Meaning of 2018 - A
Pillar in the Temple
The
Year 2018
Solomon's Temple Pillars
The
Church
Pillar in the Temple
Spiritual War
Historical Sequence, 2018 - 2020
Conclusion
The Year 2018
January 1 (Day 1,
Unity): The meaning of the year 2018 is a pillar in the
temple, for the reward of a winner believer for maximum
historical impact. The two bronze pillars that marked the
entrance to Solomon's Temple were 18 cubits high. The
pillars marked the way into Eternal Life and fellowship with
God. The temple today is the Church, and the body of every
believer is the Temple of the Holy Spirit for the indwelling of
the Father and the Son. The Church Age Believer is a
member of the Royal Family of God and a priest to God. He
is a king and a priest. When he grows to maturity and
executes the Spiritual life, he will win the victory over Satan
and his Cosmic System. The winner will also contribute to
an historical uptrend and national blessing. Like the
great people of history, the winner believer will be remembered
for his Spiritual deeds with a pillar in the temple to
commemorate his historical impact (Rev 3:12).
In general a pillar is a vertical
support structure for a building, or a pillar may be a
monument. There are many kinds of pillars in
scripture with many different functions.1 Pillars
in temples were decorated with memorial plaques honoring people
for great historical feats.
The number 18 in scripture is associated with maximum historical
impact and standing like a pillar.
- Abraham's army of 318 cowboys defeated
Chedorlaomer's army group (Gen 14:9-13, 14-16) in a great
victory with historical impact. Here the number 318 is
for judgment (300) and historical impact (18).
- Israel served the King of Moab 18 years
(Judg 3:14). Servitude corresponds to a pillar that is
bowed down.
- Israel fell into the hands of the
Philistines and Ammonites for 18 years (Judg 10:7, 8).
Here the pillar of Israel fell.
- Rheoboam had 18 wives, who stood by him
like pillars (2 Chron 11:21).
- Eighteen were killed by a falling tower
(Lk 13:4). The 18 stood like pillars until they fell.
- An hunchback woman was bowed down by
Satan for 18 years until she was healed by Jesus in a
synagogue and made erect again like a pillar (Lk 13:11, 13,
16).
Solomon's
Temple Pillars
Solomon's Temple replaced the Tabernacle
as God's dwelling on Earth. Two cast
bronze, or brass, pillars 18 cubits tall marked the entrance of
the Temple (1 Ki 7:15-22; 2 Ch 3:15-17;
4:12-13). The pillars stood outside the entrance of the main
hall and did not support any of the building. The two
pillars marked the way to
Eternal Life and fellowship with God (1 Ki 7:15-22; Jn 14:6;
Matt 7:13-14). Bronze symbolizes
judgment, corresponding to Judgment for sins and the redemption
solution.. Departing from the way of
Salvation leads to eternal judgment.
The pillars were on the left and right side
of the entrance (1 Ki 7:21). The right side is the
spiritual side, and the left side is the temporal side.
The pillars were given names, Jachin and Boaz,
which has led to much speculation. However, they were not
the names of people but simply characteristics of pillars.
Right - spiritual
side - Jachin, meaning "He will establish."
Left - temporal side - Boaz,
meaning "in Him is strength."
Dimensions: The pillars were
18 cubits (27 feet) high with a capital and a base. A
cubit was 17.72 inches. The capitals were 5 cubits with lilies
(4 cubits high) on top. The number 5 is for Grace, for a
head with humility and subject to the Grace of God. The
number 4 is for weakness that precedes sprouting, corresponding
to the New Birth of Salvation and to the Resurrection. The
overall length was 35 cubits, for rest from enemies (2 Ch
3:15). The pillars marked the way of protection from
enemies.
The capitals were
like two bowls pressed together. The capital on the
pillar symbolized the head. The parts of the capital
contained:
a. Two rows of 100
pomegranates, where 100 is for maximum Divine Good production
and 200 is for double blessing. Pomegranates symbolize
the fruit of the womb.
b. The round
central part with netting symbolized the skull and also a
bulb from which the lilies grew.
c. The wreath of chainwork at the top
symbolized the Lord's Covenant with Israel in the Mosaic
Law (ref. Ex
24:4).
d. The lilies on top of the
capital symbolized the New Life, or Eternal Life,
including Resurrection Life.
