Johnny and I were in the dream. We'd heard the marvelous story.
Then we found ourselves out on a quest. To find the train to glory.

We'd heard all about the coming troubles, - the trials, - the tribulations, -the conspiracy against the Messiah, - the the raging nations. But then we heard some happier things, about this train to glory. We knew that it will be taking us up and away from these earthly bonds. But when? We had been told that the departure of the train to glory was "imminent". Was the train indeed prepared to whisk passengers off at that very minute? Well my dear friend Johnny and I wanted an answer to that question. So, we went up to the station to find out out for ourselves.

We had seen the vision splendid, the Rapture train to glory!
But both of us would soon find out, 'The rest of the story!'

A blast of steam obscured our view. Then there we were there, at the railway station. We joined all the others on the platform surveying that marvel of engineering, taking it all in. We turned to see that the conductor of the train was right there at our side. He appeared to be someone with significant authority. Greeting us warmly he gave directions to board saying,

"Ladies and Gentlemen, your carriages are there at the rear of the train."

Well, upon hearing this my mild mannered companion, Johnny looked slightly puzzled. I followed him as he headed in the other direction, up towards the front of the train. The two of us wanted to take a look at those front carriages for ourselves. Curiously, they were all completely empty. No one was there. There were signs on these unoccupied front carriages.

Strangely, they read,
"Reserved for the Saints of the First Resurrection".

Then walking back to the rear carriages we saw that the sign read
"Reserved for the Saints of the End-Time Rapture".

There, beside the rear carriages a curious crowd was lining up to look at the train, and many were going inside the carriages. We joined a group of them at the doorway and stepped up into the train. Johnny and I found our seats and sat down with a contented sigh.

Well we were sitting there for quite a while. We looked at our train schedule but the departure time was blank. We looked on our tickets for a departure time. But they just read "Anytime now!".

I turned to ask the other passengers around me,

"Excuse me, but do any of you know when the train is going to be leaving here?"

Our fellow passengers are in a festive mood. One of them smiling contentedly turned to us and answered,

"We are leaving imminently.
Hey, what a way to go! Aren't you excited?"

There is a party atmosphere around us, but I can see that Johnny is a bit uneasy. We sit there and wait and wait.

Finally, unable to restrain himself, Johnny leans over the aisle and beckons to our conductor, whose name, as it turned out, was Michael. Johnny asks him,

Michael, a glowing presence and splendidly attired in a white uniform and a gold belt, is an inspiring fellow. We feel good under his guardianship. He turns to us, smiles, and said, "I shall be answering that question right now."
Then turning to address all the passengers he announces,

"Ladies and Gentlemen, boys and girls. Welcome to the train to glory! i know many of you are anxious to leave. Many of you have asked me when this train will be leaving. Well, we cannot leave this station yet. This is the Glory Train. There is just one express train to the Holy City. And it will not be leaving here until the divinely appointed time, and Sovereign Word is given."

Suddenly there is a stunned silence in the carriage. Mouths hang open in shocked amazement. Finally, a big man across the aisle with a prominent jutting jaw stands up. Addressing the conductor with a slight edge in his voice he asks,

"Look sir, we were told that nothing further needs to happen before we leave out of here. In fact we were told explicitly to expect to leave at any time. We were told repeatedly by practically every Bible teacher that our Rapture departure time is imminent! So what is going on here? What are we waiting for?"

Our conductor meets the man's simmering anger with an even gaze. Something about the conductor's glowing presence causes the man to pause. He looks down at his hands. Then he sits back down in his seat. Our conductor continues in quiet but earnest tones,

"Dear people.
It appears that there is something you have yet to understand. You see there are still some other people destined to board this train. All of them must come aboard before the Train to Glory can leave.

Suddenly, a lady in a red dress stands up, looking a bit flustered. She peers down over her glasses at the conductor with an imperious air.

"Other people?! Just who are these other people? Mr. Conductor, this information you are giving here is just not adding up. I'm afraid that I am going to have to ask to speak with your supervisor!"

Our conductor replies with quiet words of unction and authority.

"Dear lady. I am the supervisor. I have been given complete authority for everything that goes on here aboard this train. Now here is the situation, and you should have been well aware of this. It is laid out very clearly in your Guidebook. There is to be an all inclusive gathering of Elect and chosen people who lived in times past. The general resurrection of those who lived by faith, and in the hope of being regathered to the God they know, is a climactic event yet to come. These people of the blessed hope will be coming up out of their graves at the Last Day. (John 6:39, 6:40, 6:44, 6:54). They will be joining you here. All of you will be transported into the glory together, right on this train.

