Chapter 11 of Daniel continues the dialogue between Daniel and the Messenger. Jesus tells Daniel about the near future then He takes Daniel on a journey to the rise of the Antichrist and the end of the age culminating with the gathering (rapture) of all those found in the Book of Life.
Messenger begins to disclose the power kingdoms that soon would rise to power. He states that there would be three more Kings rising up in Persia. The first of these would be Cambyses II who rose to power six years after Daniel received this prophecy after Cyrus dies in a battle in 530BC. Cambyses II would rule until 522BC when Darius I would rise to power, and he would rule until 486BC. Then Xerxes I would reign until 464BC. Then the Messenger speaks of a fourth King rising up who would be "far richer than" all the others. This king was Darius IV. His great wealth, great power and his lust for more power led to a delusion of grandeur which led him to "stir up all against the realm of Grecia" which would be against Alexander the Great.
Verse three is speaking of Alexander the Great who would rout the Persian army. He was the male goat with the "conspicuous horn" that would rule the world in Daniel chapter 8. He would rule from 334BC to 333BC until his untimely death due to a great fever. Then, as Daniel eight states, his empire was divided into four kingdoms, and none of his own would rule the empire. "His kingdom shall be broken and shall be divided toward the four winds of heaven."(v.4) All of this happened some 200 years after the Messenger reveals it to Daniel. This proves the accuracy of Scripture. Everything happened just as Daniel recorded it would.
Verses five through twenty of chapter eleven deal with the nations of the South; Egypt, Libya and Ethiopia, as well as the nations of the north Iraq, Lebanon and Turkey. These verses also follow various intermarriages and wars between Alexander the Great and the Roman Empire. Since our subject matter is focused on the end times we will not go in depth in looking at these verses. But may I say that Daniel recorded these events that history has proven them to be exactly as he stated hundreds of years before they occurred. If he was accurate on these events, it only leads one to believe the end-time events he spoke of will occur with the same accuracy.
Old school thought attributes verses 21 through 34 to the reign of Antiochus IV (175-163BC)who obtained his rule by flattery (v.21). He desolated the Temple by boiling a pig and sprinkling the broth throughout the Temple in Jerusalem. He sacrificed a pig on the brazen altar. He then consecrated the Temple to Jupiter Olympious (v. 31). Now that "knowledge has been increased" (12:4), theologians now understand that these verses are referring to the end of the age and the Antichrist. We see in verses 21 to 24 that the Antichrist will come to power while speaking peace and safety--flatteries (v.21). Remember, I Thes.5:3 tells us that one of the signs of the end time is that there will be those who are proclaiming peace and safety when destruction is at the door. "For when they shall say, peace and safety; then sudden destruction comes upon them, as travail upon a woman with a child, and they shall not escape (I Thes.5:3)."
As we have seen in Daniel 9:27 the Antichrist will make a seven-year treaty with Israel which begins the Tribulation period, and he breaks this treaty 3 1/2 years after it is ratified. He then will stop the daily sacrifices at the Temple in Jerusalem (v. 31).
When verse 24 says, "he shall do that which his fathers have not done, nor his father's fathers," I believe we are given another hint as to where the Antichrist shall come from. The language used here referring to "his fathers" is a terminology used almost exclusively among the Jewish people and the direct descendents of Abraham. For example, the Middle Eastern people always refer to the religious actions of their "fathers" by such terms as, "Return to the land of thy fathers." My fathers Abraham, Isaac and Jacob." "The God of your fathers has sent me." "The Lord God of your fathers." "Which the Lord swore unto thy fathers." "For I spoke unto your fathers." "Which I commanded your fathers." "Covenant which I made with your fathers." "Because your fathers have forsaken me." "The God of our fathers raised up Jesus." Etc. etc.
Because of Jewish traditions, as well as those who descended from Ishmael, of referring to their "fathers" of their faith, the Antichrist is here referring to at least three generations in verse 24 and even further back in his family tree. This is a terminology of the descendants of Abraham, including those of Ishmael. We must remember that Israel is still looking for her Messiah to come and establish His kingdom on earth. A Messiah who will come from the root of David, from the tribe of Judah (Gen.49:10; Is.11:10; Rom.15;12; Rev.5:5;&22:16). Before they acknowledge someone as their Messiah he must prove that he is of the lineage of David, the tribe of Judah. Does this mean that the Antichrist will be Jewish? Not necessarily. This only means that he must have the ancestry of a Jew from the tribe of Judah. And remember this could be centuries back in his family tree. The Jewish Messiah not only has to prove his ancestry but he must also be perceived as a prophet sent by God.
"The Lord your God will raise up for you a prophet like me from your midst, from your brethern. Him you shall hear.---I will raise up for them a prophet like you from among their brethern, and will put My words in his mouth, and he shall speak to them all that I command him." (Deut.18:15,17,18)
The Antichrist will appear to be speaking on behalf of God with great wisdom and signs, miracles and wonders confirming his words. The Jews will see this as proof that this is the long-awaited Messiah. He will speak flattering words to the Jews and with his ability to broker peace in the Middle East he will be received as the Prince of peace (Is.9:6). The Jews will see the "government upon his shoulders" (Is.9:6) as he becomes recognized as a world political leader. The Antichrist will appear to fulfill the prophecies pertaining to the Messiah right down to his establishing his kingdom on earth. He will convince the Jews that he wants only the best for them while all along plotting their demise.
For the Jews to accept the Antichrist as their Messiah he must also have a forerunner. "The voice of one crying in the wilderness: prepare the way of the Lord: make straight in the desert a highway for our God." (Is.40:3) "Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord." (Mal.4:5).In these sriptures we see where a forerunner is prophesied to come before "the dreadful day of the Lord." In John 1:19-28 we see where the priests and the Levites questioned John as to whether he was the one prophesied to lead the way for the Messiah. He said he wasn't Elijah nor the Prophet but he said he was, "the voice of one crying in the wilderness: make straight the way of the Lord." (John 1:23) John was the one sent to prepare the way for the Lord's ministry among men. But since the Jews did not accept Jesus as their Messiah,they are still looking for a forerunner as well as their Messiah. Thus enters the false prophet (Rev.13:11-17; 16:13; 19:20; 20:10). The false prophet will lead the way for the Antichrist to be worshipped and followed. Then the real spirit behind Antichrist will be revealed and the Jews will see him for what he is, but it will be too late. They have no recourse but to "flee to the mountains." (Matt.24:16)
Verse 37 of Daniel 11 further substantiates this line of thought pertaining to the Antichrist. "Neither shall he regard the God of his fathers." The word "God" is from the Hebrew word, "Eloyiym" which is the plural for God or gods. It is the name used for God in the creation story in the book of Genesis, "let us make man in our image." (Gen. 1:26). Again, this is language used among the descendants of Abraham. The Antichrist will respect no God, especially the only true God, the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, "for he shall magnify himself above all."
So we see from the book of Daniel that the Antichrist will most likely come from, or come to power from, Shushan (Dan.8:2), which is modern-day Susa in Iran. He will be a direct descendant of Abraham. His family tree will include the tribe of Judah. Although he has Jewish roots he will be a follower of the Islamic faith. He will use Islamic radicals as his enforces. The Islamic faith will see him as their Messiah, the long-awaited twelveth Iman--the Madhi. The Jews will see him as their long-awaited Messiah. The true followers of God will know him as the Antichrist. Keep your eyes on the Middle East for this leader to rise up. I believe he is alive right now!
Saturday, February 25, 2012
Thursday, February 16, 2012
2012--THE END--Pt.3
As stated, God's judgment is coming to cleanse us of all of our clutter. Whatever it is that hinders our relationship with Him. It could be our jobs. If our jobs are consuming more of our time than He does or our jobs consume our thoughts more than He does, they may have to be removed. Maybe it's our recreations and our pleasures that are consuming more of our time than He gets. If this is the case He may have to remove the funds to maintain our pleasures and recreations. With some of us our relationship with God is hindered by our pursuit of houses, cars, and other possessions that we pursue more than Him. If this be the case they may have to be removed. Sometimes it's something as simple as our character or immature attitudes or sometimes just laziness in the word and prayer, or possibly we have a lot of spiritual pride. If these things hinder our relationship with God they will be removed beginning in 2012. Even our religious activities such as church services with no real true worship. Prayer that is self-serving. Bible reading and studies that show no maturing in our lives. All these religious activities do is lead us into a false sense of security, and they just clutter up our relationship with God. These too may have to be removed from our lives beginning in 2012.
It may be false experiences with God that are preventing us from having a relationship with Him. A lot of people in the church today are going around and stating, "God told me," just to validate their opinions. Many preface their opinions with, "Thus saith the Lord." And my favorite one that I'm hearing the most today is,"Let me tell you what God showed me." In the book of Ezekiel chapter 13 the Lord had a stern warning for those who just loosely declare,"Thus saith the Lord." Verses one through three say, "And the word of the Lord came to me, saying, Son of Man, prophesy against the prophets of Israel who prophesy, and say to those who prophesy out of their own heart, hear the word of the Lord! Thus says the Lord: 'woe to the foolish prophets who follow their own spirit and have seen nothing!'" Then in verse six Ezekiel states, "They have envisioned futility and false divination saying, 'thus says the Lord!' But the Lord has not sent them; yet they hope that the word may be confirmed." We have a many self-proclaimed prophets and prophetesses in the church today who go around constantly saying,"Thus saith the Lord." They're speaking out of their flesh, out of their opinion or sometimes right out of Scripture, and yet it's not the Holy Spirit speaking through them. They are in hopes that once they've spoken it the Lord will confirm the word by letting it come to pass. I personally have received numerous prophecies over myself or my family that never came to pass through no fault of our own; and yet these prophets, though false, continue right own with their ministries. It's time that the church holds people accountable for what they say when they state,"Thus saith the Lord,"or"God told me," or "Let me tell you what God showed me."
In verses 10 to 15 of Ezekiel chapter 13 God again gives a stern warning against false prophets. He speaks here of bringing his judgment to the church which has been "plastered with untempered mortar" or, to say, with false word or shallow use of the word. Please take the time to read these verses for yourself. Many voices are speaking to the believers today, many of which are designed to draw us away from God. Some are deceiving us with the message of, "I'm okay you're okay." Many voices speaking today are imitating Jesus or the Holy Spirit all again designed to lead us away from God. We're in the last of the last days and we must hear only one, His. This is the purpose of the judgment of God coming to His house beginning at a much accelerated rate in 2012. He wants us to get rid of everything in our lives that is hindering our relationship with Him. When we are in a close father/child relationship with God, we will hear only one voice and obey it.
Jesus said in John chapter 10:2-5,"He who enters by the door is the shepherd of the sheep, to him the doorkeeper opens, and the sheep hear his voice; and he calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. And when he brings out his own sheep, he goes before them; and the sheep follow him, for they know his voice. Yet they will by no means follow a stranger, but will flee from him, they do not know the voice of the strangers." And verse 17 says, "My sheep hear My voice and I know them, and they follow Me." It was not uncommon in Jesus' day for shepherds to bring their sheep into Jerusalem and into the holding pens to be used for Temple sacrifices. Let's say that 25 shepherds would bring 50 head of sheep into the corral for holding. When it was time for the shepherd to bring his sheep in he would simply stand and call out to his sheep. The only ones that would leave the pen and come to him were those sheep that belonged to him for they knew his voice. All 25 shepherds could stand at different times and even speak the same command but only their sheep would come to them because they knew only the voice of their shepherd, and they would not come to a stranger. This is what Jesus is hoping to accomplish in His church beginning in 2012 by bringing judgment to remove the clutter out of our lives; that being, that we will hear only His voice and will follow Him and not yield to any strange voice.
Yes, 2012 will hold many things for the church. We will begin to see the end of the deception that has caused self righteousness. We will begin to see the practice of holy humanism brought to an end. Anything that has caused us to rebel against His set authority in the church will be removed. 20"12", (from its Hebrew meanings), we will see God's people, flowing in the perfect plan of God, being led by God's set authority!
Rest assured, judgment is coming. It will touch all of us! The consuming fire of God's glory will either destroy all of our clutter or it will destroy us! We will fear Him or be consumed by His judgments! When it seems like a lot of bad things are coming your way don't be so quick to rebuke demons, it may very well be God's judgments brought into your life to remove the things that are hindering your relationship with Him. God wants to give His people a holy visitation. He wants to reveal His glory to His church as well as empower it. But He must first cleanse His house, His Temple, His church(know you not that your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit). Just as it was with Jesus when He entered Jerusalem for His triumphal entry, He first entered the Temple and He cleansed it. Then during His passion week He taught in the Temple, but it had to be cleansed first.
In times past God showed long-suffering with His children in that He would at times take years maybe even decades to deal with the clutter in their lives. But because the time is short and we are entering the end times and the church must the made ready for the harvest of souls, God will no longer be so patient. He's going to turn up the heat in the pressure cooker of life as He makes His bride ready for the soon return of Christ.
Are you ready for 2012? Are you ready for the purging that "is" coming? Maybe we ought to pray, "Lord, here I am. I submit to Your cleansing. Please reveal all my "clutter". Whatever hinders my relationship with You reveal it to me. Give me the strength to submit to the cleansing process and the courage to do Your will in 2012. Amen."
It may be false experiences with God that are preventing us from having a relationship with Him. A lot of people in the church today are going around and stating, "God told me," just to validate their opinions. Many preface their opinions with, "Thus saith the Lord." And my favorite one that I'm hearing the most today is,"Let me tell you what God showed me." In the book of Ezekiel chapter 13 the Lord had a stern warning for those who just loosely declare,"Thus saith the Lord." Verses one through three say, "And the word of the Lord came to me, saying, Son of Man, prophesy against the prophets of Israel who prophesy, and say to those who prophesy out of their own heart, hear the word of the Lord! Thus says the Lord: 'woe to the foolish prophets who follow their own spirit and have seen nothing!'" Then in verse six Ezekiel states, "They have envisioned futility and false divination saying, 'thus says the Lord!' But the Lord has not sent them; yet they hope that the word may be confirmed." We have a many self-proclaimed prophets and prophetesses in the church today who go around constantly saying,"Thus saith the Lord." They're speaking out of their flesh, out of their opinion or sometimes right out of Scripture, and yet it's not the Holy Spirit speaking through them. They are in hopes that once they've spoken it the Lord will confirm the word by letting it come to pass. I personally have received numerous prophecies over myself or my family that never came to pass through no fault of our own; and yet these prophets, though false, continue right own with their ministries. It's time that the church holds people accountable for what they say when they state,"Thus saith the Lord,"or"God told me," or "Let me tell you what God showed me."
In verses 10 to 15 of Ezekiel chapter 13 God again gives a stern warning against false prophets. He speaks here of bringing his judgment to the church which has been "plastered with untempered mortar" or, to say, with false word or shallow use of the word. Please take the time to read these verses for yourself. Many voices are speaking to the believers today, many of which are designed to draw us away from God. Some are deceiving us with the message of, "I'm okay you're okay." Many voices speaking today are imitating Jesus or the Holy Spirit all again designed to lead us away from God. We're in the last of the last days and we must hear only one, His. This is the purpose of the judgment of God coming to His house beginning at a much accelerated rate in 2012. He wants us to get rid of everything in our lives that is hindering our relationship with Him. When we are in a close father/child relationship with God, we will hear only one voice and obey it.
Jesus said in John chapter 10:2-5,"He who enters by the door is the shepherd of the sheep, to him the doorkeeper opens, and the sheep hear his voice; and he calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. And when he brings out his own sheep, he goes before them; and the sheep follow him, for they know his voice. Yet they will by no means follow a stranger, but will flee from him, they do not know the voice of the strangers." And verse 17 says, "My sheep hear My voice and I know them, and they follow Me." It was not uncommon in Jesus' day for shepherds to bring their sheep into Jerusalem and into the holding pens to be used for Temple sacrifices. Let's say that 25 shepherds would bring 50 head of sheep into the corral for holding. When it was time for the shepherd to bring his sheep in he would simply stand and call out to his sheep. The only ones that would leave the pen and come to him were those sheep that belonged to him for they knew his voice. All 25 shepherds could stand at different times and even speak the same command but only their sheep would come to them because they knew only the voice of their shepherd, and they would not come to a stranger. This is what Jesus is hoping to accomplish in His church beginning in 2012 by bringing judgment to remove the clutter out of our lives; that being, that we will hear only His voice and will follow Him and not yield to any strange voice.
Yes, 2012 will hold many things for the church. We will begin to see the end of the deception that has caused self righteousness. We will begin to see the practice of holy humanism brought to an end. Anything that has caused us to rebel against His set authority in the church will be removed. 20"12", (from its Hebrew meanings), we will see God's people, flowing in the perfect plan of God, being led by God's set authority!
Rest assured, judgment is coming. It will touch all of us! The consuming fire of God's glory will either destroy all of our clutter or it will destroy us! We will fear Him or be consumed by His judgments! When it seems like a lot of bad things are coming your way don't be so quick to rebuke demons, it may very well be God's judgments brought into your life to remove the things that are hindering your relationship with Him. God wants to give His people a holy visitation. He wants to reveal His glory to His church as well as empower it. But He must first cleanse His house, His Temple, His church(know you not that your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit). Just as it was with Jesus when He entered Jerusalem for His triumphal entry, He first entered the Temple and He cleansed it. Then during His passion week He taught in the Temple, but it had to be cleansed first.
In times past God showed long-suffering with His children in that He would at times take years maybe even decades to deal with the clutter in their lives. But because the time is short and we are entering the end times and the church must the made ready for the harvest of souls, God will no longer be so patient. He's going to turn up the heat in the pressure cooker of life as He makes His bride ready for the soon return of Christ.
Are you ready for 2012? Are you ready for the purging that "is" coming? Maybe we ought to pray, "Lord, here I am. I submit to Your cleansing. Please reveal all my "clutter". Whatever hinders my relationship with You reveal it to me. Give me the strength to submit to the cleansing process and the courage to do Your will in 2012. Amen."
