A Revealing Bible Study

 "These are the two olive trees, and the two candlesticks standing before the God of the earth. And if any man will hurt them, fire proceedeth out of their mouth, and devoureth their enemies: and if any man will hurt them, he must in this manner be killed. These have power to shut heaven that it rain not in the days of their prophecy: and have power over waters to turn them to blood, and to smite the earth with all plagues, as often as they will.

"And when they shall have finished their testimony, the beast that ascendeth out of the bottomless pit shall make war against them, and shall overcome them, and kill them. And their dead bodies [shall lie] in the street of the great city, which spiritually is called Sodom and Egypt, where also our Lord was crucified. And they of the people and kindred’s and tongues and nations shall see their dead bodies three days and an half, and shall not suffer their dead bodies to be put in graves.

"And they that dwell upon the earth shall rejoice over them, and make merry, and shall send gifts one to another; because these two prophets tormented them that dwelt on the earth. And after three days and an half the Spirit of life from God entered into them, and they stood upon their feet; and great fear fell upon them which saw them. And they heard a great voice from heaven saying unto them, Come up hither. And they ascended up to heaven in a cloud; and their enemies beheld them.” (Revelation 11:4-12)

"And two olive trees by it, one upon the right [side] of the bowl, and the other upon the left [side] thereof. (Zechariah 4:3) Then answered I, and said unto him, what [are] these two olive trees upon the right [side] of the candlestick and upon the left [side] thereof? (Zechariah 4:11)

"And I answered again, and said unto him, what [be these] two olive branches which (I) through the two golden pipes (II) empty (III) the golden [oil] out of themselves? And he answered me and said, Knowest thou not what these [be]? And I said, No, my lord. Then said he, ‘These [are] the two (I) anointed ones, that stand by the Lord of the whole earth.” (Zechariah 4:12-14)

Zechariah 4:12 -- (I) Hebrew by the hand; (II) or, empty out of themselves oil into gold; (III) Hebrew the gold. Zech. 4:14 -- (I) Hebrew, sons of oil - Scripture references: Rev. 11:4; Zech. 3:7; Luke 1:19; Josh. 3:11, 13; Zech. 6:5.

"These are the two olive trees, and the two candlesticks standing before the God of the earth. (Revelation 11:4) Thus saith the Lord of hosts; If thou wilt walk in my ways, and if thou wilt keep my charge, then thou shalt also judge my house, and shalt also keep my courts, and I will give thee places to walk among these that stand by.” (Zechariah 3:7)

”And the angel answering said unto him, I am Gabriel, that stand in the presence of God; and am sent to speak unto thee, and to show thee these glad tidings. And behold thou shalt be dumb, and not able to speak, until the day that these things shall be performed, because thou believest not my words, which shall be fulfilled in their season.” (Luke 1:19, 20) “Behold, the ark of the covenant of the Lord of all the earth passeth over before you into Jordan. And it shall come to pass, as soon as the soles of the feet of the priests that bear the ark of the Lord, the Lord of all the earth, shall rest in the waters of Jordan, that the waters of Jordan shall be cut off from the waters that come down from above; and they shall stand upon an heap.” (Joshua 3:11, 14)

Who are these two anointed ones? “And as it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment:” (Hebrews 9:27) Because of what Hebrews 9:27 declares, they were prophets who lived on the earth and did not die when they departed. Here is evidence of two who are with Jesus in bodily form. Mathew 17:1-4 “And after six days Jesus taketh Peter, James, and John his brother, and bringeth them up into a high mountain apart, And was transfigured before them: and his face did shine as the sun, and his raiment was white as the light. And behold, there appeared unto them Moses and Elijah talking with him. Then answered Peter, and said unto Jesus, Lord, it is good for us to be here: if thou wilt, let us make here three tabernacles; one for thee, and one for Moses, and one for Elijah."

What does it mean to be transfigured? Transfiguration # 3339. Metamorphoo; denoting change of condition. Used of Jesus involving the miracle of transformation from an earthly form into a supernatural which is denoted by the radiance of the garments, also the countenance, suggesting what the bodies of the righteous may be like in the age to come (1Cor. 15:51f.)

