Matthew 3:1-12,
"In those days came John the Baptist, preaching in the wilderness of Judaea,
And saying, Repent ye: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.
For this is he that was spoken of by the prophet Esaias, saying, The voice of one crying in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the Lord, make his paths straight.
And the same John had his raiment of camel's hair, and a leathern girdle about his loins; and his meat was locusts and wild honey.
Then went out to him Jerusalem, and all Judaea, and all the region round about Jordan,
And were baptized of him in Jordan, confessing their sins.
But when he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees come to his baptism, he said unto them, O generation of vipers, who hath warned you to flee from the wrath to come?
Bring forth therefore fruits meet for repentance:
And think not to say within yourselves, We have Abraham to our father: for I say unto you, that God is able of these stones to raise up children unto Abraham.
And now also the axe is laid unto the root of the trees: therefore every tree which bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down, and cast into the fire.
I indeed baptize you with water unto repentance. but he that cometh after me is mightier than I, whose shoes I am not worthy to bear: he shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost, and with fire:
Whose fan is in his hand, and he will thoroughly purge his floor, and gather his wheat into the garner; but he will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire."
While the Pharisees relied on being children of Abraham, in these days many think, "We have our big church: I've been a member for years," "We live in a Christian country," "I come from a long family line of Christians, and some were preachers," "We are prosperous, and blessed in all things, proving God is for us." - Rubbish! It's what I called the "Laodicean Syndrome" back in the 90s and that sickness has continued to ruin churches to this day.
He came in the spirit in John the Baptist, Elijah himself also appeared on the mount of transfiguration. See, there is "trans" in the Bible! Absolutely: Transfigured, transfiguration, an act of mighty God: Transformed by the renewing of your mind, not conformed to this world.
Malachi 4:1-6,
For, behold, the day cometh, that shall burn as an oven; and all the proud, yea, and all that do wickedly, shall be stubble: and the day that cometh shall burn them up, saith the Lord of hosts, that it shall leave them neither root nor branch.
But unto you that fear my name shall the Sun of righteousness arise with healing in his wings; and ye shall go forth, and grow up as calves of the stall.
And ye shall tread down the wicked; for they shall be ashes under the soles of your feet in the day that I shall do this, saith the LORD of hosts.
Remember ye the law of Moses my servant, which I commanded unto him in Horeb for all Israel, with the statutes and judgments.
Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the LORD:
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.
The wording of Malachi points to a last days "Elijah" as well, though I think it's a "spirit of Elijah" such as fell upon Elisha. This is the forerunner to one of the two witnesses of Revelation 11, which most think to be Elijah, though the other witness seems to be a toss up between Moses, and Enoch.
The context where it says "dreadful" - Hebrew, "yare," is dreadful, fearful, terrible. For in the very next verse the LORD says if the hearts of the fathers and of the children are not turned, that He will come and smite the earth with a curse.
There was an event that happened before when scripture says the wicked were "cut down out of time..." It's in Job 22:115-17,
"Hast thou marked the old way which wicked men have trodden?
Which were cut down out of time, whose foundation was overflown with a flood:
Which said unto God, Depart from us: and what can the Almighty do for them?"
"Out of time," there has a twofold meaning, and both meanings are ominous: 1) They were cut down out of time: They were utterly removed from the timeline, and from time itself; they ceased to be, and then were no more. 2) They were "out of time" in that the 120 years granted while Noah was building the ark and preaching righteousness, had expired: there was no more delay; judgment came suddenly and without warning to those who did not believe.
Acts 13:46,
"Then Paul and Barnabas waxed bold, and said, It was necessary that the word of God should first have been spoken to you: but seeing ye put it from you, and judge yourselves unworthy of everlasting life, lo, we turn to the Gentiles."
This too is a dire warning to those who continue in unbelief: judging themselves unworthy of eternal life. I learned in church recently that "put it from you" is the same as divorce; that is, they divorced themselves from God by continual unbelief, and by their own judgment become condemned. John 3:36 - because they have not believed on the Son, the wrath of God abideth on them. They become condemned because they are condemned already, as that is our state, our condition without Christ.
The last days and the coming of Christ are compared to the days of Noah, and we know that great annihilation came upon them, as the waters swelled up and poured down, gushing from the deep, and dropping from the sky rain that was pain. Ever been in a storm where the rain's so heavy it's painful when it hits you? It's as if it was being forcefully thrown down; it stings. I believe the rain of the flood must have been such, for the windows from on high were opened.
Now in the process of composing this message I also did read at random some of the old Preachers, and came across this by Horatius Bonar:
"Has an Elijah stood forth in the midst of us with his word, ‘As the LORD God of Israel liveth…there shall not be dew nor rain these years’ (1Ki 17:1)? Or does Elijah sleep, forgetting to reopen what was shut up? Church of God, thou little flock of Israel, thou people of His possession, thou art as Elijah! Yes, thy voice can call forth clouds of rain. Arise and call upon thy God.”