Thursday, February 9, 2012
2012--THE END--Pt.2
This message about the end of many things coming to an end in the year 2012, came to me as a result of a dream that God gave me Jan.19,2012. In this dream my wife and I were looking at Pike's Peak from our dining room window. Dark clouds began to cover the top of Pike's Peak and they appeared to be rolling as it were and had a red glow to them almost like dripping blood. Then suddenly columns of white fire began to rise out of Pike's Peak, and then suddenly one by one they launched off Pike's Peak like arrows or missiles, and the number was too great to count. They landed all over Colorado Springs and vicinity as far as one could see. They fell all around us but never hit our house. This dream caused me to wake up at 3:30 in the morning, and I was able to immediately go back to sleep. Usually when a dream comes to me from God I have to get up and immediately write it down and seek the interpretation. But with this one I just went back to sleep. When I got up at 5:30, two hours later, and began my morning of seeking God's face and reading His word I received clarity as to what this dream was about.
In my morning devotions it just so happened I was reading Ex.19. As I read verse nine I began to understand what God wanted to show me my dream. Exodus 19:9 states, "And the Lord said to Moses, behold I come to you in the thick cloud that the people may hear when I speak to you and believe you forever." In the wilderness experience God was establishing his governmental authority among His people. He was showing that it is He who selects and sets leaders among His people. And on down in Ex.19:16-18 we read, "And it came to pass on the third day, in the morning, that there were thundering and lightning, a big cloud on the mountain; and the sound of the trumpet was very loud, so that all the people who were in the camp trembled. And Moses brought the people out of the camp to meet with God, and they stood at the foot of the mountain. Now Mount Sinai was completely in smoke, because the Lord descended upon it in fire. Its smoke ascended like the smoke of a furnace, and the whole mountain quaked greatly." Even with God's presence so real to the people and all the miracles that they witnessed that set them free from Egypt, they still rebelled against God and his chosen leader Moses.
I believe God is going to make His presence known once again beginning in 2012! The clouds and the missiles of fire that I saw in my dream represented God's judgments that are going to begin in earnest in 2012. God said, "I am a jealous God." He also said, "I am a consumming fire." God is going to make these characteristic traits of His very visible beginning in 2012 for all to see. Ex.20:20 states,"for God has come to test you and that His fear may be before you, so that you may not sin." God's judgments are not being sent to necessarily destroy us but to test us, to cause us to fear him and all of this is done that we may not sin. We are told all through the book of Leviticus that we are to fear God. All through Deuteronomy it says the same things, we are to fear God. I Sam.12:14,15 states "If you fear the Lord and serve Him and obey His voice and do not rebel against the commandment of the Lord, then both you and the king who reigns over you will continue following the Lord your God. However, if you do not obey the voice of the Lord, but rebel against the commandment of the Lord, then the hand of the Lord will be against you." God is saying here that as long as His people serve him and obey his voice and not rebel against his commandments, or to say His word, then both the people and those who rule over them, the set leaders, will continue to follow God. But, if the people of God choose not to obey and rebel against Him, His word and His set leaders, that His hand will be against them. This is what I believe is coming in 2012. Those who are being stiffnecked and hardhearted toward God and rebelling against His authority, His word and refuse to obey Him are going to see His hand against them.
Even in the New Testament we read, "Do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. But rather fear him who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell." The fear of God is something that is sorely missing in the church today, as well as in the world, yet God requires us to fear Him. It's not the kind of fear that one has of scary things but it's more of a wholesome fear like the fear we should have for electricity. I like the convenience of electricity and all that it can do for us but at the same time I fear it to the point that I would not put my finger into an electrical socket. This is a wholesome fear. God wants us to realize that it is He who determines our eternal destiny and that should cause us to fear Him. Yes we must accept the fact that God is love and we are in a period of His mercy and grace, but at the same time we must balance this with a wholesome fear of God.
How did the church grow when it was in its infancy? Through a wholesome fear of God. In fact Acts 9:31 says it this way, "Then the churches throughout all Judea, Galilee, and Samaria had peace and were edified. And walking in the fear of the Lord and in the comfort of the Holy Spirit, they were multiplied." Notice the early church had peace, were edified, comforted by the Holy Spirit, and multiplied when they were walking in the fear of the Lord.
In Rev.14:7 we read, "Fear God and give glory to Him, for the hour of His judgment has come." Notice this scripture says that the hour of God's judgment has come not the hour of His wrath. This is where many people go wrong when they state that the rapture will occur before the tribulation period. They see the entire seven years as the wrath of God. God's wrath is not poured out until the sounding of the seventh trumpet, which occurs at the end of the Great Tribulation. In fact I Peter reads, "The time has come for judgment to begin at the house of God; and if it begins with us first, what will be the end of those who do not obey the gospel of God?"(I Peter 4:17) Notice Peter states this in the past tense, "has come." Upon Jesus's ascension everything had been given to man by which we would be judged, that being the word of God taught by Jesus Himself which would soon be recorded for every generation to have. The church is currently being judged by the word of God whether we are obeying it or not. This scripture is saying that if God is judging His people based on their obedience to His word, then where does that leave those in the church, professing to be Christians, and are not obeying His word?
God is going to bring judgment to His house at an accelerating rate beginning in 2012! This judgment is coming to cleanse us of all the clutter in our lives that is hindering our relationship with God and bring us to humility before God and man.
I will post Pt.3 of this teaching next week.
In my morning devotions it just so happened I was reading Ex.19. As I read verse nine I began to understand what God wanted to show me my dream. Exodus 19:9 states, "And the Lord said to Moses, behold I come to you in the thick cloud that the people may hear when I speak to you and believe you forever." In the wilderness experience God was establishing his governmental authority among His people. He was showing that it is He who selects and sets leaders among His people. And on down in Ex.19:16-18 we read, "And it came to pass on the third day, in the morning, that there were thundering and lightning, a big cloud on the mountain; and the sound of the trumpet was very loud, so that all the people who were in the camp trembled. And Moses brought the people out of the camp to meet with God, and they stood at the foot of the mountain. Now Mount Sinai was completely in smoke, because the Lord descended upon it in fire. Its smoke ascended like the smoke of a furnace, and the whole mountain quaked greatly." Even with God's presence so real to the people and all the miracles that they witnessed that set them free from Egypt, they still rebelled against God and his chosen leader Moses.
I believe God is going to make His presence known once again beginning in 2012! The clouds and the missiles of fire that I saw in my dream represented God's judgments that are going to begin in earnest in 2012. God said, "I am a jealous God." He also said, "I am a consumming fire." God is going to make these characteristic traits of His very visible beginning in 2012 for all to see. Ex.20:20 states,"for God has come to test you and that His fear may be before you, so that you may not sin." God's judgments are not being sent to necessarily destroy us but to test us, to cause us to fear him and all of this is done that we may not sin. We are told all through the book of Leviticus that we are to fear God. All through Deuteronomy it says the same things, we are to fear God. I Sam.12:14,15 states "If you fear the Lord and serve Him and obey His voice and do not rebel against the commandment of the Lord, then both you and the king who reigns over you will continue following the Lord your God. However, if you do not obey the voice of the Lord, but rebel against the commandment of the Lord, then the hand of the Lord will be against you." God is saying here that as long as His people serve him and obey his voice and not rebel against his commandments, or to say His word, then both the people and those who rule over them, the set leaders, will continue to follow God. But, if the people of God choose not to obey and rebel against Him, His word and His set leaders, that His hand will be against them. This is what I believe is coming in 2012. Those who are being stiffnecked and hardhearted toward God and rebelling against His authority, His word and refuse to obey Him are going to see His hand against them.
Even in the New Testament we read, "Do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. But rather fear him who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell." The fear of God is something that is sorely missing in the church today, as well as in the world, yet God requires us to fear Him. It's not the kind of fear that one has of scary things but it's more of a wholesome fear like the fear we should have for electricity. I like the convenience of electricity and all that it can do for us but at the same time I fear it to the point that I would not put my finger into an electrical socket. This is a wholesome fear. God wants us to realize that it is He who determines our eternal destiny and that should cause us to fear Him. Yes we must accept the fact that God is love and we are in a period of His mercy and grace, but at the same time we must balance this with a wholesome fear of God.
How did the church grow when it was in its infancy? Through a wholesome fear of God. In fact Acts 9:31 says it this way, "Then the churches throughout all Judea, Galilee, and Samaria had peace and were edified. And walking in the fear of the Lord and in the comfort of the Holy Spirit, they were multiplied." Notice the early church had peace, were edified, comforted by the Holy Spirit, and multiplied when they were walking in the fear of the Lord.
In Rev.14:7 we read, "Fear God and give glory to Him, for the hour of His judgment has come." Notice this scripture says that the hour of God's judgment has come not the hour of His wrath. This is where many people go wrong when they state that the rapture will occur before the tribulation period. They see the entire seven years as the wrath of God. God's wrath is not poured out until the sounding of the seventh trumpet, which occurs at the end of the Great Tribulation. In fact I Peter reads, "The time has come for judgment to begin at the house of God; and if it begins with us first, what will be the end of those who do not obey the gospel of God?"(I Peter 4:17) Notice Peter states this in the past tense, "has come." Upon Jesus's ascension everything had been given to man by which we would be judged, that being the word of God taught by Jesus Himself which would soon be recorded for every generation to have. The church is currently being judged by the word of God whether we are obeying it or not. This scripture is saying that if God is judging His people based on their obedience to His word, then where does that leave those in the church, professing to be Christians, and are not obeying His word?
God is going to bring judgment to His house at an accelerating rate beginning in 2012! This judgment is coming to cleanse us of all the clutter in our lives that is hindering our relationship with God and bring us to humility before God and man.
I will post Pt.3 of this teaching next week.
Friday, February 3, 2012
2012 --THE END!!!!--Pt.1
Before we continue our look at Daniel chapters 11 and 12 I would like to share with you what I believe God has revealed to me about some upcoming events for the year 2012. Is 2012 the year that all the world will end? I don't believe it's going to be the end of the world but I do believe it's going to be the end of the way we do some things among the body of Christ. The number 12 in the Hebrew has three basic meanings. The first one is it signifies the mystical number of God's people. The second meaning is it represents the elective purposes of God. The third meaning is the government perfection or rule of God. God is showing me that this is going to be a pivotal year for God's people for they are going to rise up to fulfill the purposes of God, and we shall see God's government of perfection reestablished in His church. For far too long the church has been ignoring the Scriptures founded in Heb.13:17,"Obey those who rule over you and be submissive, for they watch out for your souls, as those who must give an account. Let them do so with joy and not grief, that would be unprofitable for you." Due to the fact that so many leaders in the church have abused their leadership, have been fraudulent in their activities, have been caught in acts of immoral behavior, become very self serving, etc. etc., most people in the church no longer find themselves willing to be submissive to any leadership, especially in the church. Yet we are supposed to be the army of the Lord, a body built by Christ who is the head, unified in our quest to make disciples. Everyone desires to be the ruler of their own lives and destiny in the Lord. But if all we had in this army of the Lord are generals will we accomplish the purposes of God? We must once again see the reestablishment of God's government in his church, and I believe the year 2012 is going to see the beginnings of God's government restored to the church.
God has been showing me that in the year 2012 we will be seeing the end of doing God's will "our way." We declare that we desire God's will in our lives and yet we want to continue doing things our way whether it lines up with God's will or His Word. In the year 2012 we are going to see the end of church as we know it. Those in the church will no longer settle for anything less than God's presence and the fire of the Holy Ghost in their services. There will still be those churches who are so steeped in their religion and traditions of man, from which the Spirit of God has long since departed, that will still be in existence; in fact it will be these churches that will rise up to oppose the true church as the presence of God and the fire of the Holy Spirit begins to settle down upon them. Also in 2012 we are going to see the end of self righteousness in the church where we measure ourselves by ourselves or by those around us. 2012 will usher in the end of "holy humanism." This is where those in the church have their own plans of salvation all worked out; they have a claim to a righteousness that cannot be substantiated with Scripture. Their interpretation of Scripture is unprecedented and unmatched by any other, thus they are of the mindset that they are right and no one has the right to ever tell them that they are wrong. They are the ones that are always making the statement when you try to correct them with Scripture, "Everyone interprets the Bible differently; who's to say you're right and I am not?" This kind of a mindset will be exposed for the error that it is and will come under the full impact of God's judgment in the year 2012. In the year 2012 we are going to see the end of no authority in the church. We are going to see the fullness of the fivefold ministry brought back into the church starting in 2012.
Eph.4:11-16 states, "For 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 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, the cunning craftiness of deceitful plotting, but, speaking the truth in love, and 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 which every part does its share, causes growth of the body for the edifying of itself in love."
It was Jesus Christ Himself, the head of the church, who set these five offices in the church. Not man. Not a church board. Not denominational leaders. But Christ himself. Until we reestablish these offices in the church we will not see the church equipped for the ministry of making disciples. The body of Christ will never truly be unified until the fivefold offices listed here in Ephesians are in place in the church and the people being submissive to their authority. It's due to the lack of these five offices in the church today that is causing so many people to be like "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." I have never witnessed so much unsettledness among the members of churches as I see today. They are easily offended giving them an excuse to leave that church and go to another. They claim that they never fit in. They claim to not being fed in the church that they are attending. There is such a restlessness in the body of Christ today. It's as though the church is lacking a multi-vitamin to bring it to the fullness of its strength and vitality. That vitamin is the fivefold ministry!
God has been showing me that He's about to bring judgment into His house. His presence will be known once again among His people. 2012 is going to be a pivotal year in the church as well as in the secular world.
God has been showing me that in the year 2012 we will be seeing the end of doing God's will "our way." We declare that we desire God's will in our lives and yet we want to continue doing things our way whether it lines up with God's will or His Word. In the year 2012 we are going to see the end of church as we know it. Those in the church will no longer settle for anything less than God's presence and the fire of the Holy Ghost in their services. There will still be those churches who are so steeped in their religion and traditions of man, from which the Spirit of God has long since departed, that will still be in existence; in fact it will be these churches that will rise up to oppose the true church as the presence of God and the fire of the Holy Spirit begins to settle down upon them. Also in 2012 we are going to see the end of self righteousness in the church where we measure ourselves by ourselves or by those around us. 2012 will usher in the end of "holy humanism." This is where those in the church have their own plans of salvation all worked out; they have a claim to a righteousness that cannot be substantiated with Scripture. Their interpretation of Scripture is unprecedented and unmatched by any other, thus they are of the mindset that they are right and no one has the right to ever tell them that they are wrong. They are the ones that are always making the statement when you try to correct them with Scripture, "Everyone interprets the Bible differently; who's to say you're right and I am not?" This kind of a mindset will be exposed for the error that it is and will come under the full impact of God's judgment in the year 2012. In the year 2012 we are going to see the end of no authority in the church. We are going to see the fullness of the fivefold ministry brought back into the church starting in 2012.
Eph.4:11-16 states, "For 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 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, the cunning craftiness of deceitful plotting, but, speaking the truth in love, and 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 which every part does its share, causes growth of the body for the edifying of itself in love."
It was Jesus Christ Himself, the head of the church, who set these five offices in the church. Not man. Not a church board. Not denominational leaders. But Christ himself. Until we reestablish these offices in the church we will not see the church equipped for the ministry of making disciples. The body of Christ will never truly be unified until the fivefold offices listed here in Ephesians are in place in the church and the people being submissive to their authority. It's due to the lack of these five offices in the church today that is causing so many people to be like "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." I have never witnessed so much unsettledness among the members of churches as I see today. They are easily offended giving them an excuse to leave that church and go to another. They claim that they never fit in. They claim to not being fed in the church that they are attending. There is such a restlessness in the body of Christ today. It's as though the church is lacking a multi-vitamin to bring it to the fullness of its strength and vitality. That vitamin is the fivefold ministry!
God has been showing me that He's about to bring judgment into His house. His presence will be known once again among His people. 2012 is going to be a pivotal year in the church as well as in the secular world.
Thursday, January 26, 2012
END TIME STUDY--Pt.21
The Book of Daniel is now in its final dissertation. The 70 years of captivity are over. Daniel is now eighty-four or eighty-five years old, and he is seeking God for His direction as to what comes next in his life. He enters into a season of prayer and fasting. It is during this time that God reveals to him the last prophetic message that he was to receive and record. This message continues to the end of the book of Daniel. It is while he is mourning that a Messenger from God appeared to him by the Hiddekel (Tigris) River.
As we read Daniel 10:5-6, we see the description of this Messenger. It sounds uncannily like the descriptions that John in Revelation chapter 1 and Saul of Tarsus gave in Acts chapter 9 and 26 as they beheld Jesus in his glory. Most scholars agree that this is Jesus appearing to Daniel. Daniel sees Jesus in his glory before He becomes incarnate. John and Saul see him in His glory after His ascension. Jesus is introducing to Daniel the events of the very last days of the history of mankind just as he did with John as he spoke the Revelation of end time events in the conclusion of God's plan for all creation. Who better to announce the signs of the end times than the one who knows the beginning to the end? (Isaiah 46:10) In fact this appearing is much like the experience of John and Saul. When John saw Jesus on the Isle of Patmos he was alone and fell as dead at the presence of Jesus. Saul fell to the ground also and those with him heard a voice but saw no man. Those with Daniel saw no vision but a "great quaking fell upon them." (v.7) Daniel had been morning and fasting for three weeks, he was ready to receive from God but not so the others. Yet, even he fell to the ground as dead in the presence of the glory of Jesus. Then he is lifted up and the Messenger begins his revelation to Daniel.
The messenger sets Daniel's mind to ease by telling him that his prayers were heard on the "first day" that he set himself to seek God. Yet, Daniel prays and fasts for 21 more days because the Messenger was detained by the "Prince of the kingdom of Persia." (v.13) Then another "prince," Michael, came to help the Messenger. Remember, this occurs before Jesus became incarnate, died, resurrected, ascended and received "all power and authority." (Matt.28:18) Just who was this "Prince of the kingdom of Persia?"
A prince is a ruler of a principality, and this one ruled over the kingdom of Persia which was the next kingdom after Nebuchadnezzar or, to say, the Babylonian Empire. This prince would have been a demonic entity. One sent to oppress the children of God, the nation of Israel. Remember, Satan is referred to as "the god of this world" (II Cor.4:4), as well as, "the prince of the power of the air." (Eph.2:2) Satan believes that the Earth and the fullness thereof belongs to him. After all, Adam was given power and dominion over all the earth and he surrendered it to Satan, thus Satan has a right to feel that he has the right to rule the Earth and to be worshipped by its inhabitants. All that man was given by God was relinquished in the garden. Eternal life--gone. All needs supplied--gone. Peace and joy--gone. At rest in Him--gone. Father/child relationship--gone. Dominion over all the earth--gone. Satan became "the god of this world," "the prince of the power of the air." Until!! J-E-S-U-S!!!
