God is about to establish a Kingdom that will govern the entire Earth! When Jesus Christ returns, we will be born into His Family, become part of His Kingdom, and will begin the work of changing the world. This will be the mightiest Empire in history, ruled by the God Family: the God Family Empire!
Today, we are ambassadors for that King and that Empire (2 Corinthians 5:20; Ephesians 6:20). We live in Satan’s world, which is still governed by the empires and rulers of this world. Ambassadors for Christ are at odds with this world and can face intense persecution; Paul himself was imprisoned and executed! Do you have that level of devotion to God’s cause? If you do, then, like Paul, even when you are suffering persecution, you will be bold for God and represent the Empire.
Getting this vision of God’s Empire in your mind will transform you in powerful ways and help you to transcend the darkness of this evil world.
Abraham
God is the one who sets up and takes down kings and empires (e.g. Daniel 2:20-21; 4:17, 32; Isaiah 40:15, 17, 22-24). He specifically raised up Britain and then the United States, the modern descendants of ancient Israel. Though they were only carnal, physical nations, God accomplished great things for them and through them for the benefit of the world!
It all started with Abraham. For this man’s obedience and faith, God made some spectacular promises (Genesis 12:1-3; 15:4-6; 17:1-8). When Abraham proved willing to obey God to the point of sacrificing his own son, God then said: “By myself have I sworn, saith the Lord, for because thou hast done this thing, and hast not withheld thy son, thine only son: That in blessing I will bless thee, and in multiplying I will multiply thy seed as the stars of the heaven, and as the sand which is upon the sea shore; and thy seed shall possess the gate of his enemies; And in thy seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed; because thou hast obeyed my voice” (Genesis 22:16-18). God specifically gave the nations descended from Abraham strategic gates such as the Panama Canal, the Suez Canal and the Strait of Gibraltar.
Which nations were these? Consider: To Abraham’s grandson Jacob, God extended the promise and made it more specific: “And God said unto him, I am God Almighty: be fruitful and multiply; a nation and a company of nations shall be of thee, and kings shall come out of thy loins” (Genesis 35:11). “Nation” refers to the United States, and “company of nations” refers to the empire (later commonwealth) of Britain!
The blessings that are so plentiful, so envied and so fought over today came not because of British or American ingenuity but because of God blessing the descendants of Abraham for his faith.
God is not anti-empire. He raised up America and Britain and gave them wealth and strategic power. The empire of Britain and the superpower of America exist because of God’s promises to Abraham!
Even more exciting is the fact that, in dealing with this man, God was doing more than laying the groundwork for great physical nations—He was also laying the foundation for His future God Family Empire!
“God began training men for top positions of authority in His coming world with Abraham,” Herbert W. Armstrong wrote in Mystery of the Ages. Some might think it odd that God wanted to know if Abraham would sacrifice his own son that he waited so long for. But when God said that’s what He wanted, Abraham obeyed. And as a result he, the father of the faithful (Galatians 3:7), will hold a tremendous position in the God Family Empire!
“What is plainly revealed indicates, then, that Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob will function as a topflight team,” Mr. Armstrong continued, “with Abraham as chairman of the team, next under Christ in the coming world government of God.”
This statement appears among paragraphs of inspiring detail that Mr. Armstrong wrote, based on studying many biblical passages providing clues and vivid descriptions of the government and administration of this coming Empire.
A Structured Government
Notice what God revealed to Mr. Armstrong concerning America and Britain: “On the purely national level, the nations descended from the two tribes of Ephraim and Manasseh (descended from Joseph), will become the two leading nations of the world (Jeremiah 30:16-18; 31:4-11, 18-20; Isaiah 14:1-2; Deuteronomy 28:13)” (ibid). America and Britain—possessing those physical birthright blessings—received a lot of training for that future position in recent centuries! If these nations were loyal to God and obedient to God, they would be a blessing to other nations and cause them to praise God! Sadly, though, America and Britain have turned from Him. But God will bring them to repentance.
“[N]ext to them,” Mr. Armstrong continued, “will be the nations descended from the other tribes of Israel. And after them, but still prosperous and full of abundant blessings, the Gentile nations. King David, resurrected, immortal, in power and glory, will be king, under Moses, over all 12 nations of Israel ….” That’s quite a reward David will be given.