A pillar can symbolize a person.
- Capital - head
- Pillar proper - torso
and legs
- Base - feet.
An erect pillar symbolizes standing and support,
while a falling pillar symbolizes destruction of the entire
building (Jer 50:15; Ezek 26:11).
When the pillar falls, the capital falls with it. The
fallen capital symbolizes a fallen head, corresponding to
slavery or death. After the fall of Jerusalem the bronze pillars of Solomon's Temple were
carried away with the captives into Babylon (Jer
52:17-23). The people were carried into captivity
for their arrogant rejection of Grace, resulting in the Four
Generation Curse.
When the
capitals were carried off into
Babylon, 96
of the pomegranates were visible from one side,
where 96 is for the spoils of victory (Jer 52:23).
The
Church
God does not dwell on Earth in temples or sacred
buildings in the Church Age. He dwells in the body of the
individual believer (1 Cor 6:19). Church Age Believers are
Royal Family of God and priests to God (Rev 1:6; 5:10). At
Salvation the Church Age Believer is entered into union with
Christ by the Baptism of the Holy Spirit (1 Cor 12:13). The
Church is the Body of Christ, and Christ is the Head (Eph 5:23;
Col 1:18) and High Priest (Heb 4:14-15; 7:24, 26, 27).
Church Age Believers are ambassadors for Christ and His priests
(2Cor 5:20; Eph 6:20; 1 Pet 2:5, 9).5 They are
partners with Christ (Heb 3:1, 14; 2 Pet 1:4).
Unlike all other Dispensations, the history in the Church Age is
not determined by prophecy, but by the impact of believers.
Historical trends are based on the volition of individual
believers. Historical uptrends come from the impact of
believers who are positive and execute the Spiritual life (Isa
1:19). Believers are the salt of the Earth who determine the
rise and fall of the Client Nation (Matt 5:13). When
believers obey Bible Doctrine, the nation is blessed, and when
they are negative to Bible Doctrine, the nation is cursed (Isa
5:13; Hos 4:6).2 It isn't the politicians,
scientists, or educators that determine success and prosperity,
but the Church Age Believers, who become invisible heroes and
bring God's blessing.
There is only one Church, and its impact is international.
Client Nation USA rose from the teaching of Grace oriented men
like George Whitfield, who also had great impact in England.
His Grace teaching led to the separation of Church and State which
knocked out the Puritan religious, socialist state. Dwight
Moody had great impact as an evangelist during the War Between the
States. World Wars I and II were won by the impact of the
Church. And the Soviet Union fell in 1991 due to the impact
of the Church in the US. The Spiritual war destroyed Satan's
slavery of socialism and
Communist propaganda in the Soviet Union.
Pillars that support a
physical building may also symbolize support functions in a spiritual
temple (Eph 2:21; 1 Pet 2:5).5 Peter,
James, and John were pillars in the Jerusalem Church (Gal
2:9). While Satan spreads his lies, the
Church is the pillar and support of the Truth, corresponding to
the X-axis in the Spiritual
Coordinate System (1 Tim 3:15). The believer is the
Light of the world, corresponding to Y-axis impact (Matt 5:14;
Phil 2:15; 1 Jn 1:7).
The two bronze pillars at the entrance of Solomon's Temple mark
the path of the walk of the faithful believer (Eph 5:15-16).
He should walk in the Filling of the Holy Spirit (Rom 8:4; Gal 5:16,
25). He should have Divine viewpoint and be able to
distinguish the temporal from the spiritual (2 Cor 4:18).
The right pillar symbolized the spiritual boundary, and the left
pillar symbolized the temporal boundary. Going outside these
boundaries amounted to reversionism.
The walk of the believer includes both strategic and tactical
objectives. The strategic objective is the long range goal,
and the tactical objective is the local, or near-term,
advance. The first strategic objective of the Christian
should be advancing to Spiritual
Maturity (Eph 4:13; Heb 5:14; 6:1). The first tactical
objective should be learning about Salvation (Matt 11:29, 30).
