The Plan of the Ages Revealed — How God Reveals Himself Through Divine Pattern, Order, Growth, and Development from Passover to Pentecost to Tabernacles Until God Is All in All
The Plan of the Ages Revealed: By Carl Timothy Wray
AUTHOR
Carl Timothy Wray is a Bible teacher, author, and founder of The Finished Work of Christ ministry. For over four decades, he has dedicated himself to the study of Scripture, tracing the eternal purpose of God from Genesis to Revelation through the Full Counsel of God. His teachings focus on the Finished Work of Christ, the Plan of the Ages, the Throne of God, the Gospel of Grace, the Revelation of Jesus Christ, the Kingdom of God, the Manifestation of the Sons of God, and God’s ultimate purpose to gather all things together in Christ until God is all in all.
Through hundreds of books, articles, videos, and teachings, Carl Timothy Wray seeks to help believers discover the divine order, purpose, and pattern revealed throughout Scripture.
The Plan of the Ages Revealed examines how God reveals Himself through divine pattern, order, growth, and development throughout Scripture. From Passover to Pentecost to Tabernacles, this book traces the Plan of the Ages through creation, redemption, sonship, spiritual maturity, the Perfect Man, and the ultimate purpose of God. Discover how natural growth reveals spiritual revelation, how every age contains a divine mandate, and how God’s pattern reveals His purpose until all things are gathered together in Christ and God becomes all in all. This study explores the Plan of the Ages through the Full Counsel of God, connecting Genesis to Revelation through Scripture, prophetic patterns, spiritual growth, and the unfolding purpose of the ages.
INTRODUCTION
One of the greatest questions a believer can ask is:
What is God doing?
Not merely what is happening in the world.
Not merely what is happening in prophecy.
Not merely what is happening in the nations.
But what is God doing?
The answer to that question unlocks the entire Bible.
Many believers know individual doctrines.
Many understand certain prophetic events.
Many study covenants, priesthoods, feasts, kingdoms, and dispensations.
Yet few stop long enough to ask a simple question:
What pattern connects all these things together?
Scripture reveals a God who does nothing randomly.
God is a God of order.
God is a God of purpose.
God is a God of pattern.
The heavens move according to pattern.
The seasons move according to pattern.
The growth of a seed follows a pattern.
The development of a child follows a pattern.
The growth of a human being follows a pattern.
Creation itself reveals that God works through divine order, progressive growth, and purposeful development.
The same principle is true spiritually.
Passover follows a pattern.
Pentecost follows a pattern.
Tabernacles follows a pattern.
The priesthood follows a pattern.
The Kingdom follows a pattern.
The ages themselves follow a pattern.
The reason so much confusion exists in theology is because men often study individual truths while missing the pattern that connects them.
When the pattern is lost, the purpose becomes hidden.
When the purpose becomes hidden, confusion enters.
Yet when the pattern is discovered, the purpose becomes clear.
This is why Moses occupies such a unique place in Scripture.
The Psalmist declared:
“He made known his ways unto Moses, his acts unto the children of Israel.”
Israel saw what God did.
Moses learned how God works.
Moses learned God’s order.
Moses learned God’s pattern.
Moses learned God’s ways.
The same principle remains true today.
God reveals Himself by revealing His pattern.
And His pattern reveals His purpose.
Throughout this book we will trace that pattern through creation, natural growth, Passover, Pentecost, Tabernacles, spiritual maturity, the Perfect Man, and the unfolding Plan of the Ages.
We will discover that every age has a beginning.
Every age has a mandate.
Every age has a purpose.
Every age reaches maturity.
Every age prepares the way for what follows.
Natural growth reveals spiritual revelation.
The child reveals the mature man.
The seed reveals the harvest.
The pattern reveals the purpose.
And the purpose reveals the destination.
The destination has never changed.
From before the foundation of the world until the consummation of the ages, God has been moving creation toward one glorious conclusion:
“That God may be all in all.”
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Introduction
God Reveals Himself by Revealing His Pattern
Chapter 1
The God of Order and Pattern
Chapter 2
Moses Knew His Ways
Chapter 3
The Pattern Hidden in Creation
Chapter 4
Natural Growth Reveals Spiritual Revelation
Chapter 5
The Seed, the Child, and the Mature Man
Chapter 6
The Pattern of Passover
Chapter 7
The Pattern of Pentecost
Chapter 8
The Perfecting of the Saints
Chapter 9
The Perfect Man and the Fulness of Pentecost
Chapter 10
The Pattern of Tabernacles
Chapter 11
The Maturity of One Administration Becomes the Womb of the Next
Chapter 12
The Plan of the Ages Revealed
Conclusion
God Reveals Himself by Revealing His Pattern, and His Pattern Reveals His Purpose
CHAPTER 1
THE GOD OF ORDER AND PATTERN
One of the greatest mistakes believers make when studying Scripture is assuming that God works randomly.
Nothing could be further from the truth.
The God revealed in Scripture is a God of order.
He is a God of purpose.
He is a God of design.
He is a God of pattern.
The Plan of the Ages Revealed begins with this foundational truth:
God does not move randomly.
God does not create randomly.
God does not redeem randomly.
God does not mature His people randomly.
Everything God does follows a divine pattern established according to His eternal purpose.
If we fail to see the pattern, we will fail to understand the purpose.
If we fail to understand the purpose, we will fail to understand where God is taking creation.
Before we can understand Passover, Pentecost, Tabernacles, the Kingdom, sonship, the Perfect Man, or God becoming all in all, we must first understand the God of order and pattern.
GOD DECLARES THE END FROM THE BEGINNING
Isaiah 46:9-10
“Remember the former things of old: for I am God, and there is none else; I am God, and there is none like me,
Declaring the end from the beginning, and from ancient times the things that are not yet done.”
Notice what God says.
He declares the end from the beginning.
God sees the destination before the journey begins.
God sees the harvest before the seed is planted.
God sees the mature man before the child is born.
God sees fulfillment before the process begins.
This is one of the great keys to The Plan of the Ages Revealed.
God does not discover His purpose as history unfolds.
God unfolds His purpose through history.
History is not God searching for an answer.
History is God revealing an answer He already possesses.
GOD IS NOT THE AUTHOR OF CONFUSION
Many people view God as mysterious because they do not understand His order.
Yet Scripture says:
1 Corinthians 14:33
“For God is not the author of confusion, but of peace.”
Confusion is not God’s nature.
Order is God’s nature.
Purpose is God’s nature.
Design is God’s nature.
Pattern is God’s nature.
Whenever confusion exists, it is often because the pattern has been lost.
Men begin taking truths out of their proper place.
They remove things from their proper age.
They remove things from their proper purpose.
The result is mixture.
The Plan of the Ages Revealed restores divine order by restoring the pattern.
CREATION REVEALS THE PATTERN OF GOD
Romans 1:20
“For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made.”
God reveals invisible truths through visible creation.
Creation itself is a testimony of divine order.
Genesis 1 reveals this immediately.
Day one.
Day two.
Day three.
Day four.
Day five.
Day six.
Day seven.
Nothing is random.
Nothing is accidental.
Nothing is out of order.
Every day builds upon the previous day.
Every stage prepares for the next stage.
Every stage serves the final purpose.
Creation itself teaches the language of The Plan of the Ages Revealed.
God moves through stages.
God moves through progression.
God moves through development.
SEEDTIME AND HARVEST
Genesis 8:22
“While the earth remaineth, seedtime and harvest… shall not cease.”
Notice the pattern.
Seed.
Growth.
Harvest.
God could have created harvest without seed.
Yet He chose a process.
Why?
Because process reveals purpose.
The seed reveals the harvest.
The beginning reveals the ending.
The child reveals the mature man.
Natural growth reveals spiritual revelation.
The entire creation teaches us that God works through progressive development.
This principle becomes one of the great foundations of The Plan of the Ages Revealed.
MOSES LEARNED GOD’S WAYS
Psalm 103:7
“He made known his ways unto Moses, his acts unto the children of Israel.”
This verse reveals a profound distinction.
Israel saw God’s acts.
Moses learned God’s ways.
Israel saw the Red Sea.
Moses learned the pattern.
Israel saw the manna.
Moses learned the purpose.
Israel witnessed the miracles.
Moses learned the order behind the miracles.
Many believers know God’s acts.
Few understand God’s ways.
The Plan of the Ages Revealed is ultimately a study of God’s ways.
How does God work?
How does God build?
How does God mature?
How does God reveal Himself?
The answer is always the same.
Through divine pattern.
BUILD ALL THINGS ACCORDING TO THE PATTERN
Exodus 25:40
“And look that thou make them after their pattern, which was shewed thee in the mount.”
Hebrews 8:5
“See, saith he, that thou make all things according to the pattern shewed to thee in the mount.”
Moses was not given permission to invent.
Moses was not given permission to improve.
Moses was not given permission to redesign.
Moses was instructed to build according to the pattern.
Why?
Because the pattern reveals the purpose.
The tabernacle was not random.
The priesthood was not random.
The sacrifices were not random.
The feasts were not random.
Everything revealed Christ.
Everything pointed forward.
Everything served God’s eternal purpose.
The pattern protected the purpose.
NATURAL GROWTH REVEALS SPIRITUAL REVELATION
One of the greatest revelations found in creation is the growth of a human being.
A child begins as a seed.
Then conception.
Then development.
Then birth.
Then infancy.
Then childhood.
Then maturity.
No stage can be bypassed.
No stage can be ignored.
No stage can be removed.
Every stage has a purpose.
Every stage has a mandate.
Every stage has a state of being.
The same principle is true spiritually.
The Plan of the Ages Revealed shows that God works through ages just as He works through stages.
Passover.
Pentecost.
Tabernacles.
Each age has a purpose.
Each age has a maturity.
Each age prepares the way for what follows.
The maturity of one administration becomes the womb of the next administration.
FIND THE PATTERN
The key to understanding Scripture is not merely collecting verses.
The key is finding the pattern.
The pattern reveals the purpose.
The purpose reveals the destination.
When we find the pattern of God, confusion begins to disappear.
Passover finds its place.
Pentecost finds its place.
Tabernacles finds its place.
The Kingdom finds its place.
The Perfect Man finds his place.
The ages find their place.
Everything begins to align with the Chief Cornerstone.
The Plan of the Ages Revealed begins with this simple truth:
God reveals Himself by revealing His pattern.
And His pattern reveals His purpose.
In the chapters ahead we will trace that pattern through creation, natural growth, Passover, Pentecost, Tabernacles, spiritual maturity, and the ages themselves until we arrive at God’s ultimate destination:
“That God may be all in all.”
CHAPTER 2
MOSES KNEW HIS WAYS
One of the most revealing statements in all of Scripture is found in the Psalms.
Psalm 103:7
“He made known his ways unto Moses, his acts unto the children of Israel.”
At first glance, this verse appears simple.
Yet hidden within this statement is one of the greatest distinctions in the entire Bible.
Israel knew God’s acts.
Moses knew God’s ways.
Israel saw what God did.
Moses learned how God worked.