It’s important to realize that God’s Empire will include and be a blessing to all peoples, not just descendants of physical Israelites! “And if ye be Christ’s, then are ye Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise” (Galatians 3:29). “Abraham is (humanly) the father of all who are Christ’s and heirs of salvation,” Mr. Armstrong wrote—and that includes people descended from Israel and Gentiles—people of every race who submit themselves to God!
Notice what God revealed about Joseph. God prophesied in Genesis 49 that Joseph would be “a fruitful bough” (verse 22). “Joseph was synonymous with ‘prosperity,’” Mr. Armstrong wrote (Genesis 39:2-3). “[H]is specialty was dealing with the economy—with prosperity. … It seems evident, therefore, that Joseph will be made director of the world’s economy—its agriculture, its industry, its technology and its commerce—as well as its money and monetary system” (ibid). When you look at the financial state of America and other Israelite nations today, you can certainly see the dire need for that.
The economic system of God’s Empire will eliminate famine, starvation and poverty all around the world! Isaiah 61:4 prophesies: “And they shall build the old wastes, they shall raise up the former desolations, and they shall repair the waste cities, the desolations of many generations.” Joseph will help do that.
Consider the grandeur and splendor of this Empire that is almost here. Most of the leaders are already in place, as Mr. Armstrong outlined in The Wonderful World Tomorrow—What It Will Be Like and Mystery of the Ages. But there still are more leaders God is getting ready right now to rule with these men. God used Mr. Armstrong to restore His government to the Church, the Family of God that is going to administer that government over the world. And God is continuing to train leaders for that government today!
God’s people need to know this and absolutely believe it with every cell in our being! God is preparing us to rule! What eminence, and what illustrious rewards, God is going to give us!
We must not become selfish, like 95 percent of God’s people are today. That is the spirit of the age: People in the nations of Israel speak incessantly about their rights. What about their responsibilities before God?
God’s Family Government
Empires are led by strong governments. Human empires are led by humans, and human beings are weak and heavily influenced by the god of this world, Satan the Devil (2 Corinthians 4:4; Revelation 12:9). So human empires are flawed at best and beastly at worst.
God’s government is different: It is perfect. Yet Satan inspires people to resent, resist and rebel against government, especially God’s government. This attitude is part of our very human nature. The carnal mind is hostile toward God (Romans 8:7). We must overcome that satanic attitude. We are called to believe and obey God. That is why God has established His government in His Church. It is how He rules us and how He is building the government of His Family Empire!
Yet government is exactly what most of those who have been in God’s true Church have rejected. Some who started their own groups after Mr. Armstrong died have openly admitted that they are experimenting with other forms of government—which means experimenting with forms that are not God’s government!
God’s government unites, it protects, it accomplishes. If we didn’t have government, we wouldn’t have a work, a college or anything else of importance. If you turn away from God’s government, you are turning away from Him and in danger of losing everything!
Doing your part to build the God Family Empire requires learning to love government and even love correction. God’s government is love, and submitting to it strengthens your character and expands what you can accomplish for God.
An empire is nothing without its leader, without government. The British Empire would have been nothing without its monarchy. But God’s Church has the greatest Leader of all! Its government is actively, daily led by Jesus Christ! Submit to Him and His government in His Church and you will do great things for God.
A God Being came to Earth and became Jesus Christ (John 1). And what did He declare when He came here? A message about government, about empire! He didn’t declare the great empires of Babylon, Persia, Greece or Rome—He declared the Father and the soon-coming Kingdom of God! The true gospel is the gospel of the Kingdom of God, which is the soon-coming government of God!
God’s Work
If you are dedicated to God’s throne and to God’s Work, you will gain a vision that will thrill you like you have never been in your life.
True Christians have a fantastic example of a man who worked and sacrificed for decades to build the God Family Empire: Herbert W. Armstrong. His autobiography records many of the trials he suffered to do God’s Work. The difficulty of building God’s college, for example, was so dire that he actually wanted God to let him die. But then he repented of that and charged ahead like a soldier sprinting into the battle! In the final years of his life, Mr. Armstrong saw the many problems spreading across God’s spiritual Empire. Yet with God’s miraculous power, he did more in the last seven years of his life than all the other years combined.
