Have you ever seen the Andes Mountains? If you ever go to the Feast of Tabernacles in Chile, you will see them towering thousands of feet over the long Chilean coast. I highly recommend it! A few years ago, we had the privilege of attending the Feast there. As we were flying down the coast of Chile to Santiago, we marveled at the spectacular beauty of this great spine of mountains running down the west side of South America. A scripture came to mind.
“The voice of one crying in the wilderness: ‘Prepare the way of the Lord; make straight in the desert a highway for our God. Every valley shall be exalted [lifted up] and every mountain and hill brought low; the crooked places shall be made straight and the rough places smooth; the glory of the Lord shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together; for the mouth of the Lord has spoken’” (Isaiah 40:3–5).
Will the spectacular Andes Mountains be “brought low”? What about the beautiful Blue Ridge Mountains, the Rockies or the Alps? Why would God do such a thing?
The subject of mountains is very important in the Bible. That is why mountains are mentioned so often— more than 650 times. It can be very interesting to look at this subject in the context of the government of God that will soon be established. In an important respect, the Bible is “A Tale of Two Mountains.”
Mountains in the Bible
Mountains are frequently symbols in the Bible and are used as references to governments. Here is an example that applies to God’s government in the Kingdom of God.
“Now it shall come to pass in the latter days that the mountain of the Lord’s house [the government of His family, His Kingdom] shall be established on the top of the mountains, and shall be exalted above the hills; and all nations shall flow to it. Many people shall come and say, ‘Come, and let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, to the house of the God of Jacob [The mountain and the house are the same]; He will teach us His ways, and we shall walk in His paths.’ For out of Zion [the Holy Mountain of God] shall go forth the law, and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem” (Isaiah 2:2–3).
This scripture describes a “mountain” that has laws, territory, rulers and subjects. This is the Holy Mountain—the Kingdom and Family—of God. Scripture also describes other mountains, symbols for human governments, not referring to spiritual Israel. For example:
- “Then saviors shall come to Mount Zion, to judge the mountains of Esau, and the kingdom shall be the Lord’s” (Obadiah 21).
- “Here is the mind which has wisdom: The seven heads are seven mountains on which the woman sits. There are also seven kings. Five have fallen, one is, and the other has not yet come. And when he comes, he must continue a short time” (Revelation 17:9–10).
Satan has his own “mountain” that currently fills this world. Jesus called him the ruler of this current world. “I will no longer talk much with you, for the ruler of this world is coming, and he has nothing in Me” (John 14:30). This present world and age is filled with the mountain—the government—of our adversary, Satan!
So we can see that a Bible reference to a mountain is often the symbol of a government. It can be God’s government, man’s government or Satan’s government. Remembering this can be important in understanding what a scripture means.
A Biblical Absurdity?
A “biblical absurdity” is what critics may call a statement in the Bible that, to them, appears to be impossible. For instance, some cite the temptation of Christ—when Satan took Him to a very special mountain.
“Then the devil, taking Him up on a high mountain, showed Him all the kingdoms of the world in a moment of time. And the devil said to Him, ‘All this authority I will give You, and their glory; for this has been delivered to me, and I give it to whomever I wish. Therefore, if You will worship before me, all will be Yours.’ And Jesus answered and said to him, ‘Get behind Me, Satan! For it is written, “You shall worship the Lord your God, and Him only you shall serve”’” (Luke 4:5–8).
“Where is there a mountain,” a critic may ask, “from which one can see all the kingdoms of the world? The gospel writer must have thought the world was flat, and assumed there was a mountain somewhere high enough to allow Jesus and Satan to gaze out upon all the kingdoms of the world in a moment.” The critic will then insist that this proves the Bible is merely human literature, because it reflects the incorrect worldview of the writer’s day. After all, it is true that even from Mt. Everest—the highest mountain in the world—one cannot see over the horizon of our spherical planet. Critics ridicule as absurd the idea of a moun tain from which all the kingdoms in the world can be seen.
How would you answer an objection like this?