Jesus came and conquered sin, death and the grave! He descended into the depths of hell and took the keys of death and hell from the devil's domain! He alone, the second Adam, took back all authority and now bestows it on all those who call upon His name. He put Satan to open shame as he hung on the cross and now "we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us." (Rom.8:37)
Satan believes that the earth is his domain and neither God, Jesus, the Holy Spirit or the Saints belong here. This is why he gathers the nations in the last days to try to remove the Saints and the Jews from his domain, Earth. He has convinced himself that if all godly influences are removed that those who remain will be loyal to him and worship him as God, and he will rule the earth unopposed. How can he remove godly influences from the Earth? First, by infiltrating the family of God--the church. "For Satan himself is transformed into an angel of light. Therefore it is no great thing if his ministers also be transformed as the ministers of righteousness." (II Cor.11:14,15) Matthew 13:24 and following tells us that the wheat and the tares will cohabitate the church until the end. Satan places false prophets, teachers, pastors, evangelists and apostles in the pulpits to declare a compromised, people-friendly, watered-down gospel. The people are left to live according to the Word as they see and understand it. Many churches have been so deceived by Satan that they don't even realize that the Spirit has long departed their churches and Ichabod (the Spirit has departed) has been written over them. Satan has all but conquered the church, at least in the United States. But--there is a holy remnant of God's people in many of our churches, and God is about to bring a revival to His church and an awakening to the United States resulting in a great harvest of souls. He will first judge His own house to purify it and then bring judgment to those who oppose him. The church will rise up from the ash heap of the judgments of God and be the glorious church.
When the plan of Satan to destroy the Saints by infiltrating the church fails he then will stir up hatred against the Saints. Persecution and tribulation will be launched against the Saints in another attempt to rid the world of godly influence. Yet, in the midst of all the persecution the Saints will be miraculously delivered and have every need supplied. Then Satan will launch an all-out war against the Jews and the Saints called the Great Tribulation. In the midst of this onslaught Jesus returns. Satan will then seize the opportunity to rally the nation's to attack Jesus in an attempt to destroy Him and His followers. Bad idea!! Satan will find himself bound and cast into a pit for nearly 1000 years. And yet with all the setbacks he will once again try to overthrow Jesus and His kingdom at the end of the thousand years only to be dealt his final defeat and cast once and for all into the lake of fire.
Satan believes that he will rule and reign for eternity on earth--BUT--"to this end was the son of God manifest that he might destroy the works of the devil." (I John 3:8)
"The Spirit would convict the world of judgment because the prince of this world has been judged." (John 16:11)
"Now is the judgment of this world: now shall the prince of this world be cast out." (John 12:31)
Until Satan is cast out of heaven in Revelation 12, he is still the accuser of the brethren.(Rev.12:10) Until his final defeat he will wage war in the heavenlies (the spirit realm) with the angels of God.
In verse 14 the Messenger makes it clear for Daniel as well as all who read this vision that it is the very last days of the history of mankind and all of creation. Being in the presence of Jesus was too much for Daniel. He lost all his strength, fell to the ground and was unable to even speak. Imagine how you would be affected if Jesus appeared to you.
Jesus concludes this portion of His encounter with Daniel by reassuring Daniel that he is greatly loved and then He strengthened him. He tells Daniel that He would return to His battle with the Prince of Persia and then the Prince of Grecia (the Grecian Empire, Alexander the Great) will rise up to afflict the people of God, but Michael, the guardian angel of the Jewish people, would join in the battles to accomplish the plan of God. Remember, God has a plan and He is working His plan.
Jesus here has come to explain "the Scripture of truth," (v.21), about the future of the nation of Israel and the Jewish people. The "Scripture of truth" is a book that has already been written, the history book of mankind. We will see this book again in Revelation chapter 5 and then again in Revelation chapter 10 when it is opened. Here in chapters 10, 11 and 12 Daniel was receiving the history of mankind from 536B.C.to the very end of time. He is seeing over 2,500 years into the future. The book has already been written. It contains the very plan of God to the end of the age.
As we read Daniel 10:5-6, we see the description of this Messenger. It sounds uncannily like the descriptions that John in Revelation chapter 1 and Saul of Tarsus gave in Acts chapter 9 and 26 as they beheld Jesus in his glory. Most scholars agree that this is Jesus appearing to Daniel. Daniel sees Jesus in his glory before He becomes incarnate. John and Saul see him in His glory after His ascension. Jesus is introducing to Daniel the events of the very last days of the history of mankind just as he did with John as he spoke the Revelation of end time events in the conclusion of God's plan for all creation. Who better to announce the signs of the end times than the one who knows the beginning to the end? (Isaiah 46:10) In fact this appearing is much like the experience of John and Saul. When John saw Jesus on the Isle of Patmos he was alone and fell as dead at the presence of Jesus. Saul fell to the ground also and those with him heard a voice but saw no man. Those with Daniel saw no vision but a "great quaking fell upon them." (v.7) Daniel had been morning and fasting for three weeks, he was ready to receive from God but not so the others. Yet, even he fell to the ground as dead in the presence of the glory of Jesus. Then he is lifted up and the Messenger begins his revelation to Daniel.
The messenger sets Daniel's mind to ease by telling him that his prayers were heard on the "first day" that he set himself to seek God. Yet, Daniel prays and fasts for 21 more days because the Messenger was detained by the "Prince of the kingdom of Persia." (v.13) Then another "prince," Michael, came to help the Messenger. Remember, this occurs before Jesus became incarnate, died, resurrected, ascended and received "all power and authority." (Matt.28:18) Just who was this "Prince of the kingdom of Persia?"
A prince is a ruler of a principality, and this one ruled over the kingdom of Persia which was the next kingdom after Nebuchadnezzar or, to say, the Babylonian Empire. This prince would have been a demonic entity. One sent to oppress the children of God, the nation of Israel. Remember, Satan is referred to as "the god of this world" (II Cor.4:4), as well as, "the prince of the power of the air." (Eph.2:2) Satan believes that the Earth and the fullness thereof belongs to him. After all, Adam was given power and dominion over all the earth and he surrendered it to Satan, thus Satan has a right to feel that he has the right to rule the Earth and to be worshipped by its inhabitants. All that man was given by God was relinquished in the garden. Eternal life--gone. All needs supplied--gone. Peace and joy--gone. At rest in Him--gone. Father/child relationship--gone. Dominion over all the earth--gone. Satan became "the god of this world," "the prince of the power of the air." Until!! J-E-S-U-S!!!
Jesus came and conquered sin, death and the grave! He descended into the depths of hell and took the keys of death and hell from the devil's domain! He alone, the second Adam, took back all authority and now bestows it on all those who call upon His name. He put Satan to open shame as he hung on the cross and now "we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us." (Rom.8:37)
Satan believes that the earth is his domain and neither God, Jesus, the Holy Spirit or the Saints belong here. This is why he gathers the nations in the last days to try to remove the Saints and the Jews from his domain, Earth. He has convinced himself that if all godly influences are removed that those who remain will be loyal to him and worship him as God, and he will rule the earth unopposed. How can he remove godly influences from the Earth? First, by infiltrating the family of God--the church. "For Satan himself is transformed into an angel of light. Therefore it is no great thing if his ministers also be transformed as the ministers of righteousness." (II Cor.11:14,15) Matthew 13:24 and following tells us that the wheat and the tares will cohabitate the church until the end. Satan places false prophets, teachers, pastors, evangelists and apostles in the pulpits to declare a compromised, people-friendly, watered-down gospel. The people are left to live according to the Word as they see and understand it. Many churches have been so deceived by Satan that they don't even realize that the Spirit has long departed their churches and Ichabod (the Spirit has departed) has been written over them. Satan has all but conquered the church, at least in the United States. But--there is a holy remnant of God's people in many of our churches, and God is about to bring a revival to His church and an awakening to the United States resulting in a great harvest of souls. He will first judge His own house to purify it and then bring judgment to those who oppose him. The church will rise up from the ash heap of the judgments of God and be the glorious church.
When the plan of Satan to destroy the Saints by infiltrating the church fails he then will stir up hatred against the Saints. Persecution and tribulation will be launched against the Saints in another attempt to rid the world of godly influence. Yet, in the midst of all the persecution the Saints will be miraculously delivered and have every need supplied. Then Satan will launch an all-out war against the Jews and the Saints called the Great Tribulation. In the midst of this onslaught Jesus returns. Satan will then seize the opportunity to rally the nation's to attack Jesus in an attempt to destroy Him and His followers. Bad idea!! Satan will find himself bound and cast into a pit for nearly 1000 years. And yet with all the setbacks he will once again try to overthrow Jesus and His kingdom at the end of the thousand years only to be dealt his final defeat and cast once and for all into the lake of fire.
Satan believes that he will rule and reign for eternity on earth--BUT--"to this end was the son of God manifest that he might destroy the works of the devil." (I John 3:8)
"The Spirit would convict the world of judgment because the prince of this world has been judged." (John 16:11)
"Now is the judgment of this world: now shall the prince of this world be cast out." (John 12:31)
Until Satan is cast out of heaven in Revelation 12, he is still the accuser of the brethren.(Rev.12:10) Until his final defeat he will wage war in the heavenlies (the spirit realm) with the angels of God.
In verse 14 the Messenger makes it clear for Daniel as well as all who read this vision that it is the very last days of the history of mankind and all of creation. Being in the presence of Jesus was too much for Daniel. He lost all his strength, fell to the ground and was unable to even speak. Imagine how you would be affected if Jesus appeared to you.
Jesus concludes this portion of His encounter with Daniel by reassuring Daniel that he is greatly loved and then He strengthened him. He tells Daniel that He would return to His battle with the Prince of Persia and then the Prince of Grecia (the Grecian Empire, Alexander the Great) will rise up to afflict the people of God, but Michael, the guardian angel of the Jewish people, would join in the battles to accomplish the plan of God. Remember, God has a plan and He is working His plan.
Jesus here has come to explain "the Scripture of truth," (v.21), about the future of the nation of Israel and the Jewish people. The "Scripture of truth" is a book that has already been written, the history book of mankind. We will see this book again in Revelation chapter 5 and then again in Revelation chapter 10 when it is opened. Here in chapters 10, 11 and 12 Daniel was receiving the history of mankind from 536B.C.to the very end of time. He is seeing over 2,500 years into the future. The book has already been written. It contains the very plan of God to the end of the age.
Monday, January 16, 2012
END TIME STUDY--Pt.20
In the next three verses Gabriel subdivides the 70 weeks into three distinct segments. He starts with a period of 7 weeks, then 62 weeks and then one final week, which equal 490 years. Why 490 years or to say 70 weeks? Second Chronicles 36:21 gives us the answer. "To fulfill the word of the Lord by the mouth of Jeremiah until the land had enjoyed her sabbaths as long as she lay desolate she kept sabbath, to fulfill threescore and 10 years." (70 years)
The Babylonian exile lasted for 70 years in order to atone for the 490 years during which Isreal lived in the Promised Land and failed to oberserve the sabbath year. God's law called for the land to have a rest every 7 years, a sabbath rest. Every 7 years the land was not to be plowed, no seed planted and no harvest taken; the land was to rest. One must ascertain from this commamd of God that He does care what mankind does to the earth. Maybe God's people should lead the way in caring for the environment.
God told His people in Leviticus 25:3-5, "Six years thou shall sow thy field, and six years thou shalt prune thy vineyard, and gather thy fruit thereof; but in the seventh year shall be a sabbath of rest unto the land, a sabbath to the Lord: thou shall neither sow thy field, nor prune thy vineyard. That which grows up on its own accord of thy harvest thou shalt not reap, neither gather the grapes on the vine undressed: for it is a rest unto the land."
The Jews did not honor the law of the Sabbath rest for the land. For 490 years they violated this command of God, as well as others, so God allowed them to be taken into captivity for 70 years that the land may enjoy its sabbath rests.
Daniel now receives a timetable for the coming of the Messiah. Verse 25 states, "Know therefore and understand, that from the going forth of the commandment to restore and to build Jerusalem unto the Messiah the Prince shall be seven weeks, and threescore and two weeks." Seven weeks plus 62 weeks (score equals 20, so threescore equals 60) times seven (sabbath years) equals 483 years from the time that the command to restore and rebuild Jerusalem is given.
Many confuse the timetable of cutting off the Messiah by inserting that Cyrus, king of Persia, in 558 BC gave the command to rebuild the Temple in Jerusalem (Ezra 1:1,2). If at his command the prophetic timeclock for the cutting off of the Messiah was to begin, then the Messiah would have been cut off in 75 BC, which we know did not happen. Jesus was cut off from among the living in 33AD. But we see here in verse 25 of Daniel nine that its not the command to rebuild the Temple that triggers this prophetic timeclock but the command to "restore and to build Jerusalem." This was done by Artaxerxes in 450 BC (see Ezra through Nehemiah). With this command given in 450 BC this would put the time of the cutting off of the Messiah in 33 AD. Daniel's prophecy was perfectly fulfilled.
We must remember that the figures given by Daniel are prophetic figures that are referencing the sabbath years rest. So here in verse 25 we read about the 70 weeks of sabbaths and threescore and two weeks which equals 483 years. These add up to 69 weeks which are sabbath weeks (seven years), so 69 weeks multiplied by seven equals 483 years. The 70 weeks here represent the time it took to finish rebuilding Jerusalem which was 49 years or to say one sabbath week (7x7). From that time there would be threescore and two weeks until the Messiah would be cut off (v. 26). And when the Messiah was cut off, or to say died, it wasn't done just for Himself but He died for all, "but not for himself" (v. 26).
Even here in the Old Testament book of Daniel we see the promise of a Messiah that would take away the sins of the world, His time of death precisely foretold and his death would not be the normal death of a man but that it would be to benefit all of mankind.
As most theologians will tell you, prophecy has a current message, a near future message and usually a distant, or end time message. So it is with Daniel's prophecy. Here in chapter 9 verses 25 and 26 he has spoken of the current captivity that would soon end with the rebuilding of Jerusalem. Then he goes to a near future event, the coming of the Messiah and his death. Then he speeks of another near future event the destruction of Jerusalem and the sanctuary which occurred in 70 A.D. at the hands of Titus the commander of the Roman army,"And the people of the prince that shall come shall destroy the city and the sanctuary." Finally, he addresses the distant future, or the end times. "And the end thereof shall be with a flood and unto the end of the war desolations are determined." Like an overflowing flood the anti-Christ shall come in power to sweep away all that is good and holy. He will do all he can to destroy God's people, Jew and Christian alike, like a mighty gushing flood. Then Daniel states that the carnage of the anti-Christ, including the desolation of the Temple and the war he wages against the saints, will come to an end with the desolations of God's wrath being poured out. This all taking place in the last week or to say seven years--the Tribulation Period (first 3 1/2 years) and the Great Tribulation Period (The last 3 1/2 years).
What we must ask ourselves is, "Are we entering the season of the last prophetic week of Daniel?" Personally, I believe so. I believe the anti-Christ is alive right now and will soon rise to international prominence. Keep your eyes on the Middle East for someone to rise up and for Islam to embrace him as the long-awaited Twelfth Imam, the Mahdi.
The lessons we can learn from this chapter are many but I believe the main theme here is that, like Daniel, we should have a sense of great sorrow over sin, especially our own and that of our nation. We are now in the gap between the 483 years and the 490 years--the time of the Gentiles (Luke 21:24; Romans 11). Is it time to write the final chapter in the history of Israel and mankind?
The Babylonian exile lasted for 70 years in order to atone for the 490 years during which Isreal lived in the Promised Land and failed to oberserve the sabbath year. God's law called for the land to have a rest every 7 years, a sabbath rest. Every 7 years the land was not to be plowed, no seed planted and no harvest taken; the land was to rest. One must ascertain from this commamd of God that He does care what mankind does to the earth. Maybe God's people should lead the way in caring for the environment.
God told His people in Leviticus 25:3-5, "Six years thou shall sow thy field, and six years thou shalt prune thy vineyard, and gather thy fruit thereof; but in the seventh year shall be a sabbath of rest unto the land, a sabbath to the Lord: thou shall neither sow thy field, nor prune thy vineyard. That which grows up on its own accord of thy harvest thou shalt not reap, neither gather the grapes on the vine undressed: for it is a rest unto the land."
The Jews did not honor the law of the Sabbath rest for the land. For 490 years they violated this command of God, as well as others, so God allowed them to be taken into captivity for 70 years that the land may enjoy its sabbath rests.
Daniel now receives a timetable for the coming of the Messiah. Verse 25 states, "Know therefore and understand, that from the going forth of the commandment to restore and to build Jerusalem unto the Messiah the Prince shall be seven weeks, and threescore and two weeks." Seven weeks plus 62 weeks (score equals 20, so threescore equals 60) times seven (sabbath years) equals 483 years from the time that the command to restore and rebuild Jerusalem is given.
Many confuse the timetable of cutting off the Messiah by inserting that Cyrus, king of Persia, in 558 BC gave the command to rebuild the Temple in Jerusalem (Ezra 1:1,2). If at his command the prophetic timeclock for the cutting off of the Messiah was to begin, then the Messiah would have been cut off in 75 BC, which we know did not happen. Jesus was cut off from among the living in 33AD. But we see here in verse 25 of Daniel nine that its not the command to rebuild the Temple that triggers this prophetic timeclock but the command to "restore and to build Jerusalem." This was done by Artaxerxes in 450 BC (see Ezra through Nehemiah). With this command given in 450 BC this would put the time of the cutting off of the Messiah in 33 AD. Daniel's prophecy was perfectly fulfilled.
We must remember that the figures given by Daniel are prophetic figures that are referencing the sabbath years rest. So here in verse 25 we read about the 70 weeks of sabbaths and threescore and two weeks which equals 483 years. These add up to 69 weeks which are sabbath weeks (seven years), so 69 weeks multiplied by seven equals 483 years. The 70 weeks here represent the time it took to finish rebuilding Jerusalem which was 49 years or to say one sabbath week (7x7). From that time there would be threescore and two weeks until the Messiah would be cut off (v. 26). And when the Messiah was cut off, or to say died, it wasn't done just for Himself but He died for all, "but not for himself" (v. 26).