As you know, from Revelation chapter 20, the first resurrection will come on an epic day in future history (Rev.20:4-6). There will be an end-time harvest of the righteous dead. And all of those dear saints will be gathering to board here for their resurrection to glory at the consummation, at the end of this age. All the righteous dead will be coming back to life again. They will be coming to join you all aboard this train. (1Thes 4:15-1, 1Cor.15:23).

The scriptures also give special mention to the future saints of the Great Tribulation (Rev.7:9-17). As you have seen in Revelation chapter 7, they are a company of believers yet to be, gathered from every nation, race, and tribe. Many of these dear saints have in times past, and will in times to come, give their lives for the witness during those final years of this age. These too will be part of that great company of the righteous dead who will be raised up at the last day."

Suddenly a collective groan is heard throughout the carriage.
Someone hisses,

"Oh, my God! Those people he's referring to are the Tribulation Saints! We were told that these people did not even belong in the Church! What on earth is this man talking about!?"

The conductor picks up on the chatter, and explains.

"Dear people. These Tribulation Saints are indeed a part of the Church. Your Apostle John saw them. He said that they have had their garments washed in the blood of the Lamb (Rev.7:14). Many of them are martyr-witnesses. So they are worthy. They have made the ultimate blood covenant commitment to their Savior. So they are your brothers and sisters in the faith. There is no way that they can be 'left behind’ or in any way excommunicated from the Church, together with these people you will be gathered as the Congregation and Commonwealth of your Messiah. They cannot be forgotten. And they will not be forgotten.

As you can see from Revelation chapter twenty, these people are saints of the first resurrection, and part of the full harvest at the end of this age. At an instant in time the righteous dead will be coming up out of their graves. They will join you on this train as we pull out toward the gates of splendor (Rev.20:4-5). They will come aboard to fill these empty front carriages. The whole company of the God of Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and Joseph, will be here boarding this train on that future feast day. Then, and only then, shall we pull out of here to meet the Lord at that grand party He has prepared.”

At this point I had heard more than enough, and being the rough cut Australian that I am, I pipe up at that point to ask,

"Now hang on just one minute, Michael! That tribulation saint company will endure trials, tribulation, and exile. Those who refuse to worship the Beast or take the mark of 666 will be cut off from their finances, unable to buy and sell they will be reduced to barter and the good graces of others. Many will even suffer martyrdom! Those who fight against the Antichrist will see their campaigns crushed. Many will be beheaded! That will be the situation down here in those future times. This is not going to be a picnic in the park. Our Bible prophecy teachers tell us that those final seven years will be a chamber of horrors and that nothing good will be happening there. What do you mean we have to wait for them?”

Now, let me tell how it has been down here. For nearly 200 years we have had top pastors and Bible teachers tell us that we could go out on the rapture train at "any time". Our pastors assured us that we could leave "imminently". So, that being the case, we shouldn't have to hang around waiting for any Resurrection of a few people who are slow to get saved! We are the people of the imminent Rapture!

And those dusty Old Testament Hebrew saints don't belong on this train either. Those people of God listed in Hebrews 11 are no longer with us. They are dead, D-E-A-D dead! This is the glory train isn't it? We boarded a train for the living! Not a hearse!"

Michael graciously yet firmly replies,

"Dear Elect people of God. When you see those resurrected saints come up from their graves to board those front carriages they will all be very much alive. They will be glorified. These saints are overcomers, people who died in the faith from past times and future times. Every single one of them will come aboard to join you here on this train. Here on this very train, in transit to the gates of glory, they will be glorified into their new spiritual bodies, just as you, the living saints of the rapture will be translated at that time. All the righteous dead of this present evil age along with past saints and those future Tribulation Saints will be arising in this glorious transport together. All of them will be there. They will come aboard this train at that epic future time. The glory train will then pull out on that long awaited journey. All the saints will be entering the glory together at the Resurrection-Rapture."

My mouth is still open and moving but words won't come. I sit down abruptly. Nothing has prepared me for this. I am speechless. At that point a rather large lady appearing somewhat flushed and flustered gets up. Pointing her finger at Michael she asks,

"Now Michael, what you are telling us is not the story we were told. In fact it is FAR from what we were told! We were told the train could leave at any moment! We were told that our rapture departure required no special earlier events! If what you are saying is true then why were we not informed of this earlier?"

Michael answers,

"You are the people who flow in God's grace are you not? Are you not aware His character, His wonderful grace that seeks to find the last lost sheep? Is it possible that His Amazing Grace extends beyond your comfort zone? You have been told that you are destined to be a refined company of kings and priests under the Sovereign God of Israel. So it should come as no surprise to you that your calling and your future destiny is to take responsibility in the royal priestly offices of Messiah. So has it not been your personal responsibility to check all the information you have been hearing about things to come against the authority of God's Word? Where did your end time information come from? And who gave it to you? Did you confirm that it was correct? Did you check it against the “ Holy Scriptures”? Was what you were told given the witness and unction of the Holy Spirit?

