THE HEAVENS DECLARE

Part 34

PISCES — THE FISHES

THE FISHES

In Pisces the two fishes are a representation of the church, the called out, the people of God. At the beginning of His ministry, seeing Peter and Andrew casting a net into the blue waters of the Sea of Galilee, Jesus said unto them, "Follow Me, and I will make you fishers of men" (Mat. 4:19). When God promised that He would bring again the children of Israel into their own land, His word was, "I will send for many fishers, and they shall fish them" (Jer. 16:15-16). So in Ezekiel's vision of the great River of God the word was, "And there shall be a very great multitude of fish, because the waters shall come thither" (Eze. 47:1-9). Christ speaks of the members of His body as "born of water" (Jn. 3:5). The early Christians were accustomed to call believers ECHTHUES and PISCES — that is, fishes.

In His wonderful parable of the Dragnet Jesus said that the Kingdom of Heaven is like unto a net that was cast into the sea. It is the picture of a great net that is let down into the sea, and is left, and it swings to the moving of the waters, and there are gathered into it fishes of all sorts, all kinds. Then towards the close of day, or early morning more often, the fishermen draw the net in, and as it comes in it encloses a vast multitude of fishes. Some of them are of no use. Others are valuable. The fishermen are seen settled down on the shore, and their first business is to sort and sift, to take out the valueless and worthless, and leave in the good, gathering them together in vessels, after the worthless have been cast aside. Several of our Lord's disciples were fishermen; much of His ministry was passed by the Sea of Galilee; we find Him on various occasions making use of a fishing boat for crossing that inland sea or lake, and once at least He preached from one. Such a scene as that described in this parable might be seen there any day, and may be still. For fishermen still ply their business on those waters; their boats still cross from side to side; their nets are still let down for a draught, and at other times may be seen spread on the rocks.

Our Lord has made the spiritual meaning clear. The parable is meant to represent the realm of Heaven, that is, the spiritual realm of God, or God's government on earth. What a fisherman does in gathering all kinds of fish into his net, and then bringing a separation between those that qualify for his purposes, and those who do not, is like what the almighty Father is doing throughout this age in the formation, development and manifestation of the Kingdom of Heaven on earth. Throughout the scriptures the sea is a type of the raging, restless, surging masses of unregenerate humanity, tossed to and fro by the inner storms of the turbulent character of the carnal mind. The prophet Isaiah penned these inspired words: "The wicked are like THE TROUBLED SEA, which cannot rest, whose waters cast up mire and dirt. There is no peace, saith my God, to the wicked" (Isa. 57:20-21). Jude also described natural men when he said, "These are RAGING WAVES OF THE SEA, foaming out their own shame" (Jude 13). John, on the isle of Patmos, had a vision of a great whore sitting on many waters. The angel revealed the meaning of the "many waters", saying, "The waters which thou sawest, where the whore sitteth, ARE PEOPLES, AND MULTITUDES, AND TONGUES" (Rev. 17:15). No one can dispute the fact that it is this restless, turbulent, raging carnal heart of unregenerate men that inspires every imaginable evil and devilish perversion, and has filled the world with ever increasing confusion, immorality, faithlessness, falsehood, fraud, hatred, violence, greed, cruelty, wars and rumors of wars, bloodshed and oppression. Ah, the SEA is the LOWEST REALM on earth, and this vast sea of degenerate humanity represents mankind at his lowest point — as bad off as man can be!

The net is the Word of the Kingdom that reaches out into the vast sea of humanity and draws men, by the power of the Holy Spirit, into the sphere of the influence of the Kingdom realm of God. "A net cast into the sea," let down from a higher world, out of a different sphere — such is the dynamic of the Kingdom of Heaven. The net is, furthermore, the ministry of reconciliation — the authority of God's Word and the power of His Spirit by which He draws men out of the restless surgings of sin and death, and the darkness and futility of the world system, into the calm peace, enlightenment and reality of a realm higher and grander — life in the Spirit — the Kingdom of Heaven on earth. O glorious ministry of reconciliation! While the net is, to all appearance, the plaything of the waves, it is as a matter of fact held in the grasp of, and absolutely controlled by, One who stands upon the shore. See it as it is tossed about by the waves; they seem to do with it what they will, to bear it hither or thither as they please; to make or mar its shape and proportions; to all appearance its form and movement at any moment are the result of the action of the waters alone, they toss it from side to side, expand or contract it, bear it out to sea or dash it in their fury shorewards. Now it is borne with a rush in one direction, and now, in the grasp of some mighty wave, its whole course is altered. But as we watch we see the wondrous yet simple plan by which every thread of that mazy net is controlled by the Mind of Him who holds it in His hand. His intelligence, His Will, His Purpose, moves it and governs it, and runs along every delicate fibre, in spite of all its free play in the waters. He knows when to relax His hold and when to draw it in; He knows how to avoid undue strain from the force of the current or the rush of the captives within the net. At the time when all the cords are most lax, and all its movements most free, His hand gauges the strength of the pull, His Eye, His Mind is upon it all. That vast netword of ministry and dealing by which men are gathered into the Kingdom of Heaven is but the Fisherman's Hand, its movements are the expression of His skill and purpose. The waters may have their way, but never so as to frustrate or hinder His Purpose.

That net floating amidst the waves, and tossed about so easily, betokens another world; it is the only representative of a mind acting from without. The natural man is incapable of thinking beyond the impulses of the sea. But when God sends forth His ministry of reconciliation with the authority of His Word and the power of His Spirit a higher will, a more intelligent purpose than the battling waves know anything about, is lying there in the depths of the sea, sometimes passive, sometimes active, and each delicate thread is the channel along which that will and intelligence are borne. Whether the net lies slack and shifts with every heaving of the sea, or whether it strains and pulls, it is equally the act of the Mind of Him who holds it! In saving men the first thing God has to do is to get our attention. And to do that He chooses to use events which are instruments of either His goodness or His judgment, according to the need. Ah, yes, God has a great net and He knows just how to GET OUR ATTENTION! He can get it here and now. If He doesn't get it here, He will get it in hell. If He doesn't get it in hell, He will get it in the lake of fire. He will get it by gracious words and tender mercies, if He can. He will get it by severe judgments and awful wrath, if He must. But, blessed be His name, He will get our attention! When we consider the wisdom, purpose and power of the One who makes and casts and gathers the net, with what new and wonderful significance does the proclamation of Jesus Christ echo through the corridors of our spirits as we hear the impelling words sound from His lips, "And I, if I be lifted up from the earth, WILL DRAW A-L-L M-E-N UNTO ME" (Jn. 12:32).

