The period of time during which the Spirit of God mounts the attack against the enemy in our life is symbolized by the sixth convocation, the Day of Atonement, or Day of Reconciliation. All that is resistant to the will of God must be dealt with and removed from us.

We must turn away from our trust in the world. I think this may be easier in the days to come as God judges the sinful ways of the American people.

We must confess and put to death through the Spirit the appetites and passions of our flesh. You may have noticed that the Lord is pointing out areas in your personality that are not in accordance with His Word. As soon as He shows you something, confess it as sin. Turn away from it. Denounce it. Renounce it. The Spirit of God will help you do this and will give you total victory over it.

The Lord permits Satan to put us in one kind of prison or another, sometimes for many, many years. We must remain faithfully in the prison where we are placed, in the meanwhile looking to the Lord so we can profit from our times of suffering.

We are not to grumble. We are not to blame people. If we do we lose the benefit of the cross Christ is asking us to bear. It is only as we patiently accept our trials and do the best we can, keeping a good attitude toward God and people, that the trial results in our change from the adamic nature to the image of Jesus Christ.

This is how we are reconciled to God—it is the spiritual fulfillment of the Jewish Day of Atonement. It is a judgment on the sin in our personality, not on us as a person but on the sin that dwells in us.

We now are in the time described in the thirteenth chapter of the Book of Matthew when the Lord is removing from His Kingdom that which is offensive to God. Let us be sure we cooperate with the Spirit of God, because if we manage to cling to our love of the world, the lusts of our flesh, and our self-will, then we ourselves shall be removed from the Kingdom. There shall be no sin in the Kingdom of God!

The Son of Man will send out his angels, and they will weed out of his kingdom everything that causes sin and all who do evil. (Matthew 13:41—NIV)

In the present hour sin is being removed from us and Christ is being formed in us, if we are faithfully walking in the Spirit of God. This indeed is a strenuous program but the Spirit of God gives us enough peace and joy to keep us pressing forward.

The work of reconciliation of the Day of Atonement is leading up to the feast of Tabernacles.

When we keep the commandments of Christ and His Apostles, we are delivered from sin and Christ is formed in us. As Christ is formed in us the Father loves us. Then the Father and the Son come to us and make Their eternal dwelling place in us. The dwelling of God in at least a firstfruits of the Church must take place before the Lord returns. Otherwise we would not be ready to appear with Him and help with the installation of the Kingdom of God on the earth.

To be continued.