The Transfiguration (No. 096E)

In dealing with the Antinomian Attacks on the Covenant of God (No. 096D) we saw that the fundamental thrust of the Antinomians was the claim that the Law of God was done away and also as covered in the text of Antinomian Destruction of Christianity by Misuse of Scripture (No. 164C), Antinomian Attacks on the Law of God (No. 164D) and Antinomian Denial of Baptism (No. 164E).

Anyone that claims that the Law of God is done away and says that they are Christians is a liar. There is no light in them as we are told by the prophet Isaiah (8:20). They will not enter the First Resurrection or the Kingdom of God in the Millennium without repentance and if they do not repent they will be killed.

As we saw in the texts of the above papers the Laws of God are fundamental to the faith and the regulation of the universe. There are many texts dealing with the Laws of God and how they are to be kept by the elect as we see in Revelation 12:17 and 14:12, which are essential to the elect.

One of the great parables of the NT that is not understood is that in Mark 9:1-13. Verse 1 starts with the formation of the Kingdom of God with the death of the Christ and the giving of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost 30 CE and which those alive then, apart from he who was to be resurrected, would see.

Mark.9-:1-13

¹And he said to them, "Truly, I say to you, there are some standing here who will not taste death before they see that the kingdom of God has come with power."

The next phase was the transfiguration that had specific meaning concerning the Christ and the functions of Moses and Elijah. The apostles Peter, James and John were given this vision so that they understood the significance. So also it was given so that the elect were given understanding of the faith and the formation and function of the Church.

²And after six days Jesus took with him Peter and James and John, and led them up a high mountain apart by themselves; and he was transfigured before them, ³and his garments became glistening, intensely white, as no fuller on earth could bleach them.

The symbolism was of the white garments of the Kingdom and of the Holy Spirit that was to be given to them and the church.

Then they were given a specific vision of Moses and Elijah that appeared with Christ.

⁴And there appeared to them Eli'jah with Moses; and they were talking to Jesus. ⁵And Peter said to Jesus, "Master, it is well that we are here; let us make three booths, one for you and one for Moses and one for Eli'jah." ⁶For he did not know what to say, for they were exceedingly afraid. ⁷And a cloud overshadowed them, and a voice came out of the cloud, "This is my beloved Son; listen to him." ⁸And suddenly looking around they no longer saw any one with them but Jesus only. ⁹And as they were coming down the mountain, he charged them to tell no one what they had seen, until the Son of man should have risen from the dead.

Here he told them of his coming death and resurrection but they did not understand it.

¹⁰So they kept the matter to themselves, questioning what the rising from the dead meant.

They know that the Texts said that Elijah must come as we see from Malachi 4:5 and so they did not understand the sequence or the meaning of the transfiguration. We know that Elijah was taken, as was the Patriarch Enoch, and God was to bring them forward in time to the days of the End at Jerusalem before the coming of the Messiah.

¹¹And they asked him, "Why do the scribes say that first Eli'jah must come?" ¹²And he said to them, "Eli'jah does come first to restore all things; and how is it written of the Son of man, that he should suffer many things and be treated with contempt? ¹³But I tell you that Eli'jah has come, and they did to him whatever they pleased, as it is written of him."

Here he was saying that Elijah had come and they did to him whatever they liked. This was a reference to the prophet of those days who was to announce and baptize the Messiah but the real Elijah was to come forward with Enoch in time to deal with the restoration of the Laws of God and the Nexus of the Law. This was foretold in Revelation 11:3ff. where these two deal with Judah and the world systems prior to the Messiah. They are to preach for 1260 days and the world hates them and tries to kill them and as they seek to kill them so must they themselves be killed. When they are killed on the 1260^th day by the forces of the NWO they are forced to lie in the streets to disprove that they are the Witnesses. On the morning of the fourth day the Messiah arrives and they are resurrected by the Messiah and the entire world faces the First Resurrection (No. 143A) of the elect that have been killed and persecuted for the faith.