Even here in the Old Testament book of Daniel we see the promise of a Messiah that would take away the sins of the world, His time of death precisely foretold and his death would not be the normal death of a man but that it would be to benefit all of mankind.
As most theologians will tell you, prophecy has a current message, a near future message and usually a distant, or end time message. So it is with Daniel's prophecy. Here in chapter 9 verses 25 and 26 he has spoken of the current captivity that would soon end with the rebuilding of Jerusalem. Then he goes to a near future event, the coming of the Messiah and his death. Then he speeks of another near future event the destruction of Jerusalem and the sanctuary which occurred in 70 A.D. at the hands of Titus the commander of the Roman army,"And the people of the prince that shall come shall destroy the city and the sanctuary." Finally, he addresses the distant future, or the end times. "And the end thereof shall be with a flood and unto the end of the war desolations are determined." Like an overflowing flood the anti-Christ shall come in power to sweep away all that is good and holy. He will do all he can to destroy God's people, Jew and Christian alike, like a mighty gushing flood. Then Daniel states that the carnage of the anti-Christ, including the desolation of the Temple and the war he wages against the saints, will come to an end with the desolations of God's wrath being poured out. This all taking place in the last week or to say seven years--the Tribulation Period (first 3 1/2 years) and the Great Tribulation Period (The last 3 1/2 years).
What we must ask ourselves is, "Are we entering the season of the last prophetic week of Daniel?" Personally, I believe so. I believe the anti-Christ is alive right now and will soon rise to international prominence. Keep your eyes on the Middle East for someone to rise up and for Islam to embrace him as the long-awaited Twelfth Imam, the Mahdi.
The lessons we can learn from this chapter are many but I believe the main theme here is that, like Daniel, we should have a sense of great sorrow over sin, especially our own and that of our nation. We are now in the gap between the 483 years and the 490 years--the time of the Gentiles (Luke 21:24; Romans 11). Is it time to write the final chapter in the history of Israel and mankind?
Tuesday, July 26, 2011
END TIME STUDY--Pt.19
Let us continue looking at chapter nine of the book of Daniel. Gabriel was sent by God to Daniel to bring clarity to the prayer that he was offering unto the Lord. Daniel had seen in visions the end of time and he realized the importance for mankind, especially God's chosen people Israel, to be in a right relationship with God when that time comes.
Verse 24 contains enough information to deserve its own chapter in this study. Gabriel states, "70 weeks are determined." Daniel had been praying about the 70 years of captivity that Israel found itself captured in. When Gabriel says 70 weeks he means that there are 7x70 years yet to be fulfilled. Daniel was praying for Jerusalem, the Temple and his people. Gabriel is giving him the assurance that these would be restored due to the fact that all of the end-time events that Daniel had seen were to take place in Jerusalem.
70 weeks does not mean 70 weeks consisting of seven days per week. The Hebrew word for seven is "shabua" which means a "unit of measure" much like the word "dozen" means 12 items of one unit of measure. As Daniel was focusing on the 70 years of captivity that Jeremiah had prophesied and written letters about, Gabriel uses this opportunity to explain the time "measured out" for the history of mankind to be complete.
One may ask the question, how do we come up with 70 years from the stated 70 weeks and according to biblical scholars this then equals 490 years? We must understand the Jewish tradition of measuring units of time. Traditionally, the Jews observed sabbatic years by which their years were divided into weeks of years with each week containing seven years. Leviticus 25:8, which is where we see this measure of time instituted states, "And thou shalt number seven sabbaths of years unto thee, 7x7 years and the space of the seven sabbaths of years shall be unto thee 40 and nine years." The Sabbath was the seventh day of the week thus when using the sabbatic system of measure a day equaled a week. The 70 weeks of verse 24 would then be multiplied by seven years (Lev.25:8) which would equal 490 years. Are you confused yet? Space does not permit me to give a detailed explanation of the sabbatic years of measure. May I suggest that you research this for yourselves if it is confusing to you.
During this "70 weeks," or 490 years, six things are listed here in verse 24 that shall take place. The first of these is, "to finish the transgression." Meaning to put an end to sin, or to finish offerings for sin. Daniel had been praying over the sins of Israel and Gabriel is saying here that in time One was coming Who, when He comes, will be the final offering for sin and will thus put an end to sin's dominion. As we will see in the next verse the 70 weeks is a timetable of future events which includes the coming of Jesus Christ, the Messiah.
Another interpretation of "to finish the transgression" is to restrain transgression. This applies to the end of the age when the anti-Christ rises to power. We see this meaning "to restrain transgression" in II Thes.2:1-8, in particular, verse seven. "For the mystery of lawlessness is already at work; only "he" who now "restrains" it will do so until "he" is out of the way." (RVS, emphasis added) who is this "he" who "restrains transgression," the one who is restraining the rise of the lawless one, the anti-Christ, from coming to power until it is time for it to happen according to God's timetable? Pre-tribulationists say that it is the church and the Holy Spirit that restrains. They hold that once the church is raptured, taking with it the presence of the Holy Spirit, then the anti-Christ will be free to have his reign of terror. But this begs the question, where is this found in Scripture? Though this is a traditional view held by many in the church, it cannot be substantiated by Scripture. Note that the thing that restrains is referred to as "he" in II Thes.2:7. The church is generally referred to as "she," the bride. Although this "he" who restrains isn't identified anywhere in Scripture. There is only one place in Scripture that shows Satan being restrained and who does it. Since the anti-Christ is the personification of Satan, then "he" who is restraining him is the one with the power to do so. The Scripture is Rev.20:1-3 and it is here that we find that it is an angel that has the power to restrain Satan. Satan, through the anti-Christ, cannot rise to power until the angel given power to "restrain" is told to get out of the way, at the midway point of the tribulation period.
Summed up in this statement, "to finish the transgression," is the prophesied events of the end time. The 70 weeks (7x70 years=490 years) will be fulfilled at which time sin offerings will all cease, the anti-Christ will be free to reign, Jesus will return followed by the wrath of God being poured out to put a "finish," or to say an end, to sin and all unrighteousness.
The next thing to take place during this 70 weeks found in verse 24 is, "To make an end of all sin." All sin will be judged and sin's work will be finished. No more evil, unrighteousness, wickedness, no more satanic influence.
The next thing to occur after the fulfillment of the 70 weeks is, "To make reconciliation for iniquity." During the 70 weeks God will provide reconciliation to all of humanity through Jesus Christ. By the sacrifice of Jesus mankind can be reconciled, bought back, into a father/child relationship with Jehovah.
Then we see at the fulfillment of the 70 weeks there will be, "Everlasting righteousness." The sacrifice of animals under the Old Testament law only brought a temporary righteousness. But through the final sacrifice of sin, Jesus, we have an everlasting righteousness, that is, we are right before God.
Next we read that the 70 weeks places a seal up on "The vision and prophecy." All visions and prophecies will be "sealed," or to say, concluded, fulfilled. There is nothing left to be done that was purposed by God for his creation and prophesied or seen in visions by man to be fulfilled.
And finally, after the 70 weeks, there will be the anointing of "The most Holy." Jesus anointed King of Kings, Lord of Lords, High Priest, etc., for all eternity.
There have been volumes written pertaining to this one verse about the 70 weeks. There is so much information contained in verse 24 alone that we could spend weeks discussing it. But for the subject matter of this study we will let this brief look at verse 24 suffice.
Verse 24 contains enough information to deserve its own chapter in this study. Gabriel states, "70 weeks are determined." Daniel had been praying about the 70 years of captivity that Israel found itself captured in. When Gabriel says 70 weeks he means that there are 7x70 years yet to be fulfilled. Daniel was praying for Jerusalem, the Temple and his people. Gabriel is giving him the assurance that these would be restored due to the fact that all of the end-time events that Daniel had seen were to take place in Jerusalem.
70 weeks does not mean 70 weeks consisting of seven days per week. The Hebrew word for seven is "shabua" which means a "unit of measure" much like the word "dozen" means 12 items of one unit of measure. As Daniel was focusing on the 70 years of captivity that Jeremiah had prophesied and written letters about, Gabriel uses this opportunity to explain the time "measured out" for the history of mankind to be complete.
One may ask the question, how do we come up with 70 years from the stated 70 weeks and according to biblical scholars this then equals 490 years? We must understand the Jewish tradition of measuring units of time. Traditionally, the Jews observed sabbatic years by which their years were divided into weeks of years with each week containing seven years. Leviticus 25:8, which is where we see this measure of time instituted states, "And thou shalt number seven sabbaths of years unto thee, 7x7 years and the space of the seven sabbaths of years shall be unto thee 40 and nine years." The Sabbath was the seventh day of the week thus when using the sabbatic system of measure a day equaled a week. The 70 weeks of verse 24 would then be multiplied by seven years (Lev.25:8) which would equal 490 years. Are you confused yet? Space does not permit me to give a detailed explanation of the sabbatic years of measure. May I suggest that you research this for yourselves if it is confusing to you.
During this "70 weeks," or 490 years, six things are listed here in verse 24 that shall take place. The first of these is, "to finish the transgression." Meaning to put an end to sin, or to finish offerings for sin. Daniel had been praying over the sins of Israel and Gabriel is saying here that in time One was coming Who, when He comes, will be the final offering for sin and will thus put an end to sin's dominion. As we will see in the next verse the 70 weeks is a timetable of future events which includes the coming of Jesus Christ, the Messiah.
Another interpretation of "to finish the transgression" is to restrain transgression. This applies to the end of the age when the anti-Christ rises to power. We see this meaning "to restrain transgression" in II Thes.2:1-8, in particular, verse seven. "For the mystery of lawlessness is already at work; only "he" who now "restrains" it will do so until "he" is out of the way." (RVS, emphasis added) who is this "he" who "restrains transgression," the one who is restraining the rise of the lawless one, the anti-Christ, from coming to power until it is time for it to happen according to God's timetable? Pre-tribulationists say that it is the church and the Holy Spirit that restrains. They hold that once the church is raptured, taking with it the presence of the Holy Spirit, then the anti-Christ will be free to have his reign of terror. But this begs the question, where is this found in Scripture? Though this is a traditional view held by many in the church, it cannot be substantiated by Scripture. Note that the thing that restrains is referred to as "he" in II Thes.2:7. The church is generally referred to as "she," the bride. Although this "he" who restrains isn't identified anywhere in Scripture. There is only one place in Scripture that shows Satan being restrained and who does it. Since the anti-Christ is the personification of Satan, then "he" who is restraining him is the one with the power to do so. The Scripture is Rev.20:1-3 and it is here that we find that it is an angel that has the power to restrain Satan. Satan, through the anti-Christ, cannot rise to power until the angel given power to "restrain" is told to get out of the way, at the midway point of the tribulation period.
Summed up in this statement, "to finish the transgression," is the prophesied events of the end time. The 70 weeks (7x70 years=490 years) will be fulfilled at which time sin offerings will all cease, the anti-Christ will be free to reign, Jesus will return followed by the wrath of God being poured out to put a "finish," or to say an end, to sin and all unrighteousness.
The next thing to take place during this 70 weeks found in verse 24 is, "To make an end of all sin." All sin will be judged and sin's work will be finished. No more evil, unrighteousness, wickedness, no more satanic influence.
The next thing to occur after the fulfillment of the 70 weeks is, "To make reconciliation for iniquity." During the 70 weeks God will provide reconciliation to all of humanity through Jesus Christ. By the sacrifice of Jesus mankind can be reconciled, bought back, into a father/child relationship with Jehovah.
Then we see at the fulfillment of the 70 weeks there will be, "Everlasting righteousness." The sacrifice of animals under the Old Testament law only brought a temporary righteousness. But through the final sacrifice of sin, Jesus, we have an everlasting righteousness, that is, we are right before God.
Next we read that the 70 weeks places a seal up on "The vision and prophecy." All visions and prophecies will be "sealed," or to say, concluded, fulfilled. There is nothing left to be done that was purposed by God for his creation and prophesied or seen in visions by man to be fulfilled.
And finally, after the 70 weeks, there will be the anointing of "The most Holy." Jesus anointed King of Kings, Lord of Lords, High Priest, etc., for all eternity.
There have been volumes written pertaining to this one verse about the 70 weeks. There is so much information contained in verse 24 alone that we could spend weeks discussing it. But for the subject matter of this study we will let this brief look at verse 24 suffice.
Tuesday, July 5, 2011
END-TIME STUDY--Pt.18
The next portion of Scripture that we will be looking at is chapter nine of the book of Daniel. It is in this chapter that we are introduced to one of the most discussed prophecies of Daniel's book, that being, the 70 weeks of Daniel. The chapter begins with Daniel interceding for the Jewish people. He sets the stage for this dialogue by giving us the time in which he was living when he received the vision of the 70 weeks. The Babylonians had taken the first captives from Jerusalem in 605 B.C. when Daniel was but a young teenager. He is now over 80 years of age and he realizes that he will never leave captivity. The Babylonian empire had fallen to the Medes and Persians in 539 and 538 B.C. Darius was then made king over the Chaldeans (Babylonians). It was in 535 B.C. that some of the Jews would begin their journey back to their homeland.
In verse two Daniel acknowledges that he was aware that when he was taken captive, along with his fellow countrymen, that the duration of that captivity would be 70 years. He would have been aware of the words of Jeremiah who had prophesied not only that captivity but also its duration of 70 years. Although Jeremiah was not taken to Babylon, he sent letters to the captives. It was from these letters that Daniel began to fully understand the 70 years of captivity. As he pondered in his heart the destruction of Jerusalem and the captivity of his people he begins to pray.
Verse three tells us that Daniel assumed the position of humility and sorrow as he sought the Lord. He fasted. He place sackcloth (a burlap type cloth) upon his body; he also placed ashes on his head, both of which were signs of great sorrow and grief.
If only time and space would permit we could expound upon Daniel's prayer for within it lies a pattern for prayer. But I will only lift out those words pertinent to our subject matter. He starts with his own confession of sin then acknowledges the attributes of God. Since he will be pursuing the mercy of God for his people in captivity, he alludes to the fact that God's mercy is extended to those who "love Him" and "keep His commandments" (a lesson we should all learn). Then in verse five he confesses that the people of Israel were undeserving of His mercy because they had failed to keep His precepts and that they had sinned against Him by their rebellion against His word. They had even gone so far as to reject His prophets as they tried to warn the people. Are we not guilty of the same things as professing Christians today? We want only those prophets, preachers, who tell us what we want to hear not what we need to hear. Rest assured that God is raising up preachers after His own heart who will be declaring, "thus saith the Lord," in these the last days and the vast majority of "professing Christians" will not hearken to their words because they may be harsh, uncomfortable or calling us out of sin. As we reject these words of God, He will be given no other choice but to send judgment upon His church.
Some "professing Christians" will be taken into captivity. Captivity to porn, lust, drugs, alcohol, poverty, etc. Some will watch their children be taken into the captivity of darkness and sin. Until we, like Daniel, come to God in brokenness and humility and confess our sins and rebellion, we too shall remain in captivity until the day of his appearing at which time we then will transfer from our earthly captivity to our eternal captivity.
Daniel states that the Jewish people have "confusion of faces" (v. 7). This means that they were shamefaced, embarrassed by their current existence of captivity and their rebellion to God's word that placed them there. Their homeland lay in ruin. They were captives in a distant land. All they had taken pride in was gone. Daniel not only acknowledges the embarrassment (shamefaced), but also the fact that they deserved it because of their sin (v.8-10).
Verse eleven deserves our attention for in it lies a principle of God's word that is often overlooked or just plain rejected, yet it has a profound effect on the lives of Christians and their families today and for ever. Daniel states, "all Israel have transgressed Your law, even by departing, that they might not obey Your voice; therefore the curse is poured upon us." He is referring to the law of Moses which addresses those who enter into a covenant with God. There are blessings for keeping the covenant and curses for not keeping it. Please take the time to read Deuteronomy chapter 28, especially versus 1-2, 15-26, 32, 36, 41, 45-52. When we accept Jesus as our Savior we enter into a covenant with God. God offers us His eternal benefits and we offer Him our lives and our obedience to His will. When we enter into a covenant with God we are committing ourselves to obey His word. To obey brings blessings. To disobey brings curses.
For this reason many Christians today struggle with understanding why it seems they can never receive God's blessings and favor. It may well be that they have broken their covenant with God by their disobedience to a known law of God or their rejection of His words declared. Many feel that as long as they feel goosebumps occasionally or are still praying in tongues that all is well between them and God, yet they can't seem to receive the much sought after blessings of God. Maybe we need to seek God's face and allow Him to reveal our sins that we, like Daniel, may repent, thus qualifying us for the blessings of God that accompany the keeping of covenant with God.
Beginning with verse twelve Daniel declares the justice of God's judgments upon the people of Israel. He concludes his prayer with a plea for mercy that once again God would cause his face to shine upon his sanctuary.
It's in this setting of prayer that God reveals to Daniel His timetable for the arrival of His Messiah. The One who would take away all sin. Daniel shows us our need for repentance and forgiveness and then he shows us the coming of the One who would forgive us our sins and take away the curse of sin--the Messiah!
In verse two Daniel acknowledges that he was aware that when he was taken captive, along with his fellow countrymen, that the duration of that captivity would be 70 years. He would have been aware of the words of Jeremiah who had prophesied not only that captivity but also its duration of 70 years. Although Jeremiah was not taken to Babylon, he sent letters to the captives. It was from these letters that Daniel began to fully understand the 70 years of captivity. As he pondered in his heart the destruction of Jerusalem and the captivity of his people he begins to pray.
Verse three tells us that Daniel assumed the position of humility and sorrow as he sought the Lord. He fasted. He place sackcloth (a burlap type cloth) upon his body; he also placed ashes on his head, both of which were signs of great sorrow and grief.
