My father, Paul Clarkin Nugent (1921-1997), was drafted into the armed forces of the United States in August, 1943. He chose to enter the Marine Corps, a very dangerous choice considering their deployment on the front lines in the war. Because he was college educated, he was sent to several USMC training schools in technology, including radar. He shipped out to the Philippines in January, 1945.
Not long after arrival in the Philippines his unit was sent to the battle of Okinawa, the last great battle of World War II. At the time, they didn’t know it was the last great battle of the war. They thought they would soon be called upon to invade Japan. No doubt, they said among themselves “The allies invaded Germany and Italy. Surely, very soon, we’ll invade Japan!” It’s been estimated that if the allies: US, Britain, France and the USSR had invaded Japan like we did Germany and Italy, there would have been more than a million men dead and wounded. The war would have lasted into 1946 and possibly 1947.
Then came a game changer: the US dropped atomic bombs on two Japanese cities. Japan surrendered and what could have taken years and a sea of blood took days without allied casualties.
Now, let’s fast forward to the present and draw a parallel with the church. The present day church is in the battle of the ages. It’s the war between good and evil just before the second coming of Jesus Christ. How is the church doing in this war? Jesus commanded us: “Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations” (Matthew 28:19 NASB). Have we won the nations to Christ? We’ve won a small remnant in the nations. The vast majority of people in the nations remain in rebellion against God.
We were commanded to win the nations to Christ but we failed – so far. The failure of the church to win the nations to Christ was actually written in advance in predictive prophecies in the Bible, in both the Old and New Testaments. That’s right, our failure to win the nations was prophesied centuries ago! The book of Revelation, that great New Testament book of predictive prophecy, shows the rising up of an antichrist figure who will lead millions in utter rebellion against God. “Ye have heard that antichrist shall come” (I John 2:18). “And they worshiped the dragon which gave power unto the beast: and they worshipped the beast . . . and he opened his mouth in blasphemy against God . . . and power was given him over all kindreds, and tongues, and nations” (Revelation 13:4,6 & 7).
We, the church, have been commanded to succeed but predicted to fail!!! What a tragedy! What drama! But then again, have we really failed ultimately in making disciples of all the nations? Consider that the war isn’t over. The battle of the ages rages on!
For most of church history, the leaders of the church, in the early church, the medieval church and most of the modern church believed that the church would ultimately prevail in bringing the Gospel to the nations. The church would reform all the social institutions and the church would bring the Kingdom of God into full manifestation throughout the earth and then hand it over to Jesus at His second coming. This was called “postmillenialism” or “triumphalism.” It was an optimistic view of the advance of western Christian culture to reform and transform the world into a holy place. This optimism reached its peak in the 19th century during the height of European colonialism when “Christian” Europe controlled most of planet earth.
The twentieth century came and optimism was turned to pessimism. The horrors of World War I, World War II, the collapse of the colonialist empires, the barbarism of the holocaust in which mass murder was carried out with unspeakable brutality, and communism and its mass murders, all caused the optimism of the church to decline. After World War II, a profound pessimism settled into the church. By far the majority position today among Evangelicals is a premillenial position in which the world descends into utter chaos and rebellion against God and Christ Himself comes to do what the church would not do, which is win the nations to Himself. Then the millennium begins and the world enters a thousand year age of peace and submission to God.
I’m a premillenialist myself but I don’t believe we should accept failure as our future. The command to make disciples of all nations still stands. I will show you Bible prophecies that predict our success in winning the nations to Christ. The church will fail in some ways and succeed in other ways. There are two streams of predictive end-time prophecies in the Bible, one of catastrophe, the other of glorious victory. Let me explain.
I’m sure you’ve heard of the Seven Mountains Mandate. This is the revelation given prophetically to the church principally through two highly esteemed Evangelical leaders named Bill Bright and Loren Cunningham. Both men have publicly stated that God put the Seven Mountains Mandate on their hearts separately and then the two men met with each other and shared what the Lord had put on their hearts.
In addition, there was the miraculous death and raising up of Georgia State Senator Michael Crotts. Crotts was dead for 34 minutes after a massive heart attack on October 9, 1990. He was in the presence of the Lord and saw a vision of seven mountains and the Lord gave him the revelation that Christians must exert a godly influence on seven realms of culture. Lance Wallnau has been especially gifted at articulating the Seven Mountain Mandate to people in conferences and church meetings globally.
The seven mountains are seven major categories of social influence. On page 53 of the book, Dead for 34 Minutes by Senator Mike Crotts, Rising Star Publications, Mike Crotts lists the mountains he saw as: “Government, Learning, Outreach [religion], Business, Entertainment, Family and Media”. Those who teach on the Seven Mountains Mandate exhort Christians to hear from God regarding their calling in life. Christians can be called to serve God in business or in the media or in education or any of the mountains of influence. Traditionally many in the church have focused almost exclusively on the mountain of religion as the destination for Christians zealous to make an impact on society for God.
Half the Evangelical church has probably not even heard of the seven mountains. The other half is a bit skeptical of it. Many dismiss the seven mountains as “Kingdom Now” or “Dominion Theology.” To them, the church will fail and we’ll watch Jesus climb and conquer the seven mountains alone after He returns.
However, when you boil it all down; the Seven Mountains Mandate is just another way of saying: “Make disciples of all nations and do it NOW!!!”
In the Gospels and the Epistles there are many commands given to the church regarding what we must do before Jesus returns. One such command is given in Luke 19:13 “Occupy till I come.”