The lady, still simmering, but looking somewhat bewildered, sits down. Michael continues,

"I do not speak on my own authority here. Nor am I permitted to do that. Jude 1:9). The Word from the throne has already been given, and given to all mankind. You are the Elect of the Most High God. Have you read His Word for yourselves? Have you taken it to heart? All the information concerning the Father's agenda for the glorification of His covenant people has been made available to you, has it not?"

"You mean the Rapture?" a young man asks?

"Yes, the Rapture ... and also the Resurrection," Michael responds.

"The two occur together as one combined event. The two should never have been separated by your Bible teachers. Your Apostle Paul teaches that the dead in Christ shall rise first. Then those of you who are alive and remain at that time will be caught up, (or raptured) to join them in the transport. You will be caught up to this train immediately after, the resurrection of the righteous dead. All of you will rise together to meet the Lord in the air (1Thes.4:15-17)".

An older man rises to ask,

"Michael, many of us have been waiting for the Rapture for most of our lifetime. And now you are saying that the Lord is delaying His coming? That does not sound good. Not good at all. When these Resurrected passengers be arriving? We can't wait around for these people forever!
We'd like our Rapture to take place, well er, sort of early. Our Bible prophecy teachers didn't talk much about the Resurrection of the righteous dead. They just talked about the Rapture. So we just never saw our connection with the resurrected saints".

Michael turns to address the passengers,

"Dear saints, The Lord is not delaying His coming. Although it can be well understood that when the final seven years open up with unexpected event, many will think He has. But did not your Apostle Paul tell you about these things? Did he not tell you clearly that the Resurrection and the Rapture were a combined event, and did not your Master lay out the time of the Resurrection when He was with you?

Jesus Himself told you precisely when the Resurrection would occur did He not? Do you remember what He told you? Four times, no less, in John chapter six, He repeated that He will raise all of His saints up together at the 'last day' (John 6:39,40,44& 54). This is not hidden information.

Even Martha, knew when the Resurrection of the righteous dead would occur. She testified to Jesus that her brother Lazarus would be raised. Martha said that Lazarus would be raised from the dead at the Resurrection at the 'last day'(John 11:24).
Dear saints. Is this really such a difficult concept for you?"

Johnny speaks up at this point, wagging his head from side to side in a somewhat confused manner. He hesitates before beginning to explain,

"Err ... well Michael, we don't quite know exactly what the term, "last day" means."

Michael turns to answer Johnny's question,

"You don't know what the term "last day" means? Last day” would mean the last ordinary day of this present age would it not?"

Johnny is hesitant to answer, in any definitive way.

"Err, well, we were not given a clear definition of what the phrase "last day" might mean. We were given to understand that the phrase "last day" could also be a reference to "last days" and therefore maybe a long period of time. It could be seven years long. Or since Peter referred to the "last days" in Acts in the time of the early church the last day might even be 2,000 years long". So our Bible teachers left us a bit confused about all that.

Michael quizzically raises one eyebrow at this but makes no comment. He pauses for a while, glancing out the window before going on. The tone of his voice changes to bring words of quiet affirmation.

"You people gathered here are the beloved Congregation of God. But God has prepared this train to gather all of you. Not just some of you. That is not His style, nor is that His character as Father to gather His family in dribs and drabs. All of you will be going into the glory together. You will be traveling as one single Elect Congregation. You will all enter Messiah's Kingdom together, on one single 24 hour day. This is the normal reading of that sentence, is it not? So why seek another more stilted obtuse meaning? Does the end-time doctrine you have been given unite the Chosen people? Or does it divide them? And if it is the latter, does that not sound a bit suspicious to you?

Your scriptures state clearly that the Rapture will immediately follow the Resurrection. And the resurrection, as stated by your Messiah, four times, no less, is set to occur at the last day. The dead in Christ will rise first. (Thes.4:15-17) Your apostle Paul in that great resurrection chapter, First Corinthians chapter 15, promises a single harvest gathering of all "those who are Christ's at His coming". (1Cor.15:23). Do you see any division, or any "apartheid of the Elect" there in that promise?