Here is what Mr. Armstrong wrote to members in a 1974 letter: “[T]his great Work of God is the way God has set before us for each to grow and develop spiritually. … In 40 years, I have observed that only those whose hearts are in this great Work are themselves growing spiritually.”
In 1957, he wrote, “Anyone who does not have his whole heart in that Work is not a member of God’s true Church, and has no right whatsoever to attend or fellowship in any of its local congregations” (Good News, March 1957). That is a strong statement!
In 1967, Mr. Armstrong wrote: “I have observed that the very first need of every Christian, who is to grow and develop this spiritual character, is to have his heart completely in the Work of God, which the living Christ has called His servants to do, as His instruments” (Plain Truth, February 1967).
He was talking about how dedication to God’s cause—His Work, His Empire—transforms us into greater, godlier people!
The Apostle Peter wrote that we need to “grow in grace, and in the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. To him be glory both now and for ever. Amen” (2 Peter 3:18). God wants us to grow! And if you really want to grow, and be part of something great, then throw your heart into the Work of the God Family Empire! Learn all you can about it. Support it with your fervent prayers. Cleave to it with your affections. Contribute your tithes and offerings to it. Offer your encouragement. Do all you can to personally strengthen the Family of God that is carrying out that Work!
A Prophecy of Empires
God breaks down and builds up nations to fulfill His purpose. This is true of His chosen nation of Israel and also of kingdoms around the world and throughout history. In the Bible, He prophesied what would happen to kingdoms and empires far in advance.
God punished the kingdom of Israel and the kingdom of Judah for their sins against Him by allowing Gentile empires to conquer them. One of the Jews taken captive to Babylon was the Prophet Daniel. God blessed him, along with his three friends, Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, within their captivity and raised them up to become top leaders within the Babylonian Empire (Daniel 2:48-49). God was using this to train Daniel for rule in the Kingdom of God!
Yes, God is preparing His people for literal rule in His literal government! This is real: We are qualifying right now for a job in the God Family Empire!
When it came to worship, Daniel and his three friends disobeyed the Babylonian Empire to obey the God Family Empire. Daniel refused to stop praying to God or to even hide it. He was thrown into a den of lions (Daniel 6). His friends didn’t even hesitate to refuse a command from Nebuchadnezzar himself to worship an idol. They were thrown into a furnace (Daniel 3). But their Almighty King was far stronger than the Babylonian king, the lions or the fire, and He saved them. This is the God who rules our Empire!
God made an amazing prophecy about world empires through a dream He gave to Nebuchadnezzar and the explanation that He revealed to Daniel.
“Thou, O king, sawest, and behold a great image. This great image, whose brightness was excellent, stood before thee; and the form thereof was terrible. This image’s head was of fine gold, his breast and his arms of silver, his belly and his thighs of brass, His legs of iron, his feet part of iron and part of clay. Thou sawest till that a stone was cut out without hands, which smote the image upon his feet that were of iron and clay, and brake them to pieces. Then was the iron, the clay, the brass, the silver, and the gold, broken to pieces together, and became like the chaff of the summer threshingfloors; and the wind carried them away, that no place was found for them: and the stone that smote the image became a great mountain, and filled the whole earth” (Daniel 2:31-35).
This dream was a prophecy of four world-ruling empires that would rise and fall throughout history. Each new empire would descend to a lower quality in dignity and culture. In other prophecies, God characterizes such empires as beasts! Throughout history, they have soaked the world in blood.
We are now in the days of that fourth empire. The physical nations of Israel that God has given power to, Britain and the United States, are dying, and that fourth empire is resurging. In other prophecies, God specifically revealed that this empire would rise and fall and rise again repeatedly—and that it would directly oppose the Kingdom of God!
The Fourth Empire
Daniel 7:3, 7, 23-25 describe these same four non-Israelite empires as “four great beasts.” That fourth empire, pictured by the Daniel 2 image’s iron legs and feet, is represented here as the extraordinary fourth and final beast: “dreadful and terrible, and strong exceedingly; and it had great iron teeth: it devoured and brake in pieces, and stamped the residue with the feet of it: and it was diverse from all the beasts that were before it …. The fourth beast shall be the fourth kingdom upon earth, which shall be diverse from all kingdoms, and shall devour the whole earth, and shall tread it down, and break it in pieces. And the ten horns out of this kingdom are ten kings that shall arise: and another shall rise after them; and he shall be diverse from the first, and he shall subdue three kings. And he shall speak great words against the most High, and shall wear out the saints of the most High, and think to change times and laws: and they shall be given into his hand until a time and times and the dividing of time.”