What Jesus was teaching in this miracle was that Moses and Elijah where still alive and are the only two that are qualified to become the two anointed in the streets of Jerusalem. Moses and Elijah both did powerful miracles. Moses had power from God to part the sea and brings about many other miracles and Elijah called fire from heaven. Elijah was translated when he was taken up: "And it came to pass, as they still went on, and talked, that, behold, [there appeared] a chariot of fire, and horses of fire, and parted them both asunder; and Elijah went up by a whirlwind into heaven.” (2 Kings 2:11)

"Moses was said to have died, it was written but they never found his remains. "Nevertheless death reigned from Adam to Moses, even over them that had not sinned after the similitude of Adam's transgression, who is the figure of him that was to come. (Romans 5:14) "Yet Michael the archangel, when contending with the devil he disputed about the body of Moses, durst not bring against him a railing accusation, but said, The Lord rebuke thee.” (Jude 1:9) The fact that the archangel Michael brought Moses’ body to heaven proves where Moses’ body is located: in heaven confirming the two witnesses are Moses and Elijah.

September 21, 2003

Dearest Confused,

I am unsure why you sounded distressed about Elijah, the prophet of old who came again as John the Baptist and was promised by Jesus that he would come yet again before His great and glorious return. You had made it sound like Elijah was a false prophet! Now, I can tell you that many have come of late who have claimed to be Elijah. These men are deluded and full of selfish illusion, unrighteous anger and hatreds. I know a certain man who has declared himself to be thus the same. Woe unto him and all that make that claim before they demonstrate their true gifting and power. You see, men will come and have come claiming to be him yet are unable to demonstrate the character of the true prophet of God.

These are those who seek the empty praise of men and seek after weak women, captivating them and seducing them into submission for the sake of their selfish interests and sensual desires. He still thinks he is Elijah to this day. In his case, he came from the Jehovah Witness organization and was cast out of this church being accused of being a false prophet. See, even the apostate church organizations cannot stand what they themselves breed. Demons hate each other for none of them know love of any kind; they know only unbalanced hatreds and often envy one another. By the way, did you ever notice that all the temples of the Jehovah Witness group never have any windows on their buildings? It’s true, check it out the next time you see a “kingdom hall.”

In the case of the man whom I know in the Northwest, he was a polygamist and could never find more than one woman at a time to please. He sought after sexual desires to appease his own appetite. Furthermore, he had seduced a man for ten years into a type of unhealthy bondage. That man was a loyal and faithful servant but was made weak over time and circumstance and no longer could stand as a man separate of men.

I was personally instrumental in helping to deliver this man-servant from bondage and he is a free man to this day and loyal to Christ my Lord and that which I do. This man only knows how to serve and has not a selfish bone in his body though he is slow of speech and somewhat deficient in strength and resolve. It is apparent that the ravages of time and circumstance have made him unable to be strong and stand on his own. I will tell you he loves Jesus and is grateful for what I had done by the power, grace and mercies afforded me. His name is Keith and this witness is hereby recorded.

Now getting on to the true “Spirit of Elijah”…

2 Kings 1:6-15 “And they said unto him, There came a man up to meet us, and said unto us, Go, turn again unto the king that sent you, and say unto him, Thus saith the LORD, Is it not because there is not a God in Israel, that thou sends to enquire of Beelzebub the god of Ekron? Therefore thou shalt not come down from that bed on which thou art gone up, but shalt surely die. And he said unto them, ‘What manner of man was he which came up to meet you, and told you these words?’ And they answered him, He was a hairy man, and girt with a girdle of leather about his loins. And he said, It is Elijah the Tishbite. Then the king sent unto him a captain of fifty with his fifty. And he went up to him: and, behold, he sat on the top of an hill. And he spoke unto him, Thou man of God, the king hath said, Come down. And Elijah answered and said to the captain of fifty, If I be a man of God, then let fire come down from heaven, and consume thee and thy fifty. And there came down fire from heaven, and consumed him and his fifty. Again also he sent unto him another captain of fifty with his fifty. And he answered and said unto him, O man of God, thus hath the king said, come down quickly. And Elijah answered and said unto them, If I be a man of God, let fire come down from heaven, and consume thee and thy fifty. And the fire of God came down from heaven, and consumed him and his fifty. And he sent again a captain of the third fifty with his fifty. And the third captain of fifty went up, and came and fell on his knees before Elijah, and besought him, and said unto him, O man of God, I pray thee, let my life, and the life of these fifty thy servants, be precious in thy sight. Behold, there came fire down from heaven, and burnt up the two captains of the former fifties with their fifties: therefore let my life now be precious in thy sight. And the angel of the LORD said unto Elijah, Go down with him: be not afraid of him. And he arose, and went down with him unto the king.”