Israel witnessed the miracles.
Moses understood the pattern behind the miracles.
This distinction becomes one of the foundational keys to The Plan of the Ages Revealed.
Many believers know God’s acts.
Far fewer understand His ways.
Many know individual doctrines.
Many know prophetic events.
Many know Bible stories.
Yet few understand the divine pattern connecting them together.
The Plan of the Ages Revealed is ultimately a study of God’s ways.
It is a study of God’s order.
It is a study of God’s pattern.
It is a study of God’s purpose.
THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN ACTS AND WAYS
Israel witnessed extraordinary things.
They saw the Nile turned to blood.
They saw frogs cover Egypt.
They saw darkness fall upon the land.
They saw the death angel pass over.
They saw the Red Sea open.
They saw manna fall from heaven.
They saw water come from the rock.
They saw the pillar of cloud.
They saw the pillar of fire.
Yet seeing God’s acts is not the same as understanding God’s ways.
Acts reveal power.
Ways reveal purpose.
Acts reveal events.
Ways reveal pattern.
Acts reveal what happened.
Ways reveal why it happened.
Many people seek God’s acts.
Few seek God’s ways.
Yet Moses sought something deeper.
Exodus 33:13
“Now therefore, I pray thee, if I have found grace in thy sight, shew me now thy way.”
Notice the request.
Moses did not merely ask for another miracle.
Moses asked:
“Show me thy way.”
He wanted to understand how God thinks.
How God works.
How God governs.
How God reveals Himself.
MOSES LEARNED GOD’S ORDER
The reason Moses stands apart in Scripture is not simply because he was a prophet.
There were other prophets.
It is not simply because he heard God’s voice.
Others heard God’s voice.
It is not simply because he performed miracles.
Others performed miracles.
What distinguished Moses was that God entrusted him with divine order.
God revealed the pattern.
God revealed the blueprint.
God revealed the architecture.
Through Moses came:
The Tabernacle.
The Priesthood.
The Sacrifices.
The Feasts.
The Camp Arrangement.
The Law.
The Government of Israel.
Everything was ordered according to a heavenly pattern.
Moses became a steward of divine order.
This is why The Plan of the Ages Revealed cannot be understood apart from Moses.
THE TABERNACLE WAS A PATTERN
Exodus 25:9
“According to all that I shew thee, after the pattern of the tabernacle.”
Exodus 25:40
“And look that thou make them after their pattern, which was shewed thee in the mount.”
The word pattern appears repeatedly.
Why?
Because God was revealing something larger than a tent.
The Tabernacle was a prophetic revelation.
Every board.
Every curtain.
Every vessel.
Every sacrifice.
Every measurement.
Every priestly garment.
Every detail mattered.
Nothing was random.
Nothing was accidental.
Everything revealed Christ.
Everything revealed God’s purpose.
Everything revealed God’s order.
The pattern protected the revelation.
THE PATTERN WAS HEAVENLY
Hebrews 8:5
“Who serve unto the example and shadow of heavenly things.”
Moses was not inventing something earthly.
He was reproducing something heavenly.
The earthly tabernacle reflected a heavenly reality.
The natural revealed the spiritual.
The visible revealed the invisible.
This becomes one of the great themes of The Plan of the Ages Revealed.
God reveals heavenly truths through earthly patterns.
God reveals spiritual realities through natural examples.
God reveals eternal purpose through temporal pictures.
THE FEASTS REVEALED THE PATTERN
Leviticus 23 records the feasts of the Lord.
Many view these feasts merely as Jewish observances.
Yet Moses understood something deeper.
The feasts revealed God’s order.
Passover.
Pentecost.
Tabernacles.
These were not random celebrations.
These were prophetic patterns.
Passover revealed redemption.
Pentecost revealed formation.
Tabernacles revealed fulfillment.
The feasts revealed the journey.
The feasts revealed the growth.
The feasts revealed the development.
The feasts revealed God’s purpose through the ages.
Moses may not have seen every detail.
But God gave him the pattern.
MOSES SAW WHAT OTHERS MISSED
Israel often focused upon the immediate.
Food.
Water.
Comfort.
Protection.
Circumstances.
Moses continually returned to God’s purpose.
This is why Moses could endure the wilderness.
Hebrews 11:27
“For he endured, as seeing him who is invisible.”
Moses was seeing something beyond the moment.
He was seeing God’s purpose.
He was seeing God’s order.
He was seeing God’s destination.
He was seeing the pattern.
Those who only see events become discouraged by circumstances.
Those who see the pattern gain understanding.
Those who see the pattern gain perspective.
Those who see the pattern gain vision.
GOD STILL REVEALS HIS WAYS
The God who revealed His ways to Moses has not changed.
Malachi 3:6
“For I am the LORD, I change not.”
God still reveals Himself through His pattern.
God still reveals Himself through His Word.
God still reveals Himself through His purpose.
The problem is not that God is hiding.
The problem is that many are looking only for acts.
The Plan of the Ages Revealed invites us to look deeper.
Not merely:
What is God doing?
But:
Why is He doing it?
Where is He going?
What pattern is He revealing?
What purpose is He unveiling?
FIND THE PATTERN
If we are to understand God’s purpose, we must learn from Moses.
We must learn to seek God’s ways.
We must learn to recognize God’s order.
We must learn to see God’s pattern.
When the pattern is found, Scripture begins to come alive.
Creation reveals a pattern.
The Tabernacle reveals a pattern.
The Feasts reveal a pattern.
The Priesthood reveals a pattern.
The Ages reveal a pattern.
And every pattern points to Christ.
The Plan of the Ages Revealed is ultimately the unveiling of God’s ways through the divine pattern He established from the beginning.
Moses knew His ways.
The question before us is:
Do we?
In the next chapter we will discover that God has hidden His pattern throughout creation itself, and that natural creation continually reveals spiritual revelation to those who have eyes to see.
CHAPTER 3
THE PATTERN HIDDEN IN CREATION
One of the greatest mistakes believers make is assuming that God only reveals Himself through sermons, prophets, visions, and spiritual experiences.
Scripture teaches something far greater.
God has hidden His pattern throughout creation itself.
The heavens declare it.
The earth declares it.
The seasons declare it.
The seed declares it.
The harvest declares it.
The child declares it.
The mature man declares it.
Creation is constantly preaching.
Creation is constantly testifying.
Creation is constantly revealing the invisible things of God.
This is one of the great foundations of The Plan of the Ages Revealed.
God reveals spiritual truth through natural creation.
THE INVISIBLE REVEALED THROUGH THE VISIBLE
Romans 1:20
“For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made.”
Notice what Paul says.
The invisible things of God are clearly seen.
How?
By the things that are made.
God placed spiritual revelation inside natural creation.
The visible reveals the invisible.
The natural reveals the spiritual.
The creation reveals the Creator.
The pattern reveals the purpose.
This is why The Plan of the Ages Revealed cannot be understood apart from creation itself.
Creation is a living parable.
Creation is a living testimony.
Creation is a living revelation of God’s ways.
THE FIRST CHAPTER OF THE BIBLE REVEALS ORDER
Genesis 1:1
“In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth.”
Immediately we encounter order.
Day one.
Day two.
Day three.
Day four.
Day five.
Day six.
Day seven.
God could have created everything instantly.
Yet He chose progression.
Why?
Because God reveals Himself through pattern.
Every day builds upon the previous day.
Every stage prepares for the next stage.
Every stage contributes to the final purpose.
The first chapter of the Bible reveals the God of order.
The first chapter of the Bible reveals the God of pattern.
The first chapter of the Bible reveals the God of The Plan of the Ages Revealed.
THE SEASONS REVEAL THE WAYS OF GOD
Ecclesiastes 3:1
“To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven.”
Notice the language.
Season.
Time.
Purpose.
God operates through seasons.
God operates through timing.
God operates through purpose.
Winter has a purpose.
Spring has a purpose.
Summer has a purpose.
Harvest has a purpose.
No season can be skipped.
No season can be removed.
Every season contributes to the final outcome.
The same is true spiritually.
Every age has a purpose.
Every age has a season.
Every age contributes to God’s eternal plan.
SEEDTIME AND HARVEST REVEAL THE KINGDOM
Genesis 8:22
“While the earth remaineth, seedtime and harvest… shall not cease.”
The entire creation revolves around this principle.
Seed.
Growth.
Harvest.
This is God’s pattern.
Mark 4:26-29
“So is the kingdom of God, as if a man should cast seed into the ground.”
Jesus did not compare the Kingdom to machinery.
He did not compare the Kingdom to politics.
He compared the Kingdom to growth.
Because growth reveals the ways of God.
The seed appears insignificant.
The harvest appears glorious.
Yet the harvest is hidden inside the seed.
The ending is hidden in the beginning.
The mature man is hidden in the child.
The harvest is hidden in the seed.
The purpose is hidden in the pattern.
NATURAL GROWTH REVEALS SPIRITUAL REVELATION
This may be one of the most important truths in this entire book.
Natural growth reveals spiritual revelation.
A child teaches us about the Kingdom.
A seed teaches us about the Kingdom.
A harvest teaches us about the Kingdom.
A vine teaches us about the Kingdom.
Jesus constantly taught through natural examples because creation reveals divine pattern.
Mark 4:28
“For the earth bringeth forth fruit of herself; first the blade, then the ear, after that the full corn in the ear.”
Notice the sequence.
First.
Then.
After that.
This is the language of God.
God works progressively.
God works through stages.
God works through development.
The blade is not wrong because it is not the ear.
The ear is not wrong because it is not the full corn.
Each stage serves a purpose.
Each stage contributes to maturity.
Each stage reveals God’s order.
The same principle becomes foundational to The Plan of the Ages Revealed.
THE CHILD REVEALS THE MATURE MAN
Every human being reveals the pattern of God.
A child begins as a seed.
Then conception.
Then development.
Then birth.
Then infancy.
Then childhood.
Then maturity.
Nobody begins as a mature man.
Nobody skips growth.
Nobody bypasses development.
Every stage has:
A beginning.
A mandate.
A purpose.
A maturity.
A completion.
Every stage reveals divine order.
If development stops, maturity is hindered.
If growth is interrupted, purpose is delayed.
The same principle exists spiritually.
Passover.
Pentecost.
Tabernacles.
Each stage builds upon the previous stage.
Each stage contributes to God’s ultimate purpose.
JESUS TAUGHT THROUGH PATTERN
Matthew 13:34
“Without a parable spake he not unto them.”
Why did Jesus teach this way?
Because creation reveals truth.
The sower.
The seed.
The wheat.
The tares.
The vineyard.
The branches.
The fig tree.
The harvest.
Again and again Jesus pointed to creation.
Why?
Because the Creator hid His pattern inside creation.
Jesus simply revealed what had been there from the beginning.
The Plan of the Ages Revealed follows the same principle.
We learn spiritual truths by observing the patterns God established in creation.
CREATION TESTIFIES OF CHRIST
Psalm 19:1
“The heavens declare the glory of God.”
Creation is constantly testifying.
The seed testifies.