Study history and compare it to these and related Bible prophecies. This is talking about the Roman Empire. This was an empire like no other that emerged in the first century b.c. Then by the fourth century a.d. it united with the Catholic Church to form the Holy Roman Empire. However, by the fifth century a.d., the empire had fallen apart.
“[A]nd it had ten horns. I considered the horns, and, behold, there came up among them another little horn, before whom there were three of the first horns plucked up by the roots: and, behold, in this horn were eyes like the eyes of man, and a mouth speaking great things” (verses 7-8). The “little horn” represents the Catholic Church. It is a religion speaking “great words,” controlling an empire and opposing the true Church.
This revelation prophesies that the Roman Empire would be resurrected 10 times. That is exactly what occurred in history over the course of 2,000 years, up to this very day! The first three horns represent three foreign Germanic tribes that invaded and took over: the Vandals, then Heruli, then Ostrogoths. But then came Emperor Justinian, who in a.d. 554 accomplished the Imperial Restoration, put the Catholic Church back in power, and established the first of seven resurrections of the Holy Roman Empire. Since then, it has been resurrected in Europe under Charlemagne, Otto the Great, the Habsburgs, Napoleon and the Hitler-Mussolini axis.
Now the seventh resurrection of the Holy Roman Empire is here! You don’t hear much about this empire. But as Revelation 17 prophesies, this beastly power is ascending now! It is mostly underground, but it is alive again, and it is going to burst onto the scene at any time with tremendous power!
Winston Churchill said history is an unrivaled instrument of instruction. Before World War ii, he said, “It is my earnest hope that pondering upon the past may give guidance in days to come, enable a new generation to repair some of the errors of the former years, and thus govern, in accordance with the needs and glory of man, the awful unfolding scene of the future.”
Churchill faced the second-to-last head of the Holy Roman Empire—yet for all the history he knew, he did not understand that! The Bible shows that history: one head of the Holy Roman Empire beast growing out of another, out of another, out of another. God’s people today are now facing down the last one. But our nations are ignorant of prophecy, history and human nature; they just turn to their sports or their other entertainments or their radical ideologies and sleep through it all. Then that empire strikes and they are dead as a nation!
Churchill should have known about the Holy Roman Empire, and he should have known about the throne of David, which became the throne of the British Empire before God did away with it and created a new throne inside His Church. That throne is about to be claimed by Jesus Christ Himself! Yet the British know nothing about it. The leader of their national church even went and kissed the ring of the pope, the office that guided the Holy Roman Empire!
Clash of Empires
Daniel 10:10 through 12:4 is the longest single vision in the Bible. It is a prophecy for the time we are living in now (Daniel 10:14). It vividly describes an imminent clash of two empires: the “king of the north” and the “king of the south.” The king of the north is a description of that seventh resurrection of the Holy Roman Empire, which is rising in Europe right now.
Daniel 11:21 is a prophecy that was fulfilled in part by the ancient Antiochus Epiphanes. Daniel prophesied that he would “come in peaceably, and obtain the kingdom by flatteries.” He was a vile human being with few supporters who increased his power through deceit and flattery and by pretending to be someone he was not. Antiochus ended up gaining control over much of the Middle East. He was particularly ruthless toward one of the groups he controlled, which was one of the tribes of Israel: Judah.
Still, verse 21 will be totally fulfilled in our generation. Antiochus foreshadowed another cruel, vicious leader who is ready to take control of the modern Holy Roman Empire. And he too will target the Jews and the other nations of Israel, including Britain and the United States!
“He shall enter peaceably even upon the fattest places of the province; and he shall do that which his fathers have not done, nor his fathers’ fathers; he shall scatter among them the prey, and spoil, and riches: yea, and he shall forecast his devices against the strong holds, even for a time” (verse 24). This is a prophecy that a modern Holy Roman Empire led by a modern Antiochus will send its forces into the Holy Land—not in an attack, but peaceably. But this beast power doesn’t really want peace!