Many believe that Elijah was a prophet with great power. I declare that it is not the man who is made a prophet who has great power but it is the man who fears God and is protected by God who possesses great power for the purposes of serving God’s will. We see this demonstrated again…

2 Kings 2:5-14 “And the sons of the prophets that were at Jericho came to Elisha, and said unto him, “Knows thou that the LORD will take away thy master from thy head to day?” And he answered, Yea, I know it; hold ye your peace. And Elijah said unto him, Tarry, I pray thee, here; for the LORD hath sent me to Jordan. And he said, As the LORD lives, and as thy soul lives, I will not leave thee. And they two went on. And fifty men of the sons of the prophets went, and stood to view afar off: and they two stood by Jordan. And Elijah took his mantle, and wrapped it together, and smote the waters, and they were divided hither and thither, so that they two went over on dry ground.

And it came to pass, when they were gone over, that Elijah said unto Elisha, Ask what I shall do for thee, before I be taken away from thee. And Elisha said, I pray thee, let a double portion of thy spirit be upon me. And he said, Thou hast asked a hard thing: nevertheless, if thou see me when I am taken from thee, it shall be so unto thee; but if not, it shall not be so. And it came to pass, as they still went on, and talked, that, behold, there appeared a chariot of fire, and horses of fire, and parted them both asunder; and Elijah went up by a whirlwind into heaven. And Elisha saw it, and he cried, My father, my father, the chariot of Israel, and the horsemen thereof. And he saw him no more: and he took hold of his own clothes, and rent them in two pieces. He took up also the mantle of Elijah that fell from him, and went back, and stood by the bank of Jordan; And he took the mantle of Elijah that fell from him, and smote the waters, and said, Where is the LORD God of Elijah? And when he also had smitten the waters, they parted hither and thither: and Elisha went over.”

Again, the powers of God were made manifest and were made known to Elijah’s servant, a God fearing man whose name was Elisha. The power that Moses demonstrated while leading the Hebrews from bondage and parting the Red Sea was thus the same. The power and glory belongs to God. Don’t ever let anyone tell you otherwise.

Now there will come a day when two witnesses will appear as indicated in the book of Revelations. These men we are told will have great power so as to even shut up the sky of rain or create a great deluge. We are also told that they will torment the sons of men for a period of…? (Can you tell me how long?) Remember when Jesus was transfigured on the mountain before the three disciples? Who was Jesus standing there and speaking with? Was it not Moses and Elijah? Of course! These two men whom are now Spirit in resurrected bodies will appear again before the great and terrible day of the Lord. They are the two true witnesses. Mark my words; I tell you the truth, I lie not!

Jesus had indicated clearly that John the Baptist was Elijah and that Elijah would come again. He was speaking of that time when the two witnesses would appear, no doubt about it!

Matthew 11:11-14 “Verily I say unto you, among them that are born of women there hath not risen a greater than John the Baptist: notwithstanding he that is least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he. And from the days of John the Baptist until now the kingdom of heaven suffers violence, and the violent take it by force. For all the prophets and the law prophesied until John. And if ye will receive it, this is Elijah which was for to come.”

This passage is largely misunderstood because the English translations have it as “Was to come” but in fact the ancient Greek is clear, the original manuscripts do say that “He is to come.” What else could Jesus be talking about at that time since John the Baptist had already showed up on the scene? Does it not make sense then that he was talking of a time still yet to come? Of course He was but that does not mean it will be one of us and certainly not one who boasts of being such!

There is another essence of the above verse that you should rejoice in and that is those who were to follow would be greater than John the Baptist because He says “He who is least in the Kingdom is greater than he.” Whom is he talking about? I think you know well it is not all those who are calling themselves Christian today. It is those who are able to remain fully surrendered to Christ’s authority and endure in their faithfulness unto the end!