Remember that a mountain is roughly conical in shape—small at the top and large at the bottom, like a government. In what direction does the Bible tell us Satan and Jesus were looking when Satan made his offer? Consider this: If you are standing at the top of a conical mountain, what can you see all of “in a moment” of looking? Why, the mountain itself, of course! We know that Satan is the “god” and ruler of this world. For now, Satan’s mountain—his corrupt government—fills the whole earth. It was, very likely, Satan’s mountain—his government and kingdoms—that Satan showed Jesus. This is a spiritual mountain, and it is very real—and its glitter has seduced many people.
Jesus, however, remembered what He had prophesied centuries before. “You watched while a stone was cut out without hands, which struck the image on its feet of iron and clay, and broke them in pieces. Then the iron, the clay, the bronze, the silver, and the gold were crushed together, and became like chaff from the summer threshing floors; the wind carried them away so that no trace of them was found. And the stone that struck the image became a great mountain and filled the whole earth” (Daniel 2:34–35).
Mr. Herbert W. Armstrong used to call this the greatest battle in the history of the world. Everything was on the table, and both sides were “all in.” If Jesus took the offer of earthly rule— and Satan had the power to give it—all would have been lost for us. But Jesus had faith in His Father, and in His mission here on earth—and we must, too! ‘And Jesus answered and said to him, “Get behind Me, Satan! For it is written, “You shall worship the Lord your God, and Him only you shall serve”’” (Luke 4:8). Jesus, God in the flesh, knew that Satan should be worshiping Him, not the other way around. In dismissing Satan, Jesus blew him away with the breath of His lips. Satan lost— and now, Jesus Christ has been resurrected to glory. We are awaiting a sure outcome.
Jesus Christ is not coming to reform Satan’s mountain; He is coming to replace it. And He will replace it with His own Holy Mountain—the Kingdom of God. The present mountain is Satan’s corrupt government that has dominated the last 6,000 years of human history. The one to come is Christ’s Holy Mountain, which will rule in His millennial Sabbath and continue to grow forever. “Of the increase of His government and peace there will be no end, upon the throne of David and over His kingdom, to order it and establish it with judgment and justice from that time forward, even forever. The zeal of the Lord of hosts will perform this” (Isaiah 9:7).
Jesus rejected Satan’s mountain, but do we? How many people have sold their eternal inheritance for a small notch low on that mountain? (“If I work only one Sabbath a month, I could make supervisor!”) Christ said, “For whosoever would save his life shall lose it; and whosoever shall lose his life for my sake and the gospel’s shall save it. For what doth it profit a man, to gain the whole world, and forfeit his life?” (Mark 8:35–36, ASV). We are told to be in this world but not of it. “For all that is in the world—the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life—is not of the Father but is of the world. And the world is passing away, and the lust of it; but he who does the will of God abides forever” (1 John 2:16–17). Satan’s mountain is doomed, but God’s family is eternal, and His government increases forever (Isaiah 9:7).
God’s Government Works!
Like a government, a mountain is small at the top and large at the bottom. In a kingdom or another form of government, there is one person, a king or an executive, who is at the top. Then there are successively larger layers of people in the lower organizational structure. Even corporations are structured this way. God reveals that His government has a top-down structure, but with a very important difference from Satan’s worldly governments.
Moses clearly established a hierarchal structure for Israel, and did so with God’s inspiration and blessing. Moses said, “So I took the heads of your tribes, wise and knowledgeable men, and made them heads over you, leaders of thousands, leaders of hundreds, leaders of fifties, leaders of tens, and officers for your tribes. Then I commanded your judges at that time, saying, ‘Hear the cases between your brethren, and judge righteously between a man and his brother or the stranger who is with him. You shall not show partiality in judgment; you shall hear the small as well as the great; you shall not be afraid in any man’s presence, for the judgment is God’s. The case that is too hard for you, bring to me, and I will hear it’” (Deuteronomy 1:15–17). The leaders were to provide righteous judgment. God used a hierarchal government in ancient Israel.