"Elijah is preëminently the elder of the prophets. The crown, the throne and the scepter are his. His garments are white with flame. He seems exalted in his fiery and prayerful nature, as a being seemingly superhuman, but the New Testament places him alongside of us as man of like nature with us. Instead of placing himself outside the sphere of humanity, in the marvelous results of his praying, it points to him as an example to be imitated and as inspiration to stimulate us. To pray like Elijah, and to have results like Elijah, is the crying need of the times."
Prayer and Praying Men, Rev. Edward M Bounds 1921
Isaiah 66:15-16
For, behold, the LORD will come with fire, and with his chariots like a whirlwind, to render his anger with fury, and his rebuke with flames of fire. For by fire and by his sword will the LORD plead with all flesh: and the slain of the LORD shall be many...
Serious stuff here. Some call it "doom and gloom" preaching. But when a city or a nation is given over to gross sin, God sends prophets to warn, and those warnings will be of judgment: hence, doom and gloom. As Ezekiel received the word he was to speak unto the people:
"Son of man, I send thee to the children of Israel, to a rebellious nation that hath rebelled against me: they and their fathers have transgressed against me, even unto this very day.
For they are impudent children and stiffhearted. I do send thee unto them; and thou shalt say unto them, Thus saith the Lord GOD.
And they, whether they will hear, or whether they will forbear, (for they are a rebellious house,) yet shall know that there hath been a prophet among them.
And thou, son of man, be not afraid of them, neither be afraid of their words, though briers and thorns be with thee, and thou dost dwell among scorpions: be not afraid of their words, nor be dismayed at their looks, though they be a rebellious house.
And thou shalt speak my words unto them, whether they will hear, or whether they will forbear: for they are most rebellious.
But thou, son of man, hear what I say unto thee; Be not thou rebellious like that rebellious house: open thy mouth, and eat that I give thee.
And when I looked, behold, an hand was sent unto me; and, lo, a roll of a book was therein;
And he spread it before me; and it was written within and without: and there was written therein lamentations, and mourning, and woe." (Ezek 2:3-10)
Lamentations, mourning, and woe! Sounds like gloom and doom, and surely it was, for the whole nation had been given over to idolatry and bloodshed: they had turned their backs on Yahweh, the LORD, literally! Ezekiel 8:16 "were about five and twenty men, with their backs toward the temple of the LORD, and their faces toward the east; and they worshipped the sun toward the east"
Look how the LORD ordains a prophet and sets him up. He is to stand with boldness, as Elijah did stand against the prophets of Baal:
Jeremiah 1:6-10
Then said I, Ah, Lord GOD! behold, I cannot speak: for I am a child. But the Lord said unto me, Say not, I am a child: for thou shalt go to all that I shall send thee, and whatsoever I command thee thou shalt speak.
Be not afraid of their faces: for I am with thee to deliver thee, saith the Lord.
Then the LORD put forth his hand, and touched my mouth. And the Lord said unto me, Behold, I have put my words in thy mouth.
See, I have this day set thee over the nations and over the kingdoms, to root out, and to pull down, and to destroy, and to throw down, to build, and to plant.
1:16-19
And I will utter my judgments against them touching all their wickedness, who have forsaken me, and have burned incense unto other gods, and worshipped the works of their own hands.
Thou therefore gird up thy loins, and arise, and speak unto them all that I command thee: be not dismayed at their faces, lest I confound thee before them.
For, behold, I have made thee this day a defenced city, and an iron pillar, and brasen walls against the whole land, against the kings of Judah, against the princes thereof, against the priests thereof, and against the people of the land.
And they shall fight against thee; but they shall not prevail against thee; for I am with thee, saith the LORD, to deliver thee.
God said He would send Elijah before the great and dreadful day of the LORD. That great day is fast approaching! The nation has not heeded the warnings given it. The call to the prophets is to stand up and proclaim the word given.
Prophecy is not that feel good false stuff in some Charismatic churches that preach prosperity and dominion now theology. They prey on the poor whilst they grow their churches large, and many of the mega-churches are built on the dollars of people in poverty. That's not the gospel, and not the message of Elijah.
We should be seeing a bold witness and testimony to what the LORD is doing, and that He is coming, and will come to judge the quick and the dead, and there should be humility, not pride: for pride goeth before destruction, and an haughty spirit before a fall. Pride, the sin of Lucifer, and the one thing that can wreck a man who is lifted up in it, puffed up and boastful. For the western world is rife with pride, and thus shall be cut down and smitten.
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