The Manchild of Revelation 12

*"The birth of this Virgin Church was typified by St. John's vision where the great wonder appeared in heaven, bringing forth her first born that was caught up to the throne of God (or identified with the Authority of God). For as a virgin woman brought forth Christ after the flesh, so shall a Virgin Church bring forth the first born after the Spirit who shall be endowed with the seven spirits of God. This church so brought forth and sealed with the mark of Divine Authority will have no bonds of impositions, but the holy unction among these new born spirits will be all in all. There is not at this day (1619) visible upon the earth such a church, all profession being found light when weighed in the balances. Therefore they are rejected by the Supreme Judge. Which rejection will be for this cause, that out of them may come a new and glorious church. Then shall the glory of God and the Lamb so rest upon this typical tabernacle so that it shall be called the Tabernacle of Wisdom, and though it is not now known in visibility, yet it shall be seen as coming out of the wilderness within a short time; then it will go on to multiply and propagate itself universally, not only to the number of the first born (144,000) but also to the remnant of the seed, against whom the Dragon will make war continually."

    There are those who believe that the "Manchild" of Revelation 12 is Jesus of Nazareth. There are several reasons we do not hold to this view, not the least of which is the fact that the scriptures themselves state emphatically that this entire book of Revelation, including the twelfth chapter, is... "The Revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave unto him, to show unto his servants things which must shortly come to pass..." -- Revelation 1:1.

    This was written around the year 90 AD and some 56 to 57 years AFTER the death of Christ and almost 90 years after His birth. This is provable, historical fact. It could not have been referring to the Christ Jesus who was born of the virgin, Mary. There are certain applications that can be made, but this vision of a "Manchild" coming forth of a woman who was clothed in the sun, etc., speaks of something yet future.

    This something is the coming to maturity of a called-out remnant, a group of people who have left the organized religion of man, who have been brought forth in a spiritual birth by the Holy Spirit, and who have been shut away on the back side of a spiritual desert as Moses was; a people who have known the limitations and restrictions that Joseph experienced because of his brethren, yet they are destined for a throne! This something is the corporate Manchild company of overcomers who will rule and reign with Christ, for they do His will.

    This company of people, this small remnant of misfits, will come into the fullness of their inheritance in Christ because they have not limited the Holy One of Israel to simply the experience of "Passover," that is, salvation; nor have they limited Him to what they have called the full gospel. That is, having experienced "Pentecost" through the baptism of the Holy Spirit, they have not limited God to this in-part realm while they camped around their favorite doctrines.

    These have had an insatiable desire to know Him, to be conformed to His death that they might also be partakers of His resurrection, that is, the first resurrection. This company of misfits have been willing to pay a price, for they know by the Spirit that there is but one way out of this life and that is through a very real death.....death to self by way of the cross. They have not believed the lie that we are delivered from death by the cross of Christ, but unto death! Therefore, they have part in the first resurrection, being blessed and holy. The second death has no power over them.

    Beloved, do not take what I have said above to mean that you are not an heir. YOU ARE AN HEIR IN CHRIST JESUS! But consider the words of the Holy Spirit through the apostle Paul... "Now I say, That the heir, as long as he is a child, differeth nothing from a servant, though he be lord of all;" -- Galatians 4:1. I have a very dear and precious brother who takes issue with me for even using this scripture. He feels that it pertains only to the Jews who came out from under the Law. I know that it surely does pertain to them, for it states as much.

    But I also see the stating of a principle by the Holy Spirit, that we cannot come into our inheritance until we come of age in Christ: that is, until we come to the measure of the fullness of the stature of Christ, unto a complete, mature man. This simply means that so long as we remain immature, we cannot inherit. There must be those who, through the grace of God, bring forth the fruits of the Kingdom, and that is not merely "Christ in you, the hope of glory;" it is Christ, the image and glory of God, in you, IN FULLNESS! It is the Spirit WITHOUT MEASURE, WATERS THAT NO MAN COULD PASS OVER, WATERS TO SWIM IN, FLOODS ON DRY GROUND! This is what is coming next, if we err not.

    We have known the experience of 30-fold fruit-bearing in the outer court, as we kept the Feast of Passover (the Way). Many have also known the experience of 60-fold fruit-bearing in the Holy Place, as we have kept the Feast of Pentecost (the Truth). But none of us has known the experience of 100-fold fruit-bearing which takes place behind the veil of the Most Holy Place during the Feast of Tabernacles (the Life)! It is into this realm that those who will make up the corporate Manchild company, are caught up as they are sealed in their foreheads with the mind of Christ and identified with the authority of God in Christ. The woman in Revelation 12 is the true virgin Church, in general, out of which God will bring forth a Manchild remnant.

