Noah's Ark (Chap 15)

What is being proposed is that the body of Christ is a sort of an ark, like the Ark that Noah was instructed by GOD to build to keep his household and the animals of the earth alive during the 40-day flood. Noah’s Ark was a type and prophecy of what might be needed to save lives, during the ultimate end-time troubles that are coming (Matt 24:37).

Why would GOD need an ark to save lives? GOD is able to keep anyone He choose alive with or without a physical ark. But He chose to use an ark during the days of flood in Noah's time. Similarly in the end times, GOD is able to keep anyone alive with or without the Christian Economies suggested. But as the typology goes, GOD will use ‘an ark’ of some sort.

In our case, the proposed ark is a kind of a social and economic ark in the physical body of Christ, which should provide spiritual and economic refuge for peoples from every nation worldwide who want to escape the receiving the ‘666’ mark of the Beast on their hands or their foreheads. As many as would believe and receive the message of Christ, must be provided with an escape route from the oppression of the devil, to worship him. The escape must be provided even to the last minute possible, whether or not the inhabitants of the world will in fact choose to escape the impending destruction. Provisions of shelter and refuge will be available, and choosing Christ will not be choosing suicide for the people of the world. Provisions will not necessarily be the best but adequate for short-term survival, if one would rather suffer poverty with GOD’s people than enjoy the fleeting fancies and the pleasures of the world.

If the Church cannot provide an alternative then the inhabitants of this world will have to receive the ‘666’ mark of the Beast, even if they see that it is the devil’s scheme because there is no refuge or escape route provided by the people who proclaim salvation in Jesus name. We have heard sermons that Christ Himself is that ark of safety, yet the body of Christ collectively and physically represents Him, here on earth (Eph 1:22-23). We are His body and He is the head of the church. Each part of the body is important and must play its vital role in co-operation with the whole. Only then can the whole body that is being held together, be able to perform its full functions.

This ark has to be HUGE in order to be able to contain two of every kind of animal and birds in the whole world and their provisions of food supplies (Gen 6:21) for the whole duration of the flood and for the time it takes for the flood waters to subside. I believe Noah must have taken a considerable amount of time to build the ark even if his sons help and even if he had hired men to help him. He was about 500 years old (Gen 5:32) when GOD decided to do something about the wickedness in the earth (Gen 6:1-9); and about 600 years old when the flood waters came upon the earth (Gen 6:6). In the same way, we should not be easily discouraged should the building of the economic ark take us considerable amount of time and resources.

The details of the structure and the composition of this ark will also be very important to GOD. According to Gen 6:14-22, GOD gave instructions for this ark, concerning its material, its dimensions, its architecture and food supplies, for those He named to go into the ark. Noah’s Ark was patterned in heaven just as the Tabernacle of Moses was patterned in heaven. Noah built the ark according to the command of GOD. I believe GOD have specific instructions for His end-time Ark. Let the church of GOD worldwide seek the mind of the Lord on this matter. I do not claim that I had received direct specific instructions from the Lord concerning this ark. Frameworks and ideas suggested are first attempts to stimulate further thinking and seeking of the Lord on the subject. The churches worldwide and business leaders of GOD’s kingdom should take counsel first with the Lord and then with each other. How each business, industry and economy will in fact take shape and evolve will also have to be worked out practically, on a case-by-case basis, with the Lord building and connecting us and giving us the Land.Even though the Bible says in Rev 13:16-18, that everyone will be forced to receive the ‘666’ mark of the Beast, yet the Bible did not say that everyone should succumb. In fact, Rev 14:9-11 tells believers that we are not to succumb. We must not receive the Mark of the Beast! And since we are prepared to pay all price rather than succumb to the enemy’s coercion, why then do we not TRADE? In Dan 6:4-10, we see that King Darius of the Babylonian Empire was then instigated to issue a strict order that no one be permitted to pray or request anything from any god or other person than the king himself and that anyone who violate this order will be thrown into the den of lions. This was a trap designed for the children of GOD and we saw what Daniel’s response was. He did what he had always done before. Openly he knelt down at an upstairs window room that open towards Jerusalem and there he prayed three times a day as he had always done before.

In my opinion, this economic ark will not lessen the sufferings that will come as a result of end time persecution. In fact, it will make the world’s hatred of Christians even more certain than ever. Christian Economies will not reduce the number of Christians who may be betrayed, robbed, imprisoned, tortured or martyred during the rule of the Anti-Christ. It will only help us to stand together as a collective body and fight together as one people. Even if we are not entirely successful in forming very self-sufficient economies, any effort made in this direction will help so very much in the time of civil and social crisis that we expect to be in.
We do not have a testimony as a people when there is almost no organization or self-support among us. We are just a dispersed lot among the nations, not knowing how to be different. While the enemy has marked us for destruction, how can it be that we do not feel the urgent need to prepare ourselves for defense or support? Some prophecies were given to us as warnings, so that we can make preparations for coming events. Our attitude should be that we will do all we can to preserve the christian communities, and if we personally perish in doing so, we perish. Just like how Queen Esther and Mordecai reacted, when the enemy had already made the king issued an edict for the destruction of the Jews; they did not say, "Well, it is alright. If the king issued such an edict, then let them come and take our lives. We can take this lying down because the king knows what he is doing." Like Queen Esther, let us petition with our very own lives.

While we do not know the exact hour or time when Babylon will fall during the last days chart of events, there is no reason to further delay walking out of Babylon. And while out of the Babylonian system, we should still need to provide for our own households, if not the larger household of faith (Rev 12:14). The Church should not be dependent on the charity of those who will wear the mark of the Beast but must continue to dissuade and provide a route of escape and refuge for all from the schemes and the oppression of the enemy.

GOD will not spare us if we are replicating the world system but I am confident of better things because GOD is able to deal with His own servants. It might very well be that these end-times Christian companies and industries with spirit-led and spirit-filled leadership, will take the world by surprise and even by storm. Speaking of transformation of societies, these Christian businesses and industries will be key instruments in GOD’s hand to transform economies and societies. It will also be these Christian businesses and industries that will put Christian political leaders in power and see the nations transferred to the Kingdom. In the last days, the Lord GOD will cause righteous men in Israel and in the church worldwide to arise or spring up to repair ruins and devastations (Is 61).

What is suggested seems altogether practical but short of the will, favour and miracles of GOD, all these are mere words that cannot amount to anything. Having said that, the human factor and response is definitely critical as well, just as the Ark project required much faith and obedience Noah's part. Building the ark seems like a very practical thing and a lot of down to earth wisdom and hard work but it is actually men of faith working out their destiny in GOD Almighty, walking in inheritances and establishing GOD's kingdom in the world in the last days as the knowledge of the glory of the Lord fill the earth as the waters the sea (Hab 2:14).