The Fulness of Time
A study of end time prophecy happening now
Introduction and Foreword
‘And He has made known to us the mystery of His will according to His good pleasure, which He purposed in Christ as a plan for the fullness of time, to bring all things in heaven and on earth together in Christ’ (Ephesians 1:9-10 BSB)
‘Thou shalt arise, and have mercy upon Zion: for the time to favour her, yea, the set time, is come’ (Psalm 102:13 KJV)
‘Rejoice, rejoice, Emmanuel shall come to you O Israel’ 12th Century Latin text, author unknown
Introduction
What separates these times from any other? Nothing you might say. The prophesies of old are read by many who determine that they are either too complex to understand, they are a puzzle, or that the events described have been in progress for millennia; wars and rumours of wars, nation rising against nation, persecution of minority groups, famine, plagues, and earthquakes in various places (Matt. 24:6-7). Yet there are prophesies laid down in scripture that indicate a punctuation, an ending of this age as we know it and the beginning of another. Matt. 24:37-39 reads ‘As it was in the days of Noah, so will it be at the coming of the Son of Man. For in the days before the flood, people were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, up to the day Noah entered the ark. And they were oblivious, until the flood came and swept them all away. So will it be at the coming of the Son of Man’. BSB
When we read these scriptures, we read of events that will take place many days hence i.e., a forthtelling from the heart and mind of God concerning his creation in relation to the dimension of time. When these insights were forth told they came in as visions, dreams, and word. At these times in history there were also wars and rumours of wars, nation rising against nation, persecution of minority groups, famine, plagues, and earthquakes in various places, yet it was made clear to these prophets that what they had received did not apply to their days, but to days yet to come.
This is what we read from the prophet Daniel when he concluded his writings in Dan.12:1 ‘There will be a time of distress, the likes of which will not have occurred from the beginning of nations until that time’ Dan.12:4-9 ‘But you, Daniel, shut up these words and seal the book until the time of the end. Many will roam to and fro, and knowledge will increase.” Then I, Daniel, looked and saw two others standing there, one on this bank of the river and one on the opposite bank. One of them said to the man dressed in linen, who was above the waters of the river, “How long until the fulfilment of these wonders?” And the man dressed in linen, who was above the waters of the river, raised his right hand and his left hand toward heaven, and I heard him swear by Him who lives forever, saying, “It will be for a time, and times, and half a time. When the power of the holy people has finally been shattered, all these things will be completed.” I heard, but I did not understand. So I asked, “My lord, what will be the outcome of these things?” “Go on your way, Daniel,” he replied, “for the words are closed up and sealed until the time of the end‘ BSB.
Jesus told the original twelve disciples that (like Daniel) it was not given for them to understand the times and the seasons (Acts 1:7), however, it is also written that, at the time of the end, the wise will understand the times (Daniel 12:5‑13). They will seek to view the times and seasons from God's perspective, and they will understand!
In the book of Daniel 12:9‑10 it reads: ‘And he said, ‘Go your way, Daniel, for the words are closed up and sealed till the time of the end. Many shall be purified, made white, and refined, but the wicked shall do wickedly; and none of the wicked shall understand, but the wise shall understand’’ KJV.
So, prophesy reveals that for those who are alive at ‘the time of the end’ and who seek the mind and heart of Yahweh-Jehoshua can expect to understand the answer to the question of the holy men of old. ‘How long shall it be to the end of these wonders?’ (Daniel 12:6 KJV).
In our time, the hearts of Christians are being stirred by the Spirit to asking, seeking, and knocking, for the door of understanding will be opened. Jesus tells us in Luke 9:9-10 ‘So I tell you: Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; he who seeks finds; and to him who knocks, the door will be opened’ BSB. The parable goes on to explain the reason why doors are opened for Luke 11:13 reads: ‘So if you who are evil know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him!’ For insight into prophecy, the Spirit is needed to gain perspective and light on them.
The words of prophesy concerning the events of our generation are no longer closed and sealed (Revelation 22:10). It is our responsibility to seek God while He may be found (Isaiah 55:6). The Son of Man is the author, and He will explain them. Simon Peter, when he received a revelation concerning the Christ, the Son of the living God, was told by Jesus ‘For this was not revealed to you by flesh and blood, but by My Father in heaven’ BSB.
These writings may be difficult to understand yet in the scriptures we are encouraged many times to read and comprehend them as a light might shine in dark places in this world.
In this quest, we must wait for the Holy Spirit to give us insight, for all the wisdom in the world will not discern the truths contained here-in unless there is just one breath of the Spirit on it. In Matt.11:25-26 we read that ‘Jesus declared, ‘I praise You, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because You have hidden these things from the wise and learned, and revealed them to little children. Yes, Father, for this was well-pleasing in Your sight’ BSB. All that is needed to engage and unlock these truths is an earnestness in prayer and faith, and as Bill Turners writes in his study ‘Don’t let anyone fool you, and lead you astray’ P.3: ‘A resolve to do the will of God releases and opens the soul and mind to the correct interpretation of God’s Word’.
‘Yet the Bible is given not to mystify but to reveal’ writes C L Parker in the introduction to his book ‘According to Plan’ and at this end of this ‘age of time’ another will follow referred to by the prophets as the ‘Age of Ages’. For more information and to read C L Parker’s excellent studies on this subject go to https://prophetbillturner.com/ Study 36b ‘The Mystery of God’ and Study #36c ‘According to Plan’.
The reading of the prophesies become much clearer when we realise that they are not necessarily written in a linear fashion but were set down as they were revealed by God to the prophets. In this way many prophesies run parallel and overlap, and can repeat themselves, as two visions of the same event are seen from different perspectives.