If only time and space would permit we could expound upon Daniel's prayer for within it lies a pattern for prayer. But I will only lift out those words pertinent to our subject matter. He starts with his own confession of sin then acknowledges the attributes of God. Since he will be pursuing the mercy of God for his people in captivity, he alludes to the fact that God's mercy is extended to those who "love Him" and "keep His commandments" (a lesson we should all learn). Then in verse five he confesses that the people of Israel were undeserving of His mercy because they had failed to keep His precepts and that they had sinned against Him by their rebellion against His word. They had even gone so far as to reject His prophets as they tried to warn the people. Are we not guilty of the same things as professing Christians today? We want only those prophets, preachers, who tell us what we want to hear not what we need to hear. Rest assured that God is raising up preachers after His own heart who will be declaring, "thus saith the Lord," in these the last days and the vast majority of "professing Christians" will not hearken to their words because they may be harsh, uncomfortable or calling us out of sin. As we reject these words of God, He will be given no other choice but to send judgment upon His church.
Some "professing Christians" will be taken into captivity. Captivity to porn, lust, drugs, alcohol, poverty, etc. Some will watch their children be taken into the captivity of darkness and sin. Until we, like Daniel, come to God in brokenness and humility and confess our sins and rebellion, we too shall remain in captivity until the day of his appearing at which time we then will transfer from our earthly captivity to our eternal captivity.
Daniel states that the Jewish people have "confusion of faces" (v. 7). This means that they were shamefaced, embarrassed by their current existence of captivity and their rebellion to God's word that placed them there. Their homeland lay in ruin. They were captives in a distant land. All they had taken pride in was gone. Daniel not only acknowledges the embarrassment (shamefaced), but also the fact that they deserved it because of their sin (v.8-10).
Verse eleven deserves our attention for in it lies a principle of God's word that is often overlooked or just plain rejected, yet it has a profound effect on the lives of Christians and their families today and for ever. Daniel states, "all Israel have transgressed Your law, even by departing, that they might not obey Your voice; therefore the curse is poured upon us." He is referring to the law of Moses which addresses those who enter into a covenant with God. There are blessings for keeping the covenant and curses for not keeping it. Please take the time to read Deuteronomy chapter 28, especially versus 1-2, 15-26, 32, 36, 41, 45-52. When we accept Jesus as our Savior we enter into a covenant with God. God offers us His eternal benefits and we offer Him our lives and our obedience to His will. When we enter into a covenant with God we are committing ourselves to obey His word. To obey brings blessings. To disobey brings curses.
For this reason many Christians today struggle with understanding why it seems they can never receive God's blessings and favor. It may well be that they have broken their covenant with God by their disobedience to a known law of God or their rejection of His words declared. Many feel that as long as they feel goosebumps occasionally or are still praying in tongues that all is well between them and God, yet they can't seem to receive the much sought after blessings of God. Maybe we need to seek God's face and allow Him to reveal our sins that we, like Daniel, may repent, thus qualifying us for the blessings of God that accompany the keeping of covenant with God.
Beginning with verse twelve Daniel declares the justice of God's judgments upon the people of Israel. He concludes his prayer with a plea for mercy that once again God would cause his face to shine upon his sanctuary.
It's in this setting of prayer that God reveals to Daniel His timetable for the arrival of His Messiah. The One who would take away all sin. Daniel shows us our need for repentance and forgiveness and then he shows us the coming of the One who would forgive us our sins and take away the curse of sin--the Messiah!
Thursday, June 30, 2011
END-TIME STUDY--Pt.17
Now we come to the most exciting part of Daniel chapter eight. It is now that Gabriel makes it very clear to Daniel that what he has seen is the end of the history of mankind and of all time. He states in verse 19, "I will make you know what shall be in the last end of the indignation: for at the time appointed the end shall be." He is saying here that he had just revealed to Daniel when the Anti-Christ's indignation and defilement will end which will be at the end of the church age when all the saints shall be gathered from the Earth--2300 days from the rise of the Anti-Christ.
Daniel has now seen the head of gold (Babylonian Empire) come and go. He has seen the chest and arms of silver (Medo-Persian Empire) come and go. He has seen the belly and thighs of bronze (Macedonian-Grecian Empire) come and go. He has seen the legs of iron (Roman Empire) come and go. Finally, he sees the future when the feet of iron and clay will rise up as an Empire made up of the old Roman Empire along with the middle eastern countries.
Gabriel sums up the vision of Daniel by stating, "And in the latter times of their kingdom (the time of the Gentiles is over and the time of the wicked has run out), when the transgressors are come to full, a king of fierce countenance, (vehemently harsh, fierceness with greed) and understanding dark sentences, (literally, a puzzle or trick. He will work his ways to power by his strong looks and smooth speech) shall stand up." (v.23) I believe today's politicians are preparing us to receive the Anti-Christ. They use a strong appearance when speaking of crime, injustice or other current events. They use skilled words of persuasion to get our votes and support. Yet, very few are truthful. They are only serving their own agendas and political futures.
Gabriel states that the power of the Anti-Christ shall be mighty but the power that he possesses will not be his own. Of course we know that his power shall come from none other than Satan. Gabriel says that the Anti-Christ shall destroy wonderfully, he will try to destroy all that is good and godly. He will prosper greatly as he comes to power. He will destroy mighty armies and great leaders as well as some of God's holy people, the Saints. He will use talk of peace to gain control of nations. He will become so full of himself that he will make the biggest mistake of his life, he will stand against Jesus Christ Himself. He will be so arrogant that he will believe that he can overthrow the government of God and heaven itself. "But he shall be broken without hand." (v.25) John saw the fulfillment of this and recorded it in Revelation 19:15 which reads, "And out of His mouth goes a sharp sword, with it He should smite the nations." And then in verse 21, "And the remnant were slain with the sword of Him that set upon the horse, which sword proceeded out of His mouth." The very words of Jesus will be "sharper than any two edged sword" (Heb.4:12). There will be no armies, no weapons of modern warfare, no human involvement, no physical strength exerted, only a word from Jesus's mouth and all His enemies are defeated! Remember, His words are what created the universe. If Jesus says it--it's done!
We then see Daniel instructed to shut up the vision for it was not for his generation but for a future generation. In fact, it appears that he attempted to tell others this vision but "none understood it." (V.7) It has only been in the last few years that God has made known the mysteries of Daniel's vision. I believe it is because we are the generation that shall see all these things come to pass. (Matt.4:34)
We don't need the Book of Revelation to know the end. In the book of Daniel we have been given the calendar of end time events, we have been given signs and descriptions of the Anti-Christ, as well is where he will rise to power. If one knows and understands the book of Daniel he will have no problem identifying the Anti-Christ as well as the signs of the times of the end.
The Middle East is where it's all at. All one has to do is look at all of the unrest in the nations surrounding Israel and you must come to the conclusion that we are witnessing the fulfillment of end time prophecies. The descendents of Ishmael are rising up to claim what they believe is rightfully theirs--all the land promised to their father, Abraham. Ishmael was the firstborn son of Abraham, thus the one to receive the inheritance of his father, Abraham, as his firstborn birthright. His twelve sons are viewed as the twelve tribes of promise. It was from their bloodline that Mohammed was born, thus the Muslims believe that they are the children of promise and, like Joshua, it's time to take the promised land. Joshua was to kill all the illegitimate inhabitants of the promised land and now the descendents of Ishmael feel compelled by their sacred writings to do the same, kill the illegitimate inhabitants of their "promised land" (the Jews and those who support them) the Christians.
The Middle East is where all the action is to take place. Stay informed about the events taking place in the Middle East. Read Daniel over and over again until you can evaluate the current events in the news about what's happening in the Middle East with the prophecies of Daniel. This way you will not be taken by surprise when the Anti-Christ rises to power and the end time events unfold before your very eyes (I Thes.5:4).
Daniel has now seen the head of gold (Babylonian Empire) come and go. He has seen the chest and arms of silver (Medo-Persian Empire) come and go. He has seen the belly and thighs of bronze (Macedonian-Grecian Empire) come and go. He has seen the legs of iron (Roman Empire) come and go. Finally, he sees the future when the feet of iron and clay will rise up as an Empire made up of the old Roman Empire along with the middle eastern countries.
Gabriel sums up the vision of Daniel by stating, "And in the latter times of their kingdom (the time of the Gentiles is over and the time of the wicked has run out), when the transgressors are come to full, a king of fierce countenance, (vehemently harsh, fierceness with greed) and understanding dark sentences, (literally, a puzzle or trick. He will work his ways to power by his strong looks and smooth speech) shall stand up." (v.23) I believe today's politicians are preparing us to receive the Anti-Christ. They use a strong appearance when speaking of crime, injustice or other current events. They use skilled words of persuasion to get our votes and support. Yet, very few are truthful. They are only serving their own agendas and political futures.
Gabriel states that the power of the Anti-Christ shall be mighty but the power that he possesses will not be his own. Of course we know that his power shall come from none other than Satan. Gabriel says that the Anti-Christ shall destroy wonderfully, he will try to destroy all that is good and godly. He will prosper greatly as he comes to power. He will destroy mighty armies and great leaders as well as some of God's holy people, the Saints. He will use talk of peace to gain control of nations. He will become so full of himself that he will make the biggest mistake of his life, he will stand against Jesus Christ Himself. He will be so arrogant that he will believe that he can overthrow the government of God and heaven itself. "But he shall be broken without hand." (v.25) John saw the fulfillment of this and recorded it in Revelation 19:15 which reads, "And out of His mouth goes a sharp sword, with it He should smite the nations." And then in verse 21, "And the remnant were slain with the sword of Him that set upon the horse, which sword proceeded out of His mouth." The very words of Jesus will be "sharper than any two edged sword" (Heb.4:12). There will be no armies, no weapons of modern warfare, no human involvement, no physical strength exerted, only a word from Jesus's mouth and all His enemies are defeated! Remember, His words are what created the universe. If Jesus says it--it's done!
We then see Daniel instructed to shut up the vision for it was not for his generation but for a future generation. In fact, it appears that he attempted to tell others this vision but "none understood it." (V.7) It has only been in the last few years that God has made known the mysteries of Daniel's vision. I believe it is because we are the generation that shall see all these things come to pass. (Matt.4:34)
We don't need the Book of Revelation to know the end. In the book of Daniel we have been given the calendar of end time events, we have been given signs and descriptions of the Anti-Christ, as well is where he will rise to power. If one knows and understands the book of Daniel he will have no problem identifying the Anti-Christ as well as the signs of the times of the end.
The Middle East is where it's all at. All one has to do is look at all of the unrest in the nations surrounding Israel and you must come to the conclusion that we are witnessing the fulfillment of end time prophecies. The descendents of Ishmael are rising up to claim what they believe is rightfully theirs--all the land promised to their father, Abraham. Ishmael was the firstborn son of Abraham, thus the one to receive the inheritance of his father, Abraham, as his firstborn birthright. His twelve sons are viewed as the twelve tribes of promise. It was from their bloodline that Mohammed was born, thus the Muslims believe that they are the children of promise and, like Joshua, it's time to take the promised land. Joshua was to kill all the illegitimate inhabitants of the promised land and now the descendents of Ishmael feel compelled by their sacred writings to do the same, kill the illegitimate inhabitants of their "promised land" (the Jews and those who support them) the Christians.
The Middle East is where all the action is to take place. Stay informed about the events taking place in the Middle East. Read Daniel over and over again until you can evaluate the current events in the news about what's happening in the Middle East with the prophecies of Daniel. This way you will not be taken by surprise when the Anti-Christ rises to power and the end time events unfold before your very eyes (I Thes.5:4).
Wednesday, June 15, 2011
END-TIME STUDY--Pt.16
I want us now to return to our end-time Bible study. I want to continue our look at the book of Daniel. In our last study we were looking at chapter 8 of the book of Daniel. Here we see the vision of Daniel in verses one through ten and then beginning with verse 15 we see the interpretation of this vision. We now will pick up our study in verse nine.
The statements about the Antichrist found in verse nine are speaking of him going forth to conquer. It is at this time that verse eight of Chapter 7 is fulfilled. "I was considering the horns, and there was another horn, a little one, coming up among them, before whom three of the first horns were plucked out by the roots." (Daniel 7:8) The Antichrist will rise up from among the four kingdoms and he will destroy or conquer the other three, the one to the south, the one to the east and the one known as the Glorious or Beautiful Land, Israel. He will conquer these through peace treaties and diplomacy ("a mouth speaking pompous words." Daniel 7:8). This will help the believers to identify the Antichrist. He will seem insignificant and then suddenly he will subdue three kingdoms or rulers by diplomacy and tactfulness which will give him great bargaining power.
Let me pause here long enough to reveal what I believe to be the place that the Antichrist will either be born in or will come to power in. At the beginning of this vision we see that Daniel finds himself in Shushan, in a palace (v.2). We must understand that Daniel was in captivity in Babylon. He was brought there from Jerusalem when he was between the ages of 12 and 16. He most likely had never been to Shushan, yet he finds himself there in this vision. Not only is he in Shushan, but he is in a palace that wasn't even built yet. This palace would be built by Darius the Mede some 15 to 20 years later. It would cover some 123 acres. Shushan historically is known as Susa. It's modern-day name is Shushtar. The Ulai River is now called the Karun River.
Why is this important? Because there is no logical reason for this yet to be built palace to be mentioned here unless it is one of those hidden mysteries of scripture that only the Spirit can reveal its meaning (I Corinthians 2:10-14).
Shushan (Susa, Shushtar), the city of the Persian Empire, is none other than our modern-day Iran. Iran was known as Persia until 1935 when it underwent the name change. In medieval times Iran became one of the chief centers of Islamic civilation and extended its cultural influence into India (Daniel 8:9 "toward the East"). The Iranian people have inhabited the area since the early first millennium B. C. Iranians are believed to be direct descendents of Ishmael. The land of Ur where Abraham came from was in Elam (Iran). This was also the home of Ahasuerus and Queen Esther. Iran was part of the Roman empire from the time of the rule of Pompey. The kings of Iran called themselves "king of kings".
Could the hidden mystery here be that God was revealing the place of either the birth of the Antichrist or the place from which he would rise to power? After all it is a palace, home of a leader, that Daniel finds himself. It is also in a land ruled by Islamic radicals who follow the teachings of Mohammed and believe that as direct descendents of Ishmael, the firstborn of Abraham, they are the rightful heirs of the Promised Land.I believe that this may very well be the reason that Daniel's vision of the rise of the Antichrist begins with a location that is yet to be.
In verse 10 chapter 8 we find ourselves at the midway point of the seven-year tribulation period, now begins the Great Tribulation. Up to this point the world will have been experiencing a reasonable measure of peace brought about by the treaties brokered by the Antichrist. The Orthodox Jew, to a degree, has accepted the Antichrist as the long-awaited anointed Messiah or at best a great prophet from God. The Muslims will have accepted the Antichrist as the mahdi, the reappearing of the twelveth Inman. The professing Christian (not those in relationship with the Father), will see the Antichrist as a great prophet sent by God to bring world peace to prepare the way for the return of Jesus. The world will see the Antichrist as a great world leader with all the solutions to the world's problems. The true believer will see the Antichrist for who he really is, an agent of Satan. This mindset will cause the world to view the Christians as narrow-minded and hatemongers. I know, this is already happening but not to the degree that will take place in the tribulation. The true believers will be viewed as standing in the way of world peace and economic stability. To assault a Christian will make you a hero with little or no repercussions. It is in the midst of all of this false utopia that the Antichrist will play out his hand. He will enter the Temple and defile it showing himself to be as God.
Verse 10 chapter 8 takes place midway through the 70th week of Daniel. The first 3 1/2 years are a time of reasonable peace, especially in the Middle East. But at the midway point of the tribulation, the Antichrist reveals his true character, defiles the Temple and proclaims himself to be God. "And it was waxed great, even to the host of heaven." Isaiah had this to say about this event in Chapter 14 verse 13 of his book, "For thou hast said in thine heart, I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God." We know that from studying the first three chapters of the book of Revelation that the "stars" spoken of here ("It cast down some of the host and of the 'stars' to the ground, and stamped upon them,") are God's ministers to his church. The Antichrist will exalt himself above God (the host of heaven) and exercise great power over his host--the Saints.
Verse 11 tells us that the Antichrist will take away the daily sacrifices that are being offered up in the Temple. The only way this can happen is for there to be a new Temple built in Jerusalem. I believe the Antichrist will build this temple as part of his seven year peace treaty that he will broker with Israel. There has to be a Jewish Temple in order for it to be a place of daily sacrifices and to be defiled by the Antichrist triggering the Great Tribulation, the last 3 1/2 years of Daniel's 70th week. When you see the Temple being rebuilt, GET READY, we are closing in on the end of the history of mankind and the return of Jesus Christ.
Even with all the scriptural evidence identifying the Antichrist, many will still be drawn to him. When he defiles the Temple and tramples the truth (Judeo-Christian beliefs) under his feet, many will view this as a time of liberation from the dogmatic views of the Christian and Jewish faiths. With the Christian's scriptures and claims of the identity of the Antichrist seemingly destroyed, the people of the world will see him as a great world leader and a new improved religious figure who has come to destroy the "false" religions such as Christianity that are the stumbling blocks to world peace and harmony. The unsaved will pledge their support for the Antichrist and he will prosper in power and in wealth.
Then in verse 13 Daniel hears two saints conversing as one asked the question, "How long shall be the vision concerning the daily sacrifice, and the transgression of desolation, to give both the sanctuary and the host to be trodden under foot?" A similar conversation takes place in John's vision recorded in the book of Revelation chapter 6 verses 9-11. "And when he opened the fifth seal, I saw under the altar the souls of them that were slain for the Word of God, and for the testimony which they held: and they cried with a loud voice, saying, 'how long, old Lord, holy and true, dost thou not judge an avenge our blood on them that dwell on the earth?' And white robes were given unto every one of them; and it was said unto them, that they should rest yet a little season, until their fellow servants also and their brethern, that should be killed as they were, should be fulfilled."
Daniel was given the answer in verse 14. "And he said unto me, 'Unto two thousand and three hundred days; then shall the sanctuary be cleansed.'" It is here that we are given the first hint as to when Jesus would return to the earth to bring to a conclusion the end of the history of mankind. Daniel was speaking of the 70th week, or to say, the seven-year tribulation period. But please take note he only refers to 2300 days, this would be six years, and 140 days based on the Jewish lunar calendar which is made up of 30 day months. Later in this study we shall see that these numbers, along with the ones of Daniel 12:11,12, give the believers a real good look at the time frame of Jesus's return for his bride toward the end of the tribulation period.