Pillar
in the Temple
The winner believer in the Church will be
rewarded for maximum historical impact with a pillar in the
temple.
He who is a winner: I will make him a pillar
in the temple of My God, and he will never go out any more;
and I will inscribe upon him: (1) the Title of My God,
and (2) the name of the city of My God, which comes down out
from Heaven from the source of My God, and (3) My new Title. (Revelation
3:12)
The winner believer is one who
wins the victory over Satan by executing the Spiritual
life. The winner will have impact in his generation on
human history from Grace. He will also be rewarded for his
Divine Good production. In the Eternal
State, he will have special recognition and rank
and enjoy a unique relationship with God and the Lord
Jesus Christ. He will have a pillar in the temple as a
memorial for maximum historical impact. However, the
temple here is not a physical temple, since there will be no
temples on the New Earth in the Eternal State. The temple
refers to the Heavenly (New) Jerusalem. There is no
temple there because God and the Lord Jesus Christ are its
temple (Rev 21:22). Winners will be remembered forever in
the New Jerusalem.
The historical impact of the Church Age Believer may require
protecting the security of the nation by standing in gap (breach
in the wall). Before the fall of Jerusalem there was
no mature believer with an Edification Complex of the Soul who
could stand in the gap in the wall (Jer 5:1; 15:1; Ezek
22:30). Standing in the gap requires Spiritual Integrity
from an ECS.
Spiritual
War
The Spiritual power
of the believer comes from the Filling of the Holy Spirit and
residence inside the Divine Dynasphere. The Filling of the
Holy Spirit gives the believer freedom from sin in his own
soul. Sin is the
personal enemy that destroys the Spiritual life and fellowship
with God.4 Sin delivers a person into spiritual
death and slavery to Satan in the Cosmic System. The Divine Dynasphere
is the source of Grace and protection from Satan and his Cosmic
System. The Divine Dynasphere surrounds the believer with
the power of God to execute the Spiritual life (1 Cor 16:13; Eph 3:16; Phil 4:13; Col 1:11).
The Divine Dynasphere protects the believer on the right from
lawlessness and on the left from legalism. Satan attacks
from the Cosmic
System on the right through the Prostitute
of Babylon
(Jezebel)
(Rev 2:9,
13, 24; 3:9; 17:3-4). And Satan attacks
from the Cosmic
System on the left through the Evil King
(2 Thess 2:3-10; 1 Pet 5:8). Satan attacks the Divine
Institutions and all that belongs to God in order to enslave
people. The believer in the Divine Dynasphere must defeat
the Prostitute of Babylon in Spiritual
Warfare to deliver the civilian establishment and his
family. And he must defeat the Evil King in Spiritual
Warfare to deliver the military establishment.
Spiritual freedom
must be won before loss of temporal freedom. Spiritual
freedom can only be won by believers, who have the power to
withstand Satan and his demons from residence and function inside
the Divine Dynasphere. Satan attacks the Church through
religion and apostasy in Ecumenical Babylon (Phil 3:18-19; Col
2:23; 1Tim
4:1-3; 2 Tim. 3:1-5; 4:3-4; Jas 5:1-8; 2 Pet 2:1f; 3:3-6; Jude
1:3ff). Christianity is not a
religion. Religion is man by human good trying to influence
God. Christianity is a love relationship with God through
the work of the Lord Jesus Christ in Grace. Satan attacks
the Church and education through antichrists (2 Th 2:9; 1 Jn
2:18; 4:1-3; 2 Jn 7) and false teachers (Prov
5:22; Col 2:8; 2 Tim 3:6; 2 Pet 2:1-3; Rev 2:20), like Balaam (Jude 1:11;
Rev 2:14). False teachers attack the believer in the Divine
Dynasphere from the right (spiritual) side and the left (temporal)
side (ref. 2 Pet 2:1-3).
Standing Pillar
In order to win the battle against Satan the believer must stand
like a pillar inside the Divine Dynasphere (Dan 8:7; 10:13; 11:16; 1 Cor 10:12-21;
2 Pet 3:17; Jude 1:24).
1 Corinthians 10:12
Standing
Therefore let
him who thinks he stands take heed lest he fall.