Beloved, when God chooses to bring a people unto Himself, He is well able to do so, even to reach out to them without the use of a human vessel, if need be. He is the greatest Fisherman with the most marvelous Net! The Christ has been lifted up from the earth and now has all power in heaven and in earth — the omnipotent One. In due time He will bring His redemptive process into glorious fulfillment and consummation. If God wants to save Russians, He is well able to demolish the iron curtain and destroy the mighty bastions of communism, and cast His net into the sea of Russia. If He wants any number of Chinese, He is able to apprehend them in spite of the iron rule of an atheistic government. There is no continent too dark, no people too enslaved by

satanic powers, no man too incorrigible but what His power can penetrate them. Christ has been lifted up from the earth, and He will draw all men unto Himself. He holds the net in His almighty hands. Its work is to enclose a multitude scattered far and wide, draw them together, and skillfully bring them to the shore, to that region from whence the net came; and it would be impossible to conceive of anything better adapted to carry out this purpose. Such is the Kingdom of Heaven on earth. What more vivid picture could be drawn of it than that drawn by the hand of our Lord when He says, "It is like unto a net, that was cast into the sea; which, when it was full, they drew to shore." Such is the beginning of the Kingdom in our lives and in the earth!

But that is not the end of the matter. Gathered out of the sea the fishes are brought to the shore — the Kingdom of Heaven on earth. "Thy Kingdom come, Thy will be done in earth as it is in heaven" (Mat. 6:10). The highest realm known to man is called heaven. The interpretations of poor human beings are always childish in the extreme, for we know nothing yet as we ought to know. We have tried to picture heaven as a far-off place of many mansions, full of splendid temples and exquisite gardens, where idle inhabitants while away an endless eternity flitting about in white night gowns over golden streets and shouting hallelujah. The Greek word for "heaven" is OURANOUS, meaning "elevation, height, exaltation, eminence." This word has both natural and spiritual applications. In its spiritual application it bespeaks of the eternal and omnipresent REALM OF THE SPIRIT in which God and all celestial beings dwell — far above the realm of the physical, material, earthly, and mortal. It is not a geographical or astral location. It is not a place. It is a DIMENSION OF LIFE AND REALITY, A STATE OF BEING, A SPHERE OF EXISTENCE. Every spirit life-form lives on a plane of spiritual awareness and being. Each of these planes constitutes a "heaven", a spiritual realm above and beyond the physical and visible. Heaven is naught but the Biblical name of the REALM OF GOD'S SPIRIT, the invisible and omnipresent dimension of spiritual reality. And it is all around us. It is as near to us as the very air we breathe, yea, closer to us even than the blood coursing its way through our veins. It is just as real and near and invisible as the radio waves flooding the room where you are. We are one with it by virtue of our spiritual life. We touch heaven as we touch God. We behold heavenly things as we fasten mind and heart upon spiritual realities. We walk in heaven as we walk in the Spirit. Heaven is, furthermore, the realm of God's government — His infinite power and almighty authority. "Thus saith the Lord, the HEAVEN IS MY THRONE, and the earth is My foot-stool" (Isa. 66:1).

God is now in the grand process of bringing men out of the lowest realm of the sea of vanity, sin and death, up into the highest realm of heaven, to the fullness of His life, nature, and wisdom, to His throne, to the sphere of His omnipotent power and resplendent glory. In contrast to these the "earth" is the symbol of yet a third realm, a realm higher than the sea, but lower than heaven; an in-between realm which at its highest peak kisses heaven, and at its lowest level embraces the sea; yet, in the true sense is not entirely heavenly or spiritual, nor absolutely carnal and degenerate. In simple terms, it is a realm of MIXTURE! And this, precious friend of mine, is the realm of Pisces — The Fishes, the church realm of the past two thousand years. Just as the net gathers all kinds of fishes, so the visible church (including the one you may attend) gathers people of every kind — true believers and mere professors, mature saints and babes in Christ, spiritual and carnal, heavenly minded and earthly minded, wise and foolish virgins, wheat and tares — all are gathered together.

A tremendous revelation was given to John the beloved on Patmos. He was shown the seven candle-sticks "which are the seven churches" (Rev. 1:20). The seven churches represent THE WHOLE CHURCH REALM THROUGHOUT THE ENTIRE CHURCH AGE. If you want to know what the church is like look at the seven candlesticks! There you have the divinely inspired portrait of the church realm during this age painted by the brushstrokes of the Holy Spirit of revelation. Were they not imperfect, carnal, childish, idolatrous, heretical, rebuked — a realm of mixture and duality? The Lord commends and praises them on the one hand, while warning and rebuking them on the other hand. Some of the saints are commended for their works and faith and love, while others are warned of impending judgment if they fail to repent, and some are even threatened with extinction. These churches reveal the true state and condition of the whole church throughout the age, and history and personal experience both testify conclusively that John was shown right. The early church was a church of mixture and duality, flesh and spirit, truth and error, law and grace, spirituality and carnality. Even a casual reading of the New Testament reveals this! And from that day to this, make no mistake about it — ALL CHURCHES HAVE BEEN THE SAME! They are today! And should the church age continue on for another thousand years the church would not have changed, it would remain a church of mixture, imperfection and duality. The Word of God immutably declares it! The seven candlesticks are the seven churches, and the seven churches are the church throughout the entire church age. The "New Testament Church" realm can never be different from what John saw in spirit, for that IS THE CHURCH IN THIS AGE.