Verse 28 shows that Antiochus massacred many Jews and, even further, tried to destroy the faith of those who survived! (That faith is not the true faith, but it is largely based on the Word of God, which is why this satanic man is obsessed with destroying it.) We saw a similar satanic attack less than a century ago during World War ii: the Holocaust. But the greatest enemy for this evil combination of church and empire is the true faith: God’s one true Church!
Clash With God’s Empire
Satan has influenced and deceived God’s people through the ages. He is constantly attacking us spiritually. But when he can amass the power, he also attacks physically! In the age of the Church, he has used his great false church and its empire to persecute, torture and kill God’s saints!
In Daniel 11, in this detailed prophecy about 21st-century world empires, God also prophesied the role of His true Church! “He shall enter also into the glorious land, and many countries shall be overthrown: but these shall escape out of his hand, even Edom, and Moab, and the chief of the children of Ammon” (verse 41). “Chief” here means firstfruits. God’s people are in the middle of it all, exposing and warning against this Holy Roman Empire beast power.
God’s Church has opposed Satan’s church for two millenniums! For dozens of generations, Satan’s church-and-state empire has repeatedly attacked God’s people, trying to destroy the God Family Empire before it can be established. It has been a 2,000-year war between the true Church and a great false church. (Request a free copy of my book The True History of God’s True Church.) And it is about to erupt once again.
Verse 32 says, “[T]he people that do know their God shall be strong, and do exploits.” God’s Church is not just a social group or a religion. It is the beginning of His Empire, and it is going to do great deeds!
God commissions His Church to prophesy again. He wants us to expose this beast—expose what is happening in Europe. God’s people have always clashed with the Holy Roman Empire! Only God’s people would face them down and tell them the truth, regardless of the consequences—nobody else. It takes the power of God to do that! And we must!
Revelation prophesies in even more detail about the true Church (chapters 1-3) and the false church and its empire (chapters 13 and 17). Revelation 12 contains a prophecy of both.
Revelation 17 speaks about “the great whore that sitteth upon many waters: With whom the kings of the earth have committed fornication, and the inhabitants of the earth have been made drunk with the wine of her fornication” (verses 1-2). This is how God characterizes this church that mixes with politics and guides an empire. We are warning the world, reminding them of history and of facts. But you talk about facts, and this empire just acts drunk!
Verses 3-6 describe this church as sitting upon and guiding the European political beast. “And upon her forehead was a name written, Mystery, Babylon the Great, the Mother of Harlots and Abominations of the Earth. And I saw the woman drunken with the blood of the saints, and with the blood of the martyrs of Jesus ….” The number one goal of this harlot church has been to kill the people of God! If God’s people just want to have peace and quiet and not fight for empire, Satan’s empire is still going to come after them and will force them to accept what it teaches or kill them!
The “beast that carrieth her” (verse 7) is this empire that actually does the killing, but it is guided by the harlot, that church that looks like a lamb but speaks like a dragon. Verse 8 describes how the beast went underground, then verse 10 gets to where we are now. Five resurrections of the Holy Roman Empire had come and gone when God revealed this passage to Mr. Armstrong. One existed at that time, and one is “not yet come,” but it is rising fast now!
Revelation 12
Look at this majestic picture: “And there appeared a great wonder in heaven; a woman clothed with the sun, and the moon under her feet, and upon her head a crown of twelve stars” (Revelation 12:1). This woman symbolizes God’s true Church, and she is clothed by the God who raised up the 12 tribes of Israel, the God of the universe!
Yet the context is one of conflict: “And there appeared another wonder in heaven; and behold a great red dragon, having seven heads and ten horns, and seven crowns upon his heads” (verse 3). This is the church and empire that Satan has resurrected over and over!
There are two empires here! One is ruled by the dragon, the ultimate king of this Holy Roman Empire; the other, the God Family Empire, is clothed with the sun, adorned and empowered by God!
Verses 4-5 show Satan’s power. He turned a third of the angels from following God to following him. He has constantly attacked God, attacked the angels, attacked God’s Work, attacked Jesus Christ, attacked God’s Church.
God’s true Church has always been a small flock, persecuted by Satan and his false church. But God gives it the power to speak out. Time and again, Satan has retaliated and even killed the saints (Revelation 6:9-11; 13:7; 17:6). In this end-time, God’s message will be so strong, and Satan’s wrath will be so hot, that when its work is done, the Church must flee for its life (Revelation 12:14-16).