So there appears to be evidence, no matter how fragmented, of an unfolding of un-fulfilled prophesy, whereby the events that have gone before are not the same as those happening now, either in the natural world around us or in the global events now facing the nations. Let us then consider the evidence for these distinctions and determine to understand them more clearly. As C L Parker goes on to say in the introduction to his book ‘According to Plan’: ‘He (Jesus) stands before us as One who asks a verdict upon evidence set before us. May those who have given us the picture of Him in the Book be heard and gain the verdict: 'Truly this man was the Son of God.’’
I am just a layman in terms of Bible theology but when scriptures keep on jumping out at me then I thought it best to write them down and do something about it, hence the writing of this study. I am consoled to think that in so doing then I am in good company for none of the disciples of Jesus were from the ‘school of the rabbis’, rather they were laymen who were also open to understand such matters and in so doing wondered at these events. The shepherds of old as they kept watch of their sheep were amazed at what the angels told them and what the found in Bethlehem was ‘a Saviour has been born to you. He is Christ the Lord!’ (Luke 2:8-20).
One great hero of the Christian faith and certainly one of mine must undoubtably be William Tyndale who in his 1525 translation of the New Testament translated the Greek word ‘ekklesia’ (Greek: εκκλησία), literally ‘called out ones’ as ‘congregation’ or ‘assembly’ rather than ‘church’. It has been asserted this translation choice ‘was a direct threat to the Church's ancient’ however, Tyndale wanted to make clear in his translation that it was not the church structures that laid claim to the fundamentals of Christian knowledge and claim to be the body of Christ on earth but the assemblies of the common people who had become Christians.
These words were to strip the Church hierarchy of its pretensions to be Christ's terrestrial representative, and to award this honour to individual worshipers who made up each congregation. Tyndale was determined to make the scriptures clear to all seekers of the truth. Yahweh our God is too. One of Tyndale’s most famous quotes must surely be ‘I defie the Pope and his lawes. If God spare my life, ere many years I wyl cause a boy that driveth the plough to know more of the scripture, than though dost’.
I am one of Tyndale’s ‘ekklesia’, a ‘plough boy’, and I am amazed how the scriptures and in particular the prophesies of old can unfold in a new way when pondered on in the light of the Spirit. John 14:26 reads ‘But the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have told you’ BSB.
Heathen kings of old such as Pharaoh and Nebuchadnezzar received profound dreams and visions from the Eternal God yet even with all of their councillors did not understand them. Instead, it was the citizens of heaven who were able to shed light on them i.e., Joseph and Daniel and others too. The people who are unregenerate i.e., have no knowledge of the prime source of spiritual life, will never hear and understand, never see, or perceive, until on the Day they see the one whom they pierced (Zech.12:10; John 19:37; Rev. 1:7). Isaiah 6:9-12 reads ‘And He (Yahweh) replied: “Go and tell this people, ‘Be ever hearing, but never understanding; be ever seeing, but never perceiving.’ Make the hearts of this people calloused; deafen their ears and close their eyes. Otherwise they might see with their eyes, hear with their ears, understand with their hearts, and turn and be healed.” Then I asked: “How long, O Lord?” And He replied: “Until the cities lie ruined and without inhabitant, until the houses are left unoccupied and the land is desolate and ravaged’ BSB. This prophesy was repeated by Jesus in Matt.13:15 and John 12:40 and also by Paul in Acts 28:27. Only the ‘called out ones’ of Tyndale’s ‘ekklesia’ are able to fully comprehend this cause.
So, to this study. It is written to and fro as each topic came rolling as waves upon the beach allowing me to record them where they fell. It is not a linear approach, rather it is a compilation of information as it was unfolded to me and so I have left it where it landed and have put together an index which highlights each heading as it emerges from each previous theme.
I have taken quotations from both the King James Version of the Bible (KJV) and the Berean Study Bible (BSB) because neither of these versions require permissions to use them when included in other documents or publications. On occasions you will find the same scriptures repeated at different points in the study. These are included intentionally and as they were received and, I hope, help to highlight different aspects of similar themes in the study.
My prayer is that this study will encourage the reader to dig deep into the writings of scripture and in so doing to be strengthened in your understanding of God’s heart and mind for His people. Acts 17:11-12 reads ‘Now the Bereans were more noble-minded than the Thessalonians, for they received the message with great eagerness and examined the Scriptures every day to see if these teachings were true. As a result, many of them believed, along with quite a few prominent Greek women and men’ BSB
As when using a computer, we click on the power button and are given three options; shut down, re-start, or sleep. Today, we need to consider the real source of our power as Christians. It is neither time to shut down nor sleep, it is time to re-start, for the fulness of time is near to hand, even at the door.
Anon Author, 03 December 2020 to 28 May 2021
Foreword
It was a privilege to have met Bill Turner, more so to be able to call him a father in the faith. Bill’s quiet mannerism belied him as a man who through his Christian walk understood something of the character of God. Bill’s primary gifts were that a prophet and a teacher. Bill died in 2012 yet he spoke to the following generation, to help prepare us for the dark days to come and to see the body and bride of Christ prepared and ready for the coming of that great and glorious day when the Messiah comes to meet with His people. Like the five wise virgins, he realised the importance of having the oil of prophetic truth correctly discerned so that the people of God are prepared and ready, waiting for His arrival which is to come at the midnight hour (Matt.25:2).
We today are grateful recipients of his studies and give thanks to those, especially from the fellowships in Northern Ireland, who recorded his talks both in audio and video format and have compiled both the studies and these recordings on the website www.prophetbillturner.com. Alister Hamilton has also incorporated Bill’s teachings on his website www.truthforthelastdays.com.
Click below link to continue reading
PART ONE: (i) THE GATHERING STORM
PART ONE: (ii) THE GATHERING STORM
PART THREE: KEY DETERMINATES OF 'THE APPOINTED TIME'