The harvest testifies.
The seasons testify.
The stars testify.
The sun testifies.
The moon testifies.
The earth testifies.
Everything points beyond itself.
Everything reveals a greater reality.
Everything points to Christ.
Everything points to God’s purpose.
Everything points to the unfolding Plan of the Ages Revealed.
FIND THE PATTERN IN CREATION
Most people look at creation and see objects.
God looks at creation and sees revelation.
The believer must learn to see as God sees.
The seed reveals growth.
Growth reveals maturity.
Maturity reveals purpose.
Purpose reveals destiny.
This is why creation becomes one of our greatest teachers.
Creation reveals that God never works randomly.
Creation reveals that God never skips a stage.
Creation reveals that God always works according to pattern.
The pattern hidden in creation becomes the key to understanding the ages themselves.
The same God who formed the seed formed the ages.
The same God who established growth established the Plan of the Ages.
The same God who brings the harvest to maturity is bringing creation to maturity according to His eternal purpose.
In the next chapter we will examine one of the greatest revelations hidden in creation itself:
Natural Growth Reveals Spiritual Revelation.
CHAPTER 4
NATURAL GROWTH REVEALS SPIRITUAL REVELATION
One of the greatest principles found throughout Scripture is that God uses natural things to reveal spiritual things.
The natural reveals the spiritual.
The visible reveals the invisible.
The temporal reveals the eternal.
This principle becomes one of the master keys to understanding The Plan of the Ages Revealed.
Many believers attempt to understand spiritual truth while ignoring the natural examples God has placed before them.
Yet the Scriptures repeatedly reveal that creation itself is a teacher.
Creation reveals pattern.
Creation reveals order.
Creation reveals purpose.
Creation reveals growth.
Creation reveals maturity.
Natural growth reveals spiritual revelation.
FIRST THE NATURAL, THEN THE SPIRITUAL
1 Corinthians 15:46
“Howbeit that was not first which is spiritual, but that which is natural; and afterward that which is spiritual.”
This verse establishes a divine principle.
God teaches spiritual realities through natural realities.
The natural comes first.
The spiritual follows.
The visible teaches the invisible.
The earthly teaches the heavenly.
The child teaches the mature man.
The seed teaches the harvest.
The natural growth process teaches spiritual development.
This principle becomes foundational to The Plan of the Ages Revealed.
GOD HID HIS WISDOM IN CREATION
Romans 1:20
“For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen.”
God did not hide His wisdom from creation.
He hid His wisdom within creation.
Everywhere we look, God is revealing Himself.
The seed reveals Him.
The harvest reveals Him.
The seasons reveal Him.
The stars reveal Him.
The development of a child reveals Him.
The growth of a human being reveals Him.
The problem is not that God is hiding.
The problem is that many do not recognize the pattern.
Once the pattern is seen, the purpose begins to emerge.
THE PATTERN OF HUMAN DEVELOPMENT
Every human being begins the same way.
A seed.
Then conception.
Then development.
Then birth.
Then infancy.
Then childhood.
Then maturity.
No one begins as a mature man.
No one skips development.
No one bypasses growth.
Every stage serves a purpose.
Every stage contributes to maturity.
Every stage prepares for what follows.
This is one of the great revelations of The Plan of the Ages Revealed.
The natural growth process reveals God’s method.
God works progressively.
God works through stages.
God works through development.
God works through maturity.
EVERY STAGE HAS A MANDATE
The embryo has a mandate.
Its purpose is development.
The infant has a mandate.
Its purpose is growth.
The child has a mandate.
Its purpose is learning.
The young man has a mandate.
Its purpose is strengthening.
The mature man has a mandate.
Its purpose is fulfillment.
Every stage has a beginning.
Every stage has a purpose.
Every stage has a maturity.
Every stage has a completion.
This is not merely biology.
This is divine revelation.
Natural growth reveals spiritual revelation.
THE CHILD IS NOT A DEFECTIVE MAN
One of the greatest mistakes people make is judging one stage by another stage.
The child is not a defective adult.
The child is a successful child.
The embryo is not a defective infant.
The embryo is a successful embryo.
The seed is not a defective harvest.
The seed is a successful seed.
Each stage is fulfilling its purpose.
Each stage is progressing toward maturity.
Each stage contributes to the final outcome.
The same principle applies spiritually.
Passover is not a defective Pentecost.
Pentecost is not a defective Tabernacles.
Each administration fulfills the purpose assigned to it.
Each administration contributes to God’s eternal plan.
GROWTH REQUIRES PROCESS
Mark 4:28
“For the earth bringeth forth fruit of herself; first the blade, then the ear, after that the full corn in the ear.”
Notice the progression.
First.
Then.
After that.
God is teaching us something.
The blade has a purpose.
The ear has a purpose.
The full corn has a purpose.
Each stage contributes to maturity.
No stage can be skipped.
No stage can be bypassed.
God could produce the harvest instantly.
Yet He chooses process.
Why?
Because process reveals purpose.
Growth reveals design.
Development reveals wisdom.
The pattern reveals the purpose.
SPIRITUAL DWARFISM OCCURS WHEN GROWTH STOPS
If a child stops growing, something is wrong.
Life may still exist.
Yet development has been interrupted.
The result is immaturity.
The same principle exists spiritually.
When growth stops, maturity is hindered.
When development stops, purpose is delayed.
When the pattern is abandoned, confusion enters.
God’s purpose is always maturity.
God’s purpose is always growth.
God’s purpose is always development.
The Plan of the Ages Revealed shows that God’s dealings with humanity follow the same pattern observed in natural growth.
THE AGES FOLLOW THE SAME PATTERN
Passover reveals spiritual childhood.
Pentecost reveals spiritual growth.
Tabernacles reveals spiritual fulfillment.
Every age possesses:
A beginning.
A mandate.
A purpose.
A maturity.
A completion.
Just as the child becomes the young man, and the young man becomes the mature man, so one administration prepares the way for the next.
The maturity of one administration becomes the foundation of the next administration.
This pattern appears throughout Scripture.
The same God who designed human development designed the ages.
JESUS GREW
Luke 2:40
“And the child grew, and waxed strong in spirit.”
Luke 2:52
“And Jesus increased in wisdom and stature.”
Even Jesus reveals this principle.
Growth.
Development.
Increase.
Maturity.
The Father did not bypass process.
The Son grew.
The Son matured.
The Son developed.
Why?
Because growth itself reveals divine order.
Natural growth reveals spiritual revelation.
FIND THE PATTERN
The believer who learns to recognize God’s pattern gains understanding.
The seed reveals the harvest.
The child reveals the mature man.
The natural reveals the spiritual.
Growth reveals purpose.
Development reveals design.
Maturity reveals destiny.
This is why creation remains one of God’s greatest teachers.
God reveals Himself through pattern.
God reveals His purpose through growth.
God reveals His wisdom through development.
The Plan of the Ages Revealed teaches us that natural growth is not merely a biological process.
Natural growth is a divine testimony.
It reveals how God works.
It reveals how God matures.
It reveals how God fulfills His purpose.
And it prepares us to understand the next great revelation:
The Seed, the Child, and the Mature Man.
CHAPTER 5
THE SEED, THE CHILD, AND THE MATURE MAN
Throughout Scripture, God repeatedly reveals spiritual truth through natural growth.
The seed reveals the harvest.
The child reveals the mature man.
The beginning reveals the ending.
The process reveals the purpose.
This principle is one of the great foundations of The Plan of the Ages Revealed.
Many believers want to understand the destination without understanding the journey.
Many want the harvest without understanding the seed.
Many want maturity without understanding growth.
Yet God consistently reveals Himself through progressive development.
The seed becomes the child.
The child becomes the mature man.
The beginning unfolds into the fulfillment.
The pattern reveals the purpose.
THE END IS HIDDEN IN THE BEGINNING
Isaiah 46:10
“Declaring the end from the beginning.”
God sees the mature man inside the child.
God sees the harvest inside the seed.
God sees the oak tree inside the acorn.
God sees fulfillment inside the process.
This is why The Plan of the Ages Revealed is so important.
The end was present in God’s mind before the beginning appeared in history.
The mature man was God’s intention before the child was born.
The harvest was God’s intention before the seed was planted.
The destination was established before the journey began.
THE SEED CONTAINS THE FUTURE
John 12:24
“Except a corn of wheat fall into the ground and die, it abideth alone: but if it die, it bringeth forth much fruit.”
A seed appears insignificant.
Small.
Hidden.
Fragile.
Yet within that seed lies an entire future.
Roots.
Branches.
Fruit.
Harvest.
The future is hidden within the seed.
The purpose is hidden within the seed.
The pattern is hidden within the seed.
This is how God works.
The seed reveals the beginning.
The harvest reveals the intention.
The Plan of the Ages Revealed teaches us that God always begins with a seed.
THE CHILD IS A REVELATION OF PURPOSE
Every child carries a future.
The child is not the final manifestation.
Yet the mature man is already hidden within the child.
The child reveals potential.
The mature man reveals fulfillment.
The child reveals promise.
The mature man reveals completion.
The child reveals beginning.
The mature man reveals destination.
Natural growth reveals spiritual revelation.
The child teaches us how God develops His purpose.
FIRST THE BLADE
Mark 4:28
“For the earth bringeth forth fruit of herself; first the blade.”
Notice God’s language.
First.
The blade is not failure.
The blade is success.
The blade is doing exactly what God designed it to do.
The blade is a stage.
The blade has a purpose.
The blade prepares for what follows.
One of the greatest mistakes people make is despising the blade because it is not yet the harvest.
Yet God does not despise the blade.
God created the blade.
God ordained the blade.
God uses the blade.
The blade is part of the pattern.
THEN THE EAR
Mark 4:28
“Then the ear.”
The ear follows the blade.
The ear builds upon the blade.
The ear is not independent of the blade.
The ear is the result of the blade.
The ear could never exist without the blade.
This is one of the great lessons of The Plan of the Ages Revealed.
Every stage builds upon the previous stage.
Every stage prepares for the next stage.
Every stage contributes to maturity.
AFTER THAT THE FULL CORN IN THE EAR
Mark 4:28
“After that the full corn in the ear.”
Now maturity appears.
Now fullness appears.
Now purpose appears.
Now harvest appears.
The harvest is not separate from the process.
The harvest is the result of the process.
The harvest is the fulfillment of the process.
The harvest reveals the purpose hidden within the seed from the beginning.
LITTLE CHILDREN, YOUNG MEN, AND FATHERS
1 John 2:12-14
“I write unto you, little children…”
“I write unto you, young men…”
“I write unto you, fathers…”
John reveals spiritual growth through natural language.
Little children.
Young men.
Fathers.
Different stages.
Different levels of maturity.
Different states of being.
Yet all belong to the same family.
All possess life.
All are progressing toward maturity.
The same principle appears throughout Scripture.
God develops.
God matures.
God grows.
God fulfills.
THE PERFECT MAN
Ephesians 4:13
“Till we all come… unto a perfect man.”
The perfect man does not appear suddenly.
