The Work of Elijah, Past, Present and Future

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Short Summary
The discourse examines the threefold work of Elijah—repentance, reformation, and restoration—as a prophetic model fulfilled initially by John the Baptist, continued through Jesus and the apostles, and ultimately culminating in the Messianic kingdom. Despite centuries of preaching this message, mankind has largely rejected it, resulting in divine judgment and tribulation, but the ultimate fulfillment and success of this work will occur during Christ’s thousand-year reign when all will have the opportunity to repent and be restored. The vision of the transfiguration, featuring Moses and Elijah with Jesus, symbolizes the full realization of these prophetic roles in God’s plan for earthly and spiritual restoration.

Long Summary
Detailed Summary of the Discourse on Elijah’s Work and Its Fulfillment

Scope and Focus:
– The discourse centers on the prophet Elijah’s life and works as recorded in 1 and 2 Kings but emphasizes his symbolic and prophetic significance for future times beyond his actual life.
– The main focus is on three categories of Elijah’s work, summarized as the “three Rs”:
1. Repentance – Elijah called Israel to turn away from idolatry and sin.
2. Reformation – He urged a return to faithful service to Jehovah, renewing covenant promises made through Moses.
3. Restoration – The ultimate goal was restoring Israel to full favor and harmony with God.
– These works prefigure a continuing ministry that began about 2,000 years ago, continuing through the present and culminating in the future Messianic Kingdom.

Prophecy from Malachi (Malachi 4:5-6):
– Malachi foretold that Elijah would be sent before the “great and dreadful day of the Lord” to “turn the heart of the fathers to the children, and the heart of the children to the fathers.”
– This “day of the Lord” is a time of divine judgment and intervention, described elsewhere as a day of vengeance and great tribulation (Isaiah 34:8; Joel 2:2; Daniel 12:1; Matthew 24:21-22).
– Elijah’s role is to perform a work of reformation prior to this day, aiming to restore relationships and repentance among God’s people.

Historical Fulfillment in John the Baptist and Jesus:
– After centuries of apparent divine silence, John the Baptist appeared, calling Israel to repentance and reformation, echoing Elijah’s spirit.
– John denied being Elijah literally (John 1:19-21), yet the angel’s prophecy (Luke 1:16-17) said John would come “in the spirit and power of Elijah.”
– John’s ministry was courageous and fearless, calling for “fruits meet for repentance” (Matthew 3:7-12).
– Jesus affirmed John’s role, saying, “if ye will receive it, this is Elijah, which was for to come” (Matthew 11:14), indicating a qualified fulfillment of Malachi’s prophecy.
– Despite this call, most of Israel rejected John and Jesus, leading to national calamity including the destruction of Jerusalem in AD 70 and the Jewish diaspora lasting nearly 2,000 years.

Continuation of the Elijah Work through the Gospel Age:
– The Elijah ministry did not end with John; Jesus continued preaching repentance (Matthew 4:17), followed by the apostles and the early church (Mark 6:12; Acts 2:38; Acts 3:19; Acts 17:30; Acts 26:20).
– The call to repentance and reformation has been ongoing for two millennia, fulfilling Malachi’s prophecy in a broader sense.
– The Great Commission (Matthew 28:19; Luke 24:46-48) implies the continuation of this work worldwide.
– Despite this, the majority of humanity still resists the message, remaining in sin and selfishness, resulting in ongoing tribulation, referred to as the “great and dreadful day of the Lord.”

Future Fulfillment and Messiah’s Kingdom:
– Although the Elijah work has not fully succeeded yet, God’s plan includes allowing mankind to experience the consequences of rejection (the “curse” mentioned in Malachi 4:6).
– The ultimate restoration will occur under the Messianic Kingdom, when Christ reigns and the knowledge of God fills the earth (Isaiah 11:9; Isaiah 25:9).
– The transfiguration vision (Matthew 17:1-3) where Moses and Elijah appear alongside Jesus symbolizes the fulfillment of prophetic roles:
– Moses represents the lawgiver and prophet.
– Elijah symbolizes the reformer.
– Jesus is the Messiah who will establish the kingdom.
– Peter, James, and John were eyewitnesses of this vision, confirming the significance of these prophetic figures in the kingdom’s establishment (2 Peter 1:16-18).

