Does God Always Heal? By Walter Martin

First Peter 2:24 says of Christ, "He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, so that we might die to sins and live for righteousness; by his wounds you have been healed."

One of the primary rules of biblical interpretation which must never be violated is context. What is the context in 1 Peter 2? Answer: salvation. There is no way to interpret it in any other sense. The verse is talking about Jesus on the cross dying for us, enduring punishment and bearing our sins, thereby providing salvation for us.

When certain people get hold of this passage, however, they change the context from salvation to physical healing. Every time such people see the word "heal" in the Bible they assume it refers to the miracle of divine healing for the physical body, regardless of whether the context indicates otherwise.

A number of times in Scripture the word healing has specific reference to spiritual healing. There are diseases of the soul that have to be healed -- and the primary disease of the soul is man's unregenerate state, which is rooted in sin. The good news is that God has provided healing for this disease of the soul. And that is what Peter is talking about in 1 Peter 2:24. He is not saying that physical healing of the body is guaranteed to every believer.

Certainly, healing for the body is a benefit of Christ's death on the cross, a benefit for the church as a result of His atoning sacrifice. However, it is not -- it has never been in the history of the church -- a guarantee that God has to heal your body; He doesn't have to!

God does say He will graciously entertain our prayers. He says that if we exercise faith, and if our request is in accordance with His will, He will hear us. But He never said that the mark of true spirituality is that you would never sneeze.

Some within the church will try to tell you, "God's perfect will is that you are never going to be sick." Well, I'll tell you something: there are certain lessons -- if you are honest -- that you'll admit you never would have learned unless the Lord flattened you out long enough to get your attention. Sometimes God teaches us things through our suffering.

Moreover, I must say that sometimes a person, after praying for a healing, may receive a no from God -- a benevolent no, a kindly no, a protective no maybe, but no nevertheless. Tragically, however, there are teachers -- in the Faith movement, for example -- who have the colossal gall to tell people that if they were more spiritual, if they had more faith, if they believed like they believed, they would be well. Such faulty teaching can crush whatever faith these poor people have.

Now, I believe you should go to the Lord and believe Him for healing, and trust Him for healing, and pursue Him for healing. And I believe you should search your soul to make certain there is nothing in your life standing in the way of healing. But you must come to Him and lay yourself out on His conditions. The Scripture says, "This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us" (1 John 5:14). If perhaps God intends to teach you something through an illness, He might not heal you immediately.

So don't think you are being neglected by the Holy Spirit if you don't get healed. Don't assume that the Lord is against you. Don't conclude that you necessarily have an absence of faith or secret sin.

Take a good look at 1 Peter 2:21: "Christ suffered for you, leaving you an example, that you should follow in his steps." Circle the word example in this verse. Here we are told that Jesus suffered. And He left us an example. We are to follow in His steps.

And what is the meaning of Philippians 3:10, which refers to "the fellowship of sharing in his sufferings"? Let us be clear on this: suffering is an integral part of the fact of life, and is often used by God in the development and maturation of the Christian.

The apostle Paul had a greater standing with the Lord in terms of his ministry than I have or anybody else has ever had. According to 2 Corinthians 12:1-10 Paul requested healing from the Lord three times. And three times he got an answer back: "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness." Translation: God said no to Paul's request for healing. And God had a purpose in saying no.

Did Paul have lack of faith? Rubbish! Was Paul suffering from some secret sin that he was carrying around? Do you see how utterly absurd this is? Do you see how it plays on people's emotions and lives? Do you see how it undermines faith in the absolute authority of Scripture and transfers it to a human being whose experience becomes the criteria?

This type of teaching eats like a cancer in the body of Christ and it must be resisted and opposed at every opportunity so that Christians will not have a cloud hanging over their heads all the time. Instead, they will realize that Jesus really does love them (despite their illness) and that any healing that may come is in His sovereign hands, not ours.

A special note of thanks to Bob and Pat Hunter for their help in the preparation of this ASCII file for BBS circulation.

Copyright 1994 by the Christian Research Institute.

DAYS OF NOAH - By Dr. David Hocking

One of the interesting teachings of our Lord Yeshua about prophetic events is the connection He made with the “days of Noah.” He taught that those days of the past will be similar to what will be taking place before the return of our Messiah - Yeshua HaMashiach!

Subject: “THE DAYS OF NOAH”
Scripture: Genesis 6:1-17; Matthew 24:36-44

Matthew 24:37 – “but as the days of Noah were, so shall also the coming of the Son of man be”

WHAT MAKES THE DAYS OF NOAH LIKE THE DAYS WHEN THE MESSIAH WILL RETURN?

1A. POPULATION EXPLOSION – Genesis 6:1
“when men began to multiply on the face of the
earth”

NOTE: Average age of those listed in the first genealogy of Genesis 5 is 857 years (if you exclude Enoch, the number is over 900 years!). It says of them “begat sons and daughters” – at least four children. The total amount of years from Adam to Noah and the flood is 1656 years. If you take the year they began to have children and give at least four children to every person,
in 15 generations we have over one billion people on the planet!

2A. MORAL CORRUPTION – Genesis 6:5, 11a, 12
Matthew 24:12 – “iniquity (lawlessness) will
abound” – cf. II Timothy 3:1-5 – “perilous times”

3A. TERRIBLE VIOLENCE - Genesis 6:11b, 13
cf. II Timothy 3:3 – “fierce” (brutal)

4A. DEMONIC INFILTRATION – Genesis 6:2, 4
cf. I Timothy 4:1 – “seducing spirits and doctrines
of demons” – cf. Jude 6-7 and Revelation 9:20-21

NOTE: The term “sons of God” is used for angels in Job 1:6; 2:1; 38:4-7; Psalm 34:7; Daniel 3:24-25; but, in the NT it is used of believers – John 1:12; I John 3:10

5A. LIMITED OPPORTUNITIES – Genesis 6:3
cf. Matthew 24:42, 44; 25:13; I Peter 3:20;
II Peter 3:8-9

6A. GLOBAL DISASTER – Genesis 6:13, 17
cf. II Peter 3:10-12

7A. PERSONAL SALVATION – Genesis 6:8-10
cf. I Peter 3:20; II Peter 2:9; 3:9
cf. Matthew 24:40-41

Only eight people survived the global deluge of the entire planet in the days of Noah. Noah, his wife, his three sons (Shem, Ham, & Japheth) and their wives.
Yeshua taught us that the way to destruction is a “broad way” (Matthew 7:13-14) and that the way to everlasting life is a “narrow way” and “few” will find it!
The majority of those who say they are believers (Matthew 7:21-23) at the time before the Messiah returns are, in fact, NOT believers! Yeshua will say to them: “Depart from Me, ye workers of iniquity - I NEVER knew you!” Awesome words indeed! May God help us all to be men and women of integrity and honesty, not hypocrisy and manipulation! May we all examine ourselves carefully as to whether or not we are true believers! Is our trust in the Lord Himself and what He has done for us, or are we trusting our own wisdom, works, and profession?

The Truth About the Founder of Christianity

In our increasingly hectic world, it seems as if most men today have substituted convenience for truth. Despite the unhappy exchange there is nothing more important in life than finding truth, nor is there any more valued possession. Throughout history both the famous and men of letters have had some interesting things to say about truth. Consider some examples.

Man passes away; generations are but shadows; there is nothing stable but truth. (Josiah Quincy)

A sincere attachment to truth, moral and scientific, is a habit which cures a thousand little infirmities of mind. (Sydney Smith)

God offers to every mind its choice between truth and repose. (Emerson)

To love the truth is to refuse to let one’s self be saddened by it. (Andre Gide)

So little trouble do men take in their search after truth; so readily do they accept whatever comes first to hand. (Thucydides)

Without truth there is no goodness. (Matthew Henry)

For most of us the truth is no longer part of our minds; it has become a special product for experts. (Jacob Bronowski)

Truth matters more than man.... (George Steiner)1

If knowing truth is in one’s best interest, then the claim of Christianity to have the truth and the claim of Jesus Christ to be the truth is worth investigation.

Introduction: Inquiring Minds

So for those who do not share our Christian worldview, why might they consider openly evaluating the Christian religion?

First, because it is good to do so. As noted, the honest search for truth is one of the most noble philosophical endeavors of life. Plato declared, "Truth is the beginning of every good thing, both in Heaven and on earth; and he who would be blessed and happy should be from the first a partaker of the truth."

Any religion or philosophy that makes convincing claims to having absolute truth is worth consideration because only a few do. More to the point, any religion that claims and produces solid evidence on behalf of an assertion that it alone is fully true is worth serious consideration for that reason alone. But only Christianity does this.

The kind of existence Christianity offers in life is one of deep and abundant satisfaction, regardless of the pain and disappointment we may have to experience. Jesus claimed He would give us what we really want in life—true meaning and purpose now, and everlasting life in a heavenly existence far beyond our current comprehension. The noted Oxford scholar C. S. Lewis correctly understood one of the most heartfelt yearnings of mankind when he wrote, "There have been times when I think we do not desire heaven but more often I find myself wondering whether, in our heart of hearts, we have ever desired anything else."2 Jesus declared, "I came that they might have life and have it abundantly" (John 10:10) and "I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in me will live, even though he dies" (John 11:25). He also said, "I am the truth" (John 14:6).

Everyone likes a good adventure and, this side of death, life is undoubtedly the greatest adventure of all. The reason is obvious. Most people live their lives not knowing why they were born—or what happens when they die. Most moderns would consider it too presumptuous to claim any final answers to the mysteries of life and death. But what if, in spite of all the questions, there really were an answer? What if Jesus Christ claims He is the answer and that anyone who wishes could determine the truth of His claims to their own satisfaction?

Christianity is not just intellectually credible, whether considered philosophically, historically, scientifically, ethically, culturally, etc., but from an evidential perspective, actually superior to other world views, secular or religious.3 If Christianity were obviously false, as some critics charge, how could such esteemed intellectuals as those quoted below logically make their declarations?

Mortimer Adler is one of the world’s leading philosophers. He is chairman of the board of editors for The Encyclopedia Britannica, architect of The Great Books of the Western World series and its phenomenal Syntopicon, director of the prestigious Institute for Philosophical Research in Chicago, and author of Ten Philosophical Mistakes, How to Think About God, plus over twenty other challenging books. He simply asserts, "I believe Christianity is the only logical, consistent faith in the world."4 How could Adler make such a statement? Because he knows it can’t rationally be made of any other religion.

Philosopher, historian, theologian and trial attorney John Warwick Montgomery, holding nine graduate degrees in various fields argues, "The evidence for the truth of Christianity overwhelmingly outweighs competing religious claims and secular world views."5 How could an individual of such intellectual caliber as Dr. Montgomery use a descriptive phrase as "overwhelmingly outweighs" if it were obviously false? His 50 books and 100+ scholarly articles indicate exposure to a wide variety of non-Christian religious and secular philosophies.

The individual widely considered to be the greatest Protestant philosopher of God in the world, Alvin Plantinga, recalls, "For nearly my entire life I have been convinced of the truth of Christianity."6 On what basis can one of the world’s greatest philosophers make such a declaration if the evidence for Christianity is unconvincing?

Dr. Drew Trotter is executive director of the Center for Christian Studies at Charlottesville, VA. He holds a doctorate from Cambridge University. He argues that "logic and the evidence both point to the reality of absolute truth, and that truth is revealed in Christ."7

If we are looking for obvious truths, then perhaps we should consider the words of noted economist and sociologist, George F. Guilder, author of Wealth and Poverty who asserts, "Christianity is true and its truth will be discovered anywhere you look very far."8

Such accolades could be multiplied repeatedly.9 While testimonies per se mean little, if they are undergirded by the weight of evidence, they can hardly be dismissed out of hand.

Indeed, Christianity’s founder, Jesus Christ, is utterly original and totally unique when compared to every other religious leader who has ever lived.10 In addition, the Christian Bible itself is clearly the most influential book in human history.11 The evidence in favor of its divine inspiration and the inerrancy of its autographs is formidable, even to many former skeptics.12 If Jesus Christ and the Christian Scriptures continue to exert an unparalleled influence in the world, shouldn’t they be considered worthy of an impartial investigation? If objective evidence points to Christianity alone being fully true, then it seems that only personal bias can explain a person’s unwillingness to seriously consider the claims of Jesus Christ on their life.

A final reason secularists and those of other religious persuasions should be receptive to Christianity is because we live in an increasingly poisonous age experientially. In our pluralistic and pagan culture, almost anyone is a viable target for conversion to a wide variety of false beliefs which are far more consequential individually than Christianity—from various cults and New Age occultism to solipsism and nihilism. Philosophies of despair and potent occult experiences can convert even those who think they are the least vulnerable: "There is a great deal of research that shows that all people, but especially highly intelligent people, are easily taken in by all kinds of illusions, hallucinations, self-deceptions, and outright bamboozles—all the more so when they have a high investment in the illusion being true."13 In other words, even in this life it is the personal welfare of the non-Christian that may be at risk.

Today, most people who are uninformed about Christ tend to place Him in the same category as other great religious leaders and prophets. They assume He was no different from the rest. Most people also believe that religion everywhere is largely the same and that it doesn’t make a great deal of difference what one believes. A recent poll indicated that even 42 percent of born-again Christians had apparently adopted our culture’s relativistic outlook. They agreed with the following statement: "It does not matter what religious faith you follow because all faiths teach similar lessons about life."14

Those having such an outlook usually assume that all paths lead to the same God. If there is an afterlife, almost everyone is going to get there regardless of his/her beliefs, as long as he/she was not a terribly evil person. So it really doesn’t matter what one believes religiously and, perhaps whether or not one believes at all.

In light of such assumptions, many people wonder if any religious prophet or leader could have final relevance for today. Aren’t these prophets dead and gone? And do their teachings really offer anything unique or special? Can’t their instruction be summed up by the fundamental principles of moral living that everyone already knows? Why should anyone be interested in someone like Jesus when He lived 2,000 years ago and has no apparent relevance for today?

First, no one can logically claim to be a truly educated person if he or she does not understand who Jesus is and the influence He has exerted upon humanity. Christ’s influence in the world and His claims on people’s lives are unparalleled. Jesus Christ is undoubtedly the single most commanding person in the entire history of mankind. Indeed, it is not too much to say that if Jesus Christ had never been born, our entire Western Civilization would not exist as it does (see James Kennedy, What If Jesus Had Never Been Born? (1994). Even His death is unique.

His death, beyond any question of dispute, was the most famous death in human history. No other death has aroused a fraction of such intense feeling over so many hundreds of years…. Few can be passive about Jesus. No other human being has been so loved and so hated, so adored and so despised, so proclaimed and so opposed…. Yet if the records of Jesus are true, then unquestionably there is no greater truth to be found anywhere in the universe.15

Can anyone deny that because of Jesus, Christianity has become the largest religion of the world? That it has a membership of over one and one-half billion? That geographically, it is the most widely diffused of all religions? That it has positively altered individuals, countries, and cultures?

The second reason to be informed about Christ is of paramount importance to each individual personally. As we will see, Jesus Christ makes stupendous claims upon everyone’s life. These claims compel us to conclude that one’s relationship to Christ, or lack of it, will dramatically affect one’s present and future existence. His life is far more vital to our life, as well as the life of our friends and family, than we realize. Jesus Christ is that important, and the evidence backs it up.

What Did Jesus Claim?

The contemplation of things as they are, without substitution or imposture, without error or confusion, is in itself a nobler thing than a whole harvest of invention. —Francis Bacon

Before we proceed, let us illustrate some small portion of the impact Christ has had historically. We will do this by citing the comments of many famous and noted people—kings, scientists, poets, theologians and philosophers.

We will begin with a concise sampling of declarations made by Jesus Himself. In light of these statements, the ones that follow are all the more incredible if Jesus really were not who He claims. As you read the words of Jesus, ask yourself, what kind of man would say them? Remember also that even skeptics can’t logically deny that the four Gospel biographies of Christ are based on accurate historical reporting and that at least three were written by those who knew Christ personally and traveled closely with Him for over three years. Due to advances in textual criticism, it must now be accepted as a historic fact that Jesus said and did what the Gospel writers say He said and did. In other words, when we read the Gospels—Matthew, Mark, Luke and John—we are, in fact, reading what Jesus Himself actually said, taught and did.16 Here is what Jesus said:

I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life. (John 8:12)

I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in Me will live, even though he dies. (John 11:25)

No one has ever gone into heaven except the one who came from heaven—the Son of Man. (John 3:13)

For the bread of God is he who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world…. I am the bread of life. He who comes to me will never go hungry, and he who believes in me will never be thirsty. (John 6:33,35)

"I tell you the truth," Jesus answered, "before Abraham was born, I am!" (John 8:58)

When a man believes in me, he does not believe in me only, but in the one who sent me. When he looks at me, he sees the one who sent me. (John 12:44-5)

You call me "Teacher" and "Lord," and rightly so, for that is what I am. (John 13:13)

And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am. (John 14:3)

…I have overcome the world. (John 16:33)

My teaching is not my own. It comes from him who sent me. If anyone chooses to do God’s will, he will find out whether my teaching comes from God or whether I speak on my own. (John 7:16-17)

I and the Father are one. (John 10:30)

Anyone who has seen me has seen the Father. (John 14:9)

Now, what did Jesus declare of such brazen assertions? Only that, "My testimony is valid," (John 8:14) and "I am the one I claim to be" (John 8:28) and "…You are right in saying I am a king. In fact, for this reason I was born, and for this I came into the world, to testify to the truth. Everyone on the side of truth listens to me" (John 18:37).

Throughout history, untold millions have believed these claims were true. Considering their nature, perhaps that is the amazing thing:

The Apostle John—"This is the disciple who testifies to these things [about Jesus] and who wrote them down. We know that his testimony is true." (John 21:24)

The Apostle Paul—"He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. For by him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things were created by him and for him." (Colossians 1:16-17)

Most significantly, unlike any other religious leader, Jesus frequently appealed to His ability to prove His claims by predicting the future or performing dramatic miracles, such as healing those born blind and raising the dead:

I am telling you now before it happens, so that when it does happen you will believe that I am He. (John 13:19)

Believe me when I say that I am in the Father and the Father is in me; or at least believe on the evidence of the miracles themselves. (John 14:11)

If I had done among them what no one else did, they would not be guilty of sin. But now they have seen these miracles, and yet they have hated both me and my Father. (John 15:24)

What Have Others Said?

Now in light of such claims, consider what informed and great men historically and today—believers and unbelievers alike—have said about Jesus. Could all of them, down to the last man, be mistaken?

Certainly if men and women, as those listed below, felt it was vital to be informed on Jesus Christ, perhaps we should also become informed. Can you read all of the following statements and still believe investigating Jesus is not a worthwhile endeavor?

Blaise Pascal—Jesus Christ is the centre of everything and the object of everything, and he who does not know Him knows nothing of the order of nature and nothing of himself.

Joseph Ernest Renan—Jesus is the cornerstone of humanity. If He were taken away, it would shake the world to its foundations.

Ralph Waldo Emerson—The unique impression of Jesus upon mankind—whose name is not so much written as ploughed into the history of the world—is proof of the subtle virtue of this infusion.

Augustine—Christ is not valued at all unless He be valued above all.

Napoleon Bonaparte—I know men; and I tell you that Jesus Christ is no mere man. Between Him and every other person in the world, there is no possible term of comparison. Alexander, Caesar, Charlemagne, and I have founded empires. But on what did we rest the creations of our genius? Upon force. Jesus Christ founded His empire upon love; and at this hour millions of men would die for Him.

Pope John Paul II— Christ is absolutely original and absolutely unique.17

Robert Louis Stevenson—When Christ came into my life, I came about like a well-handled ship.

Alfred Lord Tennyson—The Lord from Heaven born of a village girl, carpenter’s son, Wonderful, Prince of Peace, the mighty God.

Lew Wallace—After six years given to the impartial investigation of Christianity, as to its truth or falsity, I have come to the deliberate conclusion that Jesus Christ was the Messiah of the Jews, the Savior of the world, and my personal Savior.

H. G. Wells—The Galilean has been too great for our small hearts.

Napoleon Bonaparte—There is not a God in heaven, if a mere man was able to conceive and execute successfully the gigantic design of making Himself the object of supreme worship, by usurping the name of God. Jesus alone dared to do this.

Malcolm Muggeridge—The coming of Jesus into the world is the most stupendous event in human history…. [and] ... What is unique about Jesus is that, on the testimony and in the experience of innumerable people, of all sorts and conditions, of all races and nationalities from the simplest and most primitive to the most sophisticated and cultivated, he remains alive…. That the Resurrection happened… seems to be indubitably true…. Either Jesus never was or he still is…. 18

Albert Einstein—I am enthralled by the luminous figure of the Nazarene.

Sir Lionell Luckhoo—I have spent more than forty-two years as a defense trial lawyer appearing in many parts of the world.... I say unequivocally the evidence for the resurrection of Jesus Christ is so overwhelming that it compels acceptance by proof which leaves absolutely no doubt.19

George Barlow—The example of Christ is supreme in its authority.

Vance Havner— Jesus was the most disturbing person in history.

J. M. Mason—He who thinks he hath no need of Christ hath too high thoughts of himself. He who thinks Christ cannot help him hath too low thoughts of Christ.

G. Campbell Morgan—Everything that is really worthwhile in the morality of today has come to the world through Christ.

Sholam Asch—Jesus Christ is the outstanding personality of all time.... no other teacher—Jewish, Christian, Buddhist, Muhammadan—is still a teacher whose teaching is such a guidepost for the world we live in.... He became the Light of the World. Why shouldn’t I, a Jew, be proud of that?

William E. Biederwolf—A man who can read the New Testament and not see that Christ claims to be more than a man, can look all over the sky at high noon on a cloudless day and not see the sun.

William Ellery Channing—I know of no sincere enduring good but the moral excellency which shines forth in Jesus Christ.

Blaise Pascal—Jesus Christ is the centre of all, and the goal toward which all tends.

Joseph Ernest Renan—Jesus was the greatest religious genius that ever lived. His beauty is eternal, and His reign shall never end. Jesus is in every respect unique, and nothing can be compared with Him. All history is incomprehensible without Christ.

P. Carnegie Simpson—The face of Christ does not indeed show us everything, but it shows the one thing we need to know—the character of God. God is the God who sent Jesus.

Joseph Ernest Renan—Whatever may be the surprises of the future, Jesus will never be surpassed.... all ages will proclaim that among the sons of men there is none born greater than Jesus.

Phillips Brooks—That Christ should be and should be Christ appears the one reasonable, natural, certain thing in all the universe. In Him all broken lines unite; in Him all scattered sounds are gathered into harmony.

Jean Baptiste Lacordaire—Whatever motives Jesus Christ might have had against calling Himself God, He did call Himself God; such is the fact.

William Quayle—This calm assumption of Jesus that He is not a sinner will take hold of the wrists of any thoughtful mind and twist them till it must come to its knees.

Leonce De Grandmaison—Either Jesus was and knew what He was, what He proclaimed Himself to be, or else He was a pitiable visionary.

W. A. Visser’t Hooft—The Christian Church stands or falls with this simple proposition: that Jesus is nothing less than God’s self-communication to men, and the only certain source of our knowledge of God.

Fulton J. Sheen—If we are to find the secret of His Timelessness—the simplicity of His Wisdom, the transforming power of His Doctrine, we must go out beyond time to the Timelessness, beyond the complex to the Perfect, beyond Change to the Changeless, out beyond the margins of the world to the Perfect God.

Dorothy Day—Christ is God or He is the world’s greatest liar and imposter.

Herbert E. Cory—The witnesses for the historical authentication and for the proofs of the Divinity of Jesus, from the earliest days, are far more comprehensive than the testimonies for the existence of many famous historical characters we accept without question.

P. T. Forsyth—An undogmatic Christ is the advertisement of a dying faith.

Charles Lamb—If Shakespeare should come into this room, we would all rise; but if Jesus Christ should come in, we would all kneel.

C. F. Andrews—The supreme miracle of Christ’s character lies in this: that He combines within Himself, as no other figure in human history has ever done, the qualities of every race.

F. R. Barry—The Humanist suggestion that Jesus was "morally right, but religiously mistaken" defies all psychological probabilities.20

This is no mean testimony, but it could be multiplied many times over. Still, there are many people and groups today claiming false things about Jesus, and many others who reject or oppose Him. This includes liberal theologians who reject His deity, cults like Mormons and Jehovah’s Witnesses who claim to honor Him and accept His teachings but do not, and those in other world faiths who reinvent His message to conform to their own.21 Because such misinformation is widespread today, even the one who names the name of Christ needs to be thoroughly versed on what history and Scripture teach about Him and why contrary views are incorrect.

The great Apostle Paul, himself a former skeptic of Christ’s claims and persecutor of Christians, said later to the Colossians that in Christ, "are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge" (Colossians 2:3). He told the Corinthian Church, "For I resolved to know nothing while I was with you except Jesus Christ and Him crucified" (1 Corinthians 2:2). Further, Paul emphasized that he had given them information he regarded "as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, that He was buried, that He was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures and that He appeared to Peter, and then to the twelve. After that, He appeared to more than five hundred of the brothers at the same time…" (1 Corinthians 15:3-6).

The Verdict of History

Truth is truth/to th’ end of reck’ning.—Shakespeare

The truth is always the strongest argument.—Sophocles

As noted, today almost everyone has an opinion of who Jesus Christ is. But these opinions vary widely and are often contradictory. And contrary opinions can’t all be true. How then do we determine who Jesus really is and whether or not He truly is the person of paramount importance He claims to be? The only way is to frankly examine His claims and then see the quality of the evidence which exists to support them. It is our hope that the remainder of this article will help our readers understand the real Jesus Christ.

We can begin by noting that history is defined as follows: "A continuous methodological record of important or public events; past events, those connected to a person or thing… the study of past events, esp. of human affairs" (Oxford American Dictionary). Notice there is no declaration that miracles cannot be part of history, despite their uniqueness. So when we encounter supernatural events in the life of Christ, the only issue is whether or not they occurred. If competent eyewitness testimony indicates miracles happened, then they must be considered part of history. Obviously if God has intervened in history, then miracles could be expected. Thus the true historian should be concerned with what actually did happen, based on careful and impartial investigation of the evidence, not with upholding a bias against the supernatural.

What Does the Bible Teach About Jesus Christ and What Did Jesus Himself Teach About Who He Was?

I am the truth. — Jesus, John 14:6

There are at least seven key things the Bible teaches about Jesus Christ, none of which are claimed as true for the founder of any other religion:

1. Jesus is the prophesied Messiah who was predicted hundreds of years in advance in the Old Testament through very specific prophecies;

2. Jesus is unique in all creation; in all religious history there has never been another like Him;

3. Jesus is virgin born, and morally perfect, i.e., sinless;

4. Jesus is God, the only incarnation of God there is or will be;

5. Jesus is the world’s only savior, who died for our sins on the cross and offers eternal salvation as an entirely free gift;

6. Jesus rose from the dead as proof of His claims;

7. Jesus is the Final Judge: He will return and personally judge every person who has ever lived at the Last Day.

In no other person of history can we see his/her life and nature prophetically outlined 400 to 1,000 years before being born; of no other individual this world has known is it possible to differentiate between their birth and origin or to speculate over their nature. In no other man do we find the audacity to specifically predict His own time and method of death and His rising from the dead. The world has never known any other truly sinless person. No one else ever claimed He would die for man’s sin and would visibly return from heaven to judge the world and decide the eternal fate of every individual.

Let’s briefly examine the above seven points.

1. The Bible teaches that Jesus is the prophesied Messiah predicted centuries in advance in the Old Testament.

It is one thing to wish to have truth on our side, and another to wish sincerely to be on the side of truth.—Richard Whately

The Hebrew Scriptures are unique among those of the world’s religions in that they contain scores of prophecies about a predicted future Messiah. These prophecies extend over a period of 1,000 years and many are given in specific detail. The final prophecy was given 400 years before Christ was ever born. In our book, The Case for Jesus the Messiah, we discuss a dozen of these prophecies in detail, proving that only Jesus Christ fulfills them, and therefore, that only He is the predicted Jewish Messiah22 (cf., John 5:46). For example, in the anguished imagery of King David’s prayers, Psalm 22 accurately describes a crucifixion—yet this description is given hundreds of years before the method of execution by crucifixion was devised. No other Psalm fits the description of Christ’s crucifixion better than Psalm 22, explaining why it is the most frequently quoted Psalm by New Testament writers. Yet this Psalm was written 1000 years before Jesus was born. Jesus Himself quoted the first verse of this Psalm while on the cross. Whatever one thinks of this Psalm, no one can deny that it describes what happened to Jesus on the cross an entire millennium later: "…they have pierced my hands and my feet. I can count all my bones; people stare and gloat over me. They divide my garments among them and cast lots for my clothing" (Psalm 22:16-18; cf. Matthew 27:35).

In Isaiah 9:6-7, the prophecy of the coming Messiah concerns a child to be born who will also be God and who will have an everlasting kingdom. In the Gospels, Jesus claimed that He was that incarnate God and that He would have an everlasting kingdom (Matthew 16:28; 26:64; Luke 22:30; John 6:38-42, 62; 8:42; 10:30, 36-38; 18:36; cf., 2 Peter 1:11).

In Isaiah 53:4-12, the Messiah is prophesied to be crushed and pierced for our transgressions; that God will lay upon Him the iniquity of all mankind. In the gospels, Jesus also claims to fulfill this prophecy (Matthew 20:28; cf. 53:12). In fact, Jesus repeatedly claimed He was the predicted Messiah by continually claiming He was fulfilling Old Testament prophecies: "You diligently study the Scriptures because you think that by them you possess eternal life. These are the Scriptures that testify about me" (John 5:39; see also Matthew 26:24, 54, 56; Luke 24:25-27, 44).

In Micah 5:2, the Messiah is said to be eternal, the ruler over Israel and that He will be born in a very specific location, Bethlehem Ephrathah. No one denies that Jesus Christ was born in Bethlehem Ephrathah and none can logically deny that He claimed He was Israel’s King and the eternal one (John 5:18; 8:58; Mark 14:60-63).

In Daniel 9:24-27, written 500 years before Christ is born, the Messiah is prophesied to be killed at the exact time of Christ’s death.23

In Zechariah 12:10, also written 500 years before Christ, it is prophesied that Jehovah Himself will be pierced by the inhabitants of Jerusalem who will mourn over Him. The Hebrew word means pierced as with a spear, just as Jesus was pierced during His crucifixion (John 19:32,35).

If we look at the list of prophecies we discuss in our book, The Case for Jesus the Messiah, we see that Jesus Christ fulfilled all of them. Remember, the following are predictions made hundreds of years before He was even born:

Genesis 3:15—Jesus defeated Satan but was wounded during the crucifixion.

Genesis 12, 17, 22—He was the literal descendant of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob in whom all the world was blessed.

Deuteronomy 18—He was the "prophet like Moses."

Psalm 22—He was mocked, insulted and crucified. His garments were gambled for and His bones were not broken.

Psalm 110—He was David’s Lord.

Isaiah 53—He was perfectly innocent and without sin, yet He atoned for the sin of the world. He was resurrected from the dead.

Jeremiah 23—Because He was God and "justified many," His proper name is "Jehovah our Righteousness."

Daniel 9—He arrived at the specific time given by the prophecy, 483 years after Artaxerxes’ decree to rebuild Jerusalem.

Micah 5—He was eternal, yet He was born in Bethlehem.

Zechariah 9—He was the King of Israel who brought salvation; He entered Jerusalem riding on a donkey.

Zechariah 12—He was Jehovah, He was pierced.

Malachi 3—John the Baptist prepared the way for Him as He suddenly came to His temple.

Had we space, there are dozens of other prophecies we could discuss that are just as specific.

(1) He would be born of a virgin (Isa. 7:14; see Mt. 1:23).

(2) He would live in Nazareth of Galilee (Isa. 9:1-2; see Mt. 2:23; 4:15).

(3) He would occasion the massacre of Bethlehem’s children (Jer. 31:15; see Mt. 2:18).

(4) His mission would include the Gentiles (Isa. 42:1-3, 6; see Mt. 12:18-21).

(5) His ministry would include physical relief (Isa. 61:1-2; see Lk. 4:16-21).

(6) He would be the Shepherd struck with the sword, resulting in the sheep being scattered (Zech. 13:7; see Mt. 26:31, 56; Mk. 14:27, 49-50).

(7) He would be betrayed by a friend for 30 pieces of silver (Zech. 11:12-13; see Mt. 27:9-10).

(8) He would be given vinegar and gall to drink (Ps. 69:21; see Mt. 27:34).

(9) He would be hated without a cause (Ps. 69:4; Isa. 49:7; Jn. 7:48; Jn. 15:25).

(10) He would be rejected by the rulers (Ps. 118:22; Mt. 21:42; Jn. 7:48).

Who is the only Person who has fulfilled all of these prophecies—and many more?24 Only Jesus Christ. There is no way to avoid this fact. Scholars Delitzsch and Gloag have rightly stated:

So far as we can determine, these prophecies refer to the Messiah only, and cannot be predicated of another. The ancient Jews admit the Messianic character of most of them; although the modern Jews, in consequence of their controversy with the Christians, have attempted to explain them away by applications which must appear to every candid reader to be unnatural... these and other predictions have received their accomplishment in Jesus of Nazareth,... the combination of prophecies is sufficient to prove that Jesus is the Messiah;...25

In fact, as we show in our book, the calculations of mathematical probability reveal these prophecies could only have been fulfilled in the manner they were through the power and omniscience of a sovereign God. The odds of any one man fulfilling just 48 of them are 1 in 10157—infinitely beyond the limits of probability.26

Remember, in John 4:25-26 and Mark 14:61-64, Jesus Himself clearly claimed He was the prophesied Messiah. In order to disprove this claim, one only needs to find a single prophecy (out of scores in the Old Testament) that proves Jesus was wrong. Because no one has yet done this and because Jesus filled all of the prophecies relating to His incarnation, and because He resurrected from the dead, no one can logically deny that He was and is the prophesied Jewish Messiah.

2. Jesus is unique in all the creation and all religious history; there has never been another like Him.

It is morally as bad not to care whether a thing is true or not, so long as it makes you feel good, as it is not to care how you got your money so long as you have got it.—Edwin Way Teale

Truth, like surgery, may hurt, but it cures. —Han Suyin

The average non-Christian, and even many Christians, have little understanding of how unique Jesus really is. Messianic prophecy is only a small part of Jesus’ uniqueness. In all the world and throughout all history, there has never been anyone like Him. There never can be. One only needs to read His words in the Gospel to plainly see this.

Anyone who wishes can also read the world’s greatest religious and philosophical literature—the Analects of Confucius, the Qur’an of Muhammad, the Vedas of the Hindus, the teachings of the Buddha, or of Taoism, Shinto, Zoroaster or any of the great philosophers like Plato, Socrates, Wittgenstein, Aristotle, Descarte, Hume, Bacon—or any of the greatest scientific minds such as Einstein. One who does this will realize that they all pale in comparison to the words of Jesus. One could argue that all the literature of the world combined hardly matches the quality, character, uniqueness and truth of the words of Jesus, because, compared to the words of Jesus, the words of anyone else are almost lifeless. The light bulb and sun, the glass of water and the ocean, or the atom and the universe; even these comparisons seem in ways inadequate. Indeed, one cannot gauge the gap adequately: it is a chasm that literally separates the infinite from the finite even as the words of God are separated from the words of men. If Jesus really is God incarnate, then this is what one expects. Listen to the response of those who actually heard Him speak, believer and unbeliever, friend and enemy alike:

You have the words of eternal life. We believe and know that you are the Holy One of God. (John 6:67-69)

The Jews were amazed and asked, "How did this man get such learning without having studied?" (John 7:15)

"No one ever spoke the way this man does," the guards declared. (John 7:46)

Those with open and closed minds alike should frankly study His words if for no other reason than to prove their uniqueness. Reverent study of the words of Christ and comparison to any or all other religious teachings should logically make one a follower of Jesus.

The Bible also teaches that there is no one who has ever lived who is like Jesus. In John 3:16-18, Jesus declares:

For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through Him. Whoever believes in Him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because he has not believed in the name of God’s one and only Son.

The words translated "one and only" are translated from the Greek monogenes, which literally means "one of a kind." This word emphasizes the unique nature of the one spoken of. In all human history there is no one else like Jesus because only Jesus is the literal Son of God. In John 5:18, where Jesus called God His (very) own Father, the Greek term means God the Father exists "in a special relation to Jesus which excludes the same relationship to others."27

Because Jesus Christ is God’s only Son, the Apostle Paul discusses His supremacy and preeminence over all creation:

He [Jesus] is the image of the invisible God, the first born over all creation. For by Him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authority; all things were created by Him and for Him. He is before all things and in Him all things hold together. And He is the head of the body, the church; He is the beginning and the First Born from among the dead, so that in everything He might have the supremacy. (Colossians 1:15-18)

The Greek word translated "image" is eikon. Like the word charakter in Hebrews 1:3, it means Jesus is the express image of, or of identical nature with, God. Further, when Jesus is described as the first born over all creation, the word translated "first born" is prototokos and stands in contrast to ktizo (created). By using the word prototokos, the Apostle Paul was emphasizing Christ’s preeminence, priority and sovereignty over all creation, as the context reveals. Paul was not stating, as Jehovah’s Witnesses and some others have maintained, in the attempt to deny Christ’s deity, that Jesus literally came into existence at some point in time. If that had been His intent, He would have used appropriate Greek words teaching that Christ had a beginning.

If the Bible itself teaches that Christ is unique, that there never has been and never will be another like him; if Christ’s own teachings, actions, character and resurrection prove this is true, and if one-fourth to one-half of the world has recognized this fact to varying degrees, then the burden of proof must clearly rest with the critic to prove otherwise. Isn’t it significant that in 2,000 years no critic ever has?

When we consider all the great religious teachers, leaders, and prophets who have ever lived, who is the equal of Jesus? Not Moses, Confucius, Buddha, or Lao Tse (Taoism), who never claimed to be anything other than sinful men. Not Muhammad, Joseph Smith, Zoroaster or Guru Nanak (Sikhism) who never gave any proof they were true prophets of God. Not Brahma, Vishnu, Shiva, or Krishna who were only myths.

If we examine the specific claims of such individuals, we find none of them claims what Jesus does. In The Qur’an the Muslim prophet Muhammad states, "Surely I am no more than a human apostle."28 In fact, Muhammad is acknowledged as sinful and asks forgiveness from God—is even rebuked by God—several times.29

If Muhammad confessed he was sinful, Jesus claimed He was sinless. If Muhammad only claimed to be a prophet of God, Jesus claimed to be God. If Muhammad was rebuked by God, Jesus was never rebuked by God; in fact, He said, "I always do what pleases Him" (John 8:29).

The Buddha simply claimed to be an enlightened man, one who could show others how to escape the duality of this world and find eternal release from suffering in a state of individual nonexistence called "nirvana." After his alleged enlightenment, the Buddha said he realized the importance of maintaining an attitude of equanimity towards all things because this attitude helps one to end the cycle of rebirth, attain permanent release from the human condition and "enter" nirvana:

Monks, I’m a Brahmana [enlightened being], one to ask a favor of, ever clean-handed, wearing my last body…. I am inexorable, bear no love nor hatred toward anyone…. I have the same feelings for respectable people as for the low; or moral persons as for the immoral; for the depraved as for those who observe the rules of good conduct…. You disciples, do not affirm that the Lord Buddha reflects thus within himself, "I bring salvation to every living being." Subhuti entertain no such delusive thought! Because in reality there are no living beings to whom the Lord Buddha can bring salvation.30

Houston Smith in The Religions of Man comments about the Buddha,

Notwithstanding his own objectivity toward himself, there was constant pressure during his lifetime to turn him into a god. He rebuffed all these categorically, insisting that he was human in every respect. He made no attempt to conceal his temptations and weaknesses, how difficult it had been to attain enlightenment, how narrow the margin by which he had won through, how fallible he still remained.31

If Buddha claimed merely a personal enlightenment designed to escape human nature, Jesus claimed (in His own nature) to be the Light of the world. If Buddha claimed it was wrong to consider him one who brings salvation to men because men, having no permanent reality, do not finally exist, Jesus taught that He came to bring salvation to all men and to dignify their existence eternally. If the Buddha promised to give others enlightenment so that they might find nirvana, a state of personal dissolution in the afterlife, Jesus promised to give men abundant life and eternal immortality in heaven. If Buddha had the same feelings for good and evil, Jesus exalted righteousness and hated evil.

Confucius said, "As to being a Divine Sage or even a Good Man, far be it for me to make any such claim."32 If Confucius denied that he was divine or even a good man, Jesus claimed He was divine and morally perfect.

We can proceed to examine all the world’s major religions in detail and never find anyone like Jesus. Not in Hinduism, Jainism, Sikhism, Confucianism, Buddhism, Taoism, Shinto, Judaism, Zoroasterism, Islam, or any other religion. Zoroaster only claimed to be a prophet, "I was ordained by Thee at the first. All others I look upon with hatred of spirit."33 Lao-tze and Guru Nanak sum up the attitude, at one time or another, of all the great religious founders when they confessed their humanity and even their ignorance. For example, Lao-tze the founder of Taoism said, "I alone appear empty. Ignorant am I, O so ignorant! I am dull!… I alone am confused, so confused!"34 Even in the latter part of his life, Guru Nanak, the founder of Sikhism still struggled to achieve enlightenment and lamented over his own spiritual darkness, "I have become perplexed in my search. In the darkness I find no way. Devoted to pride, I weep in sorrow…. How shall deliverance be obtained?"35

In The World’s Living Religions, Professor of the History of Religions, Robert Hume comments that there are three features of Christian faith that "cannot be paralleled anywhere among the religions of the world."36 These include the character of God as a loving heavenly Father, the character of the founder of Christianity as the Son of God, and the work of the Holy Spirit. Further,

All of the nine founders of religion, with the exception of Jesus Christ, are reported in their respective sacred scriptures as having passed through a preliminary period of uncertainty, or of searching for religious light…. All the founders of the non-Christian religions evinced inconsistencies in their personal character; some of them altered their practical policies under change of circumstances. Jesus Christ alone is reported as having had a consistent God-consciousness, a consistent character himself, and a consistent program for his religion.37

If the claims of men mean anything, or have any implications, and, certainly they must, whether true or false, then no one else in history ever claimed and did what Jesus did.

Again, Jesus is absolutely unique in the claims He makes for Himself. He says, "I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life" (John 8:12). How many other men have ever said that? Jesus said, "I am the way, the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me" (John 14:6). How many other men have ever said that? As we saw, Jesus even claimed that 1500 years before His birth, Moses wrote about Him and further, that the entire Old Testament bore witness to Him (John 6:46-47; Luke 24:27, 44).

Jesus commanded men to love Him in the exact same way that they love God—with all their heart, soul, and mind (Matthew 22:37-38). Jesus said that God the Holy Spirit would bear witness of Him and glorify Him (John 16:14). Who ever made such a claim? Jesus said that to know Him was to know God (John 14:7). To receive Him was to receive God (Matthew 10:40). To honor Him was to honor God (John 5:23). To believe in Him was to believe in God (John 12:44-45; 14:1). To see Him was to see God (John 8:19; 14:7). To deny Him was to deny God (1 John 2:23). To hate Him was to hate God (John 15:23). Did any other men in history ever made such statements?