Jesus said “whatever you shall bind on earth shall have been bound in heaven” (Mt. 16:19 NASB). We disciples of Christ are commanded to bind and loose things on earth. Binding and loosing was the ancient way of saying “governing planet earth.” In front of 5,000 hungry people, Jesus commanded the disciples: “You give them something to eat” (Mt. 14:16). Jesus said “YOU do it!!!” The disciples passed out the food and the food multiplied in their hands. Jesus led them in the feeding of the 5,000 but the disciples did their part.
The Greek word in the New Testament for “church” is “ekklesia” which means “called out ones” or “council” or “legislature.” The church is an elite organization, not a Sunday school picnic. It looks like the church is commanded to invade and take over the world just like my dad and the other brave men of the allied forces were commanded to invade and take over Germany, Italy and Japan.
I believe, from my study of the commands of scripture and my study of end-time biblical prophecies in Revelation and elsewhere in the Bible that Jesus is about to drop a bomb that will make nuclear weapons look like firecrackers. The bomb Jesus is about to drop is the manifestation of the sons of God. “For the earnest expectation of the creature waiteth for the manifestation of the sons of God” (Romans 8:19).
It doesn’t say that the creation waits for the second coming of Jesus, glorious as that is. All creation waits for God’s sons, an overcomer company in His church, to come to full maturity and be endued with great power to set all creation free from the bondage of sin and death. “The creature itself also shall be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God” (Romans 8:21). Jesus wants the mature sons of God to do the greater works of miracles (John 14:12) in the end-times and do the work of winning the lost and setting all of creation free.
That which is called “manifested sons” or “the sonship message” is a message that has been taken to bizarre extremes in the past. This has happened to such an extent that many in the church reject any teaching on the manifestation of the sons of God. But as Arthur Burt of Wales once said “There’s nothing unscriptural about scripture and the manifestation of the sons of God is in the scripture.” I believe the apostolic ministry is being restored to the church now. The manifestation of the sons of God encompasses the apostolic ministry and goes beyond it.
I’ve taught extensively on the sonship message in my book titled “The Cross, Self-Denial and the Manifestation of the Sons of God” available on Amazon Kindle. I bring a very conservative theological perspective to the sonship message and connect the message to sanctification and humility. I call it “the consecration message.” Those who grow to full stature in Christ and have the honor of being placed as mature sons are those who humbly deny self and “take up his cross daily” (Luke 9:23) and “follow the Lamb whithersoever he goeth” (Revelation 14:4).
In my book I teach on sanctification from Romans chapters six, seven and eight. Romans six teaches about the sanctification of the believer’s spirit. Romans seven teaches about the sanctification of the believer’s soul. Romans eight teaches about the sanctification of the believer’s body. The latter half of Romans eight teaches about our “placing” or “adoption” as mature sons who will be used of Christ to set all of creation free. So we see that the manifestation of the sons of God (Romans 8:19) is discussed in the book of Romans in the context of the epistle’s teaching on the sanctification of believers in Christ.
Romans chapter six teaches that the believer’s reborn spirit is not adopted but is actually reborn into a sinless state of full sanctification. “Reckon ye also yourselves to be dead indeed unto sin, but alive unto God” (Romans 6:11). Romans seven teaches that the soul of the believer is still mired in sin and has a sin nature and needs daily sanctification. “I am carnal, sold under sin” (Romans 7:14). Romans eight teaches about the sanctification and redemption of the believer’s physical body at the resurrection of the righteous dead. “We ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting for the adoption, to wit, the redemption of our body” (Romans 8:23).
In my book, I elaborate on the above scriptures and bring in many other scriptures on sanctification. I discuss how we are to apply the words of Jesus in the Sermon on the Mount, which commands us to turn the other cheek. I also discuss the words of Jesus in Luke 22:36 “He that hath no sword, let him sell his garment, and buy one.” I explain the identity of the 144,000 of Revelation 7:3-8 & 14:1-5 and their role in the last days.
An Old Testament example of a man of God who climbed one of the seven mountains is Daniel, the prophet. Daniel climbed the mountain of government. Daniel was a sanctified, humble man of impeccable character. God used Daniel in the highest levels of the pagan government of Babylon. Daniel confronted Nebuchadnezzar who was an antichrist figure. God used Daniel during the final downfall of Babylon in the days of Belshazzar when Daniel interpreted the writing on the wall and proclaimed the downfall of the Babylonian empire.
I also show what I believe the biblical prophecies of the end-times lay out as the actual unfolding of how the manifested sons of God will climb the seven mountains and be used of God to set all of creation free with Christ as their glorious head just before, during and after Christ’s second coming. This is greater power than any nuclear war!!
There will be blood and guts strewn about as the end-time rebellion of the world unfolds. The book of Revelation is clear about that. However, there will also be a glorious end-time harvest of a billion souls (Revelation 7:13-14). More souls will be won to Christ in a few short years than in the 2,000 years up to this point! These souls will be discipled and will be part of a glorious end-time church that will prevail and be a light to the nations.
God must have His overcomers at the tops of the seven mountains to get the Gospel message out and win the billion souls and make disciples of them. The antichrist will not prevail. We shall fulfill the Great Commission of Matthew 28:19!
You may obtain a copy of “The Cross, Self-Denial and the Manifestation of the Sons of God” at the link below which will take you to Kindle. I tried to list it on Kindle for free but Kindle would only allow a minimum price of 99 cents.
https://www.amazon.com/Cross-Self-Denial-Manifestation-Sons-God-ebook/dp/B07NCL9B82/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1550282110&sr=8-1&keywords=the+cross+self-denial+and+the+manifestation+of+the+sons+of+God
You can get a free Kindle app from my Kindle book page to read the book on any device.
Bill Nugent 