    Those so brought forth into such a realm of fullness in Christ will, as the 1619-79 Prophecy says, know no bonds or impositions of the carnal nature or of the flesh. Beyond this, it is pointless for us to speculate. Let us make our calling and election sure as to the high calling of God in Christ Jesus, moving from the in-part realm of the gifts to that which is perfect, mature, complete, which is Christ in you, All in all!

    That is to say, a "Virgin Church." Is that not, in our day also, an unusual and interesting connotation, Virgin Church. One that has not known a man. One in whom the incorruptible seed of Christ, rather than the seed of man's ideas, has been sown. Jesus said, "For there are some eunuchs, which were so born from their mother's womb: and there are some eunuchs, which were made eunuchs of men: and there be eunuchs, which have made themselves eunuchs for the kingdom of heaven's sake. He that is able to receive it, let him receive it" -- Matthew 19:12.

    A eunuch is one who has the care and oversight of the king's harem, over the king's wives. He is to look after their welfare, see to their safety and well being. The idea that the eunuch would implant his own seed in the king's wives was not even a possibility, much less an option. Eunuchs were neutered and could not perform such an act. Made eunuchs by men. Others are born eunuchs in that they have no desire for women, hopefully no desire for men either.

    It is to this situation the Lord Jesus refers when He states that some men have made themselves eunuchs for the kingdom of heaven's sake. That is, they have come to the place, through the dealings of God, by the power and mercy of God, where they do not speak their own minds, they do not implant their own concepts, ideas, dogmas, traditions, etc., into the hearts and minds of the flock of God, but have done as the apostle Paul did. "...I have espoused you to one husband, that I may present you as a chaste virgin to Christ" -- 2 Corinthians 11:2. Too often churches have become corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ through the same subtlety by which the serpent beguiled Eve with the lie.

    Words are seeds and bear the corresponding fruit. It was evident in the year 1619 that there was no visible church upon the earth that was virgin. There is today! It cannot be found down the street on some corner, bearing the name of another. The Bride should have only the name of her Beloved, her Betrothed. Her ministers have not espoused her to themselves, but to Christ!

    They have not ruled over her, but have watched over her and cared for her needs and safety, even to the laying down of their own lives when the need has arisen. They have not defiled her with their own seed, the thoughts of their own minds, the words of their concepts. She, scattered across this entire country and around the world though she is, is undefiled. And she is one. "My dove, my undefiled is but one; she is the only one of her mother, she is the choice one of her that bare her. The daughters saw her, and blessed her; yea, the queens and the concubines, and they praised her" -- Song of Songs 6:9.

    There may indeed be three score queens and four score concubines, and even virgins without number, but His undefiled is the only one who is fair as the moon, clear as the sun and as terrible as an army with banners, for she is solely His. She has left the sanctuaries of men and their theology, and has come out from among them that dance around a golden calf, the making of their own hands, entrusting herself completely and without reserve to the Lord, who is her Shepherd.

    She has allowed Him to wrap her in obscurity and anonymity while others continue to gain prominence and recognition. The last time she was seen she was coming up out of the wilderness leaning upon her Beloved. She has been so stripped of strength, so laid bare as to abilities, so crippled as to personal ambitions that she simply cannot walk alone. She must lean continually upon her heavenly Staff. She is clothed in the sun (Son) and she is crowned with judgement and wisdom, with the moon underfoot, that dead body which is but a reflection of the true.

    This is a seldom-seen view of the glorious church standing yet in the vestibule of her inheritance. She is not the Manchild, but the Manchild is within her ranks and is about to come forth. She is the Tabernacle of Wisdom, because she is the temple of Him who is Wisdom.

    As the 1619 Prophecy states, she will go on to propagate and multiply around the world, not only to the number of the firstfruits (144,000), but also to the remnant (the rest) of her seed; that is, to those in whom Christ is not yet fully manifested. There are those who bring forth fruit, some 30-fold, some 60-fold, and some 100-fold. As one star differs from another in glory (1 Corinthians 15:42), so also is the resurrection from the dead; every man in his own order. HALLELUJAH!

    Let us here take a closer look and go into more detail concerning Revelation 12 as it pertains to the issue at hand. Please read the chapter in order to refresh your memory and to get some idea of the context in which we are speaking.

REVELATION 12

1. 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:

2. And she being with child cried, travailing in birth, and pained to be delivered.

3. 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.

4. And his tail drew the third part of the stars of heaven, and did cast them to the earth: and the dragon stood before the woman which was ready to be delivered, for to devour her child as soon as it was born.

