The Morning Time Church
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Rev. 6:1 And I saw when the Lamb opened one of the seals, and I heard, as it were the noise of thunder, one of the four beasts saying, Come and see. 2And I saw, and behold a white horse: and he that sat on him had a bow; and a crown was given unto him: and he went forth conquering, and to conquer.
The Lamb is a symbol of Jesus Christ (John 1:29). The seals show the conditions, under which salvation were offered in each age. By studying them it will help our vision in seeing clearly what is required of us in our day.
The first symbol to study is thunder. Thunder is an echo or a report of a flash of lightning that has already occurred. So we understand it is pointing back to events of the past, in the case to Pentecost, when the church went forth conquering and to conqueror.
John in his vision saw a white horse going forth in battle. The horse is a symbol of warfare and a spirit, i.e. the militant spirit, which is taken from the Romans’ military and civil life. Zech 5:1-5; Jer. 6:23; 8:6.
White is a symbol of purity (holiness). It takes a pure, holy people to fight against wrong and conqueror. So we see the church is depicted by a white horse and its rider, a militant conquering spirit, or influence for God.
The bow is a offensive weapon, shooting forth arrows of truth. Jer. 50:14, 15. We are not to sympathize with Babylon or sin, but blow the trumpet and shoot arrows of fiery truth at anything that isn’t holiness unto the Lord.
The crown represents victory. “Victory must first be won before a crown is given. The church has victory over sin, and opposition
The Church of God did not come into existence in the 16th century, or in the 18th century, or in the second half of the last century.
Of course, it did not.
Our Lord Jesus Christ visited this earth almost two thousand years ago. He then established His Church just as He promised to Peter and other apostles:
"I will build my Church, and the gates of Hell shall not prevail against it" (Matthew 16:18).
Sometimes after that, Jesus Christ willingly died on the Cross for salvation of the world. On the third day after His death He rose again to life! Forty days afterwards, as the glorified Lord and Savior, He ascended to Heaven where He sat at the right hand of God the Father, assuming power and sovereignty over heaven and earth. Ten days later, on the 50th day from His atoning death, the Living Lord poured His Holy Spirit on all gathered disciples, who prayed and waited for this fulfillment of the promise in Jerusalem.
And the Church was born!
Baptized by one Spirit into one Body of which Christ is the Head, the followers of Christ became one organism, one community, one nation:
"But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, His own special people, that you may proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light; who once were not a people but are now the people of God" (1 Peter 2:9,10).
"For as the body is one and has many members, but all the members of that one body, being many, are one body, so also is Christ. For by one Spirit WE were ALL baptized into ONE BODY - whether Jews or Greeks, whether slaves or free - and have all been made to drink into one Spirit" (1 Corinthians 12:12,13).
From this on, the Church of God, Body of Christ, had some happy, glorious, and triumphant days. There were also some shadowy, turbulent and suffering times. Her history has been marked by progress and light, but also by problems and decline. Yet, onward she goes, step by step, led by the Spirit of the Lord, encouraged by that blessed hope of meeting her Savior Christ who is coming to take her to His heavenly Kingdom.
What follows is just a brief overview of the Church's history.
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