Ultimate Restoration and Kingdom Triumph:
– Jesus stated that Elijah would “restore all things” (Matthew 17:11, Revised Version), referring to the full accomplishment of repentance, reformation, and restoration in the kingdom.
– The faithful ancient worthies (including Moses and Elijah) will be resurrected to participate in this kingdom and see the triumph of God’s righteousness.
– The righteous will no longer suffer reproach (Isaiah 25:8, Revised Version).
– Elijah’s mysterious translation (2 Kings 2) symbolizes the future exaltation of Christ and the church (the “greater Elijah class”) to heavenly glory in the first resurrection.
– The kingdom will have two phases:
– A spiritual phase with Christ and the church reigning as King and Queen (Revelation 19:16).
– An earthly phase during which the world will be reconciled and restored.

Summary and Conclusion:
– Elijah’s work is a symbol of the ongoing divine call to repentance, reformation, and restoration.
– This work began with Elijah, continued powerfully with John the Baptist and Jesus, and has been carried on by the apostles and the church.
– The full success of this work awaits Christ’s kingdom when all will be given a fair opportunity to repent and be restored.
– The fulfillment of Malachi’s prophecy is thus both historical and future, thematic rather than limited to one individual.
– The transfiguration vision confirms the ultimate victory and restoration that Elijah’s work foreshadowed.
– The discourse closes with a hopeful outlook for the kingdom’s establishment and the completion of God’s plan of reconciliation.

Key Bible Verses Cited:

– Malachi 4:5-6 (KJV)
“Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord: And he shall turn the heart of the fathers to the children, and the heart of the children to their fathers…”

– Isaiah 34:8; Joel 2:2; Daniel 12:1; Matthew 24:21-22 – references to the “day of the Lord” and tribulation.

– John 1:6-12; John 1:19-21 – John the Baptist’s ministry and denial of being Elijah literally.

– Luke 1:16-17 – prophecy of John’s ministry “in the spirit and power of Elijah.”

– Matthew 3:7-12 – John’s call to repentance.

– Matthew 11:14 – Jesus identifying John as Elijah “if ye will receive it.”

– Matthew 4:17; Mark 6:12; Acts 2:38; Acts 3:19; Acts 17:30; Acts 26:20 – continuation of repentance preaching.

– Isaiah 11:9; Isaiah 25:9 – future kingdom blessings.

– Matthew 17:1-3, 11 – transfiguration and Elijah’s future restoration work.

– 2 Peter 1:16-18 – Peter’s eyewitness account of the transfiguration.

– Revelation 19:16 – Jesus as King of Kings.

– 2 Kings 2 – Elijah’s translation, symbolizing future exaltation.

– Deuteronomy 18:15-18 – Moses’ prophecy of a prophet “like unto me.”

This detailed summary captures the discourse’s historical, prophetic, and theological insights into Elijah’s work and its fulfillment through successive dispensations culminating in Christ’s Kingdom.

Transcript

Record of his life that is found in first and Second Kings and the many experiences that he had. Rather, we’re going to be looking, for the most part, as our title suggests, at the works of Elijah and what they may point to at future times from when he actually lived, and as we do that, we’ll also be looking at who in the future from Elijah’s day might have been prefigured by him as engaging in works similar to his. Those works we might categorize in three ways. We’ll call them the three Rs.

First of all, he engaged in a work of preaching repentance to the Israelites who had fallen into idolatry and much, much sin. Secondly, based on that desire for repentance, Elijah preached reformation to the Israelites that they would not only see their sins and repent from them, but that they also would then turn back to God and start serving him once again, as they had promised when their law was given to them through Moses many centuries earlier, and then, based on that, those attitudes and desires to repent and to reform, Elijah’s desire was that his fellow Israelites be restored, restored back to full favor and harmony with jehovah. So these three Rs, repentance, reformation and restoration summarize the work that Elijah engaged in for much of his life, and it is these works that prefigure, we believe, future works along that same line that we begin about 2,000 years ago from now.