Verse 14 concludes with, "Then shall the sanctuary be cleansed." The last time Jesus entered the sanctuary he "cleansed it" of the money changers (Matthew 21:12). He just made what we celebrate as his Triumphal Entry into Jerusalem where he was welcomed as a King. The next time He enters Jerusalem it will be on a white steed as King of kings. He will make His true Triumphal Entry and He will cleanse the sanctuary that was defiled by the Antichrist. This puts goosebumps on me big enough to hang a hat on.
Verses 15 through 17 set the stage for the explanation of Daniel's vision by none other than Gabriel. He tells Daniel that, "For at the time of the end shall be this vision." We just witnessed the end of history and mankind!!
The statements about the Antichrist found in verse nine are speaking of him going forth to conquer. It is at this time that verse eight of Chapter 7 is fulfilled. "I was considering the horns, and there was another horn, a little one, coming up among them, before whom three of the first horns were plucked out by the roots." (Daniel 7:8) The Antichrist will rise up from among the four kingdoms and he will destroy or conquer the other three, the one to the south, the one to the east and the one known as the Glorious or Beautiful Land, Israel. He will conquer these through peace treaties and diplomacy ("a mouth speaking pompous words." Daniel 7:8). This will help the believers to identify the Antichrist. He will seem insignificant and then suddenly he will subdue three kingdoms or rulers by diplomacy and tactfulness which will give him great bargaining power.
Let me pause here long enough to reveal what I believe to be the place that the Antichrist will either be born in or will come to power in. At the beginning of this vision we see that Daniel finds himself in Shushan, in a palace (v.2). We must understand that Daniel was in captivity in Babylon. He was brought there from Jerusalem when he was between the ages of 12 and 16. He most likely had never been to Shushan, yet he finds himself there in this vision. Not only is he in Shushan, but he is in a palace that wasn't even built yet. This palace would be built by Darius the Mede some 15 to 20 years later. It would cover some 123 acres. Shushan historically is known as Susa. It's modern-day name is Shushtar. The Ulai River is now called the Karun River.
Why is this important? Because there is no logical reason for this yet to be built palace to be mentioned here unless it is one of those hidden mysteries of scripture that only the Spirit can reveal its meaning (I Corinthians 2:10-14).
Shushan (Susa, Shushtar), the city of the Persian Empire, is none other than our modern-day Iran. Iran was known as Persia until 1935 when it underwent the name change. In medieval times Iran became one of the chief centers of Islamic civilation and extended its cultural influence into India (Daniel 8:9 "toward the East"). The Iranian people have inhabited the area since the early first millennium B. C. Iranians are believed to be direct descendents of Ishmael. The land of Ur where Abraham came from was in Elam (Iran). This was also the home of Ahasuerus and Queen Esther. Iran was part of the Roman empire from the time of the rule of Pompey. The kings of Iran called themselves "king of kings".
Could the hidden mystery here be that God was revealing the place of either the birth of the Antichrist or the place from which he would rise to power? After all it is a palace, home of a leader, that Daniel finds himself. It is also in a land ruled by Islamic radicals who follow the teachings of Mohammed and believe that as direct descendents of Ishmael, the firstborn of Abraham, they are the rightful heirs of the Promised Land.I believe that this may very well be the reason that Daniel's vision of the rise of the Antichrist begins with a location that is yet to be.
In verse 10 chapter 8 we find ourselves at the midway point of the seven-year tribulation period, now begins the Great Tribulation. Up to this point the world will have been experiencing a reasonable measure of peace brought about by the treaties brokered by the Antichrist. The Orthodox Jew, to a degree, has accepted the Antichrist as the long-awaited anointed Messiah or at best a great prophet from God. The Muslims will have accepted the Antichrist as the mahdi, the reappearing of the twelveth Inman. The professing Christian (not those in relationship with the Father), will see the Antichrist as a great prophet sent by God to bring world peace to prepare the way for the return of Jesus. The world will see the Antichrist as a great world leader with all the solutions to the world's problems. The true believer will see the Antichrist for who he really is, an agent of Satan. This mindset will cause the world to view the Christians as narrow-minded and hatemongers. I know, this is already happening but not to the degree that will take place in the tribulation. The true believers will be viewed as standing in the way of world peace and economic stability. To assault a Christian will make you a hero with little or no repercussions. It is in the midst of all of this false utopia that the Antichrist will play out his hand. He will enter the Temple and defile it showing himself to be as God.
Verse 10 chapter 8 takes place midway through the 70th week of Daniel. The first 3 1/2 years are a time of reasonable peace, especially in the Middle East. But at the midway point of the tribulation, the Antichrist reveals his true character, defiles the Temple and proclaims himself to be God. "And it was waxed great, even to the host of heaven." Isaiah had this to say about this event in Chapter 14 verse 13 of his book, "For thou hast said in thine heart, I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God." We know that from studying the first three chapters of the book of Revelation that the "stars" spoken of here ("It cast down some of the host and of the 'stars' to the ground, and stamped upon them,") are God's ministers to his church. The Antichrist will exalt himself above God (the host of heaven) and exercise great power over his host--the Saints.
Verse 11 tells us that the Antichrist will take away the daily sacrifices that are being offered up in the Temple. The only way this can happen is for there to be a new Temple built in Jerusalem. I believe the Antichrist will build this temple as part of his seven year peace treaty that he will broker with Israel. There has to be a Jewish Temple in order for it to be a place of daily sacrifices and to be defiled by the Antichrist triggering the Great Tribulation, the last 3 1/2 years of Daniel's 70th week. When you see the Temple being rebuilt, GET READY, we are closing in on the end of the history of mankind and the return of Jesus Christ.
Even with all the scriptural evidence identifying the Antichrist, many will still be drawn to him. When he defiles the Temple and tramples the truth (Judeo-Christian beliefs) under his feet, many will view this as a time of liberation from the dogmatic views of the Christian and Jewish faiths. With the Christian's scriptures and claims of the identity of the Antichrist seemingly destroyed, the people of the world will see him as a great world leader and a new improved religious figure who has come to destroy the "false" religions such as Christianity that are the stumbling blocks to world peace and harmony. The unsaved will pledge their support for the Antichrist and he will prosper in power and in wealth.
Then in verse 13 Daniel hears two saints conversing as one asked the question, "How long shall be the vision concerning the daily sacrifice, and the transgression of desolation, to give both the sanctuary and the host to be trodden under foot?" A similar conversation takes place in John's vision recorded in the book of Revelation chapter 6 verses 9-11. "And when he opened the fifth seal, I saw under the altar the souls of them that were slain for the Word of God, and for the testimony which they held: and they cried with a loud voice, saying, 'how long, old Lord, holy and true, dost thou not judge an avenge our blood on them that dwell on the earth?' And white robes were given unto every one of them; and it was said unto them, that they should rest yet a little season, until their fellow servants also and their brethern, that should be killed as they were, should be fulfilled."
Daniel was given the answer in verse 14. "And he said unto me, 'Unto two thousand and three hundred days; then shall the sanctuary be cleansed.'" It is here that we are given the first hint as to when Jesus would return to the earth to bring to a conclusion the end of the history of mankind. Daniel was speaking of the 70th week, or to say, the seven-year tribulation period. But please take note he only refers to 2300 days, this would be six years, and 140 days based on the Jewish lunar calendar which is made up of 30 day months. Later in this study we shall see that these numbers, along with the ones of Daniel 12:11,12, give the believers a real good look at the time frame of Jesus's return for his bride toward the end of the tribulation period.
Verse 14 concludes with, "Then shall the sanctuary be cleansed." The last time Jesus entered the sanctuary he "cleansed it" of the money changers (Matthew 21:12). He just made what we celebrate as his Triumphal Entry into Jerusalem where he was welcomed as a King. The next time He enters Jerusalem it will be on a white steed as King of kings. He will make His true Triumphal Entry and He will cleanse the sanctuary that was defiled by the Antichrist. This puts goosebumps on me big enough to hang a hat on.
Verses 15 through 17 set the stage for the explanation of Daniel's vision by none other than Gabriel. He tells Daniel that, "For at the time of the end shall be this vision." We just witnessed the end of history and mankind!!
Wednesday, June 1, 2011
A TORNADO IS COMING TO YOUR CHURCH--Pt 3
So where does this message to the church from this dream leave us today? Maybe we need to ask ourselves a few questions. First of all are we seated comfortably on our religious bus seat? In other words are we among those who have a false sense of security believing that we are heaven bound as we sit on our comfortable pews Sunday in and Sunday out, complacent, compromised and having no burden for the lost? We should ask ourselves has God's Spirit tried moving in our lives only to be quenched? Maybe we should ask ourselves, do we, like Paul in Romans 7:24, find ourselves crying out, "O wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death?" Like Paul do we find ourselves doing what we should not be doing and not doing the things that we should? In other words, we know what to do based on God's word, yet we don't do it. Could we be like the demoniac of Gadarenes who was tortured by contrary spirits? He had a "legion" of demons controlling his life.
What's the garbage or sin in our lives that is damming up the blessings of God for our lives? Do we have the contrary spirits of lust, adultery, or porn? Could it be that our contrary spirits are lying, deception, gossip, a murderous spirit in our hearts, envy, covetousness, complacency, lukewarm toward holy things, no burden for the lost? Or could it be that we simply have lost our first love for Christ? He is no longer occupying the first place in our hearts, our affections, our time or our love.
The demonic tried to get rid of his contrary spirits by cutting himself, by torturing his flesh. He wanted to be free but possessed not the human power to get free. It took Jesus Christ Himself to set this person free from his contrary spirits! So it is with us. To be free from our contrary spirits that keep us seated as the Spirit moves, we too must heed the words of Romans 12:2, "Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God." To be free from the dross, garbage, sin, and contrary spirits in our lives we must renew our minds. We must make up our minds that we will not conform ourselves to this world and its way of thinking. By "coming out from among them and being separate" we prove what is the good and acceptable and perfect will of God.
David put it this way in Psalms 51:10, "Create in me a clean heart oh God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me." When David said, "Renew a steadfast spirit within me," he was asking God to give him a mindset that was determined to be pure, holy and righteous in God's sight. We too must set our minds on that which is holy, pure and righteous in God's sight if we ever wish to receive the fullness of God's blessings, revival, miracles, healings, signs and wonders, gifts, etc. As it was in the dream, don't you desire the Holy Ghost to spew out the white cloud of all that has been stored up for the church into your life? Then you must submit to the wind of God's judgment and allow him to remove all your dross, garbage, sin and contrary spirits.
As we face this tornadic wind of God's judgment that is coming to the church, we can face it without fear if we abide by the words found in second Timothy 1:7, "For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind." As our minds become sound by setting them upon Christ, His words and the holy things of God and we make Jesus our first love, we then will experience the power of God to face anything that is coming in these last days--- and be victorious!
THERE IS A TORNADO COMING TO YOUR CHURCH! It will clean you up or mess you up! It will fire you up or burn you up! It will bless you or destroy you! YOUR CHOICE!! Surrender your garbage, contrary spirits and sin and receive all that God has for you or MISS THE GREATEST MOVE OF GOD EVER!!!!
What's the garbage or sin in our lives that is damming up the blessings of God for our lives? Do we have the contrary spirits of lust, adultery, or porn? Could it be that our contrary spirits are lying, deception, gossip, a murderous spirit in our hearts, envy, covetousness, complacency, lukewarm toward holy things, no burden for the lost? Or could it be that we simply have lost our first love for Christ? He is no longer occupying the first place in our hearts, our affections, our time or our love.
The demonic tried to get rid of his contrary spirits by cutting himself, by torturing his flesh. He wanted to be free but possessed not the human power to get free. It took Jesus Christ Himself to set this person free from his contrary spirits! So it is with us. To be free from our contrary spirits that keep us seated as the Spirit moves, we too must heed the words of Romans 12:2, "Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God." To be free from the dross, garbage, sin, and contrary spirits in our lives we must renew our minds. We must make up our minds that we will not conform ourselves to this world and its way of thinking. By "coming out from among them and being separate" we prove what is the good and acceptable and perfect will of God.
David put it this way in Psalms 51:10, "Create in me a clean heart oh God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me." When David said, "Renew a steadfast spirit within me," he was asking God to give him a mindset that was determined to be pure, holy and righteous in God's sight. We too must set our minds on that which is holy, pure and righteous in God's sight if we ever wish to receive the fullness of God's blessings, revival, miracles, healings, signs and wonders, gifts, etc. As it was in the dream, don't you desire the Holy Ghost to spew out the white cloud of all that has been stored up for the church into your life? Then you must submit to the wind of God's judgment and allow him to remove all your dross, garbage, sin and contrary spirits.
As we face this tornadic wind of God's judgment that is coming to the church, we can face it without fear if we abide by the words found in second Timothy 1:7, "For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind." As our minds become sound by setting them upon Christ, His words and the holy things of God and we make Jesus our first love, we then will experience the power of God to face anything that is coming in these last days--- and be victorious!
THERE IS A TORNADO COMING TO YOUR CHURCH! It will clean you up or mess you up! It will fire you up or burn you up! It will bless you or destroy you! YOUR CHOICE!! Surrender your garbage, contrary spirits and sin and receive all that God has for you or MISS THE GREATEST MOVE OF GOD EVER!!!!
Tuesday, May 31, 2011
A TORNADO IS COMING TO YOUR CHURCH--Pt 2
Let's continue looking at the message for the church that God gave me in a dream. I believe the eeriest part of this dream is where "the people sit comfortably in their seats." The people were unmoved by this wind of God's Spirit. It's as though complacency ruled. How did the church get in this kind of a condition? Could it be our people friendly theology? You know, a theology that has no call to repentance, no confession of sin, and definitely no call to holiness. Remember, "God did not call us to uncleanliness, but unto holiness." (I Thessalonians 4:7) There's no hatred of sin. And there is very little evidence of a first love experience in the church today. Revelation chapter 2 speaks of the church at Ephesus having lost its first love, could this be an indictment against the church today? First love simply means Jesus is number one in our lives. We love him first and foremost above anyone or anything this earth has to offer. The church no longer fears God or reverences him. There's very little acceptance of the full counsel of God's word. And then last but definitely not least, there seems to be no submission to God's set authority. I do realize that with all of the scandals taking place in the pulpits of America it is easy to lose confidence and faith in the leadership of the church, but it was God Himself who has set ministers in their places of authority and has commanded us to submit to them.(Hebrews 13:17)
Amos 8:11-13 speaks of this by saying, "Behold, the days are coming; says the Lord, 'that I will send a famine on the land, not a famine of bread, nor a thirst for water, but of hearing the words of the Lord. They shall wander from sea to sea, and from north to east; they shall run to and fro seeking the word of the Lord, but shall not find it. In that day our fair virgins and strong young men shall faint from thirst.'" Notice that it is God himself who is sending this famine upon the land. God has allowed churches to choose for themselves preachers who will tell them what they want to hear. Just as it was when Israel demanded a king he allowed them to have Saul. As a result of this there is a famine of the hearing of the word of God because our preachers, for the most part, no longer embrace nor preach the full counsel of God's word. People are wandering from church to church in search of truth yet there's none to be heard. Our young people are crying out for truth and yet it is not to be heard from the majority of the pulpits, especially in America. God has placed his ministers of truth on hold. He has them in a wilderness place, just like John the Baptist, being made ready for this last great move of God. They will come forth as one crying from a wilderness place, "repent for the kingdom of God is at hand." They will speak the absolute truths of God's word and they will also live by the truths of God's word!
Paul recognized that a time would come when people would not want to hear sound doctrine and preachers would accommodate their desires in order to build their numbers, monies, reputations, egos and pride. This is why he admonished Timothy, "I charge you therefore before God and the Lord Jesus Christ, Who will judge the living and the dead at His appearing and His kingdom: preach the word. Be ready in season and out of season. Convince, rebuke, exhort with all long-suffering and teaching. For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine, but according to their own desires, because they have itching ears, they will heap to themselves teachers; and they will turn their ears away from truth, and be turned aside to fables. But you be watchful in all things, endure afflictions, do the work of an evangelist, fulfill your ministry." I believe we have reached such a time as this. It's a time where people, those seated comfortably on the bus, do not want to endure or even hear sound doctrine. By not enduring sound doctrine I mean they will not stay in your church if you preach the full counsel of God's word, especially a call to holiness. These people are double minded, they want the best of both worlds and they want preachers who will pamper them with kind words of how great they are.
Even Jeremiah addresses this issue in his writings in chapter 22:21-22, "I spake unto you in your prosperity; but you said, I will not hear. This has been your manner from your youth, that you obey not my voice. The wind shall eat up your pastors, and your lovers shall go into captivity; surely then you should be ashamed and confounded for all your wickedness." When he says here that he spoke to us in our prosperity he's meaning when we had a wealth of the knowledge of the word of God presented to us. In times past, and not too long ago, preachers would preach the word in its fullness. They would give altar calls and the altars would be lined with seekers because of the conviction that the word of God brought into their souls. Today's church says I will not hear. This seems to be our attitude from the time we were young believers right on through to now--we will not obey the voice of God! But God is sending his tornadic wind to his church and those preachers who are not faithful to their call to preach sound doctrine shall be "eaten up" by the wind of God's judgment.