In Mark 2, Jesus claimed He could forgive sins—something all religions concede is reserved to God alone. In John 10:28 and 11:25, He said He could give all who believed on Him eternal life. How can a mere man, indeed anyone less than God—give eternal life to creatures who die? Yet Jesus raised the dead even in front of His enemies—not in some dark alley, but before scores of eye witnesses (Luke 7:11-15; 8:41-42, 49-56; John 11:43-44). Who else ever did that? He did other miracles that amazed those who saw them.

"We have never seen anything like this!" (Mark 2:12). "Nobody has ever heard of opening the eyes of a man born blind." (John 9:32)

In Matthew 25, He said that He would actually return at the end of the world and that He Himself would judge every person who ever lived; that He would personally raise all the dead of history and that all the nations would be gathered before Him! Who ever said that? He would sit on His throne of glory and judge and separate men from one another as a shepherd does the sheep from the goats (Matthew 25:31-46; cf. John 5:25-34). Just as clearly, Jesus taught that every person’s eternal destiny depended upon how they treated Him (John 8:24; Matthew 10:32). Jesus said, "You are from below, I am from above; you are of this world, I am not of this world" (John 8:23).

All these statements and many more like them, leave us little choice. Either Jesus was who He said He was—God incarnate—or else He was absolutely crazy. But who can believe that?

3. The Bible teaches that Jesus Christ is virgin born and sinless.

Many people today scoff at the idea of Jesus’ Virgin Birth. But the Virgin Birth of Christ is one of the most crucial doctrines of Christianity. In fact, if Jesus were not virgin born, there would be no Christianity. Why? First, if Jesus is not virgin born, then He was born just like every other man. This would prove He was only a man. But if so, then His claim to be God was a lie and He was self-deceived. In other words, if He was only a man, He could never be the incarnation of God, as He claimed.

Further, if Christ was not virgin born, He could not have been the Savior of the world. As a man, He would have inherited a sinful nature from His parents. But if He Himself were sinful, He could not have been an atoning sacrifice for the sins of the whole world (1 John 2:2). If He were only a man, how could His sacrifice on the cross, the sacrifice of a mere finite being, satisfy the infinite justice of a holy God offended by human sin and evil? Only if Christ was both sinless man and fully deity could He properly serve as the atoning sacrifice for the world’s sins in the face of an infinitely holy God. Therefore, the Virgin Birth not only undergirds the doctrine of Christ’s deity, it also undergirds the doctrine of Christ’s sinlessness and His role as the world’s Savior.

But does the Bible clearly teach that Jesus was born of a virgin? Yes. In Isaiah 7:14, written 700 years before Christ was born, it prophesies, "Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign: The virgin will be with child and give birth to a son, and will call him Immanuel." The word Immanuel means "God with us." When Matthew describes the birth of Christ from the Virgin Mary, he declares this prophecy of Isaiah was fulfilled in Jesus, "All this took place to fulfill what the Lord has said through the prophet [Isaiah]: The virgin [parthenos] will be with child and will give birth to a son, and they will call Him "Immanuel"—which means, "God with us" (Matthew 1:22-23). The Greek word parthenos means only one thing in the New Testament: virgin.

Because Jesus was virgin born, He was also sinless. He even challenged His own enemies to prove otherwise—"Can any of you prove me guilty of sin?," He asked (John 8:46). In John 7:18 Jesus said, "He who speaks on his own does so to gain honor for himself, but he who works for the honor of the one who sent him is a man of truth; there is nothing false about him." The apostles who lived intimately with Jesus for three years were able to examine His life in critical detail. Their unanimous confession was that Jesus was sinless. Peter said He was "one who committed no sin" (1 Peter 1:19). The Apostle John said, "And in Him is no sin" (1 John 3:5). Even the former skeptic, the Apostle Paul, said of Jesus, "He knew no sin" (2 Corinthians 5:21). The author of Hebrews said that Jesus was "holy, blameless, pure, set apart from sinners" as well as "one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are—yet without sin" (Hebrews 4:15; 7:26). The Roman governor Pilate, after examining Jesus, said he could find no fault in Him (John 18:38; Matthew 27:23-5; Luke 23:13). Herod concluded the same (Luke 23:13-15). Even Judas, who betrayed Him, confessed, "I have sinned in betraying innocent blood" (Matthew 27:4).

No one can logically deny reliable eyewitness testimony and the other evidence that shows Jesus is the only perfect and sinless man who ever lived. But if Jesus was perfect and sinless, shouldn’t we assume that what He has to say is important to us, regardless of what we may now think about Him?

4. The Bible teaches that Jesus is God—the only incarnation of God there is or ever will be.

The high-minded man must care more for the truth than for what people think.—Aristotle

Because Jesus Himself so clearly claimed that He was God incarnate, the other authors of the New Testament writings stress this unparalleled assertion. First, Jesus clearly claimed to be God. In John 10:30, he said, "I and the Father are one." The word "one" in the Greek (hen), according to Greek authority A. T. Robertson, means not just one in the sense of agreement, but that Jesus was saying He and God are "one essence or nature."38

Second, Jesus’ claim to be God was understood by all men, including His enemies. Jesus said, "I showed you many good works from the Father; for which of them are you stoning me?" (John 10:32). The response of His enemies was, "… because you, being a man, make yourself out to be God" (John 10:33). In John 8:58, Jesus said, "Before Abraham was born, I am." The Greek is ego eimi. Jesus was referring to Exodus 3:13-14 where God identified Himself as the "I am". Jesus applied the unique divine name to Himself, not only on this occasion but many others. That His hearers understood His claim to be God is evident when they again tried to stone Him to death (John 8:59).

His continual identification of Himself with God and His ascribing to Himself divine prerogatives and attributes leave us little choice. Jesus clearly claimed He was the God of the universe: "‘My Father is always at his work to this very day, and I, too, am working.’ For this reason the Jews tried all the harder to kill him; not only was he breaking the Sabbath, but he was even calling God his own Father, making himself equal with God." (John 5:17-18)

5. The Bible teaches that Jesus Christ is the world’s only Savior who died for our sins on the cross and who offers eternal salvation as an entirely free gift.

In spite of the many claims by people today that there are many saviors, many "gurus," and many ways to God, Jesus Himself taught that He alone was the way to God. He declared, "I am the way, the truth and the life, no man comes unto the Father but by Me" (John 14:6). He emphasized, "I tell you the truth, I am the gate for the sheep…. I am the gate; whoever enters through me will be saved…. I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full. I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep" (John 10:7-11).

Jesus clearly claimed that He was an atoning sacrifice for the world’s sin, "…the Son of Man did not come to be served but to serve and to give his life as a ransom for many" (Matthew 20:28); "This is my blood of the covenant which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins" (Matthew 26:28). Because Jesus is the only incarnation of God, God’s only begotten Son, when He died on the cross for human sin, He became the only possible way of salvation for men and women.

In other words, no one else paid the penalty of divine justice against human sin. This is why the Bible teaches, "Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved" (Acts 4:12). Further, "This is good, and pleases God our Savior, who wants all men to be saved and come to a knowledge of the truth. For there is one God and one mediator between God and man, the man Christ Jesus, who gave Himself as a ransom for all men—the testimony given in its proper time" (1 Timothy 2:3-6). Perhaps all this is why Jesus Himself warned, "…if you do not believe that I am the one I claim to be, you will indeed die in your sins" (John 8:24).

In addition, Christ offers a salvation unlike that in any other religion. Forgiveness of sins and eternal life are freely given without cost to the benefactor. Indeed, Jesus claimed that He would personally raise the dead and give eternal life to those who believed on Him:

For my Father’s will is that everyone who looks to the Son and believes in him shall have eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day. (John 6:40)

For just as the Father raises the dead and gives them life, even so the Son gives life to whom he is pleased to give it. (John 5:21)

I tell you the truth, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life and will not be condemned; he has crossed over from death to life. (John 5:24)

I tell you the truth, he who believes has everlasting life. (John 6:47)

This righteousness from God comes through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe. There is no difference, for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God and are justified freely by his grace through redemption that came by Christ Jesus. (Romans 3:22-24)

…he saved us, not because of righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy (Titus 3:5)

In the history of men, nothing like this has ever been proclaimed outside Christianity. As Martin Luther once noted, there are only two religions in the world—the religion of works and the religion of grace.

Some people may find it difficult to believe that among all the world religions, Christ alone is the way to God, and that men must believe in Him for salvation if they are to be saved. But if Jesus was correct when He said, "All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me" (Matthew 28:18), then no other option remains. Even a brief examination of what other religions teach indicates the necessity for such a conclusion. Regardless, this exclusivism is not as difficult as it seems at first glance, nor is it disharmonious with our general experience in life. Usually for success in an endeavor, the important things in life must be done properly.

6. The Bible teaches Jesus rose from the dead.

He who does not bellow the truth when he knows the truth makes himself the accomplice of liars and forgers. — Charles Peguy

If Jesus is the only man in the history of the world to rise from the dead, then who can ignore Him? This would be foolish. After all, if what Christ claimed for Himself is really true, it means one thing—that He is Himself God and the only way to God. If, in this life, it is vitally important for each of us to find and know God personally, then it is Jesus Himself who is vitally important to us.

How do we know Jesus rose from the dead? In previous articles we examined the testimony of both former skeptics and leading lawyers throughout history and today. All concluded that the evidence for the truth of Christianity and its view of Jesus and His resurrection was compelling. The formerly committed skeptics abandoned their skepticism and embraced Christ as their risen Lord and Savior—no mean testimony. The lawyers unanimously declared the evidence for Jesus’ resurrection would stand cross-examination, even in a modern court of law. Again, no mean testimony.

Men of such skepticism and intellectual caliber as those cited simply do not believe in Christianity unless it really is true. So whether one is a Christian or a non-Christian, given the claims of Christ and the historical reality of His resurrection, one cannot logically maintain that Christ is irrelevant to one’s life.

On numerous occasions Jesus predicted His own crucifixion, down to the very day (Matthew 26:2). He also predicted His subsequent resurrection three days later (Matthew 17:22-23; Mark 8:31; Luke 18:31-33; John 2:19, 22). Before any of the events had occurred, Jesus predicted no less than ten specific prophecies about His death and resurrection, all of which came true (See Do the Resurrection Accounts Conflict? And What Proof Is There That Jesus Rose From the Dead?, p. 110).

Even critics agree Jesus was crucified and died at Roman hands and that the location of His tomb was public knowledge. Nor can anyone logically deny that a 1-2 ton stone was rolled over the face of the grave or that a trained military guard was set at the grave to prevent anyone from stealing the body. But again, even critics agree the tomb was found empty Sunday morning.

Further, no theory to explain this fact has ever proved satisfactory except the Christian one. In part, this is because of the numerous resurrection appearances of Christ after His death. He appeared to many different people—to disciples who did not believe it at first, to a crowd of 500, to selected individuals. He appeared to them in many different ways, locations and circumstances. These appearances eventually compelled belief.

It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to conclude that if Christ had died (and everyone agreed He did) and if He was seen alive by large numbers of credible eyewitnesses (and this cannot logically be doubted), then the Christian view of the resurrection is established. Indeed, for a variety of reasons, Christianity could not have arisen apart from Christ’s resurrection. The very existence of the Christian religion is proof of the resurrection.

7. The Bible teaches that Jesus is the final judge: The One who will personally and visibly return to earth and judge every person who has ever lived on the Last Day.

The modern world, because it is indifferent to dogmatic truth, has logically become indifferent to ethical truth —Bertrand L. Conway

Pure truth, like pure gold, has been found unfit for circulation, because men have discovered that it is far more convenient to adulterate the truth than to refine themselves. —Charles Caleb Colton

Because Jesus is God, and because He was the very one who died for the world’s sin, He is also the one who will judge each man and woman who has ever lived and make the final determination of each one’s destiny. This was the claim of Jesus Himself:

Moreover, the Father judges no one, but has entrusted all judgment to the Son, that all may honor the Son just as they honor the Father. He who does not honor the Son does not honor the Father who sent Him. I tell you the truth, whoever hears my Word and believes Him who sent Me has eternal life and will not be condemned; he has crossed over from death to life. I tell you the truth, a time is coming and has now come when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God and those who hear will live…. do not be amazed at this, for a time is coming when all who are in their graves will hear His voice and come out—and those who have done good will rise to live, and those who have done evil will rise to be condemned. (John 5:21-29)

Jesus also taught:

When the Son of Man comes in His glory, and all the angels with Him, He will sit on His throne in heavenly glory. All the nations will be gathered before Him, and He will separate the people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. He will put the sheep on His right and goats on His left. Then the King will say to those on His right, "Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world…." Then He will say to those on his left, "depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels…." Then they will go away to eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternal life." (Matthew 25:31-34, 41, 46)

These teachings of Jesus are why the New Testament emphasizes the fact that Christ will judge the entire world. The Apostle Paul referred to his living "In the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who will judge the living and the dead,…" (2 Timothy 4:1). The Apostle Peter emphasized that God "commanded us to preach to the people and to testify that He [Jesus] is the One who God appointed as judge of the living and the dead" (Acts 10:42).

Indeed, God promises each of us that the proof of coming judgment can be had in Christ’s resurrection. In other words, the future judgment is just as certain as Christ’s own resurrection: "In the past God overlooked such ignorance, but now he commands all people everywhere to repent. For he has set a day when he will judge the world with justice by the man he has appointed. He has given proof of this to all men by raising him from the dead" (Acts 17:30-31). Indeed, the Bible has warned all men:

We must pay more careful attention, therefore, to what we have heard, so that we do not drift away. For if the message spoken by angels was binding, and every violation and disobedience received its just punishment, how shall we escape if we ignore such a great salvation? This salvation which was first announced by the Lord, was confirmed to us by those who heard him. God also testified to it by signs, wonders and various miracles, and gifts of the Holy Spirit distributed according to his will…. Nothing in all creation is hidden from God’s sight. Everything is uncovered and laid bare before the eyes of him to whom we must give account. (Hebrews 2:1-4; 4:13)

In light of this, perhaps non-Christians should reconsider the "win-win wager" of the philosopher Pascal: If the Christian God does not exist, the Christian loses nothing by believing in God; if God does exist and he believes, he gains everything in eternal life.

Of course, if God exists and the non-Christian rejects Him, then everything is forfeited in hell. There will be nothing worse for the unbeliever if Christianity turns out to be true: "What good will it be for a man if he gains the whole world, yet forfeits his soul? Or what can a man give in exchange for his soul?" (Matthew 16:26-27)



Let’s now summarize a few key conclusions and offer a final illustration of why Jesus Christ does not leave us any option other than making Him our Lord and Savior.

1. Was Jesus unique when compared to anyone else?

2. Did He establish His claim to be the prophesied Jewish Messiah and God incarnate?

3. Did He resurrect from the dead?

4. Have a large number of former skeptics and those expertly trained in evaluating truth claims and the quality of evidence declared He did?

The answer to these questions is an undeniable yes.

If Jesus is God incarnate, utterly unique, and rose from the dead as proof of His claims, then who is there that will escape a personal appointment with Him? All will either face Him as Savior or Judge. It’s not an issue of what anyone thinks, it’s entirely an issue of who Jesus is.

To establish their counterclaims, skeptics (or higher critics that run theological lotteries like the so-called "Jesus Seminar") have to provide real evidence in support of their beliefs, not merely conjecture, biased opinions or foolishness. One can only wonder why it is that in 2,000 years some of the best minds humanity can muster have never been able to prove their skeptical theories, or even to offer a reasonable defense of them? For example, look at the alternate theories put forth to explain away the resurrection—despite their cleverness they constitute, quite literally, nonsense. The problem is not that arguments against Christianity never seem convincing initially, it’s that they aren’t convincing at all when examined in light of the contrary evidence. Dr. John Warwick Montgomery comments about higher criticism what is also true for skeptical theories generally,

I have pointed out again and again that such "assured results" are non-existent, that redaction criticism, documentary criticism, and historical-critical methods have been weighed in the balance of secular scholarship and found wanting, and that the burden of proof remains on those who want to justify these subjectivistic methods, not on those who take historical documents at face value when their primary-source character can be established by objective determination of authorship and date.39

What Options Do We Have?

Truth is tough. It will not break, like a bubble, at a touch; nay, you may kick it about all day like a football, and it will be round and full at evening.—Oliver Wendell Holmes, Sr.

If Jesus was the God of this universe who visited this planet in the form of a man, then He must command our attention and respect. Indeed, our worship and obedience. It is significant that when all one’s options concerning Jesus are critically examined, one can only conclude that Jesus really was God.

There are only four logical choices we have concerning Jesus Christ. As we examine the following material, the reader should decide for himself the one option most likely to be true: 1) Jesus Christ was a liar and deceiver. 2) He was insane, mentally ill or a lunatic. 3) He was only a legend fabricated by the disciples. 4) Jesus Christ was and is who He claimed to be—incarnate Lord and God. As we proceed to examine these four options, we shall demonstrate that the fourth alternative is the only one that a thinking person can possibly arrive at.

1) Was Jesus a liar and deceiver?

As far as we know, no one of sound mind has ever seriously maintained this. Even the most fanatical atheists have not said it. Jesus’ ethical teachings are the highest man has and His personal moral character was unblemished. Even His enemies could not convict Him of sin, dishonesty or deceit.

It is morally impossible that someone of the highest ethical character would knowingly deceive people concerning the most vital aspect of his teaching—his own identity. Even the great nineteenth century British historian, W. E. H. Lecky, a committed opponent of organized Christianity, wrote the following sentiments about Jesus which have been repeated many times over the centuries by men of all and no religious persuasion. In his History of European Morals from Augustus to Charlemagne he said:

It was reserved for Christianity to present to the world an ideal character which through all the changes of eighteen centuries has inspired the hearts of men with an impassioned love; has shown itself capable of acting on all ages, nations, temperaments and conditions; has been not only the highest pattern of virtue, but the strongest incentive to its practice, and has exerted so deep an influence, that it may be truly said, that the simple record of three short years of active life has done more to regenerate and to soften mankind, than all the disquisitions of philosophers and than all the exhortations of moralists.40

Who then, can imagine that Jesus deliberately lied concerning His own nature? And is it possible that a man of such noble character and exemplary moral persuasion would frequently claim He would rise from the dead, knowing this was a lie? Contemporary philosopher and theologian John Warwick Montgomery asserts, "To answer anything but an unqualified ‘No’ is to renounce sound ethical judgment."41

Eminent historian Philip Schaff argues:

How, in the name of logic, common sense, and experience, could an imposter—that is, a deceitful, selfish, depraved man—have invented, and consistently maintained from the beginning to end, the purest and noblest character known in history with the most perfect air of truth and reality? How could he have conceived and successfully carried out a plan of unparalleled beneficence, moral magnitude, and sublimity, and sacrificed his own life for it, in the face of the strongest prejudices of his people and age?42

No one can logically maintain Jesus was a liar and deceiver. Alternative one is ruled out.

2) Was Jesus a lunatic, a man so deluded He must be classified as mentally ill?

Was Jesus mentally ill or psychotic? Mental illness or psychosis is defined as an inability to identify reality and to distinguish it from fantasy. The fifth edition of Introduction to Psychology, describes psychosis in this way: "the psychotic has to some extent given up [his personal] struggle [to cope with reality] and lost contact with reality. He may withdraw into his own fantasy world… frequently his thought processes are disturbed to the extent that he experiences delusions (false beliefs) or hallucinations…."43

For someone to be convinced that he is God when he is only a man is the height of psychosis. Was Jesus so psychologically crippled that He had deceived Himself into believing that He was God Incarnate—even though He was only a deluded man? But what insane man could ever deliver a self-portrait and teachings that are the epitome of mental health? Psychiatrist J. T. Fisher observes:

If you were to take the sum total of all authoritative articles ever written by the most qualified of psychologists and psychiatrists on the subject of mental hygiene, if you were to combine them and refine them and cleave out the excess verbiage—if you were to take the whole of the meat and none of the parsley, and if you were to have the unadulterated bits of pure scientific knowledge concisely expressed by the most capable of living poets, you would have an awkward and incomplete summation of the Sermon on the Mount. And it would suffer immeasurably through comparison. For nearly two thousand years the Christian world has been holding in its hands the complete answer to its restless and fruitless yearnings. Here… rests the blueprint for successful human life with optimum mental health and contentment.44

Dr. John Warwick Montgomery further explains:

But one cannot very well have it both ways: if Jesus’ teachings provide "the blueprint for successful human life with optimum mental health," then the teacher cannot be a lunatic who totally misunderstands the nature of his own personality. Note the absolute dichotomy: if the documentary records of Jesus’ life are accurate, and Jesus was not a charlatan, then he was either God Incarnate as he claimed or a psychotic. If we cannot take the latter alternative (and, considering its consequences, who really can follow this path to its logical conclusion?), we must arrive at a Jesus who claimed to be God Incarnate simply because he was God.45

No man can logically maintain Jesus was psychotic. Alternative two is ruled out.

3) Was Jesus a legend invented by the disciples?

This assertion is hardly worth a glance. Everyone but a few diehard atheists agree He was not. No less an authority than the Encyclopedia Britannica points out, "These independent [non-Christian] accounts prove that in ancient times even the opponents of Christianity never doubted the historicity of Jesus, which was disputed for the first time and on inadequate grounds by several authors at the end of the 18th, during the 19th, and at the beginning of the 20th centuries."46

This theory requires that the disciples falsely invented Jesus’ teachings and lied about His Resurrection. Such men must be classified as deceivers or lunatics. But this is impossible because none of the disciples had either the motive or the ability to invent Jesus. There was no reason for them to do so, nor were they capable of inventing such a being portrayed in the Gospels. No one could invent such a being. Historian Philip Schaff again argues:

This testimony [of the disciples], if not true, must be downright blasphemy or madness. The former hypothesis cannot stand a moment before the moral purity and dignity of Jesus, revealed in his every word and work, and acknowledged by universal consent. Self-deception in a matter so momentous, and with an intellect in all respects so clear and so sound, is equally out of the question. How could he be an enthusiast or a madman who never lost the even balance of his mind, who sailed serenely over all the troubles and persecutions, as the sun above the clouds, who always returned the wisest answer to tempting questions, who calmly and deliberately predicted his death on the cross, his resurrection on the third day, the outpouring of the Holy Spirit, the founding of his Church, the destruction of Jerusalem—predictions which have been literally fulfilled? A character so original, so complete, so uniformly consistent, so perfect, so human and yet so high above all human greatness, can be neither a fraud nor a fiction. The poet, as has been well said, would in this case be greater than the hero. It would take more than a Jesus to invent a Jesus.47

Again, the disciples would not and could not have engaged in such deliberate fraud. First, they did not expect their Messiah to rise from the dead; and once Jesus was crucified, they had abandoned their hopes that He was their Messiah. Further, their own Jewish ethical code and moral character would have prevented such a massive conspiratorial deception. But even if we thrust aside their ethical standards, the disciples were psychologically incapable of such fraud when they had no motive. As Montgomery points out, Jewish Messianic speculation was at variance with the Messianic picture Jesus gave of Himself; therefore, He was a singularly poor candidate for actual deification on the part of the disciples. Finally, the disciples’ own Jewish faith would have prohibited them from deifying Jesus unless the resurrection had already proved beyond any question that it was true.

It is impossible that the historical evidence for the Resurrection could ever have been manufactured or invented.48 Alternative three is ruled out. Only one alternative remains.

4) Was Jesus Lord and God?

It is impossible to maintain that Jesus was either a liar, a lunatic, or a legend. Our only option is that He was both Lord and God. This is why the famous Oxford scholar C. S. Lewis concluded:

The historical difficulty of giving for the life, sayings and influence of Jesus any explanation that is not harder than the Christian explanation, is very great. The discrepancy between the depth and sanity and (let me add) shrewdness of his moral teaching and the rampant megalomania which must be behind his theological teaching unless he is indeed God, has never been satisfactorily gotten over. Hence, the non-Christian hypotheses succeed one another with the restless fertility of bewilderment.49

Elsewhere, Lewis expands on the idea and shows why the non-Christian really has no logical alternative but to accept that Jesus is God:

"I’m ready to accept Jesus as a great moral teacher, but I don’t accept his claim to be God." That is the one thing we must not say. A man who was merely a man and said the sort of things Jesus said would not be a great moral teacher. He would either be a lunatic—on a level with the man who says he is a poached egg—or else he would be the Devil of Hell. You must make your choice. Either this man was, and is, the Son of God; or else a madman or something worse. You can shut him up for a fool, you can spit at him and kill him as a demon; or you can fall at his feet and call him Lord and God. But let us not come with any patronizing nonsense about his being a great human teacher. He has not left that open to us. He did not intend to.50

In conclusion, the very claims of Jesus Himself are evidence for His deity. No man in his right mind would make such claims unless He knew they were true. Little is left to the skeptic but to accept that Jesus was who He claimed He was. Indeed, had He not resurrected, we would not have the option of discussing His identity. For many reasons, His name would have dissipated into the mists of historical obscurity 2,000 years ago.

By Dr. John Ankerberg, Dr. John Weldon

1 Unless otherwise indicated these citations were taken from various books of contemporary or historical quotations, i.e., Rhoda Tripp (compiler), The International Thesaurus of Quotations; Ralph L. Woods (compiler and ed.), The World Treasury of Religious Quotations; William Neil (ed.), Concise Dictionary of Religious Quotations; Jonathan Green (compiler), Morrow’s International Dictionary of Contemporary Quotations.

2 C. S. Lewis, The Problem of Pain (NY: Macmillan, 1962), p. 145.

3 See, e.g., our Encyclopedia of Cults and New Religions (Eugene, OR: Harvest House Publishers, 1999).

4 As cited in an interview in Christianity Today, November 19, 1990, p. 34.

5 John W. Montgomery (ed.), Evidence for Faith: Deciding the God Question (Dallas: Word, 1991), p. 9.

6 Alvin Plantinga, "A Christian Life Partly Lived," in Kelly James-Clark (ed.), Philosophers Who Believe (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity, 1993), p. 69, emphasis added.

7 As interviewed in the Chattanooga Free Press, July 23, 1995, p. A-11.

8 L. Neff, "Christianity Today Talks to George Gilder," Christianity Today, March 6, 1987, p. 35 cited in David A. Noebel, Understanding the Times: The Religious Worldviews of Our Day and the Search for Truth (Eugene, OR: Harvest House, 1994), p. 13.

9 For testimony of skeptics’ conversion to Christianity based on the evidence for the resurrection of Christ, see Do the Resurrection Accounts Conflict? and What Proof Is There That Jesus Rose From the Dead? (Chattanooga, TN: The John Ankerberg Theological Research Institute, 1990); Also see the articles in The Ankerberg Theological Research Institute News Magazine, Vol. 2, no. 3, March 1995, Chattanooga, TN and Vol. 2, no. 4, April 1995.

10 See our Ready With An Answer (Eugene, OR: Harvest House Publishers, 1997).

11 Ibid.

12 Ibid.

13 Maureen O’Hara, "Science, Pseudo-Science, and Myth Mongering," in Robert Basil (ed.), Not Necessarily the New Age: Critical Essays (NY: Prometheus, 1988), p. 148.

14 Cited by Douglas Groothuis, "When the Salt Loses Its Savor," Christian Research Journal, Winter 1995, p. 50.

15 David Watson, Jesus Then and Now (Belleville, MI: Lion, 1986), p. 5.

16 See our Do the Resurrection Accounts Conflict and What Proof is There Jesus Rose from the Dead?

17 Pope John Paul II, Crossing the Threshold of Hope (NY: Alfred A. Knopf, 1994), p. 42.

18 Malcolm Muggeridge, Jesus: The Man Who Lives (NY: Harper & Row, 1978), pp. 7, 184, 191.

19 Sir Lionell Luckhoo, What Is Your Verdict? (Fellowship Press, 1984), p. 12 cited in Ross Clifford, Leading Lawyers Look at the Resurrection (Claremont, CA: Albatross, 1991), p. 112.

20 See Note 1.

21 See e.g., our "Facts On" series on Mormonism, Jehovah’s Witness, Islam.

22 John Ankerberg, John Weldon, Walter Kaiser, The Case for Jesus the Messiah: Incredible Prophecies That Prove God Exists (Chattanooga, TN: John Ankerberg Evangelistic Association, 1989).

23 Ibid., pp. 66-72.

24 J. Barton Payne, Encyclopedia of Biblical Prophecy (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker, 1989); Franz J. Delitzsch and Parton J. Gloag, The Messianic Prophecies of Christ (MN: Kloch & Kloch, 1983, rpt.).

25 Delitzsch and Gloag, pp. 123-124 [See book II, pp. 31-38, for additional important literature].

26 Emile Borel, Probabilities and Life (NY: Dover, 1962), Chs. 1, 3.

27 Gerhard Kittel (ed.,) q.v., monogenes, Theological Dictionary of the New Testament (Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 1978), Vol. 4, pp. 740-41

28 Sura, "The Night Journey," in N. J. Dawood, trans., The Koran, Baltimore, MD: Penguin, 1972), p. 235.

29 Ibid., 50; Suras 4:106, 40:57, 47:21, 48:2, 110:3, respectively, pp. 423, 244, 384, 460, 468 in J. M. Rodwell, trans., The Koran (NY: Dutton, 1977).

30 Robert O. Ballou, The Portable World Bible: A Comprehensive Selection from the Eight Great Sacred Scriptures of the World (NY: The Viking Press, 1968), pp. 134, 147, 151.

31 Houston Smith, The Religions of Man (NY: Harper & Row, 1965), p. 99.

32 Arthur Waley, trans., The Analects of Confucius (NY: Vintage, 1938), p. 130.

33 Yasna, 44:11; Moulton, Ez.368; from Robert E. Hume, The World’s Living Religions (NY: Charles Schribner’s Sons, 1959), rev., p. 203.

34 Tao-Teh-King, 20:3, 20:5-7 cited in Hume, p. 136.

35 In Hume, p. 95.

36 Hume, p. 283.

37 Ibid., pp. 285-286.

38 A. T. Robertson, Word Pictures in the New Testament (Nashville, TN, 1932), Vol. 5, p. 186.

39 John Warwick Montgomery, Faith Founded on Fact (NY: Thomas Nelson, 1978), p. 47, emphasis added.

40 William E. Lecky, History of European Morals from Augustus to Charlemagne (New York: D. Appleton and Co., 1903), Vol. 2, pp. 8-9 in Josh McDowell, More Than a Carpenter (Wheaton, IL: Tyndale/Living Books, 1983), p. 28.

41 John Warwick Montgomery, History and Christianity (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity, 1965), p. 63.

42 In McDowell, More Than a Carpenter, p. 30.

43 Ernest R. Hilgard, et. al., Introduction to Psychology, 5th Ed. (NY: Harcourt Brace Jovanovich 1971), p. 472.

44 In Montgomery, History and Christianity, p. 65.

45 Ibid., pp. 65-66.

46 Encyclopedia Britannica, (qv. Jesus Christ, Macropaedia, Vol. 10)

47 Philip Schaff, History of the Christian Church, Vol. 1: Apostolic Christianity (Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 1978), p. 109.

48 Montgomery, History and Christianity, pp. 66-67.

49 C. S. Lewis, Miracles: A Preliminary Study (London: Collins/Fontana, 1970), p. 113.

50 C. S. Lewis, Mere Christianity (New York, Macmillan, 1971), p. 56.

Which Law - Ceremonial, Civil, Or Moral?

Did God establish three different kinds of laws in the Old Testament? There is no place given in Scripture where the terms Moral, Ceremonial, and Civil Laws are found. From Scripture, it would appear, both in the Old and New Testaments, that the Law was one indivisible unit. In the Old Testament, Joshua speaks of the Law as one unit when he writes in Joshua 1:8: "This book of the Law shall not depart out of thy mouth; but thou shalt meditate therein day and night." Doesn't Paul do the same thing in Gal. 5:3: "For I testify again to every man that is circumcised, that he is a debtor to do the whole Law." and in Gal. 3:17?

We use Col. 2:14-17 as a proof passage that the Ceremonial Law is done away with: "Blotting out the handwriting of ordinances that was against us, which was contrary to us, and took it out of the way, nailing it to His cross; And having spoiled principalities and powers, he made a show of them openly, triumphing over them in it. Let no man, therefor, judge you in meat, or in drink, or in respect of an holyday, or of the new moon, or of the sabbath days: Which are a shadow of things to come; but the body is of Christ." In verse 14, however, Paul tells us that the handwriting (xeiro&grafon) of ordinances (do&gmasin) has been canceled.

That this verse is a sweeping statement of the whole Law in the Old Testament, not just of one part of it, can be defended from v. 17. Besides the Ceremonial Law, that verse contains the Sabbath Day which we classify as a part of the Moral Law. However, intertwined with the 3rd commandment is also the Civil Law. The Civil Law flows out from the Moral Law. Ex. 31:14: "Ye shall keep the Sabbath therefore; for it is holy unto you: every one that defileth it shall surely be put to death: for whosoever doeth any work therein, that soul shall be cut off from among his people."

Prof. Peters, in his paper "Abrogation of the Mosaic Law," also includes Heb. 9:10 with Col. 2:14-17 as referring to all the Law. Col. 2:16, for instance, is preceded by the sweeping statement of the Apostle that the handwriting of ordinances that was against us has been blotted out. "Here remember," to quote Lenski, "that this handwriting contained all the demands of God made upon us. The cancellation wiped out all of them. That means that none are now left, such as the Judaizers in Colosse imagined, requiring Christians to avoid this and that (v. 21) and to observe this and that (Col. 2:16). Again, Hebrews 9:10 with its "carnal ordinances" is preceded by the sweeping statement that the old covenant is decaying and waxing old and is ready to vanish away—and with it, certainly all covenant-laws."

Another theologian, James Denny, also points out that with one exception in a quotation from Jer. 31:33 in Hebrews 8:10 and 10:16, the word "Law" is always singular in the New Testament. This points to the unity of the divine laws.

From where do the terms then come: Moral, Civil and Ceremonial? According to Prof. Peters in his paper "Luther on the Form and Scope of the Mosaic Law," the terms began with Thomas Aquinas (1225-1274), "certainly not by simply making use of the classification of the Mosaic Law, dividing it, as Thomas Aquinas had originally done, into Leges, morales, ceremoniales and judiciales, and by finding in the Decalogue nothing but moral laws. This classification he had used in his letter to John Lang in Erfurt, June 26, 1522." The dogmatical terms of Moral, Ceremonial, and Judicial also were used by our forefathers in our confessional writings. The Apology of the Augsburg Confession, Article IV, sec. 7, reads: "In this discussion, by the Law we designate the Ten Commandments wherever they are read in Scripture. Of the ceremonies and judicial laws of Moses we say nothing at present."

Why were the dogmatical terms of Moral, Civil and Ceremonial developed if there is no division in the Bible and the Jews never considered the Law as threefold? The division probably was developed because there are 3 natural parts to the Mosaic Law. It also makes for easier teaching when we study the Old Testament Law in a threefold sense. The Law of Moses is massive in scope.

Using the three terms, Moral, Ceremonial, and Judicial, as they have been by our theologians down through the centuries, which of the three are we bound to as New Testament Christians? Very few churches, except such as the 7th Day Adventists, have any trouble seeing we are free from the Ceremonial Laws. Someone once called them the Judaizers of the 20th century. Certainly Galatians and especially Hebrews 9, Col. 2:14-17 point out to us clearly that we are not under the yoke of the Old Testament Ceremonial Laws (Israel's laws concerning worship). How about the Judicial Laws or Civil Laws (laws peculiar to the governing of a nation)?

There are no direct passages in Scripture that tell us the Civil Laws are abrogated for us except Rom. 13 and I Peter 2. These Scripture references tell us we are no longer under a theocracy, such as Israel was. Common sense also would tell us that many of the Civil Laws couldn't apply to us today, laws, for example, concerning leprosy, destroying the Hittites (Deut. 20), cities of refuge, canceling debts for fellow Israelites every 7th year. If we remember, too, the Jews thought of the Law as a unified whole, then Paul's words in Col. 2:14 certainly would call for an end to Jewish Civil Law.

However, what about the ten commandments given to Moses on Mt. Sinai that we designate as the Moral Law? Are we still bound to them? Luther said we are free from that, too. He claimed the ten commandments of the Old Testament pertained only to the Jews. Here were two arguments he used: "First of all to the First Commandment: 'The text testifies to that and constrains us in that it says: 'I am the Lord thy God, which have brought thee out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage (Ex. 20:2).' This is quite true and sufficiently clear," he goes on to say, "that we Gentiles were not led by God out of Egypt, but only the Jewish people, Israel. Therefore, Moses is applying the Ten Commandments exclusively to the people, which have been led by God out of Egypt… Consequently it is apparent that the Ten Commandments were given alone to the Jews and not to us, despite all enthusiasts.

"This is also quite obvious, Luther assures us, in view of the prohibition of the First Commandment: Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image or any likeness. 'For this,' Luther states emphatically, 'was spoken alone to the Jews and not to us. Show me one text,' he demands, 'wherewith God has prohibited us to use images.'

"Further on, Luther says once more: 'Thus this text constrains us strongly that the Ten Commandments have been given to the Jews only and not to the Gentiles, as it also follows from the Third Commandment, for the Gentiles have never been brought out of Egypt.'" (Quartalschrift, April, 1948)

While we are free from the commandments in the Old Testament, Luther, however, didn't teach us, thereby, that we are free from the commandments or natural law (Rom. 2:14-15). Luther said, "Wherever the Law of Moses and the law of nature are one and the same, there the Law remains and is not outwardly abrogated, except by faith spiritually which is nothing less than the fulfilling of the Law (Rom. 3:28).

That is, wherever Moses gives commandments that we do not follow him any farther than where he agrees with the natural law. Let Moses be a master and doctor of the Jews. We have our Master, Christ, Who has submitted to us what we should know, keep, do, and leave undone." (Quartalschrift, April, 1948) For Luther, then, where the commandments agree with the natural law, we are to follow them. The correct interpretation of the commandments or the natural law is never to be found for us in the Mosaic Law, but in the New Testament alone, as Jesus and the apostles, inspired by God, interpret the Law for us.

While the commandments in the New Testament are almost all listed identically (wording, not order) to the ten in the Old Testament, some are not. Rom. 13:9-10 and Matt. 19:18-19: "Jesus said, Thou shalt do no murder, Thou shalt not commit adultery, Thou shalt not steal, Thou shalt not bear false witness, Honour thy father and thy mother; and, Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself." That we are still obligated to those not listed, such as commandments 1-3, is found in proof passages in the New Testament.

1st Commandment: Eph. 5:5: "For this ye know, that no whoremonger, nor unclean person, nor covetous man; who is an idolater, hath any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and of God." 2nd Commandment: Rom. 12:14: "Bless them which persecute you: bless, and curse not." 3rd Commandment: Heb. 10:25: "Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is." Why we quote the commandments from the Old Testament in our Catechism, is because most are quoted in the New Testament. The order or division in the Old Testament lends itself well to teaching them to others. Luther says, "Nowhere are the laws of nature so well composed and arranged as in Moses." (Reu, p. 109)

Seeing we are free from the Mosaic Law of the Old Testament, what benefit is there in studying the Moral, Ceremonial, and Civil Laws of the Old Testament? Luther answered that in a threefold statement. Here he was looking at the Law in a broad sense, including everything that Moses wrote. He said, "I want to keep Moses and not sweep him under the rug, because I find three things in Moses:

"In the first place, I dismiss the commandments given to the people of Israel. They neither urge nor compel me. They are dead and gone, except insofar as I gladly and willingly accept something from Moses, as if I said, 'This is how Moses ruled, and it seems fine to me, so I will follow him in this or that particular.'

"I would even be glad if (today's) lords ruled according to the example of Moses. If I were emperor, I would take from Moses a model for (my) statutes; not that Moses should be binding on me, but that I should be free to follow him in ruling as he ruled. For example, tithing is a very fine rule, because with the giving of the tenth all other taxes would be eliminated. For the ordinary man it would also be easier to give a tenth than to pay rents and fees. Suppose I had ten cows; I would then give one. If I had only five, I would give nothing. If my fields were yielding only a little, I would give proportionately little; if much, I would give much.

All of this would be in God's providence. But as things are now, I must pay the Gentile tax even if the hail should ruin my entire crop. If I own a hundred gulden in taxes, I must pay it even though there may be nothing growing in the field. This is also the way the pope decrees and governs. But it would be better if things were so arranged that when I raise much, I give much; and when little, I give little."

"In the second place, I find something in Moses that I do not have from nature: the promises and pledges of God about Christ. In Deut. 18:15-16, Moses says, 'The Lord your God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among you, from your brethren—him you shall heed.'

In the third place, we read Moses for the beautiful examples of faith, of love, and of the cross, as shown in the Fathers, Adam, Abel, Noah, Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Moses and all the rest. From them we should learn to trust in God and love Him."

While we are free from the Moral Law of the Old Testament, we still are expected to keep the commandments, the natural law, as Jesus and the apostles interpreted them in the New Testament, out of love for our Savior and to the glory of God. Matt. 5:16: "Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven." We also need the Moral Law as a mirror and rule. "For the explanation and final settlement of this dissent we unanimously believe, teach, and confess that although the truly believing and truly converted to God and justified Christians are liberated and made free from the curse of the Law, yet they should daily exercise themselves in the Law of the Lord, as it is written, Ps. 1,2; 119,1: Blessed is the man whose delight is in the Law of the Lord, and in His Law doth he meditate day and night. For the Law is a mirror in which the will of God, and what pleases Him, are exactly portrayed, and which should (therefore) be constantly held up to the believers and be diligently urged upon them without ceasing.

"For although the Law is not made for a righteous man, as the apostle testifies in I Tim. 1:9, but for the unrighteous, yet this is not to be understood in the bare meaning, that the justified are to live without law. For the Law of God has been written in their heart, and also to the first man immediately after his creation a law was given according to which he was to conduct himself. But the meaning of St. Paul is that the Law cannot burden with its curse those who have been reconciled to God through Christ; nor must it vex the regenerate with its coercion, because they have pleasure in God's Law after the inner man." (Catechetical Resources, Warnke)

What use, however do we make of the Ceremonial and Civil Laws of the Old Testament that we have no obligations to whatsoever?

As Luther said in regard to the Judicial Laws, they give government good advice on how to govern. In regard to this point Prof. Warnke in his "Catechetical Resources" unit on the Moral, Ceremonial, and Civil Laws, writes:

"Those laws protected Israel's citizens from thieves, murderers, kidnappers, rapists, false witnesses, and the like, as our statutes should also do. There weren't a great many Civil Laws in comparison with our huge statute books, but they accomplished their purpose.

They also provided for swift, fair, humane, sure justice in keeping with the nature of the crime. One cannot help but contrast the various instances of capital punishment, for example, with our lenient treatment of vile offenders. No wonder that crime in America is unbelievably huge and dangerous. (A particularly vicious murderer was sentenced to 199 years in prison—he could become eligible for parole, and naturally for continuing his life of crime, after seven years.) It may be interesting to note that the Massachusetts Bay Colony in its early years had few laws.

