This marvelous blessing from heaven has already begun. If you were living in your tin shack in Africa and the dry season has been long and hot, just to hear a few drops fall on the roof is great good news, even though the refreshing showers you want and you need haven’t come yet. But yes, there has been a beginning of the great, real “latter rain.” Many people haven’t known about it yet. But the full rain will come and it will prepare God’s people to “lighten the earth with glory” just before Jesus can come again.
What had begun as “the former rain” on the great Day of Pentecost long ago when thousands heard the message of Jesus preached so clearly, will now be finished with this “latter rain” of the same Holy Spirit, only in a greater way.
People all over the world are beginning to look at the message itself that is such “most precious good news.” We can be sure that the Holy Spirit sent from God is working worldwide to help people to begin to understand.
Jesus has not forsaken His precious church, nor is He trying to raise up another church.
What He is doing is giving this church the precious gift of repentance. It’s the greatest repentance of all the ages! The Holy Spirit is working. The Lord loves this church, just like a bridegroom loves his bride who wants the wedding day to come soon.
A wedding is an exciting time, isn’t it? Now, the greatest wedding ever is just upon us. It’s what the Book of Revelation says is “the marriage of the Lamb.” You have never seen a wedding like that will be! And it says the announcement will be made in heaven that “the time has come for the wedding of the Lamb, and His bride has prepared herself for it” (19:7, 8). We can’t forget that Jesus is still a man, even though He is also still the Son of God. And He loves His bride-to-be more than any man on earth has ever loved his wife. And for His wedding to be postponed so long as it has been postponed makes Jesus to be very disappointed.
And all this long time while Jesus is still disappointed, He has to endure the pain of watching and feeling the suffering of people all over the world. If we could say something to that wonderful Bride, we would say, “Please, come; don’t delay any longer! Tell your Bridegroom ‘I do!’ in the great wedding.”
We don’t want to miss that party, do we?