Ezekiel chapter 13 gives this warning to the modern-day prophets, those declaring the will, mind, plan and word of God, in verses 3, 6, and 10-15. "Thus says the Lord God: 'Woe to the foolish prophets, who follow their own spirit and have seen nothing!'" (3) "They have envisioned futility and false divination, saying, 'thus says the Lord!' But the Lord has not sent them; yet they hope that the word may be confirmed."(6) (My hand will be against the prophets)"Because, indeed, because they have seduced My people, saying, "Peace!" when there is no peace-- and one builds a wall and they plaster it with untempered mortar-- say to those who plaster it with untempered mortar, that it will fall. There will be flooding rain, and you, O great hailstones, shall fall; and a stormy wind shall tear it down. Surely, when the wall has fallen, will it not be said to you, 'Where is the mortar with which you plastered it?' Therefore thus says the Lord God: "I will cause a stormy wind to break forth in My fury and there shall be a flooding rain in My anger, and great hailstones in fury to consume it. So I will break down the wall you have plastered with untempered mortar, and bring it down to the ground, so that its foundation will be uncovered; it will fall, and you shall be consumed in the midst of it. Then you shall know that I am the Lord. Thus will I accomplish My wrath on the wall and on those who have plastered it with untempered mortar and I will say to you, 'the wall is no more, nor those who plastered it.'"(10-15)
The warning here to our modern-day prophets or preachers is that God is going to send a tornadic wind into their midst and expose them for what they are. He is speaking to those "who follow their own spirit and yet they have seen nothing." In other words those ministers who are following after their own flesh, lust, desires and agendas. Those who are speaking what itching ears want to hear in order to maintain their reputations, financial base and people in their churches. They are like those spoken of in verse six, God has not sent them and yet they're seeking the confirmation of their peers, congregations and leadership to confirm them as ministers of God while all along "the Lord has not sent them." Like the prophets that Ezekiel was speaking about, the ministers today speak a message of peace when there is no peace. They do all they can to make the people on the pew, "those comfortably seated on the bus", to feel safe, secure and heaven bound. They are building the walls, their churches, with untempered mortar, or to say a watered-down compromised word. But God is about to send his wind of judgment which will come as a flooding rain and a stormy wind to tear down what today's ministers are now building. God's wind of judgment is about to expose the false preachers, false doctrines, false Christians and false churches. The foundations upon which we have built our compromised churches will be revealed and they shall fall. Then the world shall know that God is Lord.
Finally, Malachi 2:2 offers this warning to those who are comfortable in their religious "bus seat" believing they are on their journey to heaven while all along they are consumed with contrary spirits, garbage, sin. "If you will not hear, and if you will not lay it to heart, to give glory unto My name, says the Lord of hosts, I will even send a curse upon you, and I will curse your blessings: yea, I have cursed them already because you do not lay it to heart." Because we pick and choose the Scriptures that we want to adhere to we find ourselves under a curse. When God's wind of judgment comes to His house all that will remain are those who were walking in holiness, purity and righteousness. Those who would dare, by God's own strength, obey all the word of God. If you feel as though your life is not blessed by God you may be right. When we fail to walk in holiness we fail to be blessed of God.
Join us next time for the completion of this message.
Amos 8:11-13 speaks of this by saying, "Behold, the days are coming; says the Lord, 'that I will send a famine on the land, not a famine of bread, nor a thirst for water, but of hearing the words of the Lord. They shall wander from sea to sea, and from north to east; they shall run to and fro seeking the word of the Lord, but shall not find it. In that day our fair virgins and strong young men shall faint from thirst.'" Notice that it is God himself who is sending this famine upon the land. God has allowed churches to choose for themselves preachers who will tell them what they want to hear. Just as it was when Israel demanded a king he allowed them to have Saul. As a result of this there is a famine of the hearing of the word of God because our preachers, for the most part, no longer embrace nor preach the full counsel of God's word. People are wandering from church to church in search of truth yet there's none to be heard. Our young people are crying out for truth and yet it is not to be heard from the majority of the pulpits, especially in America. God has placed his ministers of truth on hold. He has them in a wilderness place, just like John the Baptist, being made ready for this last great move of God. They will come forth as one crying from a wilderness place, "repent for the kingdom of God is at hand." They will speak the absolute truths of God's word and they will also live by the truths of God's word!
Paul recognized that a time would come when people would not want to hear sound doctrine and preachers would accommodate their desires in order to build their numbers, monies, reputations, egos and pride. This is why he admonished Timothy, "I charge you therefore before God and the Lord Jesus Christ, Who will judge the living and the dead at His appearing and His kingdom: preach the word. Be ready in season and out of season. Convince, rebuke, exhort with all long-suffering and teaching. For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine, but according to their own desires, because they have itching ears, they will heap to themselves teachers; and they will turn their ears away from truth, and be turned aside to fables. But you be watchful in all things, endure afflictions, do the work of an evangelist, fulfill your ministry." I believe we have reached such a time as this. It's a time where people, those seated comfortably on the bus, do not want to endure or even hear sound doctrine. By not enduring sound doctrine I mean they will not stay in your church if you preach the full counsel of God's word, especially a call to holiness. These people are double minded, they want the best of both worlds and they want preachers who will pamper them with kind words of how great they are.
Even Jeremiah addresses this issue in his writings in chapter 22:21-22, "I spake unto you in your prosperity; but you said, I will not hear. This has been your manner from your youth, that you obey not my voice. The wind shall eat up your pastors, and your lovers shall go into captivity; surely then you should be ashamed and confounded for all your wickedness." When he says here that he spoke to us in our prosperity he's meaning when we had a wealth of the knowledge of the word of God presented to us. In times past, and not too long ago, preachers would preach the word in its fullness. They would give altar calls and the altars would be lined with seekers because of the conviction that the word of God brought into their souls. Today's church says I will not hear. This seems to be our attitude from the time we were young believers right on through to now--we will not obey the voice of God! But God is sending his tornadic wind to his church and those preachers who are not faithful to their call to preach sound doctrine shall be "eaten up" by the wind of God's judgment.
Ezekiel chapter 13 gives this warning to the modern-day prophets, those declaring the will, mind, plan and word of God, in verses 3, 6, and 10-15. "Thus says the Lord God: 'Woe to the foolish prophets, who follow their own spirit and have seen nothing!'" (3) "They have envisioned futility and false divination, saying, 'thus says the Lord!' But the Lord has not sent them; yet they hope that the word may be confirmed."(6) (My hand will be against the prophets)"Because, indeed, because they have seduced My people, saying, "Peace!" when there is no peace-- and one builds a wall and they plaster it with untempered mortar-- say to those who plaster it with untempered mortar, that it will fall. There will be flooding rain, and you, O great hailstones, shall fall; and a stormy wind shall tear it down. Surely, when the wall has fallen, will it not be said to you, 'Where is the mortar with which you plastered it?' Therefore thus says the Lord God: "I will cause a stormy wind to break forth in My fury and there shall be a flooding rain in My anger, and great hailstones in fury to consume it. So I will break down the wall you have plastered with untempered mortar, and bring it down to the ground, so that its foundation will be uncovered; it will fall, and you shall be consumed in the midst of it. Then you shall know that I am the Lord. Thus will I accomplish My wrath on the wall and on those who have plastered it with untempered mortar and I will say to you, 'the wall is no more, nor those who plastered it.'"(10-15)
The warning here to our modern-day prophets or preachers is that God is going to send a tornadic wind into their midst and expose them for what they are. He is speaking to those "who follow their own spirit and yet they have seen nothing." In other words those ministers who are following after their own flesh, lust, desires and agendas. Those who are speaking what itching ears want to hear in order to maintain their reputations, financial base and people in their churches. They are like those spoken of in verse six, God has not sent them and yet they're seeking the confirmation of their peers, congregations and leadership to confirm them as ministers of God while all along "the Lord has not sent them." Like the prophets that Ezekiel was speaking about, the ministers today speak a message of peace when there is no peace. They do all they can to make the people on the pew, "those comfortably seated on the bus", to feel safe, secure and heaven bound. They are building the walls, their churches, with untempered mortar, or to say a watered-down compromised word. But God is about to send his wind of judgment which will come as a flooding rain and a stormy wind to tear down what today's ministers are now building. God's wind of judgment is about to expose the false preachers, false doctrines, false Christians and false churches. The foundations upon which we have built our compromised churches will be revealed and they shall fall. Then the world shall know that God is Lord.
Finally, Malachi 2:2 offers this warning to those who are comfortable in their religious "bus seat" believing they are on their journey to heaven while all along they are consumed with contrary spirits, garbage, sin. "If you will not hear, and if you will not lay it to heart, to give glory unto My name, says the Lord of hosts, I will even send a curse upon you, and I will curse your blessings: yea, I have cursed them already because you do not lay it to heart." Because we pick and choose the Scriptures that we want to adhere to we find ourselves under a curse. When God's wind of judgment comes to His house all that will remain are those who were walking in holiness, purity and righteousness. Those who would dare, by God's own strength, obey all the word of God. If you feel as though your life is not blessed by God you may be right. When we fail to walk in holiness we fail to be blessed of God.
Join us next time for the completion of this message.
Tuesday, May 24, 2011
A TORNADO IS COMING TO YOUR CHURCH--Pt 1
God gave me a dream on Saturday morning May 14, 2011, at 5:30AM. I feel that this dream is vitally important for what our nation is going through with the disasters that we have been experiencing as well as prophecy being fulfilled for these the last of the last days. This is a message directed to the church.
I was on a bus full of church people and the bus began to be tossed around like it was caught in a tornado. It spun around and was rocked side to side and to and fro. The people never moved from their seats as though they felt secure in them. As long as they stayed seated they were comfortable and safe--a false sense of security. The shaking of the bus became very violent, yet no one moved. There were sparks flying from the roof of the bus.
I stood and began to rebuke Satan and all his demons. I told the people that we were under demonic attack and for them to start praying and rebuking the demons. As I was talking I made my way to the rear of the bus. There was a small room there like a restroom or closet. I could dimly see through the door and there was a silhouetted figure behind the door. There was a bright light behind it causing it to be silhouetted. I opened the door and a creature came out--a demonic creature I thought. It was white and very fat and round. I was frozen with fear. I had no confidence in my position in Christ. I was so fearful that I could not speak. I tried to rebuke Satan but all I could do was stutter. Finally, I was able to utter one word repeatedly, Jesus.
Finally, I had what appeared to be garbage can lids in my hands. I tried to crush the creature between the two lids in my hands. As I brought the lids together, like cymbals, one on each side of the creature, the creature exhaled out a white cloud and it was no longer round and fat. I woke up. I tried to go back to sleep but scriptures began to pour into me, and I knew that this was a God-given dream.
I then asked God to give me the interpretation of the dream. This is what I felt the Holy Spirit was giving me. Church people are sitting comfortably on the church bus of life, seemingly on life's journey to heaven; but God is about to send the wind of His Spirit to His church. His design is to blow away the garbage, or to say sin,in our lives. The wind of God's Spirit has been attempting to blow through His church and the hearts of His people, but we're content to sit comfortably on our religious "bus seats" and ignore it. We're not even moved by His Holy Spirit when it is moving among us.
Acts chapter 2 verses one through three says, "And when the day of Pentecost had fully come, they were all in one accord in one place. And suddenly there came a sound from heaven as of a rushing mighty 'wind', and it filled all the house where they were 'sitting'. And there appeared unto them cloven tongues like as a fire, and it set up on each of them." Notice when the Holy Spirit is moving among God's people it comes as a wind that blows into our lives and sets us ablaze for His glory. This is what is coming to the church as we sit on our "bus seats," our pews. There is a mighty wind of God's Spirit that is about to blow into the church that will not only cleanse us of all our sin, but it will set us ablaze for His glory.
The sparks that I saw falling from the ceiling of the bus were indicating the fire of God falling on His people. As the fire of the Holy Ghost falls upon us it will expose our sin, the garbage in our lives, that hinders our witness for Christ and prevents us from living in victory.(Numbers 32:23) This coming wind will also set us ablaze for His glory by burning the dross out of our lives. Mal.3:2-3,"But who may abide the day of His coming? And who shall stand when He appears? For He is like a refiner's fire, and like fuller's soap: and He shall sit as a refiner and purifier of silver: and He shall purify the sons of Levi, and purge them as gold and silver, that they may offer unto the Lord an offering in righteousness." When a refiner is purifing gold or silver, he boils it over fire in order for the dross to bubble to the surface. As it comes to the top he scoops it off. He does this until there is no more dross and when he looks upon the liquid he can see his own image reflected in it. So it is with the fire of God that is coming to the church. When it comes it will burn all the dross out of our lives until it is all gone, and when He looks upon us He will see a reflection of Himself. He said that He will purify "the sons of Levi," this is the saints. We are a royal priesthood; we are seated in heavenly places as kings and priests. This is speaking of us. Once He has sent us His fire of purifying and we have been cleansed of our sins and the dross in our lives, we then can offer up to Him an offering "in righteousness." We then are ready to face the coming judgments of God with the confidence that we are His and He will use us in these last days to bring glory to His name.
In the dream I stood and began to rebuke Satan and demons. I have always been able to rebuke Satan and his demons and was confident that I would win the battle--but not this time. My rebukes had no effect on the violent wind. God has shown me that it isn't Satan doing this but Himself. It is God bringing judgment to His church. "For the time is come that judgment must begin at the house of God. And if it first begin at us, what shall the end be of them (those in the church but not truly born-again. Remember he is speaking about the church and those in it receiving judgment.) that obey not the gospel of God? (The gospel that teaches us that to be born-again one must die to themselves [Romans 6]). And if the righteous scarcely be saved, where shall the ungodly (the carnal "christians", the double-minded in the church)and the sinner (in the church) appear?"(I Peter 4:17,18)
We will think that the violent winds in our lives are of Satan, but it is God Himself come to clean house. When Jesus entered Jerusalem He went into the temple and cleansed it. He is coming again and He wants God's house clean--thus the tornado of God is blowing. He wants holy, pure, clean lives ready to impact our world and ready to harvest souls. A church ready to be like Jesus! Not the religious, self-fabricated Jesus that we claim is the real deal, but the Jesus of the Bible that changes lives! If your Jesus isn't changing you, who would want Him? The Jesus of the Bible changes the lives that He saves. This wind may take on the appearance of sickness, death of loved ones, financial chaos, lost jobs, homes going into foreclosure, false accusations, broken homes, disfunctional families, etc., but all of this is the wind of God designed to purify us--He wants our attention! He is preparing a bride for His Son. One without spot or wrinkle. One who reflects His image.
As I went to the rear of the bus and looked at the smoke glass door on the small room I saw the creature. I realize now that the bright light behind the creature is the presence of God. And in this dream the creature that I saw was solid white. The interpretation of this is the fact that this creature was pure. The creature was also fat and round this simply means that it was full of blessings, full of revival, full of miracles, full of healings, signs and wonders, all the things that God is wanting to give to his church. This creature is the Holy Ghost Himself. He is full of manifestation gifts, blessings, revivals, miracles, healings, signs, and wonders and he is just waiting for the church to be pure enough to receive them. The reason why the Holy Ghost was "fat" is because he has been dammed up as it were with all of these blessings of God not able to allow them to flow out to God's church because of the garbage in our lives. He will not cohabitate with contrary spirits.
In this dream when I first faced this creature I was full of fear. I thought it was because of the presence of evil but it was the presence of purity instead. I was unclean. I felt unworthy to be in the presence of such purity. All I could do was utter the name, Jesus. It seems as though we have enough religious knowledge to know to invoke the name of Jesus but not the lifestyles of Jesus that gives the use of His name its power. Only pure, holy, righteous lives will be victorious in the war between good and evil that is coming in these last days. Only pure lives can defeat the enemy of our souls.
Another thought that came to me as I was praying for the interpretation of this dream was another view of what the silhouette in the closet stood for. As I was praying for the interpretation of this I felt the Holy Spirit asking me, what are we hiding in the closets of our hearts and minds? What spirits are we hiding in the closets of our hearts?
In this dream I tried to use garbage can lids to crush this creature but we must realize that we cannot destroy the works of demons with garbage in our lives. As I brought these garbage can lids together on each side of the creature it exhaled out a white cloud. The cloud was the stored up blessings, revival, miracles, healings, signs, wonders, manifestation gifts, and the greater works that Jesus spoke of. As we take our garbage, or to say our contrary spirits, to God He will release blessings, revival, miracles, healings, signs, wonders, manifestation gifts. The Holy Ghost will breath out upon the church these things from God. Revelation 5:8 tells us as the four creatures and the 24 elders were before the throne John saw, "golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of the saints." We have been praying for blessings, revival, miracles, healings, signs, wonders, gifts, etc. Our prayers will be mixed with the power of the Holy Ghost and poured out upon us when we allow the Holy Ghost to expose and remove the dross, or to say the garbage, out of our lives.
Hebrews 12:26-27 reads, "Now He who promised, saying, 'Yet once more I shake not only the earth, but also heaven.' Now this, 'Yet once more,' indicates the removal of all these things that are being shaken, as of things that are made, that the things which cannot be shaken may remain." God is shaking up the church as well as all the earth. We are experiencing record earthquakes, floods, droughts, wildfires, tsunamis, tornadoes, etc. We're witnessing nation against nation and kingdom against kingdom that Jesus spoke of in Matthew 24 as never before. The terms for nation and kingdom means ethnic groups or religious groups, or simply groups of people. We are now seeing religious groups and ethnic groups as well as other groups of people really coming against one another in all parts of the world, especially in the Middle East. We're seeing famines as well as pestilence, the diseases that usually follow famines and earthquakes, like never before. And Jesus said in Matthew 24:8 "all these are the beginnings of sorrow." We are about to witness the last great move of God! The last great awakening! And it will be a call to holiness! God is shaking the earth and the church is not exempt from this shaking--His judgment has begun!
We will continue looking at this tornado that is coming to our churches in next week's blog.
I was on a bus full of church people and the bus began to be tossed around like it was caught in a tornado. It spun around and was rocked side to side and to and fro. The people never moved from their seats as though they felt secure in them. As long as they stayed seated they were comfortable and safe--a false sense of security. The shaking of the bus became very violent, yet no one moved. There were sparks flying from the roof of the bus.
I stood and began to rebuke Satan and all his demons. I told the people that we were under demonic attack and for them to start praying and rebuking the demons. As I was talking I made my way to the rear of the bus. There was a small room there like a restroom or closet. I could dimly see through the door and there was a silhouetted figure behind the door. There was a bright light behind it causing it to be silhouetted. I opened the door and a creature came out--a demonic creature I thought. It was white and very fat and round. I was frozen with fear. I had no confidence in my position in Christ. I was so fearful that I could not speak. I tried to rebuke Satan but all I could do was stutter. Finally, I was able to utter one word repeatedly, Jesus.
Finally, I had what appeared to be garbage can lids in my hands. I tried to crush the creature between the two lids in my hands. As I brought the lids together, like cymbals, one on each side of the creature, the creature exhaled out a white cloud and it was no longer round and fat. I woke up. I tried to go back to sleep but scriptures began to pour into me, and I knew that this was a God-given dream.