Works that are have been in the past, which continue in the present, and which will finally come to a glorious conclusion in the future. These Elijah works, we’ll call them past, present and future, as noted in our title, will be the focus of our thoughts this morning. Now, to start our discussion, we’re going to begin by reading the last two verses of the Old Testament, which was written several centuries after the end of Elijah’s life and several more centuries before we see the beginning of the prefigurement, we’ll say, or the fulfillment of the work of Elijah. These verses are found in Malachi, the fourth chapter, verses five and six, and they give a prophecy of a future Elijah work or works, we might say, that would begin another three centuries later.

And so we’re going to read Malachi chapter four, verses five and six, and we’re going to. Most of our reading will be from the King James translation. We’ll note if there’s any other translations being used. Malachi 4, verses 5 and 6.

Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet. Remember, this is Malachi prophesying this several centuries after Elijah had died. Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet, before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord, and he shall turn the heart of the fathers to the children, and the heart of the children to the fathers, lest I come and smite the earth with a curse. Now the expression in these verses, great and dreadful day of the Lord, is used in the Bible, we most generally think, to describe a time when God will no longer permit the human race to continue in its selfish and sinful ways, unhindered by him. You know, the prophets also speak of this period, particularly in Isaiah 34, verse 8, for example, as the day of the Lord’s vengeance, or in Joel chapter two, verse two, as a day of clouds and thick darkness.

And even Jesus, as he quoted or paraphrased from Daniel 12:1, described this as a time of great tribulation, Matthew 24, verses 21 and 22. Well, a prototype of this great and dreadful day of the Lord which Malachi spoke of, came upon first the nation of Israel in the destructive trouble which followed their national rejection of Jesus, and his rejection of them being their Messiah. For several hundred years after Malachi, the last of the Old Testament prophets delivered prophets delivered his message to the Jewish people. There was no special indication that God was taking any particular notice of the people’s waywardness, not until the appearance of John the Baptist, and following him, Jesus. Through the ministry of these two servants of God, Israel was called to repentance and reformation.

But as recorded in John first chapter, verses 6 through 12, this call was not heeded except by a few. John the Baptist foretold that as a result of the failure to respond to this call to repentance and to accept their Messiah, dire calamity would come upon the nation, and so we read In Matthew chapter 3, verses 7 to 11, these words of John the Baptist, spoken particularly to the scribes, the Pharisees and the Sadducees. He said, o generation of vipers, who hath warned you to flee from the wrath to come? And then notice what he says after that.

Bring forth therefore fruits meet for repentance, and think not to say within yourselves, we have Abraham to our Father. For I say unto you that God is able of these stones to raise up children unto Abraham, and now also the axe is laid unto the root of the trees. Therefore every tree which bringeth not forth good fruit, that is, fruits meet for repentance, is hewn down and cast into the fire.

I indeed baptize you with water unto repentance but he that cometh after me is mightier than I, whose shoes I am not worthy to bear. He shall baptize you with the Holy Spirit and with fire.

Thus is prophetically described a great day of the Lord, A great and dreadful day of the Lord, as it was experienced not too long in the future by Israel in the years 8070 to 73. This came upon the nation as a manifestation of God’s displeasure over the sin and the idolatry of the people from which they did not repent, generally speaking, even when a full and complete opportunity was given to them, even with their Messiah being in their midst. The vengeance of God thus displayed resulted in the destruction of the nation, a scattering of the Jewish people throughout the earth, which was to last for more than 1800 years.

However, this day of trouble upon Israel pales in comparison to a greater tribulation foretold for the end of the present gospel age. A time of trouble, Daniel says in Daniel 12:1 such as never was, since there was a nation which would not come just upon one nation, but which would come upon the entire world. In a more general way, this larger manifestation of God’s vengeance is due to the unbridled selfishness of nations, leaders, political, religious and society in general. Mankind has not lived up to the righteous principles set forth in the Bible, nor have they adhered to the teachings and the example of Jesus, who preached and lived by the law of love. We refer you to Matthew 22:37, 40 and John 13:34 and 35.