As soon as this point was made abundantly plain John heard a voice saying, "COME UP HITHER and I will show thee things that must be hereafter." After what? Why, bless your heart, after the candlestick realm! The promises had already been given, not to the churches themselves, but to "him that overcometh" — a company out of the church. "Come up hither," the voice commanded. John is now shown another realm HIGHER THAN THE CANDLESTICK REALM! It is the realm of the overcomer, of the throne, of the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders, and John is invited to leave the candlestick realm to ASCEND IN THE SPIRIT TO THIS HIGHER REALM where the Lamb is in the throne. This is what the brethren don't want to do! How they cling to the candlestick realm with its five-fold ministry, New Testament order, rituals, ceremonies, and ordinances, with its limitation, imperfection, weakness, mixture, duality, methods, structures, etc. This revelation was given to John in the year A. D. 96. The churches of His generation refused to leave the candlestick realm and rise to a higher place in God, and within only a few years the great apostasy set in, by the third and fourth centuries the apostasy was complete, followed by an awful night of great and terrible darkness. Even secular history refers to that time as "The Dark Ages". It was the great "falling away" which Paul prophesied in which the man of sin was revealed in the temple of God in all of his dread and stark reality. Today, my beloved, if we would be overcomers, pressing into sonship, caught up to the throne, we must hear the call "Come up hither" and forsake the limitation of the candlestick realm to become related to CHRIST IN THAT PERSONAL RELATIONSHIP WHERE HIS LORDSHIP SWALLOWS UP OUR LIVES, WHERE HE IS ALL IN ALL, WHERE HIS SPIRIT, MIND AND LIFE REPLACE THE OUTWARD STRUCTURE OF WHAT WE HAVE CALLED "CHURCH". Ah, the Lord is still out there in the candlestick realm, for John saw in the midst of the seven candlesticks "one like unto the Son of man." Oh yes, He is there, ministering on that level, blessing by His grace, saving and healing and helping, but I do not hesitate to tell you that HE IS N-O-T THERE TAKING MEN ON TO PERFECTION OR INTO THE FULLNESS OF SONSHIP TO GOD. The "up hither" realm is the realm of the overcomer, of the kings and priests who are given to sit with Him on His throne, even as He overcame and is set dawn with His Father on His throne.

If any brethren can show me any church order, including the early church, or their own, that has ever carried God's people on to perfection and fullness, I will be delighted to be a part of it. If any who read these lines can acquaint me with a church on earth today that is not a body of mixture — that has no division, no carnality, no childishness, no sin, no error, no fleshly methods or manifestations, no weakness, no sickness or limitation — I tell you before God that I will join myself to it tomorrow. If such cannot be produced, then let the immutable Word of God stand firm, and know and understand that I have no obligation to participate in that which is totally impotent to minister what I need in this hour to apprehend the vision set before. I would be remiss if I did not tell you that there is no single church, fellowship, group, or movement in the earth today which will enter into the fullness of God as a unit. Seek not, dear ones, for the perfect church, for truly I tell you that there is no such thing in existence upon earth. There never has been. I have attended fellowships which seemed so lovely — everyone and everything appeared so spiritual. There was naught but love and beauty and hospitality and depth in God all around. On the outside everything looked so perfect! But I discovered that if I stayed around for only a number of days or weeks an undercurrent would begin to be felt, the veneer would commence to peel and the hidden truth and dark reality begin to filter through. I soon found that beneath the glossy exterior lurked a seething cauldron of carnality and trouble.

Look not, my friend, to this preacher, nor to that ministry, nor to the other gift, nor to any movement. Many today will croon into your ear that if you will sit under their ministry, eat at their table, join yourself to their church, drink from their fountain, flow in their stream, embrace their revelation, you will make it into sonship. But I point you to the eternal and uncontrovertible truth that ALL churches, fellowships, movements and groups upon the face of the whole earth today are but mixtures, for the net STILL GATHERS ALL KINDS OF FISHES, and the almighty Lord STILL has somewhat against the candlestick realm. Only the deep dealings and relentless processings of the Lord can separate the fishes and gather into the heavenly vessels those who shall reign in life in the Kingdom of God. Truly, many are called, but few are chosen! Multitudes are caught in the gospel net of salvation, but few are separated unto God's eternal purposes. The Lord knoweth them that are His! Those that shall be caught up to the throne shall not be called into that position of perfection, glory and power as indiscriminately as they were gathered into the church realm. Like as the mixed multitude of fishes in the net drawn to the shore is then submitted to a careful testing and separation, the good and useful being gathered into vessels, while the unqualified and useless are cast away, so there takes place a careful testing of all who belong to the present order of the church realm to determine their qualifications to be separated unto the High Calling of God in Christ Jesus. If God has singled YOU out to be a "special object" of His grace, you may expect Him to honor you with stricter discipline and severer dealings than less favored ones are called upon to endure. If God sets out to make you a son of the Most High, He is not likely to be so gentle as with those fishes that are merely cast back into the water or tossed to other purposes. A sculptor does not use a manicure set to transform the rude, unshapely marble into a thing of beauty. The saw, the hammer and the chisel are cruel instruments, but without them the rough stone must remain forever formless and unbeautified. The heavy hand of God will be upon you, my beloved, ere you make the transition from God's chosen vessel to that fish ready to be served up as meat for the life of the world!

In the Sign of Pisces there are two fishes, one moving upward toward the North Polar Star, the other swimming horizontally along the path of the sun. These bespeak of the twofold operation of God in and through His people — the two-fold manifestation of the Kingdom of Heaven. To Abraham it was revealed as his seed (Christ) becoming as the stars of heaven, and as the sand of the seashore. The fish shooting upward exquisitely pictures the "heavenly calling" of which the Lord's elect are made partakers. It denotes our position, experience and reality in Christ, seated in the heavenlies, far above all the powers, limitations and contaminations of earth. A unique race of men ascend to celestial supremacy, those born of the last Adam who is the Lord from heaven. All men in the first Adam are related by blood; we are united to Christ by spirit. Heaven for those who have been born from above is not a future hope. It is a present reality. Jesus, in His spiritual body of resurrection, ascended up "F-A-R A-B-O-V-E A-L-L PRINCIPALITY AND POWER, AND MIGHT, AND DOMINION, AND EVERY NAME THAT IS NAMED." He was made to sit at the right hand of God, far above the realms of all the other forms of spiritual life that inhabit God's vast universe; not above them geographically, but above them in rank, in quality of life, in eminence and power and nature and glory! Christ is enthroned in the highest heaven. All those elect sons whom the Father chose "in Him" in eternity past are now therefore enthroned WITH CHRIST in the highest heaven. Ah, it is really true God hath "quickened" us together with Christ; and hath raised us up together, and made us SIT TOGETHER IN HEAVENLY PLACES WITH CHRIST JESUS! (Eph. 2:56). Our bodies may still be tied to earth, but the sons of God are discovering the glorious and eternal reality of HEAVEN NOW! "As is the heavenly, such are they that are heavenly" (1 Cor. 15:48).