The Transfiguration was explained by Christ here when he said that Elijah must come to restore all things. All things includes the Laws of God, as the church has always known, except for the last half of the Twentieth Century when it was put about by the brainwashed of the Churches of God in Sardis that Elijah had come and that was Herbert Armstrong or other such blasphemy (cf. Elijah? (No. 233); The 18 Restored Truths of Herbert W. Armstrong (No. 233B)). This was a very dangerous delusion as it has rendered that system unable to prepare for and recognize the true Witnesses, which are the real Elijah and Enoch, and why Messiah cannot come before they have dealt with the Nations and in particular Judaism under the Pharisees, which was the object of this parable. The Two Witnesses are explained in the papers The Witnesses (No. 135) and The Wars of the End Part II: 1260 Days of the Witnesses (No. 141D).

Elijah

In looking at what we might expect of Elijah in the last days we can determine what he did in ancient Israel before he and Enoch were taken forward by God to act in the Last Days.

Elijah possessed the following powers:

1. He shut up the heavens during the three and a half years of his prophecy (1Kgs. 8:35; 2Chron 6:26; 1Kgs. 17:1-7; 1Kgs.18:1; Rev. 11:6);

2. He called fire down from heaven when he needed to kill large numbers of troops and confirm he was a prophet of God (2Kgs. 1:10-14).

3. He locked up in their place of worship and killed 450 priests of Baal that were under the patronage of Ahab and Jezebel (1Kgs. 18:21-40).

Israel had been plagued by Baal worship and its festivals virtually all of its existence. The idol of the Moon God Sin was made even when they got to Sinai to receive the law from Christ through Moses. They baked cakes to Tammuz or Dumuzi and wept. They still make these cakes with the sun cross on them to Dumuzi and call them “Hot Cross Buns”. They decorate trees to the sun God on the festival of the Solstice despite it being forbidden by God through the prophet Jeremiah (Jer. 10:1-9). They punished Isaiah for opposing their idolatry by sawing him in half. They call their practice “Christmas” now as though it is no longer the evil idolatrous practice condemned by God (cf. Origins of Christmas and Easter (No. 235)).

Elijah will do all these things and more as he will also have the power to inflict the plagues of Egypt on these priests of Baal and the Mother goddess Easter and the Sun Cults.

These priests that worship on Sundays and Christmas and Easter will suffer with haemorrhoids, and the botch and the other plagues (Zech 14:16-19). Unless they keep the Sabbaths, New Moons and Feasts they will die (Isa. 66:23-24).

Symbolism of the Transfiguration

It is clear here that Moses and Elijah are set on either side of Messiah. The symbolism is derived from the purpose of each in relation to Christ. Moses is there because it was he to whom Christ first appeared at Sinai and sent him to Egypt to bring Christ’s inheritance out of Egypt as the Elohim of Israel mentioned in Deuteronomy 32:8, which Eloah had given to him as his inheritance, and to which the whole world must ultimately be added. He then gave Moses the Laws of God (L1) and they were recorded as the basis of the faith for all time (cf. also Acts 7:35-53 and 1Cor. 10:4). The pivotal point is Israel as the Inheritance of the Christ as the subordinate Elohim of Israel. The life of Moses was 120 years signifying the 120 jubilees of the working creation as we see in the paper Rule of the Kings Part I: Saul (No. 282A); Rule of the Kings Part II: David (No. 282B) and Rule of the Kings Part III: Solomon and the Key of David (No. 282C) and Rule of the Kings Part IIIB: Man as the Temple of God (No. 282D).

The Transfiguration thus brackets the laws of God as given to Israel and shows that Messiah will come after the Law is restored and the heresies of the Rabbis and pseudo Christians are stamped out in Israel and then the entire world.