Rather, many people and their leaders have promoted and participated in wars, revolution, all types of conflict. Many have worshiped their idols rather than God, and here again, for many centuries it seemed as though God was not paying a whole lot of attention to what was going on. However, finally the time has come for him to act and to intervene in human affairs, and the result has been and continues to be a time of trouble, the great and dreadful day of the Lord which Malachi spoke of.

Now, our text in Malachi declares that prior to the coming of the day of the Lord, Elijah the prophet would be sent to attempt a work of reformation. Every devout Israelite looked for the coming of the promised Messiah and to the divine government which the prophets foretold he would establish in the earth. Yet here seemingly was another important personality that had to be brought into the picture, a prophet who must also come and accomplish a vast work of reformation prior to the great and dreadful day of the Lord. This additional personality, we’ll say as the Israelites understood it, had been promised in the writings of Moses. In Deuteronomy 18, verses 15 to 18, under divine inspiration, Moses spoke of a prophet.

And he said, a prophet like unto me, not Elijah, but another prophet like unto me, who would give the people that which they desired. At Mount Horeb, when the law was given, which was the ending of God’s voice against them in order that they might live this great one, this great prophet, the Israelites were accustomed to speak of as that prophet. Now we bring this out, because when John the Baptist began his ministry, the Jews sent priests and Levites to question him for the purpose of learning just who he claimed to be and what his mission was. Now John denied that he was the Christ the Messiah. But then these messengers inquired, art thou, Elias, or in the Hebrew Elijah, having in mind the prophecy of Malachi, are you Elijah the prophet that is being sent?

John’s straightforward reply to this question was, I am not, and by the way, this is all recorded in John the first chapter, verses 19 through 21. Then the messengers asked a second question. Art thou that prophet, the one that Moses had spoken of back there In Deuteronomy chapter 18, John again said, no, I am not that prophet. However, as far as John the Baptist being the foretold Elijah was concerned, his negative answer to the priests and Levites did not entirely settle the matter.

We recall that when the angel who prophesied the birth of John the Baptist said, this is recorded In Luke, chapter one, verses 16 and 17, he said, many of the children of Israel shall be turned, shall turn to the Lord their God, and he that is John the Baptist shall go before him, that is before Jesus, in the spirit and power of Elijah. Now this is the angel who prophesied concerning the birth of John the Baptist, that he would go forth in the spirit and power of Elijah to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children and the disobedient to the wisdom of the just, to make ready a people prepared for the Lord that is prepared for Jesus. Now this prophecy does come. Short of definitely identifying John the Baptist as the foretold Elijah, it simply states that he would conduct his ministry in the spirit and the power of Elijah. Now we recall that the prophet Elijah had been fearless and courageous in the conduct of his worst of reformation in Israel.

And it was in this same spirit and power that John called the nation to repentance, and so in many respects John’s work was similar to Elijah’s, and certainly the courageous manner in which he conducted it was identical. Now, later, referring to John the Baptist, Jesus said to the multitudes, and this is recorded in Matthew 11:14.

If ye will receive it, this he’s talking about John. This is Elijah, which was for to come. Here again we have a qualification identif qualified identification of John. Jesus says, if ye will receive it, this is Elijah. What Jesus meant was that to those who were reached and reformed by John’s ministry, he was the promised Elijah to them.

This indicates that the work of reformation, and we underline that word work, the work of reformation described in Malachi’s prophecy is the key to its understanding. Rather than one certain individual or individuals who might perform or undertake to perform that work, it’s the work that is critical to our understanding.

You know, the prophecy of Malachi implies, in its own words, the possibility of initial failure in that work and explains what the consequences would that be. That would be as a result, lest I come and smite the earth with a curse. Malachi 4, 6. In other words, if the work of reformation described in Malachi’s prophecy as turning the hearts of the children to the fathers and the hearts of the fathers to the children, if that should seem to fail, then a great curse would come upon the earth, ostensibly as a punishment to those who did not heed the message of the reformer.

We have a fulfillment of this. In the case of John the Baptist and his ministry, many did give heed to his call to repentance, and in doing so were blessed and and many came into Christ. However, the majority of the nation of Israel did not, and so, not having heeded John’s message, they were not prepared to accept Jesus as their Messiah and in fact were willing and ready to crucify him in the outworking of God’s plan. This led to disaster for the nation within only 40 years, and involving some of the very ones who rejected John and called for the crucifixion of Jesus, the foretold punishment fell.