Christ is now in the highest heaven in this universe. I believe most of my readers understand now what it means to experience the ascended Christ, to daily live out our lives in the triumph and victory of the Son of God, far above the sorrows, strife, sin, problems, limitation, struggles, fears, disappointments, and death of the carnal realm. THIS is sonship! Sometimes I hear people say, "Oh, I am so worried," or, "My, I am quite depressed" Do you know what that means? It means that they are under the power of death. But when you stand in union with Christ you are high above the mountains, not in the valleys. You will be in the heavenly places, far above the circumstances of earth. The problem is that far too often we forget that we are ONE WITH such a Christ who is ascended far above all! We do not appropriate Him. We do not come to Him. We do not contact Him in our spirit. We do take our stand in union with Him. "The natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness unto him; neither can he know them, for they are spiritually discerned" (I Cor. 2:14). The truth of who and what and where we are is spiritually discerned. When the truth is quickened in my spiritual consciousness I can shout, "Praise the Lord! Praise God! I am in Christ! I am raised up and made to sit together with Him in the higher than all heavens! All my troubles, all my distractions, all my problems, all my hardships, all my weaknesses, all my struggles and all my burdens are under my feet. They have become my footstool. I can rest my problems: I can rest my struggles. The more troubles I have, the more I appropriate the ascended Christ in my spirit. This is the experience of Christ! This is the reality of living in heaven — N-O-W! This is the fish swimming ever upward into that center where reigns the King upon the throne.

The second fish swimming horizontally answers to the fact that the Kingdom of the Heavens is established upon the earth — lived out by men walking in the flesh (body). Heaven must cast its shadow upon earth, heaven must come down to earth, heaven must seize hold upon earth, God's rule must come and His will be done in earth as it is in heaven. We reign from the heavens, but our reign is over the earth. Heaven and earth meet in us as they did in Jesus. Jesus the Christ, when a man on earth, was at the same time in heaven. "And no man hath ascended up to heaven, but He that came down from heaven, even the Son of man WHICH IS IN HEAVEN" (Jn. 3:13). Our Lord was in heaven; He came down from heaven, and still was in heaven. It is something a person can be in, can descend from, and still possess. His outer man was conscious in the earthly realm and one with it, but the inner man was conscious in the eternal realm and one with it. The heavens were open to Him, He dwelt and lived and walked and manifested out of the divine sphere of life. But His rule was horizontal — upon the earth, through the earth, and over the earth. As the perpendicular fish He lived and had His being in the heavens, far above all earthly cares. As the horizontal fish He brought heaven's life to bear upon all things earthly. As the horizontal fish He taught and healed and cast out devils, commanded the winds and waves, fed the multitudes, raised the dead to life again, and revealed the glory of the Father through His human life. Right now, as the perpendicular fish, you can think and know and live within yourself in triumph as an overcomer; and right now, as the horizontal fish, you can minister love, joy, peace, understanding and victory to those about you in the home, in the neighborhood. on the job. The upward fish stands for what you are in Christ. The horizontal fish speaks of how that Kingdom life is brought to bear upon all things, people and circumstances in the natural world.

The first Decan, or minor constellation, in the House of Pisces is THE BAND. This band binds the fishes, being fastened around the tails of the two fishes so that these two are inseparably tied together, so that one cannot go on without the other. The message is clear — our heavenly life and our earthly life are connected in such a way that it is no longer we that live, but Christ that liveth in and through us. Now the band is also fastened to the neck of Cetus, the Sea Monster, denoting a state of limitation, restriction, oppression and persecution. However, Aries, or the Ram (or Lamb) has his paw across the band, portraying the fact that the mighty Christ takes the bridle in His own hand; all that happens to us in this realm is under His control and working together for our good. Throughout this long age of the church the people of God have been buffeted, persecuted, oppressed, tried and tested. We have been sustained and encouraged by the Word of the Lord to us, "Beloved, think it not strange concerning the fiery trial which is to try you, as though some strange thing had happened unto you" (I Pet. 4:12). Our trials and testings are associated in the Word of God with the ministry of satan. You never thought of satan having a ministry? "Then was Jesus led up of the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted (tested) of the devil. And when the Tempter came to Him, he said, if Thou be the Son of God, command that these stones be made bread" (Mat. 4:13). "Fear none of those things which thou shalt suffer: behold, the devil shall cast some of you into prison, THAT YE MAY BE TRIED...be thou faithful...and I will give thee a crown of life" (Rev. 2:10). "And the Lord said, Simon, Simon, behold, satan hath desired to have you, THAT HE MAY SIFT YOU AS WHEAT: but I have prayed for thee, that thy faith fail not: and when thou art converted, strengthen thy brethren (Lk. 22:31-32). "Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour: whom resist stedfast in the faith, knowing that the same AFFLICTIONS are accomplished in your brethren that are in the world" (I Pet. 5:8-9).

If we can realize that behind the acts of satan is the mighty hand of God working to bring forth gold from these earthen vessels, we can rejoice, as David, in our afflictions and trials and exclaim with him, "It is good for me that I have been afflicted, that I might learn Thy statutes" (Ps. 119:7). Praise God! When we begin to see the good that comes from the assaults of satan on our lives, we are able to appreciate all the more the greatness of our God and the depth of the wisdom of His great mind. Praise His wonderful name! He is truly a God of power and might, and ALL things are in His hand — even this adversary whom we call the devil.

May the Spirit of God grant understanding to all who read these lines to know of a certainly that there is purpose in adversity and in the adversary who brings it. Yes, my brother, my sister, there is purpose in the existence and work of satan! Without this understanding all the work of God in all ages becomes a hit and miss, trial and error affair unworthy of our mighty God of whom it is written: "The Most High...liveth forever, whose dominion is an everlasting dominion, and His Kingdom is from generation to generation. And all the inhabitants of the earth are reputed as nothing: and HE doeth ACCORDING TO HIS WILL in the army of heaven, and among the inhabitants of the earth: and NONE CAN STAY HIS HAND, or say, What doest Thou?" Dear saints of God, don't believe for one moment that anything in God's great universe is out of control! God is GOD. He IS in control. The band of restriction in your life may be tied to the neck (will) of the Sea Monster, but the Lamb's paw is upon that band! HE is in control of every sphere of activity and all the interplay between good and evil that touches your life. Truly, as the inspired apostle has taught us, "the trial of your faith is more precious than gold that perisheth" (I Pet. 1-7). ADVERSITY builds strength of character. If we were never exposed to trials and tribulation, we would grow up weak indeed! The more we are exposed to adverse circumstances, the more we have to wrestle with our environment, the more we are challenged by the world around us, the stronger we become. Saints, if we would be the sons of the Most High we must be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might! There is a great and magnificent future ahead for the sons of God, and a great work our Father has for us to do in the ages to come, and He is preparing us and making us ready for the high and holy place He has for us. Can we not see that all the opposing forces we now encounter are working together for our good — to develop the strength, character, wisdom, and power we must acquire? This is God's plan for us!

