hinted' at what had been revealed to him: (Romans 16:25-26)

"Now unto Him who is able to establish you by my gospel and the proclamation of Jesus Christ, according to the revelation of the mystery hidden for long ages past, but now revealed . . . . " This joy eventually led to him being released by the Holy Spirit to write in his glorious Epistle to the Ephesians: (1:9-23)

" And He made known to us the mystery of His will according to His good pleasure, which He purposed in Christ, to be put into effect when the times will have reached their fulfillment - to bring all things in heaven and on earth together under one Head, even Christ. In Him we were also chosen, having been predestined according to the plan of Him who works out everything in conformity with His will, in order that we, who were the first to hope in Christ, might be for the praise of His Glory. And you also were included in Christ when you heard the Word of Truth, the Gospel of your salvation. Having believed, you were marked in Him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit, who is a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance until the redemption of those who are God's possession - to the praise of His Glory. For this reason, ever since I heard about your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for all the saints, I have not stopped giving thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers. I keep asking that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and revelation so that you may know Him better. I pray also that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which you have been called, the riches of His glorious inheritance in the saints, and His incomparably great power for us who believe. That power is like the working of His mighty strength which He exherted in Christ when He raised Him from the dead and seated Him at His right hand in the heavenly realms, far above all rule and authority, power and dominion and every title that can be given, not only in the present Age but also in the one to come. And God placed all things under His feet and appointed Him to be Head over everything for the Church, which is His Body, the fulness of Him who fills everything in every way. "

And so was birthed the Church Age, the bringing forth of the revelation of His Body, `the fulness of Him who fills everything in every way'.

So many believers have not seen the progression, the unfolding of doctrine, whilst they major on the Baptism in the Holy Spirit and the speaking in tongues, and so in blinkered pride they unintentionally divide and split the Body of Christ into `the haves and have-nots'. Such is the outcome for those who have become spiritually `blind' as to the times for the Church and Israel because of their acceptance of the comments and teaching of prejudiced opinions of others. Such people look to the immediate sensation and so miss the glory of God's purpose `which is His Body, the fulness of Him who fills everything in every way'. This is established by the work of the Holy Spirit and needs no ministry to bring it forth, with the inherrent danger of glossing over or ignoring the `sins of ignorance or negligence' - of which we spoke in our last Credo - as the Church enters the closing years of this Probation Period. As we have repeatedly mentioned, the outpouring of the Holy Spirit at the beginning of today's Probation Period was world-wide and not limited to the small part of the European Continent. The fruit of that outpouring can still be seen today in the countless numbers of people who are now part of the Body of Christ in China, South Korea, South America, India and many parts of Africa. What else can explain such a harvest, other than the mighty outpouring of the Holy Spirit at the beginning of a Probation Period such as has never been seen before?

Here we need to turn our thoughts back to what will occur following the closing of this Probation Period, for if a Scripturally-based fourty-year Probation Period centered on the nation of Israel ended in destruction and captivity then a world-wide Probation Period logically has to end in world-wide destruction and captivity - and without wishing to be scaremongers and sensationalists we need to consider the implications of that. It is true to say that over the past many centuries the driving force of material progress has come from the nations of western Europe and those which were spawned from it - such as America, Canada, Australia etc. More latterly, other countries endorsing the Western ideology of Capitalism have been added to that wealthy group of nations - these days known as the G7 or G8 group of nations. The inventive genius of these people has provided the means for all the nations of the world to enjoy to some degree or other the benefits of their innovative work. This has produced a life-style of comfort and ease undergirded by advances in medicine which those early pioneers could not have dreamed of. It has also led to a confidence in the supremacy of man who alone has brought about these incredible achievements and the belief that nothing can stop the onward march of progress - even to the point of creating life without the need of a God they don't believe in!

There are, however, many who warn that this is not so . . that the inventive genius of mankind has perhaps run its full course . . that it has reached its full `blooming' and is a flower that already shows signs of decay! The capitalist system which has produced this wealth and prosperity has been built on continuous developing industrial innovation and invention from the development of iron and steel . . on to its use in the printing press . . steam engines and bridge building . . the development of the telephone system through to the harnessing of gas and electricity . . the use of the internal combustion engine for use in commercial vehicles and the mighty motor car . . through to aircraft and reaching to the stars through rocket technology. All of this, as we have seen, has been undergirded by incredible advances in science and medicine, and this has enhanced the length and quality of life for countless millions of people. However, as the world moved deeper into the 20th century it became noticeable that the inventive genius had given way to developing and improving already invented processes. It appeared that man had reached the limit of his seemingly onward march to `divinity', and with the invention of the mighty `chip' man's progress has receeded to the production of smaller, and even smaller consumer items, culminating in the IPod so that we can store and listen to countless numbers of songs and to even be able to watch televison on our wristwatches! Those earlier industrial giants who created wealth are now replaced with consumer `pygmies' who seek to satisfy the clamour of people seeking the latest toy, coupled with an insatiable demand for rapidly diminishing stocks of oil without which industrial world would collapse.

