Who Are You? - George H. WarnockCHAPTER 1 - THE ARMIES OF HEAVEN
"And I saw heaven opened, and behold a white horse; and he that sat upon him was called Faithful and True, and in righteousness he doth judge and make war. His eyes were as a flame of fire, and on his head were many crowns, and he had a name written, that no man knew, but he himself. And he was clothed with a vesture dipped in blood: and his name is called The Word of God. And the armies which were in heaven followed him upon white horses, clothed in fine linen, white and clean. And out of his mouth goeth a sharp sword, that with it he should smite the nations: and he shall rule them with a rod of iron: and he treadeth the winepress of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God. And he hath on his vesture and on his thigh a name written, KING OF KINGS, AND LORD OF LORDS." (Rev. 19:11-16).
In this day of fear and anxiety, and distress among nations, how assuring to look into the scriptures and catch a glimpse of God's war plans, and to know that the Commander-in-Chief of the armies of Heaven is about to break forth on the scene of human depravity and futility, riding upon a white horse of righteousness and power, and leading His armies to battle and to total victory!
How assuring to know in this hour, when men's hearts are failing them for fear, and kings and rulers and presidents of nations are frustrated in their attempt to solve the nuclear arms crisis, and to lay a foundation for peace... to know that there is One who has conquered, and who by God's decree sits even now at God's right hand of power and authority, ruling and reigning "in the midst of His enemies"... but who simply awaits God's time-schedule, and the signal from the throne of the eternal Jehovah-God, to charge forth into battle against the Enemy, and put an end to the reign of evil.
..And to know also that we, if we are accounted to be 'faithful and true' shall be a part of that army that will follow the Son of God as He goes forth to battle in the great Day of God Almighty. These are the people who not only profess to have FAITH and TRUTH; but faithfulness and truthfulness have been wrought into their very being, as they have learned obedience by the things they have suffered, and have followed the Lord in all His ways.
The Church of Jesus Christ was destined and equipped with the armor of God to be a warring Church. We are not denying that she has fought many a valiant war with the forces of evil throughout her long history, but in too many cases she has suffered defeat, either because she knew not the strategy of the Enemy, or because she did not confine herself to those spiritual weapons which God had given her for warfare and for eventual victory. Nevertheless, in and through it all God has not forsaken the declaration of His Son:
"I will build my church, and the gates of Hell shall not prevail against it" (Matthew 16:18).
The defeats of the past (and there have been many) do not alter the purposes of God; for in the wisdom of the Cross, God will yet take all the devices of the Evil One, whose intention is to destroy the people of God, and entwine these into His own purposes so that the Enemy will be trapped in his own devices and snared in the very evil that he thought to bring upon God's chosen ones.
Samson's Ultimate Victory
The story of Samson is going to take on beautiful meaning for those of us who live in the last days. Right now we are almost ashamed to admit that we are part of the "Church" when we see ourselves like Samson: bound by the world-systems of the Philistines, grinding out the corn for the enemies of God, and so blinded in our hearts that we think we are victorious and triumphant in the midst of it all. But one day--and we believe it is beginning to happen--the hairs of Samson's head will grow again, and his strength will be renewed. We are beginning to recognize that God wants us to be distinct and separate people in the earth, "in the world, but not of it." We are beginning to realize that our calling is heavenly, that our warfare is heavenly.
One day as Samson's heart began to turn back to God--in his weakness and in his blindness and in his bondage--he comes to the place where he is prepared to lay down his life, if so be he can be avenged of the Philistines, and bring deliverance to the people of God. "Let me die with the Philistines," he cried, as he leaned upon the pillars in the House of Dagon, and destroyed the hordes of the Philistines in one massive blow. The result was that he slew more in his death, than he had slain throughout his whole life--spectacular and dramatic as many of his activities were in his former years.
Dear ones, we are going to see the true meaning of all this, when the Church of Jesus Christ begins to come to the realization of the greatness of her bondage...
When she realizes she has been so blinded in her understanding, that she did not even know she was a willing tool of the world-system...
When she realizes that she has been grinding out corn for the Philistines, all the while thinking she was working for God...
When her Nazarite vow of separation unto the Lord is renewed, and her hair of glory is restored...
When she suddenly realizes she is the laughing-stock of the world and not her friend...
When she realizes she has been led about by a lad of the Philistines, and not by the hand of God...
And when she is finally prepared to lay down her life, if so be she might know the power of the risen Christ working within her.
"For we which live are alway delivered unto death for Jesus' sake, that the life also of Jesus might be made manifest in our mortal flesh" (2 Cor. 4:11)
God is preparing an army, beloved, who will go forth in the Day of the LORD to put an end to the reign of Evil, and to deliver the people of God from their oppressor. They are not being conscripted because they have military or political skills, and know how to get involved in human programs; but because like Samson of old they have discovered the folly and the futility of all this, and are now prepared to learn God's secrets of warfare. They are a people who are being taught the art of war, and whose only weapons are SPIRITUAL AND HEAVENLY, and "mighty through God to the pulling down of strongholds" (2 Cor. 10:4)
And we are going to discover, as we proceed with this message, that if we are not clothed upon with spiritual armor, and engaging in battle in the Spirit of God in heavenly places, we are not going to know anything but defeat down here in the realms of earth.