Christ explained the difference between worldly hierarchy and God’s hierarchy. In God’s government, leadership is based on love and outgoing concern, and authority is used only for the benefit of those being served by the leadership. To the extent that authority is used to serve the leader, it is misused. God is seeking to develop such leaders for His Kingdom—servant leaders. And there is a crucial difference between the world’s way and God’s way. It is the difference between “give” and “get”—the difference between serving and being served. Satan’s way is “get” and destruction. God’s way is “give” and creation. In God’s government, authority is used to give to those who are governed—not simply to get from them.
Jesus’ disciples had an argument. “Now there was also a dispute among them, as to which of them should be considered the greatest. And He said to them, ‘The kings of the Gentiles exercise lordship over them, and those who exercise authority over them are called “benefactors.” But not so among you; on the contrary, he who is greatest among you, let him be as the younger, and he who governs as he who serves. For who is greater, he who sits at the table, or he who serves? Is it not he who sits at the table? Yet I am among you as the One who serves. But you are those who have continued with Me in My trials. And I bestow upon you a kingdom, just as My Father bestowed one upon Me, that you may eat and drink at My table in My kingdom, and sit on thrones judging the twelve tribes of Israel” (Luke 22:24–30). Jesus promised the twelve disciples that they would have offices of service in His Kingdom.
Offices of Service
To understand God’s government, it is important to understand the idea of offices. For instance, when a construction company needs the services of a construction coordinator on site, they create the office of superintendent with the authority to provide the needed services. Without that office and those services, the job will not come in on time and on budget and may not be completed at all. One office is filled by one person, not several people.
God sets up offices of service, puts one individual—not a committee—in each, and then works through that individual. And, when He wants to, God can do a big work through one person. Moses, for example, sought wise counsel, as he did from Jethro, but he also said, “…I commanded you at that time all the things which you should do” (Deuteronomy 1:18). Moses used his authority to serve Israel.
Christ established offices in the Church of God: “And He Himself gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers, for the equipping of the saints for the work of ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ, till we all come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a perfect man, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ; that we should no longer be children, tossed to and fro and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, in the cunning craftiness of deceitful plotting, but, speaking the truth in love, may grow up in all things into Him who is the head—Christ—from whom the whole body, joined and knit together by what every joint supplies, according to the effective working by which every part does its share, causes growth of the body for the edifying of itself in love” (Ephesians 4:11–16). Those who reject those offices also reject the services that Christ performs through them. When we find the true offices and ministers of God, we are obliged to follow them.
Today Is Preparation Day!
God’s Church is being prepared to be His Holy Mountain. This mountain is a holy government, and it is important that we understand God’s principles of government. Jesus said, “In My Father’s house are many mansions [offices]; if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself; that where I am, there you may be also” (John 14:2–3).
God is doing this for those “on whom the ends of the earth are come.” But can we govern the way Christ does? We need to be learning God’s government now. Now is our season of preparation. The Bride is making herself ready.
God governs by His law, and He administers it from on high. “Therefore the law is holy, and the commandment holy and just and good” (Romans 7:12). Obedience to God’s law is a blessing, and He gives it to us for our benefit. But people simply do not want to be subject to government. Since colonial times, Americans are fond of saying, “That government is best which governs least.” But God’s government is a blessing and greatly to be desired. If you do not like God’s government now, you certainly will not like it for the rest of eternity. So we are to respect government of our nation, of the Church and of our families. We need to learn about and practice God’s government in this age, so we can administer it in God’s Kingdom. Do you like government? We are to learn love and respect for righteous government, both to govern and to be governed. It is important that we qualify for the Holy Mountain of God.
Which Is Your Mountain?
So, will the world’s physical mountains be leveled? Christ reveals that, in the age to come, He will put down all other governments, and His Holy Mountain will grow to fill the whole earth. God frequently uses physical things to picture spiritual ones, so we can understand that great changes will happen to the earth.
The Bible is indeed “A Tale of Two Mountains”—and we must choose one of them. God’s people look for a city and a government to come, and our citizenship is there. “Thus says the Lord: ‘I will return to Zion, and dwell in the midst of Jerusalem. Jerusalem shall be called the City of Truth, the Mountain of the Lord of hosts, the Holy Mountain’” (Zechariah 8:3).