So, at the end of the age, at His coming, Messiah will draw all His saints from among the the quick and the dead. All of His Elect will be gathered up together as one. All of you will be leaving this earthly realm aboard this train. You will be traveling together into the glory as one complete, Elect and Chosen people. Because all of you are part of the family of faith in Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, fully regathered and reunited as a royal priesthood and a holy nation. (Heb.11:40, 1Cor.15:52, Mat.24:31)"

I am somewhat taken aback by all this. The information is coming at me too fast. It is a bit too much for me to handle. Then it hits me. Suddenly I realize what it all means,

"Lord help us! I exclaim.
Are we taking everyone with us?"

Michael replies,

"I have a seat up in the very first carriage especially reserved for Abel. He was the first of all the company of the righteous to fall asleep. And in that same front carriage are seats for all the saints of the First Resurrection (Rev.20:4-6). In fact right there in that front Resurrection carriage, along with Abel there is a seat reserved for the last Tribulation Saint."

Johnny and I are incredulous at all this. The information is terrible and yet awesome and exhilarating at the same time. Many of the passengers are too flabbergasted to speak. A wave of hushed conversation passes amongst them.
Michael continues,

"All the righteous saints will come up from their graves and ready to enter into their spiritual inheritance. -Dan.12:13 & Heb.ch11. The Old Testament saints will all be boarding here too. Joseph and the patriarchs, the judges Deborah, Samson, and Gideon, as well as Ruth, King David, the prophet Daniel, Nehemiah, along with a host of other saints of former times will all be here. Many saints you have never even heard of will be coming aboard to join you here. All those who have been justified by faith, those closed their eyes in the faith, the hope, and the love of the promised Sacrifice Lamb will be joining you. Both the living and the resurrected dead, that entire glorious company, will be aboard this train. Then, at the 'last day', we shall pull out of this station on our way into the glory."

At this point a tall man gets up to entreat the conductor saying,

"Sir, I am beginning to understand some things here today, But please understand this is all so strange to many of us. We had thought that the church had a different destiny to that of the Jews. Even the Old Testament believers were, ... er ... well sort of in a different category. This is what we had been taught by our Bible teachers. They have been wonderful teachers in every other way, and we love them for what they taught us. But Michael, how could they be so wrong here in this matter of the Resurrection and Rapture? Can you help us with this?"

Michael replies,

"Yes I can. I am the conductor and the guardian protector over all of God's people. I have been from the beginning of time (Dan.10:21). Do you remember the scripture in Hebrews 11 which lays out the long list of Old Testament heroes of the faith? Well God's covenant people in the final instance are the single undivided Elect and chosen Congregation of God. This is the Congregation to which you belong.

You are part of a wider, larger and more glorious company of people than you have been led to believe. The writer to the Hebrews goes on to reveal that all these Old Testament overcomers, will not be made perfect apart from you. You are all in the loop here. You are in the same epic relay race that Abraham began 4,000 years ago. Those heroes of the faith from former times given in Hebrews 11 are depending on you to finish the race, not just for yourself, but on behalf of all the saints who have run before you. Do you understand this?

There is silence in the train so Michael continues.

"Beloved of God, right at the beginning of Hebrews chapter 12 you have been called to run that final leg of the relay race. You run for all the heroes of the faith who were given special mention in the previous chapter 11. You are not running the race just for yourselves. You belong to the corporate Body of Christ, your Messiah. Stephen before he was stoned spoke of the congregation of the children of Israel gathered at Mount Sinai as the “Church in the wilderness.”

And at the end of Hebrews chapter 11 the situation is stated clearly. These Old Testament saints ran in the earlier part of the race.

And now, it is your turn. Because they cannot be made perfect, nor can the race brought to completion apart from YOU. Have you not been made aware of this? You are greatly honored, even privileged, to be given that opportunity, You are being offered the chance to run, to break the tape at the end of the race. The whole host of heaven will be watching.

You should be preparing yourselves spiritually to run that race. Yes, you have been called to take part on the final leg of the race". You are the ones who will been chosen to warap up the show, not just for yourselves but for one and all. You will be taking the baton to the finish line!-Heb.11:40. And all the host of heaven are on tiptoe, there on the sidelines, cheering you on, waiting to see the revealing of the sons of God. Is this not a wonderful opportunity you have been given?!

The tall man nods appreciatively and sits down.
Our conductor continues on.

"Dear people of God, the race is not yet over. Many are yet to be born into the faith. Many are yet to finish their life story and witness. In fact way at the back of those front resurrection carriages is a special seat.
I have reserved a seat for the last tribulation martyr.
Which brings me to another issue".