Andromeda is a line of bright stars in the House of Pisces picturing a woman with her arms and feet in chains, in misery and trouble, helplessly bound in the sky. Here is another picture of the church, this time not represented as a fish. It is interesting to note that in some of the ancient planispheres these fishes are depicted as having the face of a woman because another picture of the church frequently used in scripture is that of a woman, of a bride. The true church is the bride of Jesus Christ (Eph. 5:21-33; II Cor. 11:2). Here again is another picture representing the same great truth. Andromeda is the figure of a beautiful woman in what appears to be a sitting position, bound with chains upon her hands and feet. Her name in Greek (Andro-meda) means Man-Ruler. It is interesting that though she is bound and seems to be helpless, yet this "helpless" woman is to be ruler of men.

It is impossible for me to explain the glory of such a thing as this because we are blinded by the impenetrable mystery of a realm that long ago passed away. Nevertheless, the moment that we understand that man in the beginning was created male and female and that male and female IS the image of God, then we can understand for the first time the awesome glory, power and exaltation of the bride of Christ. When God formed the body of Adam from the dust of the ground, He did not make man and woman, for Adam was both in one — after the image and likeness of God. The image of God is not a body with a torso, two legs with two feet and ten toes, two arms with two hands and ten fingers, and a head with two eyes, two ears, a nose and a mouth. The image of God is the emanation of the nature of God. You see, the Bible states clearly that in the beginning there was only God — omnipotent, omniscient, immutable, holy, perfect, who is love. But because God had a Father Nature, He had to birth a Son: because when one has a father nature, the deepest craving of his nature is to beget and bring forth out of his own being an offspring in the likeness of himself. Therefore, because God had a Father Nature, He had to birth a Son; but the problem was He didn't have a wife. Now this would have been a problem for us, but it was not a problem for God, because He had His wife in His own side, for in that beginning, before human flesh was, God had both Male and Female within Himself. We know this is so because everything in the whole vast universe came out of God, and if God had not been Male and Female within Himself in the beginning we could not have male and female in the earth today — in His image.

When he that readeth can grasp the truth that God bears within Himself both the characteristics of male and female, of Father and Mother, then he can better understand the divine word spoken "in the beginning" when God said, "Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: so...in the image of God created He him; MALE AND FEMALE created He them!" (Gen. 1:26-27). When Eve had been built by the skillful hand of the Creator and presented to Adam, he had an immediate name for what Eve obviously was. Not her given name, Eve, as we term it in English, but what kind of creature she was. Hebrew is simpler than English, and more plainly explains exactly what a woman is: ISH is the Hebrew word for man, and ISHA is the feminine form of ISH or man. Adam said, "Now here is bone exactly like my bone, and flesh exactly like my flesh, because she was built from what was taken from me, I will call her "isha" — a FEMALE MAN! Adam merely added a single letter to the word which stood for himself, to define the quality of difference: sex. And God confirmed Adam's under- standing that they were both exactly alike despite the obvious outward differences: "In the day that God created man, in the likeness of God made He him; male and female created He them; and blessed them, and called THEIR name ADAM, in the day when they were created" (Gen. 5:13). To both God and Adam it was ONE CREATION "in the image of God."

Ish. Isha. Male. Female. Both Adam. Both man. Both in the image of God! Isha signifies, no matter how uncouth the sound to our ears, MAN-NESS. So in the old Latin the word for man is VIR and the word for woman is VIRA — a FEMALE MAN! The English word "woman" also confirms this truth, for it is a contraction of the old Anglo-Saxon term "womb-man" — a MAN with a womb! When Adam said that Eve must be called "isha," it was as though for "wife" one would say "she-man." God blessed the union of ish and isha, this ONE CREATION HE CALLED ADAM.

Those who read these lines should meditate deeply upon the wonder of man's premordial glory — male and female — set together in splendor over the works of God's hands. All creation being set in order, one was needed to take the headship, to bring the authority and blessing of God's Kingdom over all things. "And God said, Let us make man in our image and after our likeness; and let THEM have dominion...so God created man in His own image...male and female created He THEM. And God blessed THEM, and God said unto THEM, Be Fruitful and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it; and HAVE DOMINION over...every living thing that moveth upon the earth" (Gen. 1:26-28). My reader will observe the change from him to them. We are not presented with the actual fact of the formation of the woman until the next chapter; though here we find God blessing them, and giving them JOINTLY THE PLACE OF UNIVERSAL GOVERNMENT. All realms from the lowest of the bottomless to the highest of the heavens were set under their joint dominion, as typified by the fish of the sea, the beasts of the earth, and the fowl of the heavens. These three realms symbolically encompass all spheres of existence from the lowest depths of darkness unto the highest dimension of light and exaltation. Jesus confirmed the true scope of man's dominion when, as the last Adam, He descended into the lowest parts of the earth and then ascended up far above all heavens. He liberated the captives in the prison house of Hades and ascended up above all heavens to reign over all things. ALL POWER is given unto Him, both in heaven and in earth. THIS, precious friend of mine, is the magnificence of that dominion given to Adam — male and female — in that long ago beginning.

Eve received all her blessings in Adam; in him, too, she got her dignity and position and power. Not yet called into separation out of Adam, she was, in the purpose of God, part of the man. Universal dominion was not given to Adam alone, it was not said, let him have dominion, "but let them have dominion." There was no other creature so near to Adam as Eve, because no other creature was part of himself. What affection did not Eve owe to Adam! What nearness she enjoyed! What intimacy of communion! What full participation in all of his thoughts! In all his dignity, and in all his glory, wisdom and power, she was entirely ONE. He did not rule over her, but with her. He was lord of the whole creation, and she was ONE WITH HIM! THEY were king and queen of the universe! All this will find its full antitype in the ages to come. Then shall the True Man — the Lord from heaven, the corporate man composed of "many sons brought to glory" — take His seat upon the throne, and in companionship with His bride — the New Eve, the cleansed and perfected Church — rule over a restored creation. This church is quickened out of the grave of Christ, taken from His riven side, being thus "of His body, of His flesh, and of His bones." He is the Head and she the body, making ONE NEW MAN, as we read in the fourth chapter of Ephesians, "Till we all come, in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ" (Eph. 4:13). And who is this "Perfect Man"? CHRIST AND HIS BRIDE, CHRIST MALE AND FEMALE — THE LAST MAN ADAM AND THE NEW EVE!

