Jesus said, For many be called, but few chosen (Matthew 20:16). For many are called, but few are chosen (Matthew 22:14). This truth is so important that Jesus declared it twice in a short period of time.

Jesus referred to this truth in Matthew 22 when He was telling a parable of a wedding feast. A king made a marriage feast for his son and invited many guests. But they made light of it [the king’s invitation], and went their ways, one to his farm, another to his merchandise (Matthew 22:5). Those people really had no desire to be there. And the remnant took his servants, and entreated them spitefully, and slew them (Matthew 22:6). The king in his wrath then sent forth his army to go into the city and destroy those invitees and the city itself.

Later, the king sent forth servants saying, Go ye therefore into the highways, and as many as ye shall find, bid to the marriage (Matthew 22:9). Then when the king himself entered into the feast, he spied a man not wearing a wedding garment. He confronted the man, and the man was speechless; so the king cast him out.

Since the fall of the human race in the Garden of Eden, many have been called into the Kingdom of God; but few have been chosen and counted worthy of entering. Jesus warned us of what society would be like just before He makes His second appearance to Earth. As it was in the days of Noe, so shall it be also in the days of the Son of man. They did eat, they drank, they married wives, they were given in marriage, until the day that Noe entered into the ark, and the flood came, and destroyed them all (Luke 17:26,27).

Noah and His Family Were Chosen

The Bible tells us that in Noah’s day, God saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. And it repented the LORD that he had made man on the earth, and it grieved him at his heart. And the LORD said, I will destroy man whom I have created from the face of the earth (Genesis 6:5-7).

God was going to send a great flood, but Noah and his family found grace in the eyes of God; so God directed Noah and his family to build an ark of safety to save them.

Once the ark was built, the door remained open for seven days so that whosoever wanted to could go in and find refuge from the judgment to come; but no one outside of the Noah family entered into the ark. Many were called, but only eight souls entered in.

Once God closed the ark door, the rain poured. And every living substance was destroyed which was upon the face of the ground, both man, and cattle, and the creeping things, and the fowl of the heaven; and they were destroyed from the earth: and Noah only remained alive, and they that were with him in the ark (Genesis 7:23).

Lot’s Wife Failed

In Lot’s day, he and his family lived in the midst of two wicked cities—Sodom and Gomorrah—and the Bible says that righteous Lot was vexed by the sins of those cities. So God, in His grace and mercy, sent two angels to rescue Lot and his family before He would send judgment and destroy those cities by fire.

Unfortunately, Lot’s sons-in-law refused to go, and they mocked at the warnings of the coming judgment; so only Lot, his wife and his two daughters were found worthy in the eyes of God to escape. Then fire fell from Heaven. The LORD rained upon Sodom and upon Gomorrah brimstone and fire from the LORD out of heaven; And he overthrew those cities, and all the plain, and all the inhabitants of the cities, and that which grew upon the ground (Genesis 19:24,25).

The angels had warned Lot and his family not to look back; but as they were fleeing, Lot’s wife looked back from behind him, and she became a pillar of salt (Genesis 19:26). Jesus warns His disciples of then and today to remember Lot’s wife (Luke 17:32). She was called by God with the rest of her family to escape God’s judgment, and she was on the road to deliverance; but she disobeyed the Word of God and was destroyed.

The Glorious Church

Jesus will return one day to Rapture His glorious Church, the Bride, to Heaven. That Church will include people from all over the world and from all walks of life, and their spiritual garments will be perfect. That he [Jesus] might present it to himself a glorious church, not having spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing; but that it should be holy and without blemish (Ephesians 5:27). This glorious Church will be the chosen few.

As it was with Lot, Christ’s glorious Church is vexed by the sins of this world. That is why God has sent His Word and the Holy Spirit to prepare the Bride of Christ to leave this sinful world before the Tribulation Period comes upon the Earth. The Word and the Holy Spirit will determine who will be chosen from the many who are called.

The path of deliverance the glorious Church will travel with the Word and the Holy Spirit as they flee the coming judgment is called the narrow way. Jesus said, Strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it (Matthew 7:14). The strait gate and narrow way are truth. Jesus said, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me (John 14:6). Everyone is called unto truth.