When the judges were in doubt, they consulted the ministers or the Bible. However, by the 1640's a code.of laws was gradually adopted based on Israel's Civil Laws. Those laws of the Colony even mentioned chapter and verse in the Bible (the references were places in the margins). They were in effect until about 1700. Those Massachusetts laws were milder and more humane than England's.

Finally, as a church in the New Testament era governed by Christ and not by Moses' Ceremonial Laws, we can still find things beneficial in the Ceremonial Laws for our study. Consider the cleanliness and neatness God demanded of his priests (Deut. 16:4 and Ex. 30). Would God expect less of pastors and teachers today? In regard to pastors' and teachers' salaries, Pastor Warnke makes these remarks:

"The wages of the priests and Levites, decreed by God, are interesting. For one thing, they received no hereditary land like the other tribes, except for 48 cities in which to live with their suburbs for pasturage of their cattle, and they included the six cities of refuge (Numbers 18:20; 35:108). Outside of that they were to depend entirely upon the Lord for their sustenance, as befitted their office. And God provided for them liberally, even magnificently. This meant, using the figures for the second census, Num. 26, that they received probably five times as much income as the average Israelite, if all the people tithed. (There were over 600,000 other adult Israelites as compared with 23,000 Levites from the age of one month and upward.

So there were at the most some 12,000 adult Levites receiving tithes from 600,000 people.) In addition the Levites received many perquisites, such as special offerings, parts of various sacrifices, the first-fruits, and the redemption money. See Numbers 18:8-32 for the details. (Let no contemporary pastor start making comparisons, but rather let him pray with Solomon, Proverbs 30:8,9: "Give me neither poverty nor riches; feed me with food convenient for me: Lest I be full, and deny thee, and say, Who is the Lord: or lest I be poor, and steal, and take the name of my God in vain.")

How grateful we also should be for the freedom we have of being able to choose completely our form of worship and our time of worship. Israel's worship was governed by myriads of laws. The purpose on God's part was love. It was to keep them a holy nation (Ex. 19:6; Lev. 11:44, 19:2, 20:7; Deut. 7:6, 14:2), apart completely from the world so He finally could bring them, in His time, the promised Savior. The severity in which God dealt with Israel's false worship which was punishable by death (Deut. 13 & 17, Ex. 35), was to teach them there was no mercy or hope of salvation under the Law.

The many sacrifices without blemish or spot, purification laws for various things, should have told Israel how corrupt they were in sin, unable to save themselves and in need of a Savior. The burdensome, exacting, Ceremonial laws and their severe punishment should have caused the Jews all the more to look forward to their Redeemer who would free them from the yoke of the Law (Gal. 3:13) and place them under the joyous, light yoke of the Gospel.

"Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. For My yoke is easy, and My burden is light." Matt. 11:28-30.

A 4000 Year Hatred That Threatens The World

Abraham's Other Sons

Such barbarism is difficult for the Western mind to comprehend. Most Americans cannot fathom the depths of this kind of wanton savagery. What could possibly justify this kind of uncivilized butchery?

After the fateful events of September 11th, 2001, Americans have suddenly been thrust into the middle of this same ancient conflict that furnished the motivation for Pearl’s murder. We have actually been involved in this conflict for a long time without realizing either its magnitude or its ultimate destiny. But after September 11th, most Americans began frantically groping to understand it. Many questions were raised after the shock of those initial days.

Some Disturbing Questions

What could inspire people to hate with such intensity that they willingly give their own lives to kill you? Why would they rejoice over the murder of almost three thousand men, women and elderly people who had no connection with their conflict? Why do they hate Americans?

What is their ultimate goal?

Are those we call Islamic Fundamentalists an aberration of
the Muslim religion, or are they—as they claim—its true followers? These questions can only be answered by understanding the ancient conflict that started between descendants of the Patriarch Abraham four millennia ago.

At the beginning of the 21st Century, it is hard to imagine how a
4000-year-old hatred could explode into such a conflict that it would determine the fate of the whole earth. Who would have ever believed as the 20th Century dawned that a backward, under-
developed part of the world that was as desolate as the moon would become the center of a world controversy?

Who would have dreamed that this ancient family feud would drag the great world powers into it? For centuries, world attention focused on the peoples of Europe, the Americas, Russia and the Far East. Until the middle of the 20th century, many people couldn't find Jerusalem on a map. But today, the headlines
aren't about western civilization or Asia; they are about the sons of Abraham and the Middle East. For the first time in history, ancient Biblical names are making global headlines.

Yet as we near the predicted end of history, as we know it, the strategic center of the world has shifted back to the very region where it all started. It has shifted to a place that had largely been by-passed by the great progress of civilization and science.

A Wonder Of The Ages

One branch of the family involved in this feud was scattered throughout the world for almost two thousand years. They were never truly accepted in any of the countries to which they were scattered after the Romans destroyed their nation in AD70. They remained a distinct people, literally a nation in exile. They were
persecuted in almost every place they attempted to settle. In most cases they were eventually driven out with only the clothes on their backs.

Many times they were slaughtered. In fact, one of the great wonders of history is that they survived at all, much less that they remained a distinct people – a nation without a land. Of course I am referring to the people of Israel. They are very carefully traced in the Bible as the descendants of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. I must confess I didn’t realize why God identified Himself as the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob so many times until recently. This is a very important factor that will be analyzed at length later in the book.

Abraham’s Other Sons

The other branch of the family is composed of Abraham’s other sons and grandsons. Ishmael is actually Abraham’s first born, but under the wrong circumstances. Ishmael is the result of Abraham’s lack of faith. He is the half brother of Isaac born of his wife Sarah’s Egyptian handmaid.

Ishmael’s descendants are the most dedicated enemies of Israel – and the most powerful. He is the principle father of the Arab people. The Arabs also come from the descendants of Esau, the rejected twin brother of Jacob. As it is written, “So Esau saw that the daughters of Canaan displeased his father Isaac; and Esau went to Ishmael, and married, besides the wives that he had, Mahalath the daughter of Ishmael, Abraham's son, the sister of Nebaioth.” Esau’s descendents became known as the Edomites.

Abraham also had other sons after his wife Sarah died, “Now Abraham took another wife, whose name was Keturah. And she bore to him Zimran and Jokshan and Medan and Midian and Ishbak and Shuah. And Jokshan became the father of Sheba and Dedan. And the sons of Dedan were Asshurim and Letushim and Leummim. And the sons of Midian were Ephah and Epher and Hanoch and Abida and Eldaah. All these were the sons of Keturah.”

Now I realize that is somewhat boring to go over a bunch of old
unfamiliar names. But understanding the future depends upon learning about these ancient people who fueled the conflict that envelopes our present world. Some of these names constantly come up as enemies of the people of Israel and part of this conflict throughout history. Especially the descendants of Midian. There is no question but what many of these people became part of the Arab people.

The seeds of their enmity toward Israel can be seen by what is revealed about the sons of Abraham through Keturah, “Now Abraham gave all that he had to Isaac; but to the sons of his concubines, Abraham gave gifts while he was still living, and sent them away from his son Isaac eastward, to the land of the east (i.e., Arabian Peninsula).”

As I will show, there is one common thread in the enmity of all of Abraham’s other sons. They all felt like they were cheated out of their inheritance by Isaac, Jacob and Jacob’s sons. Even though they were all given a generous inheritance, they wanted it all. And so a root of envy was born that produced a hatred that has transcended the centuries.

Enmity Takes A Quantum Leap

As if the conflict wasn’t bad enough when it was all in the family, a direct descendant of Ishmael through his second son Kedar was born in AD570. His name was Mohammed. Later Mohammed received strange visions and revelations in the desert that became the source of the Muslim religion.

Those revelations became a carefully memorized oral tradition which was written down by Mohammed’s immediate followers. This collection became the Muslim holy book called the Koran.
Much more will be written later on this subject, but I want you to note that the enmity toward Israel, that was part of the very soul of the Arabs, was enshrined in the Koran. So an enmity that had been a family affair now became an integral part of the Muslim religion. Consequently, all who embraced Islam also embraced the everlasting enmity of Ishmael, Esau and the sons of Keturah.

The Spreading Flame

As I noted in footnote 4, Mohammad came from the region known as the Hejaz, which includes Mecca and Medina. The Arab people of that area from time immemorial were called the Beni Harb, which literally means in Arabic, Sons of War. This was certainly a fundamental characteristic of the religion Mohammed founded.

In fact, no other religion is so completely wrapped around the culture in which it was born. Mohammed had no trouble in gathering converts from the warriors of the nomadic Bedouin tribes of the Arabian Peninsula. Mohammed drew his sword and dashed across Arabia proclaiming, “There is no God but Allah and Mohammed is His Prophet.” Those who confessed faith in this creed mounted up and joined the Muslim crusade.

Those who didn’t were either put to the sword or made slaves who paid oppressive taxes. The goods of those who were slain became the booty of the Muslim warriors. This movement spread like wildfire across North Africa. Mohammad’s followers continued the crusade. Within a hundred years it had conquered all of the Middle East and North Africa and was knocking at the doors of Vienna. The Muslim Moors crossed Gibraltar and conquered Spain.

A Fire That Still Spreads Today, there are more than 1.3 billion Muslims in the world. There are more Mosques than Churches in bonny old England. There are hundreds of millions of Muslims in Asia and the South Pacific. Indonesia has the largest Muslim population of any country. There are more than eight million practicing Muslims in the United States. We of the west must face
this disturbing fact; Islam is the fastest growing religion in the world.

And this is the most important fact; there are Muslims in Indonesia who hate Israel. There are Muslims in the Philippines who hate Israel. There Muslims in Pakistan, Somalia, Libya, Algeria, England, America, Herzegovina, Chechnya, etc, who all hate Israel. Why? None of these peoples are Arab. But they are Muslim. And the more they study the Koran and the Hadith, the more they absorb the Arab’s enmity toward Israel. And the more of a fundamentalist they become.

What Is A “Fundamentalist?”

A “fundamentalist” in any religion is one who seeks to literally follow the foundational truths of that religion whole-heartedly.
One cannot be a Muslim Fundamentalist without having enmity toward Israelis. It’s part of the doctrine. Even “Moderate” Muslims catch this enmity toward Israel. It is generally believed that at least 10% of Muslims are now Fundamentalists. That means that there are at least 130 million Muslim Fundamentalists who are primed to become terrorists. I demonstrate in my new book how the old Arab enmity has been spread worldwide.

1948, When The Enmity Exploded

From the time Israelites began to flee the persecutions of Europe and go to Palestine, the old conflict heated up. Towards the end of the 19th Century, Israelites returned to Palestine and bought at inflated prices what the Muslims considered worthless land. As will be shown, when the Israelites started to return, the land was almost uninhabited and a complete desolation. There was almost no vegetation of any kind. The hills were barren from erosion. The terraces of old were broken down and unattended. Much of the fertile valleys had become fowl swamps infested with disease. At great cost and sacrifice, they drained the malaria-infested swamps, restored the terraces and water systems.

To the Muslim’s amazement, it began to flourish. Then more Jews came. The surrounding Muslim nations became infuriated and sent in a flood of Muslim settlers to contest the Israeli’s right to be there. Then the ultimate sacrilege, as far as the Muslims were concerned, happened. Against all odds, Israel became a nation. The next day, seven Muslim armies attacked the new state of Israel from all sides. There declared intention was to annihilate the Israelis and drive the survivors into the sea.

But even more amazing, the poorly equipped Israeli army
defeated the combined might of the Muslim nations. The old enmity burst into an entirely new dimension hatred that has no parallel in the world. The USA – “Harlot Israel’s Mother” This is what the US is called by most of the Muslim countries. The United
States has come under the Islam’s enmity because we have sought to help Israel survive as a Nation within borders originally granted to her by the British Mandate, the League of Nations and the United Nations.

The USA is also hated because we are the most powerful force for changing cultures into modern democracies. This is the antithesis of the Arabian 7th Century culture around which the Muslim concept of government and culture is based. Their ideal is that of a benevolent tribal chieftain who rules autocratically by the Koranic laws. The classic example of this is Iran. Iran was one of the few modern societies that had embraced the 20th Century and had adopted Western culture. It prospered as a nation under the Shah.

The United States stood by and allowed the Shah to be overthrown in 1979 by Islamic Fundamentalists led by the Ayatollah Khomeini up. Khomeini immediately dragged Iran back to the culture of 7th Century Arabia, as per the Koran. The so called “human rights abuses” of the Shah palled into insignificance in the light of the tens of thousands of executions and imprisonments that followed the Ayatollah’s implementation Islamic law called Sharia. Women were quickly returned to the Islamic standards of no rights, no education and no freedom. A woman could not even leave the home unless escorted by her husband or a male relative appointed by him. The Ayatollah quickly branded the USA the “Great Satan” primarily because our culture is such a threat to his “Islamic Theocratic Paradise.”

In the light of the September 11th attacks, some have questioned why we should continue to support Israel. Frankly, the answer to that question involves our continued existence as a nation. Supporting Israel is dangerous, because it makes us a target of the terrorists who are inflamed with the age-old enmity. But we will see some amazing things on this issue – some things that will no doubt surprise many readers.

Read my new book, The Everlasting Hatred: the roots of Jihad, and find out why Jerusalem, the Land of and people of Israel will soon become the most important issue on earth. Our attitude toward them will determine our destiny.

Jesus Christ predicted concerning the Israelites, “And they [Israel] will fall by the edge of the sword, and will be led captive into all the nations; and Jerusalem will be trampled under foot by the Gentiles until the times of the Gentiles be fulfilled. (Luke 21:24) Titus and the Roman Tenth Legion fulfilled the first part of this prophecy in AD70.

The Israelites, as predicted, have been scattered throughout the world for the last 20 Centuries. But this dispersion was only to last UNTIL the times of the Gentiles be fulfilled. The “times of the Gentiles” refers to a fixed period of time God allotted for them to dominate the world. When Israel was reborn in 1948, the “times of the Gentiles” began to be phased out. Then when Israel recaptured old Jerusalem in 1967, this “phasing out” went on fast track.

We are rapidly approaching the time when God’s Anointed King, the Israelite Jesus Christ, is going to fulfill the many unconditional promises to set up a spiritually reborn Israel as the rulers of the world under Him. This Kingdom will be brought in with a terrible global war called Armageddon. It is approaching so quickly that I can smell the smoke. Are you ready? Have you accepted the gift of pardon Jesus gave his life to purchase for you? Receive His pardon for sin now, before it is too late.

By: Hal Lindsey

Olmert Meets Bush

Israel’s Prime Minister Ehud Olmert arrived in Washington, DC, today, for some serious talks with US President George Bush. This is his first official visit to the United States since taking office. However, he will be greeted by a massive protest rally on Tuesday of this week. Hundreds of busses will descend upon Washington, DC, bringing Jews and Christians together in a protest rally against PM Olmert’s plan to unilaterally remove Jewish families from the Biblical heartland of Judea and Samaria.

US President George Bush is not strongly supportive of Olmert’s unilateral withdrawal plan. He continues to support the Road Map Plan of the United Nations, European Union, Russia, and the United States. Olmert will also meet Secretary of State Dr. Condoleezza Rice (scheduled for tonight) and Defense Secretary Donald Runsfield.

PM Olmert seemed to “downplay” the issue of disagreement between he and the US President by saying to CNN before he left for the States: “There is nothing I love more than negotiating with the Palestinians.” But, he went on to explain that there is no one in the Palestinian Authority with whom he can speak. He said that PA Chairman Manmoud Abbas (Abu Mazen) “opposes terror, but he is powerless to stop terrorism and therefore, cannot speak on behalf of the Palestinian Authority (which, of course, is now controlled by Hamas).”

We call upon all believers and supporters of God’s Word concerning His covenant with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob - to pray much this week about these very important meetings. The Bible warns us (see Ezekiel 13) about the false peace process of the end times and how the leaders in Israel will be seduced into thinking that peace is possible with their hostile enemies. The Bible also warns in Joel 3 and Daniel 11 about the attempt to divide the covenant land of Israel. That covenant (Psalm 105:8-11) is an EVERLASTING covenant - based on the unconditional promise of the LORD GOD OF ISRAEL! May God give us all wisdom in these difficult times!

Copyright © 2005 Dr. David Hocking - Hope For Today Ministries

Jerusalem — The Burdensome Stone - By Thomas S. McCall, Th.D.

Jerusalem, the Holy City, the City of the Great King, God's Holy Hill of Zion, the Center of the Earth, the Cup of Trembling, the Burdensome Stone, Sodom and Gomorrah, and Egypt. Jerusalem is called by these and many other names in the Bible. As Israel and the P.L.O., under international pressure, enter into the most critical aspect of the current "peace process," which is the effort to make a permanent settlement concerning Jerusalem, many claims and issues must be dealt with.

To Whom Does Jerusalem Belong?

The Jews say it belongs to Israel. It was the political capital and Temple worship center of the ancient Commonwealth for over 1,000 years, has been the spiritual home of the Jewish people ever since, and is understood to be the future capital of the Messiah.

The Arabs say it belongs to Islam. It is the third most sacred place to Moslem believers, next to Mecca and Medina. The city was under Moslem control from the seventh century until World War I, with the one-century exception during the Crusades.

The Papacy says it belongs to Christendom. Jerusalem is sacred to Christians because of both Old and New Testament associations, and is the site of the death and resurrection of Christ. The holy sites are of great concern, of which the Church of the Holy Sepulchre is supreme.

The United Nations says it belongs to the world. Jerusalem is revered by the world's three great monotheistic religions, and is critical as a hot spot that could well endanger world peace. Therefore, the U.N. wants to "internationalize" the city, so that no one ethnic or religious group would have control.


Jerusalem Under Israel and Jordan

What should the attitude be among those of us who believe in the Lord Jesus Christ and are evangelicals? Our conviction is that all of the Land of Israel, including Jerusalem, belongs to the Jewish people by divine decree, and we should recognize their rights of ownership. During the last three decades, in which most of the Land has been under Israeli control, evangelical Christians have had full and free access to just about all of the country. Christian tourists have been welcome, and there has been no problem seeing all of the marvelous biblical sites. The holy places of all religions are kept sacrosanct, and Jews, Moslems and Christians may visit these places and rest assured that no important site will be desecrated.

Such could not be said when the country in general, and Jerusalem in particular, was under Moslem control. My wife and I were in Jerusalem in 1965, on a tour with Dr. Charles Feinberg. This, of course, was before the Six-Day War in 1967, and Jerusalem was part of the Kingdom of Jordan, and ruled by King Hussein. East and West Jerusalem were separated by a jagged zone called "no man's land." The Mandelbaum Gate was the only way anyone could get from one side to the other.

It was like Checkpoint Charlie in Berlin. As a practical matter, no civilians could pass from Israel into Jordan, and about the only civilians who could pass from Jordan to Israel were foreign tourists. Once Christians got into Jordan, they could visit most of the New Testament holy places, but getting to Jordan was a serious problem, and the problem was created by the unwillingness of Jordan to cooperate with Israel.

As the Jordanians would not allow tourists to go from Israel into Jordan, we had to go to Jordan first, via Egypt, and then go into Israel through the Mandelbaum Gate. When Jerusalem was divided, it was difficult for pilgrims to visit the many important biblical sites.

The Western Wall Under Moslem Control

The entire Old City in 1965 was in Jordan, along with most of the biblical sites. This included the Dome of the Rock, the Temple Mount and the Western Wall. One of the places we wanted to visit was the Western Wall, sometimes called the Wailing Wall. Those who are familiar with the Wall as it is today, with its spacious plaza and daily crowds of people who come to worship and pray, can scarcely imagine what it was like in 1965.

In actuality, it was a slum. The Arab houses were built up to within about ten feet of the Wall, and the space between was like an alley. Really, it was worse than that, because all around were the odors of a latrine. The Western Wall, closed in as a dank alleyway, was deserted then. No Jews were praying at this most sacred of sites to Judaism. No young boys were performing their Bar Mitzvah rites of reading the Torah, with all their admiring family rejoicing at the Wall. It was deserted when Jordan had control of the Old City. No Jews were allowed at the Western Wall for about 20 years.


Transformation of Jerusalem Under Jewish Control

What a difference when Israel recaptured the Old City in 1967. Within months, the old slum was cleared away from the Wall, a grand plaza was established, and hundreds to thousands of people began gathering there daily to pray and worship the God of Abraham and Moses.

Once Jerusalem was reunited under Jewish control, the Moslems had free and total access to the Dome of the Rock, the Al Aksa Mosque, and all their holy places throughout the Land. Christians also, including evangelicals, have had complete and unfettered access to all the important places in Israel, including the Temple Mount, the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, the Garden Tomb, the Mount of Olives, and all the Sea of Galilee.

One shudders to think of what might happen if Jerusalem were again to be taken out of the hands of the Jewish people, even if it were placed under the U.N. or the Papacy, much less the P.L.O. Both evangelical Christians and Jews could well find themselves having much-reduced access to the scriptural sites. Furthermore, God never gave legal title of Jerusalem to Moslems or Christians or the United Nations. He gave the legal right to Jerusalem to Abraham and his descendants through Isaac and Jacob. What right do we have to try to nullify this grant to Israel from the Lord?

The Push to Remove Jerusalem from Israeli Control

Our conviction, therefore, is that both the scriptural mandates and the interests of Jews and evangelical Christians (and peace-loving Arabs, for that matter) are best served by Jerusalem remaining in the hands of Israel until the Lord returns. Already, for years, our U.S. government under two administrations and the U.N. have applied pressure on Israel to surrender strategic territory to Moslem interests.

In spite of the strong reservations of many Jews and evangelical Christians, it appears that our various governments may well try to remove Jerusalem from Israeli control. This is very regrettable, and we should resist such efforts wherever possible. Nevertheless, as the Bible teaches that Jerusalem will be a cup of trembling and a burdensome stone for all the nations in the End Times (Zech. 12:2-3), we should not be surprised.

"Pray for the peace of Jerusalem"
— Psalm 122:6a

Question: "Who is the antichrist?"

Answer: 1 John 4:3 tells us, "but every spirit that does not acknowledge Jesus is not from God. This is the spirit of the antichrist, which you have heard is coming and even now is already in the world." There is much speculation about the identity of the antichrist. Some of the more popular targets are Vladimir Putin, Jacques Chirac, Prince Charles of England, and Pope Benedict XVI. In the United States, former President Bill Clinton and current President George Bush are the most frequent speculations. So, who is the antichrist, and how will we recognize him?

The Bible really does not say anything specific about where the antichrist will come from. Many Bible scholars speculate that he will come from a confederacy of ten nations and/or a reborn Roman empire (Daniel 7:24-25; Revelation 17:7). Others see him as being a Jew since he would have to be in order to claim to be the Messiah.

It is all just speculation since the Bible does not specifically say where the antichrist will come from or what race he will be. One day, the antichrist will be revealed. 2 Thessalonians 2:3-4 tells us how we will recognize the antichrist, "Don't let anyone deceive you in any way, for that day will not come until the rebellion occurs and the man of lawlessness is revealed, the man doomed to destruction. He will oppose and will exalt himself over everything that is called God or is worshiped, so that he sets himself up in God's temple, proclaiming himself to be God."

I suspect that most people who are alive when the antichrist is revealed will be very surprised at his identity. The antichrist may or may not be alive today. Martin Luther was convinced that the pope in his time was the antichrist. Others who have lived in the past few hundred years have been equally sure as to the identity of the antichrist. So far, they have all been incorrect. I believe we should put the speculations behind us, and focus on what the Bible actually says about the antichrist.

Revelation 13:5-8 declares, "The beast was given a mouth to utter proud words and blasphemies and to exercise his authority for forty-two months. He opened his mouth to blaspheme God, and to slander his name and his dwelling place and those who live in heaven. He was given power to make war against the saints and to conquer them. And he was given authority over every tribe, people, language and nation. All inhabitants of the earth will worship the beast-all whose names have not been written in the book of life belonging to the Lamb that was slain from the creation of the world."

Recommended Resource:
Understanding End Times Prophesy by Paul Benware.

God's Coming Judgment on the United States of America

God Does Care About Sin and Righteousness in a Nation

"Righteousness exalteth a nation: but sin is a reproach to any people" (Proverbs 14:34).

DOES SCRIPTURE MENTION THE FATE OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA?

"A sinful nation, a people laden with iniquity, a seed of evildoers, children that are corrupters: they have forsaken the LORD, they have provoked the Holy One of Israel unto anger, they are gone away backward" (Isaiah 1:4). Yes, America is mentioned in Scripture as certainly as the names of the godly are written in the Word of God. "And whosoever was not found written in the Book Of Life was cast into the lake of fire" (Revelation 20:15).

In offering a promised benefit to all, the surest possible way for God to include you, is to address the benefit to "whosoever will"-- "let him take the water of life freely" (Revelation 22:17). When you volunteer yourself as a willing recipient-- "Here am I; send me" (Isaiah 6:8), then you uncontestably qualify to receive the benefit. "If ye be willing and obedient, ye shall eat the good of the land: But if ye refuse and rebel, ye shall be devoured with the sword: for the mouth of the LORD hath spoken it" (Isaiah 1:19-20). Of course, only Someone With Unlimited Resources-- "according to His riches in Glory by Christ Jesus" (Philippians 4:19)-- could afford to make your claim so sure, and still have enough left for any other eager volunteers.

In a similar fashion, the United States of America is a nation of "whosoever wills" that has turned its back on God. "The wicked shall be turned into hell, and all the nations that forget God" (Psalm 9:17). When the Divine Judge of America has determined that not enough righteousness exists in the people of America, then the Judgment must be executed against the nation. "And the LORD said, Because the cry of Sodom and Gomorrah is great, and because their sin is very grievous; I will go down now, and see whether they have done altogether according to the cry of it, which is come unto Me; and if not, I will know" (Genesis 18:20-21).

America has led the world in teaching the culture of materialism, self-seeking, and self-love. "For all seek their own, not the things which are Jesus Christ's" (Philippians 2:21). America has cunningly guided the world in spiritual fornication. "For all nations have drunk of the wine of the wrath of her fornication, and the kings of the earth have committed fornication with her, and the merchants of the earth are waxed rich through the abundance of her delicacies" (Revelation 18:3). The question is not if God will judge the United States of America, only when. "Thou art weighed in the balances, and art found wanting" (Daniel 5:27).

Many of the Saints have cried out to God to spare the United States of America, just as Abraham interceded to Jehovah for the righteous in the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah. "And Abraham drew near, and said, Wilt thou also destroy the righteous with the wicked?" (Genesis 18:23). Beginning with the possibility of 50 righteous found within the city (18:24), Abraham persuaded the LORD to hold back the prophesied destruction, if as few as 10 righteous could be found (18:32). After all, "That be far from Thee to do after this manner, to slay the righteous with the wicked: and that the righteous should be as the wicked, that be far from Thee: Shall not the Judge of all the earth do right?" (Genesis 18:25).

God has been pleased with those who haved begged for revival and the sparing of America, even as He was pleased with Abraham's intercession. "And the Scripture was fulfilled which saith, Abraham believed God, and it was imputed unto him for righteousness: and he was called the Friend of God" (James 2:23). Still, Sodom and Gomorrah were destroyed, but Lot was spared. God will likewise judge the United States of America, and deliver the Godly by the Pre-Tribulational Rapture of the Church. "And delivered just Lot, vexed with the filthy conversation of the wicked: (For that righteous man dwelling among them, in seeing and hearing, vexed his righteous soul from day to day with their unlawful deeds;) The LORD knoweth how to deliver the Godly out of temptations, and to reserve the unjust unto the day of judgment to be punished" (2Peter 2:7-9).

When the god of materialism stalks the United States of America, the LORD Jesus Christ is no longer honoured before the world as the Source and Power of America's Greatness. "Ye pollute yourselves with all your idols, even unto this day: and shall I be enquired of by you, O house of Israel? As I live, saith the LORD GOD, I will not be enquired of by you" (Ezekiel 20:31). God's people understand that He will no longer hear the petition to prevent America's execution. The sins of the United States of America "have reached unto Heaven, and God hath remembered her iniquities" (Revelation 18:5).

America's existence as a nation has been a blessing of God's Providence. "Proclaim liberty throughout all the land unto all the inhabitants thereof" (Leviticus 25:10). It has been no accident that the United States of America has experienced an abundance that has attracted the attention of the world. "Blessed is the nation whose God is the LORD; and the people whom He hath chosen for His own inheritance" (Psalm 33:12). Only God can make a nation rich. "The blessing of the LORD, it maketh rich, and He addeth no sorrow with it" (Proverbs 10:22).

At one time, the United States of America had a leader, President Abraham Lincoln, who understood the justice of Almighty God. The closing words of his second inaugural address of March 4,1865, demonstrate his faith in the Living God, as the American Civil War was only a month from its conclusion.

"Fondly do we hope, fervently do we pray, that this mighty scourge of war may speedily pass away. Yet, if God wills that it continue until all the wealth piled by the bondsman's 250 years of unrequited toil shall be sunk, and until every drop of blood drawn by the lash be paid by another drawn by the sword, as was said 3,000 years ago, so still it must be said: 'The judgments of the LORD are true and righteous altogether' [Psalm 19:9]."
133 years have changed America into a nation that cannot even pay lip service to the justice of Almighty God. "How are the mighty fallen!" (2Samuel 1:19).

God commands America to repent. "If My people, which are called by My Name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from Heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land" (2Chronicles 7:14). However, God has a limit to how long He will tolerate the arrogance of America's sin. "The LORD said, My Spirit shall not always strive with man" (Genesis 6:3).

God would spare America, if only the professed Christians of the land would repent. "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 that obey not the Gospel of God?" (1Peter 4:17). The stubborn confidence of the professed Church in the power of its own hands has brought God's curse upon it. "Thus saith the LORD; Cursed be the man that trusteth in man, and maketh flesh his arm, and whose heart departeth from the LORD" (Jeremiah 17:5).

America's churches have lost their pilgrim character. "Dearly beloved, I beseech you as strangers and pilgrims, abstain from fleshly lusts, which war against the soul" (1Peter 2:11). At home in the world, is the unfortunate description of the churches of America. "Woe to them that are at ease in Zion" (Amos 6:1). Without a clear-cut separation from sin and the world, America's churches have lost their distinctive platform to call the nation to repentance. Her ministers and leaders have brought great reproach upon the Name of God in front of the unconverted. "Her priests have violated my law, and have profaned mine holy things: they have put no difference between the holy and profane, neither have they shewed difference between the unclean and the clean, and have hid their eyes from my sabbaths, and I am profaned among them" (Ezekiel 22:26).

America's church members have imitated the immoral character of the pulpit. "Like people, like priest: and I will punish them for their ways, and reward them their doings" (Hosea 4:9). The sin of the pulpit has emboldened the people to new levels of debauchery. "Who knowing the Judgment of God, that they which commit such things are worthy of death, not only do the same, but have pleasure in them that do them" (Romans 1:32). So low have the American churches descended, that the LORD Jesus Christ, the Head of the Church (Ephesians 5:23), stands outside, knocking on the door for admission. "Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear My Voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with Me" (Revelation 3:20).

No longer is it a question of nationwide repentance or churchwide repentance, but individual repentance. "And the son said unto him, Father, I have sinned against Heaven, and in thy sight, and am no more worthy to be called thy son" (Luke 15:21). Attempting to rescue America is no longer an option. "Save yourselves from this untoward generation" (Acts 2:40). Individual repentance and faith is all that remains. "When the Son of man cometh, shall he find faith on the earth?" (Luke 18:8).

Only the truly "peculiar" are marked to participate in the Pre-Tribulational Rapture of the Church. "Who gave Himself for us, that He might redeem us from all iniquity, and purify unto Himself a peculiar people, zealous of good works" (Titus 2:14). By God's grace, He will preserve for Himself a holy people. "Preserve my soul; for I am holy: O Thou my God, save Thy servant that trusteth in Thee" (Psalm 86:2).

American Christians, like their brethren scattered throughout the world, need to be clinging to the Promises until our Saviour comes for us. The Promises make us holy like our Master, and enable us to escape. "Whereby are given unto us Exceeding Great And Precious Promises: that by These ye might be partakers of the Divine Nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust" (2Peter 1:4). Especially now, those who are truly watching and waiting for their LORD are a Little Flock. However, "Fear not, little flock; for it is your Father's good pleasure to give you the Kingdom" (Luke 12:32).

The remnant of True Believers in America are sure of God's grace to make a way to escape from the coming wrath. "And now for a little space grace hath been shewed from the LORD our God, to leave us a remnant to escape" (Ezra 9:8). Christians in the United States of America, like all Christians who are watching and praying, are more than glad to reach out for the Promised Rapture as a way of escape from the coming Tribulation. "Watch ye therefore, and pray always, that ye may be accounted worthy to escape all these things that shall come to pass, and to stand before the Son of man" (Luke 21:36).

The Pre-Tribulational Rapture of the Church is like a lifeboat launched from a sinking Titanic. "Looking for that Blessed Hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ" (Titus 2:13). The LORD Jesus is our Lifeboat Of Hope, delivering us from the wrath to come. "And to wait for His Son from Heaven, Whom He raised from the dead, even Jesus, which delivered us from the wrath to come" (1Thessalonians 1:10).

In the end, the United States of America will not be saved. America will worship the Antichrist with the rest of the world. "And all that dwell upon the earth shall worship him, whose names are not written in the Book Of Life of the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world" (Revelation 13:8). If America has ever symbolized good or right, then the very rocks of this once blessed land would cry out for joy to find an American Christian "worthy to escape all these things that shall come to pass" (Luke 21:36) at the Pre-Tribulational Rapture of the Church. And, the joy of every American Christian is the joy of meeting the LORD in the air along with the brethren of all nations.

"Now unto Him that is able to keep you from falling, and to present you faultless before the presence of His glory with exceeding joy" (Jude 24)

Maranatha!

By Tom Stewart

When Words Have No Meaning. . .

"Amnesty" - Noun: "the act of an authority (as a government) by which pardon is granted to a large group of individuals."

"Pardon" - Noun: "a release from the legal penalties of an offense."

"Nuanced" - (from the French "nuer") - noun: "a subtle distinction or variation; delicate shading"

"illegal" - adjective - "not according to or authorized by law; unlawful"

"alien" - noun - "relating, belonging, or owing allegiance to another country or government"

"Propaganda" - noun - "ideas, facts, or allegations spread deliberately to further one's cause or to damage an opposing cause; also : a public action having such an effect."

I want to make sure that we are all using the same definitions of these words, since they have taken on so many 'nuanced' definitions that they no longer have any meaning on their own. So we'll assume the classic definitions, as applied by Merriam-Webster, as our default understanding.

We've discussed the existence of 'newspeak' previously. Orwell's thesis that when words have no meaning, they can mean anything is proved by the fact it is necessary to have an agreed-upon definition for certain words before one can have any meaningful discussion about America's illegal immigration crisis.

Along with the redefinition of ordinary words comes the reshaping of thought, torturing logic until a border fence between the US and Mexico becomes the moral equivalent of a 'Berlin Wall'. All one needs to assume for that to make sense is that the Berlin Wall was built to keep the West Germans OUT of Communist East Berlin.

But I heard somebody call the proposed fence exactly that on TV, and nobody corrected him. The Berlin Wall was erected by the Communists to keep the East Berliners from ESCAPING. The US border wall proposal is intended to prevent illegal aliens from INVADING. Hmmm

"Escape" - verb - "to get away (as by flight)"

"Invade" - transitive verb - "to spread over or into"

But when words have no meaning, enforcing existing laws against illegal aliens can be characterized as the equivalent of 'criminalizing a whole class of people' -- despite the fact that the entry requirement for membership in that 'whole class of 'criminalized' people' is that they all broke the same criminal law.

(It is the semantic equivalent to arguing that anti-theft laws 'criminalize' a whole class of thieves . . . but that's what is known as a 'nuanced' viewpoint.)

There are members of both the House and Senate that have actually advanced that argument with a straight face. Worst of all, nobody laughed.

When words have no meaning, the laws they enunciate are equally meaningless. In President Bush's address to the nation, he announced: "Some in this country argue that the solution is to deport every illegal immigrant and that any proposal short of this amounts to amnesty. I disagree. It is neither wise nor realistic to round up millions of people, many with deep roots in the United States, and send them across the border."

Back to the word-check for 'amnesty' -- it means "granting a pardon for breaking the law to a large group of individuals."

Now we look up the page to the definition of 'propaganda'. President Bush has been pushing amnesty for Mexican illegal aliens almost since he took office. That's part of his agenda

". . . to secure our border, we must create a temporary worker program."

Leaving aside the idea that a temporary worker program will somehow play a role in border security for the moment, how does granting 'temporary worker status' to illegal aliens now in the country differ from granting them amnesty?

I tend to agree that mass deportations are not the answer. But neither is blanket -- or even conditional amnesty for millions of foreign scofflaws.

The President tried to make the case that; "the reality is that there are many people on the other side of our border who will do anything to come to America to work and build a better life."

Time for another word-meaning check. Wouldn't the definition of 'anything' include entering the country legally? What the President meant is that they will do ALMOST anything, except obey the law.

Therefore, since illegal aliens will do 'anything' to live here -- except obey the law and wait in line like everybody else - the President reasoned; "This creates enormous pressure on our border that walls and patrols alone will not stop."

Bush is arguing that "walls and patrols alone" can't stop, based on. . . what? With only 6000 Border Patrolmen working 3200 miles of unfenced border, how in the world can he know THAT?

Noted one critic; "This is kind of like saying the rain coming down creates tremendous pressure on the roof of my house that repairing it won't stop. . . "

But one portion of the President's proposal DID catch my eye. ". . . we need to hold employers to account for the workers they hire. It is against the law to hire someone who is in this country illegally."

BINGO! If we are going to grant a blanket amnesty anyway, why not grant amnesty to AMERICANS? Instead of the illegal aliens? Grant US employers blanket amnesty for breaking the law by hiring illegals in the first place -- and then give them ninety days to replace them with American workers, when the amnesty expires.

After that, increase the penalty for breaking the law from a fine and a slap on the wrist to hard time in a federal prison. If you hire an alien, you go to jail.

If there are no jobs, the illegals will have no choice but to go home to Mexico and apply for a green card like everybody else. (Or, alternatively, participate in developing their own economy instead of focusing on illegally reaping the benefits of somebody else's.)

Employers already have a way to verify the legal status of a potential employee. It's nicknamed Insta Check and administered by the Department of Homeland Security. Any employer with a phone OR an Internet connection can verify the identity of any employee through this web site or the Social Security Administration.

But the administration's goal isn't to put an end to the influx of cheap Mexican labor. The goal is to legalize it and prevent any interruption of the economy. Why not just say so?

Once again, we return to the dictionary definition of 'propaganda'.

Allow me to say the same thing when I criticize the administration as I do when I seem to praise it. It isn't about Bush. It is about truth, and our national willingness to accept differing versions of it without comment.

(If that were not true, then Americans wouldn't have to choose between a 'liberal media' and a 'conservative media' to get their facts. In reality, the choice is between two competing agenda-driven propaganda outlets disguised as neutral fact-reporting organizations.)

During the Tribulation, the Bible says the world will come under the sway of a master propagandist, spiritually energized by Satan, whose powers of deception will be so seductive that "all that dwell upon the earth shall worship him, whose names are not written in the book of life of the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world." (Revelation 13:8)

"Even him, whose coming is after the working of Satan with all power and signs and lying wonders, And with all deceivableness of unrighteousness in them that perish; because they received not the love of the truth, that they might be saved. And for this cause God shall send them strong delusion, that they should believe a lie:" (2nd Thessalonians 2:9-11)

I always wondered just how strong a delusion it would take. Until I witnessed Orwell's thesis proved before my very eyes; "When words have no meaning, they can mean anything at all."

By Jack Kinsella - Omega Letter Editor

Time Travelers of the Bible: Life in the Cosmos

Thousands of years ago, the Lord’s work of salvation began when the Serpent brought downfall to Adam and Eve, and by extension, to all humanity. With the fall came God’s promise of a man – an offspring of Eve – who would bruise the Serpent’s head.

This event marked the strange beginning of man’s long journey to eternity. From the human perspective, the trek is marked off by the events of history – the twists and turns of an evil past, told in the characters and events of biblical history. But within the evils and intrigues of the narrative, one finds good. More than that, one discovers holiness.

For though man would travail through the millennia, his salvation was already an accomplished fact. There are two views of salvation. One regards it as already achieved; the other sees it as precariously balanced on the knife-edge of destruction, poised to be lost in a moment of time.

But the Bible consistently views the Christian’s salvation as something already accomplished. Though we will not reach glorification until some future date, the Bible presents our salvation as already attained in the present, and as having been assured in the distant past. In other words, believers now possess eternal life. John’s first epistle is built around this assurance:

"And this is the record, that God hath given to us eternal life, and this life is in his Son.

"He that hath the Son hath life; and he that hath not the Son of God hath not life" (I John 5:11,12).

We might leave it at that, except for an observation peculiar to eternal life as we now think of it. By definition, eternity envelops all of the past, present and future. This means that if we now possess it, it is as though we always possessed it. Certainly, it is a primary article of our faith that having believed in the Lord, we now stand before the Father in a state of complete exoneration from the penalty of sin. As Paul put it:

"There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit" (Romans 8:1).

The word "now" implies the present, or our present status. But this status was obtained through the finished work of Christ. From our perspective, the process of redemption actually began in ages past. Perhaps it would be more accurate to say that it was totally accomplished in ages past.

An Irony of Time-Space

As physical creatures who live on a finite timeline, we may have decided to follow Jesus only weeks, months or years ago. Yet, our common salvation is presented as having been secured in the ancient days before time was kept. In His intercessory prayer before His Father, Jesus identifies Himself with the redeemed, asking the Father that they (we) might be brought into the same loving relationship that He enjoyed. That relationship, of course, existed prior to His incarnation, even prior to the existence of the "world." Jesus said:

"I in them, and thou in me, that they may be made perfect in one; and that the world may know that thou hast sent me, and hast loved them, as thou hast loved me.

"Father, I will that they also, whom thou hast given me, be with me where I am; that they may behold my glory, which thou hast given me: for thou lovedst me before the foundation of the world" (John 17:23,24).

Here, Jesus prays that believers might experience the Father’s love in the same way that He knew it in ages past. In the opening exposition of his letter to the Ephesians, Paul states the same idea. However, this time, another theme is presented. He informs us that the saints were chosen before the "world" was established:

"According as he hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before him in love" (Ephesians 1:4).

Among Christians, this statement has provoked much discussion. Some, taking the extreme position, have concluded that it means believers were predestined to salvation before they ever had a choice in the matter. The inference – and subject of a thousand books – is that an individual really has nothing to do with his own salvation, except to accept and enjoy it. Freedom of choice is ruled out, because the decision was made before he was ever born.

But there is an irony of time-space here. Before there was ever a "world," our salvation was complete, as good as finished. This seems impossible, unless we see the eternal as simultaneous with the "now." Or, in other words, why would the Lord create the "world" and put us in it, if He controlled our choices in advance?

Unless we, ourselves, were truly allowed to make choices for or against Christ, such choices would be utterly meaningless.