The sons of God are the temple of God (1 Cor. 3:16; Rev. 11:1-2,19). The bride of Christ is the city of God (Rev. 21:9-11). That city is the holy city, the New Jerusalem. Every stone of that city is a living stone, a glorified CHRIST BEING. Every stone is a living, ransomed soul just as every member of the body of Christ, which is the temple of God, is a living stone, disallowed indeed of men, but chosen of God and precious. We cannot fully explain nor understand a mystery so awesome as this, but the eye that sees by the Spirit sees the temple as a living thing, composed of living saints. In that temple redeemed men, the sons of God, are the pillars and foundations, and Christ Himself is the chief cornerstone, from whom the whole body fitly joined together and compacted by that which every joint supplieth, groweth unto an holy temple in the Lord, in whom we also are builded to become the habitation of God through the Spirit. In holy vision the apostle John was transported in spirit to a great and high mountain, the majestic heights of the Kingdom of God, from which he was permitted to see the perfected bride of Christ in all her beauty and glory. From his lofty vantage point the eyes of John were ravished with the electrifying sight of the unequaled majesty and infinite splendor of the bride adorned for her Husband. Not a city of stone as was the Old Jerusalem, but a New Jerusalem, a living city, a bride beyond compare, a virgin pure and holy, composed of incorruptible saints brought forth out of the living substance of Christ. Words utterly fail me to describe the wonder of such unsurpassable glory, for ours are but the words of men, but that holy and beautiful city belongs to THE REALM OF THE SPIRIT. Now at last the perfection, the image of God, Sons and Daughters, Male and Female, Temple and City, of which Adam and Eve were but a frail shadowy type, has come; the many-membered Bridegroom, the last Adam, with the many membered Bride, the Holy City, Adam and Eve, the first and the last, in the image and likeness of God JOINTLY RULING OVER ALL THINGS! The nations shall walk by the light of this city and the rulers and leaders of the earth shall bring into it their glory. The tree of life is in the midst of it and the water of life flows from the throne of God in the midst of it. This is GOD, male and female, united with the image of God in man, male and female, ruling over all the endless vastnesses of infinity unto ages of ages! May the Holy Ghost unfold these things more fully and powerfully to our hearts, that we may have a deeper sense of the conduct and character which are worthy of the high vocation wherewith we are called.

One of the deepest mysteries of the ages is that this glorious bride of Christ, destined to rule over the nations and all things, is also Andromeda, the Chained Woman of the heavens! The names of some of the principle stars in this constellation mean "the weak; the afflicted; the chained" — an eloquent picture of the church throughout this church age which has been in affliction, weakness, bondage, and in chains. Joseph Seiss wrote of the bride of Christ in her chains: "And thus, again, we have a striking picture of the unfavorable side of the church's condition in this world. Jealous rivals hate her and clamor against her. The world-powers in their selfishness fail to protect her, and lend themselves for her exposure and destruction. Innocently she is made to suffer. Though a lovely and influential princess, she is hindered by personal disabilities and bonds. It will not be so always. The time will come when those bonds shall be broken and that exposure ended. But for the present affliction and hardship are appointed to her. She cannot move as she would, or enjoy what pertains to her royal character, her innocence, and her beauty. She is bound to the hard, cold, and ponderous rock of this earthly life. Born to reign with her Lord, apostles and prophets can only wish that she did reign, that they might reign with her. She is within the sacred territory, but it is as yet a place of captivity and bonds. She never can be truly herself in this mortal life" — end quote.

This present time is a time of trial, testing, proving, washing, cleansing, processing and preparation for the glory that shall follow the marriage of the Lamb. Bride of the Iamb! do not repine when those who should understand your love for your Beloved, smite and persecute you; the Lord holds it all, and He hears all that is said. Do not grieve if your name is cast out as evil, and you are rejected and defamed by those who should tenderly care for you and bind up your wounds. Jesus knows it all; and if you look unto Him He will pour in oil that will heal every wound and ease every pain. Do not fret if your separation to your Lord is called fanaticism, and you are branded as strange and offensive; He knows it all. It was He who marked out the path for your feet, and who first journeyed over it to the cross. It was He who said that the gate is narrow and the way straightened that leadeth to life. As you press onward, counting all things but loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus your Lord; as you bear about in your body the dying of the Lord, and His life becomes manifested through partaking of His death, your hair will take on the purple of suffering and of the overcomer, and the King will be held captive by one tress of your purple hair!

There are, however, chains of bondage far more subtle and sinister than the hatred and persecution of the world. These chains are the Babylonian captivity into which the people of God have unwittingly sold themselves. Let me unfold for you the mystery. Under Old Testament economy God alone was King over His people until Israel demanded a human king in order to be like the nations around her. Before the time of these human kings, the government was a theocracy in the truest sense: that is, the government of the state was by the immediate direction of God Himself by the Spirit. Great was the condescension of God to thus honor the nation by becoming its political Sovereign, performing all the functions of an earthly monarch, and receiving the customary homage paid to a temporal king. Great was the dignity lent to the nation by the sovereign Lord of heaven and earth dwelling with them first in a tabernacle, afterwards in a splendid temple, there having His table, His altar, and His ministers. Great was His condescension to tolerate their displays of external splendor and pomp, to go forth with and command the army in war, to legislate, to execute laws, and to do all things that pertain to the office of an earthly sovereign. And yet the Israelites were not satisfied. They wished to have another to rule over them, a human king, as the nations about them had. God granted them their desire, and Israel forsook the Lord, provoked Him to jealousy with strange gods and abominations, and sacrificed to devils, provoking Him to anger. Israel, under the old covenant, was the bride of Yahweh, and He their Husband. God was very lenient with them over a long period of time; but justice demanded judgment and He finally gave them a bill of divorcement, putting Israel away. Therefore, since Israel would not be in submission to God as their Husband and King, He decreed that throughout the time of His indignation they would, as a consequence of their folly, be made to serve the kings of their enemies.

