In Psalm 97, we have one of the most illuminating prophecies of what we are now seeing unfolding in the earth:

            The Lord reigns; let the earth rejoice; yet the many islands be glad.

        Clouds and thick darkness surround Him; righteousness and justice are the foundation of His throne.

        Fire goes before Him, and burns up His adversaries round about.

        His lightnings lit up the world; the earth saw and trembled.

        The mountains melted like wax at the presence of the Lord, at the presence of the Lord of the whole earth.

        The heavens declare His righteousness, and all the peoples have seen His glory.

        Let all those be ashamed who serve graven images, who boast themselves of idols; worship Him, all you gods.

         Zion heard this and was glad, and the daughters of Judah have rejoiced because of Your judgments, O Lord.

        For Your are the Lord Most High over all the earth; You are exalted far above all gods.

        Hate evil, you who love the Lord, who preserves the souls of His godly ones; He delivers them from the hand of the wicked.

        Light is sown like seed for the righteous, and gladness for the upright in heart.

        Be glad in the Lord, you righteous ones; and give thanks to His holy name.

     The above verses begin with “the LORD reigns.” We must always keep this in mind. However, it is not a reason for inaction but action. Many Christians become passive because they think the Lord reigns and His will is going to be done in everything. It was not his will for Adam and Even to sin, though He resolved to redeem the world, not condemn it. When the kingdom has restored the earth, it will be true that only His will is done, but until this age closes, without intercessors and a church that is the salt and light it is called to be, evil will prevail.

     The Lord was on His throne when Hitler came to power also. As we have mentioned a few times Psalm 115:16, “The heavens are the heavens of the Lord, but the earth He has given to the sons of men.” This is why the Lord will not do things on earth unless we pray. He knows what we need better than we do, and long before we do, but He has delegated authority over the earth to men, and there must be a request from men for Him to intervene. When Jesus went to the cross and made atonement, we are told it was for the whole world, and it was. He now has this legal authority over the earth but will not take it until it is time to set up His kingdom. Until then, it is our job to help prepare the way for Him and His coming kingdom.

     As we see in Daniel 11:31-32, even when the “abomination of desolation” is being set up, “The people who know their God will display strength and take action.” This is always true. We cannot be what we are called to be as the salt of the earth and the light of the world by being passive. Those who follow Christ, and not just a doctrine, will be like Him and do the works that He did. Jesus confronted the greatest darkness of His times, and He overcame it with good. He never compromised or retreated, but He was also proactive going about proclaiming the kingdom and doing the works of the kingdom. That is the nature of Christ and those who are of His Spirit.

     Waking up the church and turning many relatively passive believers into the force they are called to be is the critical need of this time, and help has come. This will happen, and the church will prevail against the gates of hell. The kingdom is going to come to earth, and the Lord’s will is going to be done on earth as it is in heaven. The only question is: What are we are going to do to fulfill our part? Are we going to be the salt and light we are called to be until the end, or will we shrink back?

      Our job at the end of the age is to prepare the way for the Lord, which, as we are told in Isaiah 40, we do by building a highway. This highway is for His triumphal entry. It is how we prepare for heaven to invade the earth. 

       As we see in Psalm 97:4, “His lightnings lit up the world,” and lighting speaks of how revelation can illuminate everything that is hidden in darkness. When I asked how I should pray for our government in 2008, I was told to pray that the Spirit of Truth would come upon it. Soon many terrible things were revealed that had been hidden, and this has continued. I think this year the “lightning” is going to increase. Many things will be exposed about many people, and as we read in this Psalm, there will be much rejoicing at the judgments of the Lord. Righteousness and justice are the foundation of His throne, and these are going to prevail on the earth.

       In verse 5 it says “The mountains will melted like wax at the presence of the Lord.” Mountains usually speak of governments in Scripture, which is the case here, and this is what we are witnessing around the world at this time. However, as we see in Daniel 2, the kingdom that begins as just a small stone, which strikes and causes the collapse of the statue that represents man’s kingdoms, will itself grow into a mountain, or government, and it will keep growing until it fills the whole earth.

       Do you see God’s government forming? Are you living under His authority now? It is seen by those who see, and you are called to see.