1 Peter 4:17-19 “For the time is come that judgment must begin at the house of God: and if it first begins at us, what shall the end be of them that obey not the gospel of God? And if the righteous scarcely be saved, where shall the ungodly and the sinner appear? Wherefore let them that suffer according to the will of God commit the keeping of their souls to him in well doing, as unto a faithful Creator.”

Another Letter Answered… Not long ago, I received a letter from an inquirer who serves with a large International Ministry outreach Corporation, World Vision International. He wanted to know why he was always being shut out by other similar organizations (Discernment Ministries) when he brought forth his questions and asked for further explanation. My reply follows;

Dear Charles,

Thank you for your inquiry and concern. I cannot know specifically whom you are speaking of as you did not indicate any specific Ministry. We are considered a “Discernment Ministry" and should not have been so easily referenced and categorized with other groups. I and we all agree here at Cephas, that we are always looking for open door opportunities to engage in healthy communication otherwise we might be remiss in our duty as witnesses to His abiding Spirit. If someone whom you've contacted does not make a concerted effort to engage in such interaction, he or they are remiss in their duty as a follower of Christ Jesus. I can concur that many are closed mouth about their defense of and testimony to their proclaimed faith and actually are often stupefied when made accountable of an unworthy statement, preaching, practice or doctrine. Few are they that can actually endure a faithfulwitness and testimony of Christ's direction and authority in their life. It is as if the mouths of lions are shut up under the very scrutiny of the unwavering Word of God and Jesus' example.

A lack of effort on their part often indicates a selfish and conceited Spirit, revealing the sour fruit of human pride. This of course is further evidence of the deeply ingrained heresy of selfish religion vs. selfless and pious faith.

Spend enough time at our site, Nicholas Scrolls and Cephas Ministry, http://nicholasscrolls.cephasministry.com and http://cephasministry.com and you will begin to see just how deceived so many are as they continue to promote tradition, ritual, and control while they lie and so often declare themselves to be the "only church" yet remain divided amongst their own constituents. I thought Jesus said, "Any house that is divided against itself will fall." We are finally beginning to see God's judgment sweeping across the planet and starting with the many divided houses of God. He promised it would be so and we are witnesses to this prophetic fulfillment. I welcome these days because I believe it about time that the separation is made between the wheat and tares. The tares are what have indeed, choked the pure and blameless Word of God out. That is why so many churches are under attack, being judged and exposed for their harlotries and idolatries. Hallelujah that my Lord is faithful and uses us to achieve His will at the appropriate time and place!

Are we not given to judge and measure one another that are within the Church while God has already judged the world without? Are we not supposed to hold one another accountable to a correct understanding and application of faith in Christ Jesus, our Lord and Savior? 1 Corinthians 5:5-13 “To deliver such a one unto Satan for the destruction of the flesh that the spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord Jesus. Your glorying is not good. Know ye not that a little leaven leavens the whole lump? Purge out therefore the old leaven that ye may be a new lump, as ye are unleavened. For even Christ our Passover is sacrificed for us: Therefore let us keep the feast, not with old leaven, neither with the leaven of malice and wickedness; but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth. I wrote unto you in an epistle not to company with fornicators: Yet not altogether with the fornicators of this world, or with the covetous, or extortioners, or with idolaters; for then must ye needs go out of the world. But now I have written unto you not to keep company, if any man that is called a brother be a fornicator, or covetous, or an idolater, or a railer, or a drunkard, or an extortioner; with such an one no not to eat. For what have I to do to judge them also that are without? Do not ye judge them that are within? But them that are without God judges. Therefore put away from among yourselves that wicked person.”

I for one welcome your inquiries and questions and look forward to a lively discussion indeed. As for the rest, I cannot speak for these men whom you are talking about. I do know that there is even division among those of us who are engaged in "Discernment Ministry." My only true test and measure is always the Word of God. Let that also be your judge and measure and do not let another ministry's doctrines and old precepts fog out the call and duty to God. We have an obligation to Christ to be faithful as He was and is also faithful towards us. Religion is the lie and our duty is to be faithful witnesses.

By the His commission and authority under Christ Jesus our Lord, Nicholas