Under New Testament economy the Christ of God was to be the one and only Head of His church. But the spirit of the world was for prostituting this church and causing her to commit fornication with the kings and governments of the world, in that she began to be joined with them as she only ought to have been joined to HIM. Under God's perfect order for the New Testament age, both emperors and beggars must meet on common ground. Both are sinners; grace alone can intervene. Both must acknowledge their guilt and plead for mercy. Both should then be equal in dignity, in authority, in meekness, and in charity, deriving all their spiritual stature from HIS WORK WITHIN, and possessing none by virtue of what they are naturally. In the days of the early apostles, men were made christians by the operation of God alone, and thereby they were taken out of the nations as a people for His name (Acts 15:14). The ministries in the body of Christ were sovereignly raised up and anointed by the Holy Spirit of God. With what power, signs, and wonders did they witness to the living presence of the Christ! There was no manmade organization, no carnal church boards, no dominating hierarchies, only the dynamic presence and power of Christ manifested in and through the living members of His body.

Even before the apostles had passed from this life, a spirit and system had set in among the saints of the Lord and many people were wearing the Babylonish garment. They were instituting rules and regulations, laying down laws, formulating creeds, observing days, establishing sacraments and ordinances, elevating human government, becoming disciples of Paul, of Apollos, of Cephas, and of many others. The captivity had begun and the mysterious chains of Andromeda had begun to shackle the feet (walk) and wrists (service) of the little virgin bride of Christ. Before too many years had passed men began to set themselves up as "bishops" and "lords" over God's heritage in place of the Holy Spirit. Instead of conquering by the power of the Spirit and Truth — as in the early days — men began to substitute their ideas and their methods. Soon the glory and power, the presence and word of God in the morning time church began to be eclipsed, and the power of carnal minded men gradually took the place of the awesome presence of God. Consequently, man's carnal understanding was put upon the scriptures, and as the Spirit of Christ fled from their midst, men established a vast and elaborate system of substitutes to take the place of reality. Dioceses and parishes were established. Ecclesiastical centralization commenced. The weapons of excommunication were forged. The festivals of the church were created, along the lines of pagan celebrations. Catechetical schools were created to teach the faith systematically. The formulas of baptism and the sacraments became of great importance. Costly and ornate edifices were constructed for worship. The services became ceremonialized and elaborate. Sculpture and painting were enlisted in the work of providing aids to devotion. Relics of saints and martyrs were cherished as sacred possessions. Religous observances were multiplied. The church, with its array of gaudily bedecked clergy and of imposing ceremonies, assumed much of the stateliness and visible splendor that belonged to the HEATHEN SYSTEM which it had supplanted. The mission of the church was lost sight of in a degrading alliance with the State. Christianity was now a pageant, a ritualism, a vain philosophy, a superstition, a formula, an ARM OF THE STATE! The little virgin bride of Christ had become a beautiful woman sitting in the heavens of power, exaltation and authority — CHAINED! She appeared to be ruling, but was in fact a slave to the system of religious Babylon!

The people of the Lord have long been held captive by the spirit of the world. Thank God, there has been a little light in Babylon, and there has even been the voice of the bride and the Bridegroom (Rev. 18:23), for the people chained in that horrible darkness have been the Lord's people. The Lord has, in mercy, allowed the least faithless of the popular churches to declare enough of the gospel to lead a few to the Saviour. A few of these receive and teach a genuine baptism in the Holy Spirit. These have in measure tasted of His reality and received of His gifts. But from here on, practically everything that is taught is nothing but defilement and shame: nothing but the precepts of the elders, and the lies and deceptions of the antichrist. Organized religion today, while totally ignorant of the fact of there being an antichrist, is busy teaching his doctrines, observing his forms and ceremonies, and glorying in his shame. To His people who sit shackled in these chains of Andromeda the Word of the Lord commands: "Come out of her, My people, that ye be not partakers of her sins...for her sins have reached unto heaven, and God hath remembered her iniquities" (Rev. 18:4-5). Thank God, the chains of the Babylon system are doomed to destruction. This mysterious system is to be finally and irrevocably destroyed. Wherefore, the Lord saith, "Awake, awake; put on thy strength, O Zion; put on thy beautiful garments, O Jerusalem, the holy city: for henceforth there shall no more come into thee the uncircumcised and the unclean. Shake thyself from the dust; arise, and sit down, O Jerusalem: LOOSE THYSELF FROM THE BANDS OF THY NECK, O CAPTIVE DAUGHTER OF ZION. For thus saith the Lord, Ye have sold yourselves for naught; and ye shall be redeemed without money" (Isa. 52:1-3).

CEPHEUS — THE KING

In this third and final constellation surrounding Pisces we have the picture of a bearded man wearing a crown and a royal robe, seated upon a throne. In his uplifted hand he holds a scepter. He is a glorious king enthroned in the highest heaven. He is the Deliverer for whom the Chained Woman waits. The Egyptians called him PEKUHOR, which means The Ruler That Comes. He is known as Cepheus today, which is a Greek name that comes from a Hebrew word meaning The Branch or Royal Branch. The Ethiopians called him HYK, The King. Star names add to the imagery. The star ALPHIRK in his belt means The Redeemer, while the brightest star in his body is called AL DERAMIN which means Coming Quickly. Do we need to ask with the Psalmist, "Who is this King of Glory?" We can respond as in the Psalm, "The LORD of hosts, He is the King of Glory!"

The hour of the final deliverance of God's people and the manifestation of His glory, majesty, wisdom and power upon them is at hand. The King is coming! Hallelujah! He is coming within to set His people free, that they in turn may deliver creation. The chains of the beautiful Andromeda shall now be broken. Her release from all bondage and captivity is even now under way. Once the church is cleansed from her idols and defilement, she will be in a position to bring deliverance to a sin-sick and judgment-weary world, when "the knowledge of the Lord shall cover the earth as the waters cover the sea" (Isa. 11:9). Only when Christ's church is cleansed from her idols can she ever hope to bring deliverance to the world. And that deliverance has to come. It will come through those who have given up their all, those who have lost everything to be married to their Lord, and who henceforth live only unto Him. The water of life must now flow from the city to bring healing to the nations. But before we may have any part or lot in the great work, we must forsake all and follow the Lord alone. No one can deliver men from the lies of the antichrist while continuing to preach those lies. No one can deliver the world from the bondages of sin, fear, carnality, limitation and death while himself remaining a captive of those things. And before God's true church can persuade men to give up their idols, and loose their bands, she must first get rid of all her own golden calves and march in victory out of Egypt's domain.