This discussion begs another question: From Christ’s perspective, when was the "world" created? The answer is obvious, He created it in the "eternal now." As He said, "Before Abraham was, I am" (John 8:58). But the full answer is much more complex than this.

Nor have we properly identified what, exactly, is meant by the "world." This, we shall attempt to do a bit later in this article. But first, look at Peter’s First Epistle.

He uses the same expression in speaking of Christ’s completed work, when, in the ageless past, He was ordained to do His work of redemption. Here, the context is not the salvation of the individual, as such, but the ordination of Christ in a past era.

It is important to remember that from our perspective, His work began before a certain point in time, namely, the foundation of the world system:

"Forasmuch as ye know that ye were not redeemed with corruptible things, as silver and gold, from your vain conversation received by tradition from your fathers;

"But with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot:

"Who verily was foreordained before the foundation of the world, but was manifest in these last times for you" (1 Pet. 1:18-20).

In all the above instances, the word "foundation" is translated from the Greek, , meaning "a casting-down," "laying a foundation." It is common knowledge that structures have foundations. They represent the initiation of a project … in this case, the "world," or the world system.

The Temporal World

In the quotations above, the "world" comes from the Greek word, µ [kosmos]. It is used over 180 times in the New Testament. From this point forward, we shall use this word as a technical term. It speaks of the existing temporal design and situation of the earth, and by extension, the Solar System and even the universe. It has often been called the "world order," or the "world system."

Romans 1:20 illustrates this use:

"For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even his eternal power and Godhead; so that they are without excuse."

Here, Paul uses the Greek term kosmos, (again, translated as "world") to describe all that may be seen of God’s creation. It is a grand display of His design and order. Specifically, it is the sum total of the temporal order. It is never to be confused with the eternal, sinless harmony of the heavens, above.

Specifically, the kosmos refers to the fallen and sinful creation that is locked in time. More specifically, it is a timeline that has a date with destiny.

The kosmos has been likened to a stage upon which the human drama is played out to its dramatic conclusion. It is much as depicted in one of William Shakespeare’s most famous quotes, from As You Like It (II, vii, 139-143):

"All the world’s a stage,

"And all the men and women merely players.

"They have their exits and their entrances,

"And one man in his time plays many parts,

"His acts being seven ages."

Those ages – infant, whining schoolboy, young lover, soldier, judge, emaciated elder, and final death – are the very image of sin and dissipation.

The kosmos is an evil place. Its race is fallen; its systems are in disarray, with storms, winds, grime, decay, earthquakes, volcanoes and the roaring of restless seas of water, gasses and ice. Even the Solar System is pockmarked and cratered, fragmented and swept by deadly cosmic winds.

First Corinthians

From the biblical perspective, the collective wisdom of the cosmos is a sad recitation of failure and colossal ignorance. One book in the Bible seems devoted to proving this distressing reality. It is delivered by Paul as a letter to the most worldly and decadent of ancient Greek cities. Corinth boasted the latest in Greek philosophy and fashionable trade goods. Its arts and cuisine were the pinnacle of Graeco-Roman culture. Its morals and manners were debauched. In every sense, it was "modern."

In Paul’s letter, it provides the perfect exhibit of the failed kosmos. The following paragraph is a collection of verses from First Corinthians. At the end of each sentence the appropriate verse is indicated. In every case where the word "world" appears, it is a translation of kosmos:

"Where is the wise? where is the scribe? where is the disputer of this world? hath not God made foolish the wisdom of this world (1:20)? For after that in the wisdom of God the world by wisdom knew not God, it pleased God by the foolishness of preaching to save them that believe (1:21). But God hath chosen the foolish things of the world to confound the wise; and God hath chosen the weak things of the world to confound the things which are mighty (1:27); And base things of the world, and things which are despised, hath God chosen, yea, and things which are not, to bring to nought things that are" (1:28).

Note that those things regarded by the "world" [kosmos] as wisdom are in reality base, foolish and weak. In the following paragraph, another compilation of verses from First Corinthians contrasts the eternal wisdom of God, with the vain and ignorant knowledge of this cosmos.

"But we speak the wisdom of God in a mystery, even the hidden wisdom, which God ordained before the world unto our glory (2:7). Which none of the princes of this world knew: for had they known it, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory (2:8). But as it is written, Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him (2:9). But God hath revealed them unto us by his Spirit: for the Spirit searcheth all things, yea, the deep things of God (2:10). For what man knoweth the things of a man, save the spirit of man which is in him? even so the things of God knoweth no man, but the Spirit of God (2:11). Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the spirit which is of God; that we might know the things that are freely given to us of God (2:12). For the wisdom of this world is foolishness with God. For it is written, He taketh the wise in their own craftiness" (3:19).

The Cosmos Defined

The foregoing verses from First Corinthians represent only a small selection from Paul’s emphatic condemnation of the "world." He makes it more than clear that the "world" – the kosmos – is a place of corruption and misery. Except for Christ it would be utterly without remedy, hopeless, yet deluding itself in the belief that it had some hope after all. It is a place of foolishness and vanity.

The biblical Greek kosmos, translates directly into English as "cosmos." It denotes the visible universe. As the late Carl Sagan often said, "The cosmos is all that there is … or ever will be." As a mathematician and physicist, he entered the field of study called "cosmology," devoting himself to theorizing about the origin and development of the universe.

Like others of his persuasion, he wrote about astronomy and particle physics. He speculated that the "Big Bang" created the universe and all that it contains. His "wisdom" excluded God and Creation. And yet modern science holds cosmology high as the key to understanding the universe.

To the eyes of a human being, the cosmos may appear limitless, when in fact it really serves to limit the range of humanity. We are trapped on the surface of the earth. Given a few more decades, we may venture as far as Mars. But still, humanity is limited to a place ruled by the passionate lust for power. As long as we are imprisoned here, other dimensions are safe. But humanity’s jailer is a cruel overlord, whose history and personality are well known.

Planet earth may well be likened to the infamous "Devil’s Island," a prison off the coast of French Guiana. It is a tiny place … about 35 acres in extent. From 1852 until 1946, it was used by the French as a place of extreme isolation, from which escape was impossible. Political prisoners, thieves and murderers sent there often disappeared, never to be heard from again. Brutal and vicious treatment were the norm. Disease and torture were routine. Its cruel guardians made the place a living hell. Ruling over this place, they truly played the role of devils.

Satan and the Cosmos

The cosmos has a ruling hierarchy, with Satan at the top of the order. Those who serve him are often referred to as princes. We recall the "prince of Persia," a dark angel who hindered the heavenly messenger sent to Daniel.

In the following passage, these princes are mentioned twice. First, they are presented as those who will eventually fall from power. Second, though powerful, Scripture always shows them to be completely blind to God’s plan of redemption:

"Howbeit we speak wisdom among them that are perfect: yet not the wisdom of this world, nor of the princes of this world, that come to nought:

"But we speak the wisdom of God in a mystery, even the hidden wisdom, which God ordained before the world unto our glory:

"Which none of the princes of this world knew: for had they known it, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory" (I Cor. 2:6-8).

These are not human princes. They are the higher powers – the powers behind the throne – who translate the policy of the unseen spiritual world into the visible and violent acts of powerful men. As Paul writes in Ephesians 6:12, "For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places." These are the dark princes, their delegated authorities and the demonic hoards who do their bidding.

In II Corinthians 4:4, the leader of these princes is called, "… the god of this world," who has "… blinded the minds of them which believe not."

This, of course, refers to Satan, whose active principle is that of debunking spiritual truth. In modern terms, one might say that he operates a continuous disinformation program, specifically aimed at making God’s spiritual truth appear ridiculous. Among other things, he is constantly bent at making the fallen cosmos appear attractive.

This fundamental truth is that Satan is the chief of all the princes, and he is so named in Ephesians 2:2:

"Wherein in time past ye walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience."

He sets the direction and focus of the cosmos, even in its latest earthly incarnation, the "New World Order." Here, Satan is identified as the leader of the spirit world. It is he who travels through the atmospheric heavens, superintending the territory that he regards as his and his alone.

Satan and Job

In the biography of the righteous Job, Satan is revealed in a detailed portrait, as he interacts with Jehovah … the Lord. Though he is a lesser being than the Lord, Satan displays a surprising autonomy. He is quite free to interact with the Lord, even to the point of disagreement about the righteousness of an ordinary man called Job:

"Now there was a day when the sons of God came to present themselves before the LORD, and Satan came also among them.

"And the LORD said unto Satan, Whence comest thou? Then Satan answered the LORD, and said, From going to and fro in the earth, and from walking up and down in it" (Job 1:6,7).

It will come as no surprise to anyone who has studied the Bible that Satan considers the world (the cosmos) his home territory. In fact, he freely travels throughout its entire extent. If the cosmos extends to cover the entire Solar System, his range of authority is large, indeed. And it may, in fact, extend beyond that, since the cosmos seems to be a term that covers the whole creation, which Paul describes as follows: "For we know that the whole creation groaneth and travaileth in pain together until now" (Romans 8:22).

This "creation" would include the universe, and all that is in it. Groaning and travailing are certainly an accurate characterization of Job’s plight. On this note, it is absolutely amazing that we are allowed a glimpse of the culture of heaven, but that is exactly what the book of Job gives us.

Having exchanged polite greetings with Satan, the Lord asks him a question about a righteous mortal, a man who lives on the earth below. In the brief conversation that follows, we learn something very interesting:

"And the LORD said unto Satan, Hast thou considered my servant Job, that there is none like him in the earth, a perfect and an upright man, one that feareth God, and escheweth evil?

"Then Satan answered the LORD, and said, Doth Job fear God for nought?

"Hast not thou made an hedge about him, and about his house, and about all that he hath on every side? thou hast blessed the work of his hands, and his substance is increased in the land.

"But put forth thine hand now, and touch all that he hath, and he will curse thee to thy face" (Job 1:8-11).

Here, we learn that Job’s compound – his lands, household and livestock – is under the Lord’s protection and blessing. This emphatically establishes the need for such protection. As a citizen of the cosmos, Job required the covering of the Lord, in order to prosper. In other words, he was living in an alien environment.

Satan scoffs at the Lord’s suggestion that he is a righteous and upright man simply because it’s the right thing to do. He challenges the Lord on this ground, saying that Job’s faith is dependant upon what he manages to get from the Lord. He accuses Job of following the Lord for profit.

The Lord’s reaction is to allow Satan to test Job. Why? Because the cosmos is precisely that – a test for humanity, or more precisely, a testbed, upon which the drama of light and darkness is played out.

In Job’s case, the Lord’s protection is lifted, allowing the horrors of the cosmos to flood in upon Job’s life. Through the agency of Job’s enemies and even fire and wind from heaven, Job’s fortunes are eradicated. Crops, livestock, homes, and families were all swept into oblivion.

Job passes the test. He blesses the Lord:

"And said, Naked came I out of my mother’s womb, and naked shall I return thither: the LORD gave, and the LORD hath taken away; blessed be the name of the LORD.

"In all this Job sinned not, nor charged God foolishly" (Job1:21,22).

In an amazing display of faith, Job trusted the Lord. His simple statement displays an amazing understanding of God’s love. It is one thing to trust the One who provides; it is quite another to continue in faith when blessing and protection are removed.

It is clear that the Lord trusted Job’s steadfast belief. Why else would He have used this righteous man as a demonstration against Satan. In some way, Job knew that the Lord had this trust in him. Why else would he have held firm in the face of such disaster?

Undaunted, Satan challenged the Lord once again. Take note, this meeting on high reveals a scheduled meeting, or some sort of heavenly protocol:

"Again there was a day when the sons of God came to present themselves before the LORD, and Satan came also among them to present himself before the LORD.

"And the LORD said unto Satan, From whence comest thou? And Satan answered the LORD, and said, From going to and fro in the earth, and from walking up and down in it.

"And the LORD said unto Satan, Hast thou considered my servant Job, that there is none like him in the earth, a perfect and an upright man, one that feareth God, and escheweth evil? and still he holdeth fast his integrity, although thou movedst me against him, to destroy him without cause.

"And Satan answered the LORD, and said, Skin for skin, yea, all that a man hath will he give for his life.

"But put forth thine hand now, and touch his bone and his flesh, and he will curse thee to thy face.

"And the LORD said unto Satan, Behold, he is in thine hand; but save his life.

"So went Satan forth from the presence of the LORD, and smote Job with sore boils from the sole of his foot unto his crown" (Job 2:1-7).

Thus begins the saga of Job. The rest of the story is devoted to a tortuous series of discussions from the human point of view. Job’s deep deliberations with his peers are the Bible’s most thorough investigation of God’s motives. Their reasoning ranges from ridiculous to sublime. Still, they are unable to understand God’s operations and intents.

Overall, they charge the Lord with being unfair to Job – punishing him for some imagined sin left unconfessed, or self-righteousness or hypocrisy. None of their guesses are anywhere close to the mark. In the end, Job is adjudged righteous, but his friends are chastised for their faithlessness.

The Invisible Cosmos

By now, we have enough information to conclude that residents of the cosmos are ensnared in the time-space continuum, where they live in a condition of isolation from God. In their natural state, they live in the sphere of their own vain imagination.

It is generally the case that residents of the cosmos completely fail to understand the will and purpose of God. When Jesus came into the cosmos, its culture neither recognized nor understood Him. John’s Gospel calls Him the Word:

"In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.

" The same was in the beginning with God.

"All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made.

"In him was life; and the life was the light of men.

"And the light shineth in darkness; and the darkness comprehended it not.

"There was a man sent from God, whose name was John.

"The same came for a witness, to bear witness of the Light, that all men through him might believe.

"He was not that Light, but was sent to bear witness of that Light.

"That was the true Light, which lighteth every man that cometh into the world.

"He was in the world, and the world was made by him, and the world knew him not" (John 1:1-10).

In verses 9 and 10 of the magnificent description above, the word kosmos is used four times, translated "world." Again, we see that the cosmos is utterly blind, not only to God’s existence and presence, but to the fact that He created the very world in which they walk.

With today’s scoffers condemning the teaching of "Intelligent Design" in the classroom, we see that nothing has changed. The state of mind in the cosmos is blissful ignorance, coupled with the confidence that all things are unchanged from the past to the present. To the cosmic mind, the heavens and the earth proceed in a uniform and predictable fashion, flowing along in accordance with scientific predictability.

Jesus Meets the Ruler of the Cosmos

Before His public ministry, Jesus went into the wilderness, where He was tested by the one known as the god of this world … Satan, "the prince of the power of the air." It is of particular interest that here, the old Serpent appears as the "devil."

This term – translated from the Greek  – identifies Satan in his role as the "slanderer." He systematically maligns and disparages Jesus, acknowledging His divinity, but probing the seriousness of His commitment. In the process, he discovers that Jesus’ holiness and dedication are absolute.

Apparently, Satan realizes that Jesus is on earth to do some important work. Nevertheless, he tries to corrupt the Lord, and nip His mission in the bud. The test involves a trip into a dimension from which it is apparently possible to view the planet in its entirety … its geography, control centers and political intrigues.

"Again, the devil taketh him up into an exceeding high mountain, and sheweth him all the kingdoms of the world, and the glory of them" (Matthew 4:8).

In Luke’s account of the test, there is an additional note – the element of time:

"And the devil, taking him up into an high mountain, shewed unto him all the kingdoms of the world in a moment of time" (Luke 4:5).

Looking closely at this statement is quite revealing. Satan took Christ to a place described as a "high mountain." But there is no mountain on the face of the earth that affords the kind of view suggested here. This mountain must be in another dimension. Still, it must also be part of the cosmos that Satan rules, since he demonstrated the ability to come and go from that place as he pleased. So it is logical to conclude that there are parts of the cosmos not visible to human eyes. Nevertheless, as Satan roams in that dimension, he is able to see the earth while remaining unseen by the peoples of this planet. And of course, this is just what the Bible says about him.

Under normal circumstances a tour of all the world’s kingdoms would involve a great deal of time. Did Satan physically take the Lord on a trip to all the world’s capitals? The text doesn’t say that. But perhaps their trip consumed a period of what would be called "time" in our dimension. It seems that in that place, a second or two of our time offers the opportunity to do what would take years as we reckon time.

In short, the devil is shown to have great power in the cosmos. He has the ability to conduct a world tour in a mere moment. Somehow, he has possession of the power and glory of the cosmos. He offered it to the Lord.

But his action also demonstrates something else. It shows that he is ignorant of Christ’s plan for the cosmos. Just as the opening words of John’s Gospel tell us, Satan is somehow unable to see the truth of the Lord’s motives and actions. It is truly remarkable that with such power over the cosmos, he can’t visualize the truth about it. To paraphrase John, Jesus was in the cosmos — the cosmos was made by Him, but it didn’t know Him. More to the point, it didn’t recognize His work and intentions.

When the Cosmos Was Founded

As suggested earlier, the term, "foundation of the world" poses the "when" question. Namely, when was the cosmos founded? Science answers this question in the realm of astronomy and geology. It has arrived at a figure of about fifteen billion years ago, give or take a little.

The Bible puts the creation of "the heavens and the earth" in a framework of six literal days, making the visible universe and Solar System only a few thousand years old. But as we have seen in the episode of Satan’s temptation of Christ, the cosmos also includes an invisible dimension, where heaven meets earth.

Certainly, it existed before the physical earth was created, as did Satan, who was formerly an anointed cherub, or guardian, at the throne of God. His iniquitous fall from that position certainly predates the creation of Adam and Eve.

Logically, then, the corruption of the cosmos began with Satan’s fall. Adam and Eve were the progenitors of a new race, created by God with a purpose, to redeem this fallen cosmos. Out of their lineage would come the Messiah.

Ironically, He created the cosmos, but remains unknown by those outside the sphere of His redeeming love. To them He is a mystery. The idea that the universe or cosmos is currently in a fallen state is to them, ludicrous.

The real answer to the time of the world’s foundation lies in the fact that it was created from the perspective of the Lord, whom John’s Gospel calls the "Word." He spoke time into existence, and the physical realm we call space. The physical cosmos is a kind of parenthesis. Still, things done here have eternal consequences. These actions have effects that reach into the distant past and stretch to the far future.

As is demonstrated in many ways, the wisdom of God’s eternity does not reach into this fallen cosmos. Yes, He does send emissaries here on various occasions. They bring His wisdom into this place. But they are routinely rejected. As Jesus once told the experts in Mosaic Law:

"Therefore also said the wisdom of God, I will send them prophets and apostles, and some of them they shall slay and persecute:

"That the blood of all the prophets, which was shed from the foundation of the world, may be required of this generation" (Luke 11:49,50)

Think of it, the cosmos was established on the basis that it would require the blood of the prophets (and the blood of the saints, for that matter). Central to the existence of the cosmos is the shedding of Christ’s own blood.

The acts of the prophets and saints were assumed from the moment the cosmos was inaugurated. Observers who see the parade of human history through eternity’s window are not restricted to the "now," as we are. They might well see the acts of Abraham, King David and Jesus as all happening at the same "time." They might even see those same events as happening before the cosmos was created, or after it was destroyed.

Strange as this may sound, if time is time and eternity is eternity, there is no real temporal connection between them. They operate independently. Hypothetically, if an individual made a decision for Christ on July 4th, 2000, someone in eternity could view this event as happening "right now," even though he was viewing it from ten thousand years ago! (Or, a hundred thousand years ago, for that matter.) Would he be viewing it as a "future" event? Probably not.

Or what of the eternal observer watching the same event from a hundred thousand years in the future? Would he see this Fourth of July salvation as a past event? Again, probably not. It would simply be called, "… an event that happened in that other dimension called the cosmos." To the host of heaven, our future and our past are both present.

Thus, the foundation of the cosmos has much more to do with order and commitment than it does with time. Seen in this way, the statement in Psalm 90 takes on a whole new meaning:

"For a thousand years in thy sight are but as yesterday when it is past, and as a watch in the night" (Psalm 90:4).

We often speak of seven thousand years of human history, from the creation of the first couple to the termination of the Kingdom age. But we hardly ever think of this world – the cosmos – as a "bubble" outside the realm of eternity. Things that happen inside this bubble are timely and important to those who regard them as the beginning and end of everything. The princes of this world apparently do. Remember how Satan tempted Jesus.

Outside the bubble, the actualities of God’s eternity have an entirely different view. Think of the world – the cosmos – in this way as seen in Jesus’ intercessory prayer for the saints"

"For I have given unto them the words which thou gavest me; and they have received them, and have known surely that I came out from thee, and they have believed that thou didst send me.

"I pray for them: I pray not for the world, but for them which thou hast given me; for they are thine.

"And all mine are thine, and thine are mine; and I am glorified in them.

"And now I am no more in the world, but these are in the world, and I come to thee. Holy Father, keep through thine own name those whom thou hast given me, that they may be one, as we are" (John 17:8-11).

There is the mistaken tendency to think of those things witnessed before the foundation of the cosmos as written in stone, or unalterably predestined. But think of another thing: Jesus’ prayer in the garden of Gethsemane was given quite a different perspective by Luke:

"And he was withdrawn from them about a stone’s cast, and kneeled down, and prayed,

"Saying, Father, if thou be willing, remove this cup from me: nevertheless not my will, but thine, be done" (Luke 22:41,42).

Jesus is called "… the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world" (Rev 13:8). That is, before the cosmos was originated, He was already considered as having been crucified, buried and resurrected. Yet here, Luke records Jesus’ appeal to the Father that He might be spared from having to go through the experience. In other words, right up until the end, Jesus considered His execution to be an option! Why else would He appeal in this way to the Father?"

This apparent paradox arises only because we think of everything as enslaved to time. This is not the case. Even before the cosmos was founded, it could be seen that at the crux of human history, Jesus and the Father would agree upon the necessity for the crucifixion, and that it would take place, just as foreseen.

In the cosmos – the universe of time-space – the crucifixion was an option. The "cup" of Christ’s crucifixion might have been removed. However, in the realm of eternity, it was not an option. The crucifixion was an accomplished certainty before the foundation of the cosmos. But that night in the garden, Jesus also chose to go through with it.

In the Cosmos, Not Of the Cosmos

When He prayed that night, His conversation with the Father revealed an absolute familiarity with the dimensional situation of the cosmos. In the brief excerpt of His prayer that follows, note how He uses the word "world." In all six cases below, it is a translation of kosmos:

"I have given them thy word; and the world hath hated them, because they are not of the world, even as I am not of the world.

"I pray not that thou shouldest take them out of the world, but that thou shouldest keep them from the evil.

"They are not of the world, even as I am not of the world" (John 17:14-16).

Six times, Jesus uses the term for the created time-space continuum. In the most authentic sense of the language, as Jesus uses it, believers are not part of the cosmos. We are, in fact, the very antithesis of it.

And this answers the question that we posed at the beginning of this article. How can our salvation be considered as having been accomplished in the distant past … "before the foundation of the world?" The answer is that we are neither creatures of time, nor of time-space, but creatures of eternity. We are freed from this timeline called the cosmos, and the moment we became free in Christ, our names were added to the Book of Life, before the cosmos was ever founded.

By Gary Stearman

Do all roads lead to God? - By Pastor Greg Laurie

I just had a physical with my doctor. Thankfully, everything is looking good.

After we were done, I asked him a question: "Have you ever had to tell someone that they were going to die soon?" He told me that he had; he said it was the hardest thing he did as a physician. But in most cases, he would detect a problem and give them a course of action that, if followed, would save their life.

As a pastor, I am in a similar situation, but with even more radical implications. Because I believe the Bible is true, I know both the problem and the cure to what happens beyond the grave. It is said by some, "All roads lead to God."

You may be surprised to know that I happen to agree with that. I did not say all roads lead to heaven, but that all roads lead to God. Regardless of what you may or may not believe, I do think you will stand before God one day. But there is only one way to get to heaven. And that is the one issue that more people choke on than any other.

It is said, "Are you saying Jesus Christ is the only way, and that if someone doesn't believe in Him they're actually going to hell? That's so narrow! So insensitive! So intolerant!" By insisting that Jesus is the only way to approach God, I may sound to certain people like I'm implying I'm somehow better than they are, or that I look down on them in some way.

But I want you to know that I have a very good reason for believing that Jesus Christ is the only way to the Father. I believe it because He said so. It isn't my theory; it isn't my idea; it is His! It was Jesus who clearly stated, "I am the way, the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me" (John 14:6 NKJV). How plain is that?

The bottom line is that we're either going to believe everything Jesus said or nothing that He said. As for me, I choose to put my faith and trust in Him – for my years here on earth and for my eternity.

In Acts 4:12, the apostle Peter declared, "Nor is there salvation in any other, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved" (NKJV). Paul told Timothy, "For there is only one God and one Mediator who can reconcile God and people. He is the man Christ Jesus" (1 Timothy 2:5 NLT). If I claim to be His follower and believe His words, then I would be less than honest if I said anything but this. As a Christian, I am in no way better or superior to anyone else. I'm just one beggar telling another beggar where to find bread.

Maybe you've had someone say to you, "Well, all religions basically say and teach the same thing. They're all true. And besides, if a person is really sincere in what they believe, they'll get to heaven." This type of fuzzy, illogical, politically correct thinking is typical of so many today – making the most important decisions of life on the basis of feelings and opinions.

Let's take this line of reasoning to its logical conclusion. If a person truly is sincere in what he believes and tries to live a good life, then he will get to heaven. So Adolf Hitler is in heaven, right? He sincerely believed what he was doing was right. He had a sincere view of racial supremacy and thought it was right to exterminate the Jewish people.

It also appears that Osama bin Laden is sincere in thinking Allah wanted him to kill 3,000 people. He was honest and genuine about his belief that every American man, woman and child are infidels deserving death. So, why wouldn't he end up in some kind of paradise?

"No!" you protest. "He is not good!" Really? According to whose definition? Yours? Mine? The person next door? Is it determined by consensus? Why is it wrong to lie, steal and murder? As much as we hate to admit it, it's because God said it is wrong in the Ten Commandments, among other places.

This is why sincerity is never enough. We have to have a set of absolutes to live by. We can't simply make up the rules as we go along. You may want to believe that "all roads lead to God." You may really and sincerely hope that every religion is basically true and that they somehow all blend beautifully together.

The great world religions do not all teach the same thing. And I say that with respect for all people to believe what they choose to believe. We don't need to vilify, threaten or attack one another. We need a civil discourse, and we need to agree to disagree. But on the other hand, let's not foolishly say every religion is teaching the same thing, because they are not. For instance, take these three truths into consideration:

Concerning the existence of a personal God.
Buddhists deny it altogether. Hindus believe that God is formless and abstract, taking the form of a trinity as well as millions of lesser gods. In direct contrast, the Bible teaches that God is a personal deity, who created man in His own image, loves us and wants to have a relationship with us.

Concerning salvation.
Buddhists believe salvation comes by self-effort alone – with no personal God to help or guide you. Hindus believe you achieve salvation by devotion, works and self-control. Muslims insist that man earns his own salvation, pays for his own sins, and that you can never be certain if you have achieved salvation or not. In stark contrast, the Bible teaches that Jesus Christ died for our sins, and if we will turn from our own way and follow Him, we can be forgiven and have the hope of heaven.

Concerning Jesus Christ.
Buddhists believe Jesus was a good teacher, but less important than Buddha. Hindus believe Jesus was just one of many incarnations, or sons of God. They teach that Christ was not the one-and-only Son of God. He was no more divine than any other man, and He did not die for man's sins. Muslims will tell you that Jesus Christ was only a man, a prophet equal to Adam, Noah or Abraham, all of whom are below Muhammad in importance.

Do you see my point? It doesn't work to believe in all of the above. The tenets of these religions directly contradict one another. They cannot all be true. These belief systems are diverse and contradictory. In reality, they have little to nothing in common.

Jesus claimed to be the only way to the Father. It is not enough to admire Him or think of Him as a "great moral teacher." We must examine His unique claims and make a decision concerning Him.

© 2006 WorldNetDaily.com


Greg Laurie is the senior pastor of Harvest Christian Fellowship in Riverside, Calif., one of the eight largest churches in America, as well as the third largest in California.

PSUEDO" EPHRAEM AND THE PRE-TRIBULATION RAPTURE

As I surf the net viewing pages upon pages of information about the varying views of the rapture and the millennium I am astounded by people's editing jobs. In some aspects I'm guilty of this as well. For the sake of brevity I will quote sources or subjects without providing in depth details in the assumption there are those who will investigate it further.

However I do try to provide complete sources when I can find them. Recently I found a copy of Psuedo Ephraem's sermon. I noted that when read without parts being highlighted by a proponent of one view or another and you take it for what it says it becomes pretty clear where the author stood on the subject.

So, here is the sermon without any emphasis on any part and I will put my comments at the end. Read it for yourself:

On the Last Times, the Anti-Christ, and the End of the World
A Sermon by Pseudo-Ephraem

Intro: The reason this is referred to a pseudo-Ephraem is that three historical references state it was written by Ephraem the Syrian, but one historical reference states it was written by Isadore of Sevelle.

Section 1
Dearly beloved brothers, believe the Holy Spirit who speaks in us. We have already told you that the end of the world is near, the consummation remains. Has not faith withered away among mankind? How many foolish things are seen among youths, how many crimes among prelates, how many lies among priests, how many perjuries among deacons! There are evil deeds among the ministers, adulteries in the aged, wantonness in the youths--in mature women false faces, in virgins dangerous traces! In the midst of all this there are the wars with the Persians, and we see struggles with diverse nations threatening and "kingdom rising against kingdom." When the Roman empire begins to be consumed by the sword, the coming of the Evil One is at hand. It is necessary that the world come to an end at the completion of the Roman empire.

In those days two brothers will come to the Roman empire who will rule with one mind; but because one will surpass the other, there will be a schism between them. And so the Adversary will be loosed and will stir up hatred between the Persian and Roman empires. In those days many will rise up against Rome; the Jewish people will be her adversaries. There will be stirrings of nations and evil reports, pestilences, famines, and earth quakes in various places. All nations will receive captives; there will be wars and rumors of wars. From the rising to the setting of the sun the sword will devour much. The times will be so dangerous that in fear and trembling they will not permit thought of better things, because many will be the oppressions and desolations of regions that are to come.

Section 2
We ought to understand thoroughly therefore, my brothers, what is imminent or overhanging. Already there have been hunger and plagues, violent movements of nations and signs, which have been predicted by the Lord, they have already been fulfilled (consummated), and there is not other which remains, except the advent of the wicked one in the completion of the Roman kingdom. Why therefore are we occupied with worldly business, and why is our mind held fixed on the lusts of the world or on the anxieties of the ages? Why therefore do we not reject every care of worldly business, and why is our mind held fixed on the lusts of the world or on the anxieties of the ages? Why therefore do we not reject every care of earthly actions and prepare ourselves for the meeting of the Lord Christ, so that he may draw us from the confusion, which overwhelms all the world? Believe you me, dearest brother, because the coming (advent) of the Lord is nigh, believe you me, because the end of the world is at hand, believe me, because it is the very last time. Or do you not believe unless you see with your eyes? See to it that this sentence be not fulfilled among you of the prophet who declares: "Woe to those who desire to see the day of the Lord!" For all the saints and elect of God are gathered, prior to the tribulation that is to come, and are taken to the Lord lest they see the confusion that is to overwhelm the world because of our sins. And so, brothers most dear to me, it is the eleventh hour, and the end of the world comes to the harvest, and angels, armed and prepared, hold sickles in their hands, awaiting the empire of the Lord. And we think that the earth exists with blind infidelity, arriving at its downfall early. Commotions are brought forth, wars of diverse peoples and battles and incursions of the barbarians threaten, and our regions shall be desolated, and we neither become very much afraid of the report nor of the appearance, in order that we may at least do penance; because they hurl fear at us, and we do not wish to be changed, although we at least stand in need of penance for our actions!

Section 3
When therefore the end of the world comes, there arise diverse wars, commotions on all sides, horrible earthquakes, perturbations of nations, tempests throughout the lands, plagues, famine, drought throughout the thoroughfares, great danger throughout the sea and dry land, constant persecutions, slaughters and massacres everywhere, fear in the homes, panic in the cities, quaking in the thoroughfares, suspicions in the male, anxiety in the streets. In the desert people become senseless, spirits melt in the cities. A friend will not be grieved over a friend, neither a brother for a brother, nor parents for their children, nor a faithful servant for his master, but one inevitability shall overwhelm them all; neither is anyone able to be recovered in that time, who has not been made completely aware of the coming danger, but all people, who have been constricted by fear, are consumed because of the overhanging evils.

Section 4
Whenever therefore the earth is agitated by the nations, people will hide themselves from the wars in the mountains and rocks, by caves and caverns of the earth, by graves and memorials of the dead, and there, as they waste away gradually by fear, they draw breath, because there is not any place at all to flee, but there will be concession and intolerable pressure. And those who are in the east will flee to the west, and moreover, those who are in the west shall flee to the east, and there is not a safer place anywhere, because the world shall be overwhelmed by worthless nations, whose aspect appears to be of wild animals more than that of men. Because those very much horrible nations, most profane and most defiled, who do not spare lives, and shall destroy the living from the dead, shall consume the dead, they eat dead flesh, they drink the blood of beasts, they pollute the world, contaminate all things, and the one who is able to resist them is not there. In those days people shall not be buried, neither Christian, nor heretic, neither Jew, nor pagan, because of fear and dread there is not one who buries them; because all people, while they are fleeing, ignore them.

Section 5
Whenever the days of the times of those nations have been fulfilled, after they have destroyed the earth, it shall rest; and now the kingdom of the Romans is removed from everyday life, and the empire of the Christians is handed down by God and Peter; and then the consummation comes, when the kingdom of the Romans begins to be fulfilled, and all dominions and powers have been fulfilled. Then that worthless and abominable dragon shall appear, he, whom Moses named in Deuteronomy, saying:-Dan is a young lion, reclining and leaping from Basan. Because he reclines in order that he may seize and destroy and slay. Indeed (he is) a young whelp of a lion not as the lion of the tribe of Judah, but roaring because of his wrath, that he may devour. "And he leaps out from Basan." "Basan" certainly is interpreted "confusion." He shall rise up from the confusion of his iniquity. The one who gathers together to himself a partridge the children of confusion, also shall call them, whom he has not brought forth, just as Jeremiah the prophet says. Also in the last day they shall relinquish him just as confused.

Section 6
When therefore the end of the world comes, that abominable, lying and murderous one is born from the tribe of Dan. He is conceived from the seed of a man and from an unclean or most vile virgin, mixed with an evil or worthless spirit. But that abominable corrupter, more of spirits than of bodies, while a youth, the crafty dragon appears under the appearance of righteousness, before he takes the kingdom. Because he will be craftily gentle to all people, not receiving gifts, not placed before another person, loving to all people, quiet to everyone, not desiring gifts, appearing friendly among close friends, so that men may bless him, saying;-he is a just man, not knowing that a wolf lies concealed under the appearance of a lamb, and that a greedy man is inside under the skin of a sheep.

Section 7
But when the time of the abomination of his desolation begins to approach, having been made legal, he takes the empire, and, just as it is said in the Psalm:-They have been made for the undertaking for the sons of Lot, the Moabites and the Ammanites shall meet him first as their king. Therefore, when he receives the kingdom, he orders the temple of God to be rebuilt for himself, which is in Jerusalem; who, after coming into it, he shall sit as God and order that he be adored by all nations, since he is carnal and filthy and mixed with worthless spirit and flesh. Then that eloquence shall be fulfilled of Daniel the prophet:-And he shall not know the God of their fathers, and he shall not know the desires of women. Because the very wicked serpent shall direct every worship to himself. Because he shall put forth an edict so that people may be circumcised according to the rite of the old law. Then the Jews shall congratulate him, because he gave them again the practice of the first covenant; then all people from everywhere shall flock together to him at the city of Jerusalem, and the holy city shall be trampled on by the nations for forty-two months, just as the holy apostle says in the Apocalypse, which become three and a half years, 1,260 days.

Section 8
In these three years and a half the heaven shall suspend its dew; because there will be no rain upon the earth, and the clouds shall cease to pass through the air, and the stars shall be seen with difficulty in the sky because of the excessive dryness, which happens in the time of the very fierce dragon. Because all great rivers and very powerful fountains that overflow with themselves shall be dried up, torrents shall dry up their water-courses because of the intolerable age, and there will be a great tribulation, as there has not been, since people began to be upon the earth, and there will be famine and an insufferable thirst. And children shall waste away in the bosom of their mothers, and wives upon the knees of their husbands, by not having victuals to eat. Because there will be in those days lack of bread and water, and no one is able to sell or to buy of the grain of the fall harvest, unless he is one who has the serpentine sign on the forehead or on the hand. Then gold and silver and precious clothing or precious stones shall lie along the streets, and also even every type of pearls along the thoroughfares and streets of the cities, but there is not one who may extend the hand and take or desire them, but they consider all things as good as nothing because of the extreme lack and famine of bread, because the earth is not protected by the rains of heaven, and there will be neither dew nor moisture of the air upon the earth. But those who wander through the deserts, fleeing from the face of the serpent, bend their knees to God, just as lambs to the adders of their mothers, being sustained by the salvation of the Lord, and while wandering in states of desertion, they eat herbs.

Section 9
Then, when this inevitability has overwhelmed all people, just and unjust, the just, so that they may be found good by their Lord; and indeed the unjust, so that they may be damned forever with their author the Devil, and, as God beholds the human race in danger and being tossed about by the breath of the horrible dragon, he sends to them consolatory proclamation by his attendants, the prophets Enoch and Elijah, who, while not yet tasting death, are the servants for the heralding of the second coming of Christ, and in order to accuse the enemy. And when those just ones have appeared, they confuse indeed the antagonistic serpent with his cleverness and they call back the faithful witnesses to God, in order to (free them) from his seduction ...

Section 10
And when the three and a half years have been completed, the time of the Antichrist, through which he will have seduced the world, after the resurrection of the two prophets, in the hour which the world does not know, and on the day which the enemy of son of perdition does not know, will come the sign of the Son of Man, and coming forward the Lord shall appear with great power and much majesty, with the sign of the wood of salvation going before him, and also even with all the powers of the heavens with the whole chorus of the saints, with those who bear the sign of the holy cross upon their shoulders, as the angelic trumpet precedes him, which shall sound and declare: Arise, O sleeping ones, arise, meet Christ, because his hour of judgment has come! Then Christ shall come and the enemy shall be thrown into confusion, and the Lord shall destroy him by the spirit of his mouth. And he shall be bound and shall be plunged into the abyss of everlasting fire alive with his father Satan; and all people, who do his wishes, shall perish with him forever; but the righteous ones shall inherit everlasting life with the Lord forever and ever.

Whether written by the true Ephraem or one later it is clear from several scholars (Dr. Paul Alexander, Wilhelm Bouset and Prof C.P. Caspari among them) that it was composed before the 6th century. Many of them believe it was written by Ephraem. No matter how you slice it, it shows a belief of the pre-trib rapture over 1000 years prior to Darby.

The DaVinci Delusion That Cannot Be Ignored

[Excerpts]

Brown has the audacity to state right up front that all facts in the book are TRUE when, in fact, they are irrational lies. He has introduced to the unsuspecting an alternative form of Christianity debunking the sacrifice Jesus made for us on the cross. While dozens of films and books have done this over the years, none have been quite this salacious, filled with lies and distortions, about the One who took our sins upon Him. One should only waste money on the Hollywood Christian haters if you have a genuinely seeking friend or relative who wants the facts to be unraveled so they can hopefully embrace truth. And no previous Bible/Jesus-bashing book has sold 45 million copies so this has reached the state where the culture must be engaged in a reasonable way.

Brown tries to wipe away doubt in the opening segments of the film. What he's done is exercise his imagination, strung together rumor, myth, and legend. He has introduced to the unsuspecting an alternative form of Christianity. Any doubt these are the "last days" of deception predicted by Jesus Himself in Matthew 24?

The plot includes Jesus NOT dying on the cross, marrying Mary Magdalene, and having a child whose descendents are still alive. A secret society guards this "truth." Yet not a single credible, ancient source substantiates this.

Skeptics, seekers, new Christians, and unstable Christians could end up believing that the Christian faith is founded on a myth, for Brown cleverly mixes some truth with a lot of fiction, something that always confuses and leads people away from truth. And most today do not have the time or will not take the time to really study and find the real truth.

Campus Crusade for Christ says they have gotten notes saying some of the following:

"I read 'The DaVinci Code' and no longer know what I believe." (A missionary in Europe)

"Two close friends of mine in the church lost their faith over 'The DaVinci Code.' "

"I lost my son to 'The DaVinci Code.' "

This apostasy has gotten some fuel from Emergent Church leader Brian McClaren. In an interview in "Sojourner's Magazine," very much to the left but calling itself evangelical, McLaren suggests it is popular because "it is an experience in shared frustration with status-quo, male-dominated, power-oriented, cover-up-prone, organized religion (which is why he created a new, more trendy one called "Emergent.") McLaren suggests that the standard vision of Jesus is not sufficient to most. "I don't think 'DaVinci Code' has more harmful ideas in it than the 'Left Behind' novels, as they
twist Scripture toward a theological and political bend." This leaves me speechless and in more serious doubt and concern for those filtering into McLaren's movement called the Emergent Church.

On the positive side, the book and movie open up a tremendous opportunity to talk about Jesus while He's on the minds of millions. It's an opportunity to engage the culture (Markell)

"The DaVinci Delusion That Cannot Be Ignored"
Olive Tree Ministries, 5/16/06).

The Coming of Christ for His Church - Dr. John F. Walvoord

The Future Work of Christ

Many Scriptures testify to the fact that the present age will culminate in the coming of the Lord for His church. According to 1I Thessalonians 4:13-18, this event will close the age with the resurrection of the dead in Christ, and living saints will be “caught up” to meet the Lord in the air and thereafter “be with the Lord.”

In view of the extensive consideration of Biblical truth relating to this subject in a previous publication by the author, the present discussion will be limited to the important aspects of the doctrine. Three lines of truth relating to the coming of the Lord for His church will be considered: (1) the rapture of the church, i.e., the coming of Christ for His church; (2) Christ in relation to the church in heaven; (3) the second coming to the earth.

Four Views of the Rapture

Four major interpretations have been advanced by those accepting the inspiration and infallibility of the Scriptures. These views are concerned not only with the character and events related to the second coming, but primarily deal with the question of the relation of these events to the predicted time of tribulation or trouble which will sweep all the world and especially the nation Israel.

The four views relate the coming of Christ for His church and His second coming to the earth in relation to this time of tribulation as follows: (1) the posttribulation view, that Christ will come for His church as a phase of His return to the earth and that it will occur after the tribulation;

(2) the midtribulation view, which holds that Christ will come in the middle of the seven-year period predicted by Daniel, but before the great tribulation of the last three and a half years preceding Christ’s return to earth;

(3) the partial-rapture view, that Christ will catch out of the world those who are spiritually qualified before the tribulation, and as others become qualified, will catch them up to Himself throughout the tribulation period;

(4) the pretribulation view, which holds that Christ will come for His church before the seventieth week of Daniel, the seven-year period preceding Christ’s coming to the earth to establish His millennial kingdom.