This warfare by the Holy Roman Empire against the God Family Empire has been raging since the beginning of that empire in a.d. 554. Satan created that tool mainly to attack the true Church! Right now it is a spiritual battle. God has led His true Church to warn more powerfully through The Key of David, the Philadelphia Trumpet and other means. And as the Holy Roman Empire gets stronger, so shall the Philadelphia Church of God! We are the only ones who will do the Work of the God Family Empire and boldly proclaim God’s message of warning and hope and truth!
Around the time that Herbert W. Armstrong, died, Satan and his demons directly attacked God for the first time since before the creation (verses 7-8). God and His angels repelled him and also confined him and the demons to the Earth (verses 9-12). Then Satan attacked God’s Church! (verse 13). That is why the Church was absolutely decimated: 95 percent of God’s own people—the people He was training to rule with Jesus Christ—quickly turned away from God.
Daniel 11:34-35 prophesied this same tragedy, which is ongoing as you read this: “And some of them of understanding shall fall.” Those God invited to build the God Family Empire, some of whom did so for decades, turned instead to the things that Satan is offering. What a tragedy! Satan is conquering them spiritually, and soon he will attack them physically.
The opportunity for God’s people to repent is still here. And He will protect them from Satan’s spiritual attacks and physical attacks. Those who don’t repent will have to face Satan when he comes “to make war” (Revelation 12:17). Even as this dragon attacks God’s people who rebelled against Him, He is working to save them spiritually.
“And I looked, and, lo, a Lamb stood on the mount Sion, and with him an hundred forty and four thousand, having his Father’s name written in their foreheads” (Revelation 14:1). Finally they will repent and turn back to their Father and His Family. They wouldn’t respond to God’s message before the Great Tribulation and the attacks of this evil empire, but once they are suffering and ultimately losing their physical lives, God will bring them to repentance.
As powerful as this dragon and his beast power are, God is still empowering His God Family Empire. Satan has thrown down the gauntlet, and now it’s time for the warriors to rise. It’s time for God’s warriors, warriors like no one has ever seen before on this Earth except when they saw God’s very elect. It’s time for the warriors to rise, those warriors who are clothed with the sun! Should we let this evil old slut intimidate us—people clothed with the sun? Should we be daunted by some deranged archangel when we are clothed with the sun? Absolutely not!
Satan is turning up the heat because he knows his time is about up! (Revelation 12:12). Should we be silent? Should we be reserved? Should we be outworked by the devil and those who follow him? God’s people are clothed with the sun, which means the Creator of the sun is behind us! Why should we fear anybody? It would be shameful if we did. The stronger their hostility gets, the stronger our message is going to get, because we are the God Family Empire.
Our Mission
It is our mission to expose the dragon! Nobody else will do it. It’s up to the subjects of the God Family Empire to tell the world the truth, to remind them of the Holy Roman Empire’s bloody, bloody history, and to proclaim a warning. This is Satan’s world, and the Holy Roman Empire is Satan’s main weapon! But God’s people represent an empire far greater than Satan’s empire.
Most of the people in God’s own Church have turned away from giving this warning. They say nice things about the Vatican and the Holy Roman Empire. But we can’t think that if we speak out it will just cause more problems. God is not going to accept that at all. He wants us to speak out and tell the world how evil this harlot is! We must warn America, Britain and the Jews of what is coming. If we don’t speak out, who will oppose this satanic wickedness? Who, if not God’s Family? Prophecy says they are going to kill God’s people—our spiritual family, sons of God—who don’t repent before the Tribulation. It will kill them as it has killed God’s people for centuries! Should we warn about that? When God’s saints are resurrected, what would they think of us if we didn’t warn? What would God think of us?
We’re going to announce the death of the Holy Roman Empire, and God is going to wipe that old harlot off the face of this Earth very shortly! See, we’re about to flee for the last time ever from the Holy Roman Empire. God is going to end this madness forever after He uses it to teach some lessons.
How strong should we get? Just as strong as they do. That is our cue to expose them. But we cannot do this on our own. We can only stand up to them with God’s power!
The Fifth Empire
Every human form of government has been a disaster. Even the nations of Israel, whom God taught so much and blessed so much, have ended in disaster because they have rejected Him. They are going to fall prey to yet another ferocious beast of an empire that loves to kill and stamp on millions of people!