This was the destruction of their temple and the city of Jerusalem, and later the Jews being scattered throughout the earth.

But this work of Elijah did not end with John the Baptist, since, as Jesus explained, John the Baptist was the foretold Elijah to those who would receive it, and not the Elijah to those who did not respond to his message. It is evident that we cannot properly look for the fulfillment of Malachi’s prophecy in and through just a single individual such as John. Rather, the name Elijah is used in Malachi’s prophecy merely, as we’ve already stated, as a as symbolic of a work similar to that which was accomplished by the original Elijah. This was a work of reformation, beckoning, repentance, in which the people of Israel were called upon to return to their God and to acknowledge his sovereignty in the nation, that they might be restored to full divine favor.

And so we see that the Elijah work consisted of a calling upon the people to repeat, I mean, excuse me, to repent, reform, and recognize when it came to the time for Jesus to soon come on the scene, that the kingdom of heaven was at hand, and that’s recorded in Matthew 3:1:2, and those were John the Baptist’s own words, repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand. But it was by no means concluded with John the Baptist. We know this because later in John, I mean, excuse me, in Matthew the fourth chapter, Jesus then spoke from that time, following following John’s ministry, Jesus began to preach.

And what did he preach? Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand. He was preaching the same thing that John the Baptist had preached earlier. This was the same message that had previously been given by John.

We read further in Mark the sixth chapter, verse 12, that when the disciples of Jesus went out into the ministry, they also preached that men should repent again. That’s from Mark 6:12. Later, when the Holy Spirit, or after the Holy Spirit, came upon the church at Pentecost, the call to repentance was still preached. In his sermon on the day of Pentecost, Peter said to the audience, recorded in Acts 2:38, repentance and be baptized. In a later discourse in the third chapter of Acts, in verse 19, Peter said, repent and be converted.

In his sermon on Mars Hill, the Apostle Paul. This is in Acts 17:30, the apostle Paul said that now the Lord commandeth all men everywhere to repent, and then later in Paul’s life, when he was explaining his ministry to King Agrippa, Paul said in Acts 26, verse 20, he showed first to them of Damascus and Jerusalem, and throughout all the coasts of Judea, and then to the Gentiles, that they should repent and turn to God and do works meet for repentance. Those are the same words that John the Baptist had uttered that we read earlier from the third chapter of Matthew, works meet for repentance, and so it is evident from these many scriptures that the call to repentance and reformation continued from John the Baptist, then through Jesus, then through the twelve apostles, and really has continued in a sense down through the centuries since Pentecost, with all of those children of God participating in it.

This was and is still the foretold, or part of the foretold Works of Elijah.

Following his resurrection, Jesus commissioned his disciples to go among all the nations and preach the gospel. Matthew 28:19 and Luke 24:46 to 48, and even though repentance is not mentioned in this account, it clearly implies that the message of repentance and reformation would continue as the Gospel was being preached. It’s part and parcel of that gospel message that it would continue through the ministry of the Lord’s faithful followers, the little flock. Thus, the prophecy in Malachi that Elijah would come before the great and dreadful day of the Lord has continued to be fulfilled.

This has, I think, been particularly evident at the time in which we’re living and during the harvest of the present age, because the footstep followers of Christ have given a wide witness that the kingdom of heaven is at hand and that soon its blessings will begin to flow to all the nations of the earth.

Now, in spite of all of this, this message of Elijah of repentance and reformation going out for 2000 years, the world in general still has not heeded the Elijah message of repentance and reformation, even as Israel did not give heed to John the Baptist at the very beginning. Instead, the world has continued, for the most part, in its generally sinful, selfish ways, unmindful of the curse. Remember, Malachi spoke of the curse that would come upon those and upon all nations if this message went unheeded, and so, just as the curse, just as a curse fell upon Israel as a result of failure to repent at the time of Jesus first advent, so the present unrepentant world during the time of Christ’s second adventure is also in the throes of distress, tribulation and trouble. The world has not yet been converted by the Gospel.