Of the four views it may be said that an insignificant fraction of expositors follow the partial-rapture view, and it has never attained the status of orthodoxy within evangelicalism. The midtribulation view has experienced some popularity in the present generation, but has practically no literature and is held by no specific group or denomination. The great body of students of Scripture who, are premillennial hold either the pretribulational or posttribulational view.

Posttribulationism. Unquestionably, the majority view as far as the rapture is concerned is the posttribulational view, namely, that Christ will come for His church in connection with His second coming to the earth. This is the view advocated by the amillenarians and postmillenarians and by some premillenarians. They contend that to divide the rapture from the second coming to the earth by a period of at least seven years is to bifurcate what the Scriptures intend to be a single event.

Posttribulationists who have written on this subject usually attack the pretribulational view, rather than support their own position. Arguments gleaned from their writings in favor of the posttribulational position may be itemized as follows:

1. The argument from history. Posttribulationists appeal to the fact that the early church fathers were posttribulational and conclude that, therefore, the pretribulation position is new and novel. Pretribulationists reply by noting that modern posttribulationism with its doctrine of tribulation first and then the rapture is not what the early church fathers believed at all, for the early church held the any-movement view of the Lord’s return, thinking erroneously that they were already in the great tribulation.

The modern form of posttribulationism which places the tribulation still future and to be followed by the rapture is in some respects more recent than pretribulationism as it is taught today. Pretribulationists hold with the early church in the doctrine of imminency, but disagree that we are already in the great tribulation. Posttribulationists disagree with the early church doctrine of imminency but, like the early church, place the rapture after the tribulation.

2. The church will be preserved through the tribulation. This posttribulational argument attempts to play down the Scriptures that teach that the time of tribulation will be unprecedented in its severity and advances the position that the wrath of God in this period will be poured out only on unsaved people, while the church will go through the period without experiencing the wrath of God. Pretribulationists observe that this is not what the Bible teaches inasmuch as evidence seems to point to the martyrdom of most of those who do come to Christ in the period and that the nature of the judgment, such as earthquakes, pestilence, war, famine, etc., would affect believers as well as unbelievers. Pretribulationists also point out that posttribulationists adopt an extensive spiritualization of prophecies which should be taken literally in order to avoid contradiction of their viewpoint.

3. There are saints in the tribulation. Posttribulationists have seized upon the fact that there are saints in the tribulation as proving that the church is there as well. Pretribulationists reply by admitting that there will be people saved in the tribulation period. However, it is noted that none of the technical terms relating them to the saints of the present age, such as the phrase “in Christ,” or “the baptism of the Spirit,” or similar terms are to be found. The word church is never used in any passage dealing with the great tribulation.

4. The Bible predicts events occurring before the rapture; therefore, it cannot be imminent. This posttribulational argument is an admission that the early church fathers were wrong in believing in imminency because of events which must occur before the rapture according to posttribulation interpretation. The events usually cited, however, such as the predicted death of Peter, the destruction of Jerusalem, and implications that the period will be a long time, actually do not stand in the way of current belief in the imminent return of Christ and did not even hinder this in the first century.

Even the few years from Pentecost to the time of Paul’s conversion and later revelation of rapture truth in its details could be considered a long time. The destruction of Jerusalem is nowhere stated to be either before or after the rapture. The death of Peter could, of course, have taken place any day. This posttribulation argument certainly does not militate against the doctrine of imminency today.

5. The prophecy of a resurrection occurring at the beginning of the millennium is cited as supporting posttribulationism. Pretribulationists, of course, agree with posttribulationists that there will be a resurrection before the millennium in connection with Christ’s second coming to the earth as this is explicitly taught in Revelation 20:4-6. Pretribulationists hold, however, that this resurrection relates to tribulation saints and possibly Old Testament saints, but does not include specifically the dead in Christ of the present age.

All premillennial interpretations of Scripture agree that there is more than one resurrection, as Scriptures indicate as a minimum the resurrection of Christ, the resurrection of the righteous related to the second coming, and the resurrection of the wicked after the millennium. The further division of the resurrection of the church before the tribulation and the resurrection of other saints after the tribulation would be an additional refinement.

6. The same expressions are used for the Lord’s return for His church as are used for His second coming to the earth. Pretribulationists agree that the word coming (Gr. parousia) and other similar words may be used of both events, but find nothing strange in such usage. These are general words and must be invested by the context with their particular meaning as these same words are used of other events in the Bible and are not technical words.

7. The tares are gathered out “first” in the parable of wheat and tares in Matthew 13. Pretribulationists reply that in the first place the order is not important here as even posttribulationists admit that the separation of the wheat and the tares occurs simultaneously as illustrated in the judgment of the sheep and the goats in Matthew 25:31-46.

The reference to the wheat and tares, however, relates to the second coming and not to the rapture, as the entire interadvent age from the first coming to the earth to the second coming to the earth is in view in this passage. Significantly, in the same chapter in the parable of the dragnet, the order is reversed and the good fish are gathered into the vessels and subsequently the bad are “cast away 4" (Matt. 13:48-50). The rapture, however, is not in view in either parable.

8. Expressions like “the day” and “the day of the Lord” are technical terms which could not refer to more than one event. Pretribulationists observe that the expression “the day of the Lord” actually is a long period of time, including the entire millennium. In the nature of the case, an expression like day is a general term and has to be given meaning in the context. It is not true that this word is always used in the same sense in the Bible, and, as a matter of fact, it would be impossible to make this expression always a technical term.

9. The chronology of 2 Thessalonians 2:1-12 requires two signs preceding the Lord’s return, namely, the apostasy and the revelation of the man of sin. Pretribulationists observe that this passage is given as a correction of an error which had been taught the Thessalonians, namely, that they were already in the Day of the Lord and in the period of trouble which this would bring upon the earth. These signs relate to the Day of the Lord, not the rapture.

This passage is actually an argument for pretribulationism rather than posttribulationism as the restrainer apparently is to be identified with the restraint of sin in the present age. This must be removed before the tribulation can come. Whether or not the restrainer is the Holy Spirit, as many believe, it would be natural for an event like the rapture to cause such a lifting of restraint, and the subsequent revelation of the man of sin. If there is any evidence in this passage relating to this question, it is for the pretribulational view rather than the posttribulational view.

10. The term the end is a technical expression always referring to the end of the interadvent age. Pretribulationists note that passages where this expression occurs (1 Cor. 1:7-8; Heb. 3:6, 14; Heb. 6:11; Rev. 2:26) refer to a time which must necessarily be defined by the context. Significantly not one of the five texts used as proof are linked with the posttribulational coming of the Lord and only one instance (1 Cor. 1:7-8) even mentions it. Like other terms such as the day and coming, the expression the end is not technical in itself, therefore, could conceivably be used of the end of the church period as well as the end of the tribulation.

11. Certain passages, such as Matthew 24:31, relate the rapture to the end of the tribulation and lead naturally to posttribulationism. Pretribulationists point out that a rapture is not mentioned in Matthew 24:31, and in the passage neither translation nor resurrection is specified. As in many other instances, posttribulationists are assuming what they are trying to prove.

These brief answers to the principal posttribulational arguments could be greatly expanded. The basic problem, however, is that posttribulationism has been occupied with refuting the pretribulational arguments, but seldom if ever offers solid proof that the rapture occurs after the tribulation. As a matter of fact, not a single passage in the New Testament relating to the rapture contextually can be proved to refer to the close of the tribulation period. Posttribulationists therefore are driven completely to inference.

It is most significant that in all of the passages dealing specifically with the second coming of Christ to the earth not one word can be found concerning translation of living saints. Pretribulationists concede that there will be a resurrection of certain saints at this time, but in none of these resurrections is the church specifically mentioned.

In fact, passages such as Revelation 20:4-6 specifically refer to the tribulation saints. It is significant that the great majority of educational institutions which are premillennial are also pretribulational, especially the Bible institute movement which has specialized in the premillennial interpretation of the Scripture.

The midtribulation rapture. In the current dispute between pretribulationists and posttribulationists it is natural that some should be attracted to a mediate position. Although comparatively little literature has been created and no specific school of thought has emerged in support of the midtribulation view, it has been adopted by some contemporary evangelical scholars. Their position is that the church will be raptured at the end of the first three and a half years of the seven years of Israel’s covenant (Dan. 9:27) and therefore will be caught out of the world before the time of the great tribulation which is the last three and a half years.

The principal argument in favor of midtribulationism is the identification of the trump which will be sounded at the rapture with the seventh trump of Revelation 11. This identification, however, is completely faulty as the series of trumpets culminating in the seventh trumpet are trumps of angels having to do with the pouring out of wrath upon the earth and have no relation to the rapture or translation of living saints or to the resurrection of the dead in Christ. The seventh trumpet of Revelation is near the end of the great tribulation, not at its beginning as the day of wrath has begun much earlier (Rev. 6:17). This seventh trumpet is not the last in any event as there is a further trumpet mentioned in Matthew 24:31. The midtribulation theory renders impossible the imminency of the coming of the Lord as the events of the first half of Daniel’s seventieth week would have to occur first.

Partial-rapture theory. This point of view, which arose a hundred years ago in the works of Robert Govett, has been principally expounded by G. H. Lange in the twentieth century. The concept of a partial rapture is derived from Scripture passages in which believers are urged to be prepared for the return of the Lord. Major passages cited by partial-rapturists are Matthew 24:40-51; Matthew 25:13; Mark 13:33-37; Luke 20:34-36; Luke 21:36; Philippians 3:10-12; 1 Thessalonians 5:6; 2 Timothy 4:8; Titus 2:8; Titus 2:13; Hebrews 9:24-28; Revelation 3:3; Revelation 12:1-6. Adherents to this point of view hold that believers must have good works in order to qualify for the rapture. Even in its simplest presentation, it is obvious that this is founded on a misapprehension of grace, the basis of salvation, and the nature of the body of Christ.

If the question is raised, “How many works are required to qualify?” it becomes immediately apparent that this teaching is on a questionable foundation. According to 1 Corinthians 15:51 “all” Christians will be included in the translation and resurrection at the rapture. It is because of these objections that most evangelical scholars have considered the partial-rapture view unworthy of serious consideration.

Pretribulation rapture. This point of view is adopted in the discussion to follow and holds that Christ will come for His own before the seventieth week of Daniel is fulfilled and therefore before the great tribulation. This view has been generally followed in most advanced study of prophecy among premillenarians in the twentieth century and is in harmony with the doctrine of the imminency of the rapture held by the early church fathers. A thorough study of the doctrine in the last century has brought to light many details which formerly were obscure and has tended to harmonize the premillennial interpretation of the Scripture and solve problems which in former generations were only partially answered. Generally speaking, this view is held by most premillenarians today, especially those who distinguish the program of God for Israel and the church and who tend to interpret prophecy in a normal, literal way.

In the author’s work on The Rapture Question some fifty arguments for pretribulationism are set forth in the conclusion. Without attempting to restate all of these arguments it may be observed here that pretribulationism depends upon two important premises. First, the church is regarded as a body of saints distinct from those of other ages, either before or after. Second, the tribulation is viewed as a future period of unprecedented trouble which will occur in the last half of Daniel’s seventieth week, a seven-year period which is future and subsequent to the rapture. Generally speaking, opponents of pretribulationism have begged the question by assuming that the word church includes saints of all ages, often with no proof whatever, and have tended to neglect the specifics given in the prophetic word concerning the tribulation itself.

The supporting evidence for pretribulationism falls into six categories as follows:

1. Pretribulationism is an outgrowth of the same type of hermeneutics which leads to premillennialism,namely, a literal interpretation of prophecy as opposed to the amillennial, spiritualized or allegorical interpretation of prophecy. Consistent premillennial hermeneutics leads to pretribulationism. This is evidenced by the fact that many who have abandoned pretribulationism often abandon premillennialism also.

2. No positive evidence can be produced that the church is in the tribulation as no specific term distinguishing the saints of the present age from other ages is ever used in connection with those in the tribulation itself.

3. According to the accounts of the tribulation in the Scripture, the events are related to Israel and the Gentiles and not to the church. In fact, the church is promised deliverance from the period according to 1 Thessalonians 5:9 (cp. Rev. 6:17; 1 Thess. 1:9-10; Rev. 3:10). Whenever the truth of the rapture of the church is presented in the Bible, it is always in the form of predicting it as an imminent event. It is therefore offered as a hope to believers and a basis for comfort and exhortation with no events indicated as necessarily occurring first (1 Thess. 4:18; 5:6; Titus 2:13; 1 John 3:1-3).

4. The period in which sin is permitted to manifest itself without restraint seemingly is impossible until the restrainer (probably to be identified as the Holy Spirit) is removed (2 Thess. 2:7). This would seemingly require the rapture first before the tribulation can begin.

5. A number of events are described in prophecy as occurring in heaven between the rapture and Christ’s coming to the earth, such as the judgment seat of Christ (2 Cor. 5:10) and the consummation of the marriage union (Eph. 5:27). On earth a period of time is needed between the rapture and the second coming to provide a group of saints who will remain in their natural bodies and populate the earth in the millennium (Isa. 65:20-25). If a rapture occurred at the end of the tribulation, it would leave no saints in their natural bodies to populate the millennial earth. The necessity of this interval is brought out in the divine judgments related to the second coming, namely, the judgment of the Gentiles
(Matt. 25:31-46) and the judgment of Israel (Ezek. 20:34-38), both of which judgments presume that there has been no separation of the saved from the unsaved such as a rapture would have effected at the time of the second coming.

6. Many contrasts exist between the rapture of the church and the second coming of Christ to the earth which tend to prove that they are distinet events and separated by a time period. The rapture pictures the saints meeting Christ in the air while at the second coming Christ meets the saints on earth. At the rapture the saints go to heaven; at the second coming the saints come to the earth. At the rapture there is no indication that sin is judged in the earth as it occurs before the day of wrath; at the second coming Christ establishes His kingdom, returning to the Mount of Olives, remaining on earth where He reigns as king. At that time sin will be brought into judgment and righteousness and peace will fill the earth. The second coming clearly follows the great tribulation which is given as a definite sign of the Lord’s return. The rapture is constantly viewed as a signless event which is imminent.

The arguments for pretribulationism offered at length in the author’s The Rapture Question as well as other important contributions to this field of study, such as J. Dwight Pentecost’s Things to Come and Gerald Stanton’s Kept from the Hour, demonstrate that pretribulationism is not wishful thinking, but is based upon a solid principle of interpretation, many passages of Scripture, and is supported by innumerable collateral proofs. The pretribulation point of view welcomes thorough investigation.

The Doctrine of the Rapture in Scripture
The fact that Christ would return to take His own out of the world is first introduced in the Upper Room Discourse in John 14:1-3. The disciples, already alarmed by predictions that Christ was going to leave them and that they would not be able to follow Him (John 13:33-36), are now informed that Christ is going to come for them, and take them to the Father’s house. This was an obvious contradiction of their previous hope that Christ was going to reign on earth and quite different in its general character. It indicated that their hope was heavenly rather than earthly and that they were going to be taken out of the earth to heaven rather than for Christ to come to the earth to be with them.

In the first of Paul’s epistles to the Thessalonians, further exposition is given the doctrine of the rapture as it was held by the early church. The Apostle Paul accompanied by Timothy and Silas had visited Thessalonica and in the course of their ministry extending over three Sabbath days had led a small number to the Lord. After being forced to leave because of persecution, Paul sent Timothy back to Thessalonica to ascertain their condition. Upon his return to Paul, Timothy reported on their progress and also brought back certain theological questions he was unable to answer. Among them was the question of the relationship between the translation of living Christians and the resurrection of the dead.

This rather mature question coming from young Christians indicates the extensive character of the teaching ministry of Paul to them subsequent to their conversion. They apparently already believed in the doctrine of the resurrection of the dead. They also believed that Christ would come at any moment to catch the living to be with Himself. The relationship of these two events was the matter in point. In answer to their questions, the apostle states in 1 Thessalonians 4:15-17: “For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord, that we that are alive, that are left unto the coming of the Lord, shall in no wise precede them that are fallen asleep. For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven, with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first; then we that are alive, that are left, shall together with them be caught up in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord.”

From the Thessalonian passage it will be observed: (1) that the same Lord who ascended from the Mount of Olives to heaven would descend bodily from heaven to the realm of the atmospheric heavens; (2) His coming would be signaled by a shout, the voice of the archangel, and the trump of God; (3) at these signals the dead in Christ would be raised to rejoin their souls and spirits, which came with Christ from heaven when He came (1 Thess. 4:14); (4) living saints instantly transformed would meet the Lord in the air and without dying would be introduced to their heavenly existence; (5) having thus met the Lord in the air, saints translated and resurrected would be forever with the Lord (1 Thess. 4:17). This doctrine was introduced to them as a comfort in the loss of their loved ones as well as an encouragement to them in their time of persecution. It is noteworthy that no intimation is given of any intervening time of tribulation such as is discussed in 1 Thessalonians 5.

A major contribution to the doctrine of the rapture was given later to the Corinthian church as recorded in 1 Corinthians 15:51-58. This important theological passage is introduced by a restatement of the gospel that Christ died for our sins, and that He rose from the dead, thus supporting the doctrine of the resurrection of all men. At the conclusion of this discussion, the truth of the rapture is described as a mystery, a truth unrevealed in the Old Testament.

The Corinthian passage makes more explicit what is implied in Thessalonians, namely, that believers will receive a new body in contrast to our present corruptible, mortal, and sinful body. This heavenly body will be like the body of our Lord and suited for the heavenly sphere. The resurrection body will be incorruptible, that is, will not be subject to the decay and deterioration of age. It will be immortal in that it will be deathless. While it is not expressly stated in this passage, it is implied in 1 John 3:2 that our resurrection bodies will be sinless, a conclusion confirmed in Philippians 3:21 where our bodies are said to be “conformed to the body of his glory.” This resurrection and translation is said to take place “in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump” (1 Cor. 15:52).

Although there are other allusions to the coming of the Lord for His church in Scripture, these major passages bring out the central doctrine, namely, that when Christ comes living Christians will be translated and the dead in Christ will be raised from the dead. After meeting Christ in the air they will go to the Father’s house as promised in John 14:1-3 and in the heavenly sphere will fulfill predicted events which will take place in heaven prior to Christ’s second coming to the earth.

Dr. John F. Walvoord, (A.B., D.D., Wheaton Colleage; A.M., Texas Christian University; Th.B., Th.M, Th.D., Dallas Theological Seminary) has long been a recognized authority on systematic theology and eschatology. Dr. Walvoord is chancellor of Dallas Theological Seminary. He retired from the presidency in 1986. He is a past president of the Evangelical Theological Society.

Dr. Walvoord has specialized in the field of biblical eschatology for more than thirty years. His academic background plus extensive travel in the Middle East makes him unusually capable of preparing theological and eschatological studies.

Israel 'Will Not Allow' Iran Nuclear Weapons

The brother of newly-elected Israeli prime minister, Ehud Olmert, said here on Monday that Israel "will not allow" Iran to acquire nuclear weapons capability, and will launch a unilateral military strike if necessary to destroy Iranian nuclear facilities.

Dr. Josef Olmert, a spokesman for Prime Minister Yitzhak Shamir in the early 1990s, told an audience at Sinai Temple in Los Angeles that "Iran is an existential issue" for Israel, because successive Iranian leaders have openly evoked the possibility of a nuclear exchange with the Jewish state.

Olmert now works with Israel's mission to the United Nations in New York and with "The Israel Project," an advocacy group in Washington, DC.

His brother, who became Prime Minister after elections in March, will visit Washington, D.C. next week to meet with President Bush. Accompanying him will be Dr. Eli Levita, deputy director of Israel's Atomic Energy Commission, who will brief U.S. officials on what Israel has learned about Iran's progress toward nuclear weapons capability.

"Iran will not be allowed to get to the point where they will have the capability to destroy the state of Israel," Olmert said. "We shall prevail, and Iran will fail."

He was addressing a forum on Iran organized by Israel Christian Nexus, a group that brings Christian churches and synagogues together in support of the state of Israel.

Asked by the audience whether Israel favored regime change in Iran, as advocated by many Iranian-American organizations, the younger Olmert said that "Israel can't wait for the hope of regime change in Iran. Time is running out."

He noted that the timetable for military strikes must occur when Iran develops acquires the capability to make nuclear weapons, long before it acquires the weapons themselves. "People tell me that this means months and not years," he added.

Many intelligence agencies, including Israel's, believe it could take several additional years to actually produce an arsenal of weapons. Iran announced it had succeeded in enriching uranium last month, a milestone that Undersecretary of State Robert Joseph has said is the "point of no return" in achieving weapons capability.

Israel needed to make its intentions clear, as a warning to Iran but also to its friends in the United States and elsewhere, Olmert said. "We believe the Iranians when they say they want to wipe Israel off the map. We take them seriously. We monitor their activities. We have the ability to monitor their activities."

Israel recently launched a new spy satellite, Eros-B, capable of photograph objects on the ground as small as 70 centimeters, according to Ha'aretz newspaper. Commenting on the April 24 launch, Israeli Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni said that Israel would not "turn a blind eye" to the Iranian threat.

Iran has announced it will install 3,000 additional centrifuges in its buried enrichment plant at Natanz by the end of the year. While the satellite can not see what is taking place inside the plant, it can observe comings and goings, and log how many trucks arrive – key indicators of the type of activity taking place at the plant.

Olmert recalled the warnings issued to incoming President Ronald Reagan in January 1981 about the threat Israel saw from Saddam Hussein's nuclear weapons program, a time when Olmert was in the government.

After three months, the Israeli warnings ceased and the Americans "simply assumed" that Israel had changed its assessment of Saddam's nuclear plans and that the attack was off the table, Olmert said.

When Israel launched an air strike against Iraq's French-built nuclear reactor (nick-named "O'Chirac" after then French Prime Minister Jacques Chirac, who signed the deal with Saddam in 1975), Reagan administration officials professed "shock," even though they had been warned repeatedly, he said.

The same could happen today with Iran, he warned.

Israel would much prefer taking part in an international coalition with the United States and Europe to disarm Iran, but would strike alone if that became necessary, he said.

"If a decision has to be made by an Israeli leader, it will be carried out in the right time and it will be successful.

"Take it for granted. We shall not allow this to happen," Olmert added, referring to a nuclear-armed Iran.

Israeli leaders have escalated the rhetoric about Iran's nuclear weapons program in recent weeks, with former prime minister and Nobel Peace prize winner Shimon Peres telling the Jerusalem Post that Israel, too, could "wipe Iran off the map," just as Iran had threatened to do to Israel.

On Thursday, Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said in Malaysia that Israel "one day will vanish," and predicted the same fate would befall America.

By Kenneth R. Timmerman
All Rights Reserved © 2006 NewsMaxCom

The Rapture: Before, During or After the Tribulation?

Passionate doctrinal debates have been swirling around the evangelical church in recent years and at the center of many of those arguments has been the rapture question.

Simply stated it is, "When will the church be raptured and what will the nature of that rapture be?"

For some the whole issue is trivial, minor and hopelessly mired in unsolvable problems. In theological despair, they have abandoned serious study of the issue. But for the careful student of Scripture, this is a critically important doctrine which is clearly taught in no fewer than 27 passages in the New Testament using eight different Greek words. Any doctrine so normative and persistent in God's Word cannot be ignored or dismissed as unimportant.

While the word "rapture" does not occur in our English translations of the Bible, it does appear in the Latin version of 1 Thessalonians 4:17 where it translates the idea of being "caught up." In fact, our English word rapture is derived from the Latin rapere.

There are no fewer than five proposals regarding the time of the rapture of the church. We shall briefly survey four of these and then put special emphasis on the pretribulation rapture which we believe best represents the totality of biblical data.

The Postribulation view teaches that all believers will be raptured at the conclusion of the tribulation period. This has been the commonly held view of a large segment of Christendom including Roman Catholics and the Greek Orthodox. The definition of the tribulation period, however, is variously interpreted by these groups. In classic postribulationism, the tribulation is regarded as past or partially fulfilled, but among futuristic postribulationists, this period is more literally defined.

This position relies heavily on passages such as Matthew 24:31 and Matthew 24:40-41. But those "taken away" in these passages were not believers in the rapture, but those to be "taken away" in judgment as verses 38 and 39 demonstrate.

The Partial Rapture position argues that the rapture will occur before the seven-year tribulation period, but that only godly or spiritual believers will be taken. Carnal Christians will be required to go through the tribulation or some part of it until they repent of their sin and are forgiven. They will then be taken up to be with the Lord.

Warning passages like Matthew 14:40-51; 25:13; Mark 13:33-37; Luke 20:34-36, 1 Thessalonians 5:6, and 2 Timothy 4:8 are the focus of appeal, but the context of the verses is often ignored. More significantly, no distinction between Israel and the church is made which leads to this erroneous proposition.

Midtribulationism asserts that the church will be raptured in the middle of the tribulation or after 3 ½ years. This view is relatively recent and depends heavily on equating the idea of "wrath" with the "great tribulation," or the last 3 ½ years of that period.

Many defending this position argue that the events of the seven seals, as well as the judgments of the first six trumpets of Revelation, take place in the first half of Daniel's seventieth week, and are not part of the "Great Tribulation." They argue that the expression "wrath" or "wrath of God" is reserved for the final half of the tribulation period and the Church, therefore, is to be rescued from that and not the whole tribulation period.

It is interesting how often discussions of Revelation. 6:16-17 and 7:14 are either strangely missing or subjected to very creative exegesis! The word "wrath" occurs in Revelation 6:16-17 and the "Great Tribulation" is mentioned in Revelation. 7:14---both of which precede the seventh trumpet!

A modification of the midtribulation view is known as the Pre-wrath Rapture. The basic thrust of this position is that the church will be raptured before the outpouring of the "wrath of God" which will occur in the fourth quarter of Daniel's 70th week.

Important to this view is dividing the 70th week of Daniel into three parts: (1) The "Beginning of sorrows" are the first 3 ½ years, (2) The "Great Tribulation" or 21 months, and (3) the final 21 months which are designated the "Day of the Lord." The rapture of the church is calculated to take place just before the outpouring of the wrath of God or the beginning of the "Great Tribulation."

But this view erroneously asserts that the wrath of God does not commence until Revelation 8:1, the seventh seal, which immediately introduces the great judgments of the seven trumpets. The expression "the great day of his wrath is come" (Rev. 6:17, kjv) completely contradicts this assertion. The expression, "is come" (or "has come") is a translation of the Greek aorist tense and indicative mood pointing to a past not a future event as is maintained by the advocates of this theory.

When all biblical evidence is contextually weighed and interpreted literally, it is clear that the rapture of the church will occur before the tribulation period begins. This widely held view is know as the

Pretribulation Rapture.

A number of observations should be made regarding this view and its defense.

First, the Bible makes it clear that the church has not been appointed to wrath and will not suffer under it in the future. Paul writes in 1 Thessalonians 1:10 "And to wait for His son from heaven, whom he raised from the dead, even Jesus, who delivered us from the wrath to come" (cf. Rom. 5:9). The tribulation is the time of God's wrath (Rev. 6:16-17; 11:18; 14:10, 19; 15:1,7).

Second, the church will not be overtaken by the Day of the Lord or the tribulation period (1 Thess. 5:1-9).

Third, the possible escape of this time is mentioned in Luke 21:36.

Fourth, the promise to the church is that it will be kept from the hour of testing or temptation (Rev. 3:10). The preposition ek used here and 800 other times in the New Testament carries the idea of "out from, from out of, forth from, or from." Crucial to the meaning of this passage is the word "hour." It is a specific time period from which the church will be delivered, not some fearful events or judgments out of which the church will be taken.

Fifth, it is characteristic of God to deliver His saints before divine judgment falls. Remember Noah, Lot, and Rahab (2 Peter 2:5-9; cf. Heb. 11:5).

Sixth, while the church is mentioned 19 times in Revelation. 1 -- 3, it does not appear at all on earth in chapters 4 to 18, passages which describe the tribulation period. Is it just coincidence that a new group appears in heaven and is described in great detail before the opening of the first seal?

The best interpretation of the evidence points to the fact that the raptured church is to be identified with the 24 elders because they have been redeemed out of many nations and clothed in the righteousness of Christ. Elders are the highest church office (Acts 15:6; 20:29). Note that David appointed 24 elders to represent the entire Levitical priesthood (1 Chron. 24).

Seventh, in the tribulation period, Jews and Gentiles are distinguished again (Rev. 7:4-8, 9-10) indicating that the age of grace had ended. No such distinctions exist in this age (Gal. 3:28).

Eighth, time is required for believers to be judged at the judgment seat of Christ (2 Cor. 5:10). The 70th week of Daniel is the logical time for this to occur in heaven while the events of Revelation 4-18 take place on earth.

Ninth, there would be no need of separating the sheep form the goats if the rapture takes place at the end of the tribulation (Matt. 25:31-46).

Tenth, we are Christ's ambassadors (2 Cor. 5:20) and it is customary to call ambassadors home when a country is preparing to go to war with the enemy.

Finally, note that the apostle John is called up (Rev. 4:1) and it is in heaven that he sees the elders.

It is with overwhelming wonder and joy that we contemplate the rapture of the church. This event is imminent and requires that we live godly lives for we do not know the hour of His return.

Here are the powerfully practical dimensions to this wonderful doctrine: (1) It gives us courage for living because we are assured that God is still in control. (2) It produces a concern for the lost because every tick of the clock brings us closer to the end of the church age. (3) It causes us to purify ourselves (1 John 3:3) and (4) It gives us comfort in the time of sorrow (1 Thess. 4:16-18).

With the thrilling prospects of the rapture, we cry out with the apostle John: "Even so, come, Lord Jesus" (Rev. 22:20). Maranatha!

Dr. John Davis, Th.D., D.D.

Professor of Old Testament and Hebrew
Grace Theological Seminary
Winona Lake

Thoughts on 'The Age Of Grace'

The twelve Jesus sent out, saying, "Do not go among the Gentiles or the Samaritans. Go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel only. As you go, preach this message: The kingdom of God is near. Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse those who have leprosy, and drive out demons. Freely you have received, freely give."

Not only did Jesus Himself walk among the Jews offering healing and working miracles, and being harassed by the Pharisees, He also sent out specially anointed apostles specifically to work 'Messianic' miracles to awaken the 'grassroots Hebrews' to a new awareness that something incredibly unusual was happening in their midst.

This was not something that was going on in one small corner of a country with limited means of communication, it was a message that was being carried into the highways and byways of Israel, with major miracles attending..., and it was STILL not met with awe and jubilation by those to whom the Messiah had been pronounced for centuries. They chose to go about their business and let Jesus and His followers go about theirs!

Not only that, but after only a brief rallying to His call on 'Palm Sunday,' the Jews actually turned against Him and called out to have Him crucified.

THAT was the fullness of the sin against God by the Jewish nation, and THAT is why God sent Christ's loyal followers to the Gentiles and to the ends of the earth to preach the Good News of the gospel - and THAT is the significance of the Church Age, the Age of Grace.

That is also why the Age of Grace must come to an end so that the Jews may be given a 'second chance' to call out for, and earnestly seek their long-awaited Messiah. And the Rapture of the Church is the eye-opening event that will set off this sudden heartfelt cry for repentance, while at the same time removing the Holy Spirit from the role He has played during the Church Age. I believe He will still be present on earth, but in a different capacity.

Even so COME, Lord Jesus.

By Doris E. Howie, OHzone
October 12, 2005

What Happens When You Die? By John Piper

At Home with the Lord

"Therefore we do not lose heart, but though our outer man is decaying, yet our inner man is being renewed day by day. For momentary, light affliction is producing for us an eternal weight of glory far beyond all comparison, while we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen; for the things which are seen are temporal, but the things which are not seen are eternal.

For we know that if the earthly tent which is our house is torn down, we have a building from God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens. For indeed in this house we groan, longing to be clothed with our dwelling from heaven; inasmuch as we, having put it on, shall not be found naked. For indeed while we are in this tent, we groan, being burdened, because we do not want to be unclothed, but to be clothed, in order that what is mortal may be swallowed up by life. Now He who prepared us for this very purpose is God, who gave to us the Spirit as a pledge.

Therefore, being always of good courage, and knowing that while we are at home in the body we are absent from the Lord-for we walk by faith, not by sight-we are of good courage, I say, and prefer rather to be absent from the body and to be at home with the Lord. Therefore also we have as our ambition, whether at home or absent, to be pleasing to Him. For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may be recompensed for his deeds in the body, according to what he has done, whether good or bad." 2 Corinthians 4:16-5:10

"What Happens When You Die?"

By "you" I mean believers in Jesus Christ. If you are not a believer, the aim of these messages is to wake you up from the slumber of indifference to the question of death and eternity and to motivate you to consider Jesus Christ as the only way to eternal life and the only escape from hell and eternal death. "I am the way the truth and the life, no one comes to the Father but by me" (John 14:6). There is no other way to God.

In this sermon I will try to answer from Scripture the question, "What happens immediately at the moment of death?" In the following four weeks the questions will be:

What happens to you at the coming of Christ?

What happens to believers at the Judgment?

What is our final place: a distant heaven, or the new earth where lions and lambs lie down in peace?

What is the most essential bridge that links this life and the next?

There is a long list of reasons why this theme seems crucial to me for our consideration. Let me mention a few of them:

1. The possibilities for joy and misery after you die are trillions of times greater than in the few years on this earth before you die. The Bible compares this life to a vapor that appears as you breathe on a cold winter morning and then vanishes (James 4:14). The Bible describes the time after death as "ages of ages." Not just one or two ages of thousands of years, but ages of ages; thousands and thousands of ages (Rev. 14:11). It matters infinitely what happens to you after you die.

2. This theme forces the question as to whether our faith is real, substantial, biblical, faith in objective, external reality outside ourselves. Namely, is our faith in God or is it a mere subjective experience of feelings and thoughts inside ourselves that function as an emotional cushion to soften the bumps of life and give us a network of friends. Facing eternity has an amazing effect of sobering us out of religious delusions.

3. Thinking about death and eternity helps keep God as the center of our lives by testing whether we are more in love with this world than we are in love with God himself. Does the thought of dying give us more pain at losing what we love on earth than it gives us joy at gaining Christ?

4. When the Biblical truth of this theme grips you it frees you from fear and gives courage to live the most radical, self-sacrificing life of love. The person who can truly say, "To die is gain," will be able to say like no one else, "To live is Christ" (Phil. 1:21). But if you can't say, "To die is gain," then you will you will probably say, in one degree or another, "Let us eat, drink and be merry, for tomorrow we die" (1 Cor. 15:32). Being sure of what happens when you die is indispensable as a believer in Christ for your daily courage and for not losing heart through the pain and the diminishing health of this life.

That brings us to our text.

What Paul is doing in 2 Corinthians 4:16 - 5:10 is showing the Corinthians why he does not lose heart in spite of all the troubles and afflictions (4:8-12). Especially in view of the fact that he knows he is dying; his body is wearing away. Look at 4:16--"Therefore we do not lose heart, but though our outer man is decaying, yet our inner man is being renewed day by day."

It is utterly crucial that we not lose heart. Some of you have taken such a pounding physically and financially and relationally that you have often been tempted to "loose heart"; to give up. To say, "It isn't worth it." "Que sera, sera". "Who cares?" Paul faced the same temptation (vv 8-12) and this text holds one of the keys to why he did not lose heart.

To show that this really is crucial to his point here look at verses 6 and 8 of chapter five which is part of the same train of thought. Verse 6: "Therefore, being always of good courage . . ." Verse 8: "We are of good courage, I say." We'll come back to these verses in moment, but the point now is simply to show you that what Paul is doing here is giving the basis of being of good courage and not losing heart. That is the effect I would like it to have on you.

Now let's go back to 4:16 and follow his line of thought to see what is threatening to make Paul lose heart and lose courage, and what is keeping him from losing heart.

Verse 16: "Therefore we do not lose heart, but though our outer man is decaying . . ." Here is the threat he is dealing with: His body--"the outer man"--is decaying; it is wearing out. He can't see the way he used to (and there were probably no glasses). He can't hear the way he used to. He does not recover from beatings the way he used to. His strength walking from town to town does not hold up the way it used to. He sees the wrinkles in his face and neck. His memory is not as good. His joints get stiff when he sits still. In other words, he knows that he, like everybody else, is dying. His outer man is decaying. That's the threat to his courage and joy.

Now why doesn't he lose heart?
The first part of the answer is again in verse 16: "Therefore we do not lose heart, but though our outer man is decaying, yet our inner man is being renewed day by day." He doesn't lose heart because day by day his heart, his inner man, is being renewed. If his decaying body tends to make him lose heart, something else tends to make him gain heart. What is it?

His renewed heart comes from something very strange: it comes from looking at what he can't see. Verse 18: "We look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen; for the things which are seen are temporal, but the things which are not seen are eternal." This is Paul's way of not losing heart: looking at what you can't see.

Recall how Jesus criticized the religious leaders in his day: "Seeing they do not see and hearing they do not hear" (Matt. 13:13). In other words there was something to "see" in Jesus' life and teaching which they didn't see but should have seen. That has got to be reversed if we are to get our hope and our courage from Jesus and not lose heart. It has to be said of us, "Not seeing, they see; and not hearing, they hear. That's what Paul was doing in verse 18; he was looking at things that are not seen."

Paul illustrates this in chapter 5, verse 7: "We walk by faith, not by sight." This doesn't mean that we leap into the dark without evidence of what's there. But it does mean that the most precious and important realities in the world are beyond our senses now, and we "look" at them (v. 18) through what we know of Christ from faithful witnesses who have seen him and heard his voice. We strengthen our hearts--we renew our courage--by fixing the gaze of our hearts on invisible, objective truth that we learn about through the testimony of those who knew Christ and were taught by him (cf. Eph 1:18-23).

What truth? What do we fix our gaze on to experience day by day the renewal of the inner man in the face of death?

To answer this we look back to verse 17 for a powerful summary statement, and we look forward into chapter 5 for the unpacking of this summary statement.

Verse 17: We renew our inner man each day by looking at this truth: "Momentary, light affliction is producing for us an eternal weight of glory far beyond all comparison."

The decaying of your body is not meaningless. The pain, pressure, frustration and affliction are not happening in vain. They are not vanishing into a black hole of pointless suffering. Instead this "momentary, light affliction (he calls it that even though it lasted for years and was unremitting and often excruciating) is producing for us an eternal weight of glory far beyond all comparison."

In other words, the unseen things that Paul looks at to renew his inner man is the immense weight of glory that is being prepared for him not just after, but through and by, the wasting away of his body. There is a correlation between the decay of the Paul's body and the display of Paul's glory. When he is hurting he fixes his eyes not on how heavy the hurt is, but on how heavy the glory will be because of the hurt.

Now what does he see when he looks to the unseen glory? As he goes on in chapter five he fills in some what he sees as he looks at the unseen.

Now the next two messages concern these verses: the resurrection body and the judgment of believers. But neither of these is the focus of this message. So if I pass over something too quickly, read the next sermon.

Verses 1-5 are about the hope of receiving new, glorious bodies at the resurrection. Verses 9-10 are about the judgment and Paul's effort to please Christ the Judge. Our focus is on verses 6-8, the hope of being with Christ immediately when you die.

But let me read you the verses about the resurrection body because there is a crucial connection between this hope and the hope of being with Christ (without a new body) immediately when you die. Verses 1-5:

For we know that if the earthly tent which is our house is torn down [he's talking about his body which is decaying], we have a building from God [a building as opposed to a tent for a house--that is, something more durable and lasting, namely, a new resurrection body], a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens. For indeed in this house [this "tent-house," our present body] we groan, longing to be clothed with our dwelling from heaven [that is, our resurrection body; he mixes metaphors here shifting back and forth now between being clothed and being housed]; inasmuch as we, having put it on, shall not be found naked [in other words, he does not prefer to put off his present body like a garment and become a disembodied soul--that's what nakedness means]. For indeed while we are in this tent [this mortal body], we groan, being burdened, because we do not want to be unclothed [we don't want to be a bodiless soul], but to be clothed [on top of our present clothes--he wants the second coming of Christ to happen so that he will not have to die and be without a body, but rather have his present body swallowed up in the glorious resurrection life of the new body], in order that what is mortal may be swallowed up by life. Now He who prepared us for this very purpose is God, who gave to us the Spirit as a pledge.

We'll talk more about this in the next message. For now, here's the crucial point: If Paul had his preference he would choose to receive his new resurrection body at the second coming of Christ without having to die. And the reason he gives is that the experience of "nakedness"--that is being stripped of his body--is not something as good as having his body swallowed up by life as he is changed in the twinkling of an eye at the second coming of Christ.

This means that the great final hope of the Christian is not to die and be freed from our bodies, but to be raised with new, glorious bodies, or, best of all, to be alive at the second coming so that we do not have to lose our body temporarily and be "naked" (souls without bodies, cf. Mt. 10:28; Rev. 6:9; Heb. 12:23) until the resurrection.

But does that mean that dying and going to be with Christ does not happen, or that it is not good? No. Paul puts things back in perspective again in verses 6-8.

Therefore, being always of good courage, and knowing that while we are at home in the body we are absent from the Lord [the full intimacy we long for is not possible here]--for we walk by faith, not by sight-- we are of good courage, I say, and prefer rather to be absent from the body and to be at home with the Lord.

Now get this. In verse 4 Paul says, "He does not want to be unclothed." His first preference is not to be "absent from the body." He says that in comparison to being over-clothed with the new resurrection body if he is alive at the second coming of Christ. That would be his first preference. But if that is not possible--if the choice is between more life here by faith and going to be with Christ--he prefers that God would take him; EVEN IF it means nakedness, that is, even if it means that he must be stripped of his body.

And the reason for this willingness to leave his body behind is not because the body is bad--O, how he wants the experience of the new resurrection body--but because being at home with the Lord is so irresistibly attractive to Paul. Verse 8: "I prefer rather to be absent from the body and to be at home with the Lord."

Summary
So Paul renews his inner man by looking to unseen things. He looks at three possibilities and prefers them in descending order. First, he prefers that Christ would come and clothe his mortal body with immortality so that he would not have to die and be an incomplete, disembodied soul. But if God does not will that, Paul prefers to be absent from the body to living on here, because he loves Christ more than he loves anything else. To be absent from the body will mean to be at home with the Lord; a deeper intimacy and greater at-homeness than anything we can know in this life. Finally, if God wills that it is not time for the second coming or time for death, then Paul will walk by faith and not by sight.

In that faith he will be of good courage and, even though his outer man is decaying, his inner man will be renewed day by day through this faith in the unseen weight of glory.

Examine yourself. Do you share these biblical priorities and values in life?. Do you long mainly for the second coming? And secondly, do you long to be at home with Christ even if it costs you the surrender of your body? Third, are you committed to walk by faith until he comes or until he calls?

21st Century 'NewSpeak'

'Criminializing' Illegals

In his famous book, '1984' George Orwell introduced us to the words 'doublethink' and 'newspeak'. A word Orwell DIDN'T use - but which combines the two - is 'doublespeak.'

'Doublespeak' is saying one thing and meaning another, usually its opposite.

In Orwell's '1984,' when Big Brother and the Party say 'peace' they mean 'war', when they say 'love' they mean 'hate', and when they say 'freedom' they mean 'slavery'.

Orwell's thesis was that when words have no meaning, the events they were meant to describe lose their sense of reality.