5. And she brought forth a man child, who was to rule all nations with a rod of iron: and her child was caught up unto God, and to his throne.

6. And the woman fled into the wilderness, where she hath a place prepared of God, that they should feed her there a thousand two hundred and threescore days.

7. And there was war in heaven: Michael and his angels fought against the dragon; and the dragon fought and his angels,

8. And prevailed not; neither was their place found any more in heaven.

9. And the great dragon was cast out, that old serpent, called the Devil, and Satan, which deceiveth the whole world: he was cast out into the earth, and his angels were cast out with him.

10. And I heard a loud voice saying in heaven, Now is come salvation, and strength, and the kingdom of our God, and the power of his Christ: for the accuser of our brethren is cast down, which accused them before our God day and night.

11. And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb, and by the word of their testimony; and they loved not their lives unto the death.

12. Therefore rejoice, ye heavens, and ye that dwell in them. Woe to the inhabiters of the earth and of the sea! for the devil is come down unto you, having great wrath, because he knoweth that he hath but a short time.

13. And when the dragon saw that he was cast unto the earth, he persecuted the woman which brought forth the man child.

14. And to the woman were given two wings of a great eagle, that she might fly into the wilderness, into her place, where she is nourished for a time, and times, and half a time, from the face of the serpent.

15. And the serpent cast out of his mouth water as a flood after the woman, that he might cause her to be carried away of the flood.

16. And the earth helped the woman, and the earth opened her mouth, and swallowed up the flood which the dragon cast out of his mouth.

17. And the dragon was wroth with the woman, and went to make war with the remnant of her seed, which keep the commandments of God, and have the testimony of Jesus Christ.

    I will try not to plow the same ground twice, but the woman clothed in the sun is the Church in general, although not necessarily everything out there that calls itself the Church. She is made up of blood-washed, Spirit-baptized, called-out-ones who know no King but Christ. This Virgin Church, which has not known a man nor been implanted with man's "seed," is pregnant with a small remnant of those in whom Christ is coming to fullness.

    Not every seed brings forth fruit unto perfection, that is, unto maturity and completion. Some bring forth fruit 30-fold, some 60-fold and some 100-fold. It is this fruit (100-fold) for which the Husbandman has long patience. "Be patient therefore, brethren, unto the coming of the Lord. Behold, the husbandman waiteth for the precious fruit of the earth, and hath long patience for it, until he receive the early and latter rain" -- James 5:7. Christ in you, the hope of glory!

    The child which she brings forth is the Manchild company who are birthed into a higher realm, just as the baptism of the Holy Spirit is a higher realm than that of simply justification. The portion into which this body of people is birthed is that of the Spirit without measure; whereas the baptism of the Holy Spirit has been "according to the measure of every part."

    It has been the in-part realm of the earnest of the inheritance, whereas the manifestation of the sons of God will be the realization of the inheritance, not just the down payment. This body of overcomers is caught up to God and to His throne, indicating that, as Ezekiel the 44th chapter reveals, they are a part of the Melchizedek order of priests; that is, a priesthood that is after an endless life. This Melchizedek priesthood is the same as that depicted by the Zadok priesthood. The word, Zadok is the same as the last part of Melchi-zedek. It means "righteous." Jesus Christ is the High Priest and Head of this priesthood.

    To say that the Manchild was "caught up...," does not necessarily mean that it is a physical, geographical catching up. While there is strong evidence pointing to a spiritual catching up, I personally still believe there may be a physical, geographical catching up in store for the Manchild company only, simply from the types given through Enoch and Elijah. There is also much scripture supporting the opposite view (according to our understanding of scripture).

    Whether it is spiritual or physical makes little difference in my mind, since, in either case, one must ultimately be prepared, or else the issue becomes simply a rhetorical one. In any case, those who enter into such a realm will come into what is known as the redemption of the body (Romans 8:23), that is, they will receive a new body that is not subject to the bondage of the fall of Adam but is made like unto Christ's resurrected, glorified one.

    They will thus be enabled to stand in the very presence of God, who is a consuming fire: they will be able to appear and disappear as Christ has, since His resurrection out from among the dead. They will also, if I err not, be able to be in more than one place at the same time. Christ, who is the Resurrection, is their life.

    What we are actually presented with here in the 12th chapter of Revelation is something called the placement of adoption. This has been covered in a previous chapter of this book. It is also the first resurrection spoken of in Revelation. "Blessed and holy is he that hath part in the first resurrection: on such the second death hath no power, but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with him a thousand years" -- Revelation 20:6.

