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Jehovah said that He would gather the remnant of His flock out of the lands where He had driven them and that He would bring them back to their pasture, and they would be fruitful and multiply—Jer. 23:3:
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After the seventy-year captivity, God came in to call the children of Israel to return from Babylon to the Holy Land—25:11:
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When God called His people to come back to His chosen land, very few responded; the majority remained in their captivity.
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Only a small number came back to the chosen land; those who returned to Jerusalem to rebuild the temple were the remnant of God’s people—Ezra 1:3; 2:1-67.
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God promised that His people would return to Jerusalem after seventy years of captivity in Babylon (Jer. 25:11; 29:10); in the books of Ezra and Nehemiah a remnant returned according to this promise.
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In the Lord’s recovery today we are a remnant of God’s people who have come back to His original intention while so many genuine believers are scattered and remain in captivity—Psa. 126:1-4:
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We are members of the Body of Christ who have come back to the original ground of oneness and are standing here as God’s remnant—Deut. 12:5.
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The majority of Christians remain in captivity; only a small remnant have returned to the proper ground for God’s building—v. 11; 16:2; Psa. 132:13-14.
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The return of the children of Israel from Babylon to Jerusalem prepared the way for the coming of Christ—Micah 5:2; Matt. 2:4-6; Luke 2:4-7:
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The Lord’s first coming depended on the return of God’s people from their captivity in Babylon to the Holy Land:
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According to the prophecy in Micah 5:2, Christ was to be born in Bethlehem.
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In order for this prophecy to be fulfilled, God’s people had to be in the Holy Land—Matt. 2:4-6; Luke 2:4-7.
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The remnant of returned captives was the instrument used by God to rebuild the temple and usher in the first coming of Christ—Micah 5:2.
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Without the return of the remnant to the Holy Land, there would have been no way for Christ to come to the earth through incarnation—Luke 1:35; 2:4-7.
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Likewise, Christ’s second coming depends on the return of a remnant of His New Testament believers from their captivity in Babylon, degraded Christianity, to the unique ground of oneness for the building of the church, God’s spiritual house—Eph. 2:21-22; Rev. 2:1; 1 Tim. 3:15; 1 Pet. 2:5:
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The Lord is calling a remnant of His people to meet His need by coming out of Babylonian captivity and returning to the proper ground of the church—Rev. 18:4; Isa. 52:11; Jer. 50:8; 51:6, 9, 45.
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The Lord’s intention is not to revive Christianity as a whole but to call a remnant of His people who are willing to pay the price to follow Him for the fulfillment of His purpose and to be built up as a part of the Body—Matt. 16:18; 18:17; Eph. 1:22-23; 2:21-22; 4:16; Rev. 1:11; 22:16.
Morning Nourishment
Jer. 23:3-4 Then I will gather the remnant of My flock out of all the lands where I have driven them, and I will bring them back to their pasture; and they will be fruitful and multiply. And I will raise up shepherds over them who will shepherd them, and they will no longer fear or be dismayed, nor will any be missing, declares Jehovah.The prophet Jeremiah prophesied concerning Jehovah’s promises to restore Israel (Jer. 23:3-8)….Jehovah said that He would gather the remnant of His flock out of all the lands where He had driven them and would bring them back to their pasture. He also said that they would be fruitful and would multiply (v. 3). “Therefore indeed, days are coming, declares Jehovah, when they will no longer say, As Jehovah lives, who brought up the children of Israel out of the land of Egypt; but, As Jehovah lives, who brought up and led back the seed of the house of Israel out of the land of the north and out of all the lands where I had driven them, that they might dwell in their own land” (vv. 7-8). These are promises concerning the restoration of Israel. (Truth Lessons—Level Four, vol. 2, p. 158)
Today’s Reading
Although the Lord has accomplished much with regard to Israel to prepare her for His return, He must also prepare the church as His bride….I believe that it will be impossible for the Lord to prepare His bride in today’s Christianity as a religious system with all its traditions, rituals, and forms. I also doubt that those entrapped in Christianity will be able to do much to prepare the bride that will bring our Lord back.The Lord’s first coming depended on the return of God’s people from their captivity in Babylon to the Holy Land. According to Micah 5:2, Christ was to be born in Bethlehem, which was near Jerusalem. Therefore, in order for this prophecy to be fulfilled, God’s people had to be in the Holy Land to enable Christ to come the first time. Without God’s people in the Holy
Land, Christ would have had no way to come to the earth through incarnation. After seventy years of captivity in Babylon, God commanded His people to return to the Holy Land. The majority of the people remained in Assyria, Egypt, and Babylon, but a remnant of the people returned to the Holy Land. The Lord Jesus was born of this remnant of returned captives. Without the return of this remnant to the Holy Land, it would have been impossible for the Lord to come the first time.
Likewise, Christ’s second coming depends on the return of a remnant of His New Testament believers from their captivity in the religious Babylon, degraded Christianity (Rev. 17), to the proper ground of oneness for the recovery of the building of the church, God’s spiritual house (1 Tim. 3:15; 1 Pet. 2:5). We should ask ourselves where we are. Are we still in captivity in Babylon, or are we among those who have returned to Jerusalem, the unique ground of oneness? (CWWL, 1971, vol. 1, pp. 328-329)
The independent groups and the scattered seeking ones are like Jews who left Babylon but did not come all the way back to Jerusalem. Today the majority of Christians remain in captivity; only a small remnant have returned to the proper ground for God’s building. (CWWL, 1971, vol. 2, p. 359)
Some Christians hold the concept that the entire church will be prepared for the Lord’s second coming. They may pray that the Lord would revive the entire church throughout the earth. However, such a worldwide revival will not happen. This is because the Lord’s way is not to revive the entire church but to call a remnant of His people as the overcomers who will be willing to pay the price to follow Him for the fulfillment of His purpose and to be built up as a part of His Body and be made ready as His bride for His coming. (CWWL, 1971, vol. 1, p. 333)
Further Reading: Truth Lessons—Level Four, vol. 2, lsn. 33; CWWL, 1984, vol. 2, “Elders’ Training, Book 4: Other Crucial Matters concerning the Practice of the Lord’s Recovery,” ch. 11