The American Wisdom Series

Presents
Pamphlet #1061
"The Great and Dreadful Day of the Lord"

Therefore know this, the coming of the God of Judgment is nigh at hand,
even at the doors (Mark 13:29). In other words,
make no mistake about it and do not listen to the false teachers
and those who scoff at His Word because the "Day of the LORD" IS COMING!

Is that a frightful thing?
Not at all if you are one who loves and serves the LORD,
but for those who work "iniquity", which is "lawlessness",
which means they work (speak and do) those traditions of men
which are contrary to His Word (and therefore outside His law)
it shall not be a happy day at all!
Why not?
Because His "Fire" shall burn them as stubble (Mal. 4:1)
while at the same time those that love Him (vs. 2)
shall feel the warmth of that same "Fire" like as the rays of the Sun,
even the Sun of righteousness,
beaming down upon them surrounding them with warmth!

Malachi 4:1
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.
Again, remember that this message is given unto Israel
so let us understand what this word "wickedly" means in Hebrew.
It is the word "rishah" which is the same word used in Mal. 3:15
when referring to the "wickedness" of the "lawless ones"
who are "set up" in the high places of worship.

In other words,
ALL their evilness and wicked deeds shall be consumed as in "burned up"
when Jesus Christ returns and they shall be left with neither "root nor branch"
and they shall be naked and utterly ashamed!

"The day [which] cometh" spoken of in verse 1 is that
"great and dreadful Day of the Lord"
spoken of a few verses hence in Mal. 4:5.

It is the day the God of Judgment returns to this earth according to His promise,
exactly as it is written so many places in His Word
with so many illustrations describing that great day.


Note to Reader: When you read about these very vivid examples of physical events the Lord uses to describe happenings, don't get caught up in the horror of the physical description; that is only an example of a spiritual happening God wants you to understand. He describes it in the physical sense so that you can comprehend the spiritual reality.


Do not let the symbolic language
which is used by the Holy Spirit to paint graphic "pictures"
in our mind's eye to make clear His truths,
pull you away from the simplicity of the teachings in God's Word.

Do your homework and understand what
the "earthly symbols" represent
that are used to describe those things which are "spiritual".

For example, His Word is likened to a two-edged sword (Rev. 1:16). You "see", a person can "see" a sword slice through a man's flesh body but one cannot "see" words slice through a man's heart or soul!

Likewise, our Father is a consuming fire (Heb. 12:29) and His Truth, His Holy Spirit, is likened to "fire" (Acts. 2)!
You "see", a man can "see" fire burn straw and hay but he cannot see truth burn lies and consume away wicked deeds.

Here is a verse concerning the two olive trees
and two candlesticks in Rev. 11 to illustrate the point:

Rev. 11:5
And if any man will hurt them, fire proceedeth out of their mouth,
and devoureth their enemies:
and if any man will hurt them, he must in this manner be killed.
These words cause our flesh minds to "picture" flames
spewing forth from one's mouth like a flame thrower burning up an individual, doesn't it?

But the analogy is put forth to simply show us the effect
of the "fire" of the Holy Spirit, His Truth,
as it consumes the lies and injustice (hurt) of our enemies!

Peter uses the same analogy of "fire" and its quality of "heat"
and its ability to "melt" things down when he speaks of the same day,
the day of the LORD we just read of in Mal. 4:1.

Here it is: 2 Peter 3:10
But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night;
in the which the heavens shall pass away with a great noise,
and the elements shall melt with fervent heat,
the earth also and the works that are therein shall be burned up.

Again, do some homework and you will find that the word "elements"
does not refer to the periodic table of earth's material elements.

It means "principles" and "rudiments" such as evil ideologies
and false doctrines and all the evil works of the present "order" of things on earth...
not the surface of the planet!

Therefore, this is great news to those who love and serve truth and justice
and walk in His ways!
The King of kings and Lord of lords is soon coming to this earth
and EVERY knee shall bow,
and He shall with His saints rule ALL nations with a rod of iron!

You "see", there shall be no more Egypt (symbolic of the system of captivity and oppression)
and no more Edom (symbolic of the system of communism, those "red" nations)!

All those rudiments (elements) shall be consumed by His "fire"!

Malachi 4:2
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.
When Jesus Christ comes on that day,
those who fear (revere) their Father
shall go forth and "grow up" as calves of the stall,
which is a figure of speech meaning "to leap"
as frolicking calves when they are let loose from the stall.

Even now those upon whom He has shed His light of truth
have been delivered and set free and have experienced the joy and the frolicking!

(John 8:32 "And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.")
To wit, the word "healing" means "deliverance"
and "His wings" should read "His rays of light".

In other words, the warming rays from the brightness of His coming
and the shining light of His truth shall deliver us from captivity (Babylon)
and set us free "as calves of the stall"!

If you have eyes to see and ears hear and you are one of those spoken of in verse two
who love and serve Him,
then pay close attention to the next verse because it is written to YOU!

Malachi 4:3
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.
To "tread down" means "to squeeze out juice"
as if "to trample" in a winepress.

And to be "turned to ashes" means it was "consumed by fire", doesn't it?

Did we not just read in Rev. 11:5 concerning the two olive trees**
and the two candlesticks**
that "fire would proceed out of their mouth,
and devoureth their enemies".

**The two olive trees are those "sons of oil",
the "two anointed ones" spoken of in Zechariah 4.

Candlesticks are symbolic of "churches" (Rev. 1:20)
and the only two out of the seven churches in this final generation that do God's work
are the churches of Philadelphia and Smyrna (see Rev. 2 & 3).

Our Father loves them very much because they "fear His name"
as in they "love Him" and they show forth their love by keeping His Word (Rev. 3:9-10).

John 14:15 "If ye love me, keep my commandments."

[4] Remember ye the law of Moses my servant,
which I commanded unto him in Horeb
for all Israel,
with the statutes and judgments.

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