For inspiration, Orwell drew on real-life examples; Hitler's 'Final Solution' was a benign sounding euphemism for the destruction of an entire race of people. Communism's 'reeducation camps' were euphemisms for political concentration camps.

Stalin himself once obliquely acknowledged the power of 'doublespeak', noting, "One death is a tragedy. A million deaths is a statistic."

Orwell's '1984' was a precautionary tale penned in 1949 as an undisguised satire of Stalinist authoritarianism and its methods, inventing his 'newspeak' concept from the principles of Marxist/Leninism.

In Big Brother's world, 'peace' means 'war' -- but 'peace' as a concept remains subliminally desireable. One 'hates' a person they 'love', subliminally linking love and hate until the emotions they evoke can be manipulated by Big Brother as necessary.

When 'freedom' means 'slavery' then the distinctions between the concepts become blurry enough for Orwell's characters to long for the freedom of Big Brother's 'benevolent' oversight.

The connotations of words naturally change over time. Words like 'idiot' and 'moron' used to be neutral terms. When they became insults, 'retarded' was introduced as a replacement. Then 'retarded' became an insult, and was replaced by 'special'.

'Crippled' was replaced by 'handicapped' followed by 'disabled' which is falling into disfavor in favor of 'challenged' (which is already losing its neutrality).

The word 'fundamentalist' used to have a specific meaning. It meant one who practiced the fundamentals of one's faith. In 21st century 'newspeak', the word 'fundamentalist' is synonymous with 'religious fanatic'.

Using the 'newspeak' definition of the word, it becomes possible for the majority of Islam to be peaceful and non-violent, while those who practice the fundamentals of Islam are jihadist warriors.

Redefining the word makes those who practice the fundamentals of Islam 'evil', but the religion that inspires the evil is 'good' - as long as one doesn't take its fundamentals too seriously. Or something.

The phrase 'pro-choice' used to mean one who favors the right to select from a range of alternative options. The phrase is now used to describe pro-abortion groups that went to the Supreme Court in order to keep anyone offering alternatives to abortion 100 feet from any abortion clinic.

The phrase 'pro-life' used to mean people who believed life was something only God could give, and only God had to right to take. In contemporary usage, it is used to describe guys who bomb abortion clinics, shoot abortionists, and march in demonstrations.

The meanings of the phrases have become so confused that the majority of Americans in any given poll aren't certain if they are 'pro-choice' or 'pro-life' -- it all depends on how the question is phrased.

Ask yourself how anybody can take a middle-of-the-road approach to the question of WHEN it is moral to dismember a baby in the womb? How can there BE a middle-of-the-road position to take? How can it really even be a QUESTION?

Is there any pro-choice human being out there who wasn't once an unborn baby? How can they really believe there was a time when they were themselves in the womb but somehow still non-existent?

It is only possible when 'fetus' no longer means 'baby' and 'choice' no longer means 'alternative options'.

Millions of people continue to turn out for demonstrations opposing any legislation that would 'criminalize' illegal aliens. Let's start there.

The word 'illegal' means 'in violation of the law'. Another word for 'criminal' is 'law-breaker'.

How does one 'criminalize' something that is, by definition, already illegal? First off, the phrase 'illegal alien' has to go. How about replacing it with 'undocumented worker'?

Being an 'undocumented worker' doesn't sound like criminal behavior. Indeed, criminalizing someone for not having 'their papers' sounds like a step TOWARD Orwell's Big Brother.

Suddenly, the idea of 'criminalizing' undocumented workers sounds not just unAmerican, but somehow, unconstitutional.

In Maryland, one school district is giving students that participate in demonstrations opposing the 'criminalization' of 'undocumented workers' special credit.

Opponents claim that criminalizing illegal aliens (if words meant what they said, that phrase would end any further debate) will 'make criminals' out of people who help them either sneak into country or to get work once they get here.

Since both are already criminal acts by definition, the argument that immigration reform will 'make criminals' out of them also falls flat, unless you substitute the euphemism 'undocumented worker' for 'illegal alien' in order to cloud the issue.

Before anybody emails me to remind me again that America is a nation of immigrants, I already know that. But America is also a nation of laws, and there are laws covering legal immigration. Legal immigrants are not 'documented workers'. They are legal immigrants.

The phrase 'undocumented worker' is a euphemism for illegal alien from the Spanish south. It isn't applied to illegal aliens from the Middle East. It isn't even applied to illegal aliens from Canada or Europe.

Even the Border Patrol uses a euphemism to differentiate between illegal aliens in their arrest reports. Illegals are either 'M' or 'OTM' ['Other Than Mexican']

Change 'illegal alien' into 'undocumented worker' and the whole debate shifts from whether or not America has a right to control her borders into one in which the debate is about whether or not breaking existing laws is 'illegal'. It is an example of 21st century newspeak at its finest.

The immigration reform proposal with the best chance of success has yet to make it to any bill presented so far. Any mention of a border fence is immediately rejected by those claiming it will turn America into a 'prison'.

Another loaded word. Prisons keep people IN. Fences keep people OUT. Putting up a fence is a sovereign right. I have a fence around my property because it is MY property and I have a right to control who comes inside its borders.

My fence keeps people out, not in. It imprisons no one. The gate opens from the inside. It is the very definition of 'ownership.' But the power of propaganda has made this ridiculously simple solution unmentionable.

There are those who believe that they are too sophisticated to fall under the propagandists' spell. That arrogance is what makes them so susceptible.

"And with all deceivableness of unrighteousness in them that perish; because they received not the love of the truth, that they might be saved. And for this cause God shall send them strong delusion, that they should believe a lie:" (2nd Thessalonians 2:10-11)

If you doubt the power of 21st century newspeak, remember the immigration debate. It is all about 'criminalizing' 'illegal' behavior.

Or something. I have to check my dictionary again.

By Jack Kinsella
May 15, 2006

What Do You Believe About The 'Intermediate state?'

The "intermediate state" is the time between the death and the resurrection. Some have held that during this time we are unconscious or possibly even go out of existence. We do not think that this is biblical.

The biblical evidence is that our soul continues on after death and that we remain conscious in the intermediate state while awaiting our final destiny of resurrected existence in the new heavens and new earth.

First, Paul spoke of having the desire "to depart and be with Christ, for that is very much better" (Philippians 1:23). Notice first of all that Paul speaks of death as a departure (from the body) not into temporary nothingness or unconsciousness but to be with Christ. If we are with Christ once we have died, then we continue existing. Second, notice that Paul speaks of this state as "very much better" than the present state. It would be hard to say such a thing of a state of complete unconsciousness. Particularly when we consider that Paul's passion was to know Christ, it would seem that the reason the state beyond death is better than this present life is because we are with Christ and know it. If we were suddenly unconscious at death until the resurrection, wouldn't it be better to remain in this life because at least then we would have conscious fellowship with Christ?

Second, Paul also said that "while we are at home in the body we are absent from the Lord" and that therefore he would "prefer rather to be absent from the body and to be at home with the Lord" (2 Corinthians 5:6-8). First, it is significant that he speaks of the possibility of being absent from the body. This implies that we indeed do have souls which continue existing after the body dies. Second, notice again that he speaks of this state as his preference, which indicates (as in Philippians 1:23) that we not only continue existing between death and the resurrection, but that we are aware of our existence.

Third, even though the thief on the cross has been used to prove about every point in Christian theology, his case is still relevant here: "And He said to him, 'Truly I say to you, today you shall be with Me in Paradise'" (Luke 23:43). The Jehovah's Witness's New World Translation punctuates Jesus words as "Truly I say to you today, you shall be with Me in Paradise," giving the impression that "today" refers simply to the time of Jesus' statement. But the context demands that the "today" refer to when the thief on the cross would be with Jesus in paradise, because Jesus is responding to his request in the previous verse: "Jesus, remember me when you come in your kingdom!" The response, "Today you shall be with Me in paradise" can in this context only be taken to mean, "Not only will I remember you when I come in my kingdom, but already today you shall be with me in heaven."

Fourth, Revelation 6:9 speaks of John seeing underneath the altar "the souls of those who had been slain because of the word of God." These individuals are surely not in a state of soul sleep because in the next verse they cry out "How long, O Lord."
By John Piper

Further Resources

John Piper, "What Happens When You Die? Part I: At Home With the Lord"

Wayne Grudem, Systematic Theology, chapter 41, "Death and the Intermediate State"

WHY ISRAEL? By Dr. David Hocking

Many of our listeners and web site “lookers” have asked about our interest and commitment to the Nation of Israel. We, of course, are interested and committed to the Bible, the whole Bible, and nothing but the Bible. There are other subjects that you will find messages about in our catalog and web store. However, because of the size of the subject (biggest in the Bible next to the Lord Himself!) and its relationship to end-time events, we feel an imperative to focus on what God has said about this Nation that He promised to Abraham in His covenant (Genesis 12:1-3). In order to help our readers understand, we give you this little outline to answer the question we are asked all the time - “WHY ISRAEL?”

Subject: “WHY ISRAEL?”
Scripture: Isaiah 43:1-21

Isaiah 51:16 – “Thou art My people”

1A. IT WAS GOD’S CREATION!
Isaiah 43:1 – “the LORD that created thee, O Jacob,
and He that formed thee, O Israel”
Isaiah 43:7 – “for I have created him for My glory”
Isaiah 43:15 – “I am the LORD, your Holy One, the
Creator of Israel, your King”
2A. IT WAS GOD’S CHOICE!
Deuteronomy 7:6-9 – “the LORD thy God hath
chosen thee to be a special people unto Himself,
above all people that are upon the face of the earth”
Isaiah 41:8 – “But thou, Israel, art My servant,
Jacob whom I have chosen”
Isaiah 43:10 – “My servant whom I have chosen”
Isaiah 44:1 – “Israel, whom I have chosen”
Isaiah 44:2 – “O Jacob, My servant; and thou,
Jerusalem, whom I have chosen”

3A. IT WAS GOD’S CALLING!
Isaiah 43:1 – “I have called thee by thy name; thou
art Mine”
Isaiah 43:7 – “called by My name”
Isaiah 45:3 – “I, the LORD, which call thee by thy
name, am the God of Israel”
Isaiah 45:4 – “I have even called thee by thy name”
Isaiah 48:1 – “called by the name of Israel”
Isaiah 48:12 – “Israel, my called”
Isaiah 48:15 – “I have called him”
Isaiah 49:1 – “The LORD hath called me”

4A. IT WAS GOD’S CONFIRMATION!
Isaiah 44:26 – “That confirmeth the word of His
servant, and performeth the counsel of His
messengers; that saith to Jerusalem, Thou shalt be
inhabited; and to the cities of Judah, Ye shall be
built, and I will raise up the decayed places thereof.”
Isaiah 46:3 – “Hearken unto Me, O house of Jacob,
and all the remnant of the house of Israel….46:10 –
My counsel shall stand and I will do all My pleasure
…46:11 – “I have spoken it, I will also bring it to
pass; I have purposed it, I will also do it.”
Psalm 105:10 – “and confirmed the same unto Jacob
for a law, and to Israel for an everlasting covenant”

5A. IT WAS GOD’S COVENANT!
Genesis 15:18 – “In the same day the LORD made a
covenant with Abram”
Genesis 17:7-8 – “And I will establish My covenant
between Me and thee and thy seed after thee in their
generations for an everlasting covenant…and I will
give thee…all the land of Canaan for an everlasting
possession; and I will be their God.”
Psalm 89:34 – “My covenant will I not break, nor
alter the thing that is gone out of my lips.”
Psalm 105:8 – “He hath remembered His covenant
for ever…105:10 – “to Israel for an everlasting
covenant”

6A. IT WAS GOD’S COMFORT!
Isaiah 40:1 – “Comfort ye, comfort ye My people,
saith your God”
Isaiah 44:21 – “O Israel, thou shalt not be forgotten
of Me”
Isaiah 49:13 – “for the LORD hath comforted His
people”
Isaiah 51:3 – “For the LORD shall comfort Zion: He
will comfort all her waste places; and He will make
her wilderness like Eden, and her desert like the
garden of the LORD; joy and gladness shall be
found therein, thanksgiving, and the voice of melody”
Isaiah 51:12 – “I, even I, am He that comforteth you”
Isaiah 52:9 – “for the LORD hath comforted His people”
Isaiah 66:13 – “As one whom his mother comforteth
so will I comfort you”

7A. IT WAS GOD’S COMMITMENT!

1B. A commitment based on the PLAN He had to
save them! cf. Romans 11:25-36
Isaiah 43:25 – “I, even I, am He that blotteth
out thy transgressions for Mine own sake, and
will not remember thy sins”
Isaiah 44:22 – “I have blotted out, as a thick
cloud, thy sins: return unto Me; for I have
redeemed thee”
Isaiah 45:17 – “But Israel shall be saved in the
LORD with an everlasting salvation”
Isaiah 45:25 – “In the LORD shall all the seed
of Israel be justified”
Isaiah 46:13 – “I will place salvation in Zion
for Israel my glory”
Isaiah 53:5-6 – “But He was wounded for our
transgression, He was bruised for our iniquities
the chastisement of our peace was upon Him;
and with His stripes we are healed. All we like
sheep have gone astray; we have turned every
one to his own way; and the LORD hath laid on
him the iniquity of us all.”
Isaiah 62:11 – “Behold, the LORD hath
proclaimed unto the end of the world, Say ye to
the daughter of Zion, Behold, thy salvation
cometh; behold, His reward is with Him, and
His work before Him”

2B. A commitment based on the PROTECTION
He would give them!
Isaiah 41:13-14 – “For I the LORD thy God
will hold thy right hand, saying unto thee, Fear
not, I will help thee. Fear not, thou worm Jacob
and ye men of Israel; I will help thee, saith the
LORD, and thy Redeemer, the Holy One of
Israel”
Isaiah 43:2 – “When thou passest through the
waters, I will be with thee; and through the
rivers, they shall not overflow thee; when thou
walkest through the fire, thou shalt not be
burned; neither shall the flame kindle upon
thee”

Isaiah 49:16 – “Behold, I have grave thee upon
the palms of My hands”

3B. A commitment based on the PURPOSE He had
to be glorified!
Isaiah 40:5 – “and the glory of the LORD shall
be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together;
for the mouth of the LORD hath spoken it.”
Isaiah 43:7 – “for I have created him for My
glory”
Isaiah 43:21 – “This people have I formed for
Myself; they shall shew forth My praise”
Isaiah 44:23 – “the LORD hath redeemed
Jacob, and glorified Himself in Israel”
Isaiah 49:3 – “Thou art My servant, O Israel,
in whom I will be glorified”
Isaiah 60:21 – “Thy people also shall be all
righteous; they shall inherit the land for ever,
the branch of My planting, the work of My
hands, that I may be glorified”
Isaiah 61:3 – “that they might be called trees
of righteousness, the planting of the LORD,
that He might be glorified”

4B. A commitment based on the PROMISES of His
Word!
Isaiah 40:5 – “for the mouth of the LORD hath
spoken it”
Isaiah 46:10 – “My counsel shall stand, and I
will do all My pleasure”
Isaiah 46:11 – “I have spoken it, I will also
bring it to pass; I have purposed it, I will also
do it”
Isaiah 55:11 – “So shall My word be that goeth
forth out of My mouth: it shall not return unto
Me void, but it shall accomplish that which I
please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereto
I sent it”

And the above is just a start in understanding the Biblical reasons for the Nation of Israel - God has revealed through His dealings with them that He is a God of love and a God of faithfulness - He will NEVER forsake Israel!

Hope for Today
P. O. Box 3927
Tustin, CA 92781-3927

THE DISPENSATIONAL GOSPELS - Miles J. Stanford

INTRODUCTION -- Dispensationalism stands or falls upon rightly dividing the Word of truth (2 Tim. 2:15). Dr. Charles C. Ryrie put it succinctly: "The essence of dispensationalism ... is the distinction between Israel and the Church" (Dispensationalism Today, p. 47).

Dispensationalism is in danger of falling because of a careless dilution of her life-sustaining distinctions. One factor is the seminary teaching that the Church has a part in Israel's earthly-kingdom New Covenant (Jer. 31:31,33; Ezek. 36:26,27; 37:14). But a far more pervasive error is that of failure to distinguish between Jesus' earthly Gospel for Israel, and His heavenly Gospel for the Church.

For too long the Church has been subjected to a Synoptic, kingdom Gospel that was never intended for her. She is thereby diverted from her heavenly Gospel and position in the One "in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge" (Col. 2:3).

Mr. John N. Darby, the father of systematized Dispensationalism (and much more), lamented over the condition of the Church 100 years ago, which condition persists to this very day--circa 1991.

It is a chief burden for me as regards the Church that they are as persons outside; not inside, entered through the rent veil, abiding in the light of the Father's countenance and gazing upon the Lord Jesus Christ in His own divine perfectness with the eye that the Holy Spirit gives (2 Cor. 3:18). This is my daily, if not hourly, grief. (Doctrine, Vol. 7:185)

DR. JOHN F. MacARTHUR -- The Gospel According to Jesus is quoted in italics. Let us seriously consider a present-day grief that concerns the Church, and each one of us as a member of that Body.

*** JESUS' GOSPEL ***

Several years ago I began to study and preach through the Gospel of Matthew. As I worked through the life and ministry of our Lord, a clear understanding of the message He proclaimed and the evangelistic method He used crystallized in my thinking. I came to see Jesus' Gospel as the foundation upon which all N. T. doctrine stands. Many difficult passages in the Epistles became clearer when I understood them in that light.

This book grew out of seven years of study in the Gospels. As I have immersed myself in the Gospel Jesus taught, I have become acutely aware that most of modern evangelism--both witnessing and preaching--falls short of presenting the biblical evangel in a balanced and biblical way. On a disturbing number of fronts, the message being proclaimed today is not the Gospel according to Jesus. (Introduction, p. 15)

Note well the startling statement, "I came to see Jesus' Gospel as a foundation upon which all N.T. doctrine stands." This is gross Covenant error! Christianity cannot go back prior to the Cross for anything as its basis. The throne of heaven is the foundation of the Church, from whence she began at Pentecost.

As for the comment, "... the message being proclaimed today is not the Gospel according to Jesus," we can praise the Lord for that--it had better not be!

WHICH GOSPEL? -- At the outset we must establish just what Dr. MacArthur purports the Gospel according to Jesus to be.

No passage in all Scripture attacks modern-day easy-believeism with more force than Matthew 7:13,14. It is the conclusion of the Sermon on the Mount, and it amounts to the Savior's own presentation of the way of salvation.

This passage crushes the claim of those who say the Sermon on the Mount is not Gospel but law. In fact this is pure Gospel, with as pointed an invitation as has ever been presented. Here, in the culmination of all He has said in the Sermon on the Mount, the Lord demands that each person choose between following the world on the easy well-traveled road, or following Him on the difficult road. You will not find a plainer statement of the Gospel according to Jesus anywhere in Scripture. (p. 179)

Dr. MacArthur's particular error here lies in his applying Jesus' kingdom Gospel for earthly Israel to the heavenly Church! He has followed his many Covenant mentors in thinking that there is but one Gospel, and but one salvation. Furthermore, he expresses the strong bias of Covenant theologians toward Dispensationalism and its leaders.

Some dispensationalists have seen "the Gospel of the kingdom" that Jesus proclaimed (Matt. 4:23) as distinct from "the Gospel of the grace of God" (Acts 20:24). Also that the substance of this "Gospel of the kingdom" is "that God purposes to set up on earth the kingdom of Christ... in fulfillment of the Davidic Covenant" (New Scofield Reference Bible, p. 1366).

Lewis Sperry Chafer wrote that the Gospel of the kingdom was for the nation of Israel only "and should in no way be confused with the Gospel of saving grace" (Grace, Zondervan, p. 132).

Another early dispensational writer declared that the Gospel Jesus preached had nothing to do with salvation but was simply an announcement that the time had come to set up the kingdom of Christ on earth (Clarence Larkin-Rightly Dividing the Word, p. 61).

All this may fit neatly into a particular dispensational scheme, but Scripture does not support it. We must not forget that Jesus came to seek and to save the lost, not merely to announce an earthly kingdom. When Jesus proclaimed His kingdom, He was preaching salvation. (p. 89)

Yes, He was preaching salvation, i.e., kingdom salvation--a far cry from spiritual birth as a new creation in Christ Jesus, who is our Life (Col. 3:3).

On this page alone, in one fell swoop, Dr. MacArthur sweeps aside such dispensational leaders as Dr. C.I. Scofield, and members of his Scofield Reference Bible Editorial Committee, such as Dr. E. Schuyler English, Dr. Wm. Culbertson, Dr. Charles Feinberg, Dr. Clarence Mason, Dr. Alva McClain, and Dr. John Walvoord. Also Dr. Lewis Sperry Chafer, and Clarence Larkin.

DR. LEWIS SPERRY CHAFER -- Grace - The Glorious Theme -- In this invaluable classic, Dr. Chafer reveals clearly that Dr. MacArthur is erroneously applying Israel's kingdom Gospel to the heavenly Church.

The Messianic rule of God in the earth was the theme of the prophets; for the prophets only enlarge on the Covenants which guaranteed a throne, a King, and a kingdom, over regathered Israel, in the land which was sworn to Abraham. The good news to that nation was the "Gospel of the kingdom," and should in no wise be confused with the Gospel of saving grace (Acts. 20:24) (p. 132).

In His public ministry He took up the message of a King. At His entrance into Jerusalem He was hailed as Israel's King. At His trial before Pilate, He claimed to be a King. He died under the accusation, "This is Jesus, the King of the Jews."

The first ministry of Christ was, then, to Israel as her King. In this He appeared, not as a personal Saviour, but as Israel's long expected Messiah/King; not as a sacrifice by which a Church--the spotless Bride--might be purchased to Himself from among the nations; but as the Son of David, with every right to David's throne over Israel, at Jerusalem, in the land of promise.

In the Synoptic Gospels, there is, therefore, no record of any step toward the formation of the Church, or any reference to that great purpose, until, from His own nation, His rejection as King was evident.

According to the Synoptic Gospels, the early teachings of the King were regarding that nation, and were in no wise related to the great results which would afterward be accomplished through His death and resurrection in the calling of His Church from all nations of the earth. He likewise related the same fulfillment of every Covenant with Israel to the time of His return to earth (pp. 132-134).

Referring to the first section of the Gospel of Matthew (chaps. 1-12), wherein the Gospel of the kingdom is preached to Israel, it will be found that this precise message of the kingdom Gospel was first announced by the forerunner, John the Baptist (Matt. 3:1-3); it was announced by the King Himself (Matt. 4:17); and by His disciples (Matt. 10:5-7).

Embedded in this context, wherein only the Gospel of the kingdom is in view, and completely bounded by the records of these proclamations, is the Sermon on the Mount, which is the Manifesto of the King (Matt. 5:1 to 7:29).

In this Manifesto, the King declares the essential character of the Messianic kingdom, the conduct which will be required in the kingdom, and the conditions of entrance into the kingdom. This kingdom rule of life is purely legal, both in its inherent qualities and by its own claim. "Therefore all these things whatsoever ye would that men should do to you, do ye even so to them; for this is the law and the prophets" (Matt. 7:12) (pp. 138-140).

The teachings of grace are perfect and sufficient in themselves. They provide for the instruction of the Christian in every situation which may arise. There is no need that they be supplemented, or augmented, by the addition of precepts from either the law of Moses, or the teachings of the kingdom (p. 149).

The teachings of the kingdom are found in portions of the Psalms, the kingdom prophecies of the O.T., and the kingdom teachings of the Synoptic Gospels. These teachings are complete and sufficient to direct the life of the children of the kingdom in every condition that may arise under the rule of the King. There is no need that these teachings be supplemented, or augmented, by additions from either of the other governing systems (p. 151).

The teachings of the kingdom presented in the Sermon on the Mount (Matt. 5-7), are in exact accord with the OT predictions regarding the kingdom, and are almost wholly in disagreement with the teachings of grace (p. 161).

According to both OT and NT, righteousness and peace are the great words of the kingdom. The "Sermon on the Mount" is the expansion of the full meaning of the personal righteousness which is required in the kingdom. The great words in this present dispensation are believe and grace. Not once do these words appear in connection with the kingdom teachings in the Sermon on the Mount (p. 164).

This is in sharp contrast to the blessings in the exalted heavenly position of the Christian which he instantly attains [obtains] through Christ the moment he believes. "Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ" (Eph. 1:3) (p. 165).

When the human obligation is presented first (Sermon), and divine blessing is made to depend on the faithful discharge of that obligation, it is of and in conformity with pure law. When the divine blessing is presented first (Pauline Epistles), and human obligation follows as a result, it is of and in conformity with pure grace (p. 182).

There is a dangerous and baseless sentiment abroad which assumes that every teaching of Jesus must be binding during this dispensation simply because He said it.

The fact is forgotten that Christ, while living under, keeping, and applying the law of Moses, also taught the principles of His yet future kingdom; and, at the end of His ministry, and in relation to His Cross, He also anticipated the teachings of grace. If this three-fold division of the teachings of Christ is not recognized, there can be nothing but confusion of mind and consequent contradiction of truth (p. 179).

The teachings of the law, the teachings of grace, and the teachings of the kingdom, are separate and complete systems of divine rule which are perfectly adapted to the varied conditions of the three great dispensations (p. 181).

Every teaching of the kingdom which contemplates the responsibility of the individual is, in like manner, based on a covenant of human works, and is therefore, legal. This may be observed in all the kingdom teachings of the OT, and the kingdom teachings of the Synoptics (p. 183).

The laws of the kingdom are related only to the yet future kingdom conditions which shall be in the earth under the power and presence of the King, when Satan is bound, creation delivered, and all shall know the Lord from the least unto the greatest.

All harmony of truth is shattered when there is the slightest commingling of the principles of law and grace. Grace alone now reigns through Christ to the glory of God the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit (p. 234).

YES, AND NO -- When it comes to such vital subjects as the Gospel, and Salvation, we encounter a right, and a wrong.

Nicodemus would have understood this reference to the OT water of purification, which was sprinkled on the altar and sacrifices in most of the rituals. Being a scholar, no doubt Nicodemus remembered Ezekiel 36:25 and the promise of the New Covenant: "Then I will sprinkle clean water on you." Two verses later is the promise, "I will put My Spirit within you" (vs. 27).

These statements bringing the ideas of water and the Spirit together, sandwich another promise: "I will give you a new heart, and put a new spirit within you; and I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh" (vs. 26) (p. 41).

When the heart is redeemed, Christ gives a new heart (cf Ezek. 36:26) (p. 96).

When speaking of the Gospel according to Jesus, it is correct to refer to Israel's New Covenant, since that is the heart of His kingdom Gospel. "A new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within you, and cause you to walk in My statutes, and ye shall keep My ordinances, and do them ... and ye shall live, and I shall place you in your land" (Ezek. 36:26,27; 37:14).

The fatal flaw, not only in the theology of this book, but the majority of our seminary leaders, is to apply Israel's New Covenant in any way to the Church. Dispensationalism dies to the degree that Israel and the Church are merged.

NO COMPARISON! -- But the Blood! All salvation is based upon the shed Blood of Calvary. It is true that the salvation of the Christian and the salvation of the kingdom Jew both depend upon the Blood of the Cross. But there is neither similarity nor comparison between them!

The kingdom Jew is given access to the land, and the Messianic kingdom, via the Blood. The heavenly Christian has his position in the Holiest of All--he is seated in the heavenlies, now! "Having therefore, brethren, boldness to enter into the Holiest by the Blood of Jesus, by a new and living way, which He hath consecrated for us, through the veil, that is to say, His flesh" (Heb. 10:19,20).

But the indwelling Spirit! It is also true that the kingdom Jew will be indwelt by the Spirit of God. And for what purpose? "And, I will put My Spirit within you, and cause you to walk in My statutes, and you shall keep My ordinances, and do them" (Ezek. 36:27).

As He promised through Jeremiah 31:33, "I will make a new covenant with [whom?] the house of Israel, and the house of Judah ... I will put My [theocratic kingdom] law in their inward parts, and write it upon their hearts."

The infinite, incomparable contrast is that the indwelling Spirit of Christ brings the very life and nature of the glorified Lord Jesus Christ into the Christian--as his very Christian life! He does not produce the works of the law, but rather the gracious fruit of the Spirit, the lovely characteristics of the divine/human life of the Lord Jesus. Yes, the very "law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus" (Rom. 8:2).

*** PAUL'S GOSPEL ***

Most dispensationalists, along with Covenant theologians, fail to realize that there are two Gospels, each dependent upon the Blood of the Cross. One is earthly, the other is heavenly. And both Gospels are "according to Jesus." The one was ministered by Him on earth, in His humiliation, prior to the Cross, exclusively for Israel and her earthly kingdom.

The other--and it is altogether "new creation" other--was ministered to Paul by the glorified Lord Jesus Christ; after Calvary, from heaven, exclusively for His chosen heavenly Body, His beloved Bride.

It is a mistake of the worst sort to set the teachings of the Apostles over against the words of our Lord and imagine that they contradict one another or speak to different dispensations. The Gospels are the foundation on which the Epistles build. The entire book of James, for example, reads like a commentary on the Sermon on the Mount (p. 214).

HEAVEN-BASED CHURCH -- The Church's source is in heaven, and she was manifested on the earth at Pentecost. She will return to her eternal abode in heaven at the Rapture. She has no relationship with anything prior to the Cross.

It should be obvious to all what happens to those who consort with Synoptic-centered Covenant theology. The Lord Jesus Christ does not contradict Himself--neither Himself nor His Word. He simply introduced something heavenly and altogether new in giving His glorious Gospel to Paul. "According to the glorious Gospel of the blessed God, which was committed to my trust" (1 Tim. 1:11).

Paul's heavenly Gospel is exclusively for the Church. One need not go to Israel for anything. Why should a glorified one leave his abode in the new heavens, to live on the renewed earth? To reign, yes, but not to be a kingdom dweller. The Bride shares the throne with her Bridegroom, whether in heaven or on earth.

Paul's Gospel is, "For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received, that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures; and that He was buried, and that He rose again the third day according to the Scriptures; and that He was seen... (1 Cor. 15:3-5).

The heavenly Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ begins with His death; not with His earthly life, as Covenant theology teaches. "Except a grain of wheat fall into the ground and die, it abideth alone; but if it die, it bringeth forth much fruit" (John 12:24).

"But I make known to you, brethren, that the Gospel which was preached by me is not after man. For I neither received it of man, neither was I taught it, but by the revelation of Jesus Christ" (Gal. 1:11,12).

"For I [the glorified Lord] have appeared unto thee [Saul] for this purpose, to make thee a minister and a witness both of these things which thou hast seen, and of those things in which I will appear unto thee" (Acts 26:16).

The glorified Lord Jesus directly communicated with Paul not only the great fundamental truths of the heavenly Gospel, but totally new revelations concerning His Body: identification with Christ crucified, buried, resurrected, and ascended, the heavenly position and life of the Church, the co-heirship and co-reign of His beloved Bride, and much more. Dr. Chafer wrote, "The Church is the purpose of God in the present dispensation, and His supreme purpose in the universe" (Systematic Theology, IV:54).

Dispensationalism has the responsibility of clearly proclaiming the great differentiation between Jesus' kingdom Gospel prior to Calvary, and His post-Cross, heavenly Gospel.

Paul preached the gospel according to Jesus. In fact his defense of his apostleship was based on the claim that he received his gospel directly from Jesus (Gal. 1:11,12). He summarized his entire ministry on these words: "I did not prove disobedient to the heavenly vision....."

INFINITELY ABOVE -- All the while the Lord Jesus' heavenly (Pauline) Gospel in content and position is infinitely above the kingdom Gospel that He gave for earthly Israel.

Those who do not center in the truths which the ascended Lord communicated directly to Paul will not know who and where they are in Christ, nor what their part is in the purpose of God. Neither will they know their privileges and responsibilities. Those who are ignorant of, and not centered in, the Pauline Gospel as set forth exclusively in his Church Epistles, are constantly astray in their interpretation of the Gospel, to say nothing of Church truth.

If Paul's heavenly Gospel were not other than that of Jesus' earthly kingdom Gospel to Israel, he would naturally have been instructed by the apostles who had been with Jesus all during His earthly ministry. But on the contrary, the apostles had to be taught by Paul concerning much of the new, heavenly truth.

" ... even as our beloved brother, Paul, also according to the wisdom given unto him hath written unto you; as also in all his Epistles, speaking in them of these things, in which are some things hard to be understood, which they that are unlearned and unstable wrest, as they do also the other Scriptures, unto their own destruction" (2 Peter 3:16). Be warned, all those who would wrest, rather than rest and rightly divide! There is a heavy penalty involved in forsaking dispensationalism for Covenant theology.

DR. WM. R. NEWELL

Paul vs. Peter, o.p. -- Saul already stood in clearer light regarding the Risen Lord Jesus than did the other apostles; for they had known Him primarily in His humiliation, and they were messengers to Israel, of whom is Christ "as concerning the flesh" (Rom. 9:5). [" ... though we have known Christ after the flesh, yet now henceforth know we Him no more" (2 Cor. 5:16)].

But Saul's first vision of Christ was as the Glorified One, the Son of God, in ascension glory. Paul, we may say, never saw aught after his conversion "but the glory of that light" that burst into his life from the glorified Lord. See Acts 22:11; Phil. 3:7-10.

We do not mean that the other apostles did not recognize Jesus as Son of God. They had, long since (Matt. 16:16; John 1:14; 2:11; 20:28, etc.). But their first testimony at Jerusalem and to Israel had been of the Messiahship and Lordship of Jesus as Israel's King.

But Paul received his teaching from heaven, from the Lord Jesus Christ, rather than from Jesus on earth in His Jewish connections. Paul's Gospel has nothing Jewish about it. He had been so completely taken out of Judaism and all connections with "old things" that the Jews would never acknowledge him again.

And the Jewish Christians constantly misunderstood him [even as,they do now. Today the "Messianic Jews" gravitate to Jesus' kingdom Gospel--as do many others!]. Such liberty as Paul had come into was totally unknown before [and has been all too little known since!]." (pp. 11, 12)

Paul had no connection whatever with the apostles before him, whether in his conversion or in the revelation of the heavenly Gospel to him. "I went up (to Jerusalem) by revelation and communicated unto them that Gospel which I preached among the Gentiles" (Gal. 2:6). The Lord Jesus, according to His Gospel, said, "I am not sent but unto the lost sheep of the house of Israel" (Matt. 15:24).

"But of those who seemed to be somewhat (whatever they were, it maketh no matter to me; God accepteth no man's person)--for they who seemed to be somewhat in conference added nothing to me. But, on the contrary, when they saw that the Gospel of the uncircumcision was committed unto me, as the Gospel of the circumcision was unto Peter ... they gave to me ... the right hands of fellowship" (Gal. 2:6,7,9).

The heart of the Pauline Gospel is that the old Adam life is condemned in death, and another Adam, even the glorified Lord Jesus Christ, is revealed in us as our Life, by the Spirit of Christ. The Father identified us with Christ at the Cross, making us positionally dead unto sin, and made alive unto God. "I have been crucified with Christ: I live, yet not I, but Christ liveth in me" (Gal. 2:20).

"But God forbid that I should glory, except in the Cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom the world is crucified unto me, and I unto the world. For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision availeth anything, nor uncircumcision, but a new creature." "If any man be in Christ, he is a new creation" (Gal. 6:14,15; 2 Cor. 5:17).

Wm. R. Newell continues:

In His earthly ministry to Israel the Lord Jesus gave none of the great heavenly truths for the present Church dispensation. He but mentioned the Church, giving no explanation. Nor were these vital truths revealed to the Twelve Apostles.

Just as God chose Moses to be the revelator to Israel of the Ten Commandments, and all connected with the Law dispensation, so He chose Saul of Tarsus to be the revelator of those exclusive truths connected with our Lord's death, burial, resurrection, and His ascended, glorified Person.

And all the "mysteries," or "secrets," revealed to the Church in this dispensation by the Holy Spirit were revealed to Paul. He is the exclusive unfolder of that great company of God's elect, called the Church, the Body and Bride of Christ (p. 4).

The word "cross" does not appear in James, Peter, and John. Paul is the messenger of what God did at Calvary on our behalf. It pleased Him to choose Paul to be the great proclaimer and revealer of just what the Gospel is for this dispensation.

You can evaluate a man's ministry by this rule--is he Pauline? [Take note, all ye Pulpit Committees!] Does his doctrine start and finish according to those statements of Church truth proclaimed by the Apostle Paul? (p. 6).

WRONG WAY! -- What about Dr. MacArthur's kingdom Gospel--the basis for Lordship Salvation? He starts in a past law/kingdom dispensation, and would have Paul and his grace dispensation revert to and build upon that!

James, Peter, and John are not at variance--not in the least! They are given certain things by the Spirit of God to say to certain classes of people ["to the twelve tribes which are scattered abroad"; "to the sojourners scattered throughout Pontus. . .."], and they say it, and it is true; just as scriptural as Paul's words, and they do not conflict with Paul. Their words are included in the statement that "all Scripture is profitable..." (2 Tim. 3:16) (p. 6).

Nevertheless, Paul is the declarer of the Gospel to us. Take Romans to Philemon out of the Bible and you are bereft of Christian doctrine. For instance, if you were to take Paul's Epistles out of the Bible, you cannot find anything about the Church, the Body of Christ, for no other apostle even mentions the Body of Christ.

You cannot find the exact meaning of any of the great doctrines, such as Propitiation, Reconciliation, Justification, Identification, Redemption, or Sanctification. Nor can you find what is perhaps the most tremendous fact of every Christian life, that of personal union with the Lord Jesus Christ at the right hand of the Father in glory! Paul is the divinely chosen opener to us of truth for this dispensation of the Church.

Dispensationalism is sick, and has no one to blame but its leaders. If they had stood up with Paul and the glorified Lord Jesus Christ, against all Covenant comers, a tragedy such as this would not be in the making.

"Now unto Him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us, unto Him be glory in the Church by Christ Jesus throughout all ages, world without end. Amen" (Eph. 3:20,21).

Roe Attorney: Use Abortion To 'eliminate poor'

May 13, 2006 - A letter to Bill Clinton written by the co-counsel who successfully argued the Roe v. Wade decision urged the then-president-elect to "eliminate the barely educated, unhealthy and poor segment of our country" by liberalizing abortion laws.
Ron Weddington, who with his wife Sarah Weddington represented "Jane Roe," sent the four-page letter to President Clinton's transition team before Clinton took office in January 1993.

The missive turned up in an exhibit put together by the watchdog legal group Judicial Watch, which has been researching the Clinton administration's policy on the abortion drug RU-486, notes James Taranto in the Wall Street Journal's Best of the Web.

Weddington told the president-elect: "I don't think you are going to go very far in reforming the country until we have a better educated, healthier, wealthier population."

He said the new leader can "start immediately to eliminate the barely educated, unhealthy and poor segment of our country."

Weddington qualified his statement, saying, "No, I'm not advocating some sort of mass extinction of these unfortunate people. Crime, drugs and disease are already doing that. The problem is that their numbers are not only replaced but increased by the birth of millions of babies to people who can't afford to have babies.

"There, I've said it. It's what we all know is true, but we only whisper it, because as liberals who believe in individual rights, we view any program which might treat the disadvantaged differently as discriminatory, mean-spirited and ... well ... so Republican."

Weddington explained he was "not proposing that you send federal agents armed with Depo-Provera dart guns to the ghetto. You should use persuasion rather than coercion."

He points to President Clinton and his soon-to-be first lady Hillary Rodham Clinton as the "perfect example."

"Could either of you have gone to law school and achieved anything close to what you have if you had three or four or more children before you were 20?" he asked. "No! You waited until you were established and in your 30's to have one child. That is what sensible people do."

Later, Weddington took a shot at the "religious right."

"Having convinced the poor that they can't get out of poverty when they have all those extra mouths to feed, you will have to provide the means to prevent the extra mouths, because abstinence doesn't work. The religious right has had 12 years to preach its message. It's time to officially recognize that people are going to have sex and what we need to do as a nation is prevent as much disease and as many poor babies as possible."

Weddington then argued that with 30 million abortions up to that point since Roe v. Wade was decided in 1973, America is a much better place.

"Think of all the poverty, crime and misery ... and then add 30 million unwanted babies to the scenario," he said. "We lost a lot of ground during the Reagan-Bush religious orgy. We don't have a lot of time left."

The lawyer also delved into biblical theology.

"The biblical exhortation to 'be fruitful and multiply' was directed toward a small tribe, surrounded by enemies," he argued. "We are long past that. Our survival depends upon our developing a population where everyone contributes. We don't need more cannon fodder. We don't need more parishioners. We don't need more cheap labor. We don't need more poor babies."

In his postscript, Weddington said: "I was co-counsel in Roe v. Wade, [and] have sired zero children and one fetus, the abortion of which was recently recounted by my ex-wife in her book, "A Question of Choice" (Grosset/Putnam, 1992) I had a vasectomy in 1969 and have never had one moment of regret."

The Weddingtons divorced in 1974.

Their client in the 1973 case, Norma McCorvey, recently attempted to challenge the ruling that struck down all state laws restricting abortion, arguing changes in law and new scientific research make the prior decision "no longer just."

Commenting on a 2004 court ruling dismissing the challenge, Sarah Weddington said those who filed it "got publicity but the publicity actually has been very helpful for those of us who believe the government should not be involved."

After announcement of McCorvey's challenge, Weddington received about two dozen offers to help defend the Roe decision.

© 2006 WorldNetDaily.com

A Factual Reply To The False DaVinci Code

GUARDIANS OF THE HOLY GRAIL
By J. R. Church
Prophecy Publications, 1991

Jesus never married, never had sex. The DaVinci Code is a DANGEROUS book, filled with lies leading to DEATH. There are VERY FEW Christian websites on this Evil of 2004. One woman began reading it and felt so much evil presence, she threw the book out.

The above book reveals the sordid story of a secret organization in Europe, which, down through the centuries, has been the guardian of a so-called "holy bloodline." Participants in this clandestine group believe that members of this sacred lineage are descended from Mary Magdalene and Jesus Christ.

This mysterious group is presently made up of over 9,000 men, including Protestants, Roman Catholics, Jews, and Moslems. Their doctrine sidesteps the basic tenets of those beliefs and replaces them with the teaching of their greatest prophet whom they believe to be Buddha. Over the last 3 decades, stories have been surfacing in France about the existence of such a group.

Little by little, they have been preparing the political climate across the world for the emergence of a one-world government and the introduction of a global dictator. According to the tenets of the organization, Jesus Christ did not die on Calvary, but merely pretended to die, was taken from the cross, stolen from the tomb, and was believed to have married Mary Magdalene and even produced children. They claim that when the Romans destroyed the Temple at Jerusalem in 70 A.D. the Magdalene fled with her sacred children by boat across the Mediterranean to France. There she found refuge in a Jewish community.

Future generations of her offspring were said to have married into the royal Frankish family and by the fifth century produced a king. His name was Merovee. He was the first of a series of kings called the Merovingian bloodline.

It is said that the offspring of Merovee were noted for a birthmark above the heart a small red cross. This symbol eventually became the emblem of the Guardians of the Grail. Furthermore, these kings claimed to have clairvoyant powers and the ability to heal the sick by the laying on of hands.