The perfect man is the result of development.
The perfect man is the result of growth.
The perfect man is the result of maturity.
The perfect man is the fulfillment of a process.
Just as a child becomes a mature man through development, God’s purpose unfolds through progressive stages.
The Plan of the Ages Revealed teaches us that God works according to pattern.
The perfect man reveals the success of the process.
The perfect man reveals the completion of the mandate.
The perfect man reveals maturity.
THE AGES FOLLOW THE SAME PATTERN
The same pattern appears throughout God’s dealings with humanity.
Passover is a seed.
Pentecost is growth.
Tabernacles is fulfillment.
Each stage has purpose.
Each stage has maturity.
Each stage has completion.
Passover reveals Christ.
Pentecost forms Christ in a people.
Tabernacles reveals Christ manifested through a people.
The seed.
The child.
The mature man.
The pattern remains unchanged.
God reveals Himself through growth.
God reveals Himself through development.
God reveals Himself through progressive fulfillment.
THE PURPOSE OF THE PROCESS
Many believers become frustrated with process.
Yet process is not the enemy.
Process is the pathway.
Growth is the pathway.
Development is the pathway.
Maturity is the pathway.
God could instantly produce the harvest.
Yet He chooses development.
Why?
Because development reveals His wisdom.
Development reveals His order.
Development reveals His pattern.
The process reveals the purpose.
FIND THE PATTERN
The seed reveals the harvest.
The child reveals the mature man.
The beginning reveals the ending.
The process reveals the purpose.
This is one of the central themes of The Plan of the Ages Revealed.
God always begins with life.
God develops that life.
God matures that life.
God fulfills that life.
The seed becomes the harvest.
The child becomes the mature man.
The ages move toward fulfillment.
And every stage reveals another dimension of God’s eternal purpose.
In the next chapter we will begin tracing this pattern through Scripture itself as we examine one of the greatest prophetic patterns ever revealed:
The Pattern of Passover.
CHAPTER 6
THE PATTERN OF PASSOVER
If we are going to understand The Plan of the Ages Revealed, we must understand that God reveals His purpose progressively.
God does not reveal everything at once.
God reveals truth through pattern.
God reveals purpose through stages.
God reveals fulfillment through progressive development.
One of the greatest patterns ever given to mankind is found in the Feast of Passover.
Passover was not merely an event.
Passover was not merely a feast.
Passover was not merely a historical celebration.
Passover was a prophetic pattern.
Passover was the beginning of a journey.
Passover revealed the first great stage in God’s unfolding purpose.
To understand The Plan of the Ages Revealed, we must first understand the purpose of Passover.
PASSOVER WAS BORN IN DELIVERANCE
Exodus 12:13
“And when I see the blood, I will pass over you.”
The very name Passover reveals deliverance.
Israel was enslaved.
Israel was in bondage.
Israel was trapped in Egypt.
Yet God provided a lamb.
The blood of the lamb became the means of deliverance.
Death passed over.
Judgment passed over.
Bondage was broken.
A journey began.
Passover reveals the beginning of redemption.
Passover reveals salvation.
Passover reveals deliverance.
Passover reveals Christ.
THE LAMB WAS THE CENTER OF PASSOVER
Exodus 12:5
“Your lamb shall be without blemish.”
The lamb stood at the center of everything.
Without the lamb there is no Passover.
Without the lamb there is no deliverance.
Without the lamb there is no redemption.
Without the lamb there is no journey.
The lamb reveals Christ.
John 1:29
“Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world.”
The Passover lamb pointed beyond itself.
The natural revealed the spiritual.
The shadow revealed the substance.
The lamb revealed Christ.
This is one of the great themes of The Plan of the Ages Revealed.
Everything points to Christ.
Everything reveals Christ.
Everything serves God’s eternal purpose in Christ.
PASSOVER WAS A BEGINNING
Exodus 12:2
“This month shall be unto you the beginning of months.”
Notice carefully.
Passover was a beginning.
Not an ending.
Not a destination.
A beginning.
A starting point.
A doorway.
A foundation.
Israel’s journey did not end at Passover.
It began at Passover.
This is where many believers become confused.
They mistake beginnings for destinations.
Yet Passover itself reveals that redemption is the beginning of a journey.
The Plan of the Ages Revealed teaches us that every beginning prepares for something greater.
PASSOVER PRODUCED A PEOPLE
Before Passover there were slaves.
After Passover there was a redeemed people.
Passover changed their position.
Passover changed their standing.
Passover changed their relationship.
Passover brought them out.
Yet bringing them out was not the final objective.
God did not merely want a redeemed people.
God desired a mature people.
God desired a kingdom of priests.
God desired a people who would ultimately reveal His purpose.
Passover begins the process.
It does not complete the process.
THE LAW WAS ADDED TO THE JOURNEY
After Passover came Sinai.
After redemption came instruction.
After deliverance came order.
After salvation came formation.
Exodus 19:5-6
“Ye shall be unto me a kingdom of priests, and an holy nation.”
God immediately revealed a larger purpose.
Passover was never the whole story.
Passover was preparing the way for something greater.
The redeemed people now had to learn God’s ways.
They had to learn God’s order.
They had to learn God’s pattern.
They had to learn God’s purpose.
PASSOVER REVEALS CHRIST
1 Corinthians 5:7
“For even Christ our passover is sacrificed for us.”
Paul removes all doubt.
Christ is the fulfillment of Passover.
The lamb pointed to Christ.
The blood pointed to Christ.
The deliverance pointed to Christ.
The redemption pointed to Christ.
Everything in Passover revealed Christ.
The shadow pointed to the substance.
The type pointed to the fulfillment.
The pattern pointed to the reality.
This is why Passover remains essential to The Plan of the Ages Revealed.
Passover reveals the foundation upon which everything else is built.
PASSOVER REACHED ITS FULLNESS
Many believers think of Passover as incomplete.
Yet Passover fulfilled its purpose perfectly.
Passover accomplished exactly what God intended.
It revealed the Lamb.
It revealed redemption.
It revealed deliverance.
It revealed Christ.
Passover reached maturity according to its assignment.
Passover reached fullness according to its purpose.
Yet Passover’s fullness was not the fullness of Pentecost.
Its maturity was not the maturity of Pentecost.
Its mandate was not the mandate of Pentecost.
This distinction is essential.
Every administration reaches fullness according to its purpose.
Every administration succeeds according to its commission.
The Plan of the Ages Revealed teaches us that God builds progressively.
PASSOVER PREPARED THE WAY FOR PENTECOST
The redeemed people left Egypt.
The journey continued.
Passover produced a redeemed people.
But redemption was not the destination.
Redemption was preparation.
Deliverance was preparation.
The lamb was preparation.
The blood was preparation.
The journey was moving toward something greater.
Just as a child prepares for maturity, Passover prepared for Pentecost.
Just as a seed prepares for harvest, Passover prepared for growth.
The pattern remained consistent.
The beginning prepared for what followed.
THE LIMITATION OF PASSOVER
Passover could redeem.
Passover could deliver.
Passover could bring a people out.
But Passover could not produce maturity.
Passover could not perfect the saints.
Passover could not produce the Perfect Man.
Passover could not bring creation into fulfillment.
Passover was never designed to accomplish those things.
Passover fulfilled its purpose perfectly.
Yet its purpose was preparation.
This distinction removes confusion.
The limitation of Passover was not failure.
The limitation of Passover was assignment.
Every administration has a purpose.
Every administration has a boundary.
Every administration has a commission.
FIND THE PATTERN
Passover teaches us a profound truth.
God begins with redemption.
God begins with deliverance.
God begins with the Lamb.
God begins with Christ.
Yet the journey does not stop there.
Passover reveals the beginning.
Passover reveals the foundation.
Passover reveals the doorway.
Passover reveals Christ.
The Plan of the Ages Revealed shows that every administration prepares for the next administration.
The maturity of one stage becomes the foundation of the next stage.
Passover accomplished exactly what God intended.
Now God could move His people into growth.
Now God could move His people into formation.
Now God could move His people toward maturity.
In the next chapter we will examine the second great stage in God’s unfolding purpose:
The Pattern of Pentecost.
CHAPTER 7
THE PATTERN OF PENTECOST
If Passover reveals redemption, Pentecost reveals formation.
If Passover brings a people out, Pentecost builds those people into something.
If Passover reveals the Lamb, Pentecost reveals Christ being formed in a people.
This distinction is essential to understanding The Plan of the Ages Revealed.
Many believers understand Passover.
Far fewer understand Pentecost.
Yet we have lived within the administration of Pentecost for nearly two thousand years.
The purpose of Pentecost was never merely to save people.
The purpose of Pentecost was to form a people.
The purpose of Pentecost was to perfect the saints.
The purpose of Pentecost was to produce a mature firstfruits company.
The purpose of Pentecost was to bring forth a Perfect Man.
THE DAY OF PENTECOST FULLY CAME
Acts 2:1
“And when the day of Pentecost was fully come…”
Notice the language.
Pentecost was not an accident.
Pentecost was an appointed time.
Pentecost was an appointed feast.
Pentecost was an appointed administration.
Pentecost arrived according to God’s pattern.
Just as Passover had its appointed fulfillment in Christ, Pentecost had its appointed fulfillment in the outpouring of the Holy Spirit.
The feast moved from shadow to reality.
The pattern moved from prophecy to fulfillment.
THE BIRTH OF THE ECCLESIA
Acts 2:41
“Then they that gladly received his word were baptized.”
Acts 2:47
“And the Lord added to the church daily such as should be saved.”
Something new appeared.
The ecclesia.
The called-out company.
The saints.
The firstfruits.
Before Pentecost, Christ stood alone as the Firstborn from the dead.
Now the Spirit begins forming a corporate people.
The purpose of Pentecost was not merely individual salvation.
The purpose of Pentecost was the formation of a body.
A people.
A remnant.
A firstfruits company.
This becomes one of the central revelations of The Plan of the Ages Revealed.
THE FIVEFOLD MINISTRY REVEALS THE PURPOSE OF PENTECOST
Ephesians 4:11-12
“And he gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers;
For the perfecting of the saints…”
Notice where the commission begins.
Not with the nations.
Not with governments.
Not with the world.
The saints.
The entire mandate is anchored in one thought:
The perfecting of the saints.
Everything that follows must be interpreted through that lens.
The work of the ministry serves the saints.
The edifying of the body serves the saints.
The unity of the faith serves the saints.
The knowledge of the Son of God serves the saints.
The Perfect Man serves the saints.
The commission never changes subjects.
The subject remains the called-out company.
The ecclesia.
THE WORK OF THE MINISTRY
Ephesians 4:12
“For the work of the ministry.”
Why perfect the saints?
For the work of the ministry.
The ministry is not merely performed by leadership.
The ministry is performed by a perfected people.
Pentecost begins with spiritual babies.
Pentecost intends to produce mature saints.
Pentecost begins with believers.
Pentecost intends to produce overcomers.
Pentecost begins with children.
Pentecost intends to produce maturity.
The purpose of the ministry is formation.