But there is splendid, magnificent hope!
In the very same prophecy describing the four world-ruling empires, God describes a fifth empire. Daniel prophesied it in Daniel 2:44: “And in the days of these kings shall the God of heaven set up a kingdom, which shall never be destroyed: and the kingdom shall not be left to other people,but it shall break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms, and it shall stand for ever.”
This is a kingdom that will not be governed by fallible human beings. It is a kingdom made “without hands” and it is “certain” (verse 45).
This is not just a church we are part of. And it is not just an empire. This is the Kingdom of God, which shall never be destroyed! It will spread from Jerusalem around the world, bringing people safety and peace and hope under God’s law and government of love.
These two empires are going to clash, and one of them is going to disappear forever!
“These have one mind, and shall give their power and strength unto the beast. These shall make war with the Lamb, and the Lamb shall overcome them: for he is Lord of lords, and King of kings: and they that are with him are called, and chosen, and faithful” (Revelation 17:13-14). Jesus Christ is going to be King of kings! All those true saints who were martyred in the past are going to be kings, and so will we, under the King of kings and Lord of lords.
We are preparing right now for the work we will be doing in the Kingdom of God! True Christians attending God’s one true Church must understand this! We will receive offices and responsibilities according to the way we are being trained now! In a sense, it will be just like Daniel was trained and tried for the high office he received in Babylon. But the future offices that Daniel and God’s people throughout the ages have trained for will be under Jesus Christ, ruling the whole Earth and extending out into the universe!
God says of people like Daniel or his friends, Give me people who respond like this, and I will prepare them for great office. I will use them according to their faith, and I will reward them according to their works. They will rule the Earth!
Men like Daniel know that God’s empire is real. They know they are training for it. When their very lives are threatened, they don’t waver or even hesitate in proclaiming their loyalty to the God Family Empire!
The Kingdom of God is the Family of God: Father, Son and the Church, the Bride of Christ. A new empire is about to appear! Men like Nebuchadnezzar and Antiochus think they are impressive. They are full of pride and human power. They try to intimidate those of us fighting for this Empire. But God is using such challenges and tests to prepare us for rule in His Kingdom—and it is almost here. If you are loyal to the God Family Empire, you have protection and power from the Father and the Son. You need not fear anything or anybody as you rush forward to build and to battle for God. Let the world beware if they come up against the sons of God!
We are warning the physical nations of Israel and the rebels in God’s spiritual nation of Israel. We are warning that God is going to use Satan’s Holy Roman Empire to punish them for their sins and humble them. But then we will warn that evil empire and tell them that it is going to meet Jesus Christ in Jerusalem, and He is going to smash them like Israel should have done long ago! That empire will be dead forever! Then He will rule with His kings and priests, and the God Family Empire will be established forever! What a future!
God has already given the symbol of His rule, Mr. Armstrong’s prayer rock, to this Church and revealed that He has established a new throne of David within the Philadelphia Church of God. The preparations for the God Family Empire to assume global power are nearly complete!
What a wonderful ending there is to the age of the empires of man: “And the kingdom and dominion, and the greatness of the kingdom under the whole heaven, shall be given to the people of the saints of the most High, whose kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and all dominions shall serve and obey him” (Daniel 7:27).
Mr. Armstrong concluded Mystery of the Ages by writing: “With God’s great master plan of 7,000 years finally completed—the mystery of the ages finally revealed, and with the re-creating of the vast universe and eternity lying ahead, we come finally to … THE BEGINNING.”
What an inspiring way to end the second-most important book after the Bible! God inhabits eternity (Isaiah 57:15). That is something that’s totally different from anything we’ve ever known as human beings. Physically, there’s always been an end, and there’s certainly going to be an end if we don’t get into the God Family.
But this vision of the God Family Empire is endless! It just goes on and on forever.
Meditate on the glory of God’s Empire and what it will do for suffering human beings. That is a vision that will motivate you. It will move you to accomplish the commission God has given His Church. It will help you submit to His government. It will empower you to accomplish great exploits for God. It will give you hope and a burning desire to help proclaim this hope as much as possible. It will prepare you for your role in changing the world.It will empower you to fight, to build and to remain loyal to God, to Jesus Christ, to God’s Family and to God’s Family Empire.