The Church as the Testimony of Jesus is the Firstfruits and the Harvest in Rev. 14

In the book of Revelation we see the consummation of all that God has been doing throughout the ages, and in it we see a revelation of Jesus Christ (the Word of God) and the church (the testimony of Jesus).

The church as the testimony of Jesus is first revealed as being the seven golden lampstands (Rev. 1-3), then as the great multitude before the throne of God and of the Lamb (Rev. 7). Furthermore, the church as the testimony of Jesus is the bright universal woman with her man-child in Rev. 12.

Two chapters later we see that the testimony of Jesus is the firstfruits (the 144.000, the overcomers raptured before the great tribulation), and the harvest (the majority of the believers, rapture at the end of the great tribulation).

It is very important to realize that the church as the testimony of Jesus is not only the bright universal woman with her man-child but also the firstfruits with the harvest. As the man-child, the testimony of Jesus is composed of the overcomers who are executing Christ’s victory over the enemy and cast him down from the heavens to the earth (Rev. 12:9). As the firstfruits, the overcomers are the early ripened believers, those who cooperate with Christ as the seed of life growing in them to mature early, and they are raptured by God for His satisfaction.

In both cases there’s the general body of Christians who will later be raptured, but what God desires is to gain the overcomers: they fully cooperate with God and help Him set in motion the things that will bring about the end of the age of the church and bring in the age of the kingdom!

We need to be produced by the Lord as the firstfruits, those who are not defiled by anything impure and who follow the Lamb wherever He goes, growing in life unto maturity for God’s satisfaction! God NEEDS the firstfruits – He wants to enjoy an “early crop” of His field, and He is satisfied with these early matured ones!

Eventually, all the believers will be matured in life, but we need to be those who cooperate with the Lord today to ripen early for Him to take us to Himself for His satisfaction!

The Testimony of Jesus is the Firstfruits and the Harvest in Revelation 14

In Rev. 14:1-16 we see that the church as the testimony of Jesus is the firstfruits and the harvest, the overcomers and the general body of believers.

The one hundred and forty-four thousand standing with the Lamb on Mount Zion have His name and the name of His Father written on their foreheads, and they are firstfruits to God and to the Lamb (Rev. 14:1-5). They are a small number of believers (compared to the harvest) that are ripened early and then raptured to God on Mount Zion.

When the Lord Jesus came into us, He sowed Himself as the seed of life in our heart, seeking to grow and develop unto maturity. If seek to not be defiled with the things of this world, with anything of death and idolatry (as Daniel and his friends did in Dan. 1:5-8), the Lord can grow in us in an unhindered way and our heart will be the good earth for the growth of the seed of life.

Since the time the Lord Jesus came to the earth, He has been sowing Himself into His believers and He has been growing in them to make them God’s farm, His crop on the earth (see Matt. 13:3-8, 24; 1 Cor. 3:9). Some of the believers are ripened first – they cooperate with the Lord more for His growth in their being – and they are the overcomers who are reaped (raptured) before the great tribulation to be firstfruits to God and to the Lamb (see Rev. 14:1-5).

However, the majority of the believers will ripen later, since in this life they may not fully cooperate with the Lord to let Him grow in them. With the help of sufferings and tribulation, the majority of the believers will be ripen and will be reaped at the end of the great tribulation, being the harvest to the Lord (Rev. 14:15).

But what God desires as a Heavenly Farmer is to have the firstfruits for His satisfaction! The rapture of the overcomers before the great tribulation is mainly for God’s satisfaction and enjoyment, and so we need to make ourselves ready to be raptured NOT for our happiness but for the fulfillment of God’s purpose (see Rev. 12:5, 7-11; 14:1, 4b; 19:7).

We are here for God and for His purpose, and every day the Lord becomes much more real and precious to us! Actually, today we can live in the index of the Lord’s eyes, as Paul did (2 Cor. 2:10), and then the Lord will simply take us to Himself. If we live in the Lord’s presence today, He will rapture us to be with Him for His enjoyment before the great tribulation.

May we simply follow the Lamb wherever He goes, not be defiled, and cooperate with the growth of the divine life in us unto maturity TODAY so that we may be the firstfruits, those raptured before the great tribulation!