Darkness still covers the earth. This is Isaiah, chapter 60, verse 2. Darkness still covers the earth, and gross darkness the people. However, this does not mean that the world will never be converted and that the foretold Elijah work never will be successful. God’s wisdom, we understand, determined in advance that it would be necessary for mankind to pass through this curse of the great time of trouble, in order to recognize that nothing short of his righteous rule in the coming Messianic kingdom can succeed in establishing the divine will in the earth as it is in heaven, and turning the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the hearts of the children to the fathers.

And so, as we now see this principle being fulfilled and view the foretold curse coming upon the world, we confidently though look forward to the establishment of Messiah’s glorious kingdom, His Kingdom will enlighten the world and cause finally the people to say, as recorded in Isaiah 25. Nine, this is our God. We have waited for him. We will be glad and rejoice in his salvation.

Now, there’s another important picture that we have in the book of Matthew that relates to our subject this morning, and that is the transfiguration vision. You know, in the transfiguration vision shown to Peter, James and John, we have a further clarification and confirmation of the Elijah symbolism in the prophecies. In the last verse of chapter 16 of Matthew, that’s 16:28, Jesus had said to his disciples, he said, there be some standing here which shall not taste of death till they see the Son of Man coming in his kingdom. What did he mean by that? Well, in the next verse, which is the first verse of chapter 17, we read this.

After six days, Jesus taketh Peter, James, and John his brother, and bringeth them up into a high mountain. This was the mount of Transfiguration. Now, when Jesus had said that some standing among them would not taste death until they saw him in his kingdom, he evidently meant that they would be given a vision of the kingdom which three of them, Peter, James, and John, were given just six days later. You know, later on, Peter understood this very fact, and in second Peter, the first chapter in verse 11, he speaks of an abundant entrance into the kingdom of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.

But he goes beyond this. In the same chapter two Peter 1, 1618, Peter writes these. We have not followed cunningly devised fables when we made known unto you the power and coming, and that’s paracea, or presence of our Lord Jesus Christ. But were eyewitnesses of his majesty. He and James and John were eyewitnesses of his majesty in the mount.

For he received from God the Father honor and glory, when there came such a voice to him from the excellent glory. This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased, and this voice which came from heaven, we heard. We heard, Peter says, when we were with him in the Holy Mount, the Mount of Transfiguration, and so it is clear that Peter, James and John were given this vision of Christ’s coming kingdom.

But it’s also significant, and this is part of the connection to our lesson. It is significant that in this vision they should see Moses and Elijah in vision. Not literally. They were. They were in the grave.

But they saw Moses and Elijah in this, as part of this vision with Jesus. Matthew 17, verse 3. This was the Lord’s way of saying that the prophecies concerning Elijah and concerning that prophet who was to be like unto Moses would have their real and complete fulfillment in the Messianic kingdom. Other scriptures reveal that this is indeed God’s plan. For example, in Acts 3:20, 22, here again we have Peter, who was inspired by this vision that he had had of the kingdom on the mount of transfiguration.

He preached his well known sermon in which he talks about the times of restitution or restoration of all things. But he adds in that same context that this had been spoken by the mouth of all God’s holy prophets since the world began, and Peter even cited as one of his proof texts the promise that the Lord had made to raise up a great prophet like unto Moses. Peter mentions this in this context of Acts 3:20-22. Peter understood that the prophecy recorded in Deuteronomy 18 that we spoke of earlier, where Moses himself said, there will be a prophet like unto me.

Peter said that this would be fulfilled during the times of restitution by of all things now on the mount of transfiguration, Jesus had also said that Elijah indeed cometh and shall restore all things. This is Matthew 17, verse 11 from the Revised Version. Elijah indeed cometh and shall shall, putting it in the future shall restore all things. In this statement Jesus was referring to the ultimate of accomplishment of the Elijah work during his kingdom and its resulting blessings to all the families of the earth, and so let’s recap so far through John the Baptist there was a beginning of this Elijah work.

