“The right place to begin judgement is at the house of God; and if at first at us, what will be the end of those disobedient to the good news of God?” (1st Peter chapter 4, verse 17, The Holy Bible in Modern English).

The Age of the Church is over. Most people have left the church, never to return and the church has spiritually died. Christianity has died with it, for the moment but it will rise from death, like Christ has risen before, without the church. The pandemonium of today arises from the fact that we have come to the end of one age and the next age has yet to begin.

Let’s look at church buildings themselves. Over sixty churches were vandalized or burned in Canada in 2022. Not long ago, no-one would have dared do that. All sorts of churches stand vacant in Quebec, for lack of parishioners. France has had multiple dozens of churches burned down too. In 2011, as series of earthquakes struck Christchurch Cathedral in New Zealand. During the first quake, the cross fell from the top, symbolizing that Christ has separated Himself from the church. In a subsequent quake, a few days later, the entire structure of the cathedral was damaged beyond repair and there are no longer enough dues-paying members of the Church of England in New Zealand to rebuild it. In 2019, Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris burned and the damage was colossal. Because it is a tourist attraction, it is being rebuilt with money from wealthy donors. But that doesn’t mean the people of France will come flocking back to church. In the USA, anti-church sentiment resulted in several mass shootings in churches. In Ukraine, the government is evicting Orthodox monks from their monasteries and bulldozing churches. The remaining churches are totally subservient to the Ukrainian government.

Now let’s examine some of the people. In Russia, 80% of the people claim their religion is Russian Orthodox, though 40% say they don’t believe in God. Globalist King Charles the 3rd is the titular head of the Church of England and our Commonwealth’s Defender of the Faith. He is believed by some to have been complicit in the assassination of his ex-wife, Princess Diana. The woman he’s with now is one he was sleeping with when she was another man’s wife. The liberal United Church of Canada employs some homosexual pastors, although the Bible forbids such behavior. While I was in Kenya, I met a United Church missionary who admitted to me that she didn’t believe in God. On the same trip, I met two evangelical missionaries who were sleeping with the African girls while their wives were home in the States. One of them showed me pictures. The Roman Catholic Church still has a child sex problem, in spite of all the publicity that has caused. A wealthy Mormon polygamist in Utah was convicted of having sex with a twelve year old girl. Some of the evidence in court was a tape recording he had made of the ordeal.

This is just stuff that comes to mind as I write this and I don’t follow the news very closely at all. I’m sure there’s more, much more. Although the church was never perfect, we do owe it a serious historical nod. During its nearly 2000 year span, it inspired us to reach the cultural level of the 21st century. God has been very patient with the church, considering it justified every war. But now it’s over and Christianity has died. However, the Bible’s symbols make it clear that Christianity will rise from death, outside the church, bringing us a peace and prosperity we have never known before. We now stand between two Christian ages and this is a period of confusion between them. The Age of the Church is over and the Kingdom of God on Earth has yet to begin. The fall of the church and the widespread corruption which reigns today are signals to us to get close to Christ on our own, so we can survive and live in that glorious culture to come, right here on earth.

Now let’s see what the Bible’s symbols reveal about this. In John 15.5 Jesus tells His believers, “I am the vine and you are the branches” and church folks believe they are connected to Christ in this way. One of my rules for interpreting the Bible’s symbols is to layer them over each other, like the clear transparencies in a biology textbook, to get a fuller picture. We have just read a quote from the New Testament. Now let’s see what the Old Testament says. In Ezekiel 15.6, God says, “Like the wood of the vine among the trees of the forest, which I have given to the fire for fuel, so I will give up the inhabitants of Jerusalem.” God did give up old Jerusalem to be demolished by the Romans in 70 AD, the last time He moved forward with His plan for us, His people. But in biblical symbols, Christendom is the New Jerusalem, where God is now meant to be worshipped. Take a look at the verse numbers. Jesus mentions the vine as a symbol of His system of faith in John 15.5. God predicts the burning of the vine in Ezekiel 15.6. Notice the consecutive numbers, 15.5 and 15.6, showing us that the establishment of the vine symbol is followed by the burning of that symbol. God is telling us that he plans to demolish our present system of religion and replace it with a better one. 5 is the number of God’s Grace, or forgiveness, which we get through faith in Christ. But 6 is the number of mortal man and today’s religion has become essentially man-made, therefore it is scheduled to be replaced. And what will follow this sequence? That would be the number 7, which symbolizes the Holy Spirit, which God is planning to shower on those who sicken of evil ways and spiritually follow Christ into a new and simpler Christian civilization.

I have mentioned in other places how the prophecies predict there is a third world war coming, which we will lose and become occupied by foreigners for three and a half years. During this time, I believe the invaders will destroy many more churches and kill a lot of church people, viewing them as part of a Western system which they hate. But in spite of God’s plan, we must not ourselves go burning churches or killing people. That is the devil’s job. But for the most part, the devil can only destroy what God has let go of.

But the good ones will make it. It would be mistaken to believe that all church people are doomed. The Gospels record that during Jesus’ Ministry, thousands of ordinary Judeans followed Him and even some of the priests came to believe. So it’s going to happen again. But I believe the main movement back to Christ will begin outside the church, with many church people eventually joining in when they see good things happening in people they know. It is essential not to underestimate either the faith or the deep biblical understanding of many church people–who, seeing the nearness of the Kingdom of God, will definitely want to be a part of it.

Can we now discern how the Age of the Church has ended, in keeping with God’s progressive plan? This helps mentally prepare us to endure all coming hardships, by looking forward to a far, far better way of life to come.

My books are called the “Secrets in Biblical Symbols” series and they are available on this website. Book 1 is THE DEATH AND RESURRECTION OF THE WEST FORETOLD IN PROPHECY, which shows how an understanding of symbols reveals intriguing changes for today which churches do not understand. Book 2 is Do-it-Yourself HOME CHRISTIANITY: How to Please God and Receive His Help Without Preachers, Churches, or Money. It shows how to receive the Holy Spirit and quietly join Christ’s team, right at home. They are available in paperback and ebook. The introductory chapters can be read free on this site.