I then asked God to give me the interpretation of the dream. This is what I felt the Holy Spirit was giving me. Church people are sitting comfortably on the church bus of life, seemingly on life's journey to heaven; but God is about to send the wind of His Spirit to His church. His design is to blow away the garbage, or to say sin,in our lives. The wind of God's Spirit has been attempting to blow through His church and the hearts of His people, but we're content to sit comfortably on our religious "bus seats" and ignore it. We're not even moved by His Holy Spirit when it is moving among us.
Acts chapter 2 verses one through three says, "And when the day of Pentecost had fully come, they were all in one accord in one place. And suddenly there came a sound from heaven as of a rushing mighty 'wind', and it filled all the house where they were 'sitting'. And there appeared unto them cloven tongues like as a fire, and it set up on each of them." Notice when the Holy Spirit is moving among God's people it comes as a wind that blows into our lives and sets us ablaze for His glory. This is what is coming to the church as we sit on our "bus seats," our pews. There is a mighty wind of God's Spirit that is about to blow into the church that will not only cleanse us of all our sin, but it will set us ablaze for His glory.
The sparks that I saw falling from the ceiling of the bus were indicating the fire of God falling on His people. As the fire of the Holy Ghost falls upon us it will expose our sin, the garbage in our lives, that hinders our witness for Christ and prevents us from living in victory.(Numbers 32:23) This coming wind will also set us ablaze for His glory by burning the dross out of our lives. Mal.3:2-3,"But who may abide the day of His coming? And who shall stand when He appears? For He is like a refiner's fire, and like fuller's soap: and He shall sit as a refiner and purifier of silver: and He shall purify the sons of Levi, and purge them as gold and silver, that they may offer unto the Lord an offering in righteousness." When a refiner is purifing gold or silver, he boils it over fire in order for the dross to bubble to the surface. As it comes to the top he scoops it off. He does this until there is no more dross and when he looks upon the liquid he can see his own image reflected in it. So it is with the fire of God that is coming to the church. When it comes it will burn all the dross out of our lives until it is all gone, and when He looks upon us He will see a reflection of Himself. He said that He will purify "the sons of Levi," this is the saints. We are a royal priesthood; we are seated in heavenly places as kings and priests. This is speaking of us. Once He has sent us His fire of purifying and we have been cleansed of our sins and the dross in our lives, we then can offer up to Him an offering "in righteousness." We then are ready to face the coming judgments of God with the confidence that we are His and He will use us in these last days to bring glory to His name.
In the dream I stood and began to rebuke Satan and demons. I have always been able to rebuke Satan and his demons and was confident that I would win the battle--but not this time. My rebukes had no effect on the violent wind. God has shown me that it isn't Satan doing this but Himself. It is God bringing judgment to His church. "For the time is come that judgment must begin at the house of God. And if it first begin at us, what shall the end be of them (those in the church but not truly born-again. Remember he is speaking about the church and those in it receiving judgment.) that obey not the gospel of God? (The gospel that teaches us that to be born-again one must die to themselves [Romans 6]). And if the righteous scarcely be saved, where shall the ungodly (the carnal "christians", the double-minded in the church)and the sinner (in the church) appear?"(I Peter 4:17,18)
We will think that the violent winds in our lives are of Satan, but it is God Himself come to clean house. When Jesus entered Jerusalem He went into the temple and cleansed it. He is coming again and He wants God's house clean--thus the tornado of God is blowing. He wants holy, pure, clean lives ready to impact our world and ready to harvest souls. A church ready to be like Jesus! Not the religious, self-fabricated Jesus that we claim is the real deal, but the Jesus of the Bible that changes lives! If your Jesus isn't changing you, who would want Him? The Jesus of the Bible changes the lives that He saves. This wind may take on the appearance of sickness, death of loved ones, financial chaos, lost jobs, homes going into foreclosure, false accusations, broken homes, disfunctional families, etc., but all of this is the wind of God designed to purify us--He wants our attention! He is preparing a bride for His Son. One without spot or wrinkle. One who reflects His image.
As I went to the rear of the bus and looked at the smoke glass door on the small room I saw the creature. I realize now that the bright light behind the creature is the presence of God. And in this dream the creature that I saw was solid white. The interpretation of this is the fact that this creature was pure. The creature was also fat and round this simply means that it was full of blessings, full of revival, full of miracles, full of healings, signs and wonders, all the things that God is wanting to give to his church. This creature is the Holy Ghost Himself. He is full of manifestation gifts, blessings, revivals, miracles, healings, signs, and wonders and he is just waiting for the church to be pure enough to receive them. The reason why the Holy Ghost was "fat" is because he has been dammed up as it were with all of these blessings of God not able to allow them to flow out to God's church because of the garbage in our lives. He will not cohabitate with contrary spirits.
In this dream when I first faced this creature I was full of fear. I thought it was because of the presence of evil but it was the presence of purity instead. I was unclean. I felt unworthy to be in the presence of such purity. All I could do was utter the name, Jesus. It seems as though we have enough religious knowledge to know to invoke the name of Jesus but not the lifestyles of Jesus that gives the use of His name its power. Only pure, holy, righteous lives will be victorious in the war between good and evil that is coming in these last days. Only pure lives can defeat the enemy of our souls.
Another thought that came to me as I was praying for the interpretation of this dream was another view of what the silhouette in the closet stood for. As I was praying for the interpretation of this I felt the Holy Spirit asking me, what are we hiding in the closets of our hearts and minds? What spirits are we hiding in the closets of our hearts?
In this dream I tried to use garbage can lids to crush this creature but we must realize that we cannot destroy the works of demons with garbage in our lives. As I brought these garbage can lids together on each side of the creature it exhaled out a white cloud. The cloud was the stored up blessings, revival, miracles, healings, signs, wonders, manifestation gifts, and the greater works that Jesus spoke of. As we take our garbage, or to say our contrary spirits, to God He will release blessings, revival, miracles, healings, signs, wonders, manifestation gifts. The Holy Ghost will breath out upon the church these things from God. Revelation 5:8 tells us as the four creatures and the 24 elders were before the throne John saw, "golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of the saints." We have been praying for blessings, revival, miracles, healings, signs, wonders, gifts, etc. Our prayers will be mixed with the power of the Holy Ghost and poured out upon us when we allow the Holy Ghost to expose and remove the dross, or to say the garbage, out of our lives.
Hebrews 12:26-27 reads, "Now He who promised, saying, 'Yet once more I shake not only the earth, but also heaven.' Now this, 'Yet once more,' indicates the removal of all these things that are being shaken, as of things that are made, that the things which cannot be shaken may remain." God is shaking up the church as well as all the earth. We are experiencing record earthquakes, floods, droughts, wildfires, tsunamis, tornadoes, etc. We're witnessing nation against nation and kingdom against kingdom that Jesus spoke of in Matthew 24 as never before. The terms for nation and kingdom means ethnic groups or religious groups, or simply groups of people. We are now seeing religious groups and ethnic groups as well as other groups of people really coming against one another in all parts of the world, especially in the Middle East. We're seeing famines as well as pestilence, the diseases that usually follow famines and earthquakes, like never before. And Jesus said in Matthew 24:8 "all these are the beginnings of sorrow." We are about to witness the last great move of God! The last great awakening! And it will be a call to holiness! God is shaking the earth and the church is not exempt from this shaking--His judgment has begun!
We will continue looking at this tornado that is coming to our churches in next week's blog.
Thursday, March 24, 2011
ALL OF CREATION IS GROANING--Pt.2
Sin has and is defiling the earth! Genesis 4:10,11, "the voice of thy brother's blood cries out to me from the ground" (Leviticus 17:11 'the life of the flesh is in the blood.' I believe God could hear the life of Abel crying out from the ground as his blood defiled the earth) "and now art thou cursed from the earth which opened her mouth to receive thy brother's blood." Sin got so bad that, "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; both man, and beast, and the creeping thing, and the fowls of the air; for it repented Me that I have made them.'" God was actually sorry that he had made man. Because of his sin he had corrupted all of the earth and all that lived upon the earth to the point where God felt it necessary to destroy it.
Gen.6:11, "The earth (beast, man, ground) was also corrupt(in Hebrew the word is shawkhath-meaning decay, waste, ruin, mar, defiled) before God, and the earth was filled with violence."
Gen.6;12,"And God looked upon the earth, and behold, it was corrupt; for all flesh (man,beast) had corrupted his way (their way was to be in harmony and at peace)upon the earth."
After the flood that purged the earth, Noah offered up a sacrifice to God. "The Lord smelled a sweet savour (Noah's worship stirred God's mercy) and the Lord said in His heart, 'I will not again curse the ground any more for man's sake; for the imagination of man's heart is evil from his youth; neither will I again smite anymore everything living, as I have done.'"(Gen.8:21) Although God showed mercy to man, sin continued. "Behold, the darkness shall cover the earth, and gross darkness the people."(Is.60:2) "The earth is given into the hand of the wicked."(Job 9:24) Sin prevails! Man continues defiling the earth with his sin. This causes "all" of creation (earth, beast, man) to long for redemption.
"For we know that the whole creation (man, beast, earth) groans and travails in pain together until now."(Rom.8:22) Paul is stating that all of creation was looking for a redeemer to take sin away from man so that all of creation could return to the state of existance that it knew at the beginning, pure,clean,in harmony,at peace and undefiled. There is a general out cry of all creation against the sin of man. Sin is a burden to all of creation. When man fell he disrupted the balance of creation and thus all of creation began to act out of character from what they were created to be.
"The earth mourns (remember it is a living organism) and fades away. The earth also is defiled under the inhabitants thereof; because they have transgressed the laws. changed the ordinances, broken the everlasting covenant (the laws of existance,what God originally planned for His creation). Therefore has the curse (of sin) devoured (destroyed, defiled) the earth and they that dwell therein are desolate(laid waste)." Is.24:4,5)
The end results of man defiling the earth are what we are experiencing in the world now. "The earth shook and trembled; the foundation of heaven moved and shook because He was wroth."(II Sam.22:8) The earth was pure, clean, made for eternal existence, but man sinned and brought upon all creation the curse of sin.
As stated earlier, the earth is a living organism created to praise its Creator. To illustrate this may I share the results of an experience that was conducted to prove the effects of music on humans. A group of scientists placed two indentical plants in front of two separate speakers. Through one speaker they played hard rock music while the other plant was exposed to easy listening music. This continued 24/7. Each plant was treated the same but over a period of time the plant in front of the speaker playing easy listening music grew toward the speaker and grew much faster than normal. On the other hand the plant in front of the speaker playing hard rock grew away from the speaker and died. This proves that the plants were living organisms capable of discerning what is in harmony with creation and what is not.
Animals are also living organisms created to praise their Creator. The same group of scientists that were using the plants to prove the effects of music on nature also used animals to test the effects of music. They took four hundred cows from a dairy farm and divided them into two groups. They placed two hundred in one barn with hard rock music playing in it. They then placed the other two hundred cows in a barn where they played easy listening music. The cows exposed to the easy listening music begin to produce twice the milk that they had before. The cows exposed to the hard rock music were uneasy and dried up. Again, the cows were responding to thier environment. That which was contrary to the original plan of creation, harmony and peace, brought about a negitive response. Those cows in a peaceable environment responded positively. Why do animals attack other animals as well as man? They are out of harmony with creation. What man once had dominion over now wants to kill him. Rev.6:8 tells us that the rider of the pale horse will have power to kill one-fourth of the earth's population. He will do this with the sword, hunger, death and by the beast of the field.
What causes animals to go against their created nature of harmony and peace? The SIN of man. What causes man to face sickness, disease, depression, heartbreak, unhappiness, unfulfillment, evil, wickedness,etc.,etc.? The SIN of man. What causes the earth to suffer earthquakes, tornadoes, hurricanes, drought, tsunamies, floods, etc.,etc.? The SIN of man. The earth and creation are trying to rid itself of what caused the problem--man, in sin.
Isaiah had this to say about the end times. "The earth shall reel to and fro like a drunkard, and shall be removed like a cottage; and the transgression (original sin) thereof shall be heavy upon it, and it shall fall and not rise again."(Is.24:20)
"Thy wrath has come---(thou) should destroy them which destroy the earth." (Rev.11:18)
"And the land is defiled: therefore I do visit the iniquity thereof upon it, and the land itself vomits out her inhabitants."(Lev.18:25) She is trying to cleanse herself.
Six thousand years of defilement, sin!! And as it was in the days of Noah, God is about to cleanse the earth of sin. The earth is sending out signals that the end is near. She is rejecting sin. She is attempting to cleanse herself, by shaking-earthquakes; by winds-tornadoes, hurricanes, damaging winds; by washing-floods, tsunamies; by burning-drought, wildfires. Yet, man still won't listen and repent but continues to defile the earth with sin.
There is an upside to this message. "When thy judgements are in the earth, the inhabitants of the world will learn RIGHTOUSNESS." (Is.26:9) In the mist of all of the choas of today and its increasing effects, the church will experience a great revival! The world will experience a great awaking! We shall see a great harvest of souls! Then we shall see Jesus!!! The earth will melt away.(II Peter 3:7-13) Those who have accepted the Redeemer will put on new bodies and move to a new earth where there will no longer be any sin.
The end is near! All of creation is groaning! What should we do? (Read the answer in Ps.46:1-11.)
Gen.6:11, "The earth (beast, man, ground) was also corrupt(in Hebrew the word is shawkhath-meaning decay, waste, ruin, mar, defiled) before God, and the earth was filled with violence."
Gen.6;12,"And God looked upon the earth, and behold, it was corrupt; for all flesh (man,beast) had corrupted his way (their way was to be in harmony and at peace)upon the earth."
After the flood that purged the earth, Noah offered up a sacrifice to God. "The Lord smelled a sweet savour (Noah's worship stirred God's mercy) and the Lord said in His heart, 'I will not again curse the ground any more for man's sake; for the imagination of man's heart is evil from his youth; neither will I again smite anymore everything living, as I have done.'"(Gen.8:21) Although God showed mercy to man, sin continued. "Behold, the darkness shall cover the earth, and gross darkness the people."(Is.60:2) "The earth is given into the hand of the wicked."(Job 9:24) Sin prevails! Man continues defiling the earth with his sin. This causes "all" of creation (earth, beast, man) to long for redemption.
"For we know that the whole creation (man, beast, earth) groans and travails in pain together until now."(Rom.8:22) Paul is stating that all of creation was looking for a redeemer to take sin away from man so that all of creation could return to the state of existance that it knew at the beginning, pure,clean,in harmony,at peace and undefiled. There is a general out cry of all creation against the sin of man. Sin is a burden to all of creation. When man fell he disrupted the balance of creation and thus all of creation began to act out of character from what they were created to be.
"The earth mourns (remember it is a living organism) and fades away. The earth also is defiled under the inhabitants thereof; because they have transgressed the laws. changed the ordinances, broken the everlasting covenant (the laws of existance,what God originally planned for His creation). Therefore has the curse (of sin) devoured (destroyed, defiled) the earth and they that dwell therein are desolate(laid waste)." Is.24:4,5)
The end results of man defiling the earth are what we are experiencing in the world now. "The earth shook and trembled; the foundation of heaven moved and shook because He was wroth."(II Sam.22:8) The earth was pure, clean, made for eternal existence, but man sinned and brought upon all creation the curse of sin.
As stated earlier, the earth is a living organism created to praise its Creator. To illustrate this may I share the results of an experience that was conducted to prove the effects of music on humans. A group of scientists placed two indentical plants in front of two separate speakers. Through one speaker they played hard rock music while the other plant was exposed to easy listening music. This continued 24/7. Each plant was treated the same but over a period of time the plant in front of the speaker playing easy listening music grew toward the speaker and grew much faster than normal. On the other hand the plant in front of the speaker playing hard rock grew away from the speaker and died. This proves that the plants were living organisms capable of discerning what is in harmony with creation and what is not.
Animals are also living organisms created to praise their Creator. The same group of scientists that were using the plants to prove the effects of music on nature also used animals to test the effects of music. They took four hundred cows from a dairy farm and divided them into two groups. They placed two hundred in one barn with hard rock music playing in it. They then placed the other two hundred cows in a barn where they played easy listening music. The cows exposed to the easy listening music begin to produce twice the milk that they had before. The cows exposed to the hard rock music were uneasy and dried up. Again, the cows were responding to thier environment. That which was contrary to the original plan of creation, harmony and peace, brought about a negitive response. Those cows in a peaceable environment responded positively. Why do animals attack other animals as well as man? They are out of harmony with creation. What man once had dominion over now wants to kill him. Rev.6:8 tells us that the rider of the pale horse will have power to kill one-fourth of the earth's population. He will do this with the sword, hunger, death and by the beast of the field.
What causes animals to go against their created nature of harmony and peace? The SIN of man. What causes man to face sickness, disease, depression, heartbreak, unhappiness, unfulfillment, evil, wickedness,etc.,etc.? The SIN of man. What causes the earth to suffer earthquakes, tornadoes, hurricanes, drought, tsunamies, floods, etc.,etc.? The SIN of man. The earth and creation are trying to rid itself of what caused the problem--man, in sin.
Isaiah had this to say about the end times. "The earth shall reel to and fro like a drunkard, and shall be removed like a cottage; and the transgression (original sin) thereof shall be heavy upon it, and it shall fall and not rise again."(Is.24:20)
"Thy wrath has come---(thou) should destroy them which destroy the earth." (Rev.11:18)
"And the land is defiled: therefore I do visit the iniquity thereof upon it, and the land itself vomits out her inhabitants."(Lev.18:25) She is trying to cleanse herself.
Six thousand years of defilement, sin!! And as it was in the days of Noah, God is about to cleanse the earth of sin. The earth is sending out signals that the end is near. She is rejecting sin. She is attempting to cleanse herself, by shaking-earthquakes; by winds-tornadoes, hurricanes, damaging winds; by washing-floods, tsunamies; by burning-drought, wildfires. Yet, man still won't listen and repent but continues to defile the earth with sin.
There is an upside to this message. "When thy judgements are in the earth, the inhabitants of the world will learn RIGHTOUSNESS." (Is.26:9) In the mist of all of the choas of today and its increasing effects, the church will experience a great revival! The world will experience a great awaking! We shall see a great harvest of souls! Then we shall see Jesus!!! The earth will melt away.(II Peter 3:7-13) Those who have accepted the Redeemer will put on new bodies and move to a new earth where there will no longer be any sin.
The end is near! All of creation is groaning! What should we do? (Read the answer in Ps.46:1-11.)
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