With that Michael turns and fixes each of us in his gaze.
His eyes flash like lightning as he asks,

"Won't you wait for the salvation and deliverance of your Jewish brothers and sisters? There are many from the house of Judah that are still to come. Their calling to see God's righteous rule and Law upheld has been their anointed gifting. Their response to God's Grace has been slower than it has been for the formerly divorced house and even the Gentiles. The older brother wonders why the Father throws a party for prodigal son who returns to the Father to some acclaim. But as we see in Zechariah 12 the national conversion of the Jewish House of Judah will come, albeit fairly late. But they will definitely be coming to rejoin you. The scriptures have promised this. It will be a just one of many marvels that will unfold out of the mystery during the end-time drama. (Zech.12:7-13:1

Michael gazes at each of us as he walks down the aisle.
He continues to address us quietly.

"So then. Are you prepared to be patient and gracious here? Will you help your estranged friends to make their way to this train of the redeemed? Because the anointing of Judah will be a true blessing and fully complementary to your Gospel outreach. The House of Judah is the lawgiver in the New Covenant, the Law of the Spirit at work in human hearts. Your bothers and sisters in the spiritual flows of Judah will be helping you out of that awful pit of lawlessness you see rising up in Western Christendom.

Look this Family Feud must end. And the Breach of Jeroboam that divided the covenant people after the death of Solomon will be repaired. Both houses in the Family Feud will be reconciled and reunited. Both sticks, the stick of Joseph and the stick of Judah, will be put to good use in the hand of your Messiah, as He gathers all who belong to Him in the latter days. This is the double anointing that is showcased in Ezekiel 37. This combined authority in the Order of Melchizedek, will take your witness of the Gospel of the Kingdom to the ends of the earth. Remember that this is the train to Zion. There is just one single train to glory, and it just makes one trip.

Michael continues,

"I can assure you that we'll not be leaving here until the whole company of resurrected saints, both Jew and Gentile, from both sides of Calvary and right on up to the last tribulation martyr has come aboard. Then all of you here, assuming you are still alive, and have remained faithful to the end will board as well. You will take your seats in the Rapture carriages back here. At that point the completed company of the Elect from out of this entire evil age will have come on board and been seated. Then, and only then shall we pull out of here."

By this time I am starting to get angry. I can feel my face face flushing red with an Edomite glow. I rise to my feet. My knuckles grasp the seat in front of me. are white. I know that I am about to "lose it".

" Now look here", I snarl.
"I paid good money for this pre-tribulation rapture ticket! We were not told anything about having to wait for any Tribulation Saints! I never even knew about them until now! And we heard nothing about waiting for the salvation and deliverance of the Jews either! The Battle of Armageddon is way too late for us to leave! I say it is getting high time for you to fire those boilers and let's get this train moving! Disconnect those front Resurrection carriages from us if you have to! As a matter of fact I don't want to hear anything about any First Resurrection! I'm only interested in the Rapture! Get it? Now cut 'em off! Chop 'em loose! But let's get this train to glory rolling here right this minute!"

I scramble out of my seat and approach Michael.
Privately I whisper into his ear.

"Look Michael, were sold tickets for an exclusive church express. If there is a "Special Early Rapture Express" then I want to be on it. The last thing I want is to be "left behind". When things start getting bad I want to be assured that I'll be safe. When those trumpets begin to sound I want to be "outta here"!

Michael takes a look at my ticket.
Written in big hot pink letters are the words
"Special Early Rapture Express" and below that
"A Church Exclusive!" He raises a quizzical eyebrow.
Then he gazes into my face.

"Where did you buy this ticket?" he asks.
"I don't recognize it as one of our vouchers.
This ticket to ride has not been authorized from the third heaven.
This ticket was never issued from the throne of God by Gabriel."

Michael pulls out a scanner from his gold belt and peers at the readout intently.

"Hmmm", he says.
"This is just as I thought. This ticket does not bear the seal of God's throne. It is a forgery. It is not a faithful administration of the Scripture of Truth.-Dan.10:21 This ticket has been improperly issued by lower angelic and earthly religious powers. Whoever printed and sold this early express Resurrection-Rapture ticket to you did so without divine authority."

There is a stunned silence in the train.
We are all dumbfounded. Finally, Johnny asks,

"Why would our religious leaders, and what? the angelic powers you say?
Why would they do such a thing? Aren't all the angels over the church holy?"

Michael replies,
"The angelic religious powers over your people in your present day institutional church are in many cases less than holy. The reason for the decline in devotion to Messiah is because the Judeo-Christian people of God have married into or covenanted with unholy political and merchant powers. These ruling princes in the lower heavenly realms are often forces of darkness masquerading as angels of Light.-2Cor.11:14 These agencies that bear political and merchant rule, both the earthly human rulers and the angelic rulers above them, have never made themselves totally subject to God. So in marrying these thorny sword-wielding princes the churches have corrupted themselves. In making these church-state and church merchant alliances God's ministers below have actually loosed unholy angelic rulers up in the second heaven. Powerlessness in God and untold grief has been the result.

