In order to bolster credibility and to popularize his ‘Billion Souls Prophecy’, Bob Jones claimed he had a vision in 1979. This prophecy helped birth the Prophetic/Apostolic Movement (PAM) in the 1980s.
THE VISION OF THE SANDS OF TIME
It is worth noting that while Jones claims this vision is of God, its imagery and language reflects the theology of the New Order of the Latter Rain (NOLR) cult. The most concerning element is his emphasis on the church becoming a divine and heavenly end-times army. Here is a video with the audio of Bob Jones’ prophecy.
EXAMINING THE PROPHECY IN ITS CONTEXT.
In 1988, Mike Bickle and Bob Jones talked about their prophetic history. Jones and Bickle fleshed out this particular prophecy more in the interview, which you can read between pages 43-46:
PDF: Visions and Revelations 1988
Interestingly with the rise of the KKK in the 19th century, Apostolic figures in the Azusa cult and the New Order of the Latter Rain (NOLR) cult popularized a very racially and spiritually supremacist doctrine that became known as the ‘Serpent Seed’ doctrine (that’s what William Branham called it). This doctrine, alongside the New Age and New Order of Apostles/Prophets doctrines of the NOLR, is clearly influencing Bob Jones and Mike Bickle’s dominionistic agenda for their end-times church. ‘God’ said the following to Bob Jones (emphasis added):
“Oh, we’re collecting those who are foreknown and predestinated [sic] for the end-times, for you see they’ll be the best of all the seed that’s ever been. And we’re looking through the seeds and this’ll be your grandkids. This will be the end generation that is foreknown and predestinated [sic] to inherit all things. And these will be like grandchildren to you – even those that you minister to won’t be this generation. Their children will be. You are to write into their minds – as they write into the children’s minds. You’re to bring them to a place to allow my spirit to rule in their life where they can begin to set the church on the proper foundations – as they will…
[We need to note that this foundations is the New Order of the Latter Apostle and Prophets.]
… They’ll birth the church, but their children will attain levels of the Holy Spirit that they will not. Although their parents will reign over them and be leaders of the last day church – their children will possess the Spirit without measure – for they are the best of all generations that have ever been upon the face of the earth. And the best of all generations are those elected seeds that will glorify Christ in the last day. They will move into things of the supernatural that no one has ever moved in before. Every miracle, sign and wonder that has ever been in the bible – they’ll move in it consistently, they’ll move in the power that Christ did. Every sign and wonder that’s ever been will be many times in the last days. They themselves will be that generation that’s raised up to put death itself underneath their feet and to glorify Christ in every way. And the church that is raising up in the government will be the head and covering for them. So that that [sic] glorious church might be revealed in the last days because the Lord Jesus is worthy to be lifted up by a church that has reached the full maturity of the Godman!“
This is before Wagner and the New Apostolic Reformation (NAR) properly came onto the scene in the 1990s. This being the NOLR theology Wagner was working with and the theology Dr. Michael Brown was raised in. You have the end-times apostles and prophets raising up “a church that has reached the full maturity of the Godman” being led be the elect seed of the New Breed. In the NAR, this was called the Manchild Company – in the NAR, this was called the ‘One New Man’.
This is classic NOLR Serpent-seed Doctrine, mixing racial Nazi-like Arianism and a form of gnostic spiritual supremacy to reform Christianity and to awaken the world to a new utopian age.