Merovee, king of the Franks from 447 to 458 A.D., was an adherent to the religious cult of Diana. His son, Childeric I, (458 to 481 A.D.) practiced witchcraft. His son, Clovis I, (481 to 511 A.D.) adopted Christianity in 496 A.D. The Roman emperor, Constantine, (307 to 337 A.D.) embraced Christianity in 324 A.D., divided the Roman Empire, and eventually moved his throne to Constantinople.

It is called Istanbul, Turkey today. Constantine upset the political structure of the Imperial Roman empire and created a division in fourth century Christianity. After the death of Constantine, the Roman empire split between the east and the west. The Eastern Orthodox Church grew in power and influence, while the Roman church faltered.

In 496 A.D., the Bishop of Rome made a pact with Clovis, the grandson of Merovee, and the king of the Franks, calling him the "New Constantine," giving him authority to preside over a "Christianized" Roman empire. (The term "Holy Roman Empire" was not officially used until 962 A.D.) The pope did so to consolidate the power of the faltering Roman church.

The so-called offspring of Mary Magdalene were thus established as leaders of the empire. [five generations after Clovis] Dagobert I fathered two sons who carried on the Merovingian bloodline. The first was Clovis II and the succession continued to Childric III. He was the last known Merovingian to sit upon the throne of France.

It is difficult to trace many of the ancient genealogies. It is said that the Merovingian bloodline found its way to most of the thrones of Europe. From the Merovingian bloodline has come most of the ruling families of Europe and has even included some popes of the Roman Catholic Church. Among them was Pope Stephen IX, leader of the church in the 11th century, during the years of the Crusades. The Crusades, by the way, played an important part in the promotion of the Merovingian bloodline. Many of the Crusaders were French who went to Palestine to liberate the Holy Land from the Moslems.

By 1061 A.D., the Catholic Crusaders had conquered the city of Jerusalem and established Godfroi de Bouillon (of the Merovingian bloodline) on the throne of Jerusalem. Claiming to be of the lineage of David, Godfroi de Bouillon organized a secret society called Ordre de Sion, today called Prieure (Priory) de Zion. The clandestine Priory of Sion still exists after almost 900 years. It is very much alive today.

In the years that followed, Godfroi de Bouillon and his secret group, the Priory of Sion, began to lay plans for a front group to carry out their goals. In 1118 A.D., Hugues de Payen organized the Knights Templar and made Baudouin, the brother of Godfroi de Bouillon, its first Grand Master. They adopted the Merovingian birthmark as their emblem, a red cross!

The stated purpose of the Knights Templar was to guard the highways around Jerusalem to protect the pilgrims coming for worship. Those 9 men supposedly gave of themselves to go to Jerusalem and become the "poor knights of the Temple." [Remember that the Temple was destroyed by the Romans in 70 A.D.] They pledged themselves to be subject only to the pope and to no other political or ecclesiastical authority. Upon their arrival in Jerusalem, they were given living quarters in the palace of Baudouin [the "king of Jerusalem"] on the Temple site. Though there is no historical proof, it is believed that they spent the next 9 years digging up the buried treasure of the ancient Jewish Temple.

In 1953 a copper scroll was found in a cave near the Dead Sea which told of a fabulous Temple treasure, estimated at more than 138 tons of gold and silver which had been buried by the Jewish priesthood in 64 locations before the Romans destroyed the Temple in 70 A.D. 24 of those hordes of gold were buried under the Temple mountain. It is believed that the Knights Templar plundered the treasure of the Temple and took it back to Europe. After nine years in Jerusalem, the Templars returned to Europe wealthy beyond belief.

In the following years, they built castles all over Europe and became famous as the guardians of the Holy Grail. It is believed that the Priory of Sion organized the Knights Templar to excavate the Temple site in hopes of finding the fabulous treasure of the Temple. Evidently they were successful, for they instituted an international banking system across Europe and had the resources to loan gold to kings and governments.

The secret purpose for the Knights Templar, however, was to preserve the Merovingian bloodline in hopes of one day establishing a world government and putting their king upon the throne, a king who could claim to be the offspring of Jesus Christ and Mary Magdalene. Legends were told of their exploits. They were the guardians of the Holy Grail, the so-called cup from which Jesus drank at the last supper, and of the Grail family the bloodline of the Magdalene.

[Dan Brown's novel, The DaVinci Code, claims that the Holy Grail is NOT the cup that Christ drank from; it is THE REMAINS of Mary Magdalene, the womb or ark that bore Jesus' sacred children (also called the ark of the covenant), which is secretly hidden from the public in a location known only to the Priory of Sion!]

In 1188 there was a split between the Ordre de Sion and the Knights Templar. On October 13, 1307, all the Templars of France were arrested, including their Grand Master, Jacques de Molay. [Sound familiar? The young men's branch of Freemasonry is named the DeMolay Society after this Templar Grand Master!] In 1314 A.D., Jacques de Molay and Geoffrey de Charney (owner of the shroud, today called the Shroud of Turin) were burned at the stake. From that point on, the Knights seemed to vanish from the stage of history. Nevertheless, the order continues to exist.

The French Templars found a refuge in Scotland, where the group maintained itself as a coherent body for at least 400 years. They eventually developed into an organization called the Scottish Rite. Mormonism also has a philosophical connection to the order of the ancient Templars.

In the last century, Helena Blavatsky, founder of theosophy, spoke of an esoteric wisdom tradition running back through the Rosicrucians to the Knights Templar. The teachings of Helena Blavatsky can be best seen in the New Age Movement of today.

Toward the end of the 19th century a sinister Order of Templars was established in Germany and Austria employing the swastika as one of its emblems. At first it was known as the Thule Society but later changed its name to the Nazi party.

LET US NOT FORGET that the Order of the Knights Templar was, at first, only a front organization for a more secretive group known as the PRIORY of ZION, whose real purpose was to capture the wealth of the world, establish their own world government, and introduce a Merovingian king to sit upon a throne in Jerusalem. They are said to be the true possessors of the Temple treasury and the behind-the-scenes controllers of the world currencies.

Concerning the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our being gathered to him, we ask you, brothers, not to become easily unsettled or alarmed by some prophecy, report or letter supposed to have come from us, saying that the Day of the Lord has already come. Don't let anyone deceive you in any way, for that Day will not come until the apostasy, rebellion occurs and the man of sin, lawlessness is revealed, the man doomed to destruction. 2 Thessalonians 2

In 1979 Mr. Pierre Plantard de Saint-Claire, the present [in 1991] Secretary General of the PRIORY of ZION, was interviewed in Paris, France by reporters from the BBC. When asked the question, "Does the Priory of Sion possess the treasures of the ancient Jewish Temple?", he said, "Yes, They will be returned to Jerusalem when the time is right." Pierre Plantard is himself a descendant of the Merovingian bloodline.

The PRIORY of ZION appears to be the guardians of a "holy bloodline" and the Holy Grail the holy bloodline being the lineage of Mary Magdalene and the Holy Grail being the cup from which Jesus drank the Last Supper. The Holy Grail, therefore, was believed to contain the holy blood, or in a mystical sense, the holy bloodline from the "harlot" Magdalene.

We are told in Revelation 17 of a woman guiding the governments of the world and in her hand is seen a golden cup. It may well represent what I consider to be the unholy blood and the unholy grail.

I discovered on the internet that Pierre Plantard de Saint-Claire died in 2000. I have not yet been able to find who took his place as Grand Master of the Priory, so you researchers out there are invited wholeheartedly to help trace this mystery. According to the FICTION written by Dan Brown in The DaVinci Code, the story ends with the discovery that the heroine (Sophie) learns about her true heritage as a descendant of the Merovingians.

"And so Langdon [the protagonist] had remained, standing beside Sophie and listening in mute astonishment while Marie told the story of Sophie's late parents. Incredibly, both had been from Merovingian families, direct descendants of Mary Magdalene and Jesus Christ. Sophie's parents and ancestors, for protection, had changed their family names of Plantard and Saint-Claire. Their children represented the most direct surviving royal bloodline and therefore were carefully guarded by the Priory." (The DaVinci Code, Chapter 105, page 442)

ZIONS CRY SHOFAR NEWS

Where Do Masonry and Christianity Conflict?

In the following material we will examine the religious teachings of Masonry and compare them with the teachings of the Bible. Remember that it is the Ritual of Masonry that is the supreme authority.1 Individual Masons may disagree among themselves on various issues, but they may not disagree with the Ritual. While there may be minor variations in the Ritual from state to state, these are largely insignificant. All Masonic Lodges accept the same basic interpretation of the Ritual that we will give.

During Masonic ceremonies various symbols are employed. Different symbols are used to identify the same idea or teaching—for example, both the compass and a sprig of acacia can symbolize immortality.2

Masonic authorities universally acknowledge the importance of the Masonic symbols. Roberts admits, "Symbolism is the lifeblood of the Craft.... It is the principal vehicle by which the ritual teaches Masonic philosophy and moral lessons."3 Mackey confesses, "To study the symbolism of Masonry is the only way to investigate its philosophy."4 In the questions below we will show how the symbols and rituals of Masonry teach things that are contrary to Jesus Christ and the Bible.

The Masonic Lodge teaches that all men including Christians live in spiritual darkness until they enter and become members of the Lodge. Is this biblical?

The Masonic Lodge teaches the non-biblical view stated above in the first three degrees of the Blue Lodge, especially in the Entered Apprentice degree where the candidate is told he will now be brought out of darkness and into the light. This teaching can also be seen from the fact that light is the first and most important symbol in Masonry.5 For the Mason, light symbolizes the seeking of truth. It is the goal of Masonic Ritual to bring the ignorant or unenlightened candidate to "Masonic Light."6 Only Masonry brings light to the candidate, therefore only the Mason knows the truth.7 This means all non-Masons exist in spiritual darkness.

Proof that Masonry teaches this concept can be found by examining the Ritual of the first degree of Masonry.

In the first degree, each candidate is instructed, "You have long been in darkness, and now seek to be brought to light." In the Ritual, when the candidate stands at the anteroom door, he knocks three times. On the other side of the door, the Junior Deacon also knocks three times and opens the door. He then says, "Who goes there?" The answer given by his conductor (the Senior Steward) is given in the Ritual itself:

Mr. [Peter Smith], who has long been in darkness, and now seeks to be brought to light, and to receive a part in the rights and benefits of this Worshipful Lodge, erected to God.…8

During our telecast, former Worshipful Master Jack Harris quoted Albert Mackey, who held the highest positions Masonry has to offer. Mackey was a thirty-third degree Mason and Secretary General of the Supreme Council of the Thirty-Third Degree Scottish Rite, a position he held for a great many years. In his book, The Manual of the Lodge, Mackey describes the candidate who seeks to enter the Masonic Lodge:

There he stands without [outside] our portals, on the threshold of his new Masonic life, in darkness, helplessness and ignorance. Having been wandering amid the errors and covered over with the pollutions of the outer and profane world, he comes inquiringly to our door, seeking the new birth, and asking a withdrawal of the veil which conceals divine truth from his uninitiated sight.9

But how can any Christian take the first degree of Masonry and say that he has "long been in darkness, and now seeks to be brought to light"? Is it really true that Christians are still in darkness and the only way they can enter the light is to join the Masonic Lodge? When you became a Christian, weren’t you rescued out of darkness? Let’s look at what the Bible says.

Jesus said, "I have come into the world as a light, so that no one who believes in me should stay in darkness" (John 12:46, emphasis added). He also said, "l am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life" (John 8:12). Here Jesus teaches that He is the Light. He teaches that believing in Him removes spiritual darkness; He does not teach that any ritual, Masonic or other, removes darkness.

Colossians 1:12-14 says, "Giving thanks to the Father who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of the saints in the kingdom of light. For he has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins" (emphasis added).

Another example is Ephesians 5:8, where the Apostle Paul writes, "For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Live as children of light (for the fruit of the light consists in all goodness, righteousness and truth) and find out what pleases the Lord. Have nothing to do with the fruitless deeds of darkness, but rather expose them. For it is shameful even to mention what the disobedient do in secret" (Eph. 5:8-12, emphasis added).

Jesus and the Bible plainly teach that any person who believes in Him is no longer in darkness. If you are a Christian, how then could you enter the Masonic Lodge and swear that you are still in darkness and seeking light? In the first degree of Masonry, didn’t you say that which is directly contrary to what your Lord and the Scriptures teach?

In Henry Wilson Coil’s Masonic Encyclopedia he writes, "Light is everywhere the symbol of intelligence, information, knowledge, and truth and is opposed to darkness which symbolizes ignorance and evil. So, in the ceremonies, the candidate is said to be brought from darkness to light."10

But if Coil is right, then no Christian should take the vows of the Lodge, confessing that he does not have the truth and is living in spiritual ignorance and evil. The Scriptures clearly state that Christians "are not in darkness" and are "all sons of the light and sons of the day. We do not belong to the night or to the darkness" (1 Thess. 5:4,5, emphasis added).

How can a Christian participate in rituals and promote another religion that denies and opposes the teachings of Christ? Jesus Himself asks, ‘And why do you call Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ and not do what I say?" (Luke 6:46)

Masons teach and believe in a universal Fatherhood of God and brotherhood of man. Is this biblical?

The Masonic Lodge teaches the non-biblical view stated above in their first, second, and third degrees, but especially in the prayer of the Entered Apprentice and during their ceremony in the third degree concerning the legend of Hiram Abiff.11 Specifically, the Masonic Lodge teaches its belief in the unity and universality of all men as "one family" accepted by God regardless of race, religion, or creed.12 This Masonic teaching sounds good to most people. But if we examine it carefully, does the Bible really teach the concept of the universal Fatherhood of God and brotherhood of man, so that all men are automatically sons of God? Does the Bible teach that all men are in good standing before God even if they are ignoring God’s Son?

The Bible does not teach any of the above, but Masonry does. During the ritual of the first three degrees, every Mason is introduced to the Masonic teaching concerning the Fatherhood of God. For example, in his discussion of the ritual encompassing the Masonic legend of Hiram Abiff, Allan E. Roberts in his The Craft and Its Symbols: Opening the Door to Masonic Symbolism instructs new candidates that "through these teachings the Mason will put into practice the brotherhood of man under the Fatherhood of God. In doing so, he will develop his character and personality in the image of the Great Architect of the Universe."13

Every man who has gone through the first degree of Freemasonry remembers when he prayed the following prayer. It can be found in the Standard Masonic Ritual and Monitor of every state for the first degree (Entered Apprentice) of the Blue Lodge:

Vouchsafe Thine aid, Almighty Father of the universe, to this our present convention; and grant that this candidate for Masonry may dedicate and devote his life to thy service, and become a true and faithful brother among us! Endue him with a competency of thy divine wisdom, that, by the secrets of our art, he may be better enabled to display the beauties of brotherly love, relief, and truth, to the honor of thy holy name. Amen.14

Masonic authority Carl Claudy admits that this prayer, at the start of the Masonic journey, forms the foundation of the Craft: "Among the most beautiful of Freemasonry’s symbols, these express at the very beginning the fundamental principle of Freemasonry: the Fatherhood of God, and the Brotherhood of man."15

The Masonic temple itself is said to symbolize the idea of the harmony between the Fatherhood of God and brotherhood of man. For example, "The temple that the Craft is building is the unification and the harmonizing of the entire human family. This is summed up for us in the well-known lines: ‘God hath made mankind one vast brotherhood, Himself their Master, and the world His Lodge’."16 God Himself is said to be the ultimate "W.M. [Worshipful Master] working through His supervising Master Masons."17

But the Bible does not teach the universal Fatherhood of God (that all Masons are in good standing with God and a part of His Lodge) and brotherhood of man (that all men can live in harmony even though they hold different religious beliefs). Scripture clearly teaches that sinful men only become children of God and attain favorable standing before Him when they place their faith in Jesus Christ as their Savior.

The following Scriptures prove that, apart from Christ, men may be the creation of God, but they are not the spiritual "sons" or "children" of God.

But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, even to those who believe in His name (John 1:12, emphasis added).

[Jesus said] If I speak truth, why do you not believe Me? He who is of God hears the words of God; for this reason you do not hear them, because you are not of God (John 8:46,47, emphasis added).

The Apostle Paul describes the condition of all men before God prior to their faith in Christ:

And [you] were by nature children of wrath, even as the rest.... Remember that you were at that time separate from Christ... and strangers to the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world (Eph. 2:3,12, emphasis added).

[Men] being darkened in their understanding, excluded from the life of God, because of the ignorance that is in them, because of the hardness of their heart (Eph. 4:18, emphasis added).

But if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he does not belong to Him (Rom. 8:9, emphasis added).

Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life, but whoever rejects the Son will not see life, for God’s wrath remains on him (John 3:36, emphasis added).

In Jesus’ prayer to His Father, He describes the world’s natural condition: "The world has not known Thee" (John 17:25, emphasis added). The Bible also teaches that someday Christ will return, "dealing out retribution to those who do not know God..." (2 Thess. 1:8, emphasis added).

When Masonry teaches that all men are already saved because of the Fatherhood of God and brotherhood of man, they are effectively inhibiting and preventing Masons from coming to a personal knowledge of Jesus Christ and having their sins forgiven. In this sense, Masonry is unbiblical (John 3:16).

In the above verses, notice first of all that if Jesus gives to those who believe on Him the right to become children of God, then all men were not children of God before that. This means that men are not born children of God, as Masonry teaches, and that God is not the Father of all men—spiritually or relationally.

Why? It seems Masonry has forgotten or ignores the account of man’s Fall in Genesis—of Adam and Eve in the garden. The Bible teaches that man, through disobedience to God, sinned and broke his spiritual relationship with God. All men, although created by God, are not in a right relationship with God. Proof of this can be found in the Book of Acts where we read, "The God who made the world and all things in it... is Lord of heaven and earth.... Being then the offspring of God..." (Acts 17:24, 29).

Notice that because God is the Creator, all men may be said to be His children, His offspring, in the sense of His creating them. But they are not His children relationally or spiritually. Here is the problem. Look at what God says to His children. God now "commands all people everywhere to repent" (Acts 17:30). Repentance means we must be willing to turn away from our beliefs and reliance on self and turn to and fully rely upon Christ’s salvation provided for us.

How is it possible for a Christian to promote and defend a false teaching which says that all sinful men regardless of their relationship to Christ will go to heaven? The Scripture says a Christian should know better.

The Scriptures instruct Christians to proclaim that only through Christ will men receive forgiveness of their sins and be able to go to heaven. Jesus said: "I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father, but through Me" (John 14:6).

By Dr. John Ankerberg, Dr. John Weldon


Notes

1 Transcript, "Christianity and the Masonic Lodge: Are They Compatible?" (guests: William Mankin, Dr. Walter Martin), Chattanooga, TN, The John Ankerberg Evangelistic Association, 1985, p. 5.
2 Allen E. Roberts, The Craft and Its Symbols: Opening the Door to Masonic Symbolism (Richmond, VA, Macoy Publishing and Masonic Supply, 1974), pp. 62, 80.
3 Ibid., p. xi, cf. p. 11.
4 Albert G. Mackey, The Symbolism of Freemasonry: Illustrating and Explaining Its Science and Philosophy, Its Legends, Myths, and Symbols (Chicago, IL, Charles T. Powner Co., 1975), p. 5, emphasis added.
5 Ibid., pp. 148, 158.
6 Roberts, p. 21.
7 Mackey, Symbolism, pp. 148, 158.
8 Malcolm C. Duncan, Masonic Ritual and Monitor (New York, David Mckay Co., nd.), p. 29, cf. Transcript, "The Masonic Lodge: What Goes on Behind Closed Doors?" (guests: Jack Harris, William Mankin, Dr. Walter Martin, Paul Pantzer), Chattanooga, TN, The John Ankerberg Evangelistic Association, 1986, p. 4.
9 Albert Mackey, The Manual of the Lodge (New York, Clark Maynard, 1870), p. 20, cf. Transcript, "What Goes On Behind Closed Doors?", p. 5.
10 Henry Wilson Coil, Coil’s Masonic Encyclopedia (New York, Macoy Publishing and Masonic Supply, 1961), p. 375.
11 Roberts, p. 84.
12 Ibid., p. 21.
13 Ibid., p. 84.
14 Duncan, Masonic Ritual, p. 30, emphasis added, cf. Carl H. Claudy, Foreign Countries: A Gateway to the Interpretation and Development of Certain Symbols of Freemasonry (Richmond, VA, Macoy Publishing and Masonic Supply, 1971), p. 23; George Simmons and Robert Macoy, Standard Masonic Monitor of the Degrees of Entered Apprentice, Fellow Craft and Master Mason (Richmond, VA, Macoy Publishing and Masonic Supply, 1984), p. 17.
15 Claudy, p. 24.
16 Foster Bailey, The Spirit of Masonry (Hampstead, London, Lucius Press, Ltd., 1972), p. 110.
17 Ibid.

Israel Can Only Lose Once

Israeli Vice Premier Shimon Peres said Monday that "the president of Iran should remember that Iran can also be wiped off the map."

"Teheran is making a mockery of the international community's efforts to solve the crisis surrounding Iran's nuclear program," Peres told Reuters, adding that "Iran presents a danger to the entire world, not just to us."

If all world powers are united against Iran, military action can be avoided, Peres said.

"We can prevent all of this threat, without weapons, if there will be unity," Peres said, adding that the Security Council had to act on the matter. "If the crucial moment comes and they are incapable of taking [action] or making a policy...then they endanger their existence as an important world body," he said.

History records the main reason that the Jews decided, after almost two millennia after being exiled, that the continued survival of the Jewish race demanded a homeland. Israel's Founding Fathers summed it up in two words: "Never again!"

"Never again!" is so indelibly linked to the Holocaust and the attempted destruction of the Jewish people that the phrase has become a synonym for unimpeded genocide.

It was the slogan of Kofi Annan's special ten-year celebration of the Rwandan genocide in which the ruling Rwanda Hutu tribe set out to exterminate their traditional enemies, the Tutsi tribe.

When the bloodletting was finally exhausted, almost a million Tutsis had been slaughtered, in full view of the United Nations.

At the time, Kofi Annan was the head of UN peacekeeping operations, including the one in Rwanda that he ordered out of the country -- after ten Belgian peacekeepers were killed in an attack.

According to a 1998 article in the New Yorker magazine, Kofi Annan was told by the commander of peacekeeping forces in Rwanda of a plan by the then-government of Rwanda to exterminate the Tutsis, some three months BEFORE the slaughter began.

After the deaths of the Belgian peacekeepers, the magazine reported that Annan gave orders not to intervene. Full details of the commander's cable were reportedly forwarded to the American, French and Belgian ambassadors in the Rwandan capital, Kigali, the day after the report was sent to New York.

On the tenth anniversary of the Rwandan slaughter, Kofi Annan, now Secretary-General, designated April 7 as the "International Day of Reflection on the Genocide in Rwanda." Kofi urged the world to set aside a 'moment of silence' so that "such a tragedy can never happen again."

At the time of Kofi's 'never again speech' in 2004, at least THREE HUNDRED THOUSAND people had already been butchered at the hands of the Islamic Republic of Sudan's Janjaweed Militia.

Two years later, despite having declared the slaughter of the mainly Christian and non-Islamics in the south to be 'genocide' -- the slaughter continues.

In full view of the UN peacekeepers -- who eventually turned supervision of the slaughter over to the totally inept, under-funded and under-equipped African Union.

(Until one of the African Union's helicopters got shot down, that is. THEN the AU suspended all aircraft flights that were assigned to monitor a 'ceasefire'.)

That is what 'never again' means to the world community. It means 'never again' -- until next time, after which the UN will dedicate an 'annual' moment of silence and reflection that will be observed exactly once.

Israel was founded on the 'never again' principle, which means something different to them than it does to the rest of the world.

For two millennia, Jews were systematically rounded up and slaughtered in regional pogroms -- but it wasn't until the rise of Adolf Hitler that the wholesale slaughter of Jews threatened to wipe them from the face of the earth.

The Jews who survived the world's acquiescence to their slaughter declared that 'never again' would they trust the world community to ensure their survival.

Adolf Hitler had clearly and unambiguously outlined his planned extermination of the Jewish people some twenty years before in his political manifesto, "Mein Kampf" ("My Struggle").

And, while part of the world sat idly by (and the rest helped) Hitler imposed his 'Final Solution to the Question of the Jewish People' on almost six million of them.

THAT is what 'never again' means to Israel. Israel's foundational principle is that it would never again entrust its survival to global good will.

Israel's establishment as a Jewish State was an indictment to the world community that let the Holocaust happen, despite Hitler's having made his intentions perfectly clear -- and that it would never happen again because Israel wouldn't let it.

The establishment of Israel prevented the wholesale slaughter of Jews under the principle of collective security, but 'collective' has become a two-edged sword.

Jews were slaughtered indiscriminately throughout history, but the Jewish people survived, mainly because they were scattered throughout the world.

The Diaspora that ended the existence of the Jewish state in AD 70 also prevented the concentration of Jews in one place where they could be annihilated.

Israel's re-establishment in 1948 brought them all back into one place at precisely the moment in history when it is possible to annihilate the tiny Jewish state in a single, blinding, nuclear flash.

Former Israeli Prime Minister Golda Meir famously observed during the Yom Kippur War that, "the Arabs can fight, and lose, and return to fight another day. Israel can only lose once."

In 1973, it was a rallying cry. Hitler's successors see it as a battle strategy.

Former president Ali Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani outlined it recently, telling the world that, "the use of a nuclear bomb in Israel will leave nothing on the ground, whereas it will only damage the world of Islam."

Iran's Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has made it clear that his goal is the annihilation of Israel, an event that he described as Israel 'being eliminated by one storm.'

Revolutionary Guards commander General Mohammad Ebrahim Dehghani made global headlines with his declaration: "We have announced that wherever [in Iran] America does make any mischief, the first place we target will be Israel."

Noted Charles Krauthammer, "The logic is impeccable, the intention clear: A nuclear attack would effectively destroy tiny Israel, while any retaliation launched by a dying Israel would have no major effect on an Islamic civilization of a billion people stretching from Mauritania to Indonesia."

When viewed through the prism of Bible prophecy, things continue to develop precisely as outlined some twenty-five hundred years ago -- without deviating one iota from the original script.

We find Russia, Iran and the Islamic world on one side; Israel (and the 'Christian Crusaders') on the other.

The United Nations has already established a precedent for sitting on its hands in the face of slow, systematic, genocide.

Sheba, and Dedan, and the merchants of Tarshish, with all the young lions thereof, shall say unto thee, Art thou come to take a spoil? hast thou gathered thy company to take a prey? to carry away silver and gold, to take away cattle and goods, to take a great spoil?" (Ezekiel 38:13)

Iran is talking about genocide in 'one storm'. "Thou shalt ascend and come like a storm, thou shalt be like a cloud to cover the land, thou, and all thy bands, and many people with thee." (Ezekiel 38:9)

But, as Shimon Peres noted, "Iran can also be wiped off the map."

"And I will plead against him with pestilence and with blood; and I will rain upon him, and upon his bands, and upon the many people that are with him, an overflowing rain, and great hailstones, fire, and brimstone." (Ezekiel 38:22)

"And when these things BEGIN to come to pass, then look up, and lift up your heads; for your redemption draweth nigh." (Luke 21:28)

Jack Kinsella Omega Letter Editor

Excerpted from the Omega Letter Daily Intelligence Digest
Volume 56, Issue 5

Exposing The Lies Of 'The Da Vinci Code'

The Da Vinci Code," which remains atop national best-seller lists, is a book that has captured the imaginations of millions of readers. But I'm concerned that the novel is spreading a false "gospel" that could convince casual readers that the wonderful story of Jesus Christ is nothing but a man-made fabrication that bears no merit.

Here's a brief rundown of the book: An extremist sect of the Catholic church sends a monk on a killing spree, wiping out four noteworthy art figures who are safeguarding age-old secret documents that allegedly prove that Jesus Christ married Mary Magdalene, fathered a child with her and to this day maintains a sacred bloodline.

This conjecture greatly concerns me, especially in this age of moral relativism and situational ethics that take our society further and further from the absolute truths of the Bible. As a result of my uneasiness with the theories of "The Da Vinci Code," I asked two members of the theological community at Liberty University to address the issues of this book in order to dispel its hypotheses.

In a special interview in my National Liberty Journal newspaper, pre-eminent Liberty professors Dr. Edward Hindson and Dr. Gary Habermas, experts in church history and biblical theology, resourcefully defended the faith and discounted the theories suggesting that the Bible is just another book and that Jesus is an overall good guy – but certainly not the Son of God – who had a secret romance with Mary Magdalene. (These speculations go beyond "The Da Vinci Code," and have appeared in many recent non-fiction works. At our local Barnes & Noble, an entire display of these books appear under the heading, "Crack 'The Da Vinci Code.'")

In the interview, Dr. Hindson noted that modern-day "conspiracy theorists are fascinated with trying to fill in the blanks of some unknown aspects of Jesus' childhood or his life; and these fanciful tales begin to be spun."

He continued, "I think that with many such modern writers, there probably is an attempt to discredit the integrity of Christ in some way. I mean, it's obvious that 'The Da Vinci Code' has a very strong secularist and pro-feminist agenda. It's obviously a very anti-Christian thesis that the author develops throughout the book."

Dr. Habermas added, "There is absolutely no early data leading us to believe that Jesus was married or had a family. The Bible teaches the exact opposite. Jesus never married, never had a romance. He came with a solitary, heaven-inspired purpose – to provide a means of salvation to the world. He didn't have time for a relationship! And we don't have any reliable data suggesting anything else. There's nothing there. People on wild-goose chases can speculate forever on these issues, but the absence of timely historic data – data, I mean, that pre-dates or is from the same time as the New Testament – makes their speculations factually ridiculous."

Asked about one of the novel's characters saying that "historical evidence" proves that Jesus never portrayed Himself to be more than a mortal prophet, Dr. Hindson challenged this notion.

"What these biblical detractors are essentially saying is that Jesus never portrayed Himself to be anything more than a principled prophet. And that is simply not true," he said.

In fact, Jesus clearly said, "I and the Father are One" (John 10: 30). And He said, "… before Abraham was, I AM" (John 8:58). In many other biblical references, Jesus makes comparable declarations.

Dr. Habermas added the best text showing Jesus making unambiguous claims to be the God-Man is Mark 14:61-64: "Again, the high priest asked Him, saying to Him, 'Are You the Christ, the Son of the Blessed?' Jesus said, 'I am. And you will see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of power, and coming with the clouds of heaven.' Then the high priest tore his clothes and said, 'What further need do we have of witnesses? You have heard the blasphemy! …'"

"This is absolutely the strongest affirmation of Jesus proclaiming His Deity," said Dr. Habermas. "How much more assertively could He have made this claim than to say, 'I am,' when asked this point-blank question by the high priest. So even biblical critics should admit that we have texts which say that Jesus claimed to be somebody special, someone who will occupy God's throne."

Both men noted that Jesus' disciples would later give their lives defending Christ. Dr. Hindson said, "They died for what they believed to be a fact of history – that Jesus did in fact die on the cross and did literally rise from the dead and announce that He would come again for His followers."

The disciples certainly didn't die believing that Jesus was just a pleasant prophet; they died defending His claim to be the Son of God who came to save the world.

I close this column with the remarkable words of C.S. Lewis, who brilliantly defended the fact that Jesus was in fact God: "I am trying here to prevent anyone saying the really foolish thing that people often say about Him: 'I'm ready to accept Jesus as a great moral teacher, but I don't accept His claim to be God.' That is the one thing we must not say. A man who was merely a man and said the sort of things Jesus said would not be a great moral teacher. He would either be a lunatic – on the level with the man who says he is a poached egg – or else he would be the Devil of Hell. You can shut Him up for a fool. You can spit at Him and kill Him as a demon; or you can fall at His feet and call Him Lord and God. But let us not come with any patronizing nonsense about His being a great human teacher. He has not left that open to us. He did not intend to."

To read the complete Hindson-Habermas interview/story, please visit the National Liberty Journal website.

© 2004 WorldNetDaily.com


Dr. Ed Hindson writes: "This dangerous humanistic diatribe, thinly veiled as a novel, is among the most seductive and destructive restatements of bygone heresies in modern time."

-Jesus wasn't God
-Jesus and Mary Magdalene were married and had children
-The Bible isn't the Word of God
-The early Church invented the foundational doctrines of Christianity for the purpose of controlling the masses.
-The Church conspired to hide the truth

The Legend is back!

The Da Vinci Code is based upon the legend of the Merovingians. The Merovingians were kings who reigned in France A.D. 428-751. They claimed to be descendents of the progeny resulting from the marriage of "Jesus" and Mary Magdalene, which is total blasphemy in light of the Scriptures. This ancient heretical teaching claims that Jesus Christ survived the crucifixion through deceit and trickery, wed Mary Magdalene, and fathered a number of children whose descendents are now found in the bloodlines of much of European royalty, hence the term "royal blood."

The Bible plainly tells us that Jesus not only died, but was also buried for three days and three nights and early on Sunday morning, He rose again from the dead!

One must have a very colorful imagination to assume for one minute that a person can just walk away from a bloody, torturous crucifixion and have the strength to escape from his own country and venture hundreds of miles away to a distant land. Even today with all the medical advances, one crucified would never have the stamina to escape and flee his homeland into Europe, no matter how great the surgeon is, and yet we are to assume that this obvious fictitious story took place. The mythical "christ" of The Da Vinci Code is no match for the authentic Christ Jesus of the Bible.

Has the Time of the Gentiles Passed?

Our culture's acceleration into moral degeneracy is dizzying. Every day's news introduces yet greater and more dramatic shamelessness, debauchery, perversion, and foolishness. Rebellion against God, truth, goodness, and beauty is becoming outspoken and rampant. Given this, one question refuses to go away: Are we seeing what the Bible predicts as the passing of the "times of the Gentiles"?

As the apostle Paul sees it, the Jews are a unique people on the face of the earth. No other people in all of human history has or ever will have a comparable status or role in God's dealings with mankind. This is not to say that the individual Jew will receive any eternal reward unavailable to an individual Gentile. That is decidedly not the case. In eternity, there are no nations or people, only individuals. But in history, God deals with people as well as individuals. And as a people, the Jews stand alone. God has and will accomplish in and through them what He will accomplish in and through no other nation or family on the earthnot the Irish, not the English, not the Russians, not the Americans.

No other discernible group on the face of the earth has been chosen by God to be His people. And there are four concrete ramifications of this Jewish chosenness:

First, God has revealed to the Jews and to no other people His purposes in and through history. The prophets, the Scriptures, and divinely-revealed religion came into the world by way of the Jews.

Secondly, God came into the world through the Jewish people. God incarnated Himself in the form of His Son, an eternal King from among the Jews, who will rule over an eternal Kingdom that God will establish at the end of this age.

Thirdly, God has established covenants only with the Jews, promising them a unique relationship and experience of Himself within the bounds of temporal history here on earth.

And fourthly, the Jews will be unique in the history of mankind in their experience of wholesale repentance and universal sanctification.

These four things constitute the concrete significance of the Jews' status as uniquely the people of God. Paul's comment in Romans 9 reflects the first three of these:

I am telling the truth in Christ, I am not lying, my conscience bearing me witness in the Holy Spirit, that I have great sorrow and unceasing grief in my heart. For I could wish that I myself were accursed, separated from Christ for the sake of my brethren and kinsmen according to the flesh, who are Israelites, to whom belongs the adoption as sons and the glory and the covenants and the giving of the Law and the temple service and the promises, whose are the fathers, and from whom is the Christ according to the flesh, who is over all, God blessed forever. Amen. [Romans 9:1-5]

In Romans 11, Paul mentions the fourth ramification when he describesin broad outlinethe history of spirituality as the prophets present it. To understand this outline we must keep this clearly in mind: although God gave birth (in the story of the Exodus) to the nation of Israel and declared Himself their God and them His people, the Jews have never, as a people, made God their God. They have "played the harlot" throughout their history to the present day. Individualswhat Paul calls a "remnant" [Romans 11:5]have loved God and served Him as their God, but never has the entire nation of living Jews worshipped and served Yahwehthe living and true Godas their God. And yet, the prophets say this will happen. God will turn the nation back to Himself. Jeremiah 31:31-34 says: God will "put His Law within them," writing it "on their heart"; He will (finally) "be their God and they shall be [His] people"; God will ensure that His people "shall all know [Him], from the least of them to the greatest of them."

The most remarkable aspect of this "new covenant" God makes with Israel is the comprehensive nature of the repentance it describes. "They shall all know Me, from the least of them to the greatest of them." At present, no nation on the face of the earth has ever experienced wholesale repentancewhere an entire generation came to an authentic love of the true God. Certainly, remarkable movements of the Spirit of God have resulted in dramatic and extensive spiritual life. And perhaps there have been nearly universal "conversions" to inauthentic faith. But never has history seen an entire generation receive genuine sanctification at the hands of the living God, resulting in universal belief, universal love of God, and universal repentance from evil and worldliness. But it has been promised. The day will come (or so Paul understands the prophets) when God will keep His promise to the people He declared His own when He delivered them from Egypt. The Jewish people who for millennia have stiff-armed God, stubbornly refusing to love Him and acknowledge Him, are one day going to experience a dramatic spiritual melt-down. All of their rebellion will cease; their resistance to God will vanish; andto the very last personthey will discover within themselves a profound and authentic love for the God who chose them. In that day, the entire nation will eagerly and earnestly seek to serve God and follow His commandments. Paul suggests this when, writing to his Gentile brothers, he cites the prophetic message:

For I do not want you, brethren, to be uninformed of this mystery, lest you be wise in your own estimation, that a partial hardening has happened to Israel until the fulness of the Gentiles has come in; and thus all Israel will be saved; just as it is written, "The Deliverer will come from Zion, He will remove ungodliness from Jacob. And this is my covenant with them, when I take away their sins." [Romans 11:25-27]

At the end of time, no other people on the face of the earth will be able to boast a comparable experience. Never has every living Frenchman repented and been saved, nor every living Italian, nor every living Chinese. Nor will it ever happen in the future. The Jews, once again, will be unique in this. Among them alone will the Spirit of God have come and touched the hearts of virtually every individual such that it can be said, "All Israel was saved."
The timing of this spiritual rebirth is of most interest for the purposes of this article. Universal repentance will come upon Israel after the "fullness of the Gentiles has come in." In other words, Paul interprets the prophetic outline like this: God has turned from the Jews as a people and is not working primarily among the Jews to sanctify them. Indeed, He is working primarily among the Gentiles. But the day will come when the full complement of those Gentiles whom God is going to save will have come to faith. Only then will God turn to Israel and pour out His Spirit upon them as the prophets have promised.

What does this mean for the Gentiles who live in that time? It appears that they are forsaken. The Spirit will stop giving Gentiles "eyes to see"; no more will Gentiles be "born" of the Spirit. The Gentiles in that day will almost universally hate God and oppose all that He stands for. Paul seems to read it this way, for he speaks of a time when "the fullness of the Gentiles has come in." If the full complement of Gentiles whom God intends to save has been reached, does that not imply that no more Gentiles will be saved?

Of course, most of such language is hyperbolic. Present day Israel constitutes the "natural branches of the olive tree" which have been "cut off from their root" [Romans 11:17-24]. But, Paul tells us, even among these cut-off Jews there remains a "remnant" of individuals whom God is saving. If God maintains the symmetry, then when He "cuts off" the Gentiles from the root, there could nonetheless be a "remnant" of individuals among the Gentiles whom He will save. So we can hope, in any case.

But this prophetic scenario can mean only one thing for the Gentile world. The day shall come when Gentile ears are stopped up, when Gentile hearts remain hopelessly hardened against God, when Gentile rebellion against God manifests itself unceasingly and without shame, and when the gospel proclaimed by the apostles is no longer of any interest to any appreciable portion of people among the Gentiles.

What will that day look like? Will Gentiles stop being Christians? Will there be a wholesale explicit denunciation of Christianity? I cannot say for sure, but it would appear not. Paul writes to Timothy:

...preach the word; be ready in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort, with great patience and instruction. For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but wanting to have their ears tickled, they will accumulate for themselves teachers in accordance to their own desires; and will turn away their ears from the truth, and will turn aside to myths. [I Timothy 4:2-4]

In turning from truth to myths, will they be turning from Christianity to pagan and neo-pagan myths and religions? Possibly. But is it not equally possible that in turning from the truth to myths they will be turning from biblical-apostolic Christianity to a Christianity of their own devices? I fully expect this will be the case. The more I see how effectively falsehood and deceit can assume the guise of Christianity, the more it makes sense to me that, at the end of time, "Christianity" will flourish in the Gentile world at the same time that truth (biblical-apostolic Christianity) has been utterly abandoned.

If all this is true, the question before us today is: As we observe the spiritual darkness overtaking our culture, what are we observing? Are we witnessing God's abandonment of the Gentiles? Are we seeing the end of the times of the Gentiles? Has the fullness of the Gentiles come in, and is God about to turn to the Jews and produce among them an unprecedented spiritual repentance?

I have no answers to these questions, certainly. But in asking them, an important warning emerges. What about me? Where am I? Will the worldliness and spiritual numbness that awaits the whole Gentile world of the future sweep me along as well? Or will I remain clear and focused in my vision, setting my mind and heart on the things above, not on the things upon the earth [Colossians 3:2]? Will I be a part of the remnant of Gentiles saved at the end of time? Or will I be a part of the crowd of damned Gentiles who hate God and are busy arranging the deck chairs on their personal Titanics?

In these dark days, we would all do well to heed the apostles' persistent warnings to "be on the alert": "…let us not sleep as others do, but let us be alert and sober" [I Thessalonians 5:6]; "…be on your guard lest, being carried away by the error of unprincipled men, you fall from your steadfastness, but grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ" [II Peter 3:17-18]. We cannot save our nation, our culture, or our civilization. Prophecy itself tells us that it is doomed. But we can save our own souls, and well we should. By Jack Crabtree

Jack Crabtree is the director of McKenzie Study Center, an institute of Gutenberg College, where he has taught since 1981.

Copyright October 1997 by McKenzie Study Center

The Lamb Of God by Dave Hunt

The Bible claims to be the Word of the only true God. In addition to historical, archaeological, and scientific proofs, there are numerous internal proofs. No such evidences exist for other “sacred writings.” The Bible was written during 1,600 years by 40 prophets, most of whom lived in diverse cultures, at different times in history, yet who never contradict but complement each other. For the Qur’an, Muslims must take the word of Muhammad, just as the Book of Mormon rests solely upon Joseph Smith’s word. But every biblical prophet is confirmed by 39 other prophets, and they condemn the “scriptures” of every religion!

It would be difficult for a single author to avoid contradiction when dealing with such a lengthy period of detailed history involving so many individuals and nations and covering such a wide variety of subjects as does the Bible. But 40 different prophets writing with one voice over a period of many centuries? There can be only one explanation: divine inspiration!

Hundreds of prophecies uttered centuries and even thousands of years before their fulfillment are the irrefutable proof God offers of His existence, and these identify beyond question His Word to man—a proof absolutely unique to the Bible. Besides proving that the Bible is God’s Word, fulfilled prophecies develop themes woven like golden threads through the entire tapestry of Scripture.
One of the major themes is redemption: the only means by which a holy God can justly forgive and be reconciled to His creature, man.