You as the people of God are involved here. You are partly responsible for the loosing or releasing of these powerful spirit rulers. Religious powers are now unifying to attain seats of authority with the emerging global secular governance. This process is unleashing bigger and more powerful rulers in the heavenly realms. Whether you realize this or not these powers are loosed or bound by you, the congregation, the "called out"/ekklesia of God.

So, you are in the loop here. Your witness is vitally involved, and will go forward very wonderfully in accordance with the sovereign purposes of God. As you make your intercessions before heaven things will change for the better. As you make your earthly pronouncements and enter into your earthly covenants with politicians and religious leaders here below you bind or loose angelic principalities and powers in the heavens.-Mat.16:19 However, the called out people of God can make things worse by their compromise, and their engaging in unholy alliances. Even now there are dark angelic spirits on he Heavenly Court pressing in to establish the end-time harlot system that John saw and described in Revelation 17. This regime will be in power before the 666 Antichrist system that will follows it."

We are sitting with our mouths open at this point.
I am in a state of sheer and utter incredulity.

"This is awful!
How are we supposed to respond to this?" I ask.

There is a charged and pensive atmosphere building among the people in the train carriage. Michael is looking out the window at the crowds coming towards the train as he answers.

"Yehoveh-God has always been the protector of His people. But alas, the majority of His children are all too often not inclined to trust and commit themselves to Him. They walk by sight and just do not trust His Word. It is a fear over faith issue, a matter of devotion. The world, the flesh, and the Adversary all seek to impede the free-flowing passages of the Holy Spirit within deeper reaches of the soul. This is the root cause of your troubles. The cause of the coming Great Tribulation is simply this. The "called out" company of God will trust themselves to men before they enter into covenant with their coming King. - Dan.9:27 Is this not what your Messiah clearly stated Himself in John chapter five verse forty-three?

Let me quote it for you.

"I have come in my Father's Name,
And you do not receive me.
If another should come in his own name,
Him you will receive."

At present you are governed and ministered to by kings and presidents. As with all things political the process of maintaining popularity and power with the crowds becomes a foremost concern for your shepherds, often over and above their calling to feed the sheep of God's pasture.

Then too, the true Shepherd of Israel declares that you are a stiff-necked people.-Exod.32:9 You have turned aside from your God to follow those who promise to be your political protectors, defenders of the faith. But can you expect that compromised arrangement of church and state to take you on to glory. You and the people of the covenant who have gone before you have been inclined to side-line your God. You repeatedly go back to making covenant with powerful yet unholy secular rulers. Your political lovers are linked to spiritual principalities and powers of darkness in high places. These power brokers invariably have heir own earthy and thorny agendas.

Accordingly the important holy matters as laid out in scripture are all too often neglected by God's people. Sacred issues are set aside for pragmatic and political reasons. This is quite understandable from a human perspective. The shepherds of established Christendom must cater to the stony hearted majority. These uncommitted ones make up the masses of the nation and are beholden to the principalities and powers with whom the established religious powers have entered into covenant. So it follows that the religious powers must retain the popular support of the majority of people of the nation. They must do this in order to stay in power or in business as the case may be. The crowds are the ones who ultimately bear rule even as the seas foam and rage. It follows that holiness has never been achieved by the masses within nations or within religious establishments. So the policies, traditions, edicts, doctrines, and mores of popular Christendom are almost always mixtures of the holy and the profane. They are accommodations to the flesh and assent to the ways of this world with just enough of the genuine Biblical Truth to make it respectable.

These are the mixtures that make for compromise. So as a result of this many church teachings are not holy. Nor are doctrines of the end-time authorized from the throne of God Most High. This is why many of the common popular teachings regarding the last days are not true. While they may well be well received and well funded they are not supported in the Scripture of Truth. Nor does the Holy Spirit bear witness to these teachings that have found their way into the hearts of the true saints of God."

At that moment someone standing in the aisle speaks up.

Michael, we are busy people and not studied in the scriptures like the five-fold ministers are. So we trust our ordained and apostolic religious leaders to tell us the true facts regarding the end-time. They are the ones that we suppose have studied the scriptures and are in a special close relationship with God. Many of them have access to the Word and in Greek and Hebrew! And now you are saying that we as members of the crowd or sitting in the pew are the one's who are supposed to be in the know about these matters? Are we not to listen to our religious leaders? I thought the religious leaders were anointed of God to tell us what we are to believe."