Such things may seem to be too sweeping in scale and generalization to enable us to be intellectually or emotionally involved, however the effects are appearing in the general social life around us. Unemployment is a spectre which will never go away! Reforms in the Welfare systems of western countries are on political agendas - which is another name for cuts in services and pensions, and `cushions' for old age are under threat! Even the castle of ordinary man, his house, is no longer the rock-like security it once appeared to be! An economy based on consumer spending rather than in wealth production will prove to be built on very shaky foundations indeed. Even the great American dream is feeling this shaking as its economy slows down - natural disasters have cost billions of dollars to a nation already financially and emotionally drained because of a war it cannot sustain or withdraw from - and its onward march is being curtailed. We are not intending to present a `doomsday' scenario but are merely pointing towards the implications arising at the end of a world-wide Probation Period, which as well as gathering in a glorious harvest of people into the Kingdom of God is now moving towards its climatic end of catastrophic proportions - which in Scriptural terms of a Probation Period leads to famine, destruction and captivity!

Leaving the secular world to the politicians we now turn our thoughts back to the Church who live out their lives within these natural circumstances. Some are looking at the `immediate' and warning of Islamic States being formed in European countries within a generation; others warn of apostacy and sin in the Church; others launch movements to restore the family life which demise has caused the destruction of the moral life of the nation; and still others look at the `spirit of past saints' as a means to restore national Judaeo/Christian heritage. All of this is well-intentioned and springs from concerned sincere hearts but they merely reflect our opening illustrations of past political and moral situations in which the people failed to see the wider motivations and ambitions that lay behind the sensational immediate reporting by the media of the time.

Just as in those earlier times so today there will have been a continuous dialogue amongst the elite classes within the State system, and senior politicians of all colours - alarmed at what they see happening, threatening, as it does, the existence of the nation (and therefore their own positions) - will have formulated plans to counter these threats. The London bombings in July 2005 clearly demonstrated this for within hours the State system had swung into action and rounded up many more than those who planned those dreadful actions - a warning went out and it would have been noted! The outcome of these events has led to an increasing State control over the lives of the population, and the ever-increasing disintegration of the country's Parliamentary political system will eventually lead to a form of National Unity Government with its curtailment of universal suffrage in such a way that those of earlier national emergencies, which we mentioned earlier, could only dream of!

In view of all this what lies ahead? What of the Church, that is, the true believers, the One New Man in Christ - which is a fact through the finished work of Jesus and needs no movement to promote it. All movements have an inherrent danger within them - that of compromise - in order to ensure their onward march. There is a certain triumphism in such movements which will not appear in any genuine work of the Holy Spirit. Our plea, therefore, our purpose in writing this and other Credos, is that the blindness which appears to have gripped the Body of Christ in this country will be removed so that we will truly be able to see beyond the immediacy of events . . beyond the hype and sensation . . whether it be concern over a possible Islamic State or the moral decay in the Nation . . and see that such things emanate from or are the result of the testing of the `people's' character in a world-wide Probation Period and the failure of their response to God's Grace in the outpouring of the Holy Spirit those fourty years earlier.

For those who can see beyond the `immediacy' there is surely an urgency to stay quiet with God and build each other up in the ways of the Lord. As the Apostle Paul, in prison in Rome at the end of that Probation Period, wrote to Timothy: (2 Timothy 3)

" But mark this: There will be terrible times in the last days. People will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boastful, proud, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, without love, unforgiving, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not lovers of the good, treacherous, rash, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God - having a form of godliness but denying its power. Have nothing to do with them. They are the kind who worm their way into homes and gain control over weak-willed women, who are loaded down with sins and are swayed by all kinds of evil desires, always learning but never able to acknowledge the truth. Just as Jannes and Jambres opposed Moses, so also these men oppose the truth - men of depraved minds, who, as far as the faith is concerned, are rejected. But they will not get very far because, as in the case of those men, their folly will be clear to everyone. You, however, know all about my teaching, my way of life, my purpose, faith, patience, love, endurance, persecutions, sufferings - what kind of things happened to me in Antioch, Iconium and Lystra, the persecutions I endured. Yet the Lord rescued me from all of them. In fact everyone who wants to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted, while evil men and impostors will go from bad to worse, deceiving and being deceived. But as for you, continue in what you have learned and have become convinced of, because you know those from whom you learned it, and how from infancy you have known the holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus. All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work. "

The time will surely come when the Lord of the Church will release a true anointing upon His Body in order that they may fearlessly proclaim the everlasting Kingdom of God to a desparate and despairing world who will be in a captivity of their own making and for whom the true Church will have the only answer to their cries of despair.

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