The believer who thinks he is standing like a pillar
must be alert to hidden dangers and counterattacks in the
spiritual realm.
1
Corinthians 10:13 Testing
Testing has not overtaken you except such as is
common to mankind; moreover, God is faithful, who will not
allow you to be tested beyond what you are able, but will with
the testing also provide a way of escape that you may be able
to endure it.
God orders the life of the believer. Nothing
is accidental. God orders testing of the believer in order
to promote him when the test is passed. In this context the
Greek peirasmos should be translated "testing" and not
temptation. Temptation comes from the Old Sin Nature and
from Satan but not from God (Jas 1:13-14). There will always
be a solution or way of escape from the testing so that the
believer can endure it. God will not place a burden on a
person that is more than he can bear.
1
Corinthians 10:14 Idolatry
Therefore, my
beloved, flee from idolatry.
Immediately after the instruction about testing is
the command to flee idolatry. This may sound strange, since
most Christians would never consider worshiping a dumb idol.
However, at the beginning of the Church Age idolatry was still
practiced in Corinth, and many new Christians had been practicing
idolatry all their lives. Idolatry was common, and
Christians must stay away from it. However, idolatry can be
quite subtle. Even sinning amounts to idolatry because the
sin takes the person into the Cosmic System under the power of
Satan (Col 3:5). Satan and his demons are ready to take over
any believer who sins. Spiritual
Warfare is a fight against Satan and demons (Eph
6:12). The immature Christian doesn't even know Satan is
running his life. The believer who stands as a pillar in
the Divine Dynasphere has the power to resist Satan and his
demons (Jas 4:7; 1 Pet 5:8, 9).3
In order to have stability and stand as a pillar the believer
must have an Edification
Complex of the Soul and have the X, Y, Z, and Time axes
aligned in the Spiritual Coordinate System. Spiritual
growth is required in order to stand and not be carried away by
the counterattacks of Satan and his demons (ref. Eph 4:14).
Only the mature believer can handle the menacing attacks from
the devil's world. The weapons of Spiritual
Warfare (the full
armor of God) must be mastered to stand against the
schemes of the devil (Eph 6:11, 13, 14-15).
Falling Pillar
An erect
pillar symbolizes standing and support, while a falling pillar
symbolizes destruction of the entire building. The
strong pillars fell in the destruction of Tyre (Ezek
26:11). The Lord decreed the destruction of Babylon in
which her bulwarks would fall (Jer 50:15). In this verse
the Hebrew 'ashejah means
bulwarks, corresponding to the Assyrian asitu for
pillar. The Lord Jesus Christ prophesied the destruction
of Jerusalem and the Temple in which
its pillars would fall and not one stone would be left upon
another (Luke 19:43, 44; 21:6; Matt 24:1, 2; Mk 13:2).
Even the people and their children would be leveled to the
ground. Parents and children would be destroyed under
the Four Generation Curse. This happened when the Romans
laid siege to Jerusalem and destroyed it in 70 AD.
Pillars may fall from earthquakes or fires (Isa 29:6).
Earthquakes are Judgments decreed by God and executed by Elect
Angels (Matt 28:2; Rev 6:12; 8:5). A great earthquake in
Jerusalem in the Tribulation will cause a tenth of the city to
fall (Rev 11:13). The greatest earthquake in history
will split the city of Babylon into three parts in the
Tribulation (Rev 16:18, 19).
Historical Sequence, 2018 - 2020
The years 2018 - 2020 form an historical sequence. If the uptrend continues that begins in 2018,
there will be great success and blessing, but if the uptrend
fails, there will be great cursing and disaster.
2018
- a pillar - maximum historical impact; a time to sow, plant,
invest, found; a time of strength, success, growth; or a pillar
can fall and symbolize loss of these things or spoils.
2019 - federal
judiciary, scales - justice, commerce, the king, federal
government; a time to reap, to sell; a time of testing,
judgment, vindication, weeding out, destruction.
2020 - war,
generation - a time to fight, to kill, to die; a time to travel
and trade; an important generation.