THE EDIFYING OF THE BODY OF CHRIST
Ephesians 4:12
“For the edifying of the body of Christ.”
The word edify means to build.
To strengthen.
To mature.
To develop.
The Body of Christ must be built.
The Body of Christ must be strengthened.
The Body of Christ must be formed.
This is Pentecostal language.
This is formation language.
This is growth language.
This is maturity language.
The Plan of the Ages Revealed shows us that Pentecost is God’s great school of spiritual development.
TILL WE ALL COME
Ephesians 4:13
“Till we all come…”
This word changes everything.
Till.
The commission has a destination.
The ministry has an objective.
The administration has a purpose.
Pentecost is moving toward something.
The Fivefold Ministry was never intended to continue endlessly without purpose.
It possesses an objective.
A completion.
A maturity.
A fulfillment.
The word “till” reveals that Pentecost is working toward a specific outcome.
THE UNITY OF THE FAITH
Ephesians 4:13
“Till we all come in the unity of the faith.”
The subject has not changed.
The saints.
The ecclesia.
The called-out ones.
The remnant.
The purpose is unity.
Not fragmentation.
Not division.
Not immaturity.
Unity.
Pentecost is gathering a people into spiritual maturity and unity.
THE KNOWLEDGE OF THE SON OF GOD
Ephesians 4:13
“And of the knowledge of the Son of God.”
Pentecost is revealing Christ.
The ministry reveals Christ.
The gifts reveal Christ.
The Spirit reveals Christ.
Everything points toward Christ.
The purpose is not merely information.
The purpose is revelation.
The purpose is experiential knowledge of the Son of God.
THE PERFECT MAN
Ephesians 4:13
“Unto a perfect man.”
The subject remains unchanged.
The saints.
The ecclesia.
The called-out company.
The remnant.
The perfect man is the mature result of Pentecost’s work.
The perfect man is not describing the whole world.
The perfect man is describing what Pentecost was commissioned to produce.
A mature firstfruits company.
A mature body.
A mature remnant.
A mature ecclesia.
Pentecost reaches maturity when the perfect man appears.
THE MEASURE OF THE STATURE OF THE FULNESS OF CHRIST
Ephesians 4:13
“Unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ.”
This is Pentecostal fullness.
The fullness associated with Pentecost’s assignment.
The fullness associated with formation.
The fullness associated with maturity.
The fullness associated with the Perfect Man.
Every administration possesses fullness according to its purpose.
Passover reached its fullness.
Pentecost reaches its fullness.
Yet the fullness of one administration is not identical to the fullness of another administration.
This distinction is crucial to understanding The Plan of the Ages Revealed.
PENTECOST PRODUCES A GLORIOUS WOMAN
Revelation 12:1
“And there appeared a great wonder in heaven; a woman clothed with the sun.”
Here we encounter a mature corporate people.
A glorious woman.
Clothed with the sun.
Crowned with stars.
Filled with glory.
This woman represents the success of Pentecost’s mission.
The saints have been perfected.
The body has been formed.
The remnant has matured.
The firstfruits have developed.
Pentecost has accomplished its purpose.
Yet something remarkable remains.
She still travails.
She still groans.
She still anticipates something beyond herself.
THE LIMITATION OF PENTECOST
Romans 8:23
“Even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting for the adoption, to wit, the redemption of our body.”
Pentecost produces maturity.
Pentecost produces overcomers.
Pentecost produces the Perfect Man.
Pentecost produces the glorious woman.
Yet groaning remains.
Waiting remains.
Expectation remains.
Why?
Because Pentecost’s purpose is formation.
Pentecost brings a people to maturity.
But maturity itself becomes the foundation for what follows.
The limitation of Pentecost is not failure.
The limitation of Pentecost is assignment.
Pentecost fulfills its commission perfectly.
Yet its commission is formation.
FIND THE PATTERN
Passover reveals redemption.
Pentecost reveals formation.
Passover produces a redeemed people.
Pentecost produces a mature people.
Passover reveals Christ the Lamb.
Pentecost reveals Christ formed in a people.
The Plan of the Ages Revealed shows us that Pentecost was never random.
Pentecost possesses a purpose.
Pentecost possesses a mandate.
Pentecost possesses a maturity.
Pentecost possesses a completion.
The administration moves toward a Perfect Man.
The administration moves toward the fulness of Christ.
The administration moves toward a mature firstfruits company.
And when that purpose is fulfilled, the maturity of Pentecost becomes the womb of the next administration.
In the next chapter we will examine more closely the central commission of Pentecost:
The Perfecting of the Saints.
CHAPTER 8
THE PERFECTING OF THE SAINTS
If there is one verse that reveals the heart of Pentecost’s mandate, it is found in Ephesians 4.
Ephesians 4:12
“For the perfecting of the saints.”
Everything begins here.
Everything flows from here.
Everything that follows must be interpreted through this statement.
The work of the ministry exists because of this statement.
The edifying of the body exists because of this statement.
The unity of the faith exists because of this statement.
The knowledge of the Son of God exists because of this statement.
The Perfect Man exists because of this statement.
The fulness of Christ exists because of this statement.
The purpose of Pentecost is the perfecting of the saints.
This is one of the great revelations of The Plan of the Ages Revealed.
WHO ARE THE SAINTS?
Before we can understand the commission, we must understand the people receiving the commission.
Who are the saints?
The saints are the ecclesia.
The called-out ones.
The firstfruits.
The remnant.
Those whom God has called out of darkness into His marvelous light.
1 Peter 2:9
“But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people.”
The saints are not the world.
The saints are not the nations as a whole.
The saints are the called-out company God is forming during Pentecost.
The ecclesia is the object of the ministry.
The ecclesia is the focus of the commission.
The ecclesia is the people being perfected.
PENTECOST BEGINS WITH BABIES
Every administration begins somewhere.
Pentecost begins with spiritual infants.
Acts 2 records the birth of the church.
The Spirit is poured out.
The Word is preached.
Three thousand souls are added.
The ecclesia begins.
Yet these believers are not mature.
They are newborn.
They are spiritual children.
They require growth.
They require development.
They require formation.
This is why God gave apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors, and teachers.
Not because Pentecost begins with maturity.
Because Pentecost begins with babies.
The purpose of the ministry is growth.
The purpose of the ministry is development.
The purpose of the ministry is maturity.
THE FIVEFOLD MINISTRY IS A FORMATION MINISTRY
Ephesians 4:11
“And he gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers.”
The gifts are not the destination.
The gifts are tools.
The ministry is not the destination.
The ministry is a means to an end.
The goal is the saints.
The goal is maturity.
The goal is development.
The goal is formation.
One of the greatest mistakes believers make is focusing upon the ministry while forgetting the purpose of the ministry.
The purpose is the saints.
The purpose is the ecclesia.
The purpose is the called-out company.
The purpose is maturity.
The Plan of the Ages Revealed shows us that the Fivefold Ministry exists because God is building something.
CHRIST FORMED IN YOU
Galatians 4:19
“My little children, of whom I travail in birth again until Christ be formed in you.”
Notice Paul’s language.
Formed.
Not merely forgiven.
Not merely redeemed.
Formed.
Pentecost is a formation administration.
Christ is being formed within a people.
Character is being formed.
Faith is being formed.
Understanding is being formed.
Maturity is being formed.
The purpose of Pentecost is not merely conversion.
The purpose of Pentecost is formation.
THE PERFECTING PROCESS
Hebrews 6:1
“Let us go on unto perfection.”
Growth is expected.
Development is expected.
Maturity is expected.
God never intended His people to remain spiritual infants.
A child is wonderful.
But a child is not the destination.
The destination is maturity.
The destination is completion.
The destination is the Perfect Man.
Every sermon.
Every teaching.
Every correction.
Every trial.
Every discipline.
Every victory.
Every experience contributes to the perfecting process.
The Plan of the Ages Revealed teaches us that God is continually moving His people toward maturity.
TILL WE ALL COME
Ephesians 4:13
“Till we all come.”
This statement reveals that Pentecost possesses an objective.
The commission is moving somewhere.
The ministry is building toward something.
The process has a destination.
The saints are being perfected until something appears.
Until unity appears.
Until knowledge appears.
Until maturity appears.
Until the Perfect Man appears.
The word “till” reveals completion.
The word “till” reveals fulfillment.
The word “till” reveals maturity.
THE UNITY OF THE FAITH
Ephesians 4:13
“Till we all come in the unity of the faith.”
The saints begin scattered.
The saints begin immature.
The saints begin divided by understanding.
Yet Pentecost is gathering.
Pentecost is forming.
Pentecost is building.
Pentecost is maturing.
The goal is unity.
Not organizational unity.
Not institutional unity.
Spiritual unity.
The unity produced by Christ Himself.
THE KNOWLEDGE OF THE SON OF GOD
Ephesians 4:13
“And of the knowledge of the Son of God.”
The perfecting of the saints is ultimately centered upon Christ.
Everything points to Christ.
Everything reveals Christ.
Everything magnifies Christ.
The ministry reveals Christ.
The gifts reveal Christ.
The Word reveals Christ.
The Spirit reveals Christ.
The purpose of Pentecost is not merely education.
The purpose of Pentecost is revelation.
The saints are being brought into the knowledge of the Son of God.
THE PERFECT MAN
Ephesians 4:13
“Unto a perfect man.”
This is the destination of Pentecost.
The mature man.
The complete man.
The perfected man.
The fully developed man.
The subject has not changed.
Paul is still discussing the saints.
The ecclesia.
The called-out company.
The remnant.
The perfect man is the mature result of Pentecost’s work.
The perfect man represents the successful completion of the administration’s mandate.
The perfect man is what Pentecost has been building toward from the beginning.
THE FULNESS OF CHRIST
Ephesians 4:13
“Unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ.”
The saints are not merely growing.
The saints are growing toward a measure.
A stature.
A maturity.
A fullness.
This is Pentecostal fullness.
The fullness associated with Pentecost’s commission.
The fullness associated with formation.
The fullness associated with the Perfect Man.
The fullness associated with a mature firstfruits company.
The Plan of the Ages Revealed shows that every administration possesses a fullness according to its purpose.
Passover had fullness.
Pentecost has fullness.
Yet each fullness serves a different purpose within God’s unfolding plan.
THE SUCCESS OF PENTECOST
Many believers view Pentecost as though it has failed.
Scripture teaches the opposite.
Pentecost succeeds.
Pentecost accomplishes its assignment.
Pentecost perfects the saints.
Pentecost builds the body.
Pentecost produces unity.
Pentecost produces knowledge.
Pentecost produces the Perfect Man.
Pentecost produces a mature firstfruits company.
Pentecost accomplishes exactly what God intended.
The limitation of Pentecost is not failure.
The limitation of Pentecost is assignment.
Pentecost was commissioned to form.
And when formation reaches maturity, something extraordinary becomes possible.
FIND THE PATTERN
The perfecting of the saints reveals the heart of Pentecost.
God begins with spiritual children.
God develops those children.
God matures those children.
God perfects those children.
God produces a mature company.