When Messiah arrives with the Loyal Host and resurrects the elect in the First Resurrection the law will be enforced throughout the entire world. Everyone will keep it on pain of death and everyone who teaches against it will be killed. No Antinomian that teaches against the Law saying it is done away will be permitted to live. No one who labours or trades on the Sabbath or New Moons will be permitted to live (Isa. 66:23-24). No one or nation that does not keep the Feasts and Holy Days will be given rain in due season or allowed to live unrepentant (Zech. 14:16-18). They will all face starvation and the plagues of Egypt. So also will the Hillel or other abomination be outlawed and those who keep it will be killed (cf. Hillel, the Babylonian Intercalations and the Temple Calendar (No. 195C)). No one who prays to other than the Father or bows before an idol, statue or a crucifix will be allowed to live. See also the paper Praying to Christ or Beings other than the Father (No. 111b).

The Last Days

In the last days we are faced with the preparation for the coming of the Witnesses and we will see that we are set aside to do that function as the final aspect of prophecy before God intervenes with the Witnesses. These are best explained by reference to the parables of Christ below. It is our responsibility to give the Warning of the Last Days (No. 044). God does nothing save He warns the people through His servants the prophets (Amos 3:7).

We go into the War of the Fifth Trumpet which is a biochemical war of weaponised viruses and other aspects and then we are going into the War of the Sixth Trumpet which will kill a third of mankind. After that war we will see the establishment of the NWO that will last for 42 months and the great tribulation that will bracket the Holocaust. The end of that period is covered in the papers Wars of the End Part 1: Wars of Amalek (No. 141C) and Wars of the End Part II: 1260 Days of the Witnesses (No. 141D).

After that tribulation we will see the Messiah and Wars of the End Part III: Armageddon and the Vials of the Wrath of God (No. 141E) and Wars of the End Part IIIB: War Against Christ (No. 141E_2). This sequence is 1335 days of massive tribulation. Fortunately we will be spared the final Tribulation in the vials of the Wrath of God. However Sardis and Laodicea will not. We will be in the First Resurrection and we will be protecting our young from the Tribulation as well as subjugating the planet with the Loyal Host.

It is important that we all understand the role of the elect and the exposition of the Mysteries of God (No. 131). It is our responsibility to properly explain the Mysteries and the role of the Elect as Elohim (No. 001) and the Plan of Salvation (No. 001A) to the world prior to the Witnesses so that the Elect can be warned and reached before the Witnesses take over from us (cf. No. 141D above and No. 135).

These aspects were also covered in the Sabbath Message of Sabbath 9/1/38/120 http://www.ccg.org/weblibs/2015-messages/sabbath_message_090138120_(28mar15).html

In that Message we stated:
“From the Messiah’s own words, we must understand that once we enter into the New Covenant Temple system through him, we are not at liberty to establish our own ways independently from God’s Word and His divine Laws in our priestly service and commitment to God. This is obvious from the Messiah’s parable of the 10 virgins in Matthew 25. We must comprehend what is the process and commitment to become “born again”, and we must come to grips with the reality that only 5 of the 10 virgins were wise and acceptable to the Messiah.

Matt 25:1-13 (from GOD'S WORD Translation)

¹"When the end comes, the kingdom of heaven will be like ten bridesmaids. They took their oil lamps and went to meet the groom. Five of them were foolish, and five were wise. ²The foolish bridesmaids took their lamps, but they didn't take any extra oil. ³The wise bridesmaids, however, took along extra oil for their lamps. ⁴Since the groom was late, all the bridesmaids became drowsy and fell asleep. ⁵"At midnight someone shouted, 'The groom is here! Come to meet him!' ⁶Then all the bridesmaids woke up and got their lamps ready. ⁷"The foolish ones said to the wise ones, 'Give us some of your oil. Our lamps are going out.' ⁸"But the wise bridesmaids replied, 'We can't do that. There won't be enough for both of us. Go! Find someone to sell you some oil.' ⁹"While they were buying oil, the groom arrived. The bridesmaids who were ready went with him into the wedding hall, and the door was shut. ¹⁰"Later the other bridesmaids arrived and said, 'Sir, sir, open the door for us!' ¹¹"But he answered them, 'I don't even know who you are!' ¹²"So stay awake, because you don't know the day or the hour.