Michael replies,

"Yes, the shepherds, the pastors and teachers called to minister in Spirit and in Truth. They are also accountable before God for what they teach. They also bear an awesome responsibility for the preparation of the saints, guiding them and strengthening them toward their perfection/completion in God. Most try hard to be faithful to God's Word. But as the end time plot thickens they are under enormous political and economic pressure from the princes and merchant rulers with whom they have previously contracted. They also must please their superiors or the ones who pay their stipend. The one who pays the piper gets to call the tune. In addition to that they must also maintain their popularity with the crowds.

Crowds are the key to what is agreed and set the policies set going forward. Crowds in the street can bring down a leader very swiftly when they are roused to indignation. Remember Pontius Pilate? Even as governor he had to face an angry mob. That is why he ended up delivering Jesus up to those crowds. At that awful moment the mob cried out, "We have no king but Caesar! Away with Him! Crucify Him!" It was the wish of the people for Jesus to die on the cross at Calvary.

Back in those days, as today, "the people of the prince who is to come" call for the destruction of God's Messenger of Truth. And so they continue to do so today. The issues of popularity, power, and money rule. So that is why the political, merchant and religious rulers have consciously or unconsciously conspired to "cloak" or twist God's Word. They have done this in order to promote or continue their earthy humanistic "peace" over the crowds. It is for the sake of this supposed "peace" and the maintenance of the status quo that the religious powers of established Christendom have allowed the crowds to have what they want. So they end up getting fables of the end-time.

Johnny is stirring restlessly at this point. Finally he gets up to ask,

"I'm not sure I understand, Michael.
Why is the Word of God not being sought out by the bulk of God's people?

Michael turns and pauses before answering.

Truly the prophets have declared that God's called out Ekklesia are like sheep. They follow the other sheep, or the goats, who are following the leader. The masses are inclined to stay with the status quo.

But nevertheless, the breaking forth of the Word of God is the engine of history. The elect of God are following the Good Shepherd, moving to greener pastures, and ever leaving new legends and stories behind them. The highway of holiness leads onwards and upwards towards the gates of splendor.

There is always the new wine, foaming and bursting forth the old wineskins, and requiring new wineskins. The pilgrims in passage cannot be kept too long encamped in old structures under the flags and standards of earlier castles of compromised politics and religion. They must move on. So while denominations and old movements are desirous of keeping the bulk of the people together and comfortable in one place the fresh revelation of the Shepherd-King of Israel is beckoning the called, the chosen, and the faithful to come away, and to draw nearer to Him.

For the pilgrims, life can be unsettling in those times of transition. This is how it must be. The church or the congregation of Messiah is moving out, up along that ancient highway of holiness-Isa.35:10. The name "Hebrew" means "one who crosses over". The pilgrims are not permanent residents in their waypoints here on earth. They are sojourners in the land, just as your father Abraham was when he was called out of Ur four millenia ago.

Rulers over established religion are always trying to stop this. The breaking forth of the Word of God is very often treated as an unwanted disruption. The Berean diligence is rare. Instead of embarking on a search of the scriptures in the pure Word of God to look into the matter to see if the new thing is of God the shepherds are often seen to either silence or stonewall the issue or else to seek to find some compromise with it. Often we see revivals wind down, and then attenuated weaker versions of scriptural truth become established. They do this in order to keep people together and happy, and also to prevent emerging questions and conversations from "getting out of hand". Most importantly the crowds must be kept "quiet" for the sake of the ruling princes.

So down through the past 1700 years the shepherds and the angelic rulers over Christendom have consciously or unconsciously conspired to authorize a continuous stream of scripturally unsupported religious concessions and indulgences. They do this in order to cobble together the various factions and to keep the crowds together and under their care.

Inclusiveness in the ways of this world is a foremost concern. No pastor or evangelist wants to shepherd just the very small percentage of fully committed believers and them only. They want to reach out to others, and rightly so. But then again they do not want to hear the more fully committed among their people calling God's people to move forward too quickly. Nor do they want others coming in taking over the conversation, or becoming in any way disruptive of the current social order. So as a matter of quiet assent to what they consider expedient they find themselves committed to maintaining the status quo.

This is not new. Ever since the compromise between church and state at the Council of Nicaea Things haven't changed. Church sponsored edicts and doctrines are often mixtures of Bible truth and the fancies of men. They are tailored for the average, "middle of the road" Christian. So this is why many end-time doctrines are compromised, unholy and untrue."

Our conductor looks down at the ticket I had offered him.
Then he fixes me in his penetrating gaze as he continues.

"The sales of this false Special Early Express Pre-Tribulation Rapture ticket here is just another case in point".

At that point I am badly shaken but still indignant.
Gamely I come back protesting loudly.