The ministry serves this purpose.
The gifts serve this purpose.
The administration serves this purpose.
The Plan of the Ages Revealed teaches us that Pentecost is God’s great school of formation.
The saints are being perfected.
The body is being built.
The remnant is being matured.
The Perfect Man is emerging.
And as we will see in the next chapter, the successful completion of Pentecost’s work leads directly to one of the most important revelations in Scripture:
The Perfect Man and the Fulness of Pentecost.
CHAPTER 9
THE PERFECT MAN AND THE FULNESS OF PENTECOST
The entire administration of Pentecost is moving toward a destination.
The gifts are moving toward a destination.
The ministry is moving toward a destination.
The perfecting of the saints is moving toward a destination.
The body of Christ is moving toward a destination.
That destination is revealed in Ephesians 4.
Ephesians 4:13
“Till we all come… unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ.”
These words reveal the successful completion of Pentecost’s commission.
The purpose of Pentecost is not endless immaturity.
The purpose of Pentecost is maturity.
The purpose of Pentecost is fulfillment.
The purpose of Pentecost is the emergence of the Perfect Man.
This is one of the great revelations of The Plan of the Ages Revealed.
THE PERFECT MAN IS THE GOAL OF PENTECOST
For centuries many believers have focused upon the gifts.
Others have focused upon the ministry.
Others have focused upon church growth.
Yet Paul focuses upon something entirely different.
The Perfect Man.
The gifts are not the goal.
The ministry is not the goal.
The institutions are not the goal.
The Perfect Man is the goal.
Everything in Ephesians 4 moves toward that objective.
The saints are perfected.
The body is edified.
The faith is unified.
The knowledge of the Son increases.
The result is a Perfect Man.
This is Pentecost’s destination.
THE SUBJECT NEVER CHANGES
One of the greatest mistakes made when reading Ephesians 4 is changing the subject halfway through the passage.
The passage begins:
Ephesians 4:12
“For the perfecting of the saints.”
The saints are the subject.
The ecclesia is the subject.
The called-out company is the subject.
The remnant is the subject.
The firstfruits are the subject.
Every statement that follows must be interpreted within that context.
The unity of the faith concerns the saints.
The knowledge of the Son concerns the saints.
The Perfect Man concerns the saints.
The fulness of Christ concerns the saints.
The subject never changes.
The administration remains focused upon the perfecting of the saints.
This understanding becomes essential to The Plan of the Ages Revealed.
WHAT IS A PERFECT MAN?
The word perfect does not mean flawless in the way many imagine.
The word speaks of maturity.
Completion.
Development.
Fulfillment.
A fully grown man.
A mature man.
A complete man.
The contrast is not between saved and lost.
The contrast is between infancy and maturity.
The contrast is between children and a mature man.
Just as a child grows into adulthood, Pentecost is producing a mature spiritual company.
The Perfect Man is the mature result of the perfecting process.
THE PATTERN OF NATURAL GROWTH
Natural growth reveals spiritual revelation.
A child begins immature.
A child requires nourishment.
A child requires instruction.
A child requires development.
Eventually maturity appears.
The mature man possesses a different state of being than the child.
Both possess life.
Yet one has reached maturity.
The same principle applies spiritually.
The saints begin as spiritual children.
The saints are nurtured.
The saints are taught.
The saints are developed.
The saints are matured.
The Perfect Man emerges.
The Plan of the Ages Revealed shows that God never skips development.
God never bypasses growth.
God always moves toward maturity.
THE FULNESS OF CHRIST
Ephesians 4:13
“Unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ.”
This statement reveals the highest attainment of Pentecost.
The fulness of Christ.
Notice that Paul speaks of:
Measure.
Stature.
Fulness.
These are growth words.
These are maturity words.
These are development words.
Paul is describing the completion of Pentecost’s assignment.
A mature company.
A mature body.
A mature ecclesia.
A mature firstfruits company.
A mature corporate expression of Christ.
This is the fulness associated with Pentecost’s purpose.
EVERY ADMINISTRATION HAS A FULNESS
This is one of the great distinctions that must be understood.
Passover had fullness.
Pentecost has fullness.
Tabernacles has fullness.
Yet they are not identical.
Each administration reaches fullness according to its purpose.
Passover revealed Christ the Lamb.
Passover fulfilled its assignment.
Pentecost forms Christ in a people.
Pentecost fulfills its assignment.
Every administration succeeds according to its commission.
Every administration reaches maturity according to its mandate.
The Plan of the Ages Revealed teaches us that fullness must always be understood within the context of purpose.
THE GLORIOUS WOMAN
Revelation 12:1
“And there appeared a great wonder in heaven; a woman clothed with the sun.”
This woman reveals a mature corporate people.
She is not weak.
She is not immature.
She is clothed with heavenly glory.
She is crowned.
She is radiant.
She reveals the success of formation.
Everything Pentecost was commissioned to accomplish is visible in this woman.
The saints have matured.
The body has matured.
The remnant has matured.
The firstfruits have matured.
The woman represents the successful completion of Pentecost’s work.
YET SHE STILL TRAVAILS
Revelation 12:2
“And she being with child cried, travailing in birth.”
This is one of the most important verses in understanding The Plan of the Ages Revealed.
The woman is mature.
The woman is glorious.
The woman is crowned.
Yet she still travails.
Why?
Because maturity is not the final objective.
Maturity serves a greater purpose.
The mature woman has become a womb.
The successful completion of one administration prepares the way for another administration.
The maturity of one administration becomes the womb of the next administration.
This is how God works.
This is how God reveals His pattern.
ROMANS 8 AND THE GROANING COMPANY
Romans 8:23
“And not only they, but ourselves also… groan within ourselves.”
Notice the language.
Groaning.
Waiting.
Expectation.
These are not the words of spiritual infancy.
These are the words of maturity.
This company possesses firstfruits.
Yet they still wait.
This company possesses maturity.
Yet they still anticipate something greater.
This company has reached the fulness of Pentecost.
Yet the purpose of God continues unfolding.
The limitation of Pentecost is not failure.
The limitation of Pentecost is assignment.
Pentecost forms.
Pentecost matures.
Pentecost perfects.
Yet formation itself points beyond itself.
THE SUCCESS OF FORMATION
Pentecost succeeds.
The saints are perfected.
The body is edified.
Unity appears.
Knowledge appears.
Maturity appears.
The Perfect Man appears.
The fulness of Christ appears.
The glorious woman appears.
Everything God intended Pentecost to accomplish is accomplished.
The administration reaches maturity.
The administration reaches completion.
The administration reaches fullness according to its purpose.
The Plan of the Ages Revealed teaches us that God never abandons an administration before it fulfills its assignment.
FIND THE PATTERN
The Perfect Man reveals the success of Pentecost.
The fulness of Christ reveals the completion of Pentecost’s mandate.
The glorious woman reveals the maturity of Pentecost’s formation.
Everything has been building toward this moment.
Yet the story is not over.
The mature woman now stands ready.
The mature firstfruits company now stands ready.
The perfected saints now stand ready.
The successful completion of one administration becomes the foundation for what follows.
The pattern remains unchanged.
The seed becomes the harvest.
The child becomes the mature man.
The maturity of one administration becomes the womb of the next administration.
In the next chapter we will examine one of the most profound subjects in all of Scripture:
The Pattern of Tabernacles.
CHAPTER 10
THE PATTERN OF TABERNACLES
If Passover reveals redemption, and Pentecost reveals formation, then Tabernacles reveals fulfillment.
If Passover brings a people out, and Pentecost matures that people, then Tabernacles reveals what God intends to do through a mature people.
This distinction is essential to understanding The Plan of the Ages Revealed.
Many believers understand redemption.
Many understand spiritual growth.
Far fewer understand fulfillment.
Yet the entire creation has been moving toward fulfillment from the very beginning.
The Plan of the Ages Revealed teaches us that God moves from preparation to formation to manifestation.
Passover prepares.
Pentecost forms.
Tabernacles manifests.
THE THIRD GREAT FEAST
Leviticus 23:34
“The fifteenth day of this seventh month shall be the feast of tabernacles.”
Passover was first.
Pentecost followed.
Tabernacles completed the cycle.
The order is important.
God did not place the feasts randomly.
The order reveals the pattern.
The pattern reveals the purpose.
The purpose reveals the destination.
The feasts are prophetic pictures of God’s unfolding plan.
The journey moves from redemption to maturity to fulfillment.
This is the language of The Plan of the Ages Revealed.
TABERNACLES IS A FEAST OF FULNESS
Unlike Passover, which begins the journey, and Pentecost, which develops the journey, Tabernacles speaks of completion.
Harvest completed.
Fruit gathered.
Increase manifested.
Purpose fulfilled.
The language of Tabernacles is fullness.
Not beginning.
Not development.
Fullness.
This does not mean the previous feasts failed.
It means the previous feasts succeeded.
Passover succeeded.
Pentecost succeeded.
Their success prepared the way for fulfillment.
THE LAST GREAT DAY
John 7:37
“In the last day, that great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried.”
Notice where Jesus chooses to make one of His greatest declarations.
Tabernacles.
The feast of fulfillment.
The feast of completion.
The feast of fullness.
The feast that prophetically points beyond preparation and beyond formation.
Jesus stands in the midst of Tabernacles and declares:
John 7:38
“He that believeth on me, as the scripture hath said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water.”
The language changes.
Not receiving alone.
Flowing.
Not merely formation.
Expression.
Not merely development.
Manifestation.
The pattern begins to reveal something greater.
EVERY AGE HAS ITS OWN FULNESS
This is one of the most important distinctions in this book.
Passover possesses fullness.
Pentecost possesses fullness.
Tabernacles possesses fullness.
Yet each fullness serves a different purpose.
Passover fullness produces redemption.
Pentecost fullness produces maturity.
Tabernacles fullness produces manifestation.
The fullness of one administration should never be confused with the fullness of another administration.
The Plan of the Ages Revealed teaches us that purpose determines fullness.
Assignment determines fullness.
Mandate determines fullness.
Every administration reaches maturity according to the purpose God assigned to it.
THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN FORMATION AND MANIFESTATION
Pentecost is a formation administration.
Tabernacles is a manifestation administration.
Pentecost perfects the saints.
Tabernacles reveals what perfected saints make possible.
Pentecost forms Christ in a people.
Tabernacles reveals Christ through a people.
Pentecost develops maturity.
Tabernacles reveals maturity.
Pentecost builds the house.
Tabernacles reveals what the completed house was built for.
This distinction removes enormous confusion.
The purpose of Pentecost is not identical to the purpose of Tabernacles.
The purpose of formation is not identical to the purpose of manifestation.
THE WOMAN AND THE MAN-CHILD
Revelation 12:1
“And there appeared a great wonder in heaven; a woman clothed with the sun.”
The woman reveals maturity.
The woman reveals completion.
The woman reveals the successful fulfillment of Pentecost’s mandate.
Yet the story continues.
Revelation 12:5
“And she brought forth a man child.”
Notice the language.
Not a baby requiring development.