Very few will enter the strait gate and follow the narrow way in life because they don’t want to live in truth or abide by it. Jesus said, And this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil. But he that doeth truth cometh to the light, that his deeds may be made manifest, that they are wrought in God (John 3:19,21). It is not enough just to hear truth; you must be a doer of truth if you want to be one of the chosen few. Again, remember Lot’s wife. Her love for the world was greater than her love for truth—the Word of God.

You Must Have the Holy Ghost

Jesus said, And I, if I be lifted up from the earth, will draw all men unto me (John 12:32). And it shall come to pass in the last days, saith God, I will pour out of my Spirit upon all flesh...And it shall come to pass, that whosoever shall call on the name of the Lord shall be saved (Acts 2:17,21). The Spirit is being poured out upon all flesh in this last hour, but all people will not answer the call and accept the Spirit.

Truth and the Holy Spirit are the Bride of Christ’s angels of deliverance. Both are necessary for her to escape the coming judgment, and truth declares that the Holy Spirit is for all people who are saved. Then Peter said unto them, Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost. For the promise is unto you, and to your children, and to all that are afar off, even as many as the Lord our God shall call (Acts 2:38,39).

Even though that is what the Word says, many Christians neglect the gift of the Holy Ghost. Some procrastinate in receiving the baptism while others have no desire to obey truth and seek for the Holy Ghost. Only those who are obedient to truth can receive the Holy Ghost. And we are his witnesses of these things; and so is also the Holy Ghost, whom God hath given to them that obey him (Acts 5:32).

In the parable of the ten virgins, all ten represented spiritual purity. Five were wise and possessed the oil of the Holy Spirit in their vessel. The other five were foolish and did not have the oil of the Spirit. At the midnight hour when all was dark, the call went forth, Behold, the bridegroom cometh; go ye out to meet him (Matthew 25:6).

This parable represents the Rapture of the glorious Church. The five wise virgins possessing the oil lit their lamps and could see their way clearly to Rapture ground. The five foolish virgins disobeyed the Word of God and did not have the oil in their vessel, so they had no spiritual light to see their way to Rapture ground.

The five wise virgins met the Bridegroom and were ushered into the Kingdom of God to enjoy the marriage feast, and the five foolish virgins were left outside. They knocked on the door crying, Lord, Lord, open to us (Matthew 25:11). But the Lord replied, I know you not (Matthew 25:12). All ten virgins were called, but only the five wise ones were chosen. Only they could see their way to Rapture ground and enter into the Kingdom of God.

Jesus Is Our Safety

Many people are called and think they will make it safely into the Kingdom of God, but so many of them will be disappointed when they are left outside. Jesus said, Not everyone that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven. Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works? And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity (Matthew 7:21-23).

The chosen few will be doers of the Word, not hearers only. They will have no contamination of deceit from the devil, man or self. The chosen few will be led by truth and the Spirit of truth all the way to Rapture ground. Jesus said, Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak: and he will shew you things to come (John 16:13).

The chosen few have a work to do before Jesus returns just like Noah and his family did when they worked to build an ark of safety. We don’t have to build an ark because Jesus is our Ark of deliverance and safety. We are working to fill that Ark with souls; and then on Rapture Day, that Ark will sail safely into Heaven.

Gideon’s 300 Were Chosen

The chosen few are like Gideon’s 300—a select few ordained of God for a mighty, divine mission. The book of Judges tells of Israel being under oppressive bondage by their enemies who had overrun the country, so God ordained Gideon to gather together an army to bring deliverance. Gideon’s call to duty went forth throughout the land, and 32,000 men responded to the call. Then God told Gideon to tell those who were afraid to go back home, and 22,000 men left. Those men did not possess divine love. None of them had a heart of sacrifice or were willing to pay the price.

Later, the remaining 10,000 men were led to the bank of a river, and God told Gideon that those who put their face in the water to drink must be turned away. Those who knelt down and took up water in their hands and lapped it were to be chosen. And the number of them that lapped, putting their hand to their mouth, were three hundred men (Judges 7:6).

Why were 9700 men rejected?—because those who put their face in the water to drink were selfish. They were only thinking of themselves and their bodily thirst. The enemy was in the land, but they were not being watchful; and they were not considering the task at hand. The 300 men who remained were not thinking of themselves; they were alert and keeping a watchful eye on the enemy.

After the test was over, Gideon had 300 men—a chosen few who were willing to obey God’s instructions in everything and lay their lives on the line without fear. God used those chosen few to bring about a miraculous victory over the enemies of Israel. And they stood every man in his place round about the camp; and all the host ran, and cried, and fled (Judges 7:21).