"Now just one minute, Michael!" I exclaim.
"We are the church! We are not destined for the wrath of God! -1Thes.5:9. We are headed for glory!-Rom. 8:18
We are kings and priests before God!"-Rev.5:10

Our host replies,

"It is true you are not destined for wrath.
And indeed you are destined for glory".

With that Michael looks across at us and his eyes flash as the fire of a furnace.

"But dear saints, God is not mocked. You will never realize your true destiny in God until you stop trying to avoid your witness in Him. He has promised to be with you right through to the end of the age. -Mat 28:18-20 Your Saviour is waiting for you to take up your cross and follow Him. Only you can respond faithfully to His calling. And like your fathers before you, as they bowed before Joseph in Egypt, you must resolve this matter of the Cup of Christ.

Please understand something here. You cannot be given authority at the end of the age unless you have taken up your responsibility in it. Whether you realise this yet or not, you are the blood covenant people of God. You are the children of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. And the threshold of the final showdown of the age is just up ahead. As such it is your calling is to fulfill your witness in that New Covenant in Christ. The Savior asks you to drink "all" of His Cup along with Him.-Mat.26:27 Your response is very personal, even in the manner of the wedding betrothal. Your signature too will appear in witness on the New Covenant betrothal document if it is to be validated. You have been invited to drink the Cup along with the Bride-groom. Now how you respond to that invitation is your decision. And it is yours alone".

At that point I collapse back in my seat. This has completely blown me away. I mumble incoherently.

Johnny too has heard enough.
But then a sudden flash of realization comes across his face.

"Now I see it!", he exclaims."Those tribulation saints we are waiting for here in those front compartments of the train are surely the end-time Church!
Didn't the Apostle John say that "they have washed their robes in the blood of the Lamb"? -Rev.7:14
That sounds just like us, doesn't it? Hey, they may BE us in our future witness!
Come on, there is work to be done! We must get "back to address the future"! Time is short!"

Johnny gets up and I follow him forward and off the train. I am feeling faint and shaky.
It is like I want to fall down on my knees. I'm a pretty tough sort of a person but I can feel myself breaking up on the inside. So Johnny helps me to exit down the steps. The crowds are pressing in against us now to board the train. We, on the other hand, are going against the crowds. We are leaving the train and heading out. We pass Michael on the platform and he fixes us with an angelic smile. He says,

"I guess you boys were inclined to go up and board the train a little early, eh?"

At that point Johnny and I can only nod as we head off.

"Don't worry." Michael says.
"You will be here when it is time to board.
I will be taking every last one of you out of here precisely on time and as promised".

I stop and turn around.

"What good will that be?" I lament.
"From what we have heard here today many of us may perish in the witness before that time comes."

Michael scans the people in the carriage,
looking us over very intently before responding,

"God will give you grace for the trials ahead,
You will be kept in, through, and out of "the hour of trial, preserved by the power of God through faith unto salvation ready to be revealed in the last time."- Rev. 3:10, 1Pet.1:5

"Even as darkness falls you will be as lamps bearing the Light of His witness. You are "The sons of God, without rebuke, in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation, ...(and you will) shine as lights in the world". -Phil.2:15

You are in the Seed of Abraham, the myriad people of faith in Christ (-Gal.3:29). And the Elect of Yehoveh-God you will pass onwards and upwards as a wedding party, with lamps shining brightly in the night, passing along a highway of holiness towards the Holy City. -Isa.35:8-10

You will "lift up a banner for the peoples". -Isa.62:10
"And surrounded by a cloud of heavenly witnesses you will run with endurance the race that is set before you, looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of your faith"-Heb.12:1 You will pass on to realize your inheritance in realms of unspeakable splendor.

No matter what happens in your passage of witness you will all enter into the ecstasy of that divine transport, in the resurrection-rapture at the "last day".-John 6:39, 6:44, 6:54, & 11:24 Mat.24:31

One way or another all of you will be there alive and changed in that final climactic consummation of glory.-Joel 2:28-32.
And "not a hair of your head will be lost". -Luke 21:18.

So fear not! We'll not be one millisecond late for our departure. We'll be leaving just as soon as the gang's all here. Right after I get the word you will hear my shout. At that time I will call out,

"All aboard!"

The Word of God ministers within us as we walk off along the platform. A little glimmer of hope begins to well up within me. I find myself strangely lifted in the Spirit. Turning around I ask our host one last question,

"So when will it be, Michael? When will that Day come when we finally get carried "outta here"?

Michael turns to us and answers,

"We'll all be pulling out of here together,
"In a moment,
in the twinkling of an eye,
at the last trumpet,
.....the dead shall be raised incorruptible,
and you all will be changed."-1Cor.15:52