Mike Bickle treated this ‘Sands of Time’ prophecy as scripture, making sure that Jones sure did not “add to it or subtract from it” (pg. 44). That’s not only deceptive, it’s dangerous. Bickle reiterated the prophecy (clearly reading from something written) to cement how important he thought it really was:
“And the Lord looks at Bob and says, “From out of the sand of time I have called the best of every blood line in the earth unto this generation.” He said, “Even the blood line of Paul, even the blood line of David, the blood line of Peter, James and John, the best of their seed is unto this generation. They will be even superior to them in heart, stature and love for me.” He says, “For out the sands of time, I have elected to bring them forth in this hour.” And He said, “This generation of the young people that are coming” – and which He would give him time frames – He would put it in the language of the generation of young people that are coming. He said, “It weill be their children – not even the generation that is coming – their children is the elect generation… He said, “The generation of the young people that are coming are going to see the beginning of this world-wide New Order and this transition that is going to be coming world wide. It is going to change the expression of Christianity in the earth in a generation.“
Don’t forget that in 1988, Wagner and Wimber were already trying a prototype of the NAR through Wimber’s Vineyard Movement. So if this is what Bob Jones accurately described back in 1979, the NAR had about nine years to make steady progress through the Vineyard (Apostolic) and the Kansas City Fellowship (Prophetic) movements in the 1980s.
This prophecy played a pivotal role in the teachings of Rick Joyner, Wagner, Che Ahn, Lou Engle and countless others Dr. Michael Brown affiliates with. This prophecy also helped shape events like the ‘Toronto Blessing’, Pensacola, ‘The Call’, ‘Azusa Now’, the 2008 Lakeland Revival, the NAR, ICAL and AD2000. You can even hear this theology in Dr. Michael Brown’s ‘revival revolution’ campaign from 1999 to now, with his aggressive militancy in raising an army of radical revival revolutionaries.
The spiritual military supremacy in this theological paradigm reflects the opposite in nature and person of the Holy Spirit when we compare the fruits of the Spirit to the fruits of the flesh in Galatians 5. A Christian is ‘the elect’ by God. There is no higher spiritual class. This is nothing more than spiritual supremacy, in order to dominate churches and the Christian landscape.
THE PROPHECY TODAY
Fast forward a few decades and this divine prophecy has changed through the words of Bob Jones’ wife, Bonnie Jones. This is how she recalls this prophecy of Bob Jones:
Bobbie Jones writes about their visions on their website (which ElijahList decided to publish on their website):
Sands of Time – It’s Time to Begin!
Recently in a vision I saw the Lord standing on the seashore holding a large hourglass filled with the sands of time. As I watched, He gently turned it upside down and placed it upon the beach. Suddenly my eyes were drawn to notice the time; it was exactly five o’clock. Immediately in my spirit I felt the Lord saying, “It’s time to begin!”
Bob Jones’ Vision of the Sands of Time
In January of 1979, Bob was taken in a vision to a place by the sea called the “Sands of Time.” Bob said he saw great men there such as Elijah, Elisha, John and the martyrs. Each one including the Apostle Paul placed their hands down into the sands of time to bring up what looked like old shoe boxes. As each one did, Bob could hear them say, “Is it my time? Are the promises for now?” But with each of these leaders there was nothing in their shoebox because the promises weren’t for their generation.
Then the Lord told Bob to reach down into the sands of time to pull up his box, but Bob said, “Lord, they are all empty!” But the Lord told Bob to do as he was told. So Bob reached into the sands of time and pulled out his shoebox. As he opened the box he was shocked to see what was inside. The box was filled with white envelopes placed neatly inside. As he opened them he saw that they were draft notices that said, “Greetings, you have been inducted into the Army of God.” However, none of these draft notices had postage stamps.
Then the Lord told Bob, “I will begin to send these letters out to My leaders when it costs twenty cents to mail a letter.” At the time of this vision, postage cost eleven cents to mail a letter. No one ever thought that the price would go up again. But on October 13, 1981, it cost twenty cents to mail a letter. And the Lord said to Bob, “Everyone that was conceived, that was in the womb, or nine months prior was literally the army of God. The first would be leaders and the second would be the greatest army that nothing could ever stop. And when they reach the age of maturity I am going to begin to release them in power. I will arm them out of My armory in Heaven and there is no gift that I will deny them. They will literally pull down the warehouse of God and they will have no fear of the enemy. They will glorify Me beyond anything that has ever been. They will represent Me in My holiness and compassion.” They are Mine. They are the army of youth and they will be holy terrors.