But he was rejected by the majority. He was killed prematurely by really at the hands of the Jews. Then Jesus continued that work, but he was rejected. He was put to death. This work has continued to a greater or lesser extent throughout the present age, since Pentecost, beginning with the apostles and with the Church in general.

But those giving this message have likewise mostly been rejected and persecuted. Not until Christ’s kingdom is established in power and glory, as so graphically portrayed in this transfiguration vision, will the foretold Elijah work finally be completely and successfully accomplished. It is then that God’s precepts will be restored in the earth, and when all mankind, having then been released from Adamic condemnation, will be awakened from the sleep of death and given an opportunity to do what? To repent, to reform, and to be restored to human perfection and live forever upon the restored earth. Now it’s fitting from another standpoint that Moses and Elijah should be shown together with Jesus in that marvelous transfiguration vision of the kingdom Moses as a lawgiver and prophet and Elijah as a reformer in Israel are all fitting symbols of all of the ancient worthies, the faithful servants of God who lived prior to Jesus first advent.

All of these heroes of faith were God’s representatives during the time preceding the first advent of Christ. They upheld the principles of divine righteousness in a sinful world, suffering and dying for righteousness sake. Yet the world was mostly not impressed by their presence and their ministry.

However, it will be different in the kingdom. This class of ancient and faithful servants of God will then be raised from the dead and become the human representatives of the divine Christ in the earthly phase of the kingdom. They will be rewarded by seeing that for which they stood finally be triumphant in the earth. You know, Moses and Elijah and all the prophets and the ancient worthies will see that their works were not in vain, that they will have a fruition, they will have a success in the kingdom, and they will see that the knowledge of the Lord will fill the earth as the waters cover the sea.

Isaiah 11, verse 9. Then these righteous one, these ancient worthies, they will no longer be persecuted like they were before. On the other hand, as Isaiah chapter 25, verse 8 says from the Revised Version, the reproach of God’s people, these were the ancient worthies, the reproach of God’s people. You shall take away that reproach, that those like Moses and Elijah and so many others of the Old Testament, Daniel, so many others God will take away.

God used Elijah and his work of reformation to symbolize the call to repentance, to reformation and to the acceptance of earth’s new king, Christ Jesus. Thus we may properly think of Elijah as symbolizing the work of Christ along with the faithful overcoming little flock, the church first, in a small way, in a limited way, throughout the gospel age prior to their respective deaths. However, as we’ve already stated, for the past 2000 years since Jesus first advent, the continuing message of repentance and reformation proclaimed to the world has not yet come turned the hearts of the fathers to the children, or the heart of the children to the fathers. Though the accomplishment of this work awaits the establishment of Christ’s kingdom in power and great glory, and how beautifully this is shown by Elijah’s appearance with Jesus and with Moses in that transfiguration of the kingdom.

You know, unique in the experiences of the original Elijah was the fact that at the close of his ministry he was mysteriously, we’ll say, lifted up from the earth. Now he died, there’s no question about that. When we read in the 11th chapter of Hebrews about the ancient worthies. The apostle Paul says, these all died in faith. So we don’t understand absolutely the details of Elijah’s death.

But at the close of his ministry he was lifted up from the earth. He didn’t go to heaven. His reward was not to be a heavenly one at that time. But although he did not go to heaven, his experience readily suggests and symbolizes the fact that the greater Elijah class Jesus and the church, after proving their faithfulness in witnessing for the gospel regardless of the cost, these are exalted to heavenly glory in the first resurrection to participate with Jesus in the spiritual phase of his glorious kingdom.

Thus we see in this transfiguration vision a marvelous portrayal of the earthly and the spiritual phases of the Messianic kingdom, in which Jesus himself will be the supreme head and ruler, as the Revelator says in Revelation 19:16, the king of Kings and Lord of Lords, and it will be through that kingdom that the Elijah work of reconciling the world to God will finally be fully and forever accomplished. With this work of repentance, reformation and restoration, complete the thousand year reign of Christ, or during the thousand year reign of Christ, the kingdom will then finally having conquered all of its enemies and brought mankind back to at one with God, the kingdom will be turned over to the heavenly Father that he may be. All in all, may the Lord add his blessing.

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