This parable relates to the first resurrection and entering the millennial system with the Messiah. All ten virgins started out in the beginning from their baptism with the Holy Spirit. They all had oil in their lamps. But as time progressed, the 5 foolish virgins ran low of oil, that is, they were losing the Holy Spirit. When they realize their spiritual condition, they attempt to enter into the wedding supper on the coat-tails of the 5 wise virgins. But it doesn’t work that way. They have become disconnected from the Messiah and God through their indolence, and consequently the Messiah tells them that he never knew them. They became disconnected from their covenant relationship with God and His Temple. How did they become so disconnected from the Messiah?”

To further develop this parable we need to understand the composition of the function of the Ten Virgins and refer them back to the Ten Lampstands in the Temple of God (cf. Rule of the Kings Part III: Solomon and the Key of David (No. 282C)). The Ten Lampstands are comprised of the Seven Lampstands symbolising the seven eras of the Churches of God outlined in Revelation chapters 2 and 3. Of these the Sardis and Laodicean systems are declared dead and spewed from the Mouth of God. So virtually two whole eras are rejected but of the other five of the seven there are those that are warned and have some individuals cast out from the other five. These are the foolish five of the ten virgins in addition to the two rejected of Sardis and Laodicea. The Ten Lampstands of the faith also have the last three being the two Witnesses of the last days of Revelation 11:3ff. who have a lampstand each and also Messiah who is the final Lampstand of the Temple system. Messiah comes to take over the final phase of the Church of God and as and with the Church of the Philadelphians. Who these are is explained by looking at another parable, which is the parable of the Vineyard. This parable refers to the period of the end “when the time came.” (cf. also The Golden Jubilee (No. 300)).

Luke 20:9-19

⁹And he began to tell the people this parable: "A man planted a vineyard, and let it out to tenants, and went into another country for a long while. ¹⁰When the time came, he sent a servant to the tenants, that they should give him some of the fruit of the vineyard; but the tenants beat him, and sent him away empty-handed. ¹¹And he sent another servant; him also they beat and treated shamefully, and sent him away empty-handed. ¹²And he sent yet a third; this one they wounded and cast out.¹³Then the owner of the vineyard said, `What shall I do? I will send my beloved son; it may be they will respect him.' ¹⁴But when the tenants saw him, they said to themselves, `This is the heir; let us kill him, that the inheritance may be ours.' ¹⁵And they cast him out of the vineyard and killed him. What then will the owner of the vineyard do to them? ¹⁶He will come and destroy those tenants, and give the vineyard to others." When they heard this, they said, "God forbid!" ¹⁷But he looked at them and said, "What then is this that is written: `The very stone which the builders rejected has become the head of the corner'? ¹⁸Every one who falls on that stone will be broken to pieces; but when it falls on any one it will crush him." ¹⁹The scribes and the chief priests tried to lay hands on him at that very hour, but they feared the people; for they perceived that he had told this parable against them.

So this parable has the meaning of when the time came, meaning in the Last Days, Messiah was sent and the Jews conspired to kill him and to seize the inheritance for themselves. They knew even then that he knew what they were to do to him but it also refers on to the end of the Last Days at the final phase of the Babylonian kingdoms of Daniel Chapter 2 when the stone not cut by human hands is to be sent and that system of the Babylonians was to be destroyed by the Stone that came from heaven and struck the idol on the ten toes which is the last phase of the empires of the idol. Remember that Judah and the Churches of God that keep Hillel are all part of the Babylonian system and they have to be eliminated.

Note that there were three messengers sent to the Jews and the false religions of the Last Days both of Sardis and of Laodicea Churches of God and the Babylonian systems in total. The first messenger was the last voice of the prophets of God before the final intervention. He was badly abused and sent away empty handed. John the Baptist had already been executed before the Message of the Messiah. This was the voice of the prophet of Dan-Ephraim spoken of by God through the prophet Jeremiah in Jeremiah 4:15, 16-27. This was that prophet referred to in the gospels, the voice that established the church of the Philadelphians which was prepared for Christ. They were all persecuted for the truth (cf. Israel as the Plan of God (No. 001B) and Israel as the Vineyard of God (No. 001C)).