Not an infant requiring milk.
A man child.
A mature son.
A fully developed expression.
This is extraordinary imagery.
The woman reveals maturity.
The man-child reveals manifestation.
The woman reveals the successful completion of one administration.
The man-child reveals the emergence of another administration.
The maturity of one administration becomes the womb of the next administration.
This principle is foundational to The Plan of the Ages Revealed.
ISAIAH SAW THE SAME PATTERN
Isaiah 66:7
“Before she travailed, she brought forth.”
Isaiah 66:8
“Shall a nation be born at once?”
Again we encounter the same pattern.
Birth.
Manifestation.
Emergence.
Appearance.
Something hidden becomes visible.
Something formed becomes manifested.
Something prepared becomes revealed.
God continually reveals His purpose through the language of birth.
THE LIMITATIONS ARE REMOVED
Every previous administration possesses boundaries.
Passover has boundaries.
Pentecost has boundaries.
Those boundaries are not failures.
Those boundaries are assignments.
Yet when fulfillment appears, something changes.
The purpose of formation is no longer merely development.
The purpose of formation becomes manifestation.
The purpose of maturity becomes expression.
The purpose of preparation becomes fulfillment.
This is why Tabernacles occupies such an important place in the pattern.
It reveals the purpose toward which everything has been moving.
THE HARVEST PRINCIPLE
James 5:7
“Behold, the husbandman waiteth for the precious fruit of the earth.”
The husbandman does not labor for the seed.
The husbandman labors for the harvest.
The seed is necessary.
The growth is necessary.
The development is necessary.
Yet all are moving toward harvest.
The harvest reveals the purpose hidden within the seed from the beginning.
The same principle appears throughout Scripture.
God begins with a purpose.
God develops according to that purpose.
God fulfills according to that purpose.
The Plan of the Ages Revealed is the story of that unfolding purpose.
THE FEAST OF INGATHERING
Exodus 23:16
“The feast of ingathering, which is in the end of the year.”
Tabernacles is associated with gathering.
Completion.
Harvest.
Ingathering.
The language points toward fulfillment.
The language points toward consummation.
The language points toward completion of purpose.
God is gathering toward an appointed end.
God is moving creation toward an appointed destination.
God is revealing His purpose through divine pattern.
FIND THE PATTERN
Passover reveals redemption.
Pentecost reveals formation.
Tabernacles reveals fulfillment.
Passover begins the journey.
Pentecost matures the journey.
Tabernacles reveals the purpose of the journey.
The pattern remains consistent.
Preparation.
Formation.
Manifestation.
The seed.
The child.
The mature man.
The woman.
The man-child.
The Plan of the Ages Revealed teaches us that God never abandons His pattern.
Every stage contributes to the next stage.
Every administration prepares for the next administration.
Every purpose moves toward a greater purpose.
And as we shall see in the next chapter, the maturity of one administration becomes the womb through which the next administration emerges.
CHAPTER 11
THE MATURITY OF ONE ADMINISTRATION BECOMES THE WOMB OF THE NEXT
One of the greatest principles revealed throughout Scripture is that God never wastes a stage.
Every administration has a purpose.
Every administration has a mandate.
Every administration reaches maturity.
Every administration contributes to what follows.
Nothing is wasted.
Nothing is random.
Nothing exists independently of God’s purpose.
This is one of the great revelations of The Plan of the Ages Revealed.
The maturity of one administration becomes the womb of the next administration.
What God perfects in one age becomes the foundation for what He reveals in the next age.
This pattern appears throughout creation.
This pattern appears throughout Scripture.
This pattern appears throughout the ages themselves.
THE PATTERN IS FOUND IN NATURAL GROWTH
Natural growth reveals spiritual revelation.
A child does not appear randomly.
A child begins as a seed.
The seed develops.
The embryo develops.
The infant develops.
The child develops.
The young man develops.
The mature man emerges.
Every stage contributes to maturity.
Every stage prepares for the next stage.
The mature man is not separate from the child.
The mature man is the fulfillment of the child.
The same principle governs God’s dealings throughout the ages.
The Plan of the Ages Revealed shows that spiritual development follows the same divine order.
THE SEED BECOMES THE HARVEST
John 12:24
“Except a corn of wheat fall into the ground and die.”
The harvest is hidden inside the seed.
The future is hidden inside the beginning.
The fulfillment is hidden inside the process.
The seed exists for the harvest.
The harvest reveals the purpose of the seed.
Likewise, every administration contains within itself the preparation for what follows.
Passover contained Pentecost.
Pentecost contains fulfillment.
The beginning always points toward a greater purpose.
PASSOVER BECAME THE FOUNDATION OF PENTECOST
Passover redeemed.
Passover delivered.
Passover revealed the Lamb.
Passover brought a people out of Egypt.
Yet redemption was never the final objective.
The redeemed people had to be formed.
The redeemed people had to be matured.
The redeemed people had to learn God’s ways.
The redeemed people had to become something.
Passover succeeded.
Because Passover succeeded, Pentecost became possible.
The maturity of Passover became the foundation of Pentecost.
The Plan of the Ages Revealed teaches us that one administration never stands alone.
Each administration prepares for what follows.
PENTECOST PRODUCES A MATURE COMPANY
Ephesians 4:13
“Till we all come… unto a perfect man.”
Pentecost possesses a destination.
Pentecost possesses a purpose.
Pentecost possesses an objective.
The perfecting of the saints.
The work of the ministry.
The edifying of the body.
The unity of the faith.
The knowledge of the Son of God.
The Perfect Man.
The fulness of Christ.
Pentecost is not wandering.
Pentecost is building.
Pentecost is forming.
Pentecost is maturing.
Pentecost is preparing something.
This is one of the central truths of The Plan of the Ages Revealed.
THE WOMAN REVEALS THE SUCCESS OF PENTECOST
Revelation 12:1
“And there appeared a great wonder in heaven; a woman clothed with the sun.”
This woman reveals a mature corporate people.
She is glorious.
She is crowned.
She is radiant.
She is mature.
Everything Pentecost was commissioned to produce appears in this woman.
The saints have matured.
The body has matured.
The firstfruits have matured.
The ecclesia has matured.
The woman represents the successful completion of formation.
The woman represents the fulness of Pentecost.
YET THE WOMAN IS PREGNANT
Revelation 12:2
“And she being with child cried, travailing in birth.”
This is one of the most important verses in the entire pattern.
The mature woman is pregnant.
Why?
Because maturity was never the final objective.
Maturity serves manifestation.
Formation serves fulfillment.
Development serves purpose.
The woman has become a womb.
The successful completion of one administration prepares for the emergence of another administration.
This is how God works.
This is how God reveals His pattern.
THE MAN-CHILD EMERGES FROM MATURITY
Revelation 12:5
“And she brought forth a man child.”
Notice what emerges.
Not a baby.
Not an infant.
Not a child.
A man-child.
A mature son.
A developed expression.
This imagery is extraordinary.
The woman reveals mature formation.
The man-child reveals manifestation.
The woman reveals the successful completion of one administration.
The man-child reveals the emergence of another administration.
The maturity of Pentecost becomes the womb through which manifestation emerges.
ROMANS 8 REVEALS THE SAME PRINCIPLE
Romans 8:19
“For the earnest expectation of the creature waiteth for the manifestation of the sons of God.”
Notice the language.
Manifestation.
Not formation.
Manifestation.
Romans 8 is not describing spiritual infancy.
Romans 8 is not describing spiritual childhood.
Romans 8 is describing maturity anticipating manifestation.
The company already possesses firstfruits.
Romans 8:23
“Which have the firstfruits of the Spirit.”
The company is mature.
Yet expectation remains.
Why?
Because formation has reached its objective.
Now manifestation becomes the focus.
The Plan of the Ages Revealed teaches us that God’s pattern always moves from formation to manifestation.
THE MATURITY OF ONE AGE PREPARES THE NEXT AGE
This principle appears everywhere.
The seed prepares the harvest.
The child prepares the mature man.
Passover prepares Pentecost.
Pentecost prepares fulfillment.
The previous stage always contributes to the next stage.
Nothing is wasted.
Nothing is discarded.
Nothing is meaningless.
Everything contributes to God’s purpose.
This is why understanding the pattern is so important.
Without the pattern, the ages appear disconnected.
With the pattern, the ages reveal a single unfolding purpose.
GOD NEVER SKIPS A STAGE
One of the great lessons of creation is that development cannot be bypassed.
The embryo cannot skip childhood.
The child cannot skip maturity.
The seed cannot skip harvest.
Every stage serves a purpose.
Every stage contributes to fulfillment.
The same principle governs the ages.
Passover cannot be bypassed.
Pentecost cannot be bypassed.
Formation cannot be bypassed.
God builds progressively.
God matures progressively.
God fulfills progressively.
The Plan of the Ages Revealed teaches us that God’s wisdom is revealed through orderly development.
THE PURPOSE OF THE PATTERN
Why does God work this way?
Because the pattern reveals the purpose.
The purpose is hidden in the process.
The destination is hidden in the journey.
The fulfillment is hidden in the development.
Every stage reveals another dimension of God’s wisdom.
Every stage reveals another dimension of God’s purpose.
Every stage reveals another dimension of Christ.
The maturity of one administration becomes the womb of the next administration because God is continually unfolding His purpose through the ages.
FIND THE PATTERN
The seed becomes the harvest.
The child becomes the mature man.
Passover becomes Pentecost.
Formation prepares manifestation.
The woman brings forth the man-child.
The mature administration becomes the womb of the next administration.
The Plan of the Ages Revealed shows us that God is not moving randomly through history.
God is following a pattern.
God is unfolding a purpose.
God is revealing Himself through divine order.
Every age builds upon the previous age.
Every administration contributes to the next administration.
Every stage moves creation closer to God’s ultimate destination.
And in the next chapter we will examine the destination toward which all things have been moving from the beginning:
The Plan of the Ages Revealed.
CHAPTER 12
THE PLAN OF THE AGES REVEALED
From Genesis to Revelation, one truth stands above all others:
God has a plan.
Not merely a plan for individuals.
Not merely a plan for nations.
Not merely a plan for history.
God has a plan for creation itself.
The Scriptures call it:
Ephesians 3:11
“According to the eternal purpose which he purposed in Christ Jesus our Lord.”
This purpose did not begin in Genesis.
This purpose did not begin with Abraham.
This purpose did not begin with Moses.
This purpose did not begin with Israel.
This purpose existed before the foundation of the world.
The Plan of the Ages Revealed is the unveiling of that eternal purpose.
Everything in Scripture points toward it.
Everything in creation serves it.
Everything in the ages contributes to it.
Everything moves toward the same destination.
GOD ALWAYS HAD A DESTINATION
Isaiah 46:10
“Declaring the end from the beginning.”
God knew the destination before the journey began.
God knew the harvest before the seed was planted.
God knew the mature man before the child was born.
God knew the fulfillment before creation appeared.
History is not God trying to figure things out.
History is God revealing what He already purposed.
The ages are not experiments.
The ages are revelations.