George Hawtin has ably written: "The hour has come far us to realize that only THE LORD knoweth them that are His. Only THE LORD can gather the tares out of the wheat. Only THE LORD can separate the sheep from the goats. Only THE LORD can call His sheep by name and lead them out. Only THE LORD can look into the four corners of the earth and call forth His elect. Who, then, am I to circumscribe anything? I must learn to know men not by what they say, what they believe, where they are, or least of all because they are members of a certain group, but by that strange witness that made Jesus say to Peter, ‘Thou art Peter,' and by that same spiritual revelation that made Peter say to Jesus, ‘Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God.’ How often we have been shockingly disappointed in men! It was because we knew them only after the flesh and we did not know them after the Spirit. We accepted them because they were inside a certain circle and said they belonged to ‘The Move.’ Yes, indeed, they may have been inside the circle and they may have been in the move, but where were they in God’s eyes? That is the important question" — end quote.

The truth of the things I now write to the elect of God, which also has been inscribed in the Signs of the heavens from the dawn of creation, cannot be more graphically confirmed than by the remarkable vision given by the Lord to evangelist Tommy Hicks in 1961. He wrote: "I had hardly fallen asleep when the vision and the revelation that God gave to me came before me. The vision came three times, exactly in detail, the morning of July 25th, 1961. I was so stirred and so moved by the revelation, that this has changed my complete outlook open the body of Christ, and upon the last — the end-time ministry. The greatest thing that the church of Jesus Christ has ever been given lies straight ahead. As the vision appeared to me, after I was asleep, I suddenly found myself in a great high distance. Where I was, I do not know, but as I was looking down upon the earth, suddenly the whole world came into view: every nation, every kindred, every tongue came before my sight, from the east and the west, from the north and the south. And I recognized every country and many cities that I had been in. I was almost in fear and trembling as I stood beholding the great sight before me. At that moment, when the world came into view, it began to lightning and thunder. As the lightning flashed over the face of the earth, my eyes went downward — and I was facing the north.

"Suddenly I beheld what looked like a great giant; and as I stared and looked at it, I was almost bewildered by the sight. It was so gigantic and so great in stature; his feet seemed to reach to the north pole and his head to the south; his arms were stretched from sea to sea. I could not even begin to understand whether this were a mountain or whether this be a giant, but as I watched it, I suddenly beheld this great giant. I could see it was struggling for life, to even live. His body was covered with debris from head to foot. At times this great giant would move its body and act as if it would even rise up. When it did, thousands of little creatures seemed to run away — hideous looking creatures would run away from this giant. When he would become calm, they would came back. All of a sudden this great giant lifted his hand toward the heavens, and then it lifted its other hand. When it did, these creatures by the thousands seemed to flee away from this giant and go out into the darkness.

"Slowly this great giant began to rise, and as he did, his head and hands went into the clouds. As he arose to his feet, he seemed to have cleansed himself from the debris and filth that was upon him, and he began to raise his hands into the heavens as though praising the Lord. As he raised his hands it was even unto the clouds. Suddenly every cloud became silver, the most beautiful silver I have ever known. As I watched the phenomenon, it was so great, I could not even begin to understand what it all meant. I was so stirred as I watched it, and I cried unto the Lord, and said, "Oh, Lord, what is the meaning of this?" It felt as if I was actually in the Spirit, and I could feel the presence of the Lord even as I was asleep. From those clouds suddenly there came great drops of liquid light raining down upon this mighty giant, and slowly, slowly, this giant began to melt — began to sink, as it were, into the very earth itself. As he melted, his whole form seemed to have melted upon the face of the earth, and this great rain began to come down; liquid drops of light, as it were, began to flood the very earth itself. As I watched this giant that seemed to melt, suddenly it became millions of people over the face of the earth. As I beheld the sight before me, people stood up over the world. They were lifting their hands and they were praising the Lord.

"At that very moment there came a great thunder that seemed to roar from the heavens. I turned my eyes toward the heavens, and suddenly I saw a figure in white, in glistening white — the most glorious thing that I have ever seen in all my life. I did not see the face, but somehow I knew that it was the Lord Jesus Christ. He stretched forth His hand upon the peoples and the nations of the world, men and women. As He pointed toward them, this liquid light seemed to flow from His hand into these persons, and a mighty anointing of God came upon them, and those people began to go forth in the name of the Lord. And this is the miracle of it — this is the glorious miracle of it — those people would stretch forth their hands exactly as the Lord did, and it seemed that there was this same liquid fire in their hands. As they stretched forth their hands, they said, "According to my word, be thou made whole." As these people continued in this mighty ministry, I did not fully realize what it was. And I looked to the Lord and said, 'What is the meaning of this?' And He said, "This is that that I will do in the last days. I will restore all that the cankerworm, the palmerworm, the caterpillar — I will restore all that they have destroyed. This, My people in the end-time, shall go forth. As a mighty army shall they sweep over the face of the earth.

"One of the things that seemed remarkable — after I had reviewed the vision so many times in my mind — I never saw a church and I never saw or heard anything of a denomination, but these people were going in the Name of the Lord of hosts. Hallelujah! As they marched forward, everything they did was the ministry of Christ. These people were ministering to the multitudes over the face of the earth. Tens of thousands, yea, millions came to the Lord Jesus Christ as these people stood forth and gave the message of the Kingdom — of the coming of the Kingdom — in this hour.

"Suddenly there was another loud clap of thunder that seemed to resound around the world. I heard again the voice, the voice that seemed to speak: "Now, this is My people. This is My beloved bride." When the voice spoke, I looked upon the earth and I could see the lakes and the mountains. The graves were opened and the people from all over the world, the saints of all ages, seemed to be rising, and as they rose from the graves, suddenly all these people came from every direction and they seemed to be forming again this gigantic body. I could hardly comprehend it, it was so marvelous — it was so far beyond anything I could ever dream or think of. But, as this body suddenly began to form — it took shape again in the form of this mighty giant — this time it was different. It was arrayed in the most beautiful, gorgeous white — its garments were without spot or wrinkle — as this body began to form. The people of all ages appeared to be gathering into this body. Slowly, slowly, as it formed up into the very heavens, suddenly from the heavens above the Lord Jesus came — became the Head. I heard another clap of thunder that said, "This is My beloved Bride for whom I have waited. She will come forth, even tried by fire. This is she that I have loved from the beginning of time" — end quote.