*6. And the woman fled into the wilderness, where she hath a place prepared of God, that they should feed her there a thousand two hundred and threescore days. Since the woman is not the Manchild but that body out from which the Manchild is birthed, she must be those who have not as yet moved into that realm of maturity and fullness that the Manchild has entered into. She is then brought by the dealings of God into a condition of desolations, a wilderness condition. I believe that is the 3-1/2 years or 1260 days of tribulation needed to finish her cleansing and purging, whether spiritual or literal.

    I have heard preachers say that tribulation cannot cleanse one and is not needed, since the blood of Jesus cleanses every sin. We are not here speaking of sin. We are speaking of the self-life and the Adamic nature. You should notice the inferences made to gender here. One is to the Manchild, who is cleansed first and enters in: the other is to the woman whose cleansing takes longer. If we look back in the book of Leviticus where it deals with the laws of purification, we find that it took twice as long for cleansing when a girl was born than when a male was born.

   "Speak unto the children of Israel, saying, If a woman have conceived seed, and born a man child: then she shall be unclean seven days; according to the days of the separation for her infirmity shall she be unclean. And she shall then continue in the blood of her purifying three and thirty days; she shall touch no hallowed thing, nor come into the sanctuary, until the days of her purifying be fulfilled. But if she bear a maid child, then she shall be unclean two weeks, as in her separation: and she shall continue in the blood of her purifying threescore and six days" -- Leviticus 12:2, 4, 5.

    This was a type that was to teach us that if we walk after the soul (psuche-feminine) rather than the spirit (ruwach-masculine), it will take longer to come to purification. Thus, the woman of Revelation 12, walking after the soulish activity of the mind, affections and self-will, is not brought forth to maturity as quickly as those who walk after the Spirit. "For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God" -- Romans 8:14. "...that they should feed her there a thousand two hundred and threescore." The Manchild company, who have entered into life, will feed the woman, nourish her, minister to her and ultimately bring her into fullness of life also. When I say, "life," I am referring to that realm behind the veil in the Holy of Holies.

    Immediately there is war in heaven. That's because the sons of God have entered into a realm in the heavenlies from whence Satan has for so long ruled. "For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places" -- Ephesians 6:12.

    This is the time when he (Satan), of whom Pharaoh was but the type, is confronted by Christ's representatives on earth in order to bring out of hard servitude the chosen seed of God. Moses and Aaron were a type of those who will bear the first office under Christ to confront the Adversary of God and completely overthrow him and his regency. To this end the great Prince, Michael, will stand for the children of God.

   "And at that time shall Michael stand up, the great prince which standeth for the children of thy people: and there shall be a time of trouble, such as never was since there was a nation even to that same time: and at that time thy people shall be delivered, every one that shall be found written in the book" -- Daniel 12:1.

    The great dragon was cast out, who had from thence deceived the whole world. That's the good news. NOW! When the sons are caught up to the realm of governing authority. NOW is come salvation! NOW is come strength! NOW is come THE KINGDOM OF OUR GOD AND OF HIS CHRIST! But woe unto the inhabiters of the earth and of the sea! For he has come down to you in great wrath, for he knoweth he hath but a short time. The inhabiters of the earth are those who yet walk in the fallen nature of the earthy man, Adam. It is that vast multitude which constitutes the sea of humanity.

    So the woman comes into a wilderness condition where the sons of God minister to her for 3-1/2 years. During this time the serpent casts out of his mouth water as a flood after the woman, that he might cause her to be carried away of the flood. But the scriptures say that the earth helped the woman by opening its mouth and swallowing this flood of waters. What...is this talking about? Unless I am completely misled, that which comes out of the mouth of the serpent is just what it was in the garden...deception. There is now a flood of it such as has never been seen before.

    We are living now in a time when there is a flood of information, floods of books, of tapes, of sources of data. Some are true, some are false. There are a great many things in this hour which closely parallel the truth and which are causing some to be deceived. The New Age Movement is one instrument Satan is using to flood the world with half-truths and outright lies. This is a time when false Christs and false prophets so abound, showing great signs and wonders; insomuch that if it were possible, even the very elect would be deceived. All this flood of deception will find a repository in those who are of the earth, earthy. Those yet in fallen Adam.

    So, the dragon goes to make war with the remnant of her seed. He can't get at those who have moved on beyond the veil, into the Most Holy Place, for he cometh and findeth nothing in them. He has no legal standing or ground here because this is the New Creation only, and Satan has ground only in fallen Adam. So he focuses his attentions on the remnant of her seed, that is, the rest of her seed who have not yet moved into the fullness of their inheritance in Christ.