The next two messengers were the last before Messiah and these were Enoch and Elijah who were taken by God and brought forward in time to warn the world of the Coming Kingdom and the Wrath of God. These two are to be killed after 1260 days and four days before the Messiah comes in the morning of the Fourth Day (see No 141D above). Judah will commence to be converted by their preaching in Jerusalem.

Messiah had already been killed and resurrected, and the church had been selected and baptised and hardened under persecution, even unto death. These were selected from all eras of the faith by God through His Omniscience through Predestination (No. 296). The Two Witnesses convert, or destroy those they do not convert, of Modern Judaism.

Then Messiah will come and deliver the Wrath of God on the world and destroy all false religion (cf. Wars of the End Part III: Armageddon and the Vials of the Wrath of God (No. 141E); Wars of the End Part IIIB: War Against Christ (No. 141e_2); and Wars of the End Part IV: End of False Religion (No. 141F)).

It is not God’s will that any flesh should perish (Mat. 18:14; 2Pet. 3:9) and He has set up a system that has safety nets throughout the system. He will, however, not tolerate any breach of His laws or of the Testimony and Faith. To be in the Elect of the First Resurrection each of us has to keep the Commandments of God and the Faith and Testimony of Jesus Christ (Rev. 12:17 and 14:12). See also the Elect as Elohim (No. 001) also above. All else will be in the Second Resurrection (No. 143B) and subject to the Second Death.

We are all part of the Plan of Salvation (No. 001A). It is perfect according to God’s Prescience and His Omnipotence.

Appendix A

There are some fundamental principles that show why Moses cannot appear with Elijah as the Second Witnesses and why Enoch must be the Second Witness.

There can be no doubt that the primary witness is Elijah as he is stated specifically by God to be the one sent (by God) to deal with the world in the Last Days and to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children and the children to the fathers lest God strikes the earth with a curse, as is stated through the prophet Malachi in 4:5.

The Bible is quite clear that Elijah did not die. The Bible states, in Hebrews 9:27, that it is appointed unto all men to die once.

Moses did die and we are told that Satan struggled with Michael for the body of Moses (Jude 9). Moses therefore is dead and awaiting the First Resurrection which will not take place until four days after the Witnesses are killed. Moses therefore cannot be one of the Witnesses. The purpose of the Transfiguration therefore was not to identify the Witnesses but for another purpose associated with the roles of both Moses and Elijah and that purpose was to do with the restoration of the primary mission of Christ which was the explanation of the Laws of God and the purpose of Salvation.

Is there another patriarch or prophet that was taken in the same way that Elijah was taken? The answer is a clear positive, and that person was the patriarch Enoch. He was not, because God had taken him (Gen.5:24). He was witness against the Demons before the flood and they were condemned by his witness against them for breach of the Laws of God. It was by his witness that the ante-diluvian world was to be destroyed. Furthermore, Enoch is the patriarch of the entire post-flood world and is therefore the best person to witness to the entire animist idolatry and ancestor worship that has spread throughout the world. These people number some half of the world’s population. See also Jude 14-23.

So the fact is that these two people, Enoch and Elijah, have a proven record as witnesses against the sinners of the world both of Demons and Humans and of the antinomian forces that are to be destroyed over these 1260 days of their Witness. They are not dead but have been taken forward in time and God has specifically stated that one of them is Elijah and the other is listed in the Bible as also being taken. The reality is that the church has taught from the beginning that it was to be Enoch and Elijah. The Churches of God have always taught that until the heresy of the Armstrong/Elijah nexus of the last half of the Twentieth century. So also Tertullian taught that the Witnesses were Enoch and Elijah.

"Enoch no doubt was translated, and so was Elijah, nor did they experience death. It was postponed and only postponed, most certainly: they are reserved for the suffering of death, that by their blood they may extinguish the Antichrist" (Tertullian, De Anima, 50; (cf. also 135, 141D and 141E_2; 299C; they were not translated but rather transported as the Bible states). Time travel was inconceivable to most of the early writers. Catholic prophets were also sure that Enoch and Elijah were to come as the Two Witnesses.