The Bible denounces all of the world’s religions as inspired by “the god of this world [Satan]” (1 Cor 10:20; 2 Cor 4:4). They all teach that their god or gods can be appeased by works and religious rituals. The Bible alone is clear in its declaration that salvation “is the gift of God [a gift cannot be earned or merited]....Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to His mercy he saved us” (Eph 2:8; Ti 3:5).

God’s Word allows no room for accommodation, dialogue, or compromise. Truth does not concede anything to error and has nothing to discuss with lies. Yet for many years, the Roman Catholic Church has been in “dialogue” with Hindus, Buddhists, and Muslims, all of whose religions diametrically oppose the Bible. (A Catholic-Buddhist conference in a Kentucky monastery purported to find “common ground” between Christ’s suffering on the cross, the Buddha’s “Four Noble Truths,” and Buddhist meditation–Los Angeles Times, July 27, 1996).

How is such confusion possible? Because centuries ago, Catholicism, like the non-Christian religions, developed a “Christian” system of works and sacraments for salvation. And for many years now, Baptists and evangelicals (whose ancestors broke away from Catholicism during the Reformation) have been in “dialogue” with the Roman Catholic Church. Meanwhile, at the UN and at the leadership level of most “faiths,” the clamor for a one- world religion is growing ever louder.

Biblical Christianity stands alone against the ecumenism that every religion will eventually embrace under Antichrist. The Gospel is separated from all religions by the uncompromising declaration of every biblical prophet that for God to forgive sins and reconcile man to Himself, the penalty for sin must be paid in full. That penalty is death (eternal separation from God, the giver and sustainer of life), and it was pronounced upon the entire human race: “The soul that sinneth, it shall die....For the wages of sin is death...” (Ezk 18:20; Rom 6:23). This penalty cannot be waived even by God himself, who is bound by His eternal Word. But God sent His Son to become a man through a virgin birth to suffer in our place the punishment He had pronounced upon mankind.

The fact that the payment for sin can be made only by a sinless victim is an integral part of the theme of redemption all through the Bible. Clearly, no sinner can pay for his own sins: “The sacrifice of the wicked is abomination...” (Prv 21:27). Salvation can only be by God in grace crediting Christ’s death in payment for the sins of all mankind to those who accept salvation on His terms. This is seen in the animal sacrifices Jews were to offer. The fact that these sacrifices had to be repeated over and over proved that they were only temporary anticipations of a true sacrifice, which God would eventually provide: “For the law...can never with those sacrifices [bring perfection]. For then would they not have ceased to be offered?” (Heb 10:1,2).

Furthermore, from A.D. 70 to the present, Jews have been unable to offer the sacrifices that were established by God’s specific instructions in the Torah. This fact carries very serious consequences, especially since the destruction of the Temple and the resulting cessation of sacrifices did not happen by chance but were God’s judgment upon rebellious Israel as His prophets foretold: “For the children of Israel shall abide many days without a king, and without a prince, and without a sacrifice...” (Hos 3:4,5). Jesus declared that Gentile control over Jerusalem would continue until Armageddon: “Jerusalem shall be trodden down of the Gentiles, until the times of the Gentiles be fulfilled” (Lk 21:24). This is a remarkable prophecy still being fulfilled, as we document in Judgment Day.

So how can Jews (or Gentiles) receive God’s forgiveness, since the Levitical sacrifices He specifically commanded ceased nearly 2,000 years ago and are still impossible today? The answer to that question is given in the theme of redemption that flows through Scripture.

Central to this theme are the numerous references to a lamb as a redemptive sacrifice for sin. The first sacrifice that God accepted was the lamb offered by Abel (Gn 4:2-4; Heb 11:4). The fact, however, that animal sacrifices were only a picture of a coming sacrifice, which alone could fully atone for sins, was clear from the very beginning for two obvious reasons: 1) animal life was never equated in value to human life; and 2) as we have already seen, animal sacrifices had to be repeated, proving that they could not remove the guilt of sin.

Yet, the Old Testament prophetic pictures present amazing insights. The offering of Isaac by Abraham on an altar is a classic example. Muslims claim that Ishmael, not Isaac, was the son offered—an obvious lie because it doesn’t fit Islam. Allah is not a father, has no son, Islam has no redemptive sacrifice, and denies Christ’s death for sin.

God’s command to Abraham, however, to offer his “only son Isaac” (Gn 22:2), has undeniable prophetic meaning in relation to the biblical sacrifice of God’s “only begotten Son” (Jn 3:16). Father Abraham’s offering of Isaac on an altar has meaning only in relation to the biblical account of Father God offering Christ on the Cross for man’s sins. Nor could it be a coincidence that the very place where God told Abraham to offer his son became the site of the Jewish Temple and its sacrifices. Islam tries to steal this also by saying that it was from the place where “Ishmael was offered” that Muhammad ascended to heaven. That unbiblical claim, however, has been recently discredited by Muslim authorities. (See Judgment Day)

In Abraham’s cryptic response to Isaac’s question, “Where is the lamb for a burnt offering?” (Gn 22:7), the mystery seems to deepen: “God will provide himself a lamb” (v. 8). God himself will be the sacrificial lamb for man’s redemption? Did Christ refer to this statement when He declared, “Abraham rejoiced to see my day: and he saw it, and was glad” (Jn 8:56)? Isaiah revealed both that the coming Messiah would be God’s son: “unto us a son is given” (Is 9:6) and also that He would be YAHWEH, called “the God of Israel” 203 times in the Bible: “His name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father” (Is 9:6)! A baby born to a virgin would be God’s son and at the same time would be the Father?! Yes. As Jesus declared, “I and my Father are one” (Jn 10:30).

Isaiah also foretold that the Messiah would be the promised lamb sacrificed for the sins of the world: “The Lord hath laid on him the iniquity of us all....[H]e is brought as a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is dumb, so he openeth not his mouth” (Is 53:6,7). No wonder John the Baptist, when “looking upon Jesus as he walked...saith, Behold the Lamb of God...which taketh away the sin of the world” (Jn 1:29, 36). The intricate interrelationship between scriptures by so many different prophets from Genesis to Revelation is awesome!

The most complete Old Testament prophetic picture of the coming lamb is in the Passover. The detailed instructions settled in advance the controversy at the root of today’s conflict in the Middle East over the land that God promised to Abraham: “I will give unto thee, and to thy seed after thee...all the land of Canaan [there was no such place as “Palestine”!], for an everlasting possession...” (Gn 17:8). Because Ishmael (though illegitimate) was Abraham’s firstborn son, the Arabs, who claim descent from Ishmael, say they are the “seed” of Abraham to whom the Promised Land was given. The Bible, however, clearly says that Abraham’s descendants through Isaac and Jacob are the “seed” and true heirs (Gn 17:19; 26:3,4; 28:13; 1 Chr 16:15-18, etc.) According to the Bible, the claim of Arabs and Muslims to this disputed land is a fraud—yet the UN, EU, USA, et al., accept it as the basis for a “peace” that defies the God of Israel!

Muslims say that the Bible was changed by Jews and Christians. That won’t fly. The God of the Bible defines the seed that inherits the land so clearly that any “change” would be impossible: “...thy seed [i.e., that inherits the land] shall be a stranger in a land that is not theirs, and shall serve them; and they shall afflict them four hundred years....But in the fourth generation they shall come hither again...” (Gn 15:13-16).

The Jews, not Arabs, were slaves in Egypt for 400 years, then were brought “in the fourth generation” into the land of Canaan. Arabs did not come into “Palestine” until the brutal seventh-century-Muslim invasion after Jews had lived there for more than 2,000 years. This is irrefutable history proved by the Passover.

Israel’s deliverance came about through God’s judgment in ten plagues upon Egypt, the final one requiring the sacrifice of a lamb by any who would escape that doomed land. That event was ever after to be commemorated with the Passover supper first eaten that historic night: “And this day shall be unto you for a memorial....[W]hen your children shall say unto you, What mean ye...ye shall say, It is the sacrifice of the Lord’s passover...when he smote the Egyptians, and delivered our houses” (Ex 12:14,26,27).
Who keeps the Passover? Not Arabs! Only Jews keep it worldwide to this day.

When an event witnessed by many people is immediately commemorated with a special remembrance kept ever after, we have proof that it happened as memorialized. The annual Passover proves the slavery of Israel in Egypt and her deliverance, as the Bible declares, and that the Jews are therefore the heirs of Abraham with title to that land by a deed God signed 4,000 years ago and recorded in Scripture.

Non-Jews have neither right nor purpose in keeping the Passover; yet it has become popular for Gentile Christians to celebrate the Jewish “seder.” True, the Passover lamb pictures Christ, the Lamb that Abraham told Isaac God would provide—but so did each Levitical offering, yet Christians don’t offer those, so why would they celebrate the Passover? It commemorates ancestral deliverance from Egypt, in which Gentiles have no part.

But wasn’t the “Last Supper” the Passover, and didn’t Christ give it new meaning, to be celebrated continually until His return? “A new meaning”? Impossible! The Passover feast with roast lamb has historic significance involving an “everlasting covenant” (Gn 17:7; 1 Chr 16:15-18, etc.) concerning the Promised Land. That meaning cannot be changed. Jews (not Gentiles) are commanded by God to keep it “for ever” (Ex 12:14). Christ Himself could not give a “new meaning” to the Passover!

Furthermore, the Last Supper was not the Passover. It occurred the night “before the feast of the passover” (Jn 13:1) and without a lamb. The next morning, the rabbis were still keeping themselves undefiled so they could “eat the passover” (Jn 18:28). That afternoon, when Christ was on the Cross, it was still “the preparation of the passover” (Jn 19:14)—i.e., the lambs were being sacrificed to be eaten in the Passover supper that night.

But didn’t Christ say, “I have desired to eat this passover with you before I suffer” (Lk 22:15)? Yes, but “this passover” is not the Passover with roast lamb to be kept only by Jews in memory of deliverance from Egypt. “This passover” was something new inaugurated by Christ to be kept with bread and wine (in memory of His body broken and blood shed) by all who believe on Him (Jews and Gentiles). Why did Jesus, then, call it a “Passover”? Because as Israel was delivered by the death of a lamb from Egypt, so it commemorates deliverance for believers from sin, this evil world, and judgment to come, through the true “Lamb of God”: “as often as ye eat this bread, and drink this cup, ye do shew [proclaim] the Lord’s death till he come” (1 Cor 11:26). Paul said, “Christ our passover is sacrificed for us” (1 Cor 5:7).

If animal sacrifices could not pay for sin, what was their purpose? They were physical illustrations of spiritual truth beyond our present comprehension. Christ continually used the physical to symbolize the spiritual: (“drink of the water that I give...I am the true vine...the door...the bread of life...except you eat my flesh and drink my blood,” etc.). We do the same today.

For example, we sing hymns about being “washed in the blood of the Lamb.” We are not speaking literally. Grievous error enters when symbol is made substance, such as Catholicism’s eating of the wafer that is believed to be Christ’s physical body. That would be like swallowing pages of the Bible in order to “feed upon God’s Word” (Dt 8:3; Jer 15:16; 1 Pt 5:2, etc.)!

The significance behind the sacrificial lamb goes far beyond our highest thoughts. In John’s vision, he is told that “the Lion of the tribe of Juda...hath prevailed to open the book.” Turning to see the “Lion,” he sees “a Lamb as it had been slain...” (Rv 5:5,6)! How can a powerful lion appear as a newly slain lamb—and in what way could Christ be seen as such in heaven?! Of the heavenly city, we are told that “the Lamb is the light thereof” (Rv 21:23). The Bible ends with reference to the eternal “throne of God and of the Lamb” (22:1,3).

We can only fall down in prostrate wonder and gratitude, rejoicing that one glad day we will join the redeemed around that throne in the eternal chorus, “Worthy is the Lamb that was slain” (Rv 5:12). At last we will “see him as he is” (1 Jn 3:2) and understand fully, having been transformed into His image for all eternity! —tbc

OUR GREAT AND GLORIOUS GOD

In the eleventh chapter of Romans the Apostle Paul is tracing for us a very strange connection between a largely Gentile church and the nation of Israel. Through the centuries many have wondered about the tie between these two remarkable peoples -- the church of God, which is made up now largely of Gentile believers, although there are Jews among us -- and the Jewish nation, that strange nation which now occupies a prominent place on the stage of the world.

As you know, there is no nation today quite like Israel. It attracts worldwide attention when anything happens to it -- attention that is way out of proportion to its size and its power. Let something occur in Jerusalem, or anywhere in Israel, and it is blazoned across headlines around the world. The eyes of the world are on this strange nation of the Jews. And Jews, as a people, constitute a strange, unusual power bloc in any country in which they are found today. Someone has suggested that it might be well for the United States to guarantee the permanent possession of Jerusalem to the Jews if they will agree to give New York and Miami back to us. Surely there is no nation quite like the nation of the Jews.

In Chapter 11 the apostle is dealing with this remarkable people, and twice he asks the question, "Has God forgotten his people?" Will God forget this people because of their rejection of Messiah? Has he turned his back on them? Twice he answers the question, "No, never. God has not forgotten his people."

In the first part of this chapter Paul gives us five reasons why it is evident that God has not forgotten his people the Jews. The first one (and one of the reasons why God has turned to the Gentiles and is saving men and women from among the Gentiles) is that he desires to arouse Israel to jealousy. God is reaching Gentiles because, ultimately, he wants to reach Jews. Second, Paul says the promises of worldwide blessing that fill so many prophetic passages of the Old Testament hinge upon the restoration of Israel to God. Worldwide blessing can never come until Israel is back in right relationship with its God.Third, he says that if the first Jews (the patriarchs, Abraham and Isaac and Jacob) could be made holy by God, then God is able to make Jews holy after thousands of years have passed. Therefore there is hope for Israel.

In Paul's fourth argument he uses the figure of an olive tree. The natural branches of the tree are broken off and unnatural branches are grafted on. He points out that even the Gentiles, when they do become believers, become spiritual Israelites. When a Jew becomes a Christian, he doesn't change his spiritual heritage at all; he fulfills it. Jews who become Christians today are "completed Jews," but Gentiles who become Christians become spiritual Jews. Therefore, Paul argues, not only is that true, but, fifth, if God could do that to the unnatural branches, if he could take a twisted, deformed Gentile and make him into a son of the living God, how much more can he do this with the natural branches, the Jews.

This brings us to Verse 25 of Chapter 11, where Paul actually prophesies the restoration that is coming to Israel. Up to now he has been arguing this from reason, but now he prophesies what this restoration will be like (Verses 25-29):

I do not want you to be ignorant of this mystery, brothers, so that you may not be conceited: Israel has experienced a hardening in part until the full number of the Gentiles has come in. And so all Israel will be saved, as it is written:
"The deliverer will come from Zion;
he will turn godlessness away from Jacob.
And this is my covenant with them
when I take away their sins."

As far as the gospel is concerned, they are enemies on your account; but as far as election is concerned, they are loved on account of the patriarchs, for God's gifts and his call are irrevocable. (Romans 11:25-29 NIV)

Perhaps the striking thing about this passage is that Paul calls the Jews' present resistance to the gospel a mystery. Now he doesn't mean that it is obscure and difficult to understand. The word "mystery" does not mean that in Scripture. What it means is that it is something supernatural. It is not caused by natural causes. It cannot be observed by the normal observation of human beings.

I do not know if you have had any occasion to try to witness to a Jew. If you have, perhaps you have run up against what seemed to be a rock wall of indifference and objection and resistance to what you were trying to say. If so, you may well have been experiencing what Paul is talking about here, a strange hardening toward the gospel on the part of the Jews.

When Paul calls this a mystery he means that it is a supernatural phenomenon that has to be revealed to us. You can't explain it by the normal reasons for resistance to the gospel. It is not because the Jews are inferior in intelligence -- they are among the most intelligent of people. Scores of the greatest intellectual leaders of our time have been Jewish in background. So it is not because they are dumb; they are not dumb. And it is not because they don't want God; they are among the most religious of all people. In fact, they have been called the most religious people of all time. They want God. Ordinarily you would think they would be open to hearing the good news of how God, in grace, is ready to reach men and change them and indwell them and enrich their lives. And yet those who go among the Jews often find this strange resistance, this anger that is awakened because of the preaching of the gospel. Paul will say more about that later.

First he points out that it has been prophesied that an awakening will come. There will be an awakening. But Paul says three things about this hardness that we must take careful note of: First, it is a hardening "in part." That is, not all Jews are afflicted this way. We are not told here how big a part of Israel is going to be hardened -- whether 10% or 90%. All we are told is that there are going to be some Jews who simply will not hear, who will not receive the gospel. Whether you are talking to one who is hardened or one who is not is very difficult to determine. It may mean, as it does oftentimes, that the person needs to be witnessed to and loved and reached over a period of time. No one can say that any given person belongs to that hardening. But we can say that there will be, as has been evident in history, a strange, remarkable resistance to the gospel. I have been to Israel five times, and I am always amazed at how resistant the Jews there seem to be to the claims of the Lord Jesus. Not only does Paul say that this hardening is in part, but it is also limited in time. It is not going to go on forever. A hardening of the heart has happened "until the full number of the Gentiles come in." So this is not something that they are bound to experience forever. It isn't something that can be explained by natural causes, and it is not going to last forever. What does "the full number of the Gentiles" mean? I really do not like that translation. The word the apostle uses is "the fullness of the Gentiles." We have to ask ourselves, "What does that mean?"

Some, obviously, have interpreted that to mean that a certain number of Gentiles are going to be converted. God has a certain number in mind and he is going to let the gospel go out to all the world until that number of Gentiles has been converted, and then he will release Israel from its blindness, its hardness. But I don't think this refers to a certain number. Actually, this is the second time in this chapter where the word fullness is used. It is used not only of the Gentiles, as here, but also of the Jews. There is a fullness of Israel mentioned here. In Verse 12, Paul says of Israel, "But if their transgression means riches for the world, and their loss means riches for the Gentiles, how much greater riches will their fullness bring?" There is the same word, pleroma, which means "that which fills." Notice that it is set in direct contrast to the words "their loss" or "their fall." That refers to the time when Israel was driven out of Jerusalem by the armies of the Romans in 70 A.D. and scattered throughout all the nations of the earth.

This does not mean there is a diminished number of Jews. The Jews have increased in number throughout all these centuries of dispersion, so it is not a lower number of Jews that is in view. This is not talking about quantity at all. Paul is talking, rather, about diminished spiritual riches. The Jews have lost the quality and richness of their relationship with God. Though they have the outward trappings of faith and the very books of the Law, still they have lost that richness of relationship that sets the heart aglow and the face radiant with the light and love and beauty and grace and character of God. This is the loss; therefore the fullness means "these riches restored."

So, when Paul uses this phrase "the fullness of the Gentiles," he is talking about a Gentile church which is going to become so rich and full in its spiritual riches that it will awaken again the envy of Israel. That is what God has said in this chapter. He turns to the Gentiles in order that he may arouse the Jews to envy. Anyone who reads church history knows that there hasn't been a great deal in Gentile churches that would awaken the Jews to envy! They see among Gentile Christians, for the most part, enemies. Oftentimes the Jews have been oppressed and persecuted and terribly treated -- all in the name of Jesus Christ -- by those who profess to be Christians. But if this interpretation is right, and I think it is, it means a very hopeful thing for us. It means that a day is coming when the Gentile churches are going to be enriched with such spiritual blessing that the Jews will say, "We should have that! That's the way we should be!" And the Jews will be open, as never before, to the gospel of the grace of God.

I think we are seeing a taste of this now. This is one reason why Jews, in greater number than ever before since the time of the dispersion, have been open to the gospel and turning to Christ. This is an amazing and encouraging thing. This is what the apostle says must take place.

Paul then says the prophets have told us this is going to happen: "The deliverer will come from Zion; he will turn godlessness away from Jacob." That is a promise in the Old Testament prophets. Furthermore, quoting from Jeremiah, he says, "And this is my covenant with them when I take away their sins," (Jeremiah 31:33-34). The deliverer is coming and forgiveness is going to be granted to Israel. That is clearly stated in the gospel.

And so the apostle closes with two important things we ought to remember about the Jews. I don't know if you have Jewish friends and neighbors or not. I have had, and have enjoyed contact with them. But whoever is in touch with Jews today ought to remember these two things from Verses 28-29: "As far as the gospel is concerned, they are enemies on your account; but as far as election is concerned, they are loved on account of the patriarchs, for God's gifts and his call are irrevocable." God's gifts and his call cannot be taken back.

Now, the Jews may treat you as an enemy. That is due to this strange and supernatural hardening in part that has happened to Israel. This has been the experience of many who have gone as missionaries to the Jews. They have been treated as though they were attacking the Jews instead of trying to minister to them and help them. They have aroused the enmity and anger of the Jews.

Our friends the Jews for Jesus have told us how they have gone into Jewish communities to share and talk about their experience as Jews who have found the glory and the grace of God in Jesus Christ. They have been met with violence and attack upon their persons and enmity against them. I read last week that two thousand Jewish orthodox rabbis held a conference in New York City to determine what to do about the ravages that were being made in the Jewish community by the "Jews for Jesus" movement. The rabbis estimated there must be five thousand Jews for Jesus in New York City. The Jews for Jesus people say there are only thirty members there -- including secretaries. This is the fearsome front that any missionary movement among the Jews seems to create. It causes consternation among Jewish ranks and very grave resentment.

So remember, you may be treated as an enemy. But remember also that the Jews are loved by an unchanging God. God loves every Jew, without exception. No matter how stubborn or resistant they may be, he has set his love upon them. And the nations of the world had better not forget it. God still has chosen the Jews.

Now the apostle moves on to see God's principle of salvation for all men in this (Verses 30-32):

Just as you who were at one time disobedient to God have now received mercy as a result of their disobedience, so they too, as a result of God's mercy to you, have become disobedient in order that they too may now receive mercy. For God has bound all men over to disobedience so that he may have mercy on them all. (Romans 11:30-32 NIV)

That is an amazing statement! In this you see something of how the mind of God works and some of the strange wheels-within-wheels (Ezekiel 1:16, 10:6-10) with which he moves in current history to bring about his purposes. Paul says that God used the Jews' disobedience, their rejection of their own Messiah, in order to give opportunity to rebellious Gentiles to receive mercy and grace from his hand. In this very letter Paul recounted for us how the gospel went out to the Gentiles only because it had been rejected by the Jews. Paul said that in all the cities he came to, he started first in the synagogues. And he would have stayed there, had the Jews accepted the message. But when they rejected the message, he turned to the Gentiles. And it was only by the Jews' disobedience that the gospel went out to the Gentiles.

That, by the way, answers the question with which this whole section begins. In Chapter 9 Paul raises the question, "Has God failed?" Since he obviously has been trying to reach the Jews and has sent his own Son as their Messiah and they rejected him, does that mean that God has failed? The answer is now clear: No, God has not failed. He used that as a means to reach the Gentile world, which he had intended to reach all along. That was his way of bringing it about.

Then, Paul adds, after having shown mercy to the Gentiles, God now uses the very mercies he has shown to the Gentiles to make the Jews mad and rebellious in order that they, too, can receive mercy. What Paul is saying here is that, unless you realize how rebellious your heart is, there is no chance for you to receive mercy. And so God works in human history to make us aware of our basic, inherent rebellion against him. Paul concludes that everyone is a rebel, and God desires that everyone admit it, so they can receive mercy.

What is the thing that keeps any individual or nation from receiving mercy from God? It is always a self-righteous, self-confident attitude. "I don't need help. I can handle it myself. I am able to handle all the problems of life on my own. I don't need God." Any individual or nation with that attitude has cut himself off from receiving the mercy of God, for without mercy there is no way we can ever fulfill our humanity. So God, as Paul puts it here, has "bound all men over to [the knowledge of their] disobedience so that he may have mercy upon them all."

We have had an outstanding illustration of this in the fact that in the last few years two prominent national figures have remained etched in the public mind as an aftermath of Watergate: Richard Nixon and Charles Colson:

Charles Colson came to the place where he saw his own rebellion and disobedience to God. He finally came to a place where he was driven to his knees, where he saw that without recognizing it or knowing it, he had been involved in evil things. He began to recognize the extent of it and the control it had in his life. At last he was driven to the place where he openly committed himself to the mercy of God. God changed him. In his book Born Again he tells how God changed him, healed him, delivered him from prison, and sent him out again to have a new life. He is traveling across the country now, telling his story, involved deeply in a great and helpful ministry to prisoners. He is alive and enjoying life to the full. Richard Nixon, on the other hand, has isolated himself in a self-imposed exile in which he refuses to admit he has ever done anything wrong. Tormented with the past, he has become a national pariah, and his life is limited and narrow, crabbed, because he does not yet know of the mercy of God that is available to one who admits disobedience.

That is the way God works in history. He is constantly moving in many ways in our individual lives to bring us to an awareness of our self-righteousness and dependence on ourselves. Paul says the Jewish nation has not availed themselves of the righteousness of God. Because they are so determined to establish their own righteousness, they cannot accept the righteousness that comes by faith. That is their problem. Now all this awakens in the apostle's heart an outburst of praise and adoration for the wisdom and the greatness of God. He closes this section with these words (Verses 33-36):

Oh, the depth of the riches, the wisdom and the knowledge of God!
How unsearchable his judgments, and his paths beyond tracing out!
"Who has known the mind of the Lord?
Or who has been his adviser?"
"Who has ever given to God,
that God should repay him?"
For from him and through him and to him are all things.
To him be the glory forever! Amen. (Romans 11:33-36 NIV)

This reminder of the strange ways God works awakens within the apostle a tremendous outburst for God's inscrutable wisdom and his ways with men. As you look at these verses, you can see certain things that have amazed the apostle:

There are the deep riches, as Paul calls them, the deep riches of God's wisdom and of his ways. They are beyond human exploration. There is no way we can finally fathom God.

I received this week in the mail a pamphlet written by a group that is trying to analyze and understand intellectually all the doctrines of the Scriptures. They struggle, obviously, to put God in a box where they can get hold of him and analyze him. But if they succeed in that, they have only reduced God to the size of a man. God is greater than man. He is beyond us. We must always remember that. Our minds cannot grasp the greatness of God! We can understand what he tells us about himself, but even beyond that, there is much more that we cannot know. There are depths of riches. That is why we are always being surprised by God if we trust him. He is always enriching us in ways that we don't anticipate. Then Paul speaks of God's "unsearchable judgments." We are going through one of these unsearchable judgments right now. People cannot understand this strange drought that has gripped the whole country. Meteorologists are baffled. They say, "Why does this high pressure system sit off the coast up here, and not down by Baja, where it belongs?" They are hard pressed to find somebody to blame for it and they have no control over it. They keep telling us of storms that are coming that never show up. Why? Because God's ways are unsearchable, and his ways, who can trace out? He is beyond accountability. No man can call God to account and say, "You have no right to do that!" We do it all the time, but we have no right to do it. For God is beyond us; he knows so much more than we do.

If you have any trouble with this, just read the book of Job and see the amazing list of questions that God asked and that Job could not answer. God says, "Look, this is just A-B-C stuff. If you can't answer these, then you have no right to quiz me on what I am doing! If you don't understand this simply kindergarten level of knowledge, how am I ever going to explain to you the vast, involved, and complex things that I am doing?" Paul then is impressed by the untraceable ways of God, the paths of God that are beyond understanding. We can't put it all together. We can believe it, but we can't explain it.

For instance, it is clear from Scripture that nothing God ever planned interferes with human responsibility. Nothing God has ever said will happen in any way infringes on our free will or choice. We are free to make choices. We know it. We feel ourselves free to decide to do this or that, to do good or bad. Nothing God ever plans interferes with that freedom of human choice. And yet the amazing thing is that nothing humans ever do can frustrate God's sovereign plan. Isn't that amazing? How can you explain that? No matter what we do, whether we choose this or that with the freedom of choice we have, ultimately it all works out to accomplish what God has determined shall be done. That is the kind of God we have. Paul is not only impressed with God's inscrutable wisdom and ways, but he contrasts it with the impotence of man. He asks three very searching questions. If you have trouble with this, try to answer his questions: His first one is, "Who has known the mind of the Lord?" What he is asking is, "Who has ever anticipated what God is going to do?" Have you? Have you ever been able to figure out how God is going to handle the situations you get into? Oh, we all try, but it never turns out quite the way we think it will, does it? There is a little twist to it that we never could have guessed.

You see this in the case of Jesus. Remember how the Pharisees asked him, "Should we pay taxes to Caesar?" They thought they had him! If he said "No," the Romans would be mad at him; if he said "Yes," then the Jews would be mad at him. Do you remember how he handled it? He called for a coin and said, "Whose picture is on this coin? They said, "Caesar's." He said, "All right. What Caesar has put his image on, you give to Caesar (i.e., pay your taxes); but what God has put his image on, you give that to him," (Matthew 22:16-22, Mark 12:13-18, Luke 20:19-26). God had put his image on man, and that is what they owed to God -- themselves. The Pharisees couldn't handle that kind of an answer. It wiped them out.

Remember the woman caught in adultery? Her stern and self-righteous accusers were ready to put her to death. Then Jesus came. He didn't do a thing at first; he just sat and wrote on the ground. He looked up, finally, and said, "He that is without sin among you, let him cast the first stone," (John 8:7). They stood there, puzzled and transfixed, then every one of them began to think of other places they ought to be. Soon they were all gone, and no one was left except the woman and Jesus. How could you ever have anticipated that he was going to handle it that way? How unsearchable are his judgments! Who has anticipated what God is going to do? No one. Second question: "Or who has been his adviser?" or "Who has ever suggested something that God has never thought of?" Have you ever tried that? I have. I have sometimes looked at a situation and saw the way to work it all out and suggested to God how he could do it. I thought I had been very helpful to him. But in the final outworking of the matter, it turned out that he knew things that I didn't know and he was working at things that I never saw and couldn't have seen. God's final outworking of it was right, and mine would have been wrong. So the question remains, "Who has ever suggested something to God that he has never thought of?"

Paul's last question is, "Who has ever given to God, that God should repay him?" That is, "Who has ever given God something that he didn't already have?" Who has put God in his debt? "Why," Paul says, "everything we are and have comes from him. He gives to us; we don't give to him." There is nothing we could give to God that he doesn't already own or have in abundance, or could make, if he had to. There is nothing. And so he concludes with this great outburst: "For from him and through him and to him are all things. To him be the glory forever! Amen." God is the originator of all things; all things come from him. He is the sustainer of all things; they all depend on him. As C. S. Lewis puts it, "To argue with God is to argue with the very power that makes it possible to argue at all!" He is the end purpose. All things will find their culmination in God. He is the reason why all things exist. Therefore, "to him be the glory forever! Amen."

Then there occurs what must be the most terrible, tragic separation that has ever been made in the Bible. The chapter division here cuts off Paul's conclusion from all the tremendous arguments which have led up to it. For Paul goes right on to say, "Therefore... "

Therefore [because God is like this and you are like that], I urge you, brothers, in view of God's mercy, to offer yourselves as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God -- which is your spiritual worship. (Romans 12:1 NIV)

I don't like that translation of "spiritual worship," either. Literally, it is "logical service." You see, it is only reasonable for man to be available to God. It is even your logical reason for existence. "Therefore," he says, "bring your bodies." If you are Christians, your spirits have already surrendered to God. But you are trying to live split lives, schizophrenic lives, if your body does not follow what your spirit has already done. Now put your body where your mouth is, and follow through with what your spirit has said to God. Be his available instrument.

At this point, traditionally I should give an altar call, in which you all would bring your bodies forward. But I am not going to do that because what Paul is describing here is not an act of the moment -- it is a commitment for the rest of your life. You are going to make your body available to God for as long as you live. Paul does not talk about your soul or your spirit because you never can do anything without your body in this life. So put your body on the line. Bring it, a living sacrifice, and the God of greatness and of glory, of infinite riches and wisdom and power, will fill that body with his own amazing life, and you will never find life to be the same again. What an adventure of faith that will launch you on!

Prayer:
We thank you, our amazing Father, for this look at something of the wonder of your Being. How far beyond our stumbling words your greatness is! How mighty and vast you are, Lord, how powerful among the nations of earth. How terrible that we should ever feel afraid, with a God like you. How stupid, Lord, that we should ever think that we can outwit you, or cheat you, or rob you, or get away with something in your presence. How foolish, Lord, that we should ever forget that you love us and have declared that love in unmistakable ways, and that your love can only enrich us and bless us, ultimately. Therefore, Lord, lead us to the place where, in our inner spirit, in the innermost chambers of our wills, we submit ourselves to you, gladly and cheerfully and thankfully. We are thankful that we have the inestimable privilege of being children of the living God today. We ask you to lead us and send us out into the world around us this week with that truth governing all that we say and do. We pray in Jesus' name, Amen.

By Ray C. Stedman

Fullness of the Gentiles By Jack Kinsella

By every measurable historical standard, the city of Jerusalem should have fallen into oblivion centuries ago. The city was destroyed in AD 70 by the Romans and its founders and traditional inhabitants were killed or fled into exile in foreign lands.

It has no natural wealth. It has no coastline. It sits inconveniently upon a mountain. It overlooks nothing of strategic military value.

It is on no ancient trade route. The King's Highway of David's time ran north and south through modern Jordan. Jerusalem was well off the beaten path -- folks didn't pass through Jerusalem on their way to somewhere else -- Jerusalem was the end of the line.

Like other historical 'end of the line' cities, once its reason to exist was extinguished by the destruction of its native population, so should its history.

The once-great city of Babylon, for example, is little more than a living museum, devoid of influence or even much interest outside scholarly circles.

Over the centuries, it has been fought over by the Assyrians, Babylonians, Egyptians, Greeks, Ptolemies, Seleucids, Romans, Byzantines, Persians, Arabs, Seljuks, Crusaders, Mongols, Mamelukes, by the Turks, the British, Jordan and most recently, by those Jordanians who became 'Palestinians' after Jordan's defeat in the 1967 War.

Jerusalem remains one of the most contested cities on earth to this day. That list doesn't include the approximately two hundred million Islamic fundamentalists or Islamic states like Iran or Saudi Arabia who have conducted a decades-long shadow war to 'liberate' the city from Jewish control.

Despite two thousand years of war aimed at destroying the Jews and seizing their city, in this generation, the Jews again inhabit an undivided Jerusalem.

"And they shall fall by the edge of the sword, and shall be led away captive into all nations: and Jerusalem shall be trodden down of the Gentiles, until the times of the Gentiles be fulfilled." (Luke 21:24)

Jesus' sweeping prophecy concerning the future of city of Jerusalem and its inhabitants was fulfilled to the letter throughout history, including its restoration to Jewish hands. Note that its restoration signals the fulfillment of the 'times of the Gentiles'.

The Apostle Paul called himself the 'apostle of the Gentiles' (Romans 11:13) but Paul had formerly been known as Saul of Tarsus, a Pharisee (lawyer) and Jewish religious leader. Paul explains that the Church is a 'graft' from the original tree (Judaism), saying,

"For I would not, brethren, that ye should be ignorant of this mystery, lest ye should be wise in your own conceits; that blindness in part is happened to Israel, until the fulness of the Gentiles be come in." Romans 11:25)

Here we find the same phraseology that was employed by Jesus concerning the 'times of the Gentiles'. Jesus referred to the times of the Gentiles as being 'fulfilled'. Paul speaks of the 'fulness of the Gentiles'.

Paul says that, following the 'fulness of the Gentiles',

"And so all Israel shall be saved: as it is written, There shall come out of Sion the Deliverer, and shall turn away ungodliness from Jacob: For this is my covenant unto them, when I shall take away their sins." (Romans 11:27)

Paul notes that, during the Church Age, "As concerning the gospel, they are enemies for your sakes," but Paul cautions; "but as touching the election, they are beloved for the father's sakes."

Then Paul wraps it all together by saying, "For the gifts and calling of God are without repentance." (Romans 11:29)

This is one of the great mysteries of Scripture. The Jews are enemies of the Gospel for 'our sakes'. What does that mean?

Jesus taught that His mission was to come first to the Jews. When approached by the Samaritan woman begging Him to help her daughter, Jesus told her, "I am not sent but unto the lost sheep of the house of Israel." (Matthew 15:24)

To the Jews He prophesied, "I am come in my Father's name, and ye receive me not: if another shall come in his own name, him ye will receive." (John 5:43)

If the Jews had accepted their Messiah at His First Advent, there would have been no Church Age and the Lord would have set up the Millennial Kingdom right then and there.

Jesus prophesied that because of their rejection of Him, "Behold, your house is left unto you desolate." His prophecy was fulfilled in AD 70 with the destruction of Jerusalem and the beginning of the 'Times of the Gentiles.'

The usurper who comes in his own name and is received as the Messiah comes after the 'fulness of the Gentiles' is come in.

Jeremiah calls it the 'Time of Jacob's Trouble' (Jeremiah 30:7). Jesus calls it the 'Tribulation' (Matthew 24:29). The prophet Daniel outlines the Tribulation's six-fold purpose, from the perspective of Israel;

"(1) to finish the transgression, and (2) to make an end of sins, and (3) to make reconciliation for iniquity, and (4) to bring in everlasting righteousness, and (5) to seal up the vision and prophecy, and (6) to anoint the most Holy." (Daniel 9:24)

Let's connect the dots and see how the Big Picture develops here. Jesus said that the restoration of Jerusalem to Jewish control would signal that the 'fulness of the Gentiles be come in'.

Jesus said of the generation on earth at that time, "This generation shall not pass away, till all be fulfilled." (Luke 21:32)

Paul says that the Jews, as an institution, rejected Jesus so that the Gentiles would have a chance at salvation. He said that God would not return His attention to Israel until 'the fulness of the Gentiles be come in'. The 'fulness of the Gentiles' indicates a finite number -- a 'quota', so to speak -- of Gentiles who will come to know Christ during the Church Age.

Once that quota -- the Church Age 'elect' have been gathered, God returns His attention to the Jews, "And so all Israel shall be saved" -- because "the gifts and calling of God are without repentance."

That Jesus offered salvation first to Israel is confirmed by His own Words as recorded by John.

The 'Time of Jacob's Trouble' is so-called because of its purpose as outlined by Daniel -- the six-fold purpose that culminates with the 'anointment of the most Holy' as Messiah and the beginning of the Millennial Reign from Jerusalem.

Note how clearly the two Dispensations are divided. Until the Crucifixion, God's attention was focused on Israel. Until the 'fulness of the Gentiles be come in' God's attention is focused on the Church.

The Church, as the 'Bride of Christ' serves no role in Daniel's six-point outline for the Tribulation Period. Take another look at Daniel 9:24 before we go on.

The transgression was finished at the Cross. The Blood of Christ takes away all sin. (1st John 1:7) His death and resurrection reconciled the Church to God.

"And all things are of God, who hath reconciled us to Himself by Jesus Christ, and hath given to us the ministry of reconciliation. To wit, that God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto Himself, not imputing their trespasses unto them; and hath committed unto us the word of reconciliation." (2nd Corinthians 5:18-19)

To the saved believer reconciled to God by the Blood of Christ, 'everlasting righteousness' is a gift of grace through faith, 'sealing' the vision and prophecy of the Old Covenant and introducing the New Covenant with the Church.

The believer knows that Jesus is ALREADY anointed King of King and Lord of Lords and is awaiting His return at the end of the Church Age.

There is no role for the Church Age during the Time of Jacob's Trouble -- it doesn't begin until after the 'fulness of the Gentiles' is come in. And this is the generation in which Jerusalem was recovered from Gentile control, signaling the approach of the fullness of the Gentiles'.

The Tribulation serves two main purposes; the first is the judgment of God on a Christ-rejecting world. The second is the nation redemption of Israel. By definition, Church-Age believers have NOT rejected Christ, and need no further redemption.

The Bible says that, before the unfolding of the Time of Jacob's Trouble, there will come an ingathering of Church Age believers:

"Because thou hast kept the word of My patience, I also will keep thee from the hour of temptation, which shall come upon all the world, to try them that dwell upon the earth." (Revelation 3:10)

Jerusalem is the signal that this is the generation that will see the 'fulness of the Gentiles be come in'. It was of that generation that Paul promised:

"For this we say unto you BY THE WORD OF THE LORD, that we which are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord shall . . . be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord." (1st Thessalonians 4:15,17b)

The time is short. Don't let anybody steal your victory. Jesus is coming soon for His Church, and "THEN shall that Wicked be revealed, whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of His mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of His coming." (2nd Thessalonians 2:8)

Get excited! The time is short, the fulness of the Gentiles is at hand; the Lord IS coming soon!

"Wherefore comfort one another with these words." (2nd Thessalonians 4:18)

Old Persia Goes Nuclear By Gary Stearman

Present-day Iran is really old Persia, mentioned in the Old Testament by Ezra, Ezekiel, Daniel, and others. Most famously, where this ancient country is linked with the infamous Gog of Ezekiel 38. There, it is listed as the northern invader’s chief ally:

"And say, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold I am against thee, O Gog, the chief prince of Meshech and Tubal:

"And I will turn thee back, and put hooks into thy jaws, and I will bring thee forth, and all thine army, horses and horsemen, all of them clothed with all sorts of armour, even a great company with bucklers and shields, all of them handling swords:

"Persia, Ethiopia, and Libya with them; all of them with shield and helmet" (Ezk. 38:3-5).

Its present territory stretches from Armenia, Azerbaijan, Turkmenistan and Afghanistan on the north, to the Gulfs of Persia and Oman on the south. It is strategically positioned between Russia and the Arabian Peninsula. Possessed of great oil wealth, it is about to become a major producer of nuclear weapons.

Last October, Iran’s President, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, underscored his country’s new feeling of power by declaring that Israel should be wiped off the map. At that point, a number of countries reacted by attempting to slow Iran’s nuclear progress.

Likud MK Benjamin Netanyahu reacted by saying that Israel should deal with Iran’s nuclear facilities in the same way that it did with Iraq in 1981. At that time, Israel bombed Saddam Hussein’s Osirak Reactor into rubble. Now with Iran’s Bushehr nuclear reactor scheduled for completion in 2007, Israel’s Ariel Sharon has declared that his country cannot accept Iran’s entry into the world’s list of nuclear powers.

At the same time, as reported by Israel’s December 1st YnetNews, "Sharon warned that a nuclear Iran is not only a threat to Israel but also to Arab states and many western countries, but added that Israel is not spearheading international efforts to halt Iran’s nuclear ambitions."

Sharon said, "Israel needs not lead the campaign, yet we are in close contact with countries that are dealing with the issue."

He said that he "… agrees with the U.S. President George W. Bush that dealing with Iran’s push for nuclear armament is a top priority." His carefully crafted language constitutes a veiled warning to Iran. Israel would not threaten to take out the Iranians’ nuclear capability unless it had a plan to back up their talk.

Beginning in 2001, the Israelis began to take delivery of the new Lockheed Martin F-16i ground attack fighter. With a huge engine, extra fuel, two seats allowing for a weapons officer and an array of missiles, it could travel to Iran and knock out the contested facilities there. Called the Soufa (Storm), it has become a major part of the Israeli Air Force. Their first ord