Thirty Years Later
October 13, 2011 marked thirty years from the date postage cost twenty cents. Thirty represents the age of maturity for the priesthood. That was Jesus’ age when He began His public ministry that lasted three and a half years. There has now been a three and a half year time frame since the thirtieth anniversary of Bob’s “Sands of Time – Shoebox” prophecy and my “Sands of Time – Hourglass” vision. It is my belief that both these are closely related prophetic parables.
Although we live in a microwave world and expect everything to happen immediately, God is never in a hurry. His timing is always perfect; never early, never late but always on time. I believe the army of God that received their draft notice in 1981 came into their place of maturity in 2011. However these past three and a half years has been a time of God sifting them to determine who would remain faithful till the end.
Now! It’s Time to Begin!
“Is it my time? Are the promises for now?” That’s the question Bob heard previous great men ask as they placed their hands into the sands of time. Although their boxes were empty Bob’s contained the promises for the generation conceived or born since October 1981. But now the Lord has overturned the sands of time hourglass releasing these inductees into His end-time army and they will be the most powerful force on earth. They will be the army of “greater works” fully equipped in resurrection power and glory. This army carries a breaker anointing to break the chains of offense, oppression, lawlessness and religion.
The time on the hourglass was five o’clock and five represents God’s grace. I believe that during the past three and a half years this emerging army learned the importance of true humility. God resists the prideful but gives grace to the humble. His grace will rest upon this army and there is nothing He will withhold from them.
[Submit to God, Resist the Devil] Likewise you younger people, submit yourselves to your elders. Yes, all of you be submissive to one another, and be clothed with humility, for “God resists the proud, But gives grace to the humble.” (1 Peter 5:5)
Source: Bonnie Jones, Sands of Time – It’s Time to Begin!, BobJones.Org, http://www.bobjones.org/index.cfm?zone=/Docs/Words%20of%202015/2015-08_SandsOfTime.htm, Published August 2015. [Archive]
What is the fruit of false prophecies like this?
DRIVING THE NAR AGENDA
NARpostle Jeff Jansen has also promoted this false prophecy, which, to this day, is still affecting countless numbers of Christians. How is this prophecy applied to the church today? Just as Bonnie Jones, Jeff Jansen believes this prophecy kicked in to effect in 2011. Jansen believes:
“… this next move of God will be an outpouring of the very Presence of God manifest in and through an end time Army of God that are mature in both Word and Spirit. It will result in global harvest and global revival with mass evangelism, corporate miracles, healings, signs and wonders never witnessed before. We are being prepared to see Heaven unleashed on the earth in proportions never witnessed before. Millions will come to Christ through supernatural explosions of the glory of God and a harvest of harvesters will emerge. We are in the season of the new, and now is the time that this army of dread champions will arise.
The Church is waking up. It’s time for the End Time Army of God to arise!”
Source: Jeff Jansen, The 30 Year Word of the “End Time Army of God” is Coming to Pass, Global Fire Ministries International, http://www.globalfireministries.com/writings/view/44, Accessed May 07, 2018. [Archived]
Another victims of this false prophecy now confesses:
“We are the generation that has been told in that journal.. those born from the start of 1981.. haha!!! That’s our destiny! To be mighty army of God…! He is indeed raising up this generation… that’s why I wonder why a lot of things are happening like abortion, pornography, homosexuality, are happening in this generation… that’s because the enemy is afraid to this generation!!! But the gates of hell will never prevail as the soldiers of God advance His kingdom!!!”
Prophecies that are treated as infallible like this ‘Sands of Time’ vision have resulted in much of the dominionism and militancy we hear from the NARpostles and Prophets in the New Apostolic Reformation. It is spiritually safer to hold to Christ and His Word alone then the delusional false prophecies and teachings of Dr. Michael’s Brown’s friends and cohorts.
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Categories: iHOP, New Apostolic Reformation (NAR)