The ages are the unfolding of divine purpose.
This is one of the central truths of The Plan of the Ages Revealed.
THE AGES REVEAL GOD’S PURPOSE
Ephesians 2:7
“That in the ages to come he might shew the exceeding riches of his grace.”
Notice the language.
Ages.
Plural.
God works through ages.
God reveals Himself through ages.
God unfolds His purpose through ages.
Each age possesses:
A beginning.
A mandate.
A purpose.
A maturity.
A completion.
Each age contributes to the next age.
Each age reveals another dimension of God’s purpose.
The ages are not disconnected.
The ages are progressive.
The ages are developmental.
The ages are purposeful.
PASSOVER, PENTECOST, AND TABERNACLES
Throughout this book we have followed one great pattern.
Passover.
Pentecost.
Tabernacles.
Passover reveals redemption.
Pentecost reveals formation.
Tabernacles reveals fulfillment.
Passover prepares.
Pentecost matures.
Tabernacles manifests.
Each administration fulfills its purpose.
Each administration reaches maturity.
Each administration contributes to what follows.
The Plan of the Ages Revealed shows us that God’s purpose unfolds progressively.
Nothing is random.
Nothing is accidental.
Everything serves the eternal purpose.
THE PATTERN OF NATURAL GROWTH
Creation continually reveals the same truth.
The seed.
The child.
The mature man.
The embryo.
The infant.
The adult.
Every stage contributes to maturity.
Every stage prepares for fulfillment.
Every stage reveals divine wisdom.
Natural growth reveals spiritual revelation.
The natural man teaches us how God works.
The harvest reveals the purpose of the seed.
The mature man reveals the purpose of the child.
The fulfillment reveals the purpose of the process.
The pattern reveals the purpose.
THE PURPOSE OF FORMATION
One of the great revelations we have discovered is that formation is not the final objective.
Formation serves manifestation.
Development serves fulfillment.
Maturity serves purpose.
Pentecost forms a mature company.
The saints are perfected.
The body is edified.
The remnant is matured.
The Perfect Man appears.
The glorious woman appears.
Yet maturity itself points toward something greater.
The maturity of one administration becomes the womb of the next administration.
This principle appears throughout Scripture.
This principle appears throughout creation.
This principle reveals the wisdom of God.
THE GATHERING OF ALL THINGS IN CHRIST
Ephesians 1:10
“That in the dispensation of the fulness of times he might gather together in one all things in Christ.”
This verse reveals one of the greatest destinations in Scripture.
The gathering of all things in Christ.
All things.
Not some things.
Not a few things.
All things.
The purpose that began before creation is moving toward unity.
The purpose that began before creation is moving toward reconciliation.
The purpose that began before creation is moving toward fulfillment.
This is one of the great destinations revealed within The Plan of the Ages Revealed.
CHRIST IS THE CENTER OF THE PLAN
Colossians 1:16
“For by him were all things created.”
Colossians 1:17
“And he is before all things.”
Colossians 1:20
“And, having made peace through the blood of his cross, by him to reconcile all things unto himself.”
Christ is the center of everything.
The plan begins in Christ.
The plan unfolds through Christ.
The plan is fulfilled in Christ.
The plan ends in Christ.
The feasts reveal Christ.
The priesthood reveals Christ.
The tabernacle reveals Christ.
The ages reveal Christ.
The pattern reveals Christ.
Everything points to Him.
Everything centers upon Him.
Everything serves Him.
THE CONSUMMATION OF THE AGES
1 Corinthians 15:24
“Then cometh the end.”
Notice the certainty.
The end comes.
The purpose reaches fulfillment.
The plan reaches completion.
The ages reach their destination.
The process reaches its objective.
The journey reaches its fulfillment.
Nothing remains unfinished.
Nothing remains incomplete.
God finishes what He begins.
GOD ALL IN ALL
1 Corinthians 15:28
“That God may be all in all.”
This is the destination.
This is the purpose.
This is the goal.
This is the consummation.
This is the fulfillment.
Everything in Scripture points here.
The feasts point here.
The ages point here.
The Kingdom points here.
The priesthood points here.
The harvest points here.
The pattern points here.
The purpose points here.
The Plan of the Ages Revealed ultimately reveals God’s journey toward this glorious conclusion:
That God may be all in all.
GOD REVEALS HIMSELF BY REVEALING HIS PATTERN
As we conclude this study, we return to the foundational truth that launched this book.
God reveals Himself by revealing His pattern.
His pattern reveals His purpose.
His purpose reveals His destination.
Moses learned His ways.
Creation reveals His ways.
The feasts reveal His ways.
The ages reveal His ways.
The Scriptures reveal His ways.
The believer who discovers the pattern begins to understand the purpose.
The believer who understands the purpose begins to understand the journey.
The believer who understands the journey begins to see the glory of God’s eternal plan.
FIND THE PATTERN
The seed reveals the harvest.
The child reveals the mature man.
Passover reveals redemption.
Pentecost reveals formation.
Tabernacles reveals fulfillment.
The ages reveal purpose.
The pattern reveals destiny.
This has been the message of The Plan of the Ages Revealed from beginning to end.
God is not random.
God is not confused.
God is not reacting.
God is revealing.
He is revealing His order.
He is revealing His pattern.
He is revealing His purpose.
And through the ages He is bringing creation toward the glorious fulfillment He declared from the very beginning.
The Plan of the Ages Revealed is ultimately the story of a God who knows the end from the beginning, unfolds His purpose through divine pattern, and faithfully brings all things to their appointed destination—
Until God is all in all.
CONCLUSION
GOD REVEALS HIMSELF BY REVEALING HIS PATTERN
As we come to the conclusion of this study, we return to the simple truth that has guided every chapter of this book:
God reveals Himself by revealing His pattern, and His pattern reveals His purpose.
This single truth unlocks the Scriptures.
This single truth unlocks creation.
This single truth unlocks the ages.
This single truth unlocks the journey of God from Genesis to Revelation.
Many believers spend their lives studying individual doctrines.
Others spend their lives studying prophecy.
Others spend their lives studying covenants, kingdoms, priesthoods, and dispensations.
Yet beneath all of these subjects lies a single divine pattern.
A pattern established before the foundation of the world.
A pattern revealed through creation.
A pattern revealed through Scripture.
A pattern revealed through Christ.
A pattern revealed through the ages.
The Plan of the Ages Revealed is ultimately the story of that pattern.
THE PATTERN IS EVERYWHERE
The pattern appears in creation.
The seed reveals the harvest.
The child reveals the mature man.
The seasons reveal progression.
Growth reveals development.
Development reveals purpose.
The natural continually reveals the spiritual.
The visible continually reveals the invisible.
Natural growth reveals spiritual revelation.
Creation itself testifies of God’s ways.
Creation itself preaches God’s order.
Creation itself reveals God’s purpose.
THE PATTERN APPEARS THROUGHOUT SCRIPTURE
Moses learned God’s ways.
The Tabernacle revealed God’s pattern.
The Priesthood revealed God’s pattern.
The Feasts revealed God’s pattern.
The Kingdom reveals God’s pattern.
The ages reveal God’s pattern.
Everywhere we look, God is revealing Himself through divine order.
Nothing is random.
Nothing is accidental.
Nothing is disconnected.
Everything belongs to the same unfolding purpose.
Everything belongs to the same divine story.
Everything belongs to the same eternal plan.
PASSOVER, PENTECOST, AND TABERNACLES
Throughout this book we have followed the three great prophetic feasts.
Passover.
Pentecost.
Tabernacles.
Passover reveals redemption.
Pentecost reveals formation.
Tabernacles reveals fulfillment.
Passover brings a people out.
Pentecost matures that people.
Tabernacles reveals the purpose for which that people were prepared.
Each administration possesses a mandate.
Each administration possesses a purpose.
Each administration reaches maturity.
Each administration prepares the way for what follows.
The maturity of one administration becomes the womb of the next administration.
This is the pattern.
This is the order.
This is the wisdom of God.
THE AGES REVEAL THE PURPOSE
The Plan of the Ages Revealed teaches us that every age serves a purpose.
Every age contributes to fulfillment.
Every age reveals another dimension of Christ.
Passover was not an accident.
Pentecost was not an accident.
Tabernacles is not an accident.
The ages are not random periods of history.
The ages are the unfolding of God’s eternal purpose.
The ages are the revelation of God’s wisdom.
The ages are the progressive manifestation of God’s plan.
The ages reveal His purpose.
And His purpose reveals His destination.
THE DESTINATION NEVER CHANGED
From before the foundation of the world, God knew where creation was going.
Isaiah 46:10
“Declaring the end from the beginning.”
God saw the harvest before the seed.
God saw the mature man before the child.
God saw fulfillment before the process.
God saw the destination before the journey began.
Nothing has ever surprised Him.
Nothing has ever altered His purpose.
Nothing has ever changed His plan.
The ages have always been moving toward the same glorious conclusion.
THE GLORY OF THE ETERNAL PURPOSE
Ephesians 1:10
“That in the dispensation of the fulness of times he might gather together in one all things in Christ.”
Ephesians 3:11
“According to the eternal purpose which he purposed in Christ Jesus our Lord.”
Everything centers upon Christ.
Everything begins in Christ.
Everything unfolds through Christ.
Everything is gathered together in Christ.
Everything finds its meaning in Christ.
The feasts reveal Christ.
The priesthood reveals Christ.
The ages reveal Christ.
The pattern reveals Christ.
The purpose reveals Christ.
Christ is the center of The Plan of the Ages Revealed.
GOD ALL IN ALL
At the end of the journey stands one of the most breathtaking declarations in all of Scripture.
1 Corinthians 15:28
“That God may be all in all.”
This is the destination.
This is the purpose.
This is the fulfillment.
This is the consummation of the ages.
This is the reason for the pattern.
This is the reason for the process.
This is the reason for the journey.
Everything is moving toward this glorious conclusion.
The seed.
The harvest.
The child.
The mature man.
Passover.
Pentecost.
Tabernacles.
The Kingdom.
The ages.
Everything is moving toward the day when God shall be all in all.
FIND THE PATTERN
As you continue your journey through Scripture, remember this simple truth:
Find the pattern.
When confusion appears, find the pattern.
When doctrines seem to collide, find the pattern.
When prophecy appears complicated, find the pattern.
When the journey seems unclear, find the pattern.
The pattern reveals the purpose.
The purpose reveals the destination.
And the destination reveals the glory of God.
The Plan of the Ages Revealed has been an invitation to see Scripture through the lens of God’s divine order.
To see His ways rather than merely His acts.
To see His purpose rather than merely the events.
To see the journey rather than merely the moment.
For God reveals Himself by revealing His pattern.
And His pattern reveals His purpose.
May we continue to seek His ways.
May we continue to discover His pattern.
May we continue to understand His purpose.
And may we continue to behold the unfolding glory of His eternal plan—
Until every purpose is fulfilled,
Until every age has accomplished its commission,
Until every harvest has been gathered,
Until every promise has reached its fulfillment,
And until God is all in all.
Amen.