The year 2018 for maximum historical
impact will be a time to sow, plant, invest, buy, found,
establish. The tree that is planted will grow and
prosper. It will become strong and healthy. There will be success and growth.
However, not all investments will be wise or sound. Some
will have flaws. Foundations may be built on sand (Matt
7:25-26). And pillars can fall resulting in loss or spoils.
The year 2019 for the federal judiciary and scales, will see a
strong, prosperous, federal government. It will be a time to
sell, to reap and make a profit. However, it will also be a
time of justice and judgment. Those who profited illegally
will be brought to justice. It will also be a time of
testing. God will judge. Those who sowed to the wind
will reap the whirlwind (Hos 8:7). It may be a bad year for
tornadoes in Minnesota. Big profits will lead to big
losses. Shoddy workmanship will fail.
The year 2020 for war, a generation, and the external gates of the
nation, will be a time of war, a time to fight and to die.
There may be blessing or cursing in going to war (Deut 28:6,
19). The wars may include trade wars. It will be a
time of exodus. Those who traveled or immigrated to get rich
may be destroyed (Jas 4:13, 14). It may be the year of the electric car. Since
there are 20 years in a generation, the doubling of the 20 in the
year 2020 emphasizes the generation, such as a very important
generation in history (Matt 23:35, 36; 24:32, 33-34).
Conclusion
The year 2018 means a pillar in the temple, which is
the reward for maximum historical impact of a winner believer in
the Church (Rev 3:12). The course of history will change
because the winner obeyed God and won the victory over Satan by
executing the unique Spiritual life of human history. This
is already happening in the historical uptrend in the US which has
turned around the Four Generation Curse. The policies being
implemented by President Trump are evidence of Divine intervention
in the midst of the corruption that is in the world. The
winner believer is fighting a spiritual battle in an unseen
conflict and will likely be unknown to others. However, God
will remember the historical impact of the winner forever.
The meaning of a pillar in the temple is derived from the two
bronze pillars 18 cubits high outside Solomon's Temple. They
marked the entrance to the Temple and symbolized the way of
Eternal Life and fellowship with God. The right pillar
marked the spiritual boundary and the left pillar the temporal
boundary that separated the Divine Dynasphere from the Cosmic
System. In the Church Age the pillars also symbolize the
functions of the Church Age Believer as a king (royal ambassador)
and a priest.
The three parts of the pillars outside Solomon's Temple also
symbolize a human body standing erect.
- Capital - head
- Pillar proper - torso and legs
- Base - feet.
Pillars are support structures of a building.
Church Age Believers are being built up into a spiritual building
(the Church) (1 Pet 2:5). The spiritual strength of the
Church is parlayed into the strength of the nation under the salt
of the earth principle (Isa 1:19; Matt 5:13). Fallen pillars
are symbolic of destruction of the building. The believer
must use the armor of God to fight in Spiritual Warfare against
the enemy, win the victory, and remain standing in the Divine
Dynasphere.
References
1. Larry Wood. Doctrinal Definitions,
"Pillars," Dec.
15, 2017.
2. Larry Wood. Colors in Scripture,
"National
Blessing, National Cursing," Nov. 11, 2014.
3. Larry Wood. "Dealing with Demons in Grace," Sept. 11, 2016.
4. Larry Wood. "Sin:
The Universal Threat with Deadly Consequences," Nov. 7,
2015.
5. Larry Wood. Doctrinal
Definitions, "Standing," June 1, 2017.
Released January 1, 2018 - Revised Jan. 2, 2018
The Spiritual power
of the believer comes from the Filling of the Holy Spirit and
residence inside the Divine Dynasphere. The Filling of the
Holy Spirit gives the believer freedom from sin in his own
soul. Sin is the
personal enemy that destroys the Spiritual life and fellowship
with God.4 Sin delivers a person into spiritual
death and slavery to Satan in the Cosmic System. The Divine Dynasphere
is the source of Grace and protection from Satan and his Cosmic
System. The Divine Dynasphere surrounds the believer with
the power of God to execute the Spiritual life (1 Cor 16:13; Eph 3:16; Phil 4:13; Col 1:11).