The Narrow Way Is Hard

Gideon’s 300 had denied self, and that is what followers of Christ must do today. Jesus said, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me. For whosoever will save his life shall lose it: and whosoever will lose his life for my sake shall find it (Matthew 16:24,25).

The narrow way that leads to Rapture ground is not an easy path. Paul said, We must through much tribulation enter into the kingdom of God (Acts 14:22). Jesus said, All these are the beginning of sorrows. And then shall many be offended, and shall betray one another, and shall hate one another. And many false prophets shall rise, and shall deceive many. And because iniquity shall abound, the love of many shall wax cold. But he that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved (Matthew 24:8,10-13). Does that sound like an easy path to Glory? To be able to make it, you must deny self, be a doer of truth and be led by the Spirit.

Beware of the World Church

The world church today is made up of multitudes of people from all over the world. It is strong in number, popularity and worldly wealth; but its people have embraced the world’s ways and sins. They have chosen to walk an easy, self-fulfilling path. They have heard the Word, but they only act on part of it or maybe none of it. They care more for self and the things of this life than they do for truth, the Spirit of God and His Kingdom. They declare they are following the Lord, and they group themselves in with the obedient; but they refuse to obey the direction and leadership of truth and the Spirit of truth.

Jesus gave this warning to the church of Laodicea, which signifies the world church: I know thy works, that thou art neither cold nor hot: I would thou wert cold or hot. So then because thou art lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will spue thee out of my mouth. Because thou sayest, I am rich, and increased with goods, and have need of nothing; and knowest not that thou art wretched, and miserable, and poor, and blind, and naked: I counsel thee to buy of me gold tried in the fire, that thou mayest be rich; and white raiment, that thou mayest be clothed, and that the shame of thy nakedness do not appear; and anoint thine eyes with eyesalve, that thou mayest see. As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten: be zealous therefore, and repent. Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me (Revelation 3:15-20).

Today, the chosen few are the members of the Bride of Christ. They are paying the price and living the Jesus life in this present world. Their spiritual garments are spotless, and they will be raptured when Jesus returns. When compared to the world church, the Jesus Church has little strength, meaning they are fewer in number and less in wealth and popularity. Jesus said to the church at Philadelphia, which signifies today’s glorious Church, I know thy works: behold, I have set before thee an open door, and no man can shut it: for thou hast a little strength, and hast kept my word, and hast not denied my name. Behold, I will make them of the synagogue of Satan, which say they are Jews, and are not, but do lie; behold, I will make them to come and worship before thy feet, and to know that I have loved thee. Because thou hast kept the word of my patience, I also will keep thee from the hour of temptation, which shall come upon all the world, to try them that dwell upon the earth. Behold, I come quickly: hold that fast which thou hast, that no man take thy crown (Revelation 3:8-11).

With little strength, the Jesus Church has been ordained with the great task of taking this Gospel to the world. God has now provided an open door of technology that no man or government can shut, and we are using that technology to reach people all over the world.

Because the Jesus church is faithful to the Word of God, she will be raptured to Heaven and escape the hour of temptation that will try the whole world. For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord, that we which are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord shall not prevent them which are asleep. For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first: Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord (I Thessalonians 4:15-17).

Become One of the Chosen Few

Jesus said He is coming for those who are watching. Watch therefore, for ye know neither the day nor the hour wherein the Son of man cometh (Matthew 25:13). Are you one of the chosen few who are watching and ready to be changed on Rapture Day? Does your life measure up to the standard of the Word? Are you being led by the Spirit of truth to Rapture ground? If not, it is time to repent and give your heart to the Lord this day. Jesus said, And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free (John 8:32). If you want to be free, say the sinner’s prayer located on page 5 of this magazine.

Once you are saved, you must go on to receive the Holy Ghost. We live in a world that is growing darker in sin and wickedness every day, and you will never find your way to Rapture ground in this dark world without the divine light and the oil of the Spirit within.

You can receive the Holy Ghost baptism right now. Just get off to yourself and start praising the Lord with your whole heart. As you continue to seek and praise Him, the anointing of the Lord will fall upon you; and the Holy Ghost will come in and take over your tongue. He will give the utterance and speak through you in another language just as He did through the disciples on the Day of Pentecost.