Lord Jesus, thank You for sowing Yourself as the seed of life into our heart. Grow in us more today. Lord, cause us to grow in life and be ripened earlier to be the firstfruits for Your enjoyment and satisfaction. We set ourselves aside for You that we may not be defiled with anything of the world and of idolatry. Lord, we are here for God and for His purpose. We want to live unto You and cooperate with You that You may grow in us and mature us. May Your life grow unto maturity more today! Gain Your firstfruits, Your overcomers!

The Man-child and the Firstfruits Fulfill God’s Purpose: Image and Dominion

The Bible is an amazing book, having the seeds of all the divine truths being sown in the book of Genesis (the first book of the Bible), developing the divine truths throughout the books of the Bible, and having a “harvest” or consummation of all the divine truths in the book of Revelation (the last book of the Bible).

God did many things, but they are all focused on one thing: He desires to have an expression and representation on earth and in the universe through man (see Gen. 1:26). Throughout the Bible we see how God seeks to gain man to be His expression and representation, and in the book of Revelation we see the consummation of God’s purpose.

The church as the testimony of Jesus is God’s corporate expression and it represents God on earth in full. Specifically, the overcomers in the church are those who express God and represent Him.

In Rev. 14 we see that the testimony of Jesus is the firstfruits (the overcomers who are ripened early and are raptured before the great tribulation) and the harvest (the majority of the believers who will be ripened later and are raptured at the end of the great tribulation). With the firstfruits, God gains His expression and He is satisfied: they are raptured to God’s throne for His satisfaction, since they express God in full.

In Rev. 12 we see the great universal woman (the body of all of God’s redeemed ones) with the man-child (the overcomers); the man-child is raptured to God and he defeats Satan and casts him down to the earth. With the man-child, God gets His representation – the man-child represents God and executes His dominion.

With the firstfruits and the man-child, God gets His expression and representation in man! With and through the overcomers in the church, God is expressed and represented. God desires to gain the overcomers, those who overcome anything negative in themselves and around them, those who love the Lord with the first love, those who allow the Lord to trim away anything natural and old, and those who pay the price to buy the oil in their vessel.

These are the early ripened ones, those who mature early, and God has to rapture them to be with Him for His satisfaction! They love the Lord with the best love, and because they love Him, they fight for Him and execute His judgement over His enemy.

Lord, fulfill Your word in Genesis 1:26. Gain Your overcomers, the new race who expresses You in full and represent You with Your dominion. In this age of the degradation of the church we give ourselves to You to be produced as the man-child and the firstfruits for Your representation and expression. Lord, we want to be Your lovers and Your fighters, those who love You with their best love and fight for Your interest on earth. Lord, gain the man-child to fight against Your enemy and the firstfruits for Your satisfaction!

References and Hymns on this Topic

• Inspiration: the Word of God, my Christian experience, bro. Dick Taylor’s speaking in the message for this week, and portions from, The Testimony of Jesus (ch. 11), as quoted in, the Holy Word for Morning Revival on, The Mending Ministry of John, week 5 / msg 5, Christ’s Heavenly Priesthood Ministered to the Churches for the Producing of the Overcomers.
• Hymns on this topic:
  # Christ comes quickly for His grain, / Ripened firstfruits to obtain; / Unripe harvest will remain— / Ripen now! / From earth’s water grain must dry, / From the world your soul deny; / To mature the self must die— / Ripen now! (Hymns #1304)
  # And I saw, / And behold, / The Lamb standing / On Mount Zion, / With a hundred and forty-four thousand, / Having His name / And the name / Of His Father / Written on their foreheads. / These are they / Who are undefiled, / These are they / Without guile. / These are they who follow the Lamb. / These are they / Who were purchased / From among men, / Firstfruits to God. / These are they who follow the Lamb, who follow the Lamb. (new song on Rev. 14)
  # And soon will be the coming / Of our triumphant King! / He’s coming for the churches / Where His sweet praises ring. / Come, Lord, come reap the firstfruits, / As draws the harvest nigh, / And to Thy throne do take us